2010 Player Profile: Jake Stewart, Panners

Jake Stewart

OF - Alaska Goldpanners of Fairbanks
Bats: Right - Throws: Right
Height: 6'2" - Weight: 185lb
College: Stanford
Year: Freshman
Hometown: Fort Collins, Colorado

There have been a lot of things said about 2010 Goldpanners OF Jake Stewart. I'll give you a big one to chew on: "best high school player to ever come out of the State of Colorado".

That's a pretty big statement, and I don't know that I'm qualified to comment on its accuracy, but it wouldn't be an overstatement to tell you that Jake Stewart is highly touted. The Fort Collins product and Stanford-committed prep star went unsigned after being drafted in the 14th round by the Philadelphia Phillies in 2009. At the tender age of 18 he landed at #74 on Baseball America's top 200 prospects list. And in summer 2010 he'll be wearing Panners Red & Blue.



Draft day was kind of a Catch-22 for Stewart. I think he could have gone in the first ten rounds, some say as high as 3rd or 4th. The thing is, not too many young guys with half a brain in their head (did I mention Stewart's 4.0 GPA?) are going to give up Stanford scholarships for life in the illustrious Gulf Coast League without being taken in the first 10 and/or getting the type of signing bonus that comes with it. On the other hand, many teams are reluctant to use a first-10 pick on someone who has doubts surrounding their desire to sign. I don't know if that's exactly what went down, but anyway, the point is that Stewart was picked in the 14th round, has decided not to sign, will play for Stanford next year, and -- good news for ABL fans -- will be playing for the Panners in 2010 (barring any unforeseen circumstances).


The scouting reports on Stewart can be summed up in three words: "five-tool" and "raw". If he develops as projected he'll be able to do it all. At the same time, he's still young and still developing, so whether he will fall short of, meet, or even exceed his potential has yet to be seen. His least polished tool is supposed to be his bat, although that could be considered a compliment since he put up phenomenal offensive numbers as a prep player. Even though Stewart didn't make my Players to Watch list for the Panners, it should be obvious by now that this is my own fault and no knock on him. But in case I still need to tell you, watch Jake Stewart in 2010. Guys like him are the most fun to watch because the sky is the limit. The only question is whether they'll live up to the hype.