Joey Morgan

Morgan was headed to Oregon but was released from his commitment and instead wound up walking on at Washington, where he's thrived. He was starting as a freshman for much of the 2015 season when Austin Rei was hurt; Rei returned and played his way into being the Red Sox' third-round pick that June. Morgan could go as high or higher in 2017. While Morgan merely tried to hold his own as a freshman, he's developed into Washington's top hitter as a junior, a veteran on a young team that's struggling to earn a regional bid. Now a sturdy 6-foot, 205 pounds, he has performed well in front of crosscheckers offensively even though he's the Huskies' top offensive threat and often gets pitched around. His power is mostly to the gaps but he takes what pitchers give him, uses the right-center field gap and has a solid offensive approach. He'll need to gain strength both for defensive durability and to give his offensive game more pop, as scouts aren't confident that he has a high offensive ceiling. He's one of the nation's better catch-and-throw backstops, with consistent above-average 1.95-second pop times to second base, and he's nabbed 10 of 20 opposing basestealers so far this season. Morgan has quick feet, solid-average arm strength and the agility to block and receive well with more polish.