Updated Draft Info 3.30.08

[Greg Pappas]

Greg I wondered if you had seen this breakdown of Aaron Crow's mechanics. They said that another article on him will be up on Monday. BTW, this is a great site, and I really enjoy it.

http://saberscouting.com/2008/03/28/aaroncrowmechanalysis/#more-43

I hadn't, but thanks for the heads up.

[Lt Melmo]

Matusz would be our top pitching prospect over Tillman, Arrieta and the other youngsters. That's not to say that Tillman couldn't supplant him, because he certainly can, but at this stage Matusz becomes our #2 prospect, just behind Wieters.

Might be a bit arbitrary, but I'd be interested to hear where you'd slot all of the top 5 guys into our current prospect list.

[Greg Pappas]

Might be a bit arbitrary, but I'd be interested to hear where you'd slot all of the top 5 guys into our current prospect list.

Who do we (OH) have as the top 5? The list I saw was pre-trades.

Using this modified version...

1. Wieters

2. Tillman

3. Rowell

4. Spoone

5. Reimold

I'd say...

1. Wieters

2. Beckham (Would quickly establish himself as #1)

3. Alvarez

4. Crow

5. Matusz

6. Smoak

7. Tillman

8. Rowell

9. Spoone

10.Reimold

[Stotle]

I wonder if Gordon Beckham and Tim Beckham are brothers? I saw Gordon play this afternoon on TV and he looked pretty smooth from what I could see. Hope he is around in round two, his stats look pretty good!

Tim is black; Gordon is a white-boy.

[Hutman]

Tim is black; Gordon is a white-boy.

They could be brothers from another mother

[rhall]

I hadn't, but thanks for the heads up.

I had heard that Crow had the tendency to wrap his wrist a little bit after his hands broke, then flop it a little bit as his arm comes around, but this report certainly makes it sound potentially more serious than I had thought.

It's hard to discount Crow's performance thus far, but I have never considered Matusz far behind. Matusz's left handedness and deeper repertoire kept me thinking that maybe I'd rather have Matusz. It's so close, but Crow has been so dominant I was beginning to forget about that. If this wrist issue is anything more than a moot point, I'll have to start the inner debate once more.

[napbow]

Questions for Stotle and Greg.

How does this year's draft compare to last year's draft in terms of elite talent and overall depth?

Also, I know its early but do you know of any studs for next year's draft. I figure we are going to be drafting in the top 3, most likely number 1. I heard the first baseman from UNC is really good.

[WebLink21]

I still can see KC going Melville looking for a local kid to help boost interst in the team and attendance. That would leave Beckham to us, maybe its just wishful thinking on my part, but I think the potential is there.

Crow would be a home town kid as well. He pitches at the the University of Missouri. I would say they would take him before Melville.

[Hutman]

Crow would be a home town kid as well. He pitches at the the University of Missouri. I would say they would take him before Melville.

I am assuming that Crow goes # 1 to Tampa Bay, but if he doesn't then I'm sure KC will give him strong consideration.

[blueblood]

Thx Greg, great job,

BTW, Can you please add their agent and/or signability for each player.

Thanks,

[GeorgiaBird]

If the draft was today I would be surprised if Tampa did not take Beckham. They are not going to pay Boras' rates for Alvarez, and given they paid for a top pitcher last year don't expect them to give in to Boras' demands for Crow either.

[WebLink21]

If the draft was today I would be surprised if Tampa did not take Beckham. They are not going to pay Boras' rates for Alvarez, and given they paid for a top pitcher last year don't expect them to give in to Boras' demands for Crow either.

I could def see Beckham going #1. I think that Tampa is the perfect team for a player like him. They have plenty of good position players and can let him take his time and develop. The one thing that would surprise me would be the Pirates passing on Alvarez. I would honestly be shocked if that happened. I think they have shown their hand on their interest on him all year long.

[caribe]

Hey Greg, hope this helps you find more info on Beckham in the future...

I know at the WWBA in Jupiter he was 1-9 with I think 4 K's. I also read what Baseball America said but it didn't quite add up to what I was told. I've been following him some in the Griffin Newspapers and I know he hit an inside-the-park home-run and another over the fence. So I think he has two so far. I've heard from some people that he was stuggling at the plate and I guess after seeing this article come out, I guess they were right. I've seen this kid play twice in person, he is very good. He will just have to fight through it and continue to do what he knows best. Hope this helps and thanks for your great work.

http://griffindailynews.com/articles/2008/03/31/sports/doc47eed00f3e902758563089.txt

Sports

Click to Enlarge Handling the pressure

By BRIAN GIANDELONE

Assistant Sports Editor

brian@griffindailynews.com

Posted: Sunday, March 30, 2008 1:19 AM EDT

Email this story | Print this story

All eyes have been on Griffin High School shortstop Tim Beckham this season, and that’s fine with him. After months of being scouting by Major League Baseball teams during the summer, fall and winter workouts, Beckham said right now he is concentrating on just enjoying his senior season with the Bears and helping his team as it enters subregion play.

“I really don’t care about (the scouts being at the games). I would go about it the same way even if they weren’t out here,” he said. “I play with my friends, I shoot jokes every now and then, but I get my work in, and I still hustle.”

