Friday, February 27, 2015

Scouting the 2015 Draft: Garrett Whitley

Garrett Whitely is an name that popped up in the 2014 summer showcase events, particularly the Area Code games.  He hails from a small HS in the northeast which has never had a player drafted before.  In fact, prior to the Area Code games, he had never faced a 90 MPH fastball even from a pitching machine!  He stands 6'1", 195 lbs, B-R, T-R.  He has an athletic body with 5 tools.  He immediately adjusted to the increased velocity he faced in the showcase and had the second highest recorded bat exit speed of the even at 108.7 MPH, just 0.2 MPH lower than the highest reading.  He ran a 6.65 60.  The Perfect Game capsule summary says "great athlete" and "big bat speed."  BA has him ranked as the #41 draft prospect for 2015 while Kiley McDaniel has him at #38.  He profiles as a future CF.  I would say Torii Hunter is the comp from videos I saw.

8 comments:

  1. Having lost out on another toolsy Northeastern kid (along with a bunch of other teams), I would love to see the Giants take Whitley in the Supplemental Round. Not saying he's the next Trout, since there may never be another, but the organization is short on high upside OF talent and Whitley sounds like he has oodles of talent. Of course the level of competition has has faced may be pretty low, but bat speed and bat exit speed play against any competition. Me Want!

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    1. I don't think the organization is that bad off in terms of high upside OF talent. Mac Williamson, Mikey Edie, Gustavo Cabrera and Johneshwy Fargas all fit that description. Never hurts to have more, though.

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    2. I have hopes for Williamson, Cabrera, Edie and Horan. Carbonell is another to watch even though he was slammed recently in a few articles. The draft this year should be exciting. With 3 early picks we have a chance to do some really good things. Also, I am counting on the Giants to be active for the July 2 International Signing day. We have approx. $2.13MM to spend without being penalized. I expect them to be active. I am okay with low risk,high reward types but it would be nice to see them grab a top prospect like Andy Ibanez or Yadier Alvarez.

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    3. I saw the international bonus pool number. If there is a kid who the Giants really believe in, then go $1-1.5 M on one and spread the rest around on $100-500 K types. Otherwise, based on what we've seen of $1 M+ international bonus babies, I'd be OK with distributing the entire $2.13 around among kids you can sign for under $500 K.

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    4. BTW, Larry Baer will reportedly chair MLB's Long Range Planning Committee. Very appropriate choice given the way the Giants ownership and management has taken the long view in their management of the team.

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    5. Also, if true about Larry Baer, I would say this does not bode well for the A's desire to move to San Jose.

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    6. With the amount of tech money and corporate sponsors in San Jose I think the Giants will fight to the death to keep another team out of that area. I do not see Oakland or any other team moving into San Jose because of the fan base and money.

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    7. The combination of multiple championship and prudent management of the franchise has given the Giants tremendous clout with MLB which gives them tremendous clout in the fight to keep the A's out of San Jose. Baer chairing the Long Range Planning Committee is just one more manifestation of this clout.

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