DP Fall League Central: 2018

-Diamond Prospects Developmental Fall League- Diamond Prospects is proud to announce our return of a weekday fall league in the Upstate region and Greater Rock Hill area during September and October of 2018, plus the introduction of the Lowcountry League! The leagues will provide a local and affordable option for up-and-coming talent, plus established baseball players looking to get in some extra work during the school week. Statewide Schedule / Upstate Rosters / Rock Hill Rosters / Lowcountry Rosters / HR Ticker / Site Addresses All-Star Games – Upstate: @ Clemson – October 23  Rosters / Schedule All-Star Game – Greater Rock Hill: @ Winthrop – October 25 Roster/Schedule  

The Palmetto State MLB Debuts – 2018

By: Austin Alexander – September 6, 2018 September…Pennant races with October around the corner in the Big Leagues plus 65 different clubs in our state as the DP fall league is ramping up excites many, of course football at every level is still king for most! But for this guy, baseball is what is remains on my mind, certainly my phone, covers the DP desk and occupies our television set. This year has been a banner season for Palmetto State players that broke through into Major League Baseball, listen LOUDLY, these are the guys that made debuts in 2018: Nick Ciuffo (2012, Lexington HS, Tampa Bay Rays), Steven Duggar (2012, Byrnes HS, Clemson, San Francisco Giants), Grayson Greiner (2011, Blythewood HS, South Carolina, Detroit Tigers), Taylor Guerrieri (2011, Spring Valley HS, Toronto Blue Jays), Daniel Palka (2010, Greer HS, Chicago White Sox) and CD Pelham (2012, Lancaster HS, Spartanburg Methodist, Texas Rangers). The picture to the right was taken during batting practice on Tuesday in Toronto, 30 minutes after I’d sent a text to both Ciuffo and Guerrieri to find someone to get a mug shot of them together. Somehow the two former first-rounders and roommates got this  done for DP! Inside the same season of this decade, “veterans” Carl Edwards Jr (left, 2011, Mid-Carolina HS, Chicago Cubs), Andrew Faulkner (2011, South Aiken HS, Texas Rangers), Daniel Gossett (2011, Byrnes HS, Clemson) & Jordan Montgomery (2011, Sumter HS, South Carolina, New York Yankees) all logged time in The Show during this campaign. With a multitude of former South Carolina prepsters that are DP alums, watching MLB games takes on a different look when professional history becomes extended with more and more players on the field. At some point we will do research on how those 2011-2012 classes shaped our state along with DP’s role from 2006 to the present day. -Palmetto Pros- The beauty of this article is that 46 counties can now realize that Major League Baseball is available to our state. So is college baseball and the so many high school grads that have gone on to experience amazing success past the prep level, either in college or in pro ball! At each event that we host I tell the participants that there was a time when each kid sitting in those same spots who were also nervous and unsure what was next him. 169 of those young men were drafted and so many more received financial aid to play baseball in college. Our state is and has been quite good for college coaches and pro scouts, DP’s goals are to continue being a springboard for those whose careers have more potential than others! This guy smiles every single time a kid commits to a college and when the TV allows me to watch a Palmetto State winner play and have success on the biggest stage!

MLB Draft: Palmetto State’s Finest – 2018

-MLB Draft: Day 3- Sightler to Reds: DP congratulates…In the 12th Round of the MLB Draft (349th overall), Swansea HS standout OF Josiah Sightler was selected by the Cincinnati Reds.   Graham Lawson: Woodruff HS, Spartanburg Methodist, South Carolina… 12 th Round to the Washington Nationals.   LT Tolbert: Wren HS, South Carolina… 13th Round to the Arizona Diamondbacks.   Evan Sisk: Lewisville HS, College of Charleston…16th Round to the  St. Louis Cardinals.   Ridge Chapman: Wade Hampton HS, Spartanburg Methodist, South Carolina… 17th Round to the Washington Nationals.   Connor Grant: Blythewood HS, College of Charleston, North Greenville… 21st Round to the Miami Marlins.   Clay Helvey: Fort Mill HS, College of Charleston, Tampa… 22nd Round to the San Francisco Giants.   Mitch Spires: Gilbert HS, Winthrop… 28th Round to the Los Angeles Angels.   Smith to Padres: DP congratulates…In the 22nd Round of the MLB Draft (651st overall), Strom Thurmond HS standout OF Payton Smith was selected by the San Diego Padres.   McDaniels to Marlins: DP congratulates…In the 30th Round of the MLB Draft (897th overall), Pee Dee Academy standout LHP Garrett McDaniels was selected by the Miami Marlins.   -MLB Draft: Day 1 & 2-   Adams to Angels: In the 1st Round of the MLB Draft (17th overall), former Blythewood HS standout OF Jordyn Adams was selected by the Los Angeles Angels. {VIDEO} Hill to Mets: In the 4th Round of the MLB Draft (110th overall), former TL Hanna HS and USC standout RHP Adam Hill was selected by the New York Mets. Lancaster to Phillies: In the 8th Round of the MLB Draft (227th overall), former Hanahan HS and Coastal Carolina standout SS Seth Lancaster was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies.   Stokes to Phillies: In the 10th Round of the MLB Draft (287th overall), former AC Flora HS and South Carolina standout SS Madison Stokes was selected by the Philadelphia Phillies.   Woodall to Cardinals: In the 10th Round of the MLB Draft (303rd overall), former Georgetown HS and Coastal Carolina standout 1B Kevin Woodall Jr. was selected by the St. Louis Cardinals.

