Now Batting: 24/7 Baseball News
Credit: pixabay
Even though the unofficial start to summer is Memorial Day Weekend, it always feels like summer doesn’t really begin until we get to enjoy Fourth of July celebrations. Well, Independence Day is upon us, which means that millions of people across the country will be celebrating with barbeques, parties, trips to the beach and much more. [Read more…]
When Russell Wilson threw an interception at the goal line on Sunday night, all was right with the world again.
I had no rooting interest in this year’s Super Bowl, except for the fact that once it was over, it meant that all of the focus can shift to baseball once again.
Even though the Monday after the Super Bowl is dedicated to non-stop media coverage, the NFL season is over and we are just weeks from the reporting dates for Major League teams.
As a Phillies fan, I am not as excited this spring as in years’ past, but am still thrilled for baseball across all levels to begin.
Being a die-hard baseball fan, I follow and watch as many games as possible at the collegiate, Minor League and Major League levels.
The SEC television schedule is loaded this year, the inaugural year for baseball on the network. There will be hundreds of games televised on the SEC Network and the ESPN family of networks beginning with FSU at Georgia on February 21 at 4:30pm.
The entire SEC Tournament will be aired on television for the first time this year.
All of these games are in addition to the hundreds of college baseball games that will be aired throughout the spring from teams outside of the SEC, the regional playoffs and the College World Series.
Each year, Major League teams add more coverage to their Spring Training schedules, whether on TV, radio or digital stream. This makes the anticipation leading up to the regular season stronger than ever before.
As we prepare for Spring Training, we will be rolling out some new content over the next couple of weeks.
You will see division previews for the regular season, projected starting rotations and projected starting lineups for all 30 Major League teams, discussions on each team’s top prospects and predictions for the 2015 playoffs and World Series.
Baseball has always been the best way to get lost in excitement for a couple of hours per day, to feel like a child again and to enjoy the company of family and friends.
Here’s hoping that you enjoy the upcoming season and have the chance to bond with family and friends throughout the season.
With the San Francisco Giants winning three of the last five World Series, the rest of the league has taken notice and will look to end their reign in 2015. One thing the Giants have not done during their impressive run is win back-to-back World Series titles.
Will 2015 be the year that they finally repeat? We will find out soon enough.
Image credit: Wikimedia Commons
WBC Champs Dominican Republic. Credit: Mike Blake/Reuters.
Over the past couple of years, Major League Baseball officials have talked about instituting an international draft, or making the current Rule 4 Draft open to international players. Since we posted our first mock draft of the 2013 season, we are now tackling the idea of an international draft in baseball.
Many believe that an international draft is very close to occurring because of the new restrictions placed on international spending for amateur free agents who are not eligible for the draft in the United States. The new restrictions on signing bonuses take effect on June 1, 2013, but an international draft would not occur until at least 2014 if it is approved. [Read more…]
Stanford right-handed pitcher Mark Appel. Credit: Matthew Ersted, Stanfordphoto.com.
With the 2013 MLB draft just weeks away, we have compiled our first mock draft of the year. After being drafted eighth overall by the Pittsburgh Pirates in 2012, Stanford right-handed pitcher Mark Appel is preparing for his second draft.
Appel was the only player in the first round not to sign. He opted to return to school for another season in order to further develop his arm. Now he is in position to be taken number one overall. [Read more…]
Texas Rangers David Clyde. Credit: Louis Requena/MLB Photos/Getty Images.
With the first pick in the 1973 MLB draft, the Texas Rangers selected left-handed pitcher David Clyde. The second pick was made by the Philadelphia Phillies, who chose catcher John Stearns.
Neither player had particularly stellar careers, but Stearns edged out Clyde in the stats category even though they played different positions.
Eight of the players chosen in the first round never appeared in a Major League game during their careers. Of the 24 picks in the first round, only seven players were drafted out of the collegiate levels.
Only one player chosen from the college ranks never played in the majors. That person was third baseman Charles Bates, who was chosen 19th overall by the Detroit Tigers.
Seven first round picks were taken from schools in the state of California. As you will see later in this article, the first round was littered with future stars after the first and second picks were made.
