June Rule IV pre-draft Thread

We have a multitude of picks and depending on how we configure our bonus pool, I don't think there's any question that we can't do some things across the board as nsacpi has suggested. I foresee balance (or at least I hope to see balance) over the early portion of the draft.
 
USA Today:

14. Atlanta Braves
Cornelius Randolph, SS, Griffin (Ga.) HS: The Braves do an outstanding job of scouting their in-state products. But in this scenario neither Cameron nor Stephenson falls to them. The best home prospect left on the board is shortstop Randolph, and he has done nothing to dampen his first-round stock.

They have us with Chalmers at 28
 
Tapate50 said:
USA Today:

14. Atlanta Braves
Cornelius Randolph, SS, Griffin (Ga.) HS: The Braves do an outstanding job of scouting their in-state products. But in this scenario neither Cameron nor Stephenson falls to them. The best home prospect left on the board is shortstop Randolph, and he has done nothing to dampen his first-round stock.

They have us with Chalmers at 28
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I know you don't draft for need in baseball but I don't see how it makes sense to draft a SS with our first pick.
 
thethe said:
I know you don't draft for need in baseball but I don't see how it makes sense to draft a SS with our first pick.
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It's one of the oldest old-school rules of thumb: a shortstop can play anywhere. But I'd rather have a college slugger who doesn't strike out. But wouldn't we all?
 
rico43 said:
It's one of the oldest old-school rules of thumb: a shortstop can play anywhere. But I'd rather have a college slugger who doesn't strike out. But wouldn't we all?
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What's interesting is that the "sluggers" in this draft from the college level do not fit the "slugger" prototype. The player with the highest slugging percentage in all of college baseball in 2015 is a sophomore from North Florida named Donnie Dewees. He is 5'11", 195 lbs. The #3 slugger in college baseball was Andrew Benintendi from Arkansas. He is 5'10", 180 lbs. Ian Happ had the 11th highest slugging percentage in college baseball, and he's 5'11", 180 lbs.
 
I wonder if the Braves scouts have followed Gio Brusa since drafting him in 2012. That's a college hitter with some big time natural raw power in his swing.
 
KB21 said:
What's interesting is that the "sluggers" in this draft from the college level do not fit the "slugger" prototype. The player with the highest slugging percentage in all of college baseball in 2015 is a sophomore from North Florida named Donnie Dewees. He is 5'11", 195 lbs. The #3 slugger in college baseball was Andrew Benintendi from Arkansas. He is 5'10", 180 lbs. Ian Happ had the 11th highest slugging percentage in college baseball, and he's 5'11", 180 lbs.
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I wouldn't be surprised to see the Braves go for someone like Gio Brusa if he's there n the third round. Switch-hitting OF with decent power projection who hasn't quite put it together in college.

KB, posted the same thought just after you did. Brusa was drafted under the previous scouting team so I don't know if there's any type of "follow" that would have been somewhat automatic if the regime hadn't changed. Agree that Brusa is a legitimate power prospect.
 
All of the hitters ranked in the mid to late first round range are pretty much the same thing: a guy that probably can't play CF long term, arm best fits in LF, has an above average hit tool, and should have about average power. The only exception is Randolph, who will likely be able to play 3B. Therefore, I think I might prefer Randolph (can play a more premium position) or Happ (college bat that might be ready by 2017).

If the Braves think they can get one of those prep hitters mentioned throughout this thread at 28, then I have no problem with them taking a guy like Russell at 14.
 
