2020 MLB Draft Thread

uncannymanny

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That's interesting, thanks for sharing. I don't follow mock drafts, but my memory for some reason doesn't align with that. Maybe it was that Meadows was a less risky pick? Maybe that he and Frazier were both GA products and got the hype of playing each other? Regardless, those drafts, and the Red Sox, were very wrong. Unfortunately the 2013 draft thread is gone, but this was a fun read (with much Meadows lament):

https://sonsofsamhorn.net/index.php?threads/trey-ball.573/
Funny to see 3 years of folks tripping over themselves to explain away his failures as "rawness".
 

CoffeeNerdness

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I was hoping we'd take Bryce Jarvis, and he goes right after we take the 165th-rated guy, a high school second baseman.

This is Peter Gammons on Jarvis (so I should remember to beware, as Peter always loves to hype certain guys):
https://theathletic.co.uk/1831618/2020/06/03/gammons-prospects-with-major-league-fathers-navigate-path-to-the-draft-majors/
Cape Cod League All-Star who went to Duke and has a good family structure? My god, that's Gammons' nirvana.
 

sodenj5

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Obviously I don’t know much about Yorke in particular, but in a bizarre year, with limited picks and the Sox being slightly handcuffed by the MLB front office, I don’t have any issue with them “reaching” on a high upside HS middle infielder.

Seems the consensus is he’s just starting to tap into his power and most feel he is legitimately one of the best HS bats around.

That’s cool with me.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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Keith Law is not a fan:

“• So the Red Sox … did something. Nick Yorke wasn’t on my top 100 prospects for the draft, and he wasn’t close to it. He wasn’t on MLB Pipeline’s either, if you want a second opinion. Yorke is a high school second baseman, and the only reason I didn’t write in The Inside Game that spending high picks on high school second baseman is a bad idea is that nobody spends high picks on high school second baseman because it’s a bad idea. Yorke has a good swing, geared more for average than power, and he doesn’t have the range or arm for shortstop.”
This has me encouraged about the pick. Law was down on Pedroia when they drafted him. Maybe lightning strikes twice.
 

OCD SS

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Keith Law is not a fan:

“• So the Red Sox … did something. Nick Yorke wasn’t on my top 100 prospects for the draft, and he wasn’t close to it. He wasn’t on MLB Pipeline’s either, if you want a second opinion. Yorke is a high school second baseman, and the only reason I didn’t write in The Inside Game that spending high picks on high school second baseman is a bad idea is that nobody spends high picks on high school second baseman because it’s a bad idea. Yorke has a good swing, geared more for average than power, and he doesn’t have the range or arm for shortstop.”
The 2Bman part is what bothers me. His defensive profile doesn't seem to give him anywhere to go (although BA's write up seem to suggest he might be OK at short).

Of course the Sox have stuck to the 2B maxim in the past; they waited to until the 5th round to grab an small MI who ultimately comped to Duke Snider... I seem to remember that Law wasn't a fan of the Sox taking Pedroia either.
 

The Gray Eagle

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Yorke is a high school kid already listed at 6 feet tall and 200 pounds. If he grows any more, seems like he would be built more for other positions than 2B or SS.
 

The_Powa_of_Seiji_Ozawa

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RE: Nick Yorke, the Red Sox apparently have an underslot deal done with him that will save them "quite a bit of money" according to one source. Yorke is an athletic middle infielder who can hit and is certainly a good player, just most saw him as a 2nd-4th round talent.

View: https://twitter.com/KyleAGlaser/status/1270890251502772224?s=20
This seems a little bizarre. How often are high school players taken in the first round likely to take an underslot deal?

I just don't get it. If there is top-10 talent on the board, take it as a value pick instead of trying to spread some dollars around for a few lower round picks. Unless Yorke signs for less than half-price, I don't see those savings making much difference. The system needs all the help it can get, but teenage projection players at the lower levels don't seem to be the biggest need at the moment. Hopefully he turns into another Youkilis.
 

