2011 Cardinals Draft Wrap (YouTube links fixed)

Talk about the Cardinals minor league baseball
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MinorLeagueGuy
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Re: 2011 Cardinals Draft Wrap (YouTube links fixed)

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I love you, man.

phins
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Re: 2011 Cardinals Draft Wrap (YouTube links fixed)

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Transmogrified Tiger wrote:Disappointed there hasn't been even one mention of Martini’s lunatic father, a lifelong Cubs fan who burned all his Cubs stuff and switched allegiances after they didn’t take Nick.
Yeah, I read that during my research. Apparently that town is a crazy Cubs town. But, it's the Cubs, so eff them. =)

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Re: 2011 Cardinals Draft Wrap (YouTube links fixed)

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Cox@2nd wrote:I love you, man.
Did Tony really say your quote? That's awesome if true.

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2nd Timer
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Re: 2011 Cardinals Draft Wrap (YouTube links fixed)

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Bookmarked. This is one of those threads GRB will be referencing for years.

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Maclowery
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Re: 2011 Cardinals Draft Wrap (YouTube links fixed)

Post by Maclowery »

Wow, I read it all. Awesome.

Definitely will be fun in ~2016 to read back and see which guys made it to the big leagues.

I kinda wish the Cards had drafted some more power-hitting prospects, but that's because I don't know a godamn thing about draft strategy, and home runs are shiny.

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Re: 2011 Cardinals Draft Wrap (YouTube links fixed)

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Are the Cardinals really famous for having grit?

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Re: 2011 Cardinals Draft Wrap (YouTube links fixed)

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phins, I really appreciate what you've done for us here. I'll be revisiting this thread a few years down the road as a research and reference tool.

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Re: 2011 Cardinals Draft Wrap (YouTube links fixed)

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As always, phins drops some impressive knowledge.

Thanks for putting so much time into it. Really enjoyed reading it.

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JackofDiamonds
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Re: 2011 Cardinals Draft Wrap (YouTube links fixed)

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Wow.

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Re: 2011 Cardinals Draft Wrap (YouTube links fixed)

Post by TGantz »

phins wrote:Well, the 2011 draft is in the books. All the time spent researching and watching these kids probably makes the draft feel like the culmination of a hard year's work for our scouts. Of course, that break is short lived, as now that the Cape has kicked off their season, every summer baseball league is now underway. Next year will be another solid year, and Mark Appel out of Stanford will be right up top on many draft boards. But that's for the 2012 MLB Draft thread, and this is about the 2011 version.

Most scouts and talent evaluators agree, the Cards have some exciting arms down on the farm. Crown jewel Shelby Miller was a calculated gamble, and an expensive sign away from a Texas A & M commitment (he'd be a Junior and going to the College World Series right now if he had not signed). Expensive Dominican sign Carlos Martinez has endured a name change and a lot of misfortune to make his way from to the corn fields of Iowa, and his upper 90's fastball is generating buzz in the industry. Converted SS Trevor Rosenthal is gaining experience on the mound, and proving that you don't have to be a high draft pick, or an expensive sign out of a foreign country to be a solid prospect. John Gast has gone from college bust, to possible pro revelation. Jordan Swagerty continues his ascent from college closer to possible major league starter (though I still see solid reliever long term). Tyrell Jenkins looks to further his development at Johnson City in a few weeks. What am I getting at with my long winded rambling? The Cards have several high upside arms, but seem to be short on solid bats in the system. Matt Adams is a much talked about, bat only 1B prospect who will always have his doubters. Is he the next Clint Robinson? Or maybe the next Travis Hafner, pre-should injuries? Ryan Jackson looks great with the glove, but the bat makes him a question mark. Zack Cox looks to prove that his opposite field stroke and lack of walks will stay ply at the major league level. Oscar Tavares has exciting upside, but can't stay healthy this year, and is a long way away from the big leagues.

Yes, the Cards are said to need position players, left-handed pitchers, and seem strong with right handed pitching prospects. They say you don't draft for need in Major League Baseball, but did the Cards subscribe to that theory this draft? The Cards top prospects seem to all be tough signs from college, or expensive arms from the Dominican. Did the Cards go for best player available regardless of price? Or did they fall into old habits employed throughout drafts of yester year? Why don't we take a look at what the Cards did first, and then answer some of these questions at the end.

