Draft Decision: Pitcher or Hitter

by Matt Garrioch on Apr 13, 2025 9:00 AM EDT

Every year there are a few guys who have elite talent on the mound and at the plate. Last year Dylan Bundy was a good 3B, but that was an easy decision, even if he hit near .500. Kaleb Cowart, Casey Kelly, Aaron Hicks and many others have fallen into this category. It's a decision that could make or break their career. Some re-make themselves into pitchers like Sergio Santos, Alexei Ogando and even Tim Wakefield and some come back as hitters like Rick Ankiel but many never get the chance.

Several prospects this year have tremendous potential at the plate and on the mound.

I'll just name a few and what I think should happen.

Rio Ruiz : 3B

Duane Underwood : P

Austin Maddox : P

Brian Johnson : P

Jameis Winston : P, if he hits, drop switch hitting and stick to Right

Lewis Brinson : This is tough, OF

Joey Gallo : 3B

Courtney Hawkins : OF

A few others seem to be already decided like Lance McCullers, Hunter Virant, Max Fried and other very high end arms who have considerably lesser hitting ability. What do you guys think? If I missed others, feel free to mention them.

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Read More: Tim Wakefield (P - BOS), Sergio Santos (P - TOR), Casey Kelly (P - SDP), Aaron Hicks (OF - MIN), Dylan Bundy (P - BAL), Kaleb Cowart (PR - ANA)

Comments

Pitcher vs Hitter

Glad you posted this or I would have as a fan post

I think you give the kid a chance to pick. If you force him into one or another and his heart isn’t into it he will likely fail. Got to let the kid do what he loves best first and foremost.

i think it depends on which takes less projection. If the kid is the best hitter in his class but very raw as a pitcher then the choice is obvious.

is where he can have a greater impact and what his tools are: If the kid could be a legit #1 or #2 starter then that is more of an impact than if he projected to be an OFer with limited power potential.

This topic has come up recently on a few posts and the example I use most is Aaron Hicks. Hicks was the best pitcher I saw in Southern California in years. 6’2" lanky frame with a 96-98 FB and easily the best hammer curve in his high school class. He looked to me like what Dwight Gooden must have been at the same age. Hicks was obviously also a talented OFer but, as I argued at the time, his power was iffy and was not a sure thing to improve. My arguement was why take such an elite arm off the bump when #1/#2 starters are so hard to find, especially when there was a lot of projection needed for Hicks to be an impact OFer. At this point my arguement has been proven correct. Even if Hicks makes it as a Denard Span clone with slightly more power, is that really worth taking him off the mound for?

I would say in these cases, 75% of the time I take the kid as a pitcher if he has that type of mound upside

by ScottAZ on Apr 13, 2025 12:55 PM EDT reply actions

Great idea for a post!

I’m with you on most of your inclinations. The only ones I disagree with you on are:

Joey Gallo: P. When you add the huge contact issues that he’s shown against good pitching and his defensive limitations in the field to the mid-90s heat that he was throwing off the mound in the recent NHSI tournament in North Carolina, I’m believing that his potenial as a pitcher is ahead of his hitter.

Brian Johnson: 1B. I just haven’t seen enough progress and potential from him on the mound during the many games that I’ve seen him pitch for UF the last 2 seasons. His ++power makes me want to stick him at 1B and live with the contact issues.

Jameis Winstone: QB. I see no way that this kid will get drafted in the first 10 rounds. Even though teams can still spread out thier signing bonuses to 2-sport scholarship prospects over a 5 year period, under the new CBA the entire sigining bonus is assigned to the cumulative bonus cap limit in the year that the prospect signs. In order to get a 7 figure bonus, Winstone will have to be a top 60 pick - and I don’t see any team gambling that high of a pick on him.

My son, Adalberto Mejia. He's got the goods - he just needs a cool nickname.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

by Fla-Giant on Apr 13, 2025 1:47 PM EDT reply actions

I don't see

++ Power from Johnson. I see average power for a 1B. He may have a 50 hit tool at best as well. He’s a big guy but he is not a physical presence. He’s not fat but it looks like the weight room could help him if he sticks at 1B.
As a pitcher, I like him better as a pro prospect than Hudson Randall but not a top 2 round guy to me. He is a great college player and a mediocre pro prospect to me.

I can see the point about Gallo. I don’t love the contact ability. The raw power is there but I think he ends up at 1B and he’ll really have to hit if that is the case. I didn’t get to see him at the NHSI, damn work schedule got in the way :)

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by Matt Garrioch on Apr 13, 2025 4:02 PM EDT up reply actions

I didn’t see Gallo either, just going off reports I read. He’s reported to be very raw as a pitcher, but with that velo from a lefty I don’t see how you keep him off the mound. It would be different if I thought he could stick at 3B or RF.

I’ve definitely seen Johnson flash ++power, though it certainly is very raw and mostly potential at this point. I think that he also impressed with his power potential with TeamUSA in 2010 and on the Cape in 2011. I do agree with you that I wouldn’t start thinking of drafting him until the 3rd round, but I think some team will pop him before then.

My son, Adalberto Mejia. He's got the goods - he just needs a cool nickname.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

by Fla-Giant on Apr 13, 2025 4:11 PM EDT up reply actions

I agree with all of this except Gallo, who I like better on the mound for the reasons that Fla-Giant mentions

by John Sickels on Apr 13, 2025 2:30 PM EDT reply actions

Do you see any way that Winstone gets drafted in the first 10 rounds?

My son, Adalberto Mejia. He's got the goods - he just needs a cool nickname.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

by Fla-Giant on Apr 13, 2025 2:37 PM EDT up reply actions

seems unlikely to me

by John Sickels on Apr 13, 2025 2:41 PM EDT up reply actions

not with the current CBA. not unless he makes an iron-clad committment to baseball

by John Sickels on Apr 13, 2025 2:43 PM EDT up reply actions

Which I can’t see him doing unless he’s guaranteed at least around $3M. Under the new CBA, he’s not getting that from any team unless they take him in the first 10 or so overall picks.

My son, Adalberto Mejia. He's got the goods - he just needs a cool nickname.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

by Fla-Giant on Apr 13, 2025 4:02 PM EDT up reply actions

agreed

by John Sickels on Apr 13, 2025 4:04 PM EDT up reply actions

You know what minor tweak I’d like to see them make in the new CBA? Don’t subtract the slot $$$ amount from a team’s overall first 10 round cap limit if the team fails to sign a first 10 round pick. That way teams could still take a chance on highly-rated players that fall down the board. They’d have to make a decision on which draftees to sign and which not, but at least all 30 teams would be in the same boat. No big-market, high-revenue team would have a leg up, because they would still be limited in the total $$$ amount they could spend without penalty. As long as you have the minimum total bonus spending rule for eact team in place you wouldn’t get teams abusing the rule to not have to spend any money on their drafts.

My son, Adalberto Mejia. He's got the goods - he just needs a cool nickname.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

by Fla-Giant on Apr 13, 2025 4:25 PM EDT up reply actions

Hey, Matt

Here’s a similar idea that you might want to use in the future. What about a post called “Starter or Reliever” where you predict where specific draft pitching prospects will end up as pros.

My son, Adalberto Mejia. He's got the goods - he just needs a cool nickname.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

by Fla-Giant on Apr 13, 2025 4:14 PM EDT reply actions