MLB Draft

[Sea Dog 23]

Sox begin their draft on Sunday.  McDaniel thinks they go for more infielders at pick 14 and 50..At least these are more mature college guys.


Kiley McDaniel's latest mock:
14. Boston Red Sox
Matt Shaw, 2B, Maryland

I'll keep Shaw here as the Red Sox are mostly tied to safer position-player types at this pick with bolder choices coming down the board. One of the wildest rumors I've heard all spring is that Arizona State 2B Luke Keaschall could be a Nick Yorke-esque pick here. I buy that Boston likes him, is worried he won't get to their next pick, and is thinking about it, but it's just a little too farfetched to project right now. I've given Keaschall to them in the second round.

50. Boston Red Sox: Luke Keaschall, 2B, Arizona State

[SeaBeachFred]

We have a top notch prospect in Nick Yorke for our future second baseman and Marcello Mayer as our future shortstop.  We don't have to keep drafting players playing the same positions as our best prospects.  WE NEED PITCHING DAMN IT Bloom, you stupid son of a bitch.

[Sea Dog 23]

Fred, the pitchers are out there.  Unfortunately three good ones will be gone by pick 5 or 6.  The one I've seen Boston associated with is Hurston Waldrep at U of Florida.  Keith Law thinks he goes 24 to Atlanta.  Baseball America rates him as the 18th ranked pick in the draft.

"Four college righthanders should be selected in the first round, including Skenes, Tennessee’s Chase Dollander, Wake Forest’s Rhett Lowder and Florida’s Hurston Waldrep. There’s a bit of a talent drop off after that group of arms and the college class is notably light on lefthandersâ€"with Kent State’s Joe Whitman and Vanderbilt’s Hunter Owen the most likely targets to go in the first round and keep alive a 44-year draft streak.

There is a lot to like about Waldrep who began his career at Southern Mississippi before transferring to Florida. He started 19 games in 2023 and posted a 4.16 ERA while racking up 156 strikeouts in 101 2/3 innings. Baseball America ranks him as their 18th best draft prospect in their updated Top 500.

" Waldrep's fastball sits 95-96 and has been up to as much as 99 mph. His split changeup might be one of the best offspeed pitches in the draft. He also throws a 12-to-6 curveball and a hard slider in the mid-80s. The downside is his control. He had a 12.7% walk-rate in 2023 and that brings some reliever risk into his profile. Still, he looks like an intriguing arm.

[MongoLikeSox]

I'm with Fred on the MI position depth. If there is a stud Catcher or OF'er in play, sure. Other wise, I'd rather see us go heavy on some of the top college pitchers earlier in the draft. Especially if we have an opportunity at a stud. 

I don't keep up with the draft at all. I know nothing about any of the players.

Last Year's draft is starting to show signs of life. Chase Meidroth(AA) and Roman Anthony (A+) leading the way. A few of the mid round college pitchers have either gotten to Portland already of are getting close to being promoted there. It's nice to be able to say that for a change. Brannon looks like he's gonna be big on power and is doing decently after his promotion to Salem a couple of weeks ago.  I really can't remember this many picks doing well in their first full year after the draft.

[Sea Dog 23]

I'm with Fred on the MI position depth. If there is a stud Catcher or OF'er in play, sure. Other wise, I'd rather see us go heavy on some of the top college pitchers earlier in the draft. Especially if we have an opportunity at a stud. 

I don't keep up with the draft at all. I know nothing about any of the players.

Last Year's draft is starting to show signs of life. Chase Meidroth(AA) and Roman Anthony (A+) leading the way. A few of the mid round college pitchers have either gotten to Portland already of are getting close to being promoted there. It's nice to be able to say that for a change. Brannon looks like he's gonna be big on power and is doing decently after his promotion to Salem a couple of weeks ago.  I really can't remember this many picks doing well in their first full year after the draft.

As far as the standouts available in the draft, the players in the College World Series were on display.  In particular in the final four clubs.  The champion LSU had a couple of the projected top picks in Dylan Crews, who is a great hitter and incredible athlete in the OF.  The top pick they say.  Also pitcher Paul Skenes, who has been recorded at throwing 48 pitches at 100 mph+ in each of his games.  They have described how he can withstand that kind of wear and tear, in that he started pitching at an older age.

