Round 1 Picks made by Justin Lada (JL), Jared Sziber (JS), and Willie Hood (WH) CLEVELAND GUARDIANS: 1B, Nick Kurtz, Wake Forest JL: Taking a first baseman #1 overall comes with risks, and the history of that decision carries many examples of failure. That being said, Kurtz appears to be a safe enough of a hitter based on solid contact rates, and chase rates low enough to rival or beat other hitters in the 1.1 conversion such as JJ Weatherholt and Travis Bazzana. Cleveland is in obvious need of power and has seen its penchant for taking bigger swings and risks in player acquisition increase lately. New scouting director Ethan Purser signed high-risk, high-reward Daniel Espino in 2018 as Cleveland’s top pick in that draft. If that strategy remains here in 2024 at 1.1, then Kurtz makes sense, though Bazanna also has the tools and makeup to make an even better argument for a safer, yet high-upside pick at 1.1.
Next Year in Cleveland 2024 MLB Mock Draft 1.0
Next Year in Cleveland 2024 MLB Mock Draft…
Next Year in Cleveland 2024 MLB Mock Draft 1.0
Round 1 Picks made by Justin Lada (JL), Jared Sziber (JS), and Willie Hood (WH) CLEVELAND GUARDIANS: 1B, Nick Kurtz, Wake Forest JL: Taking a first baseman #1 overall comes with risks, and the history of that decision carries many examples of failure. That being said, Kurtz appears to be a safe enough of a hitter based on solid contact rates, and chase rates low enough to rival or beat other hitters in the 1.1 conversion such as JJ Weatherholt and Travis Bazzana. Cleveland is in obvious need of power and has seen its penchant for taking bigger swings and risks in player acquisition increase lately. New scouting director Ethan Purser signed high-risk, high-reward Daniel Espino in 2018 as Cleveland’s top pick in that draft. If that strategy remains here in 2024 at 1.1, then Kurtz makes sense, though Bazanna also has the tools and makeup to make an even better argument for a safer, yet high-upside pick at 1.1.