Well after reading about how this should have its own thread, I decided to take the initiative.. Keith Law put up his First Round Mock 3.0 yesterday and here are the Astro's picks... 8) Houston Astros Josh Sale, OF, Bishop Blanchet High School (Wash.) I've heard Michael Choice's name here twice in the past 48 hours. The Astros love Sale and won't get him at 19. 19) Houston Astros (from Detroit) Kolbrin Vitek, 2B, Ball State They'd love DeShields if he falls here, but I think that's unlikely, so they may have to choose at No. 8 between him and Sale. Also potentially on Barrett Loux or Reggie Golden, although I think Golden will be there in the sandwich round. Here's the writeup on the two new guys mentioned...
I wouldn't mind seeing the Astros pick Sale at #8, but I'd rather see them pick up a prep pitcher, as it happens to be the strength of the draft. If AJ Cole, Karsten Whitson or Dylan Covey are there @ #19, I'd love see them pick one of them. The Astros have three of the first 33 picks, so they have the ability to get some very talented players to add to their farm system.
I'm all for getting Sale at 8 as well. He's going to be a great power hitter (1st baseman?) in the future. I also agree that we should probably pick up a prep pitcher at 19. Bobby Heck loves getting them in the early rounds. The 33rd pick should be BPA as far as pitcher or position player goes. One thing I dont understand though is the Astros wanting to get Deshields at 8. That would be such a huge waste when we could pick up power there. I hope we stay away from Zach Cox. His ceiling just screams average major leaguer to me for some reason...
The royals reportedly reached a deal with Grande at #4, so the first six picks look relatively set. Will likely go Harper, Tallion, Machado, Grandel, Pomeranz, Chris Sale. Law is saying the Mets are looking mostly at Cox and Harvey at 7. So the Astros should have their choice of J. Sale, Choice, Mcguire, Deshields, Cox(maybe). Hoping they go with J. Sale at 8. There not reallly anyone like him in the system. He's a hs bat in a lot of upside, but, unlike someone like Austin Wilson, he's also pretty polished with the bat. If all goes right he's the kind of kid that could be up in 3 years and be the perfect replacement for Lee in left. An ideal first round for me would shape up something like this 9: J. Sale 19: Deshields or a hs arm that slips (Cole, Whitson, Covey, Allie) 33: a pitcher or Austin Wilson
Zach Levine/Chron's "Prep hitters worth a look in the first round: [rquoter]Manny Machado, SS, Brito H.S. (Fla.) Combining hitting and a premium position, Miami native should be first high school bat taken, probably before Astros' No. 8 pick. Josh Sale, OF, Bishop Blanchet H.S. (Wash.) Likely corner outfielder is probably the top slugger from high school ranks. Delino Deshields Jr., OF, Woodward Park Academy (Ga.) Extremely speedy son of former big leaguer of the same name probably will still be on the board for Astros' second pick at No. 19. Nick Castellanos, 3B, Archbishop McCarthy H.S. (Fla.) Big and athletic, projected to be a reach for No. 8 but a possibility for later in the first round. Justin O'Conner, C, Cowan H.S. (Ind.) Consensus top high school catcher out there, but the Astros are unlikely to take a catcher early.[/rquoter] From MLBTR: [rquoter]Law echoes the report of the Royals pursuing a deal with Yasmani Grandal, and says it could push Chris Sale to the Diamondbacks and give the Mets their choice of Zack Cox or Matt Harvey (sub. req'd). Law also mentions that the Padres have narrowed their options for the ninth overall pick down to Michael Choice and Kolbrin Vitek.[/rquoter] Also from Chron : [rquoter]Second chance to sign The Astros have expressed interest in the possibility of drafting any of three highly rated talents whom they selected in the 2007 draft but didn't sign. Derek Dietrich, Brett Eibner and Chad Bettis all signed releases authorizing the Astros to draft them. Players drafted by a club and not signed cannot be drafted later without consent because of the possibility of bad blood between the parties. “We've reached out and re-established relationships with the three players,” assistant general manager and scouting director Bobby Heck said. “They're all players that we do have interest in. We've continued the evaluation process.” Dietrich, the Astros' third-round pick in 2007 (but their first pick in that draft) couldn't come to terms with the Astros and went to Georgia Tech. Fourth-rounder Eibner from The Woodlands is a two-way star at Arkansas and is projected to go in the first round. Bettis, drafted in the eighth round, is pitching for Texas Tech. Owner Drayton McLane has no qualms about redrafting any of the players who could not reach a contract agreement three years ago. “That decision is going to be made by Ed Wade,” McLane said. “I have never influenced the draft. I don't know them.” The draft will begin Monday night with the Astros possessing the Nos. 8, 19 and 33 picks overall.[/rquoter]
With the state of this ballclub, I believe that the Astros should pick the best college players available. A top flight college player can make the jump to the majors in a shorter amount of time. I have been watching Barret Loux pitch all year. I would LOVE to see the Astros snag him at #19. The guy is going to be a good one.
