Trophies, honors, awards don’t faze Tim Melville

It is easy for the top high school pitching prospect in America to stay grounded and keep working hard every day. Heck, Tim Melville barely remembers all the hardware he has already racked up in his baseball journey.

“Sometimes I forget about it,” said the Wentzville, Mo. native. “I’ve got a trophy area in the basement, and sometimes I’ll totally forget that I won that. People remind you every day, but I just focus on playing every day. It keeps me level headed. I just focus on getting better and being number one.”

Melville easily grabs attention for his fastball, which touches 95 mph, as well as his imposing 6-5, 205-pound figure on the mound. Add his above-average power at the plate as a third baseman, first baseman and DH, and it is easy to see why he is the top high school prospect in the United States, according to Baseball America.

In his junior year at Holt High School, the right-hander went 10-1 with a save and a 0.89 ERA to lead the Indians to Missouri’s Class 4-A finals, a school-best finish. He allowed 33 hits and 21 walks and collected 117 strikeouts. He also threw a seven-inning perfect game, as well as a five-inning no-hitter. At the plate, he hit .443 with 28 runs, 13 doubles, two triples, a home run and 30 RBI.

Melville’s incredible third season at Holt earned him a trip to the Aflac All-American High School Baseball Classic, widely regarded as the top prep all-star game in the country for rising seniors and underclassmen. Before the game, Melville won the Jackie Robinson Award, which is given to the top high school player in the country. He also took home the Top Pitching Prospect award, becoming the first player to receive both awards in the Classic’s history.

“The pitching prospect award at the Aflac All-American was the biggest award ever because I knew all the guys I was going up against,” Melville said. “Then add the very prestigious Jackie Robins award…it was neat.”

Scouts and recruiters have been able to keep up with Melville even though he has spent a good deal of time crisscrossing the country. He credits his mother, Valerie, for driving him to his games and always offering support, whether it was for tee-ball during their time in Arizona, baseball camps through Old Dominion University in Virginia or his high school ball in Missouri.

Melville’s path to stardom hasn’t always been easy, however. In his sophomore year, he pitched just three innings with what was feared to be a torn labrum in his right shoulder. After visiting with numerous doctors, including famed sports orthopedic surgeon James Andrews, Melville’s injury was diagnosed as tendonitis. He played it safe regardless, and just played first, third and DH for the Indians while batting .355 with four home runs, seven doubles and 16 RBIs in 62 at-bats.

While it was difficult not being able to pitch, Melville admits the time off probably did him some good. After taking the spring and summer off from pitching and concentrating on physical therapy, Melville saw some additional zip on his fastball when he took the mound in the fall.

“I’m not sure what happened, but it didn’t hurt over the summer anymore,” Melville said. “I picked up a couple of miles per hour on the fastball and it felt back to normal.”

His baseball talent, sky-high potential and 3.4 grade-point average has caught the attention of numerous college baseball programs around the country, but Melville narrowed his top two choices to Arizona State and the University of North Carolina. While ASU was a tempting option because his family owns a home in Arizona and Melville spent some time there as a child, UNC won out because of its proximity to the Virginia area where he still spends his summers.

“Pretty much the main point for me at UNC is the coach’s philosophy is similar to the philosophy of my summer coaches about playing baseball,” Melville said. “The coaches are really laid back. The go hard, but they’re really cool guys, and I really connected with them fast. They work hard and work to win and expect to win.”

Of course, Melville also has caught the attention of Major League Baseball scouts. He has not ruled out joining the professional ranks and foregoing college altogether, but he said it will depend on where he lands in the draft.

“It is too early to say anything, so it will just happen when it happens,” he adds. “UNC is exciting, but it will all come down to the wire.”

View more photos of Tim in our gallery section.