Merkle's Boner

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The 2Bman part is what bothers me. His defensive profile doesn't seem to give him anywhere to go (although BA's write up seem to suggest he might be OK at short).

Of course the Sox have stuck to the 2B maxim in the past; they waited to until the 5th round to grab an small MI who ultimately comped to Duke Snider... I seem to remember that Law wasn't a fan of the Sox taking Pedroia either.
The problem with the whole "don't take 2B in the first round" is that people always take 2Bs in the first round. They are just called SS at he time of the draft, even though no one thinks they will stay there. Chavis is a recent example.
 

The_Powa_of_Seiji_Ozawa

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That's really not true at all. The Soxprospects 2013 Mock draft, Jim Callis' final Mock (link no longer active - but here's a past that discussed it), and Sickels' final Mock all had had Ball going ahead of Meadows. While Ball was never really connected to the Sox, the consensus was that Ball would get picked before Meadows.
Yes I remember that in some of the mocks. The general feeling at the time was that the Sox needed a power hitting outfielder in the system, and that one of Meadows or Frazier would be available at #7. Outside of a few players, that whole first round is pretty sad. What a lousy year for the Sox to have a high pick.
 

Mooch

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I'm furious that the Sox didn't take Jordan Walker (went to the Cardinals at 21). He's a local kid (Decatur GA) who plays his home games right down the street from my house so I've seen him a bunch. 6'5, 220 as a high school senior with huge power potential. Really excellent kid too. Committed to Duke.
 

EL Jeffe

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The problem with the whole "don't take 2B in the first round" is that people always take 2Bs in the first round. They are just called SS at he time of the draft, even though no one thinks they will stay there. Chavis is a recent example.
Is this true? I don't follow the MLB draft as closely as others, but IIRC, Chavis was initially projected as a 3B, right? While many of these drafted SS do eventually move off SS (and may end up at 2B), I don't think many of the 1st rounders were actually projected on draft day as being 2B only (like Yorke appears to be). I'm not going to pretend to be familiar with Yorke's game, but the scouting reports suggest he doesn't have the arm to play anywhere but 2B, which limits his ceiling and versatility. I'm not trashing the pick because who the hell knows, but there's obviously a reason it's so rare to see a projected 2B taken in the 1st round. Yorke doesn't seem to have the arm/speed/power combination to viably play elsewhere. That said, I do think Bloom is a genuinely smart personnel exec and I'll trust his judgement until proven otherwise.
 

sodenj5

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Is this true? I don't follow the MLB draft as closely as others, but IIRC, Chavis was initially projected as a 3B, right? While many of these drafted SS do eventually move off SS (and may end up at 2B), I don't think many of the 1st rounders were actually projected on draft day as being 2B only (like Yorke appears to be). I'm not going to pretend to be familiar with Yorke's game, but the scouting reports suggest he doesn't have the arm to play anywhere but 2B, which limits his ceiling and versatility. I'm not trashing the pick because who the hell knows, but there's obviously a reason it's so rare to see a projected 2B taken in the 1st round. Yorke doesn't seem to have the arm/speed/power combination to viably play elsewhere. That said, I do think Bloom is a genuinely smart personnel exec and I'll trust his judgement until proven otherwise.
Most second basemen are usually converted shortstops or third basemen. Pedroia is an obvious example.These kids are usually the best players in their state, and coaches put them at the important positions (SS, CF, etc.)

Even in the minors, organizations will usually let kids play themselves out of SS versus immediately drafting someone and saying “you’re a second baseman.”

It may very well be that Yorke ends up being a second baseman, but he also could end up at third or a corner OF spot. He’s so far from Boston, I would say worrying about his long term defensive position is pretty pointless right now.
 

Marbleheader

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I'm not going to worry about where he plays until he actually makes it to the majors. If he's really good and they are set at 2B, he's a valuable trade asset. Right now he can't make throws from SS or 3B so there's not much sense in speculating about moving him there.

MLB really needs to allow draft pick trades. They easily could have traded down and got the guy they wanted.
 

