colbyjack

Scherzer is the highest unsiged player, but I would guess the D-Backs get him into the fold before next year's draft. He's represented by Scott Boras, who has been known to stretch the negotiations out a little longer. But, you never know. I didn't think Hochevar would re-enter the draft, and he did, making a killing in the process. The top of the Brewers scouting dep't. was reportedly out looking at Scherzer (and Joba Chamberlain) late last spring. Another Boras client, Matt LaPorta, is back at Florida as a senior, whose stock slipped quite a bit last spring after an extremely disappointing junior season.

It's about time, thanks for sharing that trwi7. I think the first two rounds is a good idea, as MLB's scouting bureau has enough video footage and information on these players to make it interesting. If ESPN has it, you know Peter Gammons will probably be involved somehow, and I would guess they would bring Jim Callis on as well since ESPN is a partner of BA. I'm guessing the teams probably aren't that happy about it, as I'm guessing they will change the format somewhat in the first couple of rounds, probably to slow it down a little.

PG Crosschecker has updated their top high school prospects, expanding their list to 2,000!!! That kind of ranking is simply unheard of. www.pgcrosschecker.com/Default.aspx Of course, you need to be a subscriber to view such content, but if you click on the link you will see that they have moved Rick Porcello to their #1 prep prospect (whom I have had as the top prep pitching prospect since my rankings were released a couple of months ago) and Jason Heyward is their #2 prep prospect. Heyward, who I have commented on before, really has impressed a lot of people with his all-around ability and athleticism given his size.

The A's are up today: www.baseballamerica.com/t...62970.html The A's have done an extremely good job procuring talent, and while Travis Buck is a fine prospect, their system isn't as good as it was just a few short years ago if Buck is their #1 guy.

Colby, I was interpreting that as perhaps the injury was the fault of the changes. Kind of like when I speculated that perhaps Peterson's injury was because they changed his mechanics rather than letting him go with what worked. Thanks DHonks, but I still don't like the fact that they knew Rogers threw across his body somewhat and still took him knowing the incredible investment they would be putting into him. yup...rogers and jones were both known for smooth deliveries... Just so you know, there is a difference between a smooth delivery and throwing across your body (improper mechanics). Jones delivery and mechanics were believed to be picture perfect, but after a while we heard reports that he had difficulty maintaining/repeating his delivery. There were reports of Rogers throwing across his body before the Brewers selected him, and you could see that from his scouting video on MLB.com and from his performance at the Aflac All-American Classic the previous summer (he fell off the mound to the first base side pretty drastically). However, his arm action still worked well, evidenced by his easy upper-90s velocity. For the record, as much as I harp on what I feel to be bad a bad investment (the injury rates make the ROI for high school pitchers low with a first round pick and the guaranteed upfront money), once the pick was made...he's our guy and I'm rooting for him to recover. Agreed. As much as I have criticized the pick, from when it was made to today, I definitely wish Mark the best on his way back. As I noted earlier in this thread, at least it is only arthoscopic surgery, so hopefully it won't take as long for him to work his way back. Anyway, I'm trying to come up with some names of pitchers the Brewers drafted and turned out to be pretty good. There just doesn't seem to be many. Sheets recently, of course. Anybody want to come up with a list? bork already came up with a good list of names, but recently the Brewers have had a hard time developing pitchers. Dana Eveland has already been shipped out, while Ben Hendrickson and Dennis Sarfate are probably the closest to contributing at the big-league level, although I don't think many are counting on Hendrickson for much of anything. Parra, Gallardo, Hammond, Dillard and a few others hopefully aren't that far away. Of the 40-man roster, only 5 of the 17 pitchers were originally drafted by the Brewers. I don't know how that stands vs. other teams in baseball, but only one of those pitchers, Sheets, has been counted on in recent years. Regardless, I think the Brewers really need to look at this and learn from their mistakes. Jones could be mistake #1, and Rogers could be mistake #2. Hopefully they both bounce back, but it's difficult to count on that. And hopefully Jeffress avoids injury altogether. In the meantime, I'm still in the corner for more polished, college pitchers.

