6/9/12

Mets Draft Second Most BA Top 500 Players

Maybe there were higher upside prospects at #12 and #35 in the 2012 player draft but one thing is for certain after seeing all 40 rounds: The Mets went for a well-rounded draft and not a top-heavy one. This link supports this point: http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/draft/2012/06/twins-rockies-mets-drafted-most-players-in-ba-500/

From Baseball America's Top 500 prospects for the 2012 Amateur Draft (an excellent, well-researched, professional list), the Mets trailed only the Twins and were tied with the Rangers for the most prospects in those 500 players. The Mets drafted 19 of them--four more than the next NL East team (Braves).

The players, with their Baseball America rank in parentheses, are: Gavin Cecchini (16), Matt Koch (61), Kevin Plawecki (67), Brandon Welch (135), Teddy Stankiewicz (137), Matt Reynolds (147), Mikey White (183), Jared Price (232), Austin Barr (234), Conor Baits (281), Stefan Sabol (293), Tomas Nido (303), Chris Flexen (306), Corey Oswalt (311), Logan Taylor (312), David Gonzalez (348), Myles Smith (358), Jayce Boyd (394), Brad Markey (465)

10 comments:

Anonymous said...

Stephen, I certainly get that they drafted quite a bit of ba's top 500 rated players, but you and I both know that they arent signing 1/3 of the guys. I'd be super happy if they signed most of these guys, but I dont have a lot of hope for Barr, Baits, White, Markey, Price, Gonzalez or Smith, although lets see what we sign guys like Kaupe & Reynolds for to see if we have extra money for these guys.

I'm assuming thats why they drafted these guys at those spots since they would be willing to go underslot, since talent wise I think they were reachs at those draft slots.

Side note, I think in 4-6 years from now, Jayce Boyd is going to be the best player taken out of this draft. Once he translates that power he has in bp to games, he'll be a helluva hitter for us. We lack 1b prospects and I think he's going to move fairly quickly since he's a pretty complete player.

TheCloser

Mack Ade said...

all H.S. players reporting to Kingsport

Anonymous said...

I agree with Anon 1, this number is misleading because we know the Mets won't sign guy like Mikey White, Austin Barr, or David Gonzalez. They probably wanted to make their image look better by drafting guys they know won't sign in the later rounds, looks like it worked. The fact they drafted the second most BA 500 guys doesn't change my mind they went cheap and safe with their first picks. I'd have Courtney Hawkins, and Gallo any day of the week. It's a no brainer.

Stephen Guilbert said...

Anon2,

With all due respect, you could not "have Courtney Hawkins and Gallo" and not go over the slot recommendations. You would either have to pay a steep tax and/or draft picks, or have very little to invest in the rest of the draft.

I doubt Gallo signs. If he does, my guess it is for well over slot. It's easy to say "I could have had so and so players instead of Cecchini and Pawlecki" but rounding out drafts would be a nightmare. This wasn't cheap...it was smart.

Anonymous said...

We will find out soon what Gallo signs for, and you know it's alright to not always defend the organization. I believe you are in the minority of being overwhelmed by this draft. I'm not doing flips after this draft, and the truth neither you or I know if this was a good draft or not. An organization needs to be aggressive in the draft it you want to develop the next David Wright.

Stephen Guilbert said...

If you read me with any regularity, you will know I am often critical of the organization, ESPECIALLY with the draft. 2008 had me shouting obscenities and 2010 wasn't much better. The past two years I have seen consistency and strategy which is something I have not seen in quite a while. The Mets got some GREAT talent in last year's draft (regardless if Nimmo works out or not) and they will this year too.

Fact of the matter is you're right that neither of us will know whether or not these were productive drafts for quite a few years. However, I do know that Gallo and Hawkins will cost more than Cecchini and Pawlecki. A lot more. And money isn't something that comes easy for the Mets at this point and you cannot jeopardize the rest of a draft for two players. Especially when the Mets drafted as well as they did on days two and three.

Stephen Guilbert said...

One thing you fail to acknowledge, too, is that Cecchini and Pawlecki have already agreed to contracts. That lets the Mets focus on the rest of their draft and allows them to properly allocate money to bonuses without going over the cap and get hit with the harsh penalties that come with it.

Hawkins has not signed (but he will) and Gallo hasn't either (not so sure he will at all). Those teams cannot move on with the bigger signings until they know how much room they have to work with. If they do, they risk losing their higher-drafted players or they risk the tax and losing draft picks in next year's draft.

With our 1 and 1s already on board, the Mets management knows exactly how much they still have to work with. THIS is how you draft intelligently and it WILL pay off dividends. I fail to see how you are not grasping this.

Anonymous said...

I take quality over quantity anytime. If I have a chance to draft an All Star, I will do it rather than drafting three Major League regulars. Cecchini is so awesome, he's a Ruben Tejada who can steal! Mets fans are real pumped up. How bout a right handed AJ Pierzynski? Why not draft Courtney Hawkins then the catcher? I'd gladly give up Chris Flexen and Cecchini for Hawkins any day of the week. I don't want two high priced picks, just give me one. The Mets went safe and cheap because as you said, money is tough to come by right now. I won't excuse the Mets for their penny pinching ways. You can never make me a fan of this draft, even though I liked the Nido pick very much. I am confident Gallo signs by the way, and call me when the Mets sign Austin Barr/ Mikey White/ David Gonzalez. Your argument of saving money for these players doesn't add up because these players WILL NOT SIGN! Teams like the Blue Jays, Rangers, the old Red Sox, and the Rays use my philosophy and they have one of the best farm systems due to no one's surprise.

Stephen Guilbert said...

I can agree with you that there were higher upside players to be had.

You are flat out wrong about your words regarding signing slots. I am not 100% convinced Hawkins will be better than Cecchini and neither can you. When you can get one for less money, sign him right away, and put him at a position that is weaker than any other spot in the organization, you do it. You are simply wrong on this point and it's getting really annoying arguing with someone who just does not understand how the new CBA works. The simple fact that you reference drafting strategies from teams under the old regulations speaks to your myopic musings on this topic. Go ahead and hate on this draft. It is already better than each of the 08-10 drafts.

Mack Ade said...

NA NA NA NA NA....