2.  Kansas City Royals pick P Vida Blue.  Blue is a 19 year old hard throwing lefty.  He possess superior Arm Strength and a devastating fastball.  Vida went 8-9 last year in the Amateur Assn with an ERA of 4.07.  Part of the problem was his control.  Though not yet ready he should be a solid ace starter in a few years. Some are predicting an early call up.  Together with youngster Mike Cuellar the Royals have two fine young southpaws for the future.

3.  Anaheim Angels pick P Steve Carlton.  Carlton also has very good AS. His fastball is not as explosive as Blue's, but his repertoire of pitches is deeper.  Anaheim gave up two young pitching prospects, Matthews and Whyatt to get Carlton.  Carlton will probaby be an ace for this staff, Matthews and Whyatt are unproven.  Carlton went 11-2 with a 2.25 ERA in the Amateur Association.

4.  Oakland A's pick 3b George Brett  Oakland has added two very good positional players over the past two drafts.  Brett has all the appearances of being a fixture at 3b for many years.  He is only 18 years old and will be more than ready when Todd Walker or Dean Palmer hang up the gloves.  Probably needs two seasons to develop. Brett batted .416 in limited play in the Amateur Association.

5.  Baltimore Orioles pick LF Dusty Baker  A surprising pick this high in the draft.  The one advantage that Baker offers over the other Left Fielders that were available is that he comes ready to play.  Expect Baker to move into the starting lineup soon.  Dusty batted .307 with 10 HR's and 61 RBI's in the Amateur Association.

6.  Florida Marlins pick P Mario Soto.  Some felt he may have been the top pitcher chosen, but he slipped down to the sixth slot.  Soto has dominating Arm Strength and a very good fastball.  At 19 he may need a year or more to develop fully, but no one would be surprised if he joined the expected call ups of McCovey and Clemente.  Soto pitched to a 14-9 record in the Ammy Association with a 4.18 ERA.  He struck out 236 batters in 212 innings.

7.  Philadelphia Phillies pick P Floyd Bannister  The Phillies moved up a slot and got the pitcher that they wanted.  Bannister possesses good Arm Strength a good fastball and a very good Sinker. He also keeps the ball on the ground.  Bannister will probably stay in the Farm for a year, and be called up next season.  Bannister went 13 - 10 with a 3.49 ERA in the Amateur League this past year.  He struck out 234 batters in 206 innings.

8.  Toronto Blue Jays pick LF Lloyd Moseby  Moseby is a devastating young hitter, who still needs to improve on his fielding.  He will need some time to reach every day playing ability in the outfield or at 1b.  He could come in to be the DH right now.  Moseby batted .351 with 20 HR's 145 RBI's and stole 79 bases in the Amateur League this past year.   He's a steal this late in the round.

9.  Chicago White Sox pick P Frank Tannana  The White Sox added another fine young arm to their developing staff (see "The Kids are All Right).  Tannana has better than average Arm Strength a good fastball and a devastating slider.  Tananna will probably be ready by next season.  He went 12-8 with a 4.29 ERA in the Amateur League, struck out 196 batters, but walked 150 batters in 186 innings.

10. Chicago Cubs pick 2b Robbie Thompson  Thompson is a very young, (18 yrs. old) 2b who has very good potential.  Robbie batted .297 with 6 HR's in 317 at bats.  Possessing good strength, speed and fielding ability, along with an evident toughness, Thompson may well be a favorite of fans and teammates alike.

11. San Francisco Giants pick P Bill Bonham  A high school senior, Bonham did not play in the amatuer league and limited information is available about him.  Bonham will need more than a few seasons to develop, but has promising ability and AS.  He keeps the ball on the ground according to scouts.  Somewhat of a gamble for mid first round, but the Giants depth at pitcher makes a young prospect for the far future very attractive.

12. New York Mets choose 1b Glen Davis.  The Mets were interested in Robby Thompson and Bill Bonham and winced as both were selected right before their pick.  The club was expected to draft Lou Whittaker, but felt that he was a clone of prospect 2b Kennedy. They went with the best young player that was available.  Davis makes sense as he will be given plenty of needed time to develop, and with Buck O'Neill playing well, there is no rush.  Davis is a slugger and may develop into a top power hitter. Although only 17, Davis batted .269 with 11 HR's and 94 RBI's in the Amateur League last year.

