Baseball America's latest MLB draft predicts surprise name going to SF Giants

On Wednesday, Baseball America released its latest mock draft. In a bit of a surprise, it predicts that the SF Giants will nab speedy outfielder Eric Booth Jr. out of Oak Grove High School with the No. 4 pick.

The first three picks have been relatively set in stone for some time now. That has not changed with the latest mock draft. Roch Cholowsky, Vahn Lackey, and Grady Emerson have been pegged to go within the first three picks by most mock drafts.

While the mock drafts agree on which players will be taken with the first three selections, they do not all agree on the order. Baseball America is leaning more toward the safe prediction of Cholowsky, Emerson, and Lackey.

The Giants would be happy if any of these players fall into their lap, but that appears unlikely. That said, weird things can happen in the draft.

The first real curveball is what the Giants do with the No. 4 pick. The early mock drafts had them taking Jackson Flora out of UC Santa Barbara. The rumors have quieted on that front, and the more recent mock drafts have them taking Jacob Lombard out of Gulliver Preparatory High School.

Baseball America adds a surprise name to SF Giants with the No. 4 pick

Baseball America has thrown a new name into the hat. They have the Giants taking prep outfielder Eric Booth Jr. Booth Jr. is one of the best athletes in this year's draft and has solid tools across the board. He is a fast runner, and that should lead to a healthy number of stolen bases.

Currently, he has a swing designed for contact and line drives. He does a nice job of using the entire field. Booth Jr, has a minor hitch in his swing that saps some of his raw power, but he should add more power to his swing as he matures.

The young outfielder has a commitment to Vanderbilt University, so the Giants would need to sway him from that commitment. That is often a moot point, as players drafted within the first 10 rounds sign at an extremely high rate.

Plus, the Giants have one of the largest bonus pools in this year's draft. They hope to take a foundational player with the No. 4 pick, and have several high selections after that.

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