Expansion Draft Side Project

As you may have remember, I have been toying around with an expansion team concept that I began two years ago. Prior to the draft, here is the shadow expansion team's minor league system.


Here is the minor league system top 20 prospects so far:
1. Aroldis Chapman P A-
2. Roger Keischnick OF B-
3. Ryan Flaherty INF B-
4. Max Stassi C B-
5. Jordan Danks OF C+
6. Matt Davidson 3B C+
7. Madison Younginer P C+
8. Miguel Jean OF C+
9. Todd Glaessman OF C+
10. DJ Mitchell P C+
11. Ian Krol P C
12. Clayton Cook P C
13. Scott Gorgen P C
14. Chris Herrman C/1B/OF C
15. Adrian Nieto C C
16. Kyle Jenson OF C
17. Graham Stoneburner P C
18. Kendall Volz P C
19. Luis Domoromo RF C
20. Carlos Perez P C

As you can see the system lacks middle infield and some polished pitching. With these ideas I entered the draft.  Since this is the first year the team plays, the pick remains as the final selection in each round.  The picks after the jump.



1:32 Nick Castellanos
He was a top ten guy on my board, so it was a no-brainer for me. The need is for a pitcher or middle infield, but I could not pass up on him. He will cost a bit.  He provides an advanced prep bat in a year that was awfully short on talent.  He fell, but the Tigers snagged him, so he should be an easy signing here.

2:33 James Paxton
Paxton should come in close to slot as he does not really have much choice. He represents a somewhat polished pitcher and should immediately improve that part of the system.  This might have been overly aggressive as Paxton did not show the same command as he did last year and was eventually selected in the fourth round.  I believed in the performance last year and, perhaps, am slightly more sold on left handers.

3:31 Tyler Holt
I wound up picking Holt here about 7 rounds early it seems. I think our current system lacks centerfield depth and Holt should be able to provide some chance to stick there.  The problem now becomes signability as Holt would have seen, most likely, a far larger bonus than what he will be offered in the 10th round.  As per the rules I set out, he must sign with the team that selects him or I cannot sign him.

4:31 Phil Gosselin
Not a high potential guy, but he should be able to provide good value and stick at second.  Gosselin picks back up what Castellanos was . . . a selection I make that I would be unable to make with my next pick.

5:31 Gauntlett Eldemire
Eldemire might try to stick in center, but he is likely going to be shifted to a corner and I think it just might be left field. Very interesting bat though.  Lots of tools and perhaps not the best utilization of them.  He would also have been picked before I selected again.

6:31 Alex Lavisky
I believe in two things: 1) select a HS catcher in the upper to mid rounds every year and 2) select a middle infielder in the upper to mid rounds. After Gosselin, Lavisky fulfills the other steady goal I have. He should be an overslot.  I wound up snagging him a pick early based on where he went to the Indians.

7:31 Josh Spence
A safe left-handed selection here.  His fastball has not progressed as many hoped it would.  He has the potential to develop his slider into a solid pitch.  I would keep him as a starter for a year or two before reconsidering him as a lefty bullpen guy.

8:31 Mario Hollands
For the shadow O's, I targeted Hollands, so I went ahead and selected him here.  This is what I wrote then:

Hollands looks like he has the potential to be a big hulking power pitcher, but he usually sits around 90. Compared to last season, he has refined his mechanics and is getting more out of his fastball and occaisionally can touch the low-mid 90s. Command is a major issue as well as getting more consistency with his slider and change. I think with the developmental system in place in the Orioles system, Hollands could stand to further refine his mechanics and perhaps add a tick or two to his fastball. That difference could unlock a good bit of potential. He seems to me to be a good risk.

9:31 Omar Cotto
Cotto is another burner with very raw hitting skills.  He should be an easy signing and should provide some useful CF depth a level below Holt.


10:31 Brian Guinn
Guinn was a target of Stotle's in round 6.  He was still around and so I tabbed him.  This is what Stotle wrote:

Guinn is a glove-first middle-infielder that gets good reads off the bat and shows a high level of athleticism in the field. At the plate, he relies on what I call a high degree of "slapability". With some offensive growth, he could develop into a solid regular.