For the first year we can probably remember, there was no Barry Bonds or Mike Piazza on anyone’s draft list. And familiar names such as Mike Mussina, Richie Sexson, Jason Giambi, Jason Kendall, Frank Thomas, Ray Durham and Brian Giles are still active players not on the DL, but also not drafted. But of course pick-ups may give them an opportunity to be on an NPL roster at some point. Here are some numbers from the draft.
Most Drafted from one team:
13 – Diamondbacks, Red Sox, Yankees
12 – Tigers
11 – Cubs, Dodgers, Brewers, White Sox
Least Drafted from:
3 – Marlins
5 – Giants, Nationals
Pirates: 9
LaRoche, Sanchez, Wilson, Bay, McLouth, Snell, Gorzelanny, Duke, Capps
Ex-Pirates: 6
A. Ramirez, O. Perez, B. Arroyo, J. Guillen, M. Batista, T. Wigginton
266 total drafted, which includes the 6 additional players drafted as a result of the DL
138 from the N.L.
128 from the A.L.
Time of Draft – Players names called:
START: 6:40 PM
END: 9:25 PM
TOTAL TIME DRAFTING:
2 hours 45 minutes with about a 15 minute break at the mid-way point.
So, 2 hours 30 minutes of drafting, divided by 266 players selected means that a name was called on an AVERAGE of every 56 seconds.
(Just thought you wanted to know!!)
TEAM COMMENTS: (In draft order)
H-BOMBS:
“Worst to First?”
Big Daddy surprised everyone by attending this draft alcohol free. And he did an excellent job, as you’ll see when the prediction votes are published. John showed a preference for those teams from Ohio. 3 Reds and 3 from the Tribe. When I mentioned in the NPL news article that of a particular 11th round draft pick, well that player just happens to be a member of the H-Bombs. You see, Vernon Wells may be the type of player you want on your fantasy team. He’s a winner. In fact, Wells has been on the championship team in the North Park League for the last 3 years. In 2005 with the Kids, 2006 as an H-Bomb and last year in ’07 he was with the Big Train. Could Wells and Schoming bring back that 2006 magic again and make it 4 in a row for Wells? We’ll see…. And of course we should mention the #1 overall draft pick. An obvious choice in 2008 was Alex Rodriguez. But what does A-Rod think about joining the H-Bombs? Does he have any comments or anything to tell B.D.? Yes, he sent this message…….
So, 2 hours 30 minutes of drafting, divided by 266 players selected means that a name was called on an AVERAGE of every 56 seconds.
(Just thought you wanted to know!!)
TEAM COMMENTS: (In draft order)
H-BOMBS:
“Worst to First?”
Big Daddy surprised everyone by attending this draft alcohol free. And he did an excellent job, as you’ll see when the prediction votes are published. John showed a preference for those teams from Ohio. 3 Reds and 3 from the Tribe. When I mentioned in the NPL news article that of a particular 11th round draft pick, well that player just happens to be a member of the H-Bombs. You see, Vernon Wells may be the type of player you want on your fantasy team. He’s a winner. In fact, Wells has been on the championship team in the North Park League for the last 3 years. In 2005 with the Kids, 2006 as an H-Bomb and last year in ’07 he was with the Big Train. Could Wells and Schoming bring back that 2006 magic again and make it 4 in a row for Wells? We’ll see…. And of course we should mention the #1 overall draft pick. An obvious choice in 2008 was Alex Rodriguez. But what does A-Rod think about joining the H-Bombs? Does he have any comments or anything to tell B.D.? Yes, he sent this message…….
69’ERS:
“Those fabulous Phillies”
Understanding the circumstances of Piffy not being able to attend, Bryan the Sticker Boy filled in and did an admirable job of helping Piff out. The top choice that Piff requested to me was the top hitting middle infielder in baseball – Chase Utley. And Bryan got him a 69’er from 2007 as his top pitcher in young and talented Cole Hamels. And a good pitcher in John Lackey of the Halos is expected off the DL in mid-May and the Niners have him in reserve.
PITTSBURGH O’S:
“We Will”
PITTSBURGH O’S:
“We Will”
As you may expect, Larry led the Bucco parade with 4. LaRoche and Wilson to score on offense, and Gorzy and Capps to get the Win and the Save. While Harv made a splash with the Japanese players, the Big O quietly selected Akinori Iwamura, Ichiro Suzuki, Chien-Ming Wang and Takashi Saito from the Far East. It also appears that the O’s will attempt to re-claim that coveted Stolen Base Crown. Soriano, Crawford, Ichiro and Escobar will bring back the Running O’s in 2008.
KOOPERSTOWN KIDS:
“The name is the same.”
KOOPERSTOWN KIDS:
“The name is the same.”
This team may be confusing. We have not one, but TWO Chris Young’s joining up with Michael Young. And we have TWO M. Cabrera’s in Miguel and Melky. And this Soto guy? Is that Mexican or Japanese?? Again, I’m confused. You know, someone mentioned that the Kids have finished out of the money for two years in a row. But I have to say I have no recall of that because my memory was “cleansed” by “The Haitian” from the show Heroes!