This was the first time that the Rangers franchise owned the number one overall pick in the history of the draft since moving to Texas after being known as the Washington Senators. Clyde made an impact at the big league level, but not enough to label this pick a success. He played parts of five seasons for Texas and the Cleveland Indians, amassing a record of 18-33 with a 4.63 ERA in 84 games, 73 of them starts.
Clyde posted a career-high in wins with 8 in in 1978 with the Indians. That same year he lost a career-high 11 games. He started a career-high 25 games and posted an ERA of 4.28. Clyde debuted in the majors the same year he was drafted. He did not appear in a Minor League game until 1975.
New York Mets John Stearns. Credit: Jeff Zelevansky.
Stearns, the second pick in the draft, was taken by the Phillies. He debuted in September of 1974 with the Phillies.
He played in just me game before he was traded to the New York Mets on December 3, 1974 with Mac Scarce and Del Unser for Don Hahn, Tug McGraw, and Dave Schneck. We all know what McGraw did in his career, but Stearns also had some good seasons with the Mets.
In his entire career, Stearns hit .260 with 46 home runs, 312 RBIs, and 696 hits in 810 games. All but one of his career hits came with the Mets. He picked up his first big league hit as a member of the Phillies in 1974 in his debut.
In his career, Stearns played third base, first base, catcher, and left field. He tallied 91 stolen bases and was caught 51 times.
He made four All-Star teams; 1977, 1979, 1980, and 1982. In 1977 and 1978 he hit 12 and 15 home runs respectively. He also recorded a career-high 73 RBIs in 1978.
Stearns was originally drafted by the Oakland Athletics in the 13th round of the 1969 draft, but he failed to sign. He never appeared in the playoffs during his career, but McGraw went on to win a World Series with Philadelphia as the team’s closer in 1980.
Clyde and Stearns can be considered relative busts compared to some of the other players chosen later in the first round of the 1973 draft. Those notable players include the following:
The next installment of our draft history series features the first and second picks in the 1974 draft. The Padres selected shortstop Bill Almon and the Texas Rangers selected right-handed pitcher Tommy Boggs.
1972 Number One Pick Dave Roberts. Credit: Topps.
Since their inception in 1969, the San Diego Padres held the number one or number two pick in the first round of the Major League Baseball First Year Player Draft in 1970, 1971 and now 1972.
In 1970, the Padres held the number one overall pick. In 1971, the Padres held the number two overall pick. In 1972, the draft featured in this article, the Padres held the number one overall pick.
With the pick, the Padres selected University of Oregon catcher Dave Roberts. Roberts was drafted out of college as a catcher, but came up to the Majors as an infielder.
He eventually caught some games in the Majors, but he also appeared in the outfield and as a Designated Hitter. Roberts spent parts of 10 seasons in the big leagues.
The second pick in the draft was held by the Cleveland Indians, who selected short stop Rick Manning. Manning debuted in the Majors in 1975 and had a decent career, which totaled 13 seasons.
There were 24 picks made in the first round of the June draft in 1972, and 10 of those picks never played in a single Major League game. Those 10 players were catcher Barry Goodman (fifth pick by the Montreal Expos), right handed pitcher Larry Payne (seventh pick by the Cincinnati Reds), outfielder Steve Englishbey (ninth pick by the Houston Astros), outfielder Mike Ondina (twelfth pick by the Chicago White Sox), catcher Richard Bengston (thirteenth pick by the New York Mets), left handed pitcher Brian Vernoy (fifteenth pick by the Chicago Cubs), short stop Joel Bishop (sixteenth pick by the Boston Red Sox), short stop John Harbin (seventeenth pick by the Los Angeles Dodgers), short stop Dwayne Peltier (twenty-third pick by the Pittsburgh Pirates), and catcher Ken Thomas (twenty-fourth pick by the Baltimore Orioles).
Of the 24 first-round picks, 19 came from the high school level, with the final seven picks of the first round coming from the prep level. Four of the first five picks in the draft were from the prep ranks.
