As someone who hates the Horns, I think Melendez is gone before our second round pick. The guy's hitting, both power and contact, is on another planet. I don't know why he isn't getting more 1st/2nd round talk. Is he relatively old (COVID years will lead to older prospects),
He's a bit older (~22.3 years), RH, and can only play 1B/DH I'll be curious to see where he's drafted. Every team has differing opinions on players, only takes 1 who really likes him. I'll forgive you, this time, for your first 6 words. ETA: "The Hispanic Titanic" is one of the best nicknames ever He went to JUCO out of HS, was drafted in the 16th last year, and is a 4-yr SR because he wanted to come back to UT and play 1B exclusively (he played 7 games in the field last year and 61 this year), and he's more than adequate at it now. His numbers at UT are stupid (and UT's home park is very pitcher friendly): 119 G, 530 PA, 154 H, 108 R, 31 2B, 5 3B, 42 HR, 138 RBI, 81 BB, 108 K, .362 .481 .755 1.236
Melendez is going to be another of those guys where scouts out think themselves like they did with Berman or a guy like Goldschmidt. They want to take a guy that looking at the numbers should be a top 5 pick and talk about how stiff he is or how slow his bat is or some other such. I get it that they get it right sometimes like with AJ Reed, but I think you just can't let a guy like Melendez get past the second round.
If he can hit, he can hit. But scouts really do not like the big, slow-ish 1B only prospects. Niko Kavadas was another example last year. Some things, it looks like, never change. But usually someone with a track record like that ends up being a steal if he falls. Hitters are hitters, even if they're limited defensively. I believe Reed's inability to translate to the big leagues was due to to other reasons, which I mentioned earlier today in a different thread. He never looked to be, uh, in the best condition for a professional athlete, I guess.
Players to watch in the supers who are of draft interest… 1st round: OF Jordan Beck (Tennessee) RHP Blade Tidwell (Tennessee) OF Drew Gilbert (Tennessee) OF Jacob Melton (Oregon St.) LHP Cooper Hjerpe (Oregon St.) OF Brock Jones (Stanford) SS Peyton Graham (OU) All the above players except two have either shown up in mocks or been specifically linked to the Astros. Gilbert and Hjerpe are plausible picks based on where they currently rank on the draft boards 2nd thru 5th round: C Dalton Rushing (Louisville) 3B Cayden Wallace (Arkansas) 2B Robert Moore (Arkansas) SS Jalen Battles (Arkansas) LHP Jake Bennett (OU) SS Tanner Schobel (Virginia Tech) C Cade Hunter (Virginia Tech) RHP Ben Joyce (Tennessee) 3B Trey Lipscomb (Tennessee) 1B Ivan Melendez (UT) C Silas Ardoin (UT) SS Trey Faltine (UT) LHP Pete Hansen (UT) C Hayden Dunhurst (Ole Miss) 3B/RHP Jack Brannigan (Notre Dame) OF Justin Boyd (Oregon St.) https://forums.orangewhoopass.com/t/college-baseball-2022/1404/518?
I would be satisfied if the top of Houston’s draft came just from that list: 1: Beck 2: Melendez 2c: Moore 3: Hansen 4: Lipscomb 5: Ardoin Astros could use some high floor infield talent in their lower levels.
I have got a lot of push back on taking Melendez high in the draft. I had Keith Law telling me that Melendez will be "a top 5 round guy".
ECU's starter today is impressive, hadn't seen him before. Would be a nice pick in the mid-late rounds. I'd project him as a LHRP who looks damn good against RHB. https://ecupirates.com/sports/baseball/roster/c-j--mayhue/11639
Hansen sucked today, but Melendez just hit a freaking mammoth HR that cleared the bleachers and the ~40ft tall trees in LF and landed in the parking lot beyond. eta:
Massive cluster****ery by UT gave the game away. Oh well. Box doesn't show it, but Bennett pitched a hell of a game for OU at VaTech
Our good friends son, Nic Juaire, plays for Notre Dame. Despite slashing .350/.385/.517/.901 in 65 plate appearances he is getting minimal playing time.
As an A&M grad who was at the second game of the Super Regional, I really want the Louisville catcher, Dalton Rushing. Really great hitter, and a lefty. He should be MLB ready quickly. Despite Louisville coming short he had a great individual effort, and had some clutch hits that game, including an early 2 run homer. He’d instantly be our top catching prospect. ETA: Originally I said he had all 3 RBIs. I was thrown off by the fact that he was DHing that game, and the backup catcher had one of them. Louisville let Rushing and the backup split between catching and DHing to ease the load on their knees.
Big questions over whether he can stick behind the plate or is a 1B is the major knock on him. Looks great at the plate though.
Gargantuan upset as a good ND squad wins 2 of 3 from a juggernaut Tennessee squad playing at home. That's baseball.
He was their best hitter, and that lineup is stacked, so that says a lot. I wish he was catching at the game I attended so I could have scouted him in person, but I'll take a bat like that in our lineup. My dream is Cooper Hjerpe in the first and Rushing with our first second rounder.
