Last year's edition of this article found two players that were selected by the Jays.
Same rules as last week with the pitchers - since the Jays pick at #120 I'm only going to look at players who are ranked #120 or higher at Baseball America.
Cole Gillespie, OF, Oregon St, 6-1, 200, RH
BA Rank - 122
| Year | ABs | Ave | OBP | SLG | K/BB | K% |
| 2006 | 189 | 0.370 | 0.492 | 0.683 | 0.7 | 11.3% |
| 2005 | 94 | 0.319 | 0.455 | 0.362 | 0.6 | 10.8% |
| 2004 | 62 | 0.290 | 0.371 | 0.500 | 1.8 | 20.0% |
Gillespie is a versitlie player who's played all three OF positions and both corner infield spots. He's improved his power considerably this year. I suspect his friends call him Dizzy, although thinking about it more I suspect his friends are too young to call him that.
Cyle Hankerd, OF, USC, 6-2, 205, RH
BA Rank - 129
| Year | ABs | Ave | OBP | SLG | K/BB | K% |
| 2006 | 230 | 0.383 | 0.469 | 0.587 | 1.4 | 14.4% |
| 2005 | 218 | 0.298 | 0.378 | 0.404 | 1.8 | 16.9% |
| 2004 | 141 | 0.333 | 0.443 | 0.411 | 1.6 | 22.7% |
Another player who improved considerably this year, particularly his power. Note that USC plays one of the toughest schedules.
Jordan Newton, C, Western Kentucky, 6-0, 190, RH
BA Rank - 149
| Year | ABs | Ave | OBP | SLG | K/BB | K% |
| 2006 | 176 | 0.324 | 0.468 | 0.699 | 1.0 | 18.9% |
| 2005 | 216 | 0.329 | 0.422 | 0.620 | 1.6 | 18.6% |
| 2004 | 197 | 0.325 | 0.436 | 0.492 | 1.6 | 17.2% |
He strikes out a lot, but when he hits it it goes a long way - to do it at catcher is nice to have. The average has remained the same for the most part with the power improving each year. Newton also takes a fair share of walks.
Matt McBride, C, Lehigh, 6-3, 205, RH
BA Rank - 154
| Year | ABs | Ave | OBP | SLG | K/BB | K% |
| 2006 | 204 | 0.417 | 0.464 | 0.667 | 0.7 | 6.1% |
| 2005 | 182 | 0.258 | 0.312 | 0.385 | 1.5 | 8.0% |
| 2004 | 172 | 0.366 | 0.415 | 0.547 | 1.4 | 10.1% |
If you like catchers with a good average, good power, good speed (21 steals) who don't strike out you might like this guy. Plus, the first line of his BA scouting report is "McBride's strength has always been his catch-and-throw skills". Sounds like someone who should be a lot higher than #154.
Shane Robinson, OF, Florida St, 5-9, 165, RH
BA Rank - 169
| Year | ABs | Ave | OBP | SLG | K/BB | K% |
| 2006 | 257 | 0.350 | 0.430 | 0.490 | 0.7 | 7.7% |
| 2005 | 286 | 0.427 | 0.532 | 0.605 | 0.5 | 7.9% |
| 2004 | 275 | 0.280 | 0.358 | 0.371 | 1.5 | 11.3% |
Robinson had a great 2005 but hasn't followed it up in 2006. He's a small, quick, leadoff type, but he might be too small to be an everyday player. His ISO Slg is just .140 this year which isn't a good sign. He's probably a lot of fun to watch though.
Tyler Colvin, OF, Clemson, 6-3, 190, LH
BA Rank - 170
| Year | ABs | Ave | OBP | SLG | K/BB | K% |
|
2006 |
247 |
0.360 |
0.426 |
0.632 |
1.5 | 13.8% |
| 2005 | 258 | 0.283 | 0.323 | 0.442 | 2.2 | 11.3% |
| 2004 | 128 | 0.289 | 0.350 | 0.414 | 1.5 | 11.4% |
Like most juniors he's improved considerably this year. He's not considered to be strong in any one area, but isn't considered weak in any area either.
Whit Robbins, 1B/3B, Georgia Tech, 6-1, 208, LH
BA Rank - 177
| Year | ABs | Ave | OBP | SLG | K/BB | K% |
| 2006 | 221 | 0.367 | 0.480 | 0.620 | 0.8 | 12.1% |
| 2005 | 162 | 0.265 | 0.411 | 0.444 | 0.5 | 10.2% |
| 2004 | 144 | 0.313 | 0.421 | 0.438 | 0.7 | 11.5% |
Another improved junior. Robbins held up well against the North Carolina duo of Miller and Bard, hitting a homerun off of Bard this spring.
Chad Huffman, 1B/2B, TCU, 6-1, 206, RH
BA Rank - 178
| Year | ABs | Ave | OBP | SLG | K/BB | K% |
| 2006 | 196 | 0.388 | 0.504 | 0.765 | 0.8 | 11.9% |
| 2005 | 241 | 0.353 | 0.437 | 0.573 | 1.0 | 9.7% |
| 2004 | 253 | 0.383 | 0.477 | 0.577 | 1.2 | 9.4% |
You don't see too many 1B/2B combos do you? Well, outside of softball that is. Huffman's defensive position is the real question. Perhaps third, the OF, or maybe just DH. Regardless of the position he can hit. He continually had a high average and boosted his slugging over .750 with a .377 ISO. And he did that with a reasonable strikeout rate in a slight pitcher's park against decent competition. I like him the most of any player on this list. In my (primitive) adjustments for schedule and park Huffman comes out at #3 overall among hitters.
For what it's worth, where these players rank in my adjusted college stats:
Gillespie - 6
Hankerd - 19
Newton - 42
McBride - 85
Robinson - 340
Colvin - 124
Robbins - 34
Huffman - 3
Interestingly, last year Brian Pettway was #2 and Ryan Patterson was #4.
On Monday I'll look at who's likely to be gone, who'll be available and who the Jays might be likely to select when their pick comes up in round 1.
https://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20060530124614322