Bernie on the Scene: Did the MLB Draft Save Baseball?

The Major League Baseball First Year Player Draft came at the right time. Boredom had set in and I was nostalgic for baseball talk. And those two draft days may have saved baseball from falling into another time of complete irrelevancy. Fans were losing interest and were fed up with the public lack of concern for the future of the game. Yes, the two-day draft came when we needed it the most.

Baseball has not really needed an injection of enthusiasm since the game had to be rescued by a steroid driven home run shootout between Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa in 1998. McGwire hit 70 home runs that year and drove in 147, giving baseball a much needed shot in the arm. Oops, sorry about that. Sosa hit 66 and drove in 158 runs. 

The television coverage of the draft was solid, with my former colleagues Jim Callis and Jonathan Mayo providing very professional in-depth analysis of every player drafted.

While I have watched tons of video in the last month, I admit there were several players who never made it to my computer screen. But Callis, Mayo and former general manager Dan O'Dowd knew them all.

The draft once again illustrated that pitching is the name of the game.

There are nine positions on the field. Here are the numbers of pitchers selected by clubs in the five round draft. Note: Some clubs had compensation picks, increasing the numbers of players they could draft.

86 pitchers were taken. The list below shows the number of pitchers taken by each team within their total number of draft picks — 86 of 160 draft picks were pitchers. Amazing.

Diamondbacks — 4 of 5

Braves — 3 of 4

Orioles —1 of 6 (and they are desperate for pitching)

Red Sox —2 of 4

Cubs — 3 of 5

White Sox — All 5

Reds — 3 of 6

Indians — 3 of 6

Rockies — 3 of 6 (those poor guys)

Tigers — 0 of 6

Astros — 2 of 4

Royals — 4 of 6

Angels — 2 of 4

Dodgers — 4 of 6

Marlins — All 6

Brewers — 0 of 5 (what's up with that?)

Twins — 1 of 4

Mets — 2 of 6

Yankees — 1 of 3

Athletics — 3 of 5

Phillies —2 of 4

Pirates — 5 of 6

Padres — 4 of 6

Giants — 4 of 7

Mariners — 3 of 6

Cardinals —3 of 7

Rays — 4 of 6

Rangers — 2 of 5

Blue Jays — 3 of 5

Nationals — 4 of 6

Five Questions I Asked Myself

1. Who is the guy in the draft I can't wait to see in the big leagues?

Blaze Jordan, Desoto Central High School, Southaven, Miss.

Drafted by: Red Sox 3-89

I saw this guy hit a 500-foot home run in the high school Home Run Derby last year during the All-Star Game in Cleveland. He was just 16 at the time. I remember making a note of it in the moment. All I said to myself was "Yikes." Bobby Witt Jr. won it the year before. Today he is in the Royals organization, having been the No. 2 overall pick in the 2019 draft.

The guy has light-tower power, unlike any I have seen in a long, long time.

Jordan is a corner infielder at 6-foot-2, 222. He looks much bigger than that.

A right-handed pull hitter with a surprisingly measured swing, Jordan is a better athlete than he may look at first glance. He's agile and has solid arm strength. He has lost weight recently and has trimmed his lower half.

In four years (including eighth grade) Jordan has put up these stats:

100 games 
.440 batting average
.526 on-base percentage
131 hits
98 RBIs
96 runs
19 home runs
44 strikeouts
53 walks

He's probably best suited at third base due to his arm strength.

I can't wait to see what he'll do with The Green Monster. This was a terrific pick for the Red Sox.

2. Who is the left-handed pitcher with the most deceptive pitch?

Reid Detmers, Louisville

Drafted by: Angels 1-10

Every major league pitcher throws a fastball. Every major league hitter can hit a fastball. Some better than others. Detmers throws his fastball at a modest 89-92 miles per hour. That isn't quite the velocity we normally see in today's game.

It'll do. It is his curveball that is off the charts.

Not every hitter has mastered hitting a curveball. Not at all. It's a tough pitch to track out of the hand, and not all curveballs are created equally. Detmers' curve is in the "special" category. It has 12-6 movement and he throws it in the mid 70s. Batters aren't used to seeing that type of pitch over and over. They sit fastball and get curveball. They sit fastball again, and get curveball again.

He also throws a changeup and slider, both still in development.

Detmers can pitch as a starter or reliever. I like him in either role, though he won't have as much fantasy value if the Angels choose to use him out of the pen. Like most young lefties, he has work to do on his command.

I do want to see a bit more velocity in his development, and I want to see his third and fourth pitches develop. But give me that fastball/curve combination and plenty of hitters will be off-balance.

Detmers went 20-6 in his three years at Louisville. 

