2012 MLB Draft Prospects: Top MLB-Ready Pitchers in This Year's Draft

The 2012 MLB draft class is loaded with high school talent like Max Fried, Matt Smoral and Lucas Giolito, who will forgo the collegiate experience to work their way up the minor league ranks.

But there are a handful of pitchers that have played spectacularly well in college and are only going to need a year or two before making a splash in the big leagues. Expect the following hurlers to get drafted in the first 15-to-20 picks.

Mark Appel, RHP, Stanford

There is a terrific chance he is the No. 1 overall pick by the Houston Astros, and you can understand why.

He stands at 6’5’’, 190 pounds and has an incredibly powerful arm that allows him to consistently hit 95 mph on the radar gun.

His off-speed stuff has improved every year in college and his location is impeccable. While he still needs to fine-tune his breaking ball, Appel could see a September call-up in 2013.  

Kevin Gausman, RHP, LSU

This guy is a strikeout machine.

He struck out 125 batters in 107.2 innings while only walking 24. His ERA was a sparkling 2.84.

The power pitcher has reached 99 mph on the gun and doesn’t rely on his fielders to get out of trouble.

Gausman’s ceiling is sky-high.

Kyle Zimmer, RHP, San Francisco

He stands at 6’4’’ and 220 pounds, so take one guess what his best attribute is?

The power-pitcher relies heavily on strikeouts, but he can also throw a slider, curveball and changeup for strikes.

Having four pitches with incredible heat mixed in make him one of the prime candidates to reach the majors at some point in 2013. It would be an incredible feat considering Zimmer was a third basemen when he entered college.

Michael Wacha, RHP, Texas A&M

He registered a tidy 8-1 record with a 2.21 ERA this season as one of the standout hurlers in all of college baseball in 2012.

He towers over the mound at 6’6’’ 200 pounds and has the ability to throw in the mid-90s with ease. He really busted onto the scene this past year and continues to rise up the draft board.

I have him ranked as the fourth best collegiate pitcher, but he could very well end up with the best MLB career. 

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