The draft was being hyped as the deepest in years, and was littered with lots of starting pitching prospects. It also makes anyone who has been around fantasy baseball awhile feel old. With the offspring of Dante Bichette, Dwight Smith and Bobby Bonilla being some of the names eligible to be drafted. Some of these names you may have heard of, as most are considered top notch talent and have been glorified by every site that pimps out draft information. So here is my take on some of the names most talked about:
Dylan Bundy HS P OK – Highly projectable flame thrower. High School numbers look silly for most top players and his aren’t any different. Fastball in the mid to high 90’s with awesome control of 4 pitches and modest 111/3 K/BB rate in 48 innings.
Brandon Nimmo HS OF WY – Toolsy OF are what makes scouts swoon. From watching video, he reminds me a little of Mike Trout. He is more of a line drive type hitter but with polish. Has size to develop power, has decent speed and plays all three OF positions well.
Fransisco Lindor HS SS FLA – The top SS prospect in this years draft. Isn’t a blazer on the bases, but has decent switch hitting power. Swing seems to be a little “armsy” to me, but has the hand speed needed to be a decent hitter. Needs to develop better plate discipline and some defensive footwork, but overall he has the goods.
Trevor Bauer P UCLA – The most complete college pitcher in this year’s draft, and my pick to make it to the show before anyone. Has a little Lincecum type windup that features 4 quality pitches. Workhorse guy for top of the rotation and thinks there is still life to be had in all his pitches from what they currently are at. I will go on record as saying he is my favorite pitcher in this years draft.
CJ Cron 1b Utah – The premium college power bat. Projects to be a masher with solid hitting mechanics, but raw power to all fields. Drawing a lot of comparisons in swing to Troy Glaus, which isn’t all that bad. Brother also draft eligible, Kevin is a C/1b prospect out of HS. Needs to prove he is more than a bat, and develop some 1b skills or get sucked into that man without a position status which always hurts upcoming prospects.
George Springer OF UCONN – A wiry strong and toolsy OF with plus bat speed. Plays the part of a CF/RF in the future. Has all the tools needed at the plate to be a middle of the order run producer. Isn’t a hack defensively. Skill set reminds me of a Hunter Pence type. Power and speed guys don’t grow up on waiver wire trees.
Jed Bradley P Georgia Tech – Polished college left-hander with smooth easy repeatable delivery. Has a put away changeup that may be the best in this year’s draft. Solid fastball and mixes in a curve. Is a groundball pitcher and they always have long futures in baseball.
Josh Bell OF HS – The toughest sign in this year’s draft, but also the unicorn that everyone covets. Has plus-plus power for a switch hitting OF. Exceptionally quick hands that generate all the power need for his aggressive swing. Is being called Chili Davis in some circle, based on the switch-hitting OF comparison. Is advised by the Boras group and recently sent a letter around baseball saying he wants to honor his commitment to the University of Texas.
Taylor Guerrieri P HS – Fast rising HS RHP with a great repertoire for hitting the strike zone. Already lauded by scouts for doing “what major leaguers do” to get batters out. Fastball in the mid 90’s with a change and curve mixed in. Is on the tail of Bundy as the best HS arm in the draft.
Taylor Jungmann P TEXAS – A workman type pitcher with huge upside. Although that comes with the worry of wear and tear from being over used in college. His mechanics make you take notice, very whippy type arm movement with command of three solid pitches.
