2023 MLB Draft thread

[Timmy U]

6 minutes ago, bmags said:

power is a huge huge glaring need thou.

If he can get to it, sure. I think there's a high probability Morales is a righty lf/rf/1b with power over hit so he'll have a .700ish OPS made up mostly of running into some mistakes. We've had over 25 years of that profile and it hasn't won much.

[bmags]

Just now, Timmy U said:

If he can get to it, sure. I think there's a high probability Morales is a righty lf/rf/1b with power over hit so he'll have a .700ish OPS made up mostly of running into some mistakes. We've had over 25 years of that profile and it hasn't won much.

There is a high probability all of the first rounders fail. And we certainly have not been drafting for any sort of power profiles, which is not the same as players that should have power profiles based off of body but like to slap it to 2nd base.

[Quin]

20 minutes ago, bmags said:

There is a high probability all of the first rounders fail. And we certainly have not been drafting for any sort of power profiles, which is not the same as players that should have power profiles based off of body but like to slap it to 2nd base.

I s%*# you not, hyper linking this video and the phrase "Andrew Vaughn moon shots" on a cover letter before he was drafted got me an interview back in 2019.

[bmags]

2 minutes ago, Quin said:

I s%*# you not, hyper linking this video and the phrase "Andrew Vaughn moon shots" on a cover letter before he was drafted got me an interview back in 2019.

He wasn't really a prodigious power guy though. I don't know this all gives me flashbacks to the arguments that we couldn't develop high schoolers or athletes when really we were barely drafting them and the few we did just happened not to pan out as is common with draft picks.

[PolishPrince34]

Keith Law last mock. Ton of new information on each team. 
 

15. Chicago White Sox – Enrique Bradfield Jr., OF Vanderbilt

I think this is the floor for Dollander and they could be in the mix for Waldrep as well. I haven’t heard them with Wilson specifically, but he’d fit here given how they seem to scout and value players.

Edited July 7, 2023 by PolishPrince34

[Y2Jimmy0]

I’m pretty confident that the White Sox aren’t interested in Hurston Waldrep

[Timmy U]

23 minutes ago, Y2Jimmy0 said:

I’m pretty confident that the White Sox aren’t interested in Hurston Waldrep

Latest CBS mock has them taking Waldrep which I find hard to believe.

[Harold's Leg Lift]

#TheRickHahnFactor

[CWSpalehoseCWS]

Paywalled, so I’m not sure who he has going to the Sox.

[bmags]

I think when sox were in the 20s we got some pretty good info on who they could take based on representation. I find this years mocks less compelling as at 15 there is a mix of top ten players falling and being in that position of the round where they try to stop falls to us. I guess I don't buy Jacob Wilson at all, and Waldrep doesn't sound like a Shirley guy either.

I guess I think I buy them potentially stopping a Dollander fall. I buy the Yohandy Morales interest just based off sox taking quite a few miami players in the last decade.

The one guy I thought based off of scouting reports I'd hear sox interest on was Nimmala but I haven't really seen it come up in BA/Law (haven't looked at mlb pipeline or mcdaniel).

I guess just doing draft write up tea leaves plus what we know of shirley/sox I'd go Yohandy at 20%, Dollander/Bradfield at 15%, Houck/Miller/Troy at 12% 

split the rest up among surprise fallers and people not mentioned, but I guess I'm not including Chase Davis.

I don't know, but I guess that makes this a fun draft

[PolishPrince34]

ESPN 

15. Chicago White Sox

Chase Dollander, RHP, Tennessee

The White Sox are checking out the prep bats here, but I think this pick will come down to Yohandy Morales or Dollander. Morales closed well and could hit 30 homers as a third baseman, while Dollander had a real shot to go in the top three picks when the spring started. He wasn't bad this spring, he just performed below the lofty expectations

[bmags]

1 minute ago, PolishPrince34 said:

ESPN 

15. Chicago White Sox

Chase Dollander, RHP, Tennessee

The White Sox are checking out the prep bats here, but I think this pick will come down to Yohandy Morales or Dollander. Morales closed well and could hit 30 homers as a third baseman, while Dollander had a real shot to go in the top three picks when the spring started. He wasn't bad this spring, he just performed below the lofty expectations

yeah I think this sounds right.

[PolishPrince34]

Insiders keep on mentioning interested in prep players, but no one ever has them selecting the HS player in the mocks. 

[Y2Jimmy0]

33 minutes ago, CWSpalehoseCWS said:

Paywalled, so I’m not sure who he has going to the Sox.

