Giants Take MSU's RHP Chris Stratton at 20

Well, the Giants pick just rolled in and they got themselves a good one. I mentioned a few posts back in our draft preview that this guy would make a lot of sense, and I think the Giants were real surprised he lasted until pick 20 with all the arms that were going off the board.

Here's a little piece we did on him in the Draft Preview, along with a link to a video.

"RHP, Chris Stratton, Miss. St.: Stratton could also make a lot of sense for the Giants as most believe he'll last into the 20's and could be the best college arm available when the Giants choose. He's almost like a right-handed version of Andrew Heaney, who I think would be a great choice at 20 if he fell as well and we'll discuss in a moment. Stratton started as a reliever at Mississippi St., but became a starter this year and quickly became the team's ace. He's got a mid-90's fastball and three average to above-average pitches to go with it, which if he refines, would give him four plus-out pitches. The MSU ace had an 11-2 record and 2.21 ERA heading into the NCAA tournament that started a few days ago."

2012: 11-2, 2.21 ERA, 129 K's

Adding to that, Stratton averages about 93 mph with his heater, but can get up to 96. He's also got a nice breaking ball and a solid change-up. The cast hosting the draft at MLB TV thought him to be a good candidate to rise quickly through the system and I'm with them on that. I didn't know how good of strikeout numbers he had until the pick. He K'd 129 compared to just 27 walks over 107 innings of work in '12, coupled with that nice win-loss record and ERA posted above. For an organization that desperately needed a new #1 pitching prospect, the Giants got themselves just that in this fella. He's got a good pitchers size to him at 6'3" and 220 pounds. He's both relieved and started at MSU, but came into his own as their ace and full-time starter this year. Now the key for the Giants will be getting the kid signed and off to work. They don't select again until tomorrow, and there are still a lot of projected first rounders left on the board, so maybe they'll get lucky and have one of them they like slip to them in round 2. Stratton fills a big void this team has in the lower minors, and he should make an instant impact. I have to give the Giants an A- for this pick, based on value and potential. Of course we'll have to wait and see how he turns out, but a lot of scouts had this kid going in the top-10 to 15 picks, so the Giants got themselves a steal. It should also be noted that in his first start this season, he struck out 17 to out-duel top-10 pick Kevin Gausslen.

RHP Martin Agosta

Other Giants Selections: Day 2 of the draft has gotten started, and the Giants have made it quite clear as to the approach their taking in this draft. As I write this, the draft is in round 7, and with their first 6 picks, 5 have turned out to be starters. We talked about Stratton, a great value at 20 just above, but the Giants pulled out another nice grab after a long compensation round, nabbing St. Mary's ace Martin Agosta. The 6'1" 180 pound right-hander doesn't have the ideal size teams were looking for in a top-end pitcher, but he's got the stuff. Much like Stratton, he'll sit around 92-94 with his heater, and he's got three average to above-average pitches to go along with it. His fastball is really his bread and butter though, as he can sink it and cut it a bit and just about everything he throws has some nasty movement. The Giants obviously had the thought in mind that they were going to rebuild the lower ranks of their pitching and they've done a pretty good job so far. The one non-pitcher the Giants have selected so far is right fielder Jonathan "Mac" Williamson out of Wake Forrest. This is a guy who could have a very bright future after hitting 17 jacks in his JR. year for the Deacons and he's also a base-stealer At 6'4" and 230 pounds, he's a five-tool talent and gives the Giants a true power-hitting prospect for their outfield, something they've had trouble finding. Just from the brief glimpses I've seen, he looks a lot like a Jeff Franceour-type.

The rest of their top-7 picks have been pitchers. Left-handed reliever Steven Okert, who served as closer for Oklahoma in 2012, went after Williamson. He's a power armed lefty and another college guy who should be able to move through the system at a nice pace. College arms Ty Blach, Steven Johnson and Eduardo Encinosa have been selected since, and I don't know much about them yet, but we'll have more once we catch up with our college baseball insider, Brian Foley.