Draft Day!

[aztecryan]

Truly one of my favorite days of the year. This year's draft is obviously a different can of worms than most years, but thought I would throw out some guys worth monitoring...

The first pick is likely to be Robert Hassell, HS OF from Independence HS in Tennessee. Two-way player, but will be drafted as a hitter. Plus hit tool potential, plus runner (6.54 60 yard dash time, borderline 70 grade), above average arm in the outfield. 6'2, 190, wiry build with a lot of projection left to increase muscle. The lack of impact power potential at the pro level is the only real knock on Hassell's profile. He destroyed elite competition for Team USA'S 18U team. Other guys in play could be Reid Detmers, LHP from Louisville or perhaps one of my favorite guys, Max Meyer, RHP from Minnesota.

Other guys to keep an eye on for later : Bryce Jarvis (threw a perfect game for Duke in the spring), C.J. Van Eyk from Florida State, Petey Halpin, Masyn Winn, familiar face Casey Schmitt, Landon Knack and a host of others. This draft is arguably the deepest in a decade, which is unfortunate considering it's only 5 rounds. Strategy will be interesting, as teams are only allowed to sign undrafted guys for a max of $20,000.

[aztecryan]

Preller nailed it again.

[aardvark]

Will the draft picks go the expanded Fall League? (If there even IS a Fall League this year)

With only 5 rounds in the draft this year, I doubt that anyone not drafted (if they are an underclassman) will want to sign for 20k. This could help many college programs next year.

[aztecryan]

Jun 10, 2020 16:18:02 GMT -8 aardvark said:

Will the draft picks go the expanded Fall League? (If there even IS a Fall League this year)

With only 5 rounds in the draft this year, I doubt that anyone not drafted (if they are an underclassman) will want to sign for 20k. This could help many college programs next year.

Yes and yes. Very few players are going to sign for the 20K. Most will go to college or indy ball. Still can't believe the Padres had a choice between Veen and Hassell. I think Hassell is a future star.

[aztecmusician]

Padres draft OF Robert Hassell. Left handed hitter with a sweet swing, a very good all around athlete, also pitches and plays basketball. His strong arm could mean RF is his future position.

I like this pick, hopefully he will be knocking on the MLB door in a few years.

[aztecryan]

Jun 10, 2020 17:30:40 GMT -8 aztecmusician said:

Padres draft OF Robert Hassell. Left handed hitter with a sweet swing, a very good all around athlete, also pitches and plays basketball. His strong arm could mean RF is his future position.

I like this pick, hopefully he will be knocking on the MLB door in a few years.

Could easily stick in center field. Plus arm, plus glove, plus speed. Has the arm to play both, but more valuable in center. Absolutely destroyed teams as part of Team USA's 18U squad. 7 multihit games out of 9, posted an OBP of > .500, hit .482.

[aztecryan]

Not sure why I didn't mention Justin Lange in the original post, but serious boom potential. 101 fastball (not a typo) with a chance for some decent secondary stuff.

[aztecryan]

Padres drafted Owen Caissie in round 2. 17 year old Canadian OF. Big time raw power.

[aztecryan]

Stunner (STUNNER) here in the 3rd : Cole Wilcox, RHP out of Georgia. Easy first round grade on stuff, mid 90's fastball up to 99, power breaking stuff. Rumored 3 million price tag : If the Padres can sign him at 80, it's a HUGE coup. He was 23rd in the MLB.com rankings.

[aardvark]

Jun 11, 2020 15:26:03 GMT -8 aztecryan said:

Stunner (STUNNER) here in the 3rd : Cole Wilcox, RHP out of Georgia. Easy first round grade on stuff, mid 90's fastball up to 99, power breaking stuff. Rumored 3 million price tag : If the Padres can sign him at 80, it's a HUGE coup. He was 23rd in the MLB.com rankings.

3 million? Slot money is under $800k for that pick.

[aztecryan]

Jun 11, 2020 15:45:05 GMT -8 aardvark said:

Jun 11, 2020 15:26:03 GMT -8 aztecryan said:

Stunner (STUNNER) here in the 3rd : Cole Wilcox, RHP out of Georgia. Easy first round grade on stuff, mid 90's fastball up to 99, power breaking stuff. Rumored 3 million price tag : If the Padres can sign him at 80, it's a HUGE coup. He was 23rd in the MLB.com rankings.

