WEBVTT - Jim Callis of MLB.com talks MLB/O's draft 0:00:07.560 --> 0:00:10.920 Hey, everybody, Welcome in the latest edition of Birdland Territory 0:00:11.000 --> 0:00:14.560 with Steve, Tim and Brad and a special guest today. 0:00:14.600 --> 0:00:18.480 The MLB Draft is coming fast July eleventh, at one 0:00:18.640 --> 0:00:21.400 thirty that's when it will be this year, Saturday, ahead 0:00:21.400 --> 0:00:24.160 of the All Star Game Sunday. They'll wrap it up 0:00:24.160 --> 0:00:27.320 twenty rounds and our guest today is Jim Kallus. I've 0:00:27.360 --> 0:00:29.680 known Jim for a long time, back to his Baseball 0:00:29.680 --> 0:00:34.120 America days and since twenty thirteen senior writer for MLB 0:00:34.560 --> 0:00:37.280 dot Com and mlbpipeline dot Com. One of the best 0:00:37.680 --> 0:00:40.840 analysts of young players out there. And you'll see Jim 0:00:40.880 --> 0:00:44.920 live on draft coverage Saturday and Sunday. Check your local 0:00:44.920 --> 0:00:49.080 listings if your networks are involved, including NBC, MLB Network, 0:00:49.240 --> 0:00:53.519 MLB dot Com, Mlbpipeline. Jim, we're gonna find you everywhere, 0:00:53.520 --> 0:00:55.160 but it's going to be a busy couple of days. 0:00:55.200 --> 0:00:57.360 And thanks for joining us today in the midst of 0:00:57.400 --> 0:00:58.480 all your prep for this thing. 0:00:58.880 --> 0:01:01.160 I know, I'm glad. I'm hoping you guys can tell 0:01:01.160 --> 0:01:04.880 me who the Orioles are taken at seven, since nobody's. 0:01:05.240 --> 0:01:07.440 We're gonna throw darts here in about five minutes and 0:01:07.440 --> 0:01:11.200 see where it lands. Because but it does sound like 0:01:11.319 --> 0:01:16.080 Jim and oriole fans love to talk about wanting those 0:01:16.120 --> 0:01:19.560 to drafted picture highly up the board, which they haven't 0:01:19.600 --> 0:01:21.560 under Elias. We you and I've been through this a lot. 0:01:21.920 --> 0:01:24.800 Fifty eighth Joseph Jerwhile last year was their highest drafted 0:01:24.840 --> 0:01:30.240 picture Underlias, it sounds very unlikely this year that that 0:01:30.319 --> 0:01:32.240 pick will be a picture at seven. Is that a 0:01:32.280 --> 0:01:32.960 fair statement? 0:01:33.360 --> 0:01:35.440 Yeah, I don't think there's really a picture who fits 0:01:35.440 --> 0:01:37.640 into the mix. And even if there were, I just 0:01:37.760 --> 0:01:42.000 don't think. You know this Orioles regime, I would be 0:01:42.080 --> 0:01:44.399 shocked if they ever take a picture in the first round. 0:01:44.400 --> 0:01:48.200 I remember, I guess it was two drafts ago. We 0:01:48.240 --> 0:01:51.960 were in Fort Worth and the draft was at this 0:01:52.120 --> 0:01:54.360 rodeo venue, so it wasn't near the ballpark, so it 0:01:54.400 --> 0:01:56.120 was like thirty minutes away. I was right, I know, 0:01:56.160 --> 0:01:57.720 over there with Mellie Newman, who does all kinds of 0:01:57.720 --> 0:01:59.240 oriol stuff. And I always in that kind of year, 0:01:59.240 --> 0:02:02.240 I'm always asking, like if I bumped into you guys 0:02:02.280 --> 0:02:03.960 on drive, like, hey, who are the Oils taking seven? 0:02:03.960 --> 0:02:06.280 I always ask people and I and I think that 0:02:06.360 --> 0:02:09.119 was a year I had maybe I had him taken 0:02:09.120 --> 0:02:10.800 Birdy Bread. I projected them to take a picture because 0:02:10.800 --> 0:02:12.760 they need to take they need pitching. So I had 0:02:12.840 --> 0:02:15.880 him taking a picture like twenty I think it was 0:02:15.919 --> 0:02:18.320 the Vance honeycut pick. I had him taken a picture 0:02:18.560 --> 0:02:19.840 as I asked him, Elanie, It's like, oh, so, who 0:02:19.919 --> 0:02:21.600 the oil's taking a twenty three or whatever it was, 0:02:21.840 --> 0:02:23.320 And She's like, all I know is it's not going 0:02:23.400 --> 0:02:26.000 to be a picture. You know, never take a picture 0:02:26.000 --> 0:02:27.680 in the first round. I was like, damn it, Like 0:02:29.600 --> 0:02:32.560 I think, you know, unless you had They're looking up 0:02:32.560 --> 0:02:35.160 and Paul Skeen's is staring them in the face. I 0:02:35.200 --> 0:02:37.600 would be surprised if they ever took a picture in 0:02:37.639 --> 0:02:38.280 the first round. 