Top News:
Joe McDonald / ESPN:
Sox feel good about first 3 picks — Boston Red Sox general manager Theo Epstein and Co. came away feeling very good about the club's three picks during the first day of the 2010 Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. — Boston selected second baseman Kolbrin Vitek (20th overall) …
Discussion:
The House That Dewey Built
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Peter Abraham / Boston Globe:
Red Sox, Dice-K handle Indians, 4-1 — Game over: Red Sox 4, Indians 1 — Matsuzaka went eight innings before Bard pitched the ninth and allowed a homer by Kearns. — Draft update: Vitek has agreed to a contract — Just spoke to Kolbrin Vitek, who visited the Red Sox over the weekend …
Ian Browne / MLB.com:
Red Sox tab Vitek with first pick in Draft — CLEVELAND — The Red Sox went for an intriguing bat with the 20th overall pick in Monday night's First-Year Player Draft, grabbing Ball State second baseman Kolbrin Vitek. — While Vitek is widely regarded for his offense, it is unclear if second base will be the position he winds up at.
Jim Callis / Baseball America:
Mock First Round Update — My latest projections for the first round of tonight's draft: — 1. Nationals. Bryce Harper, c, JC of Southern Nevada — 2. Pirates. Jameson Taillon, rhp, The Woodlands (Texas) HS — 3. Orioles. Manny Machado, ss, Brito Miami Private HS — 4. Royals.
Discussion:
JSOnline
Alex Speier / Full Count:
Red Sox use first-round pick on Kolbrin Vitek — With their first-round draft pick, the Red Sox selected second baseman/outfielder Kolbrin Vitek out of Ball State University. Vitek hit .361 with 17 homers and 16 steals en route to winning Mid-American Conference Player of the Year honors.
Ben Goessling / MASNsports.com:
Nationals make Harper the No. 1 pick - The Goessling Game — On Monday night, the Nationals officially did what they've been expected to do for the better part of a year, making 17-year-old Bryce Harper the No. 1 pick in the First-Year Player Draft. — Harper, who obtained a GED and enrolled …
Discussion:
MLB Rumors
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Thomas Kaplan / New York Times:
National Draft Harper, but Not as a Catcher — SECAUCUS, N. J. — The Major League Baseball draft is beginning to follow a script, and not just because it is now televised in prime time. — The Washington Nationals picked first Monday for the second consecutive year.
Roch Kubatko / Baseball America:
Orioles Stray From Pitching-First Plan With Machado
Discussion:
Camden Chat
Kevin Goldstein / Baseball Prospectus:
Final Mock Draft: Mock Away — 1. Washington Nationals: Move along, nothing to see here. — Pick: Bryce Harper, C/OF, College of Southern Nevada — 2. Pittsburgh Pirates: The needle seems to have move a bit towards James Taillon over Manny Machado. The Pirates think Taillon is the better talent …
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John Manuel / Baseball America:
Yankees End First Round With Stunner, Cito Culver — Once again, this wasn't a consensus first-rounder. Need more proof? Cito Culver ranked No. 168 on our board, but Culver had athleticism, plus tools to play shortstop and good infield actions, and the Yankees popped him at No. 32.
John Manuel / Baseball America:
Biggest Shocker So Far: Hayden Simpson to Chicago Cubs — We were on Hayden Simpson in the preseason. But no one was on him at No. 17 overall. — Simpson, our No. 191 prospect on our Top 200, was our preseason Division II pitcher of the year, and he was the pitcher of the year at Division II.
Jim Armstrong / Denver Post:
End of slump in sight, Rockies' Helton to wear contact lenses — Give Todd Helton this: He's being proactive as he fights off the worst slump of his career. — Helton, hitting .250 with one home run and 10 RBIs, returned to Denver on Sunday night from the Rockies' road trip to San Francisco and Arizona.
Discussion:
HardballTalk
Associated Press:
Adrian Gonzalez hits pair of homers as Padres down slumping Phillies — PHILADELPHIA (AP) — The way the Philadelphia Phillies are hitting, their pitchers need to be perfect or close to it. — Adrian Gonzalez's (FSY) first of two solo homers broke up Cole Hamels' (FSY) …
