Next years draft?

[fewgoodcards]

i thought about putting a closer for the brewers' pick, but i think it would be hard to pass up a guy like meyer who could be a very good starter when there should still be a very good closer available at 32. for closers you have st. clair, perry, fields, and hunter if you consider him a closer that could all be first round worthy.

 

as for st. clair and hunter, i want to see st. clair healthy before i move him up as far as you have him. he can be electric when healthy, but i want to see him pitching this spring. do you know if they plan to start him or if he is going back to closer? hunter does have great stuff, but i want to see him get his walks under control before i put him in the top 15. to me, he is mark mccormick right now and mccormick didn't go until the middle of the sandwich round. i did almost put him going to the cardinals at 13 though b/c they seem to like the raw college righties with the big arms.

 

i do like friedrich and think he would be a solid pick at 13. i also think he is a lot like zito b/c he has such a fantastic curveball and his velocity seems to be solid average. the thing that concerns me with him is his control as he walked more guys his sophomore year than he did his freshman year, and he also had huge walk problems on the cape this summer. now maybe it is a result of pitch selection and him throwing his curve too much, but i just don't see how so many people are projecting him to be a fast mover when he walks over 4 guys per 9 in a very weak conference.

[colbyjack]

I think Rice wants St. Clair to start this year. They are incredibly deep in pitching this year, but feel they are a better team with Berry on Friday's and St. Clair going on Saturday. We'll see, and that's part of the reason I have him so high, because I think he's going to have a huge year.

 

I was surprised that he dropped so far in the draft as he did, as he finished last year very strong after returning from his injury and IMO, he's going to carry that success over to this year and not miss a beat. He's been dominant each and every year he's taken the ball, including the summer of 2006 with Team USA. I'm anxious to hear the early season reports on him.

 

I hope to see Hunter at the Metrodome on Friday, February 29th as part of the DQ Classic. He should be facing Tulane's Shooter Hunt, which will be one of the better pitching matchups in all of college baseball all season long. As a related sidenote, I noticed the other day that ESPNU will be carrying the Friday game of the San Diego-Pepperdine series in May, so if you have ESPNU you will be able to watch a possible Matusz-Hunter matchup.

[colbyjack]

One name that I think gets overlooked sometimes, by myself as much as anyone, is TN prep RHP Sonny Gray. With so much focus on character and work ethic, particularly after the suspension of Jeremy Jeffress, Sonny Gray would be a welcomed addition to the Brewers orgnaization. He has committed to Vanderbilt, so there may be some signability issues at hand, but I honestly don't know too many people that would turn down the money associated with the 16th overall pick (if he even makes it that far), unless he has chosen Scott Boras to be his advisor.

 

He's shorter, so there isn't much projection, but this is a kid that doesn't throw less than 91-92 mph, and sits in the 95 range with an electric arm and a knockout low-80s curveball. DHonks always asks me who is the Ben Sheets of this year's draft, and I can't think of anyone else that profiles like Sheets more than Gray. He also has received some comparisons to Tim Lincecum and Kyle Drabek as a shorter RHP with filthy stuff.

 

He is a great all-around athlete, leading his football team to two consecutive state championships as the QB, and he also hits in the #3 hole and plays SS when he's not pitching.

 

Being from the Nashville area, he also would be a big draw when and if he were to play for the Nashville Sounds.

 

Here's a nice video piece on him for those interested:

 

http://www.wkrn.com/nashville/news/star-smyrna-pitcher-sonny-gray-chooses-vandy/96622.htm#top

[Baseballfan3]

Oh my -- I saw the Silverstein kid several weeks ago -- he has gained about 25 lbs of muscle and grew another inch -- he is now 6'6" and 230lbs --- a beast --- and his delivery looks smooth as silk. There were at least 10 pro scouts watching him pitch a bull pen at a local baseball clinic and they were in awe.....Silverstein has grown in muscle significantly since Aflac --- and his arm is loose and fluid as always......and he was able to spot is fast ball in/out and up/down --- his breaking ball was pro caliber --- looked bigger/stronger than Madison Bumgartner ---

[fewgoodcards]

sonny gray sounds an awful lot like jarrod parker. shorter righty with a very smooth delivery that produces mid-90's heat and he backs it up with a filthy slider. do you think gray will fly up the rankings this year like parker did last year?

