Former scout and baseball exec Tony Blengino shares memories from his years of experience participating in the MLB draft. Former exec Jim Bowden will share his own most memorable experiences Tuesday.
The MLB draft is almost upon us!
MLB teams are in the final stages of preparing their respective draft boards in preparation for the draft, which takes place Thursday through Saturday, while high school, junior college and college players around the country hope for the phone call that will change their lives.
I spent the two to three weeks preceding every draft from 2005 through 2012 in the draft rooms of the Brewers and Mariners, the clubs I served in a variety of capacities. A vast array of individuals pour their hearts and souls on a 24/7/365 basis into each club's draft effort. In the final weeks, all the information derived from those efforts -- from scouting reports to video to stats to eye tests to medical information, you name it -- is evaluated as each club hammers out its board.
Eighteen-hour days become the norm and tempers can occasionally flare, as decision-makers are in equal measures passionate about their beliefs, not to mention physically drained. What many on the outside of the process don't always take into consideration is that every draft magnet is in fact a human being, with his own story that led him to the big day.
Here are my four favorite draft stories:
The 47th-rounder
Today, there is no such thing as the 47th round in the MLB Rule 4 (amateur) draft. There's also no such thing as a men's baseball team at the University of Vermont. But both existed in 2004, my second year as the Northeast area scouting supervisor for the Brewers.
That year, I was honored to scout and sign our first-round pick, Mark Rogers, a Maine high-schooler. Much of my spring was spent watching a fairly unique group of high-ceiling New England high school pitchers, including Rogers.
I had also hoped to spend part of my spring watching University of Vermont left-hander Derek Miller pitch. Unfortunately, he had undergone Tommy John surgery the previous year, and as a fourth-year junior, the timing appeared to be quite unfortunate from his perspective.
Derek and I kept in touch regularly regarding his rehabilitation, and I told him to let me know if he would be taking the mound for a bullpen session at any point prior to the draft. I had heard good things about him from many college contacts, including his coach, Bill Currier, and a handful of opposing coaches.