By Sean Duncan
Executive Director

Missouri prospects are well-represented in the updated and expanded Class of 2014 overall prospect rankings that were released on Tuesday. In fact, six of the top 25 prospects in the Prep Baseball Report’s 10-state coverage area hail from Missouri, including two in the top 10.

RHP Alex Lange (Lee’s Summit West HS) jumps up to the top-ranked Missouri prospect again, and No. 5 overall, after the 6-foot-3, 210-pound LSU recruit’s performances at the Under Armour All-America Game, Area Code Games and Metropolitan Baseball Classic over the last six weeks. Lange’s sustained velocity, coupled with a potentially wipeout slider, make him one of the top right-handed pitching prospects in the country.

Lange’s high school teammate, OF Monte Harrison (Lee’s Summit West HS), is inarguably one of the nation’s top athletes. The Nebraska recruit’s outfield arm strength and natural athleticism alone make him a high-interest draft prospect. But Harrison jumped back into the top 10 at No. 8 after he showed significant improvements at the plate, simplifying his swing by widening out in the box and letting his hands do more of the work.

Not far behind Harrison is SS/RHP Shane Benes (Westminster HS), a Missouri recruit who is one of the Midwest’s top pure hitters. Left-handed hitting OF Elijah Dilday (Francis Howell HS) made a significant leap in the rankings, moving into the top 20 after his impressive showing at the Metropolitan Baseball Classic two weeks ago.

Power-hitting C Brett Bond (Westminster HS), another Missouri, and left-handed hitting C/OF Colby Fitch (Hickman HS), a Louisville recruit, are also among the top 25 overall prospects.

Missouri also produced several of the biggest risers in the overall Top 300 rankings. SS Trey Vickers (Rockhurst HS), a Wichita State recruit, has come on strong recently, resulting in a 133-spot leap in the overall rankings. RHP Reece Eddins (Blue Springs South HS), a 6-foot-5 Nebraska recruit, also made a significant jump, along with RHP Joe Hope (Parkway North HS), OF Cole DuPont (Lafayette HS) and LHP Mitchell Plassmeyer (DeSmet HS). Both DuPont and Plassmeyer are Kansas State recruits.

Om all, 13 of the top 15 prospects in Missouri are committed. The top two uncommitted prospects are RHP Keaton Graf (Sante Fe HS) and Hope.

 A look at the top 10 overall rankings:

Rank	Name	State	School	Class	Pos	Commitment
1	Cameron Varga	OH	Cincinnati Hills Christian Academy	2014	RHP	North Carolina
2	Jeren Kendall	WI	Holmen	2014	OF	Vanderbilt
3	Jake Godfrey	IL	Providence Catholic	2014	RHP	Notre Dame
4	Zack Shannon	OH	Anderson	2014	1B	Ohio State
5	Alex Lange	MO	Lee's Summit West	2014	RHP	LSU
6	Brad Bass	IL	Lincoln-Way Central	2014	RHP	Notre Dame
7	Micah Miniard	KY	Boyle County	2014	RHP	Western Kentucky
8	Monte Harrison	MO	Lee's Summit West	2014	OF	Nebraska
9	Jonah Patten	IN	Norwell	2014	RHP	Arkansas
10	Brandon Murray	IN	Hobart	2014	RHP	South Carolina

VIEW THE TOP 300 OVERALL 2014 RANKINGS