Jeff Francouer has been acquired by the AL West leading Texas Rangers according to many sources throughout sports and Major League Baseball. The New York Mets will receive Joaquin Arias from the Rangers in the trade. Arias had been designated for assignment last week to make room on the roster for Alex Cora.
Here we are yet again in 2010. Another sport, another draft, and another highly anticipated draft class that has to meet those overbearingly high expectations of the scouts and GM’s around Major League Baseball. While I love the sport of baseball inwards and out, I also love the memorabilia that keeps the history alive for years to come. Some of these young men will sign soon and be sent off to start their career. And the others; they will wait and wait and wait until their agent gives them the go ahead to grab a pen. Look a little closer around the internet and you may notice that they have already done that very thing. Here are the top 10 Draft Picks of the 2010 MLB Draft along with links to their memorabilia already hitting the market.
1. Bryce Harper - Washington Nationals - College of Southern Nevada - MLB.com Draft Report - The Bryce Harper story is well-documented at this point. Just 17 and in junior college, he’s gotten as much hype as any Draft prospect not named Strasburg. For the most part, he’s lived up to it in his first college season, showing incredible hitting and power skills. He’s moved around on the field and has plus arm strength from anywhere, though most would like to see him catch. The only questions that seem to remain with Harper is if he’ll go No. 1 overall and then, if he’ll sign.
2. Jameson Taillon - Pittsburgh Pirates - The Woodlands HS (TX) - MLB.com Draft Report - Taillon is the complete package in a high school pitcher, with tremendous size, stuff and a feel for pitching. He has three plus pitches in his fastball, slider and curve. Even his changeup, while not used that much, is solid. He uses his size to his advantage and has tremendous mound presence. As impressive as his stuff is, his makeup might be even better. A commitment to Rice might sound intriguing, but if he goes at the top of the first round, and everything points to that happening, it likely won’t be an issue.
3. Manny Machado - Baltimore Orioles - Brito Miami Private School (FL) - MLB.com Draft Report - Machado entered the season as the top high school position player and has done nothing to diminish that evaluation. Big and athletic, he can do just about everything on the baseball field, with the ability to hit for plenty of average and some power as he matures. He has more than enough arm to play shortstop and is fine there for now, though there is some concern he’ll outgrow the position. Even if he does, he’d be just fine at third, both in terms of handling the position defensively and providing the kind of offense teams look for at the hot corner. Regardless of his position, Machado is primed to be one of the earliest names taken off the board in June.
4. Christian Colon - Kansas City Royals - Cal State - Fullerton - MLB.com Draft Report - A big prospect since high school, there’s a lot to like about Colon’s game. He has a solid approach and setup at the plate and he makes the plays in the field. His individual tools don’t grade out well, and some think he’ll need to move to second as a pro. He was the captain of Team USA last summer and put up big numbers as well. He hadn’t done that in the early going of his junior season and this is a performance-based industry, so that could hurt his draft stock a little. Even if he doesn’t pick it up, his past performance, makeup and baseball acumen should help ensure he doesn’t wait too long to hear his name called.
5. Drew Pomeranz - Cleveland Indians - Ole Miss - MLB.com Draft Report - Pomeranz has established himself as the top lefty arm in a Draft class that hasn’t got a deep the southpaw pool. Big, strong and durable, he has the makings of an above-average three-pitch mix. He commands his fastball and breaking ball very well, and, while the changeup is a bit behind, it’s improving quickly. There’s little not to like about Pomeranz — most criticisms are on the nit-picky side — and it seems likely that he’ll hear his name called very early on Draft Day.
6. Barret Loux - Arizona Diamond Backs - Texas A&M - MLB.com Draft Report - With his performances this spring, Loux is quickly moving up draft charts. The big right-hander has four pitches he uses, though it’s his fastball and plus changeup that really stand out. His breaking stuff needs some tightening, but with his command, mound presence and easy delivery, there’s reason to believe he can improve that part of his game as well. Before the season began, most Texas college pitching buzz went to Brandon Workman, but Loux has forced his way to the top of that conversation and likely into the first couple of rounds.
7. Matt Harvey - New York Mets - North Carolina - MLB.com Draft Report - Once a top high school prospect, Harvey has reclaimed his status as a first-round candidate with a resurgent junior season. The delivery problems that had him so off his game as a sophomore have largely been corrected, though there are still some issues there that can effect his command and ability to throw his breaking ball. Still, Harvey was showing an above-average to plus fastball and maintaining his velocity, to go along with glimpses of good breaking stuff and a feel for a change. He’s come a long way this season, and he likely won’t have to wait too long to be redrafted.
8. Delino Deshields Jr - Houston Astros - Woodward Academy (GA) - MLB.com Draft Report - DeShields has two things really working in his favor: his plus speed and his bloodlines. His dad of the same name spent many years in the big leagues, and the hope is that the younger DeShields could be a similar type of player. He does have the potential to be a very good hitter and puts his speed to use on the basepaths. He has more than enough range to handle center field and the hands to play second if a team wanted to give that a look. Scouts have had a hard time getting a consistent read on DeShields. He’s toolsy and seems like he’ll fall right into the old risk vs. reward debate. It seems likely a team will be willing to take the plunge at some point not too deep into the Draft.
9. Karsten Whitson - San Diego Padres - Chipley HS (FL) - MLB.com Draft Report - It’s looking like a pretty strong year for high school arms, and Whitson should be near the top in any discussion about them. He’s already big, strong and durable and he has plenty of projection, meaning he might throw harder than his already mid-90s fastball. Add in a plus breaking ball and good changeup and he has a very intriguring three-pitch mix already. Some tweaks to his delivery could make him even more dangerous. There might be a right-hander or two ahead of Whitson on the high school depth chart, but he should figure into high Draft pick conversations come June.
