The 2011 MLB Draft gets underway on Monday, June 6, and the consensus among draft experts appears to have the Colorado Rockies selecting either Utah 1B C.J. Cron or Hawaii 2B Kolten Wong with the 20th pick of the first round. Keith Law's latest mock draft for ESPN Insider projects Cron but also thinks Wong could be taken there. He classifies, as others have, the two as being "safe bats."
Cron, recently named as a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award, blistered the ball to the tune of a .434/.517/.803 with 26 doubles, 15 home runs and 59 RBI. He walked 31 times and struck out just 21 times. One could question his production since he hit in many offensive parks during Mountain West competition, but that hasn't diminished some projections of a .300-plus batting average and 40-home run power.
Wong, as we've established in previous updates is a solid fielder who could potentially move elsewhere on the diamond (possibly catcher). He'll use the field when he hits and may have decent pop for a glove second baseman. He hit .378/.492/.560 with 11 doubles, 3 triples and seven homers. He also stole 23 bases.