2008 Draft Recap - Early 2009 Preview

[colbyjack]

Please note that this story normally would be posted on the homepage of Brewerfan.net. Due to some technical difficulties, I am posting this story here on the forums for all to enjoy.

http://www.mlb.com/images/2008/06/05/LxCRzCzi.jpg
Brett Lawrie

2008 Draft Recap - Early 2009 Preview
by Patrick Ebert

After spending the last nine years filling the Brewers system with talent, an effort that culminated with the Brewers making the postseason this year for the first time since 1982, Jack Zduriencik has finally been rewarded for his hard work and knack for procuring big-league ballplayers by being named the General Manager of the Seattle Mariners.

You can nitpick and argue against the players that he accumulated through the draft, as none of them are without warts, but the bottom line remains that without him the team probably wouldn't be in the position they are today.

Five of the team's regular starters (Prince Fielder, Rickie Weeks, J.J. Hardy, Ryan Braun and Corey Hart) are products of those efforts. Starting pitchers Yovani Gallardo and Manny Parra were also drafted by Zduriencik, as were the key pieces used in the trade for CC Sabathia (Matt LaPorta, Michael Brantley and Rob Bryson) and Scott Linebrink (Will Inman and Steve Garrison). The farm system remains strong, and deep, with talent as we continue to look forward to the players that will be a part of the Milwaukee Brewers moving forward.

While I plan to write a more detailed story in the weeks to come breaking down the talent Zduriencik procured, in this story I want to take a look back at his final draft with the Brewers.

As the 2008 draft approached, the first year in which Zduriencik would have additional, early picks to play with, most assumed the team would load up on pitchers.

However, no one expected the team to draft and sign 20 pitchers among their top 28 picks. That's almost enough arms to fill two minor league rosters.

The scouting department under Zduriencik's watch continued to do an exceptional job signing its draftees, inking the top 26 selections, 29 of the top 30 and 36 of 54 in total.

Naming his replacement will be incredibly crucial, as the Brewers scouting department needs to continue to keep the pipeline of talent from the lower levels all the way up to Milwaukee rich with talent if the team hopes to continue their success. This talent will not only be used to replace and complement the talent at the big-league level, but also to supply General Manager Doug Melvin with valuable trade commodities the next time a trade opportunity like the one for CC Sabathia presented him with.

Please continue to visit the draft page on the fan forum to read more about the players selected in the 2008 draft while also keeping up to date with some of the more talented players that will be available in 2009.

Bats First
"Before the draft I felt that the two biggest weaknesses in the Brewers system were power bats and catching depth."

This was my comment as part of this story a year ago after the team selected Matt LaPorta and Jonathan Lucroy with their first two picks. This year they needed only one pick to address both of those needs. While the team loaded up on pitching overall in the draft, they did use a few of their early picks on potential impact positional players.

1. (Draft round) Brett Lawrie, C
Did not play, signed 2009 contract
2b. Cutter Dykstra, CF/2B
.269/.406/.269 in 26 at-bats with Arizona
.271/.367/.438, 9 doubles, 5 home runs in 144 at-bats with Helena
3. Logan Schafer, CF
.240/.355/.560 in 25 at-bats with Helena
.276/.306/.370, 13 doubles, 2 triples in 181 at-bats with West Virginia
6. Jose Duran, 2B
.221/.284/.309, 4 doubles, 1 triple, 2 home runs in 136 at-bats with Helena
8. Erik Komatsu, RF
.321/.394/.538, 19 doubles, 4 triples, 11 home runs in 277 at-bats with Helena

Lawrie is a premium athlete and a potential impact slugger. Similar to the picks of Ryan Braun and Rickie Weeks in past years, Lawrie could climb quickly through the system thanks to his prowess at the plate. However, his development could be slowed if the Brewers are intent on grooming him as a catcher. Given the system's depth behind the plate, Lawrie and the entire organization may benefit from a quick and permanent move to another position, with second and third base, as well as the outfield, being possible destinations for him. He signed a 2009 contract after playing with the Canadian National Team in the Beijing Olympics, and his placement to open the 2009 season may indicate just how serious the Brewers are about his defensive future.

After Lawrie, the Brewers drafted an entire outfield, as Schafer, Dykstra and Komatsu could represent the Timber Rattlers outfield from left to right, and all three enjoyed success during their professional debuts.

