Blake Beavan

The Rangers selected this kid, who should be a HUGE hometown favorite instantly. Talk about building attendance automatically. He's from the neighboring town of Irving, TX (soon to be former home of the Dallas Cowboys).

Name: Blake Beavan

He's from Irving High School. Born on January 17th, 1989 (I was a Freshman in High School when he was born - YIKES!), he stands a good 6'7 and weighs in at 210 pounds. He throws right-handed, and will be a starting pitcher if all goes well in the minors.

His scouting report:

Beavan is a very confident young man who knows all eyes are on him. He didn’t do anything to disappoint in his senior season. He was virtually unhittable all year with a plus fastball and slider coming from a big, athletic frame. He beat Cuba in Cuba for team USA last summer, so clearly he has no problem with pressure situations. His size and his arm strength alone would be enough, but throw in some decent command and excellent stuff and he won’t likely make it past the first 20 picks of the first round. (He was taken with the 17th Pick)

Fastball: Beavan was clocked up to 96 mph.

Slider: Beavan threw sliders in the 81-84 mph range, though they weren't as sharp as his fastball.

Changeup: He didn't throw many changeups, but when he did they were inthe 82-83 mph range.

Control: Beavan commanded his fastball to both sides of the plate extremely well, rare for a young pitcher of his body type.

Poise: Beavan showed good poise in a scrimmage-type setting. In the past, he's showboated at times on the mound, but there was none of that in this four-inning outing.

Physique: Beavan is big and strong with incredible arm strength and above-average athleticism.

Strengths & Weaknesses: Command of a plus, plus fastball. His secondary offerings. Both his slider and changeup were below average in this outing.

My weather forecast on him is that he will be making his first major league appearance at the end of the 2009 season, and will be a staple for the Rangers by 2011. He'll most likely be up-and-down throughout the 2010 season.

The Rangers next pick is coming up, the 24th pick.