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Despite the snow that hit parts of the midwest and the return to winter for many of the rest of the reading area, baseball is back alive and well. As the Twins kicked off their exhibition season, many colleges and high schools around the nation also started (or continued) their seasons. That means draft season has officially kicked off. How did the top draft prospects do?Hunter Greene, RHP, California prep. Greene made his regular-season debut on Saturday and lived up to the hype. He struck out seven batters in five innings. He allowed two walks on the day and two runs on two hits (and a balk) in the first inning. His fastball was reportedly clocked as high as 97 mph. The highlight of the day, though, was when Greene hit a grand-slam to give his team a 5-2 lead. He finished the 10-3 win playing shortstop. You can follow Greene throughout the spring right here at Twins Daily. Judging by his team’s schedule, he will likely throw again next Saturday. The Twins were definitely in attendance on Saturday, though I was unable to confirm who was scouting the game. Kyle Wright, RHP, Vanderbilt. You might say that Wright has been up-and-down-and-then-back-up so far this season. In inning one of game one last week, Wright was mid-to-high 90s for an inning. But then he dropped to the low 90s for the next four innings, walking (three) more than he struck out (two). His outing was done after five frames and he didn’t show any sort of breaking ball. Friday night was a different story. Over 93 pitches in six innings, Wright struck out seven, allowing a run on four hits (but no walks). He worked in the low-to-mid 90s, touching 97 mph and showing a plus curveball. Wright has the stuff #1 overall draft picks (and front-end pitchers) are made of. For me, Wright is the leader in a very tightly-contested college pitching class. Jeren Kendall, OF, Vanderbilt. Kendall started off his weekend with a bang: a 436' bomb to centerfield. He added a hustle-double later in the game and finished 2-for-5. Saturday’s game highlighted the biggest issue that Kendall has: he struck out four times (twice looking, twice swinging) and was intentionally walked in his fifth plate appearance. On Sunday, Kendall went 0-for-5 with an extra-inning strikeout. He also failed to bunt successfully earlier in the game. Kendall was asked to bunt last week and ended up bunting into the air, causing a game-ending double-play. Kendall’s speed, arm strength and pretty left-handed stroke along with his potential to hit home runs and play center field make him a five-tool prospect. But those tools come with a few question marks that were highlighted over the last three games. Alex Faedo, RHP, Florida. On a similar path as Wright - Faedo struggled in a 4.2 inning, four-run showing in his debut - game two was a bounce-back. Against rival Miami, Faedo was one out short of a complete game, allowing only two hits and striking out eight. He was replaced in the ninth inning after a two-out error was followed by a full-count walk, his first and only walk of the game. He threw 119 pitches. Though I couldn’t connect with anyone who was at the game, there are reports that he had “full command” of “nasty” arsenal, which includes a low-to-mid 90s fastball with movement, a very good slider and a developing change-up. Royce Lewis, SS, California prep. The JSerra Catholic High School athlete will begin answering questions about whether he can stick at shortstop when his season kicks off on March 11. --- Though there is no official “board” anywhere in any Twins front office member’s office, Greene’s name sits atop the unofficial board I’ll be updating over the next few months. I’d put both Faedo and Wright slightly in front of Kendall. Lewis remains a bit of a dark horse until he starts to play, but the Twins are high on his potential. Hunter GreeneKyle WrightRoyce LewisAlex FaedoJeren KendallHow does your board look? -- Hrbowski also posted on some draft prospects this weekend. Click here to view the article

If you fast-forward four months… you’ll still be waiting another week for the draft to happen and there will still be plenty of uncertainty about what will happen as the Twins approach the podium to announce the first overall draft pick. They’ll also draft 35th, thanks to a competitive balance comp pick, and 37th, when the second round begins.The Twins will have the largest bonus pool at their disposal (nearly $13.5 million), but won’t have the ability to “play the draft” as others have in the past. Comparing the last two drafts, the first pick this year has $7.4 million tied to it, a dramatic decrease from last year’s $9 million and change. The first overall pick this year is twice the slot of the 13th pick; last year the first pick was worth twice as much as the fifth pick. These changes that have happened in the new CBA put a direct damper on teams trying to tank for the first pick (or, more specifically, the money tied to the first pick). Gone are the days when a team could cut a deal with a player (or two) and use those savings on a third player who miraculously drops in the draft. In 2015, the Astros, owning the second, fifth and thirty-seventh picks were able to hand out three of the highest six bonuses. Don’t misunderstand, some players will still sign underslot and some will still sign for overslot. It’s just not going to be the same as it was before. And that directly impacts the Twins. Fortunately, despite all the changes, the Twins will still pick first and still have their choice of all the players available. And there are some good ones. You probably saw the Keith Law tweet on Friday night that California prep RHP Hunter Greene hit 100 mph. (Or if you bought the Twins Prospect Handbook, you read there that he’s touched 100 mph before.) Law’s tweet really got Twitter going though. But according to a source in California, Greene touched 102 mph last week and has demonstrated improved command of his entire four-pitch arsenal. Over 60 scouts witnessed Friday’s tilt, where Greene also showed his ability to