Comments on: In Defense of Tony Sanchez

By: Jeff

Jeff — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 00:55:51 +0000

The conclusion that 1st round position players are more valuable than first round pitchers may be correct, but you have the causation arrow backwards. Just because a player is drafted in the first round does not MAKE that player more valuable. If Tony Sanchez was really a third round talent, his being drafted in the first round is not going to make him 1st round valuable.

By: Erik Manning

Erik Manning — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 03:44:29 +0000

Oops. 1st round is what I meant.

By: battlekow

battlekow — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 00:42:08 +0000

Yeah, that makes sense, and I actually kind of like the Pirates’ strategy. The problem is that you can’t say things like “Play it safe first with a college position player, then load up on pitching when the distinct advantages disappear”–college hitters aren’t a better bet; first-round college hitters are, and merely taking Tony Sanchez in the first round does not make him a first-round college hitter.

By: Aaron/YYZ

Aaron/YYZ — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 17:50:30 +0000

Also, in a draft with a fairly flat talent level after the first few picks (as this draft was purported to be), it somewhat makes sense to not spend big early where the actual talent gain vs additional cost is not particularly favorable.

By: Ali

Ali — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 17:14:34 +0000

It would be interesting to see if your assessment of WAR for draft picks selected this decade holds. From everything I have heard, player evaluation and scouting has gotten much stronger in the last 5-10 years and it makes the draft much less a game of chance – at least in the first couple rounds. Though pitchers are undoubtedly more volatile assets, we have also seen a good number of recently drafted pitchers who came into the league and put up impressive stats immediately in the recent past (Lincecum, Verlander, Miller, Porcello, etc.)

By: joker

joker — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 16:22:40 +0000

The problem is that he’s a 2, 2.5 win player IF he pans out. He doesn’t have much room for error, and picking #4 you can’t be *hoping* for a 2, 2.5 win player.

By: Erik Manning

Erik Manning — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 16:09:54 +0000

Bobby Borchering is an interesting bat but may need to move from 3B to 1B. I’m not a real big Grant Green fan. His low BB% and ISO at the college level is pretty disturbing, and I’ve heard mixed reviews on his defense. If Green can’t stick at SS, his value really sinks. I think the hitting class after Ackley was pretty sparse, so taking a defensive whiz behind the plate isn’t too bad considering the options, IMO.

By: dtoddwin

dtoddwin — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 15:30:17 +0000

I think you have characterized the Pirates philosophy correctly and I personally like the strategy. However, knowledgeable Pirate fans didn’t want another pitcher, they wanted a position player that had a higher ceiling than Sanchez. There was tons of discussion about the topic over at Bucs Dugout if you wanna check it out.

By: Joe R

Joe R — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 14:05:54 +0000

Didn’t really think of it that way. I guess it’s just kind of hard for a team that’s looking for change and real impact players (something their farm system has lacked for years) only for your team to go Jeremy Brown-picking on you from a college that was finally kind of good last season.

Then again, the draft is highly overrated, sometimes it’s better to bring in a guys whose skills are far less likely to erode at the pro level; defensive catchers fit that bill nicely.