DIAMONDBACKS

Diamondbacks draft: Garrett Whitley a high-risk prep star

Nick Piecoro
azcentral sports
Garrett Whitley is one of the more fascinating names to emerge as a top prospect in this year's baseball draft.

During a high school showcase event last summer, Garrett Whitley saw something whizzing toward him he can't remember having seen before. It was a fastball, but it was different from the others he'd encountered playing baseball in upstate New York. It was really hard.

"I'm pretty sure I hadn't ever stepped in the box against 90 (mph) before," he said.

But Whitley said it took him only a couple of games, a handful of at-bats, to adjust, and his ability to do so provided a valuable lesson on where he stood in the baseball universe.

"When I went out to those showcases," he said, "I looked at the other guys and I looked at myself, and I definitely think I belonged there. One hundred percent."

Whitley is one of the more fascinating names to emerge as a top prospect in this year's baseball draft and certainly one of the more unexpected to be connected to the Diamondbacks with the No. 1 overall pick.

A high school center fielder out of Niskayuna, N.Y., a suburb north of Albany, Whitley has just about all the tools scouts look for in an impact position player – he is fast and strong; he has the ability to play a premium position in center field; he has the potential to hit for power — and he grades out high for his makeup, work ethic and intelligence.

But he represents one of the riskier species in the draft: Not only is he the classic high-risk, high-reward high school outfielder, but he hails from the Northeast, a region of the country in which cold weather shortens the baseball season and limits scouting opportunities. It's a region whose prospects cause teams to be hesitant before buying into a player's abilities.

Garrett Whitley has no doubts in his ability to succeed at the next level.

Moreover, Whitley arrived on the scene later than some of the other big-name prep players in this draft. Florida's Brendan Rodgers and Georgia's Daz Cameron have been attending showcase events for years, but Whitley participated in his first one only last summer.

Interestingly, he attended in large part because of Mike Serbalik, the Diamondbacks' Northeast area scout. Serbalik, who operates a hitting facility in nearby Latham and has known Whitley for years, invited him to try out for the East Coast Pro Showcase last year.

"He lives just down the road," Whitley said. "He's really helped me out a lot."

The first thing scouts mention when they discuss Whitley is his bat speed. It's not quite top-of-the-scouting-scale quick, but it helps separate him from others in the draft class. It generates good raw power, and coupled with his speed, it gives him a hard-to-find combination.

"There are some times he'll hit a grounder and they just can't get him out," Niskayuna baseball coach John Furey said. "The basepaths just aren't set up right for him."

Whitley said there is no one player after whom he has patterned his game, but, he adds, he "really, really" likes to watch Los Angeles Angels star Mike Trout.

"Everybody probably says that," Whitley said, "but I've got more reasons than just because he's the best player in baseball. I see a lot of similarities between us, being big guys who can run, hit for power, play center field and cover a lot of ground out there. Plus, he's from New Jersey, so he's a northeastern kid, too."

When Trout was coming out of Millville, N.J., in 2009, it was only a few years after the Baltimore Orioles had drafted another Garden State prospect, Billy Rowell, a third baseman who was never able to hit pro pitching. Some believe Rowell's struggles caused teams to be more skeptical of Trout. But, similarly, Trout's success might actually be beneficial to Whitley.

Garrett Whitley batted .356 (21 for 59) with three home runs, three doubles, one triple and 13 walks during his senior year.

"I think it helps," a scout with an American League club said. "I think it's human nature not to want to miss twice."

That said, Whitley would be a gamble for a club picking near the top of the draft, given his lack of a track record against quality pitching. One scout estimated that the most at-bats a big-league team's scouting staff might have seen Whitley take against good pitching is something less than 50.

"From watching him play against other kids in his area, there's just no telling if he'll be able to identify good secondary pitches," another AL scout said. "He'd just be a very risky pick for any team in the first round."

Whitley, however, has no doubts in his ability to succeed at the next level, and he points to his experience first at East Coast Pro, then at the Area Code Games, events at which he faced upper-level competition.

"One of the things I look at and I think scouts look at, too, is how quickly I was able to adjust," Whitley said. "After a game or two at East Coast Pro, I got used to the speed of the game and, after that, it was just pitching again. By the end of Area Codes, I was absolutely comfortable out there."

Whitley said he grew accustomed to seeing hordes of scouts at his games, and when asked if he's had any memorable interactions, he didn't hesitate in mentioning his meetings with Diamondbacks executives Dave Stewart and Joe Carter, both of whom came in to watch him play.

"It's really unique," he said of the draft experience. "It's been a lot of fun. … It's just been a lot of fun to know that those guys are here to watch me play. That's a cool thing."

Whitley would be a gamble for a club picking near the top of the draft, given his lack of a track record against quality pitching.

Garrett Whitley

Position, school: CF, High school in Niskayuna, N.Y.

Height, weight: 6-2, 195

Hometown: Niskayuna, N.Y.

•Whitley batted .356 (21 for 59) with three home runs, three doubles, one triple and 13 walks during his senior year.

•Niskayuna High coach John Furey said scouts measured a foul ball off Whitley's bat at 497 feet.

•Committed to play at Wake Forest.

Coming up

Diamondbacks insider Nick Piecoro is doing the legwork. He's the best source for first-hand stories on the leading draft prospects from Santa Barbara, Calif., to Florida and Tennessee. Over the next several days, read The Republic and go to dbacks.azcentral.com for continuing coverage of the Diamondbacks' potential targets for the No. 1 overall selection in the June 8-10 MLB draft.