Cincinnati Reds have all winter long to figure out #5 pick in 2018 draft

The last two seasons, the Cincinnati Reds earned the number two overall pick in the MLB draft.

The Cincinnati Reds took a small step forward in 2017.  They have the fifth worst record instead of the second worst.  That means they will draft a few spots lower than in the past few seasons.

In the 2016 draft the Reds selected third baseman Nick Senzel out of the University of Tennessee.  He projected as an elite OBP talent with a little question about his ability to generate power.  Some scouts projected that Senzel would move back to second base as a pro.

For the Reds Senzel has shown his OBP skill and improving power.  Senzel was able to double his home run output from seven to fourteen in his second season as a pro.  Some of that was due to playing more games, but Senzel appears able to hit for enough power long term.

This past year the Reds drafted Hunter Greene with the second overall pick.  He pitched in the rookie league this summer to mixed results.  He played short and pitched in high school, but is a pitcher only as a pro.

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In three games Greene pitched 4 1/3 innings.  Greene struck six and only walked one.  Unfortunately, he also allowed eight hits and six earned runs.

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This season the Cincinnati Reds have a good stock of potential players to choose from in the draft.

The player that most often gets attached to the Reds is high school third baseman Nick Gorman from Phoenix, Arizona.  They have had a chance to scout him first hand in the spring with their spring training facility right down the road in Goodyear.  If they believe both he and Senzel are third basemen only, it may discourage the selection.

The other most often linked player to the Reds is shortstop Nander DeSadas from the Monteverde Academy.  He projects as a top four pick, but if he falls the Reds will take him.  He has a plus bat and is a plus athlete.

If Gorman is the best player available, but the Reds don’t want another third baseman, they may select left-handed pitcher Shane McClanahan from South Florida.  McClanahan will slide because he already had Tommy John surgery.  That hasn’t seemed to deter the Reds with free agents and lower round picks in the past.

Next: Will the Reds be competitive vs the Cubs in 2018?

Whichever player the Reds select, it will take time for him to develop.  That is what makes all of the players so exciting.  They will all have time to develop into elite MLB players.