MatBatts

Guys in the first round or so have a much better idea of where they might go but after that, it's pretty much guesswork. Area scouts have minimal pull in the process and can only offer estimations to players they speak with.

I agree with Seth on this. Most college players wouldn't be able to attend due to postseason play and there isn't a ton to be seen for scouts that they haven't already seen at that point. From the medical standpoint, I do believe all of the top prospects (not sure how many) must submit to an MLB physical before the draft.

A year ago, Twins minor league left-hander Mat Batts was finishing his pitching career at UNC-Wilmington. Since then, he has pitched for the GCL Twins, Elizabethton Twins, Cedar Rapids Kernels and now the Ft. Myers Miracle.He's also been writing for Twins Daily this year. Today, he tells us about his MLB Draft experience.The MLB draft is unlike any other in professional sports, merging high school and college athletes together, some as many as six years apart in age. And of the more than 1,200 players drafted every June, it is widely known that a mere fraction will ever actually contribute to the major league club. Yet, every year organizations take on 30-40 fresh faces and new names, hoping that some day just a few of them will pan out to be the stars that we see on TV every night. It’s a double-edged sword in a sense from the player’s prospective. With the potential for 40 newly drafted players entering the organization every year, the minor leagues can seem like a crowded place. But for a large portion of us in minor league baseball, the size of the draft alone afforded us the opportunity to play our sport professionally—a luxury that many athletes in other sports can only dream of. For me, the draft was an opportunity to continue my baseball career, but it definitely wasn’t something that I was counting on. Coming into my senior year of college, I knew that it was a possibility, but I also had to plan for what to do if it didn’t happen. After graduation in May, with just a few weeks of college baseball remaining, I was applying for jobs just like any other college graduate with the hopes that I could push the real world aside for a few more years. Generally, professional area scouts give players their space during the course of the college season. You hear very little from them, and because of that, you have very little idea about when or if you might be drafted. At the end of my college season in late May it was much of the same. I had played my last game for UNCW, and potentially the last baseball game of my life, yet here I was, with a group of my teammates, also graduated seniors, throwing and running and preparing for a season that may or may not come. About a week before the draft, things began to pick up. I was getting a few phone calls a day from scouts asking if I was healthy (yes) and willing to accept the standard bonus of the senior-sign (of course). My family and I began to imagine which team it might be, which minor league town I might be shipped out to. It was one of the best weeks of my life. But at the same time, it could still easily go the other way. With so much talent across the country, most of them at least a couple years younger than me, I could still be passed over. During the first night of the draft I was glued to the TV, not as a player hopeful to see my name called, but as a fan watching the future of Major League Baseball, interested to see where they went. During the second day, rounds 3-10, I was hearing very little. Not that I expected to be taken that high, but I wanted some assurance from somebody that I would get an opportunity. Day three was a Saturday and my family had all planned to come meet me at the beach for the weekend. It was going to be either a celebration of the opportunity ahead of me or an enjoyable conclusion to my time in Wilmington before I headed towards the real world. I convinced myself that I was going to be fine with either. Rounds 11-40 were set to start a noon, with picks coming nearly simultaneously throughout the day. Again, I was hearing very little from the scouts that were in contact the week before. Still, though, I didn’t want to seem nervous. Finally, towards the end of the 16th round, my cell phone rang with a call from the local Baltimore Orioles scout. He assured me that I was their next pick, and asked me to stand by for his call once it was official. What a relief. I followed on the twitter tracker for the 17th round, waiting to see my name pop up, except when it did it was the Minnesota Twins and not the Orioles. The Twins scout called a moment later to let me know that they had indeed selected me with their 17th round pick. It was the perfect end to a process where so much uncertainty surrounds every pick and ultimately worked out better than I could have ever hoped. Click here to view the article

Thanks again for reading, everyone. Eric has really done a great job for us and makes coming the stadium every day a lot easier. I do not currently keep up a website of my own. Seth's bio on here is pretty detailed plus anything the Kernels have on our roster page. I hope this helps!