I'm sure the negative responses will pile up on this one, but I just wanted to point out that arthoscopic surgery is about as minor as it gets. Going into a young man's arm no matter where or how is never a good thing, but relatively speaking it's a lot better than what it could be. I sure don't like this quote though: As for whether attempts to change Rogers' delivery led to his shoulder problems, Ash said, "I think some of it is related to that. I don't think he's capable of completely changing his mechanics." These are exactly the types of things you see as a scout, write them down in red, and move on.

per rotoworld Quote: The Brewers kicked the tires on free agent Jason Schmidt, but they got the idea he wasn't interested in playing in Milwaukee. Oh well I just want to point out that rotoworld is only collecting information from other sources. They probably read the same thing from McCalvy and posted their reaction. I've noticed a few comments also about the supposed Rocco Baldelli "rumor," which of course wasn't a rumor at all. It was merely a thought by one of their writers, and probably closer to a pipedream, at least for the players he had involved.

Schmidt was one free agent many of us seemed to agree upon as a ideal offseason target for the Brewers. I'm very happy to hear them get involved. The second round this year is supposedly going to suck with a thin draft plus a bunch of bonus picks. Losing a 2nd round pick is nothing. I could care less about the 2nd round pick in signing someone like Schmidt (or even Damian Miller two years ago), but endaround, next year's draft looks as though it could be loaded. Not sure where you got the idea that it was supposed to be thin. I'll give you the insane amount of comp picks.

Left-handed Relievers Daniel Moskos-LHP-Clemson Summer of 2006, Team USA 0-0, 0.96 ERA, 17 games (all in relief), 6 saves, 18.2 IP, 6 H, 31 K, 4 BB Sophomore year, 2006, Clemson 5-5, 2.52 ERA, 33 games (all in relief), 10 saves, 53.2 IP, 44 H, 54 K, 21 BB, 1 HR, .238 BAA Summer of 2005, Cape Cod League 3-4, 3.82 ERA, 15 games (4 starts), 1 save, 33 IP, 30 H, 31 K, 15 BB, 1 HR Freshman year, 2005, Clemson 2-2, 5.40 ERA, 21 games (all in relief), 16.2 IP, 24 H, 15 K, 13 BB, 1 HR, .338 BAA Cumulative 10-11, 3.02 ERA, 86 games (4 starts), 17 saves, 122 IP, 104 H, 131 K, 53 BB, 3 HR* * No home runs against totals from summer of 2006 found Moskos wowed scouts this past summer serving as Team USA's primary closer. His fastball was clocked as high as 96, and he regularly sat in the 94 range. During the spring his fastball typically sat in the 90-92 range, where it also is expected to sit should Clemson use Moskos as a starter next spring. In addition to his heater, Moskos throws a deadly slider and a developing changeup that could give him 3 quality pitches, which is why the Tigers are considering using him as a starter. He has gotten signficantly better over the last year, although statistically he's not as dominant as you would like to see a short reliever be. He stands to be the best lefty from Clemson since Tyler Lumsden. Cole St. Clair-LHP-Rice Summer of 2006, Team USA 4-0, 0.69 ERA, 13 games (all in relief), 3 saves, 26 IP, 10 H, 43 K, 8 BB Sophomore year, 2006, Rice 7-2, 1.82 ERA, 37 games (2 starts), 11 saves, 74.1 IP, 39 H, 100 K, 26 BB, 2 HR, .151 BAA Freshman year, 2005, Rice 2-0, 3.26 ERA, 32 games (all in relief), 47 IP, 35 H, 62 K, 12 BB, 3 HR, .208 BAA Cumulative 13-2, 2.08 ERA, 82 games (2 starts), 16 saves, 147.1 IP, 84 H, 205 K, 46 BB, 5 HR* * No home runs against totals from summer of 2006 found St. Clair was the secondary closer for Team USA, pitching out of a bullpen that included Moskos as listed just above. While Moskos doesn't have the statistical dominance that you like to see from a short reliever, St. Clair does, as he has been nearly unhittable during his college career. Several inches taller than Moskos, while offering a fairly herky-jerky delivery that creates a fair amount of deception, St. Clair commands a steady 90-94 fastball very well while mixing in a curveball and a developing changeup. Like Moskos, Rice may choose to use St. Clair as a starter next spring given his potential 3-pitch repertoire. Brett Cecil-LHP-Maryland Summer of 2006, Cape Cod League 1-0, 2.17 ERA, 19 games (all in relief), 11 saves, 29 IP, 18 H, 40 K, 9 BB, 2 HR Sophomore year, 2006, Maryland 4-5, 4.78 ERA, 26 games (2 starts), 13 saves, 58.1 IP, 55 H, 54 K, 13 BB, 3 HR Summer of 2005, Cal Ripken Sr. Collegiate League 4-4, 1.46 ERA, 56 IP, 61 K, 11 BB Freshman year, 2005, Maryland 1-1, 3.77 ERA, 18 games (4 starts), 2 saves, 43 IP, 41 H, 40 K, 13 BB, 0 HR Cumulative 10-10, 3.14 ERA, 63*/6*, 26 saves*, 186.1 IP, 114 H*, 195 K, 46 BB, 5 HR* * Incomplete stats from summer of 2005 found Cecil has drawn a few comparisons to David Wells given his intimidating, 6'2", 240 pound frame. While conditioning will always be something Cecil has to keep in check, it's far from a problem, although he does throw with an unconventional delivery, although that's less of an issue if he sticks in the bullpen. Cecil was the hardest throwing southpaw on the Cape last summer, regularly registering in the 94 range while pitching consistently at 91-92. He also mixes in a very wicked, mid-80s slider that gives him a lethal one-two knockout punch from the closer's role.

