2012 MLB Draft Snapshot – The Catchers
by shankbone on Feb 10, 2012 4:16 PM PST
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PrintThere will be a lot of change between now and the draft (June 4-6) but it is less than 5 months away now. I thought I’d crib a baker’s dozen of likely suspects and muse a bit on how that pertains to the Giants. As the HS and college seasons play out names will be added and dropped, this is extremely preliminary. My ranking order should be taken with a barrel of salt.
The Giants appear to be implementing a build up the middle strategy with position players, concentrating on Center Fielders, Shortstops and Catchers in the recent drafts. Shortstop is the most difficult position from a scarcity point of view, and always a concern with the Giants. I decided to move from one of our weaknesses to one of our relative strengths: Catcher.
(Mistakes are all mine; corrections, omissions and the like are all encouraged.)
Giants currently toiling at C:
Big Giants: Buster Posey, with Chris Stewart and Eli Whiteside as the no-bat twins.
AAA: Hector Sanchez, Jackson Williams, Johnny Monell
AA: Tommy Joseph, Alex Burg
SJ: Andrew Susac, Jeff Arnold
AGA: Mike Murray, Dan Burkhart, Joe Staley
SK: Eric Sim
50-Game: Drew Stiner
National recognition: Joseph, Susac and Sanchez are all on most top 10 lists. I expect them to rocket into the consensus top 10 catchers in MLB and onto top 100 lists as well.
Don’t quote me on the depth chart, I have the big names correct and then there is some fill in. I have a theory that the BrainTrust is huge on Hector Sanchez and is waiting for him to hit his way onto the 25. That is the only reason I can see for not picking up a backup catcher with a hit tool after last year’s fiasco. One of Whiteside or Stewart will most likely begin in AAA, maybe both eventually if Sanchez does his thing. Its not going to be clear anytime soon, this is a pretty muddled situation complicated by Belt/Pill/Huff as well. It begins with the number of games Posey will catch, and subsequent moves to 1B. That question also has repercussions on the org structure.
The Giants have very good catching talent now, the result of having Andrew Susac drop for injury concerns and Tommy Joseph take a nice step forward with his defense as well as hitting in High-A. This begs the question, should they continue to look at more catchers in this years draft? The strategy is two-fold: first, you can never have enough depth, and second, you can always move a talented bat to the corners. To go into a dark pessimistic future, picture Hector Sanchez being Borked, Susac’s injuries not working out and Tommy Joseph unable to hit advanced pitching in the Eastern. OK, that’s pretty dark, come on back to the light. If Susac or Joseph work out, Posey can move away from catcher eventually. If both of them turn out, you can move somebody to LF. So just because things are great in Giant catcher-land doesn’t mean they should take their foot off the gas, necessarily.
Also, Johnny Monell looks like he could carve out a backup career, and now that I know Alex Burg isn’t an Aussie and just went over there to drink beer, eat barbe and rake HRs and blondes, he’s up there on the sleeper list. So beyond the top 3 there is some potential. And that ties into “where do we put all these guys?” Organizational depth and getting all these guys playing time is a pretty big puzzle right now.
Top 3 Catcher Prospects:
Mike Zunino, Stryker Trahan, Josh Elander
And 10 more for a Baker’s Dozen:
Alex Bregman, Clint Coulter, Tom Murphy, Peter O’Brien, Kevin Plawecki, Spencer Kieboom, Darrell Miller Jr, Jason Goldstein, Blake Hickman, Dane Phillips
1. Mike Zunino, Junior from Florida
6’2 215 R/R 3/25/1991
The Goods: Best catcher in the draft, Pops is a Reds scout, had catching gear since he was 6, student of the game, very good power and the long swing that goes along with it so much of the time. Natural leader, pull hitter, built, and he took on the SEC and kicked it in the jaw.
The Bad: Really not much. That long swing, and maybe some struggles with offspeed pitches. This guy is a beast.
The Stats: SEC player of the year, nominated for all the big awards, hit 371/442/668 in 2011.
The Ranking: BA #5, Mayo #5
The Giants: Not a chance of him falling.
