As has been a tradition of mine over the last few years, after the draft I like to go through and share my thoughts on each team’s haul (except my own team, because that just seems silly).
I doubt anyone cares what I think, and maybe no one will read this at all, but I have fun writing them and hopefully they are fun to read. And finally, just because someone ends up as my “Least Favorite Pick”, it doesn’t mean that I necessarily think it’s a bad player or prospect, I just didn’t like where they were taken.
BABY SEALS
Favorite pick: I really liked Fred’s draft, and it’s too easy to pick the Garret Mitchell at #10 selection as my favorite. So instead I’ll say my favorite Seal’s pick is Edwin Nunez, who was taken in the 6th– 90th overall. Nunez gives me Carlos Martinez vibes- but maybe I’m just saying that because he’s a Cards pitcher from Latin America. I know some (KLaw) aren’t too high on him, but Nunez excites me as a 19 year old with good size who can hit triple digits. I had him as a 4th round talent and maybe he becomes the top Cardinal pitching prospect in the next year or two.
Honorable Mention: Nick Yorke. Yorke is a prospect who got dinged because he was an obvious money-saving over draft by Boston and was not on the experts’ lists of top draft picks when Boston took him at #17. This turned him into a player who was frowned upon in the CPL. But Boston thought a lot of him, and paid him only $900K less than slot; the equivalent of slot for pick #25 (he got a higher bonus than Austin Wells, Bryce Jarvis, and Bobby Miller). Yorke apparently had a great showing after signing and is maybe a player who was punished because he had no high school season. I liked Yorke a lot and I think Fred may have gotten a real steal when he took Yorke at 42nd overall.
Least Favorite pick: Actually nothing really jumps out at me, I think Fred had a really strong draft. So I’ll ding him for passing on all of his comp round picks, when there were so many good players available to take a risk on (as evidenced by my 150 post-draft pickups).
BALL BUSTERS
Favorite pick: Eric has notoriously been absent for many drafts, so I wondered if he would remember how to draft. Of course I kid, and in spite of not picking until the very end of the 7th, Eric grabbed some pretty good players. My favorite of which was Ivan Johnson, who he got at pick #128. I am a big fan of Johnson’s upside and think he can contribute across the categories. He’s the perfect prospect for Ball Busters’ rebuild, as they can be patient as Johnson starts to establish himself in the Reds’ system.
Honorable Mention: Helcris Olivarez. Getting an organizational top 10 prospect in the 9th round (#144) is pretty outstanding, and if Olivarez was anywhere except Colorado he would’ve gone perhaps 5 rounds higher. I love lefty pitchers with his upside, and once he eventually struggles because of Colorado and the Rockies trade him, I’ll be ready to pounce to try and acquire him.
Least Favorite pick: Not a ton to choose from, but I’ll say Busters’ first pick of Jose Bonilla. He didn’t grab him in a bad spot- at #112, his first pick of the draft- and I don’t necessarily dislike Bonilla, but I think there were more talented players he passed on, including an Angels shortstop prospect I like more in Werner Blakely, who was grabbed in the 1st compensatory round.
BANOCOLATES
Favorite pick: Jeff walked away from this draft with some franchise cornerstones and it is an exciting time in Banocolate-territory (obvious rip off of Twins Territory). My favorite pick of his was taking Austin Wells at #15. I had projected that Wells would fall into the second, but I personally had him ranked as a 1st round talent. Reports from spring training is that Wells has been better than advertised behind the plate and it sounds like it may not be a sure thing that he ends up at another position. If Wells had been guaranteed to stay as catcher, where do you think he would’ve been taken in our draft? And even if he ends up as a COF or 1B, is that a bad thing? All signs point to the fact that he is going to hit, no matter where he fields, and what’s more important than that?
Honorable Mention: Banocolates took (too) many relievers (too) early in the draft, but selecting Bryan Garcia in the 3rd comp round was brilliant. I dislike Garcia and think he sucks, BUT as of me writing this he is penciled in as the Tigers closer. If he can hold onto that for even a month into the season, Jeff can flip him for a mid to late round pick pretty easily. And who knows, maybe Garcia eeks his way to 20 saves+holds this season.