MLB Draft Breakdown: 2018

By: Austin Alexander – June 5-6, 2018   In a year that professional scouts will admit there was far less draftable prep talent in South Carolina than recent years, a trio of young men managed to have their names called over the three-day event!   The more you peer into this year’s draft, the event itself took on a very different… The new DP website is here. For all the great DP content, subscribe. If you have any login/subscription issues, please contact our support team. Your feedback on the new experience is appreciated as well. Username Password Remember Me     Forgot Password

MLB Draft Preview: 2018

Compiled By: DP Staff – June 4, 2018 The workouts have concluded, the notes have been made, scouting miles have been logged and final organizational meetings have been had… and now it’s finally draft time! The First Round begins Monday, June 4 on the MLB Network. As we mosey around South Carolina throughout the calendar, we are often asked to make predictions on the upcoming draft, who will be taken, which round will they go in, who is most signable, etc. We’ve asked a few questions of our own to some ‘bigwigs’ and threw in our two cents as well. But in the past few years it’s been a different animal altogether…Check out the drastically new draft rules from yesteryear: 2014 Draft / Slotted Signing Bonus -2018 Draft Tracker- The entire process has always been a crapshoot, even for those making the final decisions so we aren’t going to take a stab at which round, but below is what we did come up with regards to who has a chance to be drafted this week. Admittedly, every single scout that we spoke with said we would learn alot from this draft to be a little more bold with our prognostication in future years. Our crystal ball comes with far less confidence than most years, with no sure thing, but here it is: -Palmetto State Players Receiving Pro Interest this Spring-  Name  High School  Position  Signed  DP’s $.02  Nate Lamb  Chesnee  LHP  Clemson  Possible  Jackson Lindley  TL Hanna  RHP  Clemson  Possible  Daniel Lloyd  Summerville  RHP  South Carolina  Possible  *Garrett McDaniels  Pee Dee Academy  LHP  Coastal Carolina  Probable  James Parker  TL Hanna  SS  Clemson  Possible  *Josiah Sightler  Swansea  OF  South Carolina  Definite  *Payton Smith  Strom Thurmond  OF/RHP  Flo-Dar Tech  Probable  Wesley Sweatt  Northwestern  RHP  South Carolina  Possible Key: Definite, Probable, Possible {chances to be drafted} -Others Receiving Pro Interest-  Name  High School  Position  Signed  Will Bethea  AC Flora  RHP  C of C  Dallas Callahan  Byrnes  C  Coastal Carolina  Chad Fairey  Ninety-Six  UTL  Clemson  Jordan Flanders  North Augusta  OF/RHP  Citadel  Dylan Harley  Cane Bay  LHP  South Carolina  Rob Hughes  Northwestern  RHP  Furman  Matthew Lumsden  JL Mann  OF/1B  Clemson  RJ Petit  Rock Hill  RHP  Charleston So.  Michael Poulos  West Ashley  RHP/C  C of C  Bradwin Salmond  Lugoff-Egin  OF/RHP  Sptg Methodist *Selected in 2018 MLB Draft

The State of DP Address – 2018

By: Austin Alexander – February 14, 2018 As Diamond Prospects’ embarks upon our 13th prep baseball year, and as the Holiday Season has now closed, a 2018 campaign awaits us! The purpose of this 4th annual The State of DP Address is aimed to accomplish a handful of things, mostly to inform our loyal viewers and pass out a few kudos as well. DP came… The new DP website is here. For all the great DP content, subscribe. If you have any login/subscription issues, please contact our support team. Your feedback on the new experience is appreciated as well.

Dean Jones

By: Austin Alexander – January 9, 2017 You can likely count on one hand the number of people that have made a legitimate difference in your life. I challenge you now, who are those five people for you? Dean Jones is easily in my top 5. Know the name? 729 prep wins to be exact, 4 state titles, former players had grandsons play for the legend. The stadium is named for him. Coach Jones was a winner of the highest order. He won baseball games at a premium level, he won in other ways too. It was 1992, a young frustrated player from a nearby high school that respected this legend from Chesnee got a call to meet in his office. I knew who he was obviously, he found my home phone number for a reason. He summoned me, I was there at 8:00 AM with zero reason as to why I was there. It was the day before school was to begin in August of 1992. An opposing coach that I would never win a game for set me straight. In a very calm voice, he put me in my place. Through my experiences of playing against his teams, being a teammate of his players, recruiting his players and scouting his clubs, it sort of comes down to this… Coach Jones impacted a community for sure, so many that knew him better than me could tell hundreds more stories. This man loved strawberries and filling his winter stove with wood. Coach Jones also loved filling his house with young men… Coach Jones was a winner that inspired me to inspire others. Let’s all aspire to be like Coach Jones! Obituary More from GoUpstate.com