mlb draft

[Goalpost]

It is getting close to that time. So, here are some of the prospects in a mock.

Should we draft a pitcher or a hitter? High school kid or college kid? Seems like there are some decent pitchers this year to me.

http://bleacherreport.com/articles/2777182-2018-mlb-mock-draft-with-2-weeks-remaining

[Yojimbo]

We have lots of depth in the minors. Probably just a BPA type of draft. Would be nice to get a young 1b with some power in the pipeline. Voto isn't going to be around forever. I wouldn't hate getting that highschool 3b Gorman and moving him over to first.

[guyofthetiger]

I always say to draft the best player available. They can be traded or developed.

[grampahol]

Baseball draft is even more of a crap shoot than football..  Look at Hunter Green.. Great HS pitcher, but his era in Dayton is around 10.xx... Not exactly what the hometown fans are hoping to see.. 

[Yojimbo]

(05-27-2018, 10:43 AM)grampahol Wrote: Baseball draft is even more of a crap shoot than football..  Look at Hunter Green.. Great HS pitcher, but his era in Dayton is around 10.xx... Not exactly what the hometown fans are hoping to see.. 

That’s more of a product of him working on new pitches and mechanics. He’s still developing, not a finished product.

[Yojimbo]

Red.com has a good draft primer link.

https://www.mlb.com/reds/news/reds-can-benefit-from-new-minors-team-in-draft/c-278523518

[grampahol]

(05-27-2018, 10:52 AM)Yojimbo Wrote: That’s more of a product of him working on new pitches and mechanics. He’s still developing, not a finished product.

Of course.. They all have to develop big league stuff to be successful. Not many pitchers are going far with just a 100 mph fastball. Big league hitters can swat a flat 100 mph fastball all day long is it doesn't have movement and they better have an assortment of pitches to keep em guessing.. 

[samhain]

I'd say they need to take a pitcher, but they really suck at developing starting pitchers. Might be a waste of a high pick.

As for Greene, at least if he sucks as a pitcher, they can have him pivot to being an everyday player and try to salvage something. I'm still hoping he pans out as a starter, though. He's going to take a few years.

[CJD]

I would like a near pro level player. Hitter or pitcher, doesn't really matter.

A Mike Leake type would be an absolute God Send at this point.

[tBengal]

Brady Singer if he's available otherwise they'll probably go with the Oregon State kid, Madrigal(sp?).

[Goalpost]

1st pick

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/sports/highschool/baseball/palm-beach/fl-sp-baseball-draft-jonathan-india-20180604-story.html

Seems like another Senzel type pick. Had 18 HR's, batted .360, 24 game hitting streak, good glove at 3rd. Selective hitter drew a lot of walks also with over .500 OBP

[Yojimbo]

Meh, interested to hear the reasoning behind another 3B, but he had good numbers this year and fairly advanced hitter already.

[grampahol]

(06-04-2018, 10:04 PM)Yojimbo Wrote: Meh, interested to hear the reasoning behind another 3B, but he had good numbers this year and fairly advanced hitter already.

I have a hunch one of the  3, Suarez, Sinzel or India has trade written all over them .. However, I have almost zero faith in the FO to pull off a trade worth getting. 

[grampahol]

(05-26-2018, 11:11 AM)Yojimbo Wrote: We have lots of depth in the minors. Probably just a BPA type of draft. Would be nice to get a young 1b with some power in the pipeline. Voto isn't going to be around forever. I wouldn't hate getting that highschool 3b Gorman and moving him over to first.

India might be that guy. Excellent defense and can hit for power, but I don't see anyone jumping over Votto in the foreseeable future . 

[Yojimbo]

(06-05-2018, 05:53 AM)grampahol Wrote: India might be that guy. Excellent defense and can hit for power, but I don't see anyone jumping over Votto in the foreseeable future . 

Yeah, Votto has another 5 years probably. Too soon to get a Junior from college in the pipeline behind him. I was thinking of getting a highschool guy in the 1b pipeline, maybe today.

[SunsetBengal]

I see the Reds took a 3B, and a pair of RH Pitchers. Anyone follow prospects closely enough to know if they're really any good?

https://www.mlb.com/reds/news/reds-select-jonathan-india-in-mlb-draft/c-279777954

[Goalpost]

Word is that the Reds tried to work an under slot deal with Matthew Liberatore, a HS lefty but were unsuccessful preceding the draft. He ended up going 16th.

MLB network really emphasized the state of baseball and defensive shifts seemingly every time a 3rd baseman was chosen. Stats show roughly 20 percent of the time, teams deploy 3 infielders on one/either side of second base.

[CJD]

(06-05-2018, 10:38 AM)SunsetBengal Wrote: I see the Reds took a 3B, and a pair of RH Pitchers.  Anyone follow prospects closely enough to know if they're really any good?

https://www.mlb.com/reds/news/reds-select-jonathan-india-in-mlb-draft/c-279777954

I don't know anything about the pitchers, but I was following the top 10 prospects (the ones we were likely to look into with our first pick) in anticipation and I'm pretty happy with the India pick.

MLB.com has him rated very favorably across the board. 55 hit, 55 power, 50 run, 55 arm, 55 fielding, 55 overall. For those unfamiliar with the scale, it's 20 to 80. 50 is considered league average. 55 is above average, 60 is a plus tool, 70 is plus plus, and 80 is, well...a perfect tool.

It's unclear if those ratings are future or current. When Senzel came out, his scouting report was 55 hit, 50 power, 50 run, 55 arm, 55 fielding, 55 overall. He has since risen to 70 hit, 55 power, 55 run, 60 arm, 60 fielding, 65 overall. So those numbers will continue to increase if India performs well in the minors. That tells me they believe India, at his current state right now, is better than the average major leaguer in hitting, power, arm strength and fielding, with room to grow further.

His pros (summarizing what I feel are the key parts): 
1. Projectable power. He was one of the better power hitters in the draft, with a developed sense of plate discipline and hitting for average. 
2. He has flexibility on position. He can easily play 3B, could probably transition to 2B and some scouts feel he would be serviceable at SS as well. He could also go to either corner outfield spot or, obviously, 1B if necessary. 
3. He is arguably the most MLB ready hitter in the entire draft with high walk rates and good contact and plate discipline. 
4. Isn't a blazer but is instinctive on the base paths and can steal bases with good speed. 

His cons: 
1. His strikeout rate was higher than you expect out of an elite hitter in college. He walked as much as he struck out (49 to 48), but his strikeout rate was still too high (compare his strikeout rate of 15.5 to Senzel's final college year, which was under 9%). 
2. He was very average to underwhelming as a prospect in his first two years of college. This is truly a "breakout season" but some worry it may be a one hit wonder season, based on his prospect status coming out of high school and after his first two years. This includes his plate discipline, strikeout rate and power all made meteoric jumps over the course of one year, which is not great for a prospect. He truly is the "hot prospect" of this draft, and that sometimes bites the people that drafted them.
3. We're crowded at 3B/2B with Senzel and Suarez, but this is minor, as you can always flip the worst defender out into the outfield, where we have very few prospects that are demanding playing time (Duvall is crap and Schebler is merely decent). 

[Yojimbo]

Finally got what I wanted in the 3rd, Brenden Spillane. Big, 6’5” 210lb, 1B with power. Led all of Div-1 in slugging and OPS.

Interesting we got the SEC (India) and Big 10 (Spillane) players of the year.

[tBengal]

I could see India flying through the minors. He's that type of player IMO(watched Florida a ton this year). I also like the Spillane pick. His numbers are insane.