How did Heyward slip to the Braves in the 2007 draft?

Fascinating piece by Tom Verducci in this week's SI on Jason Heyward, including this passage about how the Braves and the Atlanta-area East Cobb Youth Baseball program (which also produced the likes of Jeff Francoeur, Brian McCann, Dexter Fowler and Nick Markakis) might have conspired to help Heyward slip to No. 14 in the 2007 draft:

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/magazine/MAG1168402/index.htm

Does anyone here see anything under-handed in all this, or was it just a failure by the other 13 teams to do their homework?

 

Sounds like a bunch of scouts didn't do their homework.

 

I've read stories that Hayward's competition in high school was so bad and he was so good that there were games scouts would show up and he wouldn't even swing once and that helped contribute to not being able to get a read on him for teams outside of the Braves.

 

Just thinking out loud, looking back at that draft:

1. David Price, TB -- Seemed to be a consensus top pick
2. Mike Moustakas, KC -- One of the better high school hitters in the draft who is in AA now. Watched a lot of him last year and wasn't terribly impressed. Playing third now.
3. Josh Vitters, CHC -- In AA now.
4. Daniel Moskos, PIT -- This was the pick that pretty much ended Littlefield's GM career. Pirates didn't want to pay Wieters so they went for a guy who projects as a middle reliever.
5. Matt Wieters, BAL -- You don't get an opportunity to snare a cornerstone catcher every day.
6. Ross Detwiler, WSH -- He's been up in the bigs a couple of times, right?
7. Matt LaPorta, MIL -- Polished college hitter, so that's understandable
8. Casey Weathers, COL -- Another Vandy pitcher who blew out his elbow last year and hasn't pitched above AA.
9. Jarrod Parker, ARI -- Diamondbacks' No. 1 prospect.
10. Madison Bumgarner, SF -- HS pitcher who has already appeared in the majors
11. Phillipe Aumont, SEA -- Canadian pitcher still in AA.
12. Matt Dominguez, FLA -- HS hitter who is the No. 4 prospect in the Marlins org. Hasn't been above AA.
13. Beau Mills, CLE -- College hitter who hasn't been above AA and is now the No. 24 prospect in the Indians org.

So Moustakas, Vitters and Dominguez were all HS hitters taken ahead of Heyward who haven't advanced nearly as quickly. Drafting is an inexact science, I suppose. Then again, the Orioles took Billy Fucking Rowell, who is making his third tour of the Carolina League, one pick before Tim Lincecum in 2006. But the O's couldn't have used a two-time Cy Young Award winner. No, they couldn't have.

 

This was an excellent piece

 

Yeah, that's in the piece as well. The counter-argument is that those teams should have been scouting Heyward (and others) in elite travel ball games (for which he traveled all over the country year-round), not in regular high school games.

 

I've also heard/read that Heyward was pitched around during his senior year and because of that, teams were unable to get an accurate read on the guy.

 

Eh, who needs scouts? All they do is get paid to watch games. {Marge Schott}

 

Nothing new with the Braves, what was the line in the 1990s? "If the Braves come trying to trade pitching prospects, RUN." They were/are a shrewd bunch when it comes to talent.

 

What great high school hitter isn't pitched around during his senior year?

 

I read in a book how Francoeur and his "people" threw out an outlandish signing bonus number to scare off other teams --- so the Braves could pick him at 22 or wherever it was. He was threatening to go play football at Clemson.

 

I'd still rather have Wieters than Heyward.

The rest of those guys? Not so much.