2020 MLB Draft Thread (Pre-Draft Discussion)

[balsamlaker]

People don't realize that college programs are only able to give out 11.7 full scholarships per year spread out over 27 players with each player getting at least a 25% scholarship. Baseball is not a revenue-generating college sport, so the players are not all on "full rides".

[Jenkins5]

High school kids should flock to Juco this year. With few rounds, Seniors could return, less juniors & Redshirt Sophomores will be on way out, and college teams will just be crowded. There is little reason to sign $20k bonus unless you are a senior & just done with college. Can go to Juco to build up stock with more opportunities to play and decide next season based on draft stay or transfer.

[DHonks]

If the draft goes down to five rounds and any UDFA's can only earn $20K, I would stop scouting HS seniors this year and focus on the college ranks. I can't imagine many high schoolers would sign for $20K.

 

First of all, any scouting will be on old footage.

 

Secondly, if every team stops going after high school kids, I'm going to hope that some high upside top high school kids are available in the top 5 rounds in spots where they otherwise wouldn't.

[JDBrewCrew]

https://www.baseballamerica.com/rankings/mlb-mock-draft/

 

New BA Mock Draft for those interested.

[JDBrewCrew]

Would someone mind just telling me the name they have at the Brewers selection? Thanks!

[Smichaelis9]

Would someone mind just telling me the name they have at the Brewers selection? Thanks!

Austin Wells, a catcher from U of Arizona

[balsamlaker]

With the decision by MLB to limit the draft to five rounds and the likelihood that the majority of undrafted signings would be college "senior signs", hopefully the "top player on the board" five times could fill in some organizational weaknesses. Compared to other highly rated farm systems, the Brewers strength in numbers appear to be in younger players, specifically outfielders and catchers. Landing some older pitchers and middle infielders would likely be preferred. Hopefully they can also sell some top "senior signs" on the opportunity joining a lower rated farm system could offer.

[nate82]

With the decision by MLB to limit the draft to five rounds and the likelihood that the majority of undrafted signings would be college "senior signs", hopefully the "top player on the board" five times could fill in some organizational weaknesses. Compared to other highly rated farm systems, the Brewers strength in numbers appear to be in younger players, specifically outfielders and catchers. Landing some older pitchers and middle infielders would likely be preferred. Hopefully they can also sell some top "senior signs" on the opportunity joining a lower rated farm system could offer.

 

I still prefer drafting BPA position doesn't matter.

[balsamlaker]

BPA is always the best option, but it doesn't hurt if that fills in a void in the organization.

[amt2138]

Anybody in here talking about Luke Little yet from San Jacinto?

 

Blowing up on social media while throwing over 100 MPH indoor in a bullpen. One clip had him as high as 105 MPH, but mostly 101-103's. Throughout the shortened JUCO season video has him in the 94-98 range. I believe Luke said on Twitter that he will be getting on a Trackman this week to get even more data.

 

Arms like this don't come around too often, but he definitely looks the part of a reliever. He's 6ft8 so his mechanics just don't look pretty, but to me he has a lot of Andrew Miller in him. Still relatively young so the off-speed pitches are a work in progress. Going to be very, very interesting to see how high a guy like this gets.

[balsamlaker]

Little has a chance to sneak into the second half of this upcoming draft. I think Roger Clemens also went to San Jacinto.

[Austin Tatious]

Little has a chance to sneak into the second half of this upcoming draft. I think Roger Clemens also went to San Jacinto.

 

Do you mean the second half of round one or second half of the whole draft, like starting late round 2 thru round 5?

[balsamlaker]

I would guess the fourth or fifth round for Little, at best.

[amt2138]

I would guess the fourth or fifth round for Little, at best.

 

Tough to say right now. Little would be getting a ton of attention if the season was happening and he was doing this. Scouts are going to flock down there and see him on Trackman, Rapsodo and get a better read of what he's got. Could give him some serious helium or could keep him in that 100-150 range.

