Is this team bad enough for the number 1 pick?

[Mr. Chewbacca Jr.]

11 hours ago, Frobby said:

God I am tired of discussing this.   

The sad part is there's not much else to discuss. People still debate the Ubaldo decision here because the O's have given us so little to even talk about over the last few years. It's sad.

[HowAboutThat]

30 minutes ago, Hazmat said:

The mocks have been all over the place.  If Davis is the pick, it's because he's seen as the best player available.  He is the consensus top college bat and should be able to play in LF or 1B.  It's not clear that he sticks at C.

I don’t know anything about him except his name is Davis(cue the “DUM DUM DUM” music) but is he another bat without a defensive position and is another,”…will probably end up in left field or first,” kind of guy?

[osravensfan78]

23 hours ago, 7Mo said:

?? He played the '20 season at Tech and the '21 season. Next year he will play his third season before the '22 draft.

Thanks for that. He is listed as a Freshman on their site so I didn’t know about the 20 season. I think he may give Green a run for that top pick when all is said and done. 

[jdwilde1]

Yes.

[7Mo]

2 hours ago, osravensfan78 said:

Thanks for that. He is listed as a Freshman on their site so I didn’t know about the 20 season. I think he may give Green a run for that top pick when all is said and done. 

Ok good. I was afraid I was overlooking something.

How would you compare him to brother Josh?

[spiritof66]

17 hours ago, Hazmat said:

The mocks have been all over the place.  If Davis is the pick, it's because he's seen as the best player available.  He is the consensus top college bat and should be able to play in LF or 1B.  It's not clear that he sticks at C.

I would hope the Orioles have learned the danger of looking at a potential high draft choice and saying "OK, he won't be able to play that challenging defensive position in the big leagues" -- usually it's SS -- but picking him anyway since "Given his tools and general athleticism, he'll be fine at another position." Yeah, just like our outstanding young third baseman and left fielder, Ryan Mountcastle.

[Can_of_corn]

3 minutes ago, spiritof66 said:

I would hope the Orioles have learned the danger of looking at a potential high draft choice and saying "OK, he won't be able to play that challenging defensive position in the big leagues" -- usually it's SS -- but picking him anyway since "Given his tools and general athleticism, he'll be fine at another position." Yeah, just like our outstanding young third baseman and left fielder, Ryan Mountcastle.

For a second there I thought you were talking about Machado.

A disproportionate amount of HS and International players are listed at SS.

Mark Reynolds was a shortstop.

It's common to draft a player at SS with the intent to move him as he matures.

The fact that this has happened to a player selected by the prior regime should have no bearing on what Elias does.

[spiritof66]

2 minutes ago, Can_of_corn said:

For a second there I thought you were talking about Machado.

A disproportionate amount of HS and International players are listed at SS.

Mark Reynolds was a shortstop.

It's common to draft a player at SS with the intent to move him as he matures.

The fact that this has happened to a player selected by the prior regime should have no bearing on what Elias does.

I'm saying it can be risky to draft a guy who plays one position on the assumption he'll be fine at a completely different position. If I saw a young Manny Machado at SS, I think I would have an easy time concluding he could be very good at other IF positions, and maybe in the OF as well.

Mark Reynolds is an example of the difficulty of finding a home for former shortstops.. He was a third baseman (and occasional outfielder) in his early years in MILB. He was a terrible third baseman, and eventually was moved to first base to get his HR power in the lineup without being a defensive liability.

I know nothing about Davis other than his high ranking in the draft class. But no other position resembles catching, and moving a slugging catcher someplace other than first base has some risk. Third base used to be an option, but the need for speed and range at that position has increased a lot in recent years. Concluding that because Mountcastle has the speed to play the outfield and a good enough arm for left field, he should provide adequate defense there might have worked. But it didn't. The same thing could happen with Davis, so I would think of him as a future first baseman/DH..

[NCRaven]

Martin, Ortiz, Westburg, Henderson, Hernaiz and Servideo will not all play shortstop for the Orioles.  At least, not long term.  But, several of them could play at other positions in the bigs.  And, over time, Mountcastle could prove to be the best hitter of all of them.  I doubt we draft Davis, but if he proves to be the best college bat in this draft, a team will find a place to play him.

[Can_of_corn]

3 minutes ago, spiritof66 said:

I'm saying it can be risky to draft a guy who plays one position on the assumption he'll be fine at a completely different position. If I saw a young Manny Machado at SS, I think I would have an easy time concluding he could be very good at other IF positions, and maybe in the OF as well.

 

I get what you are saying but you have no choice. 

The number of guys that are high draftable that play a quality second base or left field is pretty much zero.  If you want a HS bat you have to be prepared to project him to other positions.

[BohKnowsBmore]

15 hours ago, Can_of_corn said:

For a second there I thought you were talking about Machado.

A disproportionate amount of HS and International players are listed at SS.

Mark Reynolds was a shortstop.

It's common to draft a player at SS with the intent to move him as he matures.

The fact that this has happened to a player selected by the prior regime should have no bearing on what Elias does.

Jim Thome was drafted as a SS. It’s incredibly common. 

[OriolesMagic83]

It will be hard to catch the DBacks.  I have watched the DBacks, but they seem to be a better team than the O's, just unlucky (or lucky if you're trying to get the #1 pick).  They're 16th in runs and their pitching is about as bad as the O's.  Maybe worse, when you adjust for the DH.  They are on quite a streak, 6-43, and over a shorter stretch, 4-37.  So they are barely at a 12% win percentage over their last 50 games. 

[7Mo]

1 hour ago, OriolesMagic83 said:

It will be hard to catch the DBacks.  I have watched the DBacks, but they seem to be a better team than the O's, just unlucky (or lucky if you're trying to get the #1 pick).  They're 16th in runs and their pitching is about as bad as the O's.  Maybe worse, when you adjust for the DH.  They are on quite a streak, 6-43, and over a shorter stretch, 4-37.  So they are barely at a 12% win percentage over their last 50 games. 

And they're doing that with a $100M payroll.