Now that the 2011 MLB Draft is over and teams begin to sign their players, what are the early analyses of the draft? Conor Glassey and John Manuel over at Baseball America (subscription required) have some thoughts on the Rockies' draft class. He sees the selection of Oregon LHP Tyler Anderson as a "safer first-rounder." Of course, that's code for not much upside, as is the description of being polished. But that shouldn't be taken to mean that the Rockies drafted a pitcher who won't be more than a back of the rotation guy.
In the best case, Anderson, who throws six pitches by some counts, turns out to be like Jeff Francis, who at his best was a No. 2 starter for the team.
However, they also like the "gambles" the Rockies took on high schoolers, especially SS Trevor Story in the supplemental first round and Carl Thomore in the second.
Short-season and rookie leagues begin in less than two weeks and many of the Rockies' players from this draft will play for Tri-City (SS) or Casper (Rookie). Many of the early round selections should be quick signs, as well as college players taken late in the draft. Many of the later high school selections will likely head to college.