3 million? Slot money is under $800k for that pick.

Rumors are swirling a deal is in place for 3.3 million. What a coup. It's like getting two first round picks.

[aztecryan]

[aztecmusician]

Jun 11, 2020 15:26:03 GMT -8 aztecryan said:

Stunner (STUNNER) here in the 3rd : Cole Wilcox, RHP out of Georgia. Easy first round grade on stuff, mid 90's fastball up to 99, power breaking stuff. Rumored 3 million price tag : If the Padres can sign him at 80, it's a HUGE coup. He was 23rd in the MLB.com rankings.

The Padres must be very confident they will sign him, if so Wilcox could be the steal of the draft.

[aztecmusician]

Jun 10, 2020 17:34:21 GMT -8 aztecryan said:

Jun 10, 2020 17:30:40 GMT -8 aztecmusician said:

Padres draft OF Robert Hassell. Left handed hitter with a sweet swing, a very good all around athlete, also pitches and plays basketball. His strong arm could mean RF is his future position.

I like this pick, hopefully he will be knocking on the MLB door in a few years.

Could easily stick in center field. Plus arm, plus glove, plus speed. Has the arm to play both, but more valuable in center. Absolutely destroyed teams as part of Team USA's 18U squad. 7 multihit games out of 9, posted an OBP of > .500, hit .482.

I wonder if he will ever play alongside Trammell......that’s why I speculate RF.

[aztecryan]

Jun 12, 2020 2:52:40 GMT -8 aztecmusician said:

Jun 11, 2020 15:26:03 GMT -8 aztecryan said:

Stunner (STUNNER) here in the 3rd : Cole Wilcox, RHP out of Georgia. Easy first round grade on stuff, mid 90's fastball up to 99, power breaking stuff. Rumored 3 million price tag : If the Padres can sign him at 80, it's a HUGE coup. He was 23rd in the MLB.com rankings.

The Padres must be very confident they will sign him, if so Wilcox could be the steal of the draft.

Heard it's a wrap already last night. Pending a physical.

[aztecryan]

Jun 12, 2020 2:56:00 GMT -8 aztecmusician said:

Jun 10, 2020 17:34:21 GMT -8 aztecryan said:

Could easily stick in center field. Plus arm, plus glove, plus speed. Has the arm to play both, but more valuable in center. Absolutely destroyed teams as part of Team USA's 18U squad. 7 multihit games out of 9, posted an OBP of > .500, hit .482.

I wonder if he will ever play alongside Trammell......that’s why I speculate RF.

Trammell is a left fielder (long-term)...but that's another story. Man, wbat a draft!

[Deleted]

I don't spend too much speculating on high school prospects, as they are such a crap shoot. Heck, college players are too in baseball - but projecting a 17 or 18 year olds development can be tough. Donovan Tate anyone? Ok to be fair, Tate was an amateur asshole.


Look at some recent high schoolers the Padres have drafted in rounds 1 or 2:

Ryan Weathers *1st round, #7 overall. He is almost 21, hasn't progressed above A Ball, 3.84 ERA last season. The Athletic's Padres guy said he may project still as a middle of the rotation piece, but not living up to his draft status thus far.

Xavier Edwards *2nd rounder. Showing solid potential gets on base, .805 OPS -- traded in the Tampa Bay deal

GOre & Campusano in 2017, both out of HS: Love them both, both are considered future stars. One is probably the best SP prospect in all of baseball, the other a great C prospect who might be 2-3 years away from the major leagues.



LOVE the Wilcox pick.
theathletic.com/1868335/2020/06/12/could-padres-third-round-pick-cole-wilcox-be-the-steal-of-the-draft/



That did not deter the Padres, who used their other five selections on four high schoolers and undersized Troy University pitcher Levi Thomas. Assuming they can save somewhere around $2 million among those choices, Wilcox is expected to soon embark on a pro career.

“We were in this situation last year with Hudson Head,” scouting director Mark Conner said. “Part of the draft now is understanding the dollars and managing some things. At the end of the day, I’m pretty confident that we’ll get something done like we did last year.”