3. Who is the left-handed pitcher with the biggest upside?

Garrett Crochet, Tennessee

Drafted by: White Sox 1-11

Scouts say Crochet is a clone of Chris Sale. Like Sale, the tall, slender Crochet may begin his career in the White Sox bullpen. Then, when he's ready, the team can move him to the rotation.

Crochet has the same fastball/slider combination we saw from Sale. He has the same issues regarding shoulder and arm health. In fact, Crochet missed time due to arm and shoulder soreness. Not good.

But if he stays healthy, Crochet can change the eye-level of hitters by using a two-pitch mix of fastball/slider to set up his changeup, which is not yet as developed as his other two pitches.

Pitching downhill, Crochet can get wild with his long limbs and moving parts. I have seen Sale go two or three hitters without righting the command ship. That could happen to Crochet.

Could Crochet be used as a closer? I don't see why not. But the rotation is where he fits best. And he had only 12 starts in parts of three collegiate seasons.

There is injury risk with Crochet. There are command issues with Crochet. But from what I have watched on video, this guy could be close to Sale in his approach to hitters, his physicality and his ultimate role with the White Sox.

4. Which right-handed pitcher was the biggest draft surprise?

Cole Wilcox, Georgia

Drafted by: Padres 3-80

I was shocked that Georgia's Cole Wilcox fell all the way to the 80th pick. I think the Padres got themselves a steal.

The issue with Wilcox is his command. It is currently below average. I think that can be corrected in time. However, getting a guy with a grade 65 arm and fastball that late in the draft is highway robbery.

Wilcox throws a fastball, slider and changeup. He sits in the mid-90s, but he can hit 100 without much trouble. His changeup and slider are both plus pitches for me.

In his 2019 season, Wilcox threw 59.2 innings in college. He struck out 64. He also walked 38, and that's the problem. In the short 2020 season, he threw 23 innings, striking out 32 and walking only two. I acknowledge the improvement there. Did scouts take note? I don't know.

I see Wilcox as a mid-rotation starter. But he can be a terrific reliever if the Padres choose to send him to the pen. I do see closer work in his profile. He is big, strong and athletic at 6-5, 235.

Once he shows that his spring 2020 campaign was not a fluke, the Padres will know they got a huge bargain.

5. Which hitter excites me the most?

Zac Veen, Spruce Creek High School, Port Orange, Fla.

Drafted by: Rockies 1-9

I shudder to think what a mature Zac Veen will do in Coors Field. If ever there was a guy made for that park, it's Veen. The next best place for his skills would be Yankee Stadium, where his left-handed bat would explode.

Remember that Coors has a wind tunnel in right-center that says "Zac Veen" all over it.

Veen is going to be a monster with a bat in his hands. He's already 6-5, 200, and getting bigger and stronger. He added depth to his frame between 2019 and 2020. 

He has a slight leg lift to give him proper timing, and his hitting mechanics are well beyond his 18 years. This guy could become a fixture at a corner outfield position once his development is complete. He has right-field arm strength.

I just hope the Rockies can sign him.

Veen can get too aggressive at the plate, and there are too many strikeouts in his recent history. But he is still very young and undisciplined as an immature, raw hitter. Patience will come.  Pitch recognition will come. But this guy has all the makings of a superb power hitter from the left side of the plate.

6. What player was drafted too soon?

Nick Yorke, 2B, Archbishop Mitty High School, San Jose, Calif.

Drafted by: Red Sox-1-17

I admit it. I didn't watch any video on Nick Yorke before the draft. I knew nothing about him. But the Red Sox must think they can get the player at a discount, saving money for later round picks. Or not.

With all the great talent available in the first round, why would the Red Sox take a high school second baseman that every analyst I have read rates as less than a major league quality player? Your guess is as good as mine.

MLB.com graded him a 45 — a utility player. I worked with Jonathan Mayo and Jim Callis and I guarantee you — I guarantee you — they know prospects when they see them. They know scouting grading backward and forward. They gave him a 45. Baseball America ranked Yorke at 3-95. He was selected at 1-17.

As a senior, Yorke went 8-for-15 with a double, two home runs and six RBIs in five games. Outstanding. He had a .457 career batting average in his high school career.

The Red Sox see a very good hitter with developing power. They think he has a chance to be special. 

Chaim Bloom, the main man now in Boston, has a good track record evaluating players. I watched video of him after the draft and I saw awkward footwork on defense. I did see a good swing at the plate with a nice amount of upper-cut and good finish. His extension and hitting mechanics look the part of a good contact hitter.

But I saw lots and lots of those guys with bigger power profiles and better overall tools in my research.

Thanks for following me on twitter @BerniePleskoff and for reading my baseball articles at forbes.com.