Mike Trout was the only player in-studio for the MLB Network’s broadcast of the 2009 MLB draft, and that worked out pretty well for the future Angels star. Well, pretty well in the sense that he quickly became arguably the best player in baseball, not in the sense that he had to watch 24 other players get drafted before he heard his name that day.
Anyway, there will be seven players on-hand at MLB Network’s Studio 42 on Thursday for the first day of the 2014 draft, and all seven are locks to be taken in the 74 picks that will be broadcast that night (the draft starts at 7 p.m. ET).
MLB DRAFT 2014: TV coverage | Mock draft
Prep shortstop Nick Gordon (Windemere, Fla.), the son of former MLB star pitcher Tom Gordon and the brother of current Dodgers second baseman Dee Gordon, is the highest-rated player who will be in the studio. He will be a top-five pick; the Twins are just hoping he’s still around when their spot rolls around at No. 5.
Like Gordon, all of the players who will be in Studio 42 are high school stars. Some of the college prospects are still playing—the NCAA Tournament just finished its regional round early this week—and the others opted not to attend for one reason or another.
Joining Gordon are shortstop Jacob Gatewood (Clovis, Calif.), shortstop Michael Chavis (Marietta, Ga.), OF Monte Harrison (Lee’s Summit, Mo.), OF Derek Hill (Sacramento, Calif.), RHP Grant Holmes (Conway, S.C.) and LHP Kodi Medeiros (Hilo, Hawaii).
There have been a total of 20 players in studio for the draft broadcasts, including nine last year. Though there are logistical issues—such as the on-going NCAA Tournament, among other things—Marc Weiner, the network’s coordinating producer for the draft, told Sporting News they'd like to have as many players as possible attend the draft in the future. It's kind of a more-the-merrier approach.
“We had tremendous feedback from the players and their families (last year),” he said. “Parents reached out to us and said, ‘Hey, if you ever need us to talk to other families in the future to tell them about the experience, please let us know.’ They were very excited about it. Tough to beat getting your name called and going up to get your jersey from the commissioner.”
In addition to the potential picks in attendance, each team will have a representative or two at the draft. That group includes Hall of Famers Tommy Lasorda, Andre Dawson, Ferguson Jenkins and Tony Perez. Here’s the full list.