13.  New York Yankees pick P Greg Harris Harris was the top pitcher in the Amateur League last year with a record of 21-3 and an ERA of 2.39.  He also struck out 232 batters in 214 innings. The reason he did not go near the top of the round is that despite very good AS and a more than adequate fastball his complimentary pitches are not rated very highly.  Harris will most likely be ready for HABLA next season and is determined to prove the critics wrong.  A good gamble with a mid round pick.

14.  Detroit picks 2b Lou Whittaker  On one level the selection of Whittaker makes very good sense.  He makes good contact with the ball, has better than average power for a 2b, has exceptional speed and good hands.  The depth of the Tigers at 2b is high, and finding a spot behind another 1st Round pick 2b, Breeding may be troublesome.  Expect a trade of either Breeding or Whittaker to bring in some needed pitching depth.  Lou batted .295 with 36 stolen bases last season in the Amateur League.

15.  Texas Rangers pick RF Jeff Leonard  The Rangers added some outfield depth by adding a very respectable player with solid if not spectacular hitting ability both for contact and power.  Leonard also runs well, but needs to work on his fielding.  Leonard is only 19, and will likely spend two seasons in the farm system.  Leonard batted .316 with 16 HR and 109 RBI's last year in the amateur league.

16. St. Louis Cardinals pick CF Brett Butler  Butler is a speedy CF who has blinding speed and makes good contact with the ball.  He has little power hitting ability, but may develop into a premier lead off hitter.  Butler is very close to being ready for everyday play in HABLA.  Butler devastated the amateur league last year batting a sizzling .391 while nabbing 81 stolen bases. A potential lineup for the near future for the Cardinals is Butler leading off, followed by Banks and Robinson.  That is truly frightening.

17.  Boston Red Sox pick 3b Sal Bando  Bando is a useful player as he can play both 3b and 1b.  Expect him to come up fairly soon as the Red Sox are in need of an infusion of fresh talent that is young.  The team is old and doing poorly. Bando will test the Left Field wall with his tendancy to pull the ball.  He could hit 30 Homers regularly.  Sal batted .266 with 5 homers in limited play in the amateur league last season.

18.  Los Angeles Dodgers pick P Bruce Berenyi  The Dodgers found a good young pitcher who slipped down a bit further than many would have expected.  Berenyi has better than average Arm Strength and played very well in the Amateur League last season with a record of 11 - 11 and an ERA of 3.92.  He also struck out 225 batters in 209 innings.  Berenyi is not as far along in his developement as other pitchers and at 21 may not be ready for the big time for another two seasons, and this may have caused him to drop to the later part of the round.

19.  Cleveland Indians pick P Jim Lonborg Indians GM James LeBlond did a jig for joy when Lonborg was still available at this slot.  At 22 Lonborg is one of the older draftees and may find himself pressed into service next season.  He possesses good if not great Arm Strength and has good if not great mastery of pitches.  He should be a reliable starter.  Lonborg went 7-5 with a 4.33 ERA in the Amateur League last season, registerred many strike outs per inning, but had control problems.

20.  Pittsburgh Pirates pick P Scott McGregor  Pittsburgh traded away the #3 overall and sacrificed getting a potential ace for three potentially solid if not spectacular starters.  McGregor who comes via the draft may be the best of the bunch.  McGregor has good Arm Strength and a potentially strong slider.  His fastball is above average, but not spectacular.  McGregor is reputed to keep the ball on the ground.  McGregor will need to improve on his record of 3-8 with an ERA of 6.13 in the Amateur Association last year.  He also needs to work on his control, but could develop into a reliable starting pitcher in time.

21. New York Mets pick RF Ron LeFlore  This was a case of grabbing the best player available in the minds of the club officials.  The Mets are loaded in the outfield with no less than three solid prospects.  In addition the regular club fields Dixie Walker and Carl Furrillo in Right Field.  Expect a trade soon.  LeFlore adds some great speed to an outfield that is already fleet afoot. He has very good hitting ability and may be the one that is kept.  Leflore batted .266 with 34 stolen bases last season in the Amateur League.

