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Ben Ross has an exceptional athletic profile and had the type of breakout in his final season in college that should have Twins fans paying attention to his performance in 2023. Come and read about the 144th pick in the 2022 MLB Draft and why he's 'one to watch'. Image courtesy of William Parmeter ‘In these rounds, you’re looking for something special, something unique’, Sean Johnson, Scouting Director for the Minnesota Twins offered, reflecting on day 2 of the 2022 MLB Draft. Johnson went on to highlight the organization's focus on unique tools coupled with breakout performances as two elements used to hone in on talent. In Ben Ross, the Twins landed a prospect with plenty of interesting clay to mold. With the 144th overall pick in the 2022 MLB Draft, the Twins selected Ben Ross, a shortstop out of Notre Dame College in Ohio. The school only started its baseball program in 2005. In 2013, they jumped from NAIA to Division II. Hence, Ross was not ranked in Baseball America’s Top 500 prospects heading into the draft. He signed for the Twins for $220,000, significant savings on the $398,500 draft slot. The savings from Ross and others were later applied to talented shortstop Omari Daniel, who the Twins pried away from a commitment to Oregon, in the 14th round. Scouting Notes Ross is a 6’1 shortstop and an exceptional athlete. While Ross may not have been highly ranked on draft boards, he’s exactly the kind of breakout athlete the Twins target on Day 2 of the draft. Ross has a compact swing and is short to the ball. Ross had an all-around breakout in his final season at Notre Dame College, putting together 14 home runs, 60 RBI, a .747 SLG, and 15 stolen bases in 17 attempts in 52 games. Not bad. Ross’s breakout continued in the summer in advance of the draft after playing in the Northwoods League (a college wood bat league). Ross hit .421/.502/.649 with 10 HR, 27 BB, and 28 K. Ross has a plus run tool and is an intelligent base runner and successful base stealer. He has an above-average arm and an athletic profile that could play all over the diamond. Ross’s swing is such that he should be able to continue his power breakout with a short, powerful stroke. Ben Ross debuted in late 2022, playing two games of Rookie ball before being promoted to Low-A Fort Myers. In his first 22 games, Ross managed a .371 OBP (.817 OPS), with three homers and 13 RBI. Ross was also 6-for-6 in stolen base attempts, an impressive debut for the 21-year-old. Likely to Start At: Low-A Fort Myers It’s likely Ross begins 2023 with a deep group of young prospects at Fort Myers. He will have a whole season to show he can continue to translate his exceptional athleticism into tangible developments on the field. Some fans might grumble at Ross’s low ranking or placement on pre-draft lists; I’d argue he’s a name to watch in the low minors in 2023. What did you think of the Ben Ross pick? What do you think his ceiling is with the Twins? For more Ben Ross content on Twins Daily, click here. View full article

Fourteen members of the 2022 Draft Class have made their professional debuts. We'll take a look at how each of the 14 players are doing. View full video

The draft finished up almost three weeks ago. The signing deadline was last week. All the signed draft picks have reported. So where are they and how are they doing? 1st round pick Brooks Lee has played four games for the FCL Twins and despite starting slow has a .353/.353/.471 (.824) slash line thanks to an impressive game on Monday. Lee has played in the field exclusively at shortstop, starting three games there with his other appearance at DH. There had been rumblings that Lee wouldn't be playing in the Florida Complex League too much longer and those rumblings were confirmed by Darren Wolfson on Monday afternoon. It will be interesting to see how he's integrated into the Kernels lineup. You obviously make way for Brooks Lee, but former bonus baby Wander Javier has made every single one of his starts at shortstop. Make no mistake that Lee is in a different stratosphere as a prospect, but it's possible that both find themselves on the left side of the infield. It's also possible that Lee gets a couple of days off a week as he adjusts to playing a game of baseball every day. Comp Round B pick Tanner Schobel has also played four games for the FCL Twins. He's only 3-for-15 (.200/.250/.267) with a double and a walk and has struck out three times. He's also stolen a base. He has played twice at second base, once at shortstop, and once as a DH. Schobel is in line for more reps at shortstop after Lee's promotion. Once Schobel gets his feet underneath him, it wouldn't be surprising to see him move up a level. The most recent draft pick to make his pro debut is 6th-round pick Jorel Ortega. Ortega has only played in two games, getting a start at both first base and third base. He hasn't started hitting yet, going hitless in his first four at-bats. He's struck out three times and drawn two walks. Other draftees should be joining this trio soon and we'll keep you updated on how they're doing. View full article