2. Stryker Trahan, HS from Acadiana HS (LA), Ole Miss commit
6’1 220 L/R 4/25/1994
The Goods: Left hand batting catchers don’t grow on trees. Short stroke, excellent bat speed. Lots of power potential with solid contact. He is fast, different showcases had different speeds, but 6.54 to 6.80 is excellent for a guy built like a fullback. He is named for the Burt Reynolds TV show “BL Stryker”. Pop times under 2.0.
The Bad: Interestingly, its Mayo who says he may have to move off of position. BA loves him at catcher. The usual batting language with power bats is thrown around.
The Stats: 460/545/736 – the video game type stats you want to see in HS players.
The Ranking: BA #12, Mayo #24
The Giants: I bet BA is more right than Mayo. If he drops, it becomes a signing bonus issue at #20. Should they try? YES! The more Cajuns in this organization the better, says I. He’s left handed, he’s built like a fullback but runs like a tailback, he has a great bat and did I mention he’s left handed? He’s hit all the usual circuits – Area Code, Perfect Game, Etc. I like him more than his buddy Cecchini (SS). If he has to move off a likely landing spot is RF.
3. Josh Elander, Junior from TCU
6’1 215 R/R 3/19/1991
The Goods: Notice all the Catchers are built the same in the top 3? So Elander took over for Zunino for Team USA because of Florida going deep in the NCAA. He did a bang up job. He has good plate discipline with power potential, with pull side power. It looks like his season will determine if he moves into the first round as a Zunino alternative or slides back to the 80-120 range. Has good pop times, under 2.0.
The Bad: Struggled on the Cape. Hit 186/238/220.
The Stats: However he did hit 333/426/509 in 2011 NCAA. Also hit 327/421/510 with team USA.
The Ranking: BA #25, Mayo #48
The Giants: Kind of depends on what he does this year. I don’t think he has Trahan’s upside necessarily. If they want to draft a catcher I think they should love something about him, and have the flexibility to move him. College guy crowds the situation and forces more immediate choices. HS guy can stick while they move Joseph/Posey or be moved himself.
4. Alex Bregman, HS from Albequerque Academy (NM), LSU commit
5’11 185 R/R 3/30/1994
The Goods: USA Baseball Player of the year, 2010, first time for a HS. Along with the Golden Spikes, it’s the biggest award there is, and other names since they implemented it include Zimmerman and Strasburg. How important is this? Well, you look at the list of winners and there are very few busts. This guy has an advanced plate approach and a very easy swing. There is a six minute youtube video of him hitting in a HR derby. Yes, with a aluminum bat, but its still pretty impressive. Started as a SS, moved to catcher. Sound familiar? Might have to move to 2nd.
The Bad: Doesn’t have a final position. Speed is 6.8 to 7.0/60, so he’s not especially fast. His arm isn’t of note.
The Stats: USA 18: 564/596/846 (Calm down – 39 Abs)
The Ranking: Unranked
The Giants: Why is he unranked? Size? Average speed and arm? A move to 2nd preordained? This is definitely a intangible type guy, who plays every moment of the game. Maybe his size hurts him a bit, I’d say he might be more like 5’10. The Golden Sombrero guys, ex-college ballplayers, like him a lot, expect him to get within the top 100. And then its those bonus demands. I think the Giants have identified high Baseball IQ guys to target, maybe they look at this guy. As an aside, I think I want to kidnap the whole LSU recruit class and leave them sad bereft Tigers dreaming of the glory days of The Riot, The Hobbit and The Beard. Oh, and Todd Linden.
5. Clint Coulter, HS Union HS (WA), ASU commit
6’3 200 R/R
The Goods: Good strength and frame, power potential and pitch recognition.
The Bad: Just started playing baseball full time, mutlisport athlete, might not stick at catcher.
The Stats: UnderArmour and Area Code alumni
The Ranking: BA #56, Mayo N/R
The Giants: This is the type of guy who the CBA hurts. He’s going to go to ASU almost for sure unless he rockets up the top 100 which is a tall order. I don’t see the Giants looking at a guy who’s publicly talked about not liking the CBA.
