Buck Buxton, CF, Appling HS - SSI pre-draft $0.01
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=== You Won't Get Any Arguments About ... ? ===
.... the proposition that Byron Buxton is a high-school player who makes a feasible #1 overall selection. Especially since none of the college players this year are irresistible.
... your swooning away over Buxton's athleticism. He is evidently a real freakazoid by any standards, an athlete in excess of even Justin Upton and B.J. Upton, a guy people talk about with Bo Jackson as being the legendary cross-sport athletes they've ever seen. Ever.
... the opinion that Buxton will play center field and steal bases in the majors, muchly lowering the bar that sets the minimum standards for his hitting.
... his being a super-nice kid, good head on his shoulders, who won't backfire on you Delmon Young style, who won't make you hold your nose while watching him Bryce Harper style.
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=== What's Fresh About 'Im ===
The reports about his athleticism are laugh-out-loud funny. ... We all were wow'ing about Taijuan Walker's dunking ability, not realizing that 80% of MLB players including pitchers can dunk about like Taijuan can. But Buck Buxton sounds like something out of the 1940's color line stories.
This article mentions about somebody handing Buxton -- a teenager, remember -- a football. How far can you throw it, man? Buck takes a normal half-step, "flicks his wrist," and they tape it off at 82 yards. I think Randall Cunningham was the one NFL quarterback I heard of who could throw 80; many, many NFL quarterbacks have not been able to throw 50, and 60 is the limit for most of them.
They say that Buxton can throw 99 MPH off the mound, and that if he were a pitcher in this draft he would go first round, despite the fact that he pitches only because they need a pitcher that day...
Punts 70 yards, has made All-Star teams as a DB, WR, QB ..has stolen 35 of 36 bases this year, sets world records for time down the 1B line, scored from 2B on a sac fly...
Check the first half of this video. He bounces around like a kangaroo going after the ball, reminding you of Munenori Kawasaki for energy, and when he throws the ball it looks like an atomic explosion taking place.
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We heard stories like this, about 10 degrees tangent, about Ken Griffey Jr. In many respects, the lore about Buxton reminds you of the lore about Junior.
You were probably very young then. :- ) You probably don't realize that Griffey was questioned as a baseball player. Roger Jongewaard had to fight with George Argyros to take Junior, and Argyros growled, "okay, but it's your job." Alex Rodriguez wasn't that way; EVERYbody knew that ARod was going to be a Hall of Famer. But Junior wasn't that way, not at all.
The "fresh" about Bryon Buxton is that he could turn out to be a Griffey-class player. It's possible. Well, not Griffey; there's another center fielder who reminds more...
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