2019 MWBL RE-DRAFT – (WHAT SHOULD HAVE HAPPENED)
Mid-West Baseball League Commissioner’s Office – Report submitted by Chris DeMecurio – Corktown Cycle. – July 11th, 2026.
The rules are simple. I selected a player to draft with each pick in the 1st round of the 2019 MWBL Draft, from among the players selected in that round. Minor league players had to make it up by the end of the 2021 season, or it would be a waste of a pick, no matter how good they were. Remember, it’s impossible to know what each owner would have done with a chance to re-draft, so I did my best to blend each player’s actual MLB career with their MWBL career and remaining potential. Let’s keep in mind this was for fun. With that said, go ahead and share your thoughts, and rip on some of my re-draft picks, but more importantly, feel free to call out owners for their actual picks.
1. Tijuana Bottle Rockets (From Long Beach) – Bobby Witt Jr. SS HS – Dave Myers had a slew of draft picks in 2019, including the top 2 picks. Witt is a very unique situation before the Bonus Baby (That Myers proposed). COVID in 2020 gave us all an extra year of eligibility. Witt was called up in 2022, so this extra year played, thus earning the top spot in this redraft, and the best value we have ever seen with the top pick in the redraft process. Actual Pick – Nick Senzel 3B CIN (Actual Witt Rd 10 #272 to Detroit)
2. Tijuana Bottle Rockets (From Mesa) – Cal Raleigh C SEA – Tijuana could take the rest of the draft off after grabbing Witt and Raleigh at the top. To be fair, Myers found a lot of talent in this draft overall. This would have paid off big time. Cal Raleigh is having a down 2026, but his 2025 more than makes up for it all. He’s not just doing it with the bat; he has a Gold Glove in his trophy case as well. Another amazing late-round pick to kick things off. The Actual pick will haunt the Bottle Rockets forever. Gambled on a kid that looked like it was going to pay off. Until….. Actual Pick – Wander Franco SS TB (Actual Raleigh Rd 9 #226 to Long Beach)
3. Fremont Cannons (From Southwest Detroit) – Logan Webb P SF – There are some very solid starting pitchers in this draft. None of them have been more consistent than Logan Webb. From his 2020 season until now, he sports an ERA of 3.20/1.16 WHIP. Just for fun, he has a Gold Glove in his mix. Though he hasn’t won, in the past 4 seasons he finished with votes for the Cy Young. Including a 2nd place finish in 2023. Let’s give Peter some major probs. He found Webb and Raleigh in the 9th round! That is a career’s worth of amazing 9th-round picks landed in the same draft. Actual Pick – Joey Bart C SF (Actual Webb Rd 9 #247 to Long Beach. LBD 2nd redrafted player)
4. Rosemere Renegades – Austin Riley 3B ATL – We finally found an actual 1st-round pick. A player this good must have gone to a struggling team trying to rebuild. Maybe Tijuana with four 1st-round picks? Or Coconut Creek who had 3 1sts. It actually went to the league’s powerhouse in Tempe! Chris found Riley at 13 overall. Riley wasn’t hiding under a blanket either. Most had him high on their draft boards as he was a redraft that didn’t get called up from 2016. For Chris. ultimately the rich got richer in the mid-1st. Actual Pick – Eric Lauer P SD (Actual Riley Rd 1 #13 to Tempe)
5. Southbend Lynx – Max Muncy – 1B LAD – Sometimes I am swayed by the actual pick. I had Muncy in the next group of 3 players, but the fact Southbend actually took him here made it an easy keep. Not to mention, it comes with 225 Home Runs since 2018 and an impressive WAR near 30. Muncy is not done yet. At 35, he is on pace for another 30-home-run season. Actual pick – Max Muncy
6. Coconut Creek Crushers (From Portland) – Will D. Smith, C, LAD – Smith has done it on both sides of the plate since entering the league in 2019. A WAR reaching 24 and 3 All-Star nods is quite the resume. Being a catcher and having this resume keeps him above the next position player on the list. Another great pick in the top 6. Will Smith went in the 2nd half of the draft. Actual Pick – Josh James P HOU (Actual Smith Rd 7 # 193 to Dallas)