Dykstra is the most dynamic of the three, profiling in a very similar fashion to his father, Lenny, with a hard-nosed, aggressive approach to the game. Komatsu has the most polished bat but also the most limited upside as a 5'10" left-handed swinger, while Schafer is a long strider that plays strong defense with some speed and power to the gaps. The Brewers did toy with the idea of trying Dykstra at second base during their fall instructional camp, and either Schafer and/or Komatsu could be aggressively promoted to Brevard County to open the 2009 season.

The black sheep of this group is infielder Jose Duran, who struggled upon his pro conversion after putting up big numbers at Texas A&M on his way to being named the Big 12 conference's player of the year.

Prep Righties
The Brewers aren't shy about taking high school pitchers with their early picks, although the past few years they have targeted more college arms after the first few rounds of the draft. Of the 23 pitchers the Brewers selected and signed, only seven hailed from the prep ranks, all of which were right-handed.

1s-a. Jake Odorizzi
3.48 ERA, 18 hits, 19:9 K:BB ratio in 20.2 innings with Arizona
2a. Seth Lintz
6.87 ERA, 22 hits, 26:16 K:BB ratio in 18.1 innings with Arizona
5. Maverick Lasker
Did not pitch, injury (back)
16. Stosh Wawrzasek
6.94 ERA, 15 hits, 12:7 K:BB ratio in 11.2 innings with Arizona
17. Damon Krestalude
3.15 ERA, 36 hits, 28:16 K:BB ratio in 34.1 innings with Arizona
18. Nicholas Bucci
7.36 ERA, 12 hits, 14:2 K:BB ratio in 11 innings with Arizona
19. Blake Billings
2.25 ERA, 10 hits, 15:1 K:BB ratio in 12 innings with Arizona

Odorizzi, Lintz and Lasker all have a very similar profile. All three are in the 6'2", 180 pound range, they all are very good overall athletes that also excelled at the plate as hitters, and they all show easy arm strength with the potential for wicked breaking balls.

Odorizzi of course is the most promising of this trio as the highest pitcher the Brewers selected last June. Not only does he have the projectability and stuff to succeed, but he is also the most polished, with solid command of a well-rounded three-pitch repertoire (91-94 fastball that has touched 97, low-80s slider/slurve, changeup) that may allow him to open his first full professional season with Wisconsin.

We didn't get a taste for Lasker since he had a stress fracture in his back, but he, Lintz, Wawrzasek, Krestalude, Bucci and Billings should all be a part of a very talented Helena staff next summer.

Lintz didn't post a particularly nice looking ERA, but he did strikeout more than his fair share of batters. Krestalude and Billings were solid across the board, as Billings arguably had the finest debut of any pitcher drafted this past year (with the usual small sample warning) while also having the most projectable build. Stosh and Bucci, like Lintz, showed their propensity to miss bats despite posting ugly ERAs.

College Pitching!
The Brewers didn't take a single right-handed pitcher in the top 10 rounds in the 2007 draft. They made up for that, and then some, by taking the three prep pitchers listed above along with another four from the college ranks through the top 10 rounds this past year. Since the team selected and signed 16 college pitchers in total, I'm going to break them all down here without breaking them into separate categories due to their handedness. It will be hard to say that Jack Zduriencik and his scouting team didn't place an emphasis on the supposedly more refined college hurlers after this effort.

