What the Heck, Bobby?: 2018 Draft

Showing posts with label 2018 Draft. Show all posts

Thursday, March 21, 2019

2018 Draft Summary

Earlier this month, I posted a summary of draft results to date for 20 years, starting in 1998 and continuing through 2017. Now it's time to look at the early results of the 2018 draft class. (These summaries emanate from a much deeper team-by-team analysis that was rolled out earlier this year. Links to the team-by-team information can be found at the end of this post.)

This post is an attempt to summarize the initial results of the 2018 draft in order to get an idea as to how a particular draft class plays out over time. This is just the start of an ongoing analysis that will follow this draft class going forward, looking at both the success (or failure) of individual players and how those players may ultimately benefit the team that drafted them (even if the player never plays for the drafting team and that benefit comes in the form of trade value), the makeup of the class, the likelihood of making it to the majors and other such minutiae. I plan to revisit and update information on both the historical and newer draft classes in the next offseason and I'll just see where the data takes me. This project stems from my curiosity about the draft in general and my enjoyment in sorting through myriad pixels in order to ultimately access the bigger picture. (I know. I'm a little weird.)

GENERAL NOTES: Information was obtained from Baseball-Reference. The player position reflects the primary position at which the player actually played in 2018 (and not necessarily the position at which he was drafted).

*Notes on players include the highest level achieved for the 2018 season using the following abbreviations:

Rk = Rookie

SSA = Short Season A

A = Full Season A

A+ = Full Season A Advanced

2018 DRAFT PICKS IN 2018 (POSITION PLAYERS)

Overall: .261/.349/.386/.735 batting line

8 Position Players did not play in 2018 (6 C, 2 HS)

High OPS
Rockies: .291/.371/.479/.850 | 14 Active Players
D'Backs: .288/.374/.440/.815 | 11 Active Players
Dodgers: .275/.367/.433/.800 | 19 Active Players
Twins: .281/.366/.427/.793 | 16 Active Players
Indians: .276/.373/.409/.783 | 14 Active Players
Royals: .282/.364/.412/.776 | 13 Active Players

Low OPS
Orioles: .219/.298/.322/.619 | 14 Active Players
Angels: .239/.317/.350/.667 | 9 Active Players
Cubs: .251/.333/.337/.670 | 15 Active Players
Athletics: .243/.339/.343/.682 | 18 Active Players
Astros: .232/.324/.362/.686 | 14 Active Players
Rangers: .253/.339/.347/.686 | 11 Active Players

2018 INDIVIDUAL DRAFT PICKS IN 2018 (POSITION PLAYERS)

Player's highest level played in 2018 noted*

High Individual Average (Minimum 200 PA)
OF Cal Stevenson (Blue Jays): .369/.511/.523/1.034 | Rk
OF Jarren Duran (Red Sox): .357/.394/.516/.910 | A
1B Zach Shannon (D'Backs): .354/.439/.677/1.116 | Rk
OF Nathan Eaton (Royals): .354/.427/.581/1.008 | Rk
3B C.J. Alexander (Braves): .352/.429/.495/.924 | A+
1B Grant Lavigne (Rockies): .350/.477/.519/.996 | Rk
C Ryan Jeffers (Twins): .344/.444/.502/.946 | A
3B Bobby Honeyman (Mariners): .336/.370/.460/.830 | A+
SS Owen Miller (Padres): .336/.386/.460/.846 | A
2B Coco Montes (Rockies): .333/.413/.513/.926 | Rk
OF Alek Thomas (D'Backs): .333/.395/.463/.858 | Rk

High Individual OPS (Minimum 200 PA)
1B Zach Shannon (D'Backs): .354/.439/.677/1.116 | Rk

OF Nathan Eaton (Royals): 20 2B | 66 G | Rk
1B Nick Gatewood (Padres): 20 2B | 60 G | SSA
1B Dillon Paulson (Dodgers): 20 2B | 58 G | Rk

High Individual Triples
OF Nathan Eaton (Royals): 12 3B | 66 G | Rk
OF Ross Adolph (Mets/Traded to Astros): 12 3B | 61 G | SSA
OF Jarren Duran (Red Sox): 11 3B | 67 G | A
OF Justin Dean (Braves): 9 3B | 60 G | A

High Individual Home Runs
3B Nolan Gorman (Cardinals): 17 HR | 63 G | A
OF Keegan McGovern (Mariners): 15 HR | 69 G | A
1B Chris Williams (Twins): 15 HR | 62 G | Rk
OF Jordan Qsar (Rays): 14 HR | 62 G | SSA
1B Zach Shannon (D'Backs): 14 HR | 54 G | Rk

High Individual RBI
1B Dillon Paulson (Dodgers): 61 RBI | 58 G | Rk
OF Drew Mount (Reds): 58 RBI | 65 G | Rk
C David Fry (Brewers): 57 RBI | 63 G | A
OF Niko Decolati (Rockies): 56 RBI | 69 G | Rk
1B Zach Shannon (D'Backs): 55 RBI | 54 G | Rk

