2015 Draft Thread

[Nate Colbert]

Why the fuck not?

6'2" RHP Beau Burrows from Weatherford HS (and an Aggie commit) stands out at PG showcase.

[morningwood75]

Guys to keep an eye on who will most likely be first rounders...

HS OF Kyle Tucker, brother of Preston

HS OF Ryan Johnson, out of College Station

HS RHP Kyle Molnar

HS LHP Justin Hooper

HS OF Daz Cameron, son of Mike

HS SS Brendan Rodgers

HS SS John Aiello

HS SS Nick Shumpert

HS OF Jahmai Jones

Duke RHP Michael Matuella

LSU IF Alex Bregman

Florida State OF D.J. Stewart

Vandy RHP Carson Fulmer

Virginia LHP Nate Kirby

[Reuben]

Hard to imagine a baseball-playing Shumpert not being related to Terry.

[Nate Colbert]

Hard to imagine a baseball-playing Shumpert not being related to Terry.

Son of. Also a cousin to Red Sox uber prospect Mookie Betts.

[Reuben]

This thread just got a whole lot more relevant, with Aiken saying Fuck You. So, who are the real creme-de-la-creme guys from the list above? I know Matuella's name was mentioned as a candidate for 1-1; who else? Bregman?

[Nate Colbert]

This thread just got a whole lot more relevant, with Aiken saying Fuck You. So, who are the real creme-de-la-creme guys from the list above? I know Matuella's name was mentioned as a candidate for 1-1; who else? Bregman?

I've seen Daz Cameron at the top of several lists.

[juliogotay]

No doubt other contenders will arise during the next year.

[OregonStrosFan]

Considering that the Astros are likely to have 2 top 5 picks (potentially as high as 1.1 and 1.2 or 1.2 and 1.3), a comp round pick, and a high 2nd round pick, they could very well have a $20M draft pool in the 2015 draft...  And that has me kinda curious... How is the 2015 draft looking as a whole?!? (Strong draft, weak draft, deep draft, etc...)?!? Other comments on the 2015 draft?

Thanks - I'll hang up and listen.

[astrosfan76]

Considering that the Astros are likely to have 2 top 5 picks (potentially as high as 1.1 and 1.2 or 1.2 and 1.3), a comp round pick, and a high 2nd round pick, they could very well have a $20M draft pool in the 2015 draft...  And that has me kinda curious... How is the 2015 draft looking as a whole?!? (Strong draft, weak draft, deep draft, etc...)?!? Other comments on the 2015 draft?

Thanks - I'll hang up and listen.

I haven't heard anything really one way or another.  It's not a weak draft and doesn't seem to have a Strasburg-level prospect (at this point), but does have some good players at the top.  Where this year's draft was noted as being very deep in LHP and HS pitching, in general, I don't know if there are any such areas next year.  I could be wrong, I just don't remember reading anything like that. 

[Reuben]

2015 just got an intriguing wrinkle: Phil Bickford, who went 10th overall in the 2013 draft but didn't sign, is leaving Cal State-Fullerton to enroll at a juco (presumably) and be eligible for the draft a year sooner. From BA article:

Assuming Bickford winds up in the 2015 draft pool, he has a chance to become the No. 1 overall pick. No other obvious front-runner has established himself, and Bickford already has a top-10 pedigree. But he still must refine his secondary stuff and prove that he can handle a starting role, because his stuff was considerably more electric in a relief role this summer than it was when he started in the spring.

There's more good analysis there, worth a read.
 

[Reuben]

BA's story updated now, with quotes from Cal-Fullerton's coach, who probably won't be sending Bickford any Christmas cards:

“Am I sad that he left? Yes,” Fullerton coach Rick Vanderhook told BA on Tuesday. “Am I upset? Not really. Does it hurt us? It hurts us, but it might work out pretty good, as we go. I have two guys better than him—and two guys that want to play for the team. Our program is not for individuals. If he wanted to be an individual, it’s probably best that he went somewhere else.”

Vanderhook said Bickford did not inform him of his decision to leave the program until this weekend, leaving the Titans no time to find another player to replace him.

“He has a big scholarship, and three days before school, you can’t replace Phil,” Vanderhook said. “I don’t know anybody who can get somebody into school in two days. I can’t. I just wish he would have given us the ability to go get some other guys. That’s selfishness.”

[Nate Colbert]

Kylie McDaniel of Fangraphs with his "way too early" edition of the top 51 draft prospects with this noted in his writeup:

One of the reasons you’ll keep hearing about the Astros and Aiken is because Aiken’s advisor, Casey Close’s Excel Sports Management, represents 6 of my top 15 prospects right now, with a couple of the top 15 prospects still uncommitted to advisors.

[roadrunner]

Did the deadline already pass for Aiken to file a grievance?

[Lefty]

Did the deadline already pass for Aiken to file a grievance?

Yes.

[jbm]

Has he already enrolled at a JC, or can he still do that?  I assume school has started.

[Lefty]

Has he already enrolled at a JC, or can he still do that?  I assume school has started.

Some JC in Arizona, was what I read.

[roadrunner]

I was out of town last week...were there any media reports about the grievance (lack thereof) and any implied narratives? 

[Nate Colbert]

Has he already enrolled at a JC, or can he still do that?  I assume school has started.

He's "expected" to enroll at Yavapai JC, per the Fangraphs article I linked to above.

[Reuben]

BA article on Duke RHP Michael Matuella, who's expected to be an upper-1st-round pick.

[juliogotay]

BA article on Duke RHP Michael Matuella, who's expected to be an upper-1st-round pick.

I'm thinking he won't be available when the Astros draft. It's been awhile since anyone said that.

[OregonStrosFan]

I'm thinking he won't be available when the Astros draft. It's been awhile since anyone said that.

The Astros officially eliminated themselves this weekend from contention for the first overall pick in the draft next year. Been awhile since anyone said that either... FWIW, if the season ended today, the Astros would have picks at 1:2 and 1:7 (and a comp round pick).

[Nate Colbert]

FWIW, if the season ended today, the Astros would have picks at 1:2 and 1:7 (and a comp round pick).

Just a reminder for folks, the comp round pick came from the Marlins in the Cosart trade. That'll be the 1:32 pick. So 3 of the first 32 picks.

[Mike S.]

Hadn't seen this posted yet:

http://www.vavel.com/en-us/mlb/396498-southpaw-hurler-mac-marshall-withdraws-from-lsu-becomes-eligible-for-2015-mlb-draft.html

[Reuben]

Hadn't seen this posted yet:

http://www.vavel.com/en-us/mlb/396498-southpaw-hurler-mac-marshall-withdraws-from-lsu-becomes-eligible-for-2015-mlb-draft.html

It was mentioned here.

[Mike S.]

Thanks, Reuben.  Noticed that shortly after I posted.  I really need to learn how to fucking read.

[Reuben]

Thanks, Reuben.  Noticed that shortly after I posted.  I really need to learn how to fucking read.

Eh. If that's the worst thing you do all week I'd say you're doing pretty good.

[Mike S.]

Given that we're in the home stretch of Harvest out here in wine country, reckon my boss would be pretty happy if that is the worst thing I do all week.

Moving on, looks like the Astros will have four picks out of the first fifty in the 2015 Draft?

#2
#5
#32
#41

Unless I'm missing something (entirely possible), that looks like a pretty damn good position to be drafting from.

[Mike S.]

Crawfish Boxes brings up a good point regarding FA signings affecting the Astros' Second Round pick:

http://www.crawfishboxes.com/2014/9/29/6863937/mlb-draft-2015-draft-order-set-astros-have-second-fifth-overall-picks

[juliogotay]

Given that we're in the home stretch of Harvest out here in wine country, reckon my boss would be pretty happy if that is the worst thing I do all week.

Moving on, looks like the Astros will have four picks out of the first fifty in the 2015 Draft?

#2
#5
#32
#41

Unless I'm missing something (entirely possible), that looks like a pretty damn good position to be drafting from.

Are you in Napa?

[NeilT]

Are you in Napa?

More importantly, are you making wine?

[Mike S.]

To juliogotay and NeilT, yes on both accounts.  Moved out from Austin in 2009 and been out here ever since. 

[NeilT]

To juliogotay and NeilT, yes on both accounts.  Moved out from Austin in 2009 and been out here ever since. 

Which winery?

[Mr. Happy]

To juliogotay and NeilT, yes on both accounts.  Moved out from Austin in 2009 and been out here ever since. 

I was in Napa (off of Jefferson St. not far from El Centro) until August 2012.

[Mike S.]

Regret not meeting up with you while both of us were in Napa, Mr. Happy.  My girlfriend's old place in the alphabet streets was actually not all that far from where you used to be.

NeilT, I work for Turley Wine Cellars overseeing vineyards and production work.  You make it out this way at all?

[BizidyDizidy]

Big customer of yours

[juliogotay]

To juliogotay and NeilT, yes on both accounts.  Moved out from Austin in 2009 and been out here ever since. 

Spent a couple of days in Napa last week. I envy you.

[NeilT]

Regret not meeting up with you while both of us were in Napa, Mr. Happy.  My girlfriend's old place in the alphabet streets was actually not all that far from where you used to be.

NeilT, I work for Turley Wine Cellars overseeing vineyards and production work.  You make it out this way at all?

Turley is outstanding.  I just failed to order this year, but I still have about half a case from a couple of years ago.  I wish I did get out there, but now maybe I have a reason to go!

[Mike S.]

Gents, a heartfelt thanks for your support.  It means a lot to me personally (validates what I do for a living) and I'm only half joking when I say you're paying my salary.

If anyone does make it out to Napa, please abuse my hospitality.  We don't have a tasting room at the winery in St. Helena where I work, but more than happy to crack open a few bottles for fellow Astros fans.  It's not like the team hasn't driven us to drink or anything.

NeilT: what do you have in your cellar?

juliogotay: I tell people all the time there's a reason why I pay to live in California.

[Mr. Happy]

Regret not meeting up with you while both of us were in Napa, Mr. Happy.  My girlfriend's old place in the alphabet streets was actually not all that far from where you used to be.

NeilT, I work for Turley Wine Cellars overseeing vineyards and production work.  You make it out this way at all?

Same here. I love to take people out to eat. Our neighborhood place was Fume. We ate there 5-7 times a month.

[NeilT]

NeilT: what do you have in your cellar?

i thought I had some 2010s, but clearly the Cellar Gremlins have been at work.  I've still got 9 bottles of 2011,  2 Duarte, 4 Dusi, 2 Dragon, and 1 Juvenil. Frankly, I don't remember anything about them, except that I'm very fond of Zins, and I've never had a Turley Zin that I wouldn't have happily had two more. 

[Mike S.]

Cellars gremlins are jerks.  Can't tell you how many times they've raided my stash of wines.

Dragon is one of the vineyards I work with the most.  One of the highest plantings in Napa and some stunning views.  Also Larry Turley's favorite wine.  I've walked the vineyards for the Duarte blend many times.  Amazing places.  Literally like walking on the beach because of all the deposited material from the Sacramento Delta.  Heard stories of similar situations in Greece and the Canary Islands, but I've never anything like it myself. 

Overall, I love the 2011 wines we made.  You're in a great place to drink or hold what you've got for several more years easily.

[Mike S.]

Same here. I love to take people out to eat. Our neighborhood place was Fume. We ate there 5-7 times a month.

Fume is a great place.  Haven't been there in awhile, but the bartender and I used to give each other a fair amount of shit - him being an ou fan and me being more enlightened because Dad was a Texas Ex and I learned "Hook 'em, Horns" before I could walk.

[NeilT]

Cellars gremlins are jerks.  Can't tell you how many times they've raided my stash of wines.

Dragon is one of the vineyards I work with the most.  One of the highest plantings in Napa and some stunning views.  Also Larry Turley's favorite wine.  I've walked the vineyards for the Duarte blend many times.  Amazing places.  Literally like walking on the beach because of all the deposited material from the Sacramento Delta.  Heard stories of similar situations in Greece and the Canary Islands, but I've never anything like it myself. 

Overall, I love the 2011 wines we made.  You're in a great place to drink or hold what you've got for several more years easily.

Good, 'cause I almost like them too much to drink them, if that makes sense.

[Mr. Happy]

Fume is a great place.  Haven't been there in awhile, but the bartender and I used to give each other a fair amount of shit - him being an ou fan and me being more enlightened because Dad was a Texas Ex and I learned "Hook 'em, Horns" before I could walk.

Adam, the bartender, is the man!!! He's an Oklahoma fan, so I used to give him some "Big Game Bob" shit.

[Mike S.]

I have that problem all too often.  Usually, wine helps me make a more informed decision.

[Mike S.]

Adam, the bartender, is the man!!! He's an Oklahoma fan, so I used to give him some "Big Game Bob" shit.

As you should, and I say liking Adam a great deal.

[NeilT]

After the wine tasting, it's probably time to return this thread to the 2015 draft.

[austro]

After the wine tasting, it's probably time to return this thread to the 2015 draft.

Ok, what 2015 wines will you be drafting for your cellar?

Seriously, though, where does one find the Turley wines? I'm intrigued, although I'm not normally a Zin guy.

[NeilT]

Ok, what 2015 wines will you be drafting for your cellar?

Seriously, though, where does one find the Turley wines? I'm intrigued, although I'm not normally a Zin guy.

You get your name on their mailing list and then once a year they send out an invitation to order.  Rarely you'll see a bottle in a store, or on a restaurant menu.  For many years it's been considered one of the best red wines out of California, and from my experience it is. It's not all that expensive, either, except I did see a bottle of Turley white for well over $100 recently.  I was confused.

[Mike S.]

Kind words, Neil, and I agree with you regarding the quality of the wine (admittedly, I'm biased because I help make the stuff). 

Roughly 75% of our wine is sold direct on the Mailing List, the rest going out into distribution.  So, you can find them in wine shops and on restaurant lists, but as Neil pointed out the markup can be pretty high. 

[Nate Colbert]

MLB.com with their top 50 Draft List. Their initial assessment six months out: lotsa pitching but light on position players with Rodgers, Matuella and Aiken the clear leaders at this early stage.

[pots]

MLB.com with their top 50 Draft List. Their initial assessment six months out: lotsa pitching but light on position players with Rodgers, Matuella and Aiken the clear leaders at this early stage.

I'd be shocked if Aiken went top 5.  (Especially given the Astros have 2 of those picks).  And top 10 is likely a long shot.  After that though the gamble is likely worth it.

[hostros7]

I'd be shocked if Aiken went top 5.  (Especially given the Astros have 2 of those picks).  And top 10 is likely a long shot.  After that though the gamble is likely worth it.

Aiken's draft slot will be quite telling with regards to discerning whether or not the Astros were jerking him around. 

[astrosfan76]

Aiken's draft slot will be quite telling with regards to discerning whether or not the Astros were jerking him around. 

Depending on how high he goes, it may only be telling of how one club feels the Astros handled the situation.  Since other clubs won't have access to his medical records, if they feel he's the best option, even weighing possible medical problems, he could go pretty high.  That doesn't mean Luhnow handled the situation wrongly, just that another club may have handled it differently. 

[Reuben]

MLB.com with their top 50 Draft List. Their initial assessment six months out: lotsa pitching but light on position players with Rodgers, Matuella and Aiken the clear leaders at this early stage.

Interesting that 4 of their top 6 are college players. Bodes well for the Astros if they're hoping to make up for some of the lost development time of what should've been 2014's 1/1 signing. A guy like Matuella or Buehler or Kirby is likely to reach the majors before Aiken even if Aiken had started his pro career this summer.

[Mike S.]

Had a very similar thought reading over that list.  Several very advanced arms at the top who could make things very interesting for the Astros with the second and fifth picks.

[toddthebod]

Are there any college power hitters in the draft like AJ Reed orJD Davis were last year?

[Astrofan59]

Really hoping some hitters step up, and at least one, but preferably two, gets selected in the first round.  If not, I really like Bickford.

[Reuben]

Are there any college power hitters in the draft like AJ Reed orJD Davis were last year?

Going off the above list, the top college guys that project to hit for power are Gio Brusa (#34) and Chris Shaw (#39). Obviously, the industry consensus will change a lot between now and June, but you also have to wonder if teams will grab them higher simply because of the scarcity of college power (and good college hitters overall). Maybe even work out below-slot deals like the Cubs did with Schwarber this year.

[astrosfan76]

Going off the above list, the top college guys that project to hit for power are Gio Brusa (#34) and Chris Shaw (#39). Obviously, the industry consensus will change a lot between now and June, but you also have to wonder if teams will grab them higher simply because of the scarcity of college power (and good college hitters overall). Maybe even work out below-slot deals like the Cubs did with Schwarber this year.

Maybe, but that was also a theme this year.  The catch with Reed and Davis was that they didn't have a lot of positional value.  If Davis was considered a 3B entering the draft, he may have gone a little higher, but he was stuck behind a very good defensive 3B on the depth chart.  So, he didn't have a lot of opportunity to play there.  He's not Brooks Robinson over there now, but he's at least getting a shot to show he can handle a more demanding position. 

[Nate Colbert]

Tracy Ringolsby reports:

[Aiken] has yet to enroll in a school this winter. The expectation is he will attend the IMG Academy, which offers a developmental program in a variety of sports, including baseball, and has a prep school as part of its program, which will allow him to re-enter the Draft next June. Former Reds third baseman Chris Sabo is the head coach of the IMG Academy baseball program.

[Nate Colbert]

And Jacob Nix will also be attending the IMG Academy, per this tweet from Mark Baker (@MBakerTBTimes) of the Tampa Bay Times.

And here's the press release from IMG Academy announcing his enrollment.

[Nate Colbert]

And Jacob Nix will also be attending the IMG Academy, per this tweet from Mark Baker (@MBakerTBTimes) of the Tampa Bay Times.

And here's the press release from IMG Academy announcing his enrollment.

Here's this from a McTaggart piece:

Dan Simonds, director of baseball at IMG, said Nix will get about 8-10 starts for the IMG post-graduate team, which he compared to a good junior college-level team. The post-grad team, which is made up of recent high school graduates, will face JUCO teams and Division III junior varsity teams.

[Nate Colbert]

College baseball junkies rejoice as ESPN announces 100 SEC games to be carried this spring on SEC Network, ESPNU, etc. As far as showcasing top draft prospects, Vandy (RHP Walker Buehler, INF Dansby Swanson, RHP Carson Fulmer, RHP Tyler Ferguson) and Florida (SS Richie Martin) will each have 12 games televised and LSU (SS Alex Bregman, OF Andrew Stevenson) 13 games. Tennessee (OF Christin Stewart) gets on the tube 11 times, the Aggies (RHP Grayson Long) will have 10 games on TV and ditto for Bama (SS Mikey White), Kentucky (RHP Kyle Cody) 9 games. Cincinnati (OF Ian Happ), Clemson (OF Steven Duggar) and Florida State (OF D.J. Stewart) all show up in a pair of non-conference games while Louisville (RHP Kyle Funkhouser), Miami (LHP Andrew Suarez) and Arizona (SS Kevin Newman) are televised once apiece.

Also, the entire SEC tournament will be nationally televised for the 1st time.

[Nate Colbert]

Callis says it's still unknown as to where Brady Aiken will be pitching. Touches on the four options: JUCO (though that's pretty unlikely now given how late it's gotten), IMG Academy, indy league and working out in front of MLB scouts.

"We're trying to figure out where he's going to pitch, just like you are," an executive from a team with an early first-round selection said. "He definitely would be in our mix if he gets to us, and we'd like to get our eyes on him and his medical reports as soon as we can."

[astrosfan76]

Michael Matuella pitched in an intrasquad game yesterday in front of about 30 scouts. This was the first time he had pitched in a while, after taking off the summer and fall.

Matuella pounded both sides of the plate with a devastating fastball and showed the ability to finish his delivery and hammer the bottom of the zone. In his first inning, the fastball sat 93-95 mph and touched 96, featuring plus movement, with run to the armside and natural sink. In his second inning, Matuella maintained movement and command, although his velocity dropped to 91-92. This is not a concern, however, because Matuella had yet to pitch at full speed this spring.

He also showed a good changeup, which was considered his most impressive pitch of the day. The pitch projects as at least above-average at the MLB level. He also threw a slurve in warmups, which showed promise.

Now, the reason he hadn't pitched since last season:

Matuella was diagnosed this summer with spondylolysis, a common and manageable condition. Between 3 to 7 percent of the American population has spondylolysis, according to the Cleveland Clinic, which defines it as “a specific defect in the connection between vertebrae.”

I had never heard of this condition, but the above-referenced clinic also says this about the condition:

This defect can lead to small stress fractures (breaks) in the vertebrae that can weaken the bones so much that one slips out of place, a condition called spondylolisthesis. Spondylolysis is a very common cause of low back pain...

Conservative treatment—rest, medication, exercise, and bracing—is often successful at relieving pain and swelling, especially when treatment is started early. A majority of people can have a significant reduction in pain and can return to normal activities following early treatment of spondylolysis.

If you have spondylolysis, it is important to choose activities and sports that do not place your lower back at risk for injury. Swimming and biking are possible options.

Good for the guy that he was able to start treatment, but I wonder how much this will affect his draft position; pitching 200 innings a season is not exactly swimming. Maybe he'll have no problems over the next 10 years, but I can't see teams not wanting access to his medicals before dropping $5M+ and a high pick for the guy.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/college/dukes-matuella-impresses-first-outing-spring/
http://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases_conditions/hic_your_back_and_neck/hic_Spondylolysis

[Nate Colbert]

Aggie LHP Tyler Stubblefield, a likely top 10 round pick, out with torn ACL (per various tweets).

[pots]

Aggie LHP Tyler Stubblefield, a likely top 10 round pick, out with torn ACL (per various tweets).

Interesting perhaps someone to snag with the compensation pick

[BUWebguy]

An executive from a team with an early first-round selection said ... "we'd like to get our eyes on him and his medical reports as soon as we can."

What medical reports would a team be getting before the draft? Wasn't that what caused this whole problem with Aiken in the first place?

[Nate Colbert]

What medical reports would a team be getting before the draft? Wasn't that what caused this whole problem with Aiken in the first place?

There's nothing that prevents clubs from *asking* for medicals prior to the draft. The normal response would be a stiff-arm from the player and his representatives. But where there's already significant questions as to a player's health, it generally behooves them to go ahead and provide such information. With what happened with the Astros, the only way Aiken/Close are going to get anything close to what was offered previously is for them to be upfront and disclose this.

[Reuben]

Exactly. Some players even take the initiative and share their medicals with teams, usually if they've had a recent injury or health questions. The college LHP (Freeman?) that the Rocks took in the 1st round last year, for example.

[Duman]

I am sure the Astros knew all of the details of Ruiz's rib issue when they drafted him.

[Nate Colbert]

JUCO season started up Friday.

As we all painfully remember, LHP Mac Marshall detoured to the JUCO ranks after everything unraveled. He was of course originally headed to LSU. Anyway, Perfect Game has him ranked the #2 overall JUCO prospect heading into the season. He made his debut Friday for his Chipola squad which lost a doubleheader in a Clearwater, Fla tourney. Struggled, giving up 4 runs in 2 innings though he did strike out four.

That Indians team is relatively loaded, prospect-wise. 1B/OF Isiah Gilliam was drafted in the 23rd round by the Cubs last year and is from the same Georgia HS as Marshall. PG has him ranked the #5 JUCO prospect. SS Reese Cooley was a 26th round pick by the Indians last year and PG has him as the #9 JUCO prospect.

Gilliam had three hits in one of those losses, against San Jac. The Gators have a top draft prospect of their own: RHP Riley Smith, who got the win versus Chipola while giving up a run on 6 hits in five frames. PG has him as the #4 JUCO prospect. Trivia: both Jose Bautista and Russell Martin played at Chipola before being drafted as did Buck Showalter before going on to Mississippi State.

All four guys mentioned are candidates to go in the top 10 rounds of this year's draft (if not higher), although Smith is an LSU commit which may drop him to the later rounds.

A few other JUCO names to know along with their schools, PG ranking and anything else relevant (or even not-so-relevant):

• #1 RHP Phil Bickford, College of Southern Nevada. Probably already know the name but if not scroll upward in the thread where Reuben discusses him.
• #3 RHP Chandler Eden, Yavapai College. Pitched at Oregon State as a freshman before transferring to the JUCO ranks. More trivia: guys who attended and were drafted out of Yavapai include Billy Hatcher, Charlie Kerfeld and Curt Schilling.
• #8 RHP Grayson Jones, Shelton State Community College. 14th round pick of the Indians in 2014. Auburn commit. And even more trivia: the head coach at Shelton State is former Astros pitcher Bobby Sprowl.

[Reuben]

Are Aiken and Nix not officially in JUCO yet?

[austro]

JUCO season started up Friday.

Thanks for the info. I'll probably be headed out to Colorado again for the JUCO WS this hear, and Yavapai, College of Southern Nevada, Chipola, and San Jac are frequent members of the field there, so I may get a chance to watch some of these guys.

[Nate Colbert]

Are Aiken and Nix not officially in JUCO yet?

I've posted about both earlier in this thread. Nix will not be in JUCO as he's enrolled at IMG Academy instead. Due to enrollment considerations (see this previously referenced Jim Callis article), JUCO now appears out for Aiken. That leaves him three options: IMG Academy, indy league or simply working out in front of scouts.

[pots]

I've posted about both earlier in this thread. Nix will not be in JUCO as he's enrolled at IMG Academy instead. Due to enrollment considerations (see this previously referenced Jim Callis article), JUCO now appears out for Aiken. That leaves him three options: IMG Academy, indy league or simply working out in front of scouts.

Doesn't seem like he's running out their to prove the Astros were wrong

[Reuben]

I've posted about both earlier in this thread. Nix will not be in JUCO as he's enrolled at IMG Academy instead. Due to enrollment considerations (see this previously referenced Jim Callis article), JUCO now appears out for Aiken. That leaves him three options: IMG Academy, indy league or simply working out in front of scouts.

Thanks. I lost track amidst all the boring "what will Aiken and Nix do??" drama.

Doesn't seem like he's running out their to prove the Astros were wrong

It sure doesn't. Perhaps he will end up throwing a HS season's worth of innings by June, but it wouldn't surprise me if he ends up being limited to much less than that. I suspect Close's petulance has cost his client a couple million bucks or more.

[roadrunner]

It sure doesn't. Perhaps he will end up throwing a HS season's worth of innings by June, but it wouldn't surprise me if he ends up being limited to much less than that. I suspect Close's petulance has cost his client a couple million bucks or more.

I don't see how he comes out ahead financially. The Astros have 2 of the top 5 picks and we know they aren't drafting him.  I imagine the other three teams will be hesitant, too.

I'm looking forward to the Drellich article in June that is some Aiken sob story all caused by the Astros FO and their computers.

[astrosfan76]

I don't see how he comes out ahead financially. The Astros have 2 of the top 5 picks and we know they aren't drafting him.  I imagine the other three teams will be hesitant, too.

I'm looking forward to the Drellich article in June that is some Aiken sob story all caused by the Astros FO and their computers.

It's possible, but there aren't a lot of ways for it to happen. The D-Backs have the straight 1 pick in each round, plus pick 74 (end of Comp Round B). We have the most flexibility, but won't be touching him. The Rockies have 3, 28, 38, and 48, though, so if they were inclined, they could give him the original $6.5M, if the D-Backs didn't pick him first. At 4, the Rangers, after slot increases, could come close to $5M without decreasing their other slots. With a senior sign, or two, in the first 10 rounds, they could do an extra half million, or so. After that, a team would have to be really creative to give him $5M+.

He will be picked, he's the best talent in the class. He will pitch this spring, somewhere. I don't see him sitting out the season and just pitching in tryouts; that, to me, would signal a major concern in the health of his elbow on his agent's part, were that to happen. So, I imagine he'll pitch in independent ball or IMG to prove himself. But, the less he pitches, the less likely it is that he gets that $5M+.

