Yankees Draft Picks 2007

[jacksonianmarch]

Well, here they are....


1st- Andrew Brackman- SP- NC St- 6'11" power armed pitcher who can get the 4 seamer into the high 90s and can control the 2 seamer into the mid 90s. Has a knuckle curve and change that are raw but have projection. Tired arm is concerning. Personal issues cost him time as well. A projection pick, high risk, high reward type pitcher
Keith Law says
Brackman's a very tall, athletic, ex-basketball player with fairly clean arm action and a basically sound delivery. He has a superior fastball that could eventually overpower major league hitters. His power curveball will be an out-pitch to both righties and lefties. He shouldn't be rushed. Everything will improve with instruction and innings now that he is concentrating full time on baseball. He has a speciall arm with the chance to become a No. 1 starter, or at worst a No. 3.

2nd- Austin Romine- C- HS- Professional pedigree. Considered to be a very well polished catcher. Has great arm. Average to above average defensively. Has offensive projection.

3rd- Ryan Pope- SP- Savannah A&D- Dominated NAIA ball. 9 starts, 9 complete games, 4 shutouts, ERA 1.25, 65.0 IP, 74 K's, 6 walks, Opponents hitting a robust .149 off him. Was drafted later than expected. Can bring it mid 90s.

4th- Brad Suttle- 3b- UT - Switch hitting 3b, professional hitter, not much power. Slow runner. Considered the 32nd best prospect in the draft. Is a draft eligible soph and may be a tough sign.

5th- Adam Olbrychowski- RP- Pepperdine- A guy who had 2 awful yrs at Pepperdine then put together a solid 2007 where he had a sub 3 era and posted a career high in IP, K, and BAA. Unsure of his stuff. Will report on that when it is published. On this kid....
From Baseball America:
Pepperdine put one of its best arms into a role that made him tough for scouts to see, yet righthander Adam Olbrychowski still could go in the first six rounds. He's proven durable in a relief role and gets good sink on a low-90s fastball that touches 95, giving up just two homers in 60-plus innings. He doesn't throw consistent, quality strikes with his slider and changeup, so he doesn't get as many strikeouts as someone with his stuff could.

[jacksonianmarch]

thus far, I am content with the Brackman pick. The Romine pick is a good pick, except for the fact that Harvey was available. The Pope pick sounds like they may have gotten a steal if you go by the draftcast audio "experts". Suttle didnt have the best numbers in 06, but was lights out power and avg wise this yr at UT, but has projectability apparently and was absolutely drafted later because of bonus demands (Boras client). Still kinda upset we passed on Carpenter in that slot. Thus far, content with the 4, but could have been better.

[jacksonianmarch]

the draft guru's on other sites seem to love the Olbrychowski pick.

[jacksonianmarch]

1- Brackman- Interesting pick. High upside, Extremely high reward. May need TJ. Not the end of the world if he does. 6'11" and hasnt played a full season of baseball yet. Sits at 95 can touch 97 and has even more projectability. Harvey was on the board, but the fact that he was available at our 2nd pick makes me very happy with this pick

2- Romine- I dislike this pick, not the player. What made me like the Brackman pick makes me hate this pick. Harvey was available, and we take a HS kid who is ssentially a safe pick. A solid D, fantastic arm, projectable defense catcher who is raw offensively yet has a lot of projectability. If Harvey wasnt available, I'd like this pick a whole lot more, and he will likely be a solid pick for us as he climbs the minors, but we passed with a pick in the 90s on a pitcher who should have been a top 10.

3- Pope- No SR on him, but got enough from the draft audio. The "experts" loved him. Multiple pitches, great control, can get it up into the mid 90s. I like this pick. He fell because he pitched in the NAIA at Savannah A&D. When I was in college 4 yrs ago, we played Savannah A&D and they were good. I was at a DII powerhouse too (2 CWS appearances in my 4 yrs). So they are pretty good, likely an equivalent of a lower tier DI school or an upper level D2 team. I like this pick. From the sounds of it, it is a safer pick.