7. Chicago Mobsters (Via Coconut Creek) – C.J. Abrams SS HS – Oftentimes, Stray winds up with the final selection in the draft. In 2019, Sergio went wild, drafting a High Schooler with the final selection. This was before the Bonus Baby, so it would have taken a miracle for Abrams to make it up. The COVID rule is very much in play, as Abrams makes the cut and takes the best overall pick value in our short redraft history. Abrams is only 25 years old and has the tools to jump into the top 3 when it’s all said and done. At least Detroit got Daniel Hudson for Abrams. Actual Pick Casey Mize P DET (Actual Abrams Rd 12 #336 to Detroit. 2nd redrafted for DET)
8. Selkirk Steelers – Dylan Cease P CWS – This draft class has a really nice group of starting pitchers. Cease’s good years have been great. As he enters his thirties, he doesn’t look like he is slowing down. The mustache puts him over the top. The best part is this was his original landing spot, and I didn’t realize until I started this summary. Actual Pick – Dylan Cease P CWS
9. Harsens Island Walleye – Adley Rutschman C CLG – Every once in a while you find a can’t-miss catcher. Adley was one of those guys, and he continues to deliver on both sides of the plate. He is 28 and already has a Silver Slugger. I see consistent 20+ Home Run seasons in his future. Great pick at 10 overall, moving up 1 slot in the redraft. Actual Pick – Victor Victor Mesa OF MIA (Actual Rutschman Rd 1 #10 to Yonge Street)
10. Yonge Street Stalkers – Freddy Peralta P MIL – A few of the arms in the draft can be interchangeable. I gave the nod to Freddy here because you can’t take away what he’s already done. At over 1,250 strikeouts, he leads all pitchers in this draft. On paper, he is having the worst season in the past 7 years, but he is also wearing a Mets jersey. Still can’t deny that 1.19 career WHIP. It felt like Peralta was under the radar before his move to NY. Actual Pick- Adley Rutschman C CLG (Actual Peralta Rd 2 #32 to Southbend)
11. Corktown Cycle – Logan Gilbert P SEA – Many starting pitchers are worthy in this draft. One of them is not named Brett Honeywell, who Corktown took with the 11th pick back in 2019. Gilbert is one of the youngest pitchers in this redraft and is approaching 1,000 punchouts, with a career ERA of 3.55 and a 1.05 WHIP. Actual Pick – Brent Honeywell P TB (Actual Gilbert Rd 6 #141 to Rosmere)
12. Southwest Detroit Fighting Chihuahuas (From Fremont) – Framber Valdez P HOU – It’s hard to believe you can get a lefty with a few dominant seasons at 12 overall. It’s been mentioned, but this redraft is full of talent found in every round. Warning to future owners: do not utilize the skip picks. Miz thought he landed a star when Chris Paddack was called up right away and had a fine rookie campaign. Actual Pick – Chris Paddack P SD (Actual Valdez Rd 2 #48 to Chicago)
13. Tempe Tempers (From Triple Creek – Andres Munoz P SD – I always seem to drop the elite relievers in these redrafts). This year is loaded with both position players and starters, so Munoz at 13 becomes a steal. From 2022-2025, Munoz threw 56 innings, averaging 77 strikeouts and posting a 2.29 ERA and 1.02 WHIP. Tempe maneuvering to land both Munoz and Riley in the draft is impressive. We know relievers can blow up at any time in their careers, but knowing he is only 27 years old is sure exciting. Actual Pick – Austin Riley (Actual Munoz rd 6 #158 to Tempe. 2nd redraft for TEM)
14. Manhattan Project – Nico Hoerner SS CHC – There are so many different directions I could have gone here. Jazz and Brandon Lowe are both on the board, but I went with the high defensive upside here. Hoerner already has 2 Gold Gloves under his belt, and he is great on the base paths. How about 143 stolen bases and a WAR near 24 in his young career? The actual pick here was Jonathan India, who won Rookie of the Year. Was looking like an easy top 10 redraft pick after 1 season. Actual Pick – Jonathan India 3B CIN (Actual Hoerner Rd 1 #28 to Coconut Creek)
15. Virginia Slugger – Jazz Chisholm SS ARI – Jazz has the tools, and sometimes it looks like it’s all together, and then something like the average drops. His Silver Slugger award proves this. He is still 28 and is coming off a 31/31 season. He seems to have found a home at 2B but has also spent time in the outfield and at SS. Actual Pick – Triston McKenzie P CLE (Actual Chisolm Rd 2 # 49 to Corktown)
