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'06 Draft News

Frayed Knot May 15 2006 11:11 AM

Not so much to follow for the upcoming draft this year as compared to the last few when we owned picks #9 (Pelfrey - '05), #3 (Humber - '04), #12 (Milledge - '03), #15 (Kazmir - '02), and #18 (Heilman - '01). The Wagner signing slips our #17 pick to the Phils and we don't get a choice until somewhere in the mid-60s. But - according to a recent Q&A in BA - we may yet have some 1st round talent coming our way anyway: The Mets probably are going to have to spend first-round money to keep a draft-and-follow, Pedro Beato, out of the draft. He was their 17th-rounder last year out of Brooklyn and has really come on strong for coach Dave Pano at St. Petersburg JC. He's been in the mid-90s, and one scout told our Alan Matthews that Beato would go in the first half of the first round. 'Draft-and-Follows' are guys you draft (usually in a later round) who are either in, or are headed for, Junior College programs. You then follow their progress as you retain their rights until a week prior to the next year's draft. In this case, this 17th round pitcher has apparently stepped up his game since last June to the point where he'll go in the top 15 picks overall this June after being approx #500 last year. So what he can do now is ask the Mets to cough up 1st-round type money or he'll re-enter the draft and (he hopes) get it from whoever picks him. Either way, the dude probably made himself an extra million or so bucks with a good year in JuCo.

Frayed Knot May 26 2006 10:02 AM

Following up on Beato (there's a joke in there somewhere but I can't find it): From BA: I talked to someone with another team today who said he had heard that the Mets and Beato were getting closer to a deal. The expectation from other teams is that New York will sign him, especially considering that he's a first-round talent in a year in which it doesn't have a first-round pick. It's not like money is much of an object to the Mets, anyway. We ranked Beato as the No. 13 prospect on our Top 200 and he'd likely go in the second half of the first round if he re-entered the draft. He had Tommy John surgery during his junior season at Brooklyn's Xavieran High, and the Mets took him in the 17th round last year as a draft-and-follow. That proved to be an astute decision, as he has shown three plus pitches at times this spring. Beato has a hard sinker that sits around 90 mph and touches 96. He also has a sharp 84-85 mph slider and a promising changeup. He has a strong build at 6-foot-5 and 210 pounds, and his biggest need is to improve his mechanics and, by extension, his command. At age 19, he has plenty of time to figure that out.

MFS62 May 26 2006 10:44 AM

I can't wait to see the "Beato is Neato" banner at Shea. And, while we're waiting until the June draft, here are some observations about some of the players who have been rated highly by Baseball America. Later ******************************************************************************* Evan Longoria - Related to Eva? Joba Chamberlain rhp Jr. R-R 6-3 225 - I left in the height/weight info... Gotta wonder if he goes all Bartolo/C.C., he's gonna have a natural nickname... "Joba the Hutt" Drew Stubbs - It's not Stubby Clapp, but there is potential there Daniel Bard rhp - Wonder if he'll rise fast enough to be in a battery with Josh some day (and if Josh sticks around long enough) Brett Sinkbeil rhp - Wonder if he throws a sinker Kasey Kiker lhp Sr. L-L 5-11 181 Russell County HS Phenix City, Ala. 11/19/87 - Check out the prominent "KKK" in his name.... Lo and behold, he's from Alabama Mark Melancon rhp - Might be a good idea to have him see a sports psychologist for that depression he's bound to suffer... Matt LaPorta 1b - Hispanic fans might think he'd make a good closer, in other words, he can "slam the door" Stephen King ss - Self-explanatory Steven Wright rhp - Tells dry jokes in a monotone Wes Hodges 3b Jr. R-R 6-1 207 Georgia Tech Ooltewah, Tenn. - Some strange combination of Wes Helms and Gil Hodges? Also note that he's the 2nd guy on the list hailing from Ooltewah (a suburb of Chatanooga) Chad Tracy c - Anybody else rooting for him to fall to the Diamondbacks? Milton Loo 3b/ss - His name is a lot funnier to the British Sean Black rhp/Alex White rhp/3b - Bill James observed a number of years ago that most guys named Black are white guys and most guys named White are black guys... Guess we'll find out sooner or later with him Chad Lee rhp - Somehow, I get this vision of him and Cliff Lee, Carlos Lee, Derrek Lee and Travis Lee all on the same team. Jake Locker of/rhp - Now there's a baseball name Caleb Clay rhp - I did a search at baseball-reference... He'd be the first major-league Caleb (unless some other minor leaguer named Caleb beats him to it) since 1871. No kidding. Nathan Karns rhp - Obviously going to the Tigers... First Cornejo, now Robertson, they need more Nates in the pipeline. Harold Mozingo rhp - Maybe it's just me, but I smell a euphemism for the female anatomy, as in "She's got a very Harry Mozingo." EDIT: typos

