By Nathan Rode
National Supervisor

Each year, after the last name is called in the draft, scouting departments shift their attention to the next class of prospects. They hit the road in mid-June, stocking up on looks at who’s next. Information in the summer is vital as the top players face each other and begin to give scouts a sense of what they have to offer. Follow lists are compiled and by the time winter arrives, the talent evaluators have a general idea of how they’ll approach the spring—who they will see and how many times. Because of the summer, scouts have a history with players as they watch them in the spring and determine where they should be slotted in the draft. However, sometimes that history is limited.

RHP Bryce Montes de Oca (Lawrence HS, KS) would have been on everybody’s list as a must-see last summer, but his season ended in April when he had Tommy John surgery. His junior season had barely started before he was sidelined, facing one of the most grueling rehab processes in baseball.