Hoyer scouting players for next month's Draft

ST. LOUIS -- Cubs general manager Jed Hoyer will be attending some conference baseball tournaments next week as the team continues its preparations for the June 5 First-Year Player Draft. The Cubs have the fourth pick overall.

"Everything starts to come into focus more and you start to get more excited about it," said Hoyer, who will take part in meetings with scouts and other front-office staff next week.

There's been a lot of talk about the Cubs' prospects such as Kris Bryant, last year's No. 2 overall pick, as well as about who the team will select next month.

"I think I'll be really happy when we talk about our team only," Hoyer said of the big league team, which closes a rain-shortened series with the Cardinals on Thursday. "I totally understand why people want to talk about the future and why people want to ask about our prospects and ask about the Draft.

"We are building for the future. [The media] asks me at the Trade Deadline -- I can't wait for you to ask me about who we're going to acquire and not who we're going to trade. It's understandable. Hopefully we evolve past that, and we stop talking about guys in Triple-A and Double-A and we talk about last night's game."