According to reports, part of the reason Kumar Rocker dropped all the way to No. 10 in the 2021 MLB Draft was due to his desire for an over-slot bonus, one that the Mets have agreed upon and will potentially hit $6 million - $1.24 million more than allotted for the No. 10 pick.
And, per the New York Post, Rocker's agent, Scott Boras, wanted to get the righty down to 10 because he felt the Mets were the right environment for him.
So, too, did Mets scouting director Marc Tramuta and VP of amateur scouting Tommy Tanous, who were thrilled when Rocker was available at 10.
"Don't walk past the obvious. For us, this was an obvious pick. This is an extremely talented young man that we just couldn't pass," Tramuta said on a Mets draft conference all.
Added Tanous: "We really thought there was very little chance this would happen."
Ranked No. 6 by MLB Pipeline, Rocker had eight chances to go before the Mets, as he reportedly did not consent to be re-drafted by the Rockies; Colorado had taken him in the 2018 Draft, and a player has to officially give consent to be selected by the same team multiple times.
"We're elated Kumar got to us; a pitcher of his talent and portfolio doesn't come along very often, so we were thrilled, and feel very fortunate that his name was in magnet was still on that board," Tanous said.
"After the first handful of picks, we thought there was an opportunity here that we just couldn't pass up this is," Tramuta added. "This is a supremely talented player, but even more it's elite makeup, a great young man from a great family."
Tramuta called Nashville, the home of Vanderbilt University, the "New York City of college baseball," given Vandy's reputation in the sport. That just means the team brass knows he can excel under a microscope, and perhaps under the bright lights of Queens, but don't expect them to rush the 21-year-old to the majors ahead of his time.
"We try not to scout on how quickly they get to the big leagues; we've tried to scout, at least for the last 10 years, on the best player, on the finished product," Tanous said. "I think we've had a very good track record in that case with the Dom Smiths, being a high school player, who might take a little bit longer than, say, the Michael Confortos, who make it to the big leagues in 14 months. We try not to focus on how quickly they'll get there; although it's nice the quicker they get there, we want them to get there and have sustained success."
How quickly Rocker moves will be left up to the player development department, and it's possible, given the shortened 2020 season and Vandy's run to the 2021 College World Series, that he might not play much if at all in affiliated ball this season.
"We'll leave that up to player development; Kumar had a very big workload, often taking the ball on short rest, so we'll leave that up to them on how much rest he needs, and what his schedule would be," Tanous said.
"Teams always want to move players as quickly but, more importantly, we want Kumar to have as long a career as possible here," Tramuta added. "We want the best Kumar when he gets there, so we don't have any time frame; when he's ready for the big leagues, he's going to get there."
The Mets have taken "chances" on some talented pitchers who dropped in recent drafts – see also Matt Allan and J.T. Ginn – but Rocker isn't a chance, or a flyer, or a specific draft strategy; instead, he was simply the player they felt best fit them long-term at the spot they selected.
"This is just an extremely talented young man that we just couldn't pass regardless of position," Tramuta said. "It's just it's somebody that we think fits in our philosophy as we look at pitchers, fits our philosophy as we look at makeup, fits our philosophy of a first-round pick that can have impact and longevity. He just he was just a guy that you just can't walk past."
Despite any "speed bumps" pitchers in particular may have faced after missing all or most of 2020, Rocker made all 20 of his starts for the Commodores, and Tramuta is confident he can do the same once he gets to Queens.
"These guys had seasons stolen, and you understand that these guys maybe weren't as built up, as usual, given their progress through the season, so I think I think almost every pitcher in the country had some speed bumps," Tramuta said. "But, Kumar's a guy who fought through that and made every start and stepped up; that's what he's done his whole career and I think that's what he'll do once he gets to Queens."
Follow Lou DiPietro on Twitter: @LouDiPietroWFAN
Follow WFAN on Social Media
Twitter | Facebook | Instagram | YouTube | Twitch
