On Mark Appel....

Last July 13, after it became official that first round draft pick Mark Appel would not sign with the Pirates, I wrote the following in this blog about the possible ramifications of Appel's non-signing...

It forces Appel back into next year's draft, and any number of things could go wrong for the kid at this point: he could get hurt, he could fall lower in the draft because of the abilities of the other players available in the 2013 draft, he could be exposed in his senior year at Stanford as just another Bryan Bullington, and any one of those factors could and probably would end up costing him millions of dollars.  

So, in conclusion, the new spending restrictions on the entry draft have ended up screwing the kid and screwing the Pirates, but the Yanks and Sawx are no doubt happy about it, which means everything is OK.

It was reported that the Pirates offer to Appel was in the neighborhood of $3.8 million.  It will be interesting to track both what Appel signs for next season and how his career progresses over the next ten or so years.  Time will tell how much this non-deal really hurts the Pirates.  

Well, goes to show you what I know.  Appel excelled in his senior year at Stanford, and last night he became the #1 overall draft choice in MLB, taken by the Houston Astros.  He will no doubt get more than the $3.8 million the Bucs were offering last year.  The kid rolled the dice, and came up a winner.  Of course, how he actually pitches in the majors is still TBD.

Let's Talk About Neal - Part 1

As you can tell from the title, I expect to be writing a lot about GM Neal in the next several days and weeks, and have even coined a new bit of shorthand, NHR (Neal Huntington Regime) when discussing Neal and his Minions.  It is a most fertile field, but let's start by taking a slightly different tack by listing five names:

Andrew Heaney, LHP
David Dahl, OF
Addison Russell, SS
Gavin Cecchini, SS
Courtney Hawkins, OF

Do the names mean anything to you?  If they do, then you are a certifiable Baseball Geek, because they are the five players who were selected in June's Major League Entry Draft immediately after the Pirates  used the #8 overall pick in the draft to select Stanford pitcher Mark Appel.  If you've forgotten the circumstances, Appel had been seen as one of top two or three players in the draft, but he was passed over by teams because of sign-ability concerns.  Nevertheless, Neal selected him anyway because he was the "best guy out there".  If he did sign, then the Bucs would be set with three stud top-of-the-rotation guys with Jameson Taillon, Gerritt Cole, and Appel.  If he didn't sign, well, we still had Taillon and Cole, and what the heck, why wouldn't Appel sign because who knows what his value will be come 2013?

Well, Appel did call the Pirates bluff and did not sign.  In fact, he was the ONLY first round draft pick that did not sign with his team in 2012.  At the time the signing deadline passed in mid-July, the Pirates were flying high, so this non-signing, if it was noted at all, was usually accompanied by a "well-who-needs-him" attitude.  

Right now, the lack of depth in the Pirates system as assembled by the NHR has been well documented, and wouldn't it be nice to know that there was a #1 draft pick toiling on the farm, maybe a nice catcher, short stop, or stud corner outfielder, who might help the Pirates some day?  It will be interesting to see how those five guys listed above develop over the next few years.  Heck, there were 23 players drafted in the first round after the Pirates took Appel, I just listed the first five to be brief.  For sure, you can bank on the fact that at least ONE of those 23 players will be contributing - big time - to their team by as soon as 2014, while the Neal and the Pirates will be holding a hatfull of rain as their #1 from 2012.

The Appel Doesn't Fall From the Tree

In about 45 minutes the Pirates will kick of the figurative - not literal - second half of what has thus far been an amazing season as they take on the Hated Brewers in that nemesis ball yard, Miller Park.  Let's Go Bucs.


However, the expected non-signing of number one draft pick Mark Appel became official at 5:00 this afternoon.  The fact that the Pirates have played so well in 2012 - need I remind everyone that they are in first place?- coupled with the fact that Garrett Cole and Jameson Taillon are progressing well in the minors, takes a bit of the heat off of the team for this non-signing.  We can all remember the furor that took place a few years back when the Pedro Alvarez signing almost fell through, right?


One of the big reasons that this signing did not happen was because MLB and the Players Association sought to limit the run amok free-spending of the Pirates in the amateur draft, the one area where teams like the Pirates could compete with teams like the Yankees, Angels, and Red Sox.  Let us see what the ramifications of this new spending cap accomplished.

• It caused as many as seven teams to pass on Appel, thought by many to be the #1 player in the draft, to fall to the Pirates in the number eight spot in the draft.  This no doubt cost Appel  several potential millions of dollars in possible signing bonuses.  So, MLB and the MLBPA did the kid a big favor there, right?
• The Pirates could only spend "X" amount of dollars on all of their first ten selections, which limited what they could offer Appel, which caused Appel to decide not to sign, and the Pirates have lost a potential - emphasize potential -  future Cy Young winner.
• It forces Appel back into next year's draft, and any number of things could go wrong for the kid at this point: he could get hurt, he could fall lower in the draft because of the abilities of the other players available in the 2013 draft, he could be exposed in his senior year at Stanford as just another Bryan Bullington, and any one of those factors could and probably would end up costing him millions of dollars.  

