Draft Report Cards: American League West

By Jim Callis
October 25, 2006

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See also: American League East Draft Report Cards
See also: American League Central Draft Report Cards

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LOS ANGELES ANGELS

Best Pro Debut: C Hank Conger (1) batted .319/.382/.522 before breaking the hamate bone in his right wrist, and ranked as the No. 1 prospect in the Arizona League. 1B Matt Sweeney (8) hit .341/.431/.576 to earn all-star honors in the AZL, while OF Chris Pettit (19) batted .336/.445/.566 with a league-high 25 doubles to do the same in the Pioneer League.

Best Athlete: OF Clay Fuller (4). He has good bloodlines, as his brothers Cody and Lance and father Kenny all played football at Texas Tech--and Clay can outrun all of them.

Best Pure Hitter: Conger was drafted for his bat, though his catching is also improving and he should be able to stay behind the plate. He didn't receive as much predraft hype, but Sweeney is nearly as gifted.

Best Raw Power: Conger has well-above-average power from both sides of the plate, more as a lefty. He also makes very good contact for a slugger.

Fastest Runner: Fuller has plus-plus speed and stole 15 bases in 19 tries during his 46-game pro debut.

Best Defensive Player: Fuller, once he adds a little more polish in center field. 2B Tadd Brewer (17) was the best defensive infielder signed by the Angels.

Best Fastball: Of the players the Angels signed out of the 2006 draft, it's RHP David Herndon (5), who pitches at 90-93 mph and tops out at 95. They still control the rights to RHP Jordan Walden (12), who has hit 99 mph in the past and currently is at San Jacinto (Texas) JC.

Best Breaking Ball: LHP Chris Armstrong's (14) curveball. He would have gone higher in the draft had he not been committed strongly to Oklahoma State.

Most Intriguing Background: Fuller was just one of several prominent two-sport athletes drafted by Los Angeles. The most notable is OF Jarrad Page (7), who had an impressive Angel Stadium workout before signing with the NFL's Kansas City Chiefs as a hard-hitting safety. RHP Jake Locker (40) was arguably the best athlete in the 2006 draft, but he too turned down baseball and is now a quarterback at Washington. RHP Scott Carroll (16), a former Purdue and Missouri State quarterback, might have signed if he hadn't been shut down while pitching in the Cape Cod League. Unsigned 6-foot-8 RHP Jon Plefka (47) is a forward on the Texas Tech basketball team.

Closest To The Majors: LHP Nate Boman (9) sat out the spring recovering from labrum surgery, but returned to show solid stuff and polish in the Cape Cod League. He's the most advanced player in Los Angeles' high school-heavy draft.

Best Late-Round Pick: Armstrong. Though he's just 5-foot-10, he has a bulldog mentality, quick arm and an 88-91 mph fastball that runs and sinks to go with his curve.

The One Who Got Away: Locker, though the Angels knew he was virtually unsignable. They expected to land hard-hitting OF Russ Moldenhauer (3) and met his $425,000 asking price, but he opted to attend Texas.

Assessment: Conger becomes one of the game's best catching prospects and added to an organization strength. Not having a second-round pick and failing to sign their third-rounder hurt, though the blow was lessened by landing prime draft-and-follow Sean O'Sullivan.

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OAKLAND ATHLETICS

Best Pro Debut: As an 18-year-old in the short-season Northwest League, OF Matt Sulentic (3) hit .354/.409/.479. OF Jermaine Mitchell (5) was older but just as impressive in the NWL, hitting .362/.460/.507 with 14 steals. RHP Scott Moore (23) had a 1.29 ERA, nine saves and a 30-5 K-BB ratio in 21 innings, mostly in the NWL.

Best Athlete: A two-way player in junior college, Mitchell has hitting ability, power potential, more speed than the A's realized and center-field skills. The Athletics drafted more well-rounded athletes than they usually do, also picking up OFs Angel Sierra (8) and Toddric Johnson (14).

Best Pure Hitter: Sulentic won the Dallas metroplex high school triple crown with a .676-19-58 performance, the best numbers posted in the area in a decade. He's not physically imposing at 5-foot-10 and 170 pounds, but he's a gifted hitter with surprising pop and was able to bat .235 in low Class A in August. Early in his NWL career, an opposing team came out to watch him take batting practice after hearing the sound the ball made coming off his bat.

