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Monday, June 4, 2007
Scouting the draft
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
It’s amateur draft week, which means somewhere Braves scouting director Roy Clark is walking around red-eyed. I know this because I’ve seen him on many a draft day, and it always looks like he hasn’t slept in a while - like a college kid the week of finals.
But he’ll still be chipper and pleasant as ever - hate to say nice things about a Tar Heel, but I will in Roy’s case - because that’s how he always is. I know it’s getting close to show time because I just tried to call him on his cell phone and got no answer. Roy usually answers.
I also tried Kurt Kemp, director of player development, and was told by an assistant in the minor league office Chris Rice “He’s down in the draft room.”
I’ve never been in the draft room, but I picture it being cave-like with cinderblock walls, no windows, a giant chalkboard (what do you call those kind you write with magic markers? White boards?), four or five telephones spaced out on a boardroom table, and two pots of coffee, tag team bubbling on a table off to the side, so there is caffeinated-only available at all times.
Am I right?
Hard to tell, scouts are busy at work. Not answering the phone.
So we are left to ponder the draft on our own for a few minutes. I just had a look back at the Braves top draft picks over the last 20 drafts, going back to 1987. You wanna guess how many are looking like they were great picks? I see four.
I’m going to pause here, if you want to take time to guess. Pause, pause, pause.
Long pause.
OK, it’s:
1988 Steve Avery
1990 Chipper Jones
2000 Adam Wainwright
2002 Jeff Francoeur
Three of the four should be self-explanatory. And the fourth? Wainwright counts as a guy I bet the Braves probably wish they had back right now. They traded him to the Cardinals in the deal for J.D. Drew, a one-year rental. Worth it? Not so sure. That’s also when they parted with Jason Marquis. That’s not looking that great at the moment either.
Wainwright was stellar as a last-minute closer in the World Series last year. He’s had a so-so go so far in the St. Louis rotation this season, but with the way things are going in the Braves rotation at the moment, they could surely use him. And let’s see how his career plays out.
Anyway, the Braves won the division in 2003 and that’s what they were going for, so they have their arguments to make on that deal.
Part of drafting well is getting good trade material. It doesn’t mean you should keep everybody you draft. Having Wainwright to trade for a high caliber free agent should say something too. And that fact - wanting trade fodder - is something else that makes baseball different from the NFL and NBA.
OK, wait…..just got a call back from Kemp. And we have a few points of clarification on what the draft room looks like.
“Huge, big war room. Table, computers, big screen, enough food to sustain everybody for 10 or 12 days. It’s an information center (to access) about a year’s worth of work in 10-12 days’ span. You have everything at your disposal, from reports to video.”
How could I have forgotten the computers in the draft room? I should be ashamed. I think I was right about the cinderblocks though. It’s in a room on the service level of Turner Field, same level as the clubhouses and the tunnel and little golf-carts that go whizzing by at 40 mph.
Anyway, the draft room is buzzing with possibilities as the Braves have four picks in the top 80, including 14th overall. Fourteenth is the Braves highest first round pick in at least 15 years. Not winning the division has one advantage.
And as compensation for free agent Danys Baez (signed by the Orioles), the Braves also get a supplemental first round pick at No. 33 and a second round pick at 69. The Braves also have their normal second round pick at No. 78.
Their goals as they prepare to draft? “Best available player,” Kemp summarized.
With baseball players typically years away from being ready for the majors, teams usually don’t really go on a need-based proposition. That’s probably how the Braves and other teams sometimes end up with their best prospects - Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Yunel Escobar - at positions that are locked up at the moment. But that’s just the nature of the beast.
But how about, just for fun, folks, get out the wish list. What do you want? What kind of player would you like to see the Braves draft?
You’ve got three days for your voices to be heard. As we know now (aha) the Braves scouting staff has computers in the war room. They’ll be quarantined down there until Thursday when Kemp, Paul Snyder and Ralph Garr head to Orlando for the first and supplemental rounds to be televised by ESPN2. Surely they read our esteemed blog.
And before I forget, here’s a list of the Braves top draft picks of the last 20 years.
1987 P Derek Lilliquist
1988 P Steve Avery
1989 C Tyler Houston
1990 SS Chipper Jones
1991 OF Mike Kelly
1992 P Jamie Arnold
1993 OF Andre King*
1994 P Jacob Shumate
1995 P Chad Hutchinson **
1996 1B A.J. Zapp
1997 SS Troy Cameron
1998 P Matt Belisle*
1999 P Mattheaus Butler*
2000 P Adam Wainwright
2001 P Macay McBride
2002 OF Jeff Francoeur
2003 P Luis Atilano
2004 3B Eric Campbell*
2005 P Joey Devine
2006 OF John Johnson
*second round picks, Braves had given up first round picks as compensation for free agents
**did not sign
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