[Nate Colbert]

As we all painfully remember, LHP Mac Marshall detoured to the JUCO ranks after everything unraveled. He was of course originally headed to LSU. Anyway, Perfect Game has him ranked the #2 overall JUCO prospect heading into the season. He made his debut Friday for his Chipola squad which lost a doubleheader in a Clearwater, Fla tourney. Struggled, giving up 4 runs in 2 innings though he did strike out four.

That Indians team is relatively loaded, prospect-wise. 1B/OF Isiah Gilliam was drafted in the 23rd round by the Cubs last year and is from the same Georgia HS as Marshall. PG has him ranked the #5 JUCO prospect. SS Reese Cooley was a 26th round pick by the Indians last year and PG has him as the #9 JUCO prospect.

Just noticed that C/1B Ryan McCullers is on that Chipola squad as well. Yes, he's the brother/son of the Lances.

[Reuben]

Just noticed that C/1B Ryan McCullers is on that Chipola squad as well. Yes, he's the brother/son of the Lances.

Berkman and Armstrong had a baby?

[Nate Colbert]

Apparently the first in a series of articles as MLB.com follows #1 draft prospect SS Brendan Rodgers from now until June 8th.

[Nate Colbert]

The DII schedule got cranked up this week. Perhaps the two highest ratest prospects at that level pitch just 15 miles away from one another, RHP Cody Ponce at Cal Poly Pomona and Azusa Pacific's RHP Josh Staumont.

Ponce is 6'6"/240 and had an outstanding season this past summer in the Cape Cod League (CCL). He's projected as a 1st-rounder on a number of early draft boards (ranked #20 at MLB.com, #11 at FG, #24 at BA).

Staumont is a 6'2"/205 fireballer with control issues who falls right now into the 51-100 range in terms of draft rankings. Walked 19 in 21 IP in the CCL this past summer. He saw action on Thursday in the 1st game of a DH against CSU-Monterey Bay:

Ronit Shah ‏@Rontrarian  5h ago
Josh Staumont, perhaps the hardest thrower in this draft, went 4 innings today. 7 strikeouts, 5 walks, 2 hits, 1 earned run.

Ponce may pitch today when Pomona starts its season against Dixie State at Bruce Hurst Field in St. George, Utah. And we may see a Ponce/Staumont matchup next Friday as AP and Cal Poly kick off a 2-game series.

CPP and AP each had 3 players selected in last June's MLB draft.

ETA:

Just noticed this article on the two pitchers over at Perfect Game.

[Nate Colbert]

Dave Coggin ‏@PFAbaseball  5h ago
Jake Nix IMG Academy in FL was 95-96 through 4 inning 7k's no walks 1 hit in his first outing.

[juliogotay]

The draft has been moved to July 1st. This piece discusses some of the ramifications of that. http://www.crawfishboxes.com/2015/2/6/7961855/the-death-of-the-mlb-june-draft

[Reuben]

Pretty sure that's just a possible change for future years, not this one, or any as yet.

[juliogotay]

Pretty sure that's just a possible change for future years, not this one, or any as yet.

You are right. Apparently a meeting of the minds to do so after this years' June draft.

[Nate Colbert]

Phil Bickford struck out 8 in 4.2 IP in the opener for Southern Nevada last weekend. In his 2nd start today:

Eric Longenhagen ‏@longenhagen  2h ago
Phil Bickford likely done after 5 no-hit innings. Fastball 90-92, touched 94. Slider 78-81 flashing plus.

Turns out he did go out for the 6th inning but his velocity was down and his fastball was up. Ended up going 5 2/3 with 3 runs allowed on a HR. 9 Ks, 3 BBs.

 

[astrosfan76]

BA noted the same with his pitches, noting that he hasn't thrown a changeup this season, yet.

Bickford has a chance to improve his draft stock from 2013, especially if he can continue to showcase the overpowering stuff he unleashed in the Cape Cod League this summer. His fastball sat in the mid-90s and bumped the high 90s in a relief role this summer, but he often pitched with an average fastball in a starting role this spring. He’ll need to prove he can maintain electric stuff as a starter—and show more consistent secondary stuff—in order to be drafted in the top 10 picks again this year.

The article also mentions that he reportedly wanted $4.25M to turn pro out of high school. Fullerton can be a hard school to pull kids away from, so I wonder if his demands will be as high this time around. He would perform a big favor for himself if he could bump his fastball back to the same 90-96 MPH pitch he had as a senior, with great life and command. Otherwise, he may find himself at a third college next year.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/college/game-report-phil-bickford/

[Nate Colbert]

Some might recall Ronit Shah for the information he provided on Mark Appel's starts last year at Lancaster. He also tracks many of the amateur draft prospects in and around SoCal (and writes about them for FG). Definitely a guy to follow on the twitterverse if you're a draft junkie.

Ronit Shah ‏@Rontrarian  15m ago
UCLA 6'4" LHP Hunter Virant missed all of '14 (injury), but is back on the mound now & draft eligible. Some video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_d-lNCIXt0A …

Virant of course was drafted out of HS by the Astros in the 11th round in 2012 but DNS.

[Nate Colbert]

And a third report on Bickford's start, this one from Perfect Game:

Without question [the fastball] plays much better than the number typically would indicate. The four-seamer explodes on hitters due to his outstanding extension which we’ll touch on shortly. The slider is an average pitch on its own, a little slurvy at times but most often a strike. It sat around 80 mph but didn’t have great depth.

But as the article suggests (and astrosfan76 has already noted), that reliever profile may make a top 10 pick and a $4.25MM salary demand a tad optimistic this time round.

Great read--check out the entire article.

[astrosfan76]

I was about to post the PG article myself. It really is worth reading. He breaks down his mechanics and what goes into what he describes as an "elite" pitch that "made him giggle". That label sounds contradictory to what BA calls an average pitch, but it seems they (BA) are focusing more on velocity than the overall effectiveness of the pitch.

[juliogotay]

Some might recall Ronit Shah for the information he provided on Mark Appel's starts last year at Lancaster. He also tracks many of the amateur draft prospects in and around SoCal (and writes about them for FG). Definitely a guy to follow on the twitterverse if you're a draft junkie.

Virant of course was drafted out of HS by the Astros in the 11th round in 2012 but DNS.

Do you know anything about where Virant may be taken this year? Higher than round 11? Was his injury arm-related?

[Nate Colbert]

Do you know anything about where Virant may be taken this year? Higher than round 11? Was his injury arm-related?

Stress fracture in his back. That after pitching in just 5 games as a freshman. He would have gone much higher back in 2012 but the UCLA commit scared teams off until the Astros popped him in the 11th round (going in to the draft, BA had him ranked at #53). He may still be ranked 2nd-5th round talent-wise but he's got to show he's healthy this spring. As a draft-eligible sophomore, Virant has plenty of leverage so signability could again be an issue.

[juliogotay]

Stress fracture in his back. That after pitching in just 5 games as a freshman. He would have gone much higher back in 2012 but the UCLA commit scared teams off until the Astros popped him in the 11th round (going in to the draft, BA had him ranked at #53). He may still be ranked 2nd-5th round talent-wise but he's got to show he's healthy this spring. As a draft-eligible sophomore, Virant has plenty of leverage so signability could again be an issue.

Thank you.

[Nate Colbert]

Phil Bickford, ad nauseum:

Eric Longenhagen (see his earlier tweet above) has a more complete report including video on Bickford's start for FG.

[Nate Colbert]

With the Shields signing the last piece, BA has the final draft order here and if you scroll down to the second table they estimate the Astros bonus pool at $17,977,283.

[Nate Colbert]

With the Shields signing the last piece, BA has the final draft order here and if you scroll down to the second table they estimate the Astros bonus pool at $17,977,283.

MLB.com says $17,370,400 using a 9% estimated increase as opposed to BA's 13%.

[Nate Colbert]

PG article about what they say is a strong HS class out of Florida this year (though there are a couple of 2016 kids in there as well). Rodgers, Tucker, RHP Austin Smith, RHP Triston McKenzie and OF Daniel Reyes of that group have been previously identified as possible 1st rounders/early 2nd rounders.

[Nate Colbert]

Don't think it adds anything to what we already knew about Matuella (spondylolisis, developed his changeup) but still a nice article discussing his history.

[Nate Colbert]

Some injury news:

1) Vandy righty Walker Buehler, ranked as high as#4 in some draft lists, is suffering from a sore elbow.

2) U of Virginia OF Joe McCarthy had back surgery several weeks ago and will miss 3 months of the season. If healthy, he's a likely late 1st-rounder/early 2nd-rounder.

3) SoCal HSer Tyler Nevin is apparently healthy again after having TJS that caused him to miss his entire junior season. Talent-wise, he appears to be a 3rd-5th round pick but a UCLA commit could drop him to later rounds. Yes, he's the son of that guy and of course is a 3B.

[Nate Colbert]

Week of 2/13

D1 season starts today. A couple of televised games in the upcoming week if you're interested in checking out draft prospects. The TCU game on Sunday vs Southern Illinois is on FSSW+. The Horned Frogs have a bevy of top-notch pitching talent: LHP Alex Young, RHP Riley Ferrell (closer), LHP Tyler Alexander, RHP Mitchell Traver, RHP Preston Morrison. I think I read Alexander is scheduled to start that game against the Salukis.

The UTSA vs UT game on Tuesday is on LHN (as are all home games for the Horns). Not the strongest of draft groups I don't believe from the Forty Acres except for SS C.J. Hinojosa. The Klein Collins product was of course drafted by the Astros in the 26th round back in 2012. Maybe a 2nd rounder this year. Other lesser names on the team to watch for during the season: OF Ben Johnson, RHP Chad Hollingsworth (moving into the starting rotation this season), RHP Parker French (Tigers' 19th-rounder last year). Those who follow the the Longhorns closer than I can throw out other draft-eligible guys to keep an eye on. C John Bormann from Seguin and RHP Brock Hartson (Pearland HS) are a couple of Roadrunners draft prospects. The latter is the Friday starter for UTSA so you're not going to see him versus the Horns. Like French, Bormann was drafted in the 19th round last year but turned down the Angels and their $100K offer.

If HRs increase significantly in D1 this year, this'll be the reason why.

[jbm]

Thanks for all the info.  Is Hinojosa eligible, and is the second round the current projection?  I was very impressed by him last year, and was curious what round correlated to his level of talent.  Second round seems about right, but I would think mid to low 1st round is still possible.

Compared to the those voicing opinions in the article, I have only seen a tiny fraction of college baseball, but I enjoyed the low scoring last year.

[Mr. Happy]

Thanks for all the info.  Is Hinojosa eligible, and is the second round the current projection?  I was very impressed by him last year, and was curious what round correlated to his level of talent.  Second round seems about right, but I would think mid to low 1st round is still possible.

Compared to the those voicing opinions in the article, I have only seen a tiny fraction of college baseball, but I enjoyed the low scoring last year.

Normally, I far prefer a low scoring game, but they had so deadened the bats that I wass watching kids who clearly squared up a pitch who had power drive the ball not even to the warning track. They've reduced the seams on the ball this year in an attempt to increase offense. At LSU this fall, the new ball produced about 50% more homeruns.

[roadrunner]

Thanks for all the info.  Is Hinojosa eligible, and is the second round the current projection?  I was very impressed by him last year, and was curious what round correlated to his level of talent.  Second round seems about right, but I would think mid to low 1st round is still possible.

Compared to the those voicing opinions in the article, I have only seen a tiny fraction of college baseball, but I enjoyed the low scoring last year.

I don't go to baseball games for dingers, but there is a lost element when the threat of a homer is almost completely removed from the game.

[Nate Colbert]

Is Hinojosa eligible, and is the second round the current projection?  I was very impressed by him last year, and was curious what round correlated to his level of talent.  Second round seems about right, but I would think mid to low 1st round is still possible.

Hinojosa is a junior and thus eligible. There seems to be a relatively deep crop of shortstops this year. Beyond Brendan Rodgers, draft gurus tend to like Alex Bregman, Dansby Swanson, Richie Martin, Kevin Newman, Mikey White and a few others a bit more than Hinojosa. Thus, he tends to fall in to 2nd-4th round territory in these early, early draft rankings. Given the Astros familiarity with him, certainly a guy to keep an eye on as far as a possibility at #37 or #46.

[Nate Colbert]

I don't have access to the full article but in the tease K. Law has this to say about Jacob Nix's showing last night:

Nix threw on Thursday night in front of about 50 scouts, his second outing already this spring, and he's already improved his stock since last year. Nix has added about 25 pounds of muscle, and he looks perfectly built for major league workloads. If he builds up his arm strength to where he can hold 92-94 for six innings by the end of the spring, he's got a good chance to go in the back of the first round thanks to his size, stuff and the fact that he's already a bit famous. (It never hurts you in the draft to be well-known.)

[Nate Colbert]

And we may see a Ponce/Staumont matchup next Friday as AP and Cal Poly kick off a 2-game series.

Ponce went 4 1/3 tonight with no runs, 6 k's and threw 66 pitches because of a strict pitch count. Staumont was done after 5 2/3 with 5 walks and 9 k's.

According to Kylie McDaniel:
‏

@kileymcd  4 hours ago
Cody Ponce-Josh Staumont matchup going as expected: Staumont hit 100 w/inconsistent CB & walks, Ponce commanding 92-94 t95, flashing plus SL

[Nate Colbert]

Matuella and Duke ventured to PAC 12 country to open the season against Cal.

One report says his velo was sitting 95 in 1st inning and touching 97 (another said 93-96). Apparently dropped after that.

His final line: 6 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 8 K. Three of the hits were INF singles.

And there was this:

Chris Crawford @CrawfordChrisV  ·  3 hours ago
Sitting behind a GM who has a top three pick this year. Let the rumor mongering begin!

Did Luhnow tag along with Crane and Kibbe on the Pebble Beach trip?

[Reuben]

I'd be more surprised if he wasn't there. I imagine they'll have someone important at every one of his starts.

[astrosfan76]

Another guy who could have someone trailing all his starts: Nathan Kirby.  In a game that started at 32 degrees, he sat at 92-94, before dipping slightly to 91-93 later in the game. He had good, late action, with deception on the pitch, as well as an above-average slider and even better changeup. The changeup is a pitch that has improved and with three abover-average pitches, could help him go very high on draft day.

http://www.perfectgame.org/Articles/View.aspx?article=10898

[Nate Colbert]

keithlaw @keithlaw  ·  44 minutes ago
Heard ex-closer Dillon Tate has been 94-96 today as a starter for UCSB, touching 98.

Finished his day against BYU, going 6.2 IP 3 H 0 R 2 W 8 K.

The 6’2/185 righty for the Gauchos has shown up as high as late 1st round on a number of early draft boards.

[Nate Colbert]

Ponce went 4 1/3 tonight with no runs, 6 k's and threw 66 pitches because of a strict pitch count. Staumont was done after 5 2/3 with 5 walks and 9 k's.

Video on Staumont from that game.

[Nate Colbert]

More on the Matuella start last night:

Michael Matuella lived up to the billing of a potential No. 1 overall draft pick with six smooth, scoreless innings. In the first inning, he sat 93-96 mph and mowed through the top of the Cal lineup, needing just 11 pitches to strike out the side. More impressive was the way he moved the ball in and out and relied on his offspeed pitches later in the outing once Cal started making better contact with his fastball, which dropped to 88-92 mph after the first frame.

Also reiterated earlier reports from this spring that the changeup he's added to his arsenal has quickly become his best pitch.

[Nate Colbert]

The 6’2/185 righty for the Gauchos [Dillon Tate] has shown up as high as late 1st round on a number of early draft boards.

Aaron Fitt of D1BASEBALL.com (formerly with BA) says in this column that after Saturday's showing if Tate continues his successful conversion to starter he may be a darkhorse guy to go 1/1.

[Nate Colbert]

Vandy may have the best pitching staff in the country but that didn't much faze Jose Vizcaino, Jr of Santa Clara University this weekend. Vizcaino is the Broncos' best player and showed it by going 5-10 with 5 walks and 2 steals against the Dores in the 3-game opening season series. Like his old man, Jose plays SS. He was drafted in the 36th round in 2012 by the Dodgers (his dad then and now works in their front office). Coming into the season, the junior was projected as a middle-round pick.

[Nate Colbert]

BA recaps opening day weekend results for the top draft prospects from the college ranks.

As far as pitchers as possibilities to go in the top 5, in addition to Matuella and Kirby keep an eye on Kyle Funkhouser of Louisville. Absolutely dominant in his initial start (7 IP 1 H 0 R 1 W 12 K) even though the competition may not have been the strongest in Alabama State.

Another top 5 candidate, Vandy's Walker Beuhler, was held out due to that sore elbow.

[Nate Colbert]

...Kirby keep an eye on Kyle Funkhouser of Louisville. Absolutely dominant in his initial start (7 IP 1 H 0 R 1 W 12 K) even though the competition may not have been the strongest in Alabama State.

Eyewitness report plus video of that Funkhouser start.

[Nate Colbert]

Kendall Rogers ‏@KendallRogersD1  16m ago
Heard good things about @DBU_Baseball RHP Brandon Koch. Confirmed today he was 96-98 mph opening weekend w/ wipeout 86-88 SL. #mlbdraft

6'1" 185 RHP closer for Dallas Baptist. Junior. DBU has upcoming games against Baylor (including tonight), TCU and TAMU for those who might be in attendance.

Projected 3rd-5th rounder.

[Ebby Calvin]

I could root for a guy named Funkhouser.

[hostros7]

I could root for a guy named Funkhouser.

I assume that he is the son of Marty and grew up a big Dodgers fan.

[Nate Colbert]

Week of 2/20

Upcoming TV games this week with some draft prospect action.

The Rice games versus Arizona on Friday, Saturday and Sunday will all be televised on PAC 12 Network. Draft-eligible soph RHP Jon Duplantier is a potential 1st-rounder but has yet to pitch due to some shoulder soreness. Fellow RHP Kevin McCanna got the Friday start opening weekend against UT. He went in the 22nd round out of The Woodlands in 2012 and is a candidate to go top 10 rounds this time. Other Owls to know for the draft: SS Leon Byrd (25th-rounder in 2012 out of Cy Ranch) and LHP Blake Fox (Saturday starter against UT). The primary draft prospect for the Wildcats is SS Kevin Newman. He’s the first guy in Cape Cod League (CCL) history to win back to back batting titles. He was the 9th-ranked prospect in that league by BA this past summer and is being talked up as a potential 1st-rounder. Another Wildcat to look for: converted OF and leadoff hitter 2B Scott Kingery.

Saturday will see the SEC Network televise a couple of games. Florida State vs Georgia features Noles OF DJ Stewart. Most early draft boards have him pegged as a late 1st-rounder. The other game is Miami vs Florida. The Canes have LHP Andrew Suarez and 3B David Thompson while the Gators squad includes SS Richie Martin, OF Harrison Bader and RHP Eric Hanhold. Suarez, a red-shirt junior, was picked 57th overall by the Nationals in 2014 and obviously is looking to go even higher in the draft in 2015. He’s the Friday starter so you won’t seem him in this game. Thompson has a strong arm (he was recruited to Miami as a QB) but draft reports say he’s headed to 1B in the pros. Struggled with injuries last season but bounced back to be one of the better prospects in the CCL over the summer. Maybe a 3rd-rounder at this stage.

Martin is one of a number of college shortstops that could go in the 1st round. Bader is Florida’s cleanup hitter and is batting a silly .600/.684/1.400 after 4 games. Coming into the season, he was considered top 5 round potential. Ditto for Hanhold (though he may have suffered an injury in the early going).

The Horns take on Minnesota for four games this weekend (including a DH on Saturday) with all games on LHN. The Golden Gophers have a couple of guys to check out in LHP Dalton Sawyer and (to a lesser extent) RHP Lance Thonvold. If opening weekend against the Coogs is any indication, the 6’5” 210 lb Sawyer should start one of the games on Saturday at Disch-Falk. The 6’5” 245 lb Thonvold has struggled with control out of the bullpen.

The UT-Pan American game next Tuesday against UT is also on LHN.

Also next Tuesday the PAC 12 Network will televise UCLA vs Long Beach State. You’re not going to see RHP James Kaprielian or RHP Cody Poteet as they’re the Friday and Sunday starters, respectively. Kaprielian is a possible 1st-rounder while Poteet may be a 2nd-5th round guy. OF Ty Moore has top 10 round potential. LHP Hunter Virant is being used out of the bullpen in the early going and was mentioned previously in the thread. If LBS has significant draft prospects, I don’t know their names. What do expect out of a bunch of Dirtbags?

This is not a comprehensive list of televised games, just some that caught my eye. Also note that a ton of games are being streamed online via ESPN3 and other websites.

[Ron Brand]

Nate Colbert, you are just killing it. Killing it, sir! Thanks!

[Mr. Happy]

Nate Colbert, you are just killing it. Killing it, sir! Thanks!

+1,000 Most appreciated.

[GreatBagwellsBeard]

Get this man to the front page!

[Jacksonian]

Get this man to the front page!

Front page of what?

[VirtualBob]

Front page of what?

There's a front page?  What's it there for?

[Greg M]

I use it to increase my reflexes by clicking OWA forums before the "Thank you, Astros fans" video pops up.

[Reuben]

I use it to increase my reflexes by clicking OWA forums before the "Thank you, Astros fans" video pops up.

Why? It's barely 14 months old.

[austro]

Why? It's barely 14 months old.

You should see his reflexes.

[Nate Colbert]

John Manuel ‏@johnmanuelba  22 minutes ago
Scouts in NC being informed that #Duke RHP Michael Matuella will not pitch this weekend due to forearm tightness.

ETA:
JJ Cooper @jjcoop36
Matuella hasn't thrown 60+ innings in first two years at Duke. Hasn't pitched in summer. This will add to teams' worries.

[MusicMan]

John Manuel ‏@johnmanuelba  22 minutes ago
Scouts in NC being informed that #Duke RHP Michael Matuella will not pitch this weekend due to forearm tightness.

(/whistles "Farmer in the Dell")

Tommy John's a-comin'.

[Nate Colbert]

Some pitching performances today (and yesterday):

1. Funkhouser bad (4.2 IP, 7H, 7 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 7 K, 2 HBP versus Arkansas State).
2. Kirby good (5 1/3 IP w/ 1 run allowed on 3 hits and 9 K's against not-so-juggernaut Marist).
3. Bickford very good (5 scoreless innings with 13 K's).*

*40 Ks versus just 6 BBs in 20.1 IP thus far on the year (against JUCO competition of course)

[Nate Colbert]

John Manuel ‏@johnmanuelba  22 minutes ago
Scouts in NC being informed that #Duke RHP Michael Matuella will not pitch this weekend due to forearm tightness.

ETA:
JJ Cooper @jjcoop36
Matuella hasn't thrown 60+ innings in first two years at Duke. Hasn't pitched in summer. This will add to teams' worries.

Duke HC Chris Pollard said after an MRI today:

“[Matuella] looks great. A little bit of inflammation in there, but the ligament looks great—no disruptions,” Pollard said. “(The doctor) didn’t anticipate he’ll have an issue with making his start next week. As soon as he’s symptom-free he’ll be good to get back out there.”

[Nate Colbert]

Some pitching performances today (and yesterday):

1. Funkhouser bad (4.2 IP, 7H, 7 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 7 K, 2 HBP versus Arkansas State).
2. Kirby good (5 1/3 IP w/ 1 run allowed on 3 hits and 9 K's against not-so-juggernaut Marist).
3. Bickford very good (5 scoreless innings with 13 K's).*

*40 Ks versus just 6 BBs in 20.1 IP thus far on the year (against JUCO competition of course)

Some other pitching performances:

4. Fulmer okay (5 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 W, 6 K, 1 WP, 1 HBP against Indiana State)
5. Suarez DNP (strained oblique)

[Nate Colbert]

Kiley McDaniel ‏@kileymcd  2 hours ago
Buzz growing on Dillon Tate. Flashed good CH, holding 95. Its early but he's in top 5 picks right now, esp w/Matuella & Aiken durability ?'s.

The Gauchos pitcher went 7 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 2 W, 9 K in UCSB's 11-0 win today over the U of Kentucky.

[Lefty]

Very heady play yesterday by Arizona's Newman, walk off steal of home with 2 outs.  Rice pitcher never looked him back, so he took off on his own.

http://pac-12.com/videos/arizonas-kevin-newman-after-walk-win-over-rice

[austro]

Very heady play yesterday by Arizona's Newman, walk off steal of home with 2 outs.  Rice pitcher never looked him back, so he took off on his own.

http://pac-12.com/videos/arizonas-kevin-newman-after-walk-win-over-rice

That 9th inning gave me a heart attack and a stroke. I would not have wanted to be on the same bus with Wayne Graham after that one.

[Nate Colbert]

Some more Dillon Tate video via Kiley McDaniel.

[Nate Colbert]

More on top 5 overall candidate Vandy RHP Walker Buehler and his elbow soreness:

Buehler experienced some elbow soreness when he reported back to Vanderbilt in the preseason, and the Commodores have taken their time building him back to full strength. Buehler threw a side session on Sunday, and felt no ill effects. He will throw in a simulated game situation in the next few days, and could be back on the mound in game action as soon as this weekend. His exact date of return isn’t clear right now, though, and his debut could be delayed until Vanderbilt travels to Southern California for the Dodgertown Classic on March 8.

[Nate Colbert]

Of Pettittes and Biggios:

None of the guys mentioned are 2015 draft prospects and/or draft-eligible but still thought folks might be interested. Notre Dame played this past weekend at the Irish Alamo Invitational against the likes of Incarnate Word (twice), Villanova and Northwestern at Nelson Wolff Stadium. The Golden Domers won all 4 games by a combined 40-6 score. Sophomore 2B Cavan Biggio won ACC Player of the Week honors by going .533/.733/.667 over the weekend. After 2 weekends of play, he's first or tied for first in the ACC in average (.516), hits (16), triples (2), doubles (6) and runs (11) and second or tied for second in total bases (26), on-base percentage (.625) and slugging percentage (.839). Started 52 games as a freshman though he struggled a bit hitting .246/.329/.353.

Senior OF Conor Biggio's ND career has not gone as well. He has a career .230/.359/.267 line in 3+ seasons and has played in only about half the Irish's games over that period.

And as you may have read, Josh Pettitte saw action in his first collegiate game yesterday for Rice.  Gave up a run on 2 hits while unleashing a WP in 1/3 of a frame against Arizona. Pettitte first attended Baylor but underwent TJS without seeing any action and thus he's a RS Fresh,a

[astrosfan76]

The college guys are getting more attention because, well they're playing right now, but BA posted their Pre-season All-America list to give us a glimpse of some of the top prep talent. Notable "names" include Daz Cameron and Ke'Bryan Hayes (son of Charlie). Cameron has the better chance of going high in the draft, though neither may be a good option so our top picks (Hayes could be an option after the 1st round, if still available).

As for guys worth looking at with our top picks, Brendan Rodgers and Kolby Allard are the guys who look like options, at this point. Rodgers has a chance at going before we get a crack, but he's not as much of a slam-dunk as Rodon was last year before the season. Allard has similarities to Aiken, as a young-for-his-class LHP surfer boy from SoCal with similar velocity the summer after his junior season and a good curveball. Whether he takes the step up that Aiken did is yet to be seen, but he does have potential to do so. The one main difference between the two (besides fully-developed ligaments) is stature, as Allard goes by 6'2"/190 (175 in the summer) and Aiken stood a full 2 inches and ~25 pounds larger.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/draft/2015-preseason-high-school-americans/

[Nate Colbert]

Preston Tucker's bro Kyle isn't hurting himself in the early going:

"He has the chance to really hit and drive the ball, fitting the profile of a corner bat," one scouting director said. "He's definitely helped his stock out so far this season, moving up into the top 20 picks or so."