6. Tom Murphy, Junior from Buffalo
6’1 200 R/R 4/3/1991
The Goods: Short swing with plus power potential. Hit in the NEBCL enough for all-star honors, best player preseason ranking in his league (that would be Mid-America Conference) Took Kevin Gausman deep at Fenway during a showcase. Pretty fast for a catcher 6.75/60. Good work ethic,
The Bad: Defense is solid but not spectacular, needs work.
The Stats: NEBCL: 291/367/575 2011 NCAA: 384/446/626
The Ranking: BA #68 Mayo N/R
The Giants: This guy just looks like a gritty old school catcher with some nice pop. He hit 10 HRs in 2011 NCAA, and another 9 at the NEBCL. Without having defensive excellence would the bat play somewhere else? LF? Outside the first couple rounds he looks interesting but some team should take a chance on him as a catcher.
7. Peter O’Brien, Senior from Miami
6’3 225 R/R 7/15/1990
The Goods: Recently declared eligible by the NCAA, he had to battle for eligibility after transferring to the U to be close to home and help his sick mom. 2010 USA Collegiate National team starting catcher. He was undrafted out of HS, had a breakout 2010 where he was the MEAC MVP, hit 20 HRs while hitting .386. Drafted in the third round 2011 by the Rockies, he turned em down. He has a plus arm, no info on footspeed so I’ll assume its average.
The Bad: Scouts think he’s not a catcher.
The Stats: Also hit 300 on the Cape in 40 Abs 2010,
The Ranking: BA #90, Mayo N/R
The Giants: Seems to have a lot of character. Line drive hitter with solid power, but looks like a move to first might be likely. Definitely a hard worker, and its always nice to stick it to the Rockies. As a senior, he is very signable.
8. Kevin Plawecki, Junior from Purdue
6’1 215 R/R 02/26/1991
The Goods: Johnny Bench award finalist, excellent plate discipline, 13th best K rate in the nation, only 10 in 252 plate appearances. He hit 341 with 2 HR 39 RBI. Judging from 211 Abs it looks like he’s a pretty nice OBP guy.
The Bad: Looks like he’s a contact/line drive guy.
The Stats: Also played the cape, hit .268 with 1 HR.
The Ranking: Unranked
The Giants: Don’t know what they’d do with a guy like this early, but let’s see what he does this year. In an organization not noted for developing patient hitters, I like to try and find some OBP guys. Looks like a grinder based on the low Ks.
9. Spencer Kieboom, Junior from Clemson
6’0 220 R/R
The Goods: Great name, he’s family is Dutch. Marietta GA, Cobb County. He went to Clemson with a defensive first rep and busted out some in the 2010 NCAA tourney. His defense is his strength still, but he is somebody to watch in the ACC.
The Bad: Not great batting stats, but its worth pointing out he was profiled on ESPN with a 360/455 line mid-season and then faded. Not much power so far.
The Stats: Hit .282 with a 13/22 K/BB ratio in 2011.
The Ranking: BA briefly ranked him #84 and then they pulled it. Mayo N/R
The Giants: Somebody to keep an eye on. There are 4 national standouts on Clemson – big name is Richie Schaffer but the Tigers also have 2 RH pitchers, Kevin Brady and Scott Firth.
10. Darrell Miller Jr. HS Servite HS (CA), UCLA commit
6’1 190 R/R
The Goods: Bloodlines. This is Reggie Miller’s nephew. And Cheryl Miller’s nephew. His pops was a big league catcher with the Angels for 5 years. Pops works as MLB’s VP of youth and development. The Urban Youth Academy in Compton is Pops baby. Big time UCLA family. One of the highest rated CA HS players, although its hard to find any footage of him actually playing. Big talker I guess.
The Bad: No way this guy isn’t going to UCLA, and if he got drafted it would take big money.
The Stats: Hit .545 in HS last year. Area Code 2011 alum, MLB UYA Compton alum.
The Ranking: Unranked
The Giants: Keep an eye on em!
11. Jason Goldstein, HS from Highland Park HS (IL), Illinois commit
6’0 190 R/R
The Goods: If he stays healthy he’ll break the Highland Park Giants games played record in 2012. He played the 2011 Area Code games with Blake Hickman, below. He has advanced footwork, receiving skills and a sub-1.85 pop. Gap hitter with a smooth swing and good approach. As most HS guys, he is pretty raw.
