The 2018 MLB draft is now complete. Who did your favorite team select, and was it a good choice at the time? Let’s take a look!
We at Call to the Pen have covered the MLB draft from many angles during the draft process, from team previews to previews of the high school and college classes for the draft to multiple mock drafts and much, much more. Now we cap that off with our coup de grace, a review of every pick made by every team!
First, a review of CTTP mock drafts along the way:
Mock Draft, Version 1.0
Mock Draft, Version 2.0
Mock Draft, Version 3.0
Mock Draft, Version 4.0
Mock Draft, Version 5.1
Mock Draft, Version 6.2
We’ll start with the #1 overall drafting team, the Detroit Tigers!
Detroit Tigers
Day One
Round 1, Overall 1 – Casey Mize, RHP, Auburn
Round 2, Overall 44 – Parker Meadows, OF, Georgia HS
Mize has the best balance of upside and floor in the entire draft. He has the upside of being one of the top aces in the entire league, in the mold of Max Scherzer with his elite pitch mix, premier control, and funky delivery. Meadows has tremendous bloodlines, and he will get the chance to develop in a Tigers system with some young outfielders at the big league level and upper minors that should allow for him to develop at his pace rather than being rushed.
Day Two
Round 3, Overall 79 – Kody Clemens, 2B, Texas
Round 4, Overall 105 – Kingston Liniak, OF, California HS
Round 5, Overall 135 – Adam Wolf, LHP, Louisville
Round 6, Overall 165 – Hugh Smith, RHP, Whitworth College
Round 7, Overall 195 – Eric De La Rosa, OF, Grossmont College
Round 8, Overall 225 – Jeremiah Burks, SS, Fresno State
Round 9, Overall 255 – Tarik Skubal, LHP, Seattle
Round 10, Overall 285 – Brock Deatherage, OF, North Carolina State
Knowing they were sinking some heavy money into Mize and Meadows, the Tigers only picked one high school player in the entire 2nd day, but they still got some very intriguing players, highlighted by Hugh Smith, who went from a gawky 6’3 high school senior with a mid-80s fastball to a 6’10, muscular righty with a mid-90s fastball and very good feel for working around the zone.
Day Three
Round 11, Overall 315 – Kacey Murphy, LHP, Arkansas-Fayetteville
Round 12, Overall 345 – Reece Hampton, OF, UNC-Charlotte
Round 13, Overall 375 – Christopher Proctor, C, Duke
Round 14, Overall 405 – Luke Sherley, SS, Texas State
Round 15, Overall 435 – Nick Ames, 1B, UNLV
Round 16, Overall 465 – Dayton Dugas, OF, Wichita State
Round 17, Overall 495 – Avery Tuck, OF, New Mexico JuCo
Round 18, Overall 525 – Ethan DeCaster, RHP, Duke
Round 19, Overall 555 – Angel Reyes, RHP, Oklahoma Science & Arts
Round 20, Overall 585 – Kelvin Smith, 3B, Georgia HS
Round 21, Overall 615 – John Valente, 3B, St. Johns
Round 22, Overall 645 – Mark Conger, RHP, Vanderbilt
Round 23, Overall 675 – Jordan Verdon, 3B, San Diego State
Round 24, Overall 705 – Zach Malis, 3B, Grand Canyon
Round 25, Overall 735 – Chance Kirby, RHP, Texas-San Antonio
Round 26, Overall 765 – Garrett Hill, RHP, San Diego State
Round 27, Overall 795 – Stevie Ledesma, RHP, UC-Santa Barbara
Round 28, Overall 825 – Daniel Reyes, OF, Miami
Round 29, Overall 855 – Jeb Bargfeldt, LHP, Miami
Round 30, Overall 885 – Jared Tobey, LHP, Wayne State
Round 31, Overall 915 – Jayce Vancena, RHP, Michigan
Round 32, Overall 945 – Clark Brinkman, OF, Creighton
Round 33, Overall 975 – Justin Childers, 1B, Ohio Dominican
Round 34, Overall 1005 – Vinny Esposito, OF, Cal State-Sacramento
Round 35, Overall 1035 – Chavez Fernandez, RHP, Polk State
Round 36, Overall 1065 – Yasin Chentouf, OF, Pittsburgh
Round 37, Overall 1095 – Matthew jarecki, OF, Benedictine
Round 38, Overall 1125 – Cole Henry, RHP, Alabama HS
Round 39, Overall 1155 – Cory Action, 2B, Florida HS
Round 40, Overall 1185 – Kevynn Arias, C, Montreat College
The gem of day 3 could be Smith, a Missouri commit who has the defensive chops to stick at shortstop with raw power, but he has a flair for the dramatic and ends up making errors on some routine stuff along the way because he’s trying to do too much with it. Also keep an eye on Daniel Reyes, who was a big-time prep player and ended up playing for three schools in his three years of college. He has some big pop in his bat, but his outfield defense is a bit shaky.
Overall Outlook
The focus was heavily on Mize and Meadows in this draft, but there’s plenty enough upside play along the way for this to be a big piece of the future for the Tigers as they aim to return to the top!