Season 19 - Amateur Draft First Round Review

I did 1, 21-33...tk did 2-10, and hurricane did 11-20.  Thanks again guys!

1. Detroit Wolverines - Douglas Lawrie

Really like this pick.  Typically you'd prefer a #1 SP, but a power hitting 3B is hard to come by as well and Lawrie fits the bill. Someone to build around as the Wolverines continue to re-tool.
tk21775 - "With the #1 pick, the Detroit Wolverines found their future 3B player; Lawrie projects to have a very nice power bat, with no real flaws up at the plate, defensively he'll be able to handle the corner position for us and had all the right ratings we were looking for with this pick."

2 Syracuse Orange - Mario Hiljus

Another SS taken with the #2 pick who will more than likely be converted to a 3B when he reaches the minors. Has the durability to play everyday, great speed and a solid all around bat, although his power is just average.

evil doers - "The Orange is quite thrilled with the addition of first round pick Mario Hiljus. We’re still in negotiations on his first deal but we expect to see him in uniform soon. We’re not sure where he’ll end up in the field yet. Best money is on 2B, RF, or possibly even CF. Some may say that we may have passed on better prospects. However we love our guy. His projections may not be as good as some others but we feel he had the best chance to reach his numbers. We also feel that he can be dressed in Orange for his full career which played a huge part in deciding on his selection. We also felt that he does better against right-handed pitchers compared to some of the others. Considering 75% of the starters in the league are probably righties we liked this as well. Gotta run, I think I hear his agent calling!"
*Breaking News*

That call was indeed the one we were waiting for. Mario Hiljus has signed his contract and will be in the lineup this evening

3. Boise Broncos - Keith Petersen

With the #3 pick the SS trend continues and once again, Petersen will likely be playing the corner when he reaches the majors. Great bat for the corner position, will hit for power and crush right handed pitchers. Very similiar to Lawrie who was taken #1 overall.


abesmem - "Boise is very happy getting Keith Peterson at #3. While he may end up at 3rd base in the future his should be a great major leaguer. He hits for power and average to all fields and should eat up right-handers. He’s got the perfect make-up and durability and although he doesn’t have outstanding speed, he can bunt and run the bases very well. In short, he is a complete ballplayer. He’s starting out in Hi-A, but should move up rapidly."

4. Kansas City Wildcats - Benny Ingram

One more pick that takes a SS who looks to be a 3B player but is very close to handling SS. Has great speed like Hiljus and will be a power hitter and dominant against lefties. Average contact and eye but if he handles the SS position he'll have an amazing bat for that position; if he plays 3B he still has a great bat.


llcc - "Benny Ingram SS, #4 pick. He has a overall Projected rating of 88. He should hit for power, have a great glove, steal a lot of bases, but his durability is only 79."

5. New York Red Storm - Alan Castillo

NY didn't receive the memo that we were drafting all SS players and ended up taking the 1st pitcher in the draft at the #5 spot. I like the pick, great control and stamina/durability; his splits are decent but with two pitches in the 90's, a third in the 70s, and groundball in the 90s I think he'll be very good.


mamidu - "I had Alan Castillo rated as #3 on my board. Unfortunately, the top 2 went before my pick, but i'm not too upset. I would have liked his vL to be higher, but he is projected to have outsanding control, with above avg vR and 3 outstanding pitches. I was hoping for more with all the comp picks I had, but I think I got 3-5 potential MLers out of this draft "

6. Anaheim Trojans - Dexter Robinson

With the #6 pick, the Trojans also selected a pitcher. His control looks to be the same as NY's pitcher although his stamina/durability isn't quite as high. His splits though are better, he looks to be a stud against righties and with 1 great pitch and 3 others above average he'll be in the Trojan's future rotation.


vino5 - "Robinson hasn't signed yet! He is a potential ace if he does. I also grabbed 2 decent infielders and 2 defensive catchers who should make it to the majors as platoon players."

7. Portland Ducks - Alfredo Carreras

Also a SP selected with outstanding control and two very very good pitches. His vR is lower than I like with the #7 pick but he'll be very good against lefties.

sirius07 - "Carreras has a great potential if he reaches his projections. The Ducks were looking for a player like this. See him in the ML in few seasons."

