Guardians Have Choices at the Top

It is easily the biggest question surrounding Major League Baseball’s amateur draft.

The Cleveland Guardians hold the first pick and are giving no indication about who they might select.

President of baseball operations Chris Antonetti is not setting a smokescreen, either. A Guardians source told Draft Nation late Friday night that the team might not make its final decision until Sunday night just before the draft begins at Arlington, Texas as part of the All-Star festivities.

Scouts and talent evaluators seem to agree that University of Georgia outfielder Charlie Condon is the best player available. He was this year’s Golden Spikes winner, emblematic of the best player in college baseball.

While the Guardians are considering Condon, they are not believed to be as enamored with the slugger as most other teams and are unwilling to pay hum the slot value signing bonus of $10,570,600.

Still on the Guardians’ potential list of No. 1 picks are Oregon State second baseman Travis Bazzana, West Virginia University shortstop J.J. Wetherholt, University of Florida first baseman/pitcher Jac Caglianone, Wake Forest right-hander Chase Burns and Konnor Griffin, a high school outfielder/shortstop from Florwood, Miss.

The Guardians also have the highest signing bonus pool in this year’s draft at $18,834,000. The thought around baseball circles is that the Guardians will take an under-slot player at 1-1 then spread the savings around to picks in later rounds.

That leaves Wetherholt as the presumptive favorite to go first. Sources close to the negotiations say Wetherholt might be willing to sign $7.5 million.

Wetherholt entered the season expected to be the top pick. However, he sustained a hamstring injury that caused him to miss part of the Mountaineers’ season.

The injury has healed, though, and the Guardians are not concerned about Wetherholt’s durability.

Baseball sources, though, won’t rule out Bazzana, a former Australian cricket player who passed on offers from MLB teams in high school to attend Oregon State. Bazzana’s profile is similar to Wetherholt’s and he could be the Guardians’ guy if they are unable to reach deals with Condon or Wetherholt.

Surprisingly, this is the first time the Guardians have ever owned the first overall pick. They have chosen second five times since the draft started in 1965.

Rounding out the top 10 picks this year will be Cincinnati, Colorado, Oakland, the Chicago White Sox, Kansas City, St. Louis, the Los Angeles Angels, Pittsburgh and Washington.