MLB Draft: Eight Names to Know

It is so hard to predict if the three teams above us will go with pitchers or hitters.  The sweet spot for pitchers seems to start around pick 10.  If you want to grab one of the better pitchers you need to do it then as it looks like slim pickings by the time you get to pick again.

The thing is their is some interesting talent in the 9-16 range and I can't make up my mind who the Twins should pick at 13?  All I know is that they will get a very good player with that pick.

Personally I would like them to go with a pitcher with the first pick as they have been able to identify bats in the later rounds.  The problem comes if teams that pick 9-12 decide to to take pitchers then there will be better position players that fall to our spot as well.  So whats the right thing to do I have no idea at this point.

If Stot or Langeliers falls to 13 it would be hard to pass on either one.  If Manoah were to fall to 13 then he would be hard to pass up as well.  It is hard to say what the Twins will do.  I just hope they make a good choice.  They should be in a good spot to get some good talent again this year.

College pitcher or big-time bat, I hope. I know only the toolsy guys tend to go super early. But I, for one, will not be upset if we take a bat with true top-end potential with number 13...regardless of where he projects defensively. We've got enough toolsy middle infielders and center-field types in the system who may or may not hit. What we don't have much of are guys that can flat out rake. If dude ends up being a 1B/DH only, so be it.

Given what I've seen happen this season, I would let Wes Johnson decide which draftable pitchers he thinks he could build into stars. Hand this man an entire draft of pitchers, see what he can do. 

What's Matt Wallner up to this year? He and Michael Busch were two Minnesota kids thought to potentially be first-round candidates this year. 

I've mocked Wallner to the Rays more than once this spring. He's not getting a ton of traction in first/comp discussion, though. I think he'll be a first-day pick, with the Rays a big fan (which makes sense), and a range of 35-75 for his draft area, but there are a lot of guys who fit in that range this year.

Just going by heights and weights Malone seems like he has a good build, 6'3" 205 lbs. Thompson seems kind of skinny, and Manoah looks already pretty heavy. But opting for the high school guy is always the riskier choice, as we've seen. So, while I prefer a pitcher, none of these seems ideal.

 

The two shortstops seem fine, with Stott being a little tall for the position at 6'3", but certainly there have been good ones at that height. The younger one isn't enough better to justify the age-risk, to my mind. Busch's lack of a good defensive reputation means his bat needs to be off the charts, and I'm not sure that's really the book on him.

 

Langeliers is intriguing at catcher. While we have a few good guys in the pipeline, I'm not sure it's ever a problem to have too many. But I've expounded at length on why I would resist ever again taking a catcher with a first round pick, and I'll leave it at that.

 

Misner doesn't seem like he excels in any particular area, nor does he have a particular weakness.

 

I don't see a compelling choice among these, but I guess I'd take the SS Stott, or the pitcher Manoah.

Busch is an excellent athlete. He's just played first with the Tar Heels. He's done a lot of work in the outfield this spring, but mostly in practice, and scouts are reporting that he's looked very comfortable, especially in the corners.

Misner's not hit since the SEC season began. Unless he's signing well below slot, he shouldn't be in consideration at 13.

Two guys that I've heard a lot of tie to the Twins on have been finishing well. One Jeremy mentioned here in Langeliers, and the other is Josh Jung of Texas Tech, who's slugged nearly .900 since the first weekend of April, spanning 72 at bats, with nearly twice as many walks as strikeouts, and he's been getting a lot better grades on his defense as the year goes on at the hot corner.