Final Draft projection: Rendon to follow Cole
Rice third baseman looks like Seattle's choice over pitchers
By Jonathan Mayo / MLB.com
One more time, from the top.
What follows is the final mock Draft on MLB.com, a projection of the first round hours before the action begins on Monday.
Live coverage of the actual 2011 First-Year Player Draft begins with a one-hour preview show on Monday at 6 p.m. ET on MLB.com and MLB Network, followed by the first round and supplemental compensation round. MLB.com will provide exclusive coverage of Day 2 and 3, featuring a live pick-by-pick stream, expert commentary and Draft Tracker, a live interactive application that includes a searchable database of every Draft-eligible player. You can also keep up to date at Draft Central and by following @MLBDraft on Twitter. And get into the Draft conversation by tagging your tweets with #mlbdraft.
Questions, especially regarding signability, abounded late Sunday night, leaving many things up in the air. I'll be doing a final, names-only projection on my blog Monday afternoon as things become clearer.
1. Pittsburgh Pirates: Gerrit Cole, RHP, UCLA
After carefully discussing Virginia's Danny Hultzen and Rice's Anthony Rendon as well, the Pirates have settled on taking the UCLA right-hander, a baseball source told MLB.com on Monday.
Draft Central
2. Seattle Mariners: Anthony Rendon, 3B, Rice
There's still some question about his shoulder, but there wasn't enough to move him off here. High school shortstop Francisco Lindor is a possibility.
3. Arizona Diamondbacks: Trevor Bauer, RHP, UCLA
Hultzen is a possibility, but there was some buzz about him getting past this spot. Arizona also likes high school right-hander Dylan Bundy.
4. Baltimore Orioles: Danny Hultzen, LHP, University of Virginia
The O's were looking hard at Bundy, but there might be some issues with bonus demands there. If Bauer gets past Arizona, he could be the pick and there was late word that Oklahoma high schooler Archie Bradley had entered the picture.
5. Kansas City Royals: Bubba Starling, OF, Gardner-Edgerton HS, KS
The Royals are still looking at college arms like Bauer or Cole if they drop here. Bundy will get a long look, too. Starling and Lindor are the hitters being considered, with the two-sport toolsy outfielder in their own backyard making almost too much sense.
6. Washington Nationals: Dylan Bundy, RHP, Oswasso HS, Okla.
The top high school arm -- some say best arm, period -- shouldn't drop too far. Fellow Oklahoman Archie Bradley could get a look as well and the college arms above would be welcome should any of them drop to this spot.
7. Arizona Diamondbacks: Matt Barnes, RHP, Connecticut
This one had some buzz behind it late. Barnes had always been in the top-10 conversation, so it's not a big stretch for Arizona and its unprotected pick. Lindor could still find a home here.
8. Cleveland Indians: Archie Bradley, RHP, Broken Arrow HS, Okla.
Bradley came on strong after a slow start and the Indians have always liked the big right-hander. If it doesn't work, they could consider a number of college arms.
9. Chicago Cubs: Francisco Lindor, SS, Montverde Academy, Fla.
Lindor is a premium talent who plays a premium position. The Cubs would love to get a bat here and Lindor would be the best on the board, and they'll worry about what to do with a Lindor/Starlin Castro infield later on. Anyone listed above who slides, especially Starling, would get consideration.
10. San Diego Padres: Taylor Jungmann, RHP, Texas
It's certainly no guarantee that the Padres will go the college route with this unprotected pick, but there are some awfully good arms to choose from among that group.
11. Houston Astros: Jed Bradley, LHP, Georgia Tech
This could be a good spot for Lindor should he make it out of the top 10, though the best college pitcher still on the board has always made sense.
12. Milwaukee Brewers: Sonny Gray, RHP, Vanderbilt
With two picks in four selections, there's a lot the Brewers could do here. Starting with a college pitcher is a strong possibility.
13. New York Mets: Javier Baez, SS, Arlington Country Day HS, Fla.
Baez will likely have to move to third base, but he's got enough tools to profile very well at the hot corner. North Carolina shortstop Levi Michael has been another hitter mentioned and the Mets were looking hard at the host of college pitching available.
14. Florida Marlins: Cory Spangenberg, 3B, Indian River State (Fla.)
Spangenberg gets comps to Chris Coghlan. That's worked out well, so why not go that route again? Mike Mahtook has been mentioned here by some and the Marlins might love to see Bradley get here.
15. Milwaukee Brewers: Tyler Anderson, LHP, Oregon
He's the quintessential advanced college lefty who could get to Milwaukee pretty quickly. Taylor Guerrieri's name has been mentioned here should they decide to go for a high school pitcher.
