AMERICAN LEAGUE CENTRAL 2018 DRAFT SUMMARY
PITCHING
Pitcher Breakdown
KCR: 20 Signed | 18 C | 2 JC/CC | 11 RHP | 9 LHP
CWS: 18 Signed | 18 C | 12 RHP | 6 LHP
CLE: 18 Signed | 16 C | 2 HS | 13 RHP | 5 LHP
DET: 16 Signed | 15 C | 1 JC/CC | 11 RHP | 5 LHP
MIN: 16 Signed | 14 C | 1 JC/CC | 1 HS | 11 RHP | 5 LHP
Cumulative Stats for 2018 Draft Class (Pitchers)
CLE: 2.41 ERA | 1.138 WHIP | 336.2 IP | 14 Active Pitchers
DET: 3.11 ERA | 1.219 WHIP | 498 IP | 15 Active Pitchers
MIN: 3.64 ERA | 1.333 WHIP | 396 IP | 14 Active Pitchers
KCR: 3.72 ERA | 1.348 WHIP | 549 IP | 18 Active PitchersMIN: 3.64 ERA | 1.333 WHIP | 396 IP | 14 Active Pitchers
CWS: 3.92 ERA | 1.317 WHIP | 527.2 IP | 15 Active Pitchers
Position Player Breakdown
DET: 22 Signed | 17 C | 2 JC/CC | 3 HS | 3 1B | 2 2B | 2 3B | 2 SS | 11 OF | 2 C
CWS: 16 Signed | 11 C | 5 HS | 1B | 2B | 2 3B | 2 SS | 7 OF | 3 C
MIN: 16 Signed | 12 C | 4 HS | 3 1B | 2 2B | 3B | SS | 6 OF | 3 C
CLE: 14 Signed | 8 C | 2 JC/CC | 4 HS | 3 2B | 2 SS | 6 OF | 3 C
KCR: 13 Signed | 10 C | 3 HS | 1B | 2B | 3B | SS | 7 OF | 2 CCumulative Stats for 2018 Draft Class (Position Players)
KCR: .282/.364/.412/.776 | 13 Active Players
MIN: .281/.366/.427/.793 | 16 Active Players
CLE: .276/.373/.409/.783 | 14 Active PlayersCWS: .270/.351/.385/.736 | 16 Active Players
DET: .248/.331/.376/.707 | 22 Active Players
KCR: 7 total (2 C RHP*, C RHP, 2 C LHP*, C LHP, C OF)
CLE: 6 total (C RHP, 2 HS RHP*, C 2B, HS SS, HS C*)
CWS: 4 Total (C RHP, C LHP, C 2B*, C OF)
DET: 4 Total (C RHP*, C 2B, HS OF*, HS OF)
MIN: 1 Total (C OF*)
*Top 10
AL CENTRAL DRAFT CLASS NOTES: PITCHERS
This league went very college-heavy on their pitching draft picks in 2018. Only three high school and four juco pitchers were sprinkled among the pitchers signed by these five teams. Two of those high school picks were first round picks by Cleveland and both currently reside on that team's Top 10 prospect list. Neither saw a lot of playing time and, considering that four Cleveland draft picks didn't play at all and only three of their 2018 draft pitchers logged more than 30 innings, my enthusiasm for the good initial composite numbers for the group is somewhat tempered. Similarly, since the White Sox, Royals and Twins don't have Short Season A teams, one has to look at the numbers for those teams through a lens that reflects a heavy dose of rookie league performances. The Twins did promote a couple players, but their highest draft pitcher didn't play at all and none of their 2018 draft pitchers made their Top 30 prospect list. The White Sox do have a couple of Top 30 pitchers in their group (who had mixed initial results) and a couple of top 10 round pitchers who were promoted to Full Season A with good results, but the bulk of their pitchers did not face competition above that of rookie league ball. Of these three teams, Kansas City was the most aggressive in promoting players to full season teams and also has a very impressive total of four Top 10 pitching prospects (six Top 30) to come from this draft class. The Tigers only have one Top 10 prospect out of their 2018 pitching class, but they had 11 players play at Short Season A or above, most with good success and most seeing a lot of playing time. Based on initial results, I like the depth of the Tigers group, but I will keep an eye on the plethora of Royals prospects and the potential of Cleveland's high school prospects.
AL CENTRAL DRAFT CLASS NOTES: POSITION PLAYERS
There was a much larger influx of high school and juco players among the position players than pitchers in this league and, since those younger players should be starting out in rookie leagues for the most part, I am less skeptical of their initial results. With that said, several of these teams were pretty aggressive in promoting top prospects with mostly good results. In particular, Detroit was not shy in promoting top high school picks to Short Season A. They also promoted nine players to full season teams (including one juco player), making their composite numbers much more impressive than at first glance since these players were exposed to a higher level of competition. Cleveland's top prospects performed well in their inaugural season, but the results were very mixed further down the pecking order. All four of the Twins college players who were promoted to Full Season A had excellent seasons, including their top two picks. Kansas City's high school picks underperformed somewhat, but the seven college players who did not graduate beyond rookie league brought up their overall numbers. The story for the White Sox was somewhat similar although their high school picks fared better. All in all, I like the depth of the Tigers group of players and the early promise of Cleveland's top high school prospects. I will be interested in seeing how some of the college players from these organizations will fare in 2019, particularly those who may have excelled in rookie leagues but weren't really challenged to a higher level of competition, in comparison to others (such as the promoted players for the Twins) who received some advanced experience early in their careers.
Chicago White Sox Draft Review
Cleveland Indians Draft Review
Detroit Tigers Draft Review
Kansas City Royals Draft Review
Minnesota Twins Draft Review
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