Season 14 - Amateur Draft Review by tk21775

Big thanks again for tk's assist with Season 14's review.

My advance scouting is only 10 with my large payroll, although my high school and college is set at 15 each. I’ll try and put next to each name the number of the scouting.

1). Louisville Cardinals – Carlos Martinez (15) – He was the top pitcher on my draft board and the Cardinals grabbed themselves a top SP with the #1 pick. He’s got the durability and stamina to pitch deep into the game, the control, splits, and pitches to be a true #1 when he steps onto the mound. Most teams drafting at this position hope there’s a guy like this in the draft and the Cardinals lucked out and grabbed their future ace.

2). Charleston Cougars – Craig Parrish (10) – All depends on the ratings with this guy and of course he’s on my list of low advance scouting. Defensively I see him as a 2B but he’ll be forced to play CF as he’s a lefty. He’ll be a terror on the base path with his speed, he’ll hit for power and has great contact and eye along with a solid vR. If my scouting is low on him defensively and he can play CF then I really like this pick.

3). Iowa City Hawkeyes – Earl Hodges (15) – This pick will depend on how Hodges develops. I see his defense more suited for 3B but a case could be made for him at SS which is the position he was drafted. If he can handle SS he’ll bring a nice bat for that position, if he ends up at 3B his bat is just average. Given the players picked after Hodges looks like a reach to me but if he can play SS defensively without too many errors then it’s a solid pick.

4). New York Red Storm – Scott Lord (15) – Another top starting pitching prospect, New York has to love that they we’re able to grab him at #4. His projections are very similar to Martinez who was taken with the #1 pick and he’s also a lefty. These two pitchers could easily be collecting the Cy Young award for their respective leagues in future seasons.

5). Buffalo Bulls – Khalil Drew (15) – The best overall hitter on my draft board, the Bulls found themselves a masher at the #5 spot. Drew has no weakness when he steps into the batter’s box and will be feared by pitchers. This lefty will take over RF for the Bulls when he gets called up and has nice speed. Very solid pick but looks like Drew still hasn’t signed.

6). Memphis Tigers – Lee Golub (15) – CF always seems like a hard position to fill so if you can find a center fielder in the draft it’s always a good bet. Golub looks like he should be able to handle the position alright defensively and he’ll have some speed out there. He won’t be hitting a ton of balls out of the park but his contact and splits are solid enough that he’ll hold his own in the box and have every catcher nervous when he is on the bases. I didn’t see this is a deep draft but the Tigers managed to grab a nice overall player at a tough position to fill.

7). Helana – Paul Walker (15) – I had 3 nice SP on my draft board at Walker was #3. His durability/stamina combination allows him to be a starting pitcher and out of the 3 SP taken he has the best splits overall. I’ve never had a SP with only 3 pitches that I can remember and have heard owners argue whether it makes a difference or not with SP. Will be interesting to see how Walker fares with that but grabbing the #3 SP in the draft with the #7 pick is a no brainer with the lack of position players available.

8). Jackson Rebals – Stuart Schrenk (15) – Schrenk will be able to pitch a ton of innings with his durability and stamina and has outstanding control. His splits are simply average but he should be a solid #3/4 SP given his control and pitches.

9). Hunington Thundering Herd – Al Chavez (10) – Chavez has the control and splits I like to see in a closer with some solid pitches as well. His stamina/durability combination won’t allow him to throw many pitches or he’ll be resting his arm quite often.

10). New Orleans Bayou Bengals – Brandon Galloway (15) – The 2nd SS taken in the top 10, Galloway also looks to be a gold glove at 3B but not quite a SS for me with his glove. His bat isn’t too far off of Hodges taken at #3 so nice value pick at #10. According to my board he was the best player left at this point to take.

11). Philadelphia Owls – Aaron Scelfo (15) – Outside of Kahlil Drew and Yuuta Kata, Scelfo had the best bat that I could see. He’s listed as a DH but could probably handle 1B position and play every inning, every game for the Owls. He doesn’t quite have the power I like at either the DH or 1B position but you can’t argue against the splits, eye, and contact. 3rd best hitter grabbed at with the #11 pick isn’t too bad.

12). Oakland Golden Bears – Jimmy Larkin (15) – Larkin will be a nice reliever, great control and nice splits. I would have went with cousin Bob with this pick instead of Jimmy but it’s still not a bad pick outside the top ten in a weak draft.