Three Twins draft picks have made their professional debuts. One is already being promoted to Cedar Rapids. Who are they? How are they doing? View full video

Take a look at what we know so far about the Twins 2022 Draft Class. Has anyone signed yet? Who isn't likely to sign? How does their overall pool look? View full video

Picking 8th overall in the 2022 Major League Baseball draft, the Twins were bound to wind up with a solid talent. After grabbing Brooks Lee, they found themselves in position to get another first-round talent when they took Alabama’s Connor Prielipp in round two. A lefty starter from Tomah, Wisconsin, Connor Prielipp was named the Gatorade Player of the Year in 2019 and tabbed as the state’s top draft prospect. As the Crimson Tide staff ace, Prielipp dominated to the tune of 21 scoreless innings with 35 strikeouts before the pandemic ended the 2020 season. He underwent Tommy John surgery last May, but showed well during the Major League Baseball draft combine. Prielipp has a devastating slider and can touch 95 mph on his fastball. He’s agreed to an over-slot deal with the Twins. His professional career will soon be underway, I caught up with him in the days following the selection. Twins Daily: Your draft status was talked about as an early pick, but having not pitched after surgery you had to have some uncertainty as to how things would go. What was the experience surrounding the draft and workouts for you? Connor Prielipp: Yeah, not pitching for a long time was really tough on me, but I never lost the confidence that I had while I was playing, and I always believed in myself. I was able to do the bullpen in Hoover and the [MLB] Combine and to be fortunate enough to give myself the opportunity to play professional baseball. TD: Your stuff was some of the best in the country prior to Tommy John surgery. How have you rebuilt following surgery and where do you feel like you’re at now? CP: My Tommy John surgery rehab has gone very well throughout the whole process, and I feel like I am just about back to my old self at the moment. TD: With such an impressive slider and the Twins being notable for loving the pitch, what are you most excited about developing with your offerings and repertoire? CP: I am very excited to start working with a professional staff, and I am not working on anything, in particular, to add to my repertoire at the moment. TD: Coming into professional baseball, what do you think is the thing that you as a pitcher can take the biggest leap? How do you feel about the pitch clock in the minors? CP: The biggest leap that I can take as a pitcher coming into professional baseball is to just become more polished and to be more consistent with all my pitches. The pitch clock doesn’t really bother me, and I don’t really have too big of an opinion on it. TD: What do you know about the Minnesota Twins? Have you ever been to Target Field? CP: Growing up close to the Twins and Target Field, I know a lot about who their best players were and some of their history, but I, unfortunately, grew up a Brewers fan and never made the trip to Target Field. TD: As a person or player, what is something you want Twins Territory to know about you? CP: Something that I would want Twins Territory to know about me is that I am going to do everything in my power to try and bring a World Series to Minneapolis. View full article