1s-b. Evan Frederickson, LHP
3.09 ERA, 13 hits, 16:5 K:BB ratio in 11.2 innings with Helena
6.20 ERA, 16 hits, 18:26 K:BB ratio in 20.1 innings with West Virginia
2c. Cody Adams, RHP
3.48 ERA, 56 hits, 37:16 K:BB ratio in 54.1 innings with Helena
4. Josh Romanski, LHP
Did not pitch, appeared in four games as a DH
7. Trey Watten, RHP
5.40 ERA, 64 hits, 40:25 K:BB ratio in 55 innings with Helena
9. Michael Bowman, RHP
4.26 ERA, 21 hits, 19:6 K:BB ratio in 19 innings with Helena
3.58 ERA, 23 hits, 19:15 K:BB ratio in 27.2 innings with West Virginia
10. Greg Miller, RHP
9.30 ERA, 28 hits, 24:20 K:BB ratio in 20.1 innings with Arizona
12. Garrett Sherrill, RHP
4.71 ERA, 29 hits, 46:21 K:BB ratio in 36.1 innings with Helena
13. Robert Wooten, RHP
0.00 ERA, 10 hits, 14:2 K:BB ratio in 9 innings with Helena
2.38 ERA, 14 hits, 30:4 K:BB ratio in 22.2 innings with West Virginia
15. Mark Willinsky, RHP
4.86 ERA, 31 hits, 35:24 K:BB ratio in 33.1 innings with Helena
20. Liam Ohlmann, RHP
1.42 ERA, 4 hits, 5:1 K:BB ratio in 6.1 innings with Arizona
5.68 ERA, 37 hits, 30:16 K:BB ratio in 31.2 innings with Helena
21. Lucas Luetge, LHP
0.00 ERA, 5 hits, 13:5 K:BB ratio in 14 innings with Helena
3.72 ERA, 35 hits, 33:10 K:BB ratio in 36.1 innings with West Virginia
22. Ben Jeffers, RHP
8.13 ERA, 33 hits, 37:20 K:BB ratio in 27.2 innings with Arizona
24. Brandon Ritchie, LHP
6.87 ERA, 84 hits, 49:21 K:BB ratio in 55 innings with Helena
31. Brandon Rapoza, RHP
4.22 ERA, 10 hits, 9:6 K:BB ratio in 10.2 innings with Arizona
1.04 ERA, 14 hits, 16:9 K:BB ratio in 26 innings with Helena
48. Rico Salmon, RHP
2.25 ERA, 2 hits, 5:0 K:BB ratio in 4 innings with Arizona
3.60 ERA, 41 hits, 39:13 K:BB ratio in 40 innings with Helena
49. Daniel Meadows, LHP
0.00 ERA, 5 hits, 4:3 K:BB ratio in 8 innings with Arizona
5.45 ERA, 43 hits, 38:15 K:BB ratio in 39.2 innings with Helena

I don't even know where to start with this list. As noted above, the Brewers drafted enough pitchers in 2008 to fill two full levels with arms, which is essentially what they did between Helena and Arizona this past summer, and those same arms for the most part are going to represent the staffs at Wisconsin and Helena next summer. As the old adage goes, you can never have too much pitching, and these problems do tend to work themselves out. However, don't be surprised to see an aggressive promotion or two next spring to help spread the wealth.

Frederickson's profile is more similar to a high school player's, with a big frame, impressive velocity but little command and overall polish. He earned his place in the draft by opening eyes at the team's pre-draft workout with a mid-to-upper 90s heater. Unfortunately that velocity was not present during his debut, which included a quick bump up to West Virginia. A long season may have a lot to do with that, but Frederickson's boom or bust potential keeps most in the cautiously optimistic camp.

Adams, Watten and Bowman are very similar in size and stuff to the prep trio of Odorizzi, Lintz and Lasker. Adams has the best, most electric arm, and fared much better towards the end of the year with the H-Crew than he did initially upon his arrival. His velocity does play better in shorter stints, so an eventual and permanent move to short relief isn't out of the question.

Watten has one of the more interesting profiles, since he has only recently taken to pitching after going to college as a power-hitting third baseman. Because of that he clearly needs to gain experience, but he has two wicked pitches (low-to-mid-90s fastball, slider) to build off of. Bowman's polished three-pitch repertoire allowed him to enjoy a bump up to low-A during his debut campaign.

Miller, Sherrill, Willinsky, Ohlmann, Jeffers, Ritchie, Rapoza, Salmon and Meadows are all built much bigger and stronger than the pitchers previously highlighted.

Miller, like Watten, entered college as a two-way threat, and has limited experience on the mound. But his sheer arm strength is enough to get excited about, as he's been able to dial his fastball in the mid-90s despite needing experience and polish, as shown by the results during his pro debut with the Baby Brewers in Arizona. He will likely join the prep arms while working out of the Helena bullpen next June.

Sherrill and Willinsky also have impressive fastballs, but their secondary stuff lacks in consistency. Both were used exclusively out of the Helena bullpen this past summer, where they, along with Rapoza, who filled the role of closer in college, will continue to be groomed.

