RJA

I for one would love an article on possibilities at 48 if the Twins go under slot at 8. Can never have too much draft coverage?!

Good player summary, Jamie. I am with you—if one of the top 7 drop, grab them. But, if that doesn’t happen, I would take Neto over Berry. I always look to the Cape Cod performances, as they take away the aluminum bat factor, and you can see how a player does with wood against first class competition, and he did well. If they could get him under slot, that would be even better. I think there will be a run on arms in the second and third rounds and some extra cash would help.

I would welcome some of these players but at what cost? Personally, I would focus on players on expiring contracts like Robertson, Bard, Fulmer, Chafin, etc. who have experience pitching in high leverage spots and in the postseason if possible. Only If one of the young studs is available on a good deal and not an overpay would I consider them.

Good summary of the pros and cons on Berry. I wouldn’t draft him as a bat only player (especially this high) UNLESS the Twins are confident they can make him at least an average defender at some position. Allocating one roster spot to a player who can only DH makes no sense as it makes it difficult to rotate players through the position to give them a day off, when coming back from injury, etc. It effectively makes your roster one man smaller. At 8, I would look for the best high potential player with great tools left on the board.

Thanks for the summary, Matt. That is the best showing by Lares this year. He’s small—6ft and 150 pounds—but is still young. Pretty impressive to strike 17 plus per nine. I hope Cave can get an opportunity with some team this year. He is playing his heart out.

I would certainly be willing to look at all options, but I think the Twins need to add one or two lockdown relievers on expiring contracts—Robertson, Bard, etc—to add to Duran and Jax to compete in the playoffs. I wouldn’t rely on young players with limited experience and no playoff experience to face the Yankees and Astros in the 6th-9th innings. And, needless to say, it would help us get to the playoffs.

Nice summary, Seth. Three thoughts. First, many people are down on Cave but I respect him for going down and playing his butt off (and doing well) to try to get back to the bigs. It shows character. Second, Helman is quietly putting together a good year. He is another one off those under the radar prospects who works hard to improve and has. Finally, I agree that Henriquez has great stuff. I have seen him once live, and on MiLB TV and if he can harness his control and find his spots, he could be special. After all, he is only 22 years old pitching at AAA, so he has some time to put all the pieces together.

I think bouncing pitchers back and forth is not as big a deal for experienced players who have had some MLB experience, but it is much more disruptive for rookies getting their first taste of the majors. Ideally, they will leave him down so he can develop some rhythm and bring him back when he will have some defined role. I think the pitches are there for him to be successful.

Great article, exhaustive list. I would consider the Twins needs to be relief pitcher one, relief pitcher two, and a starter in that order. I think the cost of adding relief pitchers with many years of control--like Bednar--would be extremely high, so I would concentrate on rental pieces that are having good years like Robertson, Bard, Bass, Fullmer, etc. I wouldn't trade top prospects for relief pitchers, even if they have many years of control. Fullmer and Bass have each given up only 1 homerun in 25-30 innings pitched. Given the propensity that some Twins relievers have to surrender homeruns, that would be a plus, especially in games where the Twins have 2 or 3 run leads late. It is much harder to score multiple runs late without the support of the long ball. As for starters, the price will be so high for Montas and Castillo that I would be surprised if the Twins pulled the trigger, and lesser arms would be no better than what they have. Fix the bullpen first.

Great article. I love mock drafts. They are great conversation starters. I have three comments. First, if the Nats do take Berry, then the Twins will have a shot at one of what are generally considered the top 7 players in the draft regardless of which one is left on the board when they pick. I have not seen Berry listed as one of the top 7 in many mock drafts. Second, like everyone else, I love Collier, but I think with the helium around him now there is no way he drops to 8. Finally, like Dman and others on this site, I think highly of Neto, so if the Nats don't take Berry, I could see the Twins moving in that direction. I am looking forward to v3.0.

Great thought piece, Jamie. If what you say about the top five is true, and I would agree wholeheartedly they are the top 5 (with Collier, just maybe, comprising a top 6), and you add Parada to make it a top 7, then it only requires one team ahead of the Twins to make an "unusual" pick for the Twins to get one of the top 7. If that were to happen, I would expect the Twins to choose whichever player drops down unexpectedly. If the top 7 go as predicted, then I would agree with Dman and look carefully at Neto, or maybe Young. I think the future of baseball is going to involve more contact, especially if shifts are banned or restricted. I agree with Law that Berry has no position in the bigs, and while it looks like Lesko could be special, I don't think they will go with a HS righthander coming off Tommy John. Generally, I would look for toolsy players with the defensive chops to be a good big league defender at whatever position he plays.

I think Vanimal is spot on in his lists and assessments. For me, I would prefer two rentals who are lockdown types with high leverage situational experience to go with Duran, and Jax who I think is underrated, as the Twins can always compete for them next off season in free agency and the prospect costs would be less.

It all depends on the cost of acquisition. Bullpen help is certainly needed, and if he could be picked up at a very low prospect cost, he is worth it methinks. His BAbip this year is something like .500 which is like 200 points higher than any previous year. But, his hard hit percentage is up this year as well. His splits home and away are pretty even and his BAbip and ERA are both a tad lower away. As his salary is 3 million this year and likely to go up in arbitration next year, the A's may be willing to deal.