The 2022 MLB Draft is in the books. Aside from an outstanding first day, how did the Twins do? What conclusions can we draw from their picks? Here are some insights and some thoughts from Sean Johnson, the Twins Vice President, Amateur Scouting. An Update on the Consensus Big Board The Consensus Big Board worked well in its first year. All of the consensus top 56 we profiled at Twins Daily were drafted. Only 3 players in the 76 I ranked (Tristan Smith, Cam Smith, and Max Martin) were not drafted. They are all high school players going to college. The Minnesota Twins gained 29 draft spots of consensus ranking value with their first two picks. Brooks Lee (ranked 4th, selected 8th), and Connor Prielipp (ranked 23rd, selected 48th), both reflected high value plays by the Twins front office. Barring health issues (which is a big hurdle to clear), the first two picks played out perfectly. Additionally, the consensus board was pretty accurate in the first few rounds. After day one (through 80 picks), 63 of our top 70 players had been drafted. That’s certainly something to build on for next year. In 2023, some of my thoughts on additions will be: Adding more sources (Fangraphs, Perfect Game, etc.) Expanding to 100 picks Limiting the writeups I have a suspicion that the usefulness of the board will be capped at around 75 players, but we’ll use next year to test that theory. Thanks to everyone who commented, gave feedback and interacted with all our pre-draft content at Twins Daily. Now, onto the Twins draft. After Lee and Prielipp, the Twins went heavy on signable college players. That’s not necessarily a trend. Twins VP of Amateur Scouting Sean Johnson says that the Twins "drafted players they liked organically", as opposed to trying to explicitly make savings in later rounds to pay up for initial picks. There were, however, some noticeable trends this year among picks. Here are three. The Twins Targeted Athletes ‘Geez, how many shortstops do the Twins need?' An incredibly tiring refrain tweeted out by many an egg-profile picture sporting twitter account on draft day. The answer is…an infinite number. The Twins picked six shortstops in twenty rounds of the 2022 draft. Brooks Lee (1st), Tanner Schobel (CB-B), Ben Ross (5th), Dalton Shuffield (10th), Omari Daniel (14th), and Jankel Ortiz (16th). Simply, shortstops are typically the best athletes on a given team, the Twins (like many other teams) target athletic players. If a player can play at short, they can play anywhere on the infield (and likely other positions), so please, let’s toss the ridiculous notion that the 'Twins drafted too many shortstops’ out the window forever. Twins are Buying Power Breakouts This may seem obvious, but I think there are some noteworthy case studies here. Competitive Balance pick Tanner Schobel (who Jeremy Nygaard reported has already reached an agreement with the Twins) had a power breakout in 2022. He went from seven home runs and 10 doubles in 2021 to 19 home runs in 2022 with increased elevation and pull-side power. Jorel Ortega, the Twins 6th round pick (and another middle infielder), had a similar breakthrough in 2022. He hit 18 home runs and slugged .672 for the Vols, compared to just one home run and .296 slugging in 2021 in his return from Tommy John surgery. "Just a really strong performer on one of the best college teams in America", says Sean Johnson. Although Ortega is an extreme example, the Twins draft class is littered with them, whether in college, the Cape, or the Northwoods League. Ben Ross is another example. "It's a higher bar to clear (coming from a Division II school), especially on our model, but he held up well on our board", says Johnson of Ross. The Twins are known to value exit velocity in their model. They are also jumping on players who have breakthrough years as a development that may translate to the professional level. Twins Value K/BB Ratio for Pitchers, Confident in Their Ability to add Velocity As John Vittas (play-by-play for Fort Myers) alluded to, the Twins use K:BB as a driving metric for their pitchers. If we look at the pitchers drafted outside of the three mentioned by Vittas, the trend continues: Andrew Morris (91 K, 28 BB) Ben Ethridge (39 K, 7 BB) Zachary Veen (59 K, 3 BB) Garrett McMillan (83 K, 26 BB) Johnson had plenty of interesting insights to share regarding the pitchers the Twins selected. "In these rounds (day 2 and 3), you're looking for one special pitch, something unique", before adding that the Twins feel extremely confident in their player development department in adding velocity to incoming pitchers. Interestingly, Johnson also mentioned careful consideration of the school a pitcher attended, highlighting the additional development possibilities for players who had less access to elite coaching and playing technology in their college programs. On specific pitchers, Johnson had additional insights. "Andrew Morris is a good strike thrower, four solid pitches across the board, we see him as a starter for us". On Zebby Matthews, Johnson noted, "We had him here for a pre-draft workout. He has a chance to throw really hard." When prompted to reflect on the success of last year's draft, particularly with pitchers (Hajjar, Povich, Festa etc.), Johnson noted that no one could have predicted Festa's breakout season, even the scouts who advocated for drafting him. "If you have draft ten guys like him, one might have a breakthrough like that," shares Johnson. What’s not yet clear to me is the extent to which the Twins target raw velocity in their pitchers. In a recent graphic (that I now cannot find), the MLB team was producing some of the most consistently high exit velocities and some of the most consistently low velocities from pitching. It’s likely the front office is working to course correct this in the minors and it just hasn’t shown up yet at the MLB level (besides Duran). What are your takeaways from the draft? What players are you excited to watch? Any Twins draft regrets? View full article

