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Baseball Factory best tools list Cody Hawn finds his name listed several times on a Tennessee list of baseball prospects (2006 season-junior season) -and- Arkansas Razorbacks fansite recruit page (6 names down)

I remember reading a first hand report from Nashville earlier this summer when Corey Hart filled in at first base (maybe it was during the time when Fielder was up with the big league club) and his defense there was labled as something very very good. A good defensive first baseman with some speed and the ability to hit/steal bases sounds a lot like the Florida Marlin's version of Derek Lee. With all the talk about how West Virginia players might be struggling with errors due to the first baseman down there not being exceptional (Richardson). Could having a standout first bagger like Hart help keep Weeks bat at second and a future Bruan or current Hall at third by keeping their throwing error totals down? I know that would mean trading both Overbay and Prince, just a thought.

they mentioned that Miami's 1st baseman is a natural 3rd baseman who is strickly playing there until Braun moves on. The only real play I saw Braun make was the inning ending double play and that looked silky smooth. I don't dare just a player by one play though however it looked very much routine for the guy. Hasn't been the most prolific offensive game for either of our Hurricane draftee's but they didn't draft these guys because of one game.

draft and follow can actually be quite expensive look at one of the latest signing from last year (Ford) and his 200 K paycheck. That is a significant load of cash for any draftpick outside the top 5 rounds. the draft and follow is definatly a way to be selective with your cash though and use it wisely. Instead of getting 5 guys equaling 200 thousand dollars, the Brewers waited a year and grabbed one guy that they thought actually had a chance to make it and gave it all to him. Smart spending.

I think the Brewers drafted a good number of draft and follow candidates. Even though they only signed 5 guys from this past years class, I think they really like taking that approach to the draft and seeing how guys mature over one years time. Personally, I enjoy that approach to as a fan and think it is a good way to bring in guys who are improving on things that select CC or JC's work on the players with. This should be a fun one to watch for the next 11 months.

everytime a new thread gets started the M's nab a previous lost-selection next time up we are going to see Dustin Timms or Diek Scram taken

I wonder if the Brewers were debating selecting Kahn again in round 5 before Seattle nabbed him

time for Colby's Cali catcher Charlie Cutler? (sweet sweet alliteration)

the MLB.com drafttracker is a lot faster than my internet radio connection I found out about Zimmerman appx. 20 seconds before the radio said it. I don't know if that's because of a weak connection, but if you have dial-up you might consider checking it out for neatness and quickness

That is sweet news. Expected from colbyjacks statements, but good to hear. He definatly had a good follow-up season. I am curious as to how much it took to sign him though. Anyone out there besides Burriff and Scram that we are really waiting on?

Milwaukee Brewer Community College (aka, Cowley Community College, with products Junior Spivey, Clay Blevins, and Josh Wahpepah) is playing in the Region VI baseball tournament this weekend in Wichita, KS. Cowley CC lost Friday 13-10 to Golden City CC in the first round of the weekend playoff series. The Brewers 45th round pick last year (Diek Scram) and one of the top hitting DFE's of this past years class for the club had a great effort in the teams loss. Scram went 2-3 with 2 runs and 5 RBI (one hit was a triple). impressive game from a kid who hit .460 this year with 8 long balls and 22 steals winning the Jayhawk East MVP award.

Without getting too off topic I went ahead and looked up the phrase "close to the vest" and found the answer here. link I may just be out of touch, but I don't that phrase is exactly mainstream, but it does describe our Brewers drafting philosophy to the tee...and I think that is the smartest way to play the draft. It stinks for draftniks seeking tidbits of info to make predictions, but overall we'll find out the pick relatively soon and I would rather have Milwaukee get the best player without tipping off the whole league than me getting an idea of what direction they will go.

The Dustin Timm story is one that I'll be watching, part of me wants the Brewers to get the kid because he pitched well for a major D1 baseball program and he's got a lot going for him as far as his frame and pitching ability. However, the other part of me wants him to throw the Brewer's money back in their face and play for the passion that is college baseball and sit on the money for a chance to make a post season run with his teamates.

According to the Ann Arbor News, prep pitcher Zach Putnam threw last week against a quality opponent as his team won in five innings due to the mercy rule. Putnam's squad won and the young righty threw a solid game. 5 IP 10 K, 2 BB, 1 hit given up The article mentioned he struck out the final 7 batters with five of those K victims being on his newly enhanced curveball. Also worth noting is that the only opposing runner who reached third base was picked off by Putnam in the third. -Ann Arbor News While the splitter is a tough pitch to hit, it also has a history leading to injury if I'm not mistaken. According to Colbyjacks reference in the draft guide on brewerfan.net though, Putnam has very good mechanics which eases some doubts about the kid throwing a straining splitter. Being that Putnam is from the great white north much like Glen Perkins (U of Minnesota) and Erik Cordier (Southern Door, WI) in 2004, I think that he would have some sentimental favor with a lot of posters here who hail from those areas. link to article on Putnam's performance

1. Cameron Maybin 1a. Ryan Zimmerman Reading the perfect game "hot list" and reading what Maybin is doing really has me really intrigued. In case you haven't read it (it's linked in Colby's Perfect Game feature thread) Maybin is hitting something like .800 and according to the source he hasn't struck out all year. That is pretty impressive for a guy with power potential along with everything else you could ask for in an outfield prospect. I think it would be difficult for him to climb the system with the likes of Moss, Gwynn, and Krynzel (a lot tougher than say taking a catcher or 3rd baseman) but it would definatly be a pick that you can't pass up if he falls to you. The potential is too great in this kid, especially at the 5 slot if he falls. I also list Zimmerman because Gordon will be gone and I think taking a flyer on Zimmerman wouldn't be the worst move. For starters he's supposed to be a great defender at third. If you have the defensive aspects of the game down, you can spend more of your time refining your hitting as you climb up the minor league rankings. Also he is really starting to hit this year much like he did in the Cape Cod league where he came near close to winning the "MVP" of that camp. If Maybin falls I would grab him and look for him to become the new top prize in the system once Fielder and Weeks graduate. If Maybin, Gordon, and Upton go in the top 4 though, I would look for an outside shot to sign at slot value (potentially lower) in Zimmerman who could play in a more advanced league early because he defense is good enough. I don't care about the "lack of power" that he is supposed to have. Great hitters develop power and I think that Zimmerman has the ability to become a darn good hitter someday. Gordon would be a pipe dream, but I would not cry spoiled milk to land the second best 3rd baseman and watch him flourish. Also by not wasting money in the first on a "money" guy, it frees up the Crew to invest more in their '04 DFE, some "tough signees", or look outside the country for talent like they did a little bit this offseason.