John Manuel released his third mock draft Friday and for the second time in three mock drafts he sees the Cubs taking a college arm in the first round. Manuel thinks the Cubs will take right-hander Jon Harris from Missouri State.
Manuel had the Cubs taking Vanderbilt right-hander Carson Fulmer in his first mock draft. In mock draft 2.0, Manuel pointed to the Cubs selecting OF Andrew Benintendi. In his latest mock draft, Manuel has the White Sox taking Fulmer at No. 8 and Benintendi slipping to the Reds with the 11th pick in the draft.
The Blue Jays selected Harris in the 33rd round of the 2012 draft out of High School. Harris decided to go to college instead and based on all of the reports he made the right decision.
Jon Harris is 21 years old (Oct. 16, 1993) and is 6-foot-4, 190 pounds. Harris improved his stock this spring after a late start due to an ankle injury that caused him to miss at least two outings. Harris had a good showing in the Cape Cod League last summer and followed it up with a good junior year at Missouri State.
In 13 games, Harris was 7-1 with a 1.91 ERA and a 1.06 WHIP. Harris allowed 63 hits with 32 walks and 105 strikeouts in 89 1/3 innings.
Harris’ fastball sits comfortably in the 90-94 mph range with run and sink and he’s touched 95 mph on the gun with his heater. Keith Law pointed out that Harris offers a rare projection for a college arm due to his frame. There is a possibility he could add a couple of ticks on his fastball if he is able to fill out his frame a little more.
Harris features a 12-6 curveball, slider and changeup. All three have flashed plus and he has power and depth on his breaking stuff with a promising fastball/slider combination. Most feel his changeup is a work in progress.
This spring, Harris’ command has improved and he has shown more confidence throwing inside with his fastball. Harris has averaged 3.2 walks per nine innings while striking out 10.8 batters per nine.
According to Keith Law, Harris has below to fringe-average command right now. Harris needs to smooth out his mechanics, work on consistent release points and arm speed. Harris’ inconsistent arm speed has led to him tipping pitches, especially with his curveball where the slower arm action has been noticed more often.
Harris has pitched consistently deep into games, working into the eighth inning in eight of nine starts, while averaging 110 pitches per outing.
Scouting Grades – ESPN
• Fastball: 55 (Present) – 60 (Future)
• Control: 40 (Present) – 50 (Future)
• Curveball: 55 (Present) – 60 (Future)
• Slider: 50 (Present) – 55 (Future)
• Changeup: 40 (Present) – 50 (Future)
Scouting Grades – MLB
Fastball: 65 | Curveball: 55 | Slider: 55 | Changeup: 55 | Control: 50 | Overall: 55
Keith Law thinks Jon Harris has the ceiling of a No. 3 starter and the floor of “an intriguing bullpen arm who can miss bats with two borderline plus pitches.”
Cubs 2015 Draft Reports
- Baseball America Mock Draft 2015: Version 1.0
- Baseball America Has Cubs Selecting RHP Carson Fulmer in First Mock Draft
- FanGraphs’ Mock Draft Has Cubs Selecting OF Trenton Clark in First Round
- Baseball America Mock Draft: Version 2.0
- Baseball America’s Second Mock Draft Points to Cubs Selecting OF Andrew Benintendi in First Round
- Baseball America Mock Draft: Version 3.0
Follow Chicago Cubs Online on Twitter: @TheCCO and @TheCCO_Minors