2020 MLB Draft Thread

BigMike

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Can he hit a curveball?
Funny thing is with the deep southern accent, the guy he kind of reminded me of watching him talk and the rep was the supposed can't miss prospect from Trouble with the Curve.

He certainly has a high upside potential with a potential to be a 40 HR type of bat if everything goes well
 

DJnVa

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Solid pick with Jeremy Wu-Yelland. Lefty reliever, touches mid 90s. Ready for big leagues soon hopefully. Was really good on the Cape last summer.
Needs to find the plate with a little more consistency--55 walks in 88.2 college innings.

Last season in 46.1 IP, he allowed 43 hits and 32 walks, added 8 wild pitches, 5 hit batters, and even balked 3 times. Live arm. Hopefully it's as simple as getting more consistent mechanics.
 

RedOctober3829

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Needs to find the plate with a little more consistency--55 walks in 88.2 college innings.

Last season in 46.1 IP, he allowed 43 hits and 32 walks, added 8 wild pitches, 5 hit batters, and even balked 3 times. Live arm. Hopefully it's as simple as getting more consistent mechanics.
He’ll be a reliever so hopefully it’s just as easy as refining one of his breaking pitches so he becomes a 2 pitch guy.
 

Ale Xander

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Sounds like a case where if they drafted this guy yesterday and Yorke today and signed both everyone would have been happy, but they didn't think Yorke was going to make it to their pick today.
It's like Uche/Duggar
 

DJnVa

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Sounds like a case where if they drafted this guy yesterday and Yorke today and signed both everyone would have been happy, but they didn't think Yorke was going to make it to their pick today.
Almost like they know what they are doing.
 

RoDaddy

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Lefty with good fastball but control issues - kind of a Josh Taylor vibe (and he turned out pretty good last year)

Think I read Wu-Yelland can throw 3 pitches in one of the scouting reports so I'm guessing the organization will start him and see what they've got - they can always move him to the pen if need be
 

DeadlySplitter

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MLB.com writeups and videos...

Jordan:

DeSoto Central High (Southaven, Miss.) produced a supplemental first-round slugger in Austin Riley in 2015, and five years later has a player with even more raw power. Jordan ranked as one of the top players in the 2021 class until he reclassified last May, becoming one of the youngest (17 years, five months on the originally scheduled Draft day of June 10) and most intriguing prospects in the 2020 group. He won the High School Home Run Derby at the All-Star Game in July, though he had less success facing live pitching on the showcase circuit. Few players in the 2020 Draft can do more damage to a baseball than Jordan, whose legend began to grow when he won his first national home run derby at age 11 and belted a pair of 500-foot homers at another when he was 13. His combination of impressive strength and bat speed allows him to hit mammoth blasts without a lot of loft in his right-handed stroke, and he recorded the highest exit velocity (106.9 mph) at the World Wood Bat Association World Championship in October. He still has to answer questions about his hitting ability after a summer of swings and misses against older competition, though his proponents think he'll make enough contact once he gets more time to adjust. While Jordan has worked diligently to lose weight and improve defensively at third base, most scouts believe he's almost certainly destined to play first base as a pro. The Mississippi State recruit possesses average arm strength but he's a below-average runner whose lack of quickness is better suited for first base. Wherever he plays, he'll create most of his value with his power.
https://atmlb.com/2WW4US5
Wu-Yelland (4 year junior):

A product of the Pacific Northwest, Wu-Yelland has been a part of Hawaii's bullpen since setting foot on campus as a freshman. While he did get some time as a starter as a sophomore, the southpaw likely profiles best as a reliever because of command issues. After a solid Cape Cod League showing last summer, Wu-Yelland was off to a good start to his 2020 season (0.69 ERA, 11.1 K/9 and a comparatively low 3.5 BB.9), using a fastball that touches the mid-90s, a breaking ball and a solid changeup.
https://atmlb.com/3eYpLMf
last pick is coming soon
 

DeadlySplitter

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Shane Drohan, Florida State, LHP, another 4 year junior

