58.7- Casinotes- Draft and More

[chicoruiz]

With the draft completed, let’s start things off with a critical recap of the prospects I came away with in the first few rounds:

1. P SETH WELLER- My feeling is, if you’re going to take someone #1 overall, he should pretty much have zero blemishes, and that’s Seth. Oh, his control could maybe be a tad better, but why split hairs- he’s going to be at the top of my upcoming top ten prospects list.
2. OF KOHEI OKADA- In retrospect, maybe an overdraft, but guys who can handle center field and hit in a league-average kind of way are at a premium in OOTP, as I’ve discovered the hard way.
3. OF ERIC REDDIN- A speedy outfielder who should be an asset in left or right if you can live with gap power rather than over-the-fence power. Excellent bunter, if you’re into that.
4. P CARLOS NUNEZ- Well, we can’t all be stars; the world needs lefty relievers too. That’s about Carlos’s ceiling. High intelligence rating does give hope for a ratings bump somewhere.
5. P LABEEB BIN SHAKIR- Throws a really nice cutter and pitches deep into games. That’s enough to get you drafted in round 5. Some kind of growth is needed if he’s ever going to be more than minor league fodder.

In other news… In a previous post I was bewailing the state of my bullpen and shortstop positions. Well, never let it be said that I sit on my hands in these situations. Welcome to Gamblers world:

-Shortstop Francisco Garcia, signed as a free agent. He’s probably a one-year solution, but if he can provide even the .630 OPS he did last season in Rocky Mountain he’ll be an improvement, and if a better option arises he’ll slot in nicely as a utility guy.
-Reliever Robin Cooper, claimed on waivers from Twin Cities. Robin never really got a shot in Twin Cities, but the last time he got significant work (2056 Boise) he was okay. Bearing down on his 38th birthday, so our relationship will not be a long-term one.
-Swingman Kent Johnson, claimed on waivers from Boise. Kent is only 25, and scouts like him, so when I saw him on the waiver wire I couldn’t pass him up. He’ll start as a long man out of the pen, but if he pitches well, there’s always a spot or two available in the Atlantic City rotation.

The fine, fine players that these gentlemen replaced are now available for your perusal on the current waiver wire. Just sayin’.…

[BaseClogger]

I really like both of the pitchers you got off waivers. Well done utilizing that priority position.