Marlins satisfied with skill-sets scooped up in 2014 draft
There's no telling how high picks draft will develop, but the Miami Marlins feel confident about theirs because of strong skill-sets.
Right-hander Tyler Kolek, selected second overall, has a plus fastball and curveball. The Gatorade Texas Player of the Year posted a 5-2 record and a 0.35 ERA in his senior season with 126 strikeouts and eight walks in 60 1/3 innings.
Competitive Balance A selection Blake Anderson, a high-school catcher from Mississippi, is solid defensively. Falls City High shortstop Justin Twine is a three-sport athlete who won the Texas state title in the long jump and rushed for 32 touchdowns as a quarterback.
"They have what we call the 'tools of the trade,' " vice president of scouting Stan Meek said via teleconference. "They have big tools. Kolek has a very big fastball, big, strong kid. He's a power pitcher. Blake Anderson has really, really good top-of-the-line defensive skills. Twine is a speed player with power.
"These are high school kids, but they have big ability. We're trying to deal with impact at the top of the draft, and we think all of these guys bring some impact to us both offensively and defensively."
Miami took three high school players on Day 1 of the draft and 15 overall.
After Kolek, the Marlins went with five left-handers -- all of whom competed at the collegiate level this past season. Of the 23 pitchers drafted, nine are lefties, including Chipola College junior Michael Mader.
Mader, whom Miami grabbed with the supplemental pick following the third round, finished 7-3 with one save, a 3.18 ERA and 74 strikeouts in 73 2/3 innings as a sophomore.
"I don't think it's ever easy to find good left-handers," Meek said. "I think that's why you have to draft as many as you can. ... You never have enough left-handed pitching, and it's a real commodity. We try to load up on it whenever we can."
The Marlins selected five position players over the next seven picks, including four infielders. One of them, shortstop Anfernee Seymour, attended American Heritage School in Broward County.
Over 42 picks, Meek and his staff claimed 23 pitchers, four catchers, 12 infielders and three outfielders.
Most of Miami's top prospects -- Andrew Heaney, Justin Nicolino and Anthony DeSclafani -- are pitchers. The farm system is lacking in position players.
"I think that's probably looking at a system where we're a little deficient," Meek said. "We felt like we had a little more depth of pitching. We felt like it was an area of need and so we kinda started focusing there. And we really didn't reach to take these position players.
"They fit right in with the pitchers. We thought if it's all equal, let's try some position players. Normally we say if all is equal, let's take pitching. But this time, we felt like we should lean more toward the position guys. So that's just how it fell for us."
On the final day of the Draft, the Marlins selected three righties over their first five picks. Nick White of Berryhill High School went in the 11th round. He is the top-rated pitching prospect out of Oklahoma according to MLB.com and completed his high-school career 37-4.
In the 17th round, Miami took first baseman Eric Fisher out of the University of Arkansas. The Marlins drafted him last year, but couldn't come to terms with the left-handed power hitter.
"He had a pretty good year and always liked him," Meek said. "Try it again."
Overall, the most well represented states were California (eight players), Texas (five) and Florida (five).
| MIAMI MARLINS DRAFT PICKS |
|---|
| First Round (No. 2): RHP Tyler Kolek (Shepherd HS, Texas) |
| Competitive Balance A (No. 36): C Blake Anderson (West Lauderdale HS, Mississippi) |
| Second Round (No. 43): SS Justin Twine (Falls City, Texas) |
| Third Round (No. 76): 2B Brian Anderson (University of Arkansas) |
| Supplemental Round (No. 105): LHP Michael Mader (Chipola College, Florida) |
| Fourth Round (No. 107): SS Brian Schales (Edison HS, California) |
| Fifth Round (No. 137): CF Casey Soltis (Granada HS, California) |
| Sixth Round (No. 167): LHP Chris Sadberry (Texas Tech University) |
| Seventh Round (No. 197): SS Anfernee Seymour (American Heritage School, Florida) |
| Eighth Round (No. 227): CF Stone Garrett (George Ranch HS, Texas) |
| Ninth Round (No. 257): LHP Ben Holmes (Oregon State University) |
| 10th round (No. 287): LHP Dillon Peters (University of Texas) |
| 11th Round (No. 317): RHP Nick White (Berryhill HS, Oklahoma) |
| 12th Round (No. 347): C Roy Morales (Colegio Angel David HS, Puerto Rico) |
| 13th Round (No. 377): RHP Jacob Smigelski (University of California-Riverside) |
| 14th Round (No. 407): SS Zach Sullivan (Corning East HS, New York) |
| 15th Round (No. 437): RHP Connor Overton (Old Dominion University) |
| 16th Round (No. 467): LHP Scott Squier (University of Hawaii) |
| 17th Round (No. 497): 1B Eric Fisher (University of Arkansas) |
| 18th Round (No. 527): C Brad Haynal (San Diego State University) |
| 19th round (No. 557): 2B Frederick Davis (The Citadel) |
| 20th Round (No. 587): RHP Jordan Holloway (Ralston Valley HS, Colorado) |
| 21st Round (No. 617): SS Derek King (Fort Meade HS, Florida) |
| 22nd Round (No. 647): 3B Mitchell Robinson (Clayton Heights HS, British Columbia) |
| 23rd Round (No. 677): RHP Steven Farnworth (Cal Poly Pomona) |
| 24th Round (No. 707): 2B Ryan Crammer (Newberry College) |
| 25th Round (No. 737): LHP Christian MacDonald (UNC-Wilmington) |
| 26th Round (No. 767): RHP Nick Williams (University of Tennessee) |
| 27th Round (No. 797): C Christopher Hoo (Cal Poly San Luis Obispo) |
| 28th Round (No. 827): 1B Christian Williams (Gulf Coast Community College) |
| 29th Round (No. 857): RHP Greg Greve (Ohio State University) |
| 30th Round (No. 887): RHP Kyle Fischer (St. Cloud State University) |
| 31st Round (No. 917): LHP Kyle Porter (University of California-Berkley) |
| 32nd Round (No. 947): LHP Nestor Bautista (Ball State University) |
| 33rd Round (No. 977): 1B Austen Smith (University of Alabama) |
| 34th Round (No. 1007): LHP Taylor Lehman (Keystone Oaks HS, Pennsylvania) |
| 35th Round (No. 1037): RHP Keith Zuniga (Bethune-Cookman University) |
| 36th Round (No. 1067): RHP Justin Hepner (San Diego State University) |
| 37th Round (No. 1097): RHP Chase Williams (Eastern Oklahoma State JC) |
| 38th Round (No. 1127): RHP Parker Ray (Texas A&M University) |
| 39th round (No. 1157): RHP Matt Pope (Walters State Community College, Tennessee) |
| 40th Round (No. 1187): CF Hunter Aguirre (Westmoore HS, Oklahoma) |
You can follow Christina De Nicola on Twitter @CDeNicola13 or email her at cdenicola13@gmail.com.