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My guess is that Torreyes is about to go on a blistering month.

IIRC, I think there was some talk that he wasn't in the best shape. I could be wrong, as I really don't follow College baseball all that hardcore, but he started rounding into form midseason. If the medicals check out, he's still my pick as the top guy in the draft. Beede's stuff is very good, and it's likely the command improves (not definite, but likely). That said, if Rodon is on, he's just on another level. I don't love Trea Turner. I know everything says I should ... but I don't.

We were discussing this in the thread the other day. My feeling is, as of now, he's borderline top 100. If he maintains his offensive production and shows month to month offensive consistency, then he's probably top 100, and maybe top 75. Young shortstop prospects (although I do think he'll move off shortstop long run) get valued highly. I think the top 6 is the big 3 (Soler/Baez/Almora) and Johnson/Alcantara/Vogelbach in some order. Until Thursday Assuming Appel or Gray are taken, where would you put them relative to Soler/Baez/Almora? Does either guy become the new #1? edit: I realize this is in the wrong thread, I was just curious. I think Appel or Gray probably go ahead of Almora as of now, but behind Soler/Baez. I guess you can make an argument for them to be ahead of Baez. Bryant would be behind Baez for me. A bit more debatable on Bryant/Almora for me. Anyone else would probably be behind Almora. To be honest, much as I've defended the idea of Moran being an intriguing pick, I really don't know if I would put Moran ahead of Johnson or Alcantara, if we opted for that route. But I'm not really expecting anyone outside of the top 3.

I'd think Vogelbach is well behind Alcantara at this point, unless he starts mashing. Vogelbach's only a year younger, two levels behind, has a sub-.800 OPS, and is a DH/1B. Vogelbach's got no shot at top-100 status with the level of production he's shown thus far. Now many 20-year-old low-A .794-OPS 1B/DH guys making the top 100. Oh, I agree. I don't think Vogelbach is a top 100 guy right now, as the bar is simply that much higher for a first baseman to make it. I think he's clearly 6th. I guess I should've been clearer. I think there's a good case for Alcantara at 4, ahead of Pierce Johnson, but I can see Johnson ahead of Alcantara.

We were discussing this in the thread the other day. My feeling is, as of now, he's borderline top 100. If he maintains his offensive production and shows month to month offensive consistency, then he's probably top 100, and maybe top 75. Young shortstop prospects (although I do think he'll move off shortstop long run) get valued highly. I think the top 6 is the big 3 (Soler/Baez/Almora) and Johnson/Alcantara/Vogelbach in some order.

I don't want to make it seem like I'm bashing UNC either. They are a good team, and the Braves did win a title. It's just ... their pen's spotty, and I don't really believe their SP has elite ability (thus, if they are even off a tiny bit, I think they'll run into problems). Certainly, SP hasn't been their problem ... it's the lack of offense/clutch hits, more than anything. I think UNC and Vanderbilt both win tomorrow, but ... it really wouldn't stun me if both lost. I expect Vandy's hitting to come through, but it wouldn't stun me if the Jackets hitting came through as well. Curious what the SP matchup will be, but really, this feels like a game that's going to go heavy on the pen. If UNC's bats don't snap out of their funk, it's not hard to imagine FAU scoring 2-3 runs and making this a tight contest. Of course, with some time off, Thornton's probably going to be ready to go, so UNC should have a good pen arm to call on. I've nearly made it through two college baseball thread posts without talking about UVA ... so close ... I'm cautiously optimistic about UVA's chances to get to Omaha. The offense finally woke up, Brandon Waddell probably pitched as well as he's had in awhile (granted, Army). Silverstein's continued to be steady. I'm not sure how I feel about Mayberry, as a part of me keeps wondering if Nick Howard is the better bet (he's probably got the best arm, in terms of velocity, on the SP options). Howard's been subbing in at shortstop for Cogswell, and there seems to be a chance that Cogswell could be back. The pen's rock solid if it's not overworked. If the starters can keep us in the game until the 5th/6th, we've got a shot. Obviously, would be nice to have games like the last one against Elon, where they batted around in the 3rd.

