By Pat Henderson
(I got rid of the Better Pick because it’s all a grab bag down in this part of the draft)
37) Gary Sanchez- C- NYY- Carbombs
Knapp scooped up the 17 year old to begin the 4th round and got a potential star. The Yanks inked Sanchez with the 3rd largest signing bonus for an INT teen (behind Inoa and Sano) and the 4th largest signing bonus in Yanks history. Sanchez seems to have the tools to stick at catcher and with power that rates out to a 60 on the 20-80 scale he looks to have the skill set to be a fantasy stud. He is however 17 years old and will have a long way to go in terms of years and development until he’s sitting atop the Carbombs roster.
ETA: 2015
Best Case: Victor Martinez
Worst Case: JD Closser
Pick Analysis: Good upside for pick position
38) Randall Delgado- SP- ATL- Pigeons
Sully’s good drafted contined grabbing the high upside Delgado in the 4th. Delgado is the classic big arm prospect, he’s got good, potentially great stuff but his control struggles. He seemed to put it together somewhat in the 2nd half of last year and finished the season with more strikeouts than innings pitched. Developing the curve, change and control will be the determine how far Delgado can go.
ETA: 2012
Best Case: Ublado Jiminez
Worst Case: Jesus Colome
Pick Analysis: Good
39) Edward Salcedo- SS- ATL- Walnuts
Who is Edward Salcedo? Call me a international nub but I didnt recognize this name when he came off the board in the 4th. Salcedo seems to be like everyone drafted in this round, a high risk, high reward prospect. The Braves Director of International Scouting and Operations spoke highly of Salcedo and at 18 he’s got plenty of time to develop on the Walnuts farm.
ETA: 2014
Best Case: Hanley Ramirez
Worst Case: Elian Gonzales
Pick Analysis: Reach?
40) Carlos Perez- C- TOR- Bombers
Perez is just 19 years old and his writeup starts off with the dreaded “stands out most with his defensive skills” but as you look on that isn’t a detriment to his offensive skill set. Perez has shown the ability to hit for a good average as a 17 and 18 year old in the minors and has the body to hit for power in time. He’ll be an interesting player to follow over the next few years.
ETA: 2015
Best Case: Russel Martin (when he was good)
Worst Case: Jason Kendell (when he sucked, aka most of his career)
Pick Analysis: Solid
41) Marcel Ozuna- OF- FLA- Bombers
A potential 5 tooler Ozuna is reminicent of a young Vlad. He is a bad baller hitter and handles off speed pitches well. Ozuna is a good athlete who should be able to swipe some bases once he figures out that part of his game. I was high on Ozuna and was planning on taking him with my next pick until Uustal scooped him up.
ETA: 2014
Best Case: Vlad Guerrero
Worst Case: Pablo Ozunaa
Pick Analysis: Good
42) Ryan Wheeler- 1B- ARI- Quahogs
In ’09 Wheeler lead the Northwestern league in OBP and OPS. He’s got a balanced swing and goes the other way well. He reminds scouts of Joey Votto and the Quahogs like that comparison. Wheeler was a hitter that I figured would go in the late 3rd/ Early 4th so I was glad to grab him down here. He’s more polished then some of the players that went before him but his upside probably isnt as high.
ETA: 2012
Best Case: Derrek Lee
Worst Case: Erubiel Durazo
Pick Analysis: Good
43) Fabio Martinez- SP- ANA- The team formerly known as the Blind Dogs
Fabio has an electric fastball that maintains it’s velocity deep into ball games. He has a projectable frame and Tom Tom is hoping that he’ll develop those secondary pitches to remain a starter as he gets closer to the bigs. To me he looks like a reliever, which isnt always a bad thing, he seems to have the stuff to becoming a dominant closer one day.
ETA: 2014
Best Case: Fausto Carmona (in his good year)
Worst Case: Daniel Cabrera
Pick Analysis: Solid
44) Simon Castro- SP- SD- Anchormen
A “true swing and miss” fastball and a great work ethic lead Castro to a huge improvement between his 2008 and 2009 numbers. He lead the Midwest league in Strikeouts in 09 and also pitched a 7 inning no hitter. After talking him up so much BA goes on to project him as a #3 starter. They seem to do this alot where they talk a guy up big time than slap the dreaded #3 starter tag on him. From the looks of Castro and his stuff I think Billy got great value at this point of the draft.