 

3 minutes ago, PolishPrince34 said:

ESPN 

15. Chicago White Sox

Chase Dollander, RHP, Tennessee

The White Sox are checking out the prep bats here, but I think this pick will come down to Yohandy Morales or Dollander. Morales closed well and could hit 30 homers as a third baseman, while Dollander had a real shot to go in the top three picks when the spring started. He wasn't bad this spring, he just performed below the lofty expectations

Kiley also has them taking Mahomet HS RHP Blake Wolters in the 2nd round as well. 

[bmags]

2 minutes ago, PolishPrince34 said:

Insiders keep on mentioning interested in prep players, but no one ever has them selecting the HS player in the mocks. 

I think this is still giving sox the broad organizational preference of college pitchers that was true for 20 years but not really shown under Shirley + where they are in the draft where they are using them to sop up players that are falling.

But yes if I was a mock writer who wrote multiple mocks I think I'd occasionally put a prep player on them...

[Harold's Leg Lift]

4 minutes ago, Y2Jimmy0 said:

 

Kiley also has them taking Mahomet HS RHP Blake Wolters in the 2nd round as well. 

They gotta get him down there and pay him 1st round money. 

[Harold's Leg Lift]

Quote

He wasn't bad this spring, he just performed below the lofty expectations

4.75 era, a .243 ba against and 14 HR allowed is kinda bad, Kiley. 

[Squirmin' for Yermin]

I'd love Dollander at 15.  Swing for the fences

[PolishPrince34]

Blake Wolters

RHP

---

MAHOMET-SEYMOUR HIGH (MAHOMET, ILL.)

Scouting Report

Bats: R, Throws: R

Wolters is a 6-4 Arizona commit who didn’t do the showcase circuit, making him a hot name this spring as scouts have rushed in to see him. He’s been up to 97 mph already with a slider that’s at least a 55, showing a loose arm and high 3/4 slot that puts some riding life on the fastball up in the zone. He’s already somewhat filled out and has the classic “workhorse” pitcher’s frame that teams have targeted for decades. Some minor delivery help to get him to generate more power from his hips and legs could have him sitting mid-90s in a few years, although he’ll need to also develop a third pitch to reach his ceiling as a mid-rotation to above-average starter.

[bmags]

18 minutes ago, PolishPrince34 said:

Blake Wolters

RHP

---

MAHOMET-SEYMOUR HIGH (MAHOMET, ILL.)

Scouting Report

Bats: R, Throws: R

Wolters is a 6-4 Arizona commit who didn’t do the showcase circuit, making him a hot name this spring as scouts have rushed in to see him. He’s been up to 97 mph already with a slider that’s at least a 55, showing a loose arm and high 3/4 slot that puts some riding life on the fastball up in the zone. He’s already somewhat filled out and has the classic “workhorse” pitcher’s frame that teams have targeted for decades. Some minor delivery help to get him to generate more power from his hips and legs could have him sitting mid-90s in a few years, although he’ll need to also develop a third pitch to reach his ceiling as a mid-rotation to above-average starter.

I thought this would be a Seattle 29 guy but with them getting mocked preps that fall at 22 who knows.

[bmags]

carlos come on man give us a dart

15. White Sox — Tommy Troy, 3B, Stanford

Slot Value: $4,488,600 

Total Bonus Pool: $9,072,800

It’s been college and hitter heavy for the White Sox for a while now in my conversations, and they should be right in the middle of a solid wave of college hitters. In this scenario Troy, Enrique Bradfield, Nolan Schanuel and Chase Davis seem to be the best of the bunch. Chicago gets linked more to the college third base duo of Yohandy Morales and Brock Wilken than others around it as well, and I think they are real options here as well. It’s very hard to see players like Brayden Taylor and Jacob Gonzalez getting much further down the board than this if they are somehow still available with all of the potential landing spots in front. 

Dart Throw Later Picks:

https://www.baseballamerica.com/stories/2023-mlb-mock-draft-version-4-0/

[CWSpalehoseCWS]

BA’s latest mock:

 

[peanut33tillman]

Dollander buzz is starting to take shape over last week. Feels like it very well could end up being Dollander or Morales if I had to guess. 

[Harold's Leg Lift]

Taking Dollander would be Hahn drafting for need and you NEVER draft for need but it's even worse in a draft this loaded with bats.  They deserve him to f*** this up.  

[Y2Jimmy0]

3 minutes ago, Harold's Leg Lift said:

Taking Dollander would be Hahn drafting for need and you NEVER draft for need but it's even worse in a draft this loaded with bats.  They deserve him to f*** this up.  

I disagree very much at 15. I think he's better than he showed this season. It's a no brainer if he gets to 15 when you're likely taking an underwhelming college hitter anyway. There are plenty of prep bats to take. I'd much rather gamble on Dollander than a 2nd rate college hitter.