When I Mock-Draft, They Call Me Mock-arena

[Edgy MD]

Everything has gotten pushed back this year, but things are slowly catching up. The MLB draft is scheduled for July 17-19, and while that's a month late, it's only given the mockers another month to mock, and isn't it all about the mocking?



The Mets have four of the top 100 picks because (1) they are awesome, (2) they banked their Kumar Rocker pick from last year, and (3) the Angels felt they needed Noah Syndergaard to help them to fourth place.



The key picks of course, are #s 11 and 14. There have been a million mock drafts, and they're all certainly wrong, but sometimes right about individual details, even if they are right for the wrong reason. Keith Law mocks so prolifically and flamboyantly that his readers suffer from mockular degeneration. Oh, he mocks and mocks so much that he ought to be called (insert mock pun here).



Key Flaw's most recent mockumentary has the Mets going for Texas Tech infielder Jace Jung and Arizona catcher Daniel Susac. As we know from Ike Davis and Michael Conforto, college bats can be among the fastest prospect to the show, but as we also know from Ike Davis and Michael Conforto, they can peak early once they get there.



If Jung sounds familiar, you may remember his brother (and fellow Texas Tech Red Raider Josh Jung) going eighth overall to the hometown Rangers in 2019. Josh had a very similar profile and has hit at ever stop through the minors but looks like he'll miss of all of 2022 following torn labrum surgery. Jace is a second- and third-baseman with terrific on-base skills. Concerns include a poor showing in the Cape Cod League (waddayawant from 34 plate appearances) and a modest drop off in power between his sophomore and junior years. (Oh, his slugging dropped from .697 to .612! Cry me a river!!)



Once you get past those negative nellies, though, you see an OBP figure of .481 this season and .468 over his three-year college career, and you cry, "Sign me up!"



The name Jace Jung. He bats left and throws right, swings the bat and says goodnight.



And if his nickname isn't "The Collective Unconscious," Imma be pissed.



[media=youtube]Yl38AUpfOWs[/media]



Daniel "Poison" Susac is also the younger brother of a former prospect, following Andrew Susac who went in the second round way back in 2011. Andrew made it to the bigs, but peaked as a backup. Nothing to be ashamed of there, and his experience can only enrich his brother's pathway.



Little Poison was an NCAA all-freshman selection in 2021, and was Pac-12 freshman of the year. We're talking Pac-12, here, people. The poorly kept secret in college baseball is that there are really four divisions, with the difference in level of play between the top four conferences (Pac-12, Big 12, SEC, and ACC) and the rest of Division I being perhaps wider than the difference between Divisions I and II. I'm just telling it like it is. The Pac-12 is brutal, and Susac has personally brutalized it over his two seasons as a Wildcat catcher. Siouxsac has a .999 OPS over his two college seasons, and is as regarded for his defense as for his offense. And the first guy who says the Mets don't need a catcher because they have Franciso Álvarez is gonna get such a pinch.



[media=youtube]ZeS53ZFwhTg[/media]

[Edgy MD]

There's also a lot of speculation bouncing around about Cohen throwing his money and weight around to somehow maneuver into taking Druw Jones, the son of Andruw Jones widely perceived to be going first overall to the Orioles. Since there is no trading of picks (apart from competitive balance picks) in the MLB draft, nobody has really come up with a coherent scenario about how this this might take place, but I might as well put that out there with a shaker of salt.

[whippoorwill]

Son of Andruw Jones….geez isn't he still about 25?

[Edgy MD]

Andruw was at last night's game. A little wide around the middle but still with his boyish face.

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

The real reason the draft was "delayed" is that so it can support an ever-growing MLB "tentpole" marketing event associated with the All-Star Game (more on this, soon).



What I wanted to say, though, is a story...



One of my closest friends ever-- a college/post-college roommate + a totally blue-and-orange guy (hes a key figure in my "Game 6" story)...was a pretty good athlete (racquetball.. and whiffe ball, my record, let's just say is not good, and we played A LOT) today is the parent of an 17/18-year old fresh hs graduate who was named one of 50 state winners of the "Gatorade High School Player the Year" (in Delaware, yes, so perhaps, he finishes, like 800th in California or Florida, but still, impressive, right?)



Naturally, learning this I'm excited that my friend has a kid to get this kinda recognition, and--especially when I saw on Facebook he "committed" to a, let's say, junior college not known as an academic power hitter but happens to have a pretty good baseball team-- I saw it and, it struck me "OH, leverage! My buddy's kid, is going to be drafted, maybe, by the motherf÷(kn Mets!!"