AstrosCounty J Sale would be HOU RT @FrankiePiliere Latest I have heard is Pomeranz, Sale, Harvey OR Cox, J. Sale. Pretty confident sources on that order
I think just pick the best player. The team is old and bad, so there is no need to rush players up to fill a need. The mlb team is not going to be in a state to perennially contend for 5+ years. Every move the org makes should be with an eye towards3-5 years down the road imo. No need to pass on talent for mlb readiness. Of course all things equal between two prospects then sure pick the most advanced. Would like Loux at 33, but there are likely to be higher upside guys available at 19.
Love to hear this from Wade: http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/sports/bb/7037644.html He said it “We have the budget capability to take the best player available with each of our picks. We're not drafting, ‘signable players;' we're drafting the best players available at the time.” – Astros general manager Ed Wade, on whether having five of the top 90 picks in Monday's first-year draft presents a challenge from a financial standpoint. Don't know if there is anyone who will command overslot for the 8th or 19th pick but, would love to see them snag an aj cole, austin wilson or zack lee if they fall to 33 or later.
If we get J.Sale, Deshields and Vitek or Golden with our first 3 picks I'd literally wet myself... :grin:
Royals, Grandal reportedly have a deal struck. http://mlb.fanhouse.com/2010/06/04/...ndal-have-pre-draft-agreement/?sms_ss=twitter Heyman speculating on 5 thru 8: SI_JonHeyman sale, pomeranz, harvey, cox 5 thru 8? RT @FrankiePiliere Royals, Grandal Have Pre-Draft Agreement: http://bit.ly/dhybdb
Frankie Piliere - (@SI_JonHeyman) Latest I have heard is Pomeranz, Sale, Harvey OR Cox, J. Sale. Pretty confident sources on that order except for the Mets Astros County - J Sale would be HOU (RT @FrankiePiliere Latest I have heard is Pomeranz, Sale, Harvey OR Cox, J. Sale. Pretty confident sources on that order) Frankie Piliere - (@AstrosCounty) Correct
I think there first 3 picks will be from Josh Sale, Delino DeShields Jr., Kolbrin Vitek, Michael Kvasnicka, and Reggie Golden. My guess it will be Sale at 8, Kvasnicka at 18, and Golden at 33.
The one good thing about having a bad season? It makes the minor league and draft discussion much more interesting around here...
It will be a lot more interesting next year if the Astros end up with a really high pick. Rice third baseman Anthony Rendon and Texas pitcher Taylor Jungmann are expected to be top 3 picks.
There is not a stud 1b in this year's class. Cox and Castellanos are 1st round 3b talents, but there are question marks with them. Anthony Rendon is a stud 3b in next year's class in the texeira, longoria and zimmerman mold, but the stros will likely need the first overall pick in order to get him.
