Cardinals Draft Austin Wilson in the 12th Round
Posted on June 8th, 2010 by erik in 2010 MLB Draft, tags: austin wilsonOne of the top ranked high school outfielders in the draft, Wilson is strongly committed to Stanford, so there’s a .0001% chance he signs, which is why he fell so far. But as Lloyd Christmas once asked “so you’re saying there’s a chance”? I applaud the Cardinals for drafting him.
If Zack Cox does play hard ball, they could always offer Cox’s big bonus to Wilson. Maybe he’ll bite.
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It is nice that the Cards are the 1 team of 32 that has a chance to sign him before August 15th. Would have not been surprised to see any other team pop him before the 12th like the Yanks or the Sox.
Some “unsignables” last year like Max Stassi and others that dropped actually signed, so you never know…
When you look down the draft tracker you will at least see his name next to the Cards logo…that makes me smile
Was Pujols a 9th or a 13th rounder?
i heard the Bernie interview with Cox and it didn’t sound like he wanted to play hard ball at all. Seth Blair is a good friend and former teammate of his and the Cardinals are his favorite team. When Bernie asked him about using his leverage he said that the Cardinals wouldn’t have drafted him without some understanding between him and the ballclub that he would sign.
@giveml: This is outstanding. Simply outstanding.
How much is it going to take sign him? ~$3 – $4mil?
Even if Cox and the team have agreed in principle to a number, will the commish office let them sign him right away since it is probably over slot? He probably loses most of the summer no matter what.
@cariocacardinal: doesn’t he also have to finish his college season? I doubt he signs before his team is eliminated
I think this is a very interesting decision:
Austin Wilson + the 26th overall pick in the 2011 draft or Zack Cox?
This whole slot thing is dumb dumb dumb. i hate how cox/wilson will at best sign late. :(
What’s the ceiling on Cox? Player comp? I like him at 2b for years to come but Wilson has the chance to be something really special.
Cox the higher floor, Wilson the higher ceiling. For my money, you sign Cox and make Wilson a Wagner Mateo-like offer, plus tuition costs for Stanford. Money well spent IMO to re-stock a barren system.
Hey guys, time for my annual return to FR during the draft. I wish I could be around more – I miss minor league baseball and I miss writing for this site.
Anyway, I love the Wilson pick – I have been hoping for it for a number of rounds. It would be great if they could somehow get him into the system, but no big loss if he goes to Stanford.
If we just go Wilson we get the 26th pick next year plus our regular first round pick. Thats a pretty attractive offer in next years draft.
@UncleBuck44:
This is brilliant….assuming we couldn’t get both, I would take the former
I know it’s not likely but Lunhow, Mozeliak, & Co. need to do whatever they can to get both to sign. Not likely, but it definitely needs to be tried.
Well…about 12 rounds later than i wanted…but…WOOOOHOOOO!!!!give him his money…make it to where he can’t say no
He’s the type of franchise player that Albert can pass the torch to as he is ending his career in STL. Not that he’s guaranteed to be great but he seems to have that talent and the personality to be a very loved player in STL. The more im thinking about it I sign Wilson and take 2 first round picks next year. I don’t think the FO would draft him without thinking they can sign him knowing the possible fallout from an informed fan base. We lost on Mateo, lets use that money for him.
Will they need to give him Harper money?
we used some of the mateo money already…his name is matias
Extremely tough sign, probably one of the toughest in MLB history, but I’m not sure the Cardinals would have taken him if they didn’t feel that there was even the off chance that they could get him away from that Stanford commitment. Still not a good sign that he slipped all the way to the 12th round.
Mateo got 3.5 Matias got 1.5 2 left. Obviously it was a shock that Cox fell to 25, I wonder who we were planning on taking before he fell? If we sign Wilson and not Cox we get a comp pick next year also. Next years draft is STACKED. The question is now if Wilson can be signed do we want him and an extra first rounder next year or Cox.
If the team thought there was no way to sign him, they wouldn’t have taken him. It’s as simple as that.
In the Bernie interview Cox said Albert has always been his favorite player because of how he carries himself and his dedication to his faith.
@Andrew:
This sounds like some extreme optimism Andrew. I have nothing against wishful thinking, but we are fortunate to have had Cox drop to us and to expect such a talent to drop to us next year sounds a bit naive. Signing Wilson would be akin to having two first round picks, whether they’re used this year or next, but he might not sign no matter how willing and able the Cardinals are. Shouldn’t we be tempering our expectations.
Don’t get me wrong, I hope he and Cox sign, but to crown him a franchise player before scouts are even in agreement that he’ll be able to hit more advanced pitching is premature. I don’t see the fanbase being up in arms if he doesn’t sign either. It was a risk worth taking, and not too similar to the ’07 draft.
