The 2014 MLB Draft is right around the corner.

This is how I see the first round or so of the 2014 MLB Draft going give or take a spot or two (or ten) here and there. The first four picks seem to be pretty close in terms of value and potential.

I would not mind seeing Trea Turner or Michael Conforto slip to the Giants, but I doubt either one will.

Picking in the #14 spot it seems as if the cluster from # 11 through # 17 seems like the most likely unless the Giants try to prove they are smarter than the consensus once again. Not that there's anything worng with that, given there recent track record in the draft.

	Rank, Player	Position	Hometown/School
1	. Brady Aiken	lhp	Cathedral Catholic HS San Diego
2	. Carlos Rodon	lhp	North Carolina State
3	. Tyler Kolek	rhp	Shepherd (Texas) HS
4	. Alex Jackson	c/of	Rancho Bernardo HS Escondido
5	. Nick Gordon	ss	Olympia HS Orlando
6	. Kyle Freeland	lhp	Evansville
7	. Aaron Nola	rhp	Louisiana State
8	. Trea Turner	ss	North Carolina State
9	. Michael Conforto	of	Oregon State
10	. Touki Toussaint	rhp	Coral Springs Christian HS Miami
11	. Tyler Beede	rhp	Vanderbilt
12	. Sean Newcomb	lhp	Hartford
13	. Jeff Hoffman	rhp	East Carolina
14	. Brandon Finnegan	lhp	Texas Christian
15	. Bradley Zimmer	of	San Francisco
16	. Max Pentecost	c	Kennesaw State
17	. Grant Holmes	rhp	Conway (S.C.) HS
18	. Kyle Schwarber	c/1b	Indiana
19	. Sean Reid-Foley	rhp	Sandalwood HS Jacksonville
20	. Erick Fedde	rhp	Nevada-Las Vegas
21	. Monte Harrison	of	Lee’s Summit (Mo.) West HS
22	. Derek Hill	of	Elk Grove (Calif.) HS
23	. Nick Burdi	rhp	Louisville
24	. Casey Gillaspie	1b	Wichita State
25	. Nick Howard	3b/rhp	Virginia
26	. Foster Griffin	lhp	The First Academy Orlando
27	. Jacob Gatewood	ss	Clovis (Calif.) HS
28	. Michael Chavis	3b/2b	Sprayberry HS Marietta
29	. Spencer Adams	rhp	White County HS Cleveland
30	. Derek Fisher	of	Virginia
31	. Kodi Medeiros	lhp	Waiakea HS Hilo
32	. Forrest Wall	2b	Orangewood Christian HS Winter Park
33	. Luis Ortiz	rhp	Sanger (Calif.) HS
34	. Michael Gettys	of	Gainesville (Ga.) HS
35	. Ti’Quan Forbes	ss	Columbia (Miss.) HS
36	. Braxton Davidson	1b/of	Roberson HS Asheville
37	. Jacob Bukauskas	rhp	Stone Bridge HS Ashburn
38	. A.J. Reed	1b/lhp	Kentucky
39	. Luke Weaver	rhp	Florida State
40	. Jack Flaherty	rhp	Harvard-Westlake HS Studio City
41	. Michael Kopech	rhp	Mount Pleasant (Texas) HS
42	. Milton Ramos	ss	American Heritage HS Hialeah Gardens
43	. Matt Imhof	lhp	Cal Poly
44	. Joseph Gatto	rhp	St. Augustine Prep Hammonton
45	. Cody Reed	lhp	Ardmore (Ala.) HS
46	. Mike Papi	of/1b	Virginia
47	. Michael Cederoth	rhp	San Diego State
48	. Marcus Wilson	of	Junipero Serra HS Los Angeles
49	. Scott Blewett	rhp	Baker HS Baldwinsville
50	. Justus Sheffield	lhp	Tullahoma (Tenn.) HS

Beede has been mentioned a lot in mock drafts and he was more towards the top of the board early. He has slipped a little based on a disappointing season, but rebounded somewhat late and still has the look and feel of a potential top of the rotation guy.

The college pitchers Newcomb, Hoffman and Finnegan are all interesting and almost ready for prime time, which makes me happy. Grant Holmes will make the McCovey Chronicles fan base happy and Sean Reid-Foley has great potential as well. I also like the potential and upside of RHP Nick Burdi from Louisville. He's a local product (no I never umpired one of his games) who added some velocity in college. The question appears to be whether he projects more as a starter or a closer prospect. Think maybe David Bush coming out of Wake Forest a couple of years ago. He was fairly productive for them.

Bradley Zimmer is a potential five-tool OF which the Giants haven't had in a while. Trea Turner would be great but at SS not a need position. Same with Kennesaw State C Max Pentecost. Very athletic catcher, but we already have one of those. Unless you're looking to move him out of there....I could see one of the HS bats like maybe SS Jacob Gatewood, who could move to the OF or Derek Hill from Elk Grove (CA) who is getting some late buzz.

If the Giants come out of this with 2-3 of the top fifty, especially some of the highlighted guys who I think may represent the best fit and value for them, I will be very happy. I bet that Casey Gillaspie kid from Wichita State can hit ( related to former Giant prospect Conor Gillaspie ), Giants might shy away from him because he'll be an enduring reminder of the grevious error they made in not finding a spot for Conor. I'm still not over that one.

Another name to watch might be Alex Verdugo, a LHP/OF from Sahuaro HS in Tucson AZ. If he leaves his dad at home, he could make some organization very happy. Verdugo is considered one of the top two way players in the HS ranks. He throws 90+ with a plus CB from the left side and is considered an advanced hitter with good power potential down the line. His dad is considered on of the top LL-Dad-tools in the country from some reports. If it's a package deal, PASS. But the player can play.

Dylan Cease, a RHP from Milton HS (GA) was further up most lists earlier in the season. If the reason for his drop sounds reasonable he could be a good value pick. After that, a Keith Weisenberg from Osceola HS in St. Petersburg, FL and Cobi Johnson from Mitchell HS in Tampa could get an early call.

In the Chicago land area, it seems as if Libertyville C Evan Skoug could be the first to go, ahead of Jake Latz LHP from Lemont and OF Darius Day from Simeon Academy, who was riding the top of the early season lists.