Jeffers and Ritchie aren't that far removed from Tommy John surgery, and both are better off when they're allowed to reach back and throw as hard as they can. They may be developed as starters for now to allow them to fully re-gain their arm strength and conditioning, but both may be better off coming out of the bullpen down the road.

Ohlmann is somewhat of an odd duck in this group, as his size is comparable to everyone else, but he doesn't have the same raw, hard-throwing, inconsistent profile. His repertoire is fairly polished but he sits in the upper-80s with his fastball.

Salmon and Meadows are likely to fill in the gaps in the lower levels of the system, although Meadows had a good enough professional debut and has decent stuff for a southpaw.

Not mentioned above are lefties Romanski and Luetge, both of who pitched for prominent D1 programs in San Diego and Rice. A groin injury kept Romanski from pitching last summer, but he is a talented all-around athlete that played both ways in college and led Team USA in hitting during the summer of 2007. Luetge's polish allowed him to help West Virginia get into the playoffs on their way to making the championship series.

Rob Wooten, the fiinal member of this group, was drafted as a reliever out of college and will continue to be developed that way. He's a polished sinker-slider pitcher with significant experience getting outs at the highest of levels playing for North Carolina, which includes 10 appearances in the College World Series. He finished the year at West Virginia, and should open next year at Brevard County if not Huntsville.

If nothing else, the Brewers took a boat-load of arms hoping that throwing enough of them against a wall will allow a few of them to stick. They certainly did their homework by targeting a variety of live arms, while also re-stocking the shelves of the lower levels of the system.

Bat Fillers
With the focus of the draft on the bats at the top and the arms throughout, here are the remaining positional players that were selected and signed as part of the Brewers 2008 draft effort. With all due respect to these players, all of them, with the possible exception of Dedrick and George, likely will help fill in the cracks in the lower level of the minor leagues over the next few years.

11. Mikey Marseco, SS
.311/.338/.437, 13 doubles, 3 triples in 151 at-bats with Helena
14. Corey Kemp, C
.253/.345/.343, 9 doubles, 3 home runs in 198 at-bats with Helena
25. John Delaney, IF
.262/.376/.424, 12 doubles, 5 triples, 9 home runs in 302 at-bats with Helena
26. Derrick Alfonso, C
.227/.295/.364, 4 doubles, 3 home runs in 110 at-bats with Helena
30. Wayne Dedrick, OF
Did not play, signed 2009 contract
35. Mike Vass, OF
.242/.321/.435, 4 doubles, 3 triples, 7 home runs in 161 at-bats with Helena
.091/.231/.227, 1 home run in 22 at-bats with West Virginia
38. Michael Roberts, C
.270/.342/.397, 7 doubles, 3 home runs in 141 at-bats with Helena
46. Carlos George, SS
.234/.258/.316, 10 doubles, 2 triples in 171 at-bats with Arizona

Marseco and Delaney offer defensive versatility in the infield, with Marseco profiling to stick at shortstop due to very slick and easy actions at the position, one that gets rather thin talent-wise in the lower levels of the system. Delaney can, and probably will, play anywhere on the infield. Delaney is going to offer more pop, while Marseco has some power to the gaps and a little bit of speed to leg out extra-base hits.

Similar to Marseco, George is very talented defensively at shortstop, although he is not as refined given the 37 errors he committed in 46 games. However, he offers a lot more physically than Marseco that could allow him to blossom at the plate with experience. That slow maturation process will continue next summer in Helena.

Kemp, Alfonso and Roberts are going to shoulder the burden of catching all of the young arms the Brewers recently drafted as well as those already in place in the system. One or two of them may remain with the Helena squad to help usher in the next wave of talent, from the prep arms listed above to the players not yet added to the system.

Dedrick played with Blake Billings in high school, and like Billings has considerable upside and is a great natural athlete, but he is as raw as they come.

Playing time is likely going to be hard to come by for Vass, who will have to contend with the likes of fellow '08 draftees Cutter Dykstra, Logan Schafer and Erik Komatsu as well as other corner outfielders that he's currently sandwiched in between, such as Chris Dennis and Caleb Gindl. Vass is strongly built and has power potential, but is more likely to fill an organizational need as a fourth outfielder.

