The parallels between Luke Hochevar last year and Max Scherzer this year were striking — both were first-rounders who didn’t sign because they held out for a bigger signing bonus, then pitched for the Fort Worth Cats — but the story ended differently this year. Instead of going back into the draft, Arizona signed Scherzer.
I would imagine Arizona hopes that isn’t the only way the Scherzer story ends up differently than Hochevar’s: Luke isn’t exactly dominating Double-A so far this year. As for the impact on this year’s draft, Scherzer probably would’ve gone higher than 11th (where he was picked in ’06), but this year’s draft class is extremely deep, so every team with a pick in the top 15-20 should be able to grab a top-tier talent.
By Jeff Sackmann
Brew Crew Ball
