Day One Draft Review

Having slept on it, I'm not as sour as I was while the draft was going on last night.  I usually enjoy drafts more, but I think I was looking for loud bats and high ceilings last night, but what we got were good bats and high floors. Both shorstops can actually play shortstop and don't have to move, and they both have noticeably good hands.

Hands are underrated in sports, and having good ones really helps.  In fact, one of the things that  Jack Hughes and Kaapo Kakko have in common is great hands which allow them to stick handle, pass and score unexpected goals.

Getting back to Volpe and Smith, both guys are improving players - for example Volpe went from being an average runnner to being an above average runner this year. Smith went from being a good hitter to a great hitter this year. So, maybe they're not maxed. I just doubt we'll ever see a 25 homer season from either of them.  That said, Smith could be a lefty version of DJ LeMahieu, but one that can actually play games at SS, and that wouldn't be bad.  And Volpe can stay at short, and we'll see what kind of hitter he can become. Scouts seem divided, though the Yankee scouts must see markers that make them believe, also, they say he has 80 makeup, and that implies he'll do the work and take the coaching.

As for the Lefty from Missouri, T.J. Sikkema, he has 4 above average pitches that he mixes liberally and can throw from different arm angles, and he's got that bulldog build and mentality that a lot of the shorter successful lefties have had, like Whitey Ford, for example. Though he doesn't seem have a plus pitch at this point, having a feel with those above average offerings can work. The 93-95 that some have seen is, obviously better than the 89-92 that has been reported. We'll see what happens with him.  He could move fast, we've seen lefiies with a mix of 4 average pitches move pretty fast.

So, while it wasn't an eye opener, like last year's ambi-catcher and power hitting catcher, that added big talent to an organizational need right out of the chute, it did add hands and character and improving players and a funky lefty.  Not bad.

Let's see what happens today and how much they decide to spend or save for tomorrow.