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The Twins drafted Matt Wallner, a tall, lanky, right-handed pitcher from Forest Lake (MN) High School in 2016. He had just been named Mr. Minnesota as the top high school player in the state.
Following his junior year of high school, he had committed to play at the University of North Dakota. However, when the school eliminated their baseball program, Wallner went to Southern Mississippi. While he was used as a late-inning reliever, he became an All-American right away as a freshman. He put up big power numbers all three college seasons. When the 2019 draft came around, the Twins used their Competitive Balance pick (#39 overall) on the slugger.
After signing, Wallner went to Elizabethton and played in 53 games. He hit .269/.361/.452 (.813) with 18 doubles, six homers and 28 RBI. He was promoted to Cedar Rapids where he played in 12 games and in the Kernels ' playoff run.
For the efforts, Twins Daily named him the 2019 Twins Short-Season Hitter of the Year.
Recently, Wallner was in Ft. Myers to participate in the Twins Instructional League. We'll talk to him about the draft, his pro debut, a strange 2020 season and what lies ahead for him during the offseason.
Please watch LIVE at noon on the Twins Daily Twitter, Facebook or YouTube pages live. Also feel free to ask questions in the comments below or on those platforms during the show and we'll ask them.
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Here is the YouTube link:
More on Matt Wallner:
- Twins Select Minnesotan Matt Waller with 39th Pick (June 2019)
- Twins Bring Local Product Home: Q&A with Matt Wallner (June 2019)
- Twins 2019 Short-Season Hitter of the Year (Sept 2019)
- Episode 7: Get to Know Matt Wallner. (Nov 2019)
- Follow Matt on Twitter at @Matt_Wallner. .
Previous episodes
Episode 7: Matt Wallner
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