Left-handed Starters Nick Schmidt-LHP-Arkansas Summer of 2006, Team USA 2-1, 1.53 ERA, 6 games (5 starts), 29.1 IP, 18 H, 33 K, 9 BB Sophomore year, 2006, Arkansas 9-3, 3.01 ERA, 17 games (all starts), 1 CG, 116.2 IP, 90 H, 145 K, 50 BB, 6 HR, .211 BAA Freshman year, 2005, Arkansas 8-2, 2.80 ERA, 19 games (17 starts), 2 CG, 99.2 IP, 87 H, 89 K, 39 BB, 7 HR, .235 BAA Cumulative 19-6, 2.75 ERA, 42 games (39 starts), 3 CG, 245.2 IP, 195 H, 267 K, 98 BB, 13 HR* * No home runs against totals from summer of 2006 found Schmidt, tabbed "no-hit Nick" for his early success to begin the spring of 2006 by not giving up a base hit, is a well built left-handed starter with pretty good stuff. At 6'5", 225 pounds he has the perfect build to complement his 88-92 fastball, solid slider and chanegeup. As noted, he's stingy giving up base hits, and he misses quite a few bats. He has walked more batter than you would like to see, and gives up a few long balls, but you will take that from a lefty with his size and stuff. With another big spring Schmidt should be poised to be taken in the middle of the first round. James Adkins-LHP-Tennessee Sophomore year, 2006, Tennessee 8-6, 4.50 ERA 16 games (all starts), 2 CG, 106 IP, 96 H, 112 K, 42 BB, 6 HR, .238 BAA Freshman year, 2005, Tennessee 10-5, 3.32 ERA, 19 games (all starts), 3 CG, 127.1 IP, 107 H, 135 K, 51 BB, 8 HR, .229 BAA Cumulative 18-11, 3.86 ERA, 35 games (all starts), 5 CG, 233.1 IP, 203 H, 247 K, 93 BB, 14 HR Adkins had a huge freshman year, and actually was bumped up to the Volunteers' Friday starter ahead of Luke Hochevar. Like Schmidt, Adkins is built very well at 6'5" and about 215 pounds. He's not quite as stingy giving up base hits, and is a little susceptible to the long ball while walking a few more than you would like, but he does miss bats. Adkins throws in the 88-91 range when healthy, as that velocity dipped last spring as he pitched with a sore shoulder. He took the summer off in hopes of rebuilding his arm strength for the spring of 2007. Adkins also throws a curveball, slider and changeup, giving him a very well-rounded repertoire. There is some wasted movement to his delivery, and given his shoulder problems he will need to shore up his mechanics to make sure he avoids serious injury while helping him maintain his velocity.

