Tyler Kolek, RHP

[Bobbob1313]

yeah, this is close to you as you're gonna get

I think you can do better, really. Throw some passive-aggressiveness in there. Something about how all sports fans are idiots. I believe in you.
--------------------

He's doing what we usually do to him. I agree with him.

Sure. Not really, but sure.

[dim]

The problem is that Rodon was likely passed because of signability issues.

That being said Rodon has a lot more issues than just signability. The overuse in college and likely injury concerns moving forward are the obvious ones, but his mechanics were apparently getting a bit wonky in his early starts this past season (head jerking in the middle of pitches, lack of follow through leading to balls, etc...). Add the concerns to signability issues and I can see why they went with Kolek.

I'm a huge fan of Kolek. I've said multiple times that if we weren't gonna go with Rodon, Kolek was the guy I want. He's a big body guy (in the Jose Fernandez big body way), throws a fast, fast, fast fastball, has some decent off speed stuff but relies quite a bit on his power and has a lot of room to grow. Even in high school a 0.35 ERA is nothing to sneeze at. In the end Kolek is likely a more exciting prospect than Rodon, although he might also be a little less controlled at the moment since he's coming straight out of high school as opposed to Rodon who has a proven track record over three years at NC State.

I would've loved Rodon, but now that we have Kolek I'm 100% excited and hopefully some of the money we're saving taking Kolek over Rodon will be used to draft a guy with that competitive balance pick that is a first round value but fell because of whatever concerns (although Loria never puts money back into the team, just his pocket, so whatever).

[FishTale]

Kolek > Rodon.

[Bobbob1313]

I would've loved Rodon, but now that we have Kolek I'm 100% excited and hopefully some of the money we're saving taking Kolek over Rodon will be used to draft a guy with that competitive balance pick that is a first round value but fell because of whatever concerns (although Loria never puts money back into the team, just his pocket, so whatever).

This is my issue.

If they think Kolek's the best talent available, I'm happy. They've done a decent job of identifying talent in recent years, so I'm cool with it, even if there are more obvious organization needs.

If they passed on Rodon (or Jackson, or whoever) because they think Kolek will be easier to sign, that's terrible. Because we're long past the point where anyone should assume the savings will be re-invested.

[dim]

I'm still as torn on the Kolek/Rodon debate as I was a month ago. Love Rodon based on his prior track record, and despite what some say he had a pretty damn good year at NC State despite all the pressure he dealt with, but he might simply not be the same 'exciting', best since Strasburg prospect he was heading into the season. I still think he's got #2 stuff at the least, but that whole no doubt ace pitcher thing that was being thrown around a while back isn't the case anymore.

Kolek has so much room to grow, and with the pitching we currently have waiting in the minors it might be nice to have a guy working in the minors for 4 years so we can go through our options, see which of the guys currently in contention for the rotation thrive and which bust, and hopefully in 2018 Kolek is the beast we all hope he can be and the rotation is for the most part figured out.

Most importantly it would be nice for the Marlins to take a top tier talent with their next pick or two and not cheap out. But unfortunately it seems likely that the Kolek pick was made 60% based on talent, 40% based on not wanting to pay Rodon and deal with Boras in negotiations.

[lou]

If they passed on Rodon (or Jackson, or whoever) because they think Kolek will be easier to sign, that's terrible. Because we're long past the point where anyone should assume the savings will be re-invested.

Exactly. Hoping those days are over.

I say that realizing they just traded a good draft pick to clear money for Kevin Gregg.

[jOOj]

I'm not sure what this means, but I think it's very fair to question the Marlins draft strategy if the number comes in low.

We'll see. I'm hoping they didn't cheap out and they took the guy they think is best.

Gonna get paid! Hopefully nothing ridiculous.

I truly hope this pick was for talent as well, gotta love that velocity.

[Nick]

I've seen nothing of this Kolek guy so no opinion really there. Generally I prefer prep arms to College arms, and College bats to prep bats. So it looks like we got a really high-upside high school arm. That sounds ok to me.

[NoNames7225]

Since meeting with Tyler Kolek and his parents at the Trinity River Land & Cattle Company in tiny Shepherd in January, the Miami Marlins spent more than 100 hours tracking the big, hard-throwing righthander this winter and spring. They dissected his stats and paid close attention to his parents, James and Brenda.

By the time they were done, they knew they wanted the latest fireballer from Texas.

