Preseason looks combined with the first six weeks of play have elevated Oregon State’s Aiva Arquette into the top ranking in this year’s collegiate draft class, jumping from No. 6 in our preseason rankings to supplant Texas A&M’s Jace LaViolette atop Draft Board 2.0. On the heels of a strong start at the plate (.341/.451/.622) and reliable defense (two errors in 75 chances), the Hawaiian born shortstop has exceeded the high expectations placed upon him in the preseason.

At 6-foot-4, 220 pounds Arquette is a tall shortstop whose frame and movements remind some of a young DJ LeMahieu during his college days at LSU. He played mostly second base last spring at Washington, but handled himself well at short in limited looks this summer. He has continued to impress there this spring with super-smooth, near effortless actions at shortstop. He moves well in all directions for above average range with sure, soft hands and he fields and throws on the run like a veteran major leaguer. It’s difficult to see his true arm strength since his field/flip-throw is ultra quick, but there’s plenty of arm strength to remain at the position over the long term. As long as his frame doesn’t fill out too much, he’ll remain at shortstop over the long term. And if his frame does fill out more than expected, a move to the hot corner fits the profile since his power plays anywhere on the diamond.

He began his prospect breakout last spring hitting .325/.384/.574 with 12 home runs. He then further strengthened his status as a day one draft follow by slashing .291/.357/.437 with three homers, four doubles and 21 RBIs in 103 at-bats for Chatham in the Cape League. His barrel stays in the zone a long time, producing line-drive contact from gap to gap, and the righthanded hitter also has developing home run power that plays to all fields. His top EV last season from 169 batted balls in play was 112.9 mph, and he’s already matched that output this spring. Although his best pop is to his pull side, Arquette uses all fields well with a balanced and compact swing that has good extension through the ball. When fooled, he keeps his hands back and has the ability to shoot it the other way.

Five other collegians from our preseason top ten who remain there in Draft Board 2.0 include No. 2 Jamie Arnold, No. 3 Tyler Bremner, No. 4 Luke Stevenson, No. 5 LaViolette and No. 7 Kyson Witherspoon.

Making the largest leap up our updated Draft Board to rank as the No. 6 collegian is Tennessee’s Liam Doyle. The lefthander has been nearly unhittable, allowing just a .144 batting average against. In a traditional scouting perspective, Doyle operates like a reliever with high effort and more control than pinpoint command. The scouting industry seems mixed on his long term role, but they all agree that Doyle is a future big leaguer. Despite the effort in his delivery, he fills the zone at a 69.6% strike rate with his fastball that has averaged 95.2 mph this season. His heater is nearly unhittable with a 100th percentile Whiff rate (Total S/M / Total swings) of 50.6%, while his slider also checks in at the 100th percentile with a 50.0% Z-Whiff (Total S/M inside the zone / Total swings inside the zone). His season numbers are excellent with a 2.03 ERA and 62 strikeouts vs 11 walks in 31 innings.

Other notable high-jumpers include:

• Gavin Kilen (Tennessee) pops from the No. 32-ranked collegian to No. 9. Despite average exit velocities (109-111 mph), he continues to get to every bit of his power in games. He’s currently slugging .986 with a .556 ISO. For reference, Jac Caglianone’s SLG and ISO last season were .875 and .456, respectively. Or as a same position comp, Travis Bazzana who went No. 1 overall, slugged .911 with a .504 ISO.
• Another Volunteer, Marcus Phillips, jumps from No. 118 to No. 20. His combination of size, stuff and athleticism is hard to find at the collegiate level. With a fastball up to 100 mph and an 86-88 mph sweeper/slider that are both released from a consistent 5-foot-4 height, the 6-foot-4, 245-pound righthander has a two-pitch arsenal with which he pounds the strike zone at a 67% clip. A South Dakota prep, Phillips attended Iowa Western JC for his true freshman season where he was ranked as our No. 1 Juco prospect. He had some ups and downs as a sophomore for Tennessee last spring, but continues to make big strides and his future development is exciting to project. To date he has struck out 35 and walked just nine in 30.2 innings pitched. He’s posted a 1.17 ERA and opponents are hitting just .173 against.

• Lefthander Zach Root (Arkansas) hasn’t missed a beat with his transfer from East Carolina to Fayetteville where he’s struck out 46 in 31.1 innings this spring. His mystifying five-pitch arsenal is led by two 92nd percentile Whiff% pitches in a slider and cutter, to go along with a fastball that has averaged 92.7 mph, up from a 91.6 average last spring.
• Two other southpaws also ascend the rankings. Texas senior Jared Spencer and Michigan State junior Joseph Dzierwa have been pedal to the metal all spring. Spencer ranks No. 36. He tops out at 98 with his fastball and mixes a plus sweeper. He’s struck out 43 in 31.2 innings, while Dzierwa who features a plus changeup and a fastball up to 96 has struck out 51 in 36.2 innings.
• Top-rising position players also include Daniel Dickinson (LSU), Brent Iredale (Arkansas), Korbyn Dickerson (Indiana) and Alex Lodise (Florida State). Dickinson jumps to No. 26 from No. 42. He has settled in nicely at second base in Baton Rouge and forms one of the best, if not the best, double play combinations in the country. He’s also batting .359 with a .679 SLG and 18 walks against 11 strikeouts. Iredale, a junior college transfer who ranked No. 77 in the preseason, floats up to No. 45 on the heels of an outstanding start at the plate – .356/.527/.808 – with nine HRs and 41 RBIs. Dickerson has jumped from off the board to No. 53 after also jumping from Louisville to his new college home in Bloomington. His torrid start (.346/.426/.720, 11 HRs) was unexpected after seeing limited time for the Cardinals last spring. Lodise rises from No. 130 to No. 63. He possesses two highly valued tools with above average raw power and arm strength. He ranks first among all college shortstops with a .458 batting average and is fourth in SLG at .747.