Left-handed Two-way Talents Sean Doolittle-1B/LHP-Virginia Summer of 2006, Team USA .239/.344/.327, 113 AB, 4 2B, 2 HR, 16:26 BB:K 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 game (in relief), 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 4K, 0 BB Sophomore year, 2006, Virginia .324/.454/.458, 216 AB, 15 2B, 1 3B, 4 HR, 54:28 BB:K, 8 E 11-2, 2.38 ERA, 18 games (15 starts), 90.2 IP, 64 H, 108 K, 21 BB, 5 HR, .193 BAA Summer of 2005, Cape Cod League .278/.278/.278, 18 AB, 0:3 BB:K, 1 E (did not pitch) Freshman year, 2005, Virginia .313/.391/.522, 224 AB, 12 2B, 1 3B, 11 HR, 25:28 BB:K, 5 E 3-2, 1.64 ERA, 22 games (1 start), 49.1 IP, 31 H, 66 K, 16 BB, 2 HR, .186 BAA Cumulative .301/.405/.452, 571 AB, 31 2B, 2 3B, 17 HR, 95:85 BB:K, 14 E* 14-4, 2.09 ERA, 41 games (16 starts), 142 IP, 95 H, 178 K, 37 BB, 7 HR * No error totals from summer of 2006 found Doolittle was named the ACC player of the year after his impressive performance as both a hitter and as a pitcher. He is polished in both regards, using a sweet swing from the left side of the plate, driving balls into the gaps, while commanding the strike zone well as a starter. As a hitter, while his swing is more tailored to singles and doubles at this point in time, he has enough loft in his swing to hit more home runs as he matures. A smooth defender at first base, Doolittle is a similar player to first basemen like Lyle Overbay, John Olerud and Mark Grace. He has walked more than he has struck out during his college career, a very encouraging sign for future success. As a pitcher, Doolittle commands a 88-91 fastball very well, mixing in a solid curveball and changeup. While his stuff doesn't suggest that he is a fireballer, he has missed quite a few bats so far during his college career, he is stingy giving up base hits, he doesn't walk many and he doesn't give up many home runs either. Like his hitting, these are all encouraging ratios for future success. Where does his future lie? While many scouts prefer his ability as a pitcher over his ability as a hitter at this point in time, I prefer his sweet stroke and slick D' at first. His success next spring likely will determine where his future lies. Joe Savery-1B/LHP-Rice Sophomore year, 2006, Rice .335/.442/.528, 254 AB, 20 2B, 1 3B, 9 HR, 50:45 BB:K ratio, 2 E 5-1, 2.76 ERA, 13 games (11 starts), 62 IP, 55 H, 62 K, 24 BB, 1 HR, .240 BAA Freshman year, 2005, Rice .382/.471/.559, 204 AB, 17 2B, 2 3B, 5 HR, 35:35 BB:K, 4 E 8-5, 2.43 ERA, 19 games (17 starts), 2 CG, 118.2 IP, 104 H, 129 K, 37 BB, 4 HR, .235 BAA Cumulative .356/.454/.541, 458 AB, 163 H, 37 2B, 3 3B, 14 HR, 85:80 BB:K, 6 E 13-6, 2.54 ERA, 32 games (28 starts), 180.2 IP, 159 H, 191 K, 61 BB, 5 HR Savery is a similar prospect to Doolittle in that he is very polished as both a hitter and as a pitcher. He started his career at Rice with a bang, being named the nation's freshman of the year. At the plate he has a very sound approach, employing a sweet left-handed swing that offers a lot more power potential as he matures. Again like Doolittle, he is also very adept around the first base bag, and has enough athleticism to handle a move to a corner OF spot should a team prefer his bat to his stick. Again, it's nice to see him have more walks than strikeouts at the plate so far in his college career showing his plate discipline. On the mound, while Savery is just as polished as Doolittle, Savery throws harder more consistently, as he sat in the 92 range as a freshman and throws a plus curveball and average changeup. He misses bats, allows fewer hits than innings pitched, has averaged a walk every three innings, and isn't prone to giving up the long ball. I like Savery's future on the mound, but a tender shoulder kept him from playing summer ball and also restricted his use as a pitcher during his sophomore year. He isn't expected to start pitching again until January, and Rice pitchers are always subject to scrutiny.

