2013 MLB Draft prospect profile: Trey Ball, New Castle HS (Ind.)

The sixth 2013 MLB Draft prospect I’m profiling is Trey Ball, who could have a fall-back option if pitching doesn’t exactly work out for him.

Previous entries

• Hunter Harvey
• Phil Bickford
• Ian Clarkin
• J.P. Crawford
• Nick Ciuffo

Vitals

6’6, 180 pounds

18 years old

Bats: L

Throws: L

Location

New Castle, Ind.

New Castle High School

Rankings
Baseball America: 9
ESPN: 8
MLB.com: 8
MLB Draft Insider: 13
Minor League Ball: 17
Perfect Game: ?
Scouting Baseball: 14

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Ball is one of the best two-way prospects in this draft. Some teams view him as an outfielder and he’s drawn comparisons to former Dodger Shawn Green. However, his mid-90s fastball from the left side has all-but-ended his prospects of being a hitter – for now.

The Dodgers drafted a similar player in 2009 in Aaron Miller (albeit out of college), so they’re no strangers to two-way players.

Ball is lanky and offers a ton of projectability. His fastball sits in the upper-80s to low-90s and has touched 94 MPH. Being so tall, Ball is able to get good downward plane on his pitches and throws from a more over-the-top arm angle (ala Ian Clarkin) than typical left-handed pitchers.

His curveball leaves a little to be desired at this point. It projects to be an average pitch. He’ll need to add a legitimate third pitch if he wishes to remain in the rotation. I’m betting it’ll be a changeup.

Video

He’s committed to the University of Texas, a school that’s becoming more and more a baseball institution. But Ball is projected to be a Top 10-12 pick, so signability shouldn’t be an issue.

If he makes it to No. 18, I’d have no problem with the Dodgers pulling the trigger. He’s No. 2 on my big board, but I doubt he gets beyond a team like the Blue Jays at No. 10.

Photo credit: Courtesy of Perfect Game