MLB Amateur Draft and Noles in the Minors

Before we get into this year's draft and how it might impact Florida State lets see how last years draft class is doing in the minors.

James Ramsey, OF - St. Louis Cardinals - 1st Round - 23rd Overall

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	Lev	Aff	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	TB	GDP	HBP	SH	SF	IBB
2012	22	Palm Beach	FLOR	A+	STL	56	247	210	36	48	9	3	1	14	10	2	33	59	.229	.333	.314	.648	66	1	1	1	2	1
2013	23	2 Teams	2 Lgs	AA-A+	STL	44	190	151	31	45	7	2	3	11	5	1	32	39	.298	.428	.430	.858	65	1	3	3	1	0
2013	23	Palm Beach	FLOR	A+	STL	18	77	61	17	22	5	2	1	7	1	0	12	12	.361	.481	.557	1.038	34	0	3	0	1	0
2013	23	Springfield	TL	AA	STL	26	113	90	14	23	2	0	2	4	4	1	20	27	.256	.391	.344	.735	31	1	0	3	0	0
2 Seasons						100	437	361	67	93	16	5	4	25	15	3	65	98	.258	.374	.363	.737	131	2	4	4	3	1
A+ (2 seasons)				A+		74	324	271	53	70	14	5	2	21	11	2	45	71	.258	.368	.369	.737	100	1	4	1	3	1
AA (1 season)				AA		26	113	90	14	23	2	0	2	4	4	1	20	27	.256	.391	.344	.735	31	1	0	3	0	0

Some were surprised by Ramsey going in the 1st round but staying for his senior season after being drafted the 22nd round the year before really paid off. Ramsey started the year in A ball but quickly proved that he has the skills to move up and since being promoted to AA has continued to produce in the Texas League.

Jayce Boyd, 1B - New York Mets - 6th Round - 200th Overall

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	Lev	Aff	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	TB	GDP	HBP	SH	SF	IBB
2012	21	Brooklyn	NYPL	A-	NYM	54	228	201	18	48	9	1	5	19	1	3	25	30	.239	.320	.368	.688	74	7	0	0	2	0
2013	22	Savannah	SALL	A	NYM	54	240	208	33	72	16	0	3	37	0	4	29	26	.346	.429	.466	.896	97	6	2	0	1	1
2 Seasons						108	468	409	51	120	25	1	8	56	1	7	54	56	.293	.376	.418	.794	171	13	2	0	3	1

Boyd was drafted too high as a junior and forwent his senior season for an opportunity to play pro ball. He is making the most of that opportunity as he was just announced to the South Atlantic League All-Star Team. At this point Jayce is too old and advanced for A ball and would expect a promotion soon after the all-star game.

Robert Benincassa, RHP - Washington Nationals - 7th Round - 234th Overall

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	Lev	Aff	W	L	W-L%	ERA	G	GS	GF	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	IBB	SO	HBP	BK	WP	BF	WHIP	H/9	HR/9	BB/9	SO/9	SO/BB
2012	21	Auburn	NYPL	A-	WSN	2	0	1.000	3.09	16	0	8	0	0	3	23.1	27	10	8	0	3	1	32	2	0	1	103	1.286	10.4	0.0	1.2	12.3	10.67
2013	22	Hagerstown	SALL	A	WSN	0	1	.000	3.24	16	0	15	0	0	8	16.2	16	6	6	2	5	1	23	0	0	2	72	1.260	8.6	1.1	2.7	12.4	4.60
2 Seasons						2	1	.667	3.15	32	0	23	0	0	11	40.0	43	16	14	2	8	2	55	2	0	3	175	1.275	9.7	0.4	1.8	12.4	6.88

Like Boyd, the junior skipped his senior season to further his career and is currently doing well in the same league that Jayce plays in but with the Suns of Hagerstown in Maryland. Benincassa has also been awarded with an All-Star appearance in the SALL and will more than likely be bumped up to AA shortly after.

Devon Travis, 2B - Detroit Tigers - 13th Round - 424th Overall

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	Lev	Aff	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	TB	GDP	HBP	SH	SF	IBB
2012	21	Connecticut	NYPL	A-	DET	25	107	93	17	26	2	2	3	11	3	1	8	10	.280	.352	.441	.793	41	3	3	2	1	0
2013	22	West Michigan	MIDW	A	DET	55	242	208	40	72	11	1	5	31	9	2	24	24	.346	.421	.481	.902	100	3	6	0	4	1
2 Seasons						80	349	301	57	98	13	3	8	42	12	3	32	34	.326	.401	.468	.869	141	6	9	2	5	1

Another underclassman and valuable piece of the infield is having success in the minors for the West Michigan Whitecaps in the Midwest League. Continuing his first half season success will earn him a promotion by season's end.

Sherman Johnson, INF - Anaheim Angles - 14th Round - 447 Overall

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	Lev	Aff	G	PA	AB	R	H	2B	3B	HR	RBI	SB	CS	BB	SO	BA	OBP	SLG	OPS	TB	GDP	HBP	SH	SF	IBB
2012	21	Orem	PION	Rk	LAA	54	240	182	38	49	12	2	3	20	8	1	49	40	.269	.427	.407	.834	74	5	2	6	1	0
2013	22	Burlington	MIDW	A	LAA	48	213	175	36	45	12	2	2	15	6	1	32	41	.257	.370	.383	.753	67	2	1	2	3	0
2 Seasons						102	453	357	74	94	24	4	5	35	14	2	81	81	.263	.400	.395	.795	141	7	3	8	4	0

Johnson is currently playing A ball in the Midwest league with the Burlington Bees based out of Burlington, Iowa. Just like in college Sherm is sporting respectable on-base percentage and hit his first two homeruns of the season last night.

