Nick Schnell

Schnell has done more than perhaps any prep hitter to improve his draft stock since last summer, going from a player with a real shot to enroll at Louisville to now being one of the most interesting bats in the class. All he has done since the fall is hit, hit and then hit some more. After a few solid but unspectacular summer events, Schnell began to hit for extra bases with regularity to all fields, using extremely loose hands and a fantastic feel to barrel the baseball. He has continued to hit this spring and was one of the best players at Prep Baseball Report's Midwest Select event where many crosscheckers and higher-level decision-makers were in attendance. Schnell might not be a true plus runner, but he comes close once he's underway and also has above-average arm strength from the outfield. He has the chance to play center field at least initially, but scouts think he's likely to move to a corner position in the future.