Back in 2017, Drohan was a high school lefty in Florida with some upside and some helium. A top 100 prospect on MLB Pipeline's Draft list, the son of former Minor League right-hander Bill Drohan was a two-sport standout who ended up going to Florida State rather than sign with the Phillies, who took him in the 23rd round of the Draft that June. After spending most of his sophomore year as a starter, he was establishing himself as a mainstay in the Seminoles' weekend rotation this spring. A successful high school quarterback before turning his complete focus to baseball, Drohan is still learning how to pitch, meaning there's still ceiling to reach. He'll touch 95 mph with his fastball at times and sits 92-93 consistently. He hides the ball well and that deception leads to a lot of swings and misses on the pitch. He has the chance to have an above-average curveball, with good three-quarter break to it and his changeup continues to improve. Drohan's command comes and goes, but because of his athleticsm, there's confidence from many scouts that he'll be able to repeat his delivery and throw more consistent strikes. There's still a lot to dream on here, giving the southpaw more upside than the typical college pitcher.
https://atmlb.com/3dNj6DK
 

RoDaddy

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VERY IMPRESSED with the Drohan pick! 13.8 k/9, swing and miss change-up, and sneaky fast while still able to hit 95. Control's an issue but for a 5th rounder, he sounds great. Kinda skinny - can we put 20 pounds on him and see if that adds a few extra mph?
 

RedOctober3829

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VERY IMPRESSED with the Drohan pick! 13.8 k/9, swing and miss change-up, and sneaky fast while still able to hit 95. Control's an issue but for a 5th rounder, he sounds great. Kinda skinny - can we put 20 pounds on him and see if that adds a few extra mph?
Nice pick indeed. Still hasn’t been fully a baseball for a long time too. Intriguing.
 

TimScribble

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“In his last two years in Tallahassee, Drohan posted a 3.76 ERA over 69.1 IP. Despite the struggles with command, he always showed the raw ability to miss bats.
The lefty boasts a true three-pitch mix. The fastball sits in the low 90’s and has been up to 94 with heavy arm-side run. The changeup has flashed plus with real, late fading action. The 12-6 curveball is his out pitch, and he has the ability to throw it to righties and lefties. The efficiency issues make it questionable whether he’ll stick at starter, but he has the arsenal and projectable body of a long-term starting pitcher.”

https://www.tomahawknation.com/2020/6/11/21288408/fsu-baseball-shane-drohan-5th-round-2020-mlb-draft-mike-martin-florida-state-red-sox
 

nvalvo

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So guys, are we happy with the Sox' draft or not?
Weird draft. Two offense-first RHH infielders and two LHP with control issues.

Jordan and Drohan offer a ton of ceiling, while Wu-Yelland has a floor as an interesting reliever. Yorke, with the hit tool as a carrying tool, is a bit in between. If we can find him a position, he should work out.

Under the circumstances, I think it’s a great draft. Next we get to see which amateur FA they sign.
 

The Gray Eagle

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I assumed that signing undrafted players would be like it is with the NFL, where once the draft is over, teams immediately start signing UDFAs. Clearly it's different in baseball.

Looks like signings can start on Sunday after a 48-hour "quiet period."
https://www.espn.com/mlb/story/_/id/29300041/best-players-not-taken-abbreviated-2020-mlb-draftIt'd be nice of the Red Sox could sign any of the players listed in the article, but I doubt many are going to want to play minor league ball for 20k rather than take a scholarship to play in college.
 

jon abbey

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I assumed that signing undrafted players would be like it is with the NFL, where once the draft is over, teams immediately start signing UDFAs. Clearly it's different in baseball.
It's like that in normal years, I believe, but this year there are a few days in between presumably because MLB is only allowing teams to pay a max of $20K per player, even if 10 or 15 teams are fighting over the same guy. It's sickening, honestly.
 

Rough Carrigan

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It's like that in normal years, I believe, but this year there are a few days in between presumably because MLB is only allowing teams to pay a max of $20K per player, even if 10 or 15 teams are fighting over the same guy. It's sickening, honestly.
Agreed.
And it's hard not to hope that organizations like the A's who decided to fuck over their minor leaguers this year have a *really* hard time signing anyone.
 

JimD

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So guys, are we happy with the Sox' draft or not?
I wanted the Sox to hire Chaim Bloom to shake things up. I'm going to give him the benefit of the doubt until proven wrong, especially given that prospect evaluation is so ridiculously far from an exact science.
 

jon abbey

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prospect evaluation is so ridiculously far from an exact science.
And much more so this year with no one playing games after mid-March to evaluate. All three of NY's picks were guys who played in the Cape Cod League last summer, NY always seems to weigh that heavily when applicable but obviously even more so this year.
 

jon abbey

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Not sure what it means, but if you search 'Jake MacKenzie' on Twitter, someone had him going in the first round.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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Not sure what it means, but if you search 'Jake MacKenzie' on Twitter, someone had him going in the first round.
This relates to the question I was going to ask. What is the likelihood that any of these signings should be met with "I can't believe they got this guy" as opposed to "Interesting, hope he pans out"? My assumption is that anyone that projects to be a certain major leaguer was drafted, and anyone who slipped to the free agency stage that might be a diamond in the rough is only going to be realized as such in a few years.
 