4. Suttle- GREAT pick after consulting with the draft gurus and seeing the BA rankings. A guy who should have gone in the comp round, but fell due to his 1mil asking price. Switch hitting, professional hitter with power projectability and a guy who dominated this yr at UT. High risk in that he might not sign (draft eligible sophomore) but high reward if he does.

5. Olbrychowski- a sinkerballer who sits low 90s and can get it up to mid 90s. He's a starter by trade but threw in relief for Pepperdine because they lacked a closer. A safer pick. Limited projectability with his curve and change, mid rotation to back end potential, high likelihood that he'll reach it.

Overall, the Brackman and Suttle picks are very high risk with the potential for great reward. Pope (the control master with possible power projectability) and Olbrychowski look like they are the safer pitching picks. Romine looks like he has limited top tier potential, but is a safer pick as a catcher because of his defensive skills. Overall, I'd give this draft a B+ right now based upon where guys were projected to go and where they actually went. Harvey at 2 would have made this an A.

[jacksonianmarch]

Interesting. BA rated Suttle the best pure hitter in the draft. SIGN THIS KID.

[jacksonianmarch]

http://newyork.yankees.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20070607&content_id=2011635&vkey=news_nyy&fext=.jsp&c_id=nyy

Oppenheimer likes his picks. Says Olbrychowski throws 92-96. Thats pretty good for a guy who doesnt throw a 4 seamer (his fastball is a 2 seam sinking FB).

[jacksonianmarch]

6th round pick: Richard Weems C Columbus HS

Watched the scouting video of him. He had 5 throws to the bases and wasnt accurate. He has a hitch in his delivery as well that will add maybe a tenth of a second. He stays upright in his stance and looks like he could have a nice gap to gap stroke, but he also has a lot of forward drift which will be taken advantage of in the lower levels. This kid is a project, wow. He might be better suited for college.

[Gom]

I have no idea who these kids are. I am more interested in free agents, lol. Old habits die hard.

[jacksonianmarch]

7th round pick: Damon Sublet 2B Wichita St L/R, 6'1" 190lbs

Batted .364 this season for the Shockers with 4HR and 14 steals. In 2006, he hit .394 with 12 steals.

Its like night and day watching this kid hit compared to the HS kids. Compact, short stroke, no drift, no wasted movement. He doesnt look like he has much power and his # bear that out. But his swing is nice.

His arm isnt. He slings the ball and really doesnt look like he has the capacity to be anything but a 2b.

[jacksonianmarch]

8th round pick: Taylor Grote 6'2" 195 L/R CF The Woodlands HS

Watched the scouting video. Kid looks like he has a very solid arm. He looks like he'd be a good runner too, he just has that "glide" to him that most of the better runners do. He doesnt have world class speed though, I can tell ya that. His swing has a lot of power projection. He drifts a lot, even to the point of getting out in front of his base on some swings. But I like this pick a ton better than Weems.

[jacksonianmarch]

9th Round Pick: Austin Krum Dallas Baptist U 5'9" 175 L/L CF

Kid can run. Still isnt blazing. Hate his swing. He drags his bat through the zone. Reminds me of Damon's swing, and there is a reason why there is only one guy who swings like damon in the majors. Hopefully Oppenheimer sees something I dont.

[jacksonianmarch]

10th Round Pick: Carmen Angelini 6'1" 185 R/R SS HS

A HS All American as a catcher and picked as the Louisiana POTY, Angelini is a Rice signee who is expected to be a SS. His swing is nice, compact, he has power potential in the swing. He looks like a good pick.

John Sickels thinks this kid is a 4th round talent.

[jacksonianmarch]

11th round pick: Isaiah Howes U Louisville R/R LFer 6'2" 210lbs

.392 16HR 59RBI in 65 games. Also stole 8 bases. Nice pick, U of L is no joke baseball and he was the best on the team.

