http://www.baseballamerica.com/today/askba/26969.html



Of the 12 major league Rule 5 draftees at the Winter Meetings, just three
made big league Opening Day rosters: Rangers lefthander Fabio Castro, Pirates
righty Victor Santos and Marlins second baseman Dan Uggla. Four returned to
their original organizations, two went on the 15-day disabled list, two
remained with their selecting team after clearing waivers and one was looking
for a home after being claimed on waivers and then getting designated for
assignment. Here's where everyone wound up:



Rule 5 Draftees, 2005
Player,          Pos Old Org  New Org      Status

Fabio Castro,    lhp   CWS    Tex via      KC Made the Rangers
Luis Gonzalez,   lhp   LAD    Sea via Col  Returned to LAD
Steve Andrade,   rhp   Tor    SD via TB    Claimed off waivers by KC,
                                           designated for assignment
Victor Santos,   rhp   KC     Pit          Made the Pirates
Chris Booker,    rhp   Was    Phi via Det  On 15-day DL (left knee)
Seth Etherton,   rhp   KC     SD           Cleared waivers, sent to minors
Mitch Wylie,     rhp   SF     NYM          Cleared waivers, became free agent,
                                           re-signed with Mets
Dan Uggla,       2b    Ari    Fla          Made the Marlins
Jason Pridie,    rhp   TB     Min          Returned to TB
Jamie Vermilyea, rhp   Tor    Bos          Returned to Tor
Juan Mateo,      rhp   ChC    StL          Returned to ChC
Mike Megrew,     lhp   LAD    Fla          On 15-day DL (shoulder)


White Sox rookie lefthander Boone Logan, who had just five innings of
experience above Rookie ball yet made the defending World Series champions,
may have left his magic in spring training. I've seen him pitch twice on
television and he hasn't shown much, slinging high-80s fastballs from a low
arm slot. Indians hitters haven't been impressed either, as Aaron Boone
tagged him for a two-run double on Tuesday and Travis Hafner hit a game-tying
homer off him Wednesday.

There were plenty of young players who stood out in positive fashion
yesterday, however. Orioles outfielder Nick Markakis and Nationals third
baseman Ryan Zimmerman, two blue-chip prospects who raced to the majors even
quicker than expected, hit their first major league homers. And after much
speculation about what role the Red Sox would use righty Jonathan Papelbon
in, he closed out a one-run win over the Rangers by using vicious 95-mph heat
to pitch a perfect nine inning.





         Are there any surprise college arms who are solidifying themselves
         as first-rounders this June?

         Steven Morrissey
         Henderson, Nev.



The strength of this draft is college pitching, both because of the depth it
offers and the lack of position players in the college and high school ranks.
There may be a dozen college arms taken in the first round, and the overall
record of 20 pitchers (set in 1999 and matched in 2001) could be broken.

The college pitcher who has boosted his stock the most to jump into the first
round is Washington righthander Tim Lincecum. He wasn't an unknown by any
means, but he projected as more of a second- or third-rounder because scouts
wondered about his lack of size (6 feet, 165 pounds) and the effort in his
delivery. Those factors and seven-figure bonus demands knocked him down to
the 42nd round as a sophomore-eligible a year ago.

Since then, Lincecum has dominated in both the Cape Cod League last summer
(2-0, 0.69, seven saves, 68 strikeouts in 39 innings) and back at Washington
this spring (6-2, 1.89, an NCAA Division I-best 97 strikeouts in 62 innings).
He has toned down his delivery, consistently shown a mid-90s fastball and a
plus-plus curveball, and even has unveiled a slider. Don't be surprised if
he's pitching in the big leagues later this summer.

Notre Dame righthander Jeff Samardzija could sneak into the first round—but
only if he's willing to give up football, which probably would be a tough
sell. Samardzija is also an all-America wide receiver who set Fighting Irish
records for catches (77) and touchdown receptions (15) last fall, and he has
legitimate NFL aspirations. He's more of a projection than a finished
product, but he's big (6-foot-5, 215 pounds), athletic and competitive. He
touched 96 mph with his fastball in early March against Minnesota at the
Dairy Queen Classic.

