Cleveland Sports Forum

Dan Kadar ‏@MockingTheDraft · 5 minutes ago
Holy smokes, I'm pleased with an Indians draft pick

Tony Lastoria retweeted
Nathan Rode ‏@NathanRode · 6 minutes ago
Loved #Indians 2014 draft. Already liking 2015. #mlbdraft

Me too!

Maybe Daz Cameron will drop to our next pick and we can gamble with him too. I'll take a righty 5 tool guy, even if he does carry a high price tag.

Todd Paquette ‏@IndiansAccounts · 2 minutes ago
Visions of two left handed power arms some day in the rotation in Justus Sheffield & Brady Aiken. #Indians #FutureIsNow

Was just checking out our new pitcher on Twitter. He posted this before we drafted him...

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Brady AikenVerified account
‏@bradyaiken10 I feel bad for the people who don't like Lebron. This guy will go down as one of the greatest to play the game

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He can get season tickets to watch him now.

The Cleveland Indians have used the #17 pick of the 2015 MLB Draft to select Brady Aiken.

Aiken, a left-handed pitcher, was the #1 overall pick a year ago. However, after he and the Astros seemed on the verge of agreeing to a deal, elbow inflammation in his throwing arm was detected, and the two sides were unable to work the signing bonus out. Because he had signed with an agent, Aiken was ineligible to play college baseball, and instead enrolled at the IMG Baseball Academy, a private athletic training institute in Florida. He exited during the 1st inning of his first game there, and underwent Tommy John surgery in March.

Aiken is still only 18 years old, and is expected to be ready to pitch by the time spring training begins next year, Prior to the surgery, he had a fastball that sometimes reached 100 MPH.

The slot value of the pick is $2,393,600. The deal he nearly signed a year ago was for $6.5 million, which is nearly the entire draft budget for the Indians. Obviously if he signs with the Tribe, it'll be for a lot less than he almost had a year ago. Terrible timing for him, with the elbow problems showing up at the worst possible time. He's a high risk/high reward draft pick. If he makes a full recovery, he could become the best pitcher from this draft, and an All-Star.

The Indians' next pick is #42. That the pick they won in the competitive balance lottery.

17. Cleveland selects: Brady Aiken, LHP
IMG Academy (Bradenton, Fla.)
Rank in Keith Law's Top 100: 27

Nobody knew where Aiken was going to land, and he finds a home earlier than most thought he would in Cleveland. The Tribe grabbed value pick after value pick in last year's draft, and they take a home run swing on Aiken here. He's the best prep lefty a lot of scouts have ever seen, with an advanced four-pitch mix that features dynamic, top-of-the-rotation stuff. The fiasco that transgressed with the Astros last year saw Aiken turn down $5 million just before the deadline, only to blow out his elbow and require Tommy John surgery this year, and rumors have swirled that it wasn't a run-of-the-mill surgery. Cleveland is either OK with Aiken's medicals or simply considered the upside too tantalizing to pass up.

He's the oldest looking 18 year old I've seen since Fausto Carmona...

Obviously this is a gamble but one I really like. He has 4 pitches so even if he loses something off his fastball he still has a lot of potential.

I like the look on his face in that picture of him pitching. Much like the way Trevor Bauer looks when he pitches. Mean looking Bast.....ds!

Conversely, when we had Justin Masterson, he always looked scared on the mound.

[quote="Hillbilly"]He's the oldest looking 18 year old I've seen since Fausto Carmona...

funniest line I have read in a long time, good one Hillbilly!

Aiken drew comparisons to Clayton Kershaw heading into last year's draft, and that potential is still there if he can get and stay healthy. A more conservative comparison might be Seattle Mariners lefty James Paxton, as they have similar size and repertoires.

Grade: A+

I love the Indians taking a chance on Aiken here. In a class thin on bats, rolling the dice on Aiken's potential makes sense as opposed to going with a safer college arm, as the team already has a terrific pitching staff in place but are lacking in true impact prospects.

Competitive Round A (No. 42 Overall): Triston McKenzie, RHP, Royal Palm Beach HS (Fla.)

There is plenty of projectability in the 6'5" and 160-pound frame of McKenzie, as he can already dial his fastball up to 92 and that velocity should only improve as he fills out. He also has the makings of a solid curveball/changeup mix, and could take off in the pro ranks.

Grade: A

I don't know anything about McKenzie but sounds like he has potential.

@IndiansAccounts: #Indians take out of Olympia HS (FL) LHP Juan Hillman in the 2nd round the 59th overall selection in the #MLBDraft

Tony Lastoria @TonyIBI: That's three very young, upside arms with their first three picks. Nice.

@longenhagen: Cleveland is killing it again this year, and I didn't even like the Aiken pick.

@StatsKing: Indians run of excellent picks continue. Hillman can pitch. Very advanced. CH is legit bat missing pitch. CB is not far behind. Up to 95

Curt Schilling @gehrig38: Holy crap the Indians pulled off a coup today. I think Mckenzie Hillman and Aiken could be #1 picks 3 years from now. Wow #tribewinsthedraft

@bradyaiken10: I appreciate all the support!! Thanks for showing much love Cleveland!! Can't wait to get things going with the @Indians!

@RealJuanHillman: Blessed to be apart of the @Indians organization. And I'm ready to get it started already #GoIndians

Seems to be a lot of excitement for this draft so far, as you can tell.

Mike Ferrin @MikeFerrinSXM: Knee jerk reaction: CLE, LAD, HOU, COL, PIT were my favorites today.
Really interested in Braves. Allard, Minter high upside but injuries.