NL SOUTH S9 DRAFT RECAP

Texas Outlaws

Needs from the draft: LF, C, RP

Round	Pick	Player	Pos	Age	Back- ground	Contract	Bonus	comments
1	28	Ron Brett	2B	18	HS	---	---	Not likely to sign, but would over good defense and good contact hitting but has a below average batting eye and has little power. He was a reach at #1 but fits the mold of the Texas draft.
2	74	Miguel Bennett	2B	21	COL	---	---	Speedy contact hitter with 10-15 hr power. He has issues running cleanly and will be lazy in his development. Good Coaching might make him a useful player.
3	106	Steve Lloyd	SS	18	HS	---	---	Solid Fielder at SS but a light hitter who might carve a short ML career. He is not going to do much with his bat at the pro level.
4	138	Eugene Norton	RP	18	HS	---	---	Solid long reliever with great control and splits and 3 above average pitches. At pick 138 he's quite good and a gem at this level.
5	170	Miguel Palacios	RP	22	COL	---	---	4 above average pitches and average control make him a good 5th round pick. He is probably destined to be a reliever than a starter though.

 

Summary: weak draft if their #1 doesn't sign. He is a good player, but will do no good for Texas if he stays home. They did get a couple of quality relievers and Texas did add quality defenders, but no one to hit the ball out of Arlington consistently.

Grade: C

 

Florida Marlins

Needs from the draft: 1B, C, BEST AVAILABLE

Round	Pick	Player	Pos	Age	Back- ground	Contract	Bonus	Comments
1	16	Candy Zoltan	CF	18	HS	MILB	$2,600K	Slick fielding sweet hitting CFer. Candy has good quicks and 20 hr power when he develops. He does make many errors running the base path.
1	26	Victor Rios	LF	22	COL	MILB	$1,660K	Awesome power and bat control, Rios also is blessed with great speed and will be an adequate fielder in Left. He also is prone to base running errors. College has prepped him well and he just needs some finishing being Ml ready.
1	35	Edgar Nunez	LF	18	HS	---	---	NOT SCOUTED
2	62	Alex Forster	SP	22	COL	MILB	$550K	Superior Slider to go with 3 other average pitches. Alex has above average splits, but very little control of those pitches. Without control, he is going to get tagged.
3	94	Ken Little	SP	19	JC	MILB	$425K	Career minor leaguer most likely, He sports poor splits and average pitches.
4	126	Aramis Hernandez	SP	20	JC	MILB	$350K	Below average pitches matched with below average splits = a minor leaguer for life.
5	158	Jose Castillo	C	18	HS	MILB	$250K	Dominant defensive catcher, he has all the tools in the field to make a perfect battery mate, Just don't expect him to do wonders at the plate, he is an average hitter with poor splits.

 

Summary: Made the right picks and covered their farm systems holes, with clean picks in the first and the fifth. Nothing huge was added in the way of pitching, but there are still plenty of pitchers in the system

Grade: B+

 

Houston Labs

Needs from the draft: 1B, RF, BEST

Round	Pick	Player	Pos	Age	Back- ground	Contract	Bonus	Comments
1	19	Sam Terry	RP	19	JC	MILB	$2,300K	Could be a dominant Long Reliever or spot starter. He has excellent splits and control to go with 3 plus pitches.
2	65	Kennie Randall	3B	19	JC	---	---	Powerful free swinger who is going to take a lot to get signed. He would be an asset if the Labs can get this one done, but it's unlikely. He is better suited defensively at RF.
3	97	Piper Mathews	SP	20	JC	MILB	$425K	Average is the name of the game here, not one dominant pitch and has slightly below average splits; he will be able to pitch many innings with his stamina and has been blessed with good control.
4	129	Aaron Rowand	SP	22	COL	MILB	$350K	3 above average pitches compliment the good stamina and control, but are in contract to the below average splits, Injuries might also be some trouble in the long haul.
5	161	Lefty Betemit	3B	20	JC	MILB	$250K	Lefty is in fact a righty who can't hit Lefties. He is a strong boy with average batting eye and below average splits. He will homer a lot though think .220 BA with 25+HR and 100+ SO if given a chance.

 

Summary: Took a number of pitchers to fill the ranks, they did get an elite long reliever, but is that something you want in the 1^st round and their 2^nd rounder most likely will not sign. If he signs their grade goes up to a B.

Grade: C

 

Richmond Revolution

Needs from the draft: RP, 3B, C

Round	Pick	Player	Pos	Age	Back- ground	Contract	Bonus	Comments
1	8	Kimera Newman	1B	19	JC	---	---	Offensive juggernaut that might be better suited as a DH. Offensively he's a potential MVP if he can stay healthy
2	54	Matt Williams	RF	18	HS	---	---	Light hitting fielder with above average speed and base running. His lack of power and dominant speed will limit is ab's, but he is a capable MLer, just not going to be a dominant one.
3	86	Diego Cedeno	RF	20	JC	---	---	Average hitter with plus speed, but poor base running. Fielding wise he might look more comfortable at 1B. He is not going to win many awards with his rating, but he can get the job done in a pinch.
4	118	Quinton Todd	2B	22	COL	---	---	Another average hitter with plus speed, He can field better than Cedeno, but offers even less at the plate.
5	150	Stan Neal	1B	19	JC	---	---	All or nothing hacker, he can play 1B in a pinch but he truly is a DH at heart. Will strike out a ton with his sub 20 contact. He does have good batting eye and splits so there is a good chance he will get a shot somewhere

 

Summary: Took a lot of offense with their picks, but never addressed their primary need of a reliever. Also took a number of great hitters who will be defensive liabilities in the NL.

Grade: C+