[jacksonianmarch]

12th Round pick: Manuel Barreda 5'11" 165 RHP HS

He's committed to ASU.

http://www.azstarnet.com/sn/printDS/120079

[jacksonianmarch]

13th round pick: Nick Chigges 6'0" 195lbs CoC RHP

Kid dominated for the nationally ranked CoC team. He was the ace with ridiculous #s. I;d really like to see what his stuff was. Likely not all that fantastic a la your pick of Mills from UNCC.

[ORS]

574. Christopher Carpenter

Commence the circle-jerk.

[jacksonianmarch]

That is a HUGE pick. I just hope we can sign him. Man, that is REALLY NICE!!!

[jacksonianmarch]

Peavey too? Holy shit.

[jacksonianmarch]

The Yankees took advantage of their riches. They took 9 of BA's top 200.

#7- Brackman- (#1 fastball)
#31- Carpenter
#34- Suttle- (#1 pure hitter)
#117- Peavey
#118- Romine (#3 catcher's arm)
#155- Angelini
#158- Krum
#179- Storen
#190- Snyder

[rician blast]

Wow, Jacks...4.5%? I'm underwhelmed.

[He Hate Me]

I'm more excited aobut this guy, assuming we can sign him.


http://www.youtube.com/v/8U2xkHOTvvw

[riverside sluggers]

Yankees had a very sound draft, impressed where both of our teams are in terms of farm 4 years from now

[Gom]

Most of these guys don't pan out, so it's kind of hard to get excited about a player who MAY make the major leagues in four years.

[Beckett95]

i was talking to your guys 16th round pick, Mahoney, today (he's my friends cousin) for a little bit. Good kid, but his cousins better than him, even though he didnt get drafted. ;)

[schillingouttheks]

FUCK. YOU GUYS GOT DAN MAHONEY? HE WAS ON MY FUCKING BASEBALL TEAM AT BB&N BEFORE HE LEFT AND WENT TO CUSHING ACADEMY. THAT'S SO DAMN COOL. LOL! Haha, when I was in middle school we were on the same football team, and he handed me my first hard hit ever. Pretty cool.

Kid's a fucking animal. His fastball tops out at 91 and he's a hard worker. He'll do what he's told to become the best that he can be, and I really do think he can be something. I've seen him first hand. He was ranked by Baseball America as the second best high schooler in MA, but he should have been first (I've faced the guy they ranked number one and I've faced Mahoney...Mahoney makes kids look absolutely silly...the other kid can be quite hittable). During spring training he trains with us. Haha at the beginning of last year he pitched against us and threw 6 innings of shutout ball. Cushing was winning like 10-0 but we scored 11 runs in the 7th after they took him out and we won :lol:

In all seriousness though, he probably won't sign. He wanted to go higher than he did and he's committed to UConn if he decides not to sign, which is probably his most likely destination at this point. Kind of cool to see him get drafted though :D

[Seldini]

FUCK. YOU GUYS GOT DAN MAHONEY? HE WAS ON MY FUCKING BASEBALL TEAM AT BB&N BEFORE HE LEFT AND WENT TO CUSHING ACADEMY. THAT'S SO DAMN COOL. LOL! Haha, when I was in middle school we were on the same football team, and he handed me my first hard hit ever. Pretty cool.

Kid's a fucking animal. His fastball tops out at 91 and he's a hard worker. He'll do what he's told to become the best that he can be, and I really do think he can be something. I've seen him first hand. He was ranked by Baseball America as the second best high schooler in MA, but he should have been first (I've faced the guy they ranked number one and I've faced Mahoney...Mahoney makes kids look absolutely silly...the other kid can be quite hittable). During spring training he trains with us. Haha at the beginning of last year he pitched against us and threw 6 innings of shutout ball. Cushing was winning like 10-0 but we scored 11 runs in the 7th after they took him out and we won :lol:

In all seriousness though, he probably won't sign. He wanted to go higher than he did and he's committed to UConn if he decides not to sign, which is probably his most likely destination at this point. Kind of cool to see him get drafted though :D

DUDE! You went to BB&N? I went to Nobles haha, we didn't have much projectable baseball talent there hahahaha. (Besides myself, naturally) :harhar:

[schillingouttheks]

Well, I still do. I'm going into my senior year. Haha we're taking the ISL in football this year. We're ridiculous.

