The rumors were correct. I had seen several people wonder as to my whereabouts on draft day considering how quiet I was -- much to my regular people's dismay. I had a front row seat to what was the most exciting, grueling day I have ever experienced. I was
there in the draft room while the Featherheads made their picks. It was all at once intense and highly ridiculous -- punctuated with an interrobang of the end of the day with the Featherheads' owner being carted out of the room on his palanquin being held aloft by unpaid interns.
Being in the room on draft day was an incredible experience. Watching the draft room light up throughout the day as they realized that t
hey were going to get their guys never got old. I was able to talk at length with a number of the scouts present -- all which spent a lot of time beaming from ear-to-ear. "I don't know if we've ever had this good of a draft before," remarked one.
What I wanted to do today is start with a bit of a draft review going over the individual players and what we can expect out of the 16 newest Featherheads.
1.
Mike Thompson (CF) -- An unassuming centerfielder, Mike Thompson has built a reputation as a consistent producer on the college level, with three years of above average offensive production alloyed with the great glove required to stick at center. The Featherheads believe the bat is good enough to stick in the majors. While there had been a sizeable dip in defensive production, scouts believe that Thompson's best days are ahead of him. Comp:
Miguel Yanez
2.
Ryan "X-Factor" Tate (SP) -- You know a player is good when their teammates grant you the moniker "X-Factor". Hailing from Mankato, MN, Tate was a strong performer at the college level and entered into the draft a year early with a big price tag as a widely considered top 5 pick. After somewhat surprising fall from the lofty heights of the first round, the Featherheads were all- too-happy to pick up the slack and select Tate. The hard-throwing righty features three above-average offerings, showcasing a change-up that, as described by one scout, "may end up being considered one of the best change-ups in PEBA history." Tate's fastball has a natural fade to it as well, making its trajectory look more like a cutter than a straight four-seam offering. Supposing Tate signs (his demand is on the higher end), Ewa Beach residents can expect a few starts before making his way east to Mexicali to round out the year. Comp:
Luis Reyes
3.
Michael Rutherford (RF) -- With their third pick, the Featherheads continued to beef up their offensive offerings with Michael Rutherford. Another left handed bat, Rutherford excells in right field with an absolute cannon as an arm. But the reason Hannahs and Co drafted Rutherford was due primarily to his bat... and his wheels. Over his collegiate career, Rutherford put up a .263/.353/.497 line with a WRC+ of 151. While Rutherford doesn't necessarily have the natural lift that would lead to double digit homeruns, he's no slouch either, slamming 34 over the fence in his four years at Louisville. While Michael didn't utilize his speed too much in college, his 40-yard dash times and innate baseball intelligence, scouts dare to dream on Rutherford being able to put up multiple 20 homeruns and 20 steal seasons while hitting his fair share of extra base hits. Comp:
Dewitt Barry
4.
Lou Drewery (SP) -- For their third round pick, the Featherheads made their first high school pick with Lou Drewery. The 6'2 Knoxville native gets good drive from his thick trunk which leads to a seemingly effortless delivery. Drewery features a higher end ceiling than Tate, but of course also carries a higher risk profile with his much younger age. Drewery should thrive in the lower levels due to his four strong offerings -- a slider, changeup, cutter, and forkball. While none of Drewery's pitches carry the "wow" factor the way that Tate's change-up does, with a potential fourth strong pitch in his repertoire, Drewery may be able to more effectively navigate longer stints in games at the higher levels of play. Drewery didn't have quite the year that many expected him to have which could have led to his falling to the third round, however that is not to say it wasn't solid. Drewery gained local fame his sophomore year at Seton Hall Prep which put more pressure on the young gun to perform which could have been at least partly to blame for his down numbers this year. If there was any reservations as to Drewery's prowess from Florida scouts, I didn't see it. The room exploded when they got Drewery in the third. Comp:
Kenny Ashley
5.
Bas Lorentz (SP) -- the first dutchman taken in the draft for the Featherheads is a similar build to Drewery. Both 18 year old lefties bring four pitches to the table although Drewery's do seem to have a higher top end than Bas's. Lorentz is also unlike Drewery in that every year, his stats have improved, culminating in a 1.94 ERA and striking out 65 in 51 innings. Lorentz came into the season looking to improve his draft status and he did so with flying colors. Bas reportedly put on 10 pounds of muscle between his junior and senior years which led to 5 miles per hour on his fastball. Bas Lorentz is expected to spend the entire year with Lou Drewery at Ewa Beach along with Lou Drewery, Ryan Tate, Juan Otero and An-te-hai Tien to create one of the more exciting rotations in recent memory. Comp:
Jose Martinez
6.
Jim Est (1B) -- The second dutchman added to the Featherheads fold hails originally from Westvoorne -- a small southern coastal suburb of The Hague. Est is seen primarily as a doubles-type hitter, falling naturally in as a number six hitter or, if all goes according to plan, a number 2. There is reason to suspect that that may be possible as well -- Est saw an enormous growth in his average int he past year primarily working with manager Shigetaka Samurakami to improve his ball to bat contact. While his homers dropped off this year, Est is expected to be able to drive the ball to gaps with authority and, as is the way with Florida, steal bases. After signing, Est is expected to report to Ewa Beach. Comp:
Jose Escobido
7.
Bill Navarro (SS) -- As a streaky, glove-first shortstop with the ability to steal 20-40 bases a year, Bill Navarro has\ fashioned himself into a pretty much perfect facsimile of what Florida featherheads scouts get in every draft. Only one year removed from declining San Juan's offer in the second round of the 2027 draft, Navarro took his talents to south beach and the UCSBA World Series champions South Florida Citrus where he started as a freshman at shortstop, showing off his ridiculous range on national TV. When he fell to the Featherheads in the sixth round, I heard many people whispering how this may be the best draft the Featherheads have ever had. Comp:
Hikaru Arai
8.
