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Salt Lake City leads off the draft after posting just 50 wins season 7 and tabs Brian Posey with the pressure of being the top overall pick. Posey starts his career at 2B but a move to LF seems likely when he reaches the Bigs. Look for Posey to be an All-star for 10+ seasons with his big bat and fleet feet.
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Hartford knows good pitching is hard to find and grabs a good looking SP with pick number 2. With solid control and a good 1st pitch Jensen should be a solid Big League starter though not necessarily the staff ace you'd like to grab at the top of the draft
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Pitchers go back to back when Little Rock selects a workhorse in Alex Ortiz. Look for many complete games with Ortiz' stamina/durability to go along with his nice splits and top notch control. A 12-1 record and a Cy Young award in rookie league is a sign of things to come for Ortiz.
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Detroit continues to stockpile young talent as they grab a SS with pick number 4. Conway is solid across the board on offense and will steal his fair share of bases as well. Players this talented on offense that can also play good infield defense are hard to come by. The Tigers grabbed a beast this year which is proved by the fact that Conway wins the rookie league silver slugger AND gold glove SS awards in his first pro season!
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When a player draws comparisons to Christopher Ramirez you know his future is bright. While Podsednik has a long way to go to reach those lofty goals he has all the tools. Pinpoint control, great splits and an extensive selection of good pitches R-Pod figures to anchor Scranton's rotation for years to come.
6. If Ortiz was a workhorse than Jamie Blackwell is a workhorse on steroids. Atlanta takes SP Blackwell at number 6 and immediately throws him into the fire at AAA where he holds his own. Look for Blackwell to make his big league debut sooner rather than later and leave batters shaking their heads with his exceptional control and splits.
7. SP Dave Knight gets picked 7th and is looking to sign but Buffalo is playing hardball and has currently said thanks but no thanks to his services. Stay tuned to see if this soap opera gets resolved before the season ends...
8. New York selects RF Ray Dunn with pick #8. Another great hitter with great speed, we're starting to see the trend for the season 8 draft. Dunn has worked his way up to HiA by the end of the season and this 22 year old should kill RHP in the big leagues in a few years.
9. SP Dave Harper goes 9th to Houston as they fall in love with how he can control his fastball. Never the smartest kid in school, Harper went to Central Carolina Community College and his best pitch is his number 2 pitch by far. Hey Dave, why don't you use that as your first pitch kid? Just a thought. Velcro laces on your spikes will be your friend Dave.
10. 2B Harvey Miller goes 10th to Huntington. Miller instantly becomes Huntington's 2B of the future and is a solid pick at number 10. Look for him to rake against lefties.
11. Miguel Mercedes was surprised to hear his name called this early in the draft but is up for the challenge. This SP has his work cut out for him after getting knocked around in rookie league but expect him to throw with a chip on his shoulder as he tries to make his way to the big leagues.
12. Sam Skinner had so much fun at the University of Florida it seems this 2B might just go back for his senior season instead of signing with Indianapolis. Its hard to blame him though...when Jesus...I mean Tim Tebow decided he would come back for his senior year Skinner thought he would be remiss if he didn't graduate at the same time and get to walk with the messiah.
13. Slugger Julian Meadows goes 13th to Cleveland as that franchise starts to turn the corner. Meadows had a great first pro season in LoA hitting .370 with 22 HRs to date - a sign of the power he hopes to display in Bigs.
14. Candy Green has anything but a candy arm as this OF figures to rack up some outfield assist in his career. When he's not gunning down runners he'll be spraying the ball to all fields with his exceptional splits against both lefties and righties for the Sourdoughs as they continue their youth movement.
15. NL West teams pick back to back as Tuscon selects Octavio Lee to add to their rotation of the future. Great splits and 5 good pitches make a Lee a very solid pick midway through the first round.
16. At 16, St. Louis gets another one of those solid hitters than can steal some bases in RF Marino Wilfredo. While a torn ligament in his knee ended Wilfredo's first pro season early, he was off to a great start hitting a hair under .400 in 42 games.
17. Another SP comes off the board as Charlotte snags Juan Vizquel at pick number 17. Vizquel won't blow you away with any of his ratings but he is solid across the board and will latch onto a spot in the big leagues but it won't be at the top of the rotation.