0:02:39.000 --> 0:02:41.840 The only guy who's projected high up the board pitching 0:02:41.880 --> 0:02:46.239 wise is Jackson Flora, right the UC Santa Barbara right hander, 0:02:46.280 --> 0:02:49.160 who most mock drafts have him being taken in the 0:02:49.200 --> 0:02:50.119 five range. 0:02:50.520 --> 0:02:52.960 Yeah, like, he probably fits like somewhere in there, four 0:02:53.000 --> 0:02:55.680 to six. I agreed, and like, but I do. And 0:02:55.720 --> 0:02:57.600 again I'm not claiming I know this for a fact, 0:02:57.680 --> 0:03:00.720 but if Jackson Flora was there at seven, I don't 0:03:00.720 --> 0:03:02.600 know that I project the Orioles take Jackson Fall. I 0:03:02.639 --> 0:03:05.600 just don't think they're gonna take a picture. I'd be 0:03:05.720 --> 0:03:07.560 surprised if they took a picture in the first round, 0:03:07.800 --> 0:03:09.280 and I'd be shocked if they took a picture with 0:03:09.320 --> 0:03:11.560 the top ten pick, because I just don't think they 0:03:11.639 --> 0:03:14.680 believe that you should take pictures that early in the draft, 0:03:14.840 --> 0:03:17.560 and they've obviously not done that the whole time they've 0:03:17.560 --> 0:03:18.320 been in Baltimore. 0:03:19.080 --> 0:03:20.440 Last thing for me, and I want to these other 0:03:20.440 --> 0:03:23.200 guys that jump in with Jim Kalls from MLB dot 0:03:23.200 --> 0:03:27.640 com mlbpipeline dot com. So Jim's a lot of mock drafts, 0:03:27.639 --> 0:03:31.200 including yours at MLB dot com. Most recently had them 0:03:31.240 --> 0:03:34.480 taking Drew Burris, the outfielder from Georgia Tech. I see 0:03:34.480 --> 0:03:37.200 his name link to the oriols constantly. What can you 0:03:37.240 --> 0:03:38.560 tell us about Drew Burris? 0:03:38.840 --> 0:03:41.160 Yeah, yeah, it's funny. So there's there's there's six guys, 0:03:41.160 --> 0:03:43.680 so I think are the consensus top six. You got 0:03:44.200 --> 0:03:47.840 rach Alowski Easila shortstop, Braye Emerson is Texas shortstop. Those 0:03:47.840 --> 0:03:50.440 are the top two guys they're not, and that un 0:03:50.520 --> 0:03:52.920 lack of Georgia Tech catchers maybe like a half tier 0:03:52.960 --> 0:03:55.720 behind them. And then you have you mentioned Jackson, Flora. 0:03:56.000 --> 0:03:57.640 And you've got a couple of high school guys. You 0:03:57.640 --> 0:04:01.040 have Jacob lombardho high school Shortstop Florida and Eric Boothy's 0:04:01.080 --> 0:04:03.360 High splot of Florida, Mississippi. Those are kind of the 0:04:03.360 --> 0:04:06.320 clear top six and after that it's wide open. I 0:04:06.400 --> 0:04:09.680 do think Drew burse would be the consensus next best 0:04:09.720 --> 0:04:13.560 guy for most teams, and I like him Alai. I 0:04:13.560 --> 0:04:16.800 actually think he's slightly underlated than should hire a list 0:04:16.839 --> 0:04:18.360 because we have number seven on our list as well 0:04:18.360 --> 0:04:21.120 as projecting to go seven. But the knocks on him 0:04:21.160 --> 0:04:23.600 are he's like five foot I think he's listed at 0:04:23.600 --> 0:04:26.000 five foot nine, and he hits right handed, and you 0:04:26.000 --> 0:04:27.480 wish he was a little bigger, and you wish he 0:04:27.600 --> 0:04:30.600 was you hit left handed. This guy's produced for three 0:04:30.680 --> 0:04:34.120 years at Georgia Tech. He's and he's got you know, 0:04:34.120 --> 0:04:36.320 it's solid tools across the board. I mean the power. 