So, in conclusion, the new spending restrictions on the entry draft have ended up screwing the kid and screwing the Pirates, but the Yanks and Sawx are no doubt happy about it, which means everything is OK.

It was reported that the Pirates offer to Appel was in the neighborhood of $3.8 million.  It will be interesting to track both what Appel signs for next season and how his career progresses over the next ten or so years.  Time will tell how much this non-deal really hurts the Pirates.  I don't know the numbers, but I want to know the final count on how many draft picks the Pirates did sign this year.  As I have said many times, this is a most inexact science and you never know where the true gems are.  I believe that Dave Parker was selected after the 30th round when he was drafted, and in the year that Kris Benson was the number one overall selection, the Astros selected Roy Oswalt in the 28th round.

My. Lebo Advances, A Pitcher for the Pirates, and Other Thoughts....

Cleaning out the Mental In-Box....

• I moseyed up I-79 today to the campus of Slippery Rock University to take in a first round game of the PIAA Quad-A Baseball Championship Tournament.  The Mt. Lebanon Blue Devils, sparked by a two hit, two run performance by third sacker Anthony Paladino, defeated Erie Bishop McDowell, 7-4.  The Blue Devils await the results of another opening round game in Butler this evening, but it just could be that they will get another crack at the Seneca Valley Raiders.
• I may go all season long watching the Pirates and the rest of MLB in 2012 and not see a single runner picked off of second base by the pitcher.  Today, I saw that play not once, but twice.  Both the McDowell and the Mt. Lebanon starting pitchers turned that trick this afternoon.
• Many readers may not be aware of the fact that I spent my first year in college at Slippery Rock State College, as it was then known.  All I can say is that that campus has changed amazingly since that 1969-70 academic year.  Beautiful place these days.
• I just finished watching the first hour or so of the MLB Entry Draft to see whom the Pirates would select.  Hey, they took a pitcher with their first pick!  What a surprise.  Welcome to the Buccos, Mark Appel.
• If - and I emphasize the word IF - it all pans out, how long until a rotation of Jameson Taillon, Gerritt Cole, and Marl Appel toe the rubber in a three game series at PNC Park?  In their first full season of Class A ball, Taillon and Cole, seem to be progressing nicely.
• Not to be a spoilsport, but the fragility of "can't miss" prospects came to light today with the announcement that they were proceeding with plans to make pitcher Stetson Allie (selected in the second round after Taillon in 2010) into a position player.  Call it a "Reverse John VanBenschotten". 
• Man, isn't Bud Selig a real stiff up there at the podium announcing those draft selections?
• And who was the bald headed dude with Harold Reynolds and John Hart at the anchor desk?
• Got around last night to watching what has long been considered a classic western movie, Howard Hawks' "Red River" (1948), starring John Wayne and Montgomery Clift.  Pretty good yarn about an epic cattle drive from Texas to Kansas.  Wayne was the definite star of the movie, but he was no simon-pure hero in it either, which I thought was interesting.  This was Clift's first movie, and he held his own sharing the screen with The Duke.  Clift is one of those much admired young actors from the 1950's who died young.  I haven't seen a lot of his movies over the years, but you can see how good he was in his role in "Red River".
• Regular readers will recall a post from last month about Marilyn and my trip to the Zoo. (http://www.grandstander.blogspot.com/2012/05/someone-told-me-its-all-happenin-at-zoo.html) As you can see, the post featured a picture of a baby gorilla with its mother.  The sad news came across today that that little baby ape died this past Saturday.  
• Getting back to the Pirates, how about that series win in Milwaukee?  Yeah, I know Prince Fielder is gone and that the Brewers had guys hurt, including Cryin' Ryan, but that takes none of the pleasure out of taking two of three at Miller Park.  Sunday's 6-5 win was especially satisfying with the Bucs hitting four home runs and holding off late rallies by the Brewers.
• Should be a fun series to watch with the Reds that starts tomorrow.  A three game sweep would put the Pirates in a tie for first place, but I'll happily settle for another 2-out-of-3.
• For a real inspirational story, check out this PG article from this morning about Robert Morris University assistant football coach, and former Colonials quarterback, Camdin Crouse: http://www.post-gazette.com/stories/sports/rmu/robert-morris-qb-coach-crouse-adapts-to-life-changing-events-638802/