Draft Talk & Guessing On Phils Second Round Targets

2014 Draft

There will be 74 picks tonight, through the end of the Competitive Balance B round after Round 2, and The Phils will select seventh tomorrow at the front of round three. We know The Phils will have a bunch of very talented options at #7, and that is in constant flux, at least to the people who are out there writing about it. Tyler Kolek seems to be falling on many boards, and as sure a Top 5 pick as he was a week ago, I’m that sure today that I wouldn’t put very much money at all on him being popped in the Top 10. He probably still, will, but it’s seemingly less of a lock than it was.

No matter who they get at 1.7, the Phils do have another pick today, it’s 2.6 (Seattle lost their second round pick when they signed Robinson Cano), or pick #47. I’m not going to write up much for each guy, and this may be a good place for some crowd sourced opinion on what the Phils might do with this second rounder, but here are a handful of guys who might be available and attractive to the Phillies, or are at least attractive to me for the team to take, and a couple names ranked around that pick who I think the Phils would not or could not take. I’ve included their BA Top 500 rankings so those casual draft fans among you can easily read something about them if you’re a subscriber, though remember that BA’s rankings are just one (well-researched) opinion of many.

(BA #27) Foster Griffin, LHP, First Academy (FL) – Has drawn Cole Hamels comps. I have not seen him picked in a ton of mocks, most of which go no deeper than 41. Could be on the board, could easily be long gone, as BA has him at #17 today to KC.

(BA #37) Michael Kopech, RHP, Mt Pleasant HS (TX) – Live arm, 6’3″ 190lbs, athletic, but with what BA calls a “high-maintenance” delivery. Sounds like a good pick for the Phils if they take a college arm at 1.7.

(BA #42) Joey Gatto, RHP, St. Augustine Prep, Hammonton, N.J. – South Jersey kid who was discussed on the Crashbag podcast by Mike and Eric last night. He’s a year old for the draft, at 19, which is a legitimate concern when drafting a high schooler, for projection reasons as well as roster reasons – he loses that fifth year of protection from Rule 5 and is treated like a first year JuCo player would be.

(BA #44) Marcus Wilson, OF, Serra HS (CA) – Toolsy outfielder. Phils have been known to like that type in the past. Not sure if you were aware. I don’t see it happening this year, though.

(BA #45) Michael Cederoth, RHP, San Diego State – Makes little sense for the Phils – He’s a power arm and could move fast towards the bigs, so he makes more sense for someone currently contending or on the cusp. I only mention him because I don’t know that the Phils have given up on being “close to contending”.

(BA #49) Justus Sheffield, LHP, Tullahoma HS (Tenn.) – First off, he’s apparently no relation to Gary, but his brother was a top-two-rounds type last year before he needed TJ and went to Vanderbilt. I’ve seen Sheffield in the mix in the back of the first round, so BA’s ranking might be a bit low compared to where he gets popped tonight.

Alright, I think that’s all for now. Cormican did a similar thing yesterday at the Good Phight, with some video. Check that out, too. One of his mentions was a guy I like for the Phillies tomorrow for personal reasons  – Jake Stinnett, RHP from U of Maryland. I saw him against Carlos Rodon and NC State in College Park this spring and he looked very good. He could be gone by 3.7, especially as a Top-100 type senior who could net someone a very nice slot discount, and I don’t see the value at #47 unless there’s a real targeted overslot coming in round three or beyond, a la Cord Sandberg in 2013.

69 thoughts on “Draft Talk & Guessing On Phils Second Round Targets”

  1. As a St. Augustine grad, I’d be thrilled with Joey Gatto. I’d also keep an eye on Jack Flaherty. Both the Cubs and Phillies have been linked to him in the second round.

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  3. would LOVE to see either of UVa”s Papi or Derek Hill fall to the Phils. LHP Kodi Medieros would be a miracle….same with LVille’s Nick Burdi. I’m kind of hoping they land a college OF and avoid the toolsy HS kids.

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    1. I think all four of those guys are gone by #40. I’d be cool with one of the OFers, though, and I don’t think I like Burdi for the same reason I don’t like Cederoth. Plus unless someone is convinced he’s hurt after his last outing, and it spreads like wildfire (can happen), he’s not going to last like you said.

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      1. Yea, I know….but these things rarely go Chalk after the first couple picks and I need to place my hope SOMEWHERE and it ain’t at CBP at the moment.

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  6. My draft board of the #7 pick tonight (Assuming Aiken, Rodon, Jackson, and Gordon are gone)….
    1. Tyler Kolek- there are rumors of him sliding out of the top 10, but if he is sitting there at #7 I think the Phillies have to take him. Huge upside with a 80 fastball and potential plus slider and curveball. However, he completely lacks a changeup and has issues with command/control.