Red(s)HawksFan

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Even in the minors, organizations will usually let kids play themselves out of SS versus immediately drafting someone and saying “you’re a second baseman.”
Pedroia is a perfect example. He was a SS in the Red Sox system until he ended up on the same Portland roster as Hanley Ramirez. So it wasn't even a matter of "you're not a SS" so much as "we have a SS but need a 2B and you're it".
 

nvalvo

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Yorke is a high school kid already listed at 6 feet tall and 200 pounds. If he grows any more, seems like he would be built more for other positions than 2B or SS.
It's a shame about the throwing shoulder concerns, because that sounds like a good catcher's build. One of the scouts quoted in the Globe story mentioned the OF as a likely destination.

Who knows if this pick works out, but this draft was always going to be so weird with the lack of Spring results, the weird format, and the fact that we were (unjustly IMO) dinged a pick. So I don't think I'm likely to criticize Chaim Bloom too much for this one no matter how it goes. It's a tough hand to be dealt for his first draft here.
 

JimD

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This seems a little bizarre. How often are high school players taken in the first round likely to take an underslot deal?
The impact of the pandemic on colleges probably has something to do with Yorke agreeing to a deal. Who knows how much college baseball will be played next spring?
 

effectivelywild

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The impact of the pandemic on colleges probably has something to do with Yorke agreeing to a deal. Who knows how much college baseball will be played next spring?
Also consider the fact that the most optimistic prognosticators had him in the mid 70's, where his slot bonus would be 800-850 k. Now say you offer him 2 million. Its underslot, but its a lot more than he would have been predicted to make. Maybe he'll decide to gamble on himself, but that 1.2 million is a huge gamble for someone out of high school.
 

Philip Jeff Frye

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The impact of the pandemic on colleges probably has something to do with Yorke agreeing to a deal. Who knows how much college baseball will be played next spring?
Might be more than is played in the minor leagues at the rate we're going!
 

ElcaballitoMVP

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If the hit tool is legit, the Sox will find somewhere for him to play. I'm not worried about them drafting a "2B" in the first round. People are putting him there right now because of the shoulder issue, but he's got years to rebuild his shoulder and arm strength before getting to the bigs.

He looks pretty athletic from the tape I've watched, so he could probably bounce around the field until he finds his place defensively. His actions at SS aren't the smoothest, but should be more than good enough for 2B or 3B. I could see him in LF in Fenway, as well.

Sox 3rd round pick, #89, coming up shortly on MLB Network/ESPN2(currently at 81).
 

DJnVa

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He's only 17 years, 5 months old. Reclassified from 2021 draft.
 

TimScribble

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If they saved like everyone thinks with their first pick, they’ll sign him.
 

The_Powa_of_Seiji_Ozawa

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Also consider the fact that the most optimistic prognosticators had him in the mid 70's, where his slot bonus would be 800-850 k. Now say you offer him 2 million. Its underslot, but its a lot more than he would have been predicted to make. Maybe he'll decide to gamble on himself, but that 1.2 million is a huge gamble for someone out of high school.
Was Yorke’s projected round based on signability or talent?
 

RoDaddy

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I woulda drafted this guy based on his first name alone!

Interesting prospect with the early Byrce Harper comps and 500 foot bombs, and MLB breaking down how much they like his mechanics

Lots of quality 3rd basemen in the system now
 

scottyno

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Sounds like a case where if they drafted this guy yesterday and Yorke today and signed both everyone would have been happy, but they didn't think Yorke was going to make it to their pick today.
 

The Boomer

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They'll tell us whatever, and we don't have to believe them. I'm disappointed, but maybe they think that can have it both ways: get a guy they really like AND sign him for under slot so they can target better talent in the later rounds. Or maybe they're just too clever for their own good, like in 2013 when they took Trey Ball over Austin Meadows.
Don't waste premium picks on risky HS pitchers. It's usually the worst move you can make. HS position players (especially hitters with advanced tools) are counterintuitively safer picks.