Since the Holliday signing, I’ve been getting the sinking feeling that the Cards are bracing for the possibility that they won’t be able to re-sign El Hombre and spending the money elsewhere ahead of time. If they sign Wilson and Cox along with Matias and Miller from last year, that sinking feeling is only going to speed up.
To be honest it wouldn’t be that horrible of a decision. Is Albert really going to be worth the $30M that he’s going to cost for (alleged) age 32-37?
Not saying he is a franchise player just that he has the talent to be one. We don’t draft a guy every year with this type of talent. Wilson is said to have Daryl Strawberry talent. I know very well he may not work out but having that talent in the system is an exciting thing. I think with the way things are going with slot money and players asking for so much theres a good chance that we get 2 great players next year especially with how strong the draft is. Many teams are willing to draft lesser players if they agree to sign for slot. It’s a trend that will continue until rules are changed about slot. A 26 next year could be like a 10 this year.
OH. MY. GOD.
I’m dead serious when I say this: I would have been happy with Wilson in the first round. This is our man, the one thing our farm system is missing; a Justin Upton type. He does not have the hype or even necessarily the skill set as Upton, but he brings the excitement.
If I were the Cardinals, I’d do everything in my power to get this man to sign. Bribe him, give him box seats to games, have Albert Pujols come to his birthday party (that’d be enough for me), whatever. This is our guy. I kinda still want him over Cox, but both would be nice.
I say you sign them both. The option of signing wilson and taking the draft comp next year if cox doesn’t sign only works if the guy you take next year is a better pick than cox. Plus if you go that route you have to take an easier sign guy, since you don’t keep getting a pick the following year if it happens again (that means a Lambertt / Ottavino type player vs Cox now, not the best idea imho).
Plus I really like the comments coming from Cox.
@Andrew:
As far as next years draft goes I know it’s early, but some of the analysis I’ve heard is that it’s top heavy til mid-way through the first round, then drops off. With that kind of structure wouldn’t the top tier be a more known commodity and have been drafted by the time our pick comes around? I really don’t know anything about the class beyond Rendon and Purke, but I’m curious. If what you’re saying is true and it’s much deeper all around, well that could change things.
@Austin:
I tend to agree with your statement. If the Cards didn’t think there was a shot of him reneging on his commitment to Stanford, they wouldn’t have taken a shot on him in the 12th. Still you would have thought that if there was even the slight chance that he could sign, that he would have gone earlier.
Still IF the Cards manage to sign Cox AND Wilson, it’s equivalent to having two first round picks. But that’s a huge IF. What’s the record for largest signing bonus after the fifth round?
@PJ:
Agreed. I must say I didn’t expect this at all. Don’t think he will sign but we can dream can’t we? He would great patrolling right field in Busch and he certainly projects power.
@Alex:
Yes, you would have to try and convince him that St. Louis would be a great place to be and that Stanford can wait. Use Albert Pujols as one of your biggest incitements, let him see just how great St. Louis would be to play.
But until he signs on the dotted line before the August 15th deadline, I’ll be holding my breath expecting him not to sign.
I wish the Cards brass all the luck in the world upon swaying him from school. It takes stones to draft such a player. You must be prepaired to put up some serious cake, and if he declines you must face the eventual less than informed Card fans backlash. Worst case he goes to school keeps the prospect status, and is a star later down the line with another club. In all honestly it might make the Ricky P. situaltion look like nothin’ becaue we had the guy in our control. But if he signs you hit the 12th round jackpot! Regardless, it hard not to like the Big Club taking thier best (I hope) shot.
@Franklin:
Not necessarly just as this year as the second tier guys but still very good fell out of the first round because of signing demands while lesser players were drafted in the first for what will probablybe slot money. Allie, Cole, Workman, Castellanos, Wilson all would be first rounders wtihout a slot system. We would have to pony up for the guys next year but it could be done without any supplemental picks.
purke is eligible next year?
@Andrew: I meant they are all first rounders if there was a strict slot system, there isn’t so guys that want big money drop out of the first round while lesser players are drafted ala, Yelich, Simpson, that guy the Yankees got.
I wanted them to take Wilson with their 46th or 50th pick. I’d be shocked if they signed him, but this would turn out to be an incredible draft if they could sign all of Cox, Jenkins, and Wilson.
Pat Biserta!
@VolsnCards5:
I believe so. Gerrit Cole, too.
What a wonderful post-nap surprise!
No way we sign him though.