Mat Batts is a left-handed pitcher with the Cedar Rapids Kernels. He will be writing articles periodically at Twins Daily about life in the minor leagues. The left-hander was the Twins 17th round pick a year ago about of UNC-Wilmington. While in college, he spent time as an intern at Baseball America. This is his third Twins Daily article. He has written about the Kernels reading program and about having a big leaguers rehab with the minor league team. Today, he writes about an important part of any team, an unsung member of any team, the clubhouse attendant. Please feel free to comment below.For minor league baseball players every season, the clubhouse serves as your space to live and work and joke and play—your home away from home for the better part of each and every day. Here in Cedar Rapids, we are fortunate enough to enjoy a clubhouse that is well above the average for most A-ball teams around the country. But when the game is over, and out post game meals are finished, we are out the door, headed home for some rest. So whose job is it to make sure everything is ready to go again the next day? Meet Eric Oliver. Oliver, a retired school teacher, is working his first season for the Cedar Rapids Kernels and loving every minute of it. “The most fun part of the job is interacting with the ballplayers,” Oliver said. “It’s professional baseball and I have a passion for that.” After spending 34 years as a middle school physical education teacher, Oliver’s hand was forced when he was informed this would be that last year the school district would be offering a substantial health insurance plan for its retirees. After years of trying to find time to work with the Kernels in some capacity, Oliver saw a golden opportunity to both live and work around baseball while also satisfying his need to stay busy during retirement. “I’m a high energy person,” Oliver said, “and I don’t like a lot of down time. The thing I love about this job is you’re busy all day. You don’t have time to sit around and think about what’s wrong with life.” Busy would be an understatement for most of Oliver’s days during a home stand. On a typical game day, Oliver estimates that he arrives to stadium between 6-9 a.m. and leaves between 10 p.m. and midnight. Throughout the course of the day, it’s anyone’s guess as to what his responsibilities will be. From sorting and hanging laundry to stocking snacks and drinks to managing incoming mail and packages, Oliver is constantly on the go and willing to take on any odd job. In our most recent home series, Oliver could be found printing copies of pitching charts for the visiting Peoria pitchers who accidentally ran low. “This is a job you really can’t describe,” he said. “There is no job description. There was no training. Anything that pops up at any moment becomes your responsibly.” But the work doesn’t stop when we are on the road. Oliver generally spends about six hours working during most road trip days, using the absence of players and coaches to designate cleaning days for the floors and bathrooms around the clubhouse. Oliver anticipates that he will continue substitute teaching during the offseason, and will continue his involvement with Perfect Game’s local leagues with the hopes that he can stay active and working for another 15 years. He says that he will take his job with the Kernels one year at a time, making it clear, however, that he relates his time with the team much more closely to fun than to work. “I find myself sometime at 11 o’clock at night when everyone else has gone, and I’m sanitizing the shower, and I’m thinking, I probably have more education than anybody in the room, yet here I am sanitizing the shower. If it were anything else but baseball I wouldn’t want to be involved in some of the duties. But since its professional baseball, it’s special.” Click here to view the article

Thanks for the questions! I throw three pretty standard pitches with a fastball, change up and curveball. Like most everyone else in the lower levels of the minor leagues, it's really all about gaining experience and developing consistency. Most of us are focused on accumulating a full seasons worth of innings and understanding what it takes to remain healthy and effective during a full minor league season. Outside of that, most of our goals are pretty simple. Stats can always be misleading, especially in the minor leagues so we try not to get too bogged down by statistical goals. Throwing strikes and throwing differing pitches for strikes in many different counts/situations is really a top priority for us. This makes minor league baseball a little bit different than college baseball as it was always about winning first in college, with pitch development taking a back seat in most cases. I hope this helps. Thanks again for reading!