16. Los Angeles Dodgers: Robert Stephenson, RHP, Alhambra HS, Calif.
Sometimes you hear a name associated so often with a team that you're a little wary of putting him there. But Stephenson is definitely in the mix and with other options like Anderson gone, the Dodgers could go this route. High schooler Joe Ross is another possibility.
17. Los Angeles Angels: Daniel Norris, LHP, Science Hill HS, Tenn.
The top high school lefty has reportedly thrown out a big price tag, but that won't make some teams shy away. The Angels could look at a number of projectable high school pitchers, like Stephenson, Ross or Dillon Howard.
18. Oakland A's: George Springer, OF, Connecticut
Another one that's been mentioned too much for comfort. The A's would have interest if Spangenberg got here and would look at Michael or Mahtook as well. They've got some high school arms on the list, with Ross -- brother of Oakland pitcher Tyler Ross -- perhaps being one of them.
19. Boston Red Sox: Alex Meyer, RHP, Kentucky
After two years of struggling, things really started to work for the big right-hander this year. Good timing, as it's moved him to the top two-thirds of the first round.
20. Colorado Rockies: CJ Cron, 1B, Utah
There's been a lot of talk about a college hitter here and while teams normally don't draft for need, there will be an opening at this position in Colorado before long and Cron flat-out raked this year. UNC's Levi Michael and Hawaii's Kolten Wong could be choices here as well.
21. Toronto Blue Jays: Taylor Guerrieri, RHP, Spring Valley HS. S.C.
There's still a chance the Blue Jays could go the college route with a guy like Michael, but there certainly has been a lot discussed about the Jays and projectable high-school pitching.
22. St. Louis Cardinals: Kolten Wong, 2B, Hawaii
An advanced college hitter who can run, it won't take Wong too long to be big-league ready.
23. Washington Nationals: Mike Mahtook, OF, Louisiana State
Mahtook would give the Nationals a high school pitcher and a college hitter with their first two picks. They could also see who drops here because of signability if they so chose.
24. Tampa Bay Rays: Brandon Nimmo, OF, Cheyenne East HS, Wyo.
The Wyoming kid without a high school team has some serious tools and lit it up in front of a lot of scouts as the Draft approached. He's not expected to be an easy sign, but the Rays won't shy away from taking chances even with all the picks they own.
25. San Diego Padres: Levi Michael, SS, North Carolina
There's a good chance Michael goes before things get this far, but the Padres would likely pounce if he did. If Mahtook was still around, he'd probably get a look as well.
26. Boston Red Sox: Blake Swihart, C, Cleveland HS, N.M.
Swihart's one of the better high school hitters in the class, but word is he comes with a big price tag. So, naturally, everyone thinks he'll land with the Red Sox.
27. Cincinnati Reds: Chris Reed, LHP, Stanford
College pitching has been mentioned prominently here and many teams believe Reed, Stanford's closer, can start at the next level. Kent State's Andrew Chafin or Florida State's Sean Gilmartin could be in the mix.
28. Atlanta Braves: Jose Fernandez, RHP, Alonso HS, Fla.
A live arm with a good feel for pitching might have Fernandez gone before this point, but the Braves like developing young pitching.
29. San Francisco Giants: Brian Goodwin, OF, Miami Dade College
The Giants took Gary Brown a year ago and so far, so good. Nabbing a toolsy outfielder to join him might make sense. The Giants also might be a team that nabs someone projected higher who ends up sliding.
30. Minnesota Twins: Andrew Chafin, LHP, Kent State
Chafin bounced back from a stretch of what appeared to be minor injuries that forced him to miss a couple of starts and he could figure into the mix of a few teams -- ahead of the Twins -- that are looking at college pitching.
31. Tampa Bay Rays: Henry Owens, LHP, Edison HS, Calif.
Some believe Owens will slide out of the first round, but the prep lefty has some pretty good stuff.
32. Tampa Bay Rays: Joe Ross, RHP, Bishop O'Dowd HS, Calif.
There's the chance the Rays will let this high school pitcher slide and pick up a bunch of them with their seven sandwich-round picks, but a projectable right-hander like Ross could be a fit.
33. Texas Rangers: Tyler Beede, RHP, Lawrence Academy, Mass.
The Rangers might want to wait to try and nab Beede with their supplemental pick, but if they fear he won't make it to No. 37, they could step up. If a player like Nimmo gets here, that could generate some interest.
Jonathan Mayo is a reporter for MLB.com and writes a blog, B3. Follow @JonathanMay oB3 on Twitter.
This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.
