Monday: The Draft

The placement for the MLB draft couldn’t be at a better time. June is the month of the draft, which is when teams begin to truly realize if they’re really good, or if they just got sort of lucky during the first two months (our Rangers come to mind?). It’s a good time for the draft not only because June is sort of in no man’s land in relation to the other months (April and May are the “beginning” months, July is the half way point, and August and September are the “thrilling” months) but also because it gives the bad teams something to get excited about. I myself have never really gotten too keyed up about the draft, mainly because I know that it will still be quite a few years before I get to see the players who come out of High School. But in spite of my slight aversion to this anticipated event, I still find it marginally exciting, especially waiting to discover who will be chosen as the first round pick. So, for today, I have two pieces lined up. The first is a basic look at some of the Rangers’ draft choices, and the second is a look back at where the Rangers’ first round picks since 2000 are at now.

If I could select anyone for the Rangers’ to draft as their first pick, it would obviously be Stephen Strasburg, the endowed right-hander from San Diego. Actually, endowed might not be the proper adjective for this 20 year-old phenom. It might be more suitable to say he’s been extremely blessed by the baseball gods, and by extremely, I mean more than anyone in the history of the game. Now that’s just going by reports that Strasburg, who throws over 100 MPH, might be the one of the greatest pitchers in history. Strasburg also features an incredible changeup, as well as a tight slider to fool hitters after they see his fastball. Strasburg is 6’5,” which should make his mound presence all the more domineering. But enough of him, since we know that Washington will probably get the pick (luckily the Rangers likely won’t have to face him in the AL). So, as of right now, the projections have the Rangers potentially getting 3rd baseman Matt Davidson from Yucaipa High School in California, or Mike Leake, from Arizona State. According to the MLB draft report, Davidson is mainly a power hitter with an above average cut that should send balls over the fence on frequent basis. Davidson plays an average 3rd base and has okay speed on the base paths. To me he sounds like an archetypal power hitter, and not really someone I want to see in a Ranger uniform. Leake on the other hand sounds like a good fit for the Rangers. He doesn’t have an overpowering fastball (though it will occasionally reach 94-95 MPH), and he’s not a big guy (6’0,” 180 lbs), but he has four solid pitches on his arsenal: fastball, slider, curve, and changeup. And the best part is that he seems to have good control over all of them, which definitely makes him a potential asset to the Rangers in the future. Another name that piques the Rangers’ interest is Brooks Raley. Raley, a 6’3” lefty, is from A&M, which gives the Rangers even more reason to pick him. He doesn’t have a tremendous fastball, but his off-speed pitches are good enough to make him a sure bet in a Major League rotation before too long.

There’s just a little less a month before the draft, and we’ll just have to wait and see what happens. The Rangers don’t seem to have anyone who they desperately want, which makes this year’s draft not as interesting as ones in years past. But it will still be intriguing to see who gets chosen first, though whoever it is probably won’t generate the same sort of buzz as the Blake Beavans and Justin Smoaks of the world.

Now for part two, let’s take a look at where the first round picks made by the Rangers since 2000 are at in their current state of affairs:
2000. Scott Heard. Catcher. I don’t know what ever happened to Heard. The last I heard he was playing for Stockton, but that was several years ago. Let’s just say that he didn’t work out for the Rangers, or anyone else for that matter.

2001. Mark Teixeira. First Baseman. Need I say more?

2002. Drew Meyer. Second Baseman. Meyer put up some nice minor league numbers, but never really got a chance to play at the big league level. Ian Kinsler probably had something to do with that. I think Meyer came up once in 2006, but only for a few games. He’s since left the Rangers’ organization and joined the Astros’ minor league system.

2003. John Danks. Pitcher. Oh, the days of the DVD. Now that we have Derek Holland and Neftali Feliz in the future, it doesn’t hurt so bad, but man was it painful to see Danks flourish with the White Sox while Brandon McCarthy sat on the DL. Danks of course is still in Chicago, and probably the White Sox’ best pitcher.

2004. Thomas Diamond. Pitcher. Diamond, the only remaining member of the DVD package, has been battling injuries for the last few seasons. He’s still trying to make a comeback, though I don’t really see him fitting into the Rangers’ plans for the future.

2005. John Mayberry. Outfielder. Mayberry was one of those players who had the talent, but was never able to fully put it to use. He was recently traded to the Phillies for Greg Golson, a speedy outfielder.

2006. Kasey Kiker. Pitcher. Kiker is a small guy, but looked upon as one of the bright spots for the Rangers in the future. He’s currently pitching for AA Frisco.

2007. Blake Beavan. Pitcher Of all the Rangers’ first round picks, Beavan, an immensely talented right-hander, excites me the most (part of it might have to do with the fact that he’s from my hometown. My neighbor actually went to high school with him). Hopefully we’ll get to see him pitch sometime next year.

2008. Justin Smoak. First Baseman. We’ve talked about this guy a lot of late, so there’s nothing really more to say here.