Lefties, lefties, lefties. There are some interesting groupings going on with some left-handed hitters and pitchers. I am going to offer some numbers and breakdown two notable college left-handed hitters, two notable college left-handed starters, two notable college left-handed two-way players and three notable college left-handed relievers. Left-handed hitters: Beau Mills-3B/1B-Lewis Clark State (Idaho) Summer of 2006, Alaskan Summer League .270/.355/.493, 152 AB, 9 2B, 2 3B, 7 HR, 13:25 BB:K Sophomore year, 2006, Fresno State .355/.411/.675, 200 AB, 20 2B, 1 3B, 14 HR, 17:31 BB:K, 8 E Summer of 2005, Cape Cod League .225/.314/.449, 89 AB, 6 2B, 1 3B, 4 HR, 15:23 BB:K, 10 E Freshman year, 2005, Fresno State .319/.424/.699, 216 AB, 12 2B, 2 3B, 22 HR, 31:41 BB:K, 19 E Cumulative .306/.392/.610, 657 AB, 47 2B, 6 3B, 47 HR, 76:120, 37 E* * No error totals from summer of 2006 found Mills has the most power from any college hitter, shown by his 47 career home runs while playing at Fresno State and during the summers in between. Poor grades made him academically ineligible late last spring, and he has since transferred to Lewis & Clark State in Idaho. His father is the bench coach for the Boston Red Sox, and he was drafted by the Red Sox in the late rounds out of high school in the 2004 draft. Mills probably is more of a first baseman down the road given his lofty error totals from the hot corner, but his bat is his ticket anyway. For such a big slugger, his strikeout totals aren't even that gaudy, at least not in comparison to the next guy I am going to profile. Mills broke onto the scene quickly with a huge freshman year, and re-established himself this past summer after his academic problems by being named the Alaskan League's top prospect. His power potential could very well propel him into the top half of the first round. Matt Mangini-3B-Oklahoma State Summer of 2006, Cape Cod League .310/.370/.394, 155 AB, 7 2B, 2 HR, 14:41 BB:K, 9 E Sophomore year, 2006, NC State .343/.409/.531, 239 AB, 16 2B, 4 3B, 7 HR, 27:54 BB:K, 16 E Summer of 2005, Northwoods League .342/.392/.519, 187 AB, 13 2B, 1 3B, 6 HR, 16:44 BB:K Freshman year, 2005, NC State .161/.257/.226, 31 AB, 1 3B, 3:11 BB:K Cumulative .325/.387/.487, 612 AB, 36 2B, 6 3B, 15 HR, 60:150 BB:K, 25 E* * No error totals from summer of 2005 found Mangini burst onto the scene during the summer of 2005, when he was named the Northwoods League's top prospect. A big, powerfully built third baseman, Mangini is more of a singles and doubles hitter at this point in time despite his larger frame. He led the Cape League in hitting this past summer, and got off to a tremendous start last spring for NC State. Mangini has since transferred to Oklahoma State. While he has hit for a high average, he has struck out 150 times in 612 college at-bats. That's an extremely alarming total for a guy that doesn't hit for equally alarming power. His error totals are also rather high, at a move to first base could be in his future as well, although his power production will need to increase for that to happen. Still, never underestimate one's ability to hit, as developing power and honing his strike-zone discipline are certainly things Mangini can correct.

Thanks for the new link, but there is already a thread open, just a few below this one, talking about the possibility of Turnbow going to Boston: p092.ezboard.com/fbrewers...2004.topic

I also wanted to point out that Jackson actually did quite well at the WWBA tournament, as I think Baseball America's comment on him from their top 20 prospect lists was rather misguided. Jackson had six hits on Monday, the final day of the tournament, and made big play after big play defensively, helping to propel the Reds Scout Team to the championship. You can check the game logs from WWBA's site here: www.worldwoodbat.com/Tour...spx?ID=222

The Angels are up today: www.baseballamerica.com/t...62953.html Brandon Wood repeats as their #1 prospect, Nick Adenhart is #2, and Erick Aybar, who was rumored to be part of a trade proposal for Carlos Lee last July, is #3. The Angels system is still good, but not nearly as deep as it was a year ago.

Carter is a very good slugger, and could have been a first-round pick coming out of high school in 2001 IIRC if it weren't for his Stanford commitment. However, even going back to his HS days, the guy has been pegged as a future DH early in his career. Now I know people will say they could care less about his D if he hits as well as he has so far in the minors, but the D-Backs don't even want him playing 1B because his defense is so bad, and he's a liability in LF as well (think Greg Vaughn...an old Greg Vaughn). I had one person tell me that he's more of an AL player than Jack Cust. Ouch. I'm sure he's a nice guy, and again, his stats are hard to ignore, but a player like that with his defensive reputation won't last long in the NL. Carter will be in Oakland soon enough http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif .

