LSU Baseball: Could Jaden Hill be a top 5 pick in MLB Draft?
By Zach Ragan
The LSU baseball season is scheduled to get underway on Saturday afternoon with a matchup against Air Force.
With the college baseball season starting, it means that the 2021 MLB Draft won’t be far behind.
The MLB Draft typically starts in June, but it will start on July 11 this year.
Tigers pitcher Jaden Hill is expected to be a hot commodity once the draft begins.
Could LSU baseball standout Jaden Hill be a top-five pick?
Hill could’ve played college football instead of baseball.
The Arkansas native was a three-star recruit in the 2018 recruiting class. He was ranked as the No. 58 pro-style quarterback in the country. As a result, Hill had offers from Missouri and UCF (along with several other offers).
Hill, however, chose to play baseball.
That was a wise choice because he’s set to be one of the most highly sought-after players in the 2021 MLB Draft.
The right-handed pitcher struck out 17 batters in 11 2/3 innings last season. That tells you he has electric stuff. His fastball can get up to around 98 and sits around 94-96. He also has a plus slider, good change-up, and a cutter.
At 6-foot-4, Hill has the look of a major league starter already.
So who will get him?
Well, according to NESN, Hill could be an option for the Boston Red Sox, the team with the No. 4 overall pick in the draft.
MLB teams don’t typically draft players based on “need”, due to the length of time it takes a player to develop and reach the big leagues. Hill could be the best available player when Boston selects, which is why this pick makes sense.
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Hill was originally drafted by the St Louis Cardinals in the 38th round of the 2018 MLB Draft.
Passing up the majors to go to LSU was an easy decision, though it still involved a bit of risk (you never know what could happen in college).
Hill has proved, however, that going to LSU was the right choice, as he’s on his to being a top 5-10 pick.