My Take On What the Sox Could Do With Their Top Pick

[DaTank]

So it's been a while since I've actively posted here at Soxtalk, but I've been thinking/reading a lot into the 2010 Draft lately and thought many of you would enjoy a piece on the possibilities for us at 13th overall year. I'm no draft expert, but I thought I'd give this a shot.

 

It's been said that the Sox will likely focus on pitching in 2010, specifically of the collegiate ranks. I expect southpaws Drew Pomeranz and Chris Sale along with righty Jameson Taillon to be off the boards by 13 so I won't include them. Let's look at some names the Sox might be focusing on with their top pick.

 

 

Collegiate Arms:

RHP/OF - Brett Eibner, Arkansas. Likely the top two-way player in the draft. Fastball has touched 97. (BA's 14th ranked pitcher)

RHP - Matt Harvey, North Carolina. Plus fastball and slider. Command can be a problem at times. (BA's 11th ranked pitcher)

RHP - Deck McGuire, Georgia Tech. One of the more consistent college arms. (BA's 4th ranked pitcher)

RHP - Anthony Ranaudo, LSU. Projected to be a top 5 pick coming into this year, recent elbow troubles have pushed him down most boards. 2010 stats are just plain ugly. (BA's 15th ranked pitcher)

RHP - Alex Wimmers, Ohio State. Very polished righty. (BA's 12th ranked pitcher)

RHP - Asher Wojciechowski, The Citadel. Great command of his hard fastball. (BA's 13th ranked pitcher)

RHP - Brandon Workman, Texas. Seems to be more of a contact pitcher with 87 K's in 88 innings. (BA's 10th ranked pitcher)

 

Prep Arms:

RHP - Stetson Allie, St. Edwards HS, Lakewood, OH. Has the best stuff in draft next to Jameson Taillon. (BA's 5th ranked pitcher)

RHP - A.J. Cole, Oviedo HS, Oviedo, FL. Coming into this year he was projected to be right up at the top of the draft with prep righty Jameson Taillon but has very slightly fallen off. (BA's 8th ranked pitcher)

RHP - Dylan Covey, Maranatha HS, Pasadena, CA. Good mechanics. Above average stuff and command. (BA's 9th ranked pitcher)

RHP/3B - Kaleb Cowart, Cook HS, Adel, GA. Two-way prep player likely to be drafted as a pitcher. (BA's 6th ranked pitcher)

RHP - Karsten Whitson, Chipley HS, Chipley, FL. Holds the best command among prep pitchers in the draft. (BA's 7th ranked pitcher)

 

First thing you'll notice is that I haven't included any lefties. Outside of Pomeranz and Sale there's a bit of a drop off in southpaws. James Paxton and Sammy Solis are possibilities, but both are regarded as Supplemental 1st/2nd Round talents at this point.

 

Next, I'll look at the position players that could still be around when we pick at 13. I'm writing this with the assumption that Bryce Harper, Zack Cox, and Manny Machado will be off the boards by the time our pick comes around.

 

Collegiate Position Players:

OF - Gary Brown, Cal State Fullerton. Broke his hand this year. Likely won't be picked until a little later, but, tools galore. (BA's 9th ranked position player)

OF - Bryce Brentz, Middle Tennessee State. Was projected higher after an insane performance of a .465 batting average with 28 HR in '09. Supposedly one of the better power bats in the draft, but has poor size for a "power hitter". One of my least favorites to go to us at 13. (BA's 15th ranked position player)

OF - Michael Choice, Texas-Arlington. Nice power and patience with a chance to stick in CF. (BA's 6th ranked position player)

SS - Christian Colon, Cal State Fullerton. "Safe" college bat. (BA's 4th ranked position player)

C - Yasmani Grandal, Miami. Likely to be the second catcher picked behind Bryce Harper. Personal favorite. (BA's 8th ranked position player)

2B - Kolbrin Vitek, Ball State. "Gifted hitter". Move to OF likely at the pro level. (BA's 13th ranked position player)

 

Prep Position Players:

3B - Nick Castellanos, Archbishop McCarthy HS, Southwest Ranches, FL. Very intriguing player to watch. Personally, I'd love this pick if he's still around. He's a leader and an athlete. Former SS converted to 3B. (BA's 10th ranked position player)

C - Justin O'Conner, Cowan HS, Muncie, IN. Raw catcher in his first year at the position after recently being converted from SS. Has a plus-plus arm. (BA's 12th ranked position player)

OF - Josh Sale, Bishop Blanchet HS, Seattle, WA. "Physical beast" with good power and a solid overall bat. (BA's 5th ranked position player)

OF - Austin Wilson, Harvard-Westlake HS, Los Angeles, CA. Some of the best tools in the draft. Strong Stanford commitment. Likely hard to sign. Another personal favorite. (BA's 14th ranked position player)

 

If the Sox go with a position player, I'd love to see them snatch up Yasmani Grandal, Austin Wilson, or Nick Castellanos, pending who's available. If they go pitching with their first pick, I'd hope to see a pick of Deck McGuire, Alex Wimmers, Stetson Allie, Karten Whitson, or Dylan Covey. Offer your thoughts in the comments.

 

Link to where I got a decent amount of my information. It's Baseball America's current rankings of the top 200.

 

 

 

[ChiliIrishHammock24]

Justin O'Connor!

[BearSox]

I'm personally a fan of Austin Wilson this year. Usually I prefer a college bat, but this year seems to be lacking big time with good, advanced college hitters.

 

Wilson has great tools, and while he needs work on his swing, I've heard he's got a great work ethic and character to maximize his potential. I'm willing to take a shot at him. He could be that stud OF prospect we've been in need of.