This draft I was hesitant to do earlier this month due to being quite early and it might be more appropriate to look on next year.
Here are JP's picks in the first five rounds:
David Purcey LHP (Round 1 #16 overall)
Zach Jackson LHP (Round 1S #32 overall)
Curtis Thigpen C (Round 2 #57 overall)
Adam Lind OF (Round 3 #83 overall)
Danny Hill (Round 3 #87 overall)
Casey Janssen (Round 4 #117 overall)
Ryan Klosterman (Round 5 #147 overall)
Notable selections in later rounds:
Kyle Yates (Round 13 #387)
Jesse Litsch (Round 24 #717)
Other guys who still have a shot at the show:
Cory Patton (Round 6 #177)
Chip Cannon (Round 8 #237)
Kristian Bell (Round 11 #323)
Eric Nielsen (Round 12 #357)
Mike MacDonald (Round 15 #447)
Joe Wice (Round 22 #657)
Daryl Harang (Round 23 #687)
Paul Franko (Round 31 #927)
Aaron Tressler (Round 32 #957)
When I see or hear the name David Purcey, I tend to shake my head with disappointment. It seems every year he gets off to nice start and then begins to struggle. Currently stuck in AA and now 25 time may be running out on Purcey but all he needs is one good year in the minors to get a legitimate shot at the show, however his prospect status is dropping in my opinion.
Zach Jackson was part of the Lyle Overbay deal that sent "Action" Jackson with Dave Bush and Gabe Gross to Milwaukee. He was given a few starts last year on the major league roster but he's no longer a Jay so let's not discuss him :P.
3 names you are sure to recognize are Curtis Thigpen, Adam Lind and Casey Janssen or else you are living on a rock since they are all featured on the Jays current roster. All 3 of these picks can easily be called successful even without any real major league success...yet (at least with Thigpen and Lind).
Danny Hill retired before the start of the 2007 season. He had one year of AA under his belt and while he seemed to peak there he might've had a good year and could've progressed through the minors as he was only 24.
I'll group Klosterman and Cannon together as they are both going through the AA hitters test and both with poor results. They may make the show as players off the bench but their prospect status has slipped from last year and probably won't feature on anyone's top 20 list at the end of this year.
Yates and Litsch are currently in my top 10 prospect list and rightfully so with their performance in AA. Yates statistics may be misleading as he seems very hittable and has a low K rate which may be a problem when he reaches AAA. Litsch has been pitching phenomenally this season and he's just 22. I am higher on him then most as I have as #3 in our system ahead of first round pick Ricky Romero. Considering both of these players were late round picks they are already successes. Yates will get a chance at the show and Litsch will look to get back on track and possibly try to keep a job in the Jays starting rotation in the future.
Looking up the guys who I thought still had a chance at the show took a great amount of time. Since it's just 3 years away there are a lot of players still showing promise at the A level or lower. Here is a basic summary of the prospects:
Cory Patton 5'8, 25 years old hitting .272 in Dunedin.
Kristian Bell - 23 year old in Dunedin, low K rate and high hit rate, will ERA explode on higher levels?
Joe Wice: has had some nice results with Pulaski but hopefully he's moved up to Lansing soon. Age is on Wice's side being 21 and has a nice K rate.
Eric Nielsen- had a successful year last year in Dunedin. Didn't get a promotion and is hitting .300 while repeating. Should get the call to AA soon. Age of 25 hurts his status.
Mike MacDonald: 25 and had a success in AA last season and to start this year. He's doing alright but not great in AAA but may get a shot in the bullpen or as an emergency starter.
Daryl Harang: last name is more recognizable and unfortunately we don't have the second coming of Aaron Harang but his brother pitching well in Dunedin as a reliever. Currently has a 1.96 ERA and good control and is 24. He should be promoted to AA eventually as this year he is repeating the league.
Paul Franko:had an impressive campaign in 2005 with Pulaski. He was a 1B-DH in 05' and the Jays tried to shift him to the 3B to disastrous results last season (struggled at the plate with average and power down). He is currently playing at 1B again now in Auburn and this is a make or break year.
Aaron Tressler: he is currently 25 and put up impressive numbers in Dunedin. He had an awesome year last year for Lansing.
For already churning out 3 major leaguers and easily more that could make it this draft deserve an A+. Riccardi is showing a flare for the later rounds and while he hasn't work his magic much on the "sure" 1st round picks he has gotten some nice later round picks especially with this draft. What do you think?