Angels sign Adenhart

[colbyjack]

www.baseballamerica.com/t...nhart.html

 

$710,000 for a 14th rounder. Most, including myself, figured Adenhart was a lock to attend UNC after injuring his arm, having TJ surgery & then falling in the draft. Adenhart also might have looked at UNC's current rotation (Daniel Bard & Andrew Miller) & their incoming recruiting class (Andy Gale, Mike Rozier) and decided that entering pro ball now was the best move. Of course, the money doesn't hurt. A JC wouldn't have done him any good as a potential DFE since he'll likely miss all of next spring.

 

The Angels still have a couple of more tough signs in Jered Weaver & Mark Trumbo. If they deal guys like Santana, Mathis & McPherson for a playoff push, aggressive drafting like this may help re-stock their already strong system.

[jwaltz]

Wow. I didn't think he would sign either. Good job by the Angels.

 

Edit: I wonder if the Angels paid the tab on the TJ surgery?

[colbyjack]

Edit: I wonder if the Angels paid the tab on the TJ surgery?

 

I thought of this as well. Isn't Lewis Yocum or one of those doctors you see attached to every arm surgery affiliated with the Angels or one of those SoCal teams? I'm pretty sure he at least is located somewhere in that area. I'm not sure if that helps or not, but like I said, it did come to mind.

 

And picking up the tab for the surgery certainly would have helped the negotiations.

[jwaltz]

I was thinking about that as well.

 

You responded quickly. Fun.http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif

[EdgarDiazRocks]

Wow, somebody really didn't want to college. An advisor should have told hill Chapel Hill girls are prettier than those at the Angels' AZ rehab center.

 

http://www.footballculture.net/footballenglish/images/hamm.jpg

 

A good gamble by the Angels.

[endaround]

Yes, he might have decided to have the Angels deal with his rehab instead of depening upon UNC.

[Al the Thinking Man]

Outstanding "out of the box" move by ANA.

[jwaltz]

Moreno's deep pockets didn't hurt either.

[Never Outhustled]

Moreno's dedication to winning definately did help. Brewer ownership didn't even give Melvin a full draft budget this year, which is why they've signed so few players and going the draft and follow route. The hope is new ownership will be in place by next spring, and scouting staff would have a full budget to sign a dozen or so DFEs.

[colbyjack]

Moreno's dedication to winning definately did help. Brewer ownership didn't even give Melvin a full draft budget this year, which is why they've signed so few players and going the draft and follow route. The hope is new ownership will be in place by next spring, and scouting staff would have a full budget to sign a dozen or so DFEs.

 

So few players? They've signed their top 11 picks, and 14 of their top 20, with 5 of those remaining top 20 unsigned selections being likely DFE candidates (Josh Brady being the sole exception).

 

I respect your opinions X, but is that speculation or fact? It sounds like you know something we don't. From the looks of it, the Brewers still had their usual draft budget, they just planned differently since they didn't own the 2nd overall pick. As the draft signings point out, it's not like they went for a bunch of easy signs after their first rounders. They signed most to all of their top 10 picks for slot value, with the exception of Sollmann, who is still a solid player that could have value as a utility man some day.

 

I don't think they're counting on new ownership to have a bigger budget. Signing all of the Canadians in my mind is not just a way to delay signing players. IMO, it's another way to take advantage of a unique situation given the visa troubles & therefore teams' reluctance in drafting Canadians. Not only do they have their usual array of DFEs plus the Canadian group, but they also have a couple of college guys that were injured, and fall under the same category that Jared Theodorakos did this past year. I call that doing your homework.

 

As I pointed out in the thread at the top of this forum, Weeks doesn't count in last year's draft IMO budget-wise. It was unrealistic to think that the Brewers would spend the same kind of money this year as they did last. This year's bonuses without looking likely adds up to what they did in 2000-2002, and they have been anything but cheap since they rededicated the franchise to player development when Dean Taylor took over.

 

On top of that, we may not have as many draft signees numbers-wise, but I think that has more to do with design than by default. Look at the lower levels of the minor leagues. Both Helena & Arizona are pretty stocked with players. It's arguable how much talent is there, but still, there are a lot of players at those 2 levels that the Brewers like. Instead of creating logjams with 2nd day picks at those levels I believe the organization was intentionally trying to take more DFE candidates in attempt to weed out the talent so to speak via the DFE process. I don't think I'm wearing rose-colored glasses in making that statement because to me there is an obvious systematic plan that was executed not only this year, but almost every year since Jack Z. has taken over.

