Keith Law posted his first mock draft today (subs. req’d), and he has the Astros taking Oklahoma RHP Jonathan Gray with the first overall pick. He says they figure to try to work out a pre-draft deal with the former Yankees draft pick for less than what it would take to sign Stanford RHP Mark Appel, then spread the savings around on later picks. Law expects the Cubs to take Appel second overall. I doubt he gets beyond that pick.
The Yankees have three first round picks, and Law has them selecting Stanford OF Austin Wilson (26th overall), Oklahoma HS C Jon Denney (32nd), and Arizona HS SS Dustin Peterson (33rd). Wilson was a big name a few years ago, but he wound up on campus and was expected to be a top ten pick before suffering a stress reaction in his elbow. He’s a tool shed who needs some work. Denney, who has been connected to New York before, is an offense-first catcher while Peterson a solid athlete who is likely to remain on the middle infield.
Law says the Yankees have been heavily connected to high school players with these top three picks, and that’s not surprising. Scouting director Damon Oppenheimer loves toolsy prep players. He does mention the team would love to see a top college arm fall into their laps with one of these picks, however.
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.