Thanks Toby. It's clear how much work you put into that projection. I like Nashville's team. The lineup may not be a powerhouse, but Braun should add enough of a big bat to help carry some of the other guys. The bench, the starting rotation and the bullpen all look strong. Huntsville's going to have some troubles scoring runs I think with that lineup. There are some intriguing prospects, particulalry in the outfield. The pitching staff looks solid, and the bullpen looks really good. Brevard County is going to be a lot of fun to follow. Not surprisingly, since last year's WV club was so much fun to follow. Similar to Nashville, from the lineup to the bench to the rotation to the bullpen, this club could be one of the better clubs in the FSL. I would be a little surprised to see Brewer in WV and not Jeffress, as I think it's more likely to be the other way around, but I don't want to nitpick the individual assignments. WV's pitching staff seems to leave a little to be desired, although they should score some runs with the same heart of the order Helena enjoyed this past year. Thanks again Toby.

Why don't the Brewers have that many great prospects? I've argued before that I have a hard time finding too many, if any teams, that have a better top three prospects (Braun, Gallardo, Inman) than the Brewers have. They're doing just fine. And when that second wave arrives (Braun, Yo, others) we can start getting about that third wave (Inman, Salome, Cain, Gillespie) that will be sniffing the big leagues. I should add "hopefully" because you never know of course.

Madison? Following a year in Janesville? Boo-urns. They are called the Milwaukee Brewers afterall http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif . That makes it hard for me to commit, but just to do my part, here's a logo for the event... http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y155/colbyjack/wintermeetings.jpg

What the poster failed to mention was how exhausted he was after having played for most of the summer. I'm not a big fan of that excuse, because you could use it for pretty much any player in attendance.

I have updated the list of free agents signed and the remaining free agents that were offered arbitration. There are 7 Type A free agents remaining and 14 Type B free agents that could factor into the compensation process. And with 22 free agents already signed, that means there could be as many as 43 picks in the sandwich round, which means the Brewers 2nd round pick may not be until the 78th overall selection. After seeing this unfold, I think they made a mistake by changing the compensation rules with Type B free agents before they changed the classifications. That's way too many sandwich picks, and really hurt the little guys that were supposed to have a pretty good pick with their 2nd rounder.

The Twins are up today: www.baseballamerica.com/t...62912.html Matt Garza is #1, followed by LHP Perkins and RHP Slowey. That's a lot of pitching talent on the cusp of contributing at the MLB level. Interesting to note that #10 prospect JD Durbin is out of options. The Twins need pitching help at the big league level, so there's a pretty good chance Durbin sticks, but in the event he disappoints in spring training he could be an intriguing option to keep an eye on.

I don't really have anything to add, just read this post over on Perfect Game's message board and the answer that follows: perfectgame.atinfopop.com...8471009041 A reminder not to always get caught up in the numbers, and another reminder that talent can often overcome any obstacle.

Interesting proposal. As unlikely as it is, it does make sense for all of the teams you have involved. I'm pretty sure four-team deals have happened in the past. They certainly aren't commonplace, but I seem to remember the Brewers being involved in one the past five-six years, I just can't remember who was involved (they were involved in a couple of 3-way deals, one was the Wright/Haynes/Blanco deal and the other was the Rusch/Harris trade...was there a 4th team involved in either one, even if it was to just balance some of the money involved???).

Sorry Jim, I meant to make that part more clear. I think the new signing date will increase the need for these players to pursue these summer leagues, and the teams in conjuction with the coaches may try to persuade them to play more juco's and less college freshmen and sophomores. There are plenty of these leagues out there, so while the more prominent Cape League may not be the best place to start, there should be ample opportunities for players to make the most of that time. And high schoolers have the various summer circuits, showcases, legion ball, etc. Showcases probably won't work as well, but it would be interesting if places (such as Perfect Game) started to hold a post-draft showcase and/or tournament to help some players that slipped through the cracks show their stuff with a couple of extra weeks under their belt. This already happens to a certain degree, as a couple of former Brewer draft picks, Jemile Weeks and Tom Wilhelmsen, were at their best the summer after they were drafted. That propelled the Brewers to sign Wilhelmsen, and unfortunately they weren't able to put together a package appealing enough to Weeks to sway him from Miami. I will miss the DFE process. Here's a nice DFE Obituary column from my associate at Perfect Game, David Rawnsley, who worked with the Astros when they followed and signed a couple of the bigger DFEs in recent years: Roy Oswalt and Wade Miller: www.perfectgame.org/crack...ow%5Frule/