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#Post#: 122129--------------------------------------------------
Re: 2013 Draft
DIR By: Chris27
Date: March 25, 2013, 2:42 pm
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Anyone have ESPN Insider? Chris Crawford has a draft update:
HTML http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/blog/_/name/mlb_draft/id/9095330/oklahoma-jonathan-gray-keeps-dominating-stanford-mark-appel-no-1-prospect-mlb-draft
#Post#: 122131--------------------------------------------------
Re: 2013 Draft
DIR By: Ray
Date: March 25, 2013, 2:48 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote from: Chris27 link ---
>
> Anyone have ESPN Insider? Chris Crawford has a draft update:
>
>
HTML http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/blog/_/name/mlb_draft/id/9095330/oklahoma-jonathan-gray-keeps-dominating-stanford-mark-appel-no-1-prospect-mlb-draft
>
--- End Quote ---
Winter has officially passed, which means that things are
starting to heat up on the scouting path for the 2013 draft.
This week we saw the first start of the season by one of the
best arms in the class, the dynamic-duo from Georgia continuing
their quest for world domination, and the collegiate bats doing
whatever the opposite of world domination is.
• One of the most impressive things about Jonathan Gray's
current run of dominance is that he's done it against quality
competition, and this weekend he was facing another solid lineup
in TCU. Once again, Gray was up to the challenge. The Oklahoma
right-hander struck out 12 and gave up just one earned run in
his nine innings of work, and didn't give up a hit until the
sixth inning. Gray once again hit 100 mph on guns, and his
wipeout slider kept the Horned Frogs off-balance all day.
• Mark Appel was making his first start in two weeks -- Stanford
was off for spring break last week -- and the Cardinal
right-hander did show some rust. In a 6-4 victory against Utah,
Appel gave up just one run and struck out 11 over his eight
innings, but did give up six hits and the secondary offerings
weren't as good as they have been for the most of the year.
"(Appel) certainly wasn't as good as he was against Fresno State
or Texas, but that's a tough standard to live up to" a National
League scout said. "The velocity is there, the command is so
much better than last year and with respect to [Gray], he's the
best player in the class and it isn't even close."
• TCU's decision to make Andrew Mitchell their closer may have
solidified the Horned Frogs bullpen, but the decision also meant
that one of the most talented arms in the 2013 class was
relegated to only 11 innings pitched this season. Thankfully,
Mitchell was moved into the rotation Sunday, and the
right-hander showed why he's so highly regarded. Mitchell went
only 4 2/3 innings, but he struck out six and all six hits the
right-hander gave up were singles. With a fastball that can get
up to 97 and a good curveball and change, Mitchell has a chance
to go in the top half of the first round come June.
• If there was a chief concern teams had about Arizona State's
Trevor Williams coming into the season was an inability to miss
bats despite having above-average stuff. The Sun Devil
right-hander got off to a solid start, but has really struggled
over his last two outings in conference play. After giving up 13
hits and seven earned runs against Washington State last week,
Williams was generally ineffective against Oregon State, going
five innings and giving up three runs and seven hits.
"I'd say he's one of, if not the most, frustrating pitchers in
the class," an AL East scout said. "I don't know if it's a case
where he's just not trusting his stuff against better
competition, but it sure seems like something is going on. Two
weeks ago he'd be a guy I'd recommend in the top 10. Now I'm not
so sure."
• There was good and bad news regarding Ryne Stanek's start on
Saturday against South Carolina. The good news is that Stanek
did throw strikes, giving up no walks and striking out seven in
a complete game victory. The bad news is that he was allowed to
throw 125 pitches on short rest. Even with six days between
starts, that's on the high side, and adding unnecessary stress
on the 21 year-old's right arm.
Hitters
• The Austin Meadows-Clint Frazier on March 12 had the hype of a
heavyweight fight in scouting circles, and popular opinion after
Frazier hit two mammoth homers was that Frazier had passed
Meadows on draft boards.
Not so fast my friend.
