MLB Draft starts today: Rounds 1-50

The MLB First-year player draft starts at 12:30 today. With 30 teams and 50 rounds (compare this to football's 7 rounds), it will take awhile.

There will be 1,500 players chosen over the next two days. Following the draft, there will be a rash of "free-agent" signings of players who slipped through the draft.

How big and difficult is the event? Well, there are 122,000 HS seniors, plus possibly another 25,000 JUCO/4-year College Freshman, Sophs, Juniors or Seniors who are eligible. Sorting through approximately 150,000 names isn't a task for the faint of heart. It's daunting, to say the least.

What to expect:
1). Even though there are a lot of talented HS players in the state, signability is always an issue. The teams don't want to waste a pick, so, if a player may be a difficult sign, he may be passed over for a lesser talent who they are sure they can get into camp.

2). Fewer pro teams are following high school players than in years past. Part of this is the result of "Money Ball" some feel, but it's really just an age of shrinking budgets. College players are just closer to the bigs, so there is less cost to bring them along.

3). There will be some surprise picks that no one expected, particularly in the later rounds. Some teams hate the DFE (Draft, Follow and Evaluate) but other teams find it an inexpensive way to tie up a talent for a year and continue the evaluation process.

4). Cameron Maybin will go in the first round. It will probably be somewhere between the 3rd and the 8th pick, but he may slide down to 11th-12th. It's still an outstanding recognition of his great talent. You must remember, this is a joint draft of HS AND College players, so he's competing for a draft spot with guys who are just closer to the bigs. Fantastic upside on Cameron.

5). The most intriguing player in this year's draft (to me) is Jason Neighborgal. There is not questioning his potential, but he's not a finished product yet. The Georgia Tech phenom has occasional bouts of wildness, but he's got a fantastic upside. In 52 innings, he's struck out 71 players ... but he's walked 50 and hit 12 (throw in 16 wild pitches). He's got, probably, the best arm in all of college baseball. Unlimited potential. And he may just be in the wrong system for him. The walks are too high for a first rounder, but someone needs to take this guy and finish developing him. He could be a dominate force in pro baseball and those types of players are rare.

Summary:
At least 4 high schoolers will go. I expect that the total number that will be drafted from NC out of HS in the 2 days to be around 7. There will be quite a few college players from NC (4-year and JUCO) taken today. There will be some surprises.

 

Cameron Maybin, 1st Round, Pick #10 to the Detroit Tigers

 

Chris Mason, UNC-Greensboro, Pick #56 to Tampa Bay, 2nd Round

 

Bryan Harvey, Clemson Univ, Pick #64, 2nd Round to Florida Marlins

 

Jason Neighborgal, Georgia Tech, Pick #81, Round #3 to Arizonia Diamondbacks

 

Zack Ward, Gardner-Webb Univ, Pick #92, 3rd Round ... Cincinatti Reds

 

Mike Daniel, UNC, Pick #204 in the 7th round to the Washington Nationals (from Charlotte)

 

Robert Parnell, Charleston Southern, Pick #269, Round #9 to the NY Mets

 

John Raynor, UNC-Wilmington, Pick #363, Round #12 to Baltimore

 

Dexter Carter, Greenbrier Christian, #369, Round 12 to Texas Rangers