The Bad: Not a lot, he’s his high school QB as well, most likely has a very nice arm. Runs a 7.54/60, which is catcher speed.
The Stats: 10th highest in the Area code with a .363 BA.
The Ranking: Unranked
The Giants: This guy is going to college most likely. I just figured I’d put up a couple HS guys at the end who have received national attention.
12. Blake Hickman, HS from Simeon HS (IL), Iowa commit
6’5 210 R/R
The Goods: The opposite of Goldstein above, Hickman is more athletic and not nearly as polished at the plate. He is a better athlete, with a big arm and big size. He may not stick at catcher. Runs a sub 6.95/60.
The Bad: Raw and might not stick at catcher.
The Stats: Area code, also participated in ACE programs in Chicago.
The Ranking: Unranked
The Giants: The game needs more African-American players and a guy like Hickman who repeatedly turned down football to concentrate on baseball is increasingly rare. I hope the Giants have their eye out.
13. Dane Phillips, Junior from Arkansas
6’1 195 L/R 12/18/1990
The Goods: Alright, let’s get to the sleeper. Cape Cod all-star. Led the league in avg with .349 and RBI with 34. Left handed. Strong arm. Good power bat. Can hit to all fields. Can also play OF.
The Bad: He transferred from Ok St to Arkansas this year. Not sure if he has to sit out. He played 47 games at DH and 4 at catcher in 2011. Hmmm…. Here’s his new coach’s quote on him -Arkansas coach Dave Van Horn- “He’s a little better than I thought he was going to be. He’s a good catcher. He blocks well and has a lot of energy. He’s lacking a little bit of arm strength, but he can hit.” That is pretty luke warm. Sounds like this guy isn’t long for catching.
The Stats: 2011 at Ok St: 339/391/510 Cape 2011: 349/25 walks in 129 Abs/973 OPS.
The Ranking: Unranked
The Giants: In the later rounds, who knows. Doesn’t sound like a catcher, but scrappy guys who can hit and prove out in the cape…
OK. One more just for the hell of it – keep an eye on Riley Moore. He is from the Santa Barbara area, got drafted by the Phils last year, decided to go to Arizona. Their starter just broke his leg, Moore is in for it as a true freshman. I saw some Susac comps to Moore on a couple of Philly prospect sites and John Klima of Baseball Prospect Report loves him.
Comment Starters:
Should the Giants even bother looking at any catchers?
Thoughts on young Stryker?
How many is too many catchers? Highly rated catchers?
Who can move off the position best?
The big question of course is if Buster Posey moves off of catcher what does that do to his value?
I want to know more about Bregman. I’m very curious why a national award winner is being shunned a little for the hype.
Also, would it be helpful for me to post links? I don’t want to put a bunch of extra stuff up but that HR Derby youtube video strikes me as something that might be interesting for folks.
This FanPost is reader-generated, and it does not necessarily reflect the views of McCovey Chronicles. If the author uses filler to achieve the minimum word requirement, a moderator may edit the FanPost for his or her own amusement.
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Comments
Doing this I have a new found appreciation for just how much Fla-Giant contributes.
And there are easier ways to pad your stats for the adopt-a-giant draft…
Yeah, although I think you’ll find that publishing your info in a fanpost forces you to be much more organized and precise in your database and your knowledge of it.
"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner
B *J* Stryker!
Also does Stryker throw left-handed, or just hit left-handed?
Dang, some of these guys aren’t any bigger than my 15 y.o. son. (Who, as it happens, is a catcher.)
Thanks for all the scouting reports. I know it’s a lot of work, and I appreciate having a resource that compiles so much info.
My son’s been playing on tournament teams since he was 8, so baseball starts in February for me, and usually rolls into September. But he hit his growth spurt in the last year and now he’s bigger than me (5’11’, 180).
Excellent. How’d you start him off? I have two boys, 4 1/2 and 1 1/2, we run lefty in the family and while nothing it set yet they are running that way. We hit off a tee, and watch some ball, but I’m not pushing it much yet. They can see what a freak I am about baseball though, I can tell.
Malcolm Gladwell says...
The one thing that helped my son was probably playing a ton of whiffleball in the backyard starting about age 3. He never hit off a tee – just me soft-serving them up into his swing.