16. Long Beach Dirt Bags (From Pittsburgh) – Brandon Lowe 2B TB – Another great middle IF player in the top 15. Lowe was actually a carded player going a little under the radar back in 2019. This was back when the Rays were hoarding Lowes. A typical target of the Fighting Chihuahuas was to take MLB-ready talent. Lowe did not disappoint with his 2nd round selection. Lowe has 177 blasts, including 20 already in 2026. Actual Pick – Anibal Sanchez P WAS (Actual Lowe Rd 2 #30 to Southwest Detroit)
17. Selkirk Steelers (From Motor City) – Oneil Cruz, OF, PIT – I still feel we are waiting for Cruz to break out as a star. At 27, he is putting together what looks to be his best season in the bigs. Nobody hits the ball harder, and he is a freak of an athlete putting up 20+ stolen bases a season. His defense needs to improve as he posts plenty of errors in the outfield. I know that, on paper, most people would rank Cruz much higher than this. It is entirely fair to make such a claim, and I can’t wait to see how his future plays out. Actual Pick – Brad Keller P KC (Actual Cruz Rd 5 #133 to Tempe… 3rd redraft pick for TEM)
18. Valdosta Snappers – Pablo Lopez P MIA – Lopez has always been consistent. From an ERA/WHIP/Strikeout standpoint, he probably belongs with the group of starters who went 10-12. Playing with the Twins hasn’t helped, though. Aside from 2021, when he pitched a little over 100 innings, Lopez has never separated himself as an Ace. He is still 30, and putting together an All-Star campaign so far in 2026. I wouldn’t be shocked if we saw a new jersey on Lopez within a few weeks. Actual Pick Brad Keller P KC (Actual Lopez Rd 3 #70 to Manhattan)
19. Jersey Nor’Easters – Jeff McNeil, 2B, NYM – McNeil isn’t a particularly sexy pick in round 1. Especially surrounded by all these big names and arms. But how can we deny that, in this era of hitting, he has batted over .300 4 times in his career, including a batting title! He will always give you a solid 2B card on top of that. Plug-and-play guy. The actual pick here was Pudge’s kid who came off a big rookie campaign in 2018. He was on everybody’s draft board, and fell flat after that. Actual Pick – Dereck Rodriguez P SF (Actual McNeil Rd 1 #22 to Bethesda)
20. Detroit Crime – Liam Hendriks P OAK – Could Detroit picking here have swayed me to go best available reliever over another position? The answer is yes. I think it’s fun to give Serg a great arm in his pen as he likely would have done here. Why Hendriks? From 2019-2022, he had a WHIP of 0.88! That is four full seasons of unhittability, including an 85-inning, 124-strikeout season in 2019. Actual Pick- Seranthony Dominguez PHI (Actual Hendriks Rd 10 #222 to Columbus)
21. Hollywood Werewolves – Ranger Suarez P PHI – Suarez may have finally hit his peak. That is saying a lot considering he already has a career 800+ strikeouts and a 3.33 ERA. Boston paid for him, and that seems to be paying off for them. He is on pace for his 2nd All-Star appearance. I thought about going with the much older Merril Kelly here, who is already on the Werewolves roster, but Suarez gives him the same 2026 card, and he is 7 years younger. I like this fit. Actual Pick – Diego Castillo P TB (Actual Suarez Rd 2 #31 to Southwest Detroit. 2nd redraft pick for SWD)
22. Bethesda Bandicoots – Merrill Kelly P ARI – Gotta give Kelly his due. A pitcher who seemed like he would never see his day in the show finally came back at age 30 to make his debut. Since then, he has been closing in on the 1,000-strikeout mark, with an impressive 3.92 ERA and 1.22 WHIP. Kelly is 37 but still worthy of a roster spot and a top-28 redraft pick. Nik ends up rolling the dice on Kelly with a 7th-round pick, and it pays off. Actual Pick – Jeff McNeil 2B NYM (Actual Kelly Rd 7 179 to Bethesda. 2nd redraft pick for BET)
23. Tijuana Bottle Rockets – Cedric Mullins OF BAL – It is hard to believe this is Myers’ first redraft pick when he had 7 selections in the top 52. They weren’t all busts either. A lot of players like Mullins who are reliable APBA players. Mullins checks a lot of boxes. He has the 5 tools, but doesn’t always apply them together. His 2021 campaign was really impressive, batting .291 and having his only career 30/30 year. I have 5 players listed for Tijuana, including his actual selection here at 23, so I don’t want to crush him because he drafted a convicted felon at 2 overall. Actual Pick – KeBryan Hayes 3B PIT (Actual Mullins Rd 3 #59 to Tijuana)
