1st Pick - 12th Overall - Cincy Reds - C - Yasmani Grandal

2. Yasmani Grandal – Miami – taken in the 27th round of the 2007 draft by Boston… excellent power and plate discipline… strong arm… needs work on his skills…


7/07 fr. www.projectpropsect.com: One of the top unsigned prospects for the 2007 Draft Grandal might be 2010’s Josh Phegly - a good hitter, with big time power but questionable defensive ability behind the dish despite a strong arm. Grandal lead the Hurricane’s in home runs with 16 this spring while sporting a .299/.410/.599 line with 33 walks and 37 strikeouts in 239 plate appearances. If Grandal can stay at catcher defensively, his strong bat could make him a star.



7-09: Fr. Keith Law/ www.espn.com : Grandal sports an above average arm, but really gets scouts attention with his ability to hit effectively from both sides of the plate.

7-20: homered in the first inning for Team USA win over Team Canada

7-21: 2010 MLB Mock Draft - 2nd Edition - July 21, 2009 by Scouting The Sports http://scoutingthesports.com/?p=3632 - 6. Oakland Athletics - Yasmani Grandal Catcher Miami - -Grandal was actually taken in the 27th round by the Red Sox in ‘07, but chose to go to college instead. It was certainly a good decision to return to Miami because he has developed his power and plate discipline. Grandal can certainly hit, and there are no questions about his ability at the plate. But it’s his work behind the plate that is lagging because while Grandal has a strong arm, he really needs to work on his game calling skills and work with pitchers. Oakland loves picking college kids, so this is no surprise here. If Grandal refines himself behind the plate, he could move even higher in this draft, especially with the nature of catching in baseball.

7-20: In the 6-3 Team USA loss to Team Germany: hit solo home run

8-1: from http://perfectgame.atinfopop.com: has filled out since HS days and shows more power in his stroke, technique to throw to 2b has improved, still a bit erratic however. One of the top 3 college catchers in the game and a high demand could make him an early rounder easily next spring. Consistency is biggest concern overall in his skill set performance, tools are there, just put it all together! Jorge Posado anyone?

9-24: From: http://mlbresource.blogspot.com: Mock Draft Version 1 – #5 pick overall - Yasmani Grandal, C - University of Miami

9-28: From http://mlbresource.blogspot.com: - Mock Draft Version 2 - #27 pick overall - Yasmani Grandal, C - University of Miami (FL) - Grandal and Micah Gibbs will fight for the position of top college catcher behind Bryce Harper and all three are solid. He is solid on defense and popped 16 HR last year for the Hurricanes. I could see Grandal going a little lower but for now he is a first rounder.

11-2 from www.perfectgame.com: - Future Scout Sully said: Here is my list of the Top 50 in the class. I have seen almost every one of these players. Went out to AFLAC for the week, saw team usa play, and went to many cape games: - 28-C Yasmani Grandal (2nd catcher on list)

11-3 from www.mlbresource.com: 3rd Mock draft – #17 - Yasmani Grandal, C - University of Miami, Florida - Something tells me that the Rays would really like to add another catcher along with Luke Bailey from last year's draft. Catchers are so unpredictable and I think Grandal provides an older and more mature backstop. (2nd catcher on list)

11-18 from www.macksmets.blogspot.com: - 18. C Yasmani Grandal – someone has to be the 2nd catching prospect in the “Year Of Harper”, but Grandal can make his own headlines, thank you. (2nd C on list)

11-23 from www.deepleagues.com: - #26 - Colorado Rockies Yasmani Grandal (C, Univ. of Miami) (2nd C on list)

12-11 from www.collegebaseballblog.com: named the 39th top college player to play in the 2010 season

1-1-9 update: - -Guys with sinking draft stock currently include Kris Bryant, Yasmani Grandal, Drew Pomeranz, and Kevin Keyes. Keyes was never in the class of the other names here, but with his weight balloon and shift to first base, he’s lost a lot of scouting value.

1-7-9: Morisato's 2010 MLB Mock Draft - Version 1.0 - 17th Overall – The Tampa Bay Rays - Yasmani Grandal (C), Miami - One of the bigger, but not elite, catching talents from the 2009, Grandal fell after a inconsistent senior season. He was taken in the later rounds by the Red Sox, but failed to come to terms with them. Grandal sought a seven figure bonus to skip college. With solid defense behind the bag, the ability to hit for power and above average plate discipline, Grandal will get his money and more in the top half of the first round. The Rays lack any sort of long term solution at catcher, and Grandal could rise quickly.

1-1-9 from www.draftsite.com: - #43 - Yasmani Grandal C Miami 6'2" 210 R,R

2-25 from: http://rivals.yahoo.com/ncaa/baseball: - Yasmani Grandal Miami-FL - Grandal did what was expected of him in Week 1, hitting .429 with two RBIs.



