Twins Daily Mock Draft v.2.0 (Cameron Edition): Twins Lean into Prep Class

[Jamie Cameron]

We’re just over a month from the opening day of the 2024 MLB Draft. We’re starting to see steam connecting prospects and teams. Check out our second mock draft of the cycle.

Image courtesy of Brock Beauchamp

We’re starting to see a trickle of creditable steam surrounding draft picks and fits. We’ll have at least three more mocks in the coming weeks, including a dualing installment next time up. Given how chaotic this draft should be after pick 11 or so, we’ve opted to switch things up significantly. 

1. Cleveland Guardians - Travis Bazzana, 2B, Oregon State
There's been steam connecting the Guardians to Bazzana in recent weeks. Whether accurate or not, he’s closed the gap between himself and Charlie Condon. Their composite rankings are 1.88 and 1.55 respectively. At this point, it’s close to a toss up who the industry prefers at the top.

2. Cincinnati Reds - Charlie Condon, 3B, Georgia
The Reds lucked out in the lottery big time. They’ll land one of the two best players (if they so choose) and have the financial flexibility to tap into prep talent further down the board. Condon won’t be on the board long if the Guardians pass.

3. Colorado Rockies - Chase Burns, RHP, Wake Forest
There are some decent pieces in the Rockies system, but they need talented arms if they are ever going to reemerge into relevance. Burns could be a game changer for their rotation.

4. Oakland Athletics - Jac Caglianone, 1B, Florida
Caglianone’s future is as a hitter. He’s improved his chase rates and bat to ball skills in 2024, to go with the 80 grade raw power that ameliorates the first base only profile on defense.

5. Chicago White Sox - Bryce Rainer, SS, Harvard Westlake HS, CA
The White Sox are in no hurry. They’ll likely strengthen their farm significantly before the trade deadline. They’ve been connected to Rainer and Griffin, the top two prep players on the board. Here we’ll go with Rainer, a polished, left-handed hitting shortstop. Braden Montgomery also makes plenty of sense here.

6. Kansas City Royals - Braden Montgomery, OF, Texas A&M
This is a great spot to be picking, despite getting some raw luck in the lottery (again). Montgomery has had a special 2024 season. Through regional play, he’s slugged .730 and hit 26 home runs. He’s better from the left side, and a plus arm makes him one of the best outfield prospects in the class. This would be a great get for KC. Rainer and Griffin could fit here, too.

7. St. Louis Cardinals - Nick Kurtz, 1B, Wake Forest
The Cardinals have roared back into relevance in the NL Central in 2024 after looking down and out. They have a difficult choice here. It’s hard to pass on Hagen Smith, but in Nick Kurtz, they have one of the best hit/power combos in the draft class. 22 bombs and a 1.294 OPS after a slow start will play.

8. Los Angeles Angels - Hagen Smith, LHP, Arkansas
We know the Angels type. They target players who can move and debut quickly at the MLB level, despite little evidence their strategy is working well. Smith could go as high as three, but his floor is likely around here after a dominant season in the SEC (164 Ks in 84 innings at the time of writing).

9. Pittsburgh Pirates - J.J. Wetherholt, SS, West Virginia
Wetherholt was 1:1 coming into 2024. Lingering soft tissue injuries have cost him playing time and exposure at shortstop (having previously played second base). If he can remain healthy, he could be the steal of the top half of the first round, with the best hit tool in the class. 

10. Washington Nationals - Konnor Griffin, OF, Jackson Prep HS, MS
Griffin is one of the best athletes in this class and could go several spots higher. The Nationals tend to like high upside prep players, and Griffin has that in abundance. It’s a high risk, high reward play.

11. Detroit Tigers - Trey Yesavage RHP, East Carolina
The Tigers have a relatively new team at the helm for their draft and came away with a promising 2023 haul, led by Max Clark and Kevin McGonigle. They’ve had less success developing college pitching in recent year, but Yesavage has firmly established himself as SP3.

12. Boston Red Sox - Seaver King, SS, Wake Forest
Seaver King has one of the wider range of outcomes for any first round college player. It’s athleticism, bat speed, and impact in abundance, but it’s still pretty raw. He’s one of the higher upside plays in the class on the college side.