[Eye Black]

Three MLB Mock Drafts released this week:

 

MLB.com: Mock draft: Callis picks first round of MLB Draft

 

Brewers Spoiler Below

20. Milwaukee Brewers: Cole Wilcox, RHP, Georgia

 

Wilcox also drew first-round interest as a Georgia high schooler two years ago, and he did a better job of harnessing an arsenal with the potential for three plus pitches as a sophomore this spring.

 

 

———————————————————————————

 

Baseball America: MLB Mock Draft - Version 4.0

 

Brewers Spoiler Below

20. Milwaukee Brewers: Cole Wilcox, RHP, Georgia

 

There’s been some chatter that Wilcox could go closer to his Bulldogs rotation-mate than this, perhaps as high as the 10-15 range. That isn’t a consensus opinion, as there are teams who still think Wilcox is going to be a reliever at the end of the day. Perhaps with a full season, Wilcox would have been able to prove otherwise, as he improved his control tremendously over his first four starts, walking just two batters in 23 innings, compared to 32 strikeouts.

 

 

———————————————————————————

 

The Athletic: Keith Law’s 2020 MLB mock draft: First-round projection 1.0

 

Brewers Spoiler Below

20. Milwaukee Brewers: Bryce Jarvis, RHP, Duke

 

Jarvis was draft-eligible as a sophomore last year but wasn’t signable for worth, going in the 37th round to the Yankees. The son of long-time big leaguer Kevin Jarvis came out throwing harder and with better command and control this spring, possibly enough to get himself into the first round — especially if he’s willing to take a discount as a 22.5-year-old junior.

 

[nate82]

I think the Brewers go with a HS player in round 1 and I think they go with one of these three:

 

Pete Crow-Armstrong OF

Ed Howard SS

Tyler Soderstrom C

[balsamlaker]

I could agree with nate82 that Ed Howard could be the BPA if he is on the board. If you take Soderstrom you do so with the understanding he will likely not catch in the major leagues. He was the backup catcher on his high school team and Jim Callis said the last high school catcher drafted in the first round that caught in MLB and had a WAR of 5+ (not named Mauer) was drafted in 1992 (and later caught with the Brewers).

 

If/when they draft college pitchers, it will be interested to see if they build off last year's trend of taking strikeout pitchers. Could that be a result of previous drafting of Arnett, Jungmann, Bradley, etc.?

[paul253]

A couple of names that interest me and might still be available:

 

1) Garrett Crotchet LHP Tennessee

2) Bryce Jarvis RHP Duke

3) Ed Howard SS HS

4) Pete Crowe-Armstrong OF HS

5) Robert Hassell OF HS

 

The Brewers really need an influx of talent. I hope they don’t get too conservative here.

[Eye Black]

Three MLB Mock Drafts released this week:

 

MLB.com: Mock draft: Callis picks first round of MLB Draft

 

Brewers Spoiler Below

20. Milwaukee Brewers: Cole Wilcox, RHP, Georgia

 

Wilcox also drew first-round interest as a Georgia high schooler two years ago, and he did a better job of harnessing an arsenal with the potential for three plus pitches as a sophomore this spring.

 

 

———————————————————————————

 

Baseball America: MLB Mock Draft - Version 4.0

 

Brewers Spoiler Below

20. Milwaukee Brewers: Cole Wilcox, RHP, Georgia

 

There’s been some chatter that Wilcox could go closer to his Bulldogs rotation-mate than this, perhaps as high as the 10-15 range. That isn’t a consensus opinion, as there are teams who still think Wilcox is going to be a reliever at the end of the day. Perhaps with a full season, Wilcox would have been able to prove otherwise, as he improved his control tremendously over his first four starts, walking just two batters in 23 innings, compared to 32 strikeouts.

