Appel is officially off the board, with the Pirates once again taking the plunge. They spent big on Josh Bell last year in the second-round and have shown a willingness to do whatever it takes to make their big-league squad competitive.
In other news, the Padres preceded the Pirates pick by taking left-hander Max Fried from Harvard-Westlake in California. Before that the Cubs selected Albert Almora, a player they have been sweet on for weeks, months even. And before the Cubs, the Royals and Orioles went back to back with Kyle Zimmer and Kevin Gausman, respectively.
Here are the scouting reports for each player.
