Blazer Blog 1997.1

[scotto313]

Montreal, ON – The suspense over who the Montreal Blazers would pick with the first overall selection in the Amateur Draft is over. The Blazer front office toyed with the idea of drafting twenty-one year old reliever Jason Egan. Egan is considered by the Montreal front office to be the most developed pitcher in the draft and projects to be a Closer in the not too distant future. When you combine his talents with his expected sign ability, Egan would be a good choice for the Blazers. However, the team decided at the last moment, that they would select eighteen year old starting pitcher Vicente Martínez.

Martinez appears to be the best starting pitcher in the draft. The 6’1” right-hander weighs in at 185 pounds and has a four pitch arsenal that includes a fastball, slider, changeup and forkball. His fastball is his best pitch and he hits 99 MPH on the radar gun. He struck out 180 batters in 99.2 innings pitch during his senior year at high school. Martinez’s delivery isn’t perfect, but it’s relatively easy, repeatable, and doesn’t add undue stress to his arm, which is important for a young pitcher. He also features a developing changeup that he’ll need to improve to use in the majors, but should be a viable option for him in the future. Vincente loses his control in spots, and his fastball command is less than perfect. This will likely always cause him to give up some walks at higher levels, but shouldn’t plague him too badly provided he tightens up his mechanics. He has a reputation as being a real leader but there are many scouts that question his intelligence.

The real question for Montreal is sign ability. Martinez is rumored to want north of $5 Million. With money being an issue for the ball club over the next several seasons, it is possible that Martinez will refuse to sign by the deadline. Of course, that would provide Montreal with the second overall pick next season when the draft could very well be deeper.

[aaronweiner]

Omaha, you're up!