Homewood-Flossmoor’s Dillon Head takes ‘sneaky juice’ to San Diego Padres after being drafted in first round

When Homewood-Flossmoor’s Dillon Head was taken in the first round of the MLB draft by the San Diego Padres, team officials were naturally excited about his speed.

A.J. Preller, San Diego’s president of baseball operations, called the Glenwood native the fastest player in the draft.

But Chris Kemp, the team’s scouting director, also told reporters in a video conference that the left-handed outfielder will surprise people with his power.

“I think there’s sneaky juice in there offensively,” Kemp said of the 5-foot-11, 180-pound Head. “He’s a guy that goes line to line and works good (at-bats).”

Head, who had committed to Clemson before his senior season, was chosen with the 25th pick not long after hitting .485 with 35 runs, 31 steals, six homers and 25 RBIs for H-F.

As a junior, Head produced a .467 batting average with six homers and 28 RBIs. He had a school-record 57 hits and 35 stolen bases for the Vikings.

John McCarthy, who guided Head at H-F before taking the same job as Lincoln-Way East’s head coach shortly after the MLB draft, has seen some of that “sneaky juice” up close.

“I think what they mean by ‘sneaky juice’ is that people don’t understand how much power he has,” McCarthy said. “He’s such a great line drive, gap-to-gap hitter.”

McCarthy, who was Brother Rice’s coach when Michael Massey played for the Crusaders, sees hitting similarities.

Massey, an infielder for the Kansas City Royals, hit two home runs in a July 21 game at Yankee Stadium.

“Massey was a line drive hitter with balls that left the yard but wasn’t a power hitter in high school,” McCarthy said. “As he continued to develop in college and pro ball, all of a sudden, he’s gotten bigger and stronger and the balls are leaving the yard.

“Dillon drives a lot of balls. He hits a lot of line drives that carry out of the ballpark, and it reminds me of Massey.”

Head originally verbally committed to Michigan before switching to Clemson. He will forego college, however, after signing a deal with a reported $2.8 million bonus.

Head told reporters he has been to San Diego in the past for a high school showcase.

“It’s probably my favorite place,” he said. “I’m definitely grateful and appreciative of the Padres selecting me.”

He added draft night offered up “a surreal moment” when his name was called and his parents began to cry.

“It just made me feel real emotional,” he said. “I just love making them proud, seeing all they did for me to get to this point.”

Head and his family were not the only ones who were excited on draft night.

McCarthy didn’t want to be around too many people when the draft was taking place.

“I was nervous and I was excited,” he said. “There had been a lot of preparation. Dillon is such a great kid. I was just praying for what would happen for him, and thankfully, it did.”

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McCarthy remembers first meeting Head during a camp before the outfielder was in high school. He said Head made a good first impression.

“You could see right away Dillon was a very determined young man,” McCarthy said. “He took direction very well. He worked extremely hard in all of the drills.

“You could tell he was extremely focused. I didn’t have a lot of conversation with him.”

That businesslike and serious attitude had McCarthy thinking Head would end up being a special player.

“Every kid in every camp across the country has the ability to stand out,” McCarthy said. “You’re going to stand out with your hard work and your attitude and your energy.

“And he did all of those.”

Jeff Vorva is a freelance reporter for the Daily Southtown.