The MLB draft is coming up, and starts next week on Tuesday night, June 9. Besides having the #1 pick, the Nats also have the #10 pick. With Mike Rizzo in charge (maybe), the man who was a big part of putting together a solid Arizona farm system, there is hope that they will do something good with this pick. Over the course of this week, I’ll profile several players that are potential picks for the Nats at #10.
Matthew Purke
While we have established that the Nats are looking at signable guys, let’s us take a look at the #10 player on Baseball America’s board. Matthew Purke is a left handed pitcher from Texas, and is the second best (or best?) lefty in the draft. At 6’3″, 180 lbs, he’s got a big frame and could get bigger.
Purke has a blazing fastball that gets as high as 95, and sits in the low 90s. He’s also got a very strong secondary pitch – either a slider or a slurve – either way it moves and is good. He’s got a lower delivery, which adds deception to his pitches. Unfortunately, his delivery isn’t exactly pretty (not that it’s awful), so he may need work to tighten up, keep consistent, injury-free, etc.
He’s committed to Texas Christian, so if the Nats want to pick him, they’re gonna have to find out if he’s willing to skip school. It would be imperative to find out how much money he needs to do this, especially after they got debacled (as Emmitt Smith would say) by Aaron Crow. He’s proved himself against some good high school competition, but his youth, plus the fact that his delivery may need work, means he’s not coming up anytime soon. Don’t expect him in the rotation next year, or the after that.
Preview Index:
Kyle Gibson – 6/1
Chad Jenkins – 6/2
Alex White – 6/2
Brett Jackson – 6/3
Rich Poythress – 6/3
Wil Myers – 6/4
Mike Trout – 6/4
Matthew Purke- 6/5
*Credit is due to Jim Callis and Keith Law among others, as I am not a scout and am simply trying to summarize their opinions in a way that gives Nats fans an idea of these players without running afoul of any copyright stuff.