New Venture - 5 Tool Talk; Latest -- Free Agent Draft Compensation

[colbyjack]

I invite everyone to check out my new venture, a site dedicated to the MLB draft, 5 Tool Talk.

 

http://www.5tooltalk.com/

 

This is a venture I have been thinking about for quite some time, since most of the things I report on are not specifically related to the Milwaukee Brewers. It will help market some of the bigger stories I'm working on front and center on the homepage, while also having handy resources such as the draft order, rankings and other features.

 

The site will improve moving forward (I realize some of the items at the top of the page don't look they are suppposed to if you use Internet Explorer, but they should look fine in Firefox, Safari and Opera), and I also intend to get Brian more involved to make the site more dynamic with the rankings features. I do not have a message board integrated, but if you read the about page I do plan to have a mailbag feature if I receive enough inquiries.

 

Also, this is my first stab at HTML/CSS after taking a class this winter/spring, so it showcases those skills as well.

 

I welcome your comments. I may not have as much time to devote to the site in the coming weeks since my wife and I are expecting our second child, but I do intend to update it as much as I can (and if you dig a little you will see there are quite a few notes features, that I used to share here, already in place).

 

Also, special thanks to Brewerfan user wvpowerblkwl who has always been open to us using some of his pictures taken from following the Brewers minor leaguers. If there is anyone out there that goes out and follows college and high school prospects that is willing to share photographs in exchange for name recognition, please feel free to reach out to me.

[patrickgpe]

the website does a great job with info. The problem always with the mlb draft is that I don't get to see any of the players only know what I know from what I read here. Having another rescourse to prepare me is a great thing. are forumns something you might do moving forward?

[Never Outhustled]

The sight looks great Patrick. I hope it turns out a big success for you, as you truely deserve it. When I see the success of guys you've bragged up it im the past, like Jordan Zimmerman, or how you were on the Matt Weiters bandwagon since HS, it shows your true talent.

 

A few questions:

I see you have Jared Mitchell going to the Brewers in your mock draft. I think thats a perfect prediction. Mitchel has really improved at the plate this year, and he has the incredible tools the Brewers hunt for. He has the lefty bat that the ideal Brewers pick would have. Its amazing he done so well this year considering he's never been through fall practice, and actually attended spring football during baseball season his 1st 2 years. The question is, has has stock risen so much that he'd be picked much higher than 26, and is their any issues in signing him?

 

I see you have Jake Locker #41 in your rankings. Is he really considering baseball? It would be cool if he did, since the Brewers have a connection to him.

 

I love the player reports in your Dandy Dozen. Lots of sights have ranking, but finding out anything more about players is hard to find. It says you will do new Dandy Dozens periodically, will the previous player reports still be available after the new Dandy Dozens come out?

[colbyjack]

At this point in time I do not plan on incorporating a forum. I would prefer more of a response section to the individual stories, such as something you would find with a blog, but I don't know how to code that, and I want to avoid having the site become a blog. As noted above, Brian has been kind enough to offer some of his services, so a blog-type response to the individual features may be something he can help me with.

 

Thanks X. As of right now, Mitchell may not last to the Brewers pick. I've seen him a few times this spring and there is no more dynamic player in the game. Some are a little concerned about how much he'll hit, so that could cause him to be there in the late 1st.

 

I don't think Locker is considering baseball, but I still have to rank him because he could be a premium pick if he did make himself available.

 

The Dandy Dozen does have an archive on the lower right-hand side on any and all of the Dandy Dozen related pages, as I'm pretty sure there are three entires available. I plan to keep that more periodical than what it has been moving forward once I am able to iron out some of the behind-the-scenes problems.

[Tedaldtada]

Cool Site. It's hard to find good draft coverage at an affordable price (i.e. free).

 

I see you have the Brewers taking the OF Mitchell in the first round. Has Seid touted this guy? Why do you see him as a fit for the Crew? Is he their kind of player (i.e. High upside bat, question in other areas)? Thanks dude.

[colbyjack]

Seid hasn't touted anyone with me personally. While he's a little more personable than Jack Z., he still plays his cards very close to his vest. Most scouting directors don't just come out and tell people who they're looking at, as most of that information comes anonymously.

 

The only thing that I can say for certain is that Stephen Strasburg, unless his arm falls off of his body, will go #1 overall to the Nationals. Big surprise there, right?

 

For a while Mitchell looked as though he wouldn't fall to the Brewers, but he really has been striking out at an eye-popping pace recently. The numbers were still good the last time I looked, but his overall dynamic play hasn't been quite as good, particularly as the SEC conference schedule has continued. He's definitely a high-upside player that has some holes in his game. He's an instinctive player but needs to work on his swing (obviously based on the Ks). One thing that I think Mitchell could struggle with is his identity as a player. He has the power/speed combo similar to Rickie Weeks that could make him somewhat of a 'tweener (if such a 'tweening is possible) between a leadoff hitter and a #3 hitter. When I saw him play earlier this year, he really reminded me of the do-it-all, pre-steroid Ruben Sierra. He could be that good, and not necessarily the Carl Crawford type of player people compared him to coming out of HS.

