2012 Draft Coverage: Finding 1:4 (Introduction)

This year the Baltimore Orioles will have the fourth overall pick in the MLB Rule 4 Draft (First-Year Player Draft). As in years past, Camden Depot will roll out detailed scouting reports of the players we think should be considered for selection come June. Again as in years past, we will run a "shadow draft", whereby we make a selection for Baltimore for each slot in the first ten rounds.

Unique to our 2012 coverage, we'll be starting a weekly piece (most likely on Mondays) giving a current ranking of our 1:4 targets, and a summary of any noteworthy info relating to those players over the previous week. Below is our current "preference list", ranking the fifteen players we have selected as targets for the 1:4 pick. This list was based on scouting trips over the past nine months and some video review. One note is that Luc Giolito (pictured) was at the top of our off-season pref list, but has dropped down for now until we see the extent of the arm woes that have led to his shutting down for 6 - 8 weeks. Below the rankings we've also broken the list down by player type.

Current Preference List (March 22, 2012)
1. Mark Appel, rhp, Stanford Univ.
2. Byron Buxton, of, Appling County HS (Baxley, Ga.)
3. Mike Zunino, c, Univ. of Florida
4. Deven Marrero, ss, Arizona St. Univ.
5. Kyle Zimmer, rhp, Univ. of San Francisco
6. Gavin Cecchini, ss, Barbe HS (Lake Charles, La.)
7. Kevin Gausman, rhp, Louisiana St. Univ.
8. Stryker Trahan, c, Acadiana HS (Lafayette, La.)
9. Albert Almora, of, Mater Acad. (Hialeah Gardens, Fla.)
10. David Dahl, of, Oak Mountain HS (Birmingham, Ala.)
11. Lucas Giolito, rhp, Harvard-Westlake HS (Studio City, Calif.)
12. Max Fried, lhp, Harvard-Westlake HS (Studio City, Calif.)
13. Carlos Correa, ss, Puerto Rico Baseball Acad. (Gurabo, P.R.)
14. Matt Smoral, lhp, Solon HS (Solon, Ohio)
15. Walker Weickel, rhp/1b, Olympia HS (Fla.)

Breakdown
College Pitchers
Mark Appel, rhp, Stanford Univ.
Kevin Gausman, rhp, Louisiana St. Univ.
Kyle Zimmer, rhp, Univ. of San Francisco

College Position Players
Deven Marrero, ss, Arizona St. Univ.
Mike Zunino, c, Univ. of Florida

High School Pitchers
Max Fried, lhp, Harvard-Westlake HS (Studio City, Calif.)
Lucas Giolito, rhp, Harvard-Westlake HS (Studio City, Calif.)
Matt Smoral, lhp, Solon HS (Solon, Ohio)
Walker Weickel, rhp, Olympia HS (Orlando, Fla.)

High School Position Players
Albert Almora, of, Mater Acad. (Hialeah Gardens, Fla.)
Byron Buxton, of, Appling County HS (Baxley, Ga.)
Gavin Cecchini, ss, Barbe HS (Lake Charles, La.)
Carlos Correa, ss, Puerto Rico Baseball Acad. (Gurabo, P.R.)
David Dahl, of, Oak Mountain HS (Birmingham, Ala.)
Stryker Trahan, c, Acadiana HS (Lafayette, La.)

I have seen all but Zimmer in person already (most multiple times), and will be seeing Zimmer and Appel this upcoming weekend in the Bay Area. Next weeked will be spent in Louisiana, where I plan to catch Gausman, Trahan and Cecchini. Full scouting reports will begin to roll out in April. Each report will contain player video. We strongly encourage reader involvement and hope to keep an ongoing dialogue in the discussion section of the weekly updates and the player reports. To whet your appetite, here is video of our current #1 target, Mark Appel, taken during his start this summer against Japan's collegiate national team:




We look forward to counting down with you to the draft, and the addition of the next Orioles top prospect. See you at the fields!