Draft Recap: AL North, AL East

AL North

Minnesota Fatboys:

First Round: Bob Flaherty at #27 looks like a very strong pick. He projects to play an excellent 2B, and should also be able to play a fair CF. At the plate, Flaherty has a broad skill set, projecting as adequate to good at everything but excelling at nothing, although his power deserves note. Supplemental pick Brandon Roberts is a relief workhorse that excels against righties and holds his own against lefties. However, his 2nd pitch projects to be pretty average, and he lacks a third pitch. Nashville's Mac Garcia, picked 2 slots earlier, looks much better, although (obviously) Minnesota never had a shot at him, to be fair.
Grade: B+

Other picks: Horace Faulkner should start someday, despite the high offensive standards for 1B. It's unlikely to ever happen with the Fatboys, though; he probably has to be traded to get a shot. Mule Liverman and Rabbit Hackman are likely to find themselves on someone's bench in the future, and Joel Brown was a nice late-round find. Nothing special, but there's value here.
Grade: B+

Buffalo Europeans

First Round: Denny Abercrombie's bat and glove are both strong for his position (LF); he should make a couple of All-Star games in his prime. He signed for well over slot (4.66 mil), however, which is probably why supplemental pick Kevin North hasn't been signed. Even so, North lacks the power or plate discipline to start at 1B, and his glove isn't good enough to play anywhere else. Abercrombie is definitely talented, but getting nothing out of a supplemental pick hurts.
Grade: B-

Other picks: Buffalo's 2nd and 3rd round picks are unsigned, and 4th rounder Maximo Thomas is fringy, even as a bench player. There's nothing else of note here; no one else deserves to make an ML squad by merit. If Buffalo signs either their 2nd or 3rd round picks, this grade would rise. As it stands, however, this is as ugly as it gets.
Grade: F

Syracuse Fightin' Boeheims:

First Round: Thurman Pearson's bat won't be anything special, even for a 2B. His range is also lacking for someone who mans the keystone; if he can't play 2B, he's a bench player. Either way, he's not likely to have a long ML career; once his range and speed slip, he'll be out of a job. With the 21st pick, they could have done better.
Grade: D+

Other picks: Mitch Boudreau is good enough to start at 1B against lefties; he's not bad against righties, but one should be able to find someone better, given the abundance of 1B with excellent bats. Trevor Dunston might find his way to an ML bench as a pinch hitter and occasional fill-in at 1B against RHP. As a catch-and-throw guy that can start against LHP without killing you at the plate, you can do worse than Tony Wall. You could probably do better, too, but he's a strong pick for a 5th rounder.
Grade: B

Montreal Grand Orange:

First Round: Ray Lyons at #15 looks solid, if unspectacular. He looks like a Juan Pierre-type with a better arm: great contact skills, little power, very good speed and baserunning ability, and a solid glove in CF. You'd like to see someone with more star potential this early in the draft, but CF is a shallow position in Gleeman World.
Grade: C+

Other picks: Montreal's 2nd rounder priced himself out of the Grand Orange's budget. 3rd rounder Norman Greene will make a great pinch runner, and should hit ably against LHP, albeit without power. His range at 2B is excellent, but his glovework is questionable. The next 4 picks made little sense; all of them are minor-league rotation workhorses with little to no ML potential.
Grade: D+


AL East

New York Metropolitans:

First Round: Donnie Mottola has little upside; his middling stuff and struggles against LH hitters should relegate him to long-relief duty at the ML level. Granted, this is the 31st pick of the draft, but there were better players available. Ted Roberts and Javy Gomez, picked 36th and 40th respectively, both look like better bets to succeed at the ML level.
Grade: C

Other picks: Strangely, the Mets' first 11 picks were all pitchers. What really kills them is that past 2nd rounder Britt Gardner, who looks like a capable long relief option in the future, no one else projects as a legitimate ML player. Due to their late draft position, they're partially, but not entirely, excused.
Grade: C-

Boston Red Sox:

First Round: He may be stretched as a starter, but Jim Gonzales could be a great high-leverage reliever. He has excellent command, thrives against RH hitters without giving up much to lefties, and throws a mean sinker, helping him keep the ball in the ballpark. He's also already 21; he should move relatively quickly. Given the Sox's biggest team need (credible pitching, duh), this is a very good pick.
Grade: A-

Other picks: Otto Harriger and Octavio Wilfredo are both good defense-first catchers that can hit lefties well enough to merit some playing time. David Olivares is a credible long-relief option and a nice find in the 3rd round. Samuel DeJean probably can't hit enough to start at the ML level, and might not hit enough for even a bench role, but is still an interesting enough player to give a shot in the 7th round. Jeromy Robinson's control and GB rate will probably work against him at the ML level; he'll only be able to make it work in the most forgiving of circumstances. All in all, though, a very nice mix of talent.
Grade: A-

Philadelphia Phenomenauts:

First Round: Rafael Diaz projects to have very good stamina and control, and should be very good against righties. However, he doesn't do nearly as well against lefties, doesn't have an out pitch, and lacks the durability to eat that many innings. He's a decent pitcher, and should slot in comfortably as the #3 or #4 pitcher on a team. However, for the #9 overall pick, that feels a bit disappointing.
Grade: C-

Other picks: There's not a whole lot to look at; out of their 2nd to 10th rounders, only two players (the 2nd and 6th rounders) signed. Paul Black throws two fastballs that both grade as plus pitches, and mixes in a usable changeup. He also has a rubber arm; he should be able to give the Phenomenauts 100+ innings in relief. Clem Moran projects to be your classic Quad-A player, with a bat that just isn't good enough to play at 3B, and too little range to ever escape his fate as a 4-corners guy.
Grade: C

Pittsburgh Pug Dogs:

First Round: Wolf Lockhart can hit for both average and power, doesn't have a significant platoon split, and is very durable. Defensively, he positions himself well and gets good jumps on the ball, making up for his lack of speed. His glovework projects to be playable, if not particularly good. His arm is certainly strong enough to make the throw from the hole. Now for the bad news: his throws from SS have been described as "Dalkowskian," and his batting eye conjures up memories of Pudge Rodriguez (Detroit edition). The jury's out on whether this is going to be a successful player or not; a risky #9 pick.
Grade: C+

Other picks: Daniel Franco looks more like an innings eater at AAA than a true ML pitcher; for a second rounder, that's not very impressive. Julio Mercado looks like a bench player for life; he cost well over slot (nearly $3 million), making the pick look a bit frivolous. No one else projects as a major leaguer.
Grade: C-