Photos by MaxPreps photographers/Graphic by Ryan Escobar
The top high school prospect for the 2015 Major League Baseball draft is a shortstop from Florida. That might be the case in 2016 as well.
Austin Bergner of
Windermere Prep (Fla.) leads MaxPreps' list of the nation's Top 50 junior baseball players. The shortstop, who is also a right-handed pitcher, should be one of the top picks in the 2016 draft, just as fellow Florida shortstop
Brendan Rodgers of
Lake Mary (Fla.) is expected to go No. 1 overall in the 2015 draft.
Bergner has been on a tear to start the 2015 season. He's batting .454 with 14 RBIs, three home runs and three doubles in just seven games. He also has a 2-1 record with 23 strikeouts in 14.2 innings pitched.
Bergner heads a list that includes six pitchers among the top 10 players.
Jeff Belge of
Henninger/Nottingham (Syracuse, N.Y.), a left-handed pitcher, ranks No. 2 overall while
Blake Rutherford, an outfielder from
Chaminade (West Hills, Calif.) ranks No. 3.
Jason Groome, a 6-foot-5 left-handed pitcher for
IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.), ranks No. 4 overall while
Cole Ragans, a 6-4 lefty from
North Florida Christian (Tallahassee, Fla.), ranks No. 5.
The rankings are based on several factors, including recruiting rankings from four different ranking services, draft projections and summer all-star game participation.
Florida leads the list with 14 players while California has eight.
Click here to see the full list of MaxPreps Top 50 Junior Baseball Players