High Individual Stolen Bases
OF Danny Amaral (Pirates): 25 SB | 58 G | SSA
OF Jarren Duran (Red Sox): 24 SB | 67 G | A
OF Kyle Isbel (Royals): 24 SB | 64 G | A
SS Frainyer Chavez (Rangers): 23 SB | 45 G | Rk
OF Adrian Ramos (Blue Jays): 23 SB | 44 G | Rk

High Individual Walks
OF Cal Stevenson (Blue Jays): 64 BB | 59 G | Rk
OF Jordan Qsar (Rays): 50 BB | 62 G | SSA
OF Chandler Taylor (Astros): 46 BB | 63 G | A
1B Grant Lavigne (Rockies): 45 BB | 59 G | Rk
OF Cade Harris (Rockies): 43 BB | 59 G | SSA

*Notes on players include the highest level achieved for the 2018 season using the following abbreviations:

Rk = Rookie

SSA = Short Season A

A = Full Season A

A+ = Full Season A Advanced

OVERVIEW

I'm not going to rank the affiliates as to the strength of their draft classes (to this point) because, with so many variables, comparing one system to another can often be the equivalent of comparing apples and kumquats. But there were still a few systems that stood out to me in terms of early results, depth, short-term potential, longer-term potential or a combination of all of those factors. And, although there were several franchises who stood out for pitching, but not position players (or vice versa), these are the ones that impressed me early by showing strength in both areas. (These are in no particular order.)

DIAMONDBACKS
There aren't any projected superstars among the Diamondbacks 2018 pitching class, but their overall initial results up and down the pecking order was suggestive of very good depth from their pitching ranks. And with all but one pitcher having been drafted out of college, this group could start factoring into the Diamondbacks plans in a couple of years. Balancing that out are a trio of Top 10 prospects on the position player front (two high school signees) who got off to great starts in their pro careers (plus an intriguing 15th rounder). Based on initial results, you could see a star or two emerge from the group.

RAYS
Based on initial results, the Rays look to have good depth with both pitching and offense as players throughout the draft impressed me with their inaugural seasons. As both groups were college-heavy, it won't take too long to see how much help this draft class will be able to offer the Rays at the major league level. On top of that, you can add a Top 100 high school lefty with potential star power (Matthew Liberatore) who got off to an excellent start. This could ultimately prove to be a very strong group.

PHILLIES
I really like the depth of the Phillies 2018 pitching draft class, particularly with the good mix of college, juco and high school players performing well at a variety of levels. And with college 3B Alec Bohm leading the way as the Phillies top prospect (and #59 overall in the top 100), most position players performed as well or better than expected in their first seasons.

TIGERS
Again, depth is the key with the Tigers as they went for both quality and quantity in 2018, signing 38 of 40 picks (and all of their top 37 picks). Their pitching was particularly strong with the Tigers top prospect overall RHP Casey Mize (ranked #2 RHP prospect as well) handling himself well against the early challenge to High A competition and strong results throughout the class, including the 35th and 36th round picks. The Tigers were very aggressive in promoting several of their position players and a number of them responded well to the challenge. This early exposure to higher competition could move up the timetable for some of these players to help out in Detroit sooner rather than later.

INDIANS
On the flip side of the coin, I am probably more intrigued by the long-term potential of Cleveland's 2018 draft class than I am by any more immediate success. With that said, there were a number of college-drafted pitchers who performed very nicely in 2018 and were promoted to full season teams as a result. But their top two high school pitching picks (currently #9 and #12 prospects in the system) could ultimately help write the story of how successful this draft class will prove to be. In addition, there are a few high school and juco players on the position player side that could portend longer-term success, particularly Cleveland's #4 prospect C Bo Naylor. This draft class will take a little longer to come into focus, but has the potential to generate a star or two.

RANGERS (WILD CARD)
In my mind, the Rangers 2018 draft class is the most uncertain of all in outcome, but should be extremely interesting to watch play out. The Rangers drafted heavily among high school and juco players and currently have four high schoolers numbering in their Top 30 prospect list, including their #3 prospect RHP Cole Winn (who also resides on MLB Pipeline's Top 100 list). A total of 11 of their 31 signed draft picks (including 10 of their pitchers) did not play in 2018 so there's not much of a track record to go by at this point. This draft class could be boom or bust, but in any event, it will likely take a while for it to all play out.

I singled out the above teams because I found the draft classes to have the most potential in both pitching and offense, but there are a number of teams that showed very strongly in one area or the other, but not necessarily in both.

On the pitching side, the Pirates college-heavy 2018 draft class has a number of pitchers who could move quickly through the system. The Blue Jays and Astros both showed good depth with a number of lower round pitchers performing nicely in their inaugural seasons. The Royals had mixed results, but with a whopping six pitching prospects in their Top 30 prospects (and four of those in the Top 10), I certainly expect more from some of these prospects moving forward even if they may have underperformed initially.

