Now a member of the Atlanta Braves, Dansby Swanson was the first selection in the first round of the 2015 Major League Baseball draft. Today we'll see who gets that honor and who the Braves pick at number eight. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images)
Now a member of the Atlanta Braves, Dansby Swanson was the first selection in the first round of the 2015 Major League Baseball draft. Today we’ll see who gets that honor and who the Braves pick at number eight. (Photo by Norm Hall/Getty Images) /
The rule 4 draft begins at 6 PM today and the last mocks are out with new projections for the Atlanta Braves
The Atlanta Braves lost their third round selection and the associated pool money as a result of the misdeeds of their former general manager.
That detail doesn’t stop anyone from guessing of course and guesses aplenty abound. Over the past few weeks the Atlanta Braves choice in today’s draft seemed locked in to one player. This weekend that changed a little.
Atlanta Braves front-runner slips back
High school Nolan Gorman third baseman sat atop the mocks for weeks. The 6’1” left handed hitter offers one of the drafts best power options.
Yesterday 6’6” RHP Carter Stewart took Gorman’s place. Stewart’s mix of a high 90s fastball and a curve BA calls “other worldly” due to a 3317 rpm spin rate.
Baseball America also reports TrackMan called his curve ”among the most impressive pitches the company we’ve ever tracked, at any level”.
High school arms present a higher risk of failure but Braves’ history suggests that a pitcher with those credential would sit atop their list.
If by some quirk of fate Joey Bart falls that far the Braves will be on him like white on rice. Buster Posey didn’t sign with the Braves so a chance to grab Bart would be a karma payback.
Who’s # 2 – Pitchers
Second round mocks are hard to find so I’ll run through a few suspects… prospects.
He looks a lot like a right handed Randy Johnson and at 6′ 11″, BA’s #30 ranked prospect Sean Hjelle is clearly the tallest. A junior at Kentucky, Hjelle began his college career as a closer and moved to starter as a sophomore.
His fastball sits in the low 90s but generates lots of swing and miss because he locates it so well. His throws his 12-6 curve at 84 mph, harder than the usual hammer while his change sits in the same area.
Close behind him in 6’5” BA#18 Ethan Hankins. A lefty out of Forsyth Central High School in Cumming, Ga entered the year as a highly sought after prospect. He flashed a 70 grade curve and high 90s fastball until a shoulder injury intervened.
He returned without the speed on his heater causing some scouts to back off. As much as shoulder injuries worry me, this looks like someone who tried to hit triple digits for the scouts and suffered for it. That he’s not back to normal now wouldn’t stop me if I thought that 70 grade curve was still viable.
Who’s # 2 hitters
Interesting hitters are plentiful in this draft but most of the best will go early.
Johnson’s bat improved and displayed increasing power this spring. That should continue as he gets older and stronger. He’s okay at short but his defense looks like a move to second or third is probably in his future. He’s a good looking player who could well be a Braves target. After all, who wants to upset the Egyptian god of the afterlife?
Parker Meadows is a 6’4″left handed hitting outfield out of Grayson High School in Grayson Georgia. If the name rings a bell it should, he’s the younger brother of Pirates rookie Austin Meadows.
His bat isn’t as far along as his brother when he was drafted but his plus raw power is tempting for those who believe they can shorten his swing. He shows plus to well above-average speed and a string arm that should allow him to play anywhere in the outfield.
Other Names
Here are some other names worth knowing.
Pipeline’s #39 prospect, Jacob McCarthy the mocks say he’ll go to Arizona but if he’s available the Braves should jump on him, His three-year career at Virginia produced a .337/.423/.476/.899 line with a 12” K rate, 9% walk rate and 36 steals in 38 attempts.
In a rare case of synchronicity both BA and Pipeline rank 6’ 3” 175 Lbs RHP Owen White at #59 The China Grove, N.C. native features 95 fastball, that averages in the 91-93 mph range, an above-average curveball and a sweet changeup. He’d be a tough sign but the Braves have made those before.
How about a catcher? BA’s #49 prospect Will Banfield (Pipeline #34) fills that need. The 6’1” graduate of Brookwood High in Snellville, Ga.features a 70 grade arm and 50 grade power. He’s a solid defender and team leader.
On the other hand there’s Ba’s #41 Anthony Siegler (Pipeline #46) from Cartersville GA. Banfield is a better defender but Siegler is very good and has the advantage of being a switch hitter who makes solid contact from both sides.
One last name for consideration – simply because looks the part and he’s from Edwardsville Illinois – is Trey Riley, a 20-year-old community college arm ranked #80 by BA and #76 by Pipeline. Riley throws a 60 grade fastball with cut and slider. So far he looks like a late inning reliever but work on his change could elevate him to mid-rotation starter
That’s A Wrap
Anthopoulos’ draft record in Toronto has little to do with the way he’ll draft today other than his stated plan to take the best player on the board.
My list of other names had a lot of Georgia players imply because the Braves scout Georgia hard. I could have added Canadian Tristan Pompey since AA drafted and signed his brother Dalton. There’s probably a relationship there.
The draft is deep and most of the pitchers are high school arms. There’s a shortage of bats and college bats are shorter to the majors as a rule so a lot of them could go early as well.
