[Westheim]

2058 AMATEUR DRAFT

There was not much enthusiasm for this year’s draft, with even much goodwill not able to bring the hotlist to even ten players despite 137 players on the shortlist. And here were those nine hotlist players again (*high school player):

SP Ian Peters (15/14/13) * – BNN #9
SP Kelly Whitney (14/12/12) * – BNN #2
SP Paul Egley (13/13/15) *
SP Vince Ellison (13/13/12)

2B/SS Mark McCarty (12/10/14) *

OF Jake Evans (12/14/13) – BNN #7
OF Steve Scarpa (12/8/10) – BNN #5
OF Wade Griffith (12/7/12) * – BNN #10
OF Isaiah Birth (12/8/14) – BNN #4

The Raccoons had the #13 pick in every round as well as the tenth pick in the supplemental round, but the draft started with the Aces, and they went with outfielder Jake Evans. The Stars selected Ian Peters at #2, while the Cyclones used their #3 pick on outfielder Matt Ewig, who was not on the hotlist. *Interesting*. This was followed by left-hander Butch Money getting taken by the Thunder; Money had been mentioned in the original draft class summary as a “stuff, but…” sorta pitcher.

More hotlist outfielders then; Wade Griffith went #5 to the Rebs, and Steve Scarpa at #6 to the damn Elks. Indy took Kelly Whitney at #7, and fellow pitcher Paul Egley went to the Bayhawks at #8, followed by another “stuff, but…” pitcher, Bryce Wallace, going to the Titans. Vince Ellison was the #10 pick by the Condors, and that emptied the pitching side of the hotlist.

Mark McCarty and Isaiah Birth were the only players from the hotlist that remained for when the #13 pick came up; right-handed batting outfielder or left-handed batting infielder? Both had speed, and both had in common that OSA didn’t exactly share in our power potential enthusiasm. The Raccoons eventually settled on Birth, mostly because BNN had also taken a liking to him. McCarty would fall to the #26 pick, taking in the supplemental round by the Thunder.

With our own supplemental round pick we almost drafted outfielder Craig Pepper, who was attending Pepperdine University, and thus had undeniably the weird sense of humor that could make a player subsist in the wicked Raccoons farm system, and he was near the top of the board for us at that point, but we just couldn’t pass up on another player from Cali, right-hander John Bollinger. Pepper came close to falling to the Raccoons in the second round proper, but instead ended up staying in California when taken by the Bayhawks with the #57 pick.

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2058 PORTLAND RACCOONS DRAFT CLASS

Round 1 (#13) – OF Isaiah Birth, 20, from San Antonio, TX – right-handed hitting outfielder with a wide range and great speed, and capable of hitting for average, drawing walks, and having at least a bit of power. He also likes to collect and catalogue plant specimen. Weirdo.
Supp. Round (#32) – SP John Bollinger, 21, from Union City, CA – right-hander throws 94 with the heater and has neat curves, forks, and a changeup for variety. Main concern was stamina, which was a bit on the lower end, but still well workable for a starting pitcher.
Round 2 (#62) – 1B Alex Vargas, 18, from San Angelo, TX – switch-hitter that swings at pretty much everything, but if he actually meets the ball, the ball is usually out of sight in a hurry
Round 3 (#86) – C Jeremy Healy, 18, from Zion, IL – can hit for average and power, but his throwing arm is a bit on the softer side
Round 4 (#110) – SP Malik Padgitt, 21, from Los Angeles, CA – left-hander throws a mean changeup, but the 90mph fastball could use as much work as his overall control and command
Round 5 (#134) – SP Justin Clark, 18, from Tampa, FL – the stuff of 91mph heater, curve, change, and splitter – all serviceable – promises loads of befuddled hitters, while his lack of control promises frustration for catchers and coaches alike…
Round 6 (#158) – INF/RF/CF Joe Gardner, 18, from Springfield, MA – plays many positions well and can run like heck, but whether he ever amounts to much other than a singles slapper remains to be seen
Round 7 (#182) – RF/LF John Tyner, 17, from Allen, TX – bit of a longshot pick here, because his stats didn’t merit even being picked *this* high, but “Banjo” saw huge power potential here if a myriad of other issues could be sorted out, not least of which was Tyner talking to himself in the batter’s box to everybody’s annoyance…
Round 8 (#206) – CL Bobby Meagher, 20, from Roswell, GA – right-hander throws the heater at 91 and has high promise for the slider, but it’s not there yet
Round 9 (#230) – C Miguel Guinea, 18, from Ivins, UT – one for the curiosity cabinet, the left-handed hitting, weak-armed son of Nicaraguan-born beekeepers; some power potential, though.
Round 10 (#254) – LF/1B/RF Matthew DeHart, 19, from Harker Heights, TX – his report cards are full of remarks about his astounding laziness, which is all the more shame considering his undoubtable contact and eye potential; if he could at least be bothered to run after fly balls…!
Round 11 (#278) – SP John Wiemers, 17, from Kalispell, MT – left-hander (obviously) with a very nice curveball; unfortunately his heater barely reaches 85mph…
Round 12 (#302) – INF/RF Dan Roberts, 18, from Vancouver, WA – defensively versatile with a keen eye, but not much actual stick action
Round 13 (#326) – C Garrett Wackler, 18, from Denver, CO – made it on the shortlist, but all the way to the 13th round; Wackler is so-so behind the plate, and will mostly hit for singles, but has surprising speed and baserunning qualities for a catcher

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Of course there was also the accompanying purge in the minor leagues. All in all, 17 players were dismissed from the system, while all new draftees were sent to Aumsville.

Pitchers dismissed included left-hander Jim Hunt (2052, 12th round), who had run into a very dead end in Ham Lake, and from Aumsville the following personnel: Jalen Canady (2057, 9th round), Patrick Finney (2052, 11th round), and D.J. Spitler (2057, 12th round);

In Ham Lake we also dismissed the two primary catchers, batting .183 between them, 2055 third-rounder Corey Crawford and scouting discovery Generoso Castillo; also Aumsville catcher from Brazil and a $20k signing in the 2053 July IFA period, Teobaldo Escalante.

The group of position players situated in fair territory that was handed their papers was headed by 1B Pedro Rojas cut from the Alley Cats roster. Rojas, 26, had been a scouting discovery ten years ago and had played bit parts in Portland for the last three seasons, hitting .236 with no homers and 7 RBI there. He was now being crowded out by other first-sackers. In fact we had Joel Starr there pushing upwards to the big team, and two guys in Ham Lake trying to advance, Joe Agee and Forbes Tomlin. Also dismissed were Ham Lake outfielders Jason Robinson (2053, 13th round) and Justin Zych (2056, 8th round), and from Aumsville we axed 2055 second-rounder Tyler McGovern, an all-out bust that had been dragged around by his tail for three years now and had to make room.