[MrEndshiftresign]

6/22/2016

41-22, .651, 0 GB

Looking back at the draft - Year of the College Man

Suddenly, it wasn't a good year to be a high school kid and MLB draft-eligible.

Friends and family of pitcher Jesus Valentin an 18-year-old from Montrose, MI (by way of Camaguey, Cuba), were expecting him to be drafted in the Top 10, probably the third pitcher taken after Georgia high-schooler Conner Casey or Ball State's extremely polished hurler Allen "Pop" Cummings. Instead, he was the twelfth pitcher and only the second high school pitcher taken, going 23rd overall to the Boston Red Sox.

Neither Valentin nor family members were not available for comment, but Washington Nationals GM Homer Singson had an explanation for the trend. "College players are simply more ready for big league ball. Look at Piggy Kokawa of Pittsburgh - he played straight away in the majors, and just three years later he won a Cy Young. We drafted Dave Lawrence last year at the bottom of the first round, and he made it to our big league lineup this year. He's in Triple A now because our pitching staff is so deep, but in most other teams, he'd be ready to play a full (major league) season."

Those who agree with Singson are quick to point out the cases of CF Miguel Gomez, in his sixth minor league season after getting drafted third overall by Baltimore in 2010. Or how about 1B Jesus Collazo, the Yankees' seventh overall pick in 2012? Gomez is merely an average player with the Triple A Nashville Sounds while Collazo is still stuck at single A ball after four years. But then again, getting picked out of college isn't a sure shot for near-instant production in the majors. Drew Pomeranz, the 12th overall pick in the 2010 draft out of Mississippi, is still battling with control issues with the AA Akron Aeros. And 1B/3B/LF/underachiever Todd Inoue wore out his welcome with Singson's Nationals - he continues to dog it with Detroit's AA affiliate, the Erie Seawolves.

The 2016 draft was an especially collegiate-friendly draft. But is this the start of a new trend? Cummings and Detroit first-rounder Ryoichi Oike are two very pro-ready prospects, while Billy "Old School" Holloway, the third overall pick, is a track star (and nearly a 2016 Olympian) from the college ranks with old-school values and an ambition to "be the first major leaguer since the old days go 100-100-100 - RBIs, stolen bases and runs - with less than ten home runs."

Here are the 2016 first-round picks in the recently-concluded Amateur Draft:

1. MIL - Allen "Pop" Cummings (SP), Ball State
2. DET - Ryoichi Oike (SP), San Diego State
3. SD - Billy "Old School" Holoway (SS), "college" (created player)
4. PIT - Cam Magness (SP), Oklahoma State
5. ARI - Jeff "Cheese" Wamboldt (1B), St. Mary's (NS)
6. LAA - Myung-gu Kang (SP), Mississippi State
7. MIN - Conner Casey (SP), Johnson HS (GA)
8. NYY - Norberto Prieto (C), Mississippi
9. TPB - Michael "Bucky" Brown (CF), Manhattan
10. FLA - Alonso Serrano (LF), Long Beach State
11. PHI - Dave Kavanagh (RF), Bethel HS (OK)
12. CHS - Cheng-gong Yo (SP), Stanford
13. SF - Jing-song Qin (SP), "college" (failed to sign 2 years in a row!)
14. CHC - Andres Ortega (3B), Florida Atlantic
15. DET - Juan Jose Roman (SP), Arkansas
16. PIT - Andy Waller (SP), Oral Roberts
17. HOU - Alonso Roman (SP), Florida Atlantic
18. DET - Robert Wilson (SP), "college" (failed to sign)
19. DET - Roberto Fuentes (2B), Iona
20. TPB - Dave Cote (CF), Rice
21. ARI - Ethan Morris (SP), UC-Riverside (failed to sign)
22. CIN - Don Thexton (3B), Morehead State
23. BOS - Jesus Valentin (SP), Hill-McCloy HS (MI)
24. SD - Jimmy Richard (SP), Jefferson City HS (MO)
25. KC - Dan Puckett (RF), Lyndhurst HS (NJ)
26. ATL - Alonzo Prieto (RF), Rice
27. CHC - Tyler "Shadow" Davis (MR), LSU
28. COL - Curt Chappell (SP), Indiana
29. CIN - Mike Brewer (C), St. John's
30. MIL - Rafael Gonzalez (C), Texas-Arlington (failed to sign)
31. HOU - Iyasu Amiri (CF), Jessieville HS (AR)
32. ATL - Jason Hurren (LF), Madrid HS (IA)