Least Favorite pick: Without question my least favorite pick was Robert Hassell at #7 overall. I think I am the low guy on Hassell, and do not get excited enough about guys who can hit but have no power- maybe I’ve owned Hanser Alberto for too long and he’s jaded me. Certainly not at 7th overall. I think Soderstrom there was the guy, because if he sticks at catcher he is a potential stud, and if he ends up moving to the outfield then he’s better there than Hassell.
BROB’s BARNACLES
Favorite pick: Brian took two international outfielders that I liked a lot. Pedro Pineda may end up as the top J2 in this class, and getting him at 39 is a sweet grab. But my favorite pick because of the value of where he got him, was nabbing Yoelqui Cespedes at #52 overall. As late as February, Cespedes was being mocked to go in the first, as high as #11 overall. He was also the #1 IFA according to pipeline. I honestly think that his last name pushed him down the draft board, and had he not been tied to Yoenis, he would’ve been taken 25 or so picks higher. Yes, maybe he doesn’t have a lot of HR power, but with his hit and speed he could still be a very good player. Or maybe he flames out like many Cubans, who knows?
Honorable Mention: I like Freddy Zamora in the 8th, and think it is a solid pick. I also really liked Tyler Keenan in the second comp round, and think he could be quite a steal way down there. I was hoping that Keenan would go undrafted and I could keep my eyes on him to see how he does this year, ready to pounce if he showed the power he did in college.
Least Favorite pick: Bryce Jarvis. I’m with Rem on this one, and I am not a fan of Jarvis. After the MLB draft, I was intrigued as maybe he had turned a corner, which is not uncommon for players in their junior season. But the sample size was so small, and after what we all read about his performance after signing, I am more inclined to believe that he found lightning over his 4 starts his junior year that disappeared when he got paid. Although it was exciting lightning, to be sure. And if Jarvis returns to that form, this could end up being a great pick. I just don’t have faith that happens.
DANIMALS
Favorite pick: I think Dan’s first 3 picks (Soderstrom, Leon, Abel) were terrific, and too easy for the purpose of this exercise. I really liked the Michael Taylor pick in the 6th and he could quietly be a really solid MLB player this year, if his spring performance is any indication. But my favorite pick of Danimals was Juan Then, taken #135 overall. Then is a prospect that I have liked for a while, and it confuses me that he is so under the radar. He isn’t likely going to lead a rotation, but he has good stuff and is so young. In years past, it seems like pitchers with his ceiling and youth and history were going in the 2nd or 3rd rounds.
Honorable Mention: The previously mentioned Werner Blakely. There were a few Angels SS prospects up for grabs in this draft, and while I don’t know if any are future fantasy starters, I like Blakely the most. I think Blakely was one of those prospects that would have gone much higher if we had a whole high school season, or if there were leagues going after the draft and he could break out this year.
Least Favorite pick: Matt Moore. I didn’t really dislike any of Dan’s picks but Moore was the one I liked the least. I actually had Moore on my board, but maybe a round or two later than when Dan picked. Maybe Moore has figured it out (finally), but likely not and there were a few guys I liked more in that area that Dan passed on, when he could’ve grabbed someone like Gregory Santos or Coby Mayo, or Justin Lange or Cole Henry and then taken Flexen later in the draft if he really wanted a pitcher to get him numbers this year.
FAJITA EATERS
Favorite pick: Back in December 2019 I traded an 8th round pick to Kelly’s Heroes for Chris Gittens and Yohendrick Pinango. I stupidly lost patience with Pinango and cut him, and Rem was able to benefit by grabbing him with pick #65. Pinango was a guy I was realy hoping would fall under people’s radars and I had him targeted for one of my 6th round picks, but Rem made sure that didn’t happen. And it sounds like there were a few owners who were wanting to grab Yohendrick as well. Drat. I think that Cubs system is so weak that it is not out of the realm of possibility that Pinango is a top 5 prospect in that system this time next year.
Honorable Mention: Rem picked several guys in places I really liked him taking them, such as Marsh in the 4th and Chourio in the 9th. Honorable mention, however, goes to Jared Shuster in the 4th. I really, really like Shuster and thought he would (should) go a full round higher.
