Major League Baseball completed its 2020 amateur draft on Thursday night. The spread of the novel coronavirus required the draft to be held virtually instead of in Omaha, Nebraska alongside the College World Series. The owners' desire to slash costs, meanwhile, led to the draft being shortened from 40 rounds to five.
The Seattle Mariners selected University of Georgia right-hander Emerson Hancock with the No. 6 overall pick. He was the No. 4 prospect on R.J. Anderson's big board. The Mariners earned an A from our experts for their class as they made some other valuable selections. Here's what we wrote:
Georgia righty Emerson Hancock was viewed as a possible No. 1 pick candidate coming into the spring and the Mariners were able to get him with the No. 6 selection. That's pretty much the best-case scenario. Outfielder Zach DeLoach (second rounder) and righty Connor Phillips (Competitive Balance Round B) were good values. Phillips in particular is viewed as someone with untapped potential. Hancock alone earns an A. Everyone else is gravy.
Below you'll find a full list of Seattle's picks.
Round | Overall | Player | Position | School | Top 50 |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | No. 6 | Emerson Hancock | RHP | Georgia | No. 4 |
2 | No. 43 | Zach DeLoach | OF | Texas A&M | N/A |
2s (from Brewers via trade) | No. 64 | Connor Phillips | P | McLennan (HS) | N/A |
3 | No. 78 | Kaden Polvovich | 2B | Oklahoma | N/A |
4 | No. 107 | Tyler Keenan | 3B | Mississippi | N/A |
5 | No. 137 | Taylor Dollard | P | Cal Poly | N/A |