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OXFORD, Ala. (WIAT) — Oxford shortstop Rocco Maniscalco is set to be one of the youngest players taken in the MLB Draft in decades.
After reclassifying from the class of 2027 to 2026, Maniscalco enters the draft at just 17 years and 2 months of age.
“I’ve been coaching a long time; he’s the most advanced young player I’ve ever seen,” said Oxford Head Baseball coach Travis Janssen.
That’s the general consensus of the Yellow Jackets’ shortstop. MLB.com ranks him as the No. 49 prospect in the 2026 Draft Class.
“Dedication, work ethic, and talent, he has a lot of god given talent,” Janssen said. “But I think the neat thing about Rocco is he’s capitalized on it.”
Arkansas State signee Marcus Lawler has played alongside Maniscalco since the two were five years old.
“It was kind of crazy to watch him start to separate himself, as we got older the tools started to develop,” Lawler said. “But every time I start to think about the success, I just think about the guy who would spend the night at my house every night.”
Now at just 17 years old, Maniscalco is setting the stage for the next generation.
“It’s a neat thing for the future of kids from Oxford because you see neat things like this, it’s a lot easier for kids to dream that this could happen,” Janssen said.
Watch the full story above.
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