0:04:36.720 --> 0:04:38.520 He hit a bunch of homers is I can't remember 0:04:38.520 --> 0:04:40.240 how many it was his first ten games in college. 0:04:40.279 --> 0:04:42.279 I think it was ten or twelve homers his first 0:04:42.320 --> 0:04:44.440 in games as a freshman. And the power is this 0:04:44.480 --> 0:04:46.480 tool that jumps out the most. But this guy hits 0:04:46.520 --> 0:04:48.839 for average, he controls strike zone, he's a solid runner, 0:04:48.880 --> 0:04:50.960 he can play center field. He's got arm strength, so 0:04:50.960 --> 0:04:53.920 he could play all three. And I just think in 0:04:53.960 --> 0:04:57.320 this class, most of the college hitters have an obvious flaw, 0:04:57.880 --> 0:05:00.440 and Drew's flaw is he's a little bit short and 0:05:00.480 --> 0:05:03.240 he hits right handed. It's not any flaw in particular 0:05:03.279 --> 0:05:06.480 with his game, and so I think he's he would 0:05:06.480 --> 0:05:09.520 be easy if the top six guys go one, two, three, four, five, six, 0:05:10.120 --> 0:05:13.039 he would be an easy number seven pick for me 0:05:13.680 --> 0:05:15.520 because I don't think there's anything wrong with his game, 0:05:15.680 --> 0:05:19.039 and I think he's he's more polished than some of 0:05:19.080 --> 0:05:22.200 the high ceiling hitters Oils have taken recently, and I 0:05:22.200 --> 0:05:23.920 think he would get to the big leagues pretty quick. 0:05:23.960 --> 0:05:26.360 And you know that's that's a bonus. I'd rather get 0:05:26.360 --> 0:05:28.360 the most talented player. But I just think he's got 0:05:28.360 --> 0:05:29.600 solid tools across the board. 0:05:30.360 --> 0:05:33.159 Very interesting. Jim kallis whether it's today talking draft and 0:05:33.160 --> 0:05:38.000 some other those topics here with their group on Birdland Territory. 0:05:38.200 --> 0:05:42.680 Brad Hey, Jim, to me, the draft still fascinates me, 0:05:42.760 --> 0:05:44.600 even after playing all the years I did and everything, 0:05:44.640 --> 0:05:47.800 it's just such a craft shirt. So you're talking about 0:05:47.800 --> 0:05:50.240 college hitters and everything. Do you think they have gotten 0:05:50.320 --> 0:05:52.839 better over the years, that the reason why they're getting 0:05:52.839 --> 0:05:54.560 pushed so quick to the big leagues or is it 0:05:54.640 --> 0:05:56.360 you just think it's the way the game has gone. 0:05:56.400 --> 0:05:58.360 I know it's kind of a general question, but do. 0:05:58.320 --> 0:06:00.600 You think these college hitters are more polish than they 0:06:00.600 --> 0:06:03.560 have been, let's say, ten years ago, fifteen years ago, 0:06:03.720 --> 0:06:04.800 from what you've seen. 0:06:05.120 --> 0:06:08.040 I do. I mean the twenty twenty four twenty twenty 0:06:08.040 --> 0:06:10.680 four draft was an outlier where you guys like traspas On, 0:06:11.120 --> 0:06:14.400 Nick Kurtz and Jack kagleone and a bunch of other guys, 0:06:14.440 --> 0:06:16.480 you know, Matt Shaw, Kyle Teal rushed to the big 0:06:16.720 --> 0:06:19.040 like that was an outlier. Like usually isn't that many 0:06:19.120 --> 0:06:21.599 Christian more, usually isn't that many guys. But I do 0:06:21.680 --> 0:06:25.160 think one I do think college baseball is better than 0:06:25.200 --> 0:06:27.760 it was ten, fifteen, twenty years ago. It's just in 0:06:27.880 --> 0:06:30.680 terms of quality of depth of teams. I do think 0:06:31.720 --> 0:06:33.920 you just look at the amount of instruction players get 0:06:33.960 --> 0:06:35.680 even before they get to college. Now. I mean a 0:06:35.720 --> 0:06:38.039 lot of it's private lessons, but I do think you 0:06:38.120 --> 0:06:41.039 have guys who just play a lot more. They've seen 0:06:41.080 --> 0:06:43.839 them more. You know, the showcase circuit has grown to 0:06:43.839 --> 0:06:45.800 where like you can spend the whole summer facing you know, 0:06:45.920 --> 0:06:49.560 quality competition rather than you know, hey, I live in Illinois, 0:06:49.560 --> 0:06:51.800 for example, and you know, during the high school season, 0:06:51.800 --> 0:06:53.440 how many guys you can see throw higher than eighty 0:06:53.440 --> 0:06:54.960 miles an hour? But you can see that all summer. 