 

 

———————————————————————————

 

The Athletic: Keith Law’s 2020 MLB mock draft: First-round projection 1.0

 

Brewers Spoiler Below

20. Milwaukee Brewers: Bryce Jarvis, RHP, Duke

 

Jarvis was draft-eligible as a sophomore last year but wasn’t signable for worth, going in the 37th round to the Yankees. The son of long-time big leaguer Kevin Jarvis came out throwing harder and with better command and control this spring, possibly enough to get himself into the first round — especially if he’s willing to take a discount as a 22.5-year-old junior.

 

A third publication in the past week has paired the Brewers with Georgia right-hander Cole Wilcox.

 

CBS Sports: 2020 MLB Mock Draft: Arizona State slugger Spencer Torkelson goes No. 1 to Tigers

 

20. Milwaukee Brewers: RHP Cole Wilcox, Georgia ($3,242,900 slot value)

 

Georgia's rotation will produce two first-round picks this year in Hancock and Wilcox. Wilcox has wicked stuff and command, though he can be very inconsistent from start-to-start. It's worth nothing that, as a draft-eligible sophomore, he has more leverage than the typical draftee. That could push him down even later in the first round as teams seek players they know they can sign quickly and easily. Our R.J. Anderson ranked Wilcox as the No. 30 prospect in the draft class.

[JosephC]

Stearns going with pitchers in round one in back-to-back drafts? I'd still put my money on a hitter. Although, when looking at the field, the pitching at #20 probably does look a little better than the hitting.

 

I wouldn't mind seeing them take a one-dimensional masher type. I think there will be a need for that type of bat in a couple years and they don't appear to have any "1B of the future" anywhere in the system. Stearns seems to prefer athletic types who could fit at more than one position, but obviously deviated from that a bit when he picked Hiura. I kind of like Austin Wells, the catcher out of Arizona, but would project him more as a first baseman than a catcher (or left fielder). His bat seems to profile well above the normal catcher, but will he hit enough to play 1B in MLB.....I don't know but it sounds like he could very well be the highest upside bat available at #20.

[balsamlaker]

It will be interesting to see how teams, including the Brewers, handle the financial end of a five-round draft. Do you try to simply take your BPA that will take your slot value or do you try to maneuver around financially? If you do the former at #20, you probably don't take a college hitter as there appears to be a gap after the top six. If you do the latter maybe you do look to take a college hitter, like a Wells, for $2.5M or so and try to save some money for potentially more difficult signs on the second day.

[brewmann04]

You build this pitching through the draft.

[brewcrewdue80]

Three MLB Mock Drafts released this week:

 

MLB.com: Mock draft: Callis picks first round of MLB Draft

 

Brewers Spoiler Below

20. Milwaukee Brewers: Cole Wilcox, RHP, Georgia

 

Wilcox also drew first-round interest as a Georgia high schooler two years ago, and he did a better job of harnessing an arsenal with the potential for three plus pitches as a sophomore this spring.

 

 

———————————————————————————

 

Baseball America: MLB Mock Draft - Version 4.0

 

Brewers Spoiler Below

20. Milwaukee Brewers: Cole Wilcox, RHP, Georgia

 

There’s been some chatter that Wilcox could go closer to his Bulldogs rotation-mate than this, perhaps as high as the 10-15 range. That isn’t a consensus opinion, as there are teams who still think Wilcox is going to be a reliever at the end of the day. Perhaps with a full season, Wilcox would have been able to prove otherwise, as he improved his control tremendously over his first four starts, walking just two batters in 23 innings, compared to 32 strikeouts.

 

 

———————————————————————————

 

The Athletic: Keith Law’s 2020 MLB mock draft: First-round projection 1.0

 

Brewers Spoiler Below

20. Milwaukee Brewers: Bryce Jarvis, RHP, Duke

 

Jarvis was draft-eligible as a sophomore last year but wasn’t signable for worth, going in the 37th round to the Yankees. The son of long-time big leaguer Kevin Jarvis came out throwing harder and with better command and control this spring, possibly enough to get himself into the first round — especially if he’s willing to take a discount as a 22.5-year-old junior.

