AL EAST SEASON 12 Draft review

Burlington Ice Storm

Needs from the draft: C, CF, SP

Round	Pick	Player	Pos	Age	Back-	Contract	Bonus
					ground			SUMMARY
1	18	Iago Silva	2B	21	COL	---	---	Solid #2 guy in the lineup. He has good speed and can bunt and runs fine. He is not an overwhelming hitter, but is good enough to be an everyday guy. He is a slow learner and will need strong coaching to make is projections.
2	69	Andre Becker	RF	21	COL	---	---	Solid yet unspectacular hitter, he will provide adequate defense, he has good speed, but might struggle to maintain an everyday job in a lineup.
3	101	Bill Clinton	SS	20	JC	---	---	Clinton has always had good defense and has never had the best eye, but he got the job done, This Clinton is similar except he can't hit righties.
4	133	Joey Hartman	C	20	JC	---	---	Solid defender and pitch caller, Joey will have average offense, but should get Big League Abs in the future.
5	165	Shea Hooper	2B	20	JC	---	---	Above average speed, but he houses a below average bat. He is not going to amount to much without a DITR.

Summary: Didn't even get a whiff of a starting pitching in the 1^st 5 rounds is a bit odd in this draft, but the Storm did come out of the draft with 2 solid positional players in Silva and Becker and filled a need with Hartman who should be able to climb immediately up the positional depth chart.

Grade: B-

Durham Bulls

Needs from the draft: LF/RF, SP, 1B

Round	Pick	Player	Pos	Age	Back-	Contract	Bonus
					ground			SUMMARY
1	13	Stan Nation	SP	18	HS	MILB	$2,880K	Slightly above average splits make an otherwise solid pitcher a big reach with the 13th pick. Stan does have 4 great pitches and excellent control. Nation's stamina is also a huge question mark this high.
2	65	Hideki Chang	C	22	COL	MILB	$550K	Better suited to never take the field defensively, Chang is a power slugging DH who will struggle against a right handed pitcher. Chang is also a huge project with poor makeup and an advanced age it will be very difficult for him to make his projections without elite coaching.
3	97	Thom Costello	SP	21	COL	---	---	4A quality pitcher he has 2 good pitches and a mix of other pitches to compliment his plus control and stamina, but he has very average splits to work with on the mound.
4	129	Trace Vitiello	SP	22	COL	---	---	Vitiello lacks quality pitches to make his plus control and stamina work well for him. A better pitcher in the long run than Costello, Trace will find getting out of AAA a challenge.
5	161	Evan Sanders	RP	18	HS	---	---	Career minor League pitcher

Summary: IMO misfired on Stan Nations, but that misfire seemed to get the tone of the Bulls draft. Nation, Chang and Costello all have what could be fatal flaws for a ML career. Each should get their chances though to prove me wrong.

Grade: D

Hartford Ascension
Needs from the draft: SP, RP, BEST

Round	Pick	Player	Pos	Age	Back-	Contract	Bonus	Pro
					ground			SUMMARY
1	3	Dick Lewis	SP	18	HS	---	---	Great velocity dominant splits and superior control, what does that spell A-C-E…? Go team this guy is the type you build around.
2	55	Walter Garcia	SP	22	COL	---	---	Garcia has good ML potential 2 plus pitches and 2 average pitches, good control and stamina and decent splits. He is a little weak around a right handed bat, but he still should get plenty of chances to prove that rating wrong.
3	87	Orber Lee	SP	22	COL	---	---	Poor splits will leave his career derailed at AAA
4	119	Sid Sanders	SP	19	JC	---	---	No pitch to lean on and poor splits might have his career halted in AA
5	151	Lucas Enders	RP	19	JC	---	---	Right hand specialists are rare in this league Enders will not break this tradition anytime soon.

Summary: Needed pitching and that they got, Lewis could be the best pure pitcher in the draft, Garcia is a nice Ml prospect and rest of these pitchers fall in line, Hartford has to be seeing the fruits of their labor as they have one of the best young farm systems coming around.

Grade: B+

Washington D.C. old school warriors

Needs from the draft: SP, RP, 2B

Round	Pick	Player	Pos	Age	Back-	Contract	Bonus
					ground			SUMMARY
1	4	Don Orosco	2B	18	HS	---	---	Probably the premier hitter in this draft. He is defensively weak at 2B, but should settle in the OF without issue. He is a perennial all-star with 40/40 capabilities. The next Casey Kaline?
1	42	Thurman Holder	SS	18	HS	---	---	Defensive prize, which has a weak bat but a decent set of wheels and good intangibles for a ballplayer. If you can hide his bat he will reward you in the field and on the bases.
2	56	Alan Shields	LF	22	COL	---	---	Slap hitting right hand hitting specialist. He has superior speed and can bunt with the best. His lack of power and his lack of left hand hitting will make him a sure platoon.
3	88	Karim Drese	CF	21	COL	---	---	UNKNOWN
4	120	Daniel Hundley	C	18	HS	---	---	UNKNOWN
5	152	Clyde Hamilton	LF	21	COL	---	---	UNKNOWN

Summary: Needed to target some pitching in this draft, but include they went after the premier hitter in the draft, Orosco. Who can blame them, Orosco is a 5 tool guy who gives the team a little of everything. Holder works fine in a ML defense and could be traded for the pitching the team needs in the future. Next year look for Washington to aim high for the pitching ranks and build that system up some.

Grade: B