3-16 from: http://baseballdraftreport.com : - Friday: JR C Yasmani Grandal (Miami): 2-4, 2B - Sunday: JR C Yasmani Grandal (Miami): 4-4, HR, 2B, 3 RBI, 3 R - Grandal’s impressive weekend aside, something just doesn’t sit right with the combination of “Yasmani Grandal” and “first round” in my head. I know I shouldn’t put as much stock in little instinctual hunches like that, but I just can’t help myself sometimes. Or maybe I just like hiding behind the illusion of an unexplained hunch when I don’t really feel like explaining the rock solid logic behind the conclusion. Either way.



4-12 from: - http://thecollegebaseballblog.com/2010/04/12/acc-players-of-the-week-21 - Miami catcher Yasmani Grandal has been named the Atlantic Coast Conference Baseball Player of the Week. The Hurricanes’ Grandal recorded arguably the most productive week of his collegiate career, going 11-for-20 with four home runs, 10 RBI and seven runs scored in five games. Grandal homered in both mid-week games against Florida Atlantic – hitting a two-run blast at FAU on Tuesday and a three-run shot against the Owls at home on Wednesday – before hitting a pair of two-run homers against No. 25 Virginia Tech on Saturday. The Miami junior opened the weekend against the Hokies by recording a hit in each of his first six at-bats, going 4-for-4 with a pair of runs scored on Friday before opening the game Saturday with the homers in his first two at-bats. Grandal recorded multiple hits in four of UM’s five games on the week, added three walks to his 11 hits and reached safely on 14-of-23 plate appearances on the week.

4-19 from: - http://www.baseballrumormill.com - Grandal is a switch-hitter, but his left-handed swing is superior to his right-handed swing, something that has shown up in his splits this year. From the left side, he doesn't stride in BP and his front side is very rigid, but he did step forward in games and had a more consistent weight transfer. He has good hip rotation and excellent follow-through, with a swing path that should produce above-average power. From the right side, he lacks the same bat speed and his swing is more linear, with a weak finish where he turns his wrists over and flattens the swing out. Behind the plate, Grandal has always been solid, and his arm remains plus and accurate, with a quick release. He's a well below-average runner, but he moves his feet well behind the plate. He's the top college catcher in the country, can absolutely stay behind the plate, and hits well enough to be an above-average player in the majors.

4-28 from: - http://projectprospect.com/article/2010/04/28/lincolns-2010-draft-board - Miami catcher Yasmani Grandal has vaulted himself into the top 20. Grandal has been extremely productive, hitting .432/.548/.764 while walking in 19.1% of his trips to the plate and striking out just 12.8% of the time. Those numbers stack up with anyone in the country, especially when they come from a switch-hitting catcher with good defensive tools. Grandal’s arm strength is solidly above-average and there are little, if any, doubts about his ability to be at least average defensively behind the plate. A rumor has floated around that Grandal could be headed to Kansas City with the fourth pick in the draft. Grandal is certainly a better prospect than Tony Sanchez, last year’s top college catcher who went to the Pirates in a pre-draft deal.

4-17 from: http://insider.espn.go.com/mlb/blog?name=mlb_draft&id=5105074&action=login&appRedirect=http%3a%2f%2finsider.espn.go.com%2fmlb%2fblog%3fname%3dmlb_draft%26id%3d5105074 - Miami catcher Yasmani Grandal was one of the best players from the 2007 draft to fail to sign that year, falling because of a high price tag and concerns about his ability to hit. A tremendous junior year at Miami is going to make that decision look prudent, as he's in line for a seven-figure bonus and could continue moving up the board with the lack of college bats in this year's talent pool.

4-29 from: - http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/article/college-catcher-defense - We're a little more than a month away from this year's draft, and the chatter is already mounting regarding just how high Miami's Yasmani Grandal will climb up draft boards. Let's take a look at a few other top contenders. Grandal. +0.5 in 2008, +2 in 2009 and +0.5 so far this season. He has only gunned down better than 40 percent of base-stealers once, but for his entire career, opponents have avoided running on him. Last year, his pitch blocking was solid, but for the most part, there's nothing in his record that stands out as particularly positive.