I’m pretty sure he had close to 10,000 hours of swings under his belt before he started playing baseball.
After his AA year (age 8) he was actively recruited for the tournament team. By the time he was ten, his little league team won District 4 (he hit a grand slam in the championship game. Sorry – gotta brag about that.)
When he was 11 they won they won the Division 2 title (which is the Northern California State Title). First time Albany Little League even won Sectionals, much less a Division title.
He actually quit baseball last year. He was burned out, and he’d been catching so much it was kind of a grind. Tough on his knees. (A lot of scouts don’t like to draft H.S. catchers because they feel like there’s only so many games in your knee cartilage, and you don’t want to waste it in Little League and high school. Hence the whole “converting shortstops to catcher later” trick.)
Also, moving up to Juniors they go to the big, Major League size field and it was tough on his elbow making the throw down to second. But his old coach talked him into playing tournament ball over the summer, and he’s been doing some intense workouts with them and just decided to play JV for his high school this year.
Anyway, i coached LL for six years and it was a pretty fun ride.
Thanks for the info. My 4 1/2 year old actually rejects the t for the most part for live pitching anyway, I’ll cut it altogether. You see the video of Mauer hitting the tiny ball in his garage or the stories of Sandoval hitting bottlecaps and peanuts… Now I have no such expectations of course, but there are all sorts of other goods than get picked up on the way. Nothing wrong with developing coordination and some love of the game.
I’m an east bay guy – grew up in Oakland and Berkeley – very proud to know about the Albany Little League. A little bragging is just fine. And the coaching does sound like a fun ride. Thanks for reading.
Eh, and one more question, because of the Gladwell quote – you for putting the boy in early to school to play against older tougher or hold em back to give them the competitive edge? I’ve been having this conversation a fair amount with schools coming on.
September birthday
My son was born in September, so we didn’t get that nice bump you have with a May birth in Little League. I definitely knew some kids that got kind of screwed by being born in April, so they played up as the youngest kids in their official Little League year, and if they’d been born two weeks later they would’ve been the oldest kids in their year..
That really wasn’t an issue until his team was 12 and our competition all outgrew us by a lot.
When you’re doing tryouts the biggest subject of conversation among the coaches is how much various kids have grown. Physical size makes a big difference at that age.
That said, I was never keen on kids playing up in the next age bracket. It was a hot topic in our Little League and our rules changed over the time I was coaching there (from being very fluid and letting all-star coaches cherry pick talent, to going to stricter age limits).
I didn’t hold my son back going into school. His birthday is 9/23 (same as: Bruce Springsteen, Ray Charles & John Coltrane. Maybe I should have paid for music lessons?) and he started first grade at five and turned six that month. So he’s always been young-ish at the school level, and median-aged for Little League years. All moot now that he hit his growth spurt at age 15.
Going back a bit, I will say that eye-hand coordination is something you can definitely develop at a very early age through reps. I didn’t have to push it – he wanted to play whiffleball every. freakin. day. I got drilled by so many line drives I was tattooed by those little plastic balls. (Years later I was throwing batting practice without an L-screen and I got smoked on the big-toe by a line drive and lost my toenail. Coaching is dangerous!)
Re: East Bay: District 4 in Little League comprises Alameda and Contra Costa counties, and that’s a lot of baseball tradition there. Everybody from Randy Johnson to Rickey Henderson came out of those areas. (Plus: Frank Robinson, Joe Morgan, Dave Stewart, Billy Martin – who incidentally went to Berkeley High at the same time as Philip K. Dick and Ursula K. Leguin).
Yes! Absolutely a lot of baseball tradition. I am a BHS graduate, and lived about 20 blocks from where Billy Martin grew up in the Berkeley flats. There’s more: we have similar body types and although I’m not as confrontational as him I do admire his scrappiness. My first MLB games were in Oakland during Billy Ball, before my grandpa got ahold of me and shook off all AL Clownball silliness and made me a Gints lifer.
First game ever was Ricky Henderson’s rookie year. He, and George Brett, signed my glove. Single mom, she didn’t know any better, and also the time period, it wasn’t a big deal. I spent 3 years taking the bus from Berkeley back home right by Oakland Tech, only white boy on the bus. My mom didn’t have time to deal with little league, a pretty big regret in my life. I ended up doing (ducks) lacrosse and cross country. I don’t want to push it, but I think my boys would really enjoy baseball, so I’ll give them every chance.
