What is the MLB Draft Combine?
The 2024 MLB Draft Combine features the top high school and college baseball prospects who are eligible for the 2024 MLB Draft at Chase Field in Phoenix.
The Combine gives these athletes the opportunity to participate in a series of assessments designed to prepare them for a career in professional baseball. Players have an opportunity to boost their draft stock, while showcasing their talents to MLB teams prior to next month’s MLB Draft.
As an official partner of the MLB Player Development Pipeline and USA Baseball, the MLB Combine utilizes Rapsodo’s PRO 3.0 ball flight monitor to help evaluate over 300 of the top pitchers and hitters from high schools and colleges across the nation.
Our team collected data during the on-field pitching and hitting sessions, providing MLB clubs and personalities to access real-time analytics.
With hitting and pitching being a large area of the MLB Combine, Rapsodo was able to provide in-depth reporting and analytics to aid scouts in evaluating the TRUE skill levels of these players.
A total of 319 athletes attended the Combine this year, with 171 of those prospects ranking in MLB Pipeline’s Top 200 Draft Prospects list.
So, who stood out during the lead up to the MLB Draft?
Let’s take a look at the data captured by Rapsodo's PRO 3.0 from Chase Field.
Standout Performers
Pitchers
Dennis Colleran – RHP, Northeastern University
Colleran lit up the PRO 3.0 during his session at Day 2 of the MLB Combine. The 6’3” junior from Northeastern University threw 15 pitches with 7 of those pitches clocking in at 98 MPH or higher that were some of the hardest throws in the Combine. His pitch arsenal included fastball, 2-seam fastball, slider, and splitter. The 20-year-old's slider has breaks hard with his highest spin rate topping out at 2,500 RPMs.
Brock Moore – RHP, Oregon
Outside of Colleran and Trey Gregory-Alford, Brock Moore displayed some of the hardest pitches at this year’s Combine. He tossed 7 fastballs that were all thrown at 98 MPH and collected an average speed of 97.9 MPH on his FB. The prospect out of Oregon sprinkled in a changeup and slider that had an average spin rate of 2,757 RPMs. While the reliever had 3 of the hardest pitches of the week, his two other pitches had trouble finding the strike zone. At 6’6”, Moore should have plenty of potential for a player who transitioned from first base to pitcher only a few seasons ago.
Cade Townsend – RHP, Santa Margarita Catholic HS (CA)
This 6’2” high schooler had 5 of the highest spin rates on the mound at the MLB Combine with a max spin rate of 3,104 on his curveball and averaged 3,055 RPMs on his slider. The Ole Miss commit also displayed the velocity on his fastball topping out at 96 MPH. With his fastball averaging at 17” of vertical break, it plays well with his curveball that shows –13" of vertical break, giving Townsend an advantage at deceiving hitters.
Jared Jones – First Base, LSU
Standing in the box at 6’4” and 253 lbs, Jared Jones has the physical stature to crush the baseball. The sophomore from LSU showcased this with the hardest hit of the MLB Combine at 113.4 MPH. He also registered four of the longest home runs at 437 FT, 439 FT, 450 FT, and 452 FT. Looking at his numbers from his hitting session, Jones had an average exit velocity of 100 MPH, a launch angle of 24.4 degrees, and spin rate of 2,009 which are all optimal numbers to maximize the hitting power matrix (Exit Velocity + Launch Angle + Spin = Maximum Distance).
PJ Morlando – Outfield, Summerville HS (SC)
One of the top prep prospects, PJ Morlando was intentionally walked 8 consecutive times earlier this year. After seeing his numbers at the MLB Combine, it’s not hard to see why. The 19-year-old South Carolina commit had two of the top 5 longest hits with nukes measuring at 444.6 FT and 445.2 FT. His hardest exit velocity was 109.7 while averaging 102.7 MPH on his 15 at bats.
Joseph Sullivan – OF, South Alabama
At only 5’11” and 198 lbs, Sullivan is typically seen as speedster on the diamond, but he certainly helped his draft stock with his batting performance. The junior out of South Alabama had two of the six hardest hit balls at the Combine with exit velocities of 112.2 MPH and 111.9 MPH travelling 427.1 FT and 422.2 FT. For only having 9 home runs during his season, Sullivan showed he can still pack a punch in the batter’s box.
Hunter Hines – First Base, Mississippi State
Out of his 18 swings at the MLB Combine, Hines had 12 swings that were measured over 100 MPH exit velocity and averaged 101 MPH exit velocity for his entire session (fastest exit velocity was 111.4 MPH). He also had 5 of the longest hit balls with the longest measuring at 441.7 FT. As the fourth-ranked all-time home runs leader at Mississippi State with 54 HRs in 3 seasons at the school, Hines continues to prove that his power at the plate is ready for the next level.
Grant Knipp - Two-Way Player, Campbell University
For the sake of this article, Knipp falls under the hitter section, but very well could find himself as a two-way player in the big leagues. The catcher from Campbell University showcased his talents in the batter’s box and on the mound during the MLB Combine. The Campbell redshirt junior had six hits over 100+ MPH while also throwing three pitches hitting 97 MPH on the radar. It’s still undecided how teams would plan to utilize Knipp, but he certainly had the best performance of any two-way player in the Combine.
