April 22, 2020

By Adam Morissette

Baseball Canada

OTTAWA – A pair of Junior National Team outfielders have caught the attention of MLB Pipeline as Owen Caissie and David Calabrese both appear on the list of the top 150 prospects for the 2020 MLB Draft.

Caissie, of Burlington, Ont., is the highest ranked Canadian coming in at No. 76 and is noted for his “tools to fit the right field profile very well” and having “plus raw power.” Caissie showed off his skillset last month in Florida on the Junior National Team’s spring training trip homering to dead centre field against the Toronto Blue Jays in Dunedin. He is committed to the University of Michigan for the 2021 season.

Calabrese, of Maple, Ont., landed inside the top 100 at No. 98 and was noted as having “top of the scale” speed making him dangerous on the bases. He stole two bases and added a home run during spring training with the Junior National Team last month while making some exceptional plays in the outfield. He is committed to the University of Arkansas for the 2021 season.

A pair of Canadian-born players although found themselves ranked among the top 150 in University of Michigan outfielder Jordan Nwogu (Ottawa, Ont.) at No. 109 and Rice University infielder Trei Cruz (Toronto, Ont.) at No. 127.

Due to the Covid-19 pandemic an official date has yet to be determined for the 2020 MLB Draft.