Round 1. What the Cards did: Addressed the middle infield
The Cards drafted a short, but stocky infielder out of Hawaii named Kolten Wong. At 5-9, 190 lbs. he is well put together, and just seems like a professional hitter from the left side. He has a smooth, line drive swing that he works hard to perfect. He and his father have said they built the swing from the ground up, and tried to field a swing with few holes. His swing does not put a lot of backspin on the ball, so loft is not something he puts a lot of on the ball. This diminishes his power upside, but does produce consistent line drives, and will help him avoid the holes in his swing that many prospects have to deal with once they hit professional baseball. Out of high school, he ran a 6.81 60 yard dash, and 4.4 home to 1st, both are a fairly average number. He is said to be fairly instinctive on the base paths, and this was reflected when he stole a league best 22 bases on the Cape last year. The Cape is comprised of the top talent in college baseball, and is not limited to just draft eligible players, so the talent is about as good as you can get. For this reason, I tend to put a lot of stock in the statistics that a player compiles there as a good gauge of future professional potential. FWIW, the Cards tend to agree with this approach, as they consistently will pick All-Star players from the league. Wong has a solid-average arm at 2B, hitting 78 mph on the showcase circuit, and compiling pop times of 1.87 seconds as a catcher. Wong has played CF and C in his time in college, but has found a home at 2B, where he does still have some upside due to him not having as much experience at the position. I have read in a few places some ill-founded speculation that he didn't play for Team USA the summer of his sophomore year due to a poor showing the year before. This is not correct. On the advice of his advisor (agent), he went to the Cape Cod League to solidify his draft status as a first round type player, and did just that by winning the MVP of the league by hitting .341 (league best), with 3 HR's and 11 RBI. Wong is a hard worker, said to be the leader of his team, and has had no outside character issues that I could find. His perfect world scenario has him signing fairly quickly, heading to Quad Cities to start his career, and show off the line drive bat and perhaps ending the season in High-A Palm Beach. Within three years he should be making his ML debut and settling in as a slightly above average 2B'man and 3 win player. If he achieves that, you have done well at pick 22.

What the Cardinals didn't do: Go for upside.
Wong profiles as a plenty strong player at the ML level, but the fact remains that 2B'man are rarely drafted in the top-25, and they left players with more talented on the board. Daniel Norris is a left-handed pitcher out of South Carolina who wanted a ton of money ($3.9 million), and has the chance to develop three above average pitches, and already has a plus fastball and solid curve. His inconsistent velocity this spring, coupled with his high price tag caused him to tumble to the 2nd round, so the Cards were not alone in passing on him. I have seen it written that the Cards passed on the next Shelby Miller when they passed on Taylor Guerreri, but I am not nearly as high on Taylor as I was Shelby coming out of high school. Guerreri has some issues with his delivery, and very inconsistent velocity. When he was great, he was great. But when he wasn't, he displayed poor composure, and there are makeup issues with the kid that make giving him that kind of money much more risky. I've also seen them knocked for not taking Mahtook, the OF'er from LSU, but he won't stay in CF IMO, and will move to LF, where his solid speed and hit tool will play much better. As a LF'er, he might possess even less upside than Wong, and would have made for a very boring pick.

