BA’s Draft Dope

October 23, 2008 by Mike Axisa 89 Comments

Baseball America has started digging through the aftermath of the 2008 Draft, and handed out some hardware. Unfortunately this article is subsciber only, but I’ll tell you this much: Pat Venditte has one of the best pro debuts of any college player, Jeremy Bleich had one of the draft’s best secondary pitches, and Garrison Lassiter was one of the best late round picks. Sadly both Gerrit Cole & Scott Bittle were two of the best players who got away, but that should come as no surprise. All-in-all, the Yanks spent just over $5M on the draft this year, down nearly $3M from last year. Had Cole and/or Bittle signed, they would have spent north of $8M this year.

McCaff

I sent Gerrit Cole a friend request on facebook, and im considering cursing him out.
- UWS
  
  Congratulations, you win the Most Mature and Logical Fan award.
  - http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/CRsmithT1.jpg tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Mr. Snarky Irrelevant Non Sequitur Jones
    
    McCaff = Stan
    - Mike Pop
      
      Stan as in Eminem Stan ?
      - http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/CRsmithT1.jpg tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Mr. Snarky Irrelevant Non Sequitur Jones
        
        Yup. That one was just for you, buddy.
        
        Mike Pop
        
        Lol
    - http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
      
      Stan Smith?
- Mike Pop
  
  haha why didnt u sign jackass
  - McCaff
    
    haha i’ll take i all!
Reggie C.

Who’s Garrison Lassiter? What’s the report on him?
- Reggie C.
  
  nevermind… found it at: http://www.nomaas.org/draft/?p=36
  
  Reads like he can be an offensive minded SS.
  - Mike Pop
    
    Dont worry he’ll be considered a bust by middle of next season
    - http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/CRsmithT1.jpg tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Mr. Snarky Irrelevant Non Sequitur Jones
      
      Dont worry he’ll be considered a bust ~~by middle of next season~~ immediately.
      
      Fixed.
      - Mike Pop
        
        omfg at the draft im just gonna yell out tommiesmithjohncarlos to every jets fan i see hoping to find your irrelevant ass
        
        Mike Pop
        
        that was my last “irrelevant” on you for a while
        
        http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/CRsmithT1.jpg tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Mr. Snarky Irrelevant Non Sequitur Jones
        
        Mike Pop and Tommie = BFF
        
        Mike Pop
        
        no questions bout it
- http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
  
  He’s very toolsy, excellent swing. Bit of a project.
http://www.new.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/profile.php?id=594331910&ref=name Jamal G.

Does Jeremy Bleich even have an elbow any more? You know, because of all those surgeries he’s had…
- A.D.
  
  He’s such a bust his name shouldn’t be allowed to be typed
Reggie C.

Mike.

Should the Yanks bother to make a million dollar minor league offer to Adam Loewen, the ex-Orioles draft pick 1st round pitcher-turned-OF ?? He’s 24 years old but the size and athleticism are there and he could turn into a slugger. With the Yanks lack of impact farm hitters, do you see a fit ?
- http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
  
  $1M is way too much. See if he’ll take a straight MiL deal, no bonus, and see if he accepts it. He’s no Rick Ankiel, he’s not very athletic, has big holes in his swing, and only moderate power. There’s really not much to see here.
  - Mike Pop
    
    I’d rather sign Pedro Cerrano
    - http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/CRsmithT1.jpg tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Mr. Snarky Irrelevant Non Sequitur Jones
      
      We need hats for bats.
      - Bryan
        
        I say fuck you jobu, I do it myself!
        
        Yankee1010
        
        I say bring that shit to me.
Mike Pop

Lets say Bittle and Cole did sign. Would our farm be looked at as much deeper ?
- http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
  
  Well yeah, of course. Cole would probably the top pitching prospect, and Bittle would be a nice depth guy. 10-20 range.
  - Mike Pop
    
    Cole would of started in High A probably 4 years off ?
    - http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
      
      Probably Low-A best case, maybe even Ext. ST then Staten Island. Probably 4 yrs away, yeah.
      - Mike Pop
        
        What pitcher in the minors would you say is most likely to crack the starting rotation in the near future ? Kennedy excluded… Would it be Brackman ? I mean serious impact legit starter
        
        http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/CRsmithT1.jpg tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Mr. Snarky Irrelevant Non Sequitur Jones
        
        McAllister, no?
        
        Mike Pop
        
        I wanna see Dellin become dominant
        
        http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
        
        Do you mean crack the rotation and actually stick there? Probably McAllister.
        
        Mike Pop
        
        Why would’nt it be Brackman ? I thought he could be up by the 2010 season since he played in college and all. Wouldnt that mean he is closer to the bigs than a guy like McCallister.
        
        It would be funny to see Brackman Dellin and CC in the same rotation.. 6’7 for CC and 6’10 for both of them..
- Reggie C.
  
