Bleacher Bums Forum

I think I would prefer Josh Bell to Mahtook because Bell looks to project to become a middle-of-the order hitter that switch hits as opposed to yet another right-handed bat.

Even though Bell is coming out of high school and Mahtook is a college hitter, I think Bell is the guy I would take, simply from the scouting reports I've read on both of them.

However, Bell is reportedly demanding big money, which will probably make the Cubs run away screaming.

Bell plays a mean fiddle.

Mahtook sounds good, because it sounds like he's a hitter first who also plays a nice outfield.  We've got Jackson, Szczur, Ha, Na, and Silva all angling for CF.  We don't have to get a CF in this draft.  And a good defensive LF would help, too.  So if he's a good hitter, and he's a 15-20 guy rather than top 10 because he's an uncertain CFer rather than because he's an uncertain hitter, I'd be more than happy to consider him. 

That said, I'll be totally astonished if it's either Mahtook or Springer.  I totally don't think they are guys we'll take. 

One comment on Wilken's bats:  With the exception of his first and most infamous pick Colvin, I think his tendency has been to go for contact hitters.  He's taken a lot of contact hitters who have proved out to hit pretty well for contact.  Clevenger, Vitters, Lemahieu, Barney, Cerda, Szczur, Guyer, Josh Harrison, Ty Wright.  A high ratio of position players taken in the upper rounds have been contact-first hitters, with speed and power secondary.  Colvin, of course, has been an exception.  Obviously four K-kings are Jackson, Tony Thomas, Colvin, and it appears that Reggie Golden's swing is also full of holes and that he's going to bust.  (Based on Az Phil stuff, he looks like he's k'ing continuously against these teenage Dominican pitchers.) 

But I think in general he's got a fairly good eye for contact hitters, and a seeming tendency to value them. 

it appears that Reggie Golden's swing is also full of holes and that he's going to bust.  (Based on Az Phil stuff, he looks like he's k'ing continuously against these teenage Dominican pitchers.)   

Just means we have some top flight Dominican pitchers there.....

The draft and kids from the Far East, South America, Australia and the Carribean would have been a much better way to spend the millions they've wasted on Pena.

Yes, H-J Lee seems to be legit. A good find there.

According to one source, the Nationals are "zoning in" on Bubba Starling.  Another source speculated that Starling could go as early as #2.


I don't know anything except what I read about the various potential draftees, and what I've read about specific players varies somewhat, depending on who the source is.  But Starling seems to be a guy that should please Cub fans if he is available to the Cubs (and supposedly the Cubs love him).  Springer gets very strong reviews from some people, with the one caveat seeming to be his Ks.  Mahtook seems to have made a real leap during this season, and from the more recent evaluations, he seems very promising, with less risk than Springer.


While I know there are some here who are probably going to be unhappy with whomever the Cubs draft, I'm curious what who others who follow this stuff much more closely than I do are hoping for ... and why.

I don't know much more than you do, since all I do is read some.  It sounds like there is a lot of talent in this year's draft.  Everybody evaluates differently, of course, but I'd be surprised if at least one of the players who didn't sit in the top six of Wilken's BPA list wouldn't still be available at 9.  I think he ought to be able to get somebody he likes an awful lot. 

The only one I'd be really upset with would be Springer.  If you're already striking out 27% of your AB's against college pitchers, I don't see why it's realistic to see that reduce against pro pitchers.  Their is a little SS who I'd be not very interested in, either, since we've got Castro at SS, with Barney/Lemahieu/Flaherty all in the mix for 2B.  So drafting for a defense-first guy who's a #2/#7/#8-spot hitter doesn't make sense to me. 

I assume there's a pretty good chance we'll take a gifted pitcher, and he'll look good for a while.  But as with Cashner and Wood and Prior and Pawelek, and Brownlie and Noel and Garland and Sisco and Shafer, there aren't a lot of 1st/2nd round pitchers who stay healthy and throw as hard and healthy and fast five years after they are drafted.  They often look like excellent talent evaluations for a couple of years, but you don't know how long it will take to lose 5 mph or need surgery. 

But hopefully this will be the year that a hitter can actually hit and do so with some power, or a gifted pitcher will remain gifted beyond just his minor league career but for at last a couple of big-league seasons too.  Maybe even a lot of big-league seasons...

I'm concerned that the Cubs' performance this season and the resulting decline in attendance could lead to severe budget limitations for the 2011 draft, possibly even less than we spent in 2010. The draft and kids from the Far East, South America, Australia and the Carribean would have been a much better way to spend the millions they've wasted on Pena.

I would be very surprised if there was not a rather large drop in the 2012 salary budget, regardless of how we do for the rest of the year.  I find it hard to believe that the Cubs will be big players in the free agent market this winter, certainly not to the extent that they spend the 50 million or so that comes off the books.

I think the best we can hope for is that they spend 20 million per year or so on Fielder for three years, and add a few million to the draft and international market.

Ricketts must reduce the debt he is carrying.  And unlike Congress, he isn't either crazy or irresponsible.

Out of curiosity, how much does come off the books this year.  15 or so for Fukudome, 16 or so for Ramirez.  10 for Pena.  How much is Dempster, 12 or so?  Grabow also leaves.

He's not paying Ramirez $16M after the season Ramirez is having. I don't care how loyal he is.

Here's CurtOne's BS pick in his latest mocking draft:

Harold Streeter, North Dakota State School of Mines, relief pitcher.  Extremely high ceiling if it weren't for his five Tommy John surgeries.  Once got out of an inning with only six runs scored.