Mets Draft Smith, Church

The Mets used their first round pick, 11th overall, to select high school first baseman Dominic Smith. Read Amazin’ Avenue’s assessment here.

Smith was arguably the best prep hitter in the draft and projects to be a plus fielder and hitter. SiriusXM’s MLB Network Radio compared him to David Ortiz with the bat, and Adrian Gonzalez with the glove.

Some mock drafts had the Mets taking college 1B/3B D.J. Peterson (who eventually went 12th to the Mariners), but decided to go with Smith. Peterson has a “point A to point B” swing, and seems like a more polished hitter at this stage of his life, but Smith is projected to have a higher upside.

With their second pick, 48th overall, the Mets took prep RHP Andrew Church. Here’s his assessment.

Church is kind of a risky pick. He’s a fairly hard thrower (90-94), but is very rough. He’s playing for his third high school, and has a history of locking horns with his coaches. To be fair, I obviously don’t know the kid, and shouldn’t pass judgement, but it sounds like a risk to me. He’s a true “upside” guy who will take some time to develop. How his attitude develops remains to be seen.

The draft continues today.

By the way, for full draft coverage, few bloggers do a better job than St. Lucie to Flushing. Check it out.