Overall:
It's no secret this is not the player I would have selected, and I said as much during the draft. The excitement of hoping for the upside arm was intriguing to me, and I let it cloud my thought process. There are a few factors that lead me to believe there might be a little more upside here than your standard college middle infielder. Wong is young for his class at age 20, and will be 20 for the entire 2011 season (10-10-90). His home park in Hawaii is known for being a pitchers park, and suppressing offense. The park factor for his field of 79 is one of the lowest in the country, and his teams scheduled park factor of 88 shows the he played his entire season in pitchers conditions. Yet, he was able to excel in these conditions as a younger player still learning a position. Wong is not flashy, and probably only has one tool that rates as above average on the 20-80 scale, his hit tool. To phrase it this way sells the player short though. He also excels in his plate discipline, and will draw a fair number of walks, while producing gap power and solid average slugging percentages. As he continues to grow, I do believe his foot speed will drop to barely average, and he will be more of an instinctive base runner, rather than a high steals guy. He will slot in very well as a leadoff hitter as long as he maintains his walk and K rates, and could also be a very good #2 hitter who handles the bat well, and knows game situations to move runners along. The Cardinals ended up making a solid pick for them when you couple risk, ceiling vs. floor, and yes, even a little bit of needs in the system. Guerreri, Norris, Owens, Howard and the other prep arms did not have quite the finish that the Cards wanted for the money required to sign them, and Mahtook may have had even less upside as an OF'er. I MUCH prefer Wong to Levi Michael, who I feel moves to 2B in the pro's and doesn't carry the bat that Wong does. If the Cards sign some of the players to follow, I am happy signing off on the pick, and taking back some of the criticism I levied early on. When you factor his success with wood bats and in the highest level of college baseball with his younger age, park factor, and happening to be at a position of need, the thought process makes sense, regardless of outcome from here.

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Round 2: What the Cards did: Add speed and athleticism.
I think we can all agree we are entering a different era in professional baseball. Whatever the reason you believe, the run environment we are currently playing in is changing. Power has seen a drop league-wide, and teams are starting to place a higher emphasis on speed and athleticism on the field again. The Cardinals selected such a player in the second round by taking high school OF'er, Charlie Tilson. The lefty swinging, 5-11, 175 pounder out of Illinois can really run. Armed with his 6.54 60 yard dash, Tilson put his athleticism and potential for growth on display at the prestigious 2010 Area Code Games, and found himself squarely on the draft map at that point. Rated the 37th best high school prospect by Baseball Factory, he is noted as a "gamer who can run and swings it. Excelled at the Area Code Games last August." (but you already knew that last part). Tilson profiles as a man who will stick in CF, and while he is considered a decently tough sign away from a commitment to the University of Illinois, I don't expect him to make it to campus in the end. You don't spend 2nd round picks on a kid unless you think you can sign him, especially when you're short on picks, like the Cards were in this draft. You may have read a little back and forth I had with another individual on Tilson's growth potential, but he's a kid I liked coming into the draft, and you can't accuse the Cards of going safe here. The swing is smooth and level and stays in the zone a long time. The follow through is long and true. He will have below average power in the end, but has a strong arm (was a solid LHP in high school), and while he is living on athleticism with his routes currently, his speed should allow him to profile as a strong defender.

What the Cards didn't do: Play it safe.
Right now, Tilson struggles with breaking stuff, and is a lot of projection. His main asset is his speed, and he will need to raise his hit tool to above average levels to be a candidate to be a major league level. There were several players with a different skill set available at this pick, as well as some high profile arms with big price tags. Alex Dickerson is a corner OF/1B type from Indiana with big power that the Cards brought in for a workout prior to the draft. To be fair, I was not a huge fan of his, and feel like it was a solid gamble to go with the upside of Tilson over the safe play in Dickerson or a few others.

Overall:
I'm happy that the Cards took a tools gamble, and may have an exciting prospect to show for it. It will take seven figures to sign him, and he will be a slow moving prospect, but his ceiling is that of an above average big league regular. I would love to say that he profiles as a star, but the longer I do this as an amateur scout of sorts, the more I realize just how hard it is to get a guy that profiles as a star in the major leagues. One thing with drafting northern high school players is that I believe there is a little more upside left to be tapped than their southern counterparts due to the simple fact the northern kids don't get to play as much. Get them on a professional level strength and training program as well as the coaching and ability to play year round, and you often see a little bit of projection left in these kids. You have to rely on your scouts to find the right kids with the projection left, but I'm a believer in Tilson, and liked this pick on draft day. He will play the entire season as an 18 year old (12-2-92). Check out this blog for some great info on Charlie and how he fared at the Area Code Games against some of the best competition in the country. CJ McElroy (keep reading) was also there, and made some noise.

http://www.perfectgame.org/blogs/View.aspx?event=1092

Here is a nice video over at baseballbeginnings.

