College Corner: Hitting Update

Andy Seiler's latest mock draft has Christian Colon, SS, CS Fullerton, falling to #24 with the Giants. After this weekend, I think he will probably start moving back up most draft boards. While some of us have been targeting CF's for the Giants, and I would love for them to draft an athletic CF with power, Seiler has had shortstops Rick Hague of Rice and Christian Colon tabbed in his two most recent mock drafts. Let's take a rundown on the college postion players ranked in BA's preseason top 100 College Draft Prospects:

#6 Christian Colon, SS, CS Fullerton: .299/.413/.545 with 5 HR's and 7 SB's. Colon had a strong weekend to bring his numbers up to respectability. If he keeps it up, he should move back up near the top of the position player draft ranks.

#7 Zack Cox, 3B, Arkansas: .405/.489/.568 with 3 HR's. Possibly a bit shy in the power department so far, but Cox is having a tremendous season so far and shouldn't have hurt his draft stock at all.

#9 Bryce Brentz, OF, Middle Tennessee State: .350/.442/.663 with 7 HR's. Great numbers, but maybe not quite enough to keep his stock from slipping due to doubts about quality of competition?

#10 Rick Hague, SS, Rice: .268/.337/.427 with 3 HR's. I didn't like Hague much in the preseason and I like him even less now. Although he's been a bit better lately, he could fall out of the first round entirely, if not the first 2 or 3 rounds. Historically, Rice players who drop in the draft go back for their senior season.

#12 Jedd Gyorko, SS, West Virginia: .363/.441/.688 with 6 HR's. Now we are starting to get into Giants territory when you factor in HS talent. Another player who had a big weekend to boost his season numbers. Gyorko was already doing OK, but not great. I think the concern with him is he may not be able to stick at SS.

#14 Brett Eibner, RHP/OF, Arkansas: .306/.439/.673 with 5 HR's. It's not clear whether Eibner is going to be drafted as a pitcher or hitter. It may be that he is a tweener who is pretty good at both, but not quite good enough at either. I tend to believe it's easier to convert from hitting to pitching than the other way around, so I'd try him as a hitter first. Most of all, I'd probably draft someone else in the first round.

#15 Todd Cunningham, OF, Jacksonville State: .316 with 3 HR's, 3 Triples, 6 doubles, 13 BB's, 4 HBP's. I don't have a complete stat line, but .316 is disappointing for a guy who profiles as a corner OF from a smaller program. Still, he shows good plate discipline and half his hits are for extra bases. He's still in position to make a strong run before the draft.

#17 Jarrett Parker, OF, Virginia: .308/.396/..487 with 1 HR, 4 SB's. Gotta think his stock has slipped. Would be a great choice for the Giants in round 2 or even 3.

#20 Michael Choice, OF, Texas-Arlington: .375/.510/.750 with 7 HR's and 5 SB's in 7 attempts. Choice is playing CF, but I haven't talked about him before. Possibly some concern about strength of competition, but putting up great numbers. Not sure if he profiles to stay in CF in the pros.

#24 Gary Brown, OF, CS Fullerton: .466/.489/.716 with 2 HR's, 8 2B's, 12-14 SB's. Has gotten off to a huge start this season. may not have improved stock that much as he does not project to much power. Does just 1 BB, count against him with a .466 BA?

#26 Leon Landry, OF, LSU: .375/.427/.625 with 2 HR's, 8-9 SB's. As great as Gary Brown's season has been, I think I'd prefer Landry due to slightly more power projection and better plate discipline although his isn't great either.

#27 Austin Wates, OF, Virginia Tech: .444/.535/.708 with 2 HR's, 7 SB's in 8 attempts. Seems to profile more as a corner OF or 1B, but has been raking this year. Maybe would like to see more HR's?

#28 Micah Gibbs, C, LSU: .359/.432/.547 with 3 HR's. An offensive catcher from a big time program. The Giants wouldn't?....nah!

#29 Yasmani Grandal, C, Miami: .368/.511/.529 with 1 HR, 8 2B. Good defensive catcher whose main offensive skill seems to be an ability to draw walks. Not a terrible package.

#33 Tony Thompson, 3B, Kansas: I can't find any record of Thompson playing this year. Not sure what that does to his draft stock, but it's almost certainly not helping it.

#34 Cameron Rupp, C, Texas: .278/.395/.444 with 3 HR's. Starting to creep into Giants second round territory(#76) here). Texas has really struggled at the plate this year. I'd be very worried about Rupp's bat in the pros even if drafted in round 2.

#36 Rob Brantly, C, UC Riverside: .327/.381/.545 with 2 HR's. We seem to be in a run of catchers here. Another offensive catcher who bats lefty. Draft eligible soph makes him likely to go back to school.

#41 Derek Dietrich, SS/3B, Georgia Tech: .303/.452/.576 with 4 HR's. Maybe a bit disappointing for a guy who is very questionable to stick at SS? May be worth a 3'rd round pop if he falls that far.

#43 Hunter Morris, 1B, Auburn: .425/.462/.793 with 8 HR's. As much trouble as the Giants have had finding an offensive first baseman, I wouldn't be totally opposed to grabbing Morris in round 2. Apparently not considered quite an elite hitter, he certainly has been raking this year.

#45 Blake Forsythe, C, Tennessee: .200/.395/.333. Forsythe is having a miserable season. With as many college catchers vying for second round action, Forsythe's stock has probably dropped out of sight.

