Season 10 Amateur Draft First Round Recap

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This is based off of my ADV Scouting so I'm sure others will see things differently. After doing this review, this was a much deeper draft than the last couple seasons as it wasn't til very late in the first round where I came across guys that probably won't at least be decent contributors in the big leagues.

1. Danny Smoltz - Power hitting infielder that will crush lefties and hold his own against righties...can't go wrong with that. It will be interesting to see where he ends up defensively. he doesn't project to even an average SS, but with his offensive skills, it might be prudent to live with him at SS. Or he could be a possible gold glover at another infield position.

2. Marino Terrero - Pretty nice player although his OVR looks like its inflated a bit by his "yellow" ratings. I'm guessing allright didn't see some of the guys that went after Terrero or he would have grabbed them. Or I could be completely wrong. Terrero will be a nice middle of the lineup guy with a good combo of average, power, and speed.

3. Terrence Shields - Awesome hitter and I bet arte was ecstatic he fell to him. There really arne't any holes in his swing. Should be a perennial Silver Slugger candidate and in some seasons could hit well enough to challenge for MVP status.

4. Chris Dawkins - College pitcher who should hit the pro's sooner than later. I'm guessing by Season 12 he'll be in the Buckeyes rotation.

5. Lance Jodie - Jodie is still deciding on whether he wants to go play pro hockey or not. I've heard of dual baseball and football athletes, but never a baseball and hockey athlete. Pretty impressive. If Jodie does sign, he'll be a really nice pitcher down the line. If not, Memphis will pick up a top 5 pick for next season.

6. Nolan Boone - Another college pitcher who should see the pros sooner than later. A nice combination of splits and pitchers should make him a solid starter for New Orleans.

7. Gary Frey - First off, the Tar Heels were hoping Frey would drop to them. Frey is a really nice pitcher and the argument could be made he is the best pitcher taken yet considering his excellent control, righty split, velocity, and first pitch. Great value at #7. You're officially on my list though sirius. (just kidding...maybe)

8. Sonny White - The Heels quickly got over the disappointment and snatched up White who was ranked right after Frey. White joins a nice stable of SP prospects in the Tar Heels system. Although his STA is a bit low, the Heels hope his DUR will make up for that as his splits and pitches project very nicely.

9. Bret Hutch - Yet another pitcher goes in the top ten and another solid selection. Although it seems like 3 pitch SP are hit and miss, Hutch seems to have enough solid projections in other key ratings that he will be a nice addition to the Rebels rotation.

10. Robin Raines - The top relief prospect in the draft goes next to round out the top ten. Raines should be a lock down closer if he progresses well. For the first time in NCAA history, it looks like there arne't any "surprises" in the top ten.

11. Doug Sullivan - The steal of the draft. Sullivan dropped because of his signability issues, but Fargo rolled the dice and boy did it pay off. One of the many reasons why mikejuggalo is such a good owner. Sullivan should compete for MVP's down the road.

12. Rocky Chance - Hasn't signed yet although it does look like an initial offer was made and the player demanded more. No word yet from Charleston if they are going to agree to Chance's demands. If they do, they will be getting a decent player, but would be much better if he projected to above average defensively as good hitting, good defensive SS are in such high demand.

13. Bucky Arnold - Another really nice selection. Although Arnold doesn't have any great pitches, they are all above average and combined with his splits, he should be a nice pitcher for a long time. Great value for bighead here.

14. McKay Benes - First of all, great name. Secondly, interesting pick. Always scary to take a guy with sub 50 health this early, but he has nice talent. He is probably a reliever with that STA/DUR combo, but could be a great 2 inning closer.

15. Brian Smith - Solid if not spectacular choice. Smith is also an awesome bunter. Looks like he could be a great #2 hitter in the future while playing a solid 2B.

16. Devon Browning - Another nice hitter goes to Helena and an example that OVR isn't everything. As long as he avoids the injury bug he should be a nice hitter for the Grizzlies. This is definitely a deeper draft than we've had the last couple seasons.

17. Tommie Osbourne - Would really like this pick if the splits were reversed, but still a nice mid round selection considering his nice control and excellent first pitch.

18. Alex Pimentel - Love, love, love this selection and probably rank it right below Fargo's selection as top value. Great hitting catchers that are also decent defenively seem to be really tough to grab in HBD and to get one at pick 18 is excellent. Even better is he'll be ready pretty soon as he is coming out of 3 seasons in college.

19. Robert Frederick - Wish his defense was higher, but then he probably would have soon earlier. He'll have to max out his defensive ratings to be used at SS. He is a scrapper at the plate, but probably doesn't have the bat to overcome his defense at SS and doesn't have the power you typically would like to see at 3B.

20. Howie Ryan - Interesting pick and can't wait to see how he does. Splits are excellent and if he had two great pitches he probably would have been grabbed earlier. He has one very good pitch and another average one. It seems like these guys have had mixed success so we'll see how Ryan progresses.

21. Joe Alexander - He hasn't signed yet. He'll be a decent middle of the rotation guy if he does.

22. Jorge Torres - Definitely is not a SS and is currently playing 2B in rookie ball. Could be a good third baseman as well. Has a nice bat although splits are only average.

23. Tony Acevedo - Would really like this pick if his range was a bit higher, but still could work out nicely. Its not easy to find good defense, good hitting CFers and if Acevedo maxes out his potential he could be exactly that. Nice pick as we enter the latter third of the first round.

24. Mike Rivers - Rivers should be able to contribute in the big leagues. His pitches will hold him back, but his splits and other ratings should make him a decent SP as long as you don't expect crazy numbers out of him.

25. Rodrigo Sanchez - Probably a reliever with his STA/DUR combo, but will be a very good reliever with his splits and pitches. Always nice to find any type of pitcher of this caliber this late in the first round. Should definitely lead the Mustangs bullpen one day.

26. D.J. Jennings - Still hasn't signed although he'd be a nice pick if he did as a solid CF prospect. If he doesn't than arte will get this pick next season. Decent gamble.

27. Ken Hooper - My first though was to say orobably the first guy I'd say doesn't have a chance at the bigs except for as a long reliever or more likely as a mop up specifically because of his low splits. However, he has two pitches that project to high 90's and three other decent pitches. Can't wait to see how he develops.

28. Chris Aaron - Solid selection and will definitely be able to help out the bullpen one day.

29. Buzz Beirne - Great value and a prototypical closer. Could have gone 10 - 15 spots higher and I wouldn't have blinked with the splits and pitches combo. Will save a lot of games in his career.

30. Coco Laroche - Currently playing SS, but has no chance of doing that long term, but is perfectly suited for a corner IF/OF position and has a decent enough bat to make it work.

31. Eric Wells - I don't see Wells doing much except at best a 25th guys on the roster. Glove isn't good enough and only has an average bat, but could be useful as a pinch runner.

32. Perry Abbott - Nice pick. Will hit for average and good power. I'm guessing the Trojans were perfectly content with Abbott falling to them here.

33. Turk James - Long reliever or mop up guy at best with his splits and pitches.

34. Al Moreno - Very nice pick although he won't pitch many innings. The innings he does pitch he should be very good. He is also a candidate for "what the heck is wrong with this guy?" when his ERA and WHIP are really high one season because of such a small sample size.

35. Albie Alvarez - Don't see Alvarez making much of a dent on the Orange's 40 man roster let alone big league team.

36. Phil Worrell - Could progress to be a decent reliever although like Moreno above, he won't pitch many innings.