Written by Greg Fertel
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04 June 2007
Hey guys. I'm not to sure how exactly I am going to cover the draft, but I do know that I've cleared my whole day [on thursday] to be available to do so. I'll figure it out as I go.
Some pitchers that the Yankees have been connected with:
Brett Cecil, LHP, Maryland - He's a lefty who throws 92-93 with a killer slider. The downside? He's a relief pitcher. I'm against drafting a reliever on principle in the 1st round. Someone will nab him before our second pick.
Josh Smoker, LHP, High School - He's a pretty good lefty high school starter. He's hovering around 90 mph right now, with a good curve/change combo. He's a solid pick at #30, and I'd be pretty happy if we ended up with him.
Nick Schmidt, LHP, Arkansas - Another lefty closer. He throws a lot like Cecil. Again, I'm against a reliever on principle. Update: My bad, not a closer. A couple of people awhile ago told me that he had closer stuff, and I misinterpreted them. I guess I shouldn't do this stuff just on memory.
Andrew Brackman, RHP, North Carolina State - Brackman is 6'9 to 6'11" depending on who you ask. He tops out at 97-98 mph, though sits at 93-95 on a regular day, with a spike curveball and changeup. He's got some injury concerns and has Scott Boras as a client, so people are nervous. He's a college project pick, that's for sure. Mike A. over at River Ave Blues suggested drafting him and letting Nardi Contreras do his magic. If we were drafting at #21 again, I'd say stay away from Brackman, but if he falls to #30, we could be looking at another late-first steal.
Greg Peavey, RHP, High School - One reader asked me about Peavey in an email last night. You know, now that I think about it, Peavey might not be a terrible pick at #30. He's traditionally billed as a mid-Supplemental round pick, with solid marks all around. He throws a 2-seamer around 90 with great command and a good curveball. With some work, he could be throwing harder and striking out a lot of guys. Brewerfan.net thinks that he's underrated because he is from Washington State. His motion is pretty violent. He might be a slight overdraft at #30, but if we had an early supplemental pick, I'd go for him.
Neil Ramirez, RHP, High School - A reader asked about him it the comments section. I hadn't heard of him, but a quick look up revealed a lot of positives. The scouting report has the word "Polish" written about fifteen times. He throws low to mid 90s and has a great changeup and a good curveball. He seems like Damon Oppenheimer's perfect high school pick, and a Nardi guy. The Yankees just may grab him, even though like Peavey he'd be a slight overdraft.
In fact, I need to go over to MLB Draft University and make the Yankee's pick. It's a difficult decision. I'm very tempted to pick Peavey. No big names have fallen to me.
