Draft Notebook: Day 2 in the books

Jake Lowery (Photo: JMU Athletics)

Another crazy Day 2 of the draft has come and gone.  The Indians made 29 picks in what was an eight hour marathon yesterday.

Like last year, the Indians are really being aggressive this year going after a lot of prep players as they drafted ten high school players in the first 30 picks (same as last year).  While they have selected 20 college players, it appears they have gone more of the junior college route this year as compared to last year so that is a noticeable change.

The approach to the draft this year and last year is great as it is exactly what this organization needs to do to inject some high level talent into the system.  There is a lot of risk involved, but the potential reward is well worth it especially considering the draft is the only real option for the team to add All Star level talent as they can’t go the trade route like so many big money teams can.

Below are some quotes from Indians Scouting Director Brad Grant and a few industry sources on some of the Indians’ picks as well as some of my thoughts.  As a reminder, capsules for all 30 picks to date are at IndiansProspectInsider.com.

Director’s Cuts

On Dillon Howard: “He is a guy who can really pitch with his fastball.  He can command his fastball.  He can locate his fastball.  He has very good control.  He will run the fastball up to 95 MPH and sit 92-93 with very good sink.  He has very good tailing life to his fastball.  He has a developing curveball that is coming and a good feel for a changeup.  With Dillon it is the ability to pitch with his fastball that separates him as he is an advanced high school pitcher.”

On Jake Sisco: “He is another big junior college pitcher at 6’3”.  He is 19 years old and will pitch 90-94 MPH.  He has two different breaking balls a curveball and a slider, and both of them are very good pitches for him.  He shows a feel for a changeup with still some projection to the command and control.  Again, he is another big physical junior college young right-handed pitcher.”

On Jake Lowery: “He is a left-handed hitting catcher who is very offensive.  He had a very big year at James Madison this year both hitting-wise and power-wise.  It is a very good approach at the plate with a very easy line drive oriented swing with the ability to drive the ball out.  He has plus arm strength behind the plate with developing catching skills.”

On Will Roberts: “He is a right-handed pitcher from Virginia who is another quality strike thrower and another guy with a very good fastball as well as he will sit 92-93 and touch some 94s.  He had a very successful year this year at Virginia.  He really threw strikes and really works with his fastball, and another more advanced college starter.”

Random Thoughts

Since a great majority of people have never seen any of these guys play it can make the MLB Draft tough to follow and not very appealing.  Especially since once these players are drafted they go away for three to five years in the minors leagues and then come to the pros or are never heard from again.  But if you are a casual follower wondering how the Indians are doing, they are doing exactly what they need to be doing going for some upside high risk picks.  They can’t do that every pick and need to select some signable lower upside guys, but the approach this year and last year is refreshing and only possible because of the commitment of ownership.

The approach has been to take the best available player.  That obviously is not always the case as if you took the best available player with every single pick you would have a very tough group of players to sign, so you have to sprinkle in some college seniors or some junior college kids that are known quantities when it comes to signing.  But the focus is surely on athletes and power arms.  Hooray!

The approach to hone in more on the high school players is not only part of the Indians strategy, it is also a byproduct of the strength of the draft.  This year’s draft is loaded with high school power arms, and with so many guys available the Indians are not afraid to go after them.  They will not be able to sign them all, but they will sign some of them.

I noted yesterday that it could cost the Indians as much as $4-5 million to sign first round pick shortstop Francisco Lindor.  After thinking about it and talking to some people, that appears to be a gross over-estimation on my part.  The figure given of $3.45 million that Nick Castellanos got as a first round supplemental looks to be more the ceiling for Lindor and not the floor.  While Lindor is committed to Florida State and could opt to go to school instead of signing, there are reports he really does not have the grades to go there, so if he spurns the Indians he may have to go the junior college route, similar to what outfielder Levon Washington did two years ago.  The slot recommendation for the Indians 8^th round pick is a little over $2 million, so Lindor will clearly command overslot money, but it seems at this juncture it may take something more in the $3-4 million range to sign him, with the final number likely more in the low threes.

Grant was saying yesterday that the 2^nd round pick may be the hardest decision in the draft because so much time is invested on the 1^st round pick and they have a good idea who will be there as compared to who may be available with the 2^nd round pick.  There are so many good players who are often there with the 2^nd round pick that may not have been expected to be there, so it makes it tough on who to choose since they are obviously passing on a lot of other worthy talent that they like just as much.

