Jack Moss takes major-league potential to Arizona State
GREENWOOD VILLAGE, Colo. (BVM) 鈥� Cherry Creek High School head baseball coach Marc Johnson knows what a major league-caliber hitter looks like. He saw a lot of them in his 38 years as a part-time scout for six different Major League Baseball teams and he鈥檚 also coached players who have gone on to reach the majors.
He won鈥檛 be surprised if Jack Moss is the next in that line.
鈥淭his kid can just flat hit,鈥� Johnson said. 鈥淚鈥檝e seen a lot of professional baseball players and he鈥檚 a projection, but a really good one.鈥�
The 6-foot-5, 200-pound first baseman was ranked as the No. 1 high school prospect in Colorado by MLB.com prior to the June MLB draft. He didn鈥檛 play his senior season with the Bruins after the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out spring sports across the country, but his status as the state鈥檚 top player was solidified again in May when Gatorade named him the Colorado Baseball Player of the Year for the second straight year. Moss earned the honor as a junior in 2019 after he batted .490 and slugged .710 for Cherry Creek.
But what Moss has proven against elite competition outside of high school is even more impressive. The Arizona State commit competed with the top prospects from around the country at the 2019 Area Code Games last August and was named to the all-tournament team by Baseball America after hitting .500 with four doubles and four RBIs while slugging .875 over four games with only two strikeouts in 16 at-bats.
鈥淚 was getting calls saying, 鈥楪ee whiz, this kid鈥檚 out of Denver, Colorado, not California, not Texas, not Florida; he鈥檚 out of a mountain community and this guy just dominated the top high school pitching in the country,鈥欌�� Johnson said of Moss鈥� eye-opening performance at the Area Code Games, which caught the attention of scouts from around the majors.
Ranked No. 207 among all prospects 鈥� high school or college 鈥� by Baseball America prior to the draft, Moss likely would鈥檝e been picked during a normal year. But this year’s draft was cut down to five rounds due to the pandemic. He鈥檒l have to wait until his junior year of college for his next chance to be drafted, but he鈥檚 looking forward to his time in Tempe.
鈥淚 cannot wait to be an Arizona State Sun Devil,鈥� Moss said. 鈥淭hat has been my dream school since I was 6 or 7 years old, ever since I started playing baseball. Because Colorado or Colorado State don鈥檛 have (baseball) programs, the closest thing I had was Arizona State and I would always go down to watch them in Tempe.鈥�
While Moss is excited to join ASU, he remains focused on building toward a career in the majors, and his high school coach is confident he鈥檒l be able to make it there. In his 48 years at Cherry Creek, Johnson has seen several former Bruins become pros, like outfielder Darnell McDonald, who was drafted 26th overall by the Baltimore Orioles in 1997 and All-Star reliever Brad Lidge, who was taken 17th overall by the Houston Astros in 1998.
Johnson believes Moss鈥� hitting ability will eventually earn him a shot with an MLB team, but his bat isn鈥檛 the attribute that Johnson is most fond of.
鈥淗is No. 1 attribute for me is his character and leadership,鈥� Johnson said. 鈥淗e is so high character. He鈥檚 a hard-working guy who鈥檚 always trying to hone his craft. 鈥� I know that there are guys who like him a lot and what he brings to the table. He has the opportunity to be a big clubhouse influence, too. He鈥檚 got leadership ability and he challenges people to work as hard as he does.鈥�
Moss has had to work hard. He may look the part of a future MLB left-handed slugger now, but he wasn鈥檛 always the best player on his own team, let alone the best in his home state. And he鈥檚 thrived while working to improve.
鈥淚 encountered a lot of adversity growing up through the game of baseball and I just loved it,鈥� Moss said. 鈥淭here were plenty of years growing up that I wasn鈥檛 always the best player on the team and everybody said that this kid was going to make it or that kid was going to make it, but those kids maybe stopped working a little bit and I kind of hit my growth spurt, got a little bigger, faster and stronger and things kind of took off from there.鈥�
Now Moss is the most highly-touted prospect from his state and he carries with him the potential of being a future high draft pick. With that potential comes pressure to perform at the next level for Arizona State, but Moss welcomes it.
鈥淎nytime I feel any sort of pressure with baseball I welcome it 100%,鈥� Moss said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 fun. It鈥檚 everything I鈥檝e ever wanted in terms of my career and it鈥檚 only just the beginning, which is the cool part. Whether I was the highest-ranked prospect or the lowest-ranked prospect, my work ethic isn鈥檛 going to change and my opinion of myself isn鈥檛 going to change. I鈥檓 just going to keep being the best Jack Moss I can be.鈥�
