Article: Mock Drafts: Hitter or Pitcher?

[Jeremy Nygaard]

We're less than two weeks away from draft day, but there is far from an industry consensus on what the Brewers are going to do with the 27th pick. In fact, it's getting more difficult to even narrow down to a specific position. So what do we know?

Up to this point, most industry experts believe that the focus has been primarily on college players. 

Some think pitchers make sense. Baseball America has twice connected Gonzaga RHP Gabriel Hughes to the Brewers (as has Prospects Live in their latest mock). Keith Law has been steadfast in his belief that the Brewers are most interested in midwesterner Adam Mazur, a right-handed pitcher from Iowa. And finally Oregon State LHP Cooper Hjerpe has been mocked to the Brewers most recently by Baseball America and Jim Callis.

The part that makes this interesting is that there is expected to be a run on college pitchers that could begin when the Braves come on the clock at #20. How many pitchers would the Brewers seriously consider at #27? Some other names, in addition to the aforementioned three, who could be high on the Brewers draft board are Oklahoma State RHP Justin Campbell, Tennessee RHP Blade Tidwell, and East Carolina LHP Carson Whisenhunt.

Another fast-rising college pitcher is Cade Horton. Horton's stock blew up with a memorable performance at the College World Series. The right-hander from Oklahoma wasn't mentioned in a single mock draft as of three weeks ago. Now he's got so much helium that he's getting mentioned as high as inside the top 10. 

Then there's the presence of Vanderbilt/Indy Ball RHP Kumar Rocker. How high does he go? Does the news of his shoulder scope help or hurt his draft stock? There are so many questions floating around him, but the reality is that Rocker, when and if healthy (and that's a big if), would be the best college pitcher in the draft.

If the right pitcher isn't available at #27, there should be a number of hitters that are still on the board. Outfielders Drew Gilbert (Tennessee) and Chase DeLauter (James Madison) are the two most common names connected to the Brewers. 

Vanderbilt's Spencer Jones, Florida's Starlin Thompson, Cal's Dylan Beavers and Stanford's Brock Jones are all other outfielders who may find themselves atop the Brewers draft board.

It's still wide open, but if there's any breaking news in the next 10 days, we'll have it for you right here.

BREWERS MOCK DRAFTS
Baseball America	Mayo	BrewerFanatic	McDaniel	Callis	Law
Cooper Hjerpe LHP Oregon State (7/1)	Drew Gilbert OF Tennessee (6/30)	Jett Williams SS Texas Prep (6/30)	Chase DeLauter RF James Madison (6/29)	Cooper Hjerpe LHP Oregon State (6/22)	Adam Mazur RHP Iowa (6/21)
Gabriel Hughes RHP Gonzaga (4/28)	Drew Gilbert OF Tennessee (6/15)	Kumar Rocker RHP Indy/Vanderbilt (5/26)	Chase DeLauter RF James Madison (6/1)	Cole Young SS Pennsylvania HS (6/8)	Adam Mazur RHP Iowa (5/19)
Gabriel Hughes RHP Gonzaga (4/1)	Justin Campbell RHP Oklahoma Sate (6/1)			Jett Williams SS Texas Prep (5/25)
Jordan Sprinkle SS UCSB (2/10)	Cooper Hjerpe LHP Oregon State (5/18)			Andrew Dutkanych RHP Indiana Prep (5/11)

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