8. Philadelphia Owls - Brad Cunningham

Great pickup here with another SP taken. Will pitch a ton of innings with his stamina/durability combo, high health and makeup, decent control and good splits along with 2 great pitches. Might be one of the best pitches taken and the Owls landed him with the #8 pick.

jeanpaul22 - "We are very happy about that pick. Cunningham should fit perfectly in our rotation in 3 or 4 seasons. His control is his only weakness. He will become a workhorse and give us many quality innings for many seasons. "

9. Little Rock Razorbacks - Jalal Bowman

The #9 pick landed the first catcher taken in the draft and I'm surprised he lasted this long after seeing him. An everyday catcher who has the defense to play the position and above average pitch calling with a stud bat. Great splits, will swing for power and very good contact.

joekendall - "We were really looking to add another SP, but the ones we had ranked highly went off the board fast. We are happy to get a great C. Overall, we picked up some depth at C for the organization."

10. Arizona State Sun Devils - Artie Pierce

The final pick in the top 10 lands another SP. Great stamina/durability to pitch a lot of innings, 1 great pitch, and 3 above average pitches along with very nice splits. Has very low control though so will be interesting to watch how he does in his career.

spistol - "New Sun Devils management is not one to complain, but it kind of wishes it could have taken over the team ahead of, rather than after, this year's draft, which was relatively deep. Unfortunately, past Sun Devils management may have missed an opportunity. With the 10th pick, they took Artie Pierce, a fireball-throwing 18-year-old out of Spiro, Oklahoma. He's got great stuff, but new Sun Devils management doubts he'll ever be able to get it enough under control to stop endangering mascots, batboys and other onlookers. On top of that, his health is a little iffy. Current Sun Devils management would maybe have preferred 2B Len Whitesell, who dropped all the way to the 12th pick and was grabbed by Cincinnati. Or RP Andre Eyer, who fell all the way to Seattle with the 20th pick. Heck, they would even have preferred 67th pick and future CNBC anchor Carlos Quintanilla, who at least stands a chance of making the Salem Beavers' major-league roster. At least the Sun Devils are well on their way to getting another crack at a good draft next year!"

11. Oakland Golden Bears - Patrick Tracy

He doesn’t have great durability, but definitely could be a shut-down reliever or solid starter. He has tremendous control, great velocity, and is dominant vsR while being good vsL. He keeps the ball on the ground. He doesn’t have the greatest pitches, but they are still solid.


12. Cincinnati Bearcats - Len Whitesell   Projects as a sub-par defender at both 2B & CF. He has tremendous speed. He’ll hit for a high average while driving the ball consistently against both RHP & LHP. Solid eye. He will hit a few home runs, but doesn’t have tremendous power.

allright - "Len Whitesell is more of a project than one would normally hope to snare in the first round. He demonstrates potential to make it to the show; but, he might just as well bust out. If, he makes it, he could top out as a better than average contact hitter with 10-15 home run potential. He's raw, has a long way to go, and we don't know if he can read a road map."

13. Chicago Blue Demons - Nate Daley

Solid durability/stamina combination. Good control. Will struggle against LHB, but be solid against RHB. Lacks ideal velocity. Solid GB pitcher. Top 2 pitches are great, while the next 2 are weak. This is a pitcher that will likely be better than the sum of his parts.


14. Huntington Thundering Herd - Marshall Washington   Has a tremendous glove and arm, but will struggle with his range. Should provide a solid bat with good power, good contact. Better against LHP than RHP. Solid eye.

hurricane384 - "We got Washington, #4 on our board, at 14 and assuming he gets close to his projections, we're happy about that. He could be a good 3B or a top-notch defensive COF."

15. Memphis Tigers - Buck Watson

Although he doesn’t have a great glove for a SS, he’s solid enough there that his other defensive ratings should off-set that. He’ll hit for a solid average with some power. He will drive the ball consistently and steal quite a few bases. Can definitely work the count.

mh17 - "As Memphis continues to draft talent projected to being ML ready sooner, the Tigers are pleased with addition of Buck Watson, taken in the first round. With an adequate bat and good speed, he should find himself in scoring position often, while providing stellar defense. "

16. Richmond Spiders - Henry Knight

Doesn’t have the greatest range but definitely can pick it. He’s got solid speed. He has a little bit of power. He will strike out some. He can drive the ball consistently and will work the count well.

cmthieme - "Knight looks like a pretty good prospect that should stick at 2B with a good bat. That is if his low makeup allows him to develop well enough. I'm satisfied to get him at #16."

17. Portland Ducks - Glenn Hines - Type D - Tito McGee

Can dominate RHB while holding his own against LHB. Good velocity. Solid combination of pitches. Decent control. Could provide a lot of short starts or be good out of the ‘pen with his stamina/durability combination.

18. Jackson Rebels - Marcus Branyan  

Dominant against LHB. Solid against RHB. He has a great stamina/durability combo to work out of the pen. Has good velocity and good GB skills. Doesn’t have the top-notch pitches one needs to be elite.

