MOD: Chicago Cubs

by z4 landshark on May 13, 2008 11:01 PM EDT

Hey guys,

While I am not a Cubbies fan first, I do like the team, and I promise to put in the research about the organization to help us have the best draft possible. With that being said, I would like any input possible. I have done two past drafts: one as the Giants and one as the Reds last year.

2006 Giants draft

1st round: RHP Kyle Drabek
1st supplemental: RHP Bryan Morris
3rd round: LHP Wade LeBlanc
4th round: OF Brennan Boesch
5th round: SS Chris Valaika

Notes: This draft has been hit hard by injuries to Drabek and Morris. Though I really liked their arms as power pitchers with big breaking balls. High potential pitchers. I mixed early high school picks with college players. Valaika seems to have been a good draft pick so far. He was hitting .360/.390/.581 with 7hrs in 136 at bats in high A this year. LeBlanc had also been doing very well until a bump this year in AAA.

2007 Reds Draft

15: 3B Matt Dominguez
34: LHP Nick Hagadone
53: LHP Jack McGeary
79: RHP Sam Demel
104: C Cameron Rupp
109: SS Brian Friday
139: 1B John Kaskow

Notes: This draft, I had a balanced mix of high school and college players. Dominguez is struggling in low A right now. Hagadone has done very well both years so far. It is hard to evaluate McGeary, but scouting places seem to like him a lot. Demel is doing pretty well in high A right now. Rupp has been a pretty solid player for the Texas Longhorns. Friday has a solid if unspectacular line in high A right now. Kaskow is a freshman with Stanford right now.

I provided those to just give you a sense of how I have drafted in the past. Looking at the organization's prospects, it appears that the Cubs dont have too much talent either in terms of hitting or pitching. In the majors, a lot of the stars are over 30 years old. Basically, I think in this draft, I am going to target best player possible with each pick. I may stick to my past strategy of mixing high school and college players.

The Cubs have picks 19, 41, 65, 97, 131, 161.

I have some guys in mind for the first picks, but I will need assistance with the later picks. I am just going to name a lot of names, and get your opinions on them. What do you guys feel between Gerrit Cole and Alex Meyer? I don’t know much about Meyer at all. Other guys to consider are Casey Kelly, Brett Wallace, Gillaspie, Weeks. What do you guys think?

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Comments

best player available

No sure things in the minor league system right now on either side. Last year they seemed to go after college hitters after Vitters which is fine with me. I’m taking finals right now so I haven’t been able to look hard enough at these guys to really make suggestions but starting this weekend I think i’ll be able to help get a better sense of who I personally would prefer.

by uwbadger on May 14, 2008 12:04 AM EDT reply actions

definitely

definitely the best player available, regardless.

i’ll make up a list of players i like with the first pick,
do you have AIM or an email i could reach you at?

by god allah star on May 14, 2008 1:21 AM EDT reply actions

jaruck at stanford . edu

LiNcEcuM and cAiN R STUDS

by z4 landshark on May 14, 2008 2:11 AM EDT up reply actions

Strategy

Here’s my question: Are you looking to draft the BPA in your eyes or are you looking to have a draft that reasonably resembles what the Cubs would do in terms of BPA?

If it’s the latter, here are a few things I think would be worth keeping in mind…

-Wilken loves athletic players. If you look at his past two drafts with the Cubs, he has selected a number of guys who are very good athletes, especially at the top of the draft. Jeff Samardzija is an obvious one, but Colvin, Donaldson, and Vitters are all very good athletes.

-Bloodlines might matter. Josh Lansford’s father played in the majors and I think his brother plays in the A’s system. One of Jeremy Papelbon’s brothers is the closer for the Red Sox while his twin is in the Red Sox’ system.

-Versatility is something to keep in mind. A number of the position prospects who have been drafted can play multiple positions across the diamond without much trouble. I’d be surprised to see the Cubs draft anyone who would can only play one position effectively.

-For pitchers, height is no longer a major factor taken into consideration. The Cubs used to draft almost nothing but behemoths at P. However, lately, they have not drafted many guys who are 6’6 and over. They still draft tall guys, but it’s no longer an exclusive mindset.

-Keep an eye on prospects who come out of Virginia, Florida, and Texas. The Cubs have an excellent area scout in Virginia (Billy Swoope) who is responsible for a number of draft picks over the past few years. They tend to focus a lot of prospects who come out of eastern Texas (especially Lamar University), although I’m not sure who is out there working for them. They also have the state of Florida pretty well covered. Occasionally you’ll see them go for a local product in IL, but usually that happens in later rounds.

That should give you a decent roadmap if you choose that route. I look forward to seeing your eventual draft.

by Outshined_One on May 25, 2008 2:34 AM EDT reply actions