The main area of the Dodgers’ "war room" was empty 90 minutes prior to Major League Baseball’s annual First-Year Player Draft. Huddled behind closed doors on the eighth floor at Dodger Stadium this morning were scouting director Logan White and his staff, armed with cell phones for down-to-the-wire strategy sessions.

Baseball America magazine predicted the Dodgers would choose pitcher Texas high school pitcher Clayton Kershaw with the No. 7 overall pick. But it’s nearly impossible to predict the exact order of selections, as other teams use different methods of evaluation, such as need by position and signability.

After the first six picks, Kershaw was still on the board and White selected Kershaw, a 6-foot-3, 210-pound left-hander. With the No. 26 pick, the Dodgers selected Tennessee community college pitcher Bryan Morris.

Fans will have an opportunity to see the final list of team-by-team selections on MLB.com. But the real drama is watching the emotions felt by White and the other scouts as other teams make their respective selections. Despite tracking and identifying blue-chip prospects during the year, there’s a feeling of helplessness and worry when waiting for the team ahead of you to make their selection. And your supposed "sleeper" prospect might be rated higher on another team’s list.

As White and his scouts sit around a conference table, there is a gallery area for other executives to watch, including Dodger Chairman Frank McCourt. The amateur prospects’ names, placed on individual tags on a magnetic board in various categories, are removed by scout Artie Harris as the draft progresses for the 50 rounds. Every scout also has a laptop computer, along with other printouts and information.