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Assuming Lucroy is traded, which we have to believe he will be, the only way I'll be disappointed is if neither the Brewers' top draft pick, nor the best player in the Lucroy deal is a pitcher. Neither player has to be a pitcher, you should be getting the best talent you can get, but I'd love to see them come out of this with at least one top arm. Whatever they do in the draft, where I want them to take the best player, regardless of position, I'll hope for the opposite at the top of the Lucroy deal.

This is the really interesting spot in the top ten. Detroit has been heavily linked to pitching leading up to this draft, but this is exactly the scenario they will face - whether it's Perez, Ray or Rutherford, somebody who thought they'd be picked by now will be sitting there, and it may indeed be a young hitter. I like Matt Manning here, but he's pushing for big money. I like Dakota Hudson, he's the, "safe pick" in this spot. Ian Anderson, Forrest Whitley, Braxton Garrett, Jordan Sheffield, Cal Quantrill ... any one of them could be the next Tiger. I'm just throwing a dart on this one, but I'll say Detroit takes Matt Manning.

Paul, drafting pitching will always be the curse of the Scouting Director - it's the fastest way to get rich, and the fastest way to get fired. There's no doubt, the Brewers would be well-served to take one of the top three arms in this draft, but their system surely doesn't have, "too much" of anything. What's wrong with an outfielder, if they truly think he'll be a star? I do think one of those pitchers will last to their pick, and possibly two of them, with only Puk seemingly sure to go ahead of Milwaukee. I won't mind one bit if the team takes one of those pitchers, but I also wouldn't argue with a guy who may be a middle of the order hitter in the future. My favorite hitter, not all-around player but strictly hitter, in the Brewers' system right now is Trent Clark. I think if Clark reaches his ceiling, he chases 200 hits a year, with plenty of extra base hits. The problem there is, he's still years away, and he could also turn out to be a .285 hitter, with 15 homers. Get me either a pitcher or a hitter who truly pans out, and Jules and Vincent are happy.

This sums it up .... just three days away, this was published today, addressing the team with the first pick in the draft: The Phillies have narrowed their choices to these seven players: Barnegat (N.J.) High School left-hander Jason Groome, Mercer University outfielder Kyle Lewis, La Costa Canyon (Calif.) High School outfielder Mickey Moniak, Puk, Louisville outfielder Corey Ray, Chaminade (Calif.) College Prep outfielder Blake Rutherford and Tennessee third baseman Nick Senzel.[/i] http://m.mlb.com/news/article/182030812/phillies-could-go-hitter-with-no-1-pick This is why we're all right about who the Brewers should take, and none of us are right about who the Brewers should take. Everywhere you look, there are nine guys listed in the top ten, with one wildcard. I don't think I've ever seen that before, the industry is trying to sell us the top nine guys, concrete, good to go, but with no separation, they're basically all in a pile. Alphabetically, "Blue Horseshoe Loves..." (please tell me someone gets the reference): Groome Lewis Moniak Perez Pint Puk Ray Rutherford Senzel The tenth guy interchanges a lot, but those nine are in the top ten over and over again. I'll say the wildcard is taken at pick nine, with the White Sox following by taking the best college player still on their board, whether he's one of those nine, or not.

Blake Swihart may be done for the season with an ankle injury. I'm going to go ahead and assume that hurts his trade value at the moment.

This spot is where it gets much murkier, you've got issues like signability/saving money for a later pick coming into play. If you believe, "they", the next two picks should be either combination of Ray and Rutherford, but there are a number of high school pitchers who could slide in here as well. San Diego's farm system needs a lot of love, they blew it out trying to, "win now", and that went nowhere. With that in mind, even though they have a number of early picks this year, I think they'll stick to their board, rather than playing games with money in this spot. I'll say San Diego takes Corey Ray.

The Mets were ready to send Wheeler and Flores for Gomez .... the return for Lucroy would be no less.

My exchange with Jonathan Mayo ... @JonathanMayo @MLBDraft @MLBPipeline Is Corey Ray a, "safe pick" who will play in the big leagues, or does he have true MLB star potential?"\ Jonathan MayoVerified account ‏@JonathanMayo @bballintheblood I think he has impact player potential If Ray is, "falling", it's into the 6-10 range, instead of possibly top five. This draft has several players who have been projected all over the top ten, and nothing close to, "consensus." I think it's a great year to be picking in the top ten, more so than a great year to have the first pick.

Delvin Perez

Yep, that looks like a match. As for the Cubs .... absolutely, and there's nothing wrong with it, if the Brewers get their best offer there.

The Brewers have been talking to teams about Lucroy for many months now, the parameters have to be there, whether specific offers are ready or not. By now, the Brewers would have told other teams what they're after, and teams have had the chance to evaluate, counter, etc. I would think the "tire kicker" stuff has all been set aside, the truly interested teams have been identified, and their young players have been thoroughly scouted. After all this work, when it happens, I think it's a very short process, and everything favors the Brewers right now. Lucroy is healthy, productive, proven, signed beyond this season, inexpensive, and at a position of short supply. It's rare that so many factors line up, but in this case, they have.