"He hasn't hurt himself, for sure," a second scouting director agreed. "I'd say he could go in the middle of the first round, 11 to 20 would be my best guess as of now."

[Nate Colbert]

Matuella vs Tate, with more background on the latter.

[Nate Colbert]

The DII schedule got cranked up this week. Perhaps the two highest ratest prospects at that level pitch just 15 miles away from one another, RHP Cody Ponce at Cal Poly Pomona and Azusa Pacific's RHP Josh Staumont.

Ponce is 6'6"/240 and had an outstanding season this past summer in the Cape Cod League (CCL). He's projected as a 1st-rounder on a number of early draft boards (ranked #20 at MLB.com, #11 at FG, #24 at BA).

Per a Kiley McDaniel tweet, Ponce to miss several weeks with shoulder fatigue.

[austro]

This actually belongs in the 2009 draft thread, but whatever.

I was just answering some baseball questions for my wife, and the conversation drifted to Mike Trout and the fact that he was drafted relatively late. I couldn't remember the exact details, so I went back to baseball-reference.com to look them up. He was picked 25th: 24 teams (including the Astros, who picked the inimitable Gio Miers at #21) decided that there was somebody better than Trout. The only team who was close to right was the Nats, who took Strasburg with the #1. Makes one wonder what Trout's negatives were that caused people to pass. He was a high-schooler, so maybe he just blossomed late.

On the plus side, the Angels were actually using a Yankee pick (compensation for Texeira), so at least there's that.

[astrosfan76]

This actually belongs in the 2009 draft thread, but whatever.

I was just answering some baseball questions for my wife, and the conversation drifted to Mike Trout and the fact that he was drafted relatively late. I couldn't remember the exact details, so I went back to baseball-reference.com to look them up. He was picked 25th: 24 teams (including the Astros, who picked the inimitable Gio Miers at #21) decided that there was somebody better than Trout. The only team who was close to right was the Nats, who took Strasburg with the #1. Makes one wonder what Trout's negatives were that caused people to pass. He was a high-schooler, so maybe he just blossomed late.

On the plus side, the Angels were actually using a Yankee pick (compensation for Texeira), so at least there's that.

The big thing with Trout was that he was from Jersey, so he was a cold-weather player. He didn't have the experience that others had, so he was more of a wild-card. Doesn't mean they didn't think he was talented (though, no one thought he would be "this" good), but they had less to go by.

[chuck]

The big thing with Trout was that he was from Jersey, so he was a cold-weather player. He didn't have the experience that others had, so he was more of a wild-card. Doesn't mean they didn't think he was talented (though, no one thought he would be "this" good), but they had less to go by.

You can't figure out that a guy can play by watching him for five months a year? You need ten before you're really sure? I'm glad Correa's from Puerto Rico. Who knows what calamity might have befallen that year's draft if he were from somewhere north of the Tropic of Cancer.

[Reuben]

You can't figure out that a guy can play by watching him for five months a year? You need ten before you're really sure? I'm glad Correa's from Puerto Rico. Who knows what calamity might have befallen that year's draft if he were from somewhere north of the Tropic of Cancer.

less experienced = he was less developed as a player, I think. He was also really young for his class (as was Correa). Those two factors can often lead to a kid breaking out big once he gets into pro ball or college.

[astrosfan76]

You can't figure out that a guy can play by watching him for five months a year? You need ten before you're really sure? I'm glad Correa's from Puerto Rico. Who knows what calamity might have befallen that year's draft if he were from somewhere north of the Tropic of Cancer.

From a Rosenthal article from last year (you can find similar recollections around the web):

Bane, who is now a major-league scout with the Tigers, says a number of teams simply could not believe that a kid as good as Trout could be from Jersey.

Trout, coming out of Millville H.S., wasn’t exactly an unknown — Jeff Trout recalls the Athletics’ Billy Beane, Giants’ Brian Sabean and high-ranking officials from virtually every other team coming to see his son.

Still, because kids in the northeast don’t play as much baseball as kids in Florida, California and other states in warmer climates, they usually are considered greater risks.

“Mike did the Area Code Games, did a few of the big tryouts and showcases, but he came on the scene late,” Jeff Trout says.

http://www.foxsports.com/mlb/story/how-los-angeles-angels-hooked-rookie-phenom-mike-trout-in-mlb-draft-051212

[Mr. Happy]

A scout told me that he saw Trout play in high school and that he was the most toolsy player he had ever seen in all of his years in baseball, but the club did nothing with it, probably because they didn't believe that a kid from Joisey can be that good.

[geezerdonk]

Sounds fishy to me.

[Nate Colbert]

Week of 2/27

8 games on TV this week involving draft prospects.

Three of the games involve TCU. The Horned Frogs play Cal Poly in weekend action with the Friday and Sunday tilts both on FSSW+. Senior RHP Preston Morrison should take the mound on Friday. His FB may never go much beyond the mid 80’s but he still manages to be effective. He’s thrown 16 scoreless innings to start the season, including a CG 3-hitter against then 8th-ranked Arizona State. BA has him listed as the 6th-best draft prospect among college seniors (just behind UT’s Parker French). How that translates into draft rounds is a bit of a mystery. You would think someone might pop him in the 1st 10 rounds but given the fact he wasn’t drafted out of HS nor as a junior that would be anything but a sure bet. If the current rotation holds, LHP Alex Young should go Sunday. BA has him ranked #21 among college juniors so perhaps someone the Astros would look at as far as picks #37 or #46.

This Cal Poly is the D1 San Luis Obispo variety, not the D2 Pomona folks, and it’s a good program with the Mustangs having been to regionals three times in the last six years. I’ve seen three of their guys mentioned as draft possibilities: 2B Mark Mathias, OF Zack Zehner and 1B Brian Mundell. Mathias hit .386/.455/.490 last season for the Mustangs. He had offseason shoulder surgery and has only played in one game thus far (this past Tuesday) as a DH. The injury to the labrum in his right shoulder occurred over the summer while playing for USA Baseball’s Collegiate National Team. BA has him at #34 on that college junior list so if folks are convinced he’s healthy then he may be a 2nd or 3rd rounder.

Zehner is a senior who went in the 7th round to the Blue Jays last year (Toronto also tried to sign him as an undrafted free agent the year before as a JUCO sophomore). 6’4” 215 lbs, he’s off to a .323/.417/.516 start this year after hitting .316/.374/.443 last year. BA has him at #7 (just after French and Morrison) among college senior draft prospects. Look to see if the power finally shows for this guy. And finally Mundell--he’s definitely not the same caliber as the first two guys mentioned. The junior did show some promise over the summer in the wood bat Northwoods League but still needs to do even more with the stick. A whole lot more.

The best matchup of the TV games is Rice vs TCU on Tuesday. Like the other two televised Horned Frog games, it’s on FSSW+. If your mid-week starter is someone of the caliber of RHP Mitchell Traver, then you know your pitching staff is special. If the name sounds familiar, here’s why: he was picked by the Astros in the 39th round in 2012 out of Houston Christian High. He was considered top 3 round talent coming out of HS but a diagnosis of thoracic outlet syndrome (and subsequent surgery for it) dropped him all the way down to the next to last round. On top of all that, he then had to have TJS. So in 2013 and 2014, he managed to pitch all of a third of an inning for TCU.

Despite the surgical sojourn, the 6’7” 255 lb Traver just might be all the way back. It began this summer with 29 solid innings of work in the Northwoods League that caused BA to rank him the 9th-best prospect there. And he’s kicked ass in his first 2 starts for TCU this season: 15 scoreless innings with 17 K’s and just 1 walk. The Owls game will be a step up in competition (he faced UTA and Texas Southern in those other games) so I’m really looking forward to seeing what he can do. As far as draft round, you’ve really got to wait and see how he performs the rest of the season to see how high he might go. The injury history and lack of innings makes him a bit of a crapshoot. Luhnow & co. presumably know him better than anyone at this stage, though, so another selection by his hometown team certainly wouldn’t be a surprise.

A couple of SEC Network games are on the docket. Arizona takes on Mississippi State on Saturday while rivals Clemson and South Carolina duke it out Sunday. The Wildcats DP duo of SS Kevin Newman (potential 1st-rounder) and 2B Scott Kingery were mentioned previously. The Bulldogs are a ranked team but apparently don’t have a lot of draft-eligible talent. Senior RHP Trevor Fitts is the best of the bunch it seems. He’s the closer (after starting last season) and has three saves in three appearances. As far as the Palmetto State matchup, look for Tigers OF Steven Duggar (possible 2nd-rounder). Don’t look for fellow Clemsonite LHP Zack Erwin (#47 on the BA college juniors list). He’s their Saturday starter so unless they shift their rotation won’t be in Sunday’s game. The Gamecocks, like Miss. State, are a ranked team with not much in terms of 2015 draft talent. Senior 1B Kyle Martin is the only name I’ve seen mentioned thus far--he was a 20th round pick a year ago by the Angels.

All three weekend games between the Longhorns and San Diego are being televised on LHN. And no this is not San Diego State. Nor is it UC-San Diego. This would be the Univ of San Diego Toreros. One guy on that squad to look for--SS Kyle Holder. BA has him ranked #44 in their college junior rankings of top draft prospects.

[Nate Colbert]

Aiken will join Nix on the IMG Academy team, per a K Law tweet.

[juliogotay]

Aiken will join Nix on the IMG Academy team, per a K Law tweet.

They will be able to tell the other kids about what a bunch of jerks the Astros are.

[chuck]

A scout told me that he saw Trout play in high school and that he was the most toolsy player he had ever seen in all of his years in baseball, but the club did nothing with it, probably because they didn't believe that a kid from Joisey can be that good.

This is exactly what I'm talking about. If you can't tell that a Mike Trout has the potential to be a really good player in the six or seven short months that New Jersey offers for baseball then you should probably find some other line of work. If an organization elects not to believe he can play or assigns him a prohibitively high risk factor because, gosh, he only plays half the year, then that organization deserves all of the misery that it buys itself.

Bryce Harper is from Las Vegas. They play baseball all year there. Was seeing Bryce Harper hit a baseball 100,000 times really that much more informative than seeing Mike Trout hit a baseball 65,000 times or whatever? These teams should open training academies in Guyana or Equatorial Guinea, maybe then they'd be happy.

[chuck]

By the way, I love that austro's wife is peppering him with baseball questions. There's quite a bit to recommend sra chuck but an insatiable thirst for sports knowledge isn't tremendously high on that list.

[Reuben]

Maybe a dumbass bias against cold-weather kids can explain why some teams passed on Trout, but I find it hard to believe that was the reason all 23 or 4 did (God knows Bobby Heck loved his Illinois pitchers). I'm pretty sure it was at least partly due to his being behind other top HS kids, developmentally, at the time, and teams failing to realize he would blossom the way he did once he had another year of solid baseball playing under his belt.

Plus, I bet he didn't get seen nearly as much as you think he did - maybe the Angels caught every game of his Senior year, maybe not, but I doubt many teams did; as his dad mentioned, he got a little more exposure when he did the Area Code games. 

[Lefty]

Saw that the West Virginia coach, apparently among others, is pushing hard to move the start of the season back to somewhere around April.  Paraphrasing "What the hell are we doing playing baseball in February?"

[roadrunner]

Saw that the West Virginia coach, apparently among others, is pushing hard to move the start of the season back to somewhere around April.  Paraphrasing "What the hell are we doing playing baseball in February?"

I imagine the "college" part of college baseball has something to do with it.

Yes, I realize the CWS is in June.

[Nate Colbert]

MLB.com says $17,370,400 using a 9% estimated increase as opposed to BA's 13%.

The final official number released by MLB: $17,289,200.

[austro]

Saw that the West Virginia coach, apparently among others, is pushing hard to move the start of the season back to somewhere around April.  Paraphrasing "What the hell are we doing playing baseball in February?"

Oh, I'm sure everybody will be thrilled when the ML clubs start telling the college coaches to limit the pitch counts of their draft picks come July and August. Or is the NCAA going to convince MLB to move their draft?

[Nate Colbert]

Week of 2/27

8 games on TV this week involving draft prospects.

Three of the games involve TCU. The Horned Frogs play Cal Poly in weekend action with the Friday and Sunday tilts both on FSSW+.

Looks like tonight's game has been cancelled.

[Nate Colbert]

Pitching performances & other news for the weekend:

Potential top 5 picks

• Nathan Kirby--6 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 4 W, 10 K today versus Baggy's old school (Hartford)
• Walker Buehler--supposedly will be used out of the Vandy's bullpen this weekend with an eye towards starting next weekend as he works through that elbow soreness.
• Michael Matuella--was scheduled to start today vs Rider but game cancelled. Will start 2nd game of DH tomorrow.
• Dillon Tate--no hit 20th-ranked Oregon over the 1st 5 innings. Gives up 1st run of season in 6th and final line is 7.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 4 W, 8 K.*

*More on Tate's outing:

Frankie Piliere ‏@FPilierePG  11m ago
Another start, more dominant stuff from Dillon Tate. 94-97 mph FB, typical plus SL and showing the change. Reportedly 70+ scouts there.

Others of interest

• Carson Fulmer--6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 W, 11 K versus Illinois State.
• Mac Marshall--5 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 W, 7 K versus Grand Rapids CC. Nice to see the walks down as that had been a problem in his 4 previous starts for Chipola: 9 BBs in 16 IP.

[Nate Colbert]

Pitching performances & other news (further updates):

Potential top 5 picks

• Nathan Kirby--6 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 4 W, 10 K today versus Baggy's old school (Hartford)
• Walker Buehler--supposedly will be used out of the Vandy's bullpen this weekend with an eye towards starting next weekend as he works through that elbow soreness.
• Michael Matuella--was scheduled to start today vs Rider but game cancelled. Will start 2nd game of DH tomorrow.
• Dillon Tate--no hit 20th-ranked Oregon over the 1st 5 innings. Gives up 1st run of season in 6th and final line is 7.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 4 W, 8 K.*

*More on Tate's outing:

Frankie Piliere ‏@FPilierePG  11m ago
Another start, more dominant stuff from Dillon Tate. 94-97 mph FB, typical plus SL and showing the change. Reportedly 70+ scouts there.

Others of interest

• Carson Fulmer--6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 W, 11 K versus Illinois State.
• Mac Marshall--5 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 W, 7 K versus Grand Rapids CC. Nice to see the walks down as that had been a problem in his 4 previous starts for Chipola: 9 BBs in 16 IP.
• Jon Duplantier--Kendall Rogers of D1Baseball.com reports that the draft-eligible soph and potential 1st-rounder may be out for the season. Previously he was said to be suffering from some shoulder soreness.

[Nate Colbert]

I wrote about Mitchell Traver above. This is some further info on his most recent start this past Wednesday:

He worked in the 91-93 mph range with his fastball and topped at 95, just as he had last week, with a slider that sat in the mid-80s. As impressive as those numbers were here's a set that's better: Of the 83 pitches he threw, 60 of them were for strikes and Traver never found himself in a 2-0 count.

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend performances & other news (including Saturday updates):

Potential top 5 picks

• Nathan Kirby--6 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 4 W, 10 K today versus Baggy's old school (Hartford)
• Walker Buehler--supposedly will be used out of the Vandy's bullpen this weekend with an eye towards starting next weekend as he works through that elbow soreness.
• Michael Matuella--was scheduled to start today vs Rider but game cancelled. Perhaps will start 2nd game of DH Sunday.
• Dillon Tate--no hit 20th-ranked Oregon over the 1st 5 innings. Gives up 1st run of season in 6th and final line is 7.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 4 W, 8 K.*
• Kyle Funkhouser--bounces back with a decent 7 IP, 7 H, 0 ER, 2 W, 7 K outing against Xavier.

*More on Tate's outing:

Frankie Piliere ‏@FPilierePG  11m ago
Another start, more dominant stuff from Dillon Tate. 94-97 mph FB, typical plus SL and showing the change. Reportedly 70+ scouts there.

Others of interest

• Carson Fulmer--6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 W, 11 K versus Illinois State.
• Mac Marshall--5 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 W, 7 K versus Grand Rapids CC. Nice to see the walks down as that had been a problem in his 4 previous starts for Chipola: 9 BBs in 16 IP.
• Jon Duplantier--Kendall Rogers of D1Baseball.com reports that the draft-eligible soph and potential 1st-rounder may be out for the season. Previously he was said to be suffering from some shoulder soreness.

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend performances & other news (including Sunday updates):

Potential top 5 picks

• Nathan Kirby--6 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 4 W, 10 K Friday versus Baggy's old school (Hartford).
• Walker Buehler--using him out of Vandy's bullpen this weekend may have been the plan but that was not the reality as he continues to be held out. We'll see whether he finally makes his 2015 debut next weekend where weather should not be a factor as the Dores head to LA for a tourney with games against UCLA, USC and TCU.
• Michael Matuella--apparently was on a 30 pitch limit so it was planned, but throws 23 pitches and leaves after just 1 inning in Sunday's game vs Rider. Gave up 2 hits while striking out one. Scheduled to start on Friday versus North Carolina in Chapel Hill.
• Dillon Tate--no hit 20th-ranked Oregon over the 1st 5 innings Friday. Gives up 1st run of season in 6th and final line is 7.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 4 W, 8 K.*
• Kyle Funkhouser--bounces back with a decent 7 IP, 7 H, 0 ER, 2 W, 7 K outing on Saturday against Xavier.

*More on Tate's outing:

Frankie Piliere ‏@FPilierePG  
Another start, more dominant stuff from Dillon Tate. 94-97 mph FB, typical plus SL and showing the change. Reportedly 70+ scouts there.

Others of interest

• Carson Fulmer--6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 3 W, 11 K versus Illinois State.
• Mac Marshall--5 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 W, 7 K versus Grand Rapids CC. Nice to see the walks down as that had been a problem in his 4 previous starts for Chipola: 9 BBs in 16 IP.
• Jon Duplantier--Kendall Rogers of D1Baseball.com reported via twitter that the draft-eligible soph and potential 1st-rounder may be out for the season. Previously he was said to be suffering from some shoulder soreness.

[GreatBagwellsBeard]

I'm starting to think Tate's going 1-1, and won't be around when we pick.  I hope I'm wrong.

[Nate Colbert]

Vandy Baseball ‏@VandyBaseball  29 minutes ago
Walker Buehler will make his season debut tomorrow against Evansville. He’ll get the start at 4 p.m.

[Nate Colbert]

Mid-week performances:

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Walker Buehler--makes season debut for the Dores with no hits allowed against U of Evansville in 2 IP w/2 walks and 2 strikeouts.
• Dansby Swanson--the Vandy SS with a 3-run shot in six trips to the plate tonight vs Evansville. Came in hitting .370/.434/.565 with 6 walks and 5 strikeouts in 46 ABs.

Others of Interest

• Phil Bickford--4 runs on 5 hits and 3 walks while K'ing 6 in 4 IP against Colorado NorthWestern CC.*
• Mitchell Traver--retired the Rice Owls 1-2-3 in his only inning of work. I'm guessing rain delay, having to warm up twice, injury history, able to use him this weekend as TCU heads to a tourney in LA, wanting to give other pitchers work (Horned Frogs hadn't played in a week), etc. all played a part in the short stint.

*Bickford's performance was this past weekend.

[Nate Colbert]

Week of 3/6

An LA rivalry, a border rivalry and the Houston College Classic (HCC) are all on display over the next week.

USC takes on UCLA on the PAC 12 Network on Sunday. A pair of Trojans that might be the right fit for some teams are the two Kyles. RHP Kyle Davis is the closer while LHP Kyle Twomey is the Saturday starter and thus you’re not gonna seem him in this game. Twomey is the better of the two and looks like 2nd-5th round talent while Davis might go in the top 10 rounds.

Previously mentioned four draft-eligibles for the Bruins: Kaprielian, Poteet, Moore and Virant. Kaprielian is the Friday starter so no go there but Poteet is the Sunday guy so you will most likely see him. Also, there are three UCLA seniors who likely will go at some point in the draft: closer RHP David Berg, LHP Grant Watson and 3B Chris Keck. Berg will be looking to improve on his 17th round selection by the Rangers last year. Watson and Keck probably won’t be picked until the latter stages of the draft. Keck has hit 5 longballs in the first 12 games of the season. Watson is the Saturday starter.

It’s Cats versus Cats as Cincinnati takes on Kentucky next Tuesday on the SEC Network. Might be your only televised opportunity to see INF/OF Ian Happ of the Bearcats. He’s one of the better college hitters out there (including a ridiculous .500/.604/.842 over the first 10 games this season) and definitely upper half of 1st round potential. The Wildcats RHP Kyle Cody is another possible 1st-rounder but as a weekend starter you won’t get a look at him.

The good news is that all of the HCC games will be televised on RSSW. The bad news is some will be shown on a tape-delayed basis. So broadcast dates stretch from Friday all the way to next Wednesday even though the games will actually be played Fri-Sun. Among the six-team field: Houston, LSU and Texas A&M.

You probably already know most of the draft names for the Coogs. RHP Jake Lemoine is at the top and a likely 1st-rounder. Fellow juniors C Ian Rice (JUCO transfer from Chipola), RHP Patrick Weigel, OF Kyle Survance (Jersey Village) and INF/DH Justin Montemayor (Anderson High out of Austin) should see some draft play as should senior RHP Aaron Garza (Galveston Ball). Rice was taken in the 21st round by the Red Sox last year while Weigel and Garza were Milwaukee picks--Weigel in the 22nd and Garza in the 29th. Weigel just went five innings on Tuesday against HBU so his availability for the weekend seems unlikely at best. Haven’t seen 1B Chris Iriart on any draft lists but he’s off to a strong start (.348/.474/.587) thru 13 games which if he keeps it up will attract some attention come June.

LSU has its usual strong contingent of draft talent with SS Alex Bregman, OF Andrew Stevenson and OF Mark Laird the top names this time round. Bregman is a 1st round talent though likely plays another position in the pros. Stevenson might be the higher rated of the two outfielders but either one could slip into the 1st 5 rounds. Senior C Kade Scivicque is off to a blistering .448/.486/.862 start and will get popped as well.

The three top draft names for the Aggies seem to be LHP A.J. Minter, RHP Grayson Long and OF Logan Taylor. Minter is another guy who’s suffered from thoracic outlet syndrome which has held him back at A&M. Predicting where he or the other two will get drafted is mostly a coin flip. I’ll swag it and say Minter goes in the 1st 5 rounds (though he may be trending higher) with Long and Taylor going in rounds 6-10. BTW, Taylor is mashing his way to the tune of  .405/.488/.892 in A&M’s 13-0 start while Minter has whiffed 23 in 16 IP with an 0.56 ERA. Seniors SS Blake Allemand and 1B Logan Nottebrok will get popped (late) by someone.

The usual yada-yada: not meant to be a complete list of all televised games, many more games are streamed online, etc etc etc.

[Nate Colbert]

From today's Keith Law chat:

Andy (Madison, WI): Will Aiken consent to be redrafted? If he doesn't, slot might be less than the 5 million he turned down from the Astros.

Klaw: No, he won't, nor will Nix. I don't think that guarantees he'll get less, though; someone could go over slot for him.

I had been curious whether the settlement between Jacob Nix and the Astros would have allowed them to draft him again. But apparently the answer is no if Law's info is correct.

[Nate Colbert]

Shocker: Astros have scouted Kyle Tucker.

[Nate Colbert]

Drellich visited IMG Academy and has an article on Nix and Aiken, although it doesn't add anything to what's already known.

And if you missed the posting over in the TZ thread, Heyman reported earlier today that the settlement with Nix was for "significantly less" than the $1.5MM bonus.

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend performances & other news:

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dillon Tate--facing Sacramento State, tosses 7 scoreless with 10 strikeouts.
• Dansby Swanson--against Bruin ace James Kaprielian (see below) went 1-3, overall in the game was 2-5 with a SB.

Others of Interest*

• Carson Fulmer--battled control with just 56 strikes in 112 pitches against UCLA in the Dodgertown Classic tourney but held a good-hitting Bruin squad (averaging 8.8 runs per game coming in) scoreless over 6 1/3 innings.
• James Kaprielian--dueling Fulmer, showed brilliant flashes by striking out 7 of 8 Dores at one point. Overall: 5.1 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 W 9 K.
• Hunter Virant--faced two batters in relief of Kaprielian, giving up a double and a plunk before giving way to the next UCLA reliever.
• Phil Bickford--no hit Utah State Eastern over 6 frames with 15 whiffs and just 1 walk. K'd 61 versus 10 W in 30 IP on the season.
• Mitchell Traver--in another of the Dodgertown Classic games, put up decent numbers (5.2 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 W, 7 K) against #25 USC. Threw 80 pitches, 56 for strikes. The earned runs (the first allowed this season by Traver) were inherited runners the following TCU pitcher allowed to score.
• A.J. Minter--the Aggie lefty allowed 0 ER on 4 hits while striking out 6 and walking 1 in the HCC game vs Nebraska. Reports said he was sitting 92-94 (occasionally touching 95) on the FB. 70 pitches, 50 for strikes. On the year, 29:9 K to walk ratio in 21 IP.
• Josh Staumont--the Azusa Pacific RHP per reports hit triple digits on the gun against Point Loma, giving up no hits over 6.2 frames with 14 punchouts and 4 walks/1 HBP/2 WPs.

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, etc.

[Nate Colbert]

Video on Horned Frogs righty Mitchell Traver.

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend performances (including Saturday updates):

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dillon Tate--facing Sacramento State, tosses 7 scoreless with 10 strikeouts.
• Michael Matuella--on a 40 pitch count limit, went three scoreless innings and gave up one hit and one walk and no k's against NC Tar Heels.
• Kyle Funkhouser--opens up ACC play by struggling against Miami Hurricanes (5.1 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 4 W, 2 K plus a couple of HBPs).
• Nathan Kirby--his ACC opener went better: strikes out 13 Pitt Panthers in 7 innings, allowing one run on 7 hits.
• Dansby Swanson--against Bruin ace James Kaprielian (see below) went 1-3, overall in the game was 2-5 with a SB.

Others of Interest*

• Carson Fulmer--battled control with just 56 strikes in 112 pitches against UCLA in the Dodgertown Classic tourney but held a good-hitting Bruin squad (averaging 8.8 runs per game coming in) scoreless over 6 1/3 innings.
• James Kaprielian--dueling Fulmer, showed brilliant flashes by striking out 7 of 8 Dores at one point. Overall: 5.1 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 W 9 K.
• Hunter Virant--faced two batters in relief of Kaprielian, giving up a double and a plunk before giving way to the next UCLA reliever.
• Phil Bickford--no hit Utah State Eastern over 6 frames with 15 whiffs and just 1 walk. K'd 61 versus 10 W in 30 IP on the season.
• Mitchell Traver--in another of the Dodgertown Classic games, put up decent numbers (5.2 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 W, 7 K) against #25 USC. Threw 80 pitches, 56 for strikes. The earned runs (the first allowed this season by Traver) were inherited runners the following TCU pitcher allowed to score.
• A.J. Minter--the Aggie lefty allowed 0 ER on 4 hits while striking out 6 and walking 1 in the HCC game vs Nebraska. Reports said he was sitting 92-94 (occasionally touching 95) on the FB. 70 pitches, 50 for strikes. On the year, 29:9 K to walk ratio in 21 IP.
• Josh Staumont--the Azusa Pacific RHP per reports hit triple digits on the gun against Point Loma, giving up no hits over 6.2 frames with 14 punchouts and 4 walks/1 HBP/2 WPs.
• Mac Marshall--nice outing (5 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 8 K) for the lefty against #8 ranked State College of Florida. Has 37 strikeouts vs 10 walks in 26 IP thus far in 2015.

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, etc.