Roy Mayes (P) -- With their seventh round selection, the Featherheads selected Roy Mayes out of Virginia Beach. A huge 6'5, 200 lb hurler, Mayes' ceiling is that of mid-rotation starter, however he may end up primarily in a bullpen role. This is due to his two plus-plus offerings in his fastball and curve. Unless one of his other two pitches -- slider or changeup -- develop, he may be regulated to a pen role... but if that happens, Mayes could be a great anchor for a competing 'pen. With very little mileage on his arm (Mayes was primarily a relief arm for Seton Hall Prep -- same alma mater as Ryan "X-Factor" Tate), many in the organization see Mayes here as a possible major coup. Comp:
Bill Gallagher
9.
Matt Orr (P) -- Another left-handed hurler for the Featherheads for their eighth round selection, Orr hails from Cy-Fair Highschool. Used primarily as the team's closer, and is coming off his best year, punctuated by a perfect April in which Orr threw 15 innings over 11 games, striking out 22, walking only 5 and only allowing 2 hits. Orr throws three pitches, focusing primarily on a slider and a cutter, which puts his floor firmly as a lefty specialist but is another candidate whom the scouts believe could be destined for much more success as a back-end starter, given that opportunity. Comp:
Victor Latham
10.
Roland Penwarden (2B) -- Penwarden is a Stanford player who will finish his degree online as he begins his professional career. As a cerebral player, scouts rave about Penwarden's penchant for exceeding expectations. As a relatively unknown prospect, Penwarden has advanced his draft pedigree considerably in the past year as the second basemen for the Axe. Getting minimal playing time in his first three years at Stanford, Penwarden turned in an impressive performance as a senior, scattering 12 extra base hits over his 54 games. Penwarden also brings a great defensive presence to the right side of the infield. Penwarden is expected to start opposite Navarro in Ewa Beach. Comp:
Sixto Duenas
11.
Tokaji Ohayashi (1B) -- Let's play a game, shall we? Let's say, for instance, that a player is in college. And lets say that this player has a pretty good year. Let's say that player has a slash line of .337/.382/.454. Pretty good! Let's say that that same player has a four year career where he puts up a career line of .308/.351/.412. What round do you think that player would sign in? First? Third? Possibly fifth? Nope. Tenth. Ohayashi is namazing. I still can't believe it. This 6'5 mountain of a man is not a homerun hitter, but instead trundles around the field, hitting singles and doubles seemingly at will. I'm not convinced Ohayashi doesn't end up hitting homeruns just based on his size, but even if he doesn't Ohayashi could end up being the steal of the draft if he plays well. Comp:
Jack Allen
12.
George Springer (OF) – Springer shows as a value signing. While there is a chance that his bat comes around and ends up being serviceable, there’s a real chance that he languishes in the lower minors before being unceremoniously released. When you’re getting to the later rounds, this becomes a more eventual outcome than at any other time, so we shouldn’t dwell too much on it. There is still a chance that Springer can turn in something greater than what is expected of him and become a backup right fielder sometime in the future. One thing that is nice about Springer? He is clutch. He slashes .290/.343/.452 in high pressure situations. Maybe that becomes something that can carry him through. Comp:
Gabriel Martinez
13.
Mathew Robbins (P) – Robbins is a bit of a conundrum. Through the first three years of his high school career, Robbins was used as a relief option, however he came up and filled in nicely as a starter. Through 12 appearances, Robbins wracked up 62.2 innings – averaging just over 5 innings per start. His best two outings were right at the end of the year where he pitched 10 straight scoreless innings. Robbins remains a reach primarily due to his signing issues. The young pitcher is assumed to be demanding upwards of 1.4 million which I’m sure the Featherheads brass is loathe to acquiesce considering his relatively poor performance… but weirder things have happened. Comp:
John Gillard
14.
Martin Aleman (IF) – This one didn’t make a ton of sense for me. The 6 foot 18 year old has never shown great results, however from what I understand, Martin shows as a smart player who may be seen as a project/bench guy. Still early on this guy. To my readers, I think this was the one miss in the draft. Overriding logic seems to see this guy as an “athlete” sort of player – one not talented at anything in particular but one that does have immense physical gifts. We’ll see with this one. Comp:
Joshua Ligonier
15.
Luis Salazar (C) – Salazar was an interesting pick for the Featherheads. A decent 14th round pick, Salazar remains one pick that could end up being more than originally expected. With only one season as a starter with the Houston Shastas, Salazar has had ample time to rest his legs and should be able to come in as a starter without too much trouble. Personally, signing these catchers in the last rounds make a lot of sense – as most people seem to think since 5 of the last 6 picks in the draft were catchers. Comp:
Jeff Wolfe
16.
Mike Floyd (C) – For their final pick, the Featherheads took Mike Floyd. Floyd is a purely speculative exercise as he has only started a handful of games throughout his college career. There seems to be some sort of interest as to whether Floyd’s bat can actual make a jump. It should be noted that between Salazar and Floyd, they have started a total of 48 games this year. They should be able to get some ample play time between the two of them. Comp:
Chia-Lang Guang
All in all, I'm ecstatic about this draft class. I love how we have such an interesting variety of possibilities. From excersizes in coachability like Martin Aleman and Roland Penwarden, to pure talent acquisitions like Ryan Tate, we have one of the most interesting draft classes that Florida has had in recent memory.
Keep it locked in to JT Buford's Road to the Show for all the updates on the baby F-Heads' trip through the minor leagues!
JT Buford, signing off.