Appreciate the advice. Don’t want to be a Marinovich dad, am very conscious of that. I just want them to have chances, and gain confidence. My wife is leaning older for all the academic and maturity issues. My younger boy has that crazy 2nd child monkey athleticism that comes with being fearless, having less rules enforced and wanting to keep up with his brother. As you know, its exhausting. But also a lot of fun.
Thanks for sharing that, one of the most enjoyable conversations I’ve had on MCC.
To be more specific about older/tougher competition: My experience is that most kids benefit from being a stud at their own level (and gaining confidence), than playing older kids and getting their ass kicked. The difference in one year of age at that level is pretty significant. It’s extremely rare to find a kid who’s capable of playing in the top tier of players who are a year older. I mean it does happen, but it’s should be a rare occurrence for rare players.
And one more question, and I’ll stop: August birthday (and June) – that ties in how with little league? You want the bump starting in May, so they are good? Cheers.
Cutoff
Yeah, the cutoff is May first. So a child born on 5/1 is going to be the oldest kid for that year he’s Little League eligible, and a kid born 4/30 is going to be the youngest.
So an August birth is pretty good. But don’t obsess about that. Our best player was born in October (and was never that big).
My son preferred the higher level of competition with tournament team play so that’s nothing we had to push. We were actually reluctant to join because it meant spending most weekends in the summer out on the I-80 corridor playing Walnut Creek, Concord, Orinda, Layfayette etc.
There is a huge developmental advantage playing on a tournament team, though. A regular LL season is about 18 games. You can play as many as 5 or 6 games in just one tournament so the players get so much more experience. When my son was 9 and 10, he probably played about 7 tournaments a summer.
Late Response
Here’s a great Baseball Prospectus article on the impact of age in player progression.
http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=15295
Thanks for making my prospect scouting so easy.
Seriously dude, all I have to do lately is look to right side of the page for a post by you or Fla. Lots of information and so little time getting it.
I'm a Giants Fan, but I'll always be rooting for Matt Downs
Adopted Son:Dan Burkhart , Future Backup To Buster Posey.
Much like what I said over on the shortstop discussion thread, I think that if the guy the Giants deem to be the best player available (factoring in intangibles, fit, time necessary for development, etc.) when they go on the clock at 20 is a catcher, they should take him. However, given the overall depth of catching in the system, there’s no reason to go overboard grabbing and signing catchers right and left when the money needs to go to pitching and power bats.
Love your report on Stryker, but I highly doubt the Giants will break the historical trend and take a HS position player in the first round. If he slides due to bonus demands and his somehow still there in the 2-3-4 area, I think it would be worth it for the Giants to take a run at him. I would love it if they took one of the high school catchers you’ve mentioned somewhere in the top five; that would give them a second high-potential young guy for them to develop along with Stiner.
Also consider the very strong possibility that they flip one of the young catchers — my money’s on ToJo — to strengthen the big-league roster in July if they’re in contention. It wouldn’t be a bad thing to have another highly-rated youngster to replenish the org depth.
Finally, I think Buster’s future position is going to be heavily impacted by how his contract status is handled for the next few seasons, as well as how his bat plays this year (assuming he’s healthy enough to be in the lineup 140-150 games, both at catcher and at first) because we still haven’t seen what kind of power numbers he can put up in a full season. Ideally, he would remain at catcher; I love his leadership skills, defense and the intelligence he brings to the position. If he has an All-Star caliber year this season, how much do the Giants pay him? Does he go to arbitration? Do they offer him a Longoria-type deal to buy out his arb and a couple of free agent years? Is he — gulp — committed to eventually leaving to play closer to Georgia once he hits free agency, as Fla-Giant and others have suggested?
I think that as long as the Giants have minimal financial risk in terms of the money they’ve committed to him, and if his ankle is healthy, he should be a full-time catcher. If he has a big year and puts up first baseman-type numbers in 2012, I’d be fine with them offering a five or six-year deal with the plan to ultimately move him out from behind the plate once one of the young guys is ready to catch every day. If he goes year-to-year through his arbitration, he’s much more valuable as a catcher full-time.