I'd be very surprised if 2 mil nabs Jones. Could be wrong, but it feels like it's going to take basically monster money to nab him. That said, the kid has electric stuff. I'd love it if the Cubs drafted him because they knew they could sign him.

I'm not surprised North Carolina was forced to a Game 7. North Carolina, this year, seems like the ... Braves of the 90's? (not the best comp ... ). A team with a lot of good-to-solid talent that can win a ton in the regular season. Tech surviving to face Vandy again ... that stunned me. That said, when a guy pitches on his head ... Dunno if there was really a ton that shocked me in the regionals. Central Arkansas surviving through and forcing a Game 7 might be one. Hokies losing Game 1 behind their ace doomed them.

our starters collectively have the best team BABIP in baseball right now, at .263, so Feldman's .254 figure doesn't seem super crazy given his GB tendencies and our superlative IF defense: past 2 seasons Rizzo - 3rd-best UZR/150 (qualified): +11 Barney - best UZR/150 (qualified): +14 Valbuena - 2nd-best UZR/150 (min 800 inn): +24 (!) and Castro has gradually improved his problems with errors and may develop into a plus as well, from the average fielder he is now suffice it to say, it's a favorable setup for pitchers and if we can capitalize on a pitcher's (defense-aided) success by getting another team to overpay, i'm all for it (Shark, maybe Garza aside) Honestly, what makes you feel Garza is a better asset than Feldman? It does depend on how Garza and Feldman are pitching at that point, but I'd argue that, if both are going strong, Garza would likely be the more attractive asset because a) Better overall stuff b) better track record of getting swings and misses and b) While I don't agree with it, there is this notion that the AL East is a tougher place to pitch, and that a guy who has had success there is likely to be coveted by, at the very least, those teams in the division (with a need for pitching). We know that the Yankees believe in this a bit, based on some of their FA moves/decisions/regrets of the past. This isn't to say Feldman's a bad asset, and if continues at his current pace, he could net us a very solid return (or as you note, be resigned for multiple years). He just doesn't have a track record of success as a starter (really, he's only taken off in the last year). But that's my guess, and again, have to wait and see how they are doing to really know.

I don't know much about Illinois, but Georgia Tech is a very hot and cold team. When on, they can probably beat anyone, particularly if Buck Farmer is pitching well, as they have some good bats. Still, I've seen them get stymied too many times by average pitching. I see they didn't pitch Farmer today - they gambled that they could get by and use him tomorrow, I guess. Hard to see Tech rallying to win the regional now - just don't think they have the pitching to go through a loser's bracket. Still, with that offense, I guess nothing should be ruled out.

I'm still going to be surprised if Connor Jones signs. Still ... by putting an asking price out there, I guess it raises the possibility as to whether or not a team gambles on his upside high enough. 1.5 puts him around late first ... and he's viewed roughly in that area.

How about neither? But between the two, I'd guess Hendricks. I'm still not sold I buy Cabrera as a starter long term. He definitely has the higher ceiling, though. If neither, who else on the Tennessee roster would you pick? (I know what you're saying, but I phrased it so that you'd have to pick someone :) ) No one would be my preferable option. Honestly ... uh ... I could sorta see Jokisch in that mix. Hendricks is probably the most likely of the group, I guess all three could be possible.