On the position player side, the Braves, Cardinals and Dodgers were all very aggressive in promoting players and those players responded well. The Marlins, Brewers and Angels, with so many younger players, may be slower to promote players, but will have a lot of high risk/high reward long-term potential. The Rockies had excellent initial results throughout their 2018 draft class. Boston has a good mix of highly touted high school prospects and college players with very good early success; the Yankees group has a similar mix but more uneven initial results. Even with the (apparent) defection of Kyler Murray to football, the top of the Athletics draft class is impressive (although the lower depth may be a bit questionable). On the other hand, I like the depth of the Mariners class and can see a number of their college-drafted players make fast work of the minors.

Other 2018 draft classes will likely achieve success ultimately, but the initial results may have been less than stellar. And there will certainly be individual players who have the chance to be stars who will emerge from draft classes that boast little else of lasting impact. The story of the 2018 draft is really just starting to be written. Stay tuned ...

PREVIOUS POSTS

NL EAST
Atlanta Braves
Miami Marlins
New York Mets
Philadelphia Phillies
Washington Nationals
NL East 2018 Draft Summary

NL CENTRAL
Chicago Cubs
Cincinnati Reds
Milwaukee Brewers
Pittsburgh Pirates
St. Louis Cardinals
NL Central 2018 Draft Summary

NL WEST
Arizona Diamondbacks
Colorado Rockies
Los Angeles Dodgers
San Diego Padres
San Francisco Giants
NL West 2018 Draft Summary

AL EAST
Baltimore Orioles
Boston Red Sox
New York Yankees
Tampa Bay Rays
Toronto Blue Jays
AL East 2018 Draft Summary

AL CENTRAL
Chicago White Sox
Cleveland Indians
Detroit Tigers
Kansas City Royals
Minnesota Twins
AL Central 2018 Draft Summary

AL WEST
Houston Astros
Los Angeles Angels
Oakland Athletics
Seattle Mariners
Texas Rangers
AL West 2018 Draft Summary

Saturday, February 16, 2019

AL West 2018 Draft Summary

In conjunction with the MLB Draft Deep Dive series that I've been rolling out over the last few weeks (see links below), the following is a down and dirty summary of the early 2018 draft results for the AL West.

AMERICAN LEAGUE WEST 2018 DRAFT SUMMARY

PITCHING

Pitcher Breakdown
LAA: 20 Signed | 16 C | 4 HS/NS | 18 RHP | 2 LHP
TEX: 19 Signed | 9 C | 3 JC/CC | 7 HS | 16 RHP | 3 LHP
HOU: 16 Signed | 15 C | 1 HS | 15 RHP | 1 LHP
OAK: 16 Signed | 15 C | 1 JC/CC | 14 RHP | 2 LHP
SEA: 16 Signed | 11 C | 3 JC/CC | 2 HS | 11 RHP | 5 LHP

OAK: 3.57 ERA | 1.314 WHIP | 368.1 IP | 14 Active Pitchers

SEA: 4.44 ERA | 1.378 WHIP | 316.1 IP | 15 Active Pitchers

LAA: 4.63 ERA | 1.399 WHIP | 281.2 IP | 12 Active Pitchers

Position Player Breakdown
OAK: 19 Signed | 17 C | 1 JC/CC | 1 HS | 2 1B | 2 2B | 4 3B | SS | 7 OF | 3 C

SEA: 18 Signed | 18 C | 1B | 3 2B | 3 3B | 2 SS | 6 OF | 3 C

HOU: 14 Signed | 13 C | 1 JC/CC | 1B | 2B | 3B | 2 SS | 7 OF | 2 C
TEX: 12 Signed | 6 C | 2 JC/CC | 4 HS | 2 2B | 2 3B | 3 SS | 2 OF | 3 C
LAA: 9* Signed | 3 C | 1 JC/CC | 5 HS | 2B | 3B | 2 SS | 4 OF | C

*One additional position player may be added to the totals to account for two-way player RHP/OF/DH William English; he has already been included in the pitching totals for the Angels.

Cumulative Stats for 2018 Draft Class (Position Players)

MLB Pipeline Top 30 Prospects
OAK: 5 total (C LHP, C 1B, C SS, 2 C OF*)
HOU: 4 total (HS RHP, C SS, C OF* C OF)
TEX: 4 total (HS RHP*, 2 HS RHP, HS 3B)

LAA: 3 total (HS RHP/OF, HS SS, HS OF*)

SEA: 3 total (C RHP* C RHP, C C)

