By Nathan Rode
National Supervisor

If you had to rank states one through 10 by the top five pitchers in each state, what would the rankings be?
Since much of what I do is relative to the draft, I’m going to approach this question from that perspective. That means I’m going to list five teams instead of 10. In 2014, there were 12 states that had at least five players drafted and I’m not so sure we’ll see that again this year so I’ll keep the list exclusive.

FLORIDA: This probably doesn’t come as a surprise and I’m sure you were expecting Florida, California or Texas at the very least. The order has shifted since, but five Florida pitchers made it into my National Top 50 back in November. RHP Triston McKenzie (Royal Palm Beach HS, FL) is very athletic with a loose delivery and huge upside. LHP Juan Hillman (Olympia HS, FL) pounds the strike zone with a quality arsenal. RHP Austin Smith (Park Vista HS, FL) has a huge frame and power stuff. RHP Cole Sands (North Florida Christian HS, FL) has at least three average pitches in his fastball, breaking ball and changeup. RHP Jacob Woodford (Plant HS, FL) snuck in the back end of the Top 50 in November despite missing most of 2014. He has a fastball with sink in the low 90s and a sharp breaking ball. It’s also worth mentioning RHP Brady Singer (Eustis HS, FL), who is off to a strong start this spring. He has a loose delivery and quick arm that is producing a low-90s fastball. He has since moved in front of Woodford in the rankings.