School: Buford High School; Class: Senior
Position: RHP; B/T: R/R
Height: 6-2; Weight: 195
Previously Drafted: N/A
College Commitment: Vanderbilt University
| FB | CB | CH | Command | Overall |
| 60 | 55 | 70 | 55 | 60 |
Background: Buford High School is no stranger to quality big league prospects. Such luminaries like Joey Bart and Brandon Marsh, both consensus Top 100 prospects during their professional careers, have walked through the school’s hallowed halls. Connor Bennett, a 34th round pick by the Reds in 2015, and Jake Burnette, a seventh-round pick by the Pirates in 2011, earned hefty six-figure bonuses as well.
Dylan Lesko, a powerful, firebolt-slinging right-hander, has a chance to become the earliest drafted player in school history, as well as surpassing Brandon Marsh’s $1 million bonus too – despite undergoing Tommy John surgery in late-April.
And there’s good reason why.
The 6-foot-2, 195-pound right-hander rocketed up into a separate stratosphere during his junior campaign at Buford High School, posting a barely-there 0.35 ERA with a videogame-esque 112 punch outs in only 60 innings of work. He finished the year with a perfect 11-0 record en route to capturing the Gatorade Player of the Year award, the first time a junior had done so. The big righty is committed to Pitcher University – a.k.a. Vanderbilt University.
Scouting Report: Prior to the Tommy John surgery, Lesko owned an electric arsenal – perhaps tops in the country among amateurs. Mid-90s fastball with explosion, sitting in the 93- to 95-mph range. He’ll complement the plus offering with an above-average, upper 70s curveball, though it showed some slurvy tendencies at times. He third pitch, a wickedly devastating changeup, may be the best in the country. Sitting in the low-80s with hard tumble and fade, it’s a genuine swing-and-miss pitch. Lesko commands the zone well – with all three pitchers. There’s #2-type potential. It wouldn’t be shocking to see the Mets use one of their two first round picks on the hard-throwing, recovering teenager.
Ceiling: 5.0-win player
Risk: Moderate to High
Grade: First Round
