With a draft that lasts for 40 rounds and numerous minor league franchises, it’s common for the MLB to have hundreds of high school baseball players who decide to bypass college and go straight into their professional careers.
Following this year’s draft, only 127 of Baseball America’s top 500 high school prospects chose to attend school–where they will be forced to spend at least three years before their next shot at the pros.
Of that group of 127, UNC will have six of them arriving in Chapel Hill next season. Only Mississippi, with seven, had more commitments.
It’s unclear how much the young players–five of whom are right-handed pitchers–will fit in with the current roster.
JB Bukauskas is expected to lead a UNC pitching staff heavy on right-handers in 2017. (Joe Bray/ UNC Athletics)
As it stands, the Tar Heels’ current strength lies in its pitching–especially its right-handers–with power hitting being the team’s biggest need.
The highest-ranked player in the UNC haul is Tyler Baum, a slender 6-foot-2-inch righty out of West Orange High School in Ocoee, Florida.
Baum is joined by fellow pitchers Austin Bergner (No. 165), Luca Dalatri (No. 174), Robbie Peto (No. 179) and Bo Weiss (No. 189).
Weiss is the son of former Tar Heel great and major league shortstop Walt Weiss, the current manager of the Colorado Rockies.
The five hurlers will be accompanied to campus by No. 208 on the list–catcher Brandon Martorano.
When they arrive at Boshamer Stadium, they’ll represent the final recruiting class under former assistant coach and recruiting coordinator Scott Jackson.
Jackson accepted the head coaching job at Liberty earlier this week.
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