Draft Report Card: Iowa, Louisville, Mexico City

Iowa Draft Report:
1st Rnd, 7th, Kelvim Erving Two excellent pitches and solid control. He is a lefthander that is very tough on lefties but will have his problems with right handers. Could still succeed at the major league level if he reaches his other projections.

1st Rnd, 40th, Charles Hill This 18 yr-old pitcher has quickly climed his way to High A ball and is doing great. 6-0 with 1.65 ERA in just under 44 innings of minor league ball. He projects to be a solid middle of the rotation pitcher with 4 solid pitches and ability to get righties out consistently.

Grade: C, got themselves two very good pitches but lost there 2nd and 3rd round picks to compensation. These two better pan out or they might be kicking themselves in a few years.

Louisville Draft Report:
1st Rnd, 3rd, Robert Merrick Hard hitting, fast running shortstop. Will be adequate in the field but will probably be moved to another spot in the field at some point. His bat though looks very solid as he projects to be a 20-20 man with the potential to hit around .300 every year.

2nd Rnd, 49th, Johnny Conway A soft tossing rightie with an incredible sinker. Will probably end up in the bullpen as he really doesn’t have the stuff to last more then 5 innings or so. That being said will be a welcome addition to the Louisville bullpen.

3rd Rnd, 81st, Felix Bolden Could probably take a turn at the end of most teams rotations, but will more then likely find the glut of his innings coming as a LR pitcher. Not a bad find at 81.

Grade: C+, got themselves an everyday player that can field up the middle which is a huge find in any draft. Other then that they really only grabbed a few arms for the pen.

Mexico City Draft Report:
1st Rnd, 15th, Alex Granger Strong fundamental player that does the little things very well. Has an excellent eye, stong base running skills and bunts like Brett Butler. Will be a solid but not spectacular Major league 2nd baseman.

2nd Rnd, 61st, B.J. Cheney Hard throwing leftie how will most likely take a spot in the big league rotation in a few years. Keeps his balls low and mixes up his 5 pitches very effectively. Is probably about 2 years away from playing in the majors.

3rd Rnd, 93rd, Morgan Mirabelli Should be a solid bullpen pitcher despite fairly average pitches. His durability and great control will serve him well as a left handed arm out of the pen with ability to pitch more then 1-2 innings every time out.

Grade: B-, An everyday position player, a SP and a solid RP. No stars for sure but I see three players that have big league skills no doubt.