The draft started on a chilly, January day, right at noon. We all new it was going to be a long day, but there was so much excitement in the room!!
Our strategy: After more meetings then I care to remember, we decided on this strategy for our early picks.
1. Stud SP - preferably left handed
2. Corner infielder, Centerfielder, or Catcher
3. Have our rotation, at least four starters, by the 15th/16th pick.
4. Have our complete starting lineup by the 25th pick.
5. After pick 25/26, look at players that will help us in the future.
So with that in mind, away we went!!!!
The very first pick in the draft went to Albany, and to no one's surprise, they chose SP Sean Bane.
We were able to get a few breaks, as there were clearly some surprises, so with our first ever draft pick, and to our delight, we chose:
Heida moved to the US with his family when he was 11. A dominant hurler in HS, he went on to a decent college career. To get him with our first pick, and a lefty to boot, there were "high fives" all around the room.
With our second pick, and sticking to our plan we went with third baseman Stanley Harris. Like Heida, at 22
he should only get better, and he clearly stuck out at the last workout we attended.
Our third pick was the "speedy" outfielder we were looking for, and early on, it seemed everything was going according to plan.
Hang in there, as I will list our next two picks tomorrow, to round out our top five, and then summarize the rest of the draft.