#46 Tyler Holt, OF, FSU: .348/.466/.580 with 2 HR's, 4-4 SB's. Gotta love the ability to take a walk. Probably has enough power to make it stick at higher levels. Would like to see more SB's out of a leadoff hitter, but I wouldn't complain one bit if the Giants took him in round 2, or even round 1 for that matter, but I think they could wait for round 2.

#47 Ryan LaMarre, OF, Michigan: Hasn't played due to injury, but his scouting video's are impressive. Could be a bargain if his draft stock falls due to the injury.

#51 Ross Wilson, 2B, Alabama: .308/.413/.554 with 4 HR's. Starting to get into 3'rd round territory here. I'm not a fan of drafting second basemen in the first 5 rounds but wouldn't be dismayed in round 3. Would prefer Gauntlett Eldemire who is listed at #54 or one of several college pitchers. Barrett Loux at #61? Maybe his stock has risen too much?

#54 Gauntlett Eldemire, OF, Ohio: .429/.514/.714 with 3 HR's, 6-7 SB's. Absolutely my favorite college player, not even close, and not just because of the name! I don't know if his stock has risen with his great stats, but would be the steal of the draft in round 3. Athletic player with great size who projects to fill out his body a lot.

#56 Mickey Wiswall, 1B/3B, Boston College: .263/.359/.563 with 5 HR's. The BA is disappointing. Not enough power shown to make up for lack of contact.

#59 Michael Kvasnicka, C/OF, MInnesota: .333/.443/.653, 4 HR's, 14 out of 24 hits for extra bases. Seems like a pure hitter type. Numbers are borderline for making it worth the investment of a high draft pick.

#64 Andy Wilkins, 1B, Arkansas: .303/.448/.697 with 7 HR's. Starting to creep toward 4'th round territory here, which might not be a terrible pick(kind of damning with faint praise here). Would make sense for the Giants only because they have had some much trouble finding offense at first base over the years.

#68 Victor Sanchez, 3B, San Diego: .276/.408/.431 with 2 HR's. Those numbers just won't get it done for a college corner IF. Guessing he'll go back to school if his numbers don't improve this year.

#69 Michael Olt, 3B, Connecticut: .343/.370/.642 with 5 HR's. A somwhat controversial player. Has nice numbers even for a corner IF, but I saw his birthdate and he might be old even for a college junior. May not be a terrible risk in the 4'th round?

#72 Cory Vaughn, OF, San Diego State: .323/.413/.452 with 2 HR's. Son of former MLB slugger Greg Vaughn. Plays CF with nice size and projectability even if the numbers are underwhelming. I could see John Barr taking a player like this in round 4.

#73 Kyle Parker, OF, Clemson: .414/.534/.829 with 9 HR's. Plays RF which hurts him with the scouts, but maybe with the premium currently being placed on CF's, a guy like this may become an undervalued commodity? Still, I'm guessing his draft stock has risen from the preseason vs a player like Bryce Brentz whose stock may be slipping.

#76 Cody Hawn, 1B, Tennessee: .288/.395/.530 with 4 HR's. Getting into 5'th round territory here. Again, not enough for a college first baseman. I can just here the Goldie Hawn jokes now!

#77 Joey Terdoslavich, 1B, Long Beach State: .294/.360/.456 with 2 HR's. Long Beach State has a home park that is notoriously hard on hitters, and Dirtbag hitters often project very well in the pros, but these numbers are still disappointing. As a draft eligible soph, he will probably return to school.

#78 Rob Segedin, 3B, RHP, Tulane: .439/.510/.780 with 3 HR's, 17 2B's! in 82 AB's. 21 of 36 hits have been for extra bases. Has not pitched this season so seems to be going for a hitting career and why not? .926 fielding % on 5 errors might be a concern. I don't know anything about his range. Might profile more as a first baseman in the pros which would hurt a lot. RS soph due to back injury in 2008. Obviosly over that now.

#82 Cody Stanley, C UNC Wilmington: .300/.417/.600 with 6 HR's. A lefthanded hitting catcher.

#87 Josh Rutledge, SS, Alabama: .387/.429/.627 with 3 HR's, 6 SB's. Not the son of former Tide QB Jeff Rutledge. Key question is whether he can play SS in the pros.

#91 Miles Hamblin, C, Ole Miss: .219/.333/.375. Not good numbers for a college catcher.

#94 Devin Harris, OF, East Carolina: .323/.384/.723 with 6 HR's. Listed at 6'4", 220 lbs. would seem to profle as a LF at best.

#95 Matt Den Dekker, OF, Florida: .358/.424/.506 with 2 HR, 7-8 SB's. A senior. Athletic CF with a bit of power who has never quite lived up to his promise. I could really see the Giants nabbing a player like this in a later round.

#97 Kevin Keyes, OF, Texas: .286/.360/.416 with 2 HR's, 4-4 SB's. If you haven't seen scouting video of this guy, I highly recommend it. Huge OF at 6'4", 225 lbs. Certainly makes loud contact in the batting cage! Numbers are disappointing so far, but again, I could so see the Giants drafting a player like this in round 6 or 7.

#98 Chris Bisson, 2B, Kentucky: .370/.469/.556 with 2 HR's. 2-6 SB's. Has missed some time this season. This type of player doesn't excite me too much, but not a terrible pick for the later single digit rounds.

#99 Mark Canha, OF, California: .377/.476/.565 with 3 HR's. I think I'd rather see the Giants take a Kevin Keyes or Den Dekker in the round 6-7 range based on upside than Canha.