By Jeff Odom
The St. Louis Cardinals selected Gaither High shortstop Oscar Mercado with the 57th pick in the second round of the Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft June 6.
Mercado, a Florida State University signee, racked up many accolades during his career with the Cowboys, including being named ESPN’s No. 1 middle infielder in the nation his junior year, an Under Armour All-American, a MaxPreps Underclass All-American and Perfect Game All-American and Underclass All-American.
Cardinals scouting director Dan Kantrovitz told MLB.com that the organization was “pleasantly surprised” to see Mercado fall into its hands after he was projected to go in the first round.
“Frankly, we didn’t think Oscar was going to get to our pick at 57,” Kantrovitz said. “When you see a shortstop of that caliber still on the board at 57, we weren’t going to walk away.”
The 18-year-old Mercado, who was born in Colombia, South America and immigrated to the United States at the age of 8, struggled offensively last season, hitting .286 with only five extra-base hits.
St. Louis, however, sees plenty of potential in his bat, because of his performance in showcases around the country. Plus, he batted .370 with 29 RBI his junior season and helped lead Gaither to the Class 7A-District 9 championship and one game away from the state final four.
“We saw him a lot over the summer against some of the best pitchers in the country, and (he) actually hit pretty well,” Kantrovitz said. “In the same way that we don’t read into the stats of a high school player on the really positive end, we don’t read that much into a high school player’s stats on the negative end.”
Kantrovitz added that he believes the Cardinals can sign Mercado. The projected slot value for the 57th pick is about $971,400, which could be enough to lure him out of his commitment.
“We think Oscar is going to surprise some people with the bat. But at the same time, we’re going to have to be patient with him,” he said. “He’s not a guy that we are going to expect to fly through the system. He’s a young high school player that we’re going to take our time with and groom, and hopefully he develops at the pace we think he’s going to.”
Mercado said during the season that his plans are up in the air as far as deciding between FSU and the majors, but is confident everything will work out as planned.
“I haven’t really thought about what it would take for me to sign,” Mercado said in April. “My parents have information about having my college paid for as part of a contract. We are just going to see how it plays out.
“Work ethic is the most important thing to making it to the Big Leagues,” Mercado continued. “Playing baseball is fun, and I never get burned out, but you have to work at it, work at it and work at it. There’s always room for improvement.”
Frank Permuy, the only baseball coach in Gaither’s 29-year history, told The Laker/Lutz News last November when Mercado signed with the Seminoles that he believed the 6-foot-2, 180-pound senior was one of the best to ever put on a Cowboy uniform.
“I don’t think we could have won those two (district) championships these last two years without someone like a leader by example,” Permuy said. “If he’s not the best leader, he’s one of two I’ve ever had, and I think that’s why he’s gained the respect of so many people.”
— Correspondent Don Trello contributed to this report.