soupcan May 26 2006 10:57 AM

MFS62 wrote: Caleb Clay rhp - I did a search at baseball-reference... He'd be the first major-league Caleb (unless some other minor leaguer named Caleb beats him to it) since 1871. No kidding. He may be the first in over a hundred years but 'Caleb' has had a resurgence in recent years. Prepare thyself for more than a few Major League Caleb's in the not too distant future.

MFS62 May 26 2006 11:07 AM

Soup, I'd be interested in seeing that list. It could lose me some money, but it would still be interesting. Later

soupcan May 26 2006 11:10 AM

I have no list. Just two friends who both have sons named Caleb who tell me that the name is everywhere in boys aged 5-12. Call it an informal poll.

Methead May 26 2006 11:17 AM

The [url=http://babynamewizard.com/namevoyager/lnv0105.html]Baby Name Wizard[/url] will tell you all you need to know about Caleb's resurgence in popularity. Any other name too, for that matter.

metirish May 26 2006 11:17 AM

Someone here needs to turn Peter Gabriels "Biko" into a song for Beato .

Edgy DC May 26 2006 11:24 AM

Whoah, "Caleb" is spiking like Ty Cobb, thanks in part, little doubt, to historical thriller writer Caleb Carr

Johnny Dickshot May 26 2006 12:45 PM

I'm behind this Beato fella. He'll beat yo ass, muthafukka. Those arms look like Pedro -- Pedro Astacio!

SI Metman May 26 2006 05:59 PM

The Mets have a Caleb Stewart who has seen limited time with St Lucie this year. He played in Brooklyn last season.

Frayed Knot May 28 2006 10:24 PM

I haven't heard any Beato news - although, being Sunday night and all, things may be just a bit slow on the news end. I believe the deadline is midnight tonight. If he remains unsigned he'll go back into next week's draft.

Johnny Dickshot May 30 2006 09:59 AM

Beato to Mets: Beat It ]eato watch: The Mets had until 11:59 last night to sign a draft-and-follow case from last year, otherwise Pedro Beato was heading back into the draft next Tuesday. The thing was, the 6-foot-5 righty out of Xaverian High in Brooklyn would be going back as a projected first-rounder instead of where the Mets got him — the 17th round. Beato upped his value after a season of junior college ball. Baseball America has him rated as the 13th-best draft prospect in the nation. The Mets don't have a first-rounder, losing it because they signed Billy Wagner as a free agent. So Beato would have essentially been their first-round pick. Omar Minaya said before the game that the team was still negotiating. "He's a very good kid," the GM said. "We're trying the best we can." But ultimately they couldn't sign him. BOOOOO!!!!!

Frayed Knot May 30 2006 10:34 AM

Surprising and disappointing. It seemed like such a natural fit, both for the kid: local product, would likely have been assigned to the Cyclones and the spot where he played many of his HS games; as well as the team: no 1st round pick this year, money to spare, agressively pursuing foreign amateurs, etc. Most reports seemed to assume that this was simply a matter of when and how much, not if.

seawolf17 May 30 2006 10:45 AM

Kid must be a MFY fan. Loser.

Edgy DC May 30 2006 10:48 AM

That's beat. A second piece of bad developmental news after learning they're at war with Aaron Hathaway. I can't find any evidence that Sydney schoolboy Shaun Tabrett has debuted. I guess they're holding him in extended spring training and sending him to short-season ball. He exhibits good grace!