TimScribble

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A lot of these guys will have it built into their contract that their college is paid for if they flame out (at least those that didn’t graduate college or go yet). So, if there’s a chance they wouldn’t pan out anyways, this may be their only shot.
 

jon abbey

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This relates to the question I was going to ask. What is the likelihood that any of these signings should be met with "I can't believe they got this guy" as opposed to "Interesting, hope he pans out"? My assumption is that anyone that projects to be a certain major leaguer was drafted, and anyone who slipped to the free agency stage that might be a diamond in the rough is only going to be realized as such in a few years.
This was Kiley McDaniel's guess about this going into this AM:

View: https://twitter.com/kileymcd/status/1272180175845953539
 

jon abbey

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A lot of these guys will have it built into their contract that their college is paid for if they flame out (at least those that didn’t graduate college or go yet). So, if there’s a chance they wouldn’t pan out anyways, this may be their only shot.
Not sure about that, I believe that teams can only offer $20K and no additional benefits to them or their family. I said it already once, it is sickening (but I am still hoping NY signs some promising diamonds in the rough).
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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Not sure about that, I believe that teams can only offer $20K and no additional benefits to them or their family. I said it already once, it is sickening (but I am still hoping NY signs some promising diamonds in the rough).
Teams can offer a max of $20K AND college tuition.
 

TonyPenaNeverJuiced

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On DiValerio:

This from a Phillies forum user:
Jordan DiValerio RHP Saint Joseph’s … is a kid (and this is just a hunch on my part) that may be the likeliest Phillies UDFA signing on this list. The 6′ 1″, 200 lb thrower is from central PA, and will turn 23 YO in November. DiValerio carries a low 90’s FB that will touch 94, a 78-82 MPH fading CH that flashes abv avg, and an inconsistent slurvish breaking ball at 76-79 MPH all from a three-quarter slot. The St. Joes’s Friday night starter was having a great season in 2020 before the shutdown. He totaled 22.2 IP, 16 H, 5 BB, 33 K, .193 OBA. The highlight to his season was an upset win vs 24th ranked Ohio St when he tallied 5 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 1 BB, 9 K.
On MacKenzie, here's a 2018 video from Fordham. Coach talking very highly of him as a Freshman starting around 1:55, MacKenzie sounding pretty good himself starting at 3:55. Clips of his hitting (including a nice few inside-out hits) sprinkled throughout:
 
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The Gray Eagle

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This 2019 article on Jake McKenzie mentions that their home ballpark is a pitcher's park, with deep fences. McKenzie stole 34 bags in 42 tries as a freshman.

https://fordhamram.com/68840/sports/fordham-baseballs-jake-mackenzie-swipes-his-way-through-the-atlantic-10/
MacKenzie also managed to hit eight home runs to lead the team, finished second with a .291 batting average and used to his speed to leg out six triples. All of this is to say he was very deserving of his Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year honors.

“I expected Jake to play as a freshman,” Leighton said. “But I didn’t really expect him to put up some of the numbers that he did, especially the home runs.”

For MacKenzie, this success was rather surprising, and not just because he was a freshman. He didn’t have a huge amount of high school success, being recruited just by Fordham and one other school, Quinnipiac, which is right near his home in Wallingford, Connecticut.

“I was not really highly-recruited out of high school,” he said. “I don’t think I was that good in high school at all.”

But for Leighton, there was a lot about MacKenzie that he liked. Especially, as you can note by omission above, Leighton didn’t mention being surprised by the stolen bases.

“We thought Jake was the perfect type of guy for our program,” said Leighton. “He was an above-average runner, barrelled balls consistently, and showed good defensive skills in the infield. I thought he was a gamer and the type of kid that would drive the other team crazy.”
 

snowmanny

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Not sure what it means, but if you search 'Jake MacKenzie' on Twitter, someone had him going in the first round.
since you brought it up...

Fordham actually once had a player drafted in the first round. He went on to win 111 big league games

Pete Harnisch