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http://baseballbeginnings.com/2011/04/0 ... lson-video

Round 3: What the Cards did: Draft raw tools
Charles (CJ) McElroy is the personification of "you can dream on him." A 6', 180 lb athletic dynamo, he is another of the speed and athleticism picks this draft seemed to focus on. A high school pick out of League City, Texas, McElroy was committed to play two sports at the University of Houston, where he would play baseball and football as a defensive back. MaxPreps ranked him just the #38 prospect in the state of Texas, and #337 overall, but he was a late riser after some terrific performances on the camp circuit and in private workouts. Often times, teams will bring players they would like to get a longer look at for additional athletic testing, batting practice, and sometimes just to show around the facility. The Cardinals visited with McElroy and had him as one of the fastest players in the draft. After a junior season in which he hit .319 with 17 RBIs and 19 stolen bases, McElroy became a force as a senior, hitting .488 with five homers, 20 RBIs and 46 runs. He set the single-season stolen base record at Creek with 33.
Here is what his coach had to say about him: “I’ve never seen a player in 36 years improve as much as C.J. has,” Clear Creek coach Jim Mallory said. “He is one of the top players I have ever gotten to coach. More importantly, he is an even better kid and person. Some scouts said McElroy was one of the fastest high school players in the country and one of the top defensive center fielders.

What the Cardinals didn't do: Play it safe (again).
In my time following the Cardinals drafts, two things have become readily apparent to me: They love college players, especially those who excel in summer leagues, and they love to play it safe with draft picks after the first few rounds. McElroy is certainly the opposite of that. Many baseball rankings of high school players see the top kids who have dominated the summer circuits for years and leave those players at the top. What this does is allow for those kids to get their names out there on a national level, and really become visible to the scouts and improve their draft stock. What that doesn't do, is allow for a lot of kids to come out of nowhere and really rise in their rankings. Scouts, however, know who these players are and get a chance to see them much more than recruiting and other baseball websites do. McElroy never really got the showcase himself on the summer circuit, and his national profile suffered for it. However, baseball is his first love, and there is a ton of upside left to be tapped once he starts to focus on baseball only.

Overall: The Cards nabbed another high school player with the defensive skills to play CF. This is important because there is more value to be had when you play on the right side of the defensive spectrum. It is also generally considered easy to move a player to the left on the defensive spectrum, so players who do not demonstrate quite the skills necessary to stay at those positions on the right have somewhere to go. Conversely, a LF'er who can't stay in LF has to move to 1B, and that requires much more bat to be worthwhile. A stocky, physical blur of an athlete, McElroy just turned 18 on 5-29, so he is young, and loaded with tools and upside. His frame should fill out and allow for more power in the future. An upside play, who will sign, and plays a premium defensive position? That generally will get a solid grade from me, even if he wasn't necessarily the highest rated player left on the board. McElroy is a LONG way away from his ceiling, but you can dream on him, and I love that from a 3rd round pick.

Round 4: What the Cards did: Reached for a player they liked.
There really is no debating that Kenny Peoples-Walls is not the 140th best player on most people's draft lists. Where he fits in though, is anyone's guess. The 6-1, 175 pound SS from California is said to be extremely athletic, and was a late riser on draft boards. Rated as the 53rd best draft eligible player in California, he was said to be expected to go off the board in rounds 4-10. Most likely more towards the 10th than the 4th, but the Cards liked the player, and picked him up. KPW is not considered a tough sign, and although he'll cost more than slot to sign, he should be a Cardinal come Fall. He hit .414 with 5 HR's, 23 RBI, and 14 SB's. He will most likely grow into a 3B'man, but will probably grow into a 3B'man, though he has the potential for an above average glove there as well with a strong arm.

What the Cards didn't do: Take a name player
There were many players on the board at that selection who had fallen for bonus or injury reasons, and the Cards passed on them all to KPW.

Overall: This is a definite litmus test for the Cards and their scouts. They love to take under the radar kids from California, and especially projectable ones. There are probably kids I'd have taken before KPW, but when you watch his swing, you can see the potential for solid pop with his quick wrists, and slight uppercut swing. The swing looks long to me in the short video I saw of him, and it looks to have holes up. The kid is put together, and although there are quite a few mechanical issues with his swing, the tools are there. He was only a second team all-city guy in Los Angeles, and the fact he won't be able to stick at SS hurts his stock with me.

