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2012 Amateur Draft

Latest First Round Mock Drafts

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Yesterday we heard that the Astros are expected to take Stanford right-hander Mark Appel with the first overall pick in tonight's draft, but there are still another 1,500 or so selections to be made after that, including another 59 this evening. Let's round up the latest mock drafts before the real thing begins (these articles are free for all; no subscription is required.)…

  • Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus has the Astros taking high school outfielder Byron Buxton first overall despite yesterday's report about Appel. He reports that checks on the right-hander's signability "were not going well." 
  • Jim Callis of Baseball America has the Astros taking Appel with Buxton going second overall to the Twins and Florida catcher Mike Zunino third overall to the Mariners. 
  • Keith Law of ESPN.com puts together a mock draft that has the Astros selecting Appel, the Twins selecting Buxton and the Mariners selecting Zunino. Shortstop Carlos Correa remains an option for the Astros at #1, Law notes.
  • Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com agrees that Appel, Buxton and Zunino figure to be the first three players selected. Correa could be an option for the Twins at #2 or the Mariners at #3, Mayo writes.

Draft Notes: Astros, Orioles, Red Sox

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The Astros hope Stanford's Mark Appel follows in the path of Stephen Strasburg and David Price as successful big league pitchers who were first overall picks coming out of college. Houston is expected to take Appel with the top pick on Monday in the amateur draft as we noted earlier in the day. Let's catch up on the latest draft news and rumors as teams make their final preparations in the hunt for quality Major League talent…

  • The Astros need to ensure Monday's draft bolsters the team's rebuilding effort and that starts with drafting Mark Appel over Byron Buxton, opines Steve Henson of Yahoo! Sports. Selecting Appel, a starting pitcher for the Stanford Cardinal, would take the team in a different direction than the addition of Buxton, a high school outfielder with five-tool potential. While Buxton may ultimately have a brighter future than Appel, the Astros are in need of a quality player who can contribute at the big league level as soon as possible.
  • Armed with the fourth pick in the draft, the Orioles have narrowed down their list of potential selections to four players, writes Steve Melewski of MASNSports.com. Baltimore will choose between Puerto Rican high school shortstop Carlos Correa, high school left-hander Max Fried, LSU right-hander Kevin Gausman and University of San Francisco right-hander Kyle Zimmer. The Orioles have encountered mixed success with their recent first-round picks as Matt Wieters (2007) has emerged as a top catcher in baseball while Brian Matusz (2008) has struggled in Baltimore. 
  • Red Sox general manager Ben Cherington and scouting director Amiel Sawdaye talked with Brian MacPherson of the Providence Journal about their approach to 2011's deep draft class. Sawdaye explains that the Sox felt fortunate to net Matt Barnes and Jackie Bradley Jr., both of whom they thought would be off the board prior to their selections at No. 19 and No. 40, respectively. Sawdaye cautions that it's dangerous for a team to set its sights on one specific player, as more often than not, that approach results in the disappointment of seeing the player go elsewhere.

Draft Notes: Phillies, White Sox, Brewers, Nationals

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The first round of the MLB draft takes place tomorrow night.  Here are the latest notes on the draft:

  • The Phillies intend to spend their entire draft pool of $4.9MM on their first ten picks and will draft a position player early, Matt Gelb of the Philadelphia Inquirer writes.
  • White Sox scouting director Doug Laumann told the Chicago Tribune's Dave Van Dyck he doesn't expect to find an immediate impact player in the draft.  “It’s probably as thin as I've seen in a decade,” Laumann said. “We see that it's pretty thin right now in the college ranks."
  • Brewers amateur scouting director Bruce Seid doesn't think there much of a talent dropoff after the first ten picks, according to Adam McCalvy of MLB.com.  The Brewers have the 27th, 28th, and 38th selections.
  • Nationals GM Mike Rizzo isn't letting the new CBA impact his draft strategy, says MLB.com's Bill Ladson.
  • The Padres will keep an eye out for shortstops in the draft, says Corey Brock of MLB.com.
  • The Astros have the first overall pick in the draft for the first time in 20 years. MLB.com's Brian McTaggart recalls how that missed pick (Phil Nevin) affected the franchise.

