OcalaBrave
Spring Training Invitee
Waters was originally drafted at 41. So essentially we got a 5 year look at his development and then cashed him in for another crack at getting that pick right.
Braves acquire No. 35 pick in MLB Draft for Drew Waters and more
- Thread starter CJ9
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MLB draft is a snooze fest because 95% of players are are guys no one has ever heard of until their name is called. I mean you could be really into high school and college baseball and still not now hardly any of the guys drafted past round 2-3.
Also, it's much harder to get invested into draft picks like other sports because you typically don't see those players make a MLB impact until year 3 at the earliest.
Russ2dollas
10 yr, $185 million Extension
what percentage of guys in any MLB draft actually ever play in the majors? 10 percent?
It's a totally different animal. Also a reason why the NFL and the NBA has wanted to push kids to college. Free development and more information for them to make a decision.
msstate7
Well-known member
Regardless, if you could package picks or players to move up in the draft it would make it better.
bravesfanMatt
Steve Harvey'd
I think the fear would be top spending teams who have the ability to fill rosters with FA contracts could continuiously trade prospects and picks to get high draft picks that have better hit rates. I think you need a salary cap in order for things like this to work. The Dodgers and Yankees really don't need a bunch of 2 win prospects running around the minors.. they can buy those every year. They want top 50 prospects.
Until baseballs grows a pair and institutes a cap and floor, baseball will always be a game of haves and have nots with a group in the middle who can slap the haves around a few years here and there.
Russ2dollas
10 yr, $185 million Extension
Disagree that a cap is required for anything. MLB has more diversity of teams and markets winning than the other major sports.
The issue with baseball on most everything is the owners that want to spend and the owners that don't want to spend. We will likely disagree about want to spend vs can't spend.
Trading picks has people worried someone will sell all of their draft picks or sell all of their players for draft picks.
I think they just need to put in some rules. But I don't think we need a cap. I do think we need a floor, but the floor is provided by the minimum salary. I wanted them to raise the minimum salary much more. There are lots of rich people who want teams. If you wont spend 100 million on payroll, sell.
This extra pick is desperately needed considering the Braves now have the worst farm in the game, which was only 2nd worst before the Harris and Strider graduations.
https://www.fangraphs.com/prospects...ranking?sort=-1,1&type=100&filter=&pos=&team=
This is precisely how windows of contention close...
https://www.fangraphs.com/prospects...ranking?sort=-1,1&type=100&filter=&pos=&team=
This is precisely how windows of contention close...
The farm system hasn't been this bad since the days of Frank Wren. But when you produce players like Simmons/Wood or Harris/Strider you get a little pass.
If the farm doesn't start to improve though in the next 2-3 years then we will know it was a massive mistake getting rid of Bridge/Clark.
If the farm doesn't start to improve though in the next 2-3 years then we will know it was a massive mistake getting rid of Bridge/Clark.
Hudson2
Well-known member
The good thing here is that AA realizes we need to build the farm up and got the extra pick. I expect to see a Riley extension and Fried extension this offseason and that’ll help secure positions for awhile. Hopefully we can add a few high upside guys to the farm in a few weeks.
Yup - Adding in Harris/Strider will offset the fact that the farm is mostly hot garbage right now.
There is a 2-3 year window to drastically improve the talent and that needs to be executed effectively. I love the draft strategy and now we can play in the International markets. AA is a great GM so I would bet my money on him figuring it out.
there could be guys in our system that can emerge in the next year that aren’t highly ranked or touted now.
Harris and Strider seemingly came out of nowhere. And they are producing at a high level in the bigs.
AA has really low key made some solid call ups and traded some value guys that haven’t panned out yet. He’s so far held on to the solid guys and traded some that can’t help us right now.
striker42
Well-known member
Our farm system is barren largely for two reasons, the first is we used it to make our team a contender. Teams like the Braves who can't just fill their holes by throwing money at it have to lean on their farm to get the pieces they need to contend. Doing this paid off. We got a series and still have a nice contention window ahead of us.