[colbyjack]

Here is what the Brewers have spent on their top 10 picks since Jack Z. has took over:

 

2000: $3,615,000 (no 2nd rounder)

2001: $4,517,600 (the best Brewers draft under Jack Z.)

2002: $4,350,500 (add in Parra & you have $5,900,500, but Parra's bonus might be best split between '01 & '02)

2003: $6,052,500 (as pointed out, Weeks' huge contract makes this a unique year, not the norm)

2004: $4,307,000 (bonuses are down across the board, a similar effort to 2001, and they still might not be done)

 

If I have a quarrel with anything, it's the signing of Latin players. Ever since they shut down the Latin American academies we were told that they would spend more on quality than quantity, and while I can't prove they're not doing that, it would be nice to be thrown a bone once in a while about players that actually might be worth getting excited about. I don't expect Tom Haudricourt to provide this info, but Adam McCalvy has always been good about providing info that we normally don't have access to. Of course, visa troubles effect those players as well, and Hurricane Hernan doesn't really count since he has been in the system for a few years now. Plus, the Brewers don't go out of their way to hype young players at the lower rungs of their system like the Braves, Yankees & Dodgers do.

[batman]

Great job, Patrick. When I read what X wrote, I too thought "is that really true?" and was hoping that someone (you! http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/wink.gif ) would do the research. Couple things:

 

- I think the comment about our lower minors being "stacked" is very true. I'm not sure if that's a "problem" for other organizations as well, but I'm sure that our discontinuation of the summer league teams has added to the logjam a bit.

 

- I wonder if we could form a "Canadian Summer League" team that basically just plays intrasquad games and perhaps other Canadian amateur teams. If nothing else, it would allow us to sign some of the Canadian players early, keep them in Canada, and give them access to our coaching and training personnel on at least a part-time basis while they also play with their own summer league teams. I like the idea of waiting until next year's draft to determine who to sign, as some guys will get injured or be less effective than we thought they'd be, but that decision-making process would be aided quite a bit if we could get them together and have more of a hands-on relationship with them. I don't think you can really do that unless you sign them, though, so maybe it's an impossibility. Regardless, I think developing our own program/facility in Canada would be a good idea going forward, especially if visa problems are going to be a perennial problem.

 

Anyway, great stuff Patrick!

 

~Bill

[Al the Thinking Man]

Sadly I thought the same thing with Canada, Bill.

 

Golly, we're nerds.

[colbyjack]

The Brewers already are using Canadian summer leagues trying to develop their draftees. I forget which pitcher, but MassBrew has pointed out that one of our recent draftees is playing for some summer league north of the border. I believe 1-2 of the other ones (Periard maybe), are playing for Canada's Junior National Team. That can actually an even better route, because like the entire DFE process, the Brewers don't have to pay for those team's nor player's expenses, yet they have a pretty active role in persuading those teams as to how those players should be used.

 

I think it would be really hard to have our own Canadian summer league because all Canadians are subject to the draft. It's the same reason you don't see any Puerto Rican leagues. You may have academies run by independent coaches & scouts, but not individual organizational teams. Dominican & Venezuelan teams & leagues are a plenty because you can sign a ton of players for next to nothing to field a roster & not worry about losing draft picks even when signing roster fillers. To field a Canadian team you would have to draft about 25 Canadian players. I'm sure you could fill in the gaps with some free agents & the like, but considering the Brewers took the most Canadians out of any team at 7, that's a lot of roster spots to fill.

 

It's an interesting idea, but the logistics just don't make it that realistic of a task. Who knows, maybe we could start sending some of our Latin American signees there to even things out. Are there any visa issues from going from the DR or VEN to Canada, or are they strictly USA visa issues? I'm guessing it's a USA issue, which may make it a creative way to develop talent. But if that's the case, why not just keep the DR academy open & send our Canadian draftees down there?

 

Now, the Brewers could host a team similar to the Area Code Games which could tie into the academy idea listed above, and for all I know given Team Canada and all of their Canadian scouts, they already do. Those players wouldn't be officially affiliated with the organization, but like our Area Code Game scouts/coaches, no one gets a closer look at the players than them. Actually, something like this is already in place, since I know most of our Canadian scouts are former & current coaches given their part-time status, and no one gets a closer look at the players than the coaches themselves.