0:06:55.279 --> 0:06:58.120 I think with the metrics, I think teams also can 0:06:58.200 --> 0:07:00.320 kind of hone in on how to help guys get better. 0:07:00.640 --> 0:07:05.680 I think it's definitely a case where when I started, 0:07:06.360 --> 0:07:08.560 and I mean I started working in Baseball America back 0:07:08.560 --> 0:07:10.920 in nineteen eighty nine out of college. Back then, I 0:07:11.000 --> 0:07:15.280 think there was this thought that players weren't necessarily one 0:07:15.360 --> 0:07:17.360 hundred percent fully formed, but there's only so much you 0:07:17.360 --> 0:07:19.880 can do. How much you could get guys better, you know, 0:07:19.920 --> 0:07:22.720 like natural talent was going to be the driver, and 0:07:22.800 --> 0:07:25.800 like you couldn't get guys to throw much harder or 0:07:25.840 --> 0:07:29.880 spin the ball much better, or develop more power and 0:07:30.240 --> 0:07:32.720 you know, or bat speed or whatever. And now teams 0:07:32.760 --> 0:07:34.160 know how to do those things, So I think that 0:07:34.280 --> 0:07:38.400 helps too. But then I also think eliminating a level 0:07:38.400 --> 0:07:41.800 of the minor leagues just naturally forces guys to move quicker, 0:07:42.080 --> 0:07:43.600 and so the guys who jump on the fast track 0:07:43.640 --> 0:07:45.800 and have success just get to the big leagues quicker. 0:07:45.800 --> 0:07:47.640 So I think it's I think it's true, Brad, for 0:07:47.680 --> 0:07:48.400 a lot of reasons. 0:07:48.720 --> 0:07:53.880 Okay, Jim, kind of a two parterre you saying, starting 0:07:54.040 --> 0:07:57.200 Baseball America in nineteen eighty nine, just how have you 0:07:57.400 --> 0:08:03.360 seen the popularity of MLB's draft and then the prospect level? 0:08:03.840 --> 0:08:07.040 I feel like, especially in Baltimore where the Orioles went 0:08:07.040 --> 0:08:10.440 through a tremendous rebuild, where you're looking ahead to some 0:08:10.520 --> 0:08:14.160 of these top prospects and fans are more knowledgeable about 0:08:14.200 --> 0:08:16.400 these guys than they ever were in the top one 0:08:16.520 --> 0:08:19.960 hundred list and the top thirty list within the organization. 0:08:20.160 --> 0:08:23.320 And part of that is I think minor league Baseball 0:08:23.360 --> 0:08:26.160 has done a much better job of marketing these players. 0:08:26.240 --> 0:08:29.160 Just how have you seen the draft grow and also 0:08:29.400 --> 0:08:30.840 the minor league grow? 0:08:31.400 --> 0:08:31.640 Yeah? 0:08:31.640 --> 0:08:34.160 I mean it's exploited. I mean, I'm old enough. We 0:08:34.160 --> 0:08:36.720 didn't have the Internet when I started, honestly, and at 0:08:36.720 --> 0:08:39.760 Baseball America we were pretty much you know, Alan Simpsons 0:08:39.760 --> 0:08:43.240 started the magazine because Sporting News kind of expanded and 0:08:43.280 --> 0:08:45.120 still went from being the Bible of Baseball to cover 0:08:45.120 --> 0:08:47.640 in the big four sports. And Alan loved the draft, 0:08:47.640 --> 0:08:49.720 and he loved the minor leagues, and he loved college baseball, 0:08:49.920 --> 0:08:51.920 and so I started Baseball America. It had been around 0:08:51.920 --> 0:08:54.120 for eight years when I got there. Nobody else was 0:08:54.120 --> 0:08:56.480 covering that at all. But we were print publication that 0:08:56.559 --> 0:08:58.880 came out every two weeks, like people love them, even 0:08:58.880 --> 