HARDEST HIT BALLS (MPH)
| RANK | PLAYER | EXIT VELOCITY (MPH) |
| 1 | Joseph Sullivan | 113.23 |
| 2 | Jared Jones | 113.14 |
| 3 | Nathan Flewelling | 112.4 |
| 4 | Tague Davis | 112.04 |
| 5 | Joseph Sullivan | 111.94 |
| 6 | PJ Morlando | 111.7 |
| 7 | Hunter Hines | 111.55 |
| 8 | Joseph Sullivan | 110.93 |
| 9 | Nicholas Montgomery | 110.48 |
| 10 | Jared Jones | 110.4 |
| 11 | Hunter Hines | 110.36 |
| 12 | Jared Jones | 110.14 |
| 13 | Zack Stewart | 109.95 |
| 14 | Chase Harlan | 109.87 |
| 15 | PJ Morlando | 109.69 |
| 16 | Jared Jones | 109.57 |
| 17 | Zack Stewart | 109.5 |
| 18 | Mason Guerra | 109.2 |
| 19 | Jared Jones | 109.09 |
| 20 | Aiden Harris | 108.99 |
FARTHEST HIT BALLS (FEET)
| RANK | PLAYER | DISTANCE (FT) |
| 1 | Chase Harlan | 453.4 |
| 2 | Jared Jones | 452.3 |
| 3 | Jared Jones | 450.2 |
| 4 | PJ Morlando | 445.2 |
| 5 | PJ Morlando | 444.6 |
| 6 | Hunter Hines | 441.7 |
| 7 | Jared Jones | 439.5 |
| 8 | PJ Morlando | 439.2 |
| 9 | Jared Jones | 437.9 |
| 10 | Chase Harlan | 436.8 |
| 11 | Carter Mathison | 436.3 |
| 12 | Hunter Hines | 434.9 |
| 13 | Cameron Bufford | 430.4 |
| 14 | Hunter Hines | 429.5 |
| 15 | PJ Morlando | 428.6 |
| 16 | Joseph Sullivan | 427.1 |
| 17 | Tague Davis | 426.7 |
| 18 | Joseph Sullivan | 422.2 |
| 19 | Eddie Rynders | 419.6 |
| T20 | Hunter Hines | 415.9 |
| T20 | Kodey Shojinaga | 415.9 |
FASTEST PITCHES (MPH)
| RANK | PLAYER | SPEED (MPH) |
| 1 | Dennis Colleran | 100.38 |
| 2 | Dennis Colleran | 99.76 |
| 3 | Trey Gregory-Alford | 99.7 |
| 4 | Dennis Colleran | 99.54 |
| 5 | Dennis Colleran | 99.43 |
| 6 | Brock Moore | 98.66 |
| 7 | Dennis Colleran | 98.65 |
| 8 | Brock Moore | 98.52 |
| 9 | Trey Gregory-Alford | 98.5 |
| 10 | Dennis Colleran | 98.42 |
| 11 | Dennis Colleran | 98.39 |
| 12 | Brandon Clarke | 98.34 |
| 13 | Brock Moore | 98.33 |
| 14 | Brock Moore | 98.22 |
| 15 | Brock Moore | 98.11 |
| 16 | Brock Moore | 98.06 |
| 17 | Grant Knipp | 97.93 |
| 18 | Pierce George | 97.84 |
| 19 | Grant Knipp | 97.68 |
| 20 | Grant Knipp | 97.63 |
HIGHEST SPIN RATES (RPMs)
| RANK | PLAYER | SPIN RATE (RPMs) | PITCH TYPE |
| 1 | Cade Townsend | 3103.9 | Curveball |
| 2 | Cade Townsend | 3067.55 | Slider |
| 3 | Cade Townsend | 3061.19 | Slider |
| 4 | Conner Ware | 3057.24 | Curveball |
| 5 | Ryan Verdugo | 3050.86 | Slider |
| 6 | Cade Townsend | 3048.67 | Slider |
| 7 | Cade Townsend | 3040.89 | Slider |
| 8 | Cade Obermueller | 3,032 | Slider |
| 9 | Ryan Verdugo | 3,022.53 | Slider |
| 10 | Cade Obermueller | 3,014 | Slider |
| 11 | Ryan Verdugo | 3009.04 | Slider |
| 12 | Ryan Verdugo | 2975.58 | Slider |
| 13 | Conner Ware | 2967.25 | Curveball |
| 14 | Conner Ware | 2949.01 | Curveball |
| 15 | Mason Marriott | 2926.16 | Curveball |
| 16 | Conner Ware | 2919.81 | Curveball |
| 15 | Conner Ware | 2908.79 | Curveball |
| 17 | Mason Marriott | 2871.25 | Curveball |
| 18 | Conner Ware | 2864.27 | Curveball |
| 19 | Herick Hernandez | 2862.41 | Curveball |
| 20 | Noah Franco | 2861.67 | Slider |
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