Every top Marlins baseball official made a pilgrimage to Shepherd or one of the small surrounding towns to watch the 6-foot-5, 270-pound light the radar gun routinely with fastballs at 100-mph and a few at 102-mph.

The Marlins were sold on Kolek, and they wasted no time picking second overall after the Astros took San Diego, Calif., Cathedral Catholic High lefthander Brady Aiken with the first overall pick.

“They got who they wanted,” Marlins vice president of scouting Stan Meek said of the Astros. “And we feel very good with who we wanted.”

Meek made three trips to watch Kolek pitch this season. One week after Astros president Reid Ryan and Phillies general manager Ruben Amaro Jr. watched Kolek pitch in Splendora, Marlins president Mike Hill joined White Sox general manager Rick Hahn, Cubs president Theo Epstein and Astros scouting director Mike Elias at Kolek’s start on April 11.

A week later, Astros general manager Jeff Luhnow was joined by his head of decision sciences Sig Mejdal and pro scouting coordinator Kevin Goldstein and former Cubs ace Kerry Wood at Kolek’s start. Then on April 25 Marlins general manager Dan Jennings was joined by the GMs of the White Sox and Cubs at Kolek’s penultimate start of the year.

Meek attended Kolek’s last high school start on May 1 in Jasper, sitting just a few rows behind Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan, Astros manager Bo Porter and bench coach Dave Trembley.

“We spent upwards of 100 hours watching him,” Meek said. ““We spent a lot hours. We helped the economy of Shepherd, Texas.”

Kolek ties former Spring High star Josh Beckett as the highest a Houston area high school pitcher has ever been drafted. Beckett also went second to the Marlins in 1999.

Kolek’s fastball has earned him comparisons to Ryan, baseball’s all-time strikeout leader and current special adviser to the Astros. But in reality, the Marlins actually compared him favorably to another hard-throwing righthander who grew up in the Houston area.

“You hate to put these kinds of names on him, but you kind of see some Roger Clemens in him and in the power delivery he has,” Meek said of the seven-time Cy Young Award winner.
The Astros considered Kolek for the top pick, giving him the most consideration they have given a high school righthander to the top pick in the three consecutive years they have picked first.

Kolek has signed a letter of intent to play baseball at TCU next season. Although he has some leverage with the TCU scholarship, the Marlins are gambling that he’s ready to start his pro career son.

Although Meek says Kolek still has to get his breaking ball in place, he can see the Shepherd High star climbing up the minors quickly.

“We would hope he would move very quickly (up the farm system),” Meek said.

http://blog.chron.com/ultimateastros...ith-no-2-pick/

[Todd]

I thought we were absolutely taking Rodon no questions asked and if not him then Alex Jackson.

[emkayseven]

The Marlins really did dig deep in the heart of Texas to find perhaps the next great power pitcher from the Lone Star State.

With the second overall pick in Thursday's First-Year Player Draft, the Marlins selected Tyler Kolek from Shepherd, Texas -- population of less than 2,500.

Raised on a ranch, Kolek is no stranger to hard work or getting his hands dirty. The 6-foot-5, 260-pounder grew up admiring the great Nolan Ryan, who took part in scouting the right-hander for the Astros.

But when Houston selected Brady Aiken, the lefty from San Diego, with the No. 1 overall pick, the Marlins didn't hesitate selecting the 18-year-old Kolek, who possesses the fastest fastball ever recorded by a high school player.

The Marlins clocked Kolek as high as 102 mph. Coupled with his size and upside, Kolek became too tempting to pass up.

"We didn't really see any red flags," Marlins vice president of scouting Stan Meek said. "We spent a lot of hours on him. We helped the economy in Shepherd, Texas."

Along with taking Kolek, the Marlins selected catcher Blake Anderson from West Lauderdale High School in Collinsville, Miss., with the 36th overall pick. And in the second round, with the No. 43 choice, Miami capped its first day by going with infielder Justin Twine from Falls City High School in Texas.

The Marlins are confident they will be able to sign all three of the picks.

"We feel very confident," Meek said. "We've spoken with them about what they're thinking. We think we'll get something done with them. We feel like they're all three signable kids. Those are significant picks with significant dollar values attached. We think it really shouldn't be a problem."

The Draft continues on Friday with Rounds 3-10. The MLB.com pregame show begins at 12:30 p.m. ET, with exclusive coverage of Rounds 3-10 beginning at 1 p.m.

