Back to the Future

It's that time again, the Major League draft. Although Steven Strasburg should and Will sign with the Nats he isn't going to come cheap, Dustin Ackley will go to the Mariners and should be on the fast track to the bigs within a year and a half, and although ESPN and most mock drafts have the Padres selecting Center Fielder Donovan Tate but I've gotta go with Aaron Crow being that I think they'll need pitching after trading Jake Peavy.

The Uber-Prospect that is Steven Strasburg IS the best college pitcher in the history of the MLB Draft. If you want to debate me about it please do but before you do take a look at this. Strasburg is in one word, "the best damn non-major league pitcher ever." That may have been more than one word, but the fact still remains. Steven has been clocked as high as 103 on the gun. No that's not a typo, you don't have to adjust your eyes. His curve is about 80 mph.That's a 23 mph difference from his fastball for you non-math buffs. And if that's not unhittable enough his change up is in the 70's. So to put him in perspective, he has the hardest fastball in Major League history (aside from Mark Wohlers in spring training 1995), has a Barry Zitoesque curve ball (the amount of break), and a change up as good as vintage Pedro. What more could you ask for out of a #1 overall pick.

Dustin Ackley, SHOULD go to the Mariners but a small birdie told me they may not sign their pick in order to save some money for next season. But either way he WILL be the 2nd pick signed. He is one of the most pure hitters I have had the pleasure to watch. For me watching him is like watching a slightly more raw version of Tony Gwynn, but with the right seasoning and more plate discipline could evolve into one of the better hitters of our era. The quickness in his wrists is unmatched by anyone else in this draft. His base stealing prowess plays second fiddle and rightly so but it should not go unnoticed. In his time spent with the Tar Heels it was almost impossible to double him up on the back end of a double play. As previously stated he will be in the big leagues probably slotted in the 3 hole for the M's in a year and a half.

With the third pick in the MLB Draft I think that SD is going to choose the flame throwing Aaron Crow. Although he doesn't throw as hard as Strasburg (no one does) he does also project into a top of the rotation like starter. One of the major hang-ups is that San Diego has no money. They have a LOT of payroll and the revenue isn't coming in. This is why trading Peavy is almost essential to the rebuilding of their club. They need to free up the payroll, get 3-4 prospects/proven MLB talent in return and have plenty of capital left to sign Crow to a hefty 4 mil signing bonus. Crow sits 91-93 with a plus crisp slider and an average at best changeup. You can expect a LOT of work with that change-up to really make his "stuff" lethal when he humps the rubber. *Git ya mind outta the gutter, it means takes the hill.*

That's what I got for ya without getting too in depth and on a completely unrelated to the draft side note; I just watched Andrew McCutcheon fly around the bases on Baseball tonight and I think that he could beat Ichiro, Ellsbury, and Crawford in a footrace. How's that for bold??

Stay Tuned,

Ryan