Draft Pick Discussion Thread, Rounds 1-5

[clancyphile]

Well, if he lasts until the 4th, and you're Jack Z, do you take Hughes?

 

I'd say the answer is yes.

[colbyjack]

Hughes off the board to the PIrates in round 4.

[gregmag]

Gillespie turns 22 in June. He's going to have to move through the system fast to have any kind of career at all.

 

Jeffress -- somebody said how can you give up on him before he even signs? I'm not giving up on him, but I think he's a terrible pick. Bad enough that he's a HS righty, but a small one who throws 100 and is still figuring out his breaking ball? Oh, no; he'll never get hurt. The only good news is that he's almost 19, so at least he's on the older end of the HS draftee pool. But really, I can't stand wasting our premium picks on guys who have a very limited chance of ever helping the Brewers.

 

As for Brewer, SoCal's info is very discouraging, but I don't mind rolling the dice on a raw but high-ceiling HS hitter. As Colby said, I'd feel better about it if the first round pick made more sense.

 

Between the losing streak and these draft choices, this past week has to go down as about the most disappointing in recent Brewers history. Here's hoping we get more out of the lower rounds.

 

Greg.

[gregmag]

Evan Anundsen, another HS righty, in the 4th. Be still my heart.

 

Greg.

[Team Canada]

Hughes off the board to the PIrates in round 4.

 

William? Does he go by his middle name or something?

[battlekow]

Anundsen likes alt rock and Wichita State.

[gebc1997]

I guess we all have noticed that Anundsen is from the infamous Columbine HS!!!!!

 

 

His predictions!!

 

2006---AZL 0-1, 4.98 33/35/10/29

 

Pitches 06-09 as high as High A.

Minor league rule 5'd by Toronto

10-12 with Toronto

2013 with Cubs system and released in July

 

Never reaches big time

[splitterpfj]

I realize draft picks can always surprise you either way, but these first four all look like longshots to me.

 

There's certainly no one in there who was intended to help the major league team quickly.

[gregmag]

gebc, your predictions are utterly weird, and I actually mean that in a complementary way.

 

Baseball America's draft blog . . . well, sucks. At least if you're a Brewers fan. Their one feature item about the Crew was about how we got a sleeper in the second round by drafting Tom Hickman, who in fact was taken by the Marlins three picks after we took Brewer. In contrast to their inability to distinguish between low-revenue teams, the bloggers slobber all over every Red Sox and Yankees pick with deeply researched reverence. I expect better than that from BA.

 

Greg.

[DHonks]

but splitterpfj, we really weren't counting on anyone helping before 2009 from this draft, were we?

[wibadgers23]

Outfielder Christopher Errecart taken in round 5. So far, we've only selected 2 pitchers.

[gregmag]

. . . and in the fifth round, we get Cole Gillespie mark II: Chris Errecart, another corner type with a decent but not great bat who's less than a year younger than Prince Fielder. (Gillespie is actually within a month of Fielder, and probably has no greater defensive versatility down the road, but he does have a better-regarded bat than Errecart).

 

Honestly, what do you do with guys like this? Start them in Helena and hope they see the majors at 25? At which point they'll be what -- backup corner guys? I mean, I understand Corey Hart is overqualified for his present job, but that doesn't mean you have to plan ahead to ensure sufficient mediocrity in the future.

 

I know I'm getting snippy here, but not one of these picks makes any sense to me. HS RH pitchers, old college corner hitters, and Josh Murray v. 2.0? Yuck. I look forward to being educated by people who have a better sense of how these players can help.

 

Greg.

[splitterpfj]

Hi DHonks.....no, I suppose not. I just cringe at HS pitchers, whether I should or not, and Brewer looks like an all-or-nothing type pick. He's fast, he has some power, but can he make consistent contact, can he field, is he an instinctive baserunner, etc.

 

I realize these guys are just kids right now, and of course they could become outstanding players for the Brewers, they just look like risky choices to me. Like others have said, give me one or the other, but don't roll the dice quite so much with both of the first two picks.

 

Jack Z surely knows more than I do, I'll be standing by, hoping to eat my words in a few years.

[cressj]

I would say Errecart is a solid pick in round 5. I believe he performed well last summer in the Cape Cod league.

[xisxisxis]

Jack Z surely knows more than I do, I'll be standing by, hoping to eat my words in a few years.

 

I'd keep repeating "Jack Z surely knows more than I do", but I'm afraid I'd be screaming at the top of my lungs by the 10th round.

[Katuluu]

Greg, I understand how much you don't like HS pitchers, but isn't it fairly obvious by now that Jack Z feels completely differently then you? I'd think you'd already be resigning yourself to seeing HS pitchers well in advance of every draft. http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif

 

And considering the lack of corner OF prospects in the farm system, seeing college corner OF's drafted shouldn't be all that suprising. Though I'm hoping the Brewers think highly enough of them to start them at least in WV so they will be at least somewhat pushed.

[batman]

FYI, I just added quite a bit more information about Jeffress to his post in the Official Draft Pick Selection Thread. There is a nice picture, some information about where he's from, and a few articles. Unfortunately, coverage of Jeremy appears to have been very scarce before his name started appearing in draft previews over the last few weeks. He's clearly been a big name in his area for a long time, however, and I'm sure everyone in South Boston is really excited to see their hometown boy getting so much national attention.

 

~Bill

[gregmag]

Kat, of course you're right about Jack Z. and HS arms, but this seemed like a draft where HS arms wouldn't be quite so tempting, so yeah, I had hope. Also, I respect Jack and understand that he knows a whole lot more about this than I do, but so far experience has not been kind to his worldview. Is it too much to ask that maybe he learn something from that experience, at least something about the value of diversifying your risks?