*Top 10

AL WEST DRAFT CLASS NOTES: PITCHERS

My biggest takeaway from this group is that the Rangers pitchers appear to be the furthest away from helping at the big league level. Not only did they draft a high number of high school and juco pitchers, but a large number of them did not play at all in 2018. Those that did pitch logged the fewest number of innings per pitcher of this group as well. It is a high risk/high reward class with three high school pitchers in the Rangers Top 30 prospects, but we won't find out for a while whether risk or reward will win out. With that said, the Rangers did have some interesting college players in the mix who got off to very good starts. The Angels also had quite a few players who did not play in 2018, but they did have a couple of top 10 round college players who advanced to Full Season A (while the remainder of the class was held back in rookie league). The Angels pitchers weren't able to capitalize on playing against that lower level of competition, though, and the cumulative numbers for the lower round draft picks were not optimal. Houston had the best numbers from the group and, although many of these mostly college players didn't log a lot of innings, most were challenged to the Short Season A level. This class appears to be very deep based on these initial results. Oakland also promoted a good number of players beyond the rookie league level and showed a lot of strength in the lower rounds of the draft. However, the A's top pitching prospect did not play in 2018 and the other pitchers from the top 10 rounds had mixed results. The Mariners top pitching prospect was also missing in action in 2018 and their next highest pick was traded in the offseason. Another lower round pick, one who pitched the most innings from the Seattle group and was promoted to Advanced A, was traded as well. The Mariners were aggressive in promoting some of their lower round players with mostly good results and had the Mariners not traded two of their more promising prospects, I would have liked this group more. Because of that, I will give Houston a slight edge based on initial results. However, my enthusiasm is somewhat tempered by the lack of promotion and the relatively limited number of innings for some of these pitchers in 2018.

AL WEST DRAFT CLASS NOTES: POSITION PLAYERS

The Astros weren't as reluctant to promote their position players as they were their pitchers. As a matter of fact, they were very aggressive and that played out well at the top of the pecking order, but not as well further down the draft. But I like that these almost exclusively college players were exposed to a higher level of competition early in their careers. Both the Angels and the Rangers went heavy on high school and juco players, making it hard to find much relevance in their initial results. It will likely be a couple of years before one can start to really get a handle on the strength of those draft classes. Oakland, however, drafted mostly college players. The A's class had solid results overall at the top of the class and really solid results in the later rounds as well, but they get dinged for (apparently) losing first round pick OF Kyler Murray to the NFL, although they are still reportedly pursuing Murray. The Mariners were 100% college on their position player draft picks and the class performed strongly. Seattle also lost a top player (to an offseason trade), but I still like the early depth of the Mariners class as a whole. However, even without Murray, Oakland probably has a slight edge right now with the shorter term potential of their highly ranked college prospects while the Angels and Rangers have some intriguing longer term potential with their younger prospects.

Houston Astros Draft Review
Los Angeles Angels Draft Review
Oakland Athletics Draft Review
Seattle Mariners Draft Review
Texas Rangers Draft Review

Friday, February 15, 2019

MLB Draft Deep Dive: Texas Rangers

In order to satisfy my innate curiosity as it pertains to the MLB Draft, I have taken a comprehensive look at the 2018 draft for each of the 30 MLB organizations. But I also wanted to get an idea of what each of the teams had done for the 20 years prior so that is included as a prelude to the 2018 information. I'll be looking first at each team in each division, starting with the National League East, and then I'll follow up with a an overall look at both the historical draft results to date and the early 2018 results.

My goal is to get a better idea of the big picture as to how the systems compare in terms of draft results, as well as how a good or bad draft class affects a system, the overall impact of the draft on the baseball talent pool and the circuitous ways in which draft picks are used to bolster a system for which they may never even play. This project is just a first step. I intend to expand on this information over time (including a later revisit of the 2018 class and the addition of the 2019 class next offseason) and I will share my findings as I do so.

AMERICAN LEAGUE WEST

TEXAS RANGERS

Historical Draft Results from 1998 through 2017 (TO DATE)
Drafted 947 | Signed 584 | Pitchers Signed 330 | Position Players Signed 254
Total WAR 391.5
Total Players to MLB 94

Note: The following players are listed at the position at which they were originally drafted.

1998 | 2 to MLB | WAR 24.8 | High WAR 25.1, 1B Carlos Pena, 1st rd
1999 | 8 to MLB | WAR 47.0 | High WAR 20.1, RHP Aaron Harang, 6th rd
2000 | 5 to MLB | WAR 38.5 | High WAR 32.2, 3B Edwin Encarnacion, 9th rd
2001 | 2 to MLB | WAR 69.2 | High WAR 51.8, 3B Mark Teixeira, 1st rd
2002 | 4 to MLB | WAR 3.5 | High WAR 3.0, RHP Jesse Chavez, 42nd rd
2003 | 5 to MLB | WAR 87.4 | High WAR 57.3, SS Ian Kinsler, 17th rd
2004 | 7 to MLB | WAR (0.9) | High WAR 0.6, LHP Zach Phillips, 23rd rd
2005 | 5 to MLB | WAR 1.0 | High WAR 0.9, OF John Mayberry, 1st rd
2006 | 5 to MLB | WAR 35.0 | High WAR 15.4, 1B Chris Davis, 5th rd
2007 | 8 to MLB | WAR 20.5 | High WAR 10.0, RHP Tommy Hunter, 1st rd
2008 | 8 to MLB | WAR 31.1 | High WAR 17.4, RHP Tanner Roark, 25th rd
2009 | 3 to MLB | WAR 0.1 | High WAR 0.9, RHP Tanner Scheppers, 1st rd
2010 | 10 to MLB | WAR (0.9) | High WAR 5.2, LHP Alex Claudio, 27th rd
2011 | 8 to MLB | WAR 26.1 | High WAR 15.6, RHP Kyle Hendricks, 8th rd
2012 | 5 to MLB | WAR 7.6 | High WAR 5.3, 3B Joey Gallo, 1st rd
2013 | 5 to MLB | WAR 1.4 | High WAR 1.6, SS Isiah Kiner-Falefa, 4th rd
2014 | 2 to MLB | WAR (0.4) | High WAR (0.1), 3B Jose Trevino, 6th rd
2015 | 2 to MLB | WAR 0.5 | High WAR 0.6, LHP Jeffrey Springs, 30th rd
2016 | 0 to MLB | WAR 0.0 | High WAR N/A
2017 | 0 to MLB | WAR 0.0 | High WAR N/A