[jacksonianmarch]

In regards to Mahoney, if the yankees want him, they'll get him. Lets be honest here. Slot means nothing in NY.

[schillingouttheks]

The Yankees should want him. Trust me. One of my coaches is a New York Mets scout and he wanted Mahoney to get better grades to stay at BB&N so he could have him under his nose. When he left Cushing, it was harder for him, obviously.

[jacksonianmarch]

The Yankees should want him. Trust me.

I hope so. Hell, I thought the back end of their draft was amazing and we should do everything in our power to retain all that we can.

[schillingouttheks]

Haha, I told him on facebook that if he signed with the Yankees I wouldn't be able to root for him.

[jacksonianmarch]

Haha, I told him on facebook that if he signed with the Yankees I wouldn't be able to root for him.

no, you root for him, but you hope every time he leaves the game his relievers get bombed.

I was kinda in that predicament. Remember Rico Brogna? I went to school with his sister, and he was a local legend in my hometown. NASTY baseball player with a lot of potential (until ankylosing spondylitis ruined his career). When he went to the sox, I was crushed, BUT, I decided that I had to root for him to do well, but for the sox to lose. That was the only way to go.

[schillingouttheks]

I know. I was kidding, and when he reads the comment he'll know I was. I hope he gets to the majors, kicks ass, has a good game against the Sox, but I hope we win.

Anyway, in case your interested, here are a couple pics of him:

EDIT: Nevermind. I'll find another way to get them up. You have to be his friend to see those pics.

[jacksonianmarch]

The Yankees were already able to sign 3 players from the draft.

Manuel Barreda, Snyder and an undrafted player with the last name minor.

On another note, Grote is very close to signing, as is Pope. And for further good news, Chase Weems (the yankees 6th round pick) was contacted by the phillies in the 3rd round and turned them down. But after being drafted by the yankees, the kid's dad is allowing him to proceed with signing and wil likely be in the yankees fold by the end of next week.

[jacksonianmarch]

Greg Peavey was interviewed by pinstripes plus and said that he was honored by the yankees drafting him. He also said the yankees have already talked about contract with him and he is intent on signing. The Yankees will likely pay well over slot, but the idea of him being ironclad bound to OSU is waning. Looks like we may get him.

[jacksonianmarch]

Haha, I told him on facebook that if he signed with the Yankees I wouldn't be able to root for him.

http://yankees.scout.com/2/651660.html

Mahoney's looking to sign. (Need a scout.com membership). Didnt mention school once, like most other kids do. Did talk about growing up a sox fan, but certainly is excited to be going to Florida and Rookie camp for the yanks.

[jacksonianmarch]

Thus far, the yankees have signed 2 players that were considered to be tougher signs in Manny Barreda and our 21st rounder Snyder. Other signees include Mr. Irrelevant, the catcher Day from UConn, and the two big pitchers Zink (17th round) and Jones (33rd round).

Zink is an interesting guy and just signed today. 6'5" power armed pitcher who was expected to go in the top 2 or 3 rounds in the 06 draft but had TJ surgery prior to the draft and wasnt picked. He didnt recover completely until his last 3 starts of this season and really showed off by 1 hitting Long Beach state in the regionals. He was sitting at 91 in the regionals on his sinker and his slider is recovering back to its plus days pre-TJ. He'll be an interesting guy to follow.

[jacksonianmarch]

The yankees have already signed 19 of their 50 draft picks, but have not signed any of their top 8 at this moment.

