Down on the Farm: David Price

Often times No. 1 draft picks don't live up to their hype, especially in baseball. Such guys as Matthew Bush, Bryan Bullington, and Matt Anderson are all prime examples of No. 1 overall picks who have failed to meet their expectations.

David Price, however, is different. 

Price, the No.1 overall draft pick in 2007, is a 23 year old southpaw out of Vanderbilt. Price is perhaps the most coveted arm in all of minor league baseball. 

After being called up for his cup of coffee last year, Price began to turn the heads of all those involved in baseball. He pitched 14 innings and amassed 12 strikeouts during that time, while only walking 4 batters. 

Price failed to make the Rays opening day roster, primarily to push his arbitration eligibility back another year. However, Price is the future ace of the Rays rotation. He will be a perennial Cy Young candidate after a few years in the Bigs. 

Much like Joba Chamberlain, Price's only knock is that he is so dominate as a reliever it is hard to use him in the rotation. Despite all of this, Price should be called up after a few more minor league starts at Durham, the Rays' AAA affiliate, and when he does you can expect him to surpass all expectations and thrive in either an end of the rotation job or as a middle reliever.    

Top Offensive Prospect: Matt Wieters

Matt Wieters is a 6'5" switch hitting catching phenom. He is the top prospect of the Baltimore Orioles and the top offensive prospect in all of baseball.

Wieters, who turns 23 in May, was the 5th overall pick of the 2007 MLB Amateur Draft. Wieters fell in part because of his agent, Scott Boras. But, the Orioles gambled and so far it has paid off.

Wieters was a standout a Georgia Tech before turning pro, and has drawn comparisons to Joe Mauer of the Twins and Jason Varitek of the Red Sox. 

Wieters is currently playing for the Norfolk Tides, the Orioles' AAA affiliate. However, he got off to a slow start. Weiters is batting .222 with four walks and seven strikeouts through five games.

Wieters numbers are no indication to the true talent he has. He will be a cornerstone in Baltimore for years to come. Once he gets called up, most likely sometime this summer, expect to see him produce offensively and defensively. 

He is still available in most fantasy leagues, and if you can it would behoove you to pick him up and stash him on your roster. He has a rare combination of raw power, ability to hit for average, above average speed for a catcher, and tremendous defensive abilities.

Make sure you get familiar with Wieters, because in a short time he will be tearing up Major League pitching. 

How One Man Plans To Change The MLB Draft

Freak. Phenomenal. Unreal.

Those are all words used to describe San Diego State Pitcher Stephen Strasburg.

Strasburg, a junior, is eligible for this year's MLB Amateur Draft. He and his future agent, Scott Boras, plan on making history.

Strasburg throws consistently in the high 90s and low 100s. Along with his ungodly fastball he has an outstanding curveball among other pitches. 

Strasburg entered San Diego State as an overweight, underachieving "athlete." However, early on he realized that he needed to change his philosophy to be a professional baseball player.

So he did.

Strasburg began changing his work ethic and began hitting the gym harder than ever. He started to notice the results, and people started to take an interest in his abilities. 

Because of his transformation from overweight, average pitcher to pitching phenom, he is expected to not only break the record for largest amateur contract, but to shatter it.

The Washington Nationals hold the No. 1 pick and would be crazy to pass on a "can't miss prospect" like Strasburg, or would they?

Strasburg and agent Scott Boras will demand a huge asking price, reportedly in the area of 50 million dollars. And as we have seen in the past Boras shows no shame in refusing to sign and having his clients play in the Independent League for a year (see Luke Hochevar and J.D. Drew). 

So with all that in mind, why draft a guy that would be so difficult to sign? Why go through the arduous task of dealing with Scott Boras?

Well, in this case the Nationals would be passing up a possible MLB ready pitcher and Lord knows they need all the help they can get. 

On the other hand, is there really such thing as a "can't miss prospect?"

I'm sure Mark Prior can tell you what it's like to be the next great thing to happen to baseball. Strasburg has often times been compared to Prior, who was highly touted out of college and the eventual No. 2 pick overall in 2001.

If Strasburg lives up to the hype he undoubtedly will go down in history for his unbelievable talent and his unbelievable contract. But, if he fails to meet expectations then he will be nothing more than a "can't miss prospect" who missed.

Stafford vs. Sanchez: Who Has The Brighter Future?

With the NFL Draft approaching, teams in need of a quarterback are debating on who is better Matthew Stafford or Mark Sanchez.

If History tells us anything, it's that picking a star quarterback early in the Draft is nothing more than a crap shoot.

Ask San Diego how the feel about taking Ryan Leaf, or even ask the Houston Texans how David Carr performed for their franchise.

In this year's Draft, there are two notable top QBs: Matthew Stafford and Mark Sanchez.

Stafford, the former gunslinger from the University of Georgia, has caught the eyes of many scouts his whole life. Upon his enrollment into UGA in 2006, he was touted as the No. 1 QB of his senior class, ahead of Tim Tebow, Mitch Mustain, and Jevan Snead.

He earned a starting role at QB his freshman season and never relinquished the job throughout his time at the university. Early in his collegiate career he was plagued by a high amount of INTs, however as he progressed his amount of INTs were no longer a worry of the scouts. Stafford finished his career at UGA with a 3-0 record during bowl games, and an All American award from Pro Football Weekly.

Stafford has a rocket arm and a quick release, two attributes scouts look for. He can also make a plethora of throws while on the move, which has often been overlooked by his critics. His skill set, experience, and leadership help make him a top prospect.

However, there is another top notch QB in the 2009 Draft class. Mark Sanchez, a product of QB School better known as USC, is vying to be an elite NFL QB. Sanchez would be the the 5th USC quarterback drafted in this decade.

Sanchez is coming off a phenomenal season, which entailed 34 touchdowns and a completion rate of 65.8%. Sanchez has incredible poise in the pocket and has an unrivaled accuracy for his throws. In his junior campaign he lead USC to an 11-1 record and a Rose Bowl victory.

If Sanchez has such a tremendous skill set than why is he not the obvious No. 1 pick?

Well, Sanchez has only 16 starts at the collegiate level under his belt. His lack of experience has caused for some NFL teams to be weary of his future.

In all likelihood, Matthew Stafford will be the first QB taken in the 2009 Draft, but should that be the case?

Despite all of the knocks on Sanchez, he has a brighter upside than Stafford and will likely have a better team to work with in the NFL, thus in several years when everyone looks back on the 2009 Draft they will say how Mark Sanchez has developed and played better than Matthew Stafford has.