The highest total WAR to date, as well as the high individual WAR, both come from the 2003 draft class. 2B Ian Kinsler (17th round, 57.3 WAR) played for the Rangers for eight seasons (35.0 WAR) before being traded to Detroit for 1B Prince Fielder in November 2013. Kinsler went on to post 17.7 WAR for the Tigers over the next three seasons while Fielder posted 0.3 WAR for the Rangers over that same time period. Not optimal. Kinsler, now with the Red Sox, earned his first World Series hardware in 2018. To date, he is a four-time All-Star and a two-time Gold Glove winner. LHP John Danks (1st round, 20.2 WAR) was another member of this draft class, but he never played for Texas. Danks made his MLB debut for the White Sox after being included in a December 2006 trade that sent RHP Brandon McCarthy to the Rangers. RHP Scott Feldman (30th round, 8.3 WAR) was also drafted by the Rangers in 2003. Feldman played for the team for eight seasons (3.7 WAR) before leaving via free agency. The two remaining members of the class who made it to the bigs are RHP Wes Littleton (4th round, 1.9 WAR) and C Cody Clark (11th round, -0.3 WAR). Littleton played his entire three-year MLB career for the Rangers. Clark was released by the Rangers in 2005 and kicked around the minors for several years, earning his MLB cup of coffee (16 games) for the Astros in August 2013, 10 years after he was drafted.

2018 DRAFT
40 Drafted | 31 Signed | 19 Pitchers | 12 Position Players
17 College | 15 Signed | 9 Pitchers | 6 Position Players
7 JC/CC | 5 Signed | 3 Pitchers | 2 Position Players
16 HS/NS | 11 Signed | 7 Pitchers | 4 Position Players

Notable: The Rangers signed 18 of their top 20 draft picks with the first miss being 15th round OF Cameron Simmons, University of Virginia.

PITCHERS
A whopping TEN of the 19 pitchers signed (16 RHP, 3 LHP) did not play in the minors in 2018. Of those who did play, one was promoted beyond the Short Season A* level (to Advanced A). Three of the signed pitchers debuted on MLB Pipeline's Top 30 Prospect list for the Rangers, one as a Top 10 prospect.

Top Prospects

🔟 RHP Cole Winn, 1st round, Orange Lutheran HS (CA), DNP

RHP Owen White, 2nd round, Carson HS (NC), DNP

RHP Mason Englert, 4th round, Forney HS (TX), DNP

🔟 Top 10 Prospect

Noteworthy Debut

RHP Cole Uvila, 40th round, Georgia Gwinnett College, SSA
31.2 IP | 19 G / 0 GS | 1.42 ERA | 0.884 WHIP | 15 BB : 48 K

In total, the Rangers 2018 Draft pitchers combined for a 3.27 ERA and a 1.201 WHIP (but only 170.2 innings, far fewer than the other affiliates) as compared to the 3.67 ERA and 1.299 WHIP (average of 376.2 innings per affiliate) compiled by the total 2018 Draft class in 2018.

POSITION PLAYERS
All but one of the 12 position players signed (2 2B, 2 3B, 3 SS, 2 OF, 3 C) logged at least some playing time. None of the players were promoted beyond the Short Season A* level. One player debuted on MLB Pipeline's Top 30 Prospect list for the Rangers.

Top Prospects

3B Jonathan Ornelas (R/R), 3rd round, Raymond S. Kellis HS (AZ), Rk
48 G | .302/.389/.459/.848 | 25 BB : 41 K | 15 SB : 5 CS | 10 2B / 4 3B / 3 HR

Noteworthy Debut

SS Frainyer Chavez (S/R), 22nd round, Midland College, Rk
45 G | .306/.378/.405/.782 | 19 BB : 37 K | 23 SB : 6 CS

In total, the Rangers 2018 Draft position players combined to hit .253/.339/.347/.686 as compared to .261/.349/.386/.735 batting line compiled by the total 2018 Draft class in 2018.

*Notes on players include the highest level achieved for the 2018 season using the following abbreviations:
Rk = Rookie
SSA = Short Season A
A = Full Season A
A+ = Full Season A Advanced

GENERAL NOTES: Information was obtained from Baseball-Reference and the MLB Draft History site. The occasional discrepancy in historical information was resolved to the best of my ability by delving into the player information available on B-R. On the historical information, the player position in the totals reflects the position at which the player was drafted (and not any subsequent change of position). On the 2018 information, the player position reflects the primary position played in 2018 for all players who were signed and the position at which the player was drafted for those who did not sign. Prospect listings on MLB Pipeline were as of early January and may not reflect any subsequent changes to that site.