I think it is too early to look at anything until we see if they add a Montas or Castillo, and see how Ober and Ryan pan out over the whole season. Plenty of time to think about it in the fall depending on how things go.

The 13th Amendment has nothing to do with this situation, This would be governed by breach of contract law. Specific performance of employment contracts is rare as it is considered bad policy to force someone to work with someone with whom may they have issues. But, specific performance can be granted if the party to the contract has a unique skill--say Picasso painting a portrait, or if there are other extenuating circumstances which make specific performance necessary. One could argue that leaving a team in mid season during a pennant race when finding a substitute is nearly impossible is an extenuating circumstance, especially when LSU is not currently in season. He could effectively recruit while he was employed by the Twins if the Twins permitted it--which I am confident they would have. But, if that is not the case, the party would still forfeit his salary, and in a lawsuit the party would be liable for damages including for any harm caused by his breach, especially if the Twins including the difference in salary if a replacement is hired at higher salary, as well as any other damages the Twins could prove. The reality of the matter is that whatever remedies exist at law are not relevant as the PR fallout of pursuing a remedy by the Twins would be disastrous. But, it still does not mean he was not legally and morally bound to honor the terms of the contract. If he had a clause allowing him to leave, that would be a different matter. Enough of this topic. It is too esoteric for a baseball site :).

The question is what is another industry. If being a pitching coach at LSU is another industry, he may not be subject to lateral move restrictions. Though if he had a written contract and he walked away midseason, specific enforcement is a possibility, and certainly an action for damages though the politics of doing that are not good :).

Thanks for the comment. I fear there is. Actually, professional baseball players are bound to their team for the specified number of years of their contract. Those that refuse to report and demand to renegotiate have no legal right to do so. It is simply external pressure that causes teams to cave, as the law is on their side. For example, some teams, the Vikings for example, refuse to let coaches take other positions if it is a lateral move. Employment contracts are fully enforceable. I think you are thinking of at will situations. I presume Johnson had an employment contract that restricted him in some way. Maybe not.

Thanks for the response. I have heard some things to the contrary, but have no personal knowledge. I appreciate you giving me a heads up.

I have two comments about his leaving. First, I understand that employees move to other positions for a variety of reasons--unhappiness in current position, family issues, chance for more compensation, looking for a change, etc. This is perfectly understandable. Many, many people look around for better opportunities. This is fine, ASSUMING they are not under a contract that binds them to the team for a specified period of time. I don't know if Johnson had a contract for the whole year, and whether he had the right under that contract to leave at any time. If he had the right to move midyear, then what he did is perfectly fine. But, if he did not have a clause allowing him to move, then my second comment is this: what he did is completely unprofessional. If what is being reported--that the Twins were totally unaware of his conversations until Saturday--then at a minimum his behavior is questionable given the current situation with the team. One would expect a higher degree of transparency from someone who claims to be professional. But, if he has a contract binding him to the team for the year without an escape clause, what he did is bush league. It all depends on the facts and I don't know them.

There is definitely a back story here. To walk out in the middle of the season during a pennant race is a bit unprofessional. MLTR indicates that the Twins didn't even know he was negotiating with LSU until yesterday. So much for being upfront. Either he doesn't like or agree with Rocco's pitching philosophy, or vice versa.

The real question is who among the top prospects already in the major or close the Twins would have to give up. If the Twins are serious about netting a top end starter like Castillo or Montas, none of the players mentioned will even tilt the scales. Teams are going to ask for Larnach, Kirilloff, Miranda, Winder, Canterino, etc., especially for players with a year and a half of team control. There will always be lottery tickets and second pieces added but teams are going to want player/s in the top 5 or 10 with lots of years of control.

Thanks for the summary, David. Boy, I hope the Raya situation is simply a sickness issue and not an injury. The kid has so much promise. Bentley is really doing well. I am going to dig into his background a bit more as he is not someone I have been following. Cave is trying his best to earn a promotion!

Great summary, Ted. Three thoughts. First, Steer continues to impress, which adds another legitimate prospect to move up and/or use for trade capital for pitchers. I suspect in the next month we will lose a few prospects. Second, it was nice to see Balazovic make it through 3 decent innings. I confess I am having doubts about him even with his incredible stuff. Finally, I think if I were the Twins, I would move Wallner up to St. Paul as he is pounding the ball at Wichita.

This draft is so hard to predict that I think outside the top 3 or 4, there may be some surprises. I agree with Dman that we don't need another DH type, or someone with defensive issues. The nice thing about drafting shortstops is that they often can transition to other positions defensively if need be so long as the hit tool is there. Actually, while it is important to have players who can drive the ball, I think Arraez is proving that having players who use the whole field and take great at bats is just as important if not more important than hitting the ball over the fence. So Neto's lack of big time power is not an issue for me. I think we may see teams adding these types of players in the next few years as they try to add balance to their offenses. IMHO, it would make the game more interesting.

Good article. I had my doubts when he was selected, but he is making me a believer. He has hit a bit of a rough spot in his hitting, but that is not unusual for a young hitter experiencing his first full year of professional baseball--it can wear young players down a bit physically. However, he has never let his defense slide, and he has a great eye at the plate. I like his future.