The best way I've had it put to me is that the minor leagues (especially the higher levels) are all about developing consistency. A lot of guys have pitches that could be deemed big-league ready, even in A ball. But the ability to throw those pitches in any count or situation is lacking. For the most part, we are all working on refining the skills and pitches that we have rather than coming up with new ones.

Yes, Ricky treated us to the post game meal. While they do an incredible job of taking care of our meals in Cedar Rapids, Ricky's prime rib was a much appreciated change.

Thank you both. I appreciate you guys reading!

It might be the highlight of the summer for fans in a minor league town. The chance to watch in person one of the stars for your favorite team, playing right here in your backyard.While all MLB teams would hope to avoid rehab appearances altogether for their big-league talent, it's inevitable that injuries will happen and thus rehabbing is necessary. In most cases rehabbing players are sent to the nearest minor league affiliate for a few tune-ups before they rejoin the team, but in some cases it can take more than one or two stops in the minor leagues for players to feel game-ready. There’s no denying the benefits that these appearances present for minor league teams that get the opportunity to showcase household MLB names playing in their stadiums. But there’s also no denying that the time spent in the minor leagues by MLB players is just as valuable to the minor leaguers as it is to the rehabbing player. Getting the chance to meet and watch a guy who is living the dream of all 25 guys in the clubhouse is nothing short of exciting and informative for all involved. This past weekend we hosted Twins starting pitcher Ricky Nolasco for a rehab start after his brief stint on the disabled list. For a few of us that played here last year, it was the second time meeting and seeing Nolasco throw for the Kernels, as he joined Joe Mauer last August for a week in Cedar Rapids. Both Nolasco and Mauer during their time with our team provided insight to what the major league lifestyle is really like. Watching the preparation of Nolasco before a start or his mental approach to minor league hitters can really help guys understand the importance of the little things we do every day. For our catchers, working with Nolasco before the game on his plan for the lineup and the pitches he wants to execute in certain situations allows for a better understanding of the game and the similarities between a big leaguer's pitching mentality and ours. In his latest start with us, Nolasco threw five innings and provided us all with a visual of how close—or how far—we are from making it. Without a dominant fastball, Nolasco has always had to rely on strong off-speed pitches and movement to get hitters out, and Sunday’s start was no different. He effectively threw four pitches in the strike zone whenever he wanted, nearly splitting the percentage of fastballs to off-speed pitches 50-50. While minor league pitchers can only dream of being able to locate four distinct pitches in any given outing, it was important for us to see the importance Nolasco placed on his pitch selection and location. I read a quote later in the day from Nolasco saying that the curveball was the most important pitch for him in terms of gauging his readiness for MLB hitters. Having had a good one that day, Nolasco assured reporters that he was healthy and ready to rejoin the team. Even though his, and most rehab stints by MLB players are short, they give minor leagues a boost in excitement during a long season and a glimpse at what we are all working for. Plus, that generous post-game spread was quite enjoyable. Click here to view the article

Thanks again for reading, everyone! It was indeed a rewarding experience and one that I hope to do again soon. John Curtiss enjoyed it so much that he was back on the list again two days later. They really do take care of us here in Cedar Rapids so any food coupons we get for these appearances are a nice bonus but in no way do we suffer.

