Trinity ace has big day in store

Cecconi to take part in MLB’s draft broadcast

Trinity Prep graduate and University of Miami pitcher Slade Cecconi is among 23 pro baseball prospects invited to remotely take part in Major League Baseball’s amateur draft broadcast on Wednesday night.

Cecconi, a draft-eligible sophomore, is one of several players from the Orlando area projected to be selected in the abbreviated draft, which was trimmed from 40 rounds to five rounds because of the coronavirus pandemic.

The first round gets underway at 7 p.m. on MLB Network and ESPN, with video appearances by Cecconi and other top prospects.

Rounds two through five will be held Thursday beginning at 5 p.m.

Cecconi joins Windermere High’s Carson Montgomery and Florida International’s Logan Allen, who played locally at Orange City University, as area pitchers who could hear their names called in the first two rounds.

“Cecconi has one of the best pedigrees of any player in the 2020 class going back to his high school days,” according to a scouting report by Baseball America.

Baseball America ranks Cecconi No. 32 overall in the 2020 draft class. That puts the 2018 Trinity Prep grad, who turns 21 on June 24, in position for a bonus of more than $2-million as a late first-round pick.

Montgomery, a Florida State commit, ranks No. 40 while Allen, a lefty pitcher and position player at FIU, ranks No. 54 by Baseball America.

University of Florida commit Zac Veen, an outfielder out of Port Orange Spruce Creek in Volusia County, is widely regarded as a Top 10 pick.

Mock drafts have shown Veen going as high as No. 4 to the Kansas City Royals.

The Detroit Tigers own the No. 1 overall pick followed by the Baltimore Orioles and Miami Marlins. The Tampa Bay Rays have two picks on Wednesday.

That includes the 24th selection in the first round and 37th overall, which marks the last of eight competitive balance picks that night.

Lake Mary’s Dylan Crews and Brandon Fields of Dr. Phillips were among prep draft prospects entering the high school season this spring.

Both pulled out of the draft in recent weeks and have vowed to honor their commitments to SEC programs.

Crews will play college ball at LSU. Fields plans to suit up at South Carolina, where he also considered playing football but recently said he will focus on the diamond.

“It’s been a dream of mine to get on campus and play for a great program in front of the best fans in the country,” said Crews in a Twitter post on June 3. “I look forward to revisiting the draft process in 2023.”

Players are eligible for the MLB draft out of high school, after their junior or senior seasons at a four-year college or if their 21st birthday is within 45 days of the final day of the draft.