0:09:01.160 though minor league stats by time you got them were 0:09:01.160 --> 0:09:04.800 probably two three weeks old. If you wanted how guys 0:09:04.800 --> 0:09:06.640 were doing the minor leagues, that was the only place 0:09:06.679 --> 0:09:08.240 you saw the stats, Like there was no other way. 0:09:08.320 --> 0:09:09.800 I mean, I guess maybe if you went to a 0:09:09.840 --> 0:09:11.719 minor league game, you might get an insert that have 0:09:11.800 --> 0:09:15.199 the team stats in there. And the draft, like there 0:09:15.280 --> 0:09:17.719 was the draft on like not only would it was 0:09:17.720 --> 0:09:20.599 the draft on TV a foreign concept and will be 0:09:20.679 --> 0:09:24.840 at that point wouldn't even release the draft list, like 0:09:24.840 --> 0:09:27.360 like you'd have the fifth round. They would release those 0:09:27.400 --> 0:09:29.760 picks in order to the AP so you know who 0:09:29.800 --> 0:09:31.679 was draft in the first round one order, but other 0:09:31.800 --> 0:09:35.160 than that, it would just be okay. The Orioles drafted 0:09:35.200 --> 0:09:37.520 seventy two players and they'd list them in alphabetical order 0:09:37.600 --> 0:09:41.679 and you wouldn't know who the rounder was. And that 0:09:42.360 --> 0:09:46.560 again Alex Simpson, who loves baseball, priam like all aspects 0:09:46.559 --> 0:09:49.000 of baseball more anybody I know, and started Baseball America 0:09:49.559 --> 0:09:52.400 in his garage with no publishing experience, just because he 0:09:52.440 --> 0:09:55.440 felt like baseball needs an magazine like this. Anyway Alan 0:09:55.720 --> 0:09:57.440 would get so we would come out every two weeks. 0:09:57.480 --> 0:10:00.559 We probably would come out, you know, ten days after draft, 0:10:00.840 --> 0:10:03.440 and like when I started, Allan would call the teams 0:10:03.440 --> 0:10:05.880 individually and he put the first five rounds together, so 0:10:05.880 --> 0:10:08.760 we'd print that, and then we had and they still do, 0:10:08.880 --> 0:10:11.280 I think, a yearly almanac, and we would get the 0:10:11.320 --> 0:10:14.040 complete draft order in order for the almanac, which was 0:10:14.080 --> 0:10:15.960 a book that had all these statistics in that would 0:10:15.960 --> 0:10:17.920 come out in the off season. But that was that. 0:10:18.160 --> 0:10:22.000 So finally mid nineties Alan was get a point where 0:10:22.000 --> 0:10:23.640 he could get more and more of the draft quickly. 0:10:23.800 --> 0:10:25.040 So I think it was I don't know if it 0:10:25.080 --> 0:10:27.960 was ninety five, ninety six, somewhere around there. Alan felt like, 0:10:28.960 --> 0:10:30.360 I can get the draft order. I could put the 0:10:30.400 --> 0:10:33.360 draft order together within two or three days. So again 0:10:33.559 --> 0:10:35.880 just to show you the technology at the time, we 0:10:35.880 --> 0:10:38.360 were going to sell it to you via facts, like 0:10:38.440 --> 0:10:40.880 if Steve wanted to know the Oriols draft order, we 0:10:40.920 --> 0:10:42.600 would fact, like, I don't know, we'd sell it to him. 0:10:42.600 --> 0:10:45.839 I don't know, two bucks, we would fact Steve the 0:10:46.160 --> 0:10:49.040 Orioles draft in order. And so basically at that point, 0:10:49.080 --> 0:10:52.120 because nlb's attitude always was they didn't want the college 0:10:52.160 --> 0:10:54.040 coaches to know where gods were getting drafted because they 0:10:54.040 --> 0:10:56.240 felt like maybe it was different back then. I find 0:10:56.280 --> 0:10:58.280 it a little hard to believe that teams were recruiting 0:10:58.600 --> 0:11:01.280 in June, like wait until to recruit, but like, I 0:11:01.320 --> 0:11:03.200 don't know, if you saw somebody was drafting thirty second 0:11:03.280 --> 0:11:05.480 round or the twelfth round, you're like, oh, let's go 0:11:05.480 --> 0:11:08.800 get that guy or whatever. So that's why MLB didn't 0:11:08.800 --> 0:11:10.640 want the draft rounds out there. And I think it 0:11:10.720 --> 0:11:12.520 didn't hurt that the players didn't necessarily know where they 0:11:12.559 --> 0:11:14.520 were drafted when they were trying to sign them. But 0:11:15.240 --> 0:11:17.640 because Baseball America was good, you know, I don't know what, 0:11:17.640 --> 0:11:19.080 we would have faxed you the whole draft, but if 0:11:19.120 --> 0:11:20.840 you want the whole draft, we'd fax that to you too. 0:11:21.280 --> 0:11:23.720 When we announced plans to do that, MLB is like, Okay, 0:11:23.920 --> 0:11:26.120 we'll release the draft so we've gone from that where 0:11:26.200 --> 0:11:29.720 MLB didn't even want people to know what round guys 0:11:29.720 --> 0:11:33.240 were getting drafted in to now like it's all lot 0:11:33.320 --> 0:11:36.120 Like I forget how many years even before I know 0:11:36.240 --> 0:11:40.120 the first broadcast like network broadcast was ESPN in two 0:11:40.160 --> 0:11:42.240 thousand and seven, and I think maybe a couple of 0:11:42.280 --> 0:11:46.960 years before that, MLB dot Com did some online commentary, 0:11:47.040 --> 0:11:48.160 like you could used to be able to listen to 0:11:48.200 --> 0:11:52.120 the conference call. But I remember again when I started 0:11:52.120 --> 0:11:55.079 Baseball America, like I thought the coolest thing in the 0:11:55.080 --> 0:11:56.800 world was so we would do this press conference in 0:11:56.840 --> 0:11:58.800 omahaber year at the College World Series for our college 0:11:58.800 --> 0:12:01.600 Player of the Year and we'd have the all If 0:12:01.600 --> 0:12:03.960 there were All Americans first Team All Americans who are on 0:12:04.040 --> 0:12:07.800 collegoral Turis teams, they'd come too, but MLB would let 0:12:07.880 --> 0:12:09.880 us pipe in the first round of the draft the 0:12:09.920 --> 0:12:13.880 conference call into our press conference, and so like I 0:12:13.920 --> 0:12:16.199 remember being there when Todd Helton found out the ro 0:12:16.600 --> 0:12:18.880 he was thrilling the Rockies drafted in. I remember there 0:12:19.320 --> 0:12:21.120 brooks Keishnick can go in the first round. The Cups 0:12:21.120 --> 0:12:22.920 took him. But like it seemed like the height of 0:12:23.000 --> 0:12:25.480 technology in the early nineties, to just to be able 0:12:25.520 --> 0:12:28.920 to listen to the conference call live as picks were happening. 0:12:29.000 --> 0:12:31.840 That just seemed like the coolest thing like finding out 0:12:31.880 --> 0:12:35.199 right when guy like this is pre internet, Like like 0:12:35.240 --> 0:12:37.360 you wouldn't know, like honestly until you got the paper 0:12:37.400 --> 0:12:39.560 the next morning and maybe they would list the first 0:12:39.640 --> 0:12:42.520 round picks on the aget page. So we've come a 0:12:42.559 --> 0:12:44.920 long way. And I agree to him. I mean, like 0:12:44.920 --> 0:12:47.720 like there's obviously a lot of outlets and it's instantaneous, 0:12:47.840 --> 0:12:49.800 like like just even the concept you can watch I 0:12:49.840 --> 0:12:53.800 think virtually every full season minor league club. Maybe it's 0:12:53.840 --> 0:12:55.880 all of them, it's not, it's almost all of them. 0:12:56.240 --> 0:12:58.080 I can watch them on my phone. Like if you 0:12:58.120 --> 0:13:01.040 took that in the early nineties, I'd be like, like, 0:13:01.080 --> 0:13:02.240 how big is my phone going to do? 0:13:02.280 --> 0:13:03.000 What are you talking about? 