The overlooked draft starts tomorrow. You won't hear the hype about any of the teams draft picks in this draft but oddly enough, they have to stay in the majors all season, with a few exceptions, to stay with the drafting team. The cost is minimal, the risk is almost nothing and the drafting team gets a really cheap major leaguer. The odds of a player sticking with the major league team is minimal, though. The draft does have more prospects than usual. If you've followed the draft in recent years, you'll recognize the first name.
Billy Rowell, OF/1B/3B, BAL was a 1st round pick that got Barry Bonds comparisons out of high school and still has big power. He just can't hit the ball consistently. He is likely relegated to 1B but could play in the OF a little and still has potential. I don't believe he can be a future big league regular, but if anyone has all-star potential in this group, it could be him.
Aneury Rodriguez, P, TB had good control and put up good results while being young for his league. His strikeouts could increase with time and I really like him as a potential pick.
Jose Pirela, SS, NYY showed he could hit the ball to the gaps and run and was still young for the Florida State League. I think he could hit enough to be the last player on a roster if someone is looking for a future SS.
Luis Jimenez, 3B, LAA could hit enough to play part time at 3B and could have enough bat to hit a few extra base hits.
The Astros have 3 players I like available. Collin Delome, OF, could be a Russell Branyan type player. He has a good bat and solid power but has contact issues. He could even steal a few bases and play decent defense in LF. Jose Altuve is a really short 2B. He has good contact ability and has alwasy held his own while being young for his league. I don't think he's ready to play in the majors, but I like him. Koby Clemens is a 1B/3B/C. He is versatile enough to play a few positions and has the bat for any of then. He won't hit for a high average but he can hit it a long way. I think he is mature enough to make the jump to the majors and be a decent bench player.
Ryan Adams, 2B/3B, BAL probably will be relegated to 2B defensively
but he could be an average offensive 2B in the majors. He is definately worth a pick in the draft. I am intrigued to see if he gets picked.
Wynn Pelzer, P, BAL came over for Miguel Tejada but was left unprotected by the O's. He could be a good bullpen arm to be used in long relief and used as a spot starter sometimes.
Brad Meyers, P, WSH has had some success but is a pitchability guy and I don't know if his stuff will work at the big league level.
Matt McBride, C/OF, CLE could pay dividends. He can hit and is not a bad defensive catcher. If a team needed a backup catcher, he could get picked.
I've always liked Dallas Buck, P, CIN but he hasn't returned to his pre-tommy john form.
Jim Negrych, 2B, PIT can hit. Not for power but he can hit. He can play an acceptable 2B and could get a chance. He's a personal favorite.
Brad Emaus, 2B and Mark Hallberg could fit in this mold as well.
There are several other former 1st round picks like Brett Sinkbeil, Beau Mills, Kasey Kiker, Joe Savery, Kyle McCulloch and many more. Just because there isn't a lot of hype behind the draft, there are several players that could make an impact this year. Here is a link to a pdf thru google docs of many of the available players, here is a legend for the .pdf.
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