American League Central Mock Draft Review

Chicago

23) Eric Arnett, RHP, Indiana
38) Tony Sanchez, C, Boston College
61) Keyvius Sampson, RHP, Florida HS
71) Brian Goodwin, OF, North Carolina HS
102) Blake Smith, RHP, California

COMMENT: This is a good mixture of talent. Arnett and Sanchez are polished college players, with Sanchez in particular being a potential bargain at 38. Sampson and Goodwin provide high-upside ability. I'm a particular fan of Sampson, but Goodwin could have some signability issues with Boras and North Carolina being factors. Blake Smith has a great baseball name and two-way ability. He is much more polished as an outfielder than as a pitcher. I don't know if the real White Sox would have a huge interest in Arnett and Sanchez, but as a theoretical use of multiple picks this is a sound draft.

Cleveland

15) Shelby Miller, RHP, Texas HS
63) Aaron Miller, LHP, Baylor
94) David Nick, SS, California HS

COMMENT: When the Rangers didn't pick Miller, he seemed like a logical choice to fall one spot to Cleveland. Baylor's Miller needs more polish than the average college pitcher, but the Indians need power arms, and he combines well with Shelby Miller to add heat to the system. Nick has a strong bat but will likely move to second base as a pro. The two pitchers carry risk but the rewards could be strong, and they fit the need of the system.

Detroit

9) Grant Green, SS, Southern Cal
58) Brody Colvin, RHP, Louisiana HS
89) Andrew Doyle, RHP, Oklahoma

COMMENT: Green has had a somewhat disappointing spring, but is still the top infielder available this year and a good fit for the Tigers. Colvin is athletic and projectable, and seems very much like the kind of young pitcher the Tigers covet. Doyle is more of a polish and precision guy, but should move quickly through the system. Good mixture here, although I'm not particularly high on Doyle.

Kansas City

12) Rex Brothers, LHP, Lipscomb
91) Stephen Perez, SS, Florida HS

COMMENT: An impressive power arm in Brothers, though one that will need more development time than a lot of college guys. Perez in the third round strikes me as an overdraft. He is athletic, has some speed and polish, and makes contact, but at 5-10, 170 is rather undersized and I'm not convinced about his bat. The lack of a second round pick obviously hurts depth here, and there isn't much slack for development.

Minnesota

22) Jiovanni Mier, SS, California HS
46) Reymond Fuentes, OF, Puerto Rico HS
70) Victor Black, RHP, Dallas Baptist
101) A.J. Morris, RHP, Kansas State

COMMENT: This looks a lot like something the real Twins would do: toolsy high school hitters and college pitchers. I like Fuentes a lot, but I'm not at all certain that Mier will hit enough to justify a first round choice. Black has a great arm but could use more polish, while Morris has had a terrific season but has less stuff and a heavy workload. My Twins Shadow Draft will probably look a lot different.