The NL is done now, so let's head over to the AL and see who was picked by the AL North squads.
Fargo Rat Bastids
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Fargo first rounder Gorkys Lira (nice name) projects to be a dominant closer once he fully develops. He has practically no weaknesses – his RH split isn’t ideal, but his other ratings more than make up for it. Good value for the 23rd pick. Fargo hasn’t signed their supplemental pick, 2 2nd rounders, or their 3rd round pick, but after that inked a few fringe major league players.
Final Analysis: Lira is a nice add, and will be dominant, and got a couple of other decent players too. Points off for not signing picks 2-5, but hey, it’s ploppie!
Grade: B-
New York Pride of the Yankees
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Top pick Endy Donatello is a quality masher, the exact type of player you’d expect New York to pick. He has very good contact, splits and batting eye as well, and looks to have a bright future at the plate. Defensively, he’s passable as a catcher, but should make up for the lack of defensive skills at the plate. He was a very good value pick at #27. Supp pick Gary Cuddyer is a nice pitching prospect that should end up making the majors. 2nd rounder 2B/CF Alex Chen was a nice value for where he was picked. In addition, they picked up a handful of useful relievers.
Final Analysis: Very deep draft for New York, the extra comp picks helped, but they certainly made the most of them.
Grade: A+
Sioux Falls Great Danes
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Top pick 2B Tommy Jordan is quite the threat at the plate, with tremendous contact, splits and batting eye. He doesn’t have huge power, but could still knock out 15-20 per season. Still, his biggest asset will be batting average and OBP, which he will excel greatly at. He also has superior baserunning skills, although only slightly above average speed. All in all, a very nice add for Sioux Falls. Supp pick Socks Quinn was a very nice value and should be a solid 2B or 3B in the majors. 2nd rounder Jacob Itou has to be considered a steal, and should be a dominant reliever in the bigs. 3rd rounder Elmer Jefferies could be a back of the rotation guy in the bigs. The next slew of picks also have potential to be role players at the major league level.
Flinal Analysis: An excellent draft for Sioux Falls that greatly improved their system.
Grade: A+
St. Louis Silver Sluggers
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St. Louis’s first rounder, RP Donne Forbes has caused quite the controversy due to some faulty info leaked by some usually trustworthy scouts. The issue has WhatIf Sports digging through thousands of old tickets, so the rumor has it. Although he may not be exactly what St. Louis thought, Forbes still looks like he’ll make quite the impact in the majors. His control, pitches, and LH split are outstanding, and has a good RH Split and GB/FB ratio. He has all the makings of a dominant closer. 2nd rounder Wallace Vernon can crush the ball, especially against lefties. His performance vs. righties is a slight concern, but not enough to prevent him from being a big time slugger. Their picks that followed featured some great defensive players, and some guys who can hold their own at the plate, and a couple of decent arms. Expect a few of these guys to see Major League playing time.
Final analysis: A very deep draft for St. Louis – despite the Forbes controversy!
Grade: A-