10. Michael Choice - Oakland Athletics - University of Texas - Arlington - MLB.com Draft Report - In a year that lacks a ton of big-name college hitters, players from smaller programs like Choice have a chance to shine, and he is taking advantage. Though he’ll need work on his swing mechanics, he has big-time raw power to all fields. He runs well and plays a strong outfield to boot. He may not be the elite hitter clubs seek, but since there aren’t many of those this year, teams may look hard at Choice in the early going.
The Florida Marlins have signed first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz to a minor league deal according to Matt Eddy of Baseball America. Mientkiewicz only had 20 plate appearances in 2009 due to shoulder surgery in April of the ‘09 season. The Los Angeles Dodgers had re-signed Mientkiewicz to a minor league deal in December of last year, but asked for his release after not making the team. He also turned town a number of coaching opportunities from Major League and Independent League teams. Mientkiewicz has also spent time with Minnesota, Boston, Kansas City, the New York Mets, the New York Yankees, Pittsburgh and the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Ben Sheets has signed a one-year deal with the Oakland Athletics worth a reported $10 Million plus performance incentives. Sheets impressed many teams with his workout including the Texas Rangers and New York Mets. Although Sheets is a favorite of Rangers President Nolan Ryan, they are said to have never made Sheets an offer.
The Athletics may not be done with free agent talks. They are still reportedly negotiating with free agent Johnny Damon. Although Damon will take a large paycut from 2009, he will probably receive a better offer from Oakland than the $2 Million the Yankees have reportedly offered him.
Last year the Mets went for broke and signed maybe the best starter in the game, Johan Santana. His 2.53 average led the majors and he set a career-high for innings pitched. His 16-7 record seems off until you remember all the blown leads by the bullpen.
This year? Clearly the attention has already been paid to the bullpen, with the landmark acquisitions of top-notch closer Frankie Rodriguez and then J.J. Putz (New York Post editors are already salivating over the prospect of a Putz meltdown.) But, what about the starting rotation?
Clearly Johan Santana is the ace. That leaves John Maine (10-8, 4.18 ERA, 122 strikeouts in 140 innings) and Mike Pelfrey (13-11, 3.72 ERA, 110 strikeouts in 200 innings) plus the possibilities of young righty Jonathon Niese and/or one more year of Pedro Martinez.
Keeping the sometimes brilliant, sometimes erratic free agent Oliver Perez (10-7, 4.22 ERA, 180 strikeouts in 194 innings) is problematic since he has Scott Boras for an agent and therefore will be looking for a big payoff.
So that leaves the Mets lacking one front line starter and possibly a second guy to compete with Niese for the fifth spot in the rotation.
Who are they going after? A lot of that was depending on who the Yankee’s wanted. We know now that they’ve decided to pay by the pound, offering C.C. Sabathia $160 million and A.J. Burnett about half that to don the pinstripes. Knowing the Yanks would outbid everyone else for their targets, the Mets sat back and observed.
Now, it’s time to spring into action. Here are a few possibilities.
Rumor 1: The Mets will sign go after Derek Lowe.
Although the Mets have been denying it, there’s no doubt they are interested in 35-year-old Derek Lowe (14-11, 3.24 ERA, 147 strikeouts in 211 innings.) He’s a proven winner and he’s durable, if not a bit over the hill. Rumors persist that Lowe is more interested in money than years, which works well for the Mets, who don’t want to commit another long contract to a guy who is getting up there in years. Lowe may also be targeted by the Boston Red Sox, which could no doubt add complication to bringing him to the Mets.
Rumor 2: The Mets will stand pat and keep Oliver Perez.
It seemed early on that the Mets were willing to Let Ollie go, fearing his contract would outsize his potential contribution. However, we’re seeing contracts trending toward lower amounts than expected, particularly in the case of the F-Rod signing. Ollie has his problems with blowups, but he’s also a giant-killer who’s been particularly effective against big-time foes like the Yankees and Phillies. Let’s also not forget that Ollie is young, durable, left-handed, and has good velocity and a lot of great stuff.
Rumor 3: The Mets fill in the blanks with Randy Wolf.
Also on the Mets wish list is Astros 32-year-old left-hander Randy Wolf (12-12, 4.30 ERA, 162 strikeouts in 190 innings.) Wolf is dependable and would be an adequate replacement for Perez, albeit with less upside, but more consistency.
In Conclusion
Once again I’m just laying out the possibilities and running scared from making any solid predictions. However, if you held me by the ankles over a ledge at the top of the Empire State Building and told me to make the call, I’d say the Mets are going to use the money they brilliantly saved on the bullpen to sign Oliver Perez to a healthy contract. Another wild guess is that Niese and Pedro will compete for the number five starter spot along with one more lower-level starter from the free agent pool.
BigAppleRoss: hey, you there? I need a bio for StudyofSports.com…i’m going to write about the Mets
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BigAppleRoss: ok, nevermind
SuperPal3000 has signed off.
LovingMom1945 has signed on.
BigAppleRoss: hello mom! I quickly need a bio for this sports site I’m
going to do some Mets-related writing for.
LovingMom1945: HELLO ROSS
LovingMom1945: THAT’S WONDERFUL, WE’RE SO PROUD
LovingMom1945: YOU’VE ALWAYS BEEN SUCH A GOOD WRITER, WITH YOUR BIG CITY NEW YORK EXPERIENCE
LovingMom1945: WE MISS YOU! COME HOME. YOU TELL THEM I LOVE YOU
BigAppleRoss: hmm. well, I don’t know that that’s the right angle.
Ross Morrison lives in Brooklyn with his girlfriend and two cats and writes all over the place for as long as they’ll keep paying him.
Benjamin Edwards - Editor, Studyofsports.com
