July 11, 2021

By Bob Elliott

Canadian Baseball Network

Looking at the 2020 draft, five Canadians were drafted, led by second round OF Owen Caissie, of the FieldHouse Pirates, who went to the San Diego Padres after accepting a $1,200,004 US bonus.

Four more players signed free agent contracts for the set fee of $20,000.

That was under the five-round draft system which was instituted during the COVID-19 pandemic..

So, before the Pittsburgh Pirates kicked off the three-day, 20-round, draft with the first overall pick ... what would you guess as your over/under number for Canucks to go between now and Tuesday night?

Well, this year’s draft is four times greater ... so is the answer nine (draftees and free agent signs) times four ... which equals 36?

No chance.

We asked 15 insiders from scouting directors, cross checkers, area scouts and draft gurus. The average answer we received on the number of Canadians about to be drafted from the 15 women and men who know the business and came out to 10.467 selections.

What gives?

Well, minor-league contraction eliminated over 40 teams for the 2021 season. Some teams lost two franchises. Some lost one. In 2019, the last year the Blue Jays prepared for a full minor league season, they were getting ready to fill 30-man rosters at both class-A Lansing and class-A Bluefield.

Both Lansing and Bluefield have gone poof ... the Jays system consists now consists of triple-A Buffalo, although they play at Trenton, N.J., double-A New Hampshire, class-A Vancouver, class-A Dunedin and a rookie-class Gulf Coast League.

The Jays and all other 30 teams have 180 roster spots for their minor-league systems (which does not include rookie-class Dominican Summer league players). The roster crunch definitely negatively effects Canadian prospects. High schoolers tend to need a bit more time, more reps at those lower levels, and there are less of those teams and roster spots to go around now.

To break in does a high schooler now have to jump to Dunedin where he is likely to compete with older college players.

As like every year ... scouts are saying that the high schoolers are asking for too much money. “There will be more free agent signings this year as it seems like every high schooler wants an $800,000.”

How the two top respected bugles broke down Canada which was given a three-star rating for 2021:

Perfect Game

Canada

Prospect on the Rise: Micah Bucknam, rhp, Abbotsford, BC, Abbotsford Cardinals & Adam Shoemaker, lhp, Cambridge, Ont. Great Lake Canadians

Wild Card: Calvin Ziegler, rhp, Heidelberg, Ont. Great Lake Canadians/TNXL Academy

Top 2022 Prospect: Caleb Clark, lhp, Orillia, Ont. Great Lake Canadians

Top 2023 Draft Prospect: Myles Naylor, ss, Mississauga, Ont., Ontario Blue Jays

Highest Draft Picks

Draft History: Jameson Taillon, rhp Woodlands, Tex., (2010, Pirates 1st round 2nd pick) Adam Loewen, lhp, Whalley Chiefs Surrey, B.C. (2002, Orioles/1st round, 4th pick)

2016 Draft: Andrew Yerzy, c, Toronto Mets (Diamonbacks/2nd round)

2017 Draft: Landon Leach, rhp, Toronto Mets (Twins/2nd round)

2018 Draft: Bo Naylor, c, Ontario Blue Jays (Indians/1st round, 29th pick)

2019 Draft: Dasan Brown, of, Ontario Blue Jays (Blue Jays/3rd round)

2020 Draft: Owen Caissie, of, FieldHouse Pirates (Padres/2nd round)

2020 Draft Overview:

College Players Drafted/Signed: 3/3

Junior College Players Drafted/Signed: 0/0

High School Players Drafted/Signed: 2/2

Prospects in the Top 400:

