The Hawaii Tropics selected SS Julian Rivera with the 17th pick in the 1st round of the 2057 BBA Draft. Rivera can play 2B, 3B, SS, LF, CF and RF. His Defensive Rating in the infield are 8/10/9/10 which make him capable of covering the important infield positions. His OF ratings are 7/10/8 which make him a capable COF and a player that can hold down CF in an emergency but not for an extended period.
His hitting ratings are 6/8/3/4/8 facing both righties and lefties. He is just about fully developed and can step into a role with the big club right now. He has some speed but doesn’t read pitchers well to steal bases and doesn’t run the bases well.
Hawaii GM Jim Walker said, “Rivera is the heir apparent to Thomas Kramer at SS. Kramer is 36 years old and beginning to show his age while also commanding a big salary.”
The Tropics selected 23-year-old CF Ricardo Lopez at the end of the 1st round with their supplemental pick. Lopez is listed as a center fielder, but he may play better as a right fielder. His OF ratings of 8/8/11 plays up in the corner spots better but he can play center in a pinch.
The left-handed hitting Lopez is rated 5/5/9/6/3 and is fully developed. He has better power against RHP but could hit against LHP. He has good speed, can steal some bags, and run the bases. He will rack up the strikeouts though but will also launch some balls out of the park.
Walker said of Lopez, “Lopez gives us some depth to cover the rash of injuries that have plagued not only us but most teams. We need to let him just face righties because he can struggle a ton against lefties.”
The Trops selected P Alex Garcia in the 2nd round with 54th overall pick. Fans were all questioning this pick. GM Jim Walker explained, “We never looked at Garcia as a starter only as a reliever. The OSA scouting service mis-positions players at times. As a gm you must dig deeper into a player to see if he has value. Our own scouts told us this guy can top out as a 50-55 rated reliever.”
As a reliever, Garcia has 11 stuff/7 mov/8 con with a fastball and slider combo. Right now, he is an 8/2/4 17-year-old with upside. He is an over-the-top flamethrower sitting at 96-98 mph. He does a great job at holding runners and is a team leader with good work ethic.
