Wisconsin Class of 2016 Rankings: Final Update

June 7, 2016

By Steve Nielsen
Scouting Supervisor – Wisconsin/Illinois

The WIAA season is closing in on its final week and the MLB draft runs June 9-11. This year more than any other, the state of Wisconsin will be paying close attention to day one of the draft. C Ben Rortvedt (Verona Area HS) and SS Gavin Lux (Indian Trail HS) have been battling back and forth for the top spot for nearly two years now.

Rortvedt has held the top spot since last July but as we roll out our final version of the 2016 Wisconsin Rankings, Gavin Lux has taken back the top spot as the left-handed hitting shortstop has risen to the top of most team’s draft boards.

Lux and Rortvedt went into the spring as two of the most highly regarded prep draft prospects the state has seen. Both pegged early as top three round type talents, Lux has continued his upward trend this spring.

Some of the most influential decision makers in professional baseball have traveled to the Badger State this spring, and the last few weeks of the season the campus of Indian Trail has seen the who’s who of war room hierarchy getting their last looks at the potential future of their respective organization. You can find a mock draft just about anywhere on the internet, and Lux’s name has been floated around in the first round of just about every one, some rumored as high as in the teens. At this point his commitment to Arizona State looks more of an afterthought as most prospects being talked about this high in the draft are ready to sign.

As Lux takes over the No. 1 spot let’s not forget about Rortvedt at No. 2. Dropping to No. 2 in this class is no slight to the Verona HS catcher at all. In fact Rortvedt’s name has also been talked about on day one of the draft. Rortvedt has been dubbed as the country’s best bat in the high school catching ranks and will be hard for teams to pass up on a catcher with that kind of knack for the barrel.

For more on Wisconsin’s high school draft class, check out our draft preview HERE.

RANK	NAME	STATE	SCHOOL	CLASS	POS	COMMITMENT
1	Gavin Lux	WI	Indian Trail	2016	SS	Arizona State
2	Ben Rortvedt	WI	Verona Area	2016	C	Arkansas
3	Nathan Brown	WI	Arrowhead	2016	RHP	Florida
4	Justin Lavey	WI	Tremper	2016	3B	Louisville
5	Alec Marsh	WI	Reagan College Prep	2016	RHP	Arizona State
6	Jack Eagan	WI	Wautoma	2016	LHP	Indiana
7	Cyrillo Watson	WI	South Milwaukee	2016	OF	Illinois
8	Ty Weber	WI	Menomonee Falls	2016	RHP	Illinois
9	Joe Acker	WI	Marquette University	2016	OF	Nebraska
10	Ryan Schmitt	WI	Arrowhead	2016	RHP	Illinois

A late riser in our 2016 ranks was RHP Ty Weber (Menomonee Falls HS). Weber is no stranger to the top ten as he was a staple in the top ten early in his high school career. A three sport star, Weber was pulled in many directions through his high school career, but has made some big strides this spring as he prepares to pitch for the University of Illinois. Weber has consistently showed us an upper 80’s fastball this spring with a devastating swing and miss curveball.

CLICK HERE for compete 2016 Wisconsin Rankings.