The Ones that Got Away
Jack Zduriencik has always placed a priority on signing players, especially among the first 20-25 picks, ever since he took over as the team's scouting director, so you don't typically see too many players get away that the team could end up regretting, and that was definitely the case in this past year's drafting effort. Only 18 draftees didn't end up signing. The most notable of which was 39th rounder Eric Decker, a fine baseball prospect and overall athlete, is actually more well known for his exploits on the gridiron as a wide receiver for the Minnesota Golden Gophers. He is among the national leaders in both receptions and receiving yards, and plans to keep his options wide open in both sports.

23. (draft round from 2008) Marcus Knecht, OF (Oklahoma State)
27. Austin Adams, SS (Faulkner University)
28. Brandon Garcia, C/RHP (USC)
29. Tommy Collier, RHP (San Jacinto College)
32. Colt Farrar, RHP (Texas Tech)
33. Michael White, RHP (Walters State)
34. Calvin Drummond, RHP (Arizona State)
36. Evan Bronson, LHP (Trinity University)
37. Kyle Winkler, RHP (TCU)
39. Eric Decker, OF (Minnesota)
40. Nicholas Fogarty, LHP (may have returned to Thorniea SS)
41. Joe Scott (Cal State Fullerton)
42. Ryan Wood (East Carolina)
43. Dexter Price (Auburn)
44. Kaleb Herren (Oklahoma)
45. James Kottaras (Connors State College)
47. Kavon Bahramzadeh (Kansas State)
50. Sean Nolin (San Jacinto College)

Initial Assessment
Like any year, it is difficult to form an opinion of a team's drafting effort four months after the draft took place, especially when the team's top pick (Lawrie) has yet to make his professional debut.

Despite the number of pitchers the team selected, they did manage to target a few key bats in the early rounds, with Lawrie and Dykstra having the biggest upside to make the most significant contributions down the road. The Brewers seem committed to keep Lawrie behind the dish for now, even if his eventual defensive home may lye elsewhere.

Komatsu and Schafer enjoyed immediate success, with Schafer having his season continue in the Hawaii Winter Baseball league.

Jake Odorizzi and Seth Lintz were both named among the top 20 prospects in the Arizona League according to Baseball America, as Odorizzi posted fine overall numbers while Lintz did a good job limiting hits and missing bats, despite struggling with his control and posting a less than desirable ERA. 19th rounder Blake Billings may have had the most promising debut among all of the pitchers drafted, although he tossed only 12 innings in 6 appearances.

Helena's staff was comprised almost entirely of '08 draftees (which should be the case again next year), and while no one really stood out more than the other, collectively they did a good job missing bats while offering a tremendous amount of depth in both the starting rotation and the bullpen. Watten is probably the biggest sleeper to watch from that group.

Evan Frederickson got a quick bump up to West Virginia, although he didn't show the same mid-90s velocity that he showcased at the Brewers pre-draft workout. Rob Wooten's polished approach and repertoire allowed him to also finish the season with the Power, while Lucas Luetge was also a big part of the Power's late-season and postseason run.

The combination of a few key, potential impact bats and a extraordinarily deep list of pitchers for a player or more to emerge over the next few years is encouraging, and hopefully we get a better sense of who the more likely candidates are to do so next summer.

2009 Draft
If the Brewers continue their on and off trend of focusing early on either pitchers or hitters, that means hitters are due up for next year's draft.

However, the strength of the '09 draft class lies in its pitchers, particularly from college, in which we may see the top 10-15 overall picks dominated by arms.

San Diego State righty Stephen Strasburg is the early favorite to go first overall, with the perfect combination of size, athleticism, stuff and command, and profiles in a similar fashion to David Price in the 2007 draft and even Mark Prior from 2001. Whether he goes first overall of course remains to be seen, as he has chosen to align himself with Scott Boras.

The same can be said for Oklahoma State lefty Andrew Oliver, North Carolina outfielder Dustin Ackley, USC shortstop Grant Green, Tennessee draft-eligible sophomore outfielder Kentrail Davis and the top unsigned pick from the 2008 draft, right-handed pitcher Aaron Crow, who plans to pitch for the Fort Worth Cats next spring in the Independent American Association league. Top prep stars, such as outfielder Donovan Tate from Georgia and right-handed pitcher Jacob Turner from Missouri, will also be advised by the super-agent. Meaning of course signability will once again play a prominent part of the draft.