[rician blast]

The yankees have already signed 19 of their 50 draft picks, but have not signed any of their top 8 at this moment.

Jacks...ya got too much time on yer hands, bud.

[jacksonianmarch]

Jacks...ya got too much time on yer hands, bud.

I start work on monday, so you are correct.

[jacksonianmarch]

The Yankees have come to terms with Bradley Suttle, the 4th round pick out of Texas who was considered the best pure hitter in the draft. His stock dropped a bit due to signability concerns, but the switch hitting 3b hits for average and does have some pop. Should be nice to see him fly up our system.

[jacksonianmarch]

The yankees have already signed Krum and Sublett from the top 10. There is a rumor that the yankees have already signed Suttle, Grote, Angelini and Weems but for over slot money and the commish is holding onto the approval for their contracts until more teams sign their picks. He doesnt want the yankees to influence other team's spending habits on the young kids. Brackman and Romine have had no rumors attached to them in terms of signing. I would assume the Yankees would get them all done.

If they do sign Angelini, there is talk in yankee land that Angelini may be considered the replacement eventually for Derek Jeter. He is a first round talent who had an ironclad agreement to Rice until the yankees took him in the 10th round and brought him to NY to take BP with the Yankees and putz around the clubhouse. He'd likely break the top 10 right away in terms of their minor lague prospects and would be followed closely. I hope the rumors are true.

On another note, Greg Peavey was quoted after OSU won the CWS that "OSU looks like gold and the minors looks like fool's gold." He was considered a tough sign going in, but it may be nearly impossible now.

[jacksonianmarch]

According to multiple reports, the yankees have already agreed to contracts with their 2nd round through 10th round picks. This includes Bradley Suttle, the best pure hitter in the draft, and high school standouts, Romine, Weems, Grote, and Angelini. The deals have been forwarded on to Selig who will not approve them until the slot above gets approved so the yankees dont up the spending of other teams on draft picks. The enigma, though is that the yankees dont seem to have a deal in place for Brackman. There is speculation that the yankees are only waiting to see what the kid can do in summer ball, and for the 29th pick's salary figures to be reported. The only top player that the yankees drafted who is still considered unlikely to sign is OSU bound righty, Greg Peavey. The Yankees have taken a wait and see approach with him, and even though they are expected to offer close to 1 mil to sign, there is a strong push for him to go to college for the 2 time defending national champs.

[jacksonianmarch]

Brackman is in Tampa working out at the yankees complex, a sure sign that he and the yankees have agreed to a contract. Also there are the yankees 2nd round pick, Austin Romine, and their 6th round pick, Chase Weems. On August 15th, we will know for sure if the entire class was signed.

[jacksonianmarch]

Wednesday is the deadline, but reports abound that the yankees and Brackman, their 1st round pick, have agreed to a 3 million dollar deal which will be approved by the commish's office in 2 days.

[jacksonianmarch]

The Yankees have signed their entire top 10.

Brackman got a 3.5mil signing bonus as part of a 4.5 mil major league deal (meaning, he must be on the 40 man roster). There is a rumor that he is in Alabama being seen by James Andrews as we speak.

Austin Romine signed for 500K

Bradley Suttle signed for 1.3 mil.

Taylor Grote signed for 250K

Carmen Angelini signed for 1 mil.

All are considered to be top talents. Quite a catch.

On the flip side, Greag Peavey and the kid from CNY Holle will not be signing with NY. The status of the negotiations with Chris Carpenter has not been reported. Updates to follow.

[jacksonianmarch]

I just heard from a reliable source that the yankees will not be signing Chris Carpenter. He wanted too much for what some scouts say was a major dip in velocity in summer ball. Shoot.

[jacksonianmarch]

Andrew Brackman signed a major league deal, but he will be having Tommy John surgery within the week, according to some reports. hence, he'll be on the 60 day and wont take up a roster spot.

