Dominic Taccolini, RHP, Kempner HS, Sugar Land

[Reuben]

With the news of Appel's under-slot bonus, I've been wondering exactly who the Astros drafted that they need all that extra cash for. So I decided to peruse BA's Top 500 list from the 2013 draft to see if there were any high-ranked HS kids that didn't get drafted at all.

The top-ranked undrafted player was this kid, Taccolini, at #158. Here's what BA's scouting report said:

Kohl Stewart of Houston may be the first prep pitcher selected in the entire draft, but some area scouts say the nastiest stuff in Texas belongs to Taccolini. He throws a 90-93 mph fastball with sink and bore designed to chew up wood bats, and he backs it up with a hard slider that's just as difficult to square up. He also has a changeup, though at this point he's just giving high school hitters a fighting chance when he throws it. Still, Taccolini may not go high enough in the draft to pass up an Arkansas scholarship. He has a soft 6-foot-3, 230-pound frame, a less-than-ideal arm action and a violent delivery that features a head whack. Teams may let him go to college and prove that he can stay healthy and throw enough strikes. If he does join the Razorbacks, Taccolini has the righthanded power to warrant consideration as a two-way player.

Sounds like he'd be a great kid to take a flyer on. My understanding is that, with non-drafted free agents, it works the same as rounds 11-40: any bonus over $100k counts towards your total pool. So I wonder if they could sign Nicely, German, and their other late-round HSers and still have enough to lure Taccolini from his Arkansas commitment.

Anybody here seen this kid pitch, or know anything about him?

[OregonStrosFan]

I'd forgotten there were still a number of highly touted prospects that hadn't been taken in the draft... Good work!  Some other interesting HS kids from the BA top 500 include:

(174) Ryan Sluder, OF/RHP, Amarillo (Texas) HS   
6-foot-3, 190-pounder with plus-plus speed ... He also offers bat speed and plus raw power from the right side of the plate. He profiles easily in center field and even has solid arm strength. Some scouts are intrigued by the idea of deploying Sluder as a pitcher after clocking him in the low 90s on the mound.

(186) Keegan Thompson, RHP, Cullman (Ala.) HS

Thompson has one of the draft's better curveballs and track records. *** His over-the-top delivery produces a high arm slot and helps him break off snapdragon curveballs that earn 60 present grades on the 20-80 scouting scale. He throws strikes with his fastball, which comes in at 87-92 mph. He throws a straight changeup as well as a slider that is more of an early-count offering. *** [H]e may not be signable past that point due to a strong commitment to Auburn.

(200) Tres Barrera, C, Sharyland HS, Mission, Texas

(206) Max Knutson, LHP, Mounds View HS, Arden Hills, Minn.
As a high school lefthander who usually pitches at 87-91 mph, Knutson seemed destined to attend Nebraska rather than head directly to pro ball. But his future may have changed on May 6, when his fastball suddenly ranged from 88-96 mph. It sat at 88-89 mph in his next start, leaving scouts to decide whether his surge was for real.***An athletic 6-foot-2, 205-pounder, he is also a standout in football (wide receiver) and hockey (defenseman)...

(212) Jake Rogers, C, Canyon (Texas) HS

(221) Bret Boswell, SS, Heath HS, Rockwall, Texas
Boswell got seen a lot as a junior in 2012, when Rockwall-Heath High won the Texas 4-A state championship and featured Tigers second-round pick Jake Thompson. That exposure and his bat earned Boswell a 58 Overall Future Potential grade (on the 20-80 scouting scale) from the Major League Scouting Bureau coming into this season, the second-highest grade in the state (behind only Houston high school righthander Kohl Stewart's 60)....

(236) Ronald Healy, C/1B, HS, Elev8 Sports Institute, Delray Beach, Fla.
Healy offers offensive potential, thanks to a strong lefthanded swing. He generates above-average bat speed and has a chance to hit for plus power. *** Healy has committed to Broward (Fla.) JC and is considered signable.

(252) Ryan Olson, RHP, Western Christian HS, Upland, Calif.
Olson sits at 88-91, and his 6-foot-2, 175-pound frame and clean arm action offer projection. He throws from a three-quarters slot and has a herky-jerky delivery, adding deception. His fastball has good run, and scouts think it will become an above-average pitch as he matures. *** Olson is a good student with a commitment to San Diego, but his upside could get him drafted in the fifth- to eighth-round range.

(253) Tyler Cohen, RHP, Agoura (Calif.) HS
Cohen is an intriguing prospect as both a pitcher and a shortstop. He worked at 87-88 mph at the Southern California Invitational in February, then worked at 90-91 and touched 93 in a relief role for Agoura early this spring. One scout described his mid-70s breaking ball as "a curveball from hell" that flashes plus, and he has shown feel for a changeup but seldom uses it against high school hitters.*** There is a wide range of opinion on where Cohen fits in the draft, with some calling him a potential fifth-rounder and others seeing him around the 10th round or later. He could wind up playing both ways at Loyola Marymount, giving scouts more time to determine which role suits him best.

[Reuben]

Yeah, I'm sure it's unlikely to happen, because if they liked a guy that much, why wouldn't they have drafted him somewhere in rounds 11-40? Unless they really weren't sure Appel would sign for that much below slot.

It would be cool, though, if they pulled off something unexpected like that.