2010 MLB Draft

We are about 8 months away from the 2010 June Amateur Draft, but it is never too early to look ahead.

If there was any benefit to the collapse suffered by the O’s, it was that it locked the Orioles into picking 3rd overall. This will allow the Orioles to add another high-end ceiling type of player to the organization. As has been shown with Wieters, and Matusz, the opportunity is there for almost immediate dividends.

There are number of good sources for Draft information, but I do not think there are any sites better than Draft America (formerly MLB-Draft.com).

You can find Draft America at http://www.draftamerica.com/

The operator of Draft America is Greg Pappas who is an Assistant Editor of Orioles Hangout. (www.orioleshangout.com)

This year, Mr. Pappas has Nick James contributing to the site. Mr. James provides outstanding insight, and is one of the co-operators of Camden Depot. (http://www.camdendepot.com/)

As was shown with this past-draft, the information is constantly moving, and there are a lot of variables at-play.

Grant Green went into the season as the consensus best position-player in the draft. Green’s year did not meet expectations, and he fell to 13th overall in the draft.

As Draft Day arrived, most reports about who the O’s would take centered around pitchers Zach Wheeler, and Tyler Matzek. The first rumors about Matt Hobgood, did not break until early evening with National Reporter Jonathan Mayo.

I guess my point is that to take the Mock Drafts with an understandable grain-of-salt. What is interesting is to read the analysis on the players, and to think a bit about how they project.

Mr. Pappas, and Mr. James both have a Mock Draft up, which you can find here:

http://www.draftamerica.com/mock-central.php

The initial name that catches my eye is SS Christian Colon of Cal State Fullerton, whom Pappas has going 6th overall, and James has going 3rd overall to the O’s.

As Mr. James alludes, you do not draft for ‘need’ in baseball, but it is best to combine an organizational need with a viable draft-able option. There is no hole more glaring in the Orioles organization, than at SS, even with the addition of Mychal Givens. Givens is a raw HS age kid, that is going to need to 3-4 years of further development.

If Colon proves worthy of the 3rd overall selection next June, it will be a huge boost for the system. As perhaps the best College position-player in the draft, he would likely head directly to the Arizona Fall League once signed. He would be in position to start 2011 at Frederick, and possibly Bowie. Basically I am describing the path Gordon Beckham took from the 2008 June Draft to making his Major League Debut on June 4th 2009.

MLB Bonus Baby (http://mlbbonusbaby.com) has the following to say about Colon:

“Colon may have broken his leg at the end of Team USA’s season, but that was only after he had established himself as the best all-around position player in the 2010 college class. He’s a good fielder with good instincts, a good hitter, and there’s really nothing he’s bad at. People will whine about his lack of dazzling tools, but Colon’s got a solid toolset with a solid skillset with great makeup, and there’s no reason to think he can’t be an above-average Major League shortstop in relatively short order. Assuming he recovers fully from the broken leg, he’s a top ten pick with a good spring.”

Here is a link to Colon’s Cal State Fullerton profile:
http://www.fullertontitans.com/sports/m-basebl/mtt/colon_christian00.html

So we will see what happens. Will have to watch how Colon recovers from the injury, and how he and others perform.

One thing I do not see happening, is the Orioles having an opportunity at Bryce Harper. I would imagine similarly to Strasburg, the Nationals will do what is necessary to add that talent to their system.