 

While I just updated the rankings at 5 Tool Talk, I need to do so again. Tanner Scheppers has jumped up draft boards (could go 2nd overall to the Mariners), among a few other players not listed, while Luke Bailey is going to fall off of the top 50 list, as he reportedly is due for TJ surgery.

[Tedaldtada]

When I saw him play earlier this year, he really reminded me of the do-it-all, pre-steroid Ruben Sierra.

Man that would be sick...

 

I'm really pumped for this draft, and had a couple more questions if that is cool.

 

I see Kentrail Davis is listed at 5'9''. Would this guy be much higher if he had more 'prototypical' size? We all know what Gindl can do (at least in A ball), not to mention the many other short players that have had success before. Is he still thought of as a possible 5 tool guy or are there questions about his power? It seems like he has been around forever.

Could you see the Brewers taking him in the 1st or Supplemental Round?

Also, any word on how Mychal Givens is looking so far? He just has a athletic sounding name (whatever that means). We could use an infusion of middle infield talent in the lower levels.

Lastly, Who is this years Lucroy going to be? What I mean is what smallish school prospect could you see the Brewers being super interested in? Fredrickson was kind of that guy last year.

 

Thanks so much Colby.

[TooLiveBrew]

The only thing that I can say for certain is that Stephen Strasburg, unless his arm falls off of his body, will go #1 overall to the Nationals. Big surprise there, right?

 

Now see... that's why you charge the big bucks to visit 5tooltalk.com! http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif

[colbyjack]

I was a big fan of Kentrail Davis coming out of HS. I really liked the way he swung the bat, and considered him one of the best, most polished bats available for the 2007 draft. A car accident messed up his junior year, and an affiliation with Scott Boras didn't help either, although I heard (and still hear) that he is signable.

 

However, when I saw him both last year and a few times this year, I really don't like how much he goes fishing for breaking balls in the dirt. That's more than just a hole in one's swing, that's a fault in one's approach (how many times do you yell at the TV when Corey Hart swings at those pitches even beyond his reach?). He can be successful as a dead-red, fastball hitter, and he has shown the patience to lay off pitches he can't handle, but he needs to really train himself to become a much more selective hitter.

 

He has some power, a 10-20 HR hitter at the pro level, and he's not really a 5-tool guy. More of a 3-tool guy considering that he can play CF, but won't on an everyday basis at a big-leaguer should he make it that far, as his overall D', and his arm, are made for LF. I have compared him to a LH hitting version of Shannon Stewart for quite some time now once I got past the Kirby Puckett comparisons (which aren't accurate).

 

I don't see the Brewers taking him that late, and I think if he falls that far he will go back to Tennessee for his junior year, which he may be better off doing so.

 

Givens has been 91-95 from what I've heard. Good, not great breaking ball, as he still looked his best in shorter stints last summer when he was 96-98 was a killer breaking ball. I haven't heard much about his swing or his D' this spring, which may indicate that more and more consider him as a RHP.

 

I think two small school guys and teammates fit the Brewers profile perfectly, and may factor into the team's sandwich picks: Kennesaw State RHPs Kyle Heckathorn and Chad Jenkins. Heckathorn entered the spring as the better prospect, but Jenkins may have passed him with improving stuff and much better control/command. They're both big (6'6", 240, 6'5", 205 respectively) and can throw in the mid-90s. Heckathorn as the better raw stuff, but is more of a FB/CH guy that can throw a SL (that needs work), while Jenkins is a FB/CB guy.

 

Kent State teammates Brad Stillings and Kyle Smith entered the year with many believing they would be the ones pushing themselves into sandwich round consideration, but both have struggled, and neither has shaken skepticism that they may be future short relievers given the lack of consistent secondary offerings.

 

Donovan Hand's former Jacksonville State teammate Ben Tootle was huge on the Cape last summer as a closer, but has been his team's Friday starter this spring with mixed results. His stuff is too good to be handled the way it has this spring, a concern that lingered over Evan Frederickson.

 

UC Santa Barbara's Joe Gardner and Oral Roberts' Jerry Sullivan are both good, well-rounded RHPs enjoying good years, while LHP James Jones is having a pretty awful year (on the mound, not at the plate) for Long Island University. UConn's Dan Mahoney is a draft-eligible sophomore that I don't think will even be drafted this year, but is a smaller school, big bodied and live-armed RHP that could push himself into first-round consideration a year from now.

 

As for the hitters, Florida Southern's Robbie Shields is having an ok spring after a very impressive, although short, stint on the Cape last summer. Ohio's Marc Krauss is a hitting machine that has drastically improved his power production this spring (20 HR on the year). He's a LF/1B type that physically is limited similar to Brad Nelson, meaning I don't see the Brewers drafting him early enough to land him.

[CheezWizHed]

Congrats on the new web site and congrats on the new son!

 

On your mock draft, do you match up players/teams based on need or more BPA? I'm guessing where the Brewers are drafting, the BPA is less obvious than at the top of the draft, so need plays more into the pick?

