Jim Callis Chat, 06-11-03

[Jim Callis]

Jim,

 

Thanks for the time. I was wondering what do the scouts and yourself look at when you are comparing what a kid is doing with an aluminum bat and how he would do using wood. Thanks again.

 

I'm no scout, so I can't look at a guy's swing and tell you how it will translate. Scouts look at how long the swing is, how quick it is, and whether the player makes consistent contact where the sweet spot on a wood bat will be. A big factor is how he performs in summer wood bat leagues, of which the Cape Cod League is the best.

[Jim Callis]

Why did Landon Powell, who had been so highly rated, fall to 733? A couple of people have suggested his butt is too big, but this correct (or even a good reason)?

 

Two reasons: He wanted first-round money and didn't have a year that warranted it. He cut down his swing, which helped him tighten his strike zone, but he didn't hit for power. And he has a bad overweight body that scouts feel is going to keep getting worse, which only will hamper his performance in all aspects of the game.

[Jim Callis]

Hey Jim,

 

Thanks so much for stopping by. I have a sense that the ability of teams to draft well has grown pretty significantly over the last 20 years. Do you agree? If so, what factors do you see as having played a part in this improvement?

 

Cheers,

MLP

 

No problem, Mark, and thanks for the invitation. I agree, I do think scouting is more sophisticated than it used to be. There's more statistical analysis where it once was nonexistent, and teams also study where they've made mistakes in the past. There also are tons of high school showcases, enabling scouts to see those players with wood bats against great competition.

 

But I also wonder, if someone were to analyze how many picks make it now and how good they become, if the older drafts might look better, simply because with the huge increase in the foreign players in the majors now, there are fewer spots open for draftees to fill.

[Jim Callis]

Knowing that the Cubs tend to do very well in the Colonial Conf., any predictions on where Velander may go in the 04' draft?

 

Justin Verlander may have the strongest arm in the 2004 college crop, and it's possible that he may go before Chicago's first-round pick comes up.

 

I've got to run shortly, so I'm going to cherry-pick a few more questions (out of order) that interest me.

[Jim Callis]

Jim,

 

Other than their light tower power potential, are there any other similarities between the two Dunedin HS products (Harvey and Dopirak)?

 

Thanks

 

Not really. Harvey is a much better athlete and his swing is better than Dopirak's.

[Jim Callis]

Jim,

 

Kyle Boyer looks like a quality pick in the seventh round. How come he lasted so long? As the #119 rated prospect in your top 200 list, I'd have expected him to go in the fourth or fifth rounds. How do you project him going forward?

 

Nice pick in the seventh round. Boyer broke out this year at Cal State Fullerton, and maybe his lack of a longer track record scared off some teams. He's a pretty toolsy center fielder with a good chance to hit, a very nice seventh-rounder.

[Jim Callis]

Jim, thanks for stopping by. My question is if the Cubs were forced to part with either Juan Cruz or Angel Guzman in a trade for Mike Lowell, which one (or neither) would you part with?

 

Very tough, probably Cruz. To be honest, because of their contract status, I'd be more interested in Blalock or Teixeira unless the price was radically different.

[Jim Callis]

Jim,

 

On MLB radio prior to the draft, Stockstill said that he always uses high round picks purely on the top rated player available. Do you think that was the case this year with Fox and Richie, or did the Cubs draft to need?

 

I think Cubs scouting director John Stockstill was telling it like it is, and most teams do it that way. Of course, with Chicago needing catchers, it's also likely that they rated catchers a little higher on their draft board than other teams might have.

[Jim Callis]

There's been some noise about the worldwide draft again lately; despite the lack of meetings of the owner-player draft committee, I've seen articles saying it's likely to happen. How does that possibility look from your vantage point?

 

It sounds like we'll eventually have one, though I believe it will cause more problems than it will solve. I have yet to talk to a scouting director who likes this idea. I don't have the time to expound on this now, but my views are on record in a Washington Post story that ran last week and should be available online, and also in some old Ask BA's (just google "Ask BA worldwide draft").

[Jim Callis]

Oakland has certainly garnered a lot of attention lately for their 2002 draft. If you had to pick one, though, would you take Oakland's group or the Cubs selections from that draft? Hagerty's TJ surgery puts a small dent in the success of that class, but Brownlie, Blasko, Jones, Petrick, Hagerty, Hill, etc. sure looks like a pretty good haul to me!

 

Cubs, easy.

[Jim Callis]

I've heard reports from some that Bobby Hill may be too thin skinned to be successful in a market where the media and fans can be so brutal on young players. Do you see any truth to this, and if so how do you see this effecting him?

 

Thank you.

 

I don't buy that, as he thrived in a high-pressure, high-intensity college environment at Miami. He does seem to be falling out of favor, and I wouldn't be surprised if he got traded at some point.

[Jim Callis]

That's all I have time for today. Thanks for all the great questions and the nice compliments. As Cubs fans, I think you'll be very happy with your club for quite a while.