My draft board vs. yours...

[QBsILLEST1]

It is about that time of the year again. The draft will be here in a few months and the Spring season is in full effect and we now have some sort of an idea who we should target. Personally, I think Harper goes 1st then a healthy Ranaudo goes 2nd to the Bucs. In this scenario......

My primary choice is Jameson Taillon. Who wouldn't want this kid? Early Spring reports say that his velocity has spiked and can touch 99 MPH(he touched it 4 times in 1 game). No idea on how his movement was affected by that, but he did have some good movement on it before he boosted his velocity 3 MPH. His curve is an absolute hammer, it has very hard late bite and it is thrown pretty hard as well. It projects as a 2nd "plus-plus" pitch. His slider has been catching some attention as well lately and it apparently flashed plus when thrown but is inconsistent and needs more refinement to solidify it as an actual "plus" pitch. Jamo also has a feel for a changeup that should be another usable ML pitch. His delivery shows no red flags, though not picture perfect, he seemingly has no timing issues regardless of a slower tempo(quick arm catches up to his body as he explodes at the batter). His biggest weakness is and will be his command. This will probably be the thing that separates Strasburg from Taillon in the future(Strasburg's is very good). Strasburg also gets a bunch of GB's, but we don't really know with Taillon yet if he will be a big GB guy, but other than "plus" command, Taillon on paper will look quite similar to Strasburg in a few years IMO.

If Taillon is gone, I would probably go for Dylan Covey depending on Ranaudo's health. Covey is a polished prep arm with what is tabbed the best curve in his class(some scouts say its the best they have seen in years from a prep). His fastball can touch 96 and generally sits 92-94. He has a pretty good changeup as well that should develop into another plus pitch. His command is also very good for a HSer. His weakness is his lack of projection.

What about you guys, what would your draft board look like? You don't have to assume Ranaudo comes back healthy and he and Harper are drafted with the 1st and 2nd pick. Its up to you......

[EL_Coyote]

For the 3rd overall choice, I prefer Deck McGuire. I like the fact that he has 4 pitches and looks to move relatively quickly through the minors.

Harper-If it really isn't overblown hype would be tough to pass on. Taillon also looks like he has oodles of potential, however he is young and you never know what will happen with a pitching prospect that isn't coming out of a college program.

It's too early to play this game. However once the draft gets closer (late May?) I will try to post two draft boards. One rating the talent overall and one for the Orioles.

[Hutman]

For the 3rd overall choice, I prefer Deck McGuire. I like the fact that he has 4 pitches and looks to move relatively quickly through the minors.

Harper-If it really isn't overblown hype would be tough to pass on. Taillon also looks like he has oodles of potential, however he is young and you never know what will happen with a pitching prospect that isn't coming out of a college program.

It's too early to play this game. However once the draft gets closer (late May?) I will try to post two draft boards. One rating the talent overall and one for the Orioles.

I agree, I love Tallion, but I think he goes 1 or 2, at 3 I'm leaning towards a college arm like McGuire or Pommeranz if Ranuado is not healthy. I don't see as many stud hitting prospects other than Harper.