hit. 2/7 Update: Was able to talk to another source who was at the game. Said Greene touched 101 on Friday night and that his slider "was better". The slider is the aforementioned "fourth pitch" to go with his curveball and change. The Twins are believed to have had three scouts in attendance. The state of Minnesota swooned. Greene has become the fan’s early favorite to be selected first overall. But will the front office decide this is the year where a prep right-handed pitcher finally goes first overall? Only time will tell. If not, there are plenty of other options. The college season hasn’t gotten underway yet, but Vanderbilt OF Jeren Kendall is a polished, five-tool prospect who deserves to be in the conversation. The Twins are enamored with the college pitching class which includes RHP Alex Faedo, Florida; RHP Kyle Wright, Vanderbilt; RHP J.B. Bukauskas, North Carolina; and RHP Alex Lange, LSU; among others. There are other preps to consider too and one of the names at the top of the list is California prep SS Royce Lewis. Lewis headlines a fairly deep group of prep hitters and is out to prove he can play the most difficult position in baseball. He has played third base, deferring to upperclassmen, but is making the move to shortstop this spring. Some scouts also believe his future home might be in centerfield. If there’s one thing the old regime loved: it’s toolsy preps such as Lewis. Other notes: Christopher Crawford, who formerly wrote for ESPN, is now posting draft info at Hero Sports. You can read more on both Lewis and Alex Faedo there. Full draft slots and pick values can be found at Baseball America. It’s a place worth bookmarking. You can see what’s changed since I wrote up and even earlier draft piece in October. And going back even further, here’s a link to the Twins Daily Draft Preview of Baseball America’s #1 Prospect, Andrew Benintendi. The college baseball season kicks off soon. Be sure to check back for updates on your (potentially new) favorite players. Click here to view the article

For the first time since adding Joe Mauer in 2001, the Twins are going to be first on the clock when the 2017 draft kicks off. It’s exciting. The opportunity to add the best amateur player to an already strong, young system is an encouraging step for an organization with a new leader. But before we examine the top five candidates to hear their name called at the top of the draft, we should look at some of the uncertainties that need to be cleared up before the draft happens in eight months.Ch-ch-ch-changes Terry Ryan was in the draft room, but wasn’t making the calls. Deron Johnson had the final say and many others had their voices heard. Ryan is out, obviously, and Derek Falvey has been named Chief Baseball Officer. Johnson is still in (for now), as is the entire scouting staff. But what role will Falvey play? How involved will his GM be? How many of the scouting department will he retain? How many will take jobs elsewhere? My guess is that Falvey will be more involved than Ryan, but that a majority of the scouting department remains unchanged. I don’t know what the future holds for Johnson, but I think there’s a chance his role changes. Many scouts stayed in the organization for as long as they have because of Terry Ryan. We could certainly see more changes than we’ve seen in the last few years. (Which isn’t saying much, because there have been hardly any changes in the last five years.) New Rules When poking around for information, one thing that continued to come up was the expiring Collective Bargaining Agreement. Having the #1 pick - and the draft bonus tied to it - has been an absolute benefit, one that many teams feel is unfair. Many expect the current rules to change and the benefit to… well, become less of a benefit. If the CBA rules doesn’t change, one A.L. scout told me the first pick would be “the guy who takes the best deal” before warning me to see how the new agreement shakes out. The Candidates It’s early. Really early. It’s likely not all four of these guys will be first-rounders, let alone the top four picks of the draft. It’s also extremely likely someone not on the top-four radar will be a top four pick. But as of today, here are the four I’ve been hearing tied to the first pick of the draft. Hunter Greene, California HS RHP. No right-handed prep pitcher has ever gone first overall, so despite the fact that Greene is the best prospect, there’s no guarantee that he’s going first overall. But he’s good enough to break that trend. Up to 98 on the mound, profiling as a potential ace, Greene also has legitimate two-way tools as a shortstop. How many prospects come around like this? Not many. But before you get too far ahead of yourself... no, he’s not Bryce Harper. But he is a pretty special prospect. Jeren Kendall, Vanderbilt CF. Kendall wasn’t a huge name coming from a Wisconsin HS, but Vanderbilt doesn’t just take anybody… and now Kendall’s a future star in a five-tool package. After helping Vanderbilt to the College World Series as a freshman, batting .332 with a .964 OPS as a sophomore and being the biggest run-producer on the collegiate national team this summer, Kendall has surfaced as the best draft-eligible college position player in the nation. Alex Faedo, Florida RHP. Faedo was named Baseball America’s top prospect from the collegiate national team. Faedo is a big guy (6’ 5”, 220) with top-of-the-rotation stuff. He recently underwent arthroscopic surgery on both knees, but is expected to fully recover by the spring. Faedo features a low-to-mid-90s fastball, a mid-80s slider and a change-up. Kyle Wright, Vanderbilt RHP. Wright was arguably the best pitcher in the SEC last year in a stacked conference. He showed well over the summer, featuring a high-80s heavy fastball and a plus curveball. He’s developing a change-up. Another A.L. scout told me that if he was making the call, he’d take Wright first overall right now. Other names to watch: J.B. Bukauskas, UNC RHP; Jo Adell, Kentucky HS P/OF; Trevor Rogers, New Mexico HS, LHP. Who do you take? Click here to view the article