Gary Tinstaap
April 21, 2042
Long Beach, CA
The Surfers held the 15th overall pick in the 2042 BBA Amateur draft. This is the highest that the organization has drafted since 2030, as the team has steadily fallen off from their run of 90+ win seasons in the 30's.
There has been more buzz about this draft class than usual, as players drafted and left unsigned in the 2038 "super draft" are eligible again following their college careers. There's also been significant chatter about the makeup of the class, and the tendencies of GM's around the league in these pitching-scarce days. One early analysis shows that 21 picks in the first round have been pitchers, and zero appear to be middle infielders or catchers.
I know as well as you do that Long Beach is in desperate need of a quality middle infielder, specifically a shortstop. However, there just aren't any to be found in this draft class, and trust me when I say I looked.
Anyway, here's how I grade the Surfers two picks in Round 1.
Round/Overall: 1/15
LH SP/RP Raúl Álvarez
Current: 6/7/5 (9/7/5 as RP)
Potential: 7/8/6 (10/8/6 as RP)
Fastball: 10/10
Slider: 8/9
Velocity: 97-99
Álvarez, 21, was drafted by Chicago (nee Hunstville) in the 4th round of the 2038 draft. Since then, he's shown some improvement in stuff, with a slight drop in control. After failing to sign, he played 4 standout college seasons as a two-pitch starter, where he was known as an excellent student in addition to his success on the diamond. He's indicated a desire to continue being a starter, and the Long Beach front office appears ready to give him that chance, announcing him as a starter upon selection. As we've seen in the past from the Surfers, he will be taught a tertiary pitch, and asked to tone down the velocity, at least temporarily. He's better against lefties, but should hold his own just fine against right handed hitters once he's added a third pitch to his arsenal.
OFP: 70 - Mid-rotation starter
Likely: 60 - Back-end starter
BBA ETA: mid-2043
LH RP Curt Davis
Current: 3/3/2
Potential: 8/6/6
Fastball: 7/9
Slider: 5/10
Changeup: 1/2
Velocity: 94-96
Davis is a hard-throwing, left handed 19 year old out of high school, who currently stands 6'7" tall. The imposing lefty stil has a fair amount of development to do, especially compared to others in this well-developed class, but he holds significant potential as a bullpen arm. His slider is devastating to left handed hitters, but his fastball is good enough that he can hold his own against right handed hitters. His excellent stamina should allow him to throw up to 150 innings per season in a relief role, with and outside shot of a move to the rotation if he manages to improve the changeup that he toys around with from time to time.
OFP: 60 - High leverage reliever
Likely: 40 - Left handed specialist
BBA ETA: 2044
There were definitely some BBA quality bats left on the board when Long Beach selected each of these pitchers, though it's not hard to see why they chose arms over bats. We will see how this trend holds up as the draft progresses, but it looks like there is good potential for each of these picks to be contributors in Long Beach before long.
