The Minnesota Twins selected high school pitcher Chase Petty with the 26th overall pick on Sunday night, adding a flame-throwing right-hander to the organization.
Petty comes out of Mainland Regional High School in New Jersey where he dominated thanks to a fastball that reached 102 mph. While he needs to develop his secondary pitches, he dominated at the high school level and has the stuff to be a top of the rotation starter.
“He’s a very good athlete with a live arm and a live body, and he is a great competitor,” A scout told the Philadelphia Inquirer. “The stuff coming out of his arm the day I watched him was electric. He just dominated, and he dominated offensively, too. He hit a home run, and you could just see his athleticism. His top out velocity the day we saw him was 97 to 98, and he sat mostly around 95. We interviewed him on a Zoom call, and what a tremendous kid.”
While Petty has the ability on the mound, the 18-year-old appears to have swagger off of it. During an interview on MLB Network, Petty mentioned that he talks to Los Angeles Angels star and fellow New Jersey high school standout Mike Trout “quite a bit” and revealed his dinner plans with Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado.
Chase Petty talks to Mike Trout “quite a bit” and has dinner plans with Fernando Tatis Jr. and Manny Machado tomorrow.
You cannot possibly flex harder on draft night.pic.twitter.com/6lPtSq60GW
— Baseball America (@BaseballAmerica) July 12, 2021
The Twins doubled down on high school prospects with the 36th overall pick by taking Wisconsin shortstop Noah Miller. A switch-hitting prospect with power at the plate, Miller also excels in the field with a strong arm and good range to stick at the position.
The Twins will have two more picks in the top 100 on Monday as the 20-round draft will continue on Monday.
