Cincinnati Reds 2014 MLB Draft: Rounds 3-10 Scouting Reports

For posts on all of the 2014 Cincinnati Reds draft picks, you can click here. I am limiting posts on the front page to try and keep the site from crashing.

The first thing that I want to note is that if the site doesn't look right, it is because the other format, plus all of the traffic is causing too much stress on the server and causing it to crash, so I have reverted to the most simplistic view of the site to try and keep it running through the day. If things look normal, pay no attention to this message.

Unlike yesterday, when there were only three picks, today there are eight picks and they will all be covered in this post. I will provide scouting reports, stats when available and video when available. It will be updated throughout the day. You can follow the draft live on MLB.com via conference call.

Cincinnati Reds 3rd Round Selection: RHP Wyatt Strahan, USC

Scouting Report

The 6' 3" and 190 right handed starter has some real stuff to work with, as his fastball works in the 92-94 range and he has touched as high as 97 MPH. His curveball has a change to be a future plus pitch and he also shows a solid change up. The issue with Strahan has been control, as he walked as many batters as he struck out in his first two years at USC, though he showed improvement over the 2014 season in that department. Some scouts wonder about his mechanics, saying they need work to become more repeatable. He stays rather upright in his delivery, which you can see below in the video.

Stats

Video

Cincinnati Reds 4th Round Selection: 3B Gavin LaValley, High School (OK)

Scouting Report

The 6' 3" and 235 lb corner infielder hit an insane 54 home runs in high school over his career of 121 games. He shows off impressive bat speed and he has good strength and size. He can use the entire field in his approach and scouts believe in the bat. Defensively scouts seem more split about whether or not he can stick at third base or whether he is a future first baseman.  He lost 30 pounds between his junior and senior years of high school and is noticeably thinner in some videos around the internet than others. For his size, he is a good runner, but overall is a below-average speed guy. He shows a good arm on the defensive side of the ball.

No stats available

Video

Cincinnati Reds 5th Round Selection: RHP Tejay Antone, Weatherford College

Scouting Report

The 6' 4" and 205 lb RHP went to TCU for his freshman year, but only threw seven innings in 2013 and transferred out to Weatherford JC. He was drafted out of high school by the Mets in the 22nd round in 2012 out of high school. He throws in the low 90's and touches 95 MPH with some movement. His slider is the best secondary offering and while inconsistent, could be an above-average pitch. His change up shows some promise, but is currently below-average. He also throws a curveball, but it is clearly his fourth pitch.

Stats

Video

Cincinnati Reds 6th Round Selection: RHP Jose Lopez, Seton Hall

Scouting Report

The 6' 1" and 190 lb reliever missed the 2014 season with Tommy John surgery while at Seton Hall. His fastball has been as high as 97 MPH before the injury and he showed a solid slider as well. He did a little bit of starting and relieving at Seton Hall, throwing 99.0 total innings over his Freshman and Sophomore seasons.

Stats

Cincinnati Reds 7th Round Selection: 2B Shane Mardirosian, High School (CA)

Scouting Report

The 5' 10" and 175 lb second baseman is mostly a gap power guy with plus speed who doesn't project to have much power to grow into moving forward. He has a quick bat to work with, so he has a chance to be a quality hitter for average. Defensively he has good actions and his arm will work just fine at second base. Scouts seem to love his baseball knowledge.

No Stats Available

Video

Cincinnati Reds 8th Round Selection: 1B Brian O'Grady, Rutgers

Scouting Report

The 6' 2" and 215 lb left handed hitter had spent time in the outfield at Rutgers, but the Reds selected him as a first baseman, so it looks like they will try to move him. He is a senior who played all four years, so expect him to sign quickly and he will save some money on the bonus pool. Despite having good size, he hit just eight total home runs in four seasons at Rutgers,though five did come this season. His plate discipline numbers didn't really improve over the years.

Stats

Video - Start at 1:12 for the Brian O'Grady clip

Cincinnati Reds 9th Round Selection: RHP Brian Hunter,Hartford

Scouting Report

The 6' 3" and 215 lb right handed pitcher spent the first three years at Hartford playing both the field and pitching, but was only on the mound for his senior season. His fastball has worked in the 88-92 MPH range with good sink to it and has touched as high as 94. He throws a sweepy slider in the 77-81 MPH range. His change up works in the low 80's with a little bit of fading action to it. Mechanically he is interesting. He has a bit of a short-arm action going on that says more reliever than starter to me. Control has been an issue in college,though he made strides in 2014. Perhaps a move to the bullpen could allow the stuff to play up some.

Stats

Cincinnati Reds 10th Round Selection: LHP Seth Varner, Miami (OH)

Scouting Report

The 6' 3" and 225 lb left hander is a local kid from Clermont County who went on to pitch in Oxford at Miami.He didn't pitch a ton until his senior year when he topped 40 innings for the first time, covering 104.1 of them. For the first time in his career he showed good control and had big strikeout numbers. Unfortunately I am having trouble finding a scouting report of any kind on him from his college days, so if you can find one, feel free to share it.

Stats