The Benson plan

Sporting News, The, June 17, 1996

How soon will baseball's top pick in last week's amateur draft make it to the majors? The Pirates think it could be as early as 1998. First, Kris Benson wants to try out for the Olympic team. If he makes it, he won't pitch at all for the organization this season because the club believes he will have reached his innings limit.

Still, general manager Cam Bonifay has outlined a plan that will have Benson start the 1997 season at Class A, then jump to Class AA after 10 starts if he performs well. That puts him on target to join the major league staff the following season.

Bonifay says he classifies Benson's fastball, curveball and changeup as above-average by major league standards.

The staff believes Benson's control is good enough' but feels he needs to work on his command within the strike zone. There also will be an adjustment to hitters swinging wood, rather than aluminum, bats.

Two things the Pirates like about Benson: He has been through three years of tough competition at Clemson without any arm problems, and he has handled responsibility well.

A look at the first round:

2. Twins. First baseman Travis Lee, 6-3, 205 pounds, hit .355 with 14 home runs and 60 RBIs for San Diego State. "We feel confident that he definitely has the ability to be an All-Star for the Twins," scouting director Mike Radcliff says.

3. Cardinals. Wichita State's Braden Looper is the hardest thrower in the draft. He lost his last appearance in the College World Series, but before that he was 4-0 with 12 saves and a 1.09 ERA in 22 appearances.

4. Blue Jays. Nicknamed "Captain Chaos" by his teammates, Clemson pitcher Billy Koch has a fastball that has been clocked at 100 mph. "Every time I go out there I don't think anyone can beat me," Koch says. "I want to strike him out, period. I don't want him to even touch the ball."

5. Expos. John Patterson, 18, was considered the top high school pitching prospect in the country. Scouts rave about the soundness of his mechanics and his makeup. The trouble will be signing him, as he has already committed to Louisiana State.

6. Tigers. Righthander Seth Greisinser pretty much fits the profile of pitchers recently developed by the Tigers. He's tall (6-3, 200 pounds), throws hard (consistently at 90 mph), has a biting curveball and an effective changeup.

7. Giants. Righthander Mike White is considered one of the best high school pitchers in the draft. But he scared some teams away by hiring hard-nosed agent Scott Boras to represent him. Boras reportedly wants $2.5 million for White, who was 10-1 with a 0.65 ERA as a senior, striking out 131 batters in 74 innings.

8. Brewers. The team is impressed with the overall skills of outfielder Chad Green. "His tools are there, something you can't teach," G.M. Sal Bando says. Green hit .352 with 12 homers for Kentucky this year and also stole 55 bases.

9. Marlins. The team was surprised to see Mark Kotsay still available with the ninth pick. At Cal State-Fullerton, Kotsay (6-0,185) blossomed into a lefthanded power hitter who had 41 homers and only 37 strikeouts over his final two seasons. "He's a slender, wiry, strong guy, who will make you marvel at how the ball comes off his bat," scouting director Orrin Freeman says.

10. A's. The club picked third baseman Eric Chavez, rated as the purest high school hiker in the draft. "I'm stoked to get picked by Oakland," Chavez says.

11. Phillies. Righthander Adam Eaton was 7-0 with a 0.69 ERA in 10 games. In 51 innings, Eaton (6-1, 180) struck out 73 bakers and walked 14. "A good package of body, makeup and has four quality pitches," scouting director Mike Arbuckle says. "Can be a No. 1 or No. 2 starter on a major league staff."

12. White Sox. The organization doesn't think it squandered its first-round choice with lefthanded high schooler Bobby Seay of Sarasota, Fla. Seay, 92 his senior year with an 0.70 ERA in 70 innings, has committed to Miami.

13. Mets. The major league team needs power and run production, and top pick Robert Stratton has the swing of a power-hitting, run producer. "The short, compact stroke you like to see in a:power tamer," G.M. Joe McIlvaine says.

14. Royals. Dermal Brown, 18, is a 6-0, 205-pound lefthanded hiker who baked .396 (19 for 48) with six homers, 26 RBIs and 17 stolen bases this year. He reminds club officials of Bo Jackson.

15. Padres. The team says Matt Halloran is the rare "pure shortstop." Still, the club would have bypassed Halloran and drafted outfielder Dermal Brown had Kansas City not heat it to him.

16. Blue Jays. Shortstop Joe Lawrence, 18, is compensation from the Orioles for signing Roberto Alomar. He is projected to play second base.

17. Cubs. Todd Noel, 17, struck out 79 and walked 16 for North Vermillion High School in Maurice, La. Noel went 5-3-with one save and a 1.16 ERA in eight starts and one relief appearance.

18. Rangers. R.A. Dickey's competitiveness is what appealed most to scouts. Dickey throws a fastball in the mid-9Os when rested but was known as a gutsy workhorse who took the ball under any circumstances for Tennessee.