Baseball America - Mock

1. HOUSTON ASTROS: Houston’s list still includes five players, with Georgia high school outfielder Clint Frazier believed to be a distant fifth behind the four college prospects discussed above. Despite all the Moran talk, I still think it comes down to Gray and Appel, a Houston native whom the Astros considered at No. 1 a year ago. The industry perception is that it will be easier to strike a deal with Gray, and that could be the tiebreaker if the club is split between Gray’s upside and Appel’s polish. If the Astros take a bat, it would be Bryant over Moran.
PROJECTED PICK: Jonathan Gray (Mock draft 1.0/2.0: Mark Appel/Gray).
2. CHICAGO CUBS: Chicago will consider the top four college prospects. While the Cubs won’t draft for need, they lack pitching and the decision will come down to Gray and Appel here as well. I don’t believe Chicago has resolved which pitcher it would select if it has its choice of both.
PROJECTED PICK: Mark Appel (Mock draft 1.0/2.0: Jonathan Gray/Appel).
3. COLORADO ROCKIES: This might be the easiest decision in the draft, taking whichever of the three best prospects (Gray, Appel and Bryant) remains after the first two teams have selected. If the Rockies deviate from that, Moran could be their guy.
PROJECTED PICK: Kris Bryant (Mock draft 1.0/2.0: Bryant/Bryant).
4. MINNESOTA TWINS: If Minnesota can’t get one of the big three, it will take Texas high school righthander Kohl Stewart. If Stewart’s price tag scares the Twins—he’s a Texas A&M quarterback recruit, though I can’t see him turning down top-10-pick money—they could go in the other direction and save cash for later by taking a discount with Washington prep catcher Reese McGuire. Indiana high school lefty Trey Ball and Moran are two more fallback plans.
PROJECTED PICK: Kohl Stewart (Mock draft 1.0/2.0: Stewart/Stewart).
5. CLEVELAND INDIANS: Cleveland will take one of the top four college prospects, with the most likely outcome being Moran. If all four went in the first four selections, the next college guy for Cleveland would be Nevada righthander Braden Shipley. They also could consider Georgia high school outfielders Frazier and Austin Meadows and Ball.
PROJECTED PICK: Colin Moran (Mock draft 1.0/2.0: Braden Shipley/Moran).
6. MIAMI MARLINS: Miami has been linked to Shipley for a while. He still appears to be the Marlins’ target, ahead of Meadows, Missisippi State outfielder Hunter Renfroe and maybe Moran if he were still on the board.
PROJECTED PICK: Braden Shipley (Mock draft 1.0/2.0: Reese McGuire/Shipley).
7. BOSTON RED SOX: If Minnesota doesn’t take Stewart, Boston will pounce on him. If he’s not available, the Red Sox likely will choose between the Georgia prep outfielders, and they’re split internally on which way to go. They also could look at Ball or college righthanders Shipley, Ryne Stanek (Arkansas) and maybe even Alex Gonzalez (Oral Roberts).
PROJECTED PICK: Austin Meadows (Mock draft 1.0/2.0: Clint Frazier/Frazier).
8. KANSAS CITY ROYALS: It will be an upset it Kansas City doesn’t pick a pitcher. Assuming Stewart and Shipley are gone, the Royals would choose between Ball, California high school righthander Phil Bickford and Gonzalez. They don’t appear to be on Stanek, a suburban Kansas City high school product who’s stock is on the rise again after his strong start at the Southeastern Conference tournament.
PROJECTED PICK: Trey Ball (Mock draft 1.0/2.0: Ryne Stanek/Ball).
9. PITTSBURGH PIRATES (compensation pick for failure to sign 2013 first-rounder Mark Appel): Pittsburgh has been associated with McGuire and New Mexico corner infielder D.J. Peterson for weeks. The Pirates pick again at 14 and have a better chance sneaking Peterson through five more selections, so they’ll take McGuire here.
PROJECTED PICK: Reese McGuire (Mock draft 1.0/2.0: Colin Moran/McGuire).
10. TORONTO BLUE JAYS: Toronto is looking for a high-ceiling talent to fall here. Getting Stewart of Frazier is the Jays’ primary hope, with Meadows, Ball and California prep shortstop J.P. Crawford the other possibilities.
PROJECTED PICK: Clint Frazier (Mock draft 1.0/2.0: Trey Ball/Austin Meadows).
11. NEW YORK METS: Some sources think Peterson is a lock for New York if he gets here, and the club would love a chance at Meadows. The Mets also are tied to other bats such as Mississippi State outfielder Hunter Renfroe and California prep first baseman Dom Smith. Even with all that, I think they could go for a college arm, especially if Stanek makes a strong closing argument in his NCAA regional start on Saturday.

PROJECTED PICK: Ryne Stanek (Mock draft 1.0/2.0: D.J. Peterson/Stanek).

the rest...  http://ht.ly/lB6bI