Draft Wrap-Up: Atlanta Signs 18 of 25 Picks

As the dust settles from the Tartans 2nd Amateur Draft team officials seemed moderately satisfied with their selections.

"Any time you land your #1 target in a draft you have to be satisfied," said team owner Randy Benoit. "We feel the addition of Tuck Hayes has solidified our relief pitching prospect depth and instantly improved the talent in our future bullpen."

Following the pick of Hayes, a future closer, was RP Aurelio Barrios. The right hander may have been drafted too early but has the potential to be a Setup A/B guy in the majors.

Adding Tim Mills in the 3rd round likely did not fill the clubs need for a 1B prospect, but Mills does have the potential to reach the bigs and should be a solid contributer through out his minor league career.

DH Pete Beech adds even greater depth to a strong core of DH prospects the Tartans currently possess.

C Kid Thornton has the potential to reach the big leagues behind his glove and decent stick. He will provide a solid backstop to this seasons Rookie squad.

RP David Kwon has the potential to reach the majors as a Setup B reliever, though he will likely top out at AAA.

C/DH Adam Fonville was a decent pickup in the 8th round. Fonville served as at Delgado Community College in New Orleans, LA this spring, but the Tartans see the 19 year old as a catcher, which instantly increased his value.

Of the 18 picks the Tartans signed, 15 were collegiate players, and only 3 were straight out of high school. Atlanta focused on older players as they are targeting the start of Season 4 for the premier of their "youth movement". The team drafted several RP, perhaps too many! But in speaking with owner Randy Benoit he was not concerned, "yeah some may say that this season we drafted too heavy on collegiate relievers, but this is not a problem. We have some depth at the skill positions currently in our system. We targeted a 1B/LF power hitter, a premier starting pitcher, or a top end closer with our 1st round pick. And we were able to fill one of the three gaps in our system. I guarantee you next season we will not be worried about finding a young closer. And if we can meed one of the other two needs with an international signing we will be on our way."