2011 Draft Eligibles: Mat-Su Miners

Bermudez, Mee and Scott headline big class of potential picks.

Senior Andy Mee made a case for himself in the ABL,
but where will the scouts slot him for the 2011 draft?

It's never too soon to look ahead to next year's draft, so why wait until spring time to start going over next year's potential draft picks? This year, we'll go in the order of last year's league standings (because I thought that would be a fun way to do it, I guess) and that brings us to the Mat-Su Miners for our first stop. And man, do the Miners have a big ol' list of potential draft picks. There's a lot of names below, mainly due to the big number of Sophomores and Juniors recruited by the valley club in 2010. And just like the famous Matanuska Valley giant produce, the Miners farmed some pretty big draft prospects this last year. Here's a couple who've caught my eye; feel free to suggest your own if you're so inclined:

Pablo Bermudez: One of my favorite players in 2010, a real electrifying guy. Good power and ability to drive the ball to all fields, and great instincts in the outfield. Ranked by Perfect Game as #4 prospect in the league last year.

Andy Mee: I think Andy very possibly had the best season in the whole ABL in 2010. He can pitch, he can hit, he can play the field, he can do it all. I think he'd be drafted as a RF because he can rake, he really flies in the field, and his pitcher's arm gives him a good cannon from right. He'll also be a senior in 2011, and I can't imagine him falling through the cracks and becoming an insurance salesman or something.

2010 Players to Watch: Mat-Su Miners

The Mat-Su Miners contingent in the 2010 Colony Days
Parade in Palmer, Alaska

The Mat-Su Miners were the last team in the league to release the names of their 2010 roster, which left us all scratching our heads when I was writing up watch lists for all the teams. When I wrote up the 2010 season preview, I kind of assumed that the Miners would be a team to beat based simply on the fact that they've won more games over the past three years than any other team in the league, and it would be a pretty dramatic fall for them to drop below .500 this year. So far on the young season they haven't disappointed in the winning department (although we still have a lot of games left to play).

So before we get too deep into the year, let's take a look at some of the more intriguing names on the team. The Miners will be led in 2010 by a plethora of talented pitchers, many of whom are also two-way players who can handle the bat pretty well to boot. I've picked a handful of players who I think will be interesting to follow throughout the season. The names on this list are not necessarily the "best" players on the team, but rather those who I feel have an interesting combination of talent, potential, interesting background stories, and/or previous performance to make them worth watching. There's also a "peripheral vision" list, with some guys who also roused my curiosity but maybe I didn't have enough info on to write a whole paragraph. Here's the list:

Players to Watch

RHP Robert Benincasa
Florida State
Freshman - 6'1" 180lb

Benincasa is our "already been drafted relatively high" pick for the Miners. As a high schooler he was drafted during the 33rd round by Toronto, which is pretty high for a prep non-uber prospect. High enough that a lot of people thought he would sign. Word has it that he was also on the radar of several other teams. He'll be untouchable for a couple more seasons as a DI freshman, but if he can make the most of his college career -- not to mention in front of the scouts up here in AK -- he'll be a pretty nice draft prospect for 2012 and/or 2013.