Woodlands right-hander Bryan Brickhouse will have to make the biggest decision of his life by MLB's August 15th signing deadline. The right-hander has a scholarship to baseball power North Carolina, and was drafted by the Royals in the third round of the 2011 MLB Draft yesterday. Despite his obvious plusses as a prospect (namely, a mid-90's fastball) Brickhouse may be better served by becoming a Tar Heel and working on his consistency for a few years to really improve his draft stock. Baseball America said as much in it's look at him:
"He's not particularly big or athletic. He has effort in his delivery and doesn't always stay on top of his pitches. If he can develop consistency, Brickhouse might be a No. 3 starter."
Of course, the Royals may make that a moot point by offering Brickhouse over-slot money, perhaps into the millions. It would be hard to pass up that kind of money--Matt Harrington is the biggest cautionary tale in scouting lore, but if he dominated in college, Brickhouse could potentially earn himself a much higher signing bonus.
It won't be an easy decision for Brickhouse at all, and he'll have to deal with the mental calculus and decide what is the best bet for him.