    2. Jeff Hoffman- yes, he’ll be out for the next year due to TJS, but he has TOR potential. Tall, has a quick arm, can get his fastball up to 97, and has plus curveball. There are injury concerns with his delivery and also struggles with his command, but I think he would be a good pick at #7 where we might be able to get him to sign for underslot.

    3. Aaron Nola- doesn’t offer much upside, but is projected to be the first starter to reach the majors out of this drat class. He has plus control of his pitches, gets his fastball up to 94 with movement. He could go higher then #7 as an underslot deal.

    http://youtu.be/YTOQvV4PQGE

    4. Touki Toussaint- very raw, but talented pitcher from Florida. Very athletic, with a quick, loose arm that can get his fastball up to 97. Also has a hammer curveball that has plus-plus potential. He does has problems repeating his delivery and that leads to trouble with command/control.

    5. Tyler Beede- he is projected to go in the middle of the first round, but I love his stuff, it’s electric. He has had trouble keep the walks down during his college career however. He can get his fastball up to 96 with a lot of movement, has a plus curveball, and a potential plus changeup that has a lot of downward movement. Lot of potential if he can ever get the walks down.

    Is it obvious I want a pitcher?

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  7. I will be interested in seeing what happens to the injured / recently injured pitchers, and how much the injuries play into draft position. You have Hoffman who was a top 5 before injury, you have the Fedde from UNLV who was a fringe top-10, and you have a high-schooler from the Atlanta area named Dylan Cease who was a possible mid-first rounder prior to an elbow injury (although he has, for now at least, avoided TJ).

    Gettys would make me happy.

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  8. Just a general observation about the draft and prospects.

    What BA, BP, Keith Law, mlb.com, and others like them produce is for the fans’ consumption, not the industry. Each of the 30 teams, including the Phillies, have much more thorough information about prospects than these guys (How the information is used is another story.).

    We fans are at a serious disadvantage in making draft-pick suggestions because we have an information shortage. Nevertheless, we can have a little fun today in an otherwise dismal season.

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    1. Oh yeah, it’s very different from say, NFL, where the combine is open and there’s great video of almost every player from dozens of college games. That’s why Matt and I said when we posted Round 1 the other day we’d probably be wrong on all but a handful of picks.

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      1. image how much more interesting things might be if you could also trade all of your draft picks. With baseball draft picks often being a big crap shoot, I could envision a scenario where a team gives up 10+ picks for the rights to an average, somewhat cost efficient player.

        On an aside – I would not be devastated if the Phillies went along the path of the Jays last year (well, maybe they should not make a pitcher their pick for the first 9 rounds as the Jays did last year, but pitching heavy early on would not upset me).

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        2. I disagree. I think Nola would be a solid pick. Nola has great command of multiple pitches, including excellent movement on his fastball, which I like, especially for pitchers as they get older and lose some velocity. I know he’s considered a “safe” pick, but a solid #3 starter (which I think Nola can be) is very valuable.

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  10. Hearing strong rumblings from my sources that Howard Unruh is the pick in round 2. Medium floor, high projection, a bit of a tool shed, plus makeup (loads of moxie).

    Ottis Toole needs to be our selection in round 3. “Big Ol’ Slice of Custard Pie” could have the biggest raw power in the draft. Deciduous tree allergy makes it tough to get a handle on his hit tool as his experiments with Hemlock bats have yielded mixed results. Strange aversion to fly fishing (he feels it’s a one-sided fight) may cause him to drop.

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  11. If Kolek falls to 7 I don’t know how they pass. If they pick someone else,probably Nola or another college pitcher, then you know Amaro wants a quick result. This way if by some stupid reason he’s back next year , he can say his pick is already in the bigs or is likely very close.
    The other part is signing Kolek. Part of me wonders what he’s asking for money wise. If he falls to 7 what will he ask for? Does he wanna be paid like a top 3 pick? That being said, I say you take him. If worse comes to worse you pick 8 next year.

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    1. best thing that can happen for Philiies is Nola gets selected before them. He is the wrong type of pitcher on wrong type of franchise.

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    1. If you’re asking why it went for moderation, I would guess the five youtube links maybe made it look like spam. If you’re asking why it took me two hours to get to it, I’ll refer you to my employer and their pesky desire for me to, at least sometimes, do work. Also lunch.

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  13. BTW, I predict Gatto as 2nd rd pick. Local kid who you don’t wanna let get away. Then if he pans out everyone asks how you let this guy get away.

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    1. Seems that the hype surrounding Gatto is local media driven. Isn’t getting a lot of love from national guys. Have no interest in drafting him b/c he’s a local guy who may pan out – I want the best guy available here in the 2nd.