5-1 from: - http://projectprospect.com/article/2010/04/28/lincolns-2010-draft-board - Miami catcher Yasmani Grandal has vaulted himself into the top 20. Grandal has been extremely productive, hitting .432/.548/.764 while walking in 19.1% of his trips to the plate and striking out just 12.8% of the time. Those numbers stack up with anyone in the country, especially when they come from a switch-hitting catcher with good defensive tools. Grandal’s arm strength is solidly above-average and there are little, if any, doubts about his ability to be at least average defensively behind the plate. A rumor has floated around that Grandal could be headed to Kansas City with the fourth pick in the draft. Grandal is certainly a better prospect than Tony Sanchez, last year’s top college catcher who went to the Pirates in a pre-draft deal

5-14 from: - http://baseballdraftreport.com – top 30 college catchers: - 2. Miami JR C Yasmani Grandal - From my notes on Grandal: “big lefty power, but with from right side.” If anybody can explain what the heck I was trying to say there, I’d love to know. The part that’s easy to decipher is the “big lefty power” part; the data from College Splits via Jonathan Mayo backs that scouting idea up with empirical evidence: “The left-handed hitting backstop has feasted off of righties to the tune of .485/.592/.897. Southpaws have been a little more challenging: .328/.488/.508.” Can you use a semicolon and a colon in the same sentence? Darned if I know, but I just did. You know who might know? Yasmani Grandal. Why? Well, the guy is on such a roll in 2010 that there’s no reason to put anything past him at this point. Plus lefty power, hit tool with league average potential, above-average throwing arm, and defense that won’t hurt you (the accomplished salsa dancer has shown off some really fancy footwork behind the dish this year) combine to give you a prospect with four potential big league average minimum tools. Sure, there are some things that need to be cleaned up (swing can get long, inconsistent release point on throws to second, etc.) once he gets going in pro ball, but Grandal very clearly has what it takes to be an above-average big league starting catcher from a tools/production standpoint.

5-21 from: - http://www.hardballtimes.com/main/article/beyond-bryce - To rank draft-eligible catchers, I used all that information (offense, defense and baserunning) for each of the last three seasons, with more recent seasons weighted more heavily. The familiar names land near the top, but not always in the order you'd expect. And a stats-only approach unveils some sleepers for draft day. 1. Yasmani Grandal – Miami - Grandal not only has a cool name, he's far and away the leader of the pack. His OPS is over 1.300, making him the clear leader on offense for the second year running. His defense is solid if not spectacular. He's no Harper, or even Matt Wieters, but he's a very, very good prospect in a year with a middling college crop. The rumor mill has him going as early as the top five, and he deserves to be there.

5-22 from: - http://www.sportingnews.com/blog/MLB_Draft - Miami catcher Yasmani Grandal went 1-for-5 with a strikeout against No. 1-ranked Virginia in Coral Gables Thursday. It was a rare cooling for Grandal, who has been as hot as any hitter in college baseball over the last six weeks. Grandal, perhaps the best catcher in the draft--in college or preps--not named Harper already has plus catch-and-throw skills and calls a good game. His arm is above average, and the 6-2, 210-pounder has a more slender body than most catchers, leading scouts to believe that as Grandal ages, he won't put on prohibitive weight that will limit his quickness. Pop times continue to be decent and he has quick feet

5-24 from: - http://thecollegebaseballblog.com/2010/05/24/miamis-grandal-virginias-hultzen-lead-2010-all-acc-baseball-team - Miami junior catcher Yasmani Grandal has been named the 2010 Atlantic Coast Conference Baseball Player of the Year. Miami’s Grandal leads the ACC in batting with a .428 average, along with 13 home runs and 54 RBIs. In conference games only, Grandal is hitting an even more torrid .463 with an .833 slugging percentage. Thirty-five of his 80 hits have gone for extra bases. Recently named a semifinalist for the Johnny Bench Award that goes to the nation’s top catcher, Grandal was the catalyst as the Hurricanes posted a 38-15 overall record and remained ranked among the nation’s top 15 teams throughout the regular season.

5-25 from: - http://www.mlbbonusbaby.com/2010/5/25/1486642/top-5-by-position-catchers#storyjump - Yasmani Grandal has been a big name on the prospect scene for quite some time, and he would have been an early pick out of high school in 2007 had it not been for a strong commitment to Miami. After two years of flashing big potential, but not fully realizing it, he has broken out in a big way this spring, cementing his status as the best four year college catcher in this draft class. A switch-hitter, Grandal’s much better from the left side, and he flashes plus raw power and good hitting tools, and even though he’s a well below-average runner, he’s a decent baserunner and won’t clog the bases as a pro. Before his big breakout season this spring, Grandal was considered a defense-first catcher. He flashes a plus arm, good catching skills, and even though he’s fairly big behind the plate, he looks like a natural leader and handles a pitching staff well. He shouldn’t have to go through a major adjustment behind the plate as a pro, and there’s speculation that he could be ready to suit up for a Major League team after just one full year in the minor leagues, which is reminiscent of how quickly 2008 first round pick Buster Posey was deemed ready for the Majors. Grandal could go as early as fourth overall to the Royals, and he shouldn’t last past the Reds with the twelfth pick.