WASHINGTON — There was plenty of speculation, but not much consensus about what the Nationals would do with their consecutive, late first-round picks in this year’s Major League Baseball First-Year Player Draft. The only thing anyone could seem to agree upon was that the team would probably make the kind of splash they’ve become known for.
When the picks came in, they ended up being somewhat surprising, but not for the reasons most expected. The Nats snagged high school shortstop Carter Kieboom and college righty pitcher Dane Dunning with the 28th and 29th picks, then added college third baseman Sheldon Neuse with the 58th overall pick, their final selection of the draft’s opening day.
“I think we got who we targeted,” said Nationals Assistant GM and VP of Scouting Operations Kris Kline on a conference call Thursday night. “We identified Carter and Dane early in the year, and I think we feel very fortunate to get both of these guys.”
Kieboom’s name will sound familiar to those who follow Washington’s drafts, as his older brother Spencer was a 2012 selection and currently plays at Double-A Harrisburg. (Speaking of familiar names, the final player taken on Day 1 by the Tampa Bay Rays with the 77th overall pick, was LSU outfielder Jake Fraley, cousin of WTOP Digital Entertainment Editor Jason Fraley.)
A number of the mock drafts coming into Thursday night had the Nats reaching for a high school bat from the left side of the infield. But the consensus seemed to be that they would try to pry Drew Mendoza, a third baseman, out of his commitment to Florida State. At least three mock drafts had the Nats making that move, which would fall in line with their riskier selections like Lucas Giolito and Erik Fedde, both coming off injury.
Instead, they went with Kieboom, a player ESPN’s Keith Law had rated as the 27th overall prospect and Baseball America had 49th. ESPN’s Eric Logenhagen projects Kieboom as something of a solid regular, but suspects his lack of speed will eventually force a move to third base (although Nats scouting director Kris Kline said he expected Kieboom to stay at short).
“Very good tools, from above average to solid average, Kline said. “[He’s] going to be a really good big leaguer.”
The 6-foot-2, 185-pounder from Walton High School in Marietta, Georgia batted a solid, if not overwhelming .366 as a senior, but notched an excellent .504 on-base percentage. He hit five homers and stole seven bases, decent numbers in a short high school season that could easily double or even triple in a full season of pro ball. That makes Kieboom something of the anti-Giolito or Fedde, a safe, reliable pick with a higher floor and lower ceiling.
Interestingly, Kieboom also pitched from both sides of the plate in high school, much like history-making hurler Pat Venditte, whom we profiled last season upon his arrival in the Major Leagues. Unfortunately for the ambidextrous pitching enthusiasts among us, it doesn’t appear that we’ll have the chance to see him continue to do so as a professional.
For their next selection, the Nats went with Dunning (Law 25/BA 74), a college pitcher out of the powerhouse University of Florida program. Dunning sported strong numbers in a split role as a midweek starter and a reliever on the weekends, going 5-3 with a 2.50 ERA, 78 strikeouts and just 11 walks in 68.1 innings pitched. While the Nats hope to make Dunning a starter, they passed on the more established Friday night starter from Gainesville, Logan Shore (Law 60/BA 31). But it speaks to Dunning’s raw potential that Law had him ranked above Shore overall.
“If he was at another program, he would have been a Friday night starter at 95 percent of the other programs in the country,” Kline said.
At 6-foot-3, 205 pounds, Dunning has a sinking fastball that can reach the mid 90s, along with a slider and a developing change-up, per Law’s scouting report. Nats fans will have a chance to watch him pitch sooner rather than later, as Florida hosts Florida State in Super Regional action beginning Saturday.
In the second round, Washington selected Oklahoma shortstop Sheldon Neuse (Law 60/BA N/A), who the Nats officially drafted as a third baseman. His eventual defensive future may be cloudy, but his bat improved tremendously from a .275/.342/.424 slash line as a sophomore to .369/.465/.646 as a junior, where he amassed nearly as many walks (39) as strikeouts (43) while slugging a career-high 10 home runs.
In all, the Nats addressed the positional needs many anticipated, though perhaps not with the players they expected them to pick. At least in that sense, they continued to be unpredictable in the early rounds of the draft.
