NW4A Player of the Year

You see all kinds of different ratings for the various prospects, but the overall consensus the past month has Bumgarner really moving up in the draft. Most publications now have him going in that 15 to 20 range with an outside chance to move into the top ten. I don't know if his performance against Reynolds did any damage to his standing. I would doubt it but haven't seen any new rankings since then. Wishing thinking or not, I still have my eye on the Braves at number 14. They have a fetish for high school pitchers.

 

All Over But the Draft

For the most part the evaluation of Madison has long been over. His size, Velocity, etc...... are what has him going in the 1st Round.

How he pitches against HS Teams in the last month of the season has little or nothing to do with MLB's interest in him as a prospect. They will start out with a "lump of clay" and start molding him into a ballplayer that can be successful in the big leagues.

By the way, although he is gifted, there will be 150 other lumps of clay in the organization that signs him trying to do the very same thing! Make it to the Big Leagues!

You know the odds. I've given them to you before. 5 out of every 100 lucky enough to play Minor League Baseball ever see MLB playing time. Of the 5 that do see the "Bigs" only 1 "sticks" there. That's 1 out of every 100 Minor Leaguers!

That's not even taking into consideration the odds of getting from HS to College and then from College to the Minors......etc. Madison's talented and I wish him all the best! I hope he makes us proud.

 

Yea but how many of those other 150 lumps of clay are 6-5 220 lefties that can throw on the mid 90's and is still in high school. VERY FEW!

 

You're both right, but Bumgarner does have some attributes that give him a significantly better chance to make it than most. Barring injury it would be pretty surprising if he doesn't make it to the majors someday. Also, while I do agree that the scouts have probably pretty well formed their impressions of him by now, I still think how he pitches from here on out could have some impact on exactly how high he goes in the first round.

 

Gifted for Sure

No doubt he has a great opportunity!

 

NW4A

Its easy to see how some parents/fans get dilutional about player ability. Looking at the NW4A who probably has the highest number of players with the possibility of being drafted of any conference in the state, its hard to compare it to teams and players in very weak conferences. Plus, the NW4A conference is loaded with D1 talent. Pitching is second to none. When teams play in conferences seeing low 80 (at best) fastballs every outing and a kid hits .400, you just can't compare that to the consistent 94mph pitches and high caliber baseball in 4A. Any kid can look great on paper, but when it comes to production and projection-- against quality teams night after night, the story changes drastically! If any player in NC is drafted before Madison Bumgarner it will be a joke.

 

how do you know that?

 

There is no joking in a draft decision...

If any player in NC gets drafted above Madison it will not be a joke, neither will it be a joke if Madison get drafted ahead of a college prospect. My point is that teams take there draft picks very serious, and whoever they choose is who they feel is the best fit for their current need, that is still available, period.

Jetfuel probably was emphasizing his opinion that he felt that Madison was the top draft prospect in NC.

To some teams he may be, to some, he may not. It depends on their needs.

 

not always about needs...

Have had this conversation with scouts myself. Each team has their own draft list - draft order. They pick according to who is left when it is their turn right down the line. It is impossible to have 2 players ranked the same so it makes no difference in position/need. A SS/hitter vs. LH pitcher doesn't matter. They will always take the higher pick on their list....they can always trade 'em later.

 

Never seen bumgardner play but i hear nothing but good things just an interesting note though the mlb draft will be on TV this year