This season, I have had the great pleasure of covering Modesto Nuts as part of our juvenile reports. Although the A-level Nuts are not the “best” affiliate in terms of wins and losses, the A-level Nuts are a young, fun and dynamic team with some international prospects making their debut throughout the season in the state (CF Jonatan Clase, 3B Milkar Perez, RHP Joseph Hernández), as well as Mariners’ top three drafts from the 2021 draft, all prep players: C Harry Ford, SS Edwin Arroyo and RHP Michael Morales. It was nice to see how these three learn and develop their games, and their raw talent acquires a professional touch. And for Arroyo, who has been electric for the past month, it’s not hard to squint a little and see the next rising Mariners star.
The 2021 draft was remarkable for Mariners because it represented a drastic shift in the draft philosophy, a clear demarcation between a wave of potential talent adjacent to MLB or MLB and the next wave, titled Ford, Arroyo and the 2021 International Agreement of OF Lazaro. Montes, among others. In the past, Mariners focused almost exclusively on sourcing players with a much shorter schedule for big players, as these players were thought to be available to support the wave of potential that led them to college performers rather than high-profile prep players. who need longer development paths. Although we have been watching the Modesto young players thrive, I could not help but think what the system would have looked like if the Mariners had only adopted this strategy a year earlier, in the 2020 draft when they had the sixth choice. in general.
Usually, I’m opposed to draft scenarios because they allow for extreme cherry picking, benefit exclusively from a 20/20 retrospective, and can be performed outside of the rules that normally govern checkers, such as other teams, bonus funds, and the like. However, I think it is worth examining in depth what the Mariners got in their 2020 draft if they had the best choice, and at least comparing it to a sample of what they could have had if they had implemented their 2021 draft strategy. just a year earlier.
Sixth general selection of the first round:
Initial selection: RHP Emerson Hancock, Georgia
Current level: Double-A
Due to injuries, Hancock has played less than 67 innings as a Seattle Mariner and has seen its potential stock decline during that time, falling out of the Top 100 at most outlets. He has been remarkably consistent when he has been healthy, posting almost identical numbers at every stop of minors, but these numbers are not exactly conspicuous – the strikeout rate is around 24%. Overall, it’s been a good performance when he’s managed to stay on top of the hill, but for the first time in years, the choice next to the Top 5 has been okay to admit, so far it’s been disappointing.
Selection around: Robert Hassell III, Independence High School (TN)
Current level: high A (.317 / .383 / .508)
Please forgive me for taking this particular hobby horse again, but I wanted Bobby Three Sticks to become a sailor. so badly, having seen him play the hero on the US team over and over again this summer. RH3 demonstrated first-class bat-to-ball skills, although he had questions about how much strength he had achieved; so far, he has kept skeptics in check, earning a promotion to High-A to finish his first year in the professional ball; Being High-As this year, he is still offering power in the unsuitable countries of the Midwest with Fort Wayne TinCaps, which is priced at over € 0,500. If RH3 isn’t your type, Zac Veen (John’s favorite in this draft) was also available here; AquaSox fans may recognize him as he is currently tearing the Rockies NWL.
General selection for the second round, 43.
Initial selection: OF Zach DeLoach, Texas A&M
Current level: Double-A (.260 / .357 / .399)
DeLoach has had a hard time leaving Funko Field. He struggled after moving to Arkansas last season, then went to the Arizona Fall League and worked even harder. Although he has had moments so far this season, he is posting almost exactly the same line as last year in his first round in Arkansas. DeLoach’s business card was supposed to be able to hit the ball with a bat, but the bounce rate, which is currently dangerously close to 30%, puts it at risk and it doesn’t have enough strength to make up for the lack of access to the base. .
Re-selected: SS Masyn Winn, Kingwood High School (Texas)
Current level: Double-A (.267 / .340 / .489)
First, the Cardinals are known for their aggressive outlook on prospects, but let’s just say it’s wild that 20-year-old Winn (just 20 years old!) Is on par with a nearly 24-year-old. old DeLoach. The Cardinals have been aggressive with Winn since the jump, lifting him to High-A in the middle of his first pro season and then raising him again after performing at less than 150 this year’s level, to be honest. was wRC + 164. Winn drafted largely due to his hand and defensive ability – he managed to reach 98 in the mound as a two-way player – but his hits have exploded since he became a pro. After standing out for more than a quarter of the time he tasted High-A for the first time, he dropped that number to a more respectable 20 percent, which he has maintained to an even more advanced Double-A level while still walking.
