This year’s Ole Miss signing class is currently ranked No. 5 nationally behind LSU, Tennessee, Texas and Auburn. Vanderbilt (7) and Texas A&M (9) are also in the top 10. Ole Miss and Auburn have 18 commits, the smallest classes in the top nine classes. The Rebels have four top-100 prospects, which those can be great or debilitating depending on whether they sign in the Draft this summer. The ranking once they show up or don’t show up is the one that matters but nevertheless it’s a strong class.
I like its depth and also the face that there’s only one or two guaranteed signs so far in the class. However, at this point last year, the same was the case, and that class lost three players. Prospects blow up and cool off even though the summer circuit is over for them. Plus with the portal, this is only half the story each season.
Owen Paino is a 6-foot-3, 205-pound shortstop out of Poughkeepsie, New York. He plays for the Canes organization and Ole Miss had an in with him because of freshman catcher Campbell Smithwick. He’s in the running or maybe the leader as the current top prep shortstop in the country. Perfect Game has him No. 14 nationally. He has an extremely high profile, and he’s the biggest threat to sign despite having a fairly rough summer. He didn’t perform well in the big events, so we’ll see if that affects his standing as time goes on, but for now he’s the biggest threat to sign. The top high school shortstop rarely makes it to campus. His speed is average, but he’s twitchy and can stick at short. He also has power from the left side.
Slade Caldwell (16 nationally but won’t be drafted that high) is probably my favorite prospect in the class. He has a great summer and right now is probably seen as a second or third rounder depending on his signability. He’s only 5-foot-9, but the Jonesboro, Arkansas, outfielder can really defend in centerfield, and he does everything above average even though he doesn’t have one elite tool. He runs a 6.5 60-yard dash and has a .425 career average with the wood bat in Perfect Game events. He’s strong despite the height and is high energy. If he shows up I think he’s an All-American at the college level.
Ole Miss has several players who could go in that third to fifth round range, but it’s just too early to know because that’s so dependent on signability. The early words are good, and if I had to predict it today, I’d say they show, but they are the ones who can get helium or deflate in the next eight or so months. That list for me is:
Oviedo, Fla. two-way right-hander Kaiden Lopez (6-0, 190) - No. 63 nationally
Aliso Viejo, Calif. RHP Cade Townsend (6-2, 180) - No. 106
Sylvester, Ga. RHP Owen Hancock (6-4, 190) - No. 168 nationally
Lopez is a two-way guy, but I like him more on the mound. He had a really good summer. Up to 95 on the mound. 6.5 runner. Chance to be true four-pitch guy. Love his curveball and used a cutter effectively. Changeup is new but shows promise.
Hancock is just really good. He’s a Scott Boras client. He needs to develop, but the bones are there with a mid 90s fastball and slider in low 80s. He has some mechanical stuff that needs to be refined to max ability. A look up and be really surprised in year two guy.
Townsend is the one of the three that would scare me as far as getting helium and becoming for-sure sign. Fastball has been up to 94, but he has a hammer of a curveball that gets swing and miss, and his slider has been north of 3,000 RPM. The offspeed stuff with a projectable fastball can get dicey from a showing up standpoint. We’ll see. At least he’s right-handed.
Tate Sirman, a 6-foot-2, 180-pound third baseman out of Valdosta, Ga., is really under the radar, even though he’s ranked 219 nationally. He doesn’t have any draft buzz around him, but I really like him. He can hit to all fields and he’s incredibly athletic. He can play in the middle defensively but has just been at third base. Arm strength is iffy so second base could be his eventual landing spot, and he has some swing mechanics issues that get him in trouble, but the athleticism plays anywhere, and he still hits despite the obvious issues that can be worked out at the plate with inside velocity. He has to be really aware to get extended and not tied up.
I don’t know what to think about Jackson Miller’s draft situation. The 5-foot-11 outfielder was one of the top players in next year’s class but just reclassified to this class because he is old for his draft year and thought it was better to slot into this class. You can read a lot more details here.
He’s the three-hole hitter for the Canes and can really hit. 6.6 runner. He’s good, but he hasn’t been on follow lists and hasn’t been scouted the way players are in their draft years. My guess is he could easily get a couple to few hundred thousand in the middle of the top 10 rounds, but beyond that it’s just too early to know, and I don’t have any idea about signability. The move is geared toward his age whenever he goes pro and isn’t necessarily indicative of going pro now. Even after three years of college, he’s trying to be younger than if he’d waited another year.
Ethan Surowiec is the No. 73 player nationally and is the shortstop at Gulfport. He played the corner during travel ball, and I don’t anticipate him sticking in the middle at the next level. I don’t hear much on him professionally but good player. He’s performed well and has a big arm. Scouts aren’t sure what his ceiling is which has limited his draft talk. He projects really well to a third baseman in college.
Not from a draft standpoint, but just as two players I really like in the class, be aware of shortstop Hayden Federico (No. 142) and right-hander Jake Reigert (No. 263). Federico’s dad is Michael, who is the head coach at ULM. He almost made Team US, and he has excellent makeup. Very good infield skills and can also catch. I just really like him as a player. Reigert is a 6-foot-6, 230-pounder from Minnesota. He is in the mid 90s and the ceiling is higher than that. He’s crossfire with his delivery, and there’s stuff to clean up even though he does get a lot of run on the fastball. He shows excellent feel on a changeup which you don’t see much at the prep level. Now a swing and miss but definitely a soft contact pitch.