  Signing Bittle wasn’t a big deal. Drafting Bittle was. Bittle was a bad selection. The farm is already full of near-ready to ready relievers in Sanchez, Melancon, Robertson, and Phil Coke. Did we really need to draft another reliever ??? That’s the maddening part.
  
  Signing Cole would’ve been awesome. I’ll leave it at that.
  - Rafi
    
    While I understand that the Yanks truly do have many ready/near-ready relievers, Coke and Sanchez aren’t really the best examples. Coke will (hopefully) at least get a shot as a starter, and while he was successful in the Detroit organization, Sanchez has pitched 3 innings above hi-A ball since 2006(1 inning in Tampa, and 2 in the big leagues)
    - Reggie C.
      
      It was an area of strength. I’ll give you Sanchez. He’s likely a AAA guy though. Coke makes the team as a 2nd lefty power reliever. The Coke-Marte combo should be interesting to watch.
      
      Back to Bittle … it was a bad selection. There were a number of toolsy High School OFs to select.
      - Infamous
        
        humberto just gave up 6 runs without getting an out in Arizona
        
        http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
        
        On the bright side, Ajax took Max Scherzer deep.
        
        Mike Pop
        
        Ajax or Jacoby higher ceiling ?
        
        http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
        
        Probably Jackson, because homeruns >> stolen bases.
Mike Pop

Good ol Hank
courtesy of wikipedia

“I’m very confident in the next 10 years that Chamberlain, Hughes, Kennedy, (Andrew) Brackman, (Alan) Horne – all those guys – we’re going to be a powerhouse for the next 10 years and longer.”
Mike Pop

Mike, Brackman would of been a top 10 pick in the draft if there werent concerns about his arm and the tommy john procedure right ?
- http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
  
  Word, probably top 3. Then again, Matt Wieters should have been the 2nd overall pick, so maybe Brackman wouldn’t have gone top 3.
  - Mike Pop
    
    No love for mikey moustakas
    - http://www.new.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/profile.php?id=594331910&ref=name Jamal G.
      
      That’s what he meant, I believe:
      
      1. David Price (first overall)
      2. Matt Wieters (fifth overall)
      3. Mike Moustakas (second overall)
- Slugger27
  
  and probably money
GG

The 2008 draft was a total disaster. There are plenty of reasons why we are in this hole. The draft is a huge one.
- http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/CRsmithT1.jpg tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Mr. Snarky Irrelevant Non Sequitur Jones
  
  Hold the fuck on.
  
  Considering that:
  A) The 2008 draft was four months ago, and
  B) There’s no way that we can know whether Gerrit Cole and Scott Bittle will become first ballot Hall of Famers whose faces become the first non-Presidents chiseled into Mount Rushmore OR career minor leaguers who bounce around for a while, never amount to shit, blow their arms out and end up in Germany as gay porn fluffers OR fall somewhere in between those options until like, a decade from now,
  
  it’s pretty safe to say that the “total disaster” of the 2008 draft is about 0.0000000000000000000001% of the reason that we are “in this hole” that we’re currently “in”.
  
  So slow down there, Debbie Downer.
  - Arod4mvp
    
    You got em friend
  - http://www.new.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/profile.php?id=594331910&ref=name Jamal G.
    
    I wanted to take this same approach, but I let myself believe he meant our draft results from years past.
http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.

Holy crap. I finally finished my first season in NHL 09, and I managed to come back from a 3-1 deficit in the first round of the playoffs. Game 6 was redic, I won 1-0. It was more intense than Game 7 of the ALCS. That was awesome.
- Rafi
  
  Not to be off-topic or anything.
  - http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
    
    Hey, I own the place. ;)
    - Rafi
      
      I know, I jest
      - http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/CRsmithT1.jpg tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Mr. Snarky Irrelevant Non Sequitur Jones
        
        BIG MIKE WANTS A CALZONE!!!!
        
        Slugger27
        
        everybody out, ive got eggplant on my mind
- http://www.new.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/profile.php?id=594331910&ref=name Jamal G.
  
  Dude, I remember in MVP 05 I was down 7-0 in the third inning to the Mariners in Game 5 of the ALDS. I then proceeded to fight all the way back on a two out, game-tying RBI-double by Josh Phelps (hit the top of the wall in dead center at Yankee Stadium). That happened in the bottom of the seventh inning (it wasn’t all in one shot, I kept chipping away throughout the game). I forgot who, but a reliever let up a solo HR in the top of the ninth inning; the M’s led by one run. In the bottom of the ninth, I had the tying runners on the corners with two out, but then proceeded to strikeout. I was trying for a three-peat.
  