[astrosfan76]

@FPilierePG: Alex Bregman is a shortstop long term in my opinion. I know there is some split on that issue but I'm convinced

Don't know if he'll be a strong option with either of our top two picks, but if others start to share Pilliere's sentiment, he could go well before our next picks. He has a strong stat line, so far, at .328/.391/.557 with 4 walks against 2 Ks in 61 at-bats. He's also 10-11 in steals in those 15 games. He had a down year as a sophomore, but after a tremendous freshman season, was looked at as a very-early contender for 1-1.

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend performances & news (including Sunday updates):

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dillon Tate--facing Sacramento State, tosses 7 scoreless with 10 strikeouts.
• Michael Matuella--on a 40 pitch count limit, went three scoreless innings and gave up one hit and one walk and no k's against NC Tar Heels.
• Kyle Funkhouser--opens up ACC play by struggling against Miami Hurricanes (5.1 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 4 W, 2 K plus a couple of HBPs).
• Nathan Kirby--his ACC opener went better: strikes out 13 Pitt Panthers in 7 innings, allowing one run on 7 hits.
• Walker Buehler--against TCU today: 4 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 K. 67P, 43 S. Touched 95. Mostly 92-94. Big 11-to-5 curve—two swinging Ks in the dirt.[per tweet from BA's Michael Lananna]
• Dansby Swanson--against Bruin ace James Kaprielian (see below) went 1-3, overall in the game was 2-5 with a SB. Including the other games against USC and TCU, the Vandy SS went 5-13 on the weekend with a walk and 3 SBs. Defensively, Aaron Fitt of D1baseball.com via tweet liked what he saw: "Dansby Swanson will be a big league shortstop. A good one. Makes everything look easy; charges balls well, range to both sides, accurate arm."

Others of Interest*

• Carson Fulmer--battled control with just 56 strikes in 112 pitches against UCLA in the Dodgertown Classic tourney but held a good-hitting Bruin squad (averaging 8.8 runs per game coming in) scoreless over 6 1/3 innings.
• James Kaprielian--dueling Fulmer, showed brilliant flashes by striking out 7 of 8 Dores at one point. Overall: 5.1 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 W 9 K.
• Hunter Virant--faced two batters in relief of Kaprielian, giving up a double and a plunk before giving way to the next UCLA reliever.
• Phil Bickford--no hit Utah State Eastern over 6 frames with 15 whiffs and just 1 walk. K'd 61 versus 10 W in 30 IP on the season.
• Mitchell Traver--in another of the Dodgertown Classic games, put up decent numbers (5.2 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 W, 7 K) against #25 USC. Threw 80 pitches, 56 for strikes. The earned runs (the first allowed this season by Traver) were inherited runners the following TCU pitcher allowed to score.
• A.J. Minter--the Aggie lefty allowed 0 ER on 4 hits while striking out 6 and walking 1 in the HCC game vs Nebraska. Reports said he was sitting 92-94 (occasionally touching 95) on the FB. 70 pitches, 50 for strikes. On the year, 29:9 K to walk ratio in 21 IP.
• Josh Staumont--the Azusa Pacific RHP per reports hit triple digits on the gun against Point Loma, giving up no hits over 6.2 frames with 14 punchouts and 4 walks/1 HBP/2 WPs.
• Mac Marshall--nice outing (5 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 8 K) for the lefty against #8 ranked State College of Florida. Has 37 strikeouts vs 10 walks in 26 IP thus far in 2015.
• Jose Vizcaino, Jr--the Santa Clara SS is out with a hand injury and did not play in the Broncos' series this weekend against Kansas State.

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, etc.

[GreatBagwellsBeard]

Was at the UH-A&M game on Saturday.  Grayson Long struck out 10 in seven innings.  Excellent movement on his pitches, able to change speeds effectively.  Lots of swing and miss. 

Also, Hunter Melton (3B) crushed a homer onto the LF concourse (above the Community Leaders board) at MMPUS.  Serious power.

[Nate Colbert]

From a look at some of the draft prospects in this past weekend's Dodgertown Classic:

First things first, Swanson is a no-doubt shortstop. The footwork is technically sound, and the body control in motion is strong enough to allow him to deliver throws with easy plus velocity and accuracy from all over the left side. I saw an above-average Major League shortstop in the making here, with relatively low risk of a future position change.

The whole package is highly enticing, and word ‘round the campfire is that he’ll be open to an under-slot deal, which if true would put him squarely in the running for a top-five selection in June.

From a writer I'm only slightly familiar with (and who makes a slight brain fart in the article on Walker Buehler) so take with the requisite modicum of salt.

[Reuben]

Still very early, of course, but between Tate, Kirby, and perhaps Swanson, I'm liking the Astros' chances of landing a very good college player who can help them sooner than later. Even if Matuella continues to seem too fragile for a top-5 pick.

[Nate Colbert]

Kendall Rogers @KendallRogersD1  ·  4 hours ago
I'm told @Aggie_Baseball LHP AJ Minter is experiencing tenderness, will have an MRI this week.

[Nate Colbert]

Here's a profile of previously-discussed U of Cincinnati's Ian Happ, one of the better college hitters in the draft. Unfortunately that televised game tonight versus Kentucky has been cancelled.

[Mike S.]

From a look at some of the draft prospects in this past weekend's Dodgertown Classic:

From a writer I'm only slightly familiar with (and who makes a slight brain fart in the article on Walker Buehler) so take with the requisite modicum of salt.

Further reading on Swanson (WARNING: phillies related content to follow)

http://www.thegoodphight.com/2015/3/9/8119019/2015-phillies-draft-preview-dansby-swanson-2b-ss

[Duman]

Next week, I will get to see a kid that is getting a fair amount of buzz in this area.  Trey Cabbage is a 3rd baseman who is committed to Tennessee.  According to two different sources, two Red Sox scouts were at his games this week.  My son's team plays them Monday & Tuesday of next week.  Any draft geeks heard about him? 

[Nate Colbert]

Next week, I will get to see a kid that is getting a fair amount of buzz in this area.  Trey Cabbage is a 3rd baseman who is committed to Tennessee.  According to two different sources, two Red Sox scouts were at his games this week.  My son's team plays them Monday & Tuesday of next week.  Any draft geeks heard about him? 

Well he certainly is athletic.

You may have already seen it but PG did have this blurb on him:

Although he may not be widely known, watch for Grainger's (Tenn.) Trey Cabbage, a sweet-swinging lefthanded bat and University of Tennessee commit. Cabbage proved to be one of the more consistent hitters throughout the summer, and with an athletic 6-foot-3 frame, the third baseman frequently showed the ability shoot either gap or just simply deposit the ball over the fence.

[Reuben]

Hopefully he hasn't let all his success go to his head. If so, he may need to turn over a new leaf.

[Nate Colbert]

Week of 3/12

The weekend gets started Thursday as Pepperdine takes on BYU (the BYUers don’t play on Sundays of course so all their weekend series run Thur-Sat). The Waves and Cougars also play Fri and Sat with all games on MormonVision (aka BYU TV). RHP Kolton Mahoney is the guy for BYU. He’s their Friday Thursday night starter and is looking to improve on his 23rd round selection last year by the Brewers. RHP Jackson McClelland and 2B Hutton Moyer is the best of a weak draft-eligible bunch for Pepperdine. McClelland is the Waves’ Friday dude and looks good in the uni at 6’5’’ 220 lbs but that doesn’t translate much to whiffs--just 49 in 82 IP last year and only 16 in 29 frames this season. I seem to recall Moyer’s dad Jamie as having a cup ‘o coffee in the bigs.

SEC conference play kicks off this weekend (as it does for most conferences except the ACC which started last weekend) with three of the games on the SEC Network. Ole Miss vs LSU is on both Saturday and Sunday while Auburn vs Texas A&M is Saturday only. RHP Trey Wingenter is the main draft-eligible name for Auburn. He was a 36th-rounder by the Mariners out of HS back in 2012. Appears the Tigers weekend rotation isn’t quite set so I can’t tell you whether Wingenter will be going on Saturday or not.

One PAC-12 game on tap: Oregon State vs Arizona State on Saturday. Beavers RHP Andrew Moore is off to a terrific start with 31:3 K vs W ratio over his first 30 IP but you won’t see him as he’s the Friday guy. LHP Brett Lilek of the Sun Devils has top 5 round potential but has had a rough beginning to the season and may have been moved out of his Friday slot (probably temporary). RHP Ryan Burr is the ASU closer. He went in the 33rd round to the Rangers out of HS in 2012 but has said teams offered to take him in the 3rd round back then but he held fast to his college commit (Lilek is also said to have turned down 3rd round money out of HS). It’s unlikely he goes that high this time round unless he’s finally ironed out his control problems. He’s whizzing along this year with 21 Ks against 4 Ws in his first 10 innings but in 2014 he walked 38 in 46 IP after an aborted attempt to make him a starter.

Sun Devils LHP Ryan Kellogg is an Ontario kid (the north of the border version) who spurned a $250K bonus from the hometown Blue Jays as a 12th round pick in that same 2012 draft. Like Burr, his 2014 wasn’t great. He’s been slightly improved in 2015. But judge for yourself: he is the Saturday starter. RHP/OF David Graybill has seen limited action at the plate and none thus far on the mound (other than in an exhibition game against the D-Backs). He went in the 31st round to the Dodgers in 2012 out of HS and in 2014 to the Yankees in the 32nd round. Cool fact: both his dad and granddad both played baseball at ASU.

Baylor vs TCU is televised on Sat and Sun on FSSW+/FSSW. All three games of the West Virginia/Texas series are on LHN.

SOS disclaimer: not meant to be a complete list of all televised games, many more games are streamed online, blah blah blah.

[moriartp]

Hopefully he hasn't let all his success go to his head. If so, he may need to turn over a new leaf.

Ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhh I get it now.

[Nate Colbert]

‏@keithlaw  19 minutes ago
Lot of heat in the house for San Clemente LHP Kolby Allard's start tonight, including [D-Backs Senior VP of Baseball Operations] De Jon Watson and at least three scouting directors.

[Nate Colbert]

More from Law on Allard (paywall article but this is from the tease):

I didn't spot anyone from Houston, who pick both second and fifth in this year's draft, at the game, but know they were out in force at shortstop Brendan Rodgers' game in Florida [last] night.

[Allard is] the best prep pitcher in this year's draft class, boasting the strongest combination of stuff, delivery, body and present ability of anyone in the group.

...but it wasn't the kind of outing I was hoping to see -- it was an opponent he should have just overpowered with stuff, but to their credit they waited him out and ended up getting into a number of hitters' counts against him. I still see him as a top 10 pick, probably a top-five talent, assuming this outing was a blip and not a sign that throwing strikes will be an issue going forward.

[Nate Colbert]

...but BA posted their Pre-season All-America list to give us a glimpse of some of the top prep talent. Notable "names" include Daz Cameron and Ke'Bryan Hayes (son of Charlie). Cameron has the better chance of going high in the draft, though neither may be a good option so our top picks (Hayes could be an option after the 1st round, if still available).

PG profile of C Garrett Wolforth who is a teammate of Hayes at Tomball's Concordia Lutheran HS. He's the son of "pitching guru" Ron Wolforth and from working with dad has a cannon for an arm. He's a DBU commit and will be one of the younger players in the draft as he graduates from HS a year early. Could be a 2nd or 3rd rounder IF he were willing to forego becoming a Patriot.

[Nate Colbert]

...Heyman reported earlier today that the settlement with Nix was for "significantly less" than the $1.5MM bonus.

That's in line with Drellich's source who says it was a "six figure sum".

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend performances & news:

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dillon Tate--no major problems in the Friday afternoon outing on the road at Wichita State: 8 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 W, 6 K. 98 pitches, 64 strikes.
• Mike Matuella--facing Georgia Tech, went 4 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 W, 4 K. @aaronfitt tweeted: 63 pitches.  91-93 in 4th. Used solid 79-82 curve often.
• Nathan Kirby--control spotty against Virginia Tech (4 walks and 2 WPs) but allows just 1 run on 5 hits over 7 1/3 with 6 Ks. Has now walked 14 in 32 IP on the year.

Others of Interest*

• Alex Bregman--homered (#4 on the year) in 4 ABs in SEC opener vs Ole Miss.
• James Kaprielian--extremely solid outing (7 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 2 W 10 K) for the UCLA righty in PAC 12 opener vs Washington Huskies. Now has 49 Ks vs 7 Ws in 32 IP.
• Mitchell Traver--another terrific outing for the Horned Frog as he shuts down Baylor (7 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 6 K) in Big 12 opener. K:W ratio is 31:3 over first 28 IP.
• Grayson Long--in SEC opener vs Auburn, 6.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 7 K, 110 pitches, 69 strikes. Aggies win to go to 19-0.
• Parker French--hindered a bit by a sloppy Longhorn defense but ultimately put together a really nice game (9 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 1 W, 7 K) versus WV Mountaineers.
• Josh Staumont--hiccup in yesterday’s game vs Fresno Pacific: 3.2 IP, 5 H, 10 R, 9 ER, 6 W, 7 K. 6 WhooPs!
• Ben Johnson--the Longhorn LF continued his hot-hitting ways going 2-5 with a double (although the 2B actually was a misplayed FB by WV RFer).
• Hutton Moyer--Jamie’s kid has gone 3-8 with 3 walks and a triple thus far in two games against BYU. Bad news is the Pepperdine 2B committed his 6th error (in just 19 games).
• David Hill--under the radar a bit coming into the season but the U of San Diego pitcher is opening some eyes after the start he’s had. A 17th-round pick out of HS in 2012, he allowed just one run on one hit in six innings against the Longhorns several weeks ago while whiffing six. Masterful CG tonight against Portland (9 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 W, 14 K). Although in check against the Pilots (109 pitches, 89 for strikes), wildness can be a problem: 15 walks and 7 WPs in 33 IP to go along with 40 strikeouts.
• Kyle Holder--Hill’s teammate on the Toreros, the slick-fielding SS was 2-4 against Portland with a couple of 2-baggers. Now at .356/.397/.441 on the year.
• Jose Vizcaino, Jr--the Santa Clara SS comes back from the hand injury with a blast and goes 3-4 with a longball (#3) and a walk against Loyola Marymount. (Noticed another son of a former Astro in the game tonight between Santa Clara and LMU--Chris Donnels’ son Tanner is the 1B for LMU and in his senior year is off to a pretty decent start batting .356/.461/.660).

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, “helium” guys, guys just for the hell of it, etc.

[Reuben]

I'm hoping to get a chance to see one of Matuella's starts here in Durham. Noticed on the schedule they play a weekend series in early May vs. Virginia, which could be a Matuella-Kirby matchup... unfortunately, it's at Virginia.

[Nate Colbert]

Kiley McDaniel ‏@kileymcd  3 hours ago
Per multiple scouts former #1 overall pick LHP Brady Aiken will very likely make his season debut on Thursday for IMG Post Grad in Bradenton.

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend performances & news (including Saturday updates):

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dillon Tate--no major problems in the Friday afternoon outing on the road at Wichita State: 8 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 W, 6 K. 98 pitches, 64 strikes.
• Mike Matuella--facing Georgia Tech, went 4 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 W, 4 K. @aaronfitt tweeted: 63 pitches.  91-93 in 4th. Used solid 79-82 curve often.
• Nathan Kirby--control spotty against Virginia Tech (4 walks and 2 WPs) but allows just 1 run on 5 hits over 7 1/3 with 6 Ks. Has now walked 14 in 32 IP on the year.
• Kyle Funkhouser--like Kirby, manages to gut one out against Boston College despite wavering control (7 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 4 W, 6 K). 111 pitches, 60 strikes. 14 walks, 5 HBPs and 1 WP in 31 IP for the season.
• Walker Buehler--in Vandy's game #2 today versus Arkansas, 6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 7 K. Jheremy Brown of PG (@JBrownPG) tweeted during the game: "Buehler is cruising through 5, sitting 93-94 mph in 5th, touched 95 & showed ability to get in on hands of LHH. Getting lots of GB contact." One inning later, D1Baseball.com's Kendall Rogers (@KendallRogersD1) tweeted:  "Walker Buehler looked terrific in 6th. Still 92-93 with his FB, 2 K's -- One on 92FB and beautiful 81 mph CB."
• Dansby Swanson--2 singles, 2 walks in 1st game of DH against Razorbacks. 0-3 in game #2 but did reach on 2 walks and a HBP.

Others of Interest*

• Alex Bregman--homered (#4 on the year) in 4 ABs in SEC opener vs Ole Miss.
• Carson Fulmer--5 runs allowed including a couple of longballs in 6 frames vs Arkansas. 113 pitches, 68 strikes.
• Phil Bickford--5 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 W, 12 K vs Salt Lake CC. 73 strikeouts and just 12 walks now in 35 IP.
• James Kaprielian--extremely solid outing (7 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 2 W 10 K) for the UCLA righty in PAC 12 opener vs Washington Huskies. Now has 49 Ks vs 7 Ws in 32 IP.
• Mitchell Traver--another terrific outing for the Horned Frog as he shuts down Baylor (7 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 6 K) in Big 12 opener. K:W ratio is 31:3 over first 28 IP.
• Grayson Long--in SEC opener vs Auburn, 6.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 7 K, 110 pitches, 69 strikes. Aggies win to go to 19-0.
• A.J. Minter--A&M lefty will miss the rest of the season as he undergoes TJS.
• Parker French--hindered a bit by a sloppy Longhorn defense but ultimately put together a really nice game (9 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 1 W, 7 K) versus WV Mountaineers.
• Josh Staumont--hiccup in yesterday’s game vs Fresno Pacific: 3.2 IP, 5 H, 10 R, 9 ER, 6 W, 7 K. 6 WhooPs!
• Ben Johnson--the Longhorn LF continued his hot-hitting ways going 2-5 with a double on Friday night (although the 2B actually was a misplayed FB by WV RFer).
• Rhett Wiseman--like Johnson, a guy who might be climbing the draftboards. The Dores OF came in to the weekend hitting .435/.519/.725. Against the Razorbacks in that DH on Saturday, he went a combined 6-9 with a double, triple, homer, 2 walks and 2 HBPs.
• Hutton Moyer--Jamie’s kid has gone 3-8 with 3 walks and a triple thus far in two games against BYU. Bad news is the Pepperdine 2B committed his 6th error (in just 19 games). 1-4 and reached on a plunk in series finale.
• David Hill--under the radar a bit coming into the season but the U of San Diego pitcher is opening some eyes after the start he’s had. A 17th-round pick out of HS in 2012, he allowed just one run on one hit in six innings against the Longhorns several weeks ago while whiffing six. Masterful CG tonight against Portland (9 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 W, 14 K). Although in check against the Pilots (109 pitches, 89 for strikes), wildness can be a problem: 15 walks and 7 WPs in 33 IP to go along with 40 strikeouts.
• Kyle Holder--Hill’s teammate on the Toreros, the slick-fielding SS was 2-4 against Portland with a couple of 2-baggers. Now at .356/.397/.441 on the year.
• Jose Vizcaino, Jr--the Santa Clara SS comes back from the hand injury with a blast and goes 3-4 with a longball (#3) and a walk against Loyola Marymount. (Noticed another son of a former Astro in the game tonight between Santa Clara and LMU--Chris Donnels’ son Tanner is the 1B for LMU and in his senior year is off to a pretty decent start batting .356/.461/.660).
• Trevor McGill--on the hill for LMU in Saturday's game against Santa Clara. Missed all of 2014 after having TJS but still got popped by Cardinals in 3rd round of last year's draft. Obviously DNS but has struggled quite a bit this year as he works his way back. Went 2 innings against the Broncos giving up 4 runs on 4 hits, 2 walks and 2 WPs.

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, “helium” guys, guys just for the hell of it, etc.

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend performances & news (including Sunday updates):

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dillon Tate--no major problems in the Friday afternoon outing on the road at Wichita State: 8 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 0 W, 6 K. 98 pitches, 64 strikes.
• Mike Matuella--facing Georgia Tech, went 4 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 W, 4 K. @aaronfitt tweeted: 63 pitches.  91-93 in 4th. Used solid 79-82 curve often.
• Nathan Kirby--control spotty against Virginia Tech (4 walks and 2 WPs) but allows just 1 run on 5 hits over 7 1/3 with 6 Ks. Has now walked 14 in 32 IP on the year.
• Kyle Funkhouser--like Kirby, manages to gut one out against Boston College despite wavering control (7 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 4 W, 6 K). 111 pitches, 60 strikes. 14 walks, 5 HBPs and 1 WP in 31 IP for the season.
• Walker Buehler--in Vandy's game #2 Saturday versus Arkansas, 6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 7 K. Jheremy Brown of PG (@JBrownPG) tweeted during the game: "Buehler is cruising through 5, sitting 93-94 mph in 5th, touched 95 & showed ability to get in on hands of LHH. Getting lots of GB contact." One inning later, D1Baseball.com's Kendall Rogers (@KendallRogersD1) tweeted:  "Walker Buehler looked terrific in 6th. Still 92-93 with his FB, 2 K's -- One on 92FB and beautiful 81 mph CB."
• Dansby Swanson--2 singles, 2 walks in 1st game of DH on Saturday against Razorbacks. 0-3 in game #2 but did reach on 2 walks and a HBP. Had game-winning hit on Sunday.

Others of Interest*

• Alex Bregman--homered (#4 on the year) in 4 ABs in SEC opener vs Ole Miss. Went 3-12 the final two games of the series including hitting another longball.
• Carson Fulmer--5 runs allowed including a couple of longballs in 6 frames vs Arkansas. 113 pitches, 68 strikes.
• Phil Bickford--5 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 2 W, 12 K vs Salt Lake CC. 73 strikeouts and just 12 walks now in 35 IP.
• James Kaprielian--extremely solid outing (7 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 2 W 10 K) for the UCLA righty in PAC 12 opener vs Washington Huskies. Now has 49 Ks vs 7 Ws in 32 IP.
• Mitchell Traver--another terrific outing for the Horned Frog as he shuts down Baylor (7 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 6 K) in Big 12 opener. K:W ratio is 31:3 over first 28 IP.
• Grayson Long--in SEC opener vs Auburn, 6.0 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 7 K, 110 pitches, 69 strikes. Aggies win to go to 19-0.
• A.J. Minter--A&M lefty will miss the rest of the season as he undergoes TJS.
• Parker French--hindered a bit by a sloppy Longhorn defense but ultimately put together a really nice game (9 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 1 W, 7 K) versus WV Mountaineers.
• Josh Staumont--hiccup in yesterday’s game vs Fresno Pacific: 3.2 IP, 5 H, 10 R, 9 ER, 6 W, 7 K. 6 WhooPs!
• Ben Johnson--the Longhorn LF continued his hot-hitting ways going 2-5 with a double on Friday night (although the 2B actually was a misplayed FB by WV RFer). A combined 3-8 the following two games with a triple (but also got himself picked off third base on Saturday).
• Rhett Wiseman--like Johnson, a guy who might be climbing the draftboards. The Dores OF came in to the weekend hitting .435/.519/.725. Against the Razorbacks in that DH on Saturday, he went a combined 6-9 with a double, triple, homer, 2 walks and 2 HBPs. Hitless with a walk on Sunday.
• Hutton Moyer--Jamie’s kid has gone 3-8 with 3 walks and a triple thus far in two games against BYU. Bad news is the Pepperdine 2B committed his 6th error (in just 19 games). 1-4 and reached on a plunk in series finale.
• David Hill--under the radar a bit coming into the season but the U of San Diego pitcher is opening some eyes after the start he’s had. A 17th-round pick out of HS in 2012, he allowed just one run on one hit in six innings against the Longhorns several weeks ago while whiffing six. Masterful CG tonight against Portland (9 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 1 W, 14 K). Although in check against the Pilots (109 pitches, 89 for strikes), wildness can be a problem: 15 walks and 7 WPs in 33 IP to go along with 40 strikeouts.
• Kyle Holder--Hill’s teammate on the Toreros, the slick-fielding SS was 2-4 against Portland with a couple of 2-baggers. Now at .356/.397/.441 on the year. Went 3-8 in the Saturday/Sunday games.
• Jose Vizcaino, Jr--the Santa Clara SS comes back from the hand injury with a blast and goes 3-4 with a longball (#3) and a walk against Loyola Marymount. (Noticed another son of a former Astro in the game tonight between Santa Clara and LMU--Chris Donnels’ son Tanner is the 1B for LMU and in his senior year is off to a pretty decent start batting .356/.461/.660). Viz Jr a combined 3-9 on Saturday/Sunday with another HR (#4).
• Trevor McGill--on the hill for LMU in Saturday's game against Santa Clara. Missed all of 2014 after having TJS but still got popped by Cardinals in 3rd round of last year's draft. Obviously DNS but has struggled quite a bit this year as he works his way back. Went 2 innings against the Broncos giving up 4 runs on 4 hits, 2 walks and 2 WPs.

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, “helium” guys, guys just for the hell of it, etc.

[Duman]

Next week, I will get to see a kid that is getting a fair amount of buzz in this area.  Trey Cabbage is a 3rd baseman who is committed to Tennessee.  According to two different sources, two Red Sox scouts were at his games this week.  My son's team plays them Monday & Tuesday of next week.  Any draft geeks heard about him? 

Cabbage was as expected.  Far and away the best player on the field.  Smooth LHB.  He stroked a double that hit off the wall in LF in his first at bat and then followed it up with a line drive double in RCF.  His third at bat, he finally swung and missed at a pitch and nubbed a ball that he beat out when the pitcher miss handled it.  He also stole three bases on the night.  He had a fourth stolen but the kid at the plate struck out for the 3rd out of the inning.  He played SS and looked smooth.  There were at least 3 scouts taking video of each at bat.  One was from the Cubs. 

I will see him again tonight. 

[Nate Colbert]

Week of 3/12 (addendum)

Good game tonight I should have covered in last week's TV preview. Rivalry game as Florida State takes on Florida on the SEC Network. The Gators squad includes SS Richie Martin and OF Harrison Bader while the Noles feature OF D.J. Stewart. Stewart and Martin are possible 1st rounders while Bader has gotten off to a terrific start (.424/.557/.898) and may have improved his draft status up in to the first three rounds.

[OregonStrosFan]

Went ahead and stickied this topic... Carry on!

[Nate Colbert]

Mac Marshall went one inning for Chipola yesterday, walking two and giving up a home run. Don't know whether he got hit on a comebacker or not but the short stint evidently was due to him breaking his thumb. Boy that sucks. Out six weeks.

[Nate Colbert]

keithlaw ‏@keithlaw  2h ago
Prep lefty Kolby Allard, a possible top ten pick in June, will miss at least one start with a back injury.

[Duman]

 

I will see him again tonight. 

Last night, the Cabbage went 1-4.  Singled to right on his first at bat.  Struck out looking on full count in his second at bat.  Lined out to the pitcher in his third at bat and popped out to short in his final at bat.  Had two misplays at short. Both of them were plays that required him to show his range. On one he made the play but the throw slipped out of his hand and on the other, he wasn't able to make the play. 

He came in in the seventh to close the game out and was not as impressive as a pitcher.  Hard but very straight and with control issues (bases loaded walk). 

Assessment - he struggled more in game 2.  He was facing a pitcher who is being looked at by DII schools or NAIA schools. Where as in game 1, he was facing a good pitcher who is a sophomore.  The true test for him will come in games against larger schools and in the end of the year tournament.  Word from some of their fans was that we were the first conference team to pitch to him this year. 

[Nate Colbert]

Week of 3/19

The SEC Network showcases LSU vs Arkansas on Thursday and Friday. RHP Trey Killian is the top draft prospect for the Razorbacks. He pitched on Sunday last weekend (where he was pretty slick with 7 no-hit innings against Vanderbilt) so he may not show up in either of the televised games.

