Draft Preview: Center Field

Fogelberg – While center field may boast some of the biggest names in baseball, it is a surprisingly thin position, especially for the career draft. Consider both Mickey Mantle and Hack Wilson unavailable, as the Mick will be drafted in the single season draft, and Wilson is ineligible due to being selected in the single season last year.

There are two rabbit CF’s that stand out above the rest, Billy Hamilton and Ty Cobb. Hamilton possesses a better on base percentage, which means that he is a lock to go in the first round of the blacks, that is of course if his single season disc is not chosen. Cobb is valuable in that he can get on base, steal bases, and play the entire outfield. Barry Bonds is easily the next best in this group, as he can draw a lot of walks, drop bombs, steal bases, and also play multiple positions in the OF. Don’t expect to see Cobb or Bonds make it past the second round of blacks.

After Bonds, teams are just as likely to look at mojo as they are numbers, as there are many other players that stand out statistically. Tris Speaker is a great on-base disc with plenty of singles to offer. Joe DiMaggio is a more balanced disc with a little more power, and a fair amount of everything else. Willie Mays may be highly coveted because he has a ton of power, and an uncanny knack for coming through in the clutch. I have Earl Averill ranked just above Duke Snider simply because the disc is a bit more balanced and strikes out much less. Snider does possess huge power, however. Dom DiMaggio may be the last true CF taken to play the position, but there are plenty of capable guys that play the entire OF, such as Hugh Duffy, Juan Gonzalez, Eric Davis, Tony Phillips, Pedro Guerrero, and pitch-hit extraordinaire Kiki Cuyler. Many teams will likely look to these players to fill out their bench, but you never know which player is going to step up. Almost every championship team has one unsung hero that seems to come out of nowhere and blow up beyond expectations to lead the team to the title. In other words, if you feel some mojo with a certain player, you better nab him because that is often the difference-maker in a game that can swing in the balance of a 1% slice of mojo love.