Mets Draft Scouting Reports: Rounds 36 to 40

And finishing up:

36th round: 1B Brandon Brosher, Springstead H.S. (FL). At 6 feet, 3 inches and 225 pounds, it’s tough to imagine Florida prep product anywhere but at first base, so he’s going to need to hit. At the plate, he has raw power and solid batspeed, but he needs to work on his swing before it translates in games. He doesn’t have enough of a hand load and the swing plane is flat. Additionally, he needs to work on his lower body; too often he’s fully rotated by the time he connects, and he doesn’t have nearly enough of a weight transfer. In the field, he should be a fine first baseman, with agile feet and a great arm. Also a pitcher, he can hit 90 on the gun from the right side with a very short arm action, though he needs to learn to use his legs more in his delivery. He’s committed to Oral Roberts.

Mets Draft Pick Results Tracker

Scouting reports and signing statuses for all 41 picks.

37th round: 1B Juan Avena, Compton Community College. Avena is a right-handed throwing, left-handed hitting first baseman from a California JuCo with some power potential (he’s a strong 6 feet, 2 inches) down the road but has more of a line-drive swing right now. The swing is nice and smooth, but there’s barely a hand load and he severely overstrides, committing himself to pitches too early and forcing him to hit the ball way out in front. When he waits on the pitch a little more, he can drive the ball, but a flat swing path is going to prevent him from developing home run power. I have no idea if he’s committed to a four-year program for 2014.

38th round: LHP Paul Paez, Rio Hondo College. I wrote Paez up last year when he was the Mets’ 18th-round pick. He opted for community college rather than San Diego, and it hasn’t helped. Clearly the Mets still like him, and much is the same as it was last year. He still only throws in the high-80s and he still has good command. His curve still doesn’t excite me, but he has made strides with the changeup, and he’s developed a slider, which I think has become his second-best pitch, with tight rotation, bite, and a little bit of depth. I still see a potential reliever here, but it’s nice to see him finally in the organization, as he signed the other day.

39th round: 1B Logan Quimuyog, Mosley H.S. (FL). For the third time in four rounds, the Mets selected a first baseman. Quimuyog--and yes, I think I have the spelling down--is a lean first baseman with above-average arm strength and some power potential down the road. I haven’t seen him hit, but he’s just a line drive hitter right now. He’s definitely going to James Madison University.

40th round: OF J.B. Woodman, Edgewater H.S. (FL). The fortieth round is a perfect time for a Hail Mary, a backup plan, and the Mets used theirs for one. J.B. Woodman is a hell of an athlete. A quarterback for his high school, Woodman has arm strength and speed and figures to be a professional center fielder. He has plenty of batspeed--his wrists are awfully quick--but his swing is extremely simple with little weight transfer or hip rotation; he’s pretty much all hands. His overall game is very raw however; scouts don’t like his outfield play despite conceding he could eventually be a plus defender, and he’s similarly flawed on the basepaths. At the plate, his pitch recognition still needs work, but he could eventually hit for good averages despite a lack of power. If the Mets had failed to sign somebody I’d say there was a chance of a signing here, but expect him to go to Ole Miss instead.

And that’s it. Thanks, as always, for indulging my draft obsession everyone! I'll be back for one more column with my overall impressions of the Mets' draft class in the near future, because I have plenty to say.