Author’s Note: Thank you for checking out this story. My name is Mat Batts and I hope to bring you some stories and insight from the minor league lifestyle here on Twins Daily throughout the season. This will be my second season (first full) in the Twins organization and my second stint here in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. I look forward to getting to know a lot of you—online or in person—as we move forward this summer. I hope you enjoy!It’s no secret that player appearances can be, well, uncomfortable for players. Each affiliate will have its promotional staff post sign-up sheets in the clubhouse for various appearances and events, asking players to participate at least a few times during the season. Incentives for players can range from food vouchers and coupons to even a small cash payment at some levels. Even still, there’s hardly a mad rush to fill up the lines on each sheet. It’s not that players dislike being involved in the community or meeting their fans and neighbors. But in most cases player appearances can tend toward the awkward side of things for both the players and group or event at hand. Very few of us are trained public speakers and even fewer have experience teaching or leading young children. Not to mention the timing of most of these events takes place in the mornings, most likely after a night game, or even a road game. I know, sounds torturous, right? Well, during our first few days here in Iowa, we were given the speech and expectations. First up was the Kernels Reading Program. Sign up with a teammate to travel to two schools one morning and talk about the importance of reading and end the seminar with the reading of a short children’s book. John Curtiss and I decided why not knock it out and sign up for the first appearance. And there we are, in front of 400 kindergarten-second graders and later 400 more third-fifth graders, reading Quacky Baseball and offering the students an opportunity to take part in an incentive-based reading program with the Cedar Rapids Kernels. Leaving those two schools, I have to admit my perception of the player appearances could not have been more off. In just two hours John and I, along with Kernels Community Relations staff member Ryne George, had reached nearly 800 students discussing the importance of daily reading in their lives. Students are offered the chance to log reading minutes with goals and incentives at each 250-minute level. Ryne and his staff hope to reach more than 20,000 students across Cedar Rapids and Iowa City this season. The Twins and their affiliates are no strangers to community service projects during the season. In fact, the Twins have even established a yearly award named in honor of the infamously charitable Harmon Killebrew to recognize one player at each minor league level for superior community service involvement during the season. This award, named along with the Twins minor league pitcher and players of the year awards, gives players a competitive edge to an already rewarding system established here in Cedar Rapids and elsewhere throughout the organization. Click here to view the article

Author’s Note: Thank you for checking out this story. My name is Mat Batts and I hope to bring you some stories and insight from the minor league lifestyle here on Twins Daily throughout the season. This will be my second season (first full) in the Twins organization and my second stint here in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. I look forward to getting to know a lot of you—online or in person—as we move forward this summer. I hope you enjoy! It’s no secret that player appearances can be, well, uncomfortable for players. Each affiliate will have their promotional staff post sign up sheets in the clubhouse for various appearances and events, asking players to participate at least a few times during the season. Incentives for players can range from food vouchers and coupons to even a small cash payment at some levels. Even still, there’s hardly a mad rush to fill up the lines on each sheet. It’s not that players dislike being involved in the community or meeting their fans and neighbors. But in most cases player appearances can tend toward the awkward side of things for both the players and group or event at hand. Very few of us are trained public speakers and even fewer have experience teaching or leading young children. Not to mention the timing of most of these events takes place in the mornings, most likely after a night game, or even a road game. I know, sounds torturous, right? Well, during our first few days here in Iowa, we were given the speech and expectations. First up was the Kernels Reading Program. Sign up with a teammate to travel to two schools one morning and talk about the importance of reading and end the seminar with the reading of a brief children’s book. John Curtiss and I decided why not knock it out and sign up for the first appearance. And there we are, in front of 400 kindergarten-second graders and later 400 more third-fifth graders, reading Quacky Baseball and offering the students an opportunity to take part in an incentive-based reading program with the Cedar Rapids Kernels. Leaving those two schools, I have to admit my perception of the player appearances could not have been more off. In just two hours John and I, along with Kernels Community Relations staff member Ryne George had reached nearly 800 students discussing the importance of daily reading in their lives. Students are offered the chance to log reading minutes with goals and incentives at each 250-minute level. Ryne and his staff hope to reach more than 20,000 students across Cedar Rapids and Iowa City this season. The Twins and their affiliates are no strangers to community service projects during the season. In fact, the Twins have even established a yearly award named in honor of the infamously charitable Harmon Killebrew to recognize one player at each minor league level for superior community service involvement during the season. This award, named alongside the Twins minor league pitcher and players of the year awards, gives players a competitive edge to an already rewarding system established here in Cedar Rapids and elsewhere throughout the organization.