Now taking place during the All-Star Break, MLB teams have the opportunity to improve their farm systems through the amateur draft. Following a down 2021 season, the Twins found themselves near the top of each round. With their 7th-round selection, they took right-handed pitcher, Kyle Jones, from the University of Toledo. A Michigan native, Kyle Jones is a four-year senior from the University of Toledo. A starting pitcher for the Rockets, Jones was a workhorse throwing 91 1/3 innings this past season. He posted a 4.24 ERA alongside 11.3 K/9. He became the third pitcher Minnesota selected in the 2022 MLB draft, and was noted as a high-character guy by a few different people I reached out to. I caught up with Jones after his selection to ask a few questions and introduce him to Twins Territory. Twins Daily: Working as a starter this season for Toledo, what does your repertoire look like and what is your best pitch? Kyle Jones: As a starter this year for Toledo, I worked with a four-seam fastball, spike curveball, and splitter. This summer I have been working on adding a cutter to my arsenal as well. My best pitch has always been my curveball since it has been hard with late break. My splitter played pretty well this year in spots and I’m excited to gain confidence with it. TD: How do you set yourself up to attack hitters? What type of pitcher would you describe yourself as and what goes into your preparation? KJ: I try to get ahead in the count as early as possible to reduce walks and let my offspeed work. I see myself as a pitchability guy since I can get swings and misses on my offspeed and fill up the strike zone. I stick to my weekly routine as much as possible to make sure that I am ready to go whenever I get on the mound. This includes mobility, conditioning, lifting, and a weekly bullpen. TD: The 114 strikeouts across just 91 1/3 innings are more than impressive, but then paired with just 25 walks, your ability to command the zone looks even better. What do you think can separate you as a pitcher in professional baseball? KJ: I think that being able to throw three pitches for strikes without walking many will be a separator for me professionally. I also think that being routine-oriented can help me stay healthy and consistent throughout the season. TD: Minnesota is trending towards an organization that heavily employs advanced analytics. What is your background with using the data and incorporating it into the way you pitch? KJ: I love having access to analytics whenever I have the chance. In the past, I have done pitch design sessions and training with Rapsodo which has been great for me to learn about my arsenal and metrics. Being at a mid-major, we do not always have access to Trackman data during the season, but I try to use it whenever I have the chance. I am really looking forward to diving deeper into the analytical part of pitching and am excited that the Twins will be able to provide that. TD: What do you know about the Minnesota Twins? Have you ever been to Target Field? KJ: Growing up in Detroit, I had watched the Tigers play the Twins, but have never been to Minnesota or Target Field. I know they have been playing some good baseball recently and am excited to contribute to the organization! TD: What is something you want Twins Territory to know about you as a person or player? KJ: I just want to say that I can’t wait to get down to Fort Myers and get going with the Twins. I also want to give a shoutout to my family for all the love and support throughout my career as well as to all my coaches who have gotten me to where I am today. View full article

The newest member of the Minnesota Twins is Brooks Lee, who the team just selected 8th overall in the 2022 MLB Draft. Brooks Lee is a shortstop from Cal Poly. Long-term, Lee's bat will play anywhere, profiling more as a pure hitter than a masher. He's grown to 6' 2 and over 200 pounds, so it's less likely he will stick at shortstop and eventually move to third base, where he easily has enough arm to survive. He doesn't fit the typical power profile as a third baseman, but could be a very good second baseman as well. Regardless, he checks so many of the boxes the Twins are looking for. Great bat-to-ball skills, could unlock more power and has defensive versatility. The draft slot associated with the 8th pick is $5,439,500. You can read Jamie Cameron's profile on Brooks Lee here. Baseball America's scouting report, ranked second overall: MLB.com's scouting report, where he ranked 5th overall: ESPN's scouting report, where he ranked 6th: View full article

The Minnesota Twins selected Tanner Schobel at number 68 overall in the 2022 MLB Draft. Schobel is a shortstop out of Virginia Tech University. Tanner Schobel is a 5'10, 170-pound shortstop out of Virginia Tech. Although he didn't make the consensus top 56 players, Schobel checked in at 73rd overall on our consensus big board and is drafted around the range one would expect based on his evaluations. Schobel is young as a draft-eligible sophomore (he recently turned 21). In his freshman season at Virginia Tech who moved around the infield frequently, spending time at shortstop and second base. In his first season with the Hokies, he had a middling offensive output, putting up .279/.359/.441 with 7 home runs and 10 doubles. In between his freshman and sophomore seasons at Virginia Tech, Schobel played in the Cape Cod league, managing a .378 OBP and 3 home runs in 29 games. He showed additional pop in the 2022 season, hitting .362/.445/.689 with 19 home runs and 74 RBIs in 59 games and lifting more batted balls in the air, particularly to the pull side. Schobel is a solid player defensively and has versatility around the infield. He profiles as a good utility player who can move around the infield and do everything solidly. While his pull side power may not hold up professionally in a wooden bat environment, Schobel will still have solid line drive power, particularly to the pull side. Schobel's long term upside with the Twins will hinge on whether his newly developed pull side power can be maintained at the pro level (the Twins have been developing bats well in recent years). If it can, he has a chance to stick as a regular instead of a utility man. Either way, he will be a useful prospect for the Twins. The slot value for the #68 pick in $1 million. Schobel was recommended by Twins scout John Wilson What do you think of the Twins selecting Tanner Schobel at #68 overall? Which of the Twins picks from day one of the draft are you most excited for? Share your thoughts in the comments. View full article