High School

1. Matthew Purke, LHP, Spring, TX
2. Donovan Tate, OF, Cartersville, GA
3. Tyler Matzek, LHP, Mission Viejo, CA
4. Jacob Turner, RHP, St. Charles, MO
5. Shelby Miller, RHP, Brownwood, TX
6. Mychael Givens, RHP/SS, Tampa, FL
7. Zach Wheeler, RHP, Dallas, GA
8. Austin Maddox, C/RHP, Jacksonville, FL
9. Matt Davidson, 3B, Yucaipa, CA
10. Keyvious Sampson, RHP/OF, Ocala, FL
11. Jonathan Walsh, C/3B/OF, Coppell, TX
12. Brian Goodwin, OF, Rocky Mount, NC

Prep Notes
The high school crop is highlighted by a pair of left-handed pitchers in Purke and Matzek. Both have touched the mid-90s, and pitch comfortably in the low-90s. Purke is praised for his competitive fire and wicked fastball-slider combo, while Matzek tosses a hard curveball with silky-smooth mechanics. Ian Krol (Naperville, IL), Chad James (Yukon, OK) and Beau Wright (Los Alamitos) add to the prep southpaw depth.

Tate may be the most physically gifted player to come from the prep ranks since Justin Upton and Cameron Maybin in 2005. He is a two-sport star whose father, Lars Tate, was a college star running back that spent three seasons in the NFL with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Givens, Maddox and Sampson are going to draw a lot of interest in the spring for their two-way talents. Givens and Sampson are more likely to be drafted as pitchers with easy arm strength and wicked breaking balls. Maddox' arm strength and power potential will likely lead to him being pursued as a catcher.

Catchers overall are a strength for next year's crop, which includes Maddox, Stassi, Luke Bailey (LaGrange, GA), Jonathan Walsh (Coppell, TX), Andrew Susac (Roseville, CA) and Michael Zunino (Cape Coral, FL), all of whom are candidates to go in the first two rounds of the draft.

Texas strong righty Shelby Miller is quickly rising up draft boards, while the twin towers of Chad Thompson (Trabuco Canyon, CA) and Christopher Jenkins (Westfield, NJ), who check in at 6'8" and 6'7" respectively, also throw gas with good secondary stuff.

Davidson, Goodwin, third baseman Brian Borchering (Alva, FL), shortstop Deven Marrero (Davie, FL) and outfielder Jake Marisnick (Riverside, CA) really helped their stock with strong performances this summer.

College

1. Stephen Strasburg, RHP, San Diego State
2. Grant Green, SS, USC
3. Alex White, RHP, North Carolina
4. Dustin Ackley, OF/1B, North Carolina
5. Aaron Crow, RHP, Fort Worth Cats (Independent)
6. Andrew Oliver, LHP, Oklahoma State
7. Kyle Gibson, RHP, Missouri
8. Mike Minor, LHP, Vanderbilt
9. Kentrail Davis, OF, Tennessee
10. Kendal Volz, RHP, Baylor
11. Jason Stoffel, RHP, Arizona
12. Blake Smith, RHP/OF, California

College Notes
Strasburg as noted above is the cream of this year's crop, and is poised for a huge junior year, and has posted impressive numbers throughout his college career. He earned a spot on the U.S. Olympic team's bronze medal-winning roster as part of the Beijing Olympics.

He along with fellow draft-eligible pitchers Oliver, Gibson, Minor, Volz, Smith, Mike Leake (Arizona State), Tyler Lyons (Oklahoma State), A.J. Griffin (San Diego) and Chris Hernandez (Miami) formed an incredible staff for the Team USA National Collegiate team this past summer, posting a staff ERA of 0.88 that carried the team to an undefeated, 24-0 record.

Green and Ackley showed their tools on the Cape, along with infielders Robbie Shields (Florida Southern), and D.J. LeMahieu (draft-eligible sophomore, LSU), first basemen Ben Paulsen (Clemson) and Ryan Wheeler (Loyola Marymount), third basemen Chris Dominguez (Louisville) and Rich Poythress (Georgia), and outfielders A.J. Pollock (Notre Dame), Tim Wheeler (Sacramento State) and Brett Jackson (California). Kentrail Davis was the lone draft-eligible hitting star for Team USA.

