Liam Peterson stands out with his physical, durable frame along with an upper-90s fastball that consistently beats hitters at the top of the zone. His secondary pitches can show real swing-and-miss potential, and while they still need polish, the underlying shapes and separation point to significant upside. With a proven ability to repeat his delivery and command his full arsenal, Peterson projects as a high-ceiling starter whose best baseball is still ahead of him.

Shelton’s hit tool is a problem for me. He chased >30%, whiffed >30%, and whiffed in-zone >20%. Players with that profile don’t usually make it far in professional baseball without top of the scale defense, which is not the case here. There’s bat speed and plus raw power, but if it’s usable is still to be decided. There’s prospect pedigree here, and the bull case is that if his hit to was below average (45-grade) it becomes attractive as a senior sign, but I’m not sold on that being a possibility.

Russell Sandefer has quietly become a compelling mid-round arm in the SEC this spring. He is a UCF transfer who has stepped into the Florida pitching staff and delivered results that would stand out anywhere in the country. Across 24.0 innings in 2026 he's posting a 3.00 ERA, 12.75 K/9, 3.00 BB/9, 1.04 WHIP. The 13.3% barrel rate and zero home runs allowed underscores his most defining characteristic as a pitcher: a committed east-west attack that keeps the ball on the ground and out of the air. His most dominant showing came against Ole Miss, where he threw a career-high seven shutout innings on 93 pitches, allowing two hits and one walk while striking out 11, a performance Kevin O'Sullivan described simply as "outstanding." The arsenal is built around a mid-90s running fastball that generates its effectiveness through horizontal movement rather than ride. The changeup is his most reliable secondary, generating nearly 50% whiff rates and gives him a genuine put-away pitch that plays off the fastball arm speed. The cutter is the lowest-confidence offering in the mix, a pitch that functions more as a sequencing tool than a true swing-and-miss weapon. The foundation at 6'1" with this command profile in the SEC is more than enough to earn a legitimate look in the draft this year.

Kurland followed the Jud Fabian path and enrolled early at Florida, and is now eligable for the draft. Kurland is a smaller bodied 2B with above-average power. The issue here is the hit tool, which has been below-average. There's both whiff and chase to his game (near-30% on both), which has led to a 25% K rate. The whiff rate came down a bit on the Cape this summer, and his contact quality with wood was strong as always, which keeps him in as a solid mid-to-late round pick in my book.

Cyr was productive in two years at Miami, and will aim to do the same in his first year at Florida in 2025. While he’s played shortstop in college, he lacks the arm strength to stick at the spot long-term and will likely move to 2B where he’ll play above-average defense. The power here is below average, with a 107 mph max EV, and he’s got some whiff to his game that’ll likely show up more frequently moving into pro ball.

Coppola was a highly regarded prep prospect out of New Jersey in 2021, but ended up at Florida but has struggled with injuries throughout his collegiate career. He’s a massive lefty who works in the 91-93 range, but likely has more in the tank. He moves well and has flashed a solid slider, as well as an interesting change-up profile. 2024 was rough for him, and the track record is limited, but the traits are still strong.