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So going by Fangraphs and their rankings I decided to go back and compare the ratings for this year's draft class vs. the 2018 draft class. It's hardly scientific and conclusive. Also, the rankings and ratings are still in flux and changing for the 2019 draft class so maybe I should wait to do this, but whatever... 2018 Fangraphs draft class rankings: 60 FV rating -- 0, 55 FV rating (Casey Mize and Nick Madrigal) -- 2, 50 FV rating -- 10, 45+ FV rating -- 5, 45 FV rating -- 26, 40+ FV rating -- 17. Total players with an FV 40+ or above: 60 players ------ 2019 Fangraphs draft class rankings: 60 FV rating (Adley Rutschman, duh) -- 1, 55 FV rating -- 0, 50 FV rating -- 7, 45+ FV rating -- 5, 45 FV rating -- 30, 40+ FV rating -- 14. Total players with an FV 40+ or above: 57 players https://www.fangraphs.com/prospects/the-board/2019-mlb-draft?sort=-1,1&type=0&pagenum=0&team=&pos=&filter=&pageitems=100 So I didn't tally all the players with a rating of 40 FV because I needed to cut it off somewhere and thought 40+ FV was fine. It seems pretty close and the ratings are still changing for the 2019 draft class. I mean technically the ratings are changing for the 2018 draft class too, but this is what they had before the draft. Nico Hoerner was a 45 FV in the 2018 draft rankings and is a 50 FV now. I think this draft class is weak compared to other years, but it doesn't seem too far off.

Any reports on his velo? Especially on the fastball? Someone mentioned this a while back, but we really need to hire those Driveline guys or send some of our prospects there to improve their fastballs.

[tweet] [/tweet]Great video. I've watched a lot of SS Nasim Nunez and he's outstanding defensively. Really strong arm and capable of making every kind of throw. Rising up draft boards.

I really wanted the Cubs to make a Heyward trade this offseason (with a team like SF), but I just didn't get the feeling like it was a priority for Theo & Jed. Running it back with just the Descalso and Brach additions was dumb. Maybe taking a step back and trading some veterans and getting some prospects back isn't the worst thing in the world...

That always happens around this time when scouts are looking for flaws and breaking down prospects and preparing to rank them. Yeah, the pitching really sucks and I wouldn't be super psyched if my team had a top 10 pick this year. Still, there are a bunch of really good college hitters. Some HS bats with high ceilings (and high risk) like Rece Hinds. The Cubs will probably load up on hitting prospects again in this draft.

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[tweet] [/tweet]Good stuff.

Nico will be fun to follow this year. A lot of interesting guys at the bottom levels too. Yeah. Thanks for the daily updates, Raisin.

[tweet] [/tweet]So the Cubs have the fifth smallest bonus pool for the 2019 MLB draft. Their pick at #27 has a slot value of $2,570,100. Arizona has a bunch of picks and a crazy large bonus pool this year.

From the latest K. McDaniel chat on Fangraphs: Hope the Cubs haven't committed the majority of their IFA pool money and have some available. It's going to be hard to accurately scout these guys since no one saw them in Cuba.

https://theathletic.com/902502/2019/04/03/cubs-prospects-to-watch-in-2019-nico-hoerner-brailyn-marquez-miguel-amaya/ Theo on Nico: The article also briefly talks about Dakota Mekkes, Alex Lange, Brendon Little, Brailyn Marquez, and Miguel Amaya.

I dislike the Brewers, but nothing can surpass my hatred for the Cardinals.

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So that means Adley Rutschman is probably getting $7.5 mil from Baltimore.

[tweet] [/tweet] [tweet] [/tweet]That's really good lol.

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From the latest Klaw chat: This isn't really related to this year's draft, but I wanted to include it. Saw a pretty funny tweet the other day saying the A's were planning on taking Ja Morant in this year's draft lol.

[tweet] [/tweet]Man, that must be nice. Hard to imagine as Cubs fans right now...

Yeah, I mentioned that a few posts back and how pitching is pretty lackluster in this draft. It'd be nice if there was more pitching at the top just so it could push some of the polished college bats down. I was hoping to get some input from UK, but he's been MIA. I mentioned this to Raisin, but it feels like a lot of the posters that normally engage in this thread are missing. Even Raisin is super busy right now and hasn't been posting much. Hopefully he posts some BA content once he gets some free time.

Yeah, it's not a good trend. I don't know about moving the mound back and/or lowering it (unintended consequences and whatnot). I certainly don't trust Rob Manfred to fix the problem.

I'm surprised I beat Brian. He usually posts this stuff first lol.

[tweet]https://twitter.com/keithlaw/status/1112685167615840256[/tweet] [tweet] [/tweet]Good quote from Neal Huntington:

[tweet] [/tweet][tweet] [/tweet][tweet] [/tweet]Fangraphs draft profile on Nico Hoerner: [pre]Hit: 35/55 Game: 30/40 Raw: 50/50 Speed: 70/70 Field: 45/50 Arm: 50/50[/pre] Fangraphs draft profile on Braden Shewmake: [pre]Hit: 35/55 Game: 25/45 Raw: 45/50 Speed: 55/50 Field: 45/50 Arm: 55/55[/pre] So I've been meaning to write this post for awhile. Guess I was just waiting for him to heat up and post better stats. He reminds me a lot of last year's 1st round pick Nico Hoerner. They aren't exactly alike or have the same profile, but both appeal to what the Cubs are looking for in an advanced bat. They have good swings and display great discipline. Amazing instincts and outstanding makeup. Shewmake is a coach's son and people rave about his baseball IQ, leadership and overall makeup. Not sure if he can stick at SS and there are questions about his defensive ability just like with Hoerner. Both players are athletic, but Hoerner is the better athlete. Shewmake has the stronger arm. He has 6 SB so far this season without getting caught. That probably has more to do with his good instincts and that shouldn't be a big part of his game later on. He definitely isn't as fast as Hoerner and will probably slow down even more as he matures. On the plus side, he's much bigger at 6'4" and has room to fill out and get stronger. He bats lefthanded. Just like with Hoerner, the team that drafts him will probably want to tinker with the swing a little bit and get him to hit at a higher launch angle. It's a pretty flat swing and he doesn't try to hit for power. Shewmake goes opposite field often and has a good approach. Has hit over .300 every season in college. Really good prospect who's a lock for the first round in my opinion. Not sure if he'll make it to the Cubs right now. I'm sure there are GMs/Presidents of MLB teams wondering how Nico Hoerner fell so far in the draft last year and why their scouting departments had him ranked so low. There are a lot of good hitters in this draft class (and definitely some with higher upsides) so maybe he'll fall on draft day and the Cubs will have a chance.

Rob, you clearly need to watch more Kyle Hendricks pitching gifs.