Another couple of SEC games will be on ESPNU on Saturday and Sunday. The Sunday game is Florida and Ole Miss. Mentioned it yesterday but check out SS Richie Martin and OF Harrison Bader for the Gators. Not at their level but senior INF Josh Tobias may be worth a look as well. He went in the 31st round to the Nationals out of HS. 35-year old grizzled veteran 1B Sikes Orvis supplies some pop for the Rebels. He was a Red Sox 19th-rounder out of HS and is the 3rd-ranked college senior for this year’s draft by BA.

The Saturday game has Vandy taking on Auburn and is THE game of the week for me. Good chance we'll see RHP Walker Buehler on the rubber (and if not him then RHP Carson Fulmer). Throw in SS Dansby Swanson and you've got a trifecta of possible picks at or near the top of the draft. Considering OF Rhett Wiseman, it's possible there could be a foursome of Dores taken on Draft Day #1.

As far as PAC-12 games (those games always on the conference network), Arizona takes on Stanford on Friday and Sunday. The Wildcats have their terrific middle infield duo of SS Kevin Newman (.452/.500/.570 thru 22 games) and 2B Scott Kingery (.449/.491/.622). The latter definitely has some helium to him and may join Newman as a first day pick.

Another PAC-12 game on tap for Friday night: Oregon State vs Washington State. This time you will (likely) see Beavers ace RHP Andrew Moore.

All three games of the Kansas State/Texas series is on LHN. Same for Texas Tech and Oklahoma on FCS. The Red Raiders feature a number of mid-to-late round prospects including undersized 1B Eric Gutierrez (.329/.470/.526 thru 21 games this season with 17 walks and just 9 strikeouts), OF Tyler Neslony, RHP Matt Withrow, RHP Dalton Brown, SS Tim Proudfoot and RHP Dominic Moreno. The latter two are seniors and Moreno was a 33rd-round pick of the Cardinals last year. Withrow was a Rangers’ 37th-rounder out of HS. Sooners to look for are LHP Adam Choplick and C Anthony Hermelyn. As a RS soph last season, Choplick was taken in the 32nd round by the CWS.

TCU features on two televised games this week. Sunday the opponent is Oklahoma State on FS1 while Tuesday on FSSW they take on Oklahoma. The Horned Frogs feature the arms and it looks like talented LHPs Alex Young (Sunday) and Tyler Alexander (Tuesday) will be toeing the mounds. The latter is a draft-eligible sophomore and was a 23rd-round selection of the Tigers in ‘13. The former went in the 32nd round to the Rangers out of HS and as I mentioned before could be a possibility for the Astros at #37 or #46. (Just as a footnote and not draft-related: TCU has a RS freshman backup INF by the name of Michael Landestoy and yes he’s the son of the former Astros infielder).

Like TT, the Cowboys draft-eligible guys look to be mostly mid-to-late rounders. RHP/OF Conor Costello (16th round, 2011), RHP Trey Cobb, RHP Koda Glover and senior LHP Tyler Nurdin are some of the names there.

Back to the PAC-12 and SEC Networks, respectively. Next Monday on the former has the U of San Diego and their excellent SS Kyle Holder taking on Stanford while Wednesday on the latter sees Cincinnati vs Tennessee in a battle of 1st rounders--INF/OF Ian Happ (.446/.549/.815) and OF Christin Stewart (.345/.473/.690).

SOS disclaimer: not meant to be a complete list of all televised games, many more games are streamed online, blah blah blah.

[Nate Colbert]

A PG article on Phil Bickford (the Salt Lake CC game mentioned is the one he pitched in last Saturday). We learn that he's the "nicest kid" and that he's still not using the changeup.

[BUWebguy]

Reports today that Aiken left his first start with a trainer after throwing just 13 pitches.
https://twitter.com/adamdberry/status/578659038747107328
https://twitter.com/johnmanuelba/status/578658925274337281

[roadrunner]

Reports today that Aiken left his first start with a trainer after throwing just 13 pitches.
https://twitter.com/adamdberry/status/578659038747107328
https://twitter.com/johnmanuelba/status/578658925274337281

Not sure how to describe my feelings right now.  Not really happy, but positive relief?

[Nate Colbert]

The flip side of this is a club that may have taken Aiken (D-backs, Rockies or Rangers) will now take someone the Astros would have drafted.

[VirtualBob]

Reports today that Aiken left his first start with a trainer after throwing just 13 pitches.
https://twitter.com/adamdberry/status/578659038747107328
https://twitter.com/johnmanuelba/status/578658925274337281

Schadenfreude?

[Lefty]

Schadenfreude?

Not sure how to describe my feelings right now.

"Premature" is a good word.

[Duman]

Big sis wasn't happy:

What grown man talks poorly or wishes pain upon some one else? Probably one that lives in their mothers basement wishing for a better life.

[GreatBagwellsBeard]

Big sis wasn't happy:

Doesn't she know that no one in Houston has a basement?

[roadrunner]

Big sis wasn't happy:

and Brady retweeted it....eyeroll

I feel bad for the kid, it's a shitty situation.  I feel like his agent should take a brunt of the blame.

[VirtualBob]

and Brady retweeted it....eyeroll

I feel bad for the kid, it's a shitty situation.  I feel like his agent should take a brunt of the blame.

Exactly. I feel sort for the kid for his injury but also for the bad self-serving advice he got from the agent. Astros were clearly takng on a risk with the revised offer and the agent refused to acknowledge reality.

[NeilT]

The satisfaction I'm feeling has nothing to do with Aiken.  It's that the front office may have known what they were doing and weren't just being jerks.

[Jacksonian]

The satisfaction I'm feeling has nothing to do with Aiken.  It's that the front office may have known what they were doing and weren't just being jerks.

This might be public acknowledgement or vindication for their actions.  If he really does have an elbow problem and not just a sore forearm muscle.

[Reuben]

It's also possible that he's just being overly cautious and will be back pitching again in 5 or 6 days. Could be a mountain/mole hill situation.

[chuck]

The satisfaction I'm feeling has nothing to do with Aiken.  It's that the front office may have known what they were doing and weren't just being jerks.

The Astros offered the guy five million dollars. Do you think they would offer any sum at all to a guy they thought was unlikely to play due to injury?

[NeilT]

It's also possible that he's just being overly cautious and will be back pitching again in 5 or 6 days. Could be a mountain/mole hill situation.

Yep.  Hope so.

[Duman]

The Astros offered the guy five million dollars. Do you think they would offer any sum at all to a guy they thought was unlikely to play due to injury?

They had to offer a minimum amount (4.5 mil) to be able to get the compensation pick for not signing him.  Then they sweetened that pot to try to avoid losing Nix as well. 

[VirtualBob]

They had to offer a minimum amount (4.5 mil) to be able to get the compensation pick for not signing him.  Then they sweetened that pot to try to avoid losing Nix as well. 

Exactly. Trying to whip up a boat load of lemonade after being stuck with a huge lemon.

[Uncle Charlie]

The Astros offered the guy five million dollars. Do you think they would offer any sum at all to a guy they thought was unlikely to play due to injury?

I know this has been covered but.....what's amazing to me is the advice he received to NOT take the $5 MM offer.  To get that number again, he'd likely have to get picked in the top 5 picks.  He had to know if he didn't sign that the Astros would be likely to have 2 of those 5 picks (or 2 of 6/7).  Anyway, that really leaves only 3-5 teams who would have to take a chance on him having seen one ML team already show extreme concern.  And even then, what's the upside?  Another $1 million?  Geez.  Even if you KNOW you are healthy and can prove it, why take that chance?  And now he's got the perception he has an injury of some sort?  Many GM's will be frightened by the smoke.

[Nate Colbert]

They had to offer a minimum amount (4.5 mil) to be able to get the compensation pick for not signing him. 

$3.2MM was the minimum formal offer originally made to get the compensation pick (40% of the slot amount). That amount was later raised to the $5MM final offer.

[GreatBagwellsBeard]

I know this has been covered but.....what's amazing to me is the advice he received to NOT take the $5 MM offer.  To get that number again, he'd likely have to get picked in the top 5 picks.  He had to know if he didn't sign that the Astros would be likely to have 2 of those 5 picks (or 2 of 6/7).  Anyway, that really leaves only 3-5 teams who would have to take a chance on him having seen one ML team already show extreme concern.  And even then, what's the upside?  Another $1 million?  Geez.  Even if you KNOW you are healthy and can prove it, why take that chance?  And now he's got the perception he has an injury of some sort?  Many GM's will be frightened by the smoke.

The last part of this is key.  Even if he pitches lights-out for the rest of the season, the fear's still going to be there.

[Nate Colbert]

It gets worse...

Nathan Rode ‏@NathanRode  3 hours ago
LHP Kolby Allard (CA) out 6 weeks with stress reaction in his back per his coach.

John Manuel of BA chimed in on Allard:

Baseball America confirmed news, first reported by PrepBaseballReport.com, that Allard will miss between six and eight weeks with a stress reaction in his back.

Manuel in the same BA article:

Chipola (Fla.) JC lefthander Mac Marshall left his last start after only one inning of work due to a thumb injury. We’ll update that story as more information becomes available.

As I noted previously, it's broken and Marshall is out 6 weeks.

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend pitching performances and news plus (in some cases) draft & injury history:

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dillon Tate, UCSB RHP--UTA on the west coast road trip and the 10-8 Mavs touch up Mr. Tate for his worst outing of the year (6.2 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 3 W, 8 K). A couple of the runs on his resume came courtesy of the following Gauchos reliever. ‏@JBrownPG tweeted: “Tate comes out sitting 93-95 mph w FB, T96 & getting in on LHH. SL @ 83-85 was S&M, flashed CH @ 85.” Video from warm-up and 1st inning.
• Mike Matuella, Duke RHP--against Pitt, 6.1 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 2 W, 5 K. @jesseburkhart tweeted: “Matuella ticks up to 97 in the 3rd on multiple radar guns, sitting 93-95 with command to both sides. Sharp, two-plane SL at 81-82.” Has missed time this spring with forearm tightness. Previously diagnosed with spondylolysis condition.
• Nathan Kirby, Virginia LHP--6 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 11 K, 1 HBP against #11 Florida State. 105 pitches, 67 strikes. @aaronfitt tweeted: “Kirby has had better command with his slider — which he adds & subtracts from, ranging from 79-85 — than his fastball.”
• Kyle Funkhouser, Louisville RHP--the Funk is awesome (7 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 3 W, 8 K) against Cavan Biggio and #22 Notre Dame.
• Walker Buehler, Vanderbilt RHP--Saturday start vs Auburn. Has suffered this spring from elbow soreness.

Other Pitchers of Interest*

• Carson Fulmer, Vanderbilt RHP--up and down outing (5.2 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 3 W, 8 K) against Auburn.
• Phil Bickford, Southern Nevada RHP--haven’t seen a box score but do know he recorded 9 whiffs in today’s game versus College of Southern Idaho.
• James Kaprielian, UCLA RHP--decent performance (6.2 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 3 W, 7 K) against the 7-12 Utah Utes.
• Hunter Virant, UCLA LHP--entered the weekend having allowed 8 hits, 3 walks and 1 HBP in 4.1 IP. Gave up a run on 2 hits (homer, double) in one inning tonight. 11th round pick of Astros in 2012. Limited action in 2013 and 2014 in part due to stress fracture in back.
• Mitchell Traver, TCU RHP--not the greatest command but limited the damage (5 IP 2 H, 1 ER, 4 W, 3 K) against #19 Okla. State. More walks tonight than in previous 6 games combined. 39th round pick of Astros in 2012. Pitched just ⅓ of an inning in 2013 and 2014 due to thoracic outlet syndrome surgery and TJS.
• Riley Ferrell, TCU RHP--the Horned Frogs closer and likely 1st-rounder faced 7 OSU Cowboy hitters tonight: he K’d 5 of ‘em, walked one and...gave up the game-winning HR. Has now struck out 20 in 11.2 IP this year while allowing just 2 hits.
• Alex Young, TCU LHP--will throw Sunday against Okla. State.
• Tyler Alexander, TCU LHP--a mid-week starter in name only, the draft-eligible sophomore was more than effective (7 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 0 W, 9 K) on Wednesday versus UTPA. 23rd round pick in 2013.
• Grayson Long, Aggie RHP--a Bama beatin’ as the Houston native rolls Tide (6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 W, 14 K). Threw 114 pitches, striking out 9 straight at one point. Aggies go to 23-0.
• Joseph Shaw, DBU RHP--solid effort (6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 6 K) against Evansville tonight for a guy with top 5 round potential. 39th round pick of Astros in 2012.
• Brandon Koch, DBU RHP--the Patriots closer with up to mid-90s gas picked up his 5th save by striking out the only Evansville hitter he faced. 21:4 K/W in 9.1 IP in ‘15.
• Andrew Suarez, Miami LHP--the 2nd highest pick from 2014 to not sign returned last Sunday after missing a start or two with a strained oblique. Was terrific in that game (6 scoreless versus NC State with just 3 hits and no walks allowed while whiffing 7). Faces Wake Forest this weekend.
• Trevor Megill, LMU RHP--The 3rd highest pick from 2014 to not sign should pitch tomorrow against Pepperdine.
• Josh Staumont, Azusa Pacific RHP--triple digit DII guy presumably pitches tomorrow against Hawai’i Hilo.
• David Hill, San Diego RHP--another terrific performance for the Toreros Friday night starter as he shuts down Santa Clara (8 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 4 W, 7 K). 17th round pick out of HS in 2012.

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, “helium” guys, guys just for the hell of it, etc.

Senior Slot Signs

• Benton Moss, North Carolina RHP--entered the weekend with 26:3 K/W in just 15.2 IP. Unsigned 15th rounder from 2014. Has missed time this season with a forearm strain.
• Parker French, Longhorn RHP--with the rainout, will now pitch in the scheduled DH tomorrow against K-State. Unsigned 19th rounder from 2014.

Injured

• Cody Ponce, Cal Poly Pomona RHP--the “other” top-rated DII guy and possible 1st round pick has missed three weeks with shoulder fatigue.
• A.J. Minter, Aggie LHP--out for season with TJS. Limited to just 37 innings in 2013 and 2014 in part due to thoracic outlet syndrome.
• Tyler Stubblefield, Aggie LHP--out indefinitely with torn ACL.
• Colin Poche, DBU LHP--the former Razorback pitcher and 5th-round pick of the Orioles in 2012 is out for the season with TJS.
• Mac Marshall, Chipola LHP--out 6 weeks with a broken thumb. 21st round selection of Astros in 2014.
• Jon Duplantier, Rice RHP--out indefinitely with shoulder issue.
• Jake Lemoine, Coogs RHP--out several weeks with shoulder impingement.

Will recap hitting performances at the end of the weekend.

[BudGirl]

Jake Lemoine, Coogs RHP--out several weeks with shoulder impingement.

What I heard Tuesday it is only supposed to be two weeks, but I guess that could change.

One Cougar that really caught my eye this season is a freshman, Seth Romero, he throws in the low to mid 90s.  He started against Rice Tuesday night and did a pretty good job.

[roadrunner]

I know this has been covered but.....what's amazing to me is the advice he received to NOT take the $5 MM offer.  To get that number again, he'd likely have to get picked in the top 5 picks.  He had to know if he didn't sign that the Astros would be likely to have 2 of those 5 picks (or 2 of 6/7).  Anyway, that really leaves only 3-5 teams who would have to take a chance on him having seen one ML team already show extreme concern.  And even then, what's the upside?  Another $1 million?  Geez.  Even if you KNOW you are healthy and can prove it, why take that chance?  And now he's got the perception he has an injury of some sort?  Many GM's will be frightened by the smoke.

Looking back, it feels like Close (Aiken's agent) reacted too emotionally to Luhnow leaking that there was something wrong physically with Aiken.  But...Luhnow really had no choice.  The media (mainly Drellich and Buster Olney) built up the narrative that Luhnow and the Astros FO as an evil organization that is trying to squeeze every little bit of value out of players using whatever leverage possible, so when this whole issue came up there is no way Luhnow could remain quiet - that just feeds the narrative and continues to damage their image even more.

Maybe Close trashing the Astros in public convinced the Astros to increase their offer and maybe Close at the end of the day recommended to Aiken that he take the $5M deal.  All he can really do is feed his client the information and advice he needs to make a decision.  Unfortunately for Aiken, it looks like he might have made the wrong one - and that's why I think the argument is that Close should have handled this differently.

[Mr. Happy]

Looking back, it feels like Close (Aiken's agent) reacted too emotionally to Luhnow leaking that there was something wrong physically with Aiken.  But...Luhnow really had no choice.  The media (mainly Drellich and Buster Olney) built up the narrative that Luhnow and the Astros FO as an evil organization that is trying to squeeze every little bit of value out of players using whatever leverage possible, so when this whole issue came up there is no way Luhnow could remain quiet - that just feeds the narrative and continues to damage their image even more.

Maybe Close trashing the Astros in public convinced the Astros to increase their offer and maybe Close at the end of the day recommended to Aiken that he take the $5M deal.  All he can really do is feed his client the information and advice he needs to make a decision.  Unfortunately for Aiken, it looks like he might have made the wrong one - and that's why I think the argument is that Close should have handled this differently.

I'll be far more blunt and candid. Close fucked this one up badly. Maybe even malpractice.

[juliogotay]

I'll be far more blunt and candid. Close fucked this one up badly. Maybe even malpractice.

I think part of it was that this situation was a little unprecedented. Close, and maybe  any agent, did not want to be the guy to back down regardless of the situation. He was probably getting calls from his peers telling him not to give in to these slicksters. I don't guess we are any closer to pre-draft physicals?

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend pitching performances and news plus in some cases draft & injury history (including Saturday updates):

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dillon Tate, UCSB RHP--UTA on the west coast road trip and the 10-8 Mavs touch up Mr. Tate for his worst outing of the year (6.2 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 3 W, 8 K). A couple of the runs on his resume came courtesy of the following Gauchos reliever. ‏@JBrownPG tweeted: “Tate comes out sitting 93-95 mph w FB, T96 & getting in on LHH. SL @ 83-85 was S&M, flashed CH @ 85.” Video from warm-up and 1st inning.
• Mike Matuella, Duke RHP--against Pitt, 6.1 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 2 W, 5 K. @jesseburkhart tweeted: “Matuella ticks up to 97 in the 3rd on multiple radar guns, sitting 93-95 with command to both sides. Sharp, two-plane SL at 81-82.” Has missed time this spring with forearm tightness. Previously diagnosed with spondylolysis condition.
• Nathan Kirby, Virginia LHP--6 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 11 K, 1 HBP against #11 Florida State. 105 pitches, 67 strikes. @aaronfitt tweeted: “Kirby has had better command with his slider — which he adds & subtracts from, ranging from 79-85 — than his fastball.”
• Kyle Funkhouser, Louisville RHP--the Funk is awesome (7 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 3 W, 8 K) against Cavan Biggio and #22 Notre Dame.
• Walker Buehler, Vanderbilt RHP--Subpar outing versus Auburn (5.2 IP, 8 K, 3 ER, 2 W, 5 K, 1 HBP). @kileymcd  tweeted: “Buehler is holding 92-95 and curveball is above average to plus but there isn't much deception or plane and the heater is pretty straight.” Has suffered this spring from elbow soreness.

Other Pitchers of Interest*

• Carson Fulmer, Vanderbilt RHP--up and down outing (5.2 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 3 W, 8 K) against Auburn.
• Phil Bickford, Southern Nevada RHP--haven’t seen a box score but do know he recorded 9 whiffs in today’s game versus College of Southern Idaho. Final line: 7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 W, 9 K. 36:3 K to W over his last 18 IP (3 starts).
• James Kaprielian, UCLA RHP--decent performance (6.2 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 3 W, 7 K) against the 7-12 Utah Utes.
• Hunter Virant, UCLA LHP--entered the weekend having allowed 8 hits, 3 walks and 1 HBP in 4.1 IP. Gave up a run on 2 hits (homer, double) in one inning tonight. 11th round pick of Astros in 2012. Limited action in 2013 and 2014 in part due to stress fracture in back.
• Mitchell Traver, TCU RHP--not the greatest command but limited the damage (5 IP 2 H, 1 ER, 4 W, 3 K) against #19 Okla. State. More walks tonight than in previous 6 games combined. 39th round pick of Astros in 2012. Pitched just ⅓ of an inning in 2013 and 2014 due to thoracic outlet syndrome surgery and TJS.
• Riley Ferrell, TCU RHP--the Horned Frogs closer and likely 1st-rounder faced 7 OSU Cowboy hitters tonight: he K’d 5 of ‘em, walked one and...gave up the game-winning HR. Has now struck out 20 in 11.2 IP this year while allowing just 2 hits.
• Alex Young, TCU LHP--will throw Sunday against Okla. State.
• Tyler Alexander, TCU LHP--a mid-week starter in name only, the draft-eligible sophomore was more than effective (7 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 0 W, 9 K) on Wednesday versus UTPA. 23rd round pick in 2013.
• Grayson Long, Aggie RHP--a Bama beatin’ as the Houston area native rolls Tide (6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 W, 14 K). Threw 114 pitches, striking out 9 straight at one point. Aggies go to 23-0.
• Joseph Shaw, DBU RHP--solid effort (6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 6 K) against Evansville tonight for a guy with top 5 round potential. 39th round pick of Astros in 2012.
• Brandon Koch, DBU RHP--the Patriots closer with up to 96-98 gas picked up his 5th save by striking out the only Evansville hitter he faced. 21:4 K/W in 9.1 IP in ‘15.
• Andrew Suarez, Miami LHP--the 2nd highest pick from 2014 to not sign returned last Sunday after missing a start or two with a strained oblique. Was terrific in that game (6 scoreless versus NC State with just 3 hits and no walks allowed while whiffing 7). Not the same kind of success on Saturday versus Wake Forest: 5 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 1 W, 3 K.
• Trevor Megill, LMU RHP--The 3rd highest pick from 2014 to not sign should pitch tomorrow against Pepperdine. Missed all of 2014 after undergoing TJS.
• Josh Staumont, Azusa Pacific RHP--did the usual against Hawai’i Hilo: lotsa traffic, lotsa strikeouts (6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 6 W, 11 K). Reports said he was between 94-99 on the FB.
• David Hill, San Diego RHP--another terrific performance for the Toreros Friday night starter as he shuts down Santa Clara (8 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 4 W, 7 K). 17th round pick out of HS in 2012.
• Trey Killian, Arkansas RHP--the LSU offense wasn’t as friendly (6 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 1 W, 1 K) one week after no-hitting Vandy over 7 innings. Missed the early part of the season recovering from tendonitis in his right elbow first suffered while pitching for Team USA last summer.
• Andrew Moore, Oregon State RHP--in a game from Friday night, the Beavers ace shut down Washington State (8.2 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 W, 10 K). Now 44 strikeouts and just 5 walks in 46.2 innings in 2015.

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, “helium” guys, guys just for the hell of it, etc.

Senior Slot Signs

• Benton Moss, North Carolina RHP--entered the weekend with 26:3 K/W in just 15.2 IP. Unsigned 15th rounder from 2014. Has missed time this season with a forearm strain.
• Parker French, Longhorn RHP--sinkerballer was not the sharpest against K-State, leaving his pitches up even though the final line was not particularly ugly (6 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 2 W, 4 K). Unsigned 19th rounder from 2014.

Injured

• Cody Ponce, Cal Poly Pomona RHP--the “other” top-rated DII guy and possible 1st round pick has missed three weeks with shoulder fatigue.
• A.J. Minter, Aggie LHP--out for season with TJS. Limited to just 37 innings in 2013 and 2014 in part due to thoracic outlet syndrome.
• Tyler Stubblefield, Aggie LHP--out indefinitely with torn ACL.
• Colin Poche, DBU LHP--the former Razorback pitcher and 5th-round pick of the Orioles in 2012 is out for the season with TJS.
• Mac Marshall, Chipola LHP--out 6 weeks with a broken thumb. 21st round selection of Astros in 2014.
• Jon Duplantier, Rice RHP--out indefinitely with shoulder issue.
• Jake Lemoine, Coogs RHP--out several weeks with shoulder impingement.

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend pitching performances and news plus some draft & injury history (including Sunday updates):

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dillon Tate, UCSB RHP--UTA on the west coast road trip and the 10-8 Mavs touch up Mr. Tate for his worst outing of the year (6.2 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 3 W, 8 K). A couple of the runs on his resume came courtesy of the following Gauchos reliever. ‏@JBrownPG tweeted: “Tate comes out sitting 93-95 mph w FB, T96 & getting in on LHH. SL @ 83-85 was S&M, flashed CH @ 85.” Video from warm-up and 1st inning.
• Mike Matuella, Duke RHP--against Pitt, 6.1 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 2 W, 5 K. @jesseburkhart tweeted: “Matuella ticks up to 97 in the 3rd on multiple radar guns, sitting 93-95 with command to both sides. Sharp, two-plane SL at 81-82.” Has missed time this spring with forearm tightness. Previously diagnosed with spondylolysis condition.
• Nathan Kirby, Virginia LHP--6 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 4 BB, 11 K, 1 HBP against #11 Florida State. 105 pitches, 67 strikes. @aaronfitt tweeted: “Kirby has had better command with his slider — which he adds & subtracts from, ranging from 79-85 — than his fastball.”
• Kyle Funkhouser, Louisville RHP--the Funk is awesome (7 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 3 W, 8 K) against Cavan Biggio and #22 Notre Dame.
• Walker Buehler, Vanderbilt RHP--Subpar outing versus Auburn (5.2 IP, 8 K, 3 ER, 2 W, 5 K, 1 HBP). @kileymcd  tweeted: “Buehler is holding 92-95 and curveball is above average to plus but there isn't much deception or plane and the heater is pretty straight.” Has suffered this spring from elbow soreness.