So I call him up for details, and get a kinda sad story. Despite the impressive stats Gatorade cites: .542 batting average, .642 OBP, 4 HR, 30 RBI, first-team All-State 3B/OF, who also had a 0.00 ERA is 7 Innings as a pitcher... it's one stat, my friend confesses, that really matters.



"If he tries, we can maybe say, he's 5-foot-11," ... but in reality, he's "maybe" 5-foot-10.



And all that shit above? Throw it away. High-school kids even with impressive stats who are "maybe" 5-foot-10, just don't get drafted. He's not even included in the mlb draft tracker database!



And here's the second bit. The Gatorade thing also is meant to spotlight "student-athletes", and this kid, had good grades in a good high school. So why go to a junior commuter college?



That's because he is also unlucky enough to be a good baseball player entering college while colleges are still dealing with a backload of scholarship athletes who had years tacked on to their deals--- because of Covid. So in a normal year, this kid could get a ride to a "real college" with a baseball scholarship, (like, for him, the UD Blue Hens). But, the Hens are fresh out of scholarships! They have way too many already due to covid, and so, tough luck! And the plan is, commute, and wait it out. Crazy, right? Too short... and too young.. to exploit either advantage!

[Edgy MD]

Too short coming out of high school, so he had to enroll in junior college until a big time school opened their damn eyes. Is your friend's kid named "Tom Seaver," by any chance?



The other enemy is all the teams that have shed two or more of their minor league clubs, providing fewer opportunity for all those fourth-year juniors and fifth-year-seniors and third-year sophs to take a shot at the pros, incentivizing them to stay in college.



So many things suck. I CAN'T KEEP UP!

[MFS62]

Johnny Lunchbucket wrote: "If he tries, we can maybe say, he's 5-foot-11," ... but in reality, he's "maybe" 5-foot-10.

Willie Mays was 5'10".



I hope the kid hits 4 homers in the next game he plays in front of scouts.



Later

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

I'm also just starting the new Rickey Henderson bio, and theres a story of a Dodgers' scout turned off by his unusual package of less than standard height, odd BR/TL and two strikeouts on the day he went and saw him. The BR/TL, you may wanna know was because Rickey idolized... Willie Mays--and just imitated batting the way most kids in his neighborhood hit. Iow, he was probably a better hitter lefthanded -- just never tried! Good book, so far...

[MFS62]

Scouts have to be able to look inside the person to see the true value.

My favorite baseball scouting report - on Barry Bonds; "He will make a great major leaguer for the team that drafts him. And I hope to G-d it isn't us".

Favorite all time: A talent scout about Fred Astaire; "Can't act. Can't sing. Can dance a little".



Later

[Edgy MD]

"Keith Law is late to the party," says, Jonathan Mayo of MLB.com. "I had Jung and Susac mocked to the Mets way back at the beginning of July, but I had Susac going 11th and Jung 14th. He's switched them up and acted like he did an original take!"



But Carlos "Stop Calling Me Willie" Collazo over at Baseball America thinks they're both nuts. He has the Mets going for two high-schoolers, infielder Jett Williams (Heath, TX), who is 5'8" and committed to Mississippi State, and righthanded pitcher Brock Porter (Orchard Lake Village, MI).



Jett, who thought the major was a lady suffragette, is a quick twitchy guy, strong for his size, who has also been scouted as a pitcher. He's a great example of what a Heath baseball player should look like.



[media=youtube]KU8bCrCSWe0[/media]



Porter is a prepster who has been dominating so effectively since his 9-2 / 1.20 freshman year that he's already got his own https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brock_PorterWikipedia page, which informs me that he pitch a (presumably 7-inning) no hitter this year, striking out 11 and (I think) throwing only 47 pitches.



He's Michigan's two-time Gatorade Player of the Year, and if anybody knows their Michigan schoolboy baseball players, it's Gatorade. He's a Clemson commit, but "commit" is a pretty plastic word in the high-flying world of the MLB draft.



[media=youtube]5akbKOcNbJs[/media]

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

Help, I'm grilling and can't keep eyes on draft and grill. I think the Mets are up

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

We're at 11. 10 now

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

Rangers, with the 3 pick get.... Kumar Rocker

[DocTee]

Mets take a Catcher from Georgia Tech...

[Frayed Knot]

These interviews with the redhead are painful.

