The 2011 MLB Draft gets started in less than an hour, which means we'll get to see hopes and dreams realized over the next three days. High school and college baseball players have been working for years to perfect their craft and they'll finally be rewarded by having their named over the next three days.
Thanks to the quality weather, California has annually been home to some of the top baseball prospects in America. While Southern California occupies a large portion of the discussion, the Bay Area has a whole host of talented baseball players. The University of California, Stanford University and the University of San Francisco both churn out quality players year in and year out. Additionally, Bay Area high schools have produced high quality players. Guys like Rickey Henderson and Jimmy Rollins are only two of the many prominent major league baseball players to come out of Bay Area high schools
As we prepare for Monday night's draft, here is a quick list of the top prospects in the 2011 MLB Draft, courtesy of John Sickels' Top 40 list and Keith Law's Top 100 list. While we'll be focusing this stream on updating A's and Giants draft picks, we'll also provide updates when these players (and others from the Bay Area) are selected.
LHP Chris Reed - Stanford
RHP Joe Ross - Bishop O'Dowd HS, Oakland
RHP Robert Stephenson - Alhambra HS, Martinez
OF Tyler Goeddel - Saint Francis HS, Mountain View
We'll be here for the next three days covering the 2011 MLB Draft for both the San Francisco Giants and Oakland Athletics. For more in-depth discussion about the Giants head to McCovey Chronicles. For more on the A's head over to Athletics Nation. For more general minor league and draft discussion, check out Minor League Ball and Baseball Nation.