0:13:03.160 --> 0:13:09.120 Like it's just crazy the amount of information that's out 0:13:09.160 --> 0:13:12.320 there in video and yeah, and the people, I mean 0:13:12.320 --> 0:13:15.000 people don't know the draft players as well as they 0:13:15.000 --> 0:13:16.800 know the NFL NBA players because those guys are going 0:13:16.880 --> 0:13:19.480 to step right in. But they still Again when I 0:13:19.480 --> 0:13:23.360 started covering it, I think ESPN might broadcast one game 0:13:23.400 --> 0:13:26.280 a week, like on like a Sunday night college game 0:13:26.679 --> 0:13:29.840 and maybe during the postseason if you were lucky, you 0:13:29.840 --> 0:13:32.360 maybe get two regional games before you know, they broadcast 0:13:32.400 --> 0:13:36.360 the college Old Series. Now you can watch it seems 0:13:36.440 --> 0:13:38.480 like almost I mean it's not every D one game, 0:13:38.840 --> 0:13:40.840 but it seems like you can watch almost every Division 0:13:40.840 --> 0:13:43.800 one game somewhere. And then you know, now ESPN's got 0:13:43.840 --> 0:13:46.720 squeeze play. I mean, all the regional games are live 0:13:46.960 --> 0:13:48.640 or you can watch them as they do whip around 0:13:48.640 --> 0:13:51.160 show like again. But I think these guys are you know, 0:13:51.280 --> 0:13:53.040 and just the high school guys like the showcase. There 0:13:53.040 --> 0:13:55.040 were maybe a couple of showcases when I start, but 0:13:55.040 --> 0:13:57.760 it's not like it is now and there's nationally televised 0:13:57.840 --> 0:14:00.600 games and we're going to do the High School America 0:14:00.679 --> 0:14:02.360 and MLB does They're going to do from Field of 0:14:02.440 --> 0:14:05.440 Dreams in August like that, like having a nationally televised 0:14:05.480 --> 0:14:08.640 high school All Star game, like so you like see, 0:14:08.840 --> 0:14:11.320 you know, like the guys for next year's draft on TV. 0:14:12.360 --> 0:14:13.880 There was that was never gonna happen. 0:14:14.000 --> 0:14:17.120 Before A long Way, Come a long way. The Oose. 0:14:17.600 --> 0:14:20.240 The Oos have, by the way, three top one hundred picks. 0:14:20.240 --> 0:14:23.120 We're talking with Jim Kallus about the draft number seven, 0:14:23.200 --> 0:14:26.680 number forty six, and number eighty two, and we'll continue 0:14:26.680 --> 0:14:33.440 with Jim in a minute. Here on Birdland Territory. 0:14:35.560 --> 0:14:37.880 The Orioles are trying to get back in the mix, 0:14:37.960 --> 0:14:40.120 and you don't want to miss the upcoming action this 0:14:40.240 --> 0:14:42.760 home stand. I would look to go to Wednesday for 0:14:42.800 --> 0:14:45.320 a little weekday day game action. 0:14:45.200 --> 0:14:46.160 Twelve thirty five. 0:14:46.280 --> 0:14:49.560 First pitch, I would suggest getting tickets in the Burbeth 0:14:49.640 --> 0:14:52.400 because it is supposed to be insanely hot this week 0:14:52.520 --> 0:14:53.280 in Baltimore. 0:14:53.360 --> 0:14:56.760 But make sure your tickets to the game. 0:14:56.800 --> 0:14:59.800 Geek, with over thirty five million downloads, see geek is 0:14:59.840 --> 0:15:02.400 the number one rated ticketing app. There are more than 0:15:02.480 --> 0:15:07.200 seventy thousand events listed on seat geek, including concerts, sports, festivals, 0:15:07.240 --> 0:15:10.200 and more. We're at the halfway point of MLB season, 0:15:10.240 --> 0:15:12.760 the World Cup is in the knockout round, and the 0:15:12.880 --> 0:15:15.880 NFL in college football seasons will be here before you 0:15:16.000 --> 0:15:18.560 know it. 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Make sure you click 0:15:52.600 --> 0:15:55.200 the link in the description to download the app and 0:15:55.240 --> 0:15:57.840 have the code automatically added to your accounts so you 0:15:57.880 --> 0:15:58.720 can use it later. 