BA's 07 Draft Report Card

[CaliforniaRaisin]

They reviewed the AL draft classes today and will have the NL's up tomorrow.

 

2007 Draft Report Card Overview: http://www.baseballamerica.com/online/draft/features/265091.html

 

A few Cubs made their lists:

 

Josh Donaldson was the lone Cub all-star (best pro debut of college draftees).

 

Some other stuff:

 

BEST PURE HITTER

1. Mike Moustakas, ss, Royals (1)

2. Josh Vitters, 3b, Cubs (1)

3. Jason Heyward, of, Braves (1)

4. Matt Wieters, c, Orioles (1)

5. Nick Noonan, 2b/ss, Giants (1s)

 

THE ONE WHO GOT AWAY

High School Players

1. Matt Harvey, rhp, Angels (3)

2. Kyle Blair, rhp, Dodgers (5)

3. Victor Sanchez, 3b/c, Cubs (25)

4. Hunter Morris, 1b, Red Sox (2)

5. Gary Brown, of/2b, Athletics (12)

 

And:

 

BEST DRAFT

1. Nationals

2. Rangers

3. Tigers

4. Giants

5. Yankees

 

I really like the Rangers draft.

[Guest]

http://www.baseballamerica.com/online/draft/features/265089.html

 

CHICAGO CUBS

 

Best Pro Debut: C Josh Donaldson (1S) batted .335 with nine homers and OF Ty Wright (7) hit .308 with 10 longballs and 11 steals, as both spent most of the summer in the short-season Northwest League. LHP Casey Lambert struck out 47 in 41 innings and limited opponents to a .176 average while getting to low Class A.

 

Best Athlete: OF Leon Johnson (10) was a four-sport star and Arizona state 100-meter champion in high school. RHP Ryan Acosta (12) intrigued scouts as a shortstop as well. He qualified for the Florida state finals in the 100 meters and also played point guard on his high school basketball team.

 

Best Pure Hitter: Forget about 3B Josh Vitters' (1) 6-for-51 pro debut. The No. 3 overall pick was one of the best pure hitters in the entire draft. 2B Tony Thomas (3) finished seventh in NCAA Division I with a .430 average this spring.

 

Best Power Hitter: Vitters' power may be more impressive than his pure hitting ability. Both project as at least a 70 on the 20-80 scouting scale.

 

Fastest Runner: Johnson, who stole 23 bases in 27 pro attempts, covers 60 yards in 6.4 seconds and finally beat Elliott in a head-to-head race this year. OFs Brandon Guyer (6), Wright and Jonathan Wyatt (13) all have plus speed and reached double digits in steals in their debuts.

 

Best Defensive Player: OF Clark Hardman (9) is a true center fielder who makes defense look easy by getting good jumps on the ball. Darwin Barney (4) doesn't have a standout defensive tool, but he gets the job done and should stick at shortstop.

 

Best Fastball: The Cubs didn't take a pitcher before the sixth round and didn't land any fireballers. LHP Chris Siegfried (11), Acosta and RHP Stephen Vento (23) all touch 92-93 mph, and Acosta has the most projection remaining of that group.

 

Best Secondary Pitch: Lambert's curveball, ahead of LHP James Russell's (14) changeup.

 

Most Intriguing Background: Johnson spent two years on a Mormon mission in Siberia. Speed runs in his family, as brothers Elliott (a Devil Rays infield prospect) and Cedric (Philadelphia's 19th-round pick) also can fly. Acosta's father Oscar is a former Cubs pitching coach who was killed in a car accident in 2006 while working for the Yankees in the Dominican Republic. Russell's father Jeff and unsigned OF Jordan Herr's (41, returned to Pittsburgh) dad Tommy were big league all-stars. Vitters' brother Christian is a third baseman in the Athletics system. C Roberto Sabates (39) is a Cuban defector who became subject to the draft because he established residency in the United States.