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Round 5: What the Cards did: Found a perfect marriage.
Samuel Gaviglio is a right handed pitcher out of Oregon State who fits the Cardinals pitching philosophy quite well. The 6-2, 195 pound righty relies mostly on his bread and butter pitch: a hard, downward moving sinker that sits in the high 80's. However, he also throws a solid change and decent slider. The curve is in the arsenal, but doesn't throw it much. As a freshman, he went 10-1 with a 2.73 ERA before battling a hamstring injury last year and never throwing as well. This year, he started 4-0 without allowing a run after the first inning of his first start, and had 40 K's in his first 5 starts, including a career high 14 K's in a game he carried a perfect game into the 8th.

What the Cards didn't do: Draft velocity.
Gaviglio is what he is. A limited pitcher who loves the sinker, and gets gobs of ground balls. However, due to his lack of velocity, and merely average secondary pitches, he'll always profile as a back of the rotation starter. If you're going to give Wong credit for park factors, you also have to note that Gaviglio had a home park with a factor of 64, and played a schedule with a park factor of just 74. One of the lowest in the nation.

Overall: It's the 5th round and the Cards took their first pitcher. They took a winner from a powerhouse program who produced excellent results in both the Pac-10 and in summer baseball against wood bats. I wouldn't say I'm thrilled with the pick, but when you factor in that he meshes with the club's philosophy, it's not hard to understand the pick. Very polished pitcher, he should move quickly, and face his first real test at High-A.

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Round 6: What the Cards did: Take a catcher with the tools to stay there.
There's an old axiom when it comes to prospects; you can never have too many pitchers, and you can never have too many catcher prospects. Well, the Cards don't have to worry about that, as they currently don't have a single catching prospect that profiles as a starter on a first division club. I'm not saying they added one here either, but Adam Ehrlich certainly fits the bill as far as the clubs emphasis on defense is concerned. Athletic and stocky at 6-1, 200 lbs, Ehrlich has soft hands, catches the ball rather than fighting the ball like many young catchers do, and has a very strong arm.

What the Cards didn't do: Draft a slugger.
Ehrlich will never be confused with Brian McCann at the plate. A lefty swinger who hits almost completely off his front foot, he is susceptible to breaking stuff at this point. His bat is fairly quick, and there is some potential here. You have to view that swing as lacking much power potential, but he's a high school kid who would really benefit from professional coaching.
Overall: Said to be a player who can "catch all day and make it look easy" Ehrlich will stay behind the plate and look to develop his lefty swing. I think he starts out at Johnson City, rather than extended Spring Training because the Cards will want to get him playing with the young pitchers right off the bat. Ehrlich will play the entire season as an 18 y/o (12-13-92). A commitment to Loyola-Maramount shouldn't prevent him from signing, albeit as with most high school players, for slightly above slot.

http://baseballbeginnings.com/2011/05/0 ... more-11946

Round 7: What the Cards did: Draft grit.
Nick Martini is the kind of kid this organization is going to love. He's a get dirty, let the ball hit you in the knee to get on base, do anything to beat you, kind of kid. Martini has one tool that rates above average, but it's a good tool to have; the hit tool. The 5-11, 193 pounder from Kansas State profiles as a LF type with a fringy arm, and solid speed that plays up due to anticipation and instincts on the base paths. Hit .338, was the Big 12 POY, and set an NCAA record by reaching base in 93 straight games.

What the Cards didn't do: Make a bad pick
You get a kid who has a plus hit tool, ability to get on base, make solid plays in the field, and has the famous Cardinal "grit" in the 7th round? Yeah, that will work. Keeping with the park factor theme, Martini played in a home park with a factor of 83, and a schedule park factor of 90. In other words, he was not significantly helped by his home ball park.

