Thursday, June 6, 2013

Dodgers select Chris Anderson with the 18th pick of the 2013 MLB Draft

I think I said it best on Twitter, "Well, he's better than Chris Reed." The Dodgers selected Jacksonville University right-handed pitcher Chris Anderson with their first pick in the 2013 MLB Draft.

When the pick was made, an audible "ugh" was uttered by this blogger. It's going to take some time for me to warm up to this selection, but it's not a bad pick.

Vitals
  • 6'4, 225 pounds
  • 20 years old (21 on July 29)
Anderson has a pretty good fastball/slider combination. His fastball has touched 97 MPH and sits in the low-to-mid 90s. It's even better because of plus sink. He also has potentially plus changeup and a "show me" curveball.

Anderson's slider projects as a plus pitch and is a true swing-and-miss pitch. It could get him a bunch of strikeouts going forward. If Anderson can turn his changeup into a legitimate weapon, he could have lots of success. He's also been praised for his control.

Keith Law said Anderson profiles as a No. 2 stater, while Peter Gammons said his best comp is Chris Carpenter. So, that's comforting.

Anderson was originally drafted by the Cubs in the 35th round of the 2010 draft. He dominated at Jacksonville University -- something you have to do if you're going to be selected in the first round of the draft.

The Dodgers are allotted $2,109,900 for this selection. If the team can get him to sign for less than slot, then I'll like this pick a little bit more.

Video



The top player left on my board was Ian Clarkin. As of pick No. 21, he's still available. The next-best player on my board was Hunter Harvey. The Dodgers have bucked their trend of drafting high school pitchers.

Since 2009, they've has drafted three college pitchers with their pick (Aaron Miller, Reed and now Anderson) compared to one high schooler (Zach Lee).  There were worse options on the board at the time of the Dodgers' pick, but there were also other players I preferred.

Anderson is probably a Top 10 prospect in the Dodgers' system before even throwing a pitch, so I guess it can't be that bad. He should be sent to -- at worst -- Ogden after he signs, but I'd like to see him pitch with the Loons in Great Lakes.

At least Anderson is a starting pitcher and profiles as such. I could see him reaching the majors as a reliever before eventually moving to the rotation. As you'll hear in the draft episode of "Dugout Blues," they took the "right" Anderson.

1 comment:

  1. Seems like you can't say logan white drafts hs pitchers anymore since I don't remember the last time the dodgers actually did that in the first round.

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