While there always seems to be plenty of Future Stars Series alums and current players scattered throughout Baseball America’s draft rankings, their most recent installment featured several big movers that have plenty of experience at New Balance Baseball events.
Most notably, 2019 International Week standout Brandon Clarke (pictured), who wasn’t listed in their Top 300 just several weeks ago, has made a meteoric jump to 47th. The same can be said for Blake Burke, a star of last year’s National Combine, who goes from unranked to 171st.
Sean Hard, who appeared at a Future Stars Series event as recently as earlier this month with an appearance at the Philadelphia Regional Combine, is also debuting in the BA rankings this time around, while another arm from two trips to Fenway ago, Ricky Tiedemann jumps all the way into the Top 100.
Below, find a complete list of FSS alums and current players who are currently listed among the Baseball America Top 300.
40) Braden Montgomery
Montgomery has become one of the fastest-rising players in the 2021 MLB Draft, thanks in large part to what he’s been able to show teams at Future Stars Series events. He was a true two-way standout at both International Week and the National Combine, and provides a tantalizing total package for big league organizations who are hoping to get him out of his commitment to Stanford.
47) Brandon Clarke
Now that Clarke has proven he’s healthy after coming off an arm injury, the sky seems to be the limit for the former Dirtbags pitcher, who earned an invite to International Week in 2019 after an impressive showing for that program at the National Tournaments in Cypress, Texas. Some projections even have Clarke going as early as the first round this year.
54) Edwin Arroyo
Arroyo is considered by many to be the top Puerto Rican-born player in the upcoming draft class, and was one of the big draws for scouts to see on the World Team in the most recent International Week event.
55) Anthony Solometo
Solometo was arguably the breakout star of 2020 International Week, delivering an electrifying performance for the World Team in which he struck out nine batters in three innings of work at Fenway Park, setting a new single-game event record. He’d previously pitched for Zoom Baseball Academy at the 2019 National Tournament in Cypress, Texas, where his unique delivery caught the attention of many scouts who were seeing him for the first time.
70) Ian Moller
Moller is still projected by some to be selected in the first round, which would make him the third catcher with FSS ties to earn those honors; Noah “Bo” Naylor and Drew Romo being the others. The Iowa native has played in back-to-back International Week events at Fenway Park as a member of the National Team, and also was behind the dish at the inaugural National Combine in Lake Charles, LA in 2020.
73) Braylon Bishop
As one of the youngest players at International Week in 2019, Bishop turned in one of the best hitting performances at the event, and continued to build momentum during the summer with the Sticks, for whom he’s played in the National Tournaments in each of the past two years.
83) Eric Silva
A UCLA commit, Silva started one of the games at the National Combine and didn’t disappoint, only helping a draft stock that’s been steadily climbing. While he also saw some time at the plate, most of the attention centered around what he was doing on the mound, where he struck out three batters over the course of his three-inning outing, one in which he didn’t allow a run.
88) Ricky Tiedemann
Tiedemann was a fast riser last year, but ultimately went unselected in the shorter draft and instead went to Long Beach Junior College so he could remain eligible this year. That’s proven to be a wise choice; he struck out four of the eight batters he faced in relief at International Week as a member of the National Team in 2019 and remains one of the better pitching prospects available.
103) Nic Kent
Kent was one of the members of the National Team in the original International Week event held in Sugar Land, Texas back in 2017, and has since gotten off to a stellar start in his collegiate career at the University of Virginia. Kent, who starred for US Elite in the first ever National Tournaments prior to International Week, was the first Virginia freshman to earn First Team All-ACC honors in a decade in 2019 and was hitting .328 for the Cavaliers in last year’s shortened NCAA season.
107) Justin Colon
A strong showing at the National Combine made Colon a no-brainer selection for the World Team at the most recent International Week event, where the slick-fielding shortstop continued to excel. He reached base five times, including an RBI single during the opener at Fenway Park.
138) Roc Riggio
Injury hampered Riggio at the National Combine, but he made up for that and then some at International Week, where the affable Oklahoma State commit was really able to showcase his complete skill set. Not only did he reach base in each of the three games played, he was one of only a handful of batters to touch Solometo; Riggio memorably smacked an RBI double off of him at Fenway Park.
145) Caedmon Parker
Parker is an obvious candidate as a fast riser this year; he’s already considered to potentially have the best command of any prep pitcher in this year’s draft class, and scouts like his projectable frame. He didn’t allow a hit over his two inning outing at Fenway Park at International Week, and retired three of the four batters he faced in his brief showing at the National Combine.
170) Brandon Neely
Neely had plenty of eyes on him during his outing at the 2019 National Tournament as a member of the Scorpions, and showed then why he’s being considered as a potential top-five round draft pick now. The Florida commit still managed to stand out on a team that had two first-rounders in Romo and Zac Veen, as well as Dylan Crews, who easily would have been selected last year had he not opted to instead honor his commitment to LSU.
171) Blake Burke
Burke turned heads with a massive power display at the most recent National Combine, and earned an invitation to International Week before being forced to pull out of the event prior to arriving in Boston.
182) Ryan Spikes
A Tennessee commit, Spikes’ homer early in the National Combine quickly went viral, and made the two-way standout a lock for an invitation to International Week. As a member of the National Team, he both hit and pitched at that event as well; he got two hits in the opener at Fenway Park, and had a 1-2-3 inning on the mound in Manchester, New Hampshire.
191) Pete Hansen
Hansen was a big attraction at the 2018 National Tournament as a member of NorCal, where both of his outings drew significant attention. The lefty has since gone to pitch at the University of Texas, where he struck out 18 batters in 17 innings, allowed just two walks and zero earned runs in his shortened freshman season.
207) Sean Hard
Hard parlayed an appearance as one of the hardest throwers over a dominant outing at the National Combine into a similarly successful showing at International Week, and most recently threw a bullpen session at the Philadelphia Regional Combine earlier in March. It’s expected he’ll be at the Pre-Draft Combine later this summer.
209) Drew Christo
Christo was set to play at International Week before a prior football commitment derailed that opportunity. Both he and Brady Christensen were among the big draws on a skilled Nebraska Prospects team at the most recent National Tournament in Lake Charles. He did manage to get to the National Combine, where he recorded six strikeouts, including one on Moller, who is among the top-ranked FSS alum on this list.
210) Eddie Saldivar
Saldivar is a well-rounded player who first got onto the FSS radar as a member of NorCal. He was subsequently invited to the National Combine and then International Week, performing well in both.
262) Connor Simon
Simon has been playing in FSS events for years as a member of Sheets Baseball, and has emerged as one of the more high-profile players in Louisiana.
265) Hunter Elliott
Elliott pitched well at the National Tournaments this past year in Lake Charles, Louisiana as a member of the Louisiana Knights, and parlayed that into a big showing for the National Team at the most recent International Week, striking out four batters at Fenway Park.
297) Franco Aleman
Aleman was one of the big arms at the first-ever International Week event held in Sugar Land, Texas back in 2017, and has done little to hurt his stock in pitching collegiately first at Florida International in 2019, and then for Florida this year, where he’s racked up over a strikeout per inning for the Gators.
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