24. Tijuana Bottle Rockets (From Tempe) – Josh Naylor 1B SD – Naylor isn’t going 24th any other year. Myers could have walked away from round 1 with Bobby Witt, Cal Raleigh, Cedric Mullins and Josh Naylor. Naylor is coming off his best season as a pro, but what may turn heads the most was his 30 stolen bases with only 2 caught. Teams just forget about him. I almost gave Myers Paredes here, which would have completed the back-to-back redraft combo for him, but I couldn’t let Naylor fall any more. Actual Pick – A.J. Puk P OAK (Actual Naylor Rd 3 #64 to Harsens Island)
25. Dallas Cougars – Isaac Paredes, SS, DET – If you’re looking for a 100+ home run guy who hits it to left field every single time, Paredes is your guy. I may have short-changed Paredes since he is only 27. He is on pace for a near-100-RBI season and 25 dingers again. His average has improved slightly from his first couple years in the bigs. I think every team would be happy to have this bat in their lineup. Actual Pick – Logan Allen P SD (Actual Paredes Rd 3 #79 to Tijuana. 2nd redraft pick for TIJ)
26. Hollywood Werewolves (From Columbus) – Shane McClanahan P TB – Where does this land without injuries? With a Career 3.03 ERA, McClanahan has everything you want. Strong arm, lots of punchouts (533 in 484 innings). Knock on wood, but it looks like he is healthy and dealing again in 2026. His strikeouts are down a tick, but his command is still where it needs to be. At age 29, Shane has plenty of time to climb this list. I went with McClanahan here over the big bat in Garcia because this was a Steve selection. Just 10 rounds later. Actual Pick – Richard Rodriguez P PIT (Actual McClanahan Rd 10 #255 to Hollywood)
27. Coconut Creek Crushers (From Chicago) – Adolis Garcia OF STL- Garcia had a breakout campaign in 2023 with 39 bombs helping propel the Rangers to a World Series title. He brings 2 All-Star appearances in MLB and MWBL, along with a Gold Glove in each league. Garcia’s average has dropped a little each of the past 3 seasons and is currently batting under the Mendoza line in Philly. His 150 home runs and defense make him worthy of a spot in this redraft. Actual Pick – Adrian Morejon P SD (Actual Garcia Rd 5 #136 to Tempe. 4th redraft pick for TEM)
28. Coconut Creek Crushers (From Sacramento) – Nate Lowe, 1B, TB – Back-to-back big bats and former Rangers teammates to end the redraft for Coconut Creek. I went back and forth with this last pick for a while. Here is why Lowe lands at 28. Consistent 5 1B card each year with a WAR of 13. Actual Pick – Nico Hoerner SS CHC (Actual Lowe Rd 2 #46 to Corktown. 2nd redraft for CRK)
Tijauna had players like Ke’Bryan Hayes, Isaiah Kiner-Falefa, and even a player he selected in the top 2 that shall not get his props. Players such as Jonathan India (Manhattan) and Gavin Lux (Harsens Island), who likely would have made this redraft in most years, had to be cut. I put the numbers together for the veterans Matt Boyd (Jersey) and Wade Miley (Tempe), and they were good enough to be in the conversation with double-digit WAR since 2018! Normally that gets it done for any starting pitcher. My final cut was Casey Mize (Chicago), who has yet to put together a 150+ inning season but could finally be a #2 if he can stay healthy for once. Other arms such as Jeffrey Springs (Harsens Island) and Clay Holmes (Triple Creek) were in the same boat. A fellow teammate of Lowe, Josh Jung (Dallas), is trying to prove me wrong with his 2026 campaign. At #296 overall, Motor City selected Brice Turang. Even with the extra year, he did not make it up in time for the 2019 redraft.
Redraft By The Numbers:
-Tempe led the way with 4 redraft picks for the 2nd consecutive year (4 in 2018).
-Southwest Detroit, Bethesda, Corktown, Tijauna, Long Beach, and Detroit all had a pair of picks redrafted.
-Chicago, Southbend, Selkirk, Dallas, Yonge Street, Coconut Creek, Rosemere, and Columbus, Harsend Island, Manhattan all had 1.