2021 1st round pick (5): Colton Cowser - OF - (Junior) Sam Houston University

[Tony-OH]

Post all scouting reports and initial comments and thoughts in this thread.

MLB Scouting report: 

Cowser was a late bloomer at Cypress Ranch HS (Cypress, Texas), where he played alongside projected 2021 first-rounder Ty Madden as well as J.J. Goss and Matt Thompson, who both went in the top two rounds in 2019. Scouts liked Cowser but not enough to divert him from Sam Houston, where he could surpass Glenn Wilson (No. 18 overall, 1980) as the highest pick in school history. The only Bearkat ever to play for the U.S. collegiate national team, he earned MVP honors in a 2019 series against Cuba after batting .438 in six games. 

One of the best bats in the college class, Cowser has a pure left-handed stroke and repeatedly finds the barrel. His quick hands allow him to pepper line drives all over the field as he executes a very controlled approach. Though he presently doesn't have a lot of loft in his swing, leading to some questions about his power potential, he has the hitting ability and strength to provide 20 or more homers annually and answered some questions about his power by going deep in five straight games in April and topping the Southland Conference with 16 homers this spring. 

Scouts were somewhat split on Cowser's ability to play center field, though they believe in him now that he has posted consistent plus running times this spring. He has good defensive instincts in center, possesses an average arm and spent most of his prep career in right field -- Goss and Thompson played center when they weren't pitching -- and part of his freshman season at third base. The Southland Conference player of the year's game has earned him comparisons to Brandon Nimmo and Bradley Zimmer and he could join them as mid-first-round picks.

Dan O'Dowd: Reminds me of Brandon Nimmo. Most of your WAR comes from your 1st two rounds so you take best player available.
Harold Reynolds: Reminds me of Jim Eisenreich.

[Paul in Virginia]

Commish didn't even pronounce his first name correctly.....

[Justinlstn]

Two years in a row of this

[Jagwar]

He doesn't even have a photo on his MLB draft page 

[Tony-OH]

Appears Elias went under slot once again. 

[BohKnowsBmore]

3 minutes ago, gman082288 said:

Horrible pick. Elias has got to be fired. He is NOT smarter than everyone else. HORRIBLE

 

Just now, doccat said:

Gotta say I'm unbelievably disappointed...   

 

To think we passed over Kumar Rocker and Jordan Lawlor????   

 

ELIAS is not smarter than everyone else...  He must go....

 

Same person?

[BohKnowsBmore]

1 minute ago, Tony-OH said:

Appears Elias went under slot once again. 

Any idea who the overslot targets might be?

[GoldGlove21]

Austin Martin and Jordan Lawler could have been Orioles prospects. I just do not understand.

[BohKnowsBmore]

1 minute ago, doccat said:

Gotta say I'm unbelievably disappointed...   

 

To think we passed over Kumar Rocker and Jordan Lawlor????   

 

ELIAS is not smarter than everyone else...  He must go....

 

FWIW fangraphs had Cowser in the FV50 tier and above Rocker. 

[Roll Tide]

10 rated player by MLB.com….more bargain shopping

 

Quote

MLB.com rated Cowser as the draft’s 10th-best prospect, while Baseball America had him at No. 11. To the extent Cowser was linked to the Orioles in pre-draft analysis, it was as a player who would possibly sign for below the recommended slot amount of $6.187 million, allowing the Orioles to give a larger portion of their overall $11,829,300 signing bonus pool to players taken later in the draft.

 

 

https://www.capitalgazette.com/sports/bs-sp-orioles-draft-colton-cowser-20210711-cxbed4fsevc4nf7z3abt74tiwe-story.html

[MijiT88]

I for one am not shocked by the bargain shopping but how did we not take a SS with all of them besides one right there for us...

[lovetoaster]

2 minutes ago, BohKnowsBmore said:

FWIW fangraphs had Cowser in the FV50 tier and above Rocker. 

How dare you say something positive?

[baltimoreO's22]

Elias can get lost.  This is a horrible strategy, IMO. Let’s draft a worse player with the first pick so we can maybe potentially grab a guy later that. Why are we even bothering to tank when all we do is draft mid tier prospects? 
 

[ChosenOne21]

Lawler has more upside I guess, but a much lower floor. I'd have preferred either him or Rocker here, but the kid seems like a pretty good bet to be a strong centerfielder, especially with the bat. And he's college, so hopefully not too far away

[ArtVanDelay]

He doesn’t have mono or myocarditis right?