Roberts was drafted in June and made his Major League debut on June 7 of the same season, playing in 100 games with the Padres. He did not play in a Minor League game until the 1973 season. In his rookie season, Roberts hit .244 with five homeruns, 33 RBIs, and 17 doubles. For his career, Roberts hit .239 with 49 homeruns, 208 RBIs, on just 483 hits.
The most games Roberts appeared in during a season was 127 in 1973, which was the best season of his career average-wise. He hit .286 with 21 homeruns and 64 RBIs. He only reached 100 games played in four of his seasons, three with the Padres. He also played for the Texas Rangers, the Houston Astros, and the Philadelphia Phillies.
1972 Number two pick Rick Manning.
Manning spent 13 seasons in the Majors, nine with the Indians and the final four with the Milwaukee Brewers. He was traded by Cleveland to Milwaukee in June of the 1983 season.
For his career, Manning hit .257 with 56 homeruns, 458 RBIs, and 1,349 hits in 1,555 games played. He debuted in the Majors in 1975 and never looked back. He won a Gold Glove in 1976, just his second in the league. The most games he appeared in during one season came in 1983 when he made 158 appearances between Cleveland and Milwaukee.
During his time in Cleveland, the team that drafted him, Manning played in 1,063 games, compiling a .263 average, with 36 of his homeruns and 336 of his RBIs.
Other notable players selected in the first round of the 1972 draft include the following:
The 1973 draft will be the ninth installment of our draft history series. The first overall pick was left handed pitcher David Clyde, who went to the Texas Rangers. The second overall pick went to the Philadelphia Phillies, who chose catcher John Stearns.
As our series on top prospects in spring camps comes to an end, we take a look at the best prospects who spent time in Major League Spring Training with the St. Louis Cardinals, Tampa Bay Rays, Texas Rangers, Toronto Blue Jays and Washington Nationals.
With the regular season already a week old, we have seen some top prospects make an impact on their big league clubs already and some others receive call-ups just days into the season.
St. Louis Cardinals
The 2011 World Series champions have a farm system ripe with talent, with some prospects breaking through in recent years to make major impacts in the show.
From their 2013 top prospects list, the following players spent time in Major League camp with the Cardinals this past spring:
Right handed pitcher Shelby Miller, right handed pitcher Trevor Rosenthal, infielder Kolten Wong, right handed pitcher Tyrell Jenkins, first baseman Matt Adams, left handed pitcher John Gast, right handed pitcher Michael Blazek, right handed pitcher Maikel Cleto, right handed pitcher Eric Fornataro and right handed pitcher Jordan Swagerty.
From this group, Miller, Rosenthal and Adams all made the Opening Day roster for St. Louis. Miller is the team’s fifth starter and Rosenthal is pitching out of the bullpen. Adams is backing up Allen Craig at first base and provides pop off the bench.
Tampa Bay Rays
Tampa Bay Rays infielder Wil Myers.
Tampa has seen some of its top prospects graduate to the big leagues over the past handful of seasons and they have made major impacts, especially on the pitching staff.
As we continue further into the first month of the season, the Rays have quite an impressive crop of top prospects waiting in the wings. The group that spent time in Major League camp includes outfielder Wil Myers, right handed pitcher Jake Odorizzi, right handed pitcher Chris Archer, short stop Hak-Ju Lee, left handed pitcher Enny Romero, left handed pitcher Mike Montgomery, right handed pitcher Alex Colome, short stop Tim Beckham, and left handed pitcher Felipe Rivero.
Texas Rangers
Texas has some talented prospects knocking on the doors of the big leagues, including short stop Jurickson Profar, third baseman Mike Olt, left handed pitcher Martin Perez, right handed pitcher Wilmer Font, right handed pitcher Justin Grimm, right handed pitcher Roman Mendez, right handed pitcher Neil Ramirez, right handed pitcher Nick Tepesch, and infielder Leury Garcia.
From this list, Grimm, Tepesch, and Garcia are all on the Major League roster right now for the Rangers.
Toronto Blue Jays
The top prospects from the Toronto system that spent time in big league camp this past spring include left handed pitcher Sean Nolin, right handed pitcher Josh Stilson, catcher A.J. Jimenez, and infielder Ryan Goins.
