Cron, now in his eighth big-league season with a 7.5 career WAR.Īs Wilken, now a special assignment scout with the Arizona Diamondbacks, and Clark have watched Baez’s career, not much has surprised them about his development. If Baez was off the board by the time they picked, they were going to draft Fernandez, who starred for the Miami Marlins for four seasons before his tragic death, or first baseman C.J. The Cubs heard a couple of teams in front of them were interested in Baez, so they devised a backup plan. Wilken planned to take Baez even if Lindor was available. Baez went to the Cubs one pick after Lindor went to the Cleveland Indians.Ĭhicago Cubs shortstop Javier Baez throws out a runner in the sixth inning of a game at Wrigley Field on Aug. Notably, right-handers Gerrit Cole, Trevor Bauer and Jose Fernandez, third baseman Anthony Rendon, outfielder George Springer and shortstops Lindor and Baez were taken within the top 15 picks.
Of the 60 players chosen in the first round, including the supplemental round, 42 have played in the majors with 15 amassing at least 8.0 career wins above replacement (WAR). Clark didn’t see Baez play again until the high school all-star game in Florida. So halfway through Baez’s senior season, Wilken told Clark not to attend any more of his games.
He’s always had supreme confidence, off-the-charts confidence in his abilities, but he can back it up.”Īs the Cubs homed in on Baez, Wilken didn’t want to tip off other teams. “But when you watched him do it, it made perfect sense for where he fielded that ball. “He fielded a ball up the middle and then he spun to make the throw to first - when most guys do that, you go, ‘There was no reason to do that,’ ” Clark said. In that moment, Clark saw Baez possess an important ability to make adjustments. When it progressed to a two-strike count, Baez drove the ball to left-center. But it was a sequence at the Double-A ballpark in Jacksonville during Baez’s senior season that convinced Clark he was a first-round talent.ĭuring one at-bat, Baez pulled a ball so far foul that Clark estimated it might have cleared the roof down the third-base line. “He had a penchant to play really well when it counted, and that’s not an easy read as an amateur.”Ĭlark first looked at Baez the summer heading into his senior year.
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“Under that fire and everything, there’s a calmness to his game, and I would say that helps him realize how to slow things down mentally and maybe somewhat physically,” Wilken said. His experience coaching them, including Cleveland Indians catcher Roberto Perez, helped Clark - and by extension the Cubs - understand Baez’s shy and quiet off-the-field personality. Clark’s understanding of Baez and his Puerto Rican background made Wilken feel it wasn’t a risky pick.Ĭlark was previously the head coach at Lake City Community College in Florida, where he worked with numerous Puerto Rican players. However, he felt any perceptions that Baez had a gunslinger style of play were unfair. Wilken knew there might be doubters outside the organization. “I’m in, we’re going to take this guy,” Wilken recalled telling Tom Clark, the Cubs’ northeast area scout.
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