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      1. He’s been rated as high as the high 30s and projected to go in the 1st round comp round in some mocks. His hype is far from local media driven. I don’t know whether hell pan out but hell go by end of 2nd rd

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      2. He didn’t dominate consistently and St. Augustine typically plays a weak schedule anyway. I’m not interested

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    2. I hope not. The local angle should be one of the last reasons to draft a guy. Take the best player. The year they drafted Biddle, the following guys were on the board: Noah Syndergaard, Taijuan Walker, Nick Castellanos, Mike Olt and Jackie Bradley, Jr. Three guys in the majors and the other two close. Biddle may pan out but that’s some front line talent they passed on.

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  16. My 3rd Round hope is Bryce Montese (RHP Lawrence HS-Kansas) 6-8 265….I believe he’s referred to as “a hulking presence”….fastball has gotten up to 98.

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    1. Sounds like another Rob Dibble . . . . or Phillippe Aumont.

      Gotta love the randomness of the draft process.

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  17. really don’t want Nola…he looks to be to be like Mike Leake, which is fine, but this team needs guy with star potential. They have plenty of 4-5 starter guys in the sytem

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    1. as I said…he would be wrong type of pitcher for the wrong type of organization. If the Phillies select him it would confirm their disillusionment about where they are.

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  18. Question is the bonus pool this year based on last year’s finish?
    PHILLIES BONUS POOL
    Pick No. Pick value
    1 7 $3,300,900
    2 47 $1,187,900
    3 81 $682,500
    4 112 $467,000
    5 142 $349,700
    6 172 $261,800
    7 202 $196,200
    8 232 $160,700
    9 262 $150,000
    10 292 $140,000
    TOTAL $6,896,700
    AVG $689,670 MLB RANK* 15

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    1. It’s based on last year’s finish, but the bonus pool is assigned pick by signed pick in the first 10 rounds and other teams have more picks than we do and that allows them to jump ahead of us. Yeah, it sucks, but we are right in the middle of the pack on total pool.

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  19. Curious about Neumann – Goretti’s 6-3 225 1B Josh Ockimey headed to Indiana. The Inquirer reported this morning that the Philles have had him in twice for workouts. My brother went to two of his HS games and spoke briefly with the Phillies scout ( might have been a cross checker). Baseball America doesn’t have him in their Top 500 last time I looked.I have no idea where we would go.

    For second round pick, I like Gatto but I’m afraid he will go a few spots before Phillies select. So I would be happy with one from this group of Papi, Varga , Forbes or Scott Blewett. Would be perfect spot to spend money on HS kid.

    Third Round I like either P’s Spencer Turnbull (Alabama) or Andrew Suarez (Miami FL). I don’t want the Canadian HS Gareth Morgan.

    Fourth Round, I liked LHP Dillion Peters (Texas) but he was shut down for the year after last weekend. How about Lenny Dykstra’s kid (HS-3b) or J.D. Davis OF/1B CS-Fullerton

    Fifth Round-P’s Ryan Butler (Charlotte) or Josh Provost (Seton Hall)

    Sixth Round- Mitch Watrous (Utah) P.

    Seventh Round- Joey Pankake 3b/OF (South Carolina)

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    1. I like Peters. He seems like safe pick in the 3-4 rd. Nothing special but he has the look of a typical 4-5 starter. Contact pitcher with good command.

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    2. My son hangs with goretti kids and he said that josh was getting calls yesterday, and he would sign for right money, I don’t know what kind of prospect he is, going to Indiana but has changed his mind before on college. the kid I was talking about is pat doublan I think that’s how its spell, big lefthander with good fastball, pat played in florida until recently he move back to philly, he is going to florida to play summer ball, he is a junior, but someone who might be a real good prospect next year, he was leagues best pitcher,

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    1. Who is 6′ 5″, 240 and throws in the low 90s with a good curve. Another 4th starter. Yeah!!!!

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  21. Could zech lemond ph from rice be there in the 2nd . I live in nj their also a ph here named Brian dobzanski who could go in rd 3 to 5.i know brain o ‘keefe from St Joe’s was in for a visit. A few names a buddy gave me he a scout 4 another team.later round guys that phillies mite take. chris Ellis ph miss, Brett graves ph, and j.d Davis cal st full a 1st baseman.

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  23. Dobzanski is big, strong, athletic and raw………..very high ceiling, but from SJ. Phillies don’t scout that area. If he was from Washington State they would be all over him. Look for three HS pitchers from SJ to go in the top 5-6 rounds.

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    2. Philies do not scout SJ because they do not want to pay the $5 toll to leave NJ.
      They do have budget to live by according to Rube.

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  25. Just a suggestion…when the draft starts can just one person post picks…i know its super neato to be first but no prizes will be awarded for 2+ fastest typers

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  29. The pick is Matt Imhoff, a left-hander from Cal Poly. Stinnet was taken three slots before the Phils’ pick. I haven’t seen anythng on him. Is he another command and control guy?

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