[ayaghmour2]

5th Round, 105th Overall: SS Bill Ketchum
School: Plymouth Vikings
Commit School: Garden State
1975: .438/.512/.745, 163 PA, 21 2B, 3 3B, 5 HR, 39 RBI, 10 SB
Career: .455/.538/.766, 551 PA, 87 2B, 6 3B, 14 HR, 126 RBI, 29 SB

The first, and maybe only, bust of the draft, I knew I was reaching when I took Bill Ketchum but we really needed a shortstop and the guy I wanted to take was already gone. Someone OSA is a fan of, calling him a "reliable hitter in the organization's grand scheme" even in May, I think Harry Carr is more accurate in expecting him to end up on a bench. To be fair, that's not usually that bad outside of the top-100, but there are a lot of guys I thought about here that would have been much better options. On a downward trend, he seemingly peaked as a sophomore, where he hit .484/.579/.810 with 34 doubles, 4 homers, 41 RBIs, 71 runs, and 41 walks. Aside from home runs, pretty much everything was best here, but he's a projectable picked based off pure athleticism. He's not fast, which is what limits his overall ability. but the bat can keep him progressing even if he has to move off of short. We'll give it to him to start, but his bat is really what drew me to him initially. He has a great swing and a plus-plus hitting ability, so if he can just get there the rest doesn't really matter. With his natural strength he has to at least hit doubles, but I can see low double digit homers as a respectable end result. The young left is a prototypical table setter, but with at best average speed he may not be the run scorer we need.

6th Round, 129th Overall: RHP Tom Ballard
School: Bouckville Yellowjackets
Commit School: Oglethorpe College
1975: 3-1, 52.2 IP, 1.03 ERA, 0.76 WHIP, 11 BB, 94 K
Career: 13-1, 2 SV, 179.2 IP, 0.90 ERA, 0.73 WHIP, 38 BB, 322 K

Basically a gamble in the 6th, Tom Ballard has to be the most interesting pitching prospect I've ever seen. Clocking in below 80, he was called an ace, and even now both Carr and OSA place him in a future FABL rotation role. The soft-tosser did end up losing during his Bouckville career, finishing 13-1 in three seasons, and despite never throwing too many innings he did well as a starter and reliever. It's worth attempting that at some point, as in seasons with a lot of double headers it can be advantageous to have a pen guy who can give you a spot start. If all the arms in front of him hit, that's the role he could end up in, as his command is great and his pitches are tough to elevate.

Using his sinker a majority of the time, what will determine his rotation success is the curve, as it needs to be a whiff generator. If he can put batters away and not have to rely on getting weak contact, he could thrive with a great defensive infield, and if you know me you know that we are going to have one of those. This crop of groundballers could all end up pitching together, as all four arms got rotation grades and are at least a groundball pitcher. There's plenty of talent to go around, and Lions fans will be treated to some excellent baseball once that season starts post-draft. Most of the guys currently in the system aren't, with 82nd ranked prospect Bill Bartlett the notable exception, and while unintentional this year, it represented an organizational shift for the Cougars. That's not to say only the groundballers get benefits from Lorang, Halliday, and Harris, but Jim Norris (3-1, 2.59, 13) has had the most success and he's the lone groundball guy in the rotation. All these guys are in a good environment, and we have chance to produce most of a rotation from one class.

7th Round, 153rd Overall: 3B Al Hall
School: Hopkinton Falcons
Commit School: Plantations College
1975: .489/.584/.865, 180 PA, 28 2B, 2 3B, 7 HR, 46 RBI
Career: .477/.578/.814, 725 PA, 119 2B, 8 3B, 19 HR, 174 RBI

The hardest guy to search for in-game (there's a lot of -al Hall's), the elusive Al Hall could end up the steal of the draft. Someone I was really back and forth on a lot, I took the four-year starter in the 7th, and with a big senior year he backed the flashy comments made about him. Whether you want to call it "dynamic" like OSA or "obvious" like Harry Car, the talent is lauded, and when you combine natural talent with work ethic the sky really is the limit. Inside of Carr's top 100, he's one of his favorite prospects in the draft, and it's easy to see why. After hitting 4 homers in each of his first three seasons, Hall crushed 7 longballs in 180 PAs -- which was actually his second lowest count. Ending up a homer shy of 20, and unlike Ketchum he reversed his negative trends. With an above average eye and and plus-plus contact ability, he could be a middle-of-the-order hitter, and even if he's a skinny 6'3'' there's now power. If he can keep building strength, we could have someone to actually challenge Tom Lorang, which sounds insane when directed at a 7th Round pick. He's definitely far from there, but his potentials show a complete player. If you need a weakness it's speed, he's probably the slowest guy out there, but when you have a knack for hitting it where they ain't, you have more then enough time to get to first. I'm probably getting a little too excited about him, but we have nearly nothing prospect wise at third and he should be the clear heir apparent to our Hall-of-Fame third basemen.

And it may be a good one too! This guy can really hit!!!