Draft Prospect Series: Max Meyer

Minnesota Golden Gophers righty Max Meyer is a 21 year old pitcher. After three strong years in the NCAA, Meyer looks like a strong candidate to leave the board early in the draft, potentially going as high as the number four pick. He is a projected top ten pick after a strong third year to sum up a great college career, and is thought of as one of the top arms in the draft, right behind standouts Asa Lacy and Emerson Hancock.

Meyer was a star pitcher for his squad right out of the gate, delivering a 2.27 ERA in his rookie year out of the pen without giving up a single home run (43.2 innings), and only getting better each season thereafter. Meyer has been a potential first rounder for a considerable amount of time, but this past season (prior to the cancellation) he was better than ever, launching himself into the elite top ten. Through four starts in 2020 (27.2 innings) Meyer pitched to a 1.95 ERA, a career low. His first season as a full time starter was also accompanied by an incredible 0.831 WHIP, and career bests in K/9, K/BB, H/9, and winning percentage.

Meyer is currently most likely to be drafted in the 6-10 range of picks, but could easily come off the board earlier. According to sources, Meyer is currently fourth on Toronto’s draft board, sitting behind Hancock, Lacy, and Detmers. It seems unlikely that all three of those pitchers are off the board by Toronto’s selection, so it doesn’t appear that Meyer will be a member of the Jays, but anything is possible, especially considering that he is being considered by the team. Toronto plans to select a pitcher in the first round assuming Austin Martin and Spencer Torkelson are no longer available, and with Meyer being their fourth option it is clear that there are many good options for the team.