PREVIOUSLY

NL EAST
Atlanta Braves
Miami Marlins
New York Mets
Philadelphia Phillies
Washington Nationals
NL East 2018 Draft Summary

NL CENTRAL
Chicago Cubs
Cincinnati Reds
Milwaukee Brewers
Pittsburgh Pirates
St. Louis Cardinals
NL Central 2018 Draft Summary

NL WEST
Arizona Diamondbacks
Colorado Rockies
Los Angeles Dodgers
San Diego Padres
San Francisco Giants
NL West 2018 Draft Summary

AL EAST
Baltimore Orioles
Boston Red Sox
New York Yankees
Tampa Bay Rays
Toronto Blue Jays
AL East 2018 Draft Summary

AL CENTRAL
Chicago White Sox
Cleveland Indians
Detroit Tigers
Kansas City Royals
Minnesota Twins
AL Central 2018 Draft Summary

AL WEST
Houston Astros
Los Angeles Angels
Oakland Athletics
Seattle Mariners

COMING NEXT
AL West 2018 Draft Summary

Thursday, February 14, 2019

MLB Draft Deep Dive: Seattle Mariners

AMERICAN LEAGUE WEST

PITCHERS
All but one of the 16 pitchers signed (11 RHP, 5 LHP) logged at least some playing time. Six of these pitchers were promoted beyond the Short Season A* level, two to Full Season A, three to Advanced A and one to AAA. (The one player "promoted" to AAA was sent there all the way from a rookie league club at the very end of the season for one appearance and shows all the signs of being a "warm body" appearance.) Two of them debuted on MLB Pipeline's Top 30 Prospect list for the Mariners, one as a Top 10 prospect. Two pitchers (see Noteworthy Debut below) were traded over the offseason.

Top Prospects

🔟 RHP Logan Gilbert, 1st round, Stetson University, DNP

RHP Joey Gerber, 8th round, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, A
25.2 IP | 22 G / 0 GS | 2.10 ERA | 1.130 WHIP | 11 BB : 43 K | 8 Saves

🔟 Top 10 Prospect

Noteworthy Debut

LHP Michael Plassmeyer, 4th round, University of Missouri Columbia, SSA
24 IP | 13 G / 12 GS | 2.25 ERA | 0.833 WHIP | 4 BB : 44 K
Plassmeyer was traded to the Rays in November 2018.

RHP Noah Zavolas, 18th round, Harvard University, A+
38.2 IP | 19 G / 0 GS | 3.03 ERA | 1.086 WHIP | 11 BB : 41 K
Zavolas was traded to the Brewers in December 2018.

In total, the Seattle 2018 Draft pitchers combined for a 4.44 ERA and a 1.378 WHIP over 316.1 innings as compared to the 3.67 ERA and 1.299 WHIP (average of 376.2 innings per affiliate) compiled by the total 2018 Draft class in 2018.

POSITION PLAYERS
All of the 18 position players signed (1B, 3 2B, 3 3B, 2 SS, 6 OF, 3 C) logged at least some playing time. Seven players were promoted beyond the Short Season A* level, one to Full Season A, three to Advanced A, one to AA and two to AAA. (One of the AAA promotions was temporary and lasted for only one game. The other was a "promotion" directly from rookie league at the very end of the season, another "warm body" promotion for all appearances.) Two players debuted on MLB Pipeline's Top 30 Prospect list for the Mariners, but one of those (2nd round college OF Josh Stowers) was traded to the Yankees in January 2019. In addition, 2018 Mets 1st round pick OF Jarred Kelenic made the Mariners Top 10 list following his December 2018 trade to the organization.

Top Prospects

C Cal Raleigh (S/R), 3rd round, Florida State University, SSA
38 G | .288/.367/.534/.902 | 18 BB : 29 K | 10 2B / 3B / 8 HR

Noteworthy Debut

OF Keegan McGovern (L/R), 9th round, University of Georgia, A
69 G | .271/.351/.518/.868 | 28 BB : 69 K | 14 2B / 2 3B / 15 HR | 46 RBI

3B Bobby Honeyman (L/R), 29th round, Stoney Brook University, A+
64 G | .336/.370/.460/.830 | 12 BB : 27 K

In total, the Seattle 2018 Draft position players combined to hit .263/.346/.386/.732 as compared to .261/.349/.386/.735 batting line compiled by the total 2018 Draft class in 2018.

*Notes on players include the highest level achieved for the 2018 season using the following abbreviations:
Rk = Rookie
SSA = Short Season A
A = Full Season A
A+ = Full Season A Advanced

Wednesday, February 13, 2019

MLB Draft Deep Dive: Oakland Athletics

AMERICAN LEAGUE WEST

PITCHERS
All but two of the 16 pitchers signed (14 RHP, 2 LHP) logged at least some playing time. Two of these pitchers were promoted beyond the Short Season A* level, both to Full Season A. One pitcher debuted on MLB Pipeline's Top 30 Prospect list for the A's. 13th round RHP Dallas Woolfolk was placed on the restricted list in December after testing positive for amphetamine.