Cape starters such as Jeff Inman (Stanford), Craig Fritsch (Baylor), Shawn Tolleson (Baylor), Matt Thomson (San Diego) and Brad Stillings (Kent State) add to the impressive pitching talent available for next year's draft.

Jason Stoffel (Arizona), Brad Boxberger (USC), Ben Tottle (Jacksonville State) and Scott Bittle (Ole Miss, an unsigned second rounder by the New York Yankees) highlight the short list of power relievers available.

The weakest positional category for the 2009 draft at this point in time appears to be college catchers. Tony Sanchez (Boston College), Josh Phegley (Indiana) and Tommy Medica (Santa Clara) could be drafted in the early rounds based on need more than merit. Robert Stock (USC) may ride his reputation to an early draft selection as well.

Best Guess
Next June the Brewers will own the 25th overall selection, although it wouldn't be surprising to see the team forfeit that pick by signing a prominent Type A free agent this offseason. Although with two prominent Type A free agents-to-be of their own about to hit the market in CC Sabathia and Ben Sheets, it's likely the team stands to gain a few extra picks along the way.

Of course trying to guess who the Brewers, or any team for that matter, is a waste of time this far out. Trying to figure out who Jack Zduriencik would draft even days before the draft was never easy, and now it will be even more difficult to predict since the team will be turning to a new scouting director to acquire talent via the draft.

The Brewers have taken bats with their first pick the past two years, although they did buck a significant trend under Zduriencik's watch by taking not one college pitcher before the third round, but two. As noted above, the numbers of pitchers the Brewers selected will probably be enough to fill two levels with talent, so don't be surprised if the team takes a lot of bats early next year, even if the talent depth seems to favor the pitchers, to help fill the rookie clubs' lineups.

Of course we could see them do the exact opposite of this past year, adding a key arm early before going nearly overboard with bats.

There are a lot of different things the team could do between now and next June, and those are the storylines I hope to key everyone up to speed with as part of Brewerfan.net's draft coverage.

[Mike]

Rick et al,

 

You said to feel free to argue against the Power 50 editors, so here goes.

 

Expect the B.C. OF (left to right ) to be Haydel, Schafer and Gindl. The Brewers have shown that players must touch each level at least for awhile. Though not as fast as Lee Haydel, Schafer is more instictive and a better route runner in CF. All three (3) of these guys were the OF in WV last season. Schafer can't go to the TR's after hitting .276 in WV and playing in Hawaii. A 3rd rounder has to be pushed more.

 

As for Komatsu and Dykstra, Cutter is still young and will definitely start in Wisconsin, Erik was an absolute steal in the 8th round and deserves to play in B.C., but for the aforementioned reason, will start in Wisconsin.

 

These predictions are all different than the editors.

 

Mike

[colbyjack]

These predictions are all different than the editors.

 

You're definitely welcome to share your thoughts Mike, however I only count one prediction that differs (Schafer at BC vs. Wisconsin). Also, I think you're referring to the roster projections in the season-ending Farm Hops story which is found on the minor league forum, not this one (above I only mentioned above that Schafer, Dykstra and Komatsu could end up in Wisconsin together, not that they would or should).

 

Just to clarify, the draft recap story, the Farm Hops and the Power 50 and three separate features. The Power 50 ranks the prospects currently in the Brewers farm system, the Farm Hops story served as a season-ending recap and look ahead to next year, while the draft recap story above was simply reviewing the players the Brewers drafted and how they fared this summer, while also taking a quick peak at next year's top talent.

[Mike]

I did mix the two and I was incorrect on the OF differences, however my intended point is the Brewers seem to move guys together and that means to be me that B.C.'s OF will be what left WV at 2008 season's end.

I also recognize you did not say that they would be TR's together, so I am merely stating I don't think they will, i.e.Haydel, Schafer and Gindl will be in B.C.

What I can't tell you is where Steve Chapman will play.

Thanks

[ILuvDaBush]

Given that the Power 50 differs from your own opinion, how would you rank our three "catchers" in regards to value to the organization?

I seem to be a bit higher on Salome than most and would put him in front of Lucroy. The problem comes with Lawrie vs. Salome. Both hae big questions about their defense with nary a question about their bat, unless the question is ceiling. This probably deserves its own thread, but I am just curious about your own opinion on the matter. Does Lawrie's ultimate ceiling....whatever it may be, trump what Salome did this year, despite the questions regarding Salome's ability to field his only possible NL position?