13. San Francisco Giants - Cam Caminiti, LHP, Saguaro HS, AZ
Caminiti, to his credit, has maintained his draft stock throughout the process. It’s either him or Kash Mayfield for prep LHSP1. We’ll go with Caminiti here, despite some lingering concerns about his ability to spin the baseball.

14. Chicago Cubs - James Tibbs, OF, Florida State
This might be the most mocked pick this cycle. Tibbs to the Cubs makes tons of sense. It’s a pretty safe bat. If he’s off the board, Seaver King, Cam Smith, and Christian Moore all make sense). 25 home runs and a 1.267 OPS highlight an incredible season for Tibbs through regionals. If he was more athletic, he’d be a top eight pick.

15. Seattle Mariners - Kash Mayfield, LHP, Elk City HS, OK
The Mariners leaned into a strong prep position player class in 2023 with plenty of flexibility courtesy of abundant picks (and money). Their system could use some refreshing on the pitching side. Mayfield has one of the best deliveries in the draft class (college or prep) and would be my pick for prep LHSP1.

16. Miami Marlins - Cam Smith, 3B, Florida State
The Marlins need bats. Smith is a great option who had an outstanding 2024 season anchoring the Florida State offense with James Tibbs. It’s a solid defensive profile and an offensive skillset full of impact.

17. Milwaukee Brewers - Brody Brecht, RHP, Iowa
The Brewers are ‘up there’ with the Mariners with the quality and consistency of their pitching development. Brecht might have the best one-two punch in the class between his fastball and slider. If he’s a first rounder, he’ll also set a record (high) for walk rate for a college pitcher. He improved in the second half of the season. If anyone can harness the immense ceiling, it’s Milwaukee.

18. Tampa Bay Rays - Ryan Waldschmidt, OF, Kentucky
Waldschmidt is one of my favorite prospects in the 2024 cycle. He’s done everything for Kentucky offensively on one of the best teams in the SEC. There’s solid tools across the board. He’s a sure first round profile, for me.

19. New York Mets - Vance Honeycutt, OF, North Carolina
Honeycutt has the best tools of any college position player. Elite center field defense, plus speed, and the chance for plus power. There’s legitimate swing and miss worries though, and a K% north of 25% is an orange flag.

20. Toronto Blue Jays - Christian Moore, 2B, Tennessee
Moore is 35 on the consensus board currently. It’s way too low. A 1.229 OPS and 29 home runs through regional play in the SEC is a first round profile. Any number of teams should be thrilled to get him in this range.

21. Minnesota Twins - Slade Caldwell, OF, Valley View HS, AR
Caldwell is one of only three sure fire prep players who will go in the first round, for me. While it might seem antithetical to the Twins typical approach (lean into the strength of the draft), Caldwell would be a top 10 pick if he was 6’0 (he’s 5’9). It’s plus speed in centerfield and a great approach at the plate in a very hitterish profile.

22. Baltimore Orioles - Theo Gillen, SS, Westlake HS, TX
Gillen has been described as the best hitter in Texas. That ought to be good enough for a still loaded Orioles system.

23. Los Angeles Dodgers - Kellon Lindsey, SS, Hardee HS, FL
Lindsey is one of a handful of prep shortstops who will go in the 20-40 range. He’s an explosive athlete, an 80-grade runner, and the Dodgers make superstars out of prospects with these type of athletic tools. 

24. Atlanta Braves - Carson Benge, OF, Oklahoma State
A two-way player who should focus on hitting over pitching, Benge has gotten over his groundball whoas of 2023. Benge has a nice balance of power and bat to ball skills in his profile. He’s a high floored college bat who could go ten picks higher.

25. San Diego Padres - Ryan Sloan, RHP, York Community HS, IL
One of the best prep righties in the class, Sloan has an enticing combination of frame, velocity, and pitch mix. That’s exactly the type of clay the Padres like to mold. 

26. New York Yankees - Jurrangelo Cijntje, RHP/LHP, Mississippi State
A switch pitcher who will likely focus on pitching right handed as a pro. Cijntje has earned Marcus Stroman comps and has legitimate first round steam at this point. 

27. Philadelphia Phillies - Billy Amick, 3B, Tennessee
Amick’s momentum was slowed midseason by appendicitis. He’s handled third base better than expected. It’s a power over hit profile with some swing and miss concerns.

