2014 Draft Discussion

[jersey cubs fan]

seeing a guy who profiles as a "leadoff hitter" be ranked the best college positional prospect = roflpuke

Right there with you.

[Guest]

seeing a guy who profiles as a "leadoff hitter" be ranked the best college positional prospect = roflpuke

Right there with you.

 

I guess I'm firmly aboard camp Jackson at this point.

[Guest]

Turner did finish 7th in the ACC in OPS and just outside the Top 10 in HR. Wonder how much he'll jump in that area with his junior year.

[Guest]

One of the main reasons Turner is rated so highly is his position.

[Guest]

That Braxton Davidson must have one hell of a bat to be ranked that highly as a 1B.

[davell]

Yeah, Turner's positioning has some to do with playing SS. But he's a plus fielder with 15-20 HR pop potentially that's going to steal 40 a year as well, while hitting .300. That's his upside and that's a monster.

[Redfoot]

Would you rather take Kolek or Jackson?

Kolek.

[RammyFanny]

Yeah, Turner could definitely be an Ellsbury type. And not that i'd have any problem taking a SS, but I also like the fact that Turner could probably play any position on the diamond outside of 1B and catcher. Law hates him for some reason though.

[Guest]

Kevin Gallo on Jeff Hoffman: http://www.chicagonow.com/cubs-den/2013/10/guest-post-scouting-report-on-jeff-hoffman/

[Guest]

Frank Pilere's top Cape Cod League prospects: http://perfectgame.org/Articles/View.aspx?article=9116

 

The reports on the top three (Hoffman, Pentecost and Finnegan) are free.

[davell]

Kevin Gallo on Turner

 

http://bigleaguefutures.net/1/2013/10/20/scouting-report-trea-turner-ss-north-carolina-state/

[davell]

Chris Crawford 's top 14 HS pitchers

 

http://mlbdraftinsider.com/2013/10/top-14-for-14-high-school-pitchers/

[Guest]

Keith Law and Chris Crawford's top 50 for the draft came out today. I don't have ESPN insider but from what I could piece together, they had 1. Carlos Rodon, 2. Jeff Hoffman, 3. Alex Jackson and 4. Jacob Gatewood with Trea Turner not in the top ten.

[RammyFanny]

Last I heard, Law said he wouldn't take Turner in the first round.

[Tangled Up in Plaid]

Alex Jackson 3rd... mmm.

[imb]

Rodon

Hoffman

Jackson

Gatewood

Davidson

Holmes

Aiken

Kolek

Sheffield

Newcomb

 

is the top 10. turner was 15. Beede at 18.

[Guest]

Rodon

Hoffman

Jackson

Gatewood

Davidson

Holmes

Aiken

Kolek

Sheffield

Newcomb

 

is the top 10. turner was 15. Beede at 18.

 

Much lower on Kolek, Turner and Beede than others.

[Guest]

By the way, Touki Touissant was dominant today and both his top pitches rebounded nicely after being down all summer.

[ctcf]

By the way, Touki Touissant was dominant today and both his top pitches rebounded nicely after being down all summer.

 

I would draft him solely for the name.

[Guest]

Chris Crawford's top 14 prep bats: http://mlbdraftinsider.com/2013/10/top-14-for-14-high-school-hitters/

 

On paper, this is a better class of high-school hitters than last year to start the year, with more quality at the top and quantity of guys that could go early as well. In particular it’s a much better middle-infield class, though last year was among the worst I’ve seen in my time doing this. It’s a bit light in terms of left-handed bats — and there’s more volatility in this group than last year — but I see enough offensive upside in the prep bats to at least partially make up for the lack of quality and quantity on the college side to start the year. 

[Guest]

Chris Crawford 's top 14 HS pitchers

 

http://mlbdraftinsider.com/2013/10/top-14-for-14-high-school-pitchers/

 

I think these blurbs at the top of each of his categories (college hitter, college pitcher, HS hitter, HS pitcher) are nice to see he his thought process in how he rates the 4 types and the quality of the prospects in each category:

 

The prep pitching class this year is deep in quantity, but the top of the class may not be quite as good as it was the last two years. There’s a lot of velocity here, but the class is a bit short on quality left-handed arms and we haven’t seen much consistency out of the secondary stuff at this point. There’s some very intriguing arms in this group, but if you’re looking for a Luc Giolito or a Kohl Stewart, I don’t see that quality of an option at the top. I think/hope that will change over the spring, though.

 

Crawford appears to be lower on the HS pitching crop than others I've read. He rates the 4 categories from top to bottom this way: 1) college pitchers, 2) HS hitters, 3) HS pitchers, 4) college hitters.

[Guest]

That Braxton Davidson must have one hell of a bat to be ranked that highly as a 1B.

 

Sounds like there's some hope he can play RF but yeah, everyone seems to love his bat.

 

Based on current rankings/information and assuming Rodon and Hoffman are gone, I think Davidson and Jackson are the two guys I'd most like to see.

[Rex Buckingham]

Chris Crawford 's top 14 HS pitchers

 

http://mlbdraftinsider.com/2013/10/top-14-for-14-high-school-pitchers/

 

I think these blurbs at the top of each of his categories (college hitter, college pitcher, HS hitter, HS pitcher) are nice to see he his thought process in how he rates the 4 types and the quality of the prospects in each category:

 

The prep pitching class this year is deep in quantity, but the top of the class may not be quite as good as it was the last two years. There’s a lot of velocity here, but the class is a bit short on quality left-handed arms and we haven’t seen much consistency out of the secondary stuff at this point. There’s some very intriguing arms in this group, but if you’re looking for a Luc Giolito or a Kohl Stewart, I don’t see that quality of an option at the top. I think/hope that will change over the spring, though.

 

Crawford appears to be lower on the HS pitching crop than others I've read. He rates the 4 categories from top to bottom this way: 1) college pitchers, 2) HS hitters, 3) HS pitchers, 4) college hitters.

 

I guess the college pitchers being rated that strong is a good thign for the Cubs. If they can manage to get some more quality arms that can move quickly that would be great.

[Redfoot]

I still like Gatewood. He reminds me of Austin Meadows in the sense that everything he does looks like it comes very easy to him. His swing is easy, he runs easy, he throws easy. He looks like he's playing a game. He has some things in his swing he has to clean up but Gatewood probably has the highest ceiling of any position player in the draft.

[Guest]

Jeff Hoffman looked good at the East Carolina Scout Day: http://www.baseballamerica.com/college/east-carolina-scout-day-jeff-hoffman/

 

Hoffman sat 93-96 mph with his fastball through two innings and did not throw a fastball below 94 in his second inning. He has a loose, easy arm action and the ball jumps out of his hand with downhill plane and minimal effort from a three-quarters slot. Hoffman largely pitched off his fastball.

 

Hoffman’s fastball is impressive not only because of its pure velocity but because of the above-average movement and life he generates.

 

...

 

“I pride myself on the sink that I get and that helps me get a lot of ground balls,” Hoffman said.

 

Hoffman located well down in the zone and showed above-average command, capable of locating to either outer-third of the plate. His control was improved due to a change in his mechanics.

 

...

 

Hoffman threw just two curveballs, which received plus-or-better grades this summer.

 

He also showed a short, sharp slider in warmups that he did not use in the game.

 

“I was a true curveball guy all the time until the middle of last year and then I developed this slider,” Hoffman said. “It is not a true slider but more of a curveball that I throw harder. I try to use it against a good lefthand-hitters and back-foot them with two strikes. It is more of a two-strike wipeout pitch.”

 

Hoffman also threw two 87-88 mph changeups at with good tumble.

 

There's video of Hoffman in the link.