Yanks lose first round pick to college

[Gom]

Another example of the idiot being clueless. Let's draft a player in the first round, and then not sign him.

 

Please God, kill me now if Cashman is to come back.

 

http://bats.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/08/14/first-round-pick-gerrit-cole-opts-for-college-over-yankees/

[ARod2212]

Superstar talent available. Agent is Scott Boras. Only reason he falls to you in the draft is the money he'll command. You offer as much money as you want. He says he's going to college anyway.

 

Yes, blame Cashman.

 

Seriously, what else was he supposed to do?

[jacksonianmarch]

I agree with Gom on this one. This is on the FO if Cole decides not to sign. The deadline is tonight and the story comes out one day before the deadline. Boras is also his agent. Think about the context here. This might be a ploy.

 

But lets say the kid actually goes to college, this is a big loss. Think about it. Cole throws 95-100mph with a plus offspeed pitch already. He would slot in as one of our top 3 pitching prospects immediately.

 

But the reason why this is on the front office is because of what we could have had. Lobstein, Hunt, Melville and Medders were available in that slot and would have fit very nicely into our fold. In order for us to make that deal with Cole, it must be readily apparent that he is going pro if his demands are met. If that wasnt the case, you pass.

 

BTW, this one isnt on Cashman as much as it is on Damon Oppenheimer. He is the guy who runs the drafts. But it is the front office in general who shares this blame.

 

This also threw off our entire draft strategy. While we did draft a bunch of higher end arms like O'Brien, Richardson, Braboy, and Marshall, none of them were as advanced as Cole (Marshall is the closest). If Cole wasnt a lock to sign, our supplemental pick wouldnt have been Bleich, who I view as a solid, fast moving pick, but his upside is blunted by his high 80s velocity. If Cole was a reach, I would have grabbed Medders who was available when Bleich was taken

[TheKilo]

i posted this in the Yankee draft thread.