2018 MLB Draft

[CardsofSTL]

10th round pick Kevin Woodall Jr; another 6'7 first baseman. From Coastal Carolina University.

[MrCrowesGarden]

That'll close out day two. Only two college senior selections so far.

[Swirls]

LARS NOOTBAAR

gawd I hope he makes the bigs while Shannon is still in the booth.

He's going to call him nutbar, isn't he?

[go birds]

Dropped a Duce in the 9th.

i read this as the cards drafted a guy named Dallas Baptist and didnt even bat an eyelash

[phins]

I like what the Cardinals did. Yes, I generally do like what they do in the draft, but I've been critical at times before as well.

Honestly think Gorman sticks at 3B. Griffin Roberts has probably an 80% chance to be a 1 WAR pitcher, which won't get fans excited, but what does a HS righty in that spot have? 20%? Less? He probably has a 10% of being a 3 WAR pitcher and a 1% chance of being a 5 WAR pitcher, but he's a nice pick there.

Luken Baker at least can hit. If he were healthy his entire career he goes before Seth Beer. I don't love the pick, but at least there is a position he can play adequately.

Not a huge fan of Gil Mateo, but he has REALLY performed in high-profile situations. They expected to get him to school at TCU and have him be a two-way guy for them, but he'll sign. There is a chance his strength improves and the power comes up. He's a baseball lifer type, and he has infield actions. I'm not convinced he stays at SS and I'm not convinced he hits.

Steven Gingery is every bit as good as Ryan Rolison pre-TJ. There is a risk here, but it's a discount on the talent. He's a redshirt sophomore, so this isn't a money saving pick. The changeup is legit, the velocity was ok before he got hurt, and he has a real competitiveness on the mound. I've read that the Cardinals tend to stay away from pitchers with an injury history, but that's not really true. Connor Jones had an injury history. Sam Tewes had TJ surgery.

Nick Dunn can really hit. Teams are looking for a few things when they're evaluating a draft pick: Performance with wood bats. Dunn has hit on the Cape twice now. Hard contact skills. If a guy can't make consistent contact in college, he has no chance in the pros. Dunn understand the strike zone and makes hard contact when he swings. Athleticism. Here is where Dunn runs into a little bit of trouble. He is a solid overall athlete, but his poor arm leaves him as a 2B-only player. Remember, 2B-only guys have to hit the heck out of the ball to be a prospect because if you aren't a starter at 2B, you aren't a major league player because you can't play SS to be a utility guy. I like the focus on getting left-handed bats into the system.

Edgar Gonzalez is a middle-relief prospect. He is all about ground balls with a hard, sinking fastball that sits 91-93 as a starter. He can bump that up to 94-95 out of the pen. He throws a couple of breaking balls and they vary in projection. His curveball is a lower velo offering that has poor shape. His slider has more tilt and is thrown harder at 86-87. I like him as a 6th/7th inning potential guy if he smooths out his mechanics (which has a lot of moving parts) and improves his command. He' "fine" in that spot.

Big fan of Brendan Donovan. I watched some South Al games for a couple of reasons (I know a kid that plays at Arkansas State, in their conference) and because of Swaggerty. I like him. He has corner OF potential, 55 power, 50 speed, 55 approach/hit, nice arm. Hits left-handed. It's a good pick here.

I know absolutely nothing about Lars Nootbaar. I thought that was a made up name. What I found on him is plus athlete, solid bat speed, power potential, 45 speed. Approach looks to be ok. Great size. Only year he hit was his sophomore year. Meh.

Matt Duce is a senior sign. He can't hit at all. He can catch and he can throw. Has some pull side thump. He's power over hit. Comes from a strong program that plays in Missouri State's conference (Dallas Baptist).

Kevin Woodall continues the big power theme. He produced at a very good program (Coastal Carolina won the national title two years ago), has immense size, and can at least put on a glove at 1B. This sort of guy rarely pans out as a RHH 1B-only prospect, but at least he hit.

[go birds]

seems to me that there just wasn't alot of talent in this draft.

and given that, it seems we did the best we could with what was available.

[phins]

Yeah, it was a fine draft.

Chris Holba from East Carolina (RHP) taken in the 11th. He's a pitch to contact guy who was their Friday guy. He's not a high upside kid. Kind of just a guy.

[mikechamp]

Yeah, it was a fine draft.

Chris Holba from East Carolina (RHP) taken in the 11th. He's a pitch to contact guy who was their Friday guy. He's not a high upside kid. Kind of just a guy.

Your last paragraph leads me to believe that if we're taking "kind of just a guy" in the 11th, that this wasn't a stellar draft class.

[phins]

Yeah, it was a fine draft.

Chris Holba from East Carolina (RHP) taken in the 11th. He's a pitch to contact guy who was their Friday guy. He's not a high upside kid. Kind of just a guy.

Your last paragraph leads me to believe that if we're taking "kind of just a guy" in the 11th, that this wasn't a stellar draft class.

The draft class was mediocre. There was a lot of buzz in January about this being an outstanding draft class, but honestly a lot of the top high-school kids underwhelmed and the depth suffered for it. College performers continue to get propped up the board more and more.

High school kids who are good, but not elite skills, but that are asking for a million dollars are getting to school more and more. MLB is really getting into the analytics craze and the data shows that HS picks are such a low percentage of return on high value picks that they're taking them more sporadically and going with college data superstars instead.

[phins]

12th round seeing more upside shots than the 11th round. Lots of solid players who want quite a bit to sign going in this round. Generally, the top-15 rounds will sign at a very high percentage.

Cards take Francisco Justa. A Juco who only pitched one year in Junior College. I do not know him, so I can't comment more.