FWIW, Mark Bowman has a report where he states that Brian Bridges, Atlanta's Director of Scouting, has said he is focusing on high school athletes that did more than just tour the showcase circuit this year.
 
http://m.braves.mlb.com/news/article/129123210/braves-eye-championship-caliber-players-in-draft

MLB.com: Do you feel more of an opportunity to add real impact and depth in the organization with this many picks up pretty high?
Bridges: We want to get back to what we did, and what we did successfully as a Braves family (in the past). We drafted high-end high school players that are healthy, that are championship-caliber players. ... What I've been stressing to everybody, and we've stressed as a group: Who are they in October? Who do we think we're getting in October? You guys don't want to be standing around here September (30th) in five years and going, 'Hey, the season's over.' That's not what we're trying to build, that's not acceptable as a staff, I don't think it's acceptable, for even you guys as fans of the Braves, to expect anything less than championship-caliber players. That's what we want to bring.
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MLB.com: Are character and other intangibles even more important than a player's talent?
Bridges: I've put a lot of weight and emphasis on multi-sport players. They don't necessarily have to be on the showcase circuit, might be a name you haven't heard, it might be somebody that doesn't make sense, but you know what? He's going to be athletic, he's going to have the ability to play here at SunTrust Park. … He's going to have those qualities as a player. And that's what I want.
I want guys who have failed in another sport, I want guys who have been hit in the teeth, where it's not just, 'Hey, mom drove me to the ballpark, carried my bag out there for me, and brought me a Gatorade.' I see it all the time. But I want guys that can handle being put in that situation.
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http://www.myajc.com/news/sports/ba...witter_2014_braves_sfp#d2338f04.257077.735756

“Moving forward our philosophy is going to be more on makeup,” Bridges said Sunday. “You can have all the ability in the world – you’ve seen players that had all the ability in the world, but the character and the person, who they were…. There’s not enough people playing baseball that play other sports. So to be honest with you, I’ve put a lot of weight and emphasis on multi-sport players.”
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http://usatodayhss.com/2015/outfiel...be-an-intriguing-choice-for-no-1-in-mlb-draft

A high school center fielder out of Niskayuna, N.Y., a suburb north of Albany, Whitley has just about all the tools scouts look for in an impact position player – he is fast and strong; he has the ability to play a premium position in center field; he has the potential to hit for power — and he grades out high for his makeup, work ethic and intelligence.

But he represents one of the riskier species in the draft: Not only is he the classic high-risk, high-reward high school outfielder, but he hails from the Northeast, a region of the country in which cold weather shortens the baseball season and limits scouting opportunities. It’s a region whose prospects cause teams to be hesitant before buying into a player’s abilities.
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Interesting. Athletic guy with reportedly great make up. He didn't do any showcase events prior to last year. Don't know if he is a multi sport guy or not.
 
Nick Piecoro ‏@nickpiecoro

Dbacks scouting director Deric Ladnier says they've settled on who they'll take at No. 1 overall tomorrow, but he's not tipping his hand.
 
The slot value of our #14 pick is $2,842,400 . . .

Jeff Passan ‏@JeffPassan 19m19 minutes ago
Draft day: When HS kids' bonus demands get real. Georgia prep SS Cornelius Randolph saying he'll sign for $2.4M after asking $4M all spring.
 
I wonder if Jahmai Jones is on our radar at all. The more I read about him, the more he sounds like someone the Braves might take a long look at in the 2nd round. Plus hitter who has moved from the IF to the OF and looks to have the athleticism to stay in CF. Georgia kid with great athletic bloodlines (his late father was a starting DE at Notre Dame and Jahmai was a dual-sport kid until a year or so ago). Jones' make-up and maturity are supposedly off the charts (in a positive direction). Reading Bridges' comments the other day, I couldn't help but think of Jones as a possible second-rounder.
 
dak said:
The slot value of our #14 pick is $2,842,400 . . .

Jeff Passan ‏@JeffPassan 19m19 minutes ago
Draft day: When HS kids' bonus demands get real. Georgia prep SS Cornelius Randolph saying he'll sign for $2.4M after asking $4M all spring.
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This makes me wonder even more if we'd grab Randolph at 14 and use the excess money on Brady Aiken (if he somehow gets past the Dodgers) or Donnie Everett.
 
clvclv said:
This makes me wonder even more if we'd grab Randolph at 14 and use the excess money on Brady Aiken (if he somehow gets past the Dodgers) or Donnie Everett.
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Word leaking out that the medicals on Aiken were overblown, and we likely have to grab him at 14 if we wanted him. Looks to be in that 12-17 range now from what I read.
 
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