This is a very underwhelming crop of prospects, especially since the first player to appear in camp hits the MLB.com list for Toronto at number eight.
Washington Nationals
Washington fans are going to be enjoying baseball in the Nation’s capital for quite a long time with the current active roster and the top prospects down on the farm.
The players on the top 20 list who spent time in spring camp include third baseman Anthony Rendon, right handed pitcher Nate Karns, outfielder Eury Perez, left handed pitcher Matt Purke, third baseman Matt Skole, first baseman Chris Marrero, right handed pitcher Christian Garcia, and catcher Sandy Leon.
Houston Astros George Springer. Credit: Bob Levey/Getty Images
In the third installment of our feature regarding the top prospects in big league camps this spring, we look at the Astros, Royals, Angels, Dodgers, and Marlins.
Even though all of the camps have ended and Opening Day is upon us, it is still interesting to take a look at the top prospects who received time in Major League camp, even if they did not make a Major League Opening Day roster for the 2013 season.
As we count down the hours until the first game of the season, between the Texas Rangers and Houston Astros, one can only wonder how many of these top prospects will make an impact at some point during the season this year either for their current franchise or for another one. This will be the first American League game for the Astros.
Out of the five teams we preview in this post, the Astros have the best crop of top prospects, with almost half of them being acquired through trades over the past three-plus years.
Houston Astros
Not a single player on the Astros top 20 prospect list has Major League experience yet. This could change rather quickly if the Astros struggle this year and want to see what their future holds.
The top prospects who spent time in big league camp for Houston include outfielder George Springer, right handed pitcher Jarred Cosart, second baseman Delino DeShields, right handed pitcher Brad Peacock, shortstop Jonathan Villar, catcher Max Stassi, outfielder Robbie Grossman and catcher Carlos Perez.
Of the top prospects who spent time in Astros big league camp, Springer and DeShields are the only players Houston drafted themselves. The rest came over in trades with the Phillies, Blue Jays, Pirates and Athletics. Cosart came over from the Phillies in the Hunter Pence deal and Villar came over from the Phillies in the Roy Oswalt deal. Peacock and Stassi came over from the A’s in the Jed Lowrie deal. Grossman came to Houston from Pittsburgh in the Wandy Rodriguez deal. Perez joined the Astros in the 10-player trade with the Blue Jays last year.
Kansas City Royals
Kansas City Royals David Lough. Credit: Tim Umphrey/Getty Images
The Royals have a nice crop of top prospects, some of whom could see themselves in Kansas City this year to complement an already strong lineup and no what seems to be an impressive pitching staff.
The Royals made some interesting moves in the off-season, sending a group of players, including Wil Myers, to the Tampa Bay Rays for James Shields.
The top prospects in the Royals camp this spring included left handed pitcher John Lamb, left handed pitcher Donnie Joseph, second baseman Christian Colon, left handed pitcher Chris Dwyer and outfielder David Lough. Lough is the only top prospect with Major League experience who spent time in big league camp this spring. He played 20 games for the Royals in 2012, hitting .237.
Number one prospect Bubba Starling was not invited to big league camp, but he just made his professional debut in 2012 after being drafted in 2011. In 53 games, Starling hit .275 with 10 homeruns and 33 RBIs.
The left handed pitchers on this list who spent time in big league camp are very impressive and could be called upon to pitch out of the bullpen at some point this season in Kansas City.
Los Angeles Angels
Angels fans received a pleasant surprise this off-season when former Rangers slugger Josh Hamilton joined the division-rival Angels to team with Albert Pujols and Mike Trout in an incredibly dangerous lineup. The City of Angels should enjoy an unbelievable season of baseball with the upgrades that the Angels and the Dodgers have made this off-season.
Top 20 prospects who spent time in Angels camp include third baseman Kaleb Cowart, left handed pitcher Nick Maronde, second baseman Taylor Lindsey, Kole Calhoun, third baseman Luis Jimenez, outfielder Randal Grichuk, outfielder Travis Witherspoon, right handed pitcher A.J. Schugel, shortstop Eric Stamets and second baseman Alex Yarbrough.
