Today we signed SS Beamer Weems from Baylor. He was our 8th round selection.
Coming into this spring, Beamer was known as one of the best defensive shortstops in the country. He has true SS hands and actions leaving little doubt that he can stay at the position in pro ball. Offensively, Beamer is a switch-hitter, shows a good feel for the strike zone and is a smart baserunner.
When we selected Beamer in the 8th round, we knew he wouldn't sign for "slot money". Nevertheless, we thought his combination of shortstop defense and offensive potential warranted the selection and payment over slot. We're excited to add him to the system.
13 comments:
Where will he play? Eugene?
When is he expected to be in the lineup?
Paul,
Weems is a guy whose value seemed to drop with his "poor" 2008 season. Weems had great freshman and sophomore seasons (on paper at least) so do you have any idea why he took a step back in 08 rather than taking steps forward? Injury? Random fluctuation? Something else?
It seems like if Weems had progressed in 08 like he did in 07, Weems could have been a top 100 pick, at least if his defense is as good as advertised. So I suppose his "poor" 08 helped the Pads if anything because it lowered his draft value.
Weems seems like a good case for a guy who would return to college his senior year to regain his previous value and go higher in the draft, and perhaps that's why some teams might have shied away from him in the first 8 rounds. I think it could prove to be a nice pick for the Pads, and anytime a team says their "overpaying" for slot that is a good thing to me, because that means (at least in the teams eyes) they are getting a "value" pick.
Best of luck to Weems and hopefully whatever gave him problems in 08 is behind him and he can turn out to be a great value pick
Paul,
Any word on the status of Darnell, Kipnis, Figueroa, etc.? How about Mooneyham? Are you confident the team will be able to come to terms with some/all of these players?
On the Padres home page -
http://sandiego.padres.mlb.com/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20080721&content_id=3167279&vkey=pr_sd&fext=.jsp&c_id=sd
SAN DIEGO -- The San Diego Padres announced today that the club has agreed to terms with infielder William "Beamer" Weems, the team's eighth-round pick in the 2008 First-Year Player Draft. Vice President of Scouting & Player Development Grady Fuson and Director of Scouting Bill "Chief" Gayton made the announcement.
Weems, the 255th overall selection out of Baylor University, batted .267 (55-for-206) with 10 doubles, two triples, seven home runs, 30 RBI, 41 runs scored, 33 walks and five stolen bases in 55 games at shortstop for the Bears. The 5-foot-10, 175-pound junior was a unanimous 2007 First-Team All-Big 12 selection and a 2008 All-Big 12 Honorable Mention. His 24 career home runs are the all-time record as a shortstop at Baylor. A native of Virginia Beach, Va., Weems played for the Wareham Gatemen of the Cape Cod League in the summer of 2007, batting .257 (37-for-144) with nine doubles, 11 RBI, 13 runs scored and five stolen bases in 40 games.
Paul
Could you perhaps explain the idea of "slot money" a little more. I know that certain rounds limit money, but i knew a guy drafted in round 12 two years ago that got more money than alot of guys drafted ahead of him. I thought there wasn't a cap? Plesae explain, thanks..
Are you saying that he was projected to go earlier and the draft?
What was the slot?
What did we pay him?
Where does that amount slot him, if he was to have been picked where he was paid?
Lastly, who are our remaining unsigned draftees and when is the signing deadline?
Thanks,
Steve
Hi Paul,
Good news on the signing.
I just read that Dykstra is getting second and third opinions on his hip. I'm really curious about how much information the front office had about his condition going into the draft. I know you were aware of it, but what was the extent of that knowledge?
Lets hope this kid regains his hitting stroke, but I do not like that he hit so poorly in the Cape Cod League both years...
Ping!
The Wood bat might be the biggest difference...
And Steve, the signing deadline is August 15th (I think)
Randy Wolf trade post coming soon?
vr, Xeifrank
I heard that 6th round pick Cole Figueroa is leaving his team in the Cape Cod League- does that mean he has also signed with the Padres today?
Paul, just a general question. Maybe you could address this in the blog. With a guy like Jason Kipnis who elected to play on the cape this summer, if he had a particularly good summer on the cape, how much would those short term results impact the negotiation?
I scouted Weems in 2006 at the Cape Cod Baseball League. This is what I came to with him:
Possessing one of the more unique names that I have ever seen, Weems has the look of a solid player in the making. Despite his small stature, Weems has some pop in bat. He has the look of a potential contact hitter as he will go with the pitch, and has the tendency to choke up on the bat with two strikes on him, which was something that I was impressed with. He has some holes in his swing and will get aggressive and chase pitches down by his feet when he isn’t in his zone. He has a lot of room to grow as a hitter but he does have a surprising amount of gap power and could eventually have some power as he develops. Weems has the potential to be an excellent defensive shortstop. He has great range and a plus arm. He is already very flashy defensively and can really make some great plays. He does not have great speed and does not project to be a base stealing threat. He has a good chance to be able to turn into a decent prospect with some more seasoning at the plate.
Attribute: Present/Projected
Contact: 30/50
Raw Power: 25/40
Power Production: 20/35
Overall Hitting Ability: 25/50
Arm Strength: 65/65
Arm Accuracy: 55/60
Fielding Ability: 60/70
Fielding Range: 65/70
Overall Fielding: 55/65
Running Speed: 25/30
Instincts: 35/60
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