Kolek follows a long line of Texas fireballers.

Meek says there are similarities to Roger Clemens, another Texas native. The last time the Marlins selected a right-hander from Texas with the No. 2 overall choice, it panned out. In 1999, the organization picked Josh Beckett out of Spring, Texas.

Four years later, Beckett hoisted a championship trophy and was named the 2003 World Series MVP.

Kolek is an unfinished product, but he has all the makings of a future star.

"This has just been the most amazing day in the world," Kolek said.

Amazement actually comes from those who have seen Kolek pitch. As a senior, he simply dominated, posting an 0.36 ERA with 126 strikeouts and eight walks in 60 1/3 innings.

"We met with the family in January," Meek said. "We spent upwards of 100 hours on him, with all the flights in and out of there. All the things you need to do. When you're picking that high, you sure want to feel good about everything about the player. Not just the on-field performance, but how he handles himself around the field, how he handles himself around his teammates."

The Marlins kept a close watch on Kolek. But the kid raised on a 10,000-acre ranch wasn't aware Miami had enough interest to make him the second pick overall.

"Honestly, we had a meeting with them and we talked baseball questions and stuff like that," Kolek said. "I took them around the ranch and showed them some deer. That was just about the last I'd heard from them until now. Until this moment, I had no idea what was going to happen."

The Marlins clearly felt Kolek was a safe bet, and they needed to. The slot money for the No. 2 selection is $6,821,800. If Miami is unable to sign Kolek, he has a commitment to Texas Christian University.

Because of Kolek's humble upbringing, the Marlins are confident the right-hander is a safe investment.

"It's a little different growing up on a ranch than city life," Kolek said. "You get up at 6 o'clock in the morning to go feed cattle or go fix a fence. It's hot out there. It gets up to 105, 110 degrees, with humidity. I think it makes you a lot tougher than the average high school kid."

Once Aiken was off the board, the Marlins had already zeroed in on Kolek, opting for the right-hander over North Carolina State lefty Carlos Rodon, among others.

"We worked through a lot of things," Meek said. "We had it down to six guys we liked, then down to four. The last couple of days, we just settled on [Kolek].

"There were some other guys up there we had interest in too, but in the end, we kind of targeted that this is our guy. This is the guy we hope gets to us. We thought it could happen, but with Houston picking first, and he being in that state, you always get nervous."

When weighing through all factors, the Marlins, like so many hitters, were blown away by Kolek's fastball.

"I had always thrown hard for my age," Kolek said. "I was 94 [mph] my junior year before I broke my arm. After I broke my arm, the very first start I made, I threw 102."

Meek said it's the hardest he's ever seen. In 2011, when Jose Fernandez was the 16th overall pick by Miami, he was throwing 98 mph.

"I think 98 is about the best I'd ever seen," Meek said. "I think I saw Jose pitch that in high school. I saw a couple of other kids up that high. I think [Kolek's] is kind of a unique fastball.

"The one thing he's got to be careful of is he doesn't get enamored with the counts the [radar] guns read, just go pitch."

With power becoming such a big part of the game, 100-mph fastballs become an adrenaline rush, not only for the pitchers, but the fans and the media.

If Kolek can control his velocity and improve the polish on his breaking ball, he will rise quickly through the system.

There also is injury concern when talking about hard throwers.

"I really think when guys try to get to the top-end velocity, that's when they get hurt," Meek said. "He's got plenty of arm strength without trying to force anything. That's what we really like, a good fastball that's not being forced.

"The command of the fastball is pretty good for a high school kid. We'd hope he'd move up rather quickly, but he kind of puts that on himself."

http://miami.marlins.mlb.com/news/ar...k_mia&c_id=mia

[marlinsfan24]

http://m.bleacherreport.com/articles...s-z-round-pick

MLB Comparison? Josh Beckett

[Swifty]

http://m.bleacherreport.com/articles...s-z-round-pick

MLB Comparison? Josh Beckett

That's because he's from Texas, is a high school righty, and throws hard. It's lazy.

Also, have to love when your scouting department uses words like "settle" when they pick #2. Fantastic stuff.

[Mainge]

Settle is synonymous with "decided" in this context. There's lots of legitimate criticism to be levied on this front office without nitpicking on their choice of words.

[emkayseven]

what mainge said. they didn't "settle for" him, they "settled on" him