Brock Moore pitching for the Oregon Ducks in College Baseball, CCed by Liscense 2.0
The 2024 MLB Draft, despite not featuring top-end talents on the tier of the generationally strong “Big 5” the year prior, was one of the most loaded classes from top to bottom in recent memory. With over 60 players receiving FV grades of 40 or higher, an uncharacteristically high amount of premium talents ended up slipping through the cracks of the early rounds, with plenty of forward-thinking organizations taking advantage of the depth to solidify or replenish their farm systems. Between high-octane relievers and prep talents with limitless upside, the late rounds of the 2024 draft could feature some unheralded success stories.
Brock Moore - RHRP, Seattle Mariners: Round 7, Pick 213
To say Brock Moore’s 2024 season as a 23 year old was underwhelming would be an understatement, to put it mildly. In relief at the University of Oregon, he posted a near 6 ERA in 31 IP, just a year removed from a successful season out of Menlo College’s rotation. Being much older than the average college draft prospect, Moore’s stock, specifically when it comes to model oriented organizations, plummeted, causing the pitching development powerhouse Mariners to seize their opportunity in the seventh round.
In typical Mariners fashion, their scouting department showed high faith in a pitcher with abnormal release qualities and an advanced feel for spin. Moore’s fastball, a ride/run offering with 16/13 shape from a significantly lower than average 5’3” release at right around 98 MPH, is just about as good as it gets when looking at clay for a pitching lab to mold into something special. More prominent to the situation, however, is Moore’s sweeper with 18” of horizontal movement, fitting something of a prototypical trait the Mariners search for when drafting. As we’ve seen in years prior with the likes of Troy Taylor in 2022, Brody Hopkins and Teddy McGraw in 2023, and even earlier in the 2024 draft with Ryan Sloan, Seattle often prioritizes wacky, outlier arms with distinct, high sweep breaking pitches, and Moore is no exception.
While the relief profile limits his long term value and the age diminished his draft stock, Seattle’s pitching philosophy, especially when noting the track record for success among similar arms, is about as safe of a fit as it gets for a pitcher like Moore.
Rafe Perich - 3B, Texas Rangers: Round 7, Pick 225
First and foremost, the fact that Rafe Perich fell to round 7 is a borderline travesty, with some of the most esteemed and knowledgeable public scouts in the industry placing an early round-three grade on his profile.
With a relatively sizable frame and solid athleticism when considering such, he seems like a lock to stick at the hot corner with at least fringe-average defense. The main standout when examining Perich, however, is the patient and advanced approach at the plate. It’s very rare to see him expand the zone, and in the unlikely event that he does, the bat to ball skills are impressive, as exemplified by his 5% in-zone whiff rate, one of the lowest in the entirety of college baseball last season.
Perich also boasts extremely loud exit velocities, with his 109 MPH 90th percentile EV ranking in the upper quartile of all NCAA players. When paired with his elite swing decisions and strong feel for contact, the offensive profile is as toolsy as it gets. Though the actual output behind the EVs has been lacking at times due to his inability to consistently lift the ball, the framework for above average is there and with proper adjustments from the Rangers’ offensive philosophers, there’s potential for above average pop long term, and he evidently has all the tools to thrive offensively long term.
Conrad Cason - SS/RHP, Boston Red Sox: Round 8, Pick 237
Conrad Cason features one of the loudest and most extraordinary skill sets in professional baseball. As one of the youngest players in the 2024 MLB Draft, his tools were raw, yet evident on both sides of the ball, sitting low to mid 90s with a three-pitch repertoire on the mound, advanced swing decisions at the plate, especially for his age, as well as flashes of what could become above average power once the frame is filled out.
As a pitcher, which is where most in the industry believe his future resides, Cason has flashed some gaudy stuff, most prominently a fastball with moderate ride and run from an upper 3/4s slot, which at times has touched 98 MPH, giving the 17 year old solid framework for a plus pitch down the line. In terms of breaking balls, Cason throws an upper-70s slurve-esque hybrid pitch that desperately needs some refinement on the shape front in order to become an effective offering long term. Cason’s initial struggles to maintain a consistent shape on the pitch, or develop a truly viable secondary at the high school level likely factored into his fall to the eighth round, though in an organization so focused on the development of non-fastballs, Cason’s repertoire should see progression in the coming years.
The real wild-card in Cason’s profile, however, is the upside he brings as a position player. It’s widely assumed that Boston sees him as a pitcher long term, though they’re giving him the opportunity to prove his ability as a two-way player, at least in the initial portion of his career, and with the athleticism and projectability Cason has, it’s far from unfathomable to think he has a future at shortstop in the future.
At the plate, Cason’s approach is advanced, as he’s refrained from chasing at an extremely high level, while maintaining aggression on zoned pitches. Though Cason’s swing is certainly more twitch than raw power at this stage, the projectability in his frame is exciting to consider. When he’s not on the mound, Cason looks to be a solid defender at short, he's exceptionally smooth and makes very few mistakes, and the arm is more than capable of handling the position.
The profile as a whole is an outlier, and the track record of two-way prospects developing on both sides of the ball is slim to none, so it’s difficult to bank on Cason developing both ways, though the high-upside repertoire on the mound and high-floor profile in the field establishes a polarizing combination of skill sets, something very scarce and coveted in baseball’s current state.
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