If Hunter Greene is as legit as most experts say he is, there’s certainly no doubt the Twins will take him with the No. 1 overall pick in the June 12 draft, right?
Greene is getting LeBron James-like reviews from the national media. Sports Illustrated’s Lee Jenkins talked to scouts who call him the best two-way prospect they’ve ever seen, comparing him to Mets ace Noah Syndegaard on the mound and Alex Rodriguez at shortstop.
The 17-year-old can pretty much do it all. Here’s what SI had to say about him:
- Using a wood bat, he hit balls out of Petco Park and Wrigley Field.
- He can throw 102 mph.
- His slowest fastball this season was 95 mph.
- He was the California player of the year at age 15.
- He does yoga three times a week.
- He speaks Korean (not fluently).
- He plays the violin.
- He led pregame meditation for the U.S. under-18 national team when he was 15.
It’s still not clear if Greene will go into the pros as a pitcher or position player/hitter. Maybe he’ll do both, but his pitching upside is through the roof.
“He can throw a strike any time he wants,” his high school coach told the L.A. Times. “Combine that control with that kind of velocity and that kind of competitiveness and your upside is unreal.”
Twins Chief Baseball Officer Derek Falvey was sitting behind home plate during a game Greene pitched on April 7.
Hunter Greene…in front of the GM. #mlbdraft #Twins pic.twitter.com/4B81C8liE8
— MLB Draft Room (@MLBDraftRoom) April 8, 2017
Baseball America reports Falvey met with Greene after his game on April 7 and he’s “developed positive relationships with several members of the Twins’ front office and player development staff, including Hall of Famer Dave Winfield and special assistants to baseball operations LaTroy Hawkins and Torii Hunter.”
Greene is the type of player the Rangers and Indians were known to take, according to Scout. That’s important because Minnesota’s GM Thad Levine came from the Rangers and Falvey came from Cleveland.
However on Tuesday, Baseball America also reported Green won’t pitch again during the high school season.
.@HunterGreene17 #1 @PerfectGameUSA Draft150 https://t.co/Ex1gX7cax5. @BNightengale on African Americans in MLB: https://t.co/bv702z5B2Epic.twitter.com/mFfaWZXfnH
— Daron Sutton (@lifeisgreatsut) April 14, 2017
Earlier this week, Greene became just the 13th high school athlete to grace the cover of Sports Illustrated.
But just because Greene is getting national attention doesn’t mean he’s the guy the Twins will take.
Minnesota could take a position player like Jordan Adell or Royce Lewis. Both players have incredible power. In fact, the two went toe-to-toe in a home run derby last year.