22.  Minnesota Twins pick P Dave Roberts  Roberts has slightly better than average Arm Stength and a good fastball. He does not have a second pitch that is dominating.  Has the endurance to be a starter, but will not go deep into many games.  He did not pitch very effectively in the Amateur League last year amassing a 9-11 record and an ERA of 5.77.  However, he did strike out 224 batters in only 177 innings.

23.  San Diego picks LF Dan Gladden  Gladden despite scouting reports that were not overwhelming tore apart the Amateur League last season batting .381 with 12 Homeruns 103 RBI's and 39 stolen bases.  Gladden has the ability to make contact and let his more than adequate speed do the rest.  Gladden is a fine fielder, and is ready to be called up at this time.

24.  Colorado Rockies pick 2b Tommy Herr  The Rockies gave up the #1 overall pick for four stand out young players.  The also knew they had a few picks in the latter part of the 1st round to get some depth and did so by picking 2b Herr.  Herr makes contact with the ball, has some pop, good speed and an adequate glove.  He may have gone higher, but for reports that he is not consistent from month to month during a season.  Herr batted .305 with 21 stolen bases last season in the Amateur League.

25.  New York Mets pick P Dave LaPoint  LaPoint was a dominating pitcher in the Amateur League last season racking up 21 wins against only 6 losses and pitching to an ERA of 3.62.  The rap against LaPoint is that his arm strength will never be more than slightly above average, and that he has trouble finding the strike zone at times.  LaPoint is not close to being ready to start in HABLA and will take a few years to develop on the farm. He is reported to have a very effective sinker.

26.  San Francisco Giants pick C Lance Parrish  The Giants added some more depth in the middle defense by picking this hard hitting catcher late in the first round.  Parrish possesses a very strong arm, but needs to work a bit on his fielding ability.  His offensive potential is very good, though he does struggle with left handed pitching.  In limited play Parrish batted .238 with 4 HR's.

27.  Colorado Rockies pick C Ed Ott  Another backstop was chosen after Parrish, and some feel that overall Ott may be slightly better due to stronger fielding ability.  Ott possess an absolute cannon for an arm and may find his way to the Rockies lineup soon.  Ott batted .285 with 5 HR's and 43 RBI's in 250 at bats last season in the Amateur League.

28.  Seattle Mariners pick P Bill Caudill  A short reliever with a an absolutely blazing fastball, Caudill could become a very effective closer.  The knock against Bill is his poor control.  Caudill was 3-7 with an ERA of 6.18.  In 87 innings pitched he struck out 85 batters, but also walked 88.

The best of the rest.  Team by team the other clubs Top Pick
37.  Cincinatti Reds pick 1b Dan Dreissen  A very young 1b prospect with good hitting ability, speed, and power.  Only 16 years old the high school senior will report to the farm system after graduation. High School career stand-out and a McDonald's All American Dreissen batted .366 with 8 HRs and 58 RBI's in his senior year.

55.  Houston Astros pick P Terry Forster  Journeyman pitcher through several semi professional leagues the 23 year old Forster is reported to have under average Arm Strength and lacks a big time fastball.  He relies on guile with a good change up and slider.  Was roughed up in the Amateur League last season going 1-1 with a 9.38 ERA.

77.  Atlanta Braves pick 1b Wayne Cage  Atlanta wanted a pitcher with their sole pick, but none were to be found at this point of the draft.  Cage for a late third round pick has some promise.  While he is a poor fielder and has great difficulty with left handed pitchers, he scorched right handed pitching to the tune of .302 in the amateur league last season.

79.  Milwaukee Brewers pick 3b Taylor Duncan  With only one pick, and that one being late in the third round, Milwaukee has to be pleased that it picked up a somewhat useful player.  Duncan is an adequate hitter who played three infield positions last year in the amateur league.  Batted .242 with 18 stolen bases, had no homeruns in 347 at bats.