Draft Notes: Indians, Cubs, Royals, Yankees, Orioles

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Some items from around the league as baseball prepares for Monday's amateur draft…

  • The Indians could target a pitcher with the 15th overall pick since the organization is thin on top-level hurlers, though Indians' director of amateur scouting Brad Grant tells MLB.com's Jordan Bastian that type of short-term focus can backfire.  "As soon as you start to draft towards needs, I think that's when you can make mistakes," Grand said.  "I think it's important to take the best player available. You take the player that you feel has the most ability rather than concentrating on needs."
  • The Cubs, meanwhile, are targeting power arms, says Doug Padilla of ESPN Chicago, though that doesn't necessarily mean Chicago will look to draft a pitcher with their first pick (sixth overall).
  • The Royals have a need for a college pitcher who is close to the Majors, writes Bob Dutton of the Kansas City Star, which would indicate that K.C. could take one of three right-handers (Mark Appel, Kevin Gausman or Kyle Zimmer) with the fifth overall pick.
  • Damon Oppenheimer, Yankees vice president of amateur scouting, says his team focuses on prospects who can handle the pressure of playing in New York, reports MLB.com's Bryan Hoch.  "We're always looking to get players who can play for the New York Yankees and not just be Major Leaguers," Oppenheimer said. "That is our shopping list, to see who can impact us. It's not easy to be a Yankee, so sometimes we will take a little more risk to find somebody who can fit for us."
  • Steve Melewski of MASNsports.com talks to Gary Rajsich, who is preparing for his first draft as the Orioles' scouting director.
  • The draft is entering a new era due to the changes made by the latest collective bargaining agreement, writes Jerry Crasnick for Baseball America.  Crasnick outlines the new rules in place for this year's draft and how they affect players, teams, scouts and agents.
  • The new draft rules particularly impact the Blue Jays.  MLB.com's Gregor Chisholm talks to GM Alex Anthopoulos about how the Jays' strategy of gaining compensatory picks and paying over-slot prices for prospects will change.

Quick Hits: Cabrera, Escobar, Astros

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Links for Thursday, as we await a particularly light schedule of games…

  • Melky Cabrera and the Giants haven’t made progress toward a long-term deal, ESPN.com’s Buster Olney reports.
  • Jon Paul Morosi of FOX Sports wonders if the Blue Jays could trade Yunel Escobar when prospect Adeiny Hechavarria gets the call to the Major Leagues. The A’s, Mariners and Pirates could be positioned to trade pitching for Escobar, Morosi writes. Personally, I doubt the Blue Jays trade Escobar in the near future.
  • Houston GM Jeff Luhnow told ESPN.com's Jerry Crasnick that it'll take more than one draft to add talent throughout the Astros organization. "I feel like there's a lot of pressure to do it in one draft," Luhnow said. "That's not going to happen." The Astros have the first overall selection on Monday.
  • Any bonus that exceeds $100K counts against a team’s bonus limit, even if it goes to a non-drafted free agent, Jim Callis of Baseball America tweets.

Draft Notes: Cubs, Gausman, Orioles, Rockies

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Here are some notes on this year's amateur draft, which is now less than a week away…

  • The Cubs will hold a workout for shortstop prospect Carlos Correa at Wrigley Field today, Bruce Levine of ESPNChicago.com reports. The Cubs select sixth overall in Monday's draft.
  • Jim Callis of Baseball America previewed the Orioles' draft with MASNsports.com's Steve Melewski, explaining why he expects Baltimore to select a college pitcher such as LSU's Kevin Gausman. The Orioles select fourth overall. 
  • Jonathan Mayo introduces his readers to Gausman in a piece at MLB.com.
  • Conor Glassey of Baseball America lists ten future scouting directors, including Rockies assistant scouting director Danny Montgomery.