Pitcher Dollander of Tennessee was in Omaha, as well as pitcher Lowder of Wake Forest.  The other great field player at Omaha was Wyatt Langford of Florida, who is right up there with Crews as a great all-around ball player with most of  the five tools the scouts are looking for..

[Sea Dog 23]

At #14 Sox pick catcher Kyle Teel. University Virginia. Born in New Jersey, Named the nation's top college catcher. player of the year in Atlantic Coast Conference.i  Supposedly fell to the Sox from  predicted 7 to 8 pick.  Throws right, bats left. 6-1, 190.     

Teel was a solid high school prospect in 2020 but removed his name from the Draft so he could head to Virginia. Three years later, he played his way into the top 15. He’s a super-athletic backstop who has the chance to stick behind the plate with an arm that’s easily plus. He’s a left-handed hitter with an advanced approach who seemed to find a good balance between hitting for average and power in 2023. This breaks a streak of four straight high school hitters taken by the Red Sox with their first-round picks.
Extremely athletic, Teel has seen time in the outfield and probably could handle playing second or third, but he has every chance to stick behind the plate. He has an easily plus arm and his athleticism helps his overall receiving. He gets high marks for his baseball IQ and leadership skills, and with his bat showing up more consistently,

He was a First-Team All-American by five different college baseball publications and a First-Team All-ACC selection. In 2023 Teel hit .407 with a .475 OBP with 13 home runs, 69 RBIs, 105 hits, 67 runs scored and 25 doubles this spring, and ends his college career as a .343 hitter with 28 home runs, 155 RBIs, 236 hits and 170 runs scored.

[SeaBeachFred]

At #14 Sox pick catcher Kyle Teel. University Virginia. Born in New Jersey, Named the nation's top college catcher. player of the year in Atlantic Coast Conference.i  Supposedly fell to the Sox from  predicted 7 to 8 pick.  Throws right, bats left. 6-1, 190.     

Teel was a solid high school prospect in 2020 but removed his name from the Draft so he could head to Virginia. Three years later, he played his way into the top 15. He’s a super-athletic backstop who has the chance to stick behind the plate with an arm that’s easily plus. He’s a left-handed hitter with an advanced approach who seemed to find a good balance between hitting for average and power in 2023. This breaks a streak of four straight high school hitters taken by the Red Sox with their first-round picks.
Extremely athletic, Teel has seen time in the outfield and probably could handle playing second or third, but he has every chance to stick behind the plate. He has an easily plus arm and his athleticism helps his overall receiving. He gets high marks for his baseball IQ and leadership skills, and with his bat showing up more consistently,

He was a First-Team All-American by five different college baseball publications and a First-Team All-ACC selection. In 2023 Teel hit .407 with a .475 OBP with 13 home runs, 69 RBIs, 105 hits, 67 runs scored and 25 doubles this spring, and ends his college career as a .343 hitter with 28 home runs, 155 RBIs, 236 hits and 170 runs scored.

Sounds like we have hit upon a pretty good young prospect.  His performances have been good at Virginia and that school has been a hot bed of good college  players and pro prospects for so me time now.  The only problem is that he hits left handed and we already have an overload of them already.  We need some good RIGHTHANDED HITTERS.

[MongoLikeSox]

Good, I was hoping for a top Catcher somewhere in all of this. We've got Hickey in AA and the very new Brannon in Salam. I hope this is a good addition.

[Sea Dog 23]

This time the Sox did not pick the best available player available, as they did with Mayer last year.  They picked for need in getting a great catcher.  The last great Sox catcher was Varitek, who was also drafted #14 (by Seattle).  The only glitch I read about Kyle Teel, he is an emotional, twitchy catcher, who is usually busy behind the plate.  Doesn't always offer a smooth mood for the pitcher and the infielders.

We do not have much in the way of catchers in the minors.  As Mongo pointed out Nathan Hickey is in AA. He is the 21st rated Sox prospect, projected to arrive in MLB in 2025. Steven Scott is now at AAA, but the #38 prospect.  And Brannon is a good one, but he is down in Low A, and several  years away.