[colbyjack]

Gray may not have to fly up too far to get there. He already can tough 96, so another tick or two and he's right where Parker was a year ago.

 

Parker is another guy Gray is often compared to.

 

Thanks for the update on Silverstein Baseballfan3.

[TooLiveBrew]

Silverstein has grown in muscle significantly since Aflac

how long ago was this event?

[Baseballfan3]

I believe the Alfac All-American event occurred in July -- so about 6 months ago....

[Baseballfan3]

I saw he kid several weeks ago in Maryland at a baseball clinic -- the kid looked like he added 25/30lbs of muscle to his legs and core.....a beast --- and now is around 6'6"/6'7" tall ---

[colbyjack]

Aflac was mid-August.

[TooLiveBrew]

Am I wrong to be suspicious of a guy adding 25-30 lbs. of muscle in roughly 5 months' time?

[Boy Jeenius]

If it was confirmed instead of conjecture, I guess, if you want to. It just sounded like hyperbole to me.

[Big Reed]

tying this thread to one of several others that were proposing trading a couple of our AA or High A prospects, I am led to wonder. if the Brewers did use their first round pick to draft a college closer or starting pitcher, and he signed early, at what level would it be safe to assume he starts at? high A or AA? I was just thinking if the brewers did trade away Jeffress or Rogers as part of a trade, they might be able to draft his replacement who would start pitching at the same minor league level as the prospect who was traded. Would finishing the year at AA be too optimistic for drafting a college closer?

[colbyjack]

No, I don't think finishing the year at AA is too optimistic for drafting a college closer. There another thread not too far down the forum list that discusses drafting a college closer with the possibility of that pitcher pitching in the big-leagues towards the end of the season.

 

That may not be likely, but it's possible, and pitchers such as Chad Cordero, Joey Devine, Craig Hansen and Ryan Wagner have been put in that exact same situation in recent years, while Huston Street and Brandon Morrow were with the A's and Mariners respectively the year after they were drafted. Casey Weathers, the 8th overall pick a year ago, finished the 2007 season at high A and could be with the Rockies by the end of this year.

[fewgoodcards]

i think it depends on their control. a guy with good control is going to move very fast (see street and cordero), but a guy with control that is not so good isn't going to be ready nearly as quickly (see devine, hansen, and chris perez).

[NastyTwig]

Would it be out of the question to draft two college closers within our first 7 picks to keep cost down and build a solid bullpen after all these one year contracts are up?

[GagneCY03]

Would it be out of the question to draft two college closers within our first 7 picks to keep cost down and build a solid bullpen after all these one year contracts are up?

 

It really depends on the Brewers' budget and strategy. With Milwaukee being in contention, I could see the FO wanting some guys who could move fast and contribute. The Mets took Eddie Kunz and Brant Rustich in the first two rounds last year, so I'd say it'd be possible for the Brewers to follow suit.

[TooLiveBrew]

With Milwaukee being in contention, I could see the FO wanting some guys who could move fast and contribute. The Mets took Eddie Kunz and Brant Rustich in the first two rounds last year, so I'd say it'd be possible for the Brewers to follow suit.

Yea, especially given that you can view the possession of compensatory picks as having 'free' picks (as in, ones you wouldn't have had normally), then you can afford to take some more risks - as in, drafting for a need or drafting guys based on MLB readiness.

[DHonks]

I really see the Crew spending their 7 early picks on a mix of things. I see them taking some stud, toolsy hitters, some athletes, and some pitchers. In general, I'd expect their 7 picks before the 4th round will include 1 catcher, 2-4 pitchers, and some Gillespie-like college hitters.