Before we get too giddy about things ... as much as I am personally lukewarm about Moran, there's actually quite a bit to like. He's a good defensive third baseman. He should hit for a solid average, and the potential is there for more power to come. If you don't think Kris Bryant can stick at third, and you believe Moran will add some more power, then the argument for Moran over Bryant isn't that hard. Then, the question becomes whether or not you gamble on a position player over those two arms, and whether or not the savings you gain, plus the talent you add, is enough to overcome said difference. Don't get me wrong - I think Gray is the top guy in the draft, and Appel is 2nd, but there's a very good argument that taking the position player is worth it. It's not as if Gray and Appel don't have their flaws. I'm big on Gray, and he's my preferred guy, but he needs work. I guess, my point is, if the Astros do go Moran, there is an argument for it. Sure. It's not a Hayden-Simpson-level off-board pick. You could talk yourself into liking Correa last year, too, and they did. But I'm still giddy over getting Buxton if I'm the Twins. Sure ... but as you note, McCullers (and uh ... Ruiz?) have to be in the discussion as well. So, Correa/McCullers and Co. vs. Buxton (and I don't recall them being in the discussion for Buxton ... I thought it was Appel or Correa and Co)? I would take Correa and Co. over Buxton almost everytime. In this case, what if they end up with Moran and ... to pick a name out of a hat for now, Manaea? We won't have the answer for another 4-5 years, but that very well could be a much preferable option. I'm not debating individual talents. As noted, I think Gray is the top guy in the draft. But Moran, as you note, isn't that far off the board ... so Moran and Co. vs. Gray or Appel is a discussion that I can understand some folks leaning for the former. In the Cubs case, if there's an elite, or close to elite arm, I think they need to go that way.

Yup, here's the link for that, as all BP stuff a year old is free now. http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=17173

No, it's not. The fact that they got a good prospect doesn't change the fact that they got a lesser prospect. I'm almost certain that Correa was the 2nd ranked prospect in the final draft list of a publication. http://www.baseballamerica.com/draft/prospects-and-draft-chat-with-jim-callis-4/ From the recent Jim Callis chat: I think Correa was a perfectly justifiable pick. You can argue Buxton was the better prospect, but an up the middle guy, projected to stay at shortstop, with power? He's also done very well for himself while injured. I don't love Correa, and he didn't make sense for the Cubs, but it was a fine pick, IMO.

There's no way he gets bumped up to AAA this year, right? Maybe a cup of coffee but otherwise, I hope not. He's 21 all season while, which is young for AA. There is no reason to rush him. I think he needs to show offensive consistency to get the bump. If he puts up solid numbers in June/July, then move him up to AAA. Until then, hold off. For the life of me, I don't know who the AAA shortstop is right now without checking.

Hmm ... wasn't aware of that, but could explain why Struck's having problems this year. Struck in A+/AA, though, stuff wise, as a starter, was similar to what Wang is doing in the pen now, though.

How about neither? But between the two, I'd guess Hendricks. I'm still not sold I buy Cabrera as a starter long term. He definitely has the higher ceiling, though.

That would be fascinating. I'm not huge on Appel, but I'd take him over Bryant. Interesting. Wasn't there someone claiming that Appel was first on the Cubs board (besides Kiley's comment there)?

Before we get too giddy about things ... as much as I am personally lukewarm about Moran, there's actually quite a bit to like. He's a good defensive third baseman. He should hit for a solid average, and the potential is there for more power to come. If you don't think Kris Bryant can stick at third, and you believe Moran will add some more power, then the argument for Moran over Bryant isn't that hard. Then, the question becomes whether or not you gamble on a position player over those two arms, and whether or not the savings you gain, plus the talent you add, is enough to overcome said difference. Don't get me wrong - I think Gray is the top guy in the draft, and Appel is 2nd, but there's a very good argument that taking the position player is worth it. It's not as if Gray and Appel don't have their flaws. I'm big on Gray, and he's my preferred guy, but he needs work. I guess, my point is, if the Astros do go Moran, there is an argument for it.