 

And speaking of the Area Code Games, I checked out their site the other day & the Brewers not only are covering all of California, but they're also hosting the kids from Nevada & Hawaii as well. Another instance in which the organization is expanding it's scouting horizons.

[Never Outhustled]

Colbyjack, it is fact that the Brewers have signed fewer players this year than in past years. While you have stated Helena and Arizona are stacked, thats not the case at all. Helena has been signing an unusually high number of non-drafted players, mostly pitchers, to fill out its roster. Those players require no bonus. If there was more $ available, they'd be signing draft picks like Prettman. I don't disagree at all that they've executed a plan very well, I'd expect nothing else from DM, and Jack Z. I'm simply implying the plan was forced by budget restraints. With the team for sale, it makes more sense to cut the draft budgett than the major league payroll.

[MassBrew]

Plain and simple, the Brewers knew this was to be a huge draft-and-follow year because they had so many Latin kids in Helena and Maryvale after the dissolution of the DSL and VSL squads.

 

They've signed their early picks, and will monitor the rest. No budgetary concerns at all in terms of who they signed this summer.

 

Prettyman? Eh, to steal a Toby-ism.

[950opsLHcatcher]

Does it really make a difference whether you draft guys like Brenden Murray and Jeff Garner in rounds 30-40, or wait to sign them until after the draft?

 

Helena has been signing an unusually high number of non-drafted players, mostly pitchers, to fill out its roster.

 

Pitchers Murray and Garner, and outfielder Jake Serfass. I don't know that I would define three players as an "unusually high number." I will grant you that most of the three players are pitchers.

 

For comparison's sake, last year they had two non-drafted players, and the same was true in '02. While three is more than two, I wouldn't qualify it as being unusally more.

[Never Outhustled]

Add in Ben Stanzyk toby.

[colbyjack]

Does it really make a difference whether you draft guys like Brenden Murray and Jeff Garner in rounds 30-40, or wait to sign them until after the draft?

 

This is a great point by Toby, and throw in Stanczyk as well. I have no problem with signing undrafted free agents, and I don't think any number is really unusually high, unless half the team is fielded with undrafted free agents.

 

And I don't worry too much about the number of draftees we've actually signed. Like I said above, we still retain the rights to most of these players. Secondly, we signed our first 11 picks, and that to me is what is truly important. Those 11 picks take up probably 80-90%, if not more, of your draft signing budget anyway, so I'm not too concerned about the ones that will get away, because we're just not going to have that.

 

If they didn't sign several of their top 10 picks for whatever reason then I think there would be reason for concern. If they went the extreme budget route with a bunch of their top 10 picks like the Royals did last year with their 6th-10th rounders in which they spent $5,000 on each one, that would be another reason to question the budget. And for all we know, maybe they are still planning to sign 1-2 of their remaining draftees. Prettyman and/or Josh Brady could still get inked, as could one of the more promising HS arms like Pryor, Bowman & Morgan.

[colbyjack]

And now the Angels have signed 18th rounder Mark Trumbo for $1.425 million:

 

www.baseballamerica.com/t...rumbo.html

 

As the article notes, they still fully intend to sign Jered Weaver before it is all said & done. Great job by the Angels opening up their pocketbooks & making the most by picking up some talented players that fell much farther than they should have.

[jwaltz]

An 18th rounder got $1.425mill? Wow. The Angels are really shelling out the cash. I think there is no way they don't sign Weaver. Art Moreno is shelling out cash on all areas of his club. Nice to see.

[EdgarDiazRocks]

And now Kendry Morales the same money that Weaver should have been asking for.

 

$3 Million up front, $10 million in incentives.

 

 

http://www.baseballamerica.com/images2004/kmorales150150.jpg

 

LINK

 

Jeff Weaver! Coming to a Northern League Field near you!

[Blazer25]

I wouldn't knock the undrafted FA....Stanczyk was lights out for Helena in short season....he got promoted to Beloit and was lights out in 2 innings there too....

 

I know...beware of the small sample...but I also know it's nice to get production out of guys who are cheap!!!!

[squarepusher]

Mike Adams was undrafted as well... I think that turned out better than expected.