19. New Orleans Bayou Bengals - Dick Parmelee   Has good range, but not a great glove. Decent speed. He will strike out tons. He dominates RHP, while being average against LHP. Has some power. Good eye.

20. Seattle Huskies - Andre Eyre
Great stamina/durability combination. Has 2 good pitches. Struggles against LHB while being much better against RHB. Average control. Good velocity and GB skills.
21. Dover Fightin Blue Hens - Carl Schneider   Control is the big issue here.  Splits and pitches look really good.  Charlie Vaugh from Mjor league?

byers61 - "The Fighting Blue Hens drafted SP Carl Schneider with the 21st pick in the draft. Our scout projects him to an 82 OVR rating, with good stamina, dominant against righties, and a couple of good pitches. He will be a little wild in the low minors until he has time to work on his control. At number 21, this is a pretty good prospect. "

22. Texas Tech Red Raiders - from losing Jack Torre to Louisville - Yuniesky Pena

Control is the issue here again.  Splits and pitches not as good as Schneider who just was taken.  Hopefully his control will get servicable and be a decent bullpen pitcher.

mongoose_22 - "The Red Raiders are fairly happy with this season's draft. At #22, Yuniesky Pena was drafted. While his control is a bit of a concern, we're confident he'll develop into a solid relief pitcher who will be able to eat innings out of the pen. His solid splits, very good 2 pitches and very high velocity compensating for below average command. At #27, we drafted Edward Edwards. While our scouts say he'll develop into an above average defensive second baseman with a decent stick, we really only drafted him because of his name. He has the same name... twice. Its the best name in baseball. "

23. Buffalo Bulls - John Phillips

Really like this selection.  Phillips is a solid leadoff hitter candidate and nice value grab here as we wenter the latter third of the draft.

24.Salem Beavers - Antone Roosevelt
Probably won't amount to much other than a utility infielder.  He doesn't have the glove to be a SS and doesn't really have a good enough bat to be a full time corner IF or OF.

overeasy - "Short on time and didn't get my draft settings changed, otherwise I would have drafted Dave Champion which would have made me very happy with my draft. Instead, I am praying my guy asks for more money so I can tell him to go to college."

25. Columbus Buckeyes - Bip Oeltjen

I think this is a really nice value at #25.  Not sure he can reach the lofty fielding projections, but if can even be mediocre defensively at SS, he will be a solid choice.  If not, then he'll be a good utility guy.

26. Fargo Bison - Al Franco

Back of the rotation SP prospect...hopefully can develop into a good innings eater type pitcher.

mikejuggalo - "picking late in the draft, i grabbed him and, although he is not a stud, he will hopefully be able to make the ML team in the future and help out a bit

27. Texas Tech Red Raiders - Edward Edwards

What a great name.  Great addition to a 25 man roster with a good glove and ok bat.

mongoose_22 - See pick #22

28. Helena Grizzlies -Phil Rizzuto

Love this selection.  Power hitting C who can get it done reasonably well at defense.  Surprised he lasted this long.

drichar138 - "Helena landed C Phil Rizzuto and RP Corban Franco with the 28th and 29th picks of the draft. Rizzuto is a solid hitting catcher who really excels vs left handed pitching. Time will tell if his poor batting eye and pitch calling skills will keep him from making it to the big league level. Corban is a solid reliever with two really good pitches and tremendous velocity. He will need his splits to develop to thier fullest potiential to have a chance at being a big leaguer."

29. Helena Grizzlies - from losing Marino Gomez to Nashville - Corban Franco - Setup B relief pitcher at best because of his splits. 

See above

30. Charleston Cougars - Rene Tobin

I tihnk Tobin is a steal at #30.  He will hit for a ton of power and strike out a good amount, but OPS should be really solid.  Dave Kingman anyone?

31. Iowa City Hawkeyes - Gene Holbert

In a perfect world, Holbert will develop into an everyday leadoff hitter.  More realistically, he'll be a 4th OFer off the bench with a decent contact bat.

tbone66 - "Not overly impressed with my draft this season my first rounder Gene Holbert will be a good hitter with no power and will probably change from a RF to 1B with the lack of Def skills but I have seen worse so I will cross my fingers and hope he turns out OK"

32. Minnesota Golden Gophers - Tito Harvey

Hasn't signed

33. Charlotte Tar Heels - Dave Champion

I am really really pleased that Champion fell to the Heels with the last pick in the first round.  Power Hitting catcher with decent defensive skills.  He is completely blocked by Pong at the ML level so will be interesting to see what management can do with him when the time comes.  Most of the time the Heels go with "choose best player available regardless of depth" and this is how we ended up with Champion.  Great name too.