(This was meant as a response to Truffle's post 2 above) Fair enough, but I'd argue that part of that is due to Wang coming out of the pen for a large chunk. Struck did have a K rate above 8 in his brief stretch at Daytona as a starter a couple years ago. Stuff wise, both guys have average fastballs that top out 93-95. You might see slightly higher numbers with Wang (more 92-94) than Struck (more 91-93), but I don't know if it's a significant enough difference to wonder how much of it is due to the fact one is starting and one is largely in the pen. I'd argue that Struck, when on, has the better fastball. Both curveballs are largely average. I'll even give that Wang's curveball probably flashes a tick better, but the margin really isn't by much, IMO. I think Struck's change-up is noticeably ahead of Wang's, but then again, Wang hasn't been asked to use it a ton. Command wise, Wang's probably a tick better, but in general, both are strike-throwers with average stuff, so I really am of the opinion that we have to wait and see how Wang's stuff plays in the upper levels. Again, I really hope he proves me wrong. There are some Cubs prospects that I really hope prove me wrong (moreso than the general prospect), and Wang fits in here for personal reasons. As an aside, I really still wonder what would happen if we put Struck in the pen. I wonder if a move to the pen could allow him to focus on one breaking pitch, and I wonder if he might get a bit more giddyup on the fastball. I don't think he's a late inning type in the pen, but I do think he has a better shot at a big league career than as a starter.

Debatable. There were some Cubs fans that were really intrigued with him and felt that he was under-appreciated compared to the Latin American prospects he sort of came in with (Liria/Peralta/Cruz/Paulino ... in a respect, time has probably shown them correct, as the only one with any sort of solid hope left is Peralta, who was demoted to fix whatever his problems were). The stuff is ... decent for a righthander. He's hit mid-90's before with his fastball. His curveball is probably the next best offering, an average to slightly above average pitch (I know someone on another site said it flashed plus at times, but I find that debatable ... at the very least, if it flashed plus occasionally, it wasn't consistent enough). The command's solid, changeup is pedestrian. That said, I've seen him throw very flat fastballs before, and I really don't know if I buy the curveball as an out pitch. I have personal bias here and hope I am wrong on my gut feeling on him, but if you scrapped the names and just looked at their scouting reports, you could easily confuse Nick Struck and Yao-lin Wang, and no one is exactly beating the door down for Struck (still think Struck could be mildly intriguing as a pen arm). It's not hard to envision Yao-lin Wang potentially seeing the bigs as a middle relief/long relief guy, but then again ... I think you could probably feel that way about a lot of arms in A ball.

I'd be thrilled too. To be clear, I wasn't trying to suggest that was possible or realistic (although ... I don't think it's unrealistic ... a high level pen arm under control for uh ... 3 more years? ... in his prime, filling a major need for them should net us something of value ... I don't think Graham or Alex Wood are, say, top 50 prospects as of now, so one of them doesn't seem ... ludicrous ... and Frank Wren has shown that he's willing to move prospects to fill holes).

Vogelbach is always going to be a tough crack for top 100's, simply because the bar will be higher because of the position. As for Alcantara, can I buy him top 100 at year's end? Yes. I wouldn't go there yet, though. But that's me. Perhaps others who have seen him more this year would, but it feels like the bat is going to have to play, as it does feel like he'll need to move off short eventually. If the bat has to play, then I want to make sure that this isn't simply a really nice hot streak for him, and that he can show a measure of consistency (at least, if we're going to judge him as a possible top 100). I don't need him to keep up the power he's shown in May to put him in the top 100. There's no doubt he's close, as a young middle infielder with offensive potential. Maybe my bar is too high. ____ As for Johnson, if we "broke" a list now, sure, he'd probably be top 100. If he goes to A+ and does well, he's probably top 70 or so. If he flounders ... then I think we're looking at a bit more debate. A long way to go, though.

6 deep in the top 100? I've been pushing for Alcantara, but uh ... I don't even think I can see him top 100 ... as of this moment in time. I think Johnson has to do well in A+ to crack the top 100. That said, I said it wasn't pretty because the list of names and their performances to date haven't been ... pretty. You have injuries (Vizcaino ... and his future as a starter has to be a ton more debatable now simply from a timeline perspective), disappearances (Paniagua), inconsistency (Candelario would fall in this group), and very limited upside (Szczur). There's definitely talent, no doubt about that, but no one's really pushed forward after the top 6 guys (and I think most of us agree with the top 6 guys). I think, thinking about it some more, I'd probably go with Alberto Cabrera in the top 10 as of now, but I still don't really buy him as a starter. Odd, he's a guy I like, but I have such a tough time pushing him.