2017 MLB draft thread

[Thrylos]

I'd draft Romero if he fell down to the supplementary or second round picks.  Gonsalves has had the same issues out of High School before the Internets went crazy or knew who Gonsalves was.

[Thrylos]

FWIW, I ranked the four best College pitchers, based on both objective (performance) and subjective (scouting) criteria.  Here are the results.

[AZTwin]

I'd draft Romero if he fell down to the supplementary or second round picks. Gonsalves has had the same issues out of High School before the Internets went crazy or knew who Gonsalves was.

Gonsalves issues don't sound remotely close to this situation

[Thrylos]

 

Gonsalves issues don't sound remotely close to this situation

Smoking marijuana was the issue with both of them.   Romero did not hide it, while Gonsalves said that "he did not inhale" while accompanying his buddies who smoked...  College (adult) vs High School (child) also comes to play here...

 

Biggest issue is:  Can he pitch?   If so, grab him and fix him.

[gunnarthor]

 

Drug test?  In College? That sounds really weird.  College cannot test students for drugs by any means of the imagination...

Pretty sure every major college team is part of the NCAA's drug free program which provides for testing.

 

And here's a link to the Romero story for those who didn't see it.  http://www.espn.com/college-sports/story/_/id/19351179/draft-prospect-seth-romero-kicked-team-houston-cougars

[biggentleben]

This after I'd already submitted my mock that came out today, where I had two guys talk to me about how great his stuff looked on the mound if he could just get to the finish line of the season: 

 

https://calltothepen.com/2017/05/10/mlb-mock-draft-version-2-1/

 

Second time I've ended up with the Twins with two guys I think they'll use as arms, though two different ones this time.

 

In all seriousness, I don't think Romero falls beyond the 50th pick in the draft. That'd be the floor. Where above that he goes is the question.

[Mr. Brooks]

Smoking marijuana was the issue with both of them. Romero did not hide it, while Gonsalves said that "he did not inhale" while accompanying his buddies who smoked... College (adult) vs High School (child) also comes to play here...

 

Biggest issue is: Can he pitch? If so, grab him and fix him.

Do you have a link for that Gonsalves info?

Im not saying it's not true, but I remember the story being that he refused to rat on his friends, not of him smoking or drinking.

[Willihammer]

What difference does it make they're apples to oranges. Gonsalves was never suspended, never overweight, his character never really in question. Boy scout stuff compared to Romero who is screwing up his life before our eyes.

[gunnarthor]

I would absolutely love it if the Twins took Romero at 35/37. Nab McKay or Wright at 1 (save a little money), Romero at 35 (save a little more money) and see if a top 20 talent is somehow still on the board at 37.

[gunnarthor]

 

 

This after I'd already submitted my mock that came out today, where I had two guys talk to me about how great his stuff looked on the mound if he could just get to the finish line of the season: 

 

https://calltothepen.com/2017/05/10/mlb-mock-draft-version-2-1/

 

Second time I've ended up with the Twins with two guys I think they'll use as arms, though two different ones this time.

 

In all seriousness, I don't think Romero falls beyond the 50th pick in the draft. That'd be the floor. Where above that he goes is the question.

Adell going #2? Interesting. I love the guy and want the Twins to get him but that doesn't seem possible. Enlow sounds a lot like a pitcher the Twins would be interested in - good command and a secondary pitch already. Needs to add weight. Would be very happy with him. Nice job.

[biggentleben]

 

Adell going #2? Interesting. I love the guy and want the Twins to get him but that doesn't seem possible. Enlow sounds a lot like a pitcher the Twins would be interested in - good command and a secondary pitch already. Needs to add weight. Would be very happy with him. Nice job.

 

Thanks! I think it's been exposed that there was some misinformation on Adell out there that is being exposed this spring. His swing mechanically is not the worry that rumor mills reported over the winter. I think a guy like Adell would be the type to get the Reds to move off of college player (obviously Greene as well, but if there is something there where he's going to price himself out of Cincy, they may well go for a guy like Adell/Lewis/Gore/Beck at 2.

[Mike Sixel]

KLAW's mock is out today......

 

he says McKay and Greene are the only two that should go 1:1. It's based on info he has gathered on team preferences, etc, not what he'd do....

 

he has the Twins taking McKay.

[bird]

 

I'd draft Romero if he fell down to the supplementary or second round picks.  Gonsalves has had the same issues out of High School before the Internets went crazy or knew who Gonsalves was.

 

 

This is an untrue comparison. 

[Hrbowski]

Enlow could be a tough sign.

[gunnarthor]

Another mock draft.  https://www.perfectgame.org/Articles/View.aspx?article=13754

 

They have us nabbing Clarke Schmidt at 35.  Schmidt is South Carolina's pitcher who just had TJ surgery so is likely to fall out of the first round.  mlbpipeline has him at 48 but perfectgame has him higher and the rankings are not static.  So he might have moved up a bit.

[Mike Sixel]

KLAW does not have Sam Carlson in his first round. I will ask about that on his chat today....

[nicksaviking]

What's happened to Bukauskas, is he still shrinking or something? I'm not hearing much about him anymore.

 

I don't want him at 1:1 but I'm starting to get desperate; I'm really feeling like I want anyone but McKay at this point. It just feels like such a classic Twins pick even if that's perception and not reality anymore; 90-93MPH control specialist. Guys that top out at 94 MPH just don't seem like they should be going 1:1.

 

He just feels so much closer to guys like Wimmers, Eades and Gibson than to the best player in the draft. I'm probably wrong but this just doesn't feel right.