• Calvin Ziegler, rhp, Great Lakes Canadians

• Micah Bucknam, rhp, Abbotsford Cardinals

• Mitchell Bratt, lhp, Toronto Mets

• Elijha Hammill, ss, Ontario Terriers

In College

• Tyler Black, 3b, Wright State

• Eric Cerantola, rhp, Mississippi State

• Conor Angel, rhp, Louisiana

• David McCabe, 1b, Charlotte

Baseball America

1. Micah Bucknam, RHP, Abbotsford, B.C. Abbotsford Cardinals (BA RANK: 247)

Source: HS • Ht: 6-1 • Wt: 180 • B-T: R-R • Commitment/Drafted: Washington

The 6-foot-1, 180-pound Canadian righthander has only recently been able to throw against hitters, leaving strict pandemic protocols in his home country behind to get on the mound south of the border. He’s shown solid stuff with a fastball in the low 90s that has gotten up to 95 mph, to go with a curveball-slider bend and a change up that is normally his best off speed pitch but still needs work. He’s young for the class and has shown rapid improvements in a short time, making him an intriguing prospect with plenty of projectability remaining.

2. Calvin Ziegler, RHP, Heidelberg, Ont. Great Lake Canadians (BA RANK: 272)

Source: HS • Ht: 6-2 • Wt: 210 • B-T: R-R • Commitment/Drafted: Auburn

The 18-year-old hard-throwing righthander is likely to be the first Canadian high schooler off the draft board this year, though he spent his entire spring playing south of the border to get in some time on the mound while his home province remained under strict pandemic protocols. Ziegler has consistently added velocity to his fastball, getting it up to 97 mph this spring, sitting in the low-to-mid 90s. His curve ball is solid-average, and he’s flashed a consistent top-to-bottom breaker with the potential to be a plus pitch. His mid-80s change up has been good, though Ziegler hasn’t always had a chance to get to it because of his inconsistency with his strike throwing. His stuff has always been there, and he took a step forward with his control earlier this year but recent looks indicate that there might have been some regression. He’s shown an ability to make significant progress in a short time frame, and has had an improved presence on the mound this year. There’s not a lot of projection left in his 6-foot, 205-pound frame. Ziegler is committed to Auburn, but the interest he’s drawn could easily see him head to pro ball.

3. Mitchell Bratt, LHP, Newmarket, Ont. Toronto Mets (BA RANK: 304)

Source: HS • Ht: 6-1 • Wt: 195 • B-T: L-L • Commitment/Drafted: Florida State

The 6-foot-1, 195-pound Canadian is a projectable lefthander whose size, handedness and strike-throwing ability offer a glimpse of a bright future. Bratt has routinely parked his fastball in the mid-to-upper 80s but was getting into the low 90s this spring while playing for the Georgia Premier Academy, departing his home province because of the limitations due to its strict pandemic protocols. In addition to a fastball that could easily tick up with some added strength and time on the mound, Bratt has shown solid feel for a breaking ball and change up. He doesn’t have the present stuff of some of the other lefties in the draft class, but he’s loose and athletic and throws more strikes than fellow Canadians Landon Leach, Eric Cerantola or Calvin Ziegler did in their original draft year. His operation and command add excitement to his potential.

4. Adam Shoemaker, LHP, Cambridge, Ont. Great Lake Canadians (BA RANK: 371)

Source: HS • Ht: 6-6 • Wt: 180 • B-T: L-L • Commitment/Drafted: St. John’s

Shoemaker hasn’t had much time on the mound in game action, with the southpaw only recently departing Canada to have an opportunity to showcase himself across the border ahead of the draft because of strict pandemic protocols in his home province. The 6-foot-6, 185-pound lefthander has a frame with all the projection in the world remaining. Shoemaker has been up to 95 mph with his fastball, and the St. John’s commit has shown a cement-mixer slider to go with a change up he hasn’t had a chance to use much.

5. Elijha Hammill, 2B (Oakville, Ont.) Ontario Terriers.

Source: HS • Ht: 5-11 • Wt: 195 • B-T: B-R • Commitment/Drafted: Utah

The 17-year-old switch-hitting infielder from Oakville, Ontario, ventured south to have an opportunity to play this season in Georgia, while his home country remains under strict pandemic protocols. Hammill was impressive in the last chance he got to be on the field with Team Canada in 2020, outperforming some of his older counterparts as an underclassman. The Utah commit is a candidate for a team to try to move him behind the plate, as a bigger-bodied high school second baseman, but whether he can defend as a catcher is a question mark. He doesn’t have the cleanest bat path from either side of the plate, but he controls the zone and has decent bat-to-ball skills.