Hunter Scantling, LHP - Detroit Tigers - 14th Round - 454th Overall

Year	Age	Tm	Lg	Lev	Aff	W	L	W-L%	ERA	G	GS	GF	CG	SHO	SV	IP	H	R	ER	HR	BB	IBB	SO	HBP	BK	WP	BF	WHIP	H/9	HR/9	BB/9	SO/9	SO/BB
2012	22	Connecticut	NYPL	A-	DET	2	0	1.000	1.23	13	0	9	0	0	2	22.0	7	3	3	1	6	0	21	1	0	0	77	0.591	2.9	0.4	2.5	8.6	3.50
1 Season						2	0	1.000	1.23	13	0	9	0	0	2	22.0	7	3	3	1	6	0	21	1	0	0	77	0.591	2.9	0.4	2.5	8.6	3.50

After having success in rookie ball last year it appears that Scantling is no longer playing.

Justin Gonzalez, SS - Los Angles Dodgers - 27th Round - 836th Overall

The shortstop made a tough decision and was the only (eligible) player to return for his senior season. Terrible news hit Florida State as just 2 weeks into the season Gonzalez was sidelined for the remaining of the season with a hip injury.

Seeing all of the success these players are having in the minors indicates just how much talent was lost from last year's club. For Florida State to be on the verge of another 50 win season and another trip back to Omaha given the circumstances speaks volumes of the coaching staff and their ability to reload and teach so quickly.

Now on to this year's draft. Here is how the MLB draft is scheduled out:

The Draft will have 40 rounds, and a Club may pass on its selection in any round and not forfeit its right to participate in other rounds. Like each of the previous four years, the 2013 Draft will span three days. For day one on June 6th, MLB Network and MLB.com will provide live pick-by-pick coverage during the first round, Competitive Balance Round A, the second round and Competitive Balance Round B. The intervals between selections will last four and a half minutes during the first round, two minutes during Competitive Balance Round A, and one minute during the second round and Competitive Balance Round B. The Draft will resume at 1:00 p.m. (ET) on both Friday, June 7th and Saturday, June 8th via conference call from MLB headquarters in New York City. Friday, June 7th will cover rounds three through 10, and Saturday, June 8th will cover rounds 11 through 40. Rounds three through 10 will have one minute between selections, and the remainder of the selections will be made without delays.

Make sense? I know the MLB draft is unlike any other and can be confusing. For a basic breakdown I encourage you to visit a fellow SBNation site, there you will find a simplified explanation.

Current high school players who are committed to Florida State:

Oscar Mercado, SS - Tampa, FL

He has very good actions at shortstop, with no question about his ability to defend at the premium spot. He'll need to add some strength, but he also showed some offensive ability over the summer, standing out at the East Coast Pro Showcase. His potential and his glove work will undoubtedly put him high up on Draft boards in June.

Mercado had a less than stellar senior season which will more than likely drop him out of the 1st round. He has never intended to go to FSU and is using his commitment as leverage. Being one of the top 50 players in this draft the money which he will be offered won't be turned down.

Taylor Blatch, RHP - Jensen Beach, FL

Like Mercado, the pitcher from South Florida had a down senior season which caused his stock to drop. He will probably be drafted high enough to cause fans some concern. In the end though I believe he ends up at Florida State.

There are some other Florida State commits that could be drafted in later rounds but I highly doubt any of them forgo college.

Current Florida State players who are draft eligible:

In order to be eligible for the draft once you are enrolled in a 4-year college you must either be a junior or turn 21 within a month of the draft.

Seth Miller, Scott Sitz and Justin Gonzalez are all seniors. Gonzalez will undoubtedly be drafted for the 3rd time in his career and whether he stays or not is anybody's guess at this point. Because of his injury he will be allowed to come back in 2014 but given his circumstance I would hope moves forward with his professional career.

The Noles have 10 players who are juniors and therefore eligible to be drafted. Catcher Stephen McGee and outfielder Marcus Davis are the only two are listed in Baseball America's Top 500. Of all the players on this team I think McGee is the obvious one that fans have the most concern about. With the year he is having at the plate and the premium position he plays I could see him going in the top 10 rounds making this season at FSU his last.

Any of the other juniors on the team could be drafted but I don't believe that it will be high enough for them to leave early. For the first time in a few years it would appear to be a pretty uneventful draft for Seminoles' fans, with so much young talent it is to be expected. Just prepare yourself in the next few when all these kids are drafted early and leave for a well deserved payday.

One other part of the amateur draft that I enjoy, kinda, is the players I grew up watching that now have kids who are eligible for the draft. Here is a link to a full list of baseball people who have a close relative in the draft this year. Here are a few that make me feel real old, Craig Biggio, Walt Weiss, Manny Ramirez, Roger Clemens, Torri Hunter, Jamie Moyer, Dan Plesac and Randy Verlarde to name a few.

The MLB draft doesn't have the hype that comes with the NFL but is still enjoyable to watch kids see their childhood dreams play out. We will have this thread open if any Noles are drafted or any players pertinent to Florida State.

More to come on the Super Regionals tomorrow and Saturday.

Go Noles!