Friday, November 7, 2014

Scouting the 2015 Draft: Brendan Rodgers

We'll kick off a series looking at draft prospects for the 2015 baseball amateur draft.  As of right now, the Giants have the 22'nd pick in the first round.  They could forfeit that pick if they should sign a FA who has received a Qualifying Offer.  They also could move up if teams ahead of them sign a QO FA and forfeit their picks.

The early consensus first overall pick in the 2015 draft is a HS SS from Florida named Brendan Rodgers.   Rodgers is anywhere from 6'0"-6'2", 180-190 lbs depending on what scouting report you believe.  He is athletic and projects to remain at SS, although he is listed as a SS/2B.  He runs a 6.77 60 and throws from SS have a measured velocity of 93 mph.  It's his bat that puts him in elite status as he generates tremendous bat head speed with a strong, wristy, whippy swing.  From video I saw, he seems reasonably short to the ball but then extends out into a big follow-through.  He hit 8 HR's in 22 games his junior season in HS.

While he looks like a good player to me, I wonder if he has the size you are looking for in a 1-1. He appears to have limited physical projection.  Maybe he is good enough now that he does not need the upside, but he does not have the size and obvious athleticism that jumps out at you, IMO.  He is committed to Florida State.

5 comments:

  1. Do you prefer that the Giants select the best hitter or pitcher available with their 1st pick? High school or College player? Just wondering if you were happy with last year's Giants draft? Still can't believe I got to see them win 3 rings in 5 years, I'll enjoy this amazing run for as long as it lasts. Hope they find a way to sign Panda, sounds like it won't be easy.

    LG



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    1. I don't really have a preference. At this point, I think the farm system is balanced enough that they can just go BPA. The strength and depth of this draft is in HS hitters and college pitchers with HS pitchers not far behind. Just going by BA's early top 50 draft prospects, some names that catch my eye who could be available are college RHP James Kaprielian , JC RHP Phil Bickford(if they took Bickford, it would definitely be trolling the Toronto Blue Jays!), and a HS RHP who I like a lot, Beau Burrows(had highest combination of velocity and spin rates at a summer showcase).

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    2. Oh, and yes, I am happy with the 2014 draft. I had Beede ranked #4 on my draft board, so I regard him as something of a steal. Look for him to move up fast. I think Garcia was an excellent pick. I'm not wild about Davis in round 3, but love the 2 HS hurlers and love the HS bat they took late. I'll talk about Skyler Ewing in my first base depth chart, but he's off to a terrific start to his pro career and looks like a power hitter who could move fast. What a concept!

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