Georgia coach Scott Stricklin conceded as much Thursday, telling the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, “All signs point to him signing.”

In the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Wilcox was the Bulldogs’ No. 2 starter behind Emerson Hancock, whom the Seattle Mariners drafted No. 6 overall on Wednesday. The gap in talent, if one exists, does not appear to be wide; Wilcox arguably has the greater upside. Keith Law of The Athletic ranked Hancock sixth on his draft board. He placed Wilcox at No. 14.

[aztecryan]

Jun 12, 2020 11:47:33 GMT -8 @josh said:

I don't spend too much speculating on high school prospects, as they are such a crap shoot. Heck, college players are too in baseball - but projecting a 17 or 18 year olds development can be tough. Donovan Tate anyone? Ok to be fair, Tate was an amateur asshole.


Look at some recent high schoolers the Padres have drafted in rounds 1 or 2:

Ryan Weathers *1st round, #7 overall. He is almost 21, hasn't progressed above A Ball, 3.84 ERA last season. The Athletic's Padres guy said he may project still as a middle of the rotation piece, but not living up to his draft status thus far.

Xavier Edwards *2nd rounder. Showing solid potential gets on base, .805 OPS -- traded in the Tampa Bay deal

GOre & Campusano in 2017, both out of HS: Love them both, both are considered future stars. One is probably the best SP prospect in all of baseball, the other a great C prospect who might be 2-3 years away from the major leagues.



LOVE the Wilcox pick.
theathletic.com/1868335/2020/06/12/could-padres-third-round-pick-cole-wilcox-be-the-steal-of-the-draft/



That did not deter the Padres, who used their other five selections on four high schoolers and undersized Troy University pitcher Levi Thomas. Assuming they can save somewhere around $2 million among those choices, Wilcox is expected to soon embark on a pro career.

“We were in this situation last year with Hudson Head,” scouting director Mark Conner said. “Part of the draft now is understanding the dollars and managing some things. At the end of the day, I’m pretty confident that we’ll get something done like we did last year.”

Georgia coach Scott Stricklin conceded as much Thursday, telling the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, “All signs point to him signing.”

In the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Wilcox was the Bulldogs’ No. 2 starter behind Emerson Hancock, whom the Seattle Mariners drafted No. 6 overall on Wednesday. The gap in talent, if one exists, does not appear to be wide; Wilcox arguably has the greater upside. Keith Law of The Athletic ranked Hancock sixth on his draft board. He placed Wilcox at No. 14.

C.J. Abrams, dude. C.J. Abrams.

[aztecryan]

Jun 12, 2020 11:50:59 GMT -8 aztecryan said:

Jun 12, 2020 11:47:33 GMT -8 @josh said:

I don't spend too much speculating on high school prospects, as they are such a crap shoot. Heck, college players are too in baseball - but projecting a 17 or 18 year olds development can be tough. Donovan Tate anyone? Ok to be fair, Tate was an amateur asshole.


Look at some recent high schoolers the Padres have drafted in rounds 1 or 2:

Ryan Weathers *1st round, #7 overall. He is almost 21, hasn't progressed above A Ball, 3.84 ERA last season. The Athletic's Padres guy said he may project still as a middle of the rotation piece, but not living up to his draft status thus far.

Xavier Edwards *2nd rounder. Showing solid potential gets on base, .805 OPS -- traded in the Tampa Bay deal

GOre & Campusano in 2017, both out of HS: Love them both, both are considered future stars. One is probably the best SP prospect in all of baseball, the other a great C prospect who might be 2-3 years away from the major leagues.



LOVE the Wilcox pick.
theathletic.com/1868335/2020/06/12/could-padres-third-round-pick-cole-wilcox-be-the-steal-of-the-draft/



That did not deter the Padres, who used their other five selections on four high schoolers and undersized Troy University pitcher Levi Thomas. Assuming they can save somewhere around $2 million among those choices, Wilcox is expected to soon embark on a pro career.

“We were in this situation last year with Hudson Head,” scouting director Mark Conner said. “Part of the draft now is understanding the dollars and managing some things. At the end of the day, I’m pretty confident that we’ll get something done like we did last year.”

Georgia coach Scott Stricklin conceded as much Thursday, telling the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, “All signs point to him signing.”

