Atlanta Braves Mock Draft Monday, Version 3.0
Atlanta Braves Mock Draft Monday: Remaining Options
Pick #44
So the Braves have a power-hitting college outfielder and a power-hitting infield prospect from high school in Georgia. What would they pursue at pick #44 in the second round?
I see four routes – high school arm, catcher, BPA college bat, or BPA high school bat. With the set up that happened in the draft above, a lot of the depth in the college pitching class has worked its way off the board at the end of the first round, and there isn’t a reason to reach for it. That said, there are some very good high schoolers left on the board, including #32, #39, and #41 in the most recent BA top 200, so a number of guys who by definition should be off the board would be there. I’ll be passing on them, though.
Then you have the catchers. Wow, you have the catchers. Last week, I mentioned that while the Braves are short on depth at the position in the high minors, they are very loaded in the lower minors with solid catchers, so the position isn’t as big a need as many casual fans believe, but this is a great draft to gobble up a prospect or two simply due to the raw skills in the class. You’d have Chris Okey of Clemson on the board along with Sean Murphy of Wright State as far as college guys, and you’d have Cooper Johnson out of high school in Illinois and Ben Rortvedt out of high school in Wisconsin for high school guys. Honestly, I’d prefer to wait on that position as well as the depth in that position in this year’s class is extremely high.
So, then we come to the best available bat, college and high school. On the college side, I’ve mentioned Heath Quinn a few times, and he’s still on the board here. I’d definitely have no qualms with picking him as well. That’d be one heck of an influx of power into the system. For the first time in my mocks, toolsy Anfernee Grier of Auburn slipped out of the first round, and that could be an intriguing selection as well.
There’s also Austin Hays of Jacksonville and Ronnie Dawson of Ohio State on the board (notice they’re all outfielders…not complaining, just an observation). Hays is basically the same mold as Quinn with a little more raw tools to his make up as the prototype right fielder. Dawson is a Grier-lite, a guy with a good power/speed combination, but really more an athlete than a baseball player right now, and he might take more time than the average college player.
The high school bats offer Joe Rizzo, a line drive hitting 3B from Virginia, Bo Bichette, Dante’s son from Florida, Outfielder Akil Baddoo from Georgia, and South Carolina prep outfielder Thomas Jones. I’ve mentioned before my love of Baddoo’s skill set, and I really think if he’s on the board, even in this situation, he brings a blend of power and speed that could be great to have in the system.
My selection at #44? Honestly, I’m going to stick with the college bat, and I’m going to go for either Heath Quinn or Austin Hays, preferring Quinn.
Pick #80
In the last mock, I grabbed Matthias Dias, the top pitcher from JuCo this season, and honestly, I think that’d still be the choice here. One thing to track closely would be the fall of some of the injured guys I had mentioned in previous mocks like Daulton Jefferies and Matt Krook. Jefferies will likely go in the second round, but I could see a guy like Krook or South Carolina injured starter Wil Crowe drop hard, and grabbing one of them either here or in the 4th round would make a lot of sense with the glut of available catchers being a choice at pick 5 or 6.
So, three picks before a pitcher?! Really…are we sure, this is the Braves? In all seriousness, this would be an absolute dream scenario for many fans out there who are longing for bats, but if Lewis fell, I could absolutely see something lining up exactly like this.
What would be your thoughts on this situation?!