Kentucky and Mississipi Draft Notes: Mayers, Grundy, and Bailey

Here are notes on three of the pitchers that were drafted in the 2013 MLB draft from the Universities of Mississippi and Kentucky based on the SEC network broadcast gun in a SEC tournament matchup.

Mike Mayers is a right-handed pitcher drafted by the Cardinals in the 3rd round (93th overall) out of Ole Miss. He has two successful years as a starter, with basically identical seasons in 2012-2013.

Fastball with armside tail that he can sink: 87-93 MPH, 89.5 MPH.

As far as breaking balls and off-speed pitches, he threw pitches from anywhere from 76 to 82 MPH. It appeared to me that he had 3 different pitches besides his fastball, with a change that seemed to be harder than the other pitches (about 80-82 MPH), a slider that seemed to be a tick slower (78-80 MPH), and a curveball that was a little slower. The movement did appear to be different, but one could make the argument that the slider just got somewhat slurvy at times. Without looking at grips or interviewing the pitcher, I don't know how to be sure.

Jerad Grundy is a short senior lefty picked in the 10th round by the Oakland Athletics (311st overall). He was taken by the Twins in the 27th round in 2012, and the Rangers in the 46th round out of high school in 2009. He originally went to the University of Miami, but only threw 17.2 innings and spent the next year at Heartland Community College before two years at Kentucky. He wasn't a strikeout pitcher, but lowered his walk rate in his senior year (though he did see a home run rate increase).

Grundy was a little more difficult to classify. He maxed out at 88 MPH, and probably threw more glove side than arm side. The only real off-speed pitch he showed was a changeup he threw 75-79 MPH (about 76.5 MPH average). He would throw the pitch to both lefties and righties, it wasn't a pitch with usage that was dictated by platoon (the radar gun registered a few 65-67 MPH readings, but I don't really trust those).

Outside of that, he threw pitches from 84 MPH to 88 MPH. It would seem that he had a 2-seam or sinker, along with the harder 4-seam fastball, as he would sit 84-85 MPH at times and 87-88 MPH times.

Tanner Bailey is a 6-7 right-handed reliever that was picked by the Tigers out of Ole Miss in the 32nd round (966th overall). He is a senior that spent his first two years at Texarkana College. Strikeout and walk ratios actually went down from his junior year to his senior year at Mississippi. He has already signed and pitched in a game in the New York Penn League.

Used as a closer by Ole Miss, but very unlikely to have that role in professional baseball as his fastball was 88-91 MPH (89.36 MPH average). He was fastball heavy in his one outing, but he appeared to have 2 different breaking pitches, a slider at 83-84 MPH and a curveball at 81 MPH.