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Continuing with our preview of players that the Texas Rangers may take a look at in the 2011 Major League Baseball Draft, which starts on June 6, 2011, today we are taking a look at Brandon Nimmo.
Nimmo is a name that is starting to be connected to the Rangers quite a bit...Jonathan Mayo projects Nimmo to go to the Rangers at #33 in his most recent mock draft. Keith Law's May 31 mock draft had Nimmo going to Texas at #33. John Sickels says, in his latest mock, that Brandon Nimmo is "plausible" at #33 for Texas.
Brandon Nimmo is a high school outfielder, a lefthanded thrower and hitter who is ranked #37 on the BA top 200 draft list. He's from Cheyenne, Wyoming, and BA notes that because there is no high school baseball in Wyoming, few Wyoming prep players are actually drafted -- only two have been selected in the past decade.
Nimmo currently has a commitment to attend the University of Arkansas to play college ball for the Razorbacks.
The pluses with Nimmo are that he's fast, athletic, and has the type of tools that intrigue scouts. The minuses are that, with no high school ball, he's been limited to American Legion and showcase circuit play,
The Yankees guy at scout.com did an interview with Nimmo in February that you can read here.
USA Today did a write-up on Nimmo in April that you can read here, and noted that no Wyoming high schooler has ever been picked higher than the 6th round -- and that was in 1966.
Law mentioned Nimmo is his chat session yesterday, responding to a question about whether he could be a "sleeper," like Mike Trout was two years ago:
Yes. Not as polished as Trout. Very athletic. A little concerned about the knee tendinitis lingering so long after ACL surgery.
Nimmo is, from what I've read, asking for first round money, so if the Rangers nab him at either #33 or #37, he's not likely to sign for slot. That said, he seems to be the most popular pick for the Rangers at #33 among the prognosticators, and Texas has shown before they are willing to go over slot for a guy they like.