LOCKHORNS:
“We play our home games in the Tokyo Dome”
“We play our home games in the Tokyo Dome”
Yes, Harv is predicting (or maybe just hopeful) that Kosuke Fukudome is the Japanese Roy Hobbs. And yep, Harv sure did have fun with that name! The picks of Fukky, along with Kurt Suzuki and Hiroki Kuroda led to the Current Quote from Harv located in the upper right side of this blog. Pujols in the 3rd round could be a steal if the elbow doesn’t blow out, and the Lockhorns bring back draft picks Kinsler, King Felix, Johnny Maine, David Bush and closer Jose Valverde from the 2007 squad.
BULLDOGS:
“It’s all about teamwork”
BULLDOGS:
“It’s all about teamwork”
The first Pirate player taken in 2008 was not from Larry or Bob, but by the Bulldogs. Jason Bay in round 10. Just a couple of years ago J-Bay was a 2nd rounder. The fact that Matt Holliday was still on the board for the 6th selection was no doubt a pleasant surprise to Tony and Eddie. He and the Fresh Prince of Milwaukee will be a formidable 1 – 2 power punch and they have a Boston combo in Dice-K and Paplebon from the pitching side. 24th round selection Ervin Santana is a curious subject. Can they only play him at home? His career numbers are 25-9 with a 3.14 ERA in Anaheim and 10-21 with a 7.14 ERA on the road. Dogs go for 3 years out of 3 for finishing in the money in 2008.
ROCK CATS:
“Pitching wins championships.”
ROCK CATS:
“Pitching wins championships.”
First things first…… In case you were not aware, a big CONGRATS to John and Becky on the upcoming birth of their first child. Expected date is around late May or June 1st. It’s a girl. Will John do as Big Daddy did two years ago and call in his baseball moves from the delivery room?? Okay, now back to baseball…….. The Cats jumped on starting pitching in rounds 2, 3, 4 and 9 and they also gravitated to players from the strong teams. 4 D-Backs, and 3 each from the Cubs, Indians and Yankees. But with that first round pick, the Raven is looking to find “The Wright Stuff.”
OWLS:
“Red Sox Nation”
“Red Sox Nation”
If you noticed John intently filling out paperwork at his table after the draft, you assumed he was filling out his prediction sheet. Not really. He was writing out his resignation to the Evil Empire and filling out his application to Red Sox Nation. Last year the Owls were heavy on NYY. This season they travel down to Beantown to select 5 from the BoSox. That number is the most drafted from any one MLB team by an NPL team. And all 5 are hitters. A Red Sox rain-out is a bad day. A doubleheader is good day. John went with Closers in back-to-back rounds of 6 and 7. Hmmm, do I detect a historical pattern here John?? The pitching will be fortified with the return of Smoltz and Kazmir as the Owls left the building with $9.00 owed in transaction fees. In 2008 the Owls are flying for their 4th consecutive season of finishing in the top division and thus – in the money.
THE BIG TRAIN:
“Back-to-Back”
THE BIG TRAIN:
“Back-to-Back”
Bob left the 2008 draft carrying out the hardware which is the 2007 Championship Trophy and the presentation from the former champion – John Schoming of the H-Bombs.
After Bob took a victory lap around the Windsor Place parking lot holding the bobblehead aloft, it was time to get down to business. Also taking top pitching early, the Train got former team member from '07 Josh Beckett back in round 3 and prior to that it was Jake Peavy in the 2nd as the Train has 3 hurlers from the Pods. Ian Snell and Nate McLouth represent the Black & Gold and Bob was no doubt impressed with the Bucco centerfielder based on that first Spring Training telecast when it was just two minutes into the game that Lanny once again labeled McLouth as the “N-Dog” and Wehner called him a “professional hitter.” Which I guess is better than being a non-professional hitter. 2008 will be all about defending the title for the men of Walter Johnson.
VULCANS:
“Rookie of the Year”
After Bob took a victory lap around the Windsor Place parking lot holding the bobblehead aloft, it was time to get down to business. Also taking top pitching early, the Train got former team member from '07 Josh Beckett back in round 3 and prior to that it was Jake Peavy in the 2nd as the Train has 3 hurlers from the Pods. Ian Snell and Nate McLouth represent the Black & Gold and Bob was no doubt impressed with the Bucco centerfielder based on that first Spring Training telecast when it was just two minutes into the game that Lanny once again labeled McLouth as the “N-Dog” and Wehner called him a “professional hitter.” Which I guess is better than being a non-professional hitter. 2008 will be all about defending the title for the men of Walter Johnson.
VULCANS:
“Rookie of the Year”
Welcome aboard Rich and I know everyone thought you did a great job with your first NPL draft as the prediction votes will indicate. Picking from the 10 hole is not always easy but the wrap around to take two top catchers in Mauer and McCann with 3 and 4 looks like a nifty move. Rich would not know this but the 16th round selection mentioned in the website article also has good luck on his side. Like Vernon Wells, Aaron Rowand is the other NPL player going for 4 in a row. So yes, he and Wells were NPL teammates on those winning teams the last 3 seasons and now Rowand has his shot as a Vulcan to extend that streak. Here’s another curious player statistic. The Vulcs have Brad Penny. He should be good in the first half. In the past three seasons he’s 25-8 with a 2.88 ERA before the break but just 14-14 with a 4.82 in the 2nd half. And I don’t know if there is a rivalry in the making here, but do Vulcans feast on Owls?? I’m just asking……….
YOU-TUBE:
In honor of opening day…… This is 1 minute long and it closes with a member of the Pittsburgh O’s swinging the bat.
YOU-TUBE:
In honor of opening day…… This is 1 minute long and it closes with a member of the Pittsburgh O’s swinging the bat.