Round B, general selection 64.
Initial selection: RHP Connor Phillips, McClennan Community College
Current status: exchanged for Jesse Winker / Eugenio Suárez as PTBNL for the Reds
Mariners had a valuable extra this year and used it against Phillips, their youngest draft player; not a high school player, but definitely a high school neighbor. Phillips has a huge remark, but he’s struggling with what he’s doing now in the Reds system, not Mariners’, as he and his host, Brandon Williamson, were the main pieces traded for two years for Jesse Winker and three years. / Eugenio Suárez has $ 33 million left.
Re-elected: RHP Alex Santos II, St. Michael’s Academy (NYC)
The Bronx doesn’t come up with a lot of MLB draft prospects, which sparked my interest in Santos during some of the pre-draft tournaments; this and that the hard thrower overcame his race. Astrod took Santos instead, because for some reason Astrod gets bonus options and after having struggled with his command for the first season, he has agreed to repeat the A-ball and is currently knocking out almost 30% of the winners.
Third round, general selection 78:
Initial selection: 2B Kaden Polcovich, The state of Oklahoma
Current level: Double-A (.243 / .345 / .354)
Mariners love their shabby average players. Polcovich was supposed to bring in a little more pop than the average midfielder, but the switch striker hasn’t been able to produce much power on either side of the record, although he controls the zone much better when looking at Double-Squeezing.
Re-selected: LHP Kyle Harrison, De La Salle High School (California)
At this point in the draft, the prep players are getting thinner as they start talking about the bonus fund money. The giants spent $ 2.5 million on Harrison in the third round after Casey Schmittil 3B from SDSU in the second and chose C Patrick Bailey in the first round, so it’s a bit rude to act like Harrison, one of the best prospects in baseball, available here among all the others. names; however, the purpose of the exercise is simply to illustrate what is available in each round. For some reason, the Giants got both their proven college bachelor / catcher goal in Bailey and a high-level training pitch without running out of their entire bonus fund (though it’s worth noting that they also had a choice and used it for another college player). Harrison, by the way, has already reached Double-A, torturing NWL (including our own precious FrogBoise) with a 50% K rate.
Round 4, General Selection 107:
Initial selection: 3B Tyler Keenan (Be a miss)
Current status: traded Toronto Blue Jays For Ryan Boruck (FA 2025)
Selection around: 3B AJ Vukovich, East Troy High School (Wisconsin)
Again, this is the same scenario as above; teams either pay the value of the slot machine (about $ 400-450,000 for this round) or less, or go significantly higher to buy a prep player out of their college responsibilities. As the rounds progress, the reward with the high ceiling remains the same, but the risk becomes more intense (see: The Angels’ Choice for This Round, Werner Blakely). Vukovich shares the difference in preparing a slightly lower ceiling / secure floor; D-Backs gave him $ 1.25 million in hopes that the raw power he showed in preparation would bring him to the professional ball, which is necessary because he’s not likely to be the third chief at the next level.
Fifth round, general selection 137:
Original selection: RHP Taylor Dollard, Cal Poly
Re-cast selection: Dollar
Respecting Dollard’s past performance as a Seattle sailor, we’re leaving it here and won’t change that choice. Mariners’ most successful draft choice in the 2020 draft was also the last choice of the day and probably the least announced. After A-level bowling, Dollard was quickly promoted to Everett in his draft year, where his breakthrough rate dropped slightly and he was hit home. However, the Mariners decided that Dollard didn’t need to see Everett anymore, and sent him straight to Double-A this year, where he – not Emerson Hancock – has been at the heart of Travs’ rotation. Kyle has already waxed poetic about Dollard’s performance in many of Midshipman’s Log / State of the Farm, so we won’t go into that too deeply here, but suffice it to say that if the sailor’s season continues to pass by, it’s no surprise to see that Dollard is the first member of the Mariners 2020 draft class to make it to the big numbers. I hope he’s not the only one here.
#Recast #Seafarers #Draft