Thanks to John for allowing me to take on the task of running the Yankees mock. I've been a reader of his site for years, and am excited to take on an important role in this year's mock draft.

I currently write for Pinstripe Alley as a minor league contributor, and have been covering prospects through my 'Minor Developments' column weekly for Yahoo! Sports the past four years (which has included a first round mock draft in each of the past two years). Enough about me though, let's get to the Yankees draft!

I'd like to use this initial MOD to discuss the Yankees organizational depth, and hold a preliminary discussion about what makes the most sense when our picks come up.

I think it will be important to compile a 'big board' of at least the top 125 draft eligible prospects, in order to give ourselves enough depth to make our selections through Round 3. Much of our discussion between now and the draft date should be dedicated to fine tuning this draft board based on our organizational needs and draft approach.

The Yankees hold the following selections that we'll be responsible for in this year's mock:

Pick #30

Pick #89

Pick #94

Pick #124

Here is a complete look at the 2012 Draft Order.

Since you've stopped by the Yankees specific MOD thread, I'm sure you're well versed in the organization's top prospects. Here are a few refresher lists from this season to look at as we embark on this year's mock:

Baseball America
MLB.com
John Sickels
Fangraphs

Let's start out by tossing some ideas around about the process, and what exactly we should be looking for when it's our turn to pick. Do we want to take a 'best available' approach, or should we focus on an area of need within the organization? Do we learn toward a more polished college player, or roll the dice on a high school talent?

Keep in mind the new CBA rules, and how it will affect our draft strategy. A good write-up on how these rules may affect the Yankees can be found here.

The floor is yours. I'm looking forward to varying opinions and productive discussions on which direction to take this draft. Let's have some fun with this!