This is probably the case with their 2^nd round pick right-hander Dillon Howard, a prep arm they did not anticipate being there and one they are happy to have the chance to draft.  Now comes the hard part….signing him.  He may in the end command just as much as first rounder Francisco Lindor, or just below him.  Either way, it is going to cost a pretty penny for the Indians to sign both of their first two picks, probably somewhere around $5 million or so in total.

The Indians like the power and size of their 3^rd round pick right-handed pitcher Jake Sisco.  Not only does he throw up to 95 MPH, but he has three very promising secondary offerings with his slider, curveball, and changeup.  With the potential for four solid pitches, that is very intriguing especially since he is just a year out of high school so is still young and has a lot of projection left.  He appears to be very signable, and could be a sleeper not just for the Indians but in the entire draft through the first three rounds.

The Indians 4^th round pick catcher Jake Lowery is an interesting pick, and for myself and a lot of people the thought of “Matt McBride” immediately comes to mind.  Like McBride, Lowery is a powerful catcher, just from the left side.  There are some concerns that the new ballpark in James Madison was conducive to assisting with inflating his power numbers, but the Indians believe the ability to hit is there and that he has the ability to be a 20-25 homer a year guy in the pro ranks.  Whether or not the power transfers at the pro level remains to be seen.  They also believe he has the ability to stay behind the plate.

On industry source I talked to yesterday who saw Lowery a lot this year had this to say: “He's a good player. I had him right where the Indians drafted him, solid 4th round. He is a strong kid with a good body and makeup. He has a plus arm and is okay at catcher. He is a left-handed hitter with plus power and a decent bat. A good pick.”

The Indians 7^th round pick catcher Eric Haase is an exciting pick as you have to love youthful power at the catching position.  He is expected to be a tough sign as he is committed to Ohio State University, but he has also let it be known publicly that he is not opposed to signing.  Considering the Indians used a top ten pick on him, I am willing to bet that the Indians reign him in for an overslot signing close to or on the deadline, similar to last year’s 8^th round selection Alex Lavisky.

It looks like 9^th round pick third baseman Jordan Smith will be a summer follow as he is slated to play in the Cape Code League, which is considered the top summer league.  He has an interesting bat.

The Indians 10^th round pick right-hander Jeff Johnson has closer potential, something an industry source shared with me yesterday.  “He is a college righty with overpowering stuff with the potential to be an above average closer.  He is an aggressive competitor who has a solid feel for his pitches only when pitching out of the stretch. He has a plus fastball that sits 93 but gets up to 96 MPH. He also has a very good splitter and developing slider. I like the pick.”

I was able to talk to another industry source on 12^th round pick right-handed pitcher Grant Sides: “He is a strong, physical righty who pitched in relief mostly. His fastball sits plus and was as high as 97 MPH.  He needs to develop a better feel for his slider and changeup.”

The Indians re-drafted right-handed pitcher Cody Allen yesterday in the 23^rd round, a player they originally selected in the 16^th round last year.  He was an interesting arm they selected last year and he was very interested in signing but a deal was unable to be brokered.  This time, I expect a deal to get done the second time around.

The Indians 29^th round pick right-handed pitcher Jared Ruxer is another interesting pick.  He has a nice tall, athletic build with a fastball that touches 91 MPH.  He has a developing slider and is a bulldog on the mound and very confident.  There appears to be a lot there to work with, and it would be nice to see the Indians find a way to bring him into the system.

The final day of the draft with rounds 31-50 kicks off today at noon.  Unlike yesterday, things will be more streamlined today with the draft coverage since a lot will not be known about the guys taken today until more research is done later.  Plus, a high majority of these final day picks won't even be signed.  With that in mind, the information will be limited but Jeff Ellis and I will continue to post updates and profiles for each pick.

By the way, thanks to my wing men Jeff Ellis and Jim Pete yesterday for the hard work in what was a near 8-hour marathon of draft coverage.  Also, special thanks to Andrew Zajac and Nino Colla for their contributions.  Doing what we did collectively yesterday on the site was only possible because of the total team effort.

Follow Tony and the Indians Prospect Insider on Twitter @TonyIPI. Also, his latest book the 2011 Cleveland Indians Top 100 Prospects & More is available for purchase for $20.95 to customers in the US (shipping and handling extra).

Posted in: Cody Allen,Dillon Howard,Eric Haase,Francisco Lindor,Grant Sides,Jake Lowery,Jake Sisco,Jared Ruxer,Jeff Johnson,Jordan Smith,Will Roberts