DRAFT REVIEW S17 AL EAST

Chicago Wolves

Round	Pick	Player	Pos	Age	SUMMARY
1	29	Skeeter Shields	RP	20	Best suited for long relief or as a closer like Matt O'Malley. Shields have 4 solid pitches and good velocity on his balls, but lacks the stamina to take that into the rotation, he should have good success in relief, but might have gone a little early In this draft.
2	91	Felipe Rodriguez	RP	20	1 good pitch, poor splits will eliminate him from any type of Ml career. He does have solid control and is set to be a quality inning eating reliever. Picked to high for what he will become.
3	124	Freddy Nelson	SS	22	Definitely not going to get away with him at SS, he's a poor fielder and poor hitter. He offers some speed, but I don't think he has enough speed to count him in the mix ever in Chicago.
4	156	Hugh Hayes	SS	19	Better hitter and fielder than Nelson, but still not much of a SS, he has no speed and with that is less likely a prospect to make it out of AA.
5	188	Jerry Uribe	RP	22	Solid 5th round pick up has average splits solid velocity and 3 above average pitches, lacks good enough splits right now to get out of AAA

GRADE: Shields is a solid prospect, if you know how to handle him as a closer or an ace reliever, many teams don't and his value will reflect that in trades. The rest of the draft seem to be no hum and will not make any impact in the Bigs.

SUMMARY: C-

St. Louis Brewers

Round	Pick	Player	Pos	Age	SUMMARY
1	10	Gene Stratton	SS	18	Stratton would not rank very high on any hitting charts. He is an extremely versed high school fielder and should flashes on the high school level that we has loads of potential. But you want teach dumb and Stratton is dull as a brick and shows no signs of a guy who can meet his potential. What this leaves the Brewers with is a guy who can field well enough to be at 3B or 2B, but not hit well enough to stay long. On a bright note he is fast, but may never run the bases well enough to exploit this skill.
1	49	Gustavo DeLeon	SP	18	Middle of the road starter, he is below average in control and have very average splits. He's not a guy you want on the mound for any type of big time game, but might be a useful spot starter or inning eater in blow outs.
1	58	Ignacio Ortega	3B	18	I love Ortega's potential at the end of the 1st round. He projects to be a quality 3B with power and a solid bat. His makeup indicates that will be a long road, but he is young and might accomplish it. He's not going to be a star, but might still be a quality team player.
2	79	Courtney Barmes	CF	18	He has speed and great game mechanic. He isn't going to be a great hitter, but could make the top tier of a lineup or be a solid defensive or base running option for a deep team.
3	106	Roosevelt Brush	CF	18	NOT SCOUTED
4	138	Jumbo Lin	SP	18	In the 4th round, Lin is a huge risk reward catch. His low makeup means it will take time patients and great coaching, but if accomplished he is a solid 3 pitch option with solid control and stamina and could be a fine Ml pitcher for long relief or spot starting. At 18 there is time to develop.
5	170	Alex Romero	RP	18	Overall his average splits will make it very unlikely of a rise outside of AAA or the long term. He does have 2 great pitches and good control and durability. He works on maxing his splits and you have an ace out of the 5th round.

SUMMARY: 3 first rounders and I think critics would agree most are minor league fodder with potential, but lack any makeup to get to their average projections. It is going to be a long and difficult road to make these prospects shine, I'm not sure a veteran coach could do it

GRADE: C-

Baltimore Bandits

Round	Pick	Player	Pos	Age	SUMMARY
1	7	Fernando Valdez	P	18	Power arm reliever, as I have said in the past I hate taking a bullpen guy with a top 10 pick unless that guy is amazing. Valdez is good, but might have been a reach here. 2 pitch solid control fireball arm, and solid stamina. Should have a great career.

SUMMARY: Traded away the draft for free agency, this seems to have put the team in contention now, but how will it affect the team 4 years from now? Valdez is at least Ml quality and should be a good player for many seasons. last year's draft was poor and this one was nonexistent. Overall Bandits did okay with what they drafted

GRADE: C+

Durham Bulls

Round	Pick	Player	Pos	Age	Cur Level
1	1	Woodie Gross	SS	18	Solid 3B candidate, he has solid speed and hitting, He might not be a premier superstar, but it's only because he lacks the power you look for in the #1 overall pick. Still he has great hitting knocks and should be a .300+ hitter for his career stealing 20 bags and hitting 15-20 hrs a year, I think we all want that kind of output.
1	34	Heinie DeRosa	SS	19	Another potential 3B guy with solid hitting chops. Lacks star quality hitting, but is solid enough to be a factor, He also lacks ideal power and should struggle to hit more than 20 dinger a season, and He also lacks ideal speed.
2	61	Cody Swann	CF	18	Left hand hitting specialist with solid power and speed. He is better suited to be at 2B In the ML. In the 2nd round I love this pick. His biggest knock is his contract demand, looking for over 5M might be too steep.
2	67	Nicholas Wells	2B	19	Has the speed to burn the bases, an average bat to get on base, but not the defense to play outside of RF or Left. He is average enough to be in the league, bad enough to be out of the league quickly.
3	97	Randy Trout	SS	20	Below average SS with zero power. He could be a solid right hand hitting bat, but with no power he would be limited in his uses
4	129	Brady Davies	P	18	NOT SCOUTED
5	161	Chuck Putnam	LF	18	Homerun power with limited hitting capacity. He might be a September call up a few times, but I can't see him being a stick around player. His makeup further limits his potential.

SUMMARY: 2 great drafts in a row might be signs of changes ahead for Durham. They have a number of sold players coming down the pipe. Gross, DeRosa should be solid ML'ers for many seasons. They could also be used to improve other areas for the future Bulls. This is becoming a team on the rise. In 3 seasons they might be a force to reckon with.

GRADE: A-