28. Houston Astros - Dakota Jordan, OF, Mississippi State
We haven’t talked much about Jordan. He might have the best bat speed in the class. There are major strikeout issues, and the contact rate is in the sixties. If the right player development team can help make it work, there’s massive impact in the profile

29. Arizona Diamondbacks - William Schmidt, Catholic HS, LA
Schmidt was an early riser in the cycle. The fastball took a velocity jump and it might be the best breaking ball in the prep class, an absolute hammer curveball.

30. Texas Rangers - Malcolm Moore, C, Stanford
This feels like a value play at this point. Moore has had a poor year offensively, but is still floating around the back half of the first round on most boards.

31. Arizona Diamondbacks - Tyson Lewis, SS, Millard West HS, NE
There’s tons of steam on the Diamondbacks and Lewis, who has risen quickly up boards. It’s a potential hit, power, speed combination at shortstop.

32. Baltimore Orioles - Kaelen Culpepper, SS/3B, Kansas State
A consistent performer throughout his collegiate career with no real gaps in his profile, and no real carrying tool either.

33. Minnesota Twins - Joey Oakie, RHP, Ankeny HS, IA
Given the Twins combination of picks and bonus pool, it makes too much sense for them to tap into a deep prep pitching class sometime in their first four picks. Oakie is one of my favorites with a nasty combination of running fastball and a sweeper with a ton of lateral movement. 

34. Milwaukee Brewers - Walker Janek, C, Sam Houston State
Janek is the best catcher in the class for me. He controls the run game with a plus arm and is a good defender. The offensive profile isn’t spectacular but he does everything well. If the Brewers take two college players, expect things to get weird from then on out. They have money and picks to leverage creatively.

35. Arizona Diamondbacks - Jared Thomas, OF, Texas
An impactful college bat who should stick in centerfield. Thomas has taken a step forward in 2024 with his offensive impact. It’s an appealing, well-rounded profile.

36. Cleveland Guardians - Braylon Doughty, RHP, Chaparral HS, CA
While Doughty doesn’t have a prototypical frame, it’s a smooth repeatable delivery, a good fastball, and a real ability to spin the baseball. A scary prospect in Cleveland’s player development system.

37. Pittsburgh Pirates - Wyatt Sanford, SS, Independence HS, TX
A spring riser, Sanford has a solid overall offensive profile for a system that’s very arm heavy.

38. Colorado Rockies - Caleb Lomavita, C, Cal
A value play at this point. I don’t love Lomavita’s offensive profile, personally, it’s a wild yet high impact approach. He’s had steam in the teens

39. Kansas City Royals - Mike Sirota, OF, Northeastern
Sirota has had a down year, but the tools and performance have been there before. He won’t last too long.

 

View full article

[twinstalker]

Thanks, but I think the Twins should take with pick 33 a no-chance-to-hit shortstop who's consensus-ranked over 100.  How else are we going to get the next Rayne Doncon?

I'm not bitter.

[Jamie Cameron]

24 minutes ago, twinstalker said:

Thanks, but I think the Twins should take with pick 33 a no-chance-to-hit shortstop who's consensus-ranked over 100.  How else are we going to get the next Rayne Doncon?

I'm not bitter.

Might be time to get over it. 

[Dman]

I'd be happy with that draft for the Twins.  It feels like high school players are the way to go in more ways than one for me.  First HS players get exposed to the pro game sooner and seem to develop faster. Second I think it makes sense for the Twins to build a second wave of talent so if it takes 4 or 5 years for those players to develop that timeline works out pretty well for when current players will leave via free agency.  Third the infield is pretty full right now so it doesn't feel like they need a quick to the majors type player and most of the big college bats are in the infield.

I really like Caldwell as a fit for the Twins and it is hard to say if he makes it all the way to 21, but if he does it feels like a perfect fit for the Twins to me.  A future outfield of Caldwell, Jenkins and Rodriguez would be pretty dynamic IMO.

If Janek fell all the way to 33 it would be hard for me to pass him up even for pitching help.  It is so hard to find a good defensive catcher who can possibly hit and I think Janek could be one that can.  With a plus arm and solid power I'd be willing to give up a little hit tool just for the added defense.  I'd also consider Bazzell at 33. He appears to have an elite hit tool with an average to plus arm. Doesn't look like a power stroke, but possibly elite hit tool with possible good to very good defense seems like a good get at 33.