I don’t know anything about amateur players except what Baseball America and you guys tell me but, based on what I’m reading here, I think this is a dream draft for those of us who feel the system’s short of star material. It may also signal a shift in organizatonal philosophy. The first three choices and the Wilson choice indicate that the team wants to find upper ceiling material in the draft. It also may indicate that they have decided that money spent in this manner is better than bigger money spent on signing or keeping established major leaguers. To me it makes sense to spend a couple million on Cox if we have a good chance of getting solid, cheap production for at least a few years at 3b or 2b. Contrast that with 40 million blown on Lohse who would not have been worth it in the best of circumstances, and who, now, may not have a career left. If Cox falls flat we lose 2 or 3 million. We may have already lost 40 million on Lohse. Same with Wilson. 3 or 4 million for sole rights to a potential superstar sounds way better to me than 100 million for a Carlos Lee type. Chances are that Carlos will have a better career than Wilson but the dollar difference makes this kind of draft choice the better way to go.
Azru-If we like him as much as we did Mateo why not give him the same amount of money? We lost a potential huge impact player when we lost Mateo. Wilson would make up for it for sure. Cox is a great pick at 25 but probably isn’t going to have the same potential impact on the Major League Level I believe. If he’s willing to be signed do you think we take a legit shot at him?
Oh and we get an extra first round pick next year if we choose to sign Wilson over Cox. 2 in the first round next year could be very rewarding.
BTW I think we may get a read on if the FO is serious about Wilson but if the’s mentioned at all by Mo or Luhnow and by announcers tonight during the game. Normally a 12th round pick isn’t mentioned on the broadcast and the GM or director of scouting doesn’t even acknowledge the guys existance. If they play down the drafting of him or don’t mention its likely they aren’t serious about signing him but if they talk about him like he’s a potential steal at 12 and a first round talent then we may be on to something.
I will hope until Aug. 15 (??) that we sign him but i don’t think it’s likely.
All this talk of signing Wilson over Cox or whatever makes a lot of sense, but the bottom line is this: the Cardinals managed to draft three, count ‘em, three first rounders this year. Cox was a top 10 talent, they got him at 25. Jenkins was rated within the top 30 by every outlet I saw, and the only reason he was sitting at 50 was because a couple of the big money teams in the first inning went in other directions and the other clubs didn’t want to buy him away from Baylor. Now Wilson, who somehow fell all the way to the twelfth round despite being ranked in the top 25 in talent. It’s possible not a single one of these three ever develops into anything useful; it’s also possible this is a franchise-altering draft.
The Cards need to do everything possible to sign all three of these players, anger from the commissioner’s office be damned. A gift draft like this one may literally never come again, and I’m almost in disbelief at the talent haul Luhnow and co. have managed to pull here. I realise there is a draft budget, but this is one of those situations where ownership needs to take a hard look at the future and ask what the potential return on signing all three of these players could be. They signed a monster talent in Matias; they now have a chance to add three first-round players to their system. Investing, say, ten million or so in this draft could ensure the premium talent they need to surround Albert Pujols with a championship club they can actually afford to build for years to come.
@Aaron:
Exactly spend money now on impact players or pay more later when you have to get a FA. We are going to half to play with alot of cost controlled young players if we are going to be able to sign Pujols and remain a contender. I will be sick if we aren’t willing to pay Wilson 3 mil while Lohse is sitting on 10 million this year doing nothing. We need impact stars of the future, this is our chance.
I wonder if the Cards talked to Wilson first and asked if there was a legit chance to sign him, and if so thats why they took him?
@Gatekeeper: Anytime you have a hard sign the team talks to their camp and maybe multiple times about numbers. You bet they talked to Wilson’s camp.
Luhnow just said it would be a longshot to sign Wilson, that’s expected……the real question to ask is do they want to sign him?
@Andrew: Did he just do the interview on the pregame? I missed it watching Strasburg interview. What else did Luhnow have to say?
@Andrew:
I think they would like to sign him, but not sure how realistic it would be depending on their budget. Mind linking me to the transcript of that talk?
Check on http://www.stltoday.com bernies forum- BJ rains quoted Luhnow today. You gotta think that they will scout each of the 2 guys mroe in the mean time. Cox was really never a realistic option till abotu an hour before we took him there is alot more to look into.
The other interesting thing is the 25th pick is a protected one and next year’s draft is one of the deepest in quite some time. That means the Cards could opt to spend the money allotted for Cox and spend it on Wilson if they desire and then receive another pick in next year’s deep draft for failing to sign Cox.
Cox is probably the better prospect at the moment, overall, even if Wilson is the sexier pick, considering how risky a proposition Wilson is, but the value of that extra pick next year would outweigh the difference.
Of course, signing both of them would be even better, but I really don’t see any way something like that happens. Anyway, it should be interesting to watch how this situation plays out.