0:15:59.120 --> 0:15:59.480 Thank you. 0:15:59.560 --> 0:16:04.600 Seek Jim Kallus with us today here on Birdland Territory. Jim, 0:16:04.640 --> 0:16:07.000 one thing it's always fascinating to me over the years, 0:16:07.360 --> 0:16:09.200 and I'm not sure what the latest numbers say. You 0:16:09.280 --> 0:16:12.360 might have some thoughts on it is how few players 0:16:12.440 --> 0:16:15.440 need to make the major leagues to make a team's 0:16:15.520 --> 0:16:18.720 draft successful. I've learned history talking to guys like you 0:16:18.800 --> 0:16:21.600 and JJ Cooper and scouts over the years, and this 0:16:21.640 --> 0:16:23.520 is going back to when a draft was fifty rounds, 0:16:23.560 --> 0:16:27.120 then it was forty outs twenty. What's a good draft 0:16:27.520 --> 0:16:28.280 numbers wise? 0:16:29.080 --> 0:16:32.040 I mean, this will sound kind of funny, but if 0:16:32.080 --> 0:16:35.880 you get honestly, if you get a solid big leaguer 0:16:36.520 --> 0:16:38.640 out of the draft. You're doing better than most teams. 0:16:38.640 --> 0:16:41.040 I mean haven't studied this over the years, and a 0:16:41.120 --> 0:16:45.720 tiple draft there will be say five to ten star 0:16:45.840 --> 0:16:49.640 level players if that like true stars in a draft, 0:16:51.280 --> 0:16:57.040 and then you'll have maybe a couple dozen players who 0:16:57.160 --> 0:16:59.000 you know, like I don't mean up and down like 0:16:59.000 --> 0:17:00.880 the back forth major mind I played lot of good year, 0:17:01.160 --> 0:17:03.640 Like maybe they're not a statey performer, but they'll they'll 0:17:03.680 --> 0:17:06.040 be decent players over the course of their career. And 0:17:06.040 --> 0:17:07.560 then after that it's kind of guys who have a 0:17:07.560 --> 0:17:09.320 good year. Here there a cup of coffee and like 0:17:09.880 --> 0:17:14.080 it's funny, Like just illustrate this. Every year MLB dot 0:17:14.119 --> 0:17:16.440 Com has me do it a story where I redraft 0:17:16.480 --> 0:17:19.520 the first round from ten years previously. So this year's 0:17:19.520 --> 0:17:23.080 twenty sixteen number thirty four first round picks that year 0:17:23.960 --> 0:17:27.760 of the top fourteen, well as I have it sorted 0:17:27.760 --> 0:17:31.160 out now the top fifteen players from that draft based 0:17:31.200 --> 0:17:33.199 on what they've done, what we project them to going forward. 0:17:33.600 --> 0:17:35.679 Only one the top fifteen guys who signed was a 0:17:35.680 --> 0:17:37.679 first round pick, and that was probably the best one 0:17:37.720 --> 0:17:41.000 of them, Will Smith. But not to disparage these guys 0:17:41.000 --> 0:17:43.639 because they're big leaguers. But right now, the bottom of 0:17:43.680 --> 0:17:47.600 my first round is guys like Alex call, Anthony Bender, 0:17:47.680 --> 0:17:53.000 John Schreiber, Tobias Myers, Recoo Garcia, Jojo Romero, and Brian Baker. 0:17:53.440 --> 0:17:56.520 Like again, and not to disparait those guys, but if 0:17:56.560 --> 0:17:59.880 we were redrafting the twenty sixteen draft today, those guys 0:18:00.080 --> 0:18:02.600 potentially be first round picks. And I don't think anybody 0:18:02.680 --> 0:18:05.679 when they their teams million first round pick is going, oh, 0:18:05.720 --> 0:18:07.680 I hope we get a reliever who has a couple 0:18:07.720 --> 0:18:10.320 of decent seasons in the big leagues. But that's that's 0:18:10.359 --> 0:18:13.240 the reality of the draft, like it's it's now. The 0:18:13.240 --> 0:18:16.520 flip side is, because you get these guys and you 0:18:16.600 --> 0:18:20.639 control they're earning power, essentially for three years, they have 0:18:20.720 --> 0:18:22.800 to take what you're willing to give them, and for 0:18:22.840 --> 0:18:25.199 three more years they're limited by arbitration where they'll get 0:18:25.240 --> 0:18:26.920 more money but not what they get in the free market. 0:18:27.480 --> 0:18:29.439 Like you, if you get a solid big league regular. 0:18:30.119 --> 0:18:31.280 Let's say I take a guy in the middle of 0:18:31.280 --> 0:18:33.800