[ayaghmour2]

5th Round, 78th Overall: RHP Hal Lewis
School: Tallmadge State Terriers
1949: 7-9, 139.1 IP, 4.13 ERA, 1.52 WHIP, 70 BB, 128 K
Career (COL): 14-14, 238.1 IP, 3.85 ERA, 1.47 WHIP, 116 BB, 221 K
Career (HS): 38-9, 492 IP, 1.35 ERA, 0.94 WHIP, 115 BB, 665 K

It finally happened! I got the guy I want!

Going back to the college ranks, we added another pitcher in 21-year-old Hal "Happy" Lewis, who was once drafted by the Boston Minutemen before heading to Tallmadge State. Happy was a standout pitcher as a freshman at Adams High School in Queens, where he burst onto the scene as a freshman. Happy dominated New York hitters, going 10-3 with a 1.01 ERA and 187 strikeouts in 133.1 innings pitched. He followed that up with a perfect 12-0 season, but he saw rises and falls in the categories where you would have preferred the other. That continued each of the next two seasons, as he went from a potential early round pick to falling all the way to the 10th.

He decided to bet on himself, foregoing the Minutemen organization to pitch for Tallmadge State. As in high school, he got off to a good start, going 7-5 with a 3.45 ERA, 1.40 WHIP, and 93 strikeouts in 14 starts, but again, a lot of his metrics went the wrong direction. Aside from making more starts and throwing more innings, his record, ERA, WHIP, BB%, K%, FIP, and home run rate all worsened. I'm hoping Lewis can right the ship as a junior, and you know me, I'll always bet on a hard worker like him. A five-pitch pitcher, Happy prefers quantity to quality, as he doesn't have a single dominant pitch while simultaneously having no useless pitch. If I had to pick a best pitch, its his sinker, as despite topping out at 87, it's a reliable offering that will improve if we can improve his arm strength. It's got good bite and is hard to square up, which will allow him to keep the ball in the park. He has a decent change too, but it's more of a work in progress then a go-to, but he's shown flashes of it turning into a strikeout pitch. The other three offerings aren't anything special, but Happy is the type of pitcher who embraces the "sum of the parts is greater then the whole" approach, as the threat of his secondary offerings will cause hitters to second guess their approach. If he can live on the corners, he'll find his way into a big league rotation, but his hopes are at the back end, not the front. But with his work ethic, he can surprise coaches and teammates alike, and I'm very excited to get a talented arm like him when there are very few of those left.

6th Round, 94th Overall: SS Gene Meeker
School: Glendora Tartans
1949: N/A
Career: N/A

With Gene Meeker falling to us in the 6th, it was back-to-back guys I wanted that I landed, as our draft fortune has started to change. I'm not necessarily surprised he fell, as he's a very risky pick that some might not want to take a shot since he hasn't played an inning of high school ball. But picture this: a kid from LA who doesn't really care too much, taking it easy and going with the flow. He's a town ball star, but now he's going to have to play a season of high school ball to be eligible for the draft. I needed a shortstop after I missed out on Walter Waters, as I trust Dixie Marsh who thinks he's going to be good. He's a short shortstop, so don't expect many home runs, but he almost feels like a right handed Skipper Schneider. Strong hit tool, good plate discipline, above average speed. Now before I get ahead of myself, I have no idea if Meeker is a passable, let alone excellent defender, and if I can get him to sign I expect him to play second, third, and short so I can get a look at the bat. We have a lot of good young infielders, so playing time will be tough to come by this year, so there's some pressure on him to show off this spring. I doubt he'll feel that pressure, or even know its on him, but I think he could be a good value pick in a deep draft.

7th Round, 110th Overall: RF Frank Hernandez
School: Houma Barons
1949: .457/.541/.793, 111 PA, 12 2B, 5 3B, 3 HR, 25 RBI, 27 SB
Career: .444/.530/.741, 353 PA, 36 2B, 14 3B, 7 HR, 76 RBI, 86 SB

I kept going back-and-forth on this one, but I eventually settled on half-Venezuelan outfielder Frank Hernandez. 18 in August, Hernandez is set to be a four year starter at Houma, where the speedy outfielder has already swiped 86 bases in 70 games. He's hit well too, batting .444/.530/.741 in 353 trips to the plate. Another hard worker, Hernandez is disciplined hitter who can hit the ball hard, but he's undersized for a corner bat and may not hit for the requisite power. Still, excellent speed and a strong bat can put him in a lineup, and if he's above average in the field it'll be acceptable. We have plenty of options in the outfield, so it may be tough for Hernandez to find at bats in his first year. His lack of versatility may work against him, but with his work ethic he'll always have a roster spot, and if he can continue to make improvements at the plate, he'll continue to hold a spot in one of our lineups.