Best Raw Power: Mitchell's edge in size (6 feet, 200 pounds) gives him the edge in pop over Sulentic.

Fastest Runner: Mitchell or Sierra. Mitchell accelerates more quickly and has been timed as fast as 3.9 seconds from the left side of the plate to first base. Sierra would beat him in a 60-yard dash. He was part of a high school relay team that set a Puerto Rican record with a 42.78-second time in the 4x100 relay.

Best Defensive Player: OF Larry Cobb (27) is an above-average center fielder who showed the ability to play at least an average second base in instructional league. Mitchell also does a nice job.

Best Fastball: RHP Chad Lee (4), who created barely a blip on the scouting radar before this year, pitches from 91-95 mph. RHP Andrew Bailey (6) had Tommy John surgery in 2005 and got back to 92-93 mph last spring, and he could rebound further in 2007.

Best Breaking Ball: LHP Ben Jukich (13) used his hard curveball to lead NAIA pitchers in strikeouts (144) and strikeouts per nine innings (13.7). He had 50 whiffs in 50 pro innings and finished the summer in the Midwest League playoffs. RHP Trevor Cahill (2), Oakland's top pick, has a spike curveball with sharp downward break.

Most Intriguing Background: SS Christian Vitters' (10) younger brother Josh is one of the top high school hitters available in the 2007 draft. The A's draft-and-followed the sons of farm director Keith Lieppman (1B Burke, 33) and former big leaguers Dave Cochrane (C Steve, 34) and Nelson Simmons (RHP Goldy, 40). OF Lorenzo Macias' (28) brother Drew plays in the Padres system, while RHP Matt Manship's (29) brother Jeff signed with the Twins as a 14th-round pick.

Closest To The Majors: The Athletics need lefthanded pitching, and they'll push Jukich because he's already 24.

Best Late-Round Pick: Jukich and Moore. Moore scared off some scouts with his 6-foot-2, 245-pound frame, but he has a low-90s fastball, an effective slider and the ability to throw strikes.

The One Who Got Away: Oakland took late-round fliers on potential five-tool OF Jon Pigott (31, now at Florida) and LHP Nick Hernandez (32, Tennessee), who has touched 90 mph.

Assessment: Despite lacking a first-round pick, the A's still hauled in an interesting mix of hitters and pitchers. Athletic OF Shane Keough also was one of the best draft-and-follow signings from the 2005 draft.

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SEATTLE MARINERS

Best Pro Debut: Though he was an 18-year-old from the non-hotbed of Wisconsin, LHP Tony Butler (3) pitched as well in the Northwest League as he did in Rookie ball, going a combined 3-2, 2.72 with 77 strikeouts in 56 innings. RHP Austin Dirkx (16) had a 1.64 ERA, five saves and 49 strikeouts in 38 innings--including five whiffs in a two-inning Triple-A stint.

Best Athlete: OF Gavin Dickey (12) was a backup quarterback at Florida. He's still raw with the bat, but he has arm strength and uses his speed well on the bases and in the outfield.

Best Pure Hitter: SS Chris Minaker (10) improved in each of his four years at Stanford, setting career highs across the board as a senior last spring. He continued to hit in pro ball, batting .315 with four homers in 40 games in low Class A.

Best Raw Power: The Mariners knew that C Adam Moore (6), who missed all of 2005 with a knee injury, had power. They've also been pleased with the improvement he has shown throwing and receiving since turning pro, and they believe he can stay behind the plate.

Fastest Runner: Dickey has plus speed and stole 16 bases in 18 attempts in pro ball.

Best Defensive Player: Seattle didn't sign any premium defenders. Dickey still needs work on his routes and instincts, but he has the potential become an above-average center fielder.

Best Fastball: The Mariners needed power arms and they tried to load up on them. RHP Brandon Morrow (1) pitches in the mid-90s and has topped out at 99 mph. Butler worked at 86-87 mph for much of the spring before suddenly soaring to 93-95 mph, and he stayed there in pro ball. RHPs Justin Souza (9) and Aaron Solomon (11) have touched 96, while RHPs Chris Tillman (2) and Ricky Orta (4) can get to 94.