Other Pitchers of Interest*

• Carson Fulmer, Vanderbilt RHP--up and down outing (5.2 IP, 7 H, 1 ER, 3 W, 8 K) against Auburn.
• Phil Bickford, Southern Nevada RHP--haven’t seen a box score but do know he recorded 9 whiffs in today’s game versus College of Southern Idaho. Final line: 7 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 0 W, 9 K. 36:3 K to W over his last 18 IP (3 starts).
• Kyle Cody, Kentucky RHP--a guy considered 1st round material coming into the season, the 6’7” 245-pounder was battered and tattered on Sunday facing #20 Mississippi State (4 IP, 7 H, 6 ER, 3 W, 0 K).
• James Kaprielian, UCLA RHP--decent performance (6.2 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 3 W, 7 K) against the 7-12 Utah Utes.
• Hunter Virant, UCLA LHP--entered the weekend having allowed 8 hits, 3 walks and 1 HBP in 4.1 IP. Gave up a run on 2 hits (homer, double) in one inning tonight. 11th round pick of Astros in 2012. Limited action in 2013 and 2014 in part due to stress fracture in back.
• Mitchell Traver, TCU RHP--not the greatest command but limited the damage (5 IP 2 H, 1 ER, 4 W, 3 K) against #19 Okla. State. More walks tonight than in previous 6 games combined. 39th round pick of Astros in 2012. Pitched just ⅓ of an inning in 2013 and 2014 due to thoracic outlet syndrome surgery and TJS.
• Riley Ferrell, TCU RHP--the Horned Frogs closer and likely 1st-rounder faced 7 OSU Cowboy hitters tonight: he K’d 5 of ‘em, walked one and...gave up the game-winning HR. Has now struck out 20 in 11.2 IP this year while allowing just 2 hits.
• Alex Young, TCU LHP--succinct Sunday start (2.2 IP, 6 H, 0 ER, 2 W, 4 K) against Okla. State.
• Tyler Alexander, TCU LHP--a mid-week starter in name only, the draft-eligible sophomore was more than effective (7 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 0 W, 9 K) on Wednesday versus UTPA. 23rd round pick in 2013.
• Grayson Long, Aggie RHP--a Bama beatin’ as the Houston native rolls Tide (6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 2 W, 14 K). Threw 114 pitches, striking out 9 straight at one point. Aggies go to 23-0.
• Joseph Shaw, DBU RHP--solid effort (6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 6 K) against Evansville Friday night for a guy with top 5 round potential. 39th round pick of Astros in 2012.
• Brandon Koch, DBU RHP--the Patriots closer with up to 96-98 gas picked up his 5th save Friday by striking out the only Evansville hitter he faced. 21:4 K/W in 9.1 IP in ‘15.
• Andrew Suarez, Miami LHP--the 2nd highest pick from 2014 to not sign returned last Sunday after missing a start or two with a strained oblique. Was terrific in that game (6 scoreless versus NC State with just 3 hits and no walks allowed while whiffing 7). Not the same kind of success on Saturday versus Wake Forest: 5 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 1 W, 3 K.
• Trevor Megill, LMU RHP--The 3rd highest pick from 2014 to not sign should pitch tomorrow against Pepperdine. Missed all of 2014 after undergoing TJS.
• Josh Staumont, Azusa Pacific RHP--did the usual against Hawai’i Hilo: lotsa traffic, lotsa strikeouts (6 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 6 W, 11 K). Reports said he was between 94-99 on the FB.
• Cody Ponce, Cal Poly Pomona RHP--the “other” top-rated DII guy and possible 1st round pick has missed three starts with shoulder fatigue. Returned to action on Sunday, throwing mid-90s gas. Pitch count limited him to 3 innings of work, allowing 1 earned run on 3 hits with 3 Ks.
• David Hill, San Diego RHP--another terrific performance for the Toreros Friday night starter as he shuts down Santa Clara (8 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 4 W, 7 K). 17th round pick out of HS in 2012.
• Trey Killian, Arkansas RHP--the LSU offense wasn’t as friendly (6 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 1 W, 1 K) one week after no-hitting Vandy over 7 innings. Missed the early part of the season recovering from tendonitis in his right elbow first suffered while pitching for Team USA last summer.
• Andrew Moore, Oregon State RHP--in a game from Friday night, the Beavers ace shut down Washington State (8.2 IP, 6 H, 2 ER, 1 W, 10 K). Now 44 strikeouts and just 5 walks in 46.2 innings in 2015.

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, “helium” guys, guys just for the hell of it, etc.

Senior Slot Signs

• Benton Moss, North Carolina RHP--entered the weekend with 26:3 K/W in just 15.2 IP. Effective in a win against Georgia Tech in the second game of a DH on Saturday (6 IP, 9 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 8 K). Unsigned 15th rounder from 2014. Has missed time this season with a forearm strain.
• Parker French, Longhorn RHP--sinkerballer was not the sharpest against K-State, leaving his pitches up even though the final line was not particularly ugly (6 IP, 7 H, 2 ER, 2 W, 4 K). Unsigned 19th rounder from 2014.

Injured

• A.J. Minter, Aggie LHP--out for season with TJS. Limited to just 37 innings in 2013 and 2014 in part due to thoracic outlet syndrome.
• Tyler Stubblefield, Aggie LHP--out indefinitely with torn ACL.
• Colin Poche, DBU LHP--the former Razorback pitcher and 5th-round pick of the Orioles in 2012 is out for the season with TJS.
• Mac Marshall, Chipola LHP--out 6 weeks with a broken thumb. 21st round selection of Astros in 2014.
• Jon Duplantier, Rice RHP--out indefinitely with shoulder issue.
• Jake Lemoine, Coogs RHP--out several weeks with shoulder impingement.

[Reuben]

Has Aiken's camp made any sort of statement about his injury?

[Nate Colbert]

Has Aiken's camp made any sort of statement about his injury?

Not that I've heard.

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend hitting performances & news plus some draft & injury history:

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dansby Swanson, Vanderbilt SS--had a 3-12 weekend against Auburn with 2 doubles, a HR, 3 walks and reached on a HBP. On the year: .365/.475/.573.

Other Hitters of Interest*

• Alex Bregman, LSU SS--had a 2-10 weekend against the Razorbacks with 3 walks and his 6th longball. For 2015, at .316/.375/.612 with just 2 strikeouts in 98 ABs.
• Kevin Newman, Arizona SS--had a 4-12 weekend against Stanford with 2 SBs. Now hitting .438/.487/.543 in 25 games.
• Richie Martin, Florida SS--went 2-13 with a walk and a steal in Oxford vs Ole Miss. Currently .272/.389/.391.
• Mikey White, Alabama SS--against the Aggies, a 3-11 weekend and reached on a plunk. Big-boy numbers for the season: .400/.474/.700.
• Blake Trahan, La-Lafayette SS--weekend series vs Georgia State included a 4-12 at the plate with a double and reached on 3 HBPs. Season to date: .416/.520/.584.
• C.J. Hinojosa, Longhorn SS--went 2-12 as bat remains weak in 2015. 26th round pick of the Astros in 2012.
• Kyle Holder, San Diego SS--matched up against Viz Junior, more or less a push at least hitting-wise. Went 3-11 at the plate against Santa Clara with 2 walks and 2 steals. Hitting .341/.386/.402 for the season.
• Jose Vizcaino Jr, Santa Clara SS--versus San Diego, went 4-11 with a walk. To date, a rather healthy .386/.486/.702. 36th-rounder back in 2012 by the Dodgers (who his dad then and now works for).
• David Fletcher, LMU SS--draft-eligible sophomore who had an outstanding freshman season (.329/.362/.374 with 17 steals in 21 attempts) for the Lions, starting and playing in all 56 games. Had a 4-11 weekend against Pepperdine with 3 walks and 2 doubles. For 2015, he’s at .341/.435/.484 and 8-9 in steals.
• Daniel Pinero, Virginia SS--although he reached 44 times on walks and HBPs, his numbers at the plate last year weren’t impressive (.261/.372/.286) but the fact that he came in to a top-level program like the Cavaliers and started all 68 games as a freshman is pretty eye-opening. A big boy at the position at 6’5”, he’s hitting much better this season (.293/.385/.476) including a 5-14 weekend against Florida State while also reaching on a HBP and a walk. 20th round pick of the Astros in 2013 and a draft-eligible sophomore.
• Kevin Kramer, UCLA SS--the Bruins leadoff hitter has been torrid over the last couple of weeks and went 6-13 with 2 walks and 2 SBs over the weekend and is now up to .430/.529/.686 in 22 games on the year. RS junior who missed all of the 2014 season after undergoing shoulder surgery. 25th round selection in 2011 draft out of HS.
• Scott Kingery, Arizona 2B--dude went 5-11 with a double, 3 SBs and reached on a HBP in the series sweep at Stanford’s Sunken Diamond. Thru 25 games, batting .450/.488/.618.
• Mark Mathias, Cal Poly 2B--had a 3-12 weekend with a walk against USC. Currently .389/.450/.463. Missed 7 games at the beginning of 2015 as he works his way back from offseason shoulder surgery and has been DHing since.
• Hutton Moyer, Pepperdine 2B--went 4-13 over the weekend against LMU including his 5th HR which leads the Waves. His slash line for 2015: .278/.385/.489. Son of Jamie.
• David Thompson, Miami 1B/3B--surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome and the recovery therefrom resulted in a down year at the plate last year but he’s healthy now. After hitting no homers last year in 30 games, he came in to the weekend with 6 homers already in 22 games with 5 of those coming in the last 6 games. 2 more dingers on Friday gave him 7 HRs in 7 games. Overall, 5-13 on the weekend against Wake Forest. And for the year: .361/.454/.732 with 8 longballs.
• Michael Foster, Northeastern INF/OF--went 2-10 with a walk over the weekend against UNC-Wilmington but is off to a blistering .439/.500/.621 start in 18 games with 5 SBs in 6 attempts. Not bad for a guy at a cold weather school. RS junior who was selected by the Astros in the 38th round last year after a .299/.369/.394 season.
• Edwin Rios, FIU INF/OF--having grown up in the Kissimmee area, a guy who should be pretty familiar to the Astros. The lefty swinger had a tremendous freshman campaign for the Panthers at .332/.412/.548 before declining to .296/.341/.400 last year. Went off on UNC-Charlotte for 3 homers on Saturday. Had another longball on Sunday and overall for the weekend was 7-12 with 2 walks and the 4 HRs. Now at .268/.390/.524 on the year.
• Ian Happ, Cincinnati INF/OF--his ballclub got swept in a 4-game series by the Wolf Pack in Reno but when he wasn’t being walked (6 times) Mr. Happ went 4-12. Two of those hits were his 6th and 7th HRs of the year. Silly numbers for the year: .427/.542/.800.
• Harrison Bader, Florida OF--like Richie Martin, struggled in Oxford going just 1-13. Still gaudy numbers at .360/.490/.760.
• DJ Stewart, FSU OF--if it wasn’t for Rios, might have won the weekend. 5-9 with 3 pokes and 7 walks against stiff competition (Virginia). Season to date: .304/.534/.684. Definitely the Mr. 3TO of the draft: 34 walks, 25 whiffs, 9 whams out of the park to date.
• Christin Stewart, Tennessee OF--against Georgia, 3-9 with a double/HR #6/4 walks. A blistering .343/.483/.716 for the year.
• Logan Taylor, Texas A&M OF--had a 2-10 weekend versus Bama with a couple of walks. To date: .316/.393/.582.
• Rhett Wiseman, Vanderbilt OF--pedestrian 2-14 weekend against Auburn for a guy who had been one of the hottest hitters in college baseball. Now at .390/.483/.650 thru 24 games.
• Ben Johnson, Longhorn OF--the former Westwood High QB continued his hot ways going 4-12 with 3 doubles, a triple and a walk against K-State. Currently .404/.442/.644.
• Ty Moore, UCLA OF--had a 6-13 weekend versus Utah. Slash line is currently .384/.460/.512. 25th round selection in 2012 out of HS.
• Reese Cooley, Chipola OF--NJCAA Region 8 Player of the Week as he hit .500 (11-for-22) with nine runs scored, one double, four home runs, eight RBI and two stolen bases in five games. Unsigned 26th rounder from 2014 out of HS.
• Isiah Gilliam, Chipola 1B/OF--Currently .342/.403/.518 in 33 games for the year. Unsigned 23rd rounder from 2014 out of HS.

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, “helium” guys, guys just for the hell of it, etc.

Senior Slot Signs

• Zack Zehner, Cal Poly OF--just 1-11 with 5 strikeouts in series against USC and underwhelming at .247/.302/.455 on the year. The 5th highest pick from 2014 to not sign (7th round, Blue Jays).
• Austin Byler, Nevada 1B--had a 3-13 series with 6 walks and a triple against Cincinnati. Currently .337/.517/.675 but has struck out 27 times in 83 ABs. Unsigned 9th rounder from 2014.
• Kyle Martin, South Carolina 1B--went 6-13 against Mizzou. For 2015, is hitting .391/.452/.598 with just 9 strikeouts versus 12 walks. Unsigned 20th rounder from 2014.
• Chris Keck, UCLA 3B--after not hitting any home runs thru his junior season, no surprise this guy went undrafted in 2014. Also contributing was the blood clot in his arm that caused him to miss the final 6 weeks of last season. The Bruins cleanup guy has 6 longballs in 22 games thus far this year and currently has a .342/.438/.684 slash line. Went 4-14 against Utah.
• A.J. Murray, Georgia Tech C/1B--just 1-11 with 6 strikeouts against North Carolina. On the year, the Yellow Jackets cleanup hitter is at .306/.419/.588 (though with 28 strikeouts in 85 ABs). 48th round selection by the Astros in 2011 out of HS.
• Tanner Donnels, Loyola Marymount 1B--hitting .329/.443/.633 on the year after going 5-9 against Pepperdine over the weekend with 2 homers (#4 & #5) and reaching an additional 5 times on walks/HBPs. Son of Chris.

Injured

• Joe McCarthy, Virginia OF--out 3 months after back surgery.

[pots]

They had to offer a minimum amount (4.5 mil) to be able to get the compensation pick for not signing him.  Then they sweetened that pot to try to avoid losing Nix as well. 

Wasn't just Nix.  5 million was the cap to land Nix and Marshall.  Certainly seemed like the only way the Astros were willing to risk Aiken was if they got both Marshall and Nix.  (because the 6.5 million original offer lands Nix while still being under the cap.)   

IMO, the Astros played things out very business like.  Aiken/Close camp seemed to go more the emotional/taking it personal route (given there seems to be no conceivable way he ever makes more than 5 million draft bonus and the statements made to the public).    And to me, Close is suppose to be the business end of that camp, which IMO puts the vast majority of the blame on him. 

The only mistake the Astros made was with Nix.  They never should have taken it as far as they did with him till the money was guaranteed.  And they paid for it.

[Jacksonian]

The only mistake the Astros made was with Nix.  They never should have taken it as far as they did with him till the money was guaranteed.  And they paid for it.

I'm not sure that was a mistake.  The mess with Aiken was unprecedented in the new CBA with cap limits.  He had agreed to a number and everything was going on as normal.  A wacky physical from out of nowhere derailed it.  I think of it more as a something to be learned under this CBA.

[pots]

I'm not sure that was a mistake.  The mess with Aiken was unprecedented in the new CBA with cap limits.  He had agreed to a number and everything was going on as normal.  A wacky physical from out of nowhere derailed it.  I think of it more as a something to be learned under this CBA.

It's not unprecedented to have bad things show up in a physical.  Unlikely sure, but not unprecedented.  And they knew that the money from Nix came from the leftovers of the Aiken signing.  They put the cart before the horse and paid 1.5 million for that mistake.   This was the 3rd year of the new CBA.  One the Astros have manipulated well in the past.   No idea why they felt the need to go too far with Nix early.  What benefit would it have served?   

[Jacksonian]

It's not unprecedented to have bad things show up in a physical.  Unlikely sure, but not unprecedented.  And they knew that the money from Nix came from the leftovers of the Aiken signing.  They put the cart before the horse and paid 1.5 million for that mistake.   This was the 3rd year of the new CBA.  One the Astros have manipulated well in the past.   No idea why they felt the need to go too far with Nix early.  What benefit would it have served?   

There could have been arrogance on their part.  Could have been a push from Nix.  Could have been Nix/Aiken collusion.  We'll never really know.  Regardless there was absolutely no reason up to the point of the physical for the Astros to assume or delay other negotiations because of the likelihood of a major physical problem.  Don't forget there was also a time crunch.  The deals had to be done by mid-July.  As an aside I can only imagine the disappointment Luhnow felt when he got the results of that physical.  He effectively rolled snake eyes on a 1-1.  If Aiken delays in signing then if you hadn't laid enough groundwork you won't get other deals done.  This was way too complex for folks, not you, to piss on the Astros, IMO.

[Uncle Charlie]

  This was way too complex....

There are so many ways that this could have gone down we cannot discuss all of the possibilities.  The only thing I think they could have done with Nix (and may have for all I know) is to be upfront and transparent with him when agreeing the number.  If they told him that they drafted him knowing that they needed to save money elsewhere...and likely only to come from a big $ place like Aiken, then he would/should have been able to take it.  His sign-ability is why he was available at 5-1 and any other team would have been dealing with the same issue.  Maybe they did communicate this, maybe they didn't.  We'll likely never know.

[Reuben]

Pots, minor nit here; they didn't pay Nix $1.5m, the settlement was for a "six-figure" sum.

[pots]

Pots, minor nit here; they didn't pay Nix $1.5m, the settlement was for a "six-figure" sum.

So Whitey heard wrong then.  Honestly, this isn't just a nitpick.  If it was full amount then the Astros just went way too far too early in negotiations (If I recall correctly they had Nix wrapped up in mid-June before late June finding out about Aiken). His case would have had to be pretty solid for full amount.  But being a partial amount of unknown quantity adds more unknowns.  6 figures could be as low as 10%.  A token payment to just get rid of an unfounded grievance.

[Reuben]

So Whitey heard wrong then.  Honestly, this isn't just a nitpick.  If it was full amount then the Astros just went way too far too early in negotiations (If I recall correctly they had Nix wrapped up in mid-June before late June finding out about Aiken). His case would have had to be pretty solid for full amount.  But being a partial amount of unknown quantity adds more unknowns.  6 figures could be as low as 10%.  A token payment to just get rid of an unfounded grievance.

Yep, Gammons heard wrong or perhaps just wrote wrong or was interpreted wrong. I think Heyman reported the 6-figure news fairly recently; here's a Drellich article that also has that number.

[astrosfan76]

BA weekly report on college prospects with a blurb on Kirby:

“He’s missing high,” one American League scout noted. Still, Kirby has shown the ability to pound both sides of the strike zone, leading another evaluator to speculate that the high walk numbers are more the result of Kirby’s refined approach, rather than a sign of more serious problems...Kirby has really focused on attacking hitters with his changeup.

While these concerns are not going to break Kirby, they could make the difference of a few picks in June. This will be a situation to monitor closely going forward.

Callis was given a shoot-from-the-hip question on Twitter about the draft and had this response:

Jim Callis ‏@jimcallisMLB 4h4 hours ago

Guessing...maybe Kirby & Swanson? @texanfan2785: w/@Astros having 2nd and 5th pick plus most allocated money, which direction...? @MLBDraft

I don't think he was implying who they would take, but it does give an idea of who might make sense, talent-wise with those picks.  Especially with the injury concerns with the top pitchers this season, Kirby seems to make a lot of sense.  That isn't to say that he's a shoe-in for a top 2 or top 5 pick, but he's probably definitely in the mix, at this point.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/college/college-draft-prospects-stat-roundup-week-6-3/

[Nate Colbert]

Jesse Burkhart of FG was at the Matuella start last Friday (I posted a tweet from him in the weekend pitching performance recap). Well here's his long-form report on that outing. For those who who don't want to click thru, here's the money portion:

Given his combination of pure stuff, physicality and pitchability, Matuella is a top-five talent in this draft. The big question mark of course is whether teams overlook his short track record and believe he can handle a starting pitcher’s volume. Provided no serious health complications arise from his back condition, he has a chance to develop into a frontline starter with improved control and a better changeup, offering a high floor as a rotation mainstay thanks to premium velocity and sufficient aptitude.

[Reuben]

It's also possible that he's just being overly cautious and will be back pitching again in 5 or 6 days. Could be a mountain/mole hill situation.

keithlaw @keithlaw  ·  Mar 22
Nothing official. Might make his next scheduled start. RT @mikeaxisa: @keithlaw Has there been an update on Aiken?

[Nate Colbert]

Week of 3/26

The SEC Network again is where most of the draft prospect action is at over the upcoming week. Bama vs Florida (Thursday) and Missouri vs Texas A&M (Saturday) are first up with games between Tennessee and Vandy (later Saturday and then on Sunday as well) also on the docket.

You already know the names for Vanderbilt. Tennessee features likely 1st rounder OF Christin Stewart. Missou/A&M has OF Logan Taylor of course. A couple of possible 1st round infielders are featured in the Bama/Florida tilt with SS Mikey White and SS Richie Martin. The Gators OF Harrison Bader is another likely 1st rounder.

All 3 weekend games of the Oregon/Arizona series is on PAC-12 Network. Check out Ducks’ pitchers LHP Garrett Cleavinger (closer) and LHP Cole Irvin (I believe he’ll start Sunday). 3B Mitchell Tolman and senior C Shaun Chase are a couple of lesser names. SS Kevin Newman and 2B Scott Kingery of course for the Wildcats. Southern Miss and Rice match up in C-USA play on Friday on FS1. OF Connor Barron is an interesting senior for the Golden Eagles while the Owls feature SS Leon Byrd and senior C John Clay Reeves. Absent a shift in the rotation, RHP Kevin McCanna should be on the hill for Rice.

The B1G Network kicks off its baseball coverage this weekend with Nebraska taking on the Longhorns on Saturday. Wichita State versus TCU (likely starter: LHP Alex Young) on Sunday is on FSSW.

SOS disclaimer: not meant to be a complete list of all televised games, many more games are streamed online, blah blah blah.

[Jacksonian]

Week of 3/26

The SEC Network again is where most of the draft prospect action is at over the upcoming week. Bama vs Florida (Thursday) and Missouri vs Texas A&M (Saturday) are first up with games between Tennessee and Vandy (later Saturday and then on Sunday as well) also on the docket.

You already know the names for Vanderbilt. Tennessee features likely 1st rounder OF Christin Stewart. Missou/A&M has OF Logan Taylor of course. A couple of possible 1st round infielders are featured in the Bama/Florida tilt with SS Mikey White and SS Richie Martin. The Gators OF Harrison Bader is another likely 1st rounder.

All 3 weekend games of the Oregon/Arizona series is on PAC-12 Network. Check out Ducks’ pitchers LHP Garrett Cleavinger (closer) and LHP Cole Irvin (I believe he’ll start Sunday). 3B Mitchell Tolman and senior C Shaun Chase are a couple of lesser names. SS Kevin Newman and 2B Scott Kingery of course for the Wildcats. Southern Miss and Rice match up in C-USA play on Friday on FS1. OF Connor Barron is an interesting senior for the Golden Eagles while the Owls feature SS Leon Byrd and senior C John Clay Reeves. Absent a shift in the rotation, RHP Kevin McCanna should be on the hill for Rice.

The B1G Network kicks off its baseball coverage this weekend with Nebraska taking on the Longhorns on Saturday. Wichita State versus TCU (likely starter: LHP Alex Young) on Sunday is on FSSW.

SOS disclaimer: not meant to be a complete list of all televised games, many more games are streamed online, blah blah blah.

Fuck the disclaimers.  Well done!

[Nate Colbert]

Fuck the disclaimers.  Well done!

Thank you, sir.

[Mr. Happy]

Fuck the disclaimers.  Well done!

+1 NC is kicking ass and taking names!

[MusicMan]

For BP subscribers:

BP previews the top 50 draft prospects.

[roadrunner]

For BP subscribers:

BP previews the top 50 draft prospects.

Aiken at 1...interesting.

[pots]

Aiken at 1...interesting.

Eh, from a talent standpoint he's number one.  But no shot of actually being taken there due to the unknown ligament issue.  I'm assuming BP isn't taking that into account because they have no facts on the situation.

[Nate Colbert]

+1 NC is kicking ass and taking names!

As always thanks for the encouraging words Hap!

[Nate Colbert]

A brief PG scouting report on SS Nick Shumpert who with his Highlands Ranch HS (Colorado) team was competing in the Coach Bob National Invitational Tournament:

He made at least two “plus range” plays on Tuesday, ranging far to his right to snare a groundball before seemingly turning on a dime and throwing a clothesline across the infield to nab the runner by a full step. It was an impressive display of lateral agility, footwork, athleticism, and arm strength—all of which Shumpert has in spades. He showed excellent bat speed at the plate, to go along with a swing that is highlighted by natural lift and lots of leverage. He expanded the zone a few times and chased high fastballs, coming up empty, but the potential of that swing with that bat speed is something that will keep pro scouts talking.

[Nate Colbert]

Frankie Piliere ‏@FPilierePG  4 hours ago
A fact to weigh on @UVABaseball ace Nathan Kirby. Avg 1st pitch temperature for his starts [in] 2015? 39.6 degrees. Yet still dealing.

[Nate Colbert]

Aiken had TJS yesterday. Broke the news himself.

[subnuclear]

Aiken had TJS yesterday. Broke the news himself.

Good luck to him.

[roadrunner]

I'm not sure there is a situation that could have vindicated the Astros more.  He literally got hurt the first time stepping on the mound since the draft and required Tommy John.

I agree, no one wins....but the Astros did the right thing. 

[hostros7]

Aiken at 1...interesting.

He had TJ today.  Poor kid, shitty agent.  Aiken signing at the lower offering would have wound up as a win for all parties involved.

[GreatBagwellsBeard]

So what does he do now? He won't play at IMG this year, and he can't go to a four year school. Juco or Indy league?

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

This is what he has to say about turning down the Astros offer, "The money wasn’t the only factor to consider. I wanted to play somewhere I felt comfortable, with a support system I felt would lay the groundwork for a successful and long career."

[NeilT]

This is what he has to say about turning down the Astros offer, "The money wasn’t the only factor to consider. I wanted to play somewhere I felt comfortable, with a support system I felt would lay the groundwork for a successful and long career."

Didn't they tell him about the Texas Medical Center?

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

So what does he do now? He won't play at IMG this year, and he can't go to a four year school. Juco or Indy league?

He'll get drafted this year, probably not in the top half of the first round. Get a smaller signing bonus than the Astros offer, and recuperate/rehab.

[jbm]

Best of luck to the kid.  Looks like a bullet skillfully dodged, or just sweet dumb luck on the Astros part.

[Uncle Charlie]

This is what he has to say about turning down the Astros offer, "The money wasn’t the only factor to consider. I wanted to play somewhere I felt comfortable, with a support system I felt would lay the groundwork for a successful and long career."

Whatever he has to say to himself.  $5 MM is a lot of groundwork.  Even after taxes he could have expected $3 MM which at 5% per year dividend throws off $150k/year.  In other words, a comfortable life regardless of what happened.

I can't imagine this is at all good for Casey Close's liability insurance claim status.

Sad all the way around, though it will help to restore some of the Astros front office cred.

[Nate Colbert]

Jim Callis notes:

Aiken still could go very early in the 2015 Draft. Jeff Hoffman had Tommy John surgery last May and signed for $3,080,000 as the No. 9 overall choice by the Blue Jays in June. The Nationals took Erick Fedde at No. 18 and paid him $2,511,100 despite knowing that his elbow needed to be reconstructed.

FWIW, MLBPipeline.com dropped Aiken from #3 to #6 on their draftboard (a draftboard, I might add, that still has Dillon Tate at #30).

[BizidyDizidy]

The commentary/rumor I saw yesterday was that the Astros' issue was not necessarily just that he may need Tommy John surgery, but that it may not fix what's wrong with his elbow.

[jbm]

That was my recollection.  Something about an abnormally small ligament, not just a damaged one.  At any rate, I'd be surprised if Callis is correct in his statement that Aiken could still be drafted early.

[Uncle Charlie]

The commentary/rumor I saw yesterday was that the Astros' issue was not necessarily just that he may need Tommy John surgery, but that it may not fix what's wrong with his elbow.

Exactly - the decision to lower the price was about taking on additional risk.  They felt he had a higher risk to need TJ and that recovery could be different because of its size.  Investment is about risk & returns, plain and simple.  DD in all deals, whether baseball, energy, or healthcare often has an agreed price which can be adjusted by DD and perceived risk.

On another note, I can't believe (actually I can once I thought about it) how the national press continues to dig in and defend their trash talk of the Astros management last summer.

[roadrunner]

Exactly - the decision to lower the price was about taking on additional risk.  They felt he had a higher risk to need TJ and that recovery could be different because of its size.  Investment is about risk & returns, plain and simple.  DD in all deals, whether baseball, energy, or healthcare often has an agreed price which can be adjusted by DD and perceived risk.

On another note, I can't believe (actually I can once I thought about it) how the national press continues to dig in and defend their trash talk of the Astros management last summer.

Rosenthal and Callis are bad, but Drellich is the worst.  I'm almost embarrassed for these guys because they can't admit the Astros were acting in the best interests of the club and were right.

[juliogotay]

That was my recollection.  Something about an abnormally small ligament, not just a damaged one.  At any rate, I'd be surprised if Callis is correct in his statement that Aiken could still be drafted early.

Wouldn't he now have a normal size ligament? I may not understand the nature of the repair.

[Uncle Charlie]

Wouldn't he now have a normal size ligament? I may not understand the nature of the repair.

Well above my pay grade

[roadrunner]

Hudson Belinsky tweeted last night that he heard from multiple sources that the surgery was not a "cut and dry" TJ surgery, whatever that means.

