Will Justin Hackett go pro? The Winterset baseball star faces a big decision heading into the MLB draft

WINTERSET — Justin Hackett compiled a list of goals during his freshman baseball season at Winterset High School.

Hackett posted the list on a wall in his bedroom. He wanted to earn scholarship offers (one and then five), commit to a college, and have his fastball touch the mid-90s and eventually hit 97 mph.

But as Hackett began accomplishing some of those goals, he started adding more aggressive ones during his sophomore season.

Become an NCAA All-American.

Sign a professional contract.

Make it through the minors.

Become a Hall of Famer.

“Being able to stay hungry and just know that you set your own limits and being able to understand that is kind of what made me add to it,” Hackett said.

Hackett has high expectations for himself. And for good reason. The hard-throwing right-handed pitcher from Winterset is one of the top high school baseball players in the state.

Hackett has already accomplished many of his goals. He became a heavily sought-after recruit, committed to play baseball at Texas Christian, and his fastball reached 95 mph this year. Now he has his sights on bigger ones.

“I see no cap, no ceiling and I certainly wouldn't be shocked five years from now to see him on TV,"  said David Conrad, a pitching coach at SportsPlex West in Waukee who has worked with Hackett.

More: 10 Iowa high school and college baseball players to watch for in the MLB Draft this summer

How Hackett fell in love with baseball and became the state's most dominant pitcher

Hackett had a passion for baseball at an early age.

When his older brother, Mitchell, played at Winterset, Justin usually tagged along to games. Justin brought a bat, ball and glove and made someone play with him between innings. His father, Mike, would catch bullpens for him in their backyard or at the field when he was just 8 years old. Mike bought his own catching equipment. Justin threw simulated games and had Mike keep track of how many pitches he threw and how many were strikes.

“It was his thing,” Mike said. “He’d say, ‘OK, I’ve got a batter, one out and there’s a guy at second.’”

Mike could see early on that Justin had plenty of potential. Justin started hitting the upper 80s with his fastball and could make it move by around the time he was a freshman. Justin threw so hard that Mike couldn’t keep up. One day, Justin was working on his curveball and tried spinning one over the plate. Mike didn’t have the right footwear and broke his toe. He decided to quit catching Justin.

It didn't stop Justin from getting work in. He became a regular at SportsPlex West. The indoor training facility — home to the Iowa Sticks, a premier baseball program — had mounds, weights, coaches and everything else Hackett needed. Conrad said Hackett would spend hours there training, throwing and talking with anyone he could about pitching.

"I would bet there's days he's there for over seven hours," Conrad said.

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The hard work paid off for Hackett, who was on the radar of college teams at an early age. When Hackett was just 14, he attended a Prep Baseball Report showcase at the University of Iowa. During the showcase, Hackett's fastball sat between 83-85 mph. It was strong velocity for a kid who was still growing, still developing and had yet to even throw a pitch in a high school game.

But coaches had already seen enough. A couple of months after the showcase, a coach from Valparaiso reached out to the Iowa Sticks to let them know they were interested in Hackett. Eventually, other schools came calling, including Iowa and Big 12 Conference powerhouse TCU.

"It was surreal," Hackett said.

Hackett became one of the state's most dominant pitchers as a freshman. During his first season, he went 4-1 with a 1.70 ERA and 44 strikeouts in 33 innings. Hackett touched 90 on the radar gun for the first time as a sophomore, going 4-0 with a 1.46 ERA and 44 strikeouts in just 24 innings that year.

The attention only intensified during his junior season.

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Hackett's pro potential and looming decision

The first in a long list of MLB teams to reach out to Hackett came at the beginning of his junior season. A scout from the San Francisco Giants showed up to one of his starts with Winterset. As Hackett rolled through another strong season, more showed up. He compiled a 2.02 ERA with 87 strikeouts in 52 innings and took Winterset to the state tournament.

Hackett kept going to showcases and participated in the Area Code Games, an opportunity reserved for some of the nation's top prospects. Hackett said he has heard from about 26 of the 30 big-league teams who may be interested in selecting him during the MLB Draft, scheduled for July 17-19.

Hackett checks in at 6-foot-3 and around 210 pounds and believes he may not be done growing. His fastball, usually around 91-93 mph, is complemented by a hammer curveball and a strong changeup.

"He's a really hard-working kid," an MLB scout told the Register. "I know he gets after that. Those guys usually do well in college and end up being good draft picks."

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Hackett will have a big decision to make later in the year. If an MLB team drafts him and offers him the right amount of money, he could decide to skip college and go pro. It's a path former Dowling Catholic pitcher Carter Baumler took. Baumler had committed to TCU but was drafted by the Baltimore Orioles in the fifth round and signed for $1.5 million.

Hackett has hired an advisor to help him through the draft process. He wouldn't say how many dollars it would take to keep him from going to college. He said right now his focus is on his senior season and getting Winterset back to the state tournament and winning a title.

"There's going to be a lot going into it," Hackett said. "But when the time comes, it'll be more kind of an on-the-day decision. ... I'm grateful for all the opportunities that have been given there. The work's not done. So I've got some time here before that type of decision comes. I've just got to keep working."

Winning a state title is just one of those goals that Hackett has. Like hitting 97 mph, becoming an All-American (if he goes to college) and becoming a big-leaguer and Hall of Famer. Hackett has been motivated to accomplish it all since he strategically put the list of goals in a spot where he'd walk by it every day.

"I'm ready to continue working each and every day to make that dream come true," he said.

Tommy Birch, the Register's sports enterprise and features reporter, has been working at the newspaper since 2008. He's the 2018 and 2020 Iowa Sportswriter of the Year. Reach him at tbirch@dmreg.com or 515-284-8468. Follow him on Twitter @TommyBirch.

This article originally appeared on Des Moines Register: Winterset's Justin Hackett on MLB teams' radar heading into draft