ETA: 2013
Best Case: Josh Johnson
Worst Case: Juan Guzman
Pick Analysis: Good work
45) Matt Davidson- 3B- ARI- Pandas
This chaunce looking prospect has plus-plus raw power which you love to see on any writeup, another thing you love to see? Matt Williams comparison. Davidson has both of those plusses but he is a poor runner, poor defender and has shown contact issues. If he can live up to his power potential and figure out how to man the hot corner AZ and the Pandas could have a nice problem on their hands with both Davidson and Borchering coming through the system at 3rd.
ETA: 2013
Best Case: Matt Williams
Worst Case: Russ Branyan (before last season)
Pick Analysis: Good
46) Nolan Arenado- 3B- COL- Quahogs
Only having picks in the 4th and 5th round, Arenado was right near the top of the Quahogs draft board and they were pumped to get him with this pick. At 18 Arenado has shown an advanced approach at the plate, he has a smooth, balanced swing, good plate discipline and hits well to all fields. He projects to have at least average power and should turn into at least an average regular at 3rd.
ETA: 2015
Best Case: Evan Longoria
Worst Case: Tim Naehring
Pick Analysis: Good
47) Kentrail Davis- OF- MIL- Brew Crew
He’s 5’9 195 and he can hit and run. Kentrail has drawn comparisons to Kriby Puckett and if he comes anywhere close to that then Brad has the steal of the draft. His draft stock was hurt by a poor sophomore season in college but Davis has the potential to be a 20-20 man in the bigs and with Brad’s history he probably will.
ETA: 2012
Best Case: Kirby Puckett with good eyes
Worst Case: Donnie Sadler
Pick Analysis: Nice value
48) Daniel Fields- SS- DET- Carbombs
His dad played briefly in the bigs and at age 12 he parked one with a wooden bat. He doesnt seem to have 1 outstanding skill but is solid in every facet of the game. He has a great attitude and makeup. If he sticks at short stop he seems like he’ll be a valuable fantasy commodity, if he moves elsewhere his stock will probably drop.
ETA: 2014
Best Case: Derek Jeter
Worst Case: Alex Cora
Pick Analysis: Good
Puckett died a couple years ago, didn't he? Or did I dream that shit. I can't remember.
ReplyDeleteJuan Guzman! Awesome. Didn't that guy have like a pet iguana or some shit? I seem to recall him doing a little piece about it on NESN and Remdawg totally freaking out. That might have been a dream to, or maybe just another player. Anyway...great comparisons in this round.
Elian Gonzalez??? ahahahaha
ReplyDeleteI didn't even catch that the first time. Hilarious.
haha juan guzman did have an iguana if i recall, I remember hearing about that.
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked the comparisons, i've got some good ones cooking for Rd 5.
War Elian haha
Nolan Arenado and Evan Longoria? Don't think he'll have close to the same power. He is a good hitter, which usually translates to power, but you don't see prospects who have questions about power become annual 30+ HR guys. 20-25 is a solid upside. He reminds me more of Bill Mueller or Melin Mora (more walks) for best case. Someone who hits .310 with 15-20 HR and and 80 walks.
ReplyDeleteDelgado's control improved a ton in the 2nd half last season and I don't think it's really that big of an issue anymore. He's been dynamite this spring too (according to Adam Foster). He may have been my favorite pick this round.
Prospectus crapped on Ryan Wheeler a little, calling him Lyle Overbay. We'll see if he can follow Joey Votto's career path. His (Votto) numbers were undervalued in the minors as well. Scouts generally discard numbers in the Northwest League, where Wheeler played last season, especially if the guy comes from college. High A and AA this season will tell the story with Wheeler.
Also wasn't too impressed with Matt Davidson. He has huge power, but has had an awful approach at the plate so far. K'ing a ton and swinging at everything.
My favorite guys this round- Delgado, Davis, Sanchez, in that order.
I LOL'd at the long lost chaunce reference for Matt Davidson. I still say he's sexy and if he can make it to the majors he will join Cloon-tang and Shia LaBeouf in my list of many Man Crushes.
ReplyDeleteAs for Salcedo I loved that pick for the Walnuts. I know very little about him, but what I do know I love.
1) The Braves love him and see him as Chipper's eventual replacement. Highest signing bonus ever for an international signee for the organization.
2) He was projected as a first round pick in last years draft
3) I've heard comparisons to Han Ram, good approach at the plate and plus power
4) Will most likely start the year at high A Rome for the Braves at the age of 18 and he may move quickly through the system