Philadelphia Flyers 2011 Draft Review

/ Draft report, Hockey, RotoRob correspondent report

People will ask why the Flyers did not take the promising Hamilton, who seemed to address everything the team required to restock arguably the franchise’s greatest need. The simple answer here is they went with the best player available. While Hamilton could easily turn out to be an absolute gem of a defenseman, Couturier’s pedigree screamed out at the Flyers. He has size (6’4”, 195), skill and is defensively complete as a forward. Couturier hits, fights, and has great vision.

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MLB Draft Review: 2001 Part Six

/ Baseball, Draft report, Todd Habiger

Bonderman sported a dynamic fastball the reached the upper 90s as well as a plus slider that could buckle the knees. Oakland shipped Bonderman to the Tigers in 2002 in a three-team deal that netted them Ted Lilly and a couple of prospects. Despite going 6-19 in his rookie season in 2003, Bonderman showed enough that many scouts predicted great things for years to come. It has yet to happen as his stuff has never translated into wins or a sub-4.00 ERA. Bonderman suffered through an injury-plagued 2009 and missed most of the season. He’s expected to slide into the fourth starter role for the Tigers this year.

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MLB Draft Review: 2001 Part Five

/ Baseball, Draft report, Todd Habiger

Taken out of Youngstown State University, Hennessey sported an killer slider that was his out pitch and a fastball that could reach the mid-90s (though he had to dial it down to the low-90s/high 80s to control it). His career almost never got on track as he missed 2002 and most of 2003 to have two benign tumors removed from his back. But through hard work Hennessey came back in late 2003 and made it to the Show in 2004. For three seasons, Hennessey bounced between Triple-A and the big club. After working mostly as a starter, he found big league success in the bullpen. Hennessey was an effect reliever in 2006 and in 2007, after Armando Benitez was traded, he inherited the closer job and converted 19-of-24 saves. Unfortunately, that was as good as it got for Hennessey. He was awful in 2008 and was allowed to leave as a free agent following the season. He signed with Baltimore in November 2008, but was released on June 11, 2009 without having thrown a pitch for the Os.

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MLB Draft Review: 2001 Part Four

/ Baseball, Draft report, Todd Habiger

The White Sox drafted Honel based on the fact that he threw a devastating knuckle-curve ball with great command and a fastball that hit the mid-90s. His stuff lead the Sox to believe that he was going to be a top of the rotation starter. Honel played the part well, moving steadily through the system until 2004 when injuries set in. Tendinitis limited him to four appearances in 2004 and when he came back in 2005, he wasn’t the same pitcher, as he compiled a 5.88 ERA in 93 innings. The following year was another lost season for Honel as he underwent Tommy John surgery. After surgery, Honel struggled to get his fastball back, pitching mostly in the high 80s range. After the 2007 season, Honel retired briefly, before signing with with the St. Louis Cardinals organization soon thereafter. Unfortunately, Honel had nothing left and he never made it through the season with the Cardinals Double-A club. After the Cardinals released him, Honel shifted to Independent Ball, joining the Edmonton Capitals of the Golden League. He had a fine year split between Edmonton and Long Beach, but struggled with massive control issues.

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MLB Draft Review: 2001 Part Three

/ Baseball, Draft report, Todd Habiger

Baugh was taken out of the pitching factory known as Rice University, as Detroit ignored the high pitch counts he endured in college. Early on the move looked good as it appeared Baugh would rocket through the Tiger minor league system and join the major league rotation in very short time. He didn’t get the radar gun excited, working in the low 90s, but he knew how to pitch and had excellent command of his fastball and curve to go along with a nice changeup. While Baugh didn’t have the stuff of a top-of-the-rotation starter, he looked like he would slot in nicely in the middle of the rotation. Unfortunately, he tore a labrum in his shoulder and missed the 2002 season. Baugh worked his way back from surgery, recapturing his old velocity, but not his old results. He’s been languishing in the minor leagues ever since, pitching this year in the Astro organization. He’s now a minor league free agent.

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