Indians select Carson Tucker

The Cleveland Indians made a surprise selection with their first-round pick, but it was a pick that didn't disappoint me as the Wahoo's tabbed Arizona high school shortstop Carson Tucker at the twenty-third slot of Wednesday's draft.

The eighteen-year-old Tucker is the younger brother of Pirates shortstop Cole Tucker, who Pittsburgh selected in the first round of the 2014 draft and made his major league last season.
Cole Tucker ranks at the top of the nicest players to move through the minors, so it'll be easy to root for Carson, who has a similar projection as Cole as a glove-first shortstop.
Tucker is a right-handed hitting infielder that most think can stay at shortstop, but could also be able to handle a move to second base if need be.
Tucker doesn't appear to have plus power, but he does have the frame to give him a chance to develop it, even if the chance is an unlikely one.

Keith Law of The Athletic disliked the pick of Tucker, having him rated as a late-second to early third-round prospect and listing him with "zero plus tools and as an average defender at shortstop, if he stays there".
Others seem to like him better, but the consensus is that this was a mild overdraft, but considering his background and work ethic, Tucker's pick isn't being overwhelmingly panned.
Tucker moved up draft boards in the last year with a growth spurt that saw him gain several inches in height and resemble his brother physically.
Tucker does have a commitment to Texas that will have to be bought out for the Indians to sign him, but I haven't heard that Tucker is locked into the Longhorns firmly and shouldn't be a major obstacle in getting him signed and into a system that has other promising shortstops in top 100 prospect Tyler Freeman, Brayan Rocchio, and Yordis Valdes that are jockeying for position to be the replacement for Francisco Lindor when he leaves via free agency after the 2021 season or is traded before then.


The Indians also picked with the 36th pick with a competitive balance choice and took college pitcher Tanner Burns from Auburn.
Burns throws right-handed and finished with a 2-1 record for the Tigers with a 2.42 ERA and 32 strikeouts in 22.1 innings in the Covid-chopped season.
Burns whiffed 2010 batters in his two-plus years with Auburn and the Indians say he sits around 92-93 MPH and gets as high as 96 MPH when needed.
Burns did miss time in 2019 due to shoulder issues, but the Tribe thinks those problems were not only minor but in the past.
The stocky six-footer is projected to be a back of the rotation starter or possibly a late-inning reliever in the majors.