2028 Draft - Top 100 College Prospects

A potential two-way talent, Partida has loud, physical tools. On the bump he's touched 99 and will hold 92-94 after the first couple innings of work. He's capable of clicking into another gear as the game gets late with big spots too having shown the ability to touch 95 after 80 pitches of work. It's steep with tailing action, responsible for tons of groundballs. He'll fold in a mid-70s curve that lacks firmness, but does feature bigger two-plane shape. There's also a low-80s changeup that he's still working to fully polish in terms of conviction and arm speed. Partida has effort through his release and projects into the bullpen should he continue pitching at the next level. That said, almost everyone prefers the infielder and the bat.

Partida is a particularly impressive athlete with tools on the left side of the infield that stand out in an immediate way. Some believe he has a chance to become a true middle-of-the-order stick to go alongside that defensive value.

Partida has soft hands and actions around the pillow that really project to stick on the dirt. He's played some shortstop, however he's already outgrown that role for most, his lateral range being tested at the '6' in his current physical state. That being said, Partida has a good chance to play the shortstop position up the minor league ladder. His athletic skills should allow him to play third base at a very high level. It's at least plus arm strength with an arm action that carries the baseball through the first base bag. He's got above average foot speed that should play anywhere on the diamond. Partida has exceptionally soft hands and quiet actions befitting of a left-side infielder. His heartbeat and internal clock stand out. Nothing gets Partida out of his comfort zone.

Partida has easy bat speed and flashes above average game power to all fields. He could eventually grow into above average over-the-fence game-power upside. Partida is already rather maxed physically and is doesn't possess too much more projection from a physicality perspective. However he's already impacting the game in all facets. There's a ton of tools and myriad avenues for impact on this player. It's a premium profile.

Franco was one of the more well-rounded shortstop prospects in the 2025 Draft and was unanimously conisdered a Top 100 name for the class. He pulled his name out of that Draft to honor his commitment to TCU.

Franco has a short, compact swing and makes tight turns on the baseball. He's revered for his bat-to-ball skills and patient approach at the plate. He doesn't like to expand the zone and generally waits for pitchers to give him mistakes. Scouts would like to see the quality of contact take a jump between now and the draft, but he puts the game in motion and allows his plus run tool to come into play. To date, he's fallen victim to poor BABIP luck a bit more than his peers, though that too has normalized as he's gotten stronger. Franco is stinging the ball with more consistency. It's likely only fringe-average raw power, but that certainly plays when you take into consideration the other traits he brings to the field.

Franco is an athletic infielder with a loose left-handed swing and should grow into some pull-side power thanks to his long, lean frame. He tacked on good weight this winter and the tools and athleticism are finally blooming. He's a shortstop now and looks to stay at the position with fluid actions, footwork and the ability to make throws from awkward angles. It's above-average to plus arm strength too.

The book on Franco is projection and tools. He checks a lot of boxes without totally impacting the baseball just yet.

Evan Jones was a sneaky draft arm in the 2025 cycle coming out of Methacton High, but ended up at Wake Forest after overtures from the coaching staff insisting they'd get him throwing much, much harder in Winston-Salem.

They were right.

Jones was mostly 90-92 in high school and reportedly touched 94 toward the end of his senior year. Upon arriving to Wake Forest, that quickly shot up to 99 in the fall of his freshman year. Better still, he's holding his velocity. Jones can maintain 94-97 a second time through a lineup and can sit 96-99 when asked to pitch an inning or two. Jones' newfound velocity, paired with unique angles he presents to hitters, make for a difficult at-bat. He launches from 64-inch slot and nearly two-feet wide of the rubber. Jones maintains some carry on his fastball, sneaking up on hitters that don't respect his arm talent. It's every bit that of plus fastball projection, and should he harness the ability to hold 96-99 in shorter outings, Jones could own one of better fastballs in baseball when he's commanding it.

Jones pairs a mid 80s sweeping slider, up to 89, that can rank among the best breaking balls in college baseball when he's on. It's a plus pitch, even with the denigration of the sweeper in MLB in recent yeras. He will flash a low-80s changeup to lefties at the dish. His secondaries lag behind the fastball quality, but his unique release traits and propensity for spin point toward a leverage arm at a mininum at the next level.

Jones' operation works. It's a loose arm, a slingshot delivery and more than enough strikes to be considered draft-worthy.

Despite being selected in the second round by the Pittsburgh Pirates in the 2025 Draft, Cervantes went unsigned as a prep and decided to go to school. He's a gifted, projectable athlete will a full menu of pitches to get the opposition out.

Up to 97, Cervantes will live 92-93 with life at the top rail and darting action away from left-handed bats. His go-to weapon is a big upper-70s/low-80s bender with huge two-plane tilt, more sweeping action than depth. He's shown good feel for the pitch and it'll flash 'plus' consistently. He'll need to firm it up just a bit for the breaker to reach it's 60-grade ceiling, but it's in the tank. Cervantes has a mid-80s changeup that lacks the execution of the breaking ball but flashes dynamic shape and has been particularly effective against left-handed hitters.

Cervantes has a good arm and starter actions on the bump. Further development of the changeup will dictate where scouts place his name in July 2028. Cervantes will be just 20 years old on draft day, something scouts will unquestionably weigh in their evaluation. He's a model darling.

Fernsler stood out during his senior year in high school dominating the competition as a 17 year old. He went into the 2025 Draft with big bonus demands, but walked away from por ball to play at TCU.

Fernsler will run the fastball up to 94. He launches out of an outlandishly low three-quarter slot and generally sinks and tails the baseball away from right-handed hitters. That said, his approach angles are still exceptionally flat when he gets to the top of the zone. He's worked to get some carry on his heater when elevating the baseball too, however it's a less natural shape for his slot. Given his exceptionally low slot and bigger frame, it's a unique look for hitters. Fernsler also lands open and has some cross-fire action to his delivery. The whole thing is awfully unique. He'll likely always find value with the fastball at the top of the zone.

Fernsler's fastball is paired with a changeup that'll flash above average. It plays off the heater quite well and has the chance to develop into a real weapon. There's also a low-80s slider that he'll sweep into the back-foot of right-handed hitters.

Fernsler has so many components to his profile playing on his side. He'll be just 20 years old for the Draft, he's left-handed and absolutely pounds the zone with strikes. He's a model dream and a guy who could hear his name called early in the Draft.