Meadows has been red-hot lately, going 8-for-11 over his last
three games with two homers and three doubles. In addition to
the scorching hitting, the left-handed hitting outfielder has
been a force on the bases with 11 stolen bases in his ten games
so far.
"Meadows would certainly go ahead of Frazier for me, and I say
that with all due respect" an NL Central scout said. "He's going
to play center field, he's going to steal 30 bases, and he's
going to hit. I like Frazier a lot, but he's a corner outfielder
and he doesn't have the projection that Meadows does. It would
be a mistake to take (Frazier) over Meadows."
Frazier hasn't exactly been chopped liver at the plate, himself.
The right-handed hitting outfielder hit his seventh homer of the
season on Tuesday, and no player has more bat speed in this
year's class. Even as a guy who's future is more than likely at
a corner outfield position, Frazier has a chance to go high,
thanks in part to his offensive upside and the lack of any
semblance of depth in the collegiate ranks.
• Keith Law and I were in Tempe to see New Mexico third-baseman
DJ Peterson last Wednesday, and the results were mixed at best.
This weekend, Peterson faced what will likely be the toughest
pitcher he'll see all year in Nevada right-hander Braden
Shipley. Peterson failed to accumulate a hit against the
Wolfpack right-hander, flying out twice and grounding into a
double play.
"For me, it's simply a matter of scouting with stats on
Peterson" an AL scout said. "I can't take a one-tool guy who's
going to more than likely end up at first base on day one unless
he's got 70-80 power, and (Peterson) doesn't have it. The
numbers are great, but if you put [San Diego third baseman Kris]
Bryant on that team, then the numbers would be even wackier."
Peterson is hitting .392/.496/.876 on the year, but the Lobos
play in one of the great hitter's ballparks in all of college
baseball.
• While there's almost no chance of him catching Jon Denney,
Reese McGuire (Kentwood HS, Covington, Wash.) has solidified
himself as the second-best prep catcher in the class. The
left-handed hitting backstop has put up a .562 on-base
percentage to start the season, while continuing to show the
best catch-and-throw skills of any prep catcher available this
year. The power numbers haven't shown up yet, but scouts believe
that as he fills out his frame the pop will come, and McGuire is
absolutely a day-one candidate this year.
• Finally, it is worth nothing that Trey Ball from New Castle
(Ind.) HS. -- who ranked No.11 on Keith Law's Future 50 -- will
get his season underway today when New Castle takes on
Hagerstown. Ball is the best two-way prospect in the class, and
while most prefer him in the outfield, a team could fall in love
with his size (6-foot-6, 190 pounds) and projection on the
mound.
#Post#: 122134--------------------------------------------------
Re: 2013 Draft
DIR By: Chris27
Date: March 25, 2013, 3:00 pm
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Thank you Ray. Very interesting notes as well.
#Post#: 122136--------------------------------------------------
Re: 2013 Draft
DIR By: Ray
Date: March 25, 2013, 3:16 pm
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No problem.
I wonder if a good comp for Frazier would be Oscar Taveras.
Amazed at the fall Stanek has undergone. And, now, 125 pitches.
It wouldn't surprise me if something was already wrong with his
arm considering all the trouble he's been having. He might be a
good guy to scoop up in the third after he undergoes TJ surgery
in a few months.
#Post#: 122145--------------------------------------------------
Re: 2013 Draft
DIR By: Jes Beard
Date: March 25, 2013, 4:14 pm
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--- Quote from: Cactus link ---
>
> Add the Minnesota Twins owners to that list. A couple years
ago they used the revenue sharing money to pay bonuses to
management.
>
--- End Quote ---
And if bonuses were needed to keep a Hoyer, Epstein and McCleod
(assuming they actually are as good as we hope), wouldn't that
be worth it?
Is it better to spend money on a single player, or on management
which will be shaping a roster?
#Post#: 122153--------------------------------------------------
Re: 2013 Draft
DIR By: Chris27
Date: March 25, 2013, 6:04 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote ---
> Amazed at the fall Stanek has undergone. And, now, 125
pitches. It wouldn't surprise me if something was already wrong
with his arm considering all the trouble he's been having.