[gunnarthor]

 

What's happened to Bukauskas, is he still shrinking or something? I'm not hearing much about him anymore.

 

I don't want him at 1:1 but I'm starting to get desperate; I'm really feeling like I want anyone but McKay at this point. It just feels like such a classic Twins pick even if that's perception and not reality anymore; 90-93MPH control specialist. Guys that top out at 94 MPH just don't seem like they should be going 1:1.

 

He just feels so much closer to guys like Wimmers, Eades and Gibson than to the best player in the draft. I'm probably wrong but this just doesn't feel right.

Relax.  Gibson was a top 10 talent going into the season before TJ but the other two weren't.  McKay is better than all three. I'm not sure if I want him as a pitcher or a hitter but as a prospect he'll be better than Berrios.  While his stuff might not be quite as good as Wright's stuff his command/control is a lot better making him a safer bet.  

[Willihammer]

J.B. hasn't pitched in a long time. Scheduling and/or weather gave UNC a 1 week break. Apr 28 was his last start although he was lapped by Tyler Baum in the rotation so maybe there's something else going on.

[Hrbowski]

 

J.B. hasn't pitched in a long time. Scheduling and/or weather gave UNC a 1 week break. Apr 28 was his last start although he was lapped by Tyler Baum in the rotation so maybe there's something else going on.

I will try to get into contact with the UNC guys.

[Vanimal46]

This may just be pure stubbornness now, but I'm still on board with Greene at 1:1... Falvey and Levine get a 17 year old flame thrower to develop the way they feel is best.

[Mike Sixel]

 

This may just be pure stubbornness now, but I'm still on board with Greene at 1:1... Falvey and Levine get a 17 year old flame thrower to develop the way they feel is best.

 

given their decisions lately, I'm not sure I love this as much as I used to, frankly. 

[mazeville]

I like the idea of taking McKay and letting him pitch AND hit as the DH on his non-pitching days. If they're just taking a pitcher, I think Greene would be the best bet, given his talent. 

[Willihammer]

I'm with BigGentleBen, McKay and Adell 1/1A. Flip a coin.

Still a few weeks to go though.

[nicksaviking]

 

Relax.  Gibson was a top 10 talent going into the season before TJ but the other two weren't.  McKay is better than all three. I'm not sure if I want him as a pitcher or a hitter but as a prospect he'll be better than Berrios.  While his stuff might not be quite as good as Wright's stuff his command/control is a lot better making him a safer bet.  

 

That's what I'm afraid of. We heard about how great Gibson, Wimmers and Eades command were and how safe they were. Jay also. We've repeatedly seen in our own organization that good command/control in college does not make a guy safe.

 

When it comes to a balance of "Stuff" vs "Command/Control", I'm putting more weight on "Stuff". At 1:1 I just don't want a guy who's defining trait is good command. Despite the assumptions and perceptions it just does not appear to actually raise a pitcher's floor. So give me the guy with a projected higher ceiling.

[Mike Sixel]

I tweeted KLAW about his preference (don't expect an answer) and asked on his chat about Carlson.....I'll let you know if/what he says.

[gunnarthor]

 

That's what I'm afraid of. We heard about how great Gibson, Wimmers and Eades command were and how safe they were. Jay also. We've repeatedly seen in our own organization that good command/control in college does not make a guy safe.

 

When it comes to a balance of "Stuff" vs "Command/Control", I'm putting more weight on "Stuff". At 1:1 I just don't want a guy who's defining trait is good command. Despite the assumptions and perceptions it just does not appear to actually raise a pitchers floor. So give me the guy with a projected higher ceiling.

Sure, but command/control also referred to Garza, Slowey, Baker, Blackburn, Perkins, Duensing, Swarzak, Radke, Silva, Berrios and Gonsalves.  And stuff also included Durbin, Bullock, Hunt, Bashore, Boyd, etc.  (And guys like Garza and McKay have both.  It's not like McKay's stuff is bad.  He's arguably the #3 pitcher in the draft just based on stuff. Plus he's a lefty. Plus he's got great command/control. Plus he should be quick to the majors. Plus makeup.).

 

And if you just want to look at recent drafts, stuff got Kolek, Zimmer, Tate, Aiken, Fried, Appel, Groome etc drafted.  And we've seen command/control guys fall in the draft and look pretty good in hindsight.  (Nola, Finnigan, Wacha, Lynn every pitcher ever drafted by the Cardinals.)

[Hrbowski]

 

And if you just want to look at recent drafts, stuff got Kolek, Zimmer, Tate, Aiken, Fried, Appel, Groome etc drafted.  And we've seen command/control guys fall in the draft and look pretty good in hindsight.  (Nola, Finnigan, Wacha, Lynn every pitcher ever drafted by the Cardinals.)

Lance Lynn was by no means a control guy while he was pitching in the SEC.

 

Also, Danny Hultzen had elite control in college, was a lefty, and had similar stuff to McKay, but he never made it to the majors.

[beckmt]

I am also still on board with Greene, with Wright as a distance second choice.  Twins need talent and stuff, not more command and control pitchers.  They may be safer, but do not turn into aces.

[Mike Sixel]

Eli
1:09 Where would Seth Romero rank on talent alone? How far do you see off-field concerns dropping him?

 

Keith Law
1:10 He would have gone in the first, I would have ranked him more towards the second (it's not a good delivery), and I think he now goes second or third with a significant discount. Getting in a fight with a teammate on top of a mountain of previous incidents tells me either he's got a real mental illness or he's totally irresponsible.