Miners dominate prospects list

PALMER — Ben Taylor and the Mat-Su Miners are batting 4 for 4.

In each of Taylor’s four seasons as head coach of the Miners, the Palmer-based summer collegiate amateur baseball squad has had one of its products selected at the top of the list of the Alaska Baseball League’s top prospects, a list picked annually by Baseball America, a chief authority on the national pastime.

The latest is Stephen Kolek, a hard-throwing right-hander from Texas A&M. Kolek, who helped the Miners win the 2016 ABL title, leads a group of Miners that dominated Baseball American’s top 10 for the ABL, released Aug. 23.

“We work hard to build relationships with the schools that we get our players from. It’s a testament to the way the organization is run. Kids have such a great experience, we get the quality of players we get,” Taylor said by cellphone from his home in Arizona Wednesday afternoon.

Kolek is the third straight Aggie to be named the ABL’s top prospect after a summer with the Miners.

“(Texas) A&M has been bread and butter for me personally since coaching in East Texas,” Taylor said. “It’s a big thing for them and us.”

Taylor, also the associate head coach for Chandler-Gilbert Community College in Arizona, coached in the Texas Collegiate League before his arrival in Palmer. After leaving his old summer team, the East Texas Pumpjacks, as the winningest head coach in TCL history, Taylor brought his ties with Texas A&M to the Miners.

Now, three straight Aggies pitchers have earned Baseball America top prospect honors. Last year, reliever Corbin Martin earned the honor. The year before it was right-handed starter Tyler Stubblefield.

Following Taylor’s first year as head coach, former Miners shortstop AJ Simcox, a Tennessee product, was named the leagues top prospect.

Kolek made six regular-season starts for the Miners, finishing 4-0 with a 2.43 earned run average. He fanned 32 in 37 innings, while walking only 10. He also made the start in a 9-3 victory over the Peninsula Oilers that clinched the ABL title.

As a freshman with the Aggies, Kolek was 3-0 with a 3.30 ERA in a dozen appearances and three starts. Kolek recorded 21 strikeouts in 30 innings. In addition to the statistics early in his college career, Kolek has the physical characteristics to make an impact at the next level.

“He’s got first-round stuff,” Taylor said of Kolek’s potential in a future MLB First-Year Player Draft. “It would not shock me, two years from now to see him as one of the first 30 names called.”

Kolek has the build, a 6-foot-3 and 210 pounds. He has three pitches, and regularly sits in the 89-92 mph range, according to Taylor. Kolek also has baseball pedigree. His older brother Tyler was selected No. 2 overall by the Miami Marlins in the 2014 MLB Draft.

A half-dozen Miners were selected among the 10 on the 2016 list, including the top 3 prospects in the ABL. A pair of right-handed pitchers follow Kolek on the list. Arizona incoming sophomore Cody Deason and Gonzaga incoming junior Gage Burland are second and third, respectively. Deason and Burland are also both big right-handers. Deason, part of a Wildcats team that finished as the 2016 Division I runner-up, is 6-4 and 210 pounds. Burland stands 6-2 and 215 pounds.

“The first thing is the eye test. You’ve got to look the part,” Taylor said. “A right-handed arm with size is prime to attract some attention.”

Deason made four starts with the Miners in 2016, finishing 1-1 with a 1.89 ERA and 19 strikeouts in 19 innings pitched. Burland was among the top ABL relievers of the summer, allowing only two earned runs in 18 1/3 innings of work. He also fanned 16 hitters in 17 appearances.

Grand Canyon incoming junior Garrison Schwartz is Mat-Su’s top position player on the list, earning a sixth-place spot. Schwartz hit .277 for the Miners, playing in 44 of 47 games. Taylor emphasized this list projects potential for a player’s ability to advance and succeed at the next level. Schwartz may not have won the ABL batting title, Taylor said, but the outfielder is a highly regarded prospect.

“His ceiling is so high,” Taylor said. “I can see him playing for a long time.”

Long Beach State utility man Jacob Hughey and Kansas State reliever Jordan Floyd also made the list.

Hughey, a sophomore this fall, emerged as a two-way standout for the Miners. The lefty finished third in the league with 47 strikeouts, and was 3-1 with a 3.37 ERA. He also hit lead-off for the final month of the season, batting. 366.

Floyd, a senor at Kansas State, was the top closer in the ABL, leading the league with 10 saves. He also recorded a save in all three playoff games for the Miners. In 24 games, Floyd fanned 27 and allowed only one earned run.

Contact Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman sports editor Jeremiah Bartz at sports@frontiersman.com.