I'm also not sure who Hudson Belinsky is but for some reason I follow him.

[astrosfan76]

I normally like what he has to say, but I disagree heavily with CJ Nitkowski's take on the situation (the first part is Aiken's statement):

    I can honestly say I don’t regret not signing…it was an informed decision based on circumstances only a few people know the truth about. The money wasn’t the only factor to consider. I wanted to play somewhere I felt comfortable, with a support system I felt would lay the groundwork for a successful and long career…Even now, I know I made the decision that made the most sense for my future.

And here’s Nitkowski’s take on that:

    This is from an 18-year-old kid who turned down $5 million dollars less than a year ago and just had Tommy John surgery. Could the Astros have handled his situation so poorly that even now, with all that has happened, he doesn’t regret taking the last minute offer? Apparently so.

    And that “support system” part? That’s the equivalent of dad saying he’s not mad at you, just disappointed in you. Those sting.

What's he supposed to say, that he really should have taken the money and that he had some measure of guilt with how things played out last year?  Please.  Not only does that imply fault in his camp's behavior, but also that he should have acknowledged then that he was a medical risk.  That's just not going to happen.

As for the "support system" crap, what does that even mean?  He felt pretty comfortable with the organization before the medical or he wouldn't have flown in to sign the contract.  Could the organization have handled some things better?  I would agree that they could have.  But, the nature and context of his comments do nothing to further indemnify them. 

http://blog.chron.com/ultimateastros/2015/03/27/ex-astros-pitcher-aiken-surgery-hardly-a-win-for-team/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter#12840101=0

[pots]

I normally like what he has to say, but I disagree heavily with CJ Nitkowski's take on the situation (the first part is Aiken's statement):

What's he supposed to say, that he really should have taken the money and that he had some measure of guilt with how things played out last year?  Please.  Not only does that imply fault in his camp's behavior, but also that he should have acknowledged then that he was a medical risk.  That's just not going to happen.

As for the "support system" crap, what does that even mean?  He felt pretty comfortable with the organization before the medical or he wouldn't have flown in to sign the contract.  Could the organization have handled some things better?  I would agree that they could have.  But, the nature and context of his comments do nothing to further indemnify them. 

http://blog.chron.com/ultimateastros/2015/03/27/ex-astros-pitcher-aiken-surgery-hardly-a-win-for-team/?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter#12840101=0

CJ seems to neglect/forget/whatever that the Astros get the #2 pick this year instead.  No doubt the kid has talent, but no doubt the next kid will too.  And hoepfully (knock knock) a healthy elbow.

[Nate Colbert]

No surprise here given the previous 6-8 week estimate on his back but Kolby Allard says he's likely done for the (HS) season.

[Reuben]

I think what the reaction of Drellich and some others boils down to at this point is basically "Ok, so maybe the Astros had good reason to to do what they did, but... they still, potentially, might have sort of been jerks about it. Ok, maybe not jerks, but at least slightly too business-like and computer-y, and not super-nice warm fuzzy touchy-feely guys like we seem to believe every GM and executive should be."

Would I prefer to have strong reason to believe that the members of the Astros FO are all super-nice, compassionate and considerate guys who go out of their way to treat every player and employee well no matter what? Sure.

Do I need to believe that in order to enjoy rooting for the success of the Houston Astros baseball team? No.

Would them being occasionally less than super-nice, compassionate and considerate, and perhaps a little too focused on conducting business in a business-like fashion make them different from the vast majority of upper-level management people in America? I doubt it.

[Mr. Happy]

I'll be more blunt: Fuck Drellich in his lazy ass. The Astros have been vindicated, and Casey Close's E&O carrier should prepare for a lawsuit. If the Astros actually offered $5,000,000, even after the negative health issue came to the fore, and I have no reason to believe otherwise, you have, repeat have to advise the kid to take the money.

[Nate Colbert]

MLB and MLBPA expect to discuss a pre-draft combine with medicals during negotiations on next CBA.

If anything is ever agreed to, wouldn't happen until 2017 at earliest.

[austro]

MLB and MLBPA expect to discuss a pre-draft combine with medicals during negotiations on next CBA.

If anything is ever agreed to, wouldn't happen until 2017 at earliest.

It's just stunning to me that such an agreement isn't already in place. Would you buy a $5mm house without an inspection? There's no other business in the world that would spend that kind of money without assuring themselves of the soundness of the asset they're acquiring.

Thanks, Bud. At least we got a sure-fire way of determining the home team in the WS.

[pots]

I think what the reaction of Drellich and some others boils down to at this point is basically "Ok, so maybe the Astros had good reason to to do what they did, but... they still, potentially, might have sort of been jerks about it. Ok, maybe not jerks, but at least slightly too business-like and computer-y, and not super-nice warm fuzzy touchy-feely guys like we seem to believe every GM and executive should be."

Would I prefer to have strong reason to believe that the members of the Astros FO are all super-nice, compassionate and considerate guys who go out of their way to treat every player and employee well no matter what? Sure.

Do I need to believe that in order to enjoy rooting for the success of the Houston Astros baseball team? No.

Would them being occasionally less than super-nice, compassionate and considerate, and perhaps a little too focused on conducting business in a business-like fashion make them different from the vast majority of upper-level management people in America? I doubt it.

What it boils down to is people's inability to just say they were wrong.  What troll step is Drellich on?

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend pitching performances and news plus some draft & injury history:

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dillon Tate, UCSB RHP--Another Friday, another dominant outing for the athletic Gauchos guy: this one against Long Beach State (9 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 W, 10 K). ‏‏@ShotgunSprD1 (definitely want to follow him if you’re a draft junkie and want the latest on West Coast players) tweeted during the game: “Dillon Tate just went with a 3-1 changeup at 88 and then struck out Eric Hutting with a knee-buckling inside slider at 84”. Also tweeted this after game: “It's REALLY hard not to root for a kid like Dillon Tate. He made certain to come over after the game to congratulate [LBS starter and winning pitcher] Kyle Friedrichs.”
• Mike Matuella, Duke RHP--mediocre outing against an 8-13 Boston College squad: 4.2 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 5 W, 6 K.
• Nathan Kirby, Virginia LHP--tackles Notre Dame on Saturday.
• Kyle Funkhouser, Louisville RHP--doesn’t tear the roof off Georgia Tech but a few shingles are missing for the 17-7 Yellow Jackets as the Funkmeister shuts ‘em down (7 IP, 4 piddly singles, 1 ER, 2 W, 7 K). Now 49 Ks in 45 IP in 2015 but 19 W and 5 HBP.
• Walker Buehler, Vanderbilt RHP--should take the bump on Saturday versus Tennessee.

Other Pitchers of Interest*

• Carson Fulmer, Vanderbilt RHP--shuts down the rival Vols on Friday night (8 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 3 W, 12 K).
• Phil Bickford, Southern Nevada RHP--faces off against Western Nevada College on Saturday. 36:3 K to W over his last 18 IP (3 starts) and 82:12 in 42 IP for the year.
• Kyle Cody, Kentucky RHP--the 6’7” 245-lb potential 1st-rounder is the likely Sunday starter versus that stout LSU offense. 33rd-rounder out of HS in 2012.
• James Kaprielian, UCLA RHP--effective outing (8 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 1 W, 9 K) against a mediocre 12-12 Washington State team. Now with 55 K’s and just 9 W’s in 46 frames. 40th-rounder in 2012 out of HS.
• Hunter Virant, UCLA LHP--has allowed 10 hits, 3 walks and 1 HBP in 5.1 IP. Did not pitch on Friday. 11th round pick of Astros in 2012. Limited action in 2013 and 2014 in part due to stress fracture in back.
• Mitchell Traver, TCU RHP--mows down (6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 3 W, 5 K) the Shockers Friday night. Pitched just ⅓ of an inning in 2013 and 2014 due to thoracic outlet syndrome surgery and TJS. 39th round pick of Astros in 2012.
• Riley Ferrell, TCU RHP--the Horned Frogs closer did not see action Friday. The A&M Consolidated HSer with the high 90s FB has struck out 20 in 11.2 IP this year while allowing just 2 hits.
• Alex Young, TCU LHP--Sunday starter vs Wichita State.
• Tyler Alexander, TCU LHP--a mid-week starter in name only given the deep Horned Frogs pitching staff, the draft-eligible sophomore shut down the Sooners (7 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 0 W, 5 K) on Tuesday. Incredibly, has yet to walk a batter this season in 27.2 IP with 24 Ks. 23rd round pick in 2013.
• Grayson Long, Aggie RHP--a respectable outing for the Houston area native on Friday against Mizzou (5 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 2 W, 7 K).
• Joseph Shaw, DBU RHP--Friday night starter for the Patriots gives up a couple of runs in 6 innings of work against Illinois State. 39th round pick of Astros in 2012.
• Brandon Koch, DBU RHP--the Patriots closer stayed in the bullpen Friday. 24:4 K/W in 10.1 IP in ‘15.
• Andrew Suarez, Miami LHP--should throw Saturday against North Carolina. Missed several starts earlier with a strained oblique. The 2nd highest pick from 2014 to not sign (57th overall, Nationals).
• Brandon Waddell, Virginia LHP--Sunday start for the 6’3” hurler against the Fighting Irish. Houston area native out of Clear Lake HS.
• Matthew Crownover, Clemson LHP--RS junior entered this weekend with a 42:11 strikeout to walk ratio in 41.1 IP this season and was coming off a really strong outing against Virginia Tech last weekend where he went 8.1 scoreless. Not so good tonight against the Demon Deacons: 5.2 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 4 W, 5 K. Had TJS in 2012. Unsigned 21st round selection in 2014.
• Trey Killian, Arkansas RHP--off kilter on Friday night (5 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 5 W, 6 K) against Ole Miss. Was shut down the early part of the season recovering from tendonitis in his right elbow first suffered while pitching for Team USA last summer.
• Tyler Jay, Illinois LHP--the closer for the Fighting Illini and possible 1st-round pick has 28 whiffs versus just 3 walks in 26.1 innings on the season and a nifty .151 BAA. Weekend series with Michigan State starts on Saturday.
• Kyle Twomey, USC LHP--named the 14th-best prospect in the Cape Cod League this past summer by Baseball America, the Trojan starter has 31 punchouts and 10 walks in 36.1 IP. Will throw on Saturday against Washington. 3rd round pick in 2012 out of HS.
• Ryan Burr, ASU RHP--the Sun Devils closer was not used on Friday night against Stanford. Hasn’t allowed an earned run this season while whiffing an incredible 33 hitters in 16.2 frames. Has walked 9 this year after walking 38 in 44 IP last year. 33rd round pick in 2012 out of HS.
• Trevor Megill, LMU RHP--should pitch on Sunday against Gonzaga. The 3rd highest pick from 2014 to not sign (3rd round-104th overall, Cardinals). Missed all of 2014 after undergoing TJS.
• Josh Staumont, Azusa Pacific RHP--last week Hawai’i Hilo, this week Hawai’i Pacific. Wild Thing notches victories in consecutive weekends against both with the performance this time a bit more restrained for him at least in the strikeout dept. (7 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 5 W, 6 K). For the year? 63 strikeouts, 34 walks, 39 innings.
• Cody Ponce, Cal Poly Pomona RHP--the “other” top-rated DII guy and possible 1st round pick presumably will pitch one of the DH games on Saturday against Cal State Dominguez Hills. Has missed three starts this season with shoulder fatigue.
• David Hill, San Diego RHP--might be the best performing starter this side of Dillon Tate. Gem against BYU this week (8 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 10 K). Over his last 3 outings: 25 IP, 13 H, 2 ER, 6 W, 31 K.
• Andrew Moore, Oregon State RHP--was effective for 6 innings on Friday against Cal Poly allowing just 2 runs but the 7th frame was a bit nastier as 2 additional runners scored after he left with 1 out in the inning. Makes it now 47 strikeouts and just 7 walks in 53 innings in 2015.
• Bubba Derby, SDSU RHP--undersized hurler had a so-so outing Friday vs UNLV (6 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 3 W, 6 K) which is atypical in a season where he has a 63:10 K/W ratio in 45.1 IP.

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, “helium” guys, guys just for the hell of it, etc.

Senior Slot Signs

• Benton Moss, North Carolina RHP--34:4 K/W in just 21.2 IP this season. Should start Saturday or Sunday against a tough Miami Hurricanes club. Has missed time this season with a forearm strain. Unsigned 15th rounder from 2014.
• Parker French, Longhorn RHP--perhaps the only good thing that can be said about Friday’s start against Nebraska is that he didn’t throw a whole lot of pitches (4.1 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 0 W, 3 K). Unsigned 19th rounder from 2014.
• David Berg, UCLA RHP--the Bruins sidearming closer retired the Cougars 1-2-3 in the 9th with 2 K’s to pick up his 5th save of 2015. 34:2 K/W in 23.2 IP.  Unsigned 17th rounder from 2014.
• Bobby Poyner, Florida LHP--the Gators reliever entered the weekend with 28 strikeouts and just one walk in 26.1 IP. Did not pitch on Friday.
• Kyle Friedrichs, Long Beach State RHP--out-dueled Dillon Tate on Friday night (9 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 W, 13 K) and I’m sure caught some additional scouts’ eyes. UCSB managed just 1 FB off him. Has a fantastic 61 strikeouts and just 5 walks in 45.1 IP this season. Was the Dirtbag closer in 2012 (and a darned-good one) before going under the knife (TJS) and missing all of 2013. Pitched just 26 innings in a recovery season in 2014.

Injured

• A.J. Minter, Aggie LHP--out for season with TJS. Limited to just 37 innings in 2013 and 2014 in part due to thoracic outlet syndrome.
• Tyler Stubblefield, Aggie LHP--out indefinitely with torn ACL.
• Colin Poche, DBU LHP--the former Razorback pitcher and 5th-round pick of the Orioles in 2012 is out for the season with TJS.
• Mac Marshall, Chipola LHP--out 6 weeks with a broken thumb. 21st round selection of Astros in 2014.
• Jon Duplantier, Rice RHP--out indefinitely with shoulder issue.
• Jake Lemoine, Coogs RHP--out several weeks with shoulder impingement.

[roadrunner]

I think what the reaction of Drellich and some others boils down to at this point is basically "Ok, so maybe the Astros had good reason to to do what they did, but... they still, potentially, might have sort of been jerks about it. Ok, maybe not jerks, but at least slightly too business-like and computer-y, and not super-nice warm fuzzy touchy-feely guys like we seem to believe every GM and executive should be."

Would I prefer to have strong reason to believe that the members of the Astros FO are all super-nice, compassionate and considerate guys who go out of their way to treat every player and employee well no matter what? Sure.

Do I need to believe that in order to enjoy rooting for the success of the Houston Astros baseball team? No.

Would them being occasionally less than super-nice, compassionate and considerate, and perhaps a little too focused on conducting business in a business-like fashion make them different from the vast majority of upper-level management people in America? I doubt it.

It is strange to me how much the media tries to paint the Astros as evil villains.  I guess that article Drellich wrote about the Astros treating players like assets got a lot of clicks and the momentum just built from there, but it's mindboggling even now how stubborn they are about this Aiken situation. 

At least some are starting to realize it's getting out of hand.  Brian Kenny wrote an apology to the Astros in a sportsonearth article, and Craig Calcaterra had a great tweet yesterday saying the Astros caused 9/11.  All of the attention has made me root even harder for the Astros if anything just as a fuck you to the media.

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend pitching performances and news plus some draft & injury history (including Saturday updates):

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dillon Tate, UCSB RHP--Another Friday, another dominant outing for the athletic Gauchos guy: this one against Long Beach State (9 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 W, 10 K). ‏‏@ShotgunSprD1 (definitely want to follow him if you’re a draft junkie and want the latest on West Coast players) tweeted during the game: “Dillon Tate just went with a 3-1 changeup at 88 and then struck out Eric Hutting with a knee-buckling inside slider at 84”. Also tweeted this after game: “It's REALLY hard not to root for a kid like Dillon Tate. He made certain to come over after the game to congratulate [LBS starting pitcher] Kyle Friedrichs.”
• Mike Matuella, Duke RHP--mediocre outing against an 8-13 Boston College squad: 4.2 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 5 W, 6 K. Has missed time this spring with forearm tightness. Previously diagnosed with spondylolysis condition.
• Nathan Kirby, Virginia LHP--tackles Notre Dame on Saturday. The Fighting Irish were a little less so after Kirby got done with ‘em (6 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 2 W, 8 K). 62 Ks in 44.2 innings on the year despite the 21 Ws.
• Kyle Funkhouser, Louisville RHP--doesn’t tear the roof off Georgia Tech but a few shingles are missing for the 17-7 Yellow Jackets as the Funkmeister shuts ‘em down (7 IP, 4 piddly singles, 1 ER, 2 W, 7 K). Now 49 Ks in 45 IP in 2015 but 19 W and 5 HBP.
• Walker Buehler, Vanderbilt RHP--should take the bump on Saturday versus Tennessee. No earned runs in 5.2 IP with 7 Ks and 0 Ws but 7 hits allowed including 4 XBH. Missed several starts early and on restricted pitch count in several others due to elbow soreness.

Other Pitchers of Interest*

• Carson Fulmer, Vanderbilt RHP--shuts down the rival Vols on Friday night (8 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 3 W, 12 K).
• Phil Bickford, Southern Nevada RHP--faces off against Western Nevada College on Saturday. Roughed up some, giving up 8 hits (including 3 doubles, 1 triple and 1 homer) in 5.2 IP although he did strike out 7 while walking 1. 1st round selection by Blue Jays (10th overall) out of HS in 2013.
• Kyle Cody, Kentucky RHP--the 6’7” 245-lb potential 1st-rounder is the likely Sunday starter versus that stout LSU offense. 33rd-rounder out of HS in 2012.
• James Kaprielian, UCLA RHP--effective outing (8 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 1 W, 9 K) against a mediocre 12-12 Washington State team. Now with 55 K’s and just 9 W’s in 46 frames. 40th-rounder in 2012 out of HS.
• Hunter Virant, UCLA LHP--has allowed 10 hits, 3 walks and 1 HBP in 5.1 IP. Did not pitch on Friday or Saturday. 11th round pick of Astros in 2012. Limited action in 2013 and 2014 in part due to stress fracture in back.
• Mitchell Traver, TCU RHP--mows down (6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 3 W, 5 K) the Shockers Friday night. Pitched just ⅓ of an inning in 2013 and 2014 due to thoracic outlet syndrome surgery and TJS. 39th round pick of Astros in 2012.
• Riley Ferrell, TCU RHP--the Horned Frogs closer did not see action Friday but struck out the side in the 9th on Saturday vs Wichita State. The A&M Consolidated HSer with the high 90s FB has struck out 23 in 12.2 IP this year while allowing just 2 hits.
• Alex Young, TCU LHP--Sunday starter vs Wichita State.
• Tyler Alexander, TCU LHP--a mid-week starter in name only given the deep Horned Frogs pitching staff, the draft-eligible sophomore shut down the Sooners (7 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 0 W, 5 K) on Tuesday. Incredibly, has yet to walk a batter this season in 27.2 IP with 24 Ks. 23rd round pick in 2013.
• Grayson Long, Aggie RHP--a respectable outing for the Houston area native on Friday against Mizzou (5 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 2 W, 7 K).
• Joseph Shaw, DBU RHP--Friday night starter for the Patriots gives up a couple of runs in 6 innings of work against Illinois State. 39th round pick of Astros in 2012.
• Brandon Koch, DBU RHP--the Patriots closer stayed in the bullpen Friday but went 2 scoreless frames Saturday with 3 Ws and 2 Ks. 26:7 K/W in 12.1 IP in ‘15.
• Andrew Suarez, Miami LHP--should throw Saturday against North Carolina. Went just 3 innings against the Tar Heels while allowing 4 hits and 4 walks. Threw 60 pitches after throwing 70 and 82 pitches, respectively, in his previous two outings after missing several starts earlier with a strained oblique. The 2nd highest pick from 2014 to not sign (57th overall, Nationals).
• Brandon Waddell, Virginia LHP--Sunday start for the 6’3” hurler against the Fighting Irish. Houston area native out of Clear Lake HS.
• Matthew Crownover, Clemson LHP--RS junior entered this weekend with a 42:11 strikeout to walk ratio in 41.1 IP this season and was coming off a really strong outing against Virginia Tech last weekend where he went 8.1 scoreless. Not so good Friday against the Demon Deacons: 5.2 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 4 W, 5 K. Had TJS in 2012. Unsigned 21st round selection in 2014.
• Trey Killian, Arkansas RHP--off kilter on Friday night (5 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 5 W, 6 K) against Ole Miss. Was shut down the early part of the season recovering from tendonitis in his right elbow first suffered while pitching for Team USA last summer.
• Tyler Jay, Illinois LHP--the closer for the Fighting Illini and possible 1st-round pick has 28 whiffs versus just 3 walks in 26.1 innings on the season and a nifty .151 BAA. Weekend series with Michigan State starts on Saturday. Picked up his 6th save Saturday with 1.1 scoreless frames.
• Kyle Twomey, USC LHP--named the 14th-best prospect in the Cape Cod League this past summer by Baseball America, the Trojan starter has 31 punchouts and 10 walks in 36.1 IP. Will throw on Saturday against Washington. Somehow overcame 7 walks and 4 hits allowed in that game to shutout the Huskies over 7 innings. 3rd round pick in 2012 out of HS.
• Justin Jacome, UCSB LHP--named the 25th-best prospect in the Cape Cod League this past summer by Baseball America, the lanky 6’6” Gauchos hurler shut down Long Beach State on Saturday in a CG effort (9 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 2 W, 12 K). 49 K to 13 W in 48.2 IP this year.
• Ryan Burr, ASU RHP--the Sun Devils closer was not used on Friday night against Stanford. Retired all 5 batters he faced on Saturday with a 95-96 FB to clinch 9th save. Hasn’t allowed an earned run this season while whiffing an incredible 35 hitters in 18.1 frames. Has walked 9 this year after walking 38 in 44 IP last year. 33rd round pick in 2012 out of HS.
• Trevor Megill, LMU RHP--threw Saturday night against Gonzaga (3.1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 W, 3 K). The 3rd highest pick from 2014 to not sign (3rd round-104th overall, Cardinals). Missed all of 2014 after undergoing TJS.
• Josh Staumont, Azusa Pacific RHP--last week Hawai’i Hilo, this week Hawai’i Pacific. Wild Thing notches victories in consecutive weekends against both with the performance this time a bit more restrained for him at least in the strikeout dept. (7 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 5 W, 6 K). For the year? 63 strikeouts, 34 walks, 39 innings.
• Cody Ponce, Cal Poly Pomona RHP--the “other” top-rated DII guy and possible 1st round pick. Against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Saturday, obviously remains on a restricted pitch count as he threw just 53 pitches in four IP. He racked up five strikeouts and allowed just one walk and three hits. Has missed three starts this season with shoulder fatigue.
• David Hill, San Diego RHP--might be the best performing starter this side of Dillon Tate. Gem against BYU this week (8 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 10 K). Over his last 3 outings: 25 IP, 13 H, 2 ER, 6 W, 31 K.
• Andrew Moore, Oregon State RHP--was effective for 6 innings on Friday against Cal Poly allowing just 2 runs but the 7th frame was a bit nastier as 2 additional runners scored after he left with 1 out in the inning. Makes it now 47 strikeouts and just 7 walks in 53 innings in 2015.
• Bubba Derby, SDSU RHP--undersized hurler had a so-so outing Friday vs UNLV (6 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 3 W, 6 K) which is atypical in a season where he has a 63:10 K/W ratio in 45.1 IP.

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, “helium” guys, guys just for the hell of it, etc.

Senior Slot Signs

• Benton Moss, North Carolina RHP--34:4 K/W in just 21.2 IP this season. Should start Sunday against the Miami Hurricanes. Has missed time this season with a forearm strain. Unsigned 15th rounder from 2014.
• Parker French, Longhorn RHP--perhaps the only good thing that can be said about Friday’s start against Nebraska is that he didn’t throw a whole lot of pitches (4.1 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 0 W, 3 K). Unsigned 19th rounder from 2014.
• David Berg, UCLA RHP--the Bruins sidearming closer retired the Cougars 1-2-3 in the 9th with 2 K’s to pick up his 5th save of 2015. Did exactly the same on Saturday for save #6. 36:2 K/W in 24.2 IP. Unsigned 17th rounder from 2014.
• Bobby Poyner, Florida LHP--the Gators reliever entered the weekend with 28 strikeouts and just one walk in 26.1 IP. Did not pitch this weekend.
• Kyle Friedrichs, Long Beach State RHP--out-dueled Dillon Tate on Friday night (9 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 W, 13 K) and I’m sure caught some additional scouts’ eyes. UCSB managed just 1 FB off him. Has a fantastic 61 strikeouts and just 5 walks in 45.1 IP this season. Was the Dirtbag closer in 2012 (and a darned-good one) before going under the knife (TJS) and missing all of 2013. Pitched just 26 innings in a recovery season in 2014.

Injured

• A.J. Minter, Aggie LHP--out for season with TJS. Limited to just 37 innings in 2013 and 2014 in part due to thoracic outlet syndrome. 38th round pick in 2012 out of HS.
• Tyler Stubblefield, Aggie LHP--the draft-eligible sophomore is out indefinitely with a torn ACL. 36th round pick in 2013 out of Lufkin HS.
• Colin Poche, DBU LHP--the former Razorback pitcher and 5th-round pick of the Orioles in 2012 is out for the season with TJS.
• Mac Marshall, Chipola LHP--out 6 weeks with a broken thumb. 21st round selection of Astros in 2014.
• Jon Duplantier, Rice RHP--draft-eligible sophomore out indefinitely with shoulder issue.
• Jake Lemoine, Coogs RHP--out several weeks with shoulder impingement. 21st round selection in 2012 out of HS.

[Col. Sphinx Drummond]

Would you buy a $5mm house without an inspection?

One might agree on a price, then have an inspection. If the inspection turned up that the house had a bad elbow joints in all the plumbing then the sale would be either voided or the price renegotiated. I guessing of course--never tried to buy a $5MM house.

[mrpink]

One might agree on a price, then have an inspection. If the inspection turned up that the house had a bad elbow joints in all the plumbing then the sale would be either voided or the price renegotiated. I guessing of course--never tried to buy a $5MM house.

I thought that's what Alkie charged you for his.

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend pitching performances and news plus some draft & injury history (including Sunday updates):

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dillon Tate, UCSB RHP--Another Friday, another dominant outing for the athletic Gauchos guy: this one against Long Beach State (9 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 W, 10 K). ‏‏@ShotgunSprD1 (definitely want to follow him if you’re a draft junkie and want the latest on West Coast players) tweeted during the game: “Dillon Tate just went with a 3-1 changeup at 88 and then struck out Eric Hutting with a knee-buckling inside slider at 84”. Also tweeted this after game: “It's REALLY hard not to root for a kid like Dillon Tate. He made certain to come over after the game to congratulate [LBS starting pitcher] Kyle Friedrichs.”
• Mike Matuella, Duke RHP--mediocre outing against an 8-13 Boston College squad: 4.2 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 5 W, 6 K. Has missed time this spring with forearm tightness. Previously diagnosed with spondylolysis condition.
• Nathan Kirby, Virginia LHP--tackles Notre Dame on Saturday. The Fighting Irish were a little less so after Kirby got done with ‘em (6 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 2 W, 8 K). 62 Ks in 44.2 innings on the year despite the 21 Ws.
• Kyle Funkhouser, Louisville RHP--doesn’t tear the roof off Georgia Tech but a few shingles are missing for the 17-7 Yellow Jackets as the Funkmeister shuts ‘em down (7 IP, 4 piddly singles, 1 ER, 2 W, 7 K). Now 49 Ks in 45 IP in 2015 but 19 W and 5 HBP.
• Walker Buehler, Vanderbilt RHP--should take the bump on Saturday versus Tennessee. No earned runs in 5.2 IP with 7 Ks and 0 Ws but 7 hits allowed including 4 XBH. Missed several starts early and on restricted pitch count in several others due to elbow soreness.

