Headlined by the best player of a generation, the 2009 draft has emerged as one of the best draft classes in the 21st century. One of the most recognized faces in baseball today, Mike Trout already is a two-time MVP and five-time Silver Slugger. In six full seasons in the majors, Trout has finished no [...]
The top of the 2008 Draft was defined by signability. Buster Posey was in the running for top overall pick until it was suggested that he was going to ask for $12 million, which took him out of the running. Scott Boras was advising several of the top talents, including Pedro Alvarez, Gerrit Cole and [...]
For the first time in this Mets360 series, it feels like bWAR numbers are not reflective of a draft’s impact. The 2007 edition does not have anyone from its top 100 with a career bWAR over 40 (each of the previous two drafts had three), but it features multiple Cy Young Award winners and MVPs [...]
After back-to-back years where a combined 53 of the 30 first-round picks made the majors, the 2006 Draft saw 23 selections make the majors. Of those, five saw a career with negative bWAR value, including the second-overall pick. But there were three guys who were the clear cream of the crop among the top 100 [...]
There is a superstition that bad things come in threes. That certainly seems to have held true for the first half dozen Major League Baseball Amateur Drafts of the 21st century – even the ones dripping with talent, like the 2005 edition. The Seattle Mariners’ selection of catcher Jeff Clement with the third pick of [...]
After a relatively poor draft in 2003, the top 100 of 2004 showed up to restore our faith in both the talent of U.S. amateurs and the ability of organizations to identify that talent. All told, 27 of the first 30 picks made the majors, with 22 of those 27 providing positive bWAR values. There [...]
While the Mets360 draft series is still in relative infancy, there is a very good chance the 2003 draft will go down as the least flashy of the bunch when the series concludes. Looking at the previous three drafts dissected in this exercise, each has had a minimum of three players among the top 100 [...]
Today we examine our third draft. The 2000 Draft was kind of a bust and the 2001 was essentially a top-heavy affair, at least among the top 100 picks, which is the extent of our look. It appears that there was better drafting – or better players – in the first round of 2002 but [...]
The 2001 draft started with a bang and – outside of a handful of hits beyond the first half dozen picks – fizzled considerably as it climbed toward 100. Five of the first six players selected in 2001 have posted a career bWAR in double digits. However, only five of the remaining 94 players in [...]
If nothing else, hopefully having the team’s top minor league affiliate in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League the past several years has taught individuals the need for context. An .800 OPS in the International League is a different beast than the same mark in the PCL. Perhaps nowhere is context needed more than with the [...]
Former Baseball Prospectus writer Joe Sheehan posted the following nugget on Facebook the other day: "The #Twins’ improved run prevention is entirely coming on contact. Last year, the Twins allowed a .320 batting average on balls in play, with 356 doubles and triples conceded. This year, the Twins have allowed a .298 BABIP, and 300 [...]
In yesterday’s article about Brandon Nimmo, a side thread in the comments section developed about Nori Aoki, specifically his contract status and the viability of bringing him back as a reserve outfielder in 2018. Commenter Pete In Iowa expressed this opinion: What’s all this crap about the $7 – $8 million Aoki would get being [...]