One of the preeminent MLB Draft experts is now projecting that the Boston Red Sox will select Kumar Rocker with their first-round pick, and it doesn't appear to simply be a shot in the dark.
In his latest MLB Mock Draft, Keith Law of The Athletic has Chaim Bloom and company using the No. 24 overall pick on the former Vanderbilt righty:
"This one has some legs, as the Red Sox were heavy on Rocker once he started pitching for Tri-City in June, with people at every start, and they were serious about him last year until Marcelo Mayer fell into their laps at pick No. 4."
Of course, Rocker was selected with the 10th pick in the 2022 MLB Draft by the New York Mets, who never ultimately offered him a contact. Jon Heyman of The New York Post now reports that the Mets "questioned his shoulder durability." Heyman adds that Rocker -- currently pitching for the Tri-City ValleyCats of the Frontier League -- "recently had a shoulder scope and should be first rounder again."
Clearly, selecting Rocker won't be for the risk averse, but the payoff could be tremendous, with Law saying that "he has No. 2 starter upside." Rocker went 14-4 with a 2.73 ERA and 179 strikeouts over 122 innings in 2021, his final collegiate season.
Projections for Rocker will be selected seem to be all over the place. Law had previously pegged the Philadelphia Phillies at No. 17 as a team that could be a candidate to select Rocker. Carlos Collazo of Baseball America has the Los Angeles Angels selecting Rocker with the 13th pick in his latest mock.
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