Maronde pitched in 12 games for the Angels in 2012, which was his first professional season after being drafted in 2011. He climbed the professional ladder quickly, going from the Class A Advanced California League to the Majors. He pitched to a 1.50 ERA in 12 appearances totaling six innings for the Angels.
Calhoun also saw time with the big club in 2012, hitting .174 in just 21 games. Maronde did not make the team out of Spring Training, but he should be one of the first callups should the Angels need a reliever during the season.
Los Angeles Dodgers
Los Angeles is primed to win the West after major moves at the trade deadline in 2012 and a massive off-season that saw them add Zack Greinke to an already formidable starting rotation.
They have some impressive prospects waiting in the wings, with some just months away from the bigs if injuries strike outside of the one to Hanley Ramirez.
Top prospects who saw time with the big club during Spring Training for the Dodgers this year include outfielder Yasiel Puig, right handed pitcher Matt Magill, catcher Tim Federowicz, right handed pitcher Chris Withrow, left handed pitcher Paco Rodriguez and outfielder Alex Castellanos.
Two of the players on this list made the team out of camp, Federowicz and Rodriguez. Federowicz will serve as the backup catcher to A.J. Ellis. He appeared in three games with the Dodgers in 2012. Rodriguez will be a lefty out of the bullpen and he appeared in 11 games spanning 6.2 innings in 2012 for LA. He pitched to a 1.35 ERA. He was the first member of the 2012 draft class to reach the Majors.
Miami Marlins
Marlins fans will not have much to cheer about in 2013 as the team traded away Hanley Ramirez at the deadline last year along with Anibal Sanchez, Omar Infante and Randy Choate. Then, in the off-season, they shipped Jose Reyes, Emilio Bonifacio, John Buck, Mark Buehrle and Josh Johnson to the Blue Jays.
The only major cogs left on the roster are Giancarlo Stanton and Ricky Nolasco. They are surrounded by low-key free agent signings and prospects they received in some of those trades as well as prospects they have drafted and developed.
In camp this year were right handed pitcher Jose Fernandez, outfielder Christian Yelich, outfielder Jake Marisnick, left handed pitcher Andrew Heaney, shortstop Adeiny Hechavarria, outfielder Marcell Ozuna, left handed pitcher Adam Conley, second baseman/shortstop Derek Dietrich, catcher Rob Brantly, catcher J.T. Realmuto and left handed pitcher Brian Flynn.
Of these players, Fernandez, Hechavarria and Brantly are on the team’s Opening Day roster. Fernandez will be in the rotation while Brantly and Hechavarria are in the lineup for game one versus the Washington Nationals in D.C. on April 1. In 25 starts in the minors in 2012, Fernandez had a record of 14-1 and an ERA of 1.75. He had not pitched above Class-A and was preparing to pitch at Double-A when he was called up on Sunday.
Fernandez was added when starters Nate Eovaldi and Henderson Alvarez were placed on the disabled list. He is scheduled to make his Major League debut against the New York Mets on April 7 at Citi Field.
Stay tuned for our fourth installment of this series, which will take a look at the top prospects who spent time in big league camps this spring with the Milwaukee Brewers, the Minnesota Twins, the New York Mets, the New York Yankees and the Oakland Athletics.
As we work on the redesign for our Rule 4 Draft site we have come to a decision to merge the site with JAV Baseball and will be moving content over for the next couple of days.
We would like to thank all of the readers of JAV Baseball for sticking with us since our inception even during times when the site was down because of problems.
We feel that by merging the two sites we can focus mainly on the Rule 4 Draft while also adding in some generic baseball content along the way. [Read more…]
Hello baseball fans,
Welcome to our new website: Rule 4 Draft. For those of you not familiar with the Rule 4 Draft, it is the annual amateur Major League Baseball draft where high school and collegiate players are taken by Major League teams.
This website is dedicated to the Rule 4 Draft. We will discuss everything you can think of regarding the draft from unsigned picks to players drafted multiple times to what-if draft scenarios. [Read more…]