Best Breaking Ball: Tillman and Butler have a chance to develop outstanding curveballs. Tillman has more power to his breaker, while Butler's is tough on righthanders because it breaks down and in on them.

Most Intriguing Background: Minaker not only graduated from Stanford, but he completed a master's degree in sociology in his four years there. OF Stan Posluszny's (34) brother Paul is a Penn State football star who won the Bednarik (nation's top defender) and Butkus (nation's top linebacker) awards in 2005. Unsigned RHP Bryan Earley's (44) father Bill pitched briefly in the big leagues. LHP Greg Moviel's (26) brother Paul pitches in the White Sox system.

Closest To The Majors: Morrow, who has a mid-80s slider to go with his heat, projects as a future closer and may not need much more than a full season in the minors before he's ready for Seattle.

Best Late-Round Pick: Dirkx' sinker and slider move so much that hitters have trouble making hard contact against him. RHP Kam Mickolio (18) can get inconsistent with his delivery, but he's 6-foot-9 and has flashed a 92-93 mph fastball.

The One Who Got Away: 3B Jared Baehl (14) was a two-way and football star in high school. His power potential is his best feature, and he'll show it off at Evansville.

Assessment: The Mariners addressed the lack of pitching in their system by signing arms with their first five and eight of their first 10 selections. Butler looks like one of the steals of the draft to this point.

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TEXAS RANGERS

Best Pro Debut: Little LHP Danny Ray Herrera (45) used his unhittable changeup with screwball action to go 4-3, 1.45 with a 72-12 K-BB ratio in 62 innings and reach high Class A. C Chad Tracy (3) and OF/1B Chris Davis (5) made the Northwest League all-star team. Tracy hit .262 with 11 homers, while Davis batted .277 with 15 blasts.

Best Athlete: OF Craig Gentry (10) is still raw, in part because he had Tommy John surgery and an infected knee while at Arkansas. But he's a graceful center fielder with well above-average speed and raw power. OF Grant Gerrard (7) is a 6-foot-4, 215-pounder with average to slightly above-average tools.

Best Pure Hitter: Tracy has a good approach and innate ability to center balls well on the bat. His power in his debut came as a bit of a surprise.

Best Raw Power: Navarro (Texas) JC coach Skip Johnson compared Davis to another of his former stars, Brad Hawpe, and Davis has more pop in his bat than Hawpe does. Davis also showed power on the mound in junior college, pitching at 90-92 mph when his back wasn't bothering him.

Fastest Runner: Gentry, who swiped 20 bases in 26 attempts as a pro.

Best Defensive Player: SS Marcus Lemon (4), who signed for $1 million, and Gentry are solid defenders up the middle. Lemon's hands and instincts enhance his average range. Some scouts questioned his bat, but he got off to a good start by hitting .310 in Rookie ball.

Best Fastball: LHP Kasey Kiker (1) is just 5-foot-11, but his quick arm and easy delivery allow him to unleash 90-93 mph heat and top out at 97. RHP Brennan Garr (9), a converted third baseman, can hit 95 mph. RHP Jake Brigham's (6) stock dropped when he struggled with his delivery this spring, but his fastball has touched 94.

Best Breaking Ball: Kiker's curveball. His changeup could give him a third plus pitch.

Most Intriguing Background: Listed at 5-foot-7 and 145 pounds--which may be generous--Herrera may be the smallest pitcher ever drafted. Tracy's father Jim manages the Pirates and played in the majors. Lemon's dad was a three-time all-star and now runs Chet Lemon's Juice, one of the nation's best AAU baseball programs. Unsigned OF Clint Stubbs' (49) brother Drew went eighth overall to the Reds in the 2006 draft.

Closest To The Majors: Herrera, because his changeup and location are exceptional. LHP Glenn Swanson, a draft-and-follow from 2005, also could move quickly in a lefthanded relief role.

Best Late-Round Pick: Herrera.

The One Who Got Away: RHP Brandt Walker (21) is wiry strong and features a nice three-pitch mix. He could contribute quickly at Stanford. The Rangers hoped to keep LHP Lance McClain's (24) rights by having him stay at national champion Walters State (Tenn.) CC, but he transferred to Tennessee.

Assessment: The Rangers hoped to get a quality lefthander with the 12th overall pick, and they accomplished that mission with Kiker. Tracy, Lemon and Davis all have some upside.