If going prep bat I think Wyatt Sanford would be my pick at 33.  Really good defense with a chance to hit. Not projected for much power so maybe not a Twinsy pick, but I like going hitter, hitter as the hitters fall off the table most likely by pick 60.

I do like the Oakey pick and would be totally OK with that pick.  33 is a great spot to get your pick of some of the next tier HS arms.  It would ensure you have the chance for a fairly fast moving elite arm and is a pick the Twins don't usually make.  Having two first round picks means that they can even out the bats and arms and in most years with just one 1st round pick you have to choose bat or arm this way you can get both in the first round.  Doing it that way they should get a good value bat at 21 and arm at 33.

Bottom line I think the board could fall very close to what you have there.  I still think Benge goes top 20, but there are so many mix and match guys it will be interesting to see where guys fall. I can't make up my mind about going bat, bat or bat arm.  Will be interesting to see what the Twins do.  Thanks for sharing your picks.

 

[Jamie Cameron]

2 minutes ago, Dman said:

I'd be happy with that draft for the Twins.  It feels like high school players are the way to go in more ways than one for me.  First HS players get exposed to the pro game sooner and seem to develop faster. Second I think it makes sense for the Twins to build a second wave of talent so if it takes 4 or 5 years for those players to develop that timeline works out pretty well for when current players will leave via free agency.  Third the infield is pretty full right now so it doesn't feel like they need a quick to the majors type player and most of the big college bats are in the infield.

I really like Caldwell as a fit for the Twins and it is hard to say if he makes it all the way to 21, but if he does it feels like a perfect fit for the Twins to me.  A future outfield of Caldwell, Jenkins and Rodriguez would be pretty dynamic IMO.

If Janek fell all the way to 33 it would be hard for me to pass him up even for pitching help.  It is so hard to find a good defensive catcher who can possibly hit and I think Janek could be one that can.  With a plus arm and solid power I'd be willing to give up a little hit tool just for the added defense.  I'd also consider Bazzell at 33. He appears to have an elite hit tool with an average to plus arm. Doesn't look like a power stroke, but possibly elite hit tool with possible good to very good defense seems like a good get at 33.

If going prep bat I think Wyatt Sanford would be my pick at 33.  Really good defense with a chance to hit. Not projected for much power so maybe not a Twinsy pick, but I like going hitter, hitter as the hitters fall off the table most likely by pick 60.

I do like the Oakey pick and would be totally OK with that pick.  33 is a great spot to get your pick of some of the next tier HS arms.  It would ensure you have the chance for a fairly fast moving elite arm and is a pick the Twins don't usually make.  Having two first round picks means that they can even out the bats and arms and in most years with just one 1st round pick you have to choose bat or arm this way you can get both in the first round.  Doing it that way they should get a good value bat at 21 and arm at 33.

Bottom line I think the board could fall very close to what you have there.  I still think Benge goes top 20, but there are so many mix and match guys it will be interesting to see where guys fall. I can't make up my mind about going bat, bat or bat arm.  Will be interesting to see what the Twins do.  Thanks for sharing your picks.

 

Thanks for reading. Couple thoughts on your thoughts.

Caldwell I can see at 21. He's one of several options I'd be good with. Most of them are college hitters, he's one of the exceptions. I agree on Janek, but I don't think he makes it out the first round personally. He's C1, for me. Bazzell at 33 is too rich for me.

Wouldn't mind a prep SS at 33 but I like Gillen and Lewis better than Sanford personally.

As for Oakie, that pick was more emblematic of what they could do with their 1-2 punch, rather than any explicit connection there. The more I spend time on it, the more I think it's likely they go bat-bat at 21 and 33. We've talked about this before but after 40-50 picks the bats fall of quite a bit.

Several more of these to come lol

[Dman]

 

Jamie, maybe you will be covering this in your show but While there is a top 10 or 11, after those picks it seems to be trending more college bats from 11 to about 17 with James Tibbs, Cam Smith, Seaver King, Carson Benge, Ryan Waldschmidt, and maybe Christian Moore.  Tucked in there are two pitchers Trey Yesavage and Cam Caminiti that appear destined to go in the top 20. If any of those names