Quick Hits: Oswalt, Marlins, Hunter, Draft

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Free agent left-hander Joe Beimel underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this month, and Tim Brown of Yahoo! Sports reports (on Twitter) that the 35-year-old plans to resume his career once healthy. Brown says Beimel pitched with the torn elbow ligament for 3-4 years. Here's the latest from around the league…

  • The Angels were very close to signing Roy Oswalt at one point according to Jon Heyman of CBSSports.com, but the right-hander had reservations about leaving his family for an extended period of time. The Rangers signed Oswalt earlier today.
  • The Red Sox remained in contact with Oswalt during the season but did not make him an offer, reports WEEI.com's Rob Bradford. They did make him in offer prior to the season.
  • “There are always things that can be done," said Marlins president of baseball operations Larry Beinfest to reporters (including Juan C. Rodriguez of The Sun-Sentinel) when asked if the club can add pieces this summer. "There’s still room for improvement here. Whether that means changes or not, I don’t know. It’s still May."
  • Bill Shaikin of The Los Angeles Times reports (on Twitter) that the Angels have reinstated Torii Hunter from the restricted list. The outfielder spent time away from the team to deal with his son's legal issue.
  • In his latest mock draft, ESPN's Keith Law projects the Astros to take Stanford right-hander Mark Appel with the first overall pick in next Monday's draft. "The Astros intend to take whomever they believe is the best player, not the best player for the price," wrote Law.

Draft Notes: Cubs, Garcia, Pirates, Twins

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MLB's first year player draft takes place one week from today. The notes below should provide some hints as to what might happen on June 4th…

  • Chicago GM Jed Hoyer says "pitching is a target” for the Cubs in next week’s draft, Bruce Miles of the Daily Herald reports (Twitter link) “As an organization, our pitching depth is one of our bigger concerns,” Hoyer said.
  • In this week's edition of Ask BA Jim Callis of Baseball America explains why teams won't use top picks to draft players they don't intend to sign.
  • Cuban left-hander Onelki Garcia has his eyes on a major payday with the draft looming. The 22-year-old is looking for a signing bonus of $7MM and will not sign unless he's taken in the first round, tweets ESPN.com's Keith Law.
  • Jim Callis of Baseball America expects the Pirates to take a hitter with the eighth overall selection (all Twitter links). Callis keeps hearing the Pirates connected to Arizona State shortstop Deven Marrero, and prep outfielder Albert Almora and University of Florida catcher Mike Zunino are also possibilities. Zunino draws comparisons to Jason Varitek, Callis notes.
  • Callis expects the Twins to take the top talent available when they select second overall, but notes that they could use pitching.

Daniel Seco contributed to this post.

NL Central Notes: Berkman, Cubs, Lucroy, Astros

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The light-hitting Pirates again didn't generate much offense on Friday, scoring just one run against the Cubs.  Fortunately for the Bucs, that lone run was all they needed — five Pittsburgh hurlers (started off by A.J. Burnett's scoreless 5 1/3 frames) combined to shut out Chicago in a 1-0 result.  The Cubs have now suffered 10 consecutive losses.

Here's the latest from around the division…

Stark On Myers, Phillies, Wang, Giants, Appel

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There will be interleague games throughout most of the season, starting next year, ESPN.com’s Jayson Stark reports.  MLB will limit the number of interleague contests during the last five weeks of the season to ensure that most teams play within their own league down the stretch. Here are more of Stark’s rumors…

  • Brett Myers told Stark he doesn’t want to be traded, but realizes it’s beyond his control. Though Myers doesn’t have a no-trade clause, he obtains a $500K bonus if dealt.
  • The Phillies have “zero” interest in trading Cole Hamels or Shane Victorino, according to an executive who looked into the possibility of trading for the free agents to be. "They'd have to be really out of it to trade anybody,” the exec said.
  • Some teams have expressed interest in rehabbing right-hander Chien-Ming Wang. The Nationals don’t seem interested in trading him, however.
  • The Giants are sending signals that they’re in the market for a corner outfield bat, Stark reports. The Giants, who are also monitoring the infield market, may not have much selection since few power bats seem to be available.
  • Rival teams believe the Astros are leaning toward selecting Stanford right-hander Mark Appel with the first overall selection in this June’s amateur draft. One person said Astros GM Jeff Luhnow seems to want to select someone close to the Major Leagues.
  • The loss of pitching coach Dave Duncan entered into the Cardinals' thinking when they extended Yadier Molina earlier in the year, GM John Mozeliak told Stark. "With the fact that Dunc was gone, it was a subtle way of still keeping that same presence on our staff,” he said.
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