Clubs are readying for today's Major League Baseball amateur draft with a tenacious belief that their picks will determine the future of the organization. In a way, they're right. A few will strike instant gold, picking the "can't miss" superstar, who actually doesn't miss. Most, however, will wind up striking out. These five ballclubs will have the first five selections:
Detroit,
Minnesota,
Pittsburgh,
Milwaukee and
Boston. Baseball experts predict that these players will be high on everybody's list:
1.
Ryan McDonald, 18 year-old CF out of high-school.
2.
Jaylin Harris, 22 year-old 2B out of college.
3.
Lalla Vega, 22 year-old SS out of college.
4.
Jose Lopez, 20 year-old 2B out of college.
5.
Zach McConkey, 18 year-old LHP out of high-school.
6.
Neil Toms, 22 year-old SS out of college.
7.
John Brown, 18 year-old LHP out of high-school.
8.
Randy Baum, 17 year-old 1B out of high-school.
9.
Nick Imbraguglio, 17 year-old LF out of high-school.
10.
Lishëndri Halii, 18 year-old LHP out of high-school.
1st Round, 1st Pick(1st overall)
Detroit Tigers select CF
Ryan McDonald(18, 0.5/5*) out of Valley Christian High School (San Jose, CA)
Average Competition: .613-29-72 2.375OPS 9.5WAR 40G
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $3.34M
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality:
Leader, Loyalty, Adaptability, Financial Ambition
Dubbed a future face of the franchise in the latest Baseball America Mock Draft,
McDonald brings elite 90 grade power potential with 85 eye potential and a lot of strikeouts to the plate, and a long way to the MLB level. Probably a corner outfielder instead of a center fielder, it will take him some time, but he could be a future home run king.
Seemingly cut his face off when I did the screenshot 
1st Round, 19th Pick(19th overall)
Toronto Blue Jays select 1B
Randy Baum(17, 0.5/5*) out of Spanish River High School
Average Competition: .503-23-63 1.878OPS 7.7WAR 43G
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $2.6M
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality:
Adaptability, Work Ethic
There was some pitching potential to be had when our turn to pick came, but we are pretty stacked on pitching and lack the franchise changing bat… maybe
Baum is the one. A potential 60/60/80/65/60 hitter with not much else, all will depend on his development process tho…
2nd Round, 17th Pick(56th overall)
Toronto Blue Jays select RHSP
Mat Rose(18, 1.5/3.5*) out of Christopher Columbus High School
Average Competition: 11-0 0.97 165K 6.8WAR 111.1IP 15GS
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $430k
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality:
Baseball IQ, Work Ethic,
Financial Ambition
We eventually tapped into the pitching depth of this draft, selecting the right-hander with a mid-90’s fastball, a devastating cutter and a changeup and slider as weaker pitches. His work often results in a lot of groundballs and he can work deep into ballgames, so he fits our profile like a glove.
3rd Round, 22nd Pick(8th overall)
Toronto Blue Jays select C
Peter Kilgore(18, 0.5/4.5*) out of Luther Prep High School
Average Competition: .468-12-51 1.561OPS 6.4WAR 44G
Signability: Impossible, Bonus Demand: ???
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality:
Loyalty, Adaptability, Financial Ambition, Work Ethic
Kilgore has a blue chip personality that also has the ability to be a good defensive catcher with a cannon of an arm and a 65/50/55/70/70 potential bat. The catch? He is quite committed to go to UAB, so signing him will be costly.
4th Round, 20th Pick(119th overall)
Toronto Blue Jays select RHRP
Jason Bixby(18, 1.5/4.5*) out of Tomahawk High School
Average Competition: 3-+0 12SV 1.13 78K 1.8WAR 39.2IP 17G/1GS
Signability: Extremely Hard, Bonus Demand: $130k
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: Unknown
A wannabe starter whose stamina does not hold up, he has four plus plus pitches in a fastball, curveball, sinker and cutter with mid-90’s velocity. The ability to avoid the home run or the walk may become a concern, but
Bixby could one day become a strong reliever…
5th Round, 20th Pick(149th overall)
Toronto Blue Jays select LHSP
John Hall(22, 1.5/3.5*) out of Stanford University
Great Competition: 8-4 3.00 114K 2.8WAR 114IP 17GS
Signability: Easy, Bonus Demand: $20k
Injury Proneness:
Durable
Personality:
Leader
Junior college lefty that should be another good groundball pitcher one day with three strong and two waste pitches and good stamina.
6th Round, 20th Pick(179th overall)
Toronto Blue Jays select RHSP
Greg Toomey(22, 1.5/3.5*) out of CSUSM
Great Competition: 8-4 3.00 114K 2.8WAR 114IP 17GS
Signability: Easy, Bonus Demand: slot
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality: unknown
Similar to
Hall, Junior College groundballer with some upside, just pitching from the right side.
7th Round, 20th Pick(209th overall)
Toronto Blue Jays select RHSP
Alejandro Melendez(18, 1/3.5*) out of Carlos Colon Burgos High School
Average Competition: 7-2 1.06 141K 5.5WAR 93IP 12GS
Signability: Hard, Bonus Demand: slot
Injury Proneness:
Durable
Personality:
Financial Ambition, Leader, Loyalty
High school righty that dropped down because of his personality, he still is a good pitching prospect due to his strong cutter.
8th Round, 20th Pick(239th overall)
Toronto Blue Jays select 1B
George Capen(22, 1.5/3.5*) out of College of William & Mary
Great Competition: .308-17-66 1.041OPS 4.4WAR 66G
Signability: Easy, Bonus Demand: slot
Injury Proneness: normal
Personality:
Adaptability, Work Ethic
A weird story this guy. A dynamite defender all over the infield, just… he is afraid of turning a double play after a collision as a young kid… so he is incapable of playing anything other than first base. Still a solid hitter and a potential Gold Glover at first… we don’t know where his story will end.