Second, we're just now really feeling the full effect of the unprecedented sanctions MLB hurled at us from Coppy. The effects of those sanctions lagged. As we've promoted and traded away, we've not had the supply of guys coming behind to fill spaces. The international sanctions were just brutal. MLB would have never done that to a team like the Yankees or Dodgers. The Braves aren't enough of a sacred cow to get that protection. But those sanctions put air in the pipe that we're really feeling now.
Second, we're just now really feeling the full effect of the unprecedented sanctions MLB hurled at us from Coppy. The effects of those sanctions lagged. As we've promoted and traded away, we've not had the supply of guys coming behind to fill spaces. The international sanctions were just brutal. MLB would have never done that to a team like the Yankees or Dodgers. The Braves aren't enough of a sacred cow to get that protection. But those sanctions put air in the pipe that we're really feeling now.
The key for extending this window (as it typically is for mid-market teams) is likely going to be the continued high attendance/success of The Battery and ownership's commitment to allow payroll to continue to reflect those revenue stream levels.
I realize it isn't the prescribed route for the more analytically-minded crowd, but REASONABLE extensions for Dansby, Fried, and Riley through at least the end of the Acuna deal would hopefully allow Alex to continue filtering through the AAAA guys he has and restock the system in time to eliminate the gaping hole that exists because of the previous international restrictions. If Dansby's extended, Arcia stays a utility guy (where he's best-suited to be), and Shewmake becomes one as early as next season as well. With Riley around longer, he or Grissom could potentially finally plug the hole in LF with the other one manning 3B. If you could keep Fried on board for an additional 2 seasons, you'd potentially have your top 3 rotation guys (going out on a limb and assuming Strider can stick in the rotation) in place through 2026.
Would those extensions represent a big gamble? Of course. However, they would buy Alex 4-5 years to continue to work his magic and begin putting replacement pieces in place.
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NYCBrave
Well-known member
I'd argue that the Braves have promoted more high end talent through their organization over the past 6 years than any other. Swanson, Albies, Acuna, Soroka, Fried, Riley, Anderson, Contreras, Wright and now Strider and Harris.
And as mentioned, they have seemingly figured out exactly which guys to keep and which to trade.
The one nitpick I have is the bullpen. There have been plenty of pitcher busts at the higher levels of the minors that they should have been able to convert into cheap late inning weapons, but it hasn't happened. Aside from Minter, the bullpen is essentially all put together through free agency.
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jpx7
Very Flirtatious, but Doubts What Love Is.
I think Grissom is one guy that FG hung too low of a grade on, thus leaving the team with no prospects above the 45 FV-tier.
Russ2dollas
10 yr, $185 million Extension
I agree.
The system is bad, last bad. BUT that's not a total kick at AA's drafting and development team. We had the Coppy sanctions. We are back in that market but the guys are too far away and have not played to show potential value. I'm not saying there is an Ozzie or Acuna or Contreras in there, but there could be talent.
We also have had some incredibly fast promotions. Strider and Harris are expected to be in the minors.
It is a very fair criticism that none of our failed starters have been in the pen. Amazing they have all either hit or been trash. Maybe Muller breaks that trend.
I do wish they'd go back and look at their models that have them so in love with college pitchers with velocity spikes and college hitters who have no carrying skill.
Russ2dollas
10 yr, $185 million Extension
I agree with you, but I'm just reading. I'm not a scout.
In FG defense, Grissom has still been in a 21 yo in high A. That's not old, but it's not young. If he performs at AA, then he'll earn an increase.
His pop in AA last year should have been the indication that he was advanced.
Hitting on Wright, Harris, Contreras and Strider all at once may have just extended the window to the next wave of talent. That type of hit rate in that type of non-elite prospect would be truly noteworthy if they continue to produce. That’s roughly 10 WAR per year from those guys?