MLB Draft, 2021

[Edgy MD]

Well, trades this week wouldn't have involved players just drafted. But yes, they saved elsewhere to pay the bonus on Rocker. They'll get a compensaiton pick in the same spot in 2022, but whether that money can be invested elsewise, I can only hope.

[bmfc1]

Listen to Jon:

[batmagadanleadoff]

Today is the deadline to sign your draft picks and Jeff Passan says that as of now the Mets will .... If that's true, it hurts the farm system and we heard that the Mets had trouble making more trades this week because they didn't have enough second-level players to deal.

Granted that the future s unknown and we don't know how this draft will ultimately turn out, but right now, this year's Mets draft is looking like an unmitigated disaster with bad ripple effects, like the one you mentioned, beyond not signing Rocker.

I wonder what the precise issue is with Rocker for the Mets not to sign him? Because money is no longer a Mets problem. We'll find out soon enough.

[bmfc1]

Maybe he'll turn out like Brady Aiken.
Maybe the extra pick they get next year (at 11) will turn into a star.
But for now, this is a disaster.

From Scott Boras:

[seawolf17]

The Mets effing up this pick is so very Mets.

[bmfc1]

I'd like to know if the Mets drastically lowered their offer based on his medicals or if they withdrew their offer and closed the door. If they offered him 50 cents on the dollar and Boras declined that's his decision as Rocker is out of baseball and any $ for a year. Rocker didn't submit an MRI before the draft so the Mets drafted him based on what they knew which was not everything. I hope that the Mets are wrong and that Rocker is healthy but before everyone gets all "LOL Mets" we should consider that there is a scenario (which the Mets might not be able to talk about) where they were shocked at what they saw.

Good information (at least to me) about the draft process here: https://www.mlb.com/mets/news/kumar-roc ... -with-mets

[Benjamin Grimm]

Well, that was fun while it lasted.

I guess.

[Frayed Knot]

"Baseball draft picks are worth up to 5x their slot value to clubs .I never shy away from investments that can make me that type of return."

Not sure the owners are going to be happy with Uncle Steve going public with that sort of information.

[bmfc1]

“The Mets made no offer, ever,” following the physical, a source said.

The reasons for that might be speculated on elsewhere. They won’t be here. Suffice to say that what has been rumored is either incomplete or inaccurate.

https://sny.tv/articles/sources-mets-ku ... over-money

[ashie62]

They get an extra pick in the 1st round next year.

I don't see this as a real problem for the now.

They can add that pick to the one they will get for Conforto.

[Ceetar]

well, they should extend Conforto.

There's no reason to think a pick a year from now is going to help the Mets MORE than having Rocker now. It makes no sense, it is dumb and yet another example of how confused this front office is.

[Frayed Knot]

It makes no sense, it is dumb and yet another example of how confused this front office is.

It makes a whole lot of sense if they have reason to think he's damaged goods.

[Ceetar]

It makes no sense, it is dumb and yet another example of how confused this front office is.

It makes a whole lot of sense if they have reason to think he's damaged goods.

He'd have to be basically immobile. They've have to be convinced he had zero chance to make the majors. And where did they discover this information in a scant few weeks? That just means they failed doing their research the first time.

[batmagadanleadoff]

They get an extra pick in the 1st round next year.

I don't see this as a real problem for the now.

Unless the Mets knowingly selected "lesser" players than what was available in subsequent rounds based on some budget that accounted for signing Rocker. They won't make that up and so it looks like they're now a year behind in prospect acquisition and development. Prospects are currency as much as currency is. Brett Baty is the only Mets #1 draft pick still in their minor league system - the Mets having traded 2018's Jared Kelenic and 2020's Pete Crow-Armstrong.

[batmagadanleadoff]

And where did they discover this information in a scant few weeks?

Medical records, natch. It does seem odd that with so many millions of dollars at stake for each player, that the players don't have to submit medical records that would go into a common pool for the teams to examine prior to the draft.

[Ceetar]

And where did they discover this information in a scant few weeks?

Medical records, natch. It does seem odd that with so many millions of dollars at stake for each player, that the players don't have to submit medical records that would go into a common pool for the teams to examine prior to the draft.

Boras disagrees. Maybe he's lying, but it doesn't seem like something he'd out and out lie about.

[batmagadanleadoff]

And where did they discover this information in a scant few weeks?

Medical records, natch. It does seem odd that with so many millions of dollars at stake for each player, that the players don't have to submit medical records that would go into a common pool for the teams to examine prior to the draft.

Boras disagrees. Maybe he's lying, but it doesn't seem like something he'd out and out lie about.

I don't know how truthful Boras is being but his response didn't surprise me in the least. In fact, I expected it. He's simply representing his client's interests (and by extension, Boras's own interests).

[bmfc1]

A player doesn't have to submit to a pre-draft medical exam unless he wants to and if he does and is drafted the team that picks him must offer at least 40% of the slot value (even if they don't want to). Rocker did not consent so the Mets did not have all of the information pre-draft that they did post-draft. I suspect that Steve Cohen will only want to "invest" in players that allow for a pre-draft exam.

[batmagadanleadoff]

A player doesn't have to submit to a pre-draft medical exam unless he wants to ....

Odd, isn't it?

[batmagadanleadoff]

I suspect that Steve Cohen will only want to "invest" in players that allow for a pre-draft exam.

And maybe some other owners too after this Rocker saga.

[Ceetar]

Rocker would start tomorrow somewhere if he was on a team. He'd take the ball and pitch. MAYBE the Mets read the medicals as him being a risk (but a sure failure? that's almost never how medicals work, and it's not like the Mets docs are 100% here) but they knew he didn't submit his info AND they knew he was asking for overslot, which seems unlikely if he was worried about something showing.

But even if the Mets were all fine there, they still didn't hedge there bets with that information and have a few other draftees that they could use the (overslot) money earmarked for Rocker on perhaps a better prospect that wanted more money. i.e. some lower guy that would sign for 1.5 but not .5. If you lose that guy because Rocker signs, fine. Instead they pissed it away.

[Frayed Knot]

He'd have to be basically immobile. They've have to be convinced he had zero chance to make the majors.

No, they just may have been convinced they could do better next year. A player doesn't have to be borderline crippled before you choose to take a different path. Remember the adage from MONEYBALL, it's easier to recover from the player you fail to sign than it is to recover from the one you sign at the wrong price.



"And where did they discover this information in a scant few weeks?"

Ummm, during a physical exam.



"That just means they failed doing their research the first time."

No, if means they had the exclusive ability to check him out medically, something that was denied to them prior to draft day.

[Edgy MD]

There's no reason to think a pick a year from now is going to help the Mets MORE than having Rocker now. It makes no sense, it is dumb and yet another example of how confused this front office is.

There is no reason that you know of.

The "he'd have to be basically immobile" argument isn't really serious, is it?

[Fman99]

What a big shitty mess.

[Ceetar]

Even if we ignore the "humans as commodities" thing and pretend that "Let's just draft someone else next year" isn't extremely subjective, they still pissed away the overcap money, meaning they drafted a guy without seeing his medicals WITHOUT a plan in place should they not like them. They clearly weren't prepared NOT to sign him. Being surprised about it is no excuse, that's their job. See also: Sandy's quote about being surprised what pitching went for at the traded deadline (this year, previous years, you pick, he says the same thing every time. He's a grouchy old man complaining about prices these days, and it shows)

It's inarguable that they were unprepared.