While Beckham does not feel any added pressure with the scouts watching his every move on the field, he said he has struggled this season re-adjusting to high school pitching after spending much of the summer working with pitches between 88 and 95 miles per hour.

“I have to make adjustments and get back to the slow pitching,” he said. “I’m not doing like I think I should be doing. I’ve just got to continue to play ball.”

Despite his small hitting slump, Griffin coaches have praised Beckham’s handling of the added attention.

“He’s handled it well, sometimes a little impatient at the plate, but overall he’s done well,” Griffin head coach Jamie Cassady said.

Beckham said many of his batting struggles have been his own fault. With opposing pitchers throwing away from him, he said he needs to focus on not swinging at pitches out of the strike zone and make the pitchers work to get him out.

He added with more work in batting practice and hitting off the tee, he is confident he can return to last season’s .512 batting average.

“I just need to work and do all that off the field, when nobody is watching,” he said.

But Griffin’s coaching staff already has noticed signs that his form is starting to return.

“I see some signs that he’s trying to work through it, and he’s going to improve over the second half of the season,” Griffin assistant coach Eddie Parker said. “There are a lot of distractions for him, and despite that he’s continued to work hard out there.”

Despite the early season struggle at the plate, Beckham said his defensive skills continue to get stronger throughout the season.

“The biggest thing for him is to go out and have fun playing the game, and that’s what he does. He has fun out there and it shows,” Cassady said.

Beckham’s enjoyment of the game is one factor that has attracted the attention of the major league scouts, and Cassady said by talking to them after every game, those scouts continue to be impressed with the Griffin shortstop.

By watching Beckham throughout the summer and winter workouts and learning his true potential, Cassady said the scouts now just want to see how he reacts to adversity and how he improves during the season.

“They want to see his poise and how he handles himself,” Cassady said. Right now they just want to see if they can find anything wrong with him. He’s held himself together and has done well, and that’s all because he’s got good character.”

[Greg Pappas]

Hey Greg, hope this helps you find more info on Beckham in the future...

I know at the WWBA in Jupiter he was 1-9 with I think 4 K's. I also read what Baseball America said but it didn't quite add up to what I was told. I've been following him some in the Griffin Newspapers and I know he hit an inside-the-park home-run and another over the fence. So I think he has two so far. I've heard from some people that he was stuggling at the plate and I guess after seeing this article come out, I guess they were right. I've seen this kid play twice in person, he is very good. He will just have to fight through it and continue to do what he knows best. Hope this helps and thanks for your great work.

http://griffindailynews.com/articles/2008/03/31/sports/doc47eed00f3e902758563089.txt

Sports

Click to Enlarge Handling the pressure

By BRIAN GIANDELONE

Assistant Sports Editor

brian@griffindailynews.com

Posted: Sunday, March 30, 2008 1:19 AM EDT

Email this story | Print this story

All eyes have been on Griffin High School shortstop Tim Beckham this season, and that’s fine with him. After months of being scouting by Major League Baseball teams during the summer, fall and winter workouts, Beckham said right now he is concentrating on just enjoying his senior season with the Bears and helping his team as it enters subregion play.

“I really don’t care about (the scouts being at the games). I would go about it the same way even if they weren’t out here,” he said. “I play with my friends, I shoot jokes every now and then, but I get my work in, and I still hustle.”

While Beckham does not feel any added pressure with the scouts watching his every move on the field, he said he has struggled this season re-adjusting to high school pitching after spending much of the summer working with pitches between 88 and 95 miles per hour.

“I have to make adjustments and get back to the slow pitching,” he said. “I’m not doing like I think I should be doing. I’ve just got to continue to play ball.”

Despite his small hitting slump, Griffin coaches have praised Beckham’s handling of the added attention.

“He’s handled it well, sometimes a little impatient at the plate, but overall he’s done well,” Griffin head coach Jamie Cassady said.

Beckham said many of his batting struggles have been his own fault. With opposing pitchers throwing away from him, he said he needs to focus on not swinging at pitches out of the strike zone and make the pitchers work to get him out.

He added with more work in batting practice and hitting off the tee, he is confident he can return to last season’s .512 batting average.

“I just need to work and do all that off the field, when nobody is watching,” he said.

But Griffin’s coaching staff already has noticed signs that his form is starting to return.

“I see some signs that he’s trying to work through it, and he’s going to improve over the second half of the season,” Griffin assistant coach Eddie Parker said. “There are a lot of distractions for him, and despite that he’s continued to work hard out there.”

Despite the early season struggle at the plate, Beckham said his defensive skills continue to get stronger throughout the season.

“The biggest thing for him is to go out and have fun playing the game, and that’s what he does. He has fun out there and it shows,” Cassady said.

Beckham’s enjoyment of the game is one factor that has attracted the attention of the major league scouts, and Cassady said by talking to them after every game, those scouts continue to be impressed with the Griffin shortstop.

By watching Beckham throughout the summer and winter workouts and learning his true potential, Cassady said the scouts now just want to see how he reacts to adversity and how he improves during the season.

“They want to see his poise and how he handles himself,” Cassady said. Right now they just want to see if they can find anything wrong with him. He’s held himself together and has done well, and that’s all because he’s got good character.”

Thanks for the info. It'll be fun watching him grow as this year moves along.