I like its depth and also the face that there’s only one or two guaranteed signs so far in the class. However, at this point last year, the same was the case, and that class lost three players. Prospects blow up and cool off even though the summer circuit is over for them. Plus with the portal, this is only half the story each season.
Owen Paino is a 6-foot-3, 205-pound shortstop out of Poughkeepsie, New York. He plays for the Canes organization and Ole Miss had an in with him because of freshman catcher Campbell Smithwick. He’s in the running or maybe the leader as the current top prep shortstop in the country. Perfect Game has him No. 14 nationally. He has an extremely high profile, and he’s the biggest threat to sign despite having a fairly rough summer. He didn’t perform well in the big events, so we’ll see if that affects his standing as time goes on, but for now he’s the biggest threat to sign. The top high school shortstop rarely makes it to campus. His speed is average, but he’s twitchy and can stick at short. He also has power from the left side.
Slade Caldwell (16 nationally but won’t be drafted that high) is probably my favorite prospect in the class. He has a great summer and right now is probably seen as a second or third rounder depending on his signability. He’s only 5-foot-9, but the Jonesboro, Arkansas, outfielder can really defend in centerfield, and he does everything above average even though he doesn’t have one elite tool. He runs a 6.5 60-yard dash and has a .425 career average with the wood bat in Perfect Game events. He’s strong despite the height and is high energy. If he shows up I think he’s an All-American at the college level.
Ole Miss has several players who could go in that third to fifth round range, but it’s just too early to know because that’s so dependent on signability. The early words are good, and if I had to predict it today, I’d say they show, but they are the ones who can get helium or deflate in the next eight or so months. That list for me is:
Oviedo, Fla. two-way right-hander Kaiden Lopez (6-0, 190) - No. 63 nationally
Aliso Viejo, Calif. RHP Cade Townsend (6-2, 180) - No. 106
Sylvester, Ga. RHP Owen Hancock (6-4, 190) - No. 168 nationally
Lopez is a two-way guy, but I like him more on the mound. He had a really good summer. Up to 95 on the mound. 6.5 runner. Chance to be true four-pitch guy. Love his curveball and used a cutter effectively. Changeup is new but shows promise.
Hancock is just really good. He’s a Scott Boras client. He needs to develop, but the bones are there with a mid 90s fastball and slider in low 80s. He has some mechanical stuff that needs to be refined to max ability. A look up and be really surprised in year two guy.
Townsend is the one of the three that would scare me as far as getting helium and becoming for-sure sign. Fastball has been up to 94, but he has a hammer of a curveball that gets swing and miss, and his slider has been north of 3,000 RPM. The offspeed stuff with a projectable fastball can get dicey from a showing up standpoint. We’ll see. At least he’s right-handed.
Tate Sirman, a 6-foot-2, 180-pound third baseman out of Valdosta, Ga., is really under the radar, even though he’s ranked 219 nationally. He doesn’t have any draft buzz around him, but I really like him. He can hit to all fields and he’s incredibly athletic. He can play in the middle defensively but has just been at third base. Arm strength is iffy so second base could be his eventual landing spot, and he has some swing mechanics issues that get him in trouble, but the athleticism plays anywhere, and he still hits despite the obvious issues that can be worked out at the plate with inside velocity. He has to be really aware to get extended and not tied up.
I don’t know what to think about Jackson Miller’s draft situation. The 5-foot-11 outfielder was one of the top players in next year’s class but just reclassified to this class because he is old for his draft year and thought it was better to slot into this class. You can read a lot more details here.
Outfielder Jackson Miller Reclassifies For 2024 MLB Draft
A Mississippi commit, Jackson Miller is an athletic center fielder who hit .457/.556/.814 this spring at The Benjamin School.
www.baseballamerica.com
He’s the three-hole hitter for the Canes and can really hit. 6.6 runner. He’s good, but he hasn’t been on follow lists and hasn’t been scouted the way players are in their draft years. My guess is he could easily get a couple to few hundred thousand in the middle of the top 10 rounds, but beyond that it’s just too early to know, and I don’t have any idea about signability. The move is geared toward his age whenever he goes pro and isn’t necessarily indicative of going pro now. Even after three years of college, he’s trying to be younger than if he’d waited another year.
Ethan Surowiec is the No. 73 player nationally and is the shortstop at Gulfport. He played the corner during travel ball, and I don’t anticipate him sticking in the middle at the next level. I don’t hear much on him professionally but good player. He’s performed well and has a big arm. Scouts aren’t sure what his ceiling is which has limited his draft talk. He projects really well to a third baseman in college.
Not from a draft standpoint, but just as two players I really like in the class, be aware of shortstop Hayden Federico (No. 142) and right-hander Jake Reigert (No. 263). Federico’s dad is Michael, who is the head coach at ULM. He almost made Team US, and he has excellent makeup. Very good infield skills and can also catch. I just really like him as a player. Reigert is a 6-foot-6, 230-pounder from Minnesota. He is in the mid 90s and the ceiling is higher than that. He’s crossfire with his delivery, and there’s stuff to clean up even though he does get a lot of run on the fastball. He shows excellent feel on a changeup which you don’t see much at the prep level. Now a swing and miss but definitely a soft contact pitch.