Least Favorite pick: Like myself, Rem took a lot of pitchers in this draft and the one I liked the least was him taking Jeff Criswell in the 5th. I may be lower than most on Criswell, but I don’t like him very much at all, and there were better pitchers that went right after that I think are more exciting, such as Alex Santos. There were some sexy bats passed on as well, and at #68 I think Criswell was a reach.
G.I. ZO’s
Favorite pick: Really it is Nick Gonzalez, because I think he is a high ceiling/high floor hitter who will be ready to contribute very, very soon. But again, it’s too easy to choose a top 4 pick. Digging deeper into the draft my favorite pick here is Nick Garcia at #129. Garcia is one of those prospects that I think can attract a lot of attention once baseball resumes to full-time routines. He signed for double his slot value, so Pittsburgh must think a lot of him, too. Garcia has good size and a good arsenal, and I think that had he been drafted by a team like Tampa, everyone would be more excited about him. I had him as a 6th round talent, so grabbing him in the 9th is pretty tasty.
Honorable Mention: Pete Crow Armstrong. PCA was a projected 1st round pick at one point, but owners were scared off when serious questions about whether he’ll hit were raised. He has already changed his leg placement in his batting stance, which I think will add more power. And he got a number of at bats well into spring training, showing the Mets are excited about him too. Ed Howard could also be a real steal for the Zo’s, if he can hit his projected offensive ceiling (or a little better).
Least Favorite pick: I don’t hate this pick, but I was not a big fan of Wilman Diaz at #16. Again, I think I am the low guy on him, and I do like him a good deal, but not where he was taken and the other players who were passed on. I had Diaz behind Colmenarez, Hernandez, and Leon as far as IFAs, but in this draft grabbing J2s was even more of a crap-shoot than normal, and if Diaz was Zobrack’s guy, then more power to him.
KELLY’s HEROES
Favorite pick: For the second year in a row it seemed that JK and I were in alignment with players we liked. It is actually very difficult for me to narrow down what my favorite pick of his was, but I’ll choose Cole Sands, who was taken with pick #158- third to last pick in the 10th round. I had Sands as a 4th round talent, and had I not grabbed so many pitchers already, he would’ve wound up on my team. He is an exciting guy to have because of his ceiling, and to get him that late is outstanding.
Honorable Mention: Who to choose? Contrary to the Nerdery ,I actually really like Maikol Hernandez. JT Ginn was a great pick and guy I passed on in the 4th only because I had taken so many pitchers already. Zach Deloach is interesting, especially if he can tap into some power. And Danny De Andrade in the 7th is an absolute steal, as is Matt Cronin in the late part of the supplementals. But honorable mention goes to Yhoswar Garcia, who I can’t believe fell into the 7th round. These are just a few, and I thought JK had a really strong draft.
Least Favorite pick: Isaiah Greene. Again, I know I am the low guy on him because everyone I read is very high on what Greene could potentially do. But honestly, I just don’t see it. He was a player I knew I would not be drafting under any circumstance. Maybe I’m wrong, but I was going to let someone else take that gamble. I think he flames out at AAA or as a fourth outfielder.
MOTLEY SHUE
Favorite pick: Shue did not have a lot of picks, relatively speaking, but he was able to get some nice value with most of them. Easily my favorite pick of his was Petey Halpin- in spite of the fact that dude’s name is “Petey”. Like the headless bird from Dumb and Dumber. Shue grabbed him at the end of the 8th round, which I think is an absolute steal since I had him as a top of the 5th round talent. Cleveland signed all of their picks before Halpin (Carson Tucker, Tanner Burns, and Logan Allen) to under slot bonuses so they could give Petey more than twice the slot. That means something.
Honorable Mention: Jordan Walker. Oh boy do I love Jordan Walker and seriously considered him at #17 for a long, long time. It’s not tremendous value getting him at #20, but had there been a full high school year for Walker to play, he may have would up in our top 10 picks.
Least Favorite pick: Easy choice for me; Ha-Seong Kim. I have been burned so much with Asian players (such as Yoshi Tsutsumo just last year) that I know I was the low man on Kim. I had him as a late 2nd round talent. Maybe he proves me wrong- it happens a lot- but I think Kim is going to be a big nothing burger. And looking at the talent that was there (I was a huge fan of this draft class), it hard to see taking Kim over guys like Lacy, Soderstrom, Hancock, etc.
