Former WPIAL stars Alex Kirilloff, Austin Hendrick on Baseball America’s prospect list

Kevin Gorman
Monday, Jan. 18, 2021 3:44 p.m. | Monday, Jan. 18, 2021 3:44 p.m.

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Minnesota Twins right fielder Alex Kirilloff (76) warms up before a spring training baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles Monday, March 4, 2019, in Fort Myers, Fla.

Chris Harlan | Tribune-Review

West Allegheny senior baseball player Austin Hendrick

A pair of former WPIAL stars are ranked in Baseball America’s top 100 prospects, including one who cracked the top 20 for the first time.

Plum’s Alex Kirilloff is ranked the No. 18 overall prospect and No. 1 in the Minnesota Twins organization by Baseball America. The 6-foot-2, 215-pound outfielder became the first player to make his major league debut by starting a playoff game and projects as an impact hitter.

How to follow up making history in the bottom of the 4th? How about a sliding catch in the top of the 5th?

Alex Kirilloff's big league debut going just fine. pic.twitter.com/rPCPoPcHSY

— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) September 30, 2020

“Kirilloff has the rare ability to succeed as a hitter in a variety of ways — using the opposite field, turning on the inner half with authority, handling both velocity and breaking stuff and also understanding the strike zone,” Baseball America wrote about Kirilloff. “Because of those traits, and the fact that he plays with such a low pulse, he has a chance to become a plus-plus hitter.”

West Allegheny graduate Austin Hendrick, the No. 12 pick in the MLB Draft last June, bypassed a scholarship to Mississippi State to sign with the Cincinnati Reds. Hendrick is Baseball America’s No. 97 prospect, dropping from No. 72 in September despite not playing last summer. The 6-foot, 195-pound outfielder projects as a power hitter.

Baseball America calls Hendrick “a middle-of-the-order slugger in the making.”

Here's Austin Hendrick hitting absolute bombs at Wrigley Field.#Reds fans can now wait on the day it comes in a Cincinnati uniform.

Here's how re-tooled his swing to showcase 'utterly elite' bat speed: https://t.co/bKjCnjmo7o pic.twitter.com/4Q2wGS6tYB

— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) June 11, 2020

Another WPIAL alum just missed Baseball America’s Top 100 prospect list. Former Blackhawk star left-handed pitcher Brendan McKay, who was ranked No. 12 in 2020, made his major league debut for the Tampa Bay Rays in 2019. McKay missed last season after testing positive for covid-19 and then undergoing shoulder surgery in August, and is four outs away from graduating from prospect status.