https://www.mlb.com/news/2019-mlb-draft-...ast-starts
These Draft picks are off to fast starts
By Jonathan Mayo @JonathanMayo
August 12, 2019
The first summer of pro ball for a recently drafted player is mostly an opportunity for him to get his feet wet and get a sense of what the transition is going to be like. It’s also a chance for he and his organization to get to know each other a bit better. Typically, the draftee just goes out and plays, with coaches and player development staff not tweaking too much, so all parties can get a first sense of what works and what doesn’t at this level.
This, in turn, gives players a strong foundation to build from as they approach their first full year. Statistical performance, because of the sample size, doesn’t carry too much weight on the positive or negative side of the ledger. But a strong pro debut can really put some wind at the sails of these new prospects, with success out of the gate often leading to more success down the road.
Last year’s draftees featured as being off to hot starts can be found all over our rankings this year. A total of 10 are on the Top 100, while eight more are currently on a team Top 30 and many have used last year’s debut to jump up their respective organizational ladders.
Who might be next? Here are 20 members of the Draft class of 2019 off to very good starts (all stats are as of Monday).
First-round hitters
4. Greg Jones, SS, Rays
The toolsy product out of UNC Wilmington has hit extremely well in the New York-Penn League and his .349 average would be third in the league if he had enough at-bats to qualify. His .423 on-base percentage would be second and he’d be in the top three in slugging (.500) as well.