6. Dominic Hambley, RHP, Victoria, B.C. Victoria Mariners

Source: HS • Oregon State

7. Cam Gurney, RHP, Scotland, Ont. FieldHouse Pirates

Source: HS • Commitment: Arizona State

8. Simon Lusignan, RHP, Varennes, Que. Okotoks Dawgs

Source: HS • Commitment/Drafted: Stetson

And with the Jays first pick …. Choosing 19th overall in the first round the Jays selected Ole Miss RHP Gunnar Hogland of Hudson, Fla. He was ranked 14th over-all by Perfect Game, 19th over-all by Baseball America and 22nd by MLB.Pipeline. Jim Callis of MLB.Pipeline had Hogland going to the Jays.

The Blue Jays first round pick for 2021 was RHP Gunnar Hoglund of Ole Miss

Baseball America says: 2. Gunnar Hoglund, RHP, Mississippi (BA RANK: 19)

Source: 4YR • Ht: 6-4 • Wt: 220 • B-T: L-R • Commitment/Drafted: Pirates ‘18 (1s)

A supplemental first-round pick of the Pirates in 2018 after he went 7-0, 0.27 at Fivay High in Hudson, Fla., Hoglund’s command has long stood out. It made him an immediate contributor at Ole Miss, and it has helped him be one of the best pitchers in the Southeastern Conference in 2020 and 2021. Hoglund’s 2021 season came to a premature end when he blew out his pitching elbow in his May 7 start against Texas A&M. His rehab from Tommy John surgery means he’ll be sidelined until midway through 2022, and it likely ended any chance he had of being a top-10 pick. But Hoglund’s body of work (154 innings in three years at Ole Miss) gives teams a lot of comfort with who Hoglund is—a relatively safe starting pitcher with plus command who has the ability to throw three pitches for strikes no matter what the count. Hoglund came into 2021 viewed as a starter likely to be taken in the back of the first round, but he quickly showed improved stuff. Hoglund had touched 95 mph going back to high school, but he generally sat 90-92. This year, he sat 92-94 mph. His slider got a little harder and sharper as well. Hoglund has shown he can spot his above-average fastball to the arm side or glove side, but he generally aims to keep his fastball away—he’ll work glove side to righthanders and arm side to lefties. He consistently wins at 0-0 in the count, getting ahead which means he can then attack righties with his above-average, 80-84 mph slider, again generally staying away. Lefties have to worry about his low-80s, above-average changeup, but he’s also shown he’s comfortable working in on their hands with his slider. It’s that ability to spot all three pitches and avoid the heart of the plate that is key to his success. Even after his elbow injury, he’s seen as a low-risk surefire starter with a consistent, easy delivery.

Hoglund’s numbers: He had a 2.87 ERA with a 4-2 record in 11-11 starts before being felled by Tommy John surgery. He walked 17 and struck out 96 in 62 2/3 innings, limiting opposing hitters to a .178 average.

His final outing was May 7 when he had to leave after retiring two hitters facing against Texas A@M.

Slot money for 19th over-all: $3,359,000 US.

As expected: INF Tyler Black (Stouffville, Ont.) of the Wright State Raiders and a Toronto Mets grad was the top Canuck grad going 33rd overall to the Milwaukee Brewers.

1st Firsts: Black becomes the first Canadian selected in the first round since 2018 when C Noah Naylor (Mississauga, Ont.) went 29th overall in North America to Cleveland ... Black is the first Canuck Brewers first-rounder since GM Doug Melvin (Chatham, Ont.) and assistant GM Gord Ash (Toronto, Ont.) selected INF Brett Lawrie (Langley, BC) of the Langley Blaze at 16th overall ... And he’s the first university first rounder since the Padres chose RHP Cal Quantrill (Port Hope, Ont.) from Stanford University as the eighth pick in 2016.