[ayaghmour2]

6th Round, 93rd Overall: LF Bob Rogers
School: Newman
Commit School: Eastern State
1943: .517/.569/.661, 138 PA, 14 2B, HR, 34 RBI, 8 SB
Career: .517/.569/.661, 138 PA, 14 2B, HR, 34 RBI, 8 SB

I forgot to turn my list off when I woke up this morning, and while Bob Rogers isn't a bad pick per say, it's probably not one that I would have made. To make matters worse, I now found out he's "Impossible" to sign, although we will do our best to convince him to forgo Eastern State just like our previous pick Lefty Jones. "Snoot" only started as a senior at Newman, but showed tremendous bat-to-ball skills and finishing with the second highest batting average for any draft eligible player. He won't draw many walks or hit for much power, and despite just two sentences in his scouting report, the third one from Tom Weinstock says Rogers "has the talent to flourish in the majors." I'm not too sold on that, but his hit tool is very exciting, and worst case he should be a decent pinch hitter off the bench if you need someone to put the ball in play. We may not be able to sign him, which would kind of suck, but we have a huge draft budget and are still well under budget.

7th Round, 109th Overall: CF Alex Snyder
School: Arkansas A&T
1943: .270/.370/.369, 299 PA, 7 2B, 6 3B, 2 HR, 35 RBI, 34 SB
Career: .270/.370/.369, 299 PA, 7 2B, 6 3B, 2 HR, 35 RBI, 34 SB

After patiently waiting his turn as a freshman and sophomore, Alex Snyder finally got his shot as a junior, and he put together an excellent season for the Badgers. A quick and athletic outfielder, Snyder spent most of his time out in center, but filled in a bit at left, right, and first as well. He had a nice .270/.370/.369 in one of the toughest NAIA conferences. He also swiped 34 bases and scored 50 times with more walks (41) then strikeouts (29). He won't hit for much power, and is more of a groundball hitter, but he looks to be a prototypical leadoff hitter who can beat out slow rollers while always looking to take the extra base. Tom Weinstock is a big fan of his defense, and he thinks Snyder has one of the best outfield arms he's ever seen. With the arm and impressive range he can be a top defensive center fielder, and gives me shades of Tom Taylor, just without the bat. We do have some outfield depth in the system, so Snyder will be the last outfielder we take, but I can still see Snyder starting off in San Jose instead of La Crosse. Somewhat surprisingly, Snyder actually checks in on the Mock, projected a pick above Bill Holloway at 3.12.

8th Round, 125th Overall: SS Tom Brownleaf
School: Durant
Commit School: CC Los Angeles
1943: .450/.523/.658, 130 PA, 14 2B, 3 3B, HR, 32 RBI, 14 SB
Career: .270/.370/.369, 299 PA, 7 2B, 6 3B, 2 HR, 35 RBI, 34 SB

I usually draft a ton of middle infielders, but the switch hitter from Oklahoma is the first one we've taken since the 2nd Round. Brownleaf didn't start until he was was a senior, where he put up 2.1 WAR in 26 games. A very disciplined hitter, he walked (15) twice as often as he struck out (7), and should be able to keep that up as he rises through the minors. Tom Weinstock thinks he could hit around .300 when fully developed, which is a much higher projection then OSA. Both think he's better off as a bench bat then a starter, but he has good speeds, hits from both sides of the plate, and should be a decent defender at short. He's young and has a lot of time to improve, but it's always nice when a guy can cover many positions for you. He reminds me a lot of Eddie Curtis, who was a 7th Rounder and has stuck on because of his versatility. The war opened up a lot of positions, and now with the Freddie Jones trade he has a shot to stick. Brownleaf could follow the same path, and as a switch hitter with speed he already has a built in advantage.