--- End Quote ---
Stanek reportedly looked as good on Sunday as he has all year.
In fact, he was just named SEC pitcher of the week for that
start. Witnesses said he was 94-95 with his FB. But he's had
some mediocre starts where he's struggled with both command and
control. I think his arm is probably fine though.
#Post#: 122154--------------------------------------------------
Re: 2013 Draft
DIR By: Chris27
Date: March 25, 2013, 6:10 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
Perfect Game's Patrick Ebert:
--- Quote ---
> Ryne Stanek - While Stanek hasn't enjoyed the best of starts
to the 2013 season, Arkansas' pitching staff has been rock solid
this year, and Stanek was very sharp against South Carolina on
Saturday. Frankie Piliere was in attendance at this game and
shared his thoughts in the PG MLB Draft Blog. I'm not going to
add too much more to what Frankie said, since he painted the
picture perfectly, but I will reinforce just how impressive he
looked this weekend. The fastball was humming, the slider was
sharp in the mid- to late-innings and he really seemed in tune
in his dominant CG performance.
--- End Quote ---
--- Quote ---
> Jonathan Gray - This was my first look at Gray, a big-bodied
RHP with velocity to match his size. The TV broadcast had his
fastball at 96-98, which isn't crazy considering reports
indicate he's topped triple digits this spring. His breaking
ball is an equally nasty pitch, thrown in the mid- to upper-80s
with really sharp two-plane break away from RH batters. The
velocity suggests it's a slider, but it looks to be thrown more
like a curve. Whatever it is, it's nasty, and the hitters also
had no chance catching up to his fastball. He attacked hitters
with both pitches and really pounded the strike zone to go nine
innings (in a 12 inning game). He maintained his velocity deep
into the game, and he also mixed in a really nice changeup,
which was just icing on the cake. That pitch showed really good
fading/sinking action late and down in the zone, with a great
speed differential to his fastball. There is some effort to his
delivery, but I walked away very impressed. The only thing that
came to mind is where he fell in the draft. With his stuff
there's no reason to think he won't be in the Astros' discussion
for the first overall pick, however his body type is somewhat
unlike what you expect from a 1/1. You usually think of guys
like Appel, Manaea and even Stanek with tall, lanky yet strong,
projectable and well proportioned builds. Gray isn't out of
shape by any means, but he's not in the same conversation when
it comes to body type.
>
--- End Quote ---
HTML http://www.perfectgame.org/forum/messages.aspx?TopicID=9908&MessageID=20333#post20333
#Post#: 122161--------------------------------------------------
Re: 2013 Draft
DIR By: craig
Date: March 25, 2013, 7:10 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote from: Ray link ---
>
> ..."(Appel) certainly wasn't as good as he was against Fresno
State or Texas, but that's a tough standard to live up to" a
National League scout said. "The velocity is there, the command
is so much better than last year and with respect to [Gray],
he's the best player in the class and it isn't even close."
> ....
>
--- End Quote ---
Not to be dim, but the "he" that's the best player and it't not
close, "he" is Appel, and it's not close? Or "he" is Gray, and
it's not close?
I'm assuming he meant Appel, right?
#Post#: 122162--------------------------------------------------
Re: 2013 Draft
DIR By: Ray
Date: March 25, 2013, 7:14 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote from: craig link ---
>
>
> Not to be dim, but the "he" that's the best player and it't
not close, "he" is Appel, and it's not close? Or "he" is Gray,
and it's not close?
>
>
> I'm assuming he meant Appel, right?
>
--- End Quote ---
I took it to mean Appel....but, you're right, shoddy writing
there.
#Post#: 122165--------------------------------------------------
Re: 2013 Draft
DIR By: Deeg
Date: March 25, 2013, 7:42 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
--- Quote from: craig link ---
>
>
> Not to be dim, but the "he" that's the best player and it't
not close, "he" is Appel, and it's not close? Or "he" is Gray,
and it's not close?
>
>
> I'm assuming he meant Appel, right?
>
--- End Quote ---
My exact question - I have no idea which guy he's talking about.
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