Other Pitchers of Interest*

• Carson Fulmer, Vanderbilt RHP--shuts down the rival Vols on Friday night (8 IP, 5 H, 0 ER, 3 W, 12 K).
• Phil Bickford, Southern Nevada RHP--faced off against Western Nevada College on Saturday. Roughed up some, giving up 8 hits (including 3 doubles, 1 triple and 1 homer) in 5.2 IP although he did strike out 7 while walking 1. 1st round selection by Blue Jays (10th overall) out of HS in 2013.
• Kyle Cody, Kentucky RHP--the 6’7” 245-lb potential 1st-rounder is the likely Sunday starter versus that stout LSU offense. Struggled against ranked Ole Miss last week and does the same against the #1 Tigers (5 IP, 8 H, 5 ER, 0 W, 3 K). 33rd-rounder out of HS in 2012.
• James Kaprielian, UCLA RHP--effective outing (8 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 1 W, 9 K) against a mediocre 12-12 Washington State team. Now with 55 K’s and just 9 W’s in 46 frames. 40th-rounder in 2012 out of HS.
• Hunter Virant, UCLA LHP--entered the weekend having allowed 10 hits, 3 walks and 1 HBP in 5.1 IP. Did not pitch on Friday or Saturday. Struck out the only Washington State batter he faced Sunday. 11th round pick of Astros in 2012. Limited action in 2013 and 2014 in part due to stress fracture in back.
• Mitchell Traver, TCU RHP--mows down (6 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 3 W, 5 K) the Shockers Friday night. Pitched just ⅓ of an inning in 2013 and 2014 due to thoracic outlet syndrome surgery and TJS. 39th round pick of Astros in 2012.
• Riley Ferrell, TCU RHP--the Horned Frogs closer did not see action Friday but struck out the side in the 9th on Saturday vs Wichita State. The A&M Consolidated HSer with the high 90s FB has struck out 23 in 12.2 IP this year while allowing just 2 hits.
• Alex Young, TCU LHP--Sunday starter vs Wichita State. Nice bounceback outing against Wichita State (7 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 W, 9 K) after tough start last week. Now 38 strikeouts and just 7 walks in 36.2 IP this year.
• Tyler Alexander, TCU LHP--a mid-week starter in name only given the deep Horned Frogs pitching staff, the draft-eligible sophomore shut down the Sooners (7 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 0 W, 5 K) on Tuesday. Incredibly, has yet to walk a batter this season in 27.2 IP with 24 Ks. 23rd round pick in 2013.
• Grayson Long, Aggie RHP--a respectable outing for the Houston area native on Friday against Mizzou (5 IP, 5 H, 3 ER, 2 W, 7 K).
• Joseph Shaw, DBU RHP--Friday night starter for the Patriots gives up a couple of runs in 6 innings of work against Illinois State. 39th round pick of Astros in 2012.
• Brandon Koch, DBU RHP--the Patriots closer stayed in the bullpen Friday but went 2 scoreless frames Saturday with 3 Ws and 2 Ks. 26:7 K/W in 12.1 IP in ‘15.
• Andrew Suarez, Miami LHP--threw Saturday against North Carolina. Went just 3 innings against the Tar Heels while allowing 4 hits and 4 walks. Threw 60 pitches after throwing 70 and 82 pitches, respectively, in his previous two outings after missing several starts earlier with a strained oblique. The 2nd highest pick from 2014 to not sign (57th overall, Nationals).
• Brandon Waddell, Virginia LHP--Sunday start for the 6’3” hurler against the Fighting Irish. Solid outing (5.1 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 W, K 3) versus ND. Now has a 34:14 K/W ratio in 36.1 IP. Houston area native out of Clear Lake HS.
• Matthew Crownover, Clemson LHP--RS junior entered this weekend with a 42:11 strikeout to walk ratio in 41.1 IP this season and was coming off a really strong outing against Virginia Tech last weekend where he went 8.1 scoreless. Not so good Friday against the Demon Deacons: 5.2 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 4 W, 5 K. Had TJS in 2012. Unsigned 21st round selection in 2014.
• Trey Killian, Arkansas RHP--off kilter on Friday night (5 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 5 W, 6 K) against Ole Miss. Was shut down the early part of the season recovering from tendonitis in his right elbow first suffered while pitching for Team USA last summer.
• Tyler Jay, Illinois LHP--the closer for the Fighting Illini and possible 1st-round pick has 28 whiffs versus just 3 walks in 26.1 innings on the season and a nifty .151 BAA. Weekend series with Michigan State started on Saturday. Picked up his 6th save Saturday with 1.1 scoreless frames.
• Kyle Twomey, USC LHP--named the 14th-best prospect in the Cape Cod League this past summer by Baseball America, the Trojan starter has 31 punchouts and 10 walks in 36.1 IP. Threw on Saturday against Washington. Somehow overcame 7 walks and 4 hits allowed in that game to shutout the Huskies over 7 innings. 3rd round pick in 2012 out of HS.
• Justin Jacome, UCSB LHP--named the 25th-best prospect in the Cape Cod League this past summer by Baseball America, the lanky 6’6” Gauchos hurler shut down Long Beach State on Saturday in a CG effort (9 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 2 W, 12 K). 49 K to 13 W in 48.2 IP this year.
• Ryan Burr, ASU RHP--the Sun Devils closer was not used on Friday night against Stanford. Retired all 5 batters he faced on Saturday with a 95-96 FB to clinch 9th save. Picked up 10th save on Sunday in 1.1 IP but did allow his first earned run of the year. Has now whiffed an incredible 38 hitters in 19.2 frames. Has walked 9 this year after walking 38 in 44 IP last year. 33rd round pick in 2012 out of HS.
• Trevor Megill, LMU RHP--threw Saturday night against Gonzaga (3.1 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 2 W, 3 K). The 3rd highest pick from 2014 to not sign (3rd round-104th overall, Cardinals). Missed all of 2014 after undergoing TJS.
• Josh Staumont, Azusa Pacific RHP--last week Hawai’i Hilo, this week Hawai’i Pacific. Wild Thing notches victories in consecutive weekends against both with the performance this time a bit more restrained for him at least in the strikeout dept. (7 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 5 W, 6 K). For the year? 63 strikeouts, 34 walks, 39 innings.
• Cody Ponce, Cal Poly Pomona RHP--the “other” top-rated DII guy and possible 1st round pick. Against Cal State Dominguez Hills on Saturday, obviously remains on a restricted pitch count as he threw just 53 pitches in four IP. He racked up five strikeouts and allowed just one walk and three hits. Has missed three starts this season with shoulder fatigue.
• David Hill, San Diego RHP--might be the best performing starter this side of Dillon Tate. Gem against BYU this week (8 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 W, 10 K). Over his last 3 outings: 25 IP, 13 H, 2 ER, 6 W, 31 K.
• Andrew Moore, Oregon State RHP--was effective for 6 innings on Friday against Cal Poly allowing just 2 runs but the 7th frame was a bit nastier as 2 additional runners scored after he left with 1 out in the inning. Makes it now 47 strikeouts and just 7 walks in 53 innings in 2015.
• Bubba Derby, SDSU RHP--undersized hurler had a so-so outing Friday vs UNLV (6 IP, 5 H, 4 ER, 3 W, 6 K) which is atypical in a season where he has a 63:10 K/W ratio in 45.1 IP.

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, “helium” guys, guys just for the hell of it, etc.

Senior Slot Signs

• Benton Moss, North Carolina RHP--entered the weekend with a 34:4 K/W in just 21.2 IP this season. Did a nice job on Sunday shutting down (6 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 2 W, 4 K) a good Miami Hurricanes squad. Has missed time this season with a forearm strain. Unsigned 15th rounder from 2014.
• Parker French, Longhorn RHP--perhaps the only good thing that can be said about Friday’s start against Nebraska is that he didn’t throw a whole lot of pitches (4.1 IP, 7 H, 3 ER, 0 W, 3 K). Unsigned 19th rounder from 2014.
• David Berg, UCLA RHP--the Bruins sidearming closer retired the Cougars 1-2-3 in the 9th Friday with 2 K’s to pick up his 5th save of 2015. Struck out 2 in a scoreless 9th Saturday and then worked an additional 2 scoreless innings on Sunday for save #6. 36:3 K/W in 26.2 IP. Unsigned 17th rounder from 2014.
• Bobby Poyner, Florida LHP--the Gators reliever entered the weekend with 28 strikeouts and just one walk in 26.1 IP. Did not pitch this weekend.
• Kyle Friedrichs, Long Beach State RHP--out-dueled Dillon Tate on Friday night (9 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 0 W, 13 K) and I’m sure caught some additional scouts’ eyes. UCSB managed just 1 FB off him. Has a fantastic 61 strikeouts and just 5 walks in 45.1 IP this season. Was the Dirtbag closer in 2012 (and a darned-good one) before going under the knife (TJS) and missing all of 2013. Pitched just 26 innings in a recovery season in 2014.

Injured

• A.J. Minter, Aggie LHP--out for season with TJS. Limited to just 37 innings in 2013 and 2014 in part due to thoracic outlet syndrome. 38th round pick in 2012 out of HS.
• Tyler Stubblefield, Aggie LHP--the draft-eligible sophomore is out indefinitely with a torn ACL. 36th round pick in 2013 out of Lufkin HS.
• Colin Poche, DBU LHP--the former Razorback pitcher and 5th-round pick of the Orioles in 2012 is out for the season with TJS.
• Mac Marshall, Chipola LHP--out 6 weeks with a broken thumb. 21st round selection of Astros in 2014.
• Jon Duplantier, Rice RHP--draft-eligible sophomore out indefinitely with shoulder issue.
• Jake Lemoine, Coogs RHP--out several weeks with shoulder impingement. 21st round selection in 2012 out of HS.

[Nate Colbert]

Weekend hitting performances & news plus some draft & injury history:

Potential Top 5 Picks

• Dansby Swanson, Vanderbilt SS--relatively quiet weekend for him against the Vols with 1 double and a couple of walks. Now .351/.467/.568 for the year.

Other Hitters of Interest*

• Alex Bregman, LSU SS--had what for him was a disappointing series against Kentucky going 2-14 with 2 walks which dropped his season numbers to .304/.373/.557. Just 3 strikeouts in 115 ABs.
• Kevin Newman, Arizona SS--had a 3-10 weekend against Oregon and reached on a walk and a HBP. Currently at .426/.474/.530.
• Richie Martin, Florida SS--went 4-12 with a home run (#2) and a steal (#10) against Alabama. Upped his numbers to .296/.402/.426. 16 walks versus 11 strikeouts in 108 ABs.
• Mikey White, Alabama SS--against the Gators, a 2-12 weekend and reached on a plunk. Still impressive numbers for the season: .379/.460/.642.
• Blake Trahan, La-Lafayette SS--weekend series vs Arkansas State included a 3-10 at the plate with 3 walks, 3 SBs and reached on a HBP. Slash line for the year clocks in at .385/.500/.521 with 9 steals (but he’s been thrown out 7 times).
• C.J. Hinojosa, Longhorn SS--Horns got swept by the Huskers and their usually excellent shortstop was a major contributing factor in those losses. Went 0-13 at the plate as his offensive struggles in 2015 continue (just .200/.306/.314 on the year). Even made 3 errors in the series. 26th round pick of the Astros in 2012.
• Kal Simmons, Kennesaw State SS--The switch-hitter was ranked by BA as the 22nd best prospect in the Cape Cod League (CCL) last summer. Against USC Upstate (yes, University of South Carolina Upstate does actually exist), went 4-14 over the weekend with 2 walks and a grand slam. That was his 8th longball and now has an impressive .300/.389/.555 line on the year with 13 walks versus just 12 strikeouts in 110 ABs.
• Kyle Holder, San Diego SS--went 7-10 in the 3 games against BYU with 4 walks, 2 doubles and a triple. For 2015, pushes his numbers to .389/.458/.484 with 11 walks and just 6 strikeouts in 95 ABs.
• Jose Vizcaino Jr, Santa Clara SS--versus U of Pacific, continued to rake by going 6-13 with a triple, 2 HRs and 2 SBs. Updated 2015 stats: .375/.457/.725. Missed 5 games earlier in the season with a hand injury. 36th-rounder back in 2012 by the Dodgers (who his dad then and now works for).
• David Fletcher, LMU SS--went 4-13 with a walk, double and SB versus Gonzaga putting him at .351/.438/.486 and 10-11 in steals for the year. Draft-eligible sophomore who had an outstanding freshman season (.329/.362/.374 with 17 steals in 21 attempts) for the Lions, starting and playing in all 56 games.
• Daniel Pinero, Virginia SS--had a 4-12 weekend against Notre Dame with 2 walks and a SB. Currently at .304/.395/.451 in 2015. A big boy at the position at a listed 6’5” and has made 9 errors in 26 games (had just 9 miscues all of last season). Reached 44 times on walks and HBPs in 2014 as a freshman even though his overall numbers weren’t impressive (.261/.372/.286). The fact that he came in to a top-level program like the Cavaliers and started all 68 games as a freshman is notable to say the least. 20th round pick of the Astros in 2013 and a draft-eligible sophomore this season.
• Kevin Kramer, UCLA SS--the Bruins leadoff hitter had a 4-13 series with 3 walks and 1 HBP running his numbers to .410/.512/.629 on the year. RS junior who missed all of the 2014 season after undergoing shoulder surgery. 25th round selection in 2011 draft out of HS.
• Scott Kingery, Arizona 2B--continues to motor along with a 4-8 weekend against the Ducks with a triple, homer (#2), walk and a SB. Now batting a nifty .453/.492/.650.
• Mark Mathias, Cal Poly 2B--for the second weekend in a row, the Mustangs played a PAC-12 opponent. After USC last week, it was Oregon State on tap this time out. Mathias went 3-13 against the Beavers with a pair of walks. Currently at .338/.405/.394 in 17 games. Missed 7 games at the beginning of 2015 as he works his way back from offseason shoulder surgery and has been DHing since.
• Brandon Lowe, Maryland 2B--Draft-eligible sophomore who had a sensational freshman season for the Terrapins batting .348/.464/.464. Looks like he’s gonna smash through those numbers this year. He blasted his 5th longball this weekend against Michigan and is at .381/.492/.670 for the season with 18 walks compared to 12 strikeouts in 97 ABs.
• Hutton Moyer, Pepperdine 2B--went 6-14 with 2 walks against Portland with a pair of doubles and a pair of triples. His slash line improves to .290/.395/.523.
• David Thompson, Miami 1B/3B--no longballs this weekend but extended hitting streak to 18 games by going 4-11 with 2 walks against North Carolina. And for the year: .357/.449/.688 with the 8 longballs. Surgery for thoracic outlet syndrome and the recovery therefrom resulted in a down year at the plate last year (no home runs) but he’s healthy now.
• Michael Foster, Northeastern INF/OF--had a 6-13 series against Delaware with a steal and reached on a HBP to continue his hot 2015 pace. Now at .420/.476/.614 in 23 games with 6 SBs in 7 attempts. RS junior who was selected by the Astros in the 38th round last year after a .299/.369/.394 season.
• Edwin Rios, FIU INF/OF--the lefty swinger had 2 more deep flies this weekend to give him 8 HRs for the year. Also walked 4 times and singled. Now at .276/.400/.582 on the year. Had a tremendous freshman campaign for the Panthers at .332/.412/.548 before declining to .296/.341/.400 last year. Kissimmee area native.
• Ian Happ, Cincinnati INF/OF--the switch-hitter had a down series for him going just 2-10 with 3 walks against South Florida. He’s “slumped” to .393/.509/.708. Currently playing CF for the Bearcats, there’s some debate as to where his future position lies in the pros.
• Harrison Bader, Florida OF--nice weekend against Bama going 4-11 with a homer (#8) and 2 walks to maintain eye-popping numbers at .367/.491/.733.
• DJ Stewart, FSU OF--facing Virginia Tech, went 2-10 with 5 walks/HBPs. Season to date: .277/.507/.596 with 38 walks and 27 whiffs.
• Christin Stewart, Tennessee OF--so how’d he do against Fulmer, Buehler and Co? Not good at all. Just 1-12 with 6 whiffs. The slash line of course took a beating: .289/.423/.590.
• Chris Shaw, Boston College 1B/OF--the 13th ranked prospect in the CCL this past summer (per BA) and potential 1st rounder banged out his 7th HR of the year while going 4-12 and helping the Eagles to a sweep of Duke over the weekend. Currently at .273/.375/.557. 26th round selection in 2012 out of HS.
• Logan Taylor, Texas A&M OF--the three-game set vs Mizzou was very productive for him as he goes 7-11 with a walk, dinger and SB. The numbers of course took a rise: .359/.433/.620.
• Rhett Wiseman, Vanderbilt OF--a 4-15 weekend against Tennessee with no XBH. Still great numbers at .367/.453/.592 but considerably less sparkling than a couple of weeks ago.
• Ben Johnson, Longhorn OF--along with a SB and reaching on a plunk, had a 4-13 weekend against Nebraska. Former Westwood High QB is currently at .383/.427/.600.
• Ty Moore, UCLA OF--had a 3-10 weekend versus Washington State with a double and 2 walks/HBPs. Slash line is currently .384/.466/.535. 25th round selection in 2012 out of HS.
• Reese Cooley, Chipola OF--hit two more HRs this week and has now cranked out 6 bombs in his last 12 games. Unsigned 26th rounder from 2014 out of HS.
• Isiah Gilliam, Chipola 1B/OF--has an 8-game hitting streak in which he’s batting .400 (14-35) with 5 doubles. Unsigned 23rd rounder from 2014 out of HS.

*Guys just a hair outside the top five picks (at least for now), guys who might be available at #37 and #46, re-draft possibilities, local (i.e. Texas) guys, “helium” guys, guys just for the hell of it, etc.

Senior Slot Signs

• Zack Zehner, Cal Poly OF--a productive 3 games against Oregon State with 3 hits (including 2 bombs, numbers 4 & 5) and 3 walks in 14 plate appearances. The slash line is showing some life: .250/.320/.500. The 5th highest pick from 2014 to not sign (7th round, Blue Jays).
• Austin Byler, Nevada 1B--had a 5-9 series with 6 walks/HBPs plus 2 doubles and a HR (#7) at San Jose State. Currently .355/.547/.720. Has 29 walks but has whiffed 30 times in 93 ABs. Seems to be competing with DJ Stewart as to who can lead the nation in walks AND strikeouts. The 6th highest pick from 2014 to not sign (9th round, Nationals).
• Kyle Martin, South Carolina 1B--had a bang-up weekend vs Georgia by going 5-10 with 5 walks, a triple, 2 HRs (#5 & #6) and 2 swipes. For 2015, the lefty hitter is at a very cool .392/.472/.657 and still has just 9 strikeouts (in 102 ABs) versus 17 walks. Unsigned 20th rounder from 2014.
• Chris Keck, UCLA 3B--went 4-11 with a double and 2 walks against Washington State in a year in which he’s hitting .333/.431/625. Went undrafted in 2014 after his junior year, a combination of zero career HRs as a Bruin and a blood clot in his arm that caused him to miss the final 6 weeks of the season.
• A.J. Murray, Georgia Tech C/1B--not as rough as last weekend but still the 2-11 versus Louisville (including an Ofer on Friday against Funkhouser) isn’t too great. Drops him down for the year to a still very respectable .290/.397/.580 (though with 32 strikeouts in 100 ABs). 48th round selection by the Astros in 2011 out of HS.
• Kade Scivicque, LSU C--had a 5-15 weekend with a double against Kentucky which (showing how hot he’s been thus far in 2015) actually dropped his numbers for the year to .402/.427/.598. After transferring in from juco, hit .304/.377/.467 in 2014.
• Tommy Williams, UCF 3B--the 6th-ranked Knights took 2 of 3 from U of H over the weekend with Mr. Williams going 3-13 with a couple of walks and hitting his 4th bomb of the year. His 2015 numbers overall are pretty salty at .393/.457/.598. His OPS progression in his college career? .611 in 2013 to .819 in 2014 to the current 1.055 so it looks like he’s kinda getting the hang of things. 20th rounder in 2011 out of HS.
• Dylan Moore, UCF SS--was 2-12 on the weekend versus the Coogs with a HR (#8) and also reached 3 times on a pair of walks and a HBP. A very slick .352/.424/.639 for the year. After transferring in from juco, he put up .315/.391/.414 numbers in his junior season for the Knights.
• Blake Allemand, Aggies SS--the 5’10” Bourne native has been swinging a hot bat this season. The A&M leadoff hitter went 3-12 with 2 walks this weekend against Missouri which actually dropped his numbers for the year a tad to .324/.400/.420. He’s got 18 walks against just 7 strikeouts in 105 ABs.
• Connor Barron, Southern Miss OF--A 3rd rounder in 2011 (102nd overall pick) out of HS, the potential five tool player never really put things together at the plate in his first three seasons with the Golden Eagles. However, things might finally have clicked for him last summer playing in the Texas Collegiate League where he batted 344/.418/.519, had 34 stolen bases in 37 attempts and BA named him the top prospect in that league. The success has continued in his senior season. Entered the weekend hitting .341/.454/.477. Made a nice diving catch in the 5th inning against Rice Friday night but jammed a shoulder on the play and was removed from the game and missed the final 2 games as well.
• John Clay Reeves, Rice C--had a 5-11 weekend against Southern Miss that included a HR (#4) and a walk to give him a cool .378/.449/.532 slash line in 2015. Hit .317/.370/.439 as a junior after spending his freshman year at Arkansas (where he started 19 games at catcher) and then transferring to Navarro College for his sophomore season.
• Tanner Donnels, Loyola Marymount 1B--had a 2-9 three game set against Gonzaga with 4 walks and his 11th 2-bagger of the year. For the year: .309/.432/.585. Son of Chris.
• Logan Landon, UTPA OF--I can’t really justify putting this guy here but still felt the need to mention him. He’s one of the odder success stories of the early D1 season and the college baseball websites (D1baseball.com, et al) don’t seem to have picked up on him yet. The Broncos senior outfielder entered the weekend 2nd in the nation in batting average. Beating up on a bunch of mid-major schools? Sure, except for this: UTPA has played 5 games this season against Texas A&M (twice), TCU (twice) and UT and Landon has hit at an even better clip (.632) in those games. More specifically, against the #1 (Aggies with a 1.76 ERA), #2 (Horned Frogs, 1.77) and #25 (Longhorns, 2.67) ranked pitching staffs in the country this guy has gone 12-19 with a double, homer, 3 walks and 2 SBs. All of those were road games in front of crowds I’m sure were far larger than what he’s used to in Edinburg. Overall in 23 games he’s at .440/.523/.670. But here’s the strange part: he was exclusively a pitcher in his three previous college seasons (one at UTPA, two at a Kansas juco). Sure he’s likely to fall back to earth shortly but even in a small sample size what he’s done is pretty remarkable. Here’s a link to an article on him in the local newspaper.

Injured

• Joe McCarthy, Virginia OF--out 3 months after back surgery.

[Jacksonian]

Ridiculously good Nate.  But damn, come up for air.

[Nate Colbert]

If you somehow haven't been able to figure out there's a lot of good college shortstops available in the upcoming draft, BA spells it out for you. On Kyle Holder:

The best defender in the class, Holder was moving up draft boards thanks to a .353/.409/.412 start at the plate and one error through 22 games. “Depending on the scout,” one crosschecker said, “he’s either a 70 or 80 defender. It’s that good.” Added San Diego coach Rich Hill, “You don’t see a (college) shortstop that looks like him, that’s a prototypical guy . . . I’ve had scouts say he’s the best amateur shortstop they’ve seen—ever.”

[Mike S.]

At least some are starting to realize it's getting out of hand.  Brian Kenny wrote an apology to the Astros in a sportsonearth article, and Craig Calcaterra had a great tweet yesterday saying the Astros caused 9/11. 

I would put Dave Schoenfield from ESPN in that camp, in what's a fairly balanced piece to my eyes (apologies if posted somewhere else already - been a long day):

http://espn.go.com/blog/sweetspot/post/_/id/56015/aikens-surgery-highlights-amateur-inequities?ex_cid=espnapi_public

[Nate Colbert]

Keith Law just tweeted out that Matuella has a torn UCL and will have TJS.

[GreatBagwellsBeard]

Keith Law just tweeted out that Matuella has a torn UCL and will have TJS.

Hmm.  That could make him an interesting 2nd rounder if he lasts that long.

[astrosfan76]

Where Matuella falls depends largely on teams’ opinions of his medical record, but officials with two clubs—one on the area level, one a more senior evaluator—indicated Matuella already was off their draft boards due to medical concerns, and that was before the news of his UCL tear.

Ouch.  I don't have any kind of medical background, but I'm surprised there are teams that wouldn't have spent even a 3rd or 4th-round (let alone a 3rd-day pick) on him before his surgery announcement.  I've said before that his back concerned me, but that's a complete lack in his ability in the filler rounds.  Perhaps money plays a heavy part in their dismissals, which I get, but completely dropping the guy in what is shaping up to be a fairly handicapped draft class seems rough.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/college/dukes-matuella-done-season/

[GreatBagwellsBeard]

Ouch.  I don't have any kind of medical background, but I'm surprised there are teams that wouldn't have spent even a 3rd or 4th-round (let alone a 3rd-day pick) on him before his surgery announcement.  I've said before that his back concerned me, but that's a complete lack in his ability in the filler rounds.  Perhaps money plays a heavy part in their dismissals, which I get, but completely dropping the guy in what is shaping up to be a fairly handicapped draft class seems rough.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/college/dukes-matuella-done-season/

Exactly.  If the talent's there, take a flier, like the Mengden pick last year.

[jbm]

I'm in the other camp.  I'd avoid those types.  The residual memory of their past success/ability seems to cloud too many minds.  I suppose that with the right data, a club might feel that they have an edge, but my gut tells me that clubs shouldn't discount previous injuries more than they do.  It's totally anecdotal on my part, but I have trouble forgetting Jack Armstrong and Matt Purke.  

[Nate Colbert]

Callis analyzes the top of the draft post Matuella.

After Brendan Rodgers at #1...

Though they acknowledged that he's more of a solid player than a franchise cornerstone, both scouting directors said they would take [Dansby] Swanson with the second overall choice as of now.

[Astrofan59]

"I think this Draft is going to be defined as very erratic," an AL scouting executive said. "There's some depth but there's not a lot of top-end talent. No one is distancing himself from the rest of the pack, so it's a strange Draft to project what's going on at the top."

Astros cannot catch a break.  2 of the top 5 picks and there is a lack of top end talent.

[astrosfan76]

I'm in the other camp.  I'd avoid those types.  The residual memory of their past success/ability seems to cloud too many minds.  I suppose that with the right data, a club might feel that they have an edge, but my gut tells me that clubs shouldn't discount previous injuries more than they do.  It's totally anecdotal on my part, but I have trouble forgetting Jack Armstrong and Matt Purke. 

It depends on the type/severity of the injury. Shoulder injuries are generally going to be riskier than UCL injuries, etc. But, it should be a case-by-case basis with risk/reward factored in. I definitely don't have a problem offering less with the increased level of risk (and think it should be that way).

Really, if a club thinks a guy has a 20% chance of being an 50 grade player (or however they want to grade them) because of injury concerns, how does that compare to the other options available at that point in the draft. If the other available players have a ceiling of a 40 player, with a 30% chance of being a utility player, is it worth grabbing the higher-ceiling player? Of course, if Matuella is right, he has a much higher ceiling, but that's just the way I look at it.