IBC

Being off work for Christmas break means I have nothing to do and I noticed a lot of gimmicks I did last year so I'm continuing them.

Round 2 Pick 14: Lonnie Chisenhall

In a deal with Nils I swapped my first for his second and still wound up with the highest rated position player on my board. Lonnie was shortstop in junior college so this was another case of me drafting another SS of the future. Of course the Indians promptly moved him to 3rd. Lonnie had a nice stint in the Carolina League but struggled when promoted to AA. Still the future is bright and he could be in the majors in September if everything goes right.

Round 2 Pick 30: Jordan Lyles

I didn't know who I wanted with this pick and decided at the last minute I needed a starter. Only problem was I couldn't find anything on Lyles, there were few scouting reports from draft sites because everyone figured he was going to South Carolina and wouldn't sign. I said what the hell because he struck out a bunch of guys and took him. Lyles wound up dominating the South Atlantic League and could potentially be studly. He's still a ways off but he is exciting.

Round 3 Pick 30: Jerome Hoes

Hoes was another attempt to get a middle infielder of the future. He had a really good debut in the GCL after being drafted and walked a lot, so he was my sleeper pick I was really excited about. Well he sucked this year, plain and simple. He barely managed a .600 OPS in the SALLY, didn't have a .300 OBP, the list goes on and on. I always give my draft picks 2 years because of what happened with Adam Jones, so he gets a shot to redeem himself this year.

Round 4 Pick 30: Kyle Russell

Russell was drafted the year before as a draft eligable sophomore by the Cards but they didn't fork out the money for him, the same year they didn't fork out the money to Rick Porcello and drafted Pete Kouzma instead. I figured he was worth taking this late. The good: 26 homers, .900 OPS, kills righties. The bad: A LOT of strikeouts and he was old for his league. When I took him it was my hope he could turn into a Russ Branyan type of ballplayer, someone to hit for power off the bench eventually and play first and left. This is the year we'll see if thats the case

Dan's post and the Cards imploding against the Brewers gave me an idea to follow this up.

The only one of these guys still on my team is LJ Hoes, who has good on base ability, hits for average and has no power to speak of. He's been moved from 2nd to the outfield but he's 21 in AA hitting .318 at the moment so I'll take it. Hopefully he'll turn out to be a good leadoff man in the future.

I cut Russell earlier this year. Still hits for a lot of power, still strikes out almost 40% of the time, is 25 and hasn't reached AAA yet. My modest Russ Branyan hopes are done, he's clearly going to be the old guy you sign to hit homers to appease fans in AAA for the next 8 years.

Lyles and Chisenhall went to Nick over the winter in my all in for 2011 trade to propel me back in the playoffs. Of course I didn't know Adam Wainwright needed Tommy John at the time, making the whole all in philosophy moot. Lonnie was having a decent season in AAA before getting called up and has struggled so far for the Tribe. Lyles has held his own since his callup, but the Astros are one of the worst teams of all time and just traded every good player they have, so he may not win a game all year.

All in all a pretty good draft for me, 2 top prospects, a young guy that's still establishing himself as a prospect and a 4th round miss on a power bat. Wish every draft could be this good