NELLAMANIACS
Favorite pick: In his first draft in over a decade, and with very little time to prepare, Nelly came out with a hell of a draft. I will cheat here and chose Nelly’s first pick as my favorite pick of his, Carlos Colmenarez. I was 50-50 with taking Sabato or Colmenarez with my pick at #17, and as stated above I had Colmenarez rated as the top J2. I really think the kid can be special- like, really special. Top 10 prospect (or better) in all of baseball special. Dang, maybe I should’ve taken him instead.
Honorable Mention: Like a few other owners, Nelly leaned very heavily on the J2 prospects in his first draft back, which may turn out to be very smart. In fact, 7 of his 9 picks were J2 players. Taking Hans Montero in the 2nd round comp was absolutely terrific value and some outlets have Montero rated right behind the big three J2 shortstops from this class (Colmenarez, Hernandez, Diaz). And Kyle Harrison, arguably the top prep lefty in the class, at 40th overall is a pretty sweet pick as well.
Least Favorite pick: Carson Tucker was a 1st round pick in the MLB draft, but it was a money saving pick (as stated above). I don’t like Tucker’s brother Cole at all, and I think I like Carson even less. This was the one pick Nelly made that that I was not a fan of, because the other players available at #38 were considerably better. But maybe Tucker, and Nelly, will prove me wrong.
PRO BOWLERS
Favorite pick: The Nerdery in their podcast were very complimentary to Dan for having a great draft, but for me the best draft- hands down- was Pro Bowlers. Pat had 19 picks in this draft and I really, really liked 16 of them, so it’s really hard for me to choose just one. But that’s the exercise. As much as I want to choose Cristian Hernandez or Evan Carter, that’s too easy again, so I’ll go with a pick that was a shocker to me; Blake Hunt. I thought for sure I was the high guy on Hunt, so when Pat took him at 34 it came as a big surprise. Now he did pass on some very talented players to select Hunt, but if the things we’re reading out him are true, and his swing change is opening up his offensive potential, this may prove to be a terrific pick. Also, given the number of studs Pat was able to choose before this pick, he could afford the risk of selecting Hunt here and passing on some other sexy names.
Honorable Mention: Manuel Beltre. I was hoping to grab Beltre when I passed on the bigger name J2 guys, and think that he is an underappreciated talent from the class. He has a sweet swing, will require no assimilation into the culture, and I have a hunch he will advance quickly. I doubt he’s a superstar, but I think he is a starter for a long time.
Least Favorite pick: If I have to choose, I’ll say Colt Keith. I am not a fan of Keith’s at all, but Pat took him in the 10th so…who really cares? It’s a throw away pick. But again, I think the Bowlers’ draft was so strong that it is a testament that I think his worst pick took place in the last round.
ROLLIN’ GOATS
Favorite pick: Cale’s draft was polarizing for me, as Cale had several picks that I thought were really great, and several others where I scratched my head a little. My favorite pick of the bunch was Jared Kelley in the 3rd round. Before the MLB draft there was considerable discussion who the best prep pitcher was- Abel or Kelley. When Abel went off the board first, it seemed like Kelley got forgotten. If Kelley turns out to be the best HS pitcher from this draft, The Goats getting him at #36 will have all of us kicking ourselves.
Honorable Mention: Starting in the 8th round, Cale made 4 picks in a row that I thought were amazing: Buelvas, Winder, Marte, and Nicolas. I was a big, big fan of all of those players and Cale drafting them so late might prove to be the best stretch of late picks in this entire draft.
Least Favorite pick: Goats’ first pick of Vukovich at the end of the second was very surprising to me. I like Vuk OK, and I think I had him rated as a top 5th round talent, so I was not a fan of Cale grabbing him at #31 overall. He was a 4th round MLB pick from a cold-weather state, and doesn’t rank in the top 10 in a pretty weak farm in Arizona. I’m not saying he won’t turn into a good player, but the players Cale passed on at that spot were really strong.
THE BIG HURTS
Favorite pick: Hurts grabbed Samuel Basallo in the first round of the comp draft, at pick #165 overall, and in doing so broke my heart. Hopefully by the time minus-1 rolls around The Big Hurts decides that he has no room for Basallo and cuts him loose. Basallo was the J2 catcher given the biggest bonus this year and it is because of his bat. Even if he doesn’t stay behind the plate, the bat and power are special enough to give him a shot- if you can be patient with J2 catchers who can take a long time to develop.