[ORS]

Wow, they sign him to an MLB deal and he has to get TJS. That's cutting it close with his options considering the potential for this to delay his ability to be ready for the show. Interesting.

[jacksonianmarch]

Wow, they sign him to an MLB deal and he has to get TJS. That's cutting it close with his options considering the potential for this to delay his ability to be ready for the show. Interesting.

I think they did it with the express purpose of him having tommy john.

[jacksonianmarch]

Wow, they sign him to an MLB deal and he has to get TJS. That's cutting it close with his options considering the potential for this to delay his ability to be ready for the show. Interesting.

you can get another option if you miss a full season. Sean Henn did.

[ORS]

I know. Still, with 4 years of options after he's back, it seems limited for a kid who will have to regain feel, and then start his development, when he's already a kid with question marks about makeup and reportoire. It's like taking Dan Bard and having him run through a field of fire with a gasoline suit on.

[jacksonianmarch]

I know. Still, with 4 years of options after he's back, it seems limited for a kid who will have to regain feel, and then start his development, when he's already a kid with question marks about makeup and reportoire. It's like taking Dan Bard and having him run through a field of fire with a gasoline suit on.

no doubt it is a risk. A healthy Brackman is more advanced than Bard, but then again, nobody knows how healthy Brackman will be 14 months post surgery.

[jacksonianmarch]

BA rates the yankees as the biggest winners of the draft.

http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/draft/?p=228

[jacksonianmarch]

Andrew Brackman is throwing simulated games. In his last start, he was sitting mid 90s and throwing all of his breaking pitches. Apparently he has quite an assortment of pitches. They will need to scale them back so he can focus on 4 pitches. His arsenal includes a 4 seamer, 2 seamer, forkball, changeup, a knuckle curve and a spike curveball. The spike is a harder curveball thrown in the mid 80s with a 12-6 break. My guess is, the yankees will have him throwing the 4FB, 2FB, spike curve, and change when camp breaks next yr.

[jacksonianmarch]

Looks like a good time for a 1 yr post mortem...

1. Andrew Brackman RHP- if he is truly thowing mid 90s 1 yr after surgery then this is a major win. He'll start next yr in Tampa and should see quite a lot of interest. He was in the conversation for #1 pick of 2007 with David Price until the arm issues crept up. Now he'll have to start earning that MLB contract, which was significantly aided by the fact that Brackman was on the 60 day DL all yr.

2. Austin Romine C- started in long season A ball and was 19 for the entire yr. He did very well. Hit .300 for the whole yr and hit 10 homers in the second half of the yr. He'll also be in Tampa.

3. Ryan Pope RHP- dominated the first half of the yr in Tampa, then got hurt and was awful from July on. If healthy, he will likely move quickly in 2009, but as is, he might be repeating the level.

4. Bradley Suttle 3B- started the yr injured, then turned it on post AS break, hitting .281 with 8 homers and OPSing .830. He is one of the more advanced and polished bats in the yankee system and is living up to the billing as a great pure hitter.

5. Adam Olbrychowski RHP- started the yr on fire (3.06 pre AS ERA) but was injured at the end of June and posted an AWFUL second half (7.54ERA post AS). He will likely resume his reliever role he occupied at Pepperdine and should rocket through the ranks in that capacity.

6. Chase Weems C- Weems got snake bit a little in 08. He started off the yr on the DL, then when he came off, never got a chance to prove himself in long season since Montero and Romine were splitting the duties in Charleston. Then, when he was assigned to the GCL, he got to fight for playing time with guys like Cervelli and Anson while splitting time with Arcia. In 09, he'll be a starting catcher in Charleston and we'll finally be able to judge if his pick at 6 and overslot bonus was worth it.

7. Damon Sublett 2b- dominated SI in 2007 and earned a promotion past Charleston to Tampa. There, he started off slow, but finished the yr with a .353 stretch before tearing ligaments in his foot. While his offensive numbers were down for him, the OBP and IsoPatience were not (.364 and .101 respectively). Expect this kid to land in Trenton after a stop in the HWL this yr.