 

Closest To The Majors: Barney and Lambert don't have overwhelming physical tools, but both get the most out of their ability because they're intelligent and instinctive.

 

Best Late-Round Pick: The Cubs spent $225,000 on Acosta and $350,000 on Russell. After pitching in the mid-80s at Texas, Russell showed improved velocity in the summer Texas Collegiate League before signing. LHP Zach Ashwood (16) also added velocity during the summer, pitching at 87-90 mph and also showing a better curveball.

 

The One Who Got Away: 3B/C Victor Sanchez (25) ranked as the No. 1 prospect in the Northwoods League, hitting .275 with wood bats as a high schooler in a summer college circuit. He's now at San Diego. Preston Clark (33) returned to Texas and could be one of the first catchers drafted in 2008.

 

Assessment: The Cubs were set to take prep righty Jarrod Parker at No. 3 until the Royals made a late decision to pass on Vitters. That set the tone for Chicago, which took position players with nine of its first 10 choices.

 

I think Wyatt is clearly the best defender the Cubs took.

[CubinNY]

http://www.baseballamerica.com/online/draft/features/265089.html

 

CHICAGO CUBS

 

Best Pro Debut: C Josh Donaldson (1S) batted .335 with nine homers and OF Ty Wright (7) hit .308 with 10 longballs and 11 steals, as both spent most of the summer in the short-season Northwest League. LHP Casey Lambert struck out 47 in 41 innings and limited opponents to a .176 average while getting to low Class A.

 

Best Athlete: OF Leon Johnson (10) was a four-sport star and Arizona state 100-meter champion in high school. RHP Ryan Acosta (12) intrigued scouts as a shortstop as well. He qualified for the Florida state finals in the 100 meters and also played point guard on his high school basketball team.

 

Best Pure Hitter: Forget about 3B Josh Vitters' (1) 6-for-51 pro debut. The No. 3 overall pick was one of the best pure hitters in the entire draft. 2B Tony Thomas (3) finished seventh in NCAA Division I with a .430 average this spring.

 

Best Power Hitter: Vitters' power may be more impressive than his pure hitting ability. Both project as at least a 70 on the 20-80 scouting scale.

 

Fastest Runner: Johnson, who stole 23 bases in 27 pro attempts, covers 60 yards in 6.4 seconds and finally beat Elliott in a head-to-head race this year. OFs Brandon Guyer (6), Wright and Jonathan Wyatt (13) all have plus speed and reached double digits in steals in their debuts.

 

Best Defensive Player: OF Clark Hardman (9) is a true center fielder who makes defense look easy by getting good jumps on the ball. Darwin Barney (4) doesn't have a standout defensive tool, but he gets the job done and should stick at shortstop.

 

Best Fastball: The Cubs didn't take a pitcher before the sixth round and didn't land any fireballers. LHP Chris Siegfried (11), Acosta and RHP Stephen Vento (23) all touch 92-93 mph, and Acosta has the most projection remaining of that group.

 

Best Secondary Pitch: Lambert's curveball, ahead of LHP James Russell's (14) changeup.

 

Most Intriguing Background: Johnson spent two years on a Mormon mission in Siberia. Speed runs in his family, as brothers Elliott (a Devil Rays infield prospect) and Cedric (Philadelphia's 19th-round pick) also can fly. Acosta's father Oscar is a former Cubs pitching coach who was killed in a car accident in 2006 while working for the Yankees in the Dominican Republic. Russell's father Jeff and unsigned OF Jordan Herr's (41, returned to Pittsburgh) dad Tommy were big league all-stars. Vitters' brother Christian is a third baseman in the Athletics system. C Roberto Sabates (39) is a Cuban defector who became subject to the draft because he established residency in the United States.

 

Closest To The Majors: Barney and Lambert don't have overwhelming physical tools, but both get the most out of their ability because they're intelligent and instinctive.