Honorable Mention: Alex Santos at #70 overall might turn out to be another big steal. When you figure that the Astros had to make the most of their draft because they had picks taken away, them taking Santos says everything I need to know about what they think about his ceiling. Santos might rank as the top prospect in the system next year. I also really liked Hurts’ pick of Zavier Warren in the 7th and Carlos Rodriguez in the 10th.
Least Favorite pick: As much as I dislike Garret Crochet and think he is a long-term closer who will have Tommy John within the next 12 months, getting him at #22 was a bargain if everyone else is right and I am wrong about him, so I can’t choose that pick. So instead I’ll say I was not a huge fan of Denzer Guzman in the 6th. In a typical draft, that’s late enough that it does not matter a whole lot. But I thought that this draft was so good and so deep, that I didn’t have Denzer on my draft board.
THE BIG UNITS
Favorite pick: The first ever CPL event- let alone CPL draft- for Carrol and I thought he did very well for himself. Getting Hancock at pick 9 is huge, as he might turn out to be the best pitcher in this draft. But my favorite pick of the Units was 4th rounder Blaze Jordan. That’s my kind of prospect- humongous power and question marks about everything else. I was considering taking him at pick 54 if he didn’t go one pick before. If Blaze flames out (see what I did there?) then losing a 4th on him- even in this draft- is not a huge deal because the payoff if he hits (figuratively and literally) is immense.
Honorable Mention: Going through The Big Units’ picks there is a lot to like. From Jordan Westburg to Daniel Cabrera to CPL favorite Ariel Almonte; lots of exciting upside. But honorable mention goes to Ben Hernandez who Units grabbed in the 9th round, #133 overall. At one time I had Hernandez as a 4th/5th round talent because of what I read about his changeup. Also, Yiddi Cappe is a guy that was so difficult for me to get info on but he got a big, big bonus and maybe becomes the next Marlins superstar prospect.
Least Favorite pick: Patrick Bailey. This is perhaps too easy, but I want to point out that I am a big Bailey guy and actually believe he is going to be a fantasy contributor and there is more in the bat than he gets credit for. Having said that, I think we all agree that Carrol could’ve gotten him probably one to two rounds later and used that pick at #21 to grab a guy like Mick Abel or Slade Cecconi or Reid Detmers. But this is just a lack of experience rather than it being a terrible pick.
TOM CAT’s
Favorite pick: Chris Flexen, easy. I don’t know why Flexen lasted until the second to the last pick in the 10th round- #159 overall- when he is going to be in the Seattle rotation- at least to start the year. The Mariners GM said as much when they signed him. Maybe we all forget how fragile pitchers are, and how expensive they are at the trade deadline. Is Flexen sexy- nope. Is he great- no, likely not. But he is not even 27 years old and got a contract that the Mariners are going to give him every opportunity to play out. And again, he has a major league rotation job right now. Apparently I am in disagreement with the Nerdery on this, but I don’t see a big difference between Flexen and Arihara, who was taken (too early) in the 4th round.
Honorable Mention: Chad Pinder. Back in 2018 I traded two picks- a 2020 4th (turned into Brennan Malone) and a 2021 7th (Ryan Jensen)- to Jeff for Pinder. Pinder has done nothing but tease me with his talent since then. I cut him, picked him up, cut him again. Then I drafted him in the 10th round last year and was forced to cut him again. But there he was on my draft board again this year. Now he’s crushing in spring and looks to have a job either as an OF or as a 2B for Oakland. Curse you Chad Pinder! Tommy getting him in the 1st comp round may really pay off- or he’ll just tease the Tom Cat’s with his potential until Tommy goes mad, too. Yes, I said “too”. Also, almost the same story could be said about Josh Fuentes (taken at #97) who has teased my team for too long, too.
Least Favorite pick: This is tough because I like many of the guys Tom drafted, but I just hate where he drafted them. I like Casey Martin and if things click, he could be awesome- special power and speed and a category filler. The same could be said about Jordan Nwogu, and Zach Daniels. But the risk on all of these guys is high enough that he could’ve drafted them all about two rounds later than when they were taken. But I suppose he only needs one to click.
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