Johnny Dickshot May 30 2006 11:08 AM

On a positive note we appeared to have inked another draft and follow from last season, Nick "Candy-O" Carr. Link

MFS62 May 30 2006 11:39 AM

I've always wondered. When we read about all these high school and college pitchers with great stuff, and records like 12-4, 2.98, who is drafting the guys who got the hits off them? The pitchers who beat them? Later

Edgy DC May 30 2006 12:14 PM

Pretty funny that his college is called "CSI." He would become the first product of the College of Southern Idaho to make the bigs.

MFS62 May 30 2006 12:17 PM

Edgy DC wrote: Pretty funny that his college is called "CSI." Does he throw bullets or just look at them under a microscope? BA DA BUM! Later

Johnny Dickshot Jun 05 2006 09:55 AM

Suck it, Bud BA: ]Budget Crunch Hits Draft-And-Follows When two significant draft-and-follow players went back into the draft rather than sign with the teams that took them last year, Major League Baseball may have played a bigger role than the teams' scouts. MLB, which has established a system of recommended bonuses for every pick through the first 10 rounds, also provided bonus recommendations for significant draft-and-follows this year, sources said. Those recommendations apparently played a big role in the Mets' decision not to sign righthander Pedro Beato, and the Devil Rays' decision not to sign righthander Bryan Morris. Both are potential first-round picks in this year's draft. Beato was a 17th-round pick last year out of high school in Brooklyn, and he improved significantly in a year at St. Petersburg (Fla.) Junior College, showing a fastball that touched 96 mph. Beato reportedly sought a bonus of about $1.2 million, while MLB recommended a $750,000 bonus, which is about what it recommends for a pick in the middle of the second round. The Mets decided not to challenge the recommendation and let Beato go, a decision made even more puzzling because they don't have a first-round pick this year. New York will give the No. 18 overall pick to the Phillies as compensation for signing free-agent Billy Wagner. Beato is Baseball America's No. 13-rated prospect in this year's draft crop and is expected to go in the back of the first round now that he's back in the pool, where he should draw a bonus in the neighborhood of $1 million. Morris was Tampa Bay's third-round pick last year, and he and the team had an oral agreement on a $1.4 million bonus last summer before the former Devil Rays management team didn't follow through on the deal. So Morris went to Motlow State (Tenn.) Community College to play for his father for a year. MLB's recommendation for Morris' bonus was $800,000, and Morris naturally was expecting something in the neighborhood of his original agreement with the Rays. The new Rays regime was not anxious to rock the boat with MLB in its first year, so it let Morris go. Morris is BA's No. 29 draft prospect, and he's expected to go around that point in the draft this year. Another significant player who didn't sign with the team that drafted him, Luke Hochevar, was not affected by MLB's bonus recommendations. Hochevar was the 40th overall pick of the Dodgers, and the two sides went through acrimonious negotiations last summer before things fell apart. Hochevar's agent, Scott Boras, talked to new Dodgers general manager Ned Colletti during spring training this year about Hochevar, but the two sides had almost no discussions after that, and there were no substantive negotiations as the signing deadline approached. So Hochevar, too, will be available on Tuesday.

Edgy DC Jun 05 2006 11:20 AM

That's pretty beato. The Mets are taking a bullet for the rest of the teams there. It also strikes of collusion. The Post had a front-page story last week speculating that the Orioles were going to draft Jeffrey Maier. It sounded like the media rooting for the best story.

Vic Sage Jun 05 2006 11:24 AM

team in the biggest market in the NL loses a potential 1st round pick because it won't pay an extra $0.5m in bonus money. this is what pisses me off about wilpon...

A Boy Named Seo Jun 05 2006 09:45 PM

[url=http://sports.yahoo.com/mlb/news;_ylt=AgCKQRBJko_hLHdtdDiqWRgi0bYF?slug=jp-taylor060506&prov=yhoo&type=lgns]Ghost from draft day past[/url]... MLB "only" has a recommended bonus structure now. Back then they'd send a henchman to your home and tell you to sign. I like the way this article was written. Kinda folksy.