Here are some rundowns on each of their eight selections from Day 1. Please keep in mind this info is from Diamondbacks people, so it’s obviously going to lean heavily on the glass-half-full side.
1. No. 16, 3B Bobby Borchering: The Diamondbacks saw him a lot, and they saw a lot more good than bad. His batting practice sessions were said to be extremely impressive, though he might have fallen for some teams because his in-game at-bats sometimes weren’t as good. He had a great performance against good competition in the Florida all-star game, Diamondbacks people are on board with the Chipper Jones comparisons (particularly from the left side), and they believe he has a chance to stick at third base. They think the bat has the potential to produce 30-homer type power.
Quick side note: Borchering is telling people he doesn’t have an advisor, that he’s leaning on his parents in the negotiating process, yet the Diamondbacks have been in touch with agents from SFX. Maybe his comments to reporters are a matter of him trying to be extra careful with NCAA rules? (He’s committed to Florida.) Or maybe he’s about to make an agent change. Either way, the Diamondbacks seem to think they can sign him sooner than later and want to get him out playing games ASAP.
2. No. 17, CF A.J. Pollock: One person said he is the best bet to be the best player the Diamondbacks took, a center fielder who could hit .285 with 15 home runs and 20 steals in the big leagues. The skill-set maybe doesn’t blow you away, but it’s also one that you don’t see all the time out of a center fielder. “When you meet this kid and watch him play,” one scout said, “you’ll fall in love with him.” Some have called him a right-handed Mark Kotsay, some have dropped Ryan Spilborghs' name. And there are some who believe there’s more in there, more ceiling, than what the industry consensus seems to think. The Diamondbacks believe the Red Sox, Rays and Cubs were looking hard at him and didn’t think he would have been around at 35. Signability: It sounds like they already have a deal in place, or are very close to having one in place.
3. No. 35, 3B Matt Davidson: Another high-upside pick, Davidson has huge power potential, maybe a 30-home run type if he can put it all together, and one scout called him a hard-nosed kid, a gamer. Defensively, he’s a work in progress, and the hope is that with hard work he can stay at third. But if he hits the way the Diamondbacks expect, he profiles at any corner spot. Signability: Like Pollock, sounds like it’s done or close to done.
4. No. 41, SS Chris Owings: We heard multiple people throwing out Aaron Hill as a comp: Similar build, short swing, more power than you might expect. Good glove, good arm, should be able to stick at shortstop. Gordon Beckham was another name mentioned. He could be tough to sign as his commitment to South Carolina is strong, but the Diamondbacks have been on him a while and have developed a relationship, and they believe they should be in the same neighborhood financially as what he’s seeking.
5. No. 45, LHP Mike Belfiore: In that 25-inning game between Boston College and Texas, Belfiore threw 129 pitches in 9 2/3 innings. But instead of hurting his draft status, some people think it might actually have helped him. He was a reliever for BC, but Belfiore showed with that outing that he could get through a lineup three times, and when he hit 93 mph near the end, he showed he has the stamina to start, too. He is said to have clean arm action, athleticism and secondary pitches, so he’ll get a chance to start. We heard Belfiore might have some Joe Saunders in him. Obviously the Diamondbacks will be very careful with how they use him, particularly this season, in case there are any lingering effects from the 129-pitch outing, but believe there are a lot of bullets left in his arm since he's been used mostly as a reliever.
6. No. 60, RHP Eric Smith: The Diamondbacks think that his sinker was up there with Leake’s among the best in the draft, both visually and statistically (i.e., inducing ground balls). He throws it 89-93 mph and has decent secondary stuff, including what one scout described as a swing-and-miss slider. He profiles well for the ballpark. It doesn’t sound like they see him as a top-of-the-rotation guy, but he could be a No. 4-type starter.
7. No. 64, LF Marc Krauss: This guy can rake. He did it in the Cape with a wood bat then hit 27 home runs in the college season. Yeah, he played in the MAC, but the Diamondbacks looked at how he did against better Division I competition and he raked against them, too. The club had a ton of video on him, and something one scout mentioned to me was that he took the same swing each and every time. Does Krauss have a position? Not really. But people feel he has some Adam Dunn in him at the plate -- and maybe some Sean Casey, too -- and believe the bat will create value, positional concerns aside.
8. No. 95, OF Keon Broxton: Their biggest gamble of the day, but one that’s easier to take when you already have seven other selections. Very raw but loaded with tools. One scout said he thought Broxton, who is 6-foot-4, had some Rondell White in him, another said Mike Cameron, another said Matt Kemp. One scout: “Wait until you see this guy.” A high school teammate of Diamondbacks area scout Luke Wrenn’s son, Broxton turned down a football scholarship from Florida Atlantic and turned down some money from the Phillies as a 29th-rounder last year. Instead, he went to a Florida junior college, where he kept getting better and better this season. Then he just went off in the Junior College World Series, further improving his stock. The Diamondbacks knew Baltimore liked him, and then after they took him, they heard from Orioles people who said they were going to pick him in the fourth round.