Top Prospects

LHP Hogan Harris, 3rd round, University of Louisiana at Lafayette, DNP

Noteworthy Debut

RHP Gus Varland, 14th round, Concordia University - St. Paul, A
38 IP | 13 G / 11 GS | 0.95 ERA | 0.816 WHIP | 8 BB : 50 K

In total, the Oakland 2018 Draft pitchers combined for a 3.57 ERA and a 1.314 WHIP over 368.1 innings as compared to the 3.67 ERA and 1.299 WHIP (average of 376.2 innings per affiliate) compiled by the total 2018 Draft class in 2018.

POSITION PLAYERS
All but one of the 19 position players signed (2 1B, 2 2B, 4 3B, SS, 7 OF, 3 C) logged at least some playing time. Three players were promoted beyond the Short Season A* level, two to Advanced A and one to AAA. (The AAA promotion for 2B Nick Ward was for the final two games of the season and the player was pulled up from rookie ball so I'm considering that a fill in rather than a promotion, but speaks well of the system's confidence in that player's defensive abilities.) Four players debuted on MLB Pipeline's Top 30 Prospect list for the A's, two as Top 10 prospects. 38th round OF Austin Piscotty voluntarily retired in July 2018. First round pick OF Kyler Murray recently opted to play football over baseball, at least for now, but the A's retain his baseball rights and will continue to pursue him.

Top Prospects

🔟 OF Kyler Murray (R/R), 1st round, University of Oklahoma, DNP

🔟 OF Jameson Hannah (L/L), 2nd round, Dallas Baptist University, SSA
23 G | .279/.347/.384/.731 | 9 BB : 24 K

SS Jeremy Eierman (R/R), 2nd round, Missouri State University, SSA
62 G | .235/.283/.381/.664 | 13 BB : 70 K

1B Alfonso Rivas (L/L), 4th round, University of Arizona, SSA
61 G | .285/.397/.383/.780 | 36 BB : 44 K | 7 SB : 4 CS | 16 2B / 3B / HR

🔟 Top 10 Prospect

Noteworthy Debut

3B Jonah Bride (R/R), 23rd round, University of South Carolina, SSA
56 G | .280/.368/.410/.778 | 24 BB : 36 K | 17 2B / 3 HR

In total, the Oakland 2018 Draft position players combined to hit .243/.339/.343/.682 as compared to .261/.349/.386/.735 batting line compiled by the total 2018 Draft class in 2018.

*Notes on players include the highest level achieved for the 2018 season using the following abbreviations:
Rk = Rookie
SSA = Short Season A
A = Full Season A
A+ = Full Season A Advanced

Tuesday, February 12, 2019

MLB Draft Deep Dive: Los Angeles Angels

AMERICAN LEAGUE WEST

LOS ANGELES ANGELS

Historical Draft Results from 1998 through 2017 (TO DATE)
Drafted 944 | Signed 667 | Pitchers Signed 324 | Position Players Signed 343
Total WAR 331.4
Total Players to MLB 90

Note: The following players are listed at the position at which they were originally drafted.

1998 | 1 to MLB | WAR (0.7) | High WAR (0.7), RHP Seth Etherton, 1st rd
1999 | 6 to MLB | WAR 42.0 | High WAR 37.7, RHP John Lackey, 2nd rd
2000 | 5 to MLB | WAR 34.6 | High WAR 27.4, C Mike Napoli, 17th rd
2001 | 9 to MLB | WAR 10.3 | High WAR 7.5, 1B Casey Kotchman, 1st rd
2002 | 4 to MLB | WAR 41.6 | High WAR 30.3, 2B Howie Kendrick, 10th rd
2003 | 5 to MLB | WAR 4.8 | High WAR 8.4, SS Sean Rodriguez, 3rd rd
2004 | 6 to MLB | WAR 49.2 | High WAR 34.4, RHP Jered Weaver, 1st rd
2005 | 5 to MLB | WAR 5.8 | High WAR 9.6, OF Peter Bourjos, 10th rd
2006 | 5 to MLB | WAR 5.5 | High WAR 3.3, RHP Jordan Walden, 12th rd
2007 | 4 to MLB | WAR 3.1 | High WAR 1.7, RHP Ryan Brasier, 6th rd
2008 | 6 to MLB | WAR 11.6 | High WAR 9.6, RHP Tyler Chatwood, 2nd rd
2009 | 6 to MLB | WAR 95.0 | High WAR 64.3, OF Mike Trout, 1st rd
2010 | 5 to MLB | WAR 13.3 | High WAR 13.6, OF Kole Calhoun, 8th rd
2011 | 5 to MLB | WAR 12.7 | High WAR 8.4, RHP Mike Clevinger, 4th rd
2012 | 7 to MLB | WAR (2.6) | High WAR 0.4, RHP Yency Almonte, 17th rd
2013 | 4 to MLB | WAR 0.9 | High WAR 1.4, RHP Keynan Middleton, 3rd rd
2014 | 5 to MLB | WAR 2.3 | High WAR 2.4, LHP Sean Newcomb, 1st rd
2015 | 2 to MLB | WAR 2.0 | High WAR 2.0, SS David Fletcher, 6th rd
2016 | 0 to MLB | WAR 0.0 | High WAR N/A
2017 | 0 to MLB | WAR 0.0 | High WAR N/A