[Sea Dog 23]

In the 2nd round  #50 Sox picked Nazzan Zanetello, a high schooler from St Louis.   He reminds some people of an EARLY Mookie with his swing.  Nationals wanted him at #41, but he turned down their under slot offer.  Plays SS, but he projects as 3B or OF.  A true athlete in the field.

Zanetello has a wiry 6-foot-2 frame with room to add more muscle, and his strong hands and wrists produce plenty of bat speed and 25-homer potential. He doesn't have the prettiest right-handed swing but makes a lot of hard contact. He also shows good control of the strike zone and produced against quality pitching throughout the summer.

While Zanetello has clocked run times that earn grades from anywhere from 45 to 70 on the 20-80 scouting scale, the consensus is that he'll probably have solid speed once he's physically mature. His athleticism and strong arm help him make plays at shortstop, where he projects as an average defender. The Arkansas commit has looked solid in stints in center field and should provide similar glovework if he shifts to third base.

[Sea Dog 23]

After taking a high school infielder in the 3rd, Antonio Anderson, Sox pick pitcher Matt Duffy of Canisius College in the 4th.  Duffy is pick #115, whereas he was rated from 240-270.  Sox are evidently going under slot, to create enough money to sign their over slots in rounds 1-3 and cover their two supplement draft picks, also in round 4.

"Duffy is a metric-darling with a three-pitch mix including a fastball, a slider and a changeup. The fastball catches the headlines, up to 95 with considerable ride through the zone, missing a ton of bats in 2023. Duffy's three-quarter slot is said to create deception for hitters, and he'll manipulate the shape of his slider to either tunnel his fastball or sweep away from righties. The changeup lags behind his two primary weapons, but does fade off his fastball tunnel as has been considerably effective against lefty bats. Duffy is loose and explosive, though he lacks much projection and a team that buys him in the draft will by buying his *now* stuff."

[MongoLikeSox]

Thanks for the updates. Are you happy with any of the guys after the Catcher? 

[Sea Dog 23]

In the 5th the Sox pick Kyler Teel's teammate at UVA, L/H pitcher Connely Early.  We didn't keep the Navy pilot we signed, but Early is a transfer from West Point !

"Early is a pitchability lefty with a low-90s heater that does possesses some hop late through the zone, though his command of the pitch has been inconsistent. Still, considering his deception and feel for secondary offerings, one might characterize his arsenal as effectively wild. The slider is a low-80s sweeper and the curveball is a fringier upper-70s breaker that melts off the slider a bit. He mixes in a changeup that might be his best offering, a pitch that's induced plenty of bad swings. For now, he's not an overpowering arm, but his feel for pitching and keeping runners off the bases makes him an intriguing profile to follow."

[Sea Dog 23]

Z
Thanks for the updates. Are you happy with any of the guys after the Catcher?

After Teel the catcher, the Sox seemed to go back to infielders again.  However the baseball ratings people really like the hitting technique and overall great athletes of those picks.  The infielders do project as good outfielders as positions they have played.  The two supplement picks were infielders from Georgia Tech and Wright State for example.  Their pluses are a history of good contact, low strikeout rates, and good BB rates.
Sox have supposedly come to an agreement with the second pick Zanetello. aroun $2.5m.  Teel is expected to ask for a $4.5mil bonus.

The three pitchers come from big college baseball programs.  We'll have to spend some to keep Duffy, as he just transferred to Univ of South Carolina.  They say Univ of Virginia may offer some NIL money to keep Early. in the 6th round Sox got their third pitcher, C.J. Weins , a RH from Western KY, pitched last year at U.South Carolina.

[Sea Dog 23]

Through 10 rounds, it looks as if Boston is getting three great players at the top, and they will pay a lot for them over slot, and throw in the pitcher Matt Duffy, who Univ of South Carolina values highly as a transfer.

As I recall Sox drafted 6 pitchers in the first 10 rounds.  They were all junior-senior college guys, which favors their signing, unlike high schoolers, who are not getting their big bonus and going off to college.  They drafted like that in 2022.  Of the last three pitchers, two were big guys, 6-7, 240 or so., then Ammons of Clemson, a 6-0 pitcher, more of a reliever.  The puzzle is why the two big guys do not throw over 95 fast balls.