[ayaghmour2]

We didn't get to the 9th and 10th round live this year, but there were still a bunch of guys that I liked. For any players that I actually would have taken, I'll write a report on those picks after the 8th Round (in a different post), but the rest I'll just include basic information. Any guy that doesn't have anything justifying him being taken, I'll release them. This is usually guys with pathetic stats or no playing time. Most of my picks have to be signed, as the only guys in the first 20 rounds to sign were my my 9th, 11th, 15th, 16th, and 18th round picks signed automatically. 21st-25th Round Picks signed automatically.

6th Round, 90th Overall: LF Bobby Mills (San Antonio HS Warriors): The first of three six round picks, I think Bobby Mills is going to be an excellent big league player. He hit .375/.443/.631 (214 OPS+) with 24 homers, 25 steals, and 105 RBI's in three high school seasons. He's an extremely gifted hitter with 20/20 potential and he almost never strikes out. Just 25 (compared to 60 walks) in 540 trips to the plate and his discipline is one of his many strengths. He makes consistent contact and can hit the long ball, while also a dependable defender outfielder in left. It's a little shocking he was available in the 6th, as his track record is impressive and at least my scout is a big fan, but he does have a high bonus and he's extremely hard to sign.

6th Round, 92nd Overall: SS Ducky Jordan (Little Rock HS Pioneers): "The Hot Springs Hotshot" played in his home state of Arkansas for High School and started at shortstop for three seasons for the Pioneers. The switch hitter had great numbers, batting .324/.383/.512 (143 OPS+) with 12 homers, 24 steals, and 75 RBI's. He was a solid defender, but really excelled as a senior, recording a +9.3 zone rating and 1.093 efficiency. He's really fast and excellent with the glove, but Jordan will have to keep showing promise with the bat. He did add power as as senior, hitting 7 homers, but I don't see him ever hitting many. He could turn into an Arnold Bower type player.

6th Round, 94th Overall: 2B Red Moore (Frankford State Owls): It actually looks like our actual 6th Round Pick signed, and the 21-year-old Moore will be assigned to Class B San Jose. While most of the top picks have not signed, Moore ranks as our 6th highest prospect and 101st in the league. With the Owls, Moore hit .351/.403/.517 (134 OPS+) with 14 homers, 20 steals, and 97 RBI's in 625 trips to the plate. Moore is a smooth defender at second and he led Frankford State in batting average this year, hitting .386. He's got good speed and good range and a lot of the things you look for in a second basemen. He's not much of a power hitter, but he profiles as a leadoff hitter who can occasionally go deep and will almost never strikeout. We don't have many middle infield prospects, and Moore has surpassed Homer Ray and Elmer Hutchins as the top 2B prospect in the system.

7th Round, 110th Overall: RF Reginald Westfall (Detroit HS Panthers): It was a big senior season for lefty Reginald Westfall who hit .317/.407/.596 (158 OPS+) with 11 homers and 44 RBI's in 189 trips to the plate. It's a big jump in power for Westfall who hit just 4 homers both as a sophomore and junior. He may not be a slugger in the majors, just 5'8'' 160, but he makes hard contact consistently and when he gets a hold of one he can hit one over the fence. He's working on developing his contact tool, but he's really showed improvement between last year and this year. He's also a passable defender with range really being the only weakness.

8th Round, 126th Overall: CF Elias Canady (Portland HS Jumberjacks): This was the last human pick for us, and readers may remember this youngsters name. He was featured in two reports last season:

During Spring Training:

CF Elias Canady (Portland HS Lumberjacks): The High School season just started this week, and no one had a better week then Elias Canaday. Possibly the hottest freshman last season, he had a dominant season where he hit .376/.438/.679 (210 OPS+) with 12 homers and 45 RBI's. In the high school leagues, it's very rare for a freshman to start and even rarer for them to put up this performance. In 5 games he hit 9-for-22 with 4 homers and 11 RBI's. Canady is one of my way-to-early potential #1 picks for the 1933 draft as he is filled to the brim with potential. He's got elite power and a keen eye which limits his strikeouts. Pitcher's don't usually want to throw to him, but it's really hard to get Canady to chase. It also appears he might be a decent defender as well and has the potential to stay in center long term. If he does, he's likely going to be one of the best CF of the 1940s in the FABL.

June 7th, 1931:

CF Elias Canady: Easily the best player on the roster, the sophomore is one of the best youngsters in the league. He hit .304/.372/.652 (183 OPS+) with 15 homers and 42 RBI's in another excellent season. The first was even better, as he hit .376/.438/.679 (210 OPS+) with 12 homers and 45 RBI's. Canady is extremely talented, a plus defender and amazing hitter. Not only do pitcher's hate facing him, he can draw a ton of walks with excellent plate discipline. He can hit any pitch and strikeouts should never be much of a problem for him. He's got the talent to be a franchise cornerstone and whatever team selects him in 1933 will be extremely lucky to have him.


So one in game year ago I declared that this guy would be a franchise cornerstone. And who could blame me? Look at those numbers as a high schooler! Two amazing seasons and my scout was drooling over his tools.

Well...

Then 1932 happened...

In 178 trips to the plate, Canaday hit.185/.247/.284 (33 OPS+) with 3 homers, 21 RBI's, and 45 strikeouts.

What happened here?

He fell so hard that his career batting line fell down to .289/.353/.539 (147 OPS+) despite OPS+ of 210 and 195 as a sophomore and junior. He hit a combined 27 homers with 87 RBI's his first season. The only thing that got better was his +7.0 ZR and 1.093 EFF in center, but it was just a nightmare for the Plant City, Florida native.

There's a lot to unpack here:

I have to imagine that his senior year was a fluke. He almost had a drop like Tom Taylor, who in 1928 and 1929 had 216 and 196 OPS+ before falling to 97 in 1930. He's rebounded a bit, recording an even 121 the past two seasons in Chicago, but even that huge drop was nowhere near Canady's. It is a super small sample size, just 40 games, but the scary thing was his strikeouts. He had more strikeouts this season then his first two seasons combined while his walk rating dropped. The power was non existent as well, but I have to believe this is just a 40 game slump. It's not all that rare for a player to have a bad month and a half in the majors, and this honestly could be Canady. It's hard to believe that a guy who was so highly rated and did so well as Canady would just totally suck now, but without being able to see his ratings there's no way to reassure myself.

The one thing on my side is his personality: "a student of the game, Canady will bust his tail to become better at his position."

I'm hoping Canady can prove the doubters wrong, and as an 8th Round Pick there's really no risk to me and I will give him every chance he can to regain his formerly elite form.