The highest WAR to date, both total and individual, is from 2009. OF Mike Trout (1st round, 64.3 WAR) is obviously the centerpiece of the Angels 2009 draft class, having played his entire career to date for the Angels. In his first eight MLB seasons, he was the American League Rookie of the Year (2012), a two-time MVP (2014 and 2016), a six-time Silver Slugger and a seven-time All-Star. The other 2009 draft pick to play his entire career for the Angels is RHP Garrett Richards (1st round, 7.3 WAR). LHP Patrick Corbin (2nd round, 12.4 WAR) never played a game for the Angels at the major league level, having been included in a July 2010 trade to the Diamondbacks for RHP Dan Haren. LHP Tyler Skaggs (1st round, 2.1 WAR) was also included in the Haren trade, but was eventually traded back to the Angels. OF Randal Grichuk (1st round, 9.4 WAR) was another player who was traded away before his major league debut (to the Cardinals in November 2013). The final signed MLB player from that 2009 class was RHP David Carpenter who pitched in 34 MLB games, 30 for the Angels, for a negative WAR, and left via free agency in 2014.

2018 DRAFT
40 Drafted | 29 Signed | 20 Pitchers | 9 Position Players
23 College | 19 Signed | 16 Pitchers | 3 Position Players
2 JC/CC | 1 Signed | 0 Pitchers | 1 Position Player
15 HS/NS | 9 Signed | 4 Pitchers | 5 Position Players

Notable: The Angels signed their first 21 players with the first miss being 22nd round HS LHP Hunter Milam (AL).

PITCHERS
Eight of the 20 pitchers signed (18 RHP, 2 LHP) did not pitch in 2018. This includes 5th round two-way player William English; English did not pitch in 2018 nor did he play a position, but was instead used exclusively as a DH. Since English was considered a very good pitching prospect when drafted, I will leave him with the pitchers for the time being (as far as draft totals go). Two of the signed pitchers were promoted beyond the Short Season A* level, both to Full Season A. One pitcher from the class debuted on MLB Pipeline's Top 30 Prospect list for the Angels.

Top Prospects

RHP/OF William English, 5th round, Western International HS (MI), Rk
Did not pitch or play a position in 2018; used exclusively as a DH

Noteworthy Debut

RHP Jake Lee, 9th round, Oakland University (MI), Rk
23.2 IP | 17 G / 0 GS | 2.66 ERA | 1.056 WHIP | 4 BB : 30 K | 5 Saves

In total, the Angels 2018 Draft pitchers combined for a 4.63 ERA and a 1.399 WHIP over 281.2 innings as compared to the 3.67 ERA and 1.299 WHIP (average of 376.2 innings per affiliate) compiled by the total 2018 Draft class in 2018.

POSITION PLAYERS
All but one of the 9 position players signed (2B, 3B, 2 SS, 4 OF, C) logged at least some playing time. (One additional outfielder can be added to the totals to account for two-way player English.) Two players were promoted beyond the Short Season A* level, one to Full Season A and one to AA. Two position players (plus English) debuted on MLB Pipeline's Top 30 Prospect list for the Angels, one as a Top 10 prospect.

Top Prospects

🔟 OF Jordyn Adams (R/R), 1st round, Green Hope HS (NC), Rk
29 G | .267/.361/.381/.742 | 14 BB : 30 K

SS Jeremiah Jackson (R/R), 2nd round, St. Luke's Episcopal School (HS/AL), Rk
43 G | .254/.314/.491/.805 | 15 BB : 59 K

RHP/OF William English (R/R), 5th round, Western International HS (MI), Rk
30 G | .220/.325/.260/.585 | 11 BB : 34 K
Did not pitch or play a position in 2018; used exclusively as a DH

🔟 Top 10 Prospect

Noteworthy Debut

3B Tim Millard (R/R), 35th round, Dallas Baptist University, A
71 G | .276/.365/.433/.798 | 33 BB : 57 K | 14 2B / 9 HR | 41 RBI

In total, the Angels 2018 Draft position players combined to hit .239/.317/.350/.667 as compared to .261/.349/.386/.735 batting line compiled by the total 2018 Draft class in 2018.

*Notes on players include the highest level achieved for the 2018 season using the following abbreviations:
Rk = Rookie
SSA = Short Season A
A = Full Season A
A+ = Full Season A Advanced

Pages

Thursday, March 21, 2019

2018 Draft Summary

Saturday, February 16, 2019

AL West 2018 Draft Summary

Friday, February 15, 2019

MLB Draft Deep Dive: Texas Rangers

Thursday, February 14, 2019

MLB Draft Deep Dive: Seattle Mariners

Wednesday, February 13, 2019

MLB Draft Deep Dive: Oakland Athletics

Tuesday, February 12, 2019

MLB Draft Deep Dive: Los Angeles Angels