We've reached the halfway point of the 2022 MLB Draft, which will conclude with 10 more rounds later this afternoon. The draft will resume at 1:00 pm this afternoon and figures to be all wrapped up between 4:00 and 5:00. After starting off at a snail's pace on Sunday night, Day 2 moved significantly faster. Here's to hoping for more of the same tomorrow. One big change in draft coverage at Twins Daily this year is the introduction of the Twins Draft Tracker. If you feel like there's less draft coverage on the front page and in the forums from Twins Daily staff, it's because you're right. The length of Day 1 provided us some time to do other things (like record a video or push out an article after a pick), but the swiftness of the rest of the draft keeps most of the activity over in the Tracker. That's where new scouting information and signing information will go. It's a neat feature that Brock put together if you haven't checked it out. Round 11: Andrew Cossetti, C, St. Joseph's Round 12: Nate Baez, C, Arizona State Round 13: C.J. Culpepper, RHP, Cal Baptist Round 14: Omari Daniel, SS, The Walker School (GA) Round 15: Ben Ethridge, RHP, Southern Mississippi Round 16: Jankel Ortiz, SS, Academia Presbiteriana HS (PR) Round 17: Alec Sayre, OF, Wright State Round 18: Zachary Veen, LHP, Point Loma Nazarene Round 19: Garrett McMillan, RHP, Alabama Round 20: Korbyn Dickerson, OF, Trinity HS (KY) Of course, keep the conversation going in the comments below. It was fun to read through the comments as I was able yesterday and try to interject as much as I could. I hope to do the same tomorrow. Here again is the quick recap of the first ten rounds with bonus information. Player Round Slot Brooks Lee, SS, Cal Poly 1 $5,439,500 Connor Prielipp, LHP, Alabama 2 $1,621,900 Tanner Schobel, SS, Virginia Tech CB $1,001,500 Andrew Morris, RHP, Texas Tech 4 $533,100 Ben Ross, SS, Notre Dame Coll. 5 $398,200 Jorel Ortega, SS, Tennessee 6 $301,000 Kyle Jones, RHP, Toledo 7 $235,400 Zebby Matthews, RHP, W. Carolina 8 $187,700 Cory Lewis, RHP, UC-Santa Barbara 9 $164,000 Dalton Shuffield, SS, Texas State 10 $153,700 What did you think of Day 2 now that the dust settled? What do you want to see later today? Shots on guys who might have higher price tags? All pitchers? All catchers!? View full article