 

I know you were asking for HS/College pics, but feel free to use the WI Rats pics I took from 5/2/09 if you want. I can send the hi-res pics also if you are interested.

 

edit: wrong link...

[lovehate]

I love your site Colby, nice job - very clean looking.

 

Prospect question for you - BA's most recent draft tracker says Matzek is the best prep pitcher in the country, I see you currently have 2 prep arms ranked higher. Can you give us an idea of what you like better in the other 2 guys?

 

Thanks,

[colbyjack]

I really like Matthew Purke. I talked about this on XM Radio Sunday morning, but he has stuff plus the intangibles. He has deception to his low-3/4 delivery and he has a competitive demeanor on the mound. His fastball runs in the low-90s, and his slider is a nasty pitch.

 

Miller is a live-armed RHP that kind of reminds me of Homer Bailey. He has been up to 98 this spring, and also throws a hammer curve.

 

And that isn't meant to take too much away from Matzek, who many consider the best prep pitching prospect in the nation. He does command 4 pitches, but I wouldn't call any of them nasty, or special. His fastball sits in the low-90s, but it's straight, making it a more hittable pitch. I like both Purke and Miller moving forward in that they have a lot more room for improvement.

[colbyjack]

I wasn't able to commit as much time to 5 Tool Talk as I would have liked, although it didn't even get off the ground until April. This year I'm excited to get things kicked off much, much earlier, recently updating the 2010 draft order, top 50 prospects, notes, a mock draft and a new Dandy Dozen. A 2010 draft preview story will be coming very soon as well. As always, I'm open to hear your thoughts.

 

5 Tool Talk

 

EDIT: It was fun to re-read this thread. Kudos to Tedaldtada29 for predicting Kentrail Davis' selection in the sandwich round, even if he didn't know it (and even if I felt it wouldn't happen -- I thought his connection to Boras would carry him back to Tennessee if he fell that far). Also, Heckathorn's name was also mentioned as a realistic sandwich round option.

 

EDIT #2: I apologize that I still haven't addressed a few coding issues for IE users. You really should find a different browser anyway, but who am I to preach about such things? http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

[Tedaldtada]

Colby, thanks for shout out and I'm very happy that 5 Tool Talk is back in business! I have to say that signing Kentrail Davis is a huge coup for the Crew. In fact, that whole draft is very impressive. Getting Davis, Heckathorne, Richardson, Hall, Howell, Gennett, and McKelvie all to sign is pretty remarkable. Too bad we couldn't lock in McDaniel, Rutledge, or Stock but we all kinda knew that after they were picked. Getting all those tough signs in the fold really makes the entire class look first rate.

 

Is it March yet?? I want to see what these guys can do!

[TooLiveBrew]

Great to see things up & running so well, colby. Best of luck to you... I'll sure be dropping by often.

 

Have you thought about arranging any interviews with upcoming prospects? That could be a neat feature to set you apart from 'other' draft/prospect sites.

[colbyjack]

I'm going to do my best not to pimp my personal site that much here, but I do want to make people aware that I have both a Facebook page and a YouTube page in place for my 5 Tool Talk venture. I welcome you to join both pages as it's the best way for me to make people aware of updates as they are posted.

 

In addition to a recent trip I took to Las Vegas to check out Bryce Harper, LeVon Washington and several other intriguing draft-eligible players (I apologize for the video quality from this event, they were taken from my iPhone, as I intend to tote a better video camera with me moving forward), I hope to take a trip later this month to Tennessee to catch some combination of players including Anthony Ranaudo, Bryan Morgado, Blake Forsythe, Micah Gibbs, Leon Landry, Logan Darnell, Chris Bisson and Bryce Brentz.

 

Also a reminder that all of my updates and observations moving forward, including top prospect rankings, will be there, and not here like in past years. I do not have a forum in place (yet), so I intend to still talk about draft stuff here for those interested.

 

Thanks for your support!

[colbyjack]

If you have the time I invite you to check out some of the most recent features at 5 Tool Talk. I don't have, and at the time don't plan to add, a forum, but I have added the opportunity for users to add their comments for any new feature. Here is a link to my top 50 2011 prospects to show an example of this:

 

http://www.5tooltalk.com/topprospects.html

[ramssuperbowl99]

If you have the time I invite you to check out some of the most recent features at 5 Tool Talk. I don't have, and at the time don't plan to add, a forum, but I have added the opportunity for users to add their comments for any new feature. Here is a link to my top 50 2011 prospects to show an example of this:

 

http://www.5tooltalk.com/topprospects.html

Great site and great work. Stuff like this is always appreciated!

And nice calls with Heckathorn and Davis in the thread. If I ever need to know who the Brewers are taking in the sandwich round, I'll just ask. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif

[colbyjack]

The deadline for teams to offer/decline arbitration to free agents was this evening. Check out the link below for the players that were offered arbitration and how they effect the 2011 draft order. The players have a week to accept/decline arby, but recent history suggests most of these players will decline (IIRC, only 3 players accepted arby last year).

 

http://www.5tooltalk.com/feature-mainpage.html