13). Columbus Buckeyes – Charlie Post (10) – Low scouting for me but he’s got an outstanding bat and can handle the catcher position. He will definitely contribute when he gets a chance but with his durability that low I just don’t see him having too many chances to swing the lumber to make a difference throughout a season. In the playoffs however he could make himself known.

14). Seattle Huskies – Yuuta Kata (15) – 2nd best bat of the draft on my board. Has great contact, splits, and eye although just like Scelfo, a little less power than I personally like at this position. Low health is a concern but to grab the 2nd best hitter with the 14th pick made this a choice the Huskies could live with given his potential.

15). Chicago Blue Demons – Bob Larkin (15) – Great pick at #15. Larking is a solid reliever that could pitch innings 8 and 9 in a lot of games. He’s got great control and very nice splits along with two good pitches. Great steal at #15 as these types of closers with the stamina/durability make managing a bullpen much easier.

16). Buffalo – Omar Leon (15) – Left handed SP with great control and vL, along with solid vR. Velocity and groundball below average, along with two decent pitches. This lefty will pitch in the majors someday as a #3/4 pitcher.

17). Boise – Jack Webster (15) – Glove is a little weak to play the 2B position but the rest of the defense is there. He’ll have a nice bat at this position if he can keep the errors down.

18). New York – Johnny Thompson (10) – If my projections are close I really, really like this pick. Outstanding control, with good splits and 3 solid pitches out of a closer. Durability/stamina combo isn’t quite there but at #18 this is a very solid pickup for a solid setup/closer type pitcher.

19). Minnesota Golden Gophers – Domingo Ibanez (15) – Power hitting bat, great contact and vR, this guy should hit quite a few homeruns. His defense doesn’t excite anyone although he could possibly play C against a team that doesn’t run much. For an AL team, great hitting draft prospect this late in the draft.

20). Dover Fightin Blue Hens – Bruce Moore – Hasn’t signed

21). Arizona Sun Devils – Matt Reynolds (10) – Decent control and splits, although no solid individual pitch amongst the 4.

22). Portland Ducks – Scott Lloyd (15) – Reliever with great control, nice splits, and two great pitches. Has the durability to be on the mound in the 9th for most games. Solid selection for the Ducks in the late round.

23). Little Rock – Tim Ashby (15) – Has enough defensive to handle center fielder, little power although average splits in the bat.

24). Charleston Cougars – Thom Drew (10) – Average control although decent splits and 3 solid pitches should help. Will be a nice contributor for the pitching staff.

25). Huntington Thundering Herd – Bob Dodd (10) – Looks to have solid defense at the SS position along with some nice speed as well. Has great vR projections with average contact; eye is quite low. Should be a solid defensive contributor if he stays health and gets close to his numbers.

26). LAA – Randy Aurilia (10) - Has the defense to play 2B and some nice speed. Bat has nice contact and vL with some power although eye is pretty low.

27). Richmond Spiders – Miguel Ramirez (10) – Has a great bat that will hit for power, looks to be more suited for DH as he doesn’t have the defense for catcher. If his makeup allows him to develop his bat it will be a nice pickup at this point in the draft.

28). Syracuse Orange – Ivan Luna (10) – My projections have him closer to LF than 2B so will depend on his position. Great contact, vL, and batting eye along with average power and vR. If he can play 2B he’ll have a nice bat for the position, if left field he’ll still have a nice bat.

29). Philadelphia Owls – Derrick Longoria (15) – Has the defensive to be a great catcher, limiting runners from stealing and being able to call a game. Has some nice power in his bat as well, with decent contact although splits are average. He’ll have to share games with another catcher due to his durability.

30). Kansas City Wildcats– Matt Oliver (10) – Love the pick here. Guy has the stamina/durability to be a regular closer; great control, splits, groundball pitcher, with two very good pitches. The makeup is high that he looks to get close to where he should be. Nice job by the Wildcats here.

31). Charlotte Heels – Jason Snider (15) – Nice pickup by the Heels to grab a solid defensive SS who could be a gold glove this deep in the draft. He’ll be able to hit against lefties a little as well.

32). LAA – Renyel Tejeda (15) – Great contact and speed with the defensive to manage RF along with a little pop in his bat but below avg splits, especially for a corner outfielder.