The Twins have not yet determined who they’ll take with the No. 1 pick in Monday’s MLB Draft, a source with knowledge of the situation tells GoMN.
According to Baseball America, the Twins wanted to have a clear idea of who they’re selecting by June 7, and that the two frontrunners were Vanderbilt right-handed pitcher Kyle Wright and Louisville left-handed pitcher/first baseman Brendan McKay.
When asked if the Twins will have a scout in attendance to see Wright pitch Friday against Oregon State in the NCAA Super Regional, the source said, “don’t believe so.” That doesn’t mean the Twins aren’t considering Wright for the top spot, but one would imagine a scout would be there to see him pitch if he’s in the mix to go number one.
A pair of California high school stars are also on the Twins’ radar: Shortstop Royce Lewis and pitcher/shortstop Hunter Greene. Wright, McKay, Lewis and Greene make up the big four, although some reports suggest there are five or six names in play.
Kyle Wright
Wright can strengthen his case to be the top pick Friday night when he pitches against No. 1 Oregon State in the NCAA Super Regionals.
Which version of Wright will show up? The guy who had a 5.59 ERA on April 1 or the dominating pitcher who has allowed one earned run or fewer in six of his last eight starts to lower his ERA to 2.98?
Generally, the top pick in the draft is good all the time compared to Wright, who’s only been really good for the last two months this season.
Wright’s fastball runs 93-96 mph and he has a nasty knuckle-curve. He has big upside along with being considered the safest college pitcher in the draft.
Brendan McKay
Like Wright, McKay will be on the mound Friday when Louisville plays Kentucky in the Super Regionals. He’ll also be the best bat in Louisville’s lineup.
Louisville coach Dan McConnell told ESPN that the team that gets McKay will get a guy who is a top three-to-five college pitcher and hitter.
“How you use him is your choice,” McDonnell said. “I [realize] the challenges of big league two-way players. But you’re getting a starting rotation pitcher that you hope can give you 200 innings a year and a left-handed power bat. Man, it’s exciting.”
Hunter Greene
Greene is in Minneapolis for a workout with the Twins today. The California high school star was touted as baseball’s LeBron James on the cover of Sports Illustrated last month, and on Thursday, ESPN senior writer Keith Law made Greene sound like a star.
“The 17-year-old who hit 102 miles per hour in a short outing in February is going to show you the easiest mid-90s fastball you’ve ever seen, from a body that scouts compare to a young Doc Gooden’s. And oh, by the way, he plays a mean shortstop that would fit well on a big league diamond right now.”
But Greene isn’t penciled in a pitcher in the big leagues. He told ESPN that he wants to try and play shortstop and hit in the big leagues, too.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BVFhXzmjLQP
Royce Lewis
California’s Gatorade Player of the Year apparently isn’t a lock to sign with the team that drafts him.
According to the Los Angeles Times, UC Irvine coach Mike Gillespie thinks there’s a good chance Lewis decides to enjoy the college playing experience over the millions of dollars he’ll be guaranteed in the big leagues.
Gillespie said Lewis’ parents are not dazzled by the millions MLB teams could offer and they are strong advocates of the benefits of their son going to college.
“This could have a happy ending three years from now,” Gillespie said.
Lewis’ high school coach, Brett Kay, played with Mets stars David Wright and Jose Reyes and told MLB.com that Lewis has a chance to be as good or better than them.
Get to know Royce Lewis, 1 of 6 players #MNTwins are said to be considering with the No. 1 overall @MLBDraft pick: https://t.co/cB0otVnJL2 pic.twitter.com/d7pTMJNC9d
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) June 6, 2017
The MLB Draft begins at 6 p.m. Monday on MLB Network.