I'd be shocked if Cleveland traded for a big contract, and just as shocked if Braun would allow a deal to the Indians. If you ask me, a small market team that needs help in the outfield, should keep its top two prospects, who happen to be outfielders - that wipes out Zimmer and Frazier. Brady Aiken is too much of a wildcard, the potential is huge, but he hasn't even pitched in a game yet, my guess there would be, Cleveland's GM wouldn't risk guessing wrong, so I'd cross him off too. 1B, Bobby Bradley - huge power potential, but significant risk too. Trading for Bradley would be like drafting Jake Gatewood - the power potential is obvious, but so is the concern about making enough contact to maximize that skill. Perhaps the best match among Cleveland's top prospects - Justus Sheffield. He's a lefty who's not the best pitcher you've ever seen, but one with an honest shot at an extended career as a major league starting pitcher - he's about two years from the big leagues right now. If you want a guy who might pull on a Brewers uniform on the day of the trade, there's RHP Mike Clevinger. Like Sheffield, he's not going to be "the guy", but he should be a good, solid MLB starting pitcher for several seasons. Another interesting prospect would be catcher Francisco Mejia. He's only 20 years old, a full three years from the big leagues, but he's a talented kid. What's the best offer I think Cleveland could make for Lucroy? Bradley, Sheffield or Clevinger, and Mejia Do I think Cleveland will make that offer? No, I do not, I think they'll keep their kids around, to stay young, and less expensive for several seasons.

Oakland - Delvin Perez

I'm only guessing, but I'd bet that means Rutherford will be working out at MP, prior to the draft.

This is a very interesting year - while there is no, "slam dunk" at the top, there are guys who should be picked higher than they will be. I could envision the Brewers passing on him if he's there, and I'm not certain he should even get to the Brewers in the first place .... My vote .... Riley Pint.

Moniak

The headline misquotes Stearns, he did not say Braun "is going to be a Brewer for a very long time", he said: “We get interest in a number of players,” he said. “Certainly, any player who’s performing at the level that Ryan is performing, you’re going to get a level of interest. But we fully anticipate Ryan is going to be a Brewer for a very long time.”

I asked Jonathan Mayo ... "Daz Cameron went later last year over money .... who's that guy this year?" He said ... "One of the HS pitchers..Matt Manning or maybe Ian Anderson? 3b Drew Mendoza a possibility."

The reason the Brewers should ask, is because there won't be pitching solutions waiting to be signed next winter. If you're trying to win now/next year, you'll have to trade to fill any pitching holes you've got. All by itself, supply and demand raises Nelson's value, so go for it, and if the offer isn't there, you've got Jimmy Nelson in the Brewers' rotation.

The Mets just traded for James Loney.

I said this, May 18 ... One team I'd like to throw into the mix is the New York Mets. The Mets are getting nothing from the catcher position this year, and they don't even know when Travis D'Arnaud will be allowed to throw a ball again. They're built around pitching, and that's all good, but their lineup could certainly use a boost. The Mets have some young guys I'm sure the Brewers would want, but at the moment, they don't have a lot of pitchers among their top prospects, so it may come down to Mr Wheeler again.

You've got Kyle Lewis in there twice.

Would I want the Brewers to take Puk if he got to them? Yes I would. I think the Phillies will take him, but if they don't, I believe they'll take a hitter. If that happens, I think the most interesting scenario to watch would be if the Reds stick to their guns and take a bat too. You'd have the Braves sitting there, with all three of the top arms on the board, at a time when a top bat would make plenty of sense for them. The bottom line - I think one of the top three pitchers will be available to the Brewers, if not two of them, and Puk is the one guy I don't think they'll have a shot at, one way or another. I just can't see four teams letting him go by at this point, but the MLB draft is a strange animal.

Adam Lind - OPS with Seattle - .580. Freddy Peralta - dominating the Midwest League, with two more arms in the stable.

I know it's kind of aggravating when the top of the draft is a fluid as this one, (AKA:No Bryce Harper), but it's also kind of fun. You can throw out any "Brewers Tendencies", because the Director of Scouting is only in his second year, and the GM is in his first - any perceived patterns were established by people who will not have input this time around. I think the Brewers will get a shot at Groome or Pint, I do not think all three of the top arms will go in the first four spots. If that happens, leaving the Brewers with at least one of the pitchers in the mix with both high school and college bats, we'll all learn something about the new braintrust. Your guess is as good as mine, but since i think the organization needs more elite talent, more than an elite pitcher, I won't be disappointed by the pick unless they try to get cute with it to save money, etc. A pick in the top five is something this team hasn't had in a very long time, now is not the time to play games.