[colbyjack]

I know there are a couple of threads that tackle this issue, and it is a little confusing since I released three different things in the matter of 5-10 minutes, but please discuss the Power 50 on this thread:

 

http://forum.brewerfan.net/viewtopic.php?t=16457

 

This thread is more about the draftees from 2008, and the top prospects available for 2009. Thanks!

[CheezWizHed]

Patrick, I really appreciate these summaries you write up. I can hardly wrap my mind around all of these draftees, let alone follow how they are all doing!

 

I'm wondering, as the winter baseball slow down happens, if you would be willing to go back and do the same for 2007's draft. It would be cool to follow-up on how they are doing in the first full year of baseball. I follow the higher level draft prospects, but reading this makes me realize how many of the lower draftees I miss until they are at AA or so...

 

Of course, I know I'm asking for a lot with this, but maybe that will shakeup those mid-February doll-drums... Thanks.

[colbyjack]

CheezWizHed, I'm glad you enjoy these features. I did write a recap of the 2007 draftees last year after their first summer is pro ball:

 

http://www.brewerfan.net/...wArticle.do?articleId=269

 

I'm not sure if I will have time to do a more complete recap a year and a half after they were drafted, but here's a quick rundown of the prospects of note (others may feel free to add any I am leaving off):

 

• Matt LaPorta of course was traded for Sabathia.

• Jonathan Lucroy hit very well at low-A and high-A after a good showing at this time last year in the Hawaii Winter Baseball league and is one of the team's top prospects.

• Eric Farris started the year slow after arriving late to WV due to injury. He finished the year strong, but needs to show more power to be considered an everyday big-leaguer.

• Caleb Gindl led the Pioneer League last year in hitting as an 18-year old, and finished this past year with a batting average above .300 after a slow start. He's currently playing in the HWB.

• Dan Merklinger runs hot and cold, but still has good stuff for a lefty.

• Efrain Nieves also runs a little hot and cold, but has improving stuff and was named one of the top prospects in the Pioneer League.

• Kristian Bueno has been brought along more slowly than the others, but still is a name to keep an eye on, most likely with Helena next year.

• Eric Fryer had a breakout season at WV.

• Cody Scarpetta put up very impressive numbers in very limited time between Arizona and Helena this past year. He recently pitched a very good game in the HWB, where he replaced Mike Ramlow a few weeks ago, and is now one of the organization's top pitching prospects.

• Chris Dennis has incredible raw power and is a sleeper among prospects to watch moving forward.

• Donovan Hand has been aggressively pushed, pitching this past year for AA.

• Erik Miller, like Bueno, has been brought along slowly, but has some interesting athletic talent.

• Bobby Bramhall had a very good and somewhat overlooked season for BC this past year. He probably profiiles as a reliever/specialist down the road.

• Zelous Wheeler has been a solid filler for the lower levels so far.

• Ditto for Steffan Wilson.

• Shawn Zarraga was the only Arizona Brewer to hit .300 this past year. He has big power and gives the Brewers a sleeper prospect at catcher in the lower levels.

 

The DFEs from last year (the last year of the process) are pretty promising as well. Bryson was included in the Sabathia deal, Robinson has injury issues but is a talented pitching prospect when healthy, Haydel is arguably the fastest player in the system and hit just below .300 in his first full season, and Tyson got back on track after his demotion to Helena.

 

As for the ones that got away, keep an eye on Rick Hague, a SS at Rice and Chase Reid, a RHP at Vanderbilt who will actually be draft eligible next June as a 21-year old sophomore.

[CheezWizHed]

Thanks for taking the time on recapping the 2007 draft too. I read them every year (I've been around since WOAH SOLVDD, but just started posting more recently). I generally watch the high end of the draft (say down to Gindl for '07), but its the low end I always miss.

I'll have to add Scarpetta and Hand to my watch list. Scarpetta kind of hit my radar lately anyway because of the 40-man list.

Zarraga - yet another catcher prospect? Is it safe to say Jack Z has a gift for catchers? Hopefully that was a strength of his staff and not just him. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

I'm really sad to see the DFE system go. Its been so good to us.

[1992casey]

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