Great breakdown on the org depth at C.
Once again I agree as well, I don’t see the first round pick being a good fit with Zunino gone and Stryker almost certainly gone. The trade angle is something I forgot about, and I agree with you ToJo is the likely suspect. This is an area where I get a little worried, getting value for one of these guys isn’t one of Sabean’s strengths. Although he has a pretty good record with the trades and not giving up the top talent, Sabean almost seems compelled to make throw-ins on trades, and with very few exceptions there is nothing coming back for the farm. It won’t just be ToJo, it’ll also be an arm ranked in the teens.
The Buster long-term contract is hard to judge, and this year is definitely important. I take the view that its all about the money, all the time. Fla-Giant put forth a good argument about regional preferences that I decided to tug on his shirt tails about. Given his careful prep and lining up the different angles, he’s most likely right, but I’ll maintain my stance that if the RDF has the money there it won’t be a problem, I’ll keep on that argument for a bit.
Thanks on the org depth. Catcher is most likely our biggest current organizational strength, outside the pitcher whisperer reputation.
Just to clarify, I didn’t mean for it to seem that I was categorically peredicting that I think Buster will leave the Giants as soon as he becomes eligible following the 2016 season. I just was trying to make everybody aware that it’s a distinct possibility no matter how the Giants treat him. There’s a lot of time to go, so anything can happen between now and 2016.
"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner
initial thoughts
Zunino – I’ve seen him play a ton of games on TV and in person the last 2 years. The strides that he made on defense and on offense between his first and 2nd college seasons were striking. He’s the best catching prospect that I’ve seen since Buster in 2008 (I never considered Harper as a catcher long-term). Zunino is actually ahead of Buster at the same point in their careers, albeit Buster didn’t start catching until he was a sophomore and Buster is more athletically gifted. Zunino is very mature and a natural leader. Any team that he’s on will end up being his team after a year or two. His biggest defect right now is that his swing is a bit long and he has trouble laying off the outside breaking balls.
Stryker Trahan - I like what I’ve seen and read about him. I would have no problem with the Giants taking him at #20 (but don’t hold your breath), because I think he’s talented enough to play corner OF and possibly 3B as a pro and I think his bat is good enough and powerful enough to justify putting him at 1B.
Riley Moore - I really liked him as a target starting in the 4th round last year. However, I wouldn’t put him in the same category that Susac was in coming out of HS. Susac was a much more complete product than Moore was. Susac was also older when he left HS and became draft-eligible after his sophomore season. Moore will have to put in 3 years at AZ before he can be drafted again. Moore does have the tools to be a Matt Weiters type catcher – tall with a well above-average bat for a catcher.
"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner
Riley Moore stands out for the left handed power. There wasn’t any big time analysis with comps for Susac, they were throwing out a name. The more I’ve read about Susac just nosing around old draft info the more excited I get about him. I really like Klima’s writing, so I took note of him.
I’m not holding my breath on Stryker, he should be in the first dozen. Part of this is sort of an exercise in finding enough players who might sneak ahead of… Vic-tor!
I agree, with that speed he could be a pretty good OF.
I’m interested for your thoughts on Bregman.
Bregman
I love his simple, compact and quick swing. He consistently barrels up the ball and hits it hard. I also love his baseball IQ and instincts. He’s the kind of prospects whose is greater than the whole of his parts. I think he’s got a great chance to get to the major leagues, but I don’t see him as a catcher. I think that his physical build will leave him too beaten down if he were to catch full time – and his average arm-strength is the decider. I think he’ll end up as a 2B/LF guy as he matures and progresses. He would have been a good sleeper pick starting in the 3rd round under the old draft rules, but with the new rules I don’t see that teams will be allowed to pay him enough money to get him to drop the LSU commitment.
"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner
Coincidentally, I talk to Alex’s dad periodically. I’m a City Hall reporter here in Albuquerque, and Alex’s dad is a former city councilor and prominent lawyer who’s active in the Democratic Party.
I suspect Alex will head to college unless he’s picked pretty high (like, say, the first round). Just a gut feeling.
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