The biggest unknown who has jumped into the early rounds is Barton County
(Kan.) CC sophomore righthander Chad Lee. He went undrafted a year ago, when
he missed part of the college season with a left knee injury that required
surgery. Lee offers size (6-foot-4), an above-average 90-93 mph fastball and
a decent curveball.





         I know it's very early, but have you heard anything regarding whom
         the Royals are considering with the No. 1 overall pick in the draft?
         Are they going to take the best player available or someone who
         would be less expensive, as they've been known to do with the
         exception of Alex Gordon last year. Who do you see as a good fit
         for what the Royals need at this point?

         Brett McConnell
         Kansas City, Mo.



Teams with the No. 1 overall choice have that pick because they were awful
the previous season, and they can't afford to draft for need. They simply
have to take the best player available. In the Royals' case, they have so
many holes that they're not going to fall into a trap of targeting a specific
position.

North Carolina lefthander Andrew Miller was the consensus top prospect
entering the season, and he has done nothing to change that. Two scouting
directors I spoke to this week said Miller would be their guy if they owned
the top pick. "Miller would go 1-1 today, tomorrow, June 7 or whenever you
want to have the draft," one said.

In March, Kansas City scouting director Deric Ladnier said the club was
zeroing in on Miller and three college righthanders: Daniel Bard (North
Carolina), Ian Kennedy (Southern California) and Max Scherzer (Missouri). But
Scherzer has missed time with a finger injury and shoulder tendinitis, while
Bard and Kennedy haven't totally lived up to their hype. Miller's delivery
and command are less than polished, and some scouts believe he projects
better as a closer than as a frontline starter. Given those developments,
Ladnier told BA's John Manuel today that Kansas City is expanding its search.

If the Royals have a number of candidates and no prospect who stands clearly
above the rest, then signability could play a factor in their choice. If they
consider several players equally worthy, why wouldn't they take the cheapest?
Before they spent a club-record $4 million bonus on Gordon, the No. 2 overall
pick last year, they saved money on their first-round picks in the previous
two drafts.





         Now that the Diamondbacks have announced Justin Upton officially is
         moving to center field, what are they most likely to do with their
         outfield? They now have Upton to go along with Carlos Quentin, Chris
         Young and Carlos Gonzales. That's four outfielders, all with immense
         potential, for three spots. How will this play out?

         Mike Besser
         Las Vegas



         With Justin Upton moving to center field, what does this mean for
         Chris Young? He seems like a prospect with nice upside, but will the
         Diamondbacks shift him over to left or right field? It seems that
         Arizona has one too many outfield prospects.

         Jesse Morgan-Young
         Salem, Ore.



I addressed a similar question in the March 2 Ask BA, when a reader wondered
how Seattle would deploy promising catchers Kenji Johjima and Jeff Clement
once Clement is ready for the majors. My reply was that the Mariners would
worry about figuring that out when they had to. The Diamondbacks likely will
take the same approach.

What's interesting is that all four outfielders—none of whom ranks lower
than No. 32 on our Top 100 Prospects list—could handle center field, though
Quentin and Gonzales are better suited for right. I think Quentin could
out-produce any of Arizona's big league outfielders right now, but he'll open
the season at Triple-A Tucson. Young, who's recovering from a broken bone in
his right hand, is close to being ready for the majors. He'll stay in center
for now.

Upton, currently sidelined by a shoulder injury, and Gonzales won't reach
Arizona before late 2007 at the earliest, so the Diamondbacks have plenty of
time to sort this out. These situations often resolve themselves, with
someone getting hurt or traded or failing to meet expectations.

If that's not the case with Arizona's outfielders, Young could be the odd man
out. I'm bullish on Young, but he's more valuable in center field than he
would be in left (similar to Coco Crisp's value to the Indians before he was
traded to the Red Sox). My best guess is that the Diamondbacks would go with
Quentin in left, Upton in center and Gonzales in right and use Young as very
attractive trade bait if all four players live up to their hype.