The Twins-only 10-round Mock Draft was a late addition to the 2022 Plan. During my first run covering the draft at TwinsDaily, it was an annual staple. It was always fun and looking back sparked some good memories. The inaugural Twins-mock was posted in 2014. Nick Gordon (Round 1) and Max Murphy (Round 9) were hits. But only three (including Gordon) ever made a major league appearance. There were two more hits in 2015 (Kyle Cody and Trey Cabbage), but the story here is the other names that I drafted. Dillon Tate hasn’t lived up to the high draft status, but he’s been a productive reliever. Logan Allen has bounced around a little bit over his four season in the MLB. Joey Bart probably wouldn’t have signed in the sixth round. (He was drafted in the 27th round.) Bart became the second overall pick in 2018. I was taking Jake Cronenworth in the seventh round - which was where he was selected - but as a pitcher. Cronenworth went on to finish runner-up in the 2020 Rookie of the Year race and made the All-Star game in 2021. My streak of multiple correct picks came to an end in 2016, when I only correctly predicted Alex Kirilloff. Will Smith went much higher in real-life (deservedly so). Daulton Jefferies was in the A’s starting rotation before getting injured. Keegan Akin has made the majors. (And I’ve hit on pretty much everyone to play in Baltimore’s bullpen.) As has Stephen Nogosek with the Mets. My final attempt came all the way back in 2017, when I incorrectly projected the Twins to select Kyle Wright. After a mostly down major league career, Wright has had a really good 2022. My streak continued as I correctly pegged Blayne Enlow going to the Twins, though he hasn’t debuted due to injury. Riley Adams (Washington) has made the majors, as has Michael Baumann with, you guessed it, Baltimore! Now after a four-year absence, I’ll see if I can correctly predict any of the Twins first 10 picks. It’s 10 picks because, despite forfeiting one to sign Carlos Correa, the Twins received a competitive balance pick. Note: This is my third attempt after not liking my first two projections. And that starts with my first pick. Round 1 (Pick 8 - $5,439,500): Gavin Cross, OF, Virginia Tech. Cross has been the name most frequently connected to the Twins at #8. I think the Twins would be very likely to take almost any of the Top 7 names if they fell to them, though Termarr Johnson and Cam Collier seem to be the two they’d be happiest to see fall. The other side of that coin is that the Mets are lurking at #11 and may try to force someone to slide down to them. (BA: 10; MLB: 10; ESPN: 10; Athletic: 10) Round 2 (Pick 48 - $1,621,900): Jacob Miller, RHP, Liberty Union (Ohio) High School. When you take a high school pitcher early, you’re betting on upside. The floor is going to be low. Miller has a powerful arm as well as showing a feel for spinning the ball. Bonus points for being from the midwest. (BA: 34; MLB: 37; ESPN: 43; Athletic: 42) Comp Round B (Pick 68 - $1,001,500): Jacob Misiorowski, RHP, Crowder JC. The Twins have added a number of guys who throw in the low-to-mid-90s and then they unlock a few more MPHs on their fastball. Misiorowski already throws over 100, so maybe it’s time the Twins take a hard thrower and help refine his command and secondary pitches. (BA: 68; MLB: 78; ESPN: NR; Athletic: 95) Round 4 (Pick 114 - $533,100): Henry Williams, RHP, Duke. The first of two Duke picks, Williams just had Tommy John surgery in December and will probably require a dip into the bonus pool to get this done. Hasn’t thrown a ton of college innings, but has shown plenty of upside. May bet on himself and return to Duke for another season. (BA: 179; MLB: 81; ESPN: 109; Athletic: 62) Round 5 (Pick 144 - $398,200): Dom Keegan, C/1B, Vanderbilt. Keegan has a great bat and a chance to stick behind the plate. But there’s a wide range on where he could go. It’s tough to get a read on “seniors” as they have an option to go back to school for an extra (COVID) year. (BA: 227; MLB: 97; ESPN: 128; Athletic: 76) Round 6 (Pick 174 - $301,000): Marcus Johnson, RHP, Duke. Johnson moved from a bullpen role to the rotation this year for the Blue Devils. He has a mid-to-high 90s fastball and a slider with a high-spin rate. With less than 130 college innings under his belt, there is reason to believe that Johnson’s trajectory could continue to climb. (BA: 129; MLB: 139; ESPN: NR; Athletic: NR) Round 7 (Pick 204 - $235,400): Michael Knorr, RHP, Coastal Carolina. Knorr looks the part of a starting pitcher but is somewhat of a project. He’s equipped with a big-time fastball, yet lacks great command of it and doesn’t have great feel for throwing a breaking ball. The Twins have had success in leveling up college pitchers recently and should continue to roll the dice in that area. (BA: 128; MLB: 176; ESPN: NR; Athletic: NR) Round 8 (Pick 234 - $187,700): Steven Zobac, RHP, Cal. New to full-time pitching, Zobac looked the part after moving exclusively to the mound. Equipped with a low-90s fastball and a good slider, there’s still potential to develop a third pitch and continue to improve while keeping his focus on the mound. (BA: 252; MLB: 241; ESPN: NR; Athletic: NR) Round 9 (Pick 264 - $164,000): Alex Kachel, 3B, Fresno State. Instead of spending the 8th overall pick on a great bat with a questionable defensive home, we’re going that direction in the 9th round. Kachel can hit, but can he field? (BA: 228; MLB: NR; ESPN: NR; Athletic: NR) Round 10 (Pick 294 - $153,700): Derek Diamond, RHP, Ole Miss. Diamond really struggled this past year - allowing multiple earned runs in 14 or 16 appearances. But he showed plenty of signs of having draftable characteristics last year. If a team is able to unlock that, they’ve found a prospect. (BA: 212; MLB: NR; ESPN: NR; Athletic: NR) View full article