  That is still the greatest game I ever played in any sports video game I ever played.
- Rafi
  
  So how’s the game? I’ve heard good things about it, and could use a new game
Bryan

Does Pat Venditte have a legit shot at making the majors using both arms, or are they going to pick on over the other?
- Mike Pop
  
  I dont think hes got the stuff to be a force in the majors but i could be wrong
E-ROC

When does the minor league free agent list become available?
- http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
  
  Late October/early November is usually when BA posts it.
  - E-ROC
    
    Thank ya’s.
T-Dizzle

This draft class blew.
Why would anyone take Cole? He’s high school kid that’s proven nothing.
They need to be like the Rays and draft a David Price he was proven in college
- Arod4mvp
  
  Who is this guy ? Is it Tim Dierkes from MLBTR ?
  - http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/CRsmithT1.jpg tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Mr. Snarky Irrelevant Non Sequitur Jones
    
    Picking #28 in the first round says hello.
- http://www.new.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/profile.php?id=594331910&ref=name Jamal G.
  
  Dude, are you really telling me there was not a single person in your entire life who taught you to refrain from commenting on topics that you are so wholly ignorant in regards to?
  - http://www.spartacus.schoolnet.co.uk/CRsmithT1.jpg tommiesmithjohncarlos a/k/a Mr. Snarky Irrelevant Non Sequitur Jones
    
    Dude, his name is T-Dizzle.
    
    I rest my case.
- Yankee1010
  
  Sure. Seems likely. I’m sure the Yanks will have the 1st pick in the draft very soon AND there will be a guy like Price available. You’ll be happy then, right?
- http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
  
  Cole Hamels, high school.
  Scott Kazmir, high school.
  Jamie Shields, high school.
  Josh Beckett, high school.
  Jon Lester, high school.
  Roy Halladay, high school.
  Jake Peavy, high school.
  CC Sabathia, high school.
  Chad Billingsley, high school.
  Chien-Ming Wang, high school.
  Greg Maddux, high school.
  
  Do I need to go on?
  
  Go ahead and take your college arms, then enjoy your #4 starters who have been ruined by spending their crucial development years under the tutelage of inferior college coaches.
  - Mike Pop
    
    Burned
    - http://www.new.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/profile.php?id=594331910&ref=name Jamal G.
      
      No, http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a398/username690/Lidge_Owned.jpg
  - http://www.new.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/profile.php?id=594331910&ref=name Jamal G.
    
    I’ve always wanted to ask a serious fan of college baseball this question: Do you think that the use of pitchers at the collegiate level should be relegated by Major League Baseball? Or at least have some sort of input by MLB scouts and/or personnel?
    
    Basically, should the coaches at Rice be handcuffed? ;)
    - Slugger27
      
      dude, we should be THANKING those coaches… if it werent for wayne graham misusing him, wade townsend would be haunting us for years to come
      
      but i suppose theyll settle for david price
    - Slugger27
      
      now that i think about it… whats niemann up to these days? isnt he in the rays organization too?
      - http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
        
        Yep, he was in the rotation earlier in the year when Kazmir was out. He’s blocked at AAA, but he ML ready. I’m sure Friedman’s getting a good amount of calls about him (Atlanta? Detroit? Seattle? San Diego?).
    - http://www.riveraveblues.com Mike A.
      
      Unless MLB organizations start paying college coaches, or contributing to the school’s athletics department, then they should have zero say in how they use the players.
- steve (different one)
  
  They need to be like the Rays and draft a David Price he was proven in college
  
  come on.
  
  these people are just f’ing with us.
Tripp

How is Bittle consider a top prospect who got away? He was injured. No one is going to meet the demands he had being injured. I guess I wouldn’t classify him as a “top prospect” who got away.
Mike Pop

Anyone know who prevailed in the homestead strike of 1892 ? was it the workers/union or carnegie and frick ? Anyone know off the top of their heads
- http://www.new.facebook.com/home.php?ref=home#/profile.php?id=594331910&ref=name Jamal G.
  
  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homestead_Strike#The_strike.27s_conclusion
  - Mike Pop
    
    lol thanks
  - Slugger27
    
    wikipedia… I KNEW IT!
Slugger27

what in the hell r u talking about
- Mike Pop
  
  history my dude history
  - Slugger27
    
    haha, to somethin that happened 97 years before my birth though… u must be cruising that wikipedia pretty good
ortforshort

2008 was a farm system disaster for the Yankees. They screwed up the draft big time, altho’ you can’t expect to have a great draft when you’re picking 28th – it is something of a crapshoot trying to get blue-chippers. They screwed up on the international front, letting Beane steal Inoa out from under their noses and then getting outbid for most of the other top prospects by, of all teams, the Reds and the Padres. On top of that, the farm system’s value tumbled as a slew of prospects went backward big time like Hughes, Kennedy, Horne, Marquez, Tabata, Sanchez and Cox. Plus other young players like Cabrera and Cano tanked. The only way the organization can turn the year into a positive, talentwise, is if they sign both free agents Sabbathia and Teixeira.