Twins Video
Jay still needs to sign, but once that formality is taken care of, his future role becomes the hot topic. He worked almost exclusively as a reliever during his career at the University of Illinois, and while he was perhaps the most dominant collegiate closer in the nation this year, he has no experience handling a full-time starter's workload.
Terry Ryan stated that he plans to keep Jay in a relief role for the remainder of this season, but the team has expressed commitment to giving him a shot as a starter going forward. That makes sense; rarely does a club use a Top 10 draft pick on a pitcher who is designated a reliever right out of the gates, and many (though not all) scouts do believe that Jay could start thanks to his deep pitch repertoire, exceptional command and easy throwing motion.
A successful path might mirror that of Tyler Duffey, who currently ranks as one of the organization's most MLB-ready pitching prospects. Duffey was the closer for Rice University before being selected by the Twins in the fifth round of the 2012 draft, and finished out that year as a reliever at Elizabethton after signing, but he moved to full-season ball in 2013 and 18 of his 24 appearances came as a starter. He has been starting exclusively since then and has really taken to it, as he's now in Triple-A with a decent shot at debuting in the majors this summer.
Duffey, like nearly every top starter in the Twins' system, is a righty. The only left-handers that ranked among my top eight pitching prospects a few weeks ago were Taylor Rogers, who's known more for polish and command than overpowering stuff, and Stephen Gonsalves, a 20-year-old who is still likely several years away from the majors.
As a potentially fast-tracked lefty power arm, Jay would provide something that is currently amiss for the Twins if he can start. But he would also do so by remaining in his familiar relief role, and in that capacity he would be geared for a much faster impact with fewer foreseeable obstacles.
While the Twins' bullpen has been surprisingly effective this year, it is lacking quality left-handed options. Brian Duensing has been terrible and is probably in his last year with the club. Aaron Thompson and Caleb Thielbar are nothing special. And while the Twins have numerous high-upside relievers developing in the minors, nearly all them throw from the right side.
Jay has a chance to fill that void on the big-league club and he has a chance to do it very quickly. Baseball America suggested that the 21-year-old "could be the first player from the draft class to reach the majors if he stays in a relief role."
Consider that Brandon Finnegan, the college reliever selected 17th overall by the Royals last year, was up in the majors pitching key innings in September and October, and most consider Jay a superior talent.
The Royals sent Finnegan back to the minors to work on starting this year, but the results so far haven't been great, as his control has been a mess and he has yet to complete even five innings in a start. And while Duffey has been a success story up to this point, he's been the exception. Countless other college relievers that the Twins have drafted with thoughts of being converted to starters have failed to stick.
Attempting to move Jay into a starting role means gradually extending out his workload (his 66 innings this year are the most he's thrown in a high school or college season) and acclimating his arm to a very set of different demands. It's certainly not impossible, but it could be a lengthy process and the odds aren't stellar. Conversely, he could be pitching in a big-league bullpen by the end of the year and his chances of excelling in that role seem extremely good.
Obviously Jay would offer much more value as a starter if it worked out, but a lefty reliever who can dominate hitters from both sides and pitch multiple innings is a quality asset, and for what it's worth the Twins have built considerable starting pitching depth in the minors, which they have added to with some other picks in this draft.
What do you think? Would you try Jay as a starter, or would you rather commit to him as a reliever with the idea of getting him up to the big leagues, for good, as quickly as possible?
MORE FROM TWINS DAILY
— Latest Twins coverage from our writers
— Recent Twins discussion in our forums
— Follow Twins Daily via Twitter, Facebook or email
— Become a Twins Daily Caretaker
Recommended Comments
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.