18. SP Tony Hand is picked 18th by Monterrey and finishes his first pro season with a 6-2 record and 3.09 in LoA. While its rare to snag a staff ace at this point in the draft, you'll happily take a player like Hand that should give you some quality innings from the middle to bottom of your rotation.
19. A third straight SP comes off the board next when Scottsdale selects Donn Holtz. Holtz looks like the real deal and jlinchec has to be happy to add him to his young stable.
20. Defense goes 20th when Richmond selects SS Desi Flores. This slick fielder can steal some bases and will be an asset to the big league squad once he gets coached up on his fielding if he can meet his coach's projections.
21. Rochester joins the SP parade with Jeff Martin taken at pick 21. Affectionatley knows as "Wild Thing" to his friends at Mott Community College this 5'11" hurler will throw the ball right past you if he doens't stick it in your ear first. Batters don't dig their feet in against Martin especially left handers who this LH pitcher is especially deadly against.
22. Scottsdale makes its 2nd pick of the first round and hits another HR with 2B Galahad Pavano. Look for a move to LF before all is said and done for Pavano but there's no question he'll handle the bat well for the T's.
23. SS Ricky Beam goes next to Colorado Springs as this year's draft produces another solid hitter than can steal a base when needed. Hitting .424 in rookie leauge, expect Beam to work his way through the AltiDUDES organization before breaking into the bigs as a 3B most likely. In the meantime however, Beam is your NL rookie league SS silver slugger.
24. The first RP comes off the board at 24 with Fritz Sheridan going to Norfolk. If you're going to take a RP in the first round - this is the type to take...a possible lights out closer at the big league level if he reaches projections. If Norfolk can take care of the first 8 innings, Sheridan will take care of the 9th.
25. C/DH goes next to Fargo with Ross Dougherty. Finishing rookie league with a .399 batting average, Dougherty is solid across the board on offense with a great eye. His defense is good enough to get by in the bigs but he might crack the lineup as a DH on this American League squad. If you've met Ross Dougherty then you've met the AL rookie league sliver slugger award winner at C this season.
26. Little Rock's 2nd pick of the first round is Carl Petrick - a C/DH type not unlike the player taken one spot in front of him. Petrick hit .390 in his first pro season in rookie leauge. Expect these last two picks to be forever linked to see who should have gone off the board first.
27. At pick 27 Jacksonville takes Banana White, the CF with the good game and better name. Growing up this speedy CF was certainly teased about his white banana but after his $1.5 million signing bonus who is laughing now? White won't hit a HR unless its inside the park but you don't need power when the rest of your skill set is as good as this banana boy. Defense, offense, and speed. Great pick this late in the first round. Its been a good few months for the defending champion Juggernauts.
28. Fresno was in the market for a SP and got about who they would expect to get at the tail end of the first round in Posiedon Crawford. Crawford won't wow you with his splits but shows very nice control and 2 plus pitches which means he should make the big league rotation in the always tough AL West.
29. Texas goes pitching as well and will look to Ron Dickens to be the next homegrown talent to reach the Bigs for the Tittyballs, just like their two young guns that made their debut this season for the big league club. Dickens is going to scare the dickens out of RHB for years to come.
30. RP Augie Stephens goes 30th to Pawtucket and jumps right into the award parade this franchise has shown in winning the rookie league fireman of the year award in his first pro season. Was Pawtucket concerned about division-rival Norfolk's RP selection earlier in round one when they made this pick? Pawtucket owner Sharkey has no comment other than "Scoreboard" but we will see who has the last laugh in a few years as these two young relievers work their way to the ML level.
31. Releivers go back to back when Cheyenne selects Jesus "Tim Tebow" James with pick 31. James saved 11 games his first year - splitting time between rookie league and LoA. Jesus put the fear of God into left handed hitters when he's on the mound. You'll have to earn your way on base as James is not going to put runners on base with his exceptional control.
32. You had the best record in the league last season Kansas City...what does that earn you? C/DH Philip Myers, that's who. An 0-3 performance on the last day of the season dropped Myers below .400 in his first season as he finishes the year at .399 While his pitch calling is a bit lower than you'd like - Myers has s good arm behind the plate if he needs to catch but swings a good enough stick to handle DH duties as well.
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