Rays considering 5 prospects for No. 1 pick

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06/05/2008 -

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) -The Tampa Bay Rays are feeling pressure to make the right call in the baseball draft.

Although they aren't looking for immediate help from the player they select No. 1 on Thursday, there's an added sense of urgency to make the most of an opportunity they don't expect to have again soon.

The Rays never won more than 70 games in a season during their first 10 years, but have been one of the feel-good stories of this season.

The young, talented team has led the AL East for much of the first two months and intends to keep getting better.

``In our minds and in our planning, hopefully this is the last time we're picking this high for a while, so we put a little more pressure on ourselves to add another impact player before hopefully we start picking in the 20s,'' Rays executive vice president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said.

Tampa Bay also had the No. 1 pick a year ago, selecting David Price, a pitcher from Vanderbilt that the Rays had targeted for months. The hard-throwing lefty got off to a great start as a pro - he's opened with 18 scoreless innings for Class-A Vero Beach.

There's no consensus best player this summer, so the Rays are considering five prospects for the top spot:

-Tim Beckham, a high school shortstop from Griffin, Ga., who's viewed as one of the best pure athletes in the draft.

-Buster Posey, one of the nation's top defensive catchers at Florida State.

-Brian Matusz, a big college lefty who led the country in strikeouts at San Diego.

-Pedro Alvarez, superb hitting third baseman from Vanderbilt.

-Kyle Skipworth, of Rubidoux, Calif., the top-rated high school catcher and possibly the best prep prospect at the position since Joe Mauer was the No. 1 pick seven years ago.

``Last year, we had a pretty good idea who we were taking in the fall. It was just a matter of something weird not happening to him,'' director of scouting R.J. Harrison said. ``This group is pretty even. I could make a case for any one of those five guys.''

The Pittsburgh Pirates have the second pick, with Kansas City, Baltimore, San Francisco, Florida, Cincinnati, the Chicago White Sox, Washington and Houston rounding out the top 10.

This is the fourth time the Rays have had the No. 1 selection. They picked high school outfielders Josh Hamilton in 1999 and Delmon Young in 2003 before using last year's top choice on Price.

Friedman said the club was not focusing on any particular position, noting that needs of an organization can change very quickly.

``To sit here right now and tell you this is going to be the needs of this organization in two years, I think is extremely difficult to do,'' Friedman said.

The Rays, he said, don't have a hard and fast rule when it comes to selecting college prospects rather than high school players.

``You never want to take someone with the idea that you would trade them. But if you take the best player available, either something opens up on your major league team or you can go out there and make a move to add someone somewhere else. It really just gets back to taking the most talented player that you feel fits your team.''

Beckham is considered a legitimate five-tool player. Skipworth, the other prep prospect among the options the Rays are pondering, is an outstanding hitter who Harrison feels has chance to develop a ``middle of the lineup'' bat.

Posey is a versatile player who began his college career as a shortstop. He switched to catcher as a sophomore and entered this week's NCAA super regionals batting a Division I-best .468.

Matusz was 12-2 with a 1.71 ERA this season for San Diego. Vandy's Alvarez hit .317 with nine homers and 30 RBIs despite missing 23 games with a broken right hand.

Harrison said any of them would be a fine addition to the Rays.

``I have spent time with all five of them, and our staff has spent a lot of time with them. They're all top-notch kids, you would be proud to have any of them,'' the director of scouting said. ``We aren't going to get this shot any more, this pick of the litter, so we are trying to make a decision to get the best player, best guy combination.''

Others who could be drafted early include Georgia shortstop Gordon Beckham (no relation to Tim), Tulane pitcher Shooter Hunt, South Carolina first baseman Justin Smoak, Missouri pitcher Aaron Crow and Florida high school first baseman Eric Hosmer.Copyright © 2005 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. The information contained in the AP News report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press.

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Football Betting Lines

The 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds have been released and Denver Broncos' running back Knowshon Moreno has been made the opening favorite.

Bet NFL Sports Lines

Moreno was selected in the first round of April's NFL draft and is expected to carry the rushing load for the Broncos this season. And with Jay Cutler now in Chicago, Moreno might be expected to be Denver's entire offense.

Betting Lines from sports betting lines have made Moreno a 5/2 favorite to win this year's Offensive Rookie of the Year Award. Fellow running back Chris “Beanie” Wells (Arizona Cardinals) is right behind Moreno at 7/2, while Donald Brown (Indianapolis Colts) and receiver Michael Crabtree (San Francisco 49ers) are 5/1 to win. Quarterbacks Mark Sanchez (New York Jets) and Matthew Stafford (Detroit Lions) are 7/1 and 8/1, respectively.

A couple of players who present some value are Josh Freeman, Shonn Green and Darrius Heyward-Bey.

Freeman needs to beat out Byron Leftwich to become the starting quarterback of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers but if he does, he has a lot or raw talent and could use the weapons around him (i.e. Kellen Winslow Jr. and Antonio Bryant) to be very successful in his first season.

Green enters a crowded backfield in New York, but considering both Thomas Jones and Leon Washington are unhappy about their contract situations and might holdout, the former Iowa product could become the Jets' primary back.

Everyone was shocked when Al Davis took Heyward-Bey with the eighth overall pick in April's draft, but the kid has a tremendous amount of talent and if quarterback JaMarcus Russell takes the next step this year, the former Maryland product could blossom. Plus, Heyward-Bey will be looking to prove the people wrong who said Oakland should have taken Michael Crabtree with the No. 8 pick.

And if you're looking for a deep sleeper, check out Pat White at 30/1. He enters the Miami Dolphins vaunted “Wild Cat” offense and could be a big time playmaker.

For complete odds on the 2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year odds, see below.

2009 AP NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year Odds to Win

Ramses Barden (NYG) 40/1

Andre Brown (NYG) 20/1

Donald Brown (IND) 5/1

Kenny Britt (TEN) 20/1

Glenn Coffee (SFO) 30/1

Chase Coffman (CIN) 50/1

Michael Crabtree (SFO) 5/1

Josh Freeman (TB) 14/1

Shonn Green (NYJ) 14/1

Percy Harvin (MIN) 10/1

Darrius Heyward-Bay (OAK) 18/1

Juaquan Iglesias (CHI) 30/1

Cornelius Ingram (PHI) 50/1

Rashad Jennings (JAC) 30/1

Johnny Knox (CHI) 40/1

Jeremy Maclin (PHI) 18/1

Mohamed Massaquoi (CLE) 30/1

LeSean McCoy (PHI) 12/1

Knowshon Moreno (DEN) 5/2

Hakeem Nicks (NYG) 18/1

Brandon Pettigrew (DET) 30/1

Brian Robiskie (CLE) 20/1

Mark Sanchez (NYJ) 7/1

Matthew Stafford (DET) 8/1

Jason Smith (STL) 40/1

Mike Thomas (JAC) 25/1

Patrick Turner (MIA) 50/1

Mike Wallace (PIT) 50/1

Chris Wells (ARI) 7/2

Pat White (MIA) 30/1

Field (Any Other Player) 9/1

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