 

As for the old guys we've drafted (says the soon-to-be 39 year-old), I hope you're right. If they're good enough to move more quickly than we've seen recent Brewer prospects move, and if the organization in fact moves them quickly, then they're useful prospects -- as long as Gillespie isn't limited to 1B, which one scouting report I read somewhere said he might be.

 

Greg.

[batman]

Again FYI, I have added information to Brent Brewer's post on the Official Draft Pick Selection Thread. Of particular interest is that Brewer was considering signing a professional contract and foregoing Seminole football even before the second-round selection and that he will almost certainly be moved to the outfield (he played there in high school and was planning on playing there in college).

 

~Bill

[bjkrautk]

Maybe more of a research project than a question -- would it be possible to find out what HS pitchers Jack Z has selected (with other teams) that have pitched in the major leagues?

 

If there was a 20-game winner or two in that list, I know it would make me feel more comfortable with these picks.

[batman]

Unfortunately, Jack Z's record with high school pitchers hasn't been good. Using Baseball America's Executive Database and The Baseball Cube, I came up with the following draft summaries for his time with the Pirates and Mets. Take it for what it's worth.

 

Jack Zduriencik was the Pirates' scouting director from 1991 through 1993.

 

1991: Selected JuCo catcher/outfielder Jon Farrell with the 24th pick; he topped out at Double-A. Selected prep pitcher Dave Doomeweerd and Northwestern pitcher Dan Jones in the second round; neither made it to the Show. The team's best selection that year was Tony Womack, a seventh-rounder out of Guilford College. Other notable selections included Dustin Hermanson (prep pitcher, round 39), Jim Brower (prep pitcher, round 56), and Paul Wilson (prep pitcher, round 57).

 

1992: Selected prep outfielder (obviously later catcher) Jason Kendall with the 23rd overall selection. Spent sandwich pick and two second round picks on prep outfielders, too; none of them had any real big league impact, although two of them made it there. Not too many other big leaguers.

 

1993: Selected prep outfielder Charles Peterson with the 22nd overall pick; he topped out at Triple-A. Used sandwich round picks on a college outfielder, Jermaine Allensworth, who spent a little time in the big leagues and on prep first-baseman Andy Rice, who never got past Single-A. Selected prep pitcher Kevin Pickford with the 54th overall pick, a prep pitcher from California, but he only had a cup of coffee in the big leagues in 2002. The only other notable selection was prep pitcher Kane Davis in the 13th round; amazingly, he had the best career of anyone in that Pirates' draft.

 

Zduriencik was then Director of Minor League Operations and Special Assistant to the GM with the New York Mets from 1996 through 1999. I'm not sure how much input he had into the draft selections in any given year, so take these with a grain of salt.

 

1996: Selected prep outfielder Rob Stratton with the 13th overall pick; he topped out at Triple-A. Spent next three picks on two college and one prep pitcher, with only third-rounder Ed Yarnall seeing the big leagues. Only other big leaguers in the draft were pitchers Dicky Gonzalez (round 16, no info on where he came from) and Tim Corcoran (round 44, prep).

 

1997: Selected prep pitcher Geoff Goetz with sixth overall pick; he never advanced past Double-A. Second-rounder Tyler Jackson, a pitcher from Cal-Berkeley, has spent the last several years in the Show while third-round prep shortstop Cesar Crespo has seen some big league time. Other notable picks include Garrett Atkins (prep third-baseman, round 10), Jason Phillips (college catcher, round 24), Brandon Lyon (prep pitcher, round 37), Randy Keisler (college pitcher, round 40), and David DeJesus (prep outfielder, round 43).

 

1998: Selected college outfielder Jason Tyner with 21st overall pick; he's spent some time in the big leagues but never amassed more than 396 at-bats in a single campaign. Second-round prep pitcher Pat Strange made eleven appearances in 2002 and 2003 and next two picks (both college pitchers) never made the Show. Only other notable selections include Ty Wigginton (college infielder, round 17) and Jaime Cerda (college pitcher, round 23).

 

1999: Didn't have a first-round pick. Selected prep pitcher Neal Musser with 73rd overall pick; he topped out in Triple-A. Other second-round pick, college pitcher Jake Joseph, never made the Show, either. Notable picks include Jeremy Griffiths (3rd round, college pitcher), Prentice Redman (10th round, CC outfielder), and Mike Jacobs (college catcher-turned-first-baseman, round 38) .

 

~Bill

[batman]

I added some more information to Cole Gillespie's post in the Official Draft Pick Selection Thread. He has a very interesting story and looks like quite a gritty battler... and he can hit a little bit, too.

 

~Bill

[Never Outhustled]

I think 1 thing thats obvious about Jeffress is he'll be an easy sign. He stated immediately after being selected that he'd sign, and his actions back that up. He never even bothered signing a letter of intent with a college, so he has no leverage. You've got to respect a kid that could care less about the money part of the game. His agents used to work for Doug Melvin in Texas.

 

Anyone else think Jeffress looks like and is built like Dontrelle Willis? They both have super long legs and no torso. Willis is Jeffress's idol and he kind of copies the leg kick.

[jwaltz]

I wouldn't say he is built like Dontrelle. Dontrelle is a tall and fairly big guy. He is 6'4" and listed at 239. Jeffress is around 6'. Jeffress' delivery does remind me some of Dontrelle though. The high leg kick is similar to Dontrelle. Maybe he is built like Dontrelle's mini-me.

[Oldcity]

I found it interesting that Melvin said they felt none of the college pitchers available when the Brewers picked were worthy of a first round pick. That includes Daniel Bard, who many liked.