 

Best Late-Round Pick: The Cubs spent $225,000 on Acosta and $350,000 on Russell. After pitching in the mid-80s at Texas, Russell showed improved velocity in the summer Texas Collegiate League before signing. LHP Zach Ashwood (16) also added velocity during the summer, pitching at 87-90 mph and also showing a better curveball.

 

The One Who Got Away: 3B/C Victor Sanchez (25) ranked as the No. 1 prospect in the Northwoods League, hitting .275 with wood bats as a high schooler in a summer college circuit. He's now at San Diego. Preston Clark (33) returned to Texas and could be one of the first catchers drafted in 2008.

 

Assessment: The Cubs were set to take prep righty Jarrod Parker at No. 3 until the Royals made a late decision to pass on Vitters. That set the tone for Chicago, which took position players with nine of its first 10 choices.

 

I think Wyatt is clearly the best defender the Cubs took.

If Vitters is half as good as the hype he should be ready to play in Chicago inside of three years.

[mdwilla]

Getting guys like Sanchez and Preston Clark to sign makes this a much deeper draft . The Cubs need all the help they can get in the postion player department for awhile.

[Guest]

Getting guys like Sanchez and Preston Clark to sign makes this a much deeper draft . The Cubs need all the help they can get in the postion player department for awhile.

Unfortunately, we didn't sign them, though.

[CuseCubFan69]

Is Donaldson a catcher that will stay there or be moved like Fox?

[CubColtPacer]

Is Donaldson a catcher that will stay there or be moved like Fox?

 

From all I've heard, while Donaldson is still learning the position and is in some ways still very shaky defensively, there is no real expectation that he'll have to move off of the C position. He has the natural skills and instincts, and now it's just a matter of experience and teaching to get him better defensively behind the plate.

[CuseCubFan69]

Is Donaldson a catcher that will stay there or be moved like Fox?

 

From all I've heard, while Donaldson is still learning the position and is in some ways still very shaky defensively, there is no real expectation that he'll have to move off of the C position. He has the natural skills and instincts, and now it's just a matter of experience and teaching to get him better defensively behind the plate.

 

Thanks. Is he shaky because he's a guy just out of HS or he's new to the position?

[Guest]

Is Donaldson a catcher that will stay there or be moved like Fox?

 

From all I've heard, while Donaldson is still learning the position and is in some ways still very shaky defensively, there is no real expectation that he'll have to move off of the C position. He has the natural skills and instincts, and now it's just a matter of experience and teaching to get him better defensively behind the plate.

 

Thanks. Is he shaky because he's a guy just out of HS or he's new to the position?

 

He's out of college and new to the position (started catching his sophomore year at Auburn).

[forbez18]

Has anyone heard anything about Kit Kopach? I remember watching him pitch and he would be in the middle 90's consitantly. His problem was he could not control the ball. It would be interesting to hear what has happened with him?

[Guest]

Has anyone heard anything about Kit Kopach? I remember watching him pitch and he would be in the middle 90's consitantly. His problem was he could not control the ball. It would be interesting to hear what has happened with him?

 

He was out all of 2007 due to shoulder surgery.

[badnews]

As long as you're fielding questions, can you tell me what happened to "Trey" Taylor, a lefty out of Baylor, I think, who the Cubs drafted twice, the second time rather high (7th Round?), but apparently he never pitched for them?

[forbez18]

Has anyone heard anything about Kit Kopach? I remember watching him pitch and he would be in the middle 90's consitantly. His problem was he could not control the ball. It would be interesting to hear what has happened with him?

 

He was out all of 2007 due to shoulder surgery.

 

These are things that I should know, but I have been real bad at following up with him. I was his catcher for a few years before college, and he was hitting 90 then, however he was a short stop up until a year and a half before college. Never pitched before that in his life. Kit and Dan Frega both played on my team, and then went onto ISU where they were each drafted in the 4th round. I hope to hear that Kit recovers well, and is able to produce this year.