 

A third publication in the past week has paired the Brewers with Georgia right-hander Cole Wilcox.

 

CBS Sports: 2020 MLB Mock Draft: Arizona State slugger Spencer Torkelson goes No. 1 to Tigers

 

20. Milwaukee Brewers: RHP Cole Wilcox, Georgia ($3,242,900 slot value)

 

Georgia's rotation will produce two first-round picks this year in Hancock and Wilcox. Wilcox has wicked stuff and command, though he can be very inconsistent from start-to-start. It's worth nothing that, as a draft-eligible sophomore, he has more leverage than the typical draftee. That could push him down even later in the first round as teams seek players they know they can sign quickly and easily. Our R.J. Anderson ranked Wilcox as the No. 30 prospect in the draft class.

 

Reading from the RJ Anderson ranking, I'd have to wonder on Stearns looking for the OFs that could replace Cain. Garrett Mitchell, Pete Crow-Armstrong, and Robert Hassell would sound to be that type of replacement with chances of being there at 20. I'm really not going to get to caught up on who is selected. Seems a number of Catchers are around top 50, many pitchers, a few duo types, not many 1b/3b.

 

Teams are going to have what? just 5 picks? Oh well some with 6 or 7(Cardinals of course) I don't really see the draft a 2nd round type with 1st pick and then hoping a talent falls that you bundle savings with your 2nd(or 3rd) round pick to sign. I suppose the teams that have the Comp A pick with a top 12 pick for round 2 could try that with the 1st round selection. (KC, SD, Pitt, and Col) It's still a long wait between pick 1 and pick 2. You gotta keep in mind nothing is guaranteed for 2021 playing season. Draftees could miss out on playing before next season's draft. I'd have doubts on a drafted player not signing with any team that selected them to return or go to college. If there's a BPA draft format this has to be the year to just do so.

[sveumrules]

Looks like FanGraphs has us taking Mississippi State second baseman Justin Foscue who "walked 15 times and struck out just thrice before the shutdown. He’s a multi-year performer at an SEC school and plays a premium position, the kind of player who teams with a strong quantifiable track record gravitate toward." Full mock here...

 

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/2020-mock-draft-mach-one/

[nate82]

Looks like FanGraphs has us taking Mississippi State second baseman Justin Foscue who "walked 15 times and struck out just thrice before the shutdown. He’s a multi-year performer at an SEC school and plays a premium position, the kind of player who teams with a strong quantifiable track record gravitate toward." Full mock here...

 

https://blogs.fangraphs.com/2020-mock-draft-mach-one/

 

Yuck not really someone I would want the Brewers to be drafting.

 

If the Brewers are going to go with a college player I would prefer these players over Foscue.

 

RHP Clayton Beeter

RHP Cade Cavalli

OF Garrett Mitchell

 

Another player to watch for in HS is Jordan Walker. I think he could stick at 3B and his ceiling would be that of Kris Bryant and his floor is really low so he is a boom or bust type of a player. He has all of the athleticism you would want out of a player the biggest concern is that his bat won't translate and he may not stick at 3B. Even if Walker doesn't stick at 3B he is someone who could make a transition like Braun to the OF.

 

Garrett Mitchell probably won't be available when the Brewers are picking but if it is between him and Foscue I don't see how the Brewers pass on Mitchell. Mitchell can play all 3 OF positions while Foscue is mostly a 2B/3B player. I don't think he has the arm to play 3B so really he is a 2B only player. While the Brewers drafted Hiura I don't believe Foscue's bat is all that special and it won't make up for the value that Stearns loves.

 

Clayton Beeter would be interesting as he was a closer last year and the start of this year he was the #1 starter for Texas Tech. Beeter is a question mark and he could be a #1 type pitcher teams are just leery about him as he was a former closer in college and this would have been the first time he would be a starter. He has a mid 90's fastball with a really good curveball. I wouldn't be all that upset if the Brewers went with Beeter with their first pick it would be a gamble but if it pays off you have a top of the rotation starter.