Overall: Taking kids who can balance out the toolsy, upside type players from earlier in the draft is a must. Martini is one of three position players that I think will move quickly in the system (Wong and Kevin Medrano being the other two). Hit only .257 in the Cape Cod League, but walked 24 times to match his 24 K's.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vsi9JoLi ... re=related][/youtube]

Round 8: What the Cards did: Draft a possible LOOGY
Most on the board know that I'm a huge Miami Hurricanes fan. Most also know the Cardinals seem to have developed an affinity for drafting Miami Hurricanes players under Jeff Luhnow. Great for me in that my favorite college players (along with Missouri State) get drafted by my favorite professional team. Daniel Miranda is a player I am very familiar with, as are the Cardinals, having drafted him in the 50th round out of high school. The 6' 190 lb (he's much closer to 215, believe me) left-hander has one plus pitch, a slider he calls a curve. It's this pitch, along with a 3/4 arm angle that causes the ball to move down and away from left-handed hitters, that gives him a shot at a career as a LOOGY one day.

What the Cards didn't do: Maximize the value of the pick.
This seems rather early to me for a player Canes fans couldn't wait to get out of the closer role. His fastball tops out at 88 mph, and does have solid movement. He has solid control, walking only 4 batters and striking out 37 in 30 innings of action.

Overall: This is a curious selection, but one that makes sense when you factor in the dearth of left-handed pitching in our minor league system, and the fact that Miranda has excellent control of three pitches (fastball, changeup, curve). The Cards are said to be giving Miranda a shot as a starter, even though he was almost exclusively a reliever at the U. His skill set is one that should give him a solid chance at dominating lefties and making the big leagues one day as a LOOGY. Getting a player with the skill set to make the majors at a spot that your system has a real weak spot at cannot be considered a bad pick.

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Round 9: What the Cards did: Go off the board.
Tyler Mills is an interesting kid. He came to Michigan as an extremely athletic OF'er with a great arm, and turned into a hard throwing reliever. at 6-3 and 205 lbs, Mills looks great getting off the bus. In the second outing of his pitching career, he threw two innings out of the bullpen against a very good baseball program in Louisville. He sat at 94-96, and flashed a plus slider, which sat at 84-87. As is normally the case, this intrigued his coaches enough to give him a start in his next outing. He ended up throwing 127 pitches, and his stuff was rarely sharp after that, sitting more in the 88-92 range, and with a slider with less break.

What the Cards didn't do: Take a guy I like.
Mills is a two pitch pitcher who lacks a feel for the mound. Is purely a relief prospect, and his stuff as is makes him non-draftable. The Cards are really banking on the stuff returning after he gets some rest for his arm. A draft-eligible sophomore, he was presumed to be a tough sign, but has already signed. He has decent deception in his motion, which makes the velocity play up even more, but lacks command and polish. 52 IP, 30 BB, 48 K.

Overall: If his stuff returns, he makes me look foolish, and the Cards have a power arm to add to their arsenal. He won't move quickly, even as a reliever because of lack of experience on the mound. I think it was the right move to turn pro, rather than have his coaches ruin his arm before he even gets started, if they haven't already.

Round 10: What the Cards did: Draft more athleticism
Lance Jeffries is a local product with a feel good story. A CF prospect with plus speed and defense. 5-9, 185 lbs. and fairly well put together. Here is what Perfect Game had to say about him:
WILD CARD: Lance Jeffries, of, McCluer HS. Jeffries is a feel-good story of an inner-city youth who learned to play baseball at the local Boys/Girls Club, and has excelled in Major League Baseball’s Urban Youth Program. He has three potential plus tools in his speed, arm and center-field defense. A team that thinks he can hit could take a chance on him surprisingly early.
Timed at 6.6 in the 60 yard dash, speed is his best attribute. He does have a plus arm, and while he has unrefined swing mechanics, the tools are there to develop.

What the Cards didn't do: Deviate from their plan.
The Cards said they wanted more speed and athleticism and they seemed to continue on that mission here. He was said to be the second best prospect in Missouri this year, and had the ability to go off the board much earlier than the 10th round.
Overall: Any time you say the Cards may not have gotten great value with a particular pick, it is important to remember that the MLB draft is such a different animal, and budget limitations, and signability has to be taken into consideration with every pick, which are all part of a bigger puzzle. I like the point where the Cards were able to get Jeffries, and have already signed him to a pro contract.