8. Taylor Grote CF- I had high hopes for this kid, but he couldnt even win playing time against the later round scrubs we drafted this yr. He has thus far looked absolutely overmatched and has not made the adjustments necessarily to become a good professional baseball player. A year and 2 months isnt necessarily the best time to be making player judgements, but right now, this pick looks like a major bust.

9. Austin Krum CF- I hated this pick when they made it, although BA seemed to like him a lot. Well, he started the yr like shit, but ended very well and likely earned himself a starting nod in Tampa next yr. He finished the yr with a .840OPS and .395OBP in his last 2 months.

10. Carmen Angelini SS- supposed to be the second coming of Jeter. Well, he is proving to be that...on the field anyway. Jeter made 50 some odd errors in his first season and Angelini tried to replicate that. At the dish, they couldnt be more dissimilar. Angelini looks like he was rushed a bit and should repeat the level.

11. Isaiah Howes RF- tore his labrum in ST and missed the whole yr

12. Manny Barreda RHP- underwent Tommy John surgery in June or July and missed the yr

13. Nick Chigges RHP- asked for and was granted his release in June

14. Braedyn Pruitt 3B/1B- dominated SI in 2007, but was putrid on promotion to Charleston. So bad that he likely doesnt even project to have a starting gig in 2009.

15. David Williams RF- has become a 4th OFer in Charleston and is looking like a guy who might get cut coming into 2009

16. Daniel Mahoney RHP- unsigned

17. Ryan Zink RHP- has proven to be a very solid middle reliever in Charleston and could fashion himself a big league career out of the pen.

18. Chris Carpenter RHP- unsigned

19. Taylor Holiday OF- was an awful backup OFer in Charleston and likely wont make a return visit to yankee camp in 09

20. Ryan Wehrle SS- was a big time prospect when he was a frosh at Nebraska but trouble found him a lot. It continued in the yankee system and he was released by the time the season started

21. Justin Snyder 2B- BA had him in their top 200 and he showed why. .288BA and .371OBP as a 2b while also having the capability to play SS, 3B, and all 3 OF positions will keep you employed. Not many 21st round picks have big league futures, but this kid might be a solid super sub.

22. Craig Heyer RHP- dominated the SAL as the Riverdogs setup man and may have a future with the yankees out of the pen.

23-26 have either been released or werent signed.

27. Brandon Laird 1B- talk about a steal. Laird is the little brother of Gerald, the catcher for the Rangers, but they have rather opposite game styles. Gerald is a defense first C. Brandon is an offense first 1B. His numbers as a 20 yr old in long season were awesome. .273 23HR 86RBI .832OPS. But when you put into context what he did after the AS break and you have to wonder if this kid is gonna be something special. (.282 18HR 52RBI post AS break in 67 games). Quite a pick in the 27th round.

28 on is a list of guys the yankees either did not sign, released or intend to release by ST 2009.

So, now that a few names have fallen off the list, the solid picks seem to be obvious.

Top flight Talent: Brackman, Romine, Suttle, Laird

Lesser talent, good picks: Sublett, Krum, Snyder, Pope

Jury still out: Angelini, Grote, Weems, Olbrychowski, and Barreda

Marginal: Heyer, Zink

The rest, fuck em.

[jacksonianmarch]

Brackman is pitching in the HWL and after a terrible first start, he settled down last night. 5IP 3H 0ER 1BB 5K with 2/3 of his pitches going for strikes.

[jacksonianmarch]

I know. Still, with 4 years of options after he's back, it seems limited for a kid who will have to regain feel, and then start his development, when he's already a kid with question marks about makeup and reportoire. It's like taking Dan Bard and having him run through a field of fire with a gasoline suit on.

with the new rule about an injury option yr, Brackman needs to be on the 25 man by the start of 2013.