Independence's Robert Hassell III on cusp of achieving goal in MLB Draft

Mike McLaury remembers the exact moment he knew Robert Hassell III was going to be a special baseball player.

Specifically, the Independence baseball coach remembers the sound.

It was Hassell's freshman year at Independence in an intrasquad game before the season.

"He hit a ball, just over the shortstop's head," McLaury said. "It's just a base hit.

"But he hit it so hard it reminded me of batting practice when I was (coaching) at Middle Tennessee or Western Kentucky. As a freshman in high school, he was hitting the ball as hard as those college kids. The ball went by me and I thought, 'I've heard that sound before.' And it didn't come from a senior in college. It came from a freshman in high school."

Hassell is expected to be the first Tennessee high school baseball player selected on Wednesday during the MLB Draft (6 p.m. CT, ESPN, MLB Network).

"It's been exciting," Hassell said. "People ask me if I'm nervous. But this is what I've been working for. We'll see what happens.

"It's going to be a happy thing."

Hassell, a Vanderbilt signee, is listed as the No. 16-rated prospect in the MLB 200 as an outfielder. 

A CBS Sports mock draft has Hassell going eighth overall to the San Diego Padres. The Sporting News' mock draft has him going ninth to the Colorado Rockies. An MLB.com mock draft has him going No. 10 to the Los Angeles Angels. And NBC Sports has Hassell projected at No. 12 to the Cincinnati Reds.

The draft has been reduced to five rounds this year, down from its usual 40, because of the coronavirus pandemic.

Hassell burst onto the baseball world at a young age. He played on the Southeast Little League teams in 2013 and 2014 that made it to the Little League World Series. He was 11 and 12 during those years.

"The way I look at it there are some people that want to grow up and be doctors, lawyers, teachers, astronauts or whatever," Hassell said. "I knew at an early age I wanted to grow up and be a baseball player. 

"This is my future. It's my life. I take it very seriously. I just take it as that. It's got to be the same game and fun at the same time. It always has to be fun. The day it's not fun to me anymore is the day I'll have to hang it up." 

Hassell, a two-time Tennessee Gatorade Baseball Player of the Year, hit .423 as a junior with 14 home runs, eight doubles and 36 RBIs. Independence played just two games before the coronavirus pandemic shut down the Eagles' season.

Vanderbilt in the MLB Draft

Vanderbilt has four players in the MLB 200 who are expected to be picked.

• Infielder Austin Martin is projected as the No. 2 pick in the draft by the Baltimore Orioles. Martin hit a team-high .377 in the Commodores' 16 games before the season ended because of COVID-19. He hit three home runs and six doubles with 35 RBIs.
• Teammate Jake Eder (1-1) had a 3.60 ERA in four starts and is the No. 59 prospect in the MLB 200. He had 27 strikeouts and nine walks.
• Reliever Tyler Brown  is the No. 133 prospect in the MLB 200. He was 1-2 with a save and had a 2.53 ERA in seven appearances. 
• Hugh Fisher is No. 153 in the MLB 200. He sat out the 2020 season because of arm surgery. He was 2-0 with a 4.41 ERA in 22 appearances in 2019.

Reach Tom Kreager at 615-259-8089 or tkreager@tennessean.com and on Twitter @Kreager.