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

Kevin Parada. Did anyone mock him? Some lists had him as high as 6 overall. And lots a mlb catchers from GaTech. Like Veritek

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

[CROSSOUT]Jack Williams[/CROSSOUT] Jett Williams. Ss from a Texas high school

Edited July 17, 2022 by Guest

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

That's our guy at 14. Only 5-7!!!

[nymr83]

Edgy MD wrote: There's also a lot of speculation bouncing around about Cohen throwing his money and weight around to somehow maneuver into taking Druw Jones, the son of Andruw Jones widely perceived to be going first overall to the Orioles. Since there is no trading of picks (apart from competitive balance picks) in the MLB draft, nobody has really come up with a coherent scenario about how this this might take place, but I might as well put that out there with a shaker of salt.

This of course didn't happen. How COULD it have happened? well, first the Mets (who had the 3rd largest 'bonus pool' with all their picks) would have found guys willing to take under slot deals at #14 and in later rounds. Then, the Mets tell Druw's agent that they're going to pay him $X million dollars above slot amount if he gets to them and would that work for Druw? Druw's agent says "yeah, we want X!" and proceeds to tell the other teams "you better not draft Druw because I plan to get him X and he is going to college if you select him and dont top that? don't believe me? Andruw has already set aside a million dollars for his kid to have the most fun college experience ever! bwahahah!"



The risks for the Mets here are fairly low. The risk for Druw/agent are that the Mets somehow reneg as someone they like better falls to them unexpectedly at 11 or that the Mets screw him by drafting him and only offering slot value and getting the 12th pick next year if he declines. this seems VERY low risk. Doing this the year after they did it to Rocker gives the organization a stench that agents won't soon forget, and presumably if you are cutting a nefarious backroom deal like this the medicals have been exchanged and fully reviewed ahead of time.

[Edgy MD]

Jett has a wicked arm and a quick hands.



Met #1s who were under six feet:



1966: Steven Chilcott, c, 5'11"

1971: Rich Puig, 2b/3b, 5'10"

1977: Wally Backman, ss, 5'9"

1980: John Gibbons, c, 5'11"

1983: Stan Jefferson, of, 5'11"

1985: Gregg Jefferies, ss, 5'11"

1994: Jay Payton, of, 5'10"

1997: Geoff Goetz, sp, 5'11"

2003: Lastings Milledge, of, 5'11"



Jett Blue&Orange would have them all beat.

[Frayed Knot]

Our other picks last night:



2nd round (52 overall) -- Blade Tidwell, RHP Tennessee

#75 (the Syndergaard pick) -- Nick Morabito (not to be confused with Micky Morandini) OF, Gonzaga College HS, Washington DC

[Frayed Knot]

So how about this slash line for #1-overall Jackson (son of Matt) Holliday during his 40 game senior year at Stillwater (OK) High School: .685/.749/1392 // 2141

52 of his (national HS record) 89 hits went for extra bases: 29 2Bs, 6 3Bs, 17 HRs



At 6' 1" / 175 (though potentially still growing) he clocks in at a lot smaller than his 6' 4" / 240-ish dad. He also swings lefty and, at least for now, lists as a SS

[Edgy MD]

Wifey Watch reports that Mrs. Holliday was/is pretty tiny, so his continued growth is something less than bankable.

[MFS62]

After seeing Phil Rizzuto, listed at 5'6", play shortstop I'm OK with him.

But when I read that he has "good pop" I had a flashback to the Baseball Digest Rookie Report (remember them?) that said Bud Harrelson had "good power for a shortstop", and laughed.



Later

[bmfc1]

Here is an article on Nick Morabito:

https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/07/18/mets-draft-gonzagas-nick-morabito-who-plans-skip-virginia-tech/https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2022/07/18/mets-draft-gonzagas-nick-morabito-who-plans-skip-virginia-tech/

[Methead]

I'd like to extend a warm welcome to 10th round selection Zebulon Vermillion.

[MFS62]

He's a 6'5", 240 pound righty pitcher from the u of Arkansas.

Last year's record was: 3-0 4.69 ERA with 41H, 15 BB and 28K in 40.1 IP.



Later

[Johnny Lunchbucket]

=Methead post_id=100200 time=1658178555 user_id=61]
I'd like to extend a warm welcome to 10th round selection Zebulon Vermillion.

[Edgy MD]

Sounds like Methead has himself an adoptee.

[Methead]

Heh. That thought crossed my mind, sure.