Draft Discussion

[kaiser]

I'm sure everyone has been following the other two Cafeholics Drafts - between the three of them, there are some interesting anomalies being thrown up.

For example, Kris Medlen was drafted 55th in Pond Scum, and has just been taken 104th in Masters. Conversely, James Shields went 65th in Masters, and Pond Scum waited until pick 105.

Any thoughts on these very different valuations of two pitchers? For me, Medlen went just after I picked Bumgarner, whom I do like a fair bit more. I would have taken Shields in Round 8 if he had made it back to me - and around pick 100 seems about right.

What do others think?

My take is " Medlen in the 5th ".

I think Medlin went about two rounds too early in Pond Scum, and that Shields went about two rounds too early in Masters.

I also think that Tex (4.13 in Masters, 3.10 in Pond Scum) went at least a round early in Pond Scum, and maybe even in Masters.

By the way, keep in mind that Masters has 15 teams, compared to Pond Scum's 14. Probably doesn't make a huge difference, but by this point in the draft it has an effect.

[Mookie4ever]

I know I reached with Morales and Howard but I don't care.

[MashinSpuds]

I know I reached with Morales and Howard but I don't care.

See, this is a good motto.

[kaiser]

I know I reached with Morales and Howard but I don't care.

See, this is a good motto.

Nothing wrong with reaching for a guy you really want, as long as you don't go crazy and start taking Fonzie Soriano in the third round.

[jfg]

I know I reached with Morales and Howard but I don't care.

I was thinking about Howard with my pick after yours.

[kaiser]

Thought you guys might want to see the case made by the guy who took Shields in the Masters draft.

since i was the one who took jshields "early" i will attempt to defend my position...

i took him w/the 65th pick and my next selection wasnt until #86..i didnt think that he would make it back to me and i wasnt crazy about having jcueto, medlen, bmorrow, ikennedy, jjohnson, dfister, tlincecum as my #2 SP (the pitchers taken after pick #86)... he probably averages as a 6th rounder but in this draft, i wanted him when it was my pick in the 5th

simply, imo he is a horse..5 consecutive years of 200+ IP w/ last 2 yrs striking out over 200.. 1.04 and 1.17 whip the last 2 yrs..solid, consistent, safe

his xERA has been under 4.01 for 5 straight years.. GB % is rising and FB% is dropping

and he'll face houston 5 or 6 times this season

i have him as the 12th best SP

p.s. i almost took kmedlen w/the 95th pick..nice value there

[ayebatter]

Thought you guys might want to see the case made by the guy who took Shields in the Masters draft.

since i was the one who took jshields "early" i will attempt to defend my position...

i took him w/the 65th pick and my next selection wasnt until #86..i didnt think that he would make it back to me and i wasnt crazy about having jcueto, medlen, bmorrow, ikennedy, jjohnson, dfister, tlincecum as my #2 SP (the pitchers taken after pick #86)... he probably averages as a 6th rounder but in this draft, i wanted him when it was my pick in the 5th

simply, imo he is a horse..5 consecutive years of 200+ IP w/ last 2 yrs striking out over 200.. 1.04 and 1.17 whip the last 2 yrs..solid, consistent, safe

his xERA has been under 4.01 for 5 straight years.. GB % is rising and FB% is dropping

and he'll face houston 5 or 6 times this season

i have him as the 12th best SP

p.s. i almost took kmedlen w/the 95th pick..nice value there

And for you here's the weak case made by the guy for taking Teix at 3.10:

Medlen and Teixeira are two of the reaches that come to my mind so far in this draft.

I had Ellsbury set to go in the 3rd and when he was taken just ahead of me I decided to move Teix up , like I said you take 'em when you can't wait any longer.

[jfg]

Here's my weak case:

Wanted a 2nd tier pitcher, thought the ones I wanted would be gone by the time it came back to me, nobody took pitchers, ended up with 3 tier 2 pitchers.

[Fenris-77]

I have a weak case of my own. I waited too long on my third starter and ended up taking a reach. Obviously I was hoping for something shiny there given the nature of our draft relative to pitching in general, but the guy I actually wanted (Morrow) amazingly got drafted before my pick. Crazy, I know.

[Mookie4ever]

I like the guy that took 2 catchers in the first 7 rounds. That takes huge balls. He's throwing it in our faces and saying "this is how little I think of the abilities of these so called cafeholics. I will throw away two of my first 7 picks and still win". He is also refusing to pick anyone that can hit a home run or drive in a run. Huge brass cojones on that guy. Much respect.