Now that all the players who are going to sign have put their name on the dotted line, it's time to take a look at this season's draft, with selected commentary on good, bad, and otherwise particularly noteworthy selections.
1.
Otis Evans, RHP - Age 18 - $6.72M - Rating: 
- Grade: A+
Comment: Evans is the clearest choice for the #1 overall pick in quite some time, and may be the best pitcher to enter the league – through the draft or otherwise – in several seasons. He’s well worth his huge signing bonus.
2.
Endy Regan, CF/2B - Age 18 - $6.10M - Rating: - Grade: B-
3.
Delino Rojas, CF – Age 20 - $3.82M – Rating: - Grade: B
Comment: Regan and Rojas both project to be speedy players with strong defense, but neither is an especially skilled hitter. While they’re both valuable, neither is quite worthy of a top-5 pick.
4.
Burke Lincoln, RHP – Age 22 - $3.72M – Rating: - Grade: A-
Comment: In a weak year for pitchers,
5.
Mateo Mercedes, 2B – Age 19 - $3.63M – Rating: - Grade: A+
Comment: Mercedes is almost certainly the draft’s most talented position player, a top-quality hitter with good speed and the durability to play 162 games a season. It’s shocking that he fell this far.
6.
Kennie Webster, SS – Age 18 - $3.54M – Rating: - Grade: A
7.
Leo Harris, LHP – Age 19 - $3.44M – Rating: - Grade: A-
8.
Lance Doyle, 2B – Age 21 - $3.35M – Rating: - Grade: B+
Comment: Doyle is a difficult player to grade. Scouts say he has great potential both as a contact hitter and a power hitter, but his L/R splits are mediocre at best. No matter how his hitting turns out, his defense and speed are still impressive, but he’s not quite 5-star material.
9.
Alex Tolbert, RHP – Age 18 - $3.25M – Rating: - Grade: C-
Comment: It’s never easy to draft a good starting pitcher, but the Killer Whales could certainly do better than Tolbert, who throws just 3 pitches and has unimpressive L/R splits.
10.
Sammy Bowen, RHP – Age 18 - $3.16M – Rating: - Grade: B
11.
Robinson Reynolds, 1B/DH – Age 19 - $3.07M – Rating: - Grade: A+
Comment: The switch-hitting Reynolds swings the best bat in this draft class by a wide margin, and if he’s able to overcome his injury problems, he will likely develop into a perennial All-Star.
12.
Harold Alston, LHP – Age 18 - $2.97M – Rating: - Grade: A-
13.
B.C. Sipp, SS – Age 18 - $5.11M – Rating: - Grade: A
Comment: For the third straight season, the Cows selected the draft’s best high-school position player. The pride of Cajun country (the “B.C.” stands for Beauregard Charlemagne) is more than just a good hitter – he’s also lightning-quick on the bases and projects to be a competent fielder, too.
14.
Derrek Trammell, 2B – Age 18 - $2.79M – Rating: - Grade: C+
15.
Spike Alston, RHP – Age 20 - $2.69M – Rating: - Grade: B-
16.
Jude Aardsma, RF/1B – Age 18 - $2.60M – Rating: - Grade: A
Comment: Aardsma is a terrific hitter with great speed whose talent is more like that of a top-10 pick than the 16th overall selection. What might hold him back, however, is his poor durability, which will likely limit him to 130 or so games per season.
17.
Bill Barker, LHP – Age 18 - $2.50M – Rating: - Grade: A-
18.
Willis Barfield, 1B/DH – Age 19 - $2.41M – Rating: - Grade: A
Comment: Barfield is almost certainly the second-best hitter in this draft class. But one area in which he’s second to none is his temper, which has been described as “explosive” and “terrifying” by various sources. Hopefully for
19.
Art Dunn, RF – Age 19 - $2.32M – Rating: - Grade: A-
Comment: Dunn has great potential as a hitter, but his platoon splits are as dramatic as they come. Against lefties, he’s the second coming of Babe Ruth; against righties, he’s the second coming of Mario Mendoza.
20.
Philip Giambi, 2B – Age 18 - $2.22M – Rating: - Grade: B
21.
Mariano Herrara, LHP – Age 21 - $2.13M – Rating: - Grade: B
22. Buffalo Blue Cheese
Marino Blanco, LHP – Age 18 – $2.04M– Rating: - Grade: D
Comment: Blanco throws hard, has good control, and keeps the ball on the ground – but he only has one good pitch, and his L/R splits aren’t very exciting either. Buffalo may have been better just letting him go unsigned.
23.
Billy Nelson, RHP – Age 18 - $1.94M – Rating: - Grade: C+
24.
Vicente Chavez, 3B – Age 22 - $1.85M – Rating: - Grade: A
25.
Dean Hill, RHP – Age 21 - $1.75M – Rating: - Grade: B
Comment: Hill is the third reliever chosen in a four-pick span, but the only one with true potential to be a closer. Though he doesn’t throw particularly hard, he boasts a devastating cutter and slider, and excellent control of both pitches.
26.
B.J. McNeil, LHP – Age 22 - $1.66M – Rating: - Grade: B-
27.
Antone Webster, LF/RF – Age 18 - $1.57M – Rating: - Grade: D
Comment: It’s typical to see teams reach for pitchers at the end of round 1, but rarely do position players of Webster’s caliber get taken this high. He projects to be an average ML hitter at best, and isn’t especially fast either – not exactly the sort of future you want for a corner outfielder.
28. Helena Shadow Wolves
Willie Nieto, LHP – Age 18 - $1.47M – Rating: - Grade: B+
29.
Dick Jefferies, RHP – Age 18 - $2.95M – Rating: - Grade: B-
30. Buffalo Blue Cheese
Johnnie Gibson, SS – Age 18 – Unsigned – Rating: - Grade: C-
Comment: Gibson is a mediocre hitter at best, but he’s also one of the best defensive shortstops in the draft. He seems to have chosen football over baseball, as he said he might – but that may be because Buffalo management simply declined to meet his contract demands.
31. Helena Shadow Wolves
Andrew Clayton, 2B – Age 18 - $1.19M – Rating: - Grade: A
Comment: Clayton may not have the durability to last a full big-league season, but whatever portion he does play, he’ll be a dynamic force. He’s a good fielder who can run and hit for both power and contact – a great find for the 31st pick.
32.
Pete Adams, 1B – Age 22 - $1.10M – Rating: - Grade: A-
33.
Hector Machado, SS – Age 18 - $1.00M – Rating: - Grade: B
34.
- Grade: B+
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