In the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Wilcox was the Bulldogs’ No. 2 starter behind Emerson Hancock, whom the Seattle Mariners drafted No. 6 overall on Wednesday. The gap in talent, if one exists, does not appear to be wide; Wilcox arguably has the greater upside. Keith Law of The Athletic ranked Hancock sixth on his draft board. He placed Wilcox at No. 14.

C.J. Abrams, dude. C.J. Abrams.

Wanted to touch on a few things here : First, Weathers. He's 21 in December, already ticketed for High A (more than 2 years below average age for the California League even using his December birthday) and has only had one full season, which was hampered by some arm/conditioning issues. Heard from someone in Arizona that he's dialed in and in shape (with nowhere to play, sadly).

With regards to the draft, if you can hit on even a small majority of your premium high school talent, you're crushing it. Since 2017 : Gore, Weathers, Abrams, Campusano, Edwards and now Hassell and Lange. Of that group, Weathers looks like a rotation piece, while Gore and Abrams look like future superstars, with Campusano projecting to be an above average everyday catcher. That is a STELLAR turnout for the value/risk of the selections.

I talked to a couple industry guys, one who put a potential 70 grade on Hassell's hit tool at maturity. The question is how much power he will generate as his frame fills out and if he sticks in center field. Either way, he's going to hit and profiles well in the outfield as well. Some of the publications have already released their draft grades. Padres were in the top 5 for everyone. Preller, assuming Wilcox gets done....crushed it.

[Deleted]

Jun 12, 2020 11:50:59 GMT -8 aztecryan said:

Jun 12, 2020 11:47:33 GMT -8 @josh said:

I don't spend too much speculating on high school prospects, as they are such a crap shoot. Heck, college players are too in baseball - but projecting a 17 or 18 year olds development can be tough. Donovan Tate anyone? Ok to be fair, Tate was an amateur asshole.


Look at some recent high schoolers the Padres have drafted in rounds 1 or 2:

Ryan Weathers *1st round, #7 overall. He is almost 21, hasn't progressed above A Ball, 3.84 ERA last season. The Athletic's Padres guy said he may project still as a middle of the rotation piece, but not living up to his draft status thus far.

Xavier Edwards *2nd rounder. Showing solid potential gets on base, .805 OPS -- traded in the Tampa Bay deal

GOre & Campusano in 2017, both out of HS: Love them both, both are considered future stars. One is probably the best SP prospect in all of baseball, the other a great C prospect who might be 2-3 years away from the major leagues.



LOVE the Wilcox pick.
theathletic.com/1868335/2020/06/12/could-padres-third-round-pick-cole-wilcox-be-the-steal-of-the-draft/



That did not deter the Padres, who used their other five selections on four high schoolers and undersized Troy University pitcher Levi Thomas. Assuming they can save somewhere around $2 million among those choices, Wilcox is expected to soon embark on a pro career.

“We were in this situation last year with Hudson Head,” scouting director Mark Conner said. “Part of the draft now is understanding the dollars and managing some things. At the end of the day, I’m pretty confident that we’ll get something done like we did last year.”

Georgia coach Scott Stricklin conceded as much Thursday, telling the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, “All signs point to him signing.”

In the pandemic-shortened 2020 season, Wilcox was the Bulldogs’ No. 2 starter behind Emerson Hancock, whom the Seattle Mariners drafted No. 6 overall on Wednesday. The gap in talent, if one exists, does not appear to be wide; Wilcox arguably has the greater upside. Keith Law of The Athletic ranked Hancock sixth on his draft board. He placed Wilcox at No. 14.

C.J. Abrams, dude. C.J. Abrams.

Alot to like about C.J., I just intentionally omitted last years class, as "too new to rate". I like all that I have read on Abrams, but can we give him more than 150 at bats in the Arizona league before we call him a smashing success of a pick?

I like everything I am reading on Hassell too. High marks for this draft so far, gents!

Ryan, as far as you know- does Preller make most of the draft pick calls, or does Conner? I recall reading an article a few years ago, about how many scouting directors had authority or were in complete control of the draft. Particularly for teams not picking in the top ten. I remember them referencing Cleveland, where Brad Grant was running the draft for about a decade.