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Round 11: Michael Maness, a 6' 180 lb righty out of East Carolina, who was CUSA Pitcher of the Year in 2010. Commands an average four pitch repertoire, and was an easy Senior sign.

Round 12: Danny Stienstra, a 6-2, 200 lb. 1B'man out of San Jose State seems a blah type pick. Has some power, can get on base, limited tools.
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Round 13: Kolby Byrd, a 6-1, 215 lb. lefty swinging catcher out of a Junior College. Can stick at catcher, can hit mistakes, all-around type player, and that's about all I have on him.

Round 14: Kevin Medrano, a 6-1, 155 lb. 2B'man who can really hit. That is his only tool, and would be one of the selections from 11-20 that intrigue me. He has next to no power, but a smooth, line-drive swing coupled with a good glove make him a nice selection in the 14th round. He was a Cape-Cod All-Star selection (actually started the game for the West), and finished 4th in batting average in the Cape. Hit over .400 last year, and led the team in slugging, but a shoulder injury early in the season after a collision at the plate wrecked his season. A lack of arm strength limits him to 2B, and if he fills out his frame and develops any power at all, it will go a long way in helping him to make it. Stated as being the best hitter and defender in the state of Missouri among draft eligible prospects by Perfect Game, he was rated the #5 draft eligible player in the state. The fact he is a one tool player who can only play 2B limits him.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IQJKXRTn-ME&NR=1][/youtube]

Round 15: Matthew Williams, another undersized player at 5-10, 170 lbs. is a SS from Liberty University. Has some pop for a little guy, slugged .549 with a .405 OBP and was a three year starter. Big question is if the glove will stay at SS.

Round 16: Travis Miller, a 6-1, 185 lb. reliever out of the U, he lacks any standout trait, and has been a reliever his entire college career. The hope is his 3/4 arm action that produces lots of ground balls with a heavy 91 mph fastball, and a solid slider will allow him to be a ROOGY in the big leagues. Athletic and strong kid. Does nothing that overwhelms in my time seeing him.

Round 17: Dutch Deol, is a 6-3, 200 lb. OF'er out of a California HS. He hit only .280 his Senior year, and I honestly had never heard of him until we drafted him. Is said to have some upside. Limited info, great name.

Round 18: Kyle Hald, LHP out of Old Dominion, who has a pedestrian fastball, but solid command of a changeup/curveball. Big K numbers, and finished as Co-Pitcher of Year in his conference. At 5-11, 195 lbs. is absolutely the next Justin Verlander. Maybe not, but a nice, cheap, Senior sign.

Round 19: Nick Gillung, LHP out of Mercyhurst College. 6-1, 185 pounder out of small school who put up big K numbers and solid stats. Another Senior sign who will take a shot at filling a LOOGY role one day.

Round 20: Aramis Garcia, C out of a Florida High School. Is committed to Florida International, and will be a 50/50 type sign. The youngest of the catchers drafted (1-12-93), and known for his pop. Conflicting reports, as one outlet states he has a great feel for catching, and Baseball America says the question is whether his skill set will allow him to remain at catcher. Right-handed swinging prospect who stands 6-2 and weighs 195 lbs.

Round 21: Christopher Kirsch, LHP out of Lackawanna College. He's an intriguing guy, as he was drafted in the 13th round by the Pirates originally, but wants six figures to sign. Is lean and projectible at 6-2, 185 lbs. but sits only in that 87-89 range currently. Decent curveball, that MaxPreps says he is keeping the grip a secret. Another upside pick, can't fault them here.

Round 22: Justin Kamplain is a LHP out of an Al. high school. He's committed to Alabama and considered a tough sign. He was at the Busch Stadium tryout, and although undersized at 6', 170 lbs. he pitched a perfect game this season, and has been clocked as high as 88-92 this year, although he's had trouble maintaining that velocity deep into games. If he does sign, it's a great addition. Bet he goes to school though.

Round 23: Patrick Deese, RHP out of Western Carolina is a relief-only type prospect. Originally went to Clemson, and has a fastball that has touched 94, but little else.

Round 24: Jon Cornelius, a little lefty out of Florida Tech, he's under 6' but stocky at 200 lbs. He relies on command and deception with his 85-87 mph fastball and a good breaking ball. One of these guys has to turn into a decent LOOGY right? Easy Senior sign.

Round 25: Todd McInnis, is a tiny right-hander out of S. Mississippi. He was named C-USA Pitcher of the Year after going 8-3. Has a plus plus changeup, and it was rated best in Miss. by MLB Bonus Baby. Easy sign.

Round 26: Brett Graves, RHP out of Francis Howell. Strong commitment to Mizzou, but considered best arm in MO HS this year. 6-1, 170 lb with a drop and drive delivery that gets it up to 90 mph already. Would be a nice sign if they can get it done. Bet he goes to school though.

Round 27: Gary Apelian, OF'er from Santa Ana College. Said to be a dead pull hitter, he's an easy Senior sign.

Round 28: Ryan Sherriff, a LHP out of a Los Angeles Juco. 6-1, 185 lbs. and said to have expected to be drafted in the top-20 rounds. His Coach is a big proponent of his (as you'd expect). Just turned 21.

Round 29: Christopher Matulis, a LHP out of Central Florida (well, really he is a transfer to UCF from LSU, and hasn't played after an arm injury). He's an interesting guy though at 6-6, 217 lbs. and pitching left-handed. He was solid as a freshman, going 6-2.

Round 30: David Bergin, a RHP out of Tenn. Wesleyn College, there were said to be some "issues" with him at the program. He also hit 23 HR's, so I wonder if that would be a fallback. Honestly, I know very, very little about him, and that's about all I can say.

Conclusion: After the 30th round you're hoping to sign some guys, fill in your organization with easy Senior signs who excelled numbers wise, but may not have the tools to be selected much higher. The Cardinals were limited in the number of picks they had, but weren't afraid to take chances and draft guys they felt a conviction for. Many of the guys selected were under the radar types, and/or guys who were late risers. They tended to stick with standard drafting principles of taking SS's, C's, and CF'ers, with the obvious selection of Kolten Wong in the 1st round. It is fairly pointless to try and assign any type of grade to a MLB draft this soon, especially with not knowing who will sign and who won't, but the Cards will be in the middle of the pack spending wise, and would probably be middle of the pack for me on the haul that they received. In other words, they did a pretty good job of finding guys they liked and taking them. You can't ask for a lot more than that in forming an early opinion.

The Cardinals may not have drafted for need per se, but they did attempt to fill a perceived lack of athleticism and left-handed pitching in the minors. Did the Cards go for best player available regardless of price? Definitely not, but they also didn't go cheap, instead choosing to draft several players out of high school who will require over slot bonuses.

In the end, I think it was a good mix. I would have liked to see more of an investment in power potential, but that was probably the biggest weakness of this draft. The Cards could have stepped out and chosen some kids in the 5-8 round range and paid their asking prices, but chose to go a little safer in that range. It's not necessarily the way I would have drafted personally, but I can't accuse them of playing it safe either. Often times, the raw, athletic players who rely on speed and lack a hit tool have a lower success rate than draftees who are raw but rely on power as a plus tool while trying to develop a hit tool further. High school players have a traditionally lower success rate than college players do, but also tend to have a higher ceiling. This draft was a good mix of high school "upside" (Tilson, McElroy, KPW, Jeffries, Garcia, and college "production" Wong, Gaviglio, Martini, Miranda, and in the end, I'm very pleased with how the puzzle all came together.

This post is a little while after the draft, and may not be of interest to many on the board any longer, but I wanted to educate myself a little bit more before I posted anything, and I have either seen in person, on television, or watched as much video as possible on almost every draftee I have commented on.

Would like to list some sites I used for the compilation of my information:

http://www.boydsworld.com/data/pf2010.html
http://mlb.mlb.com/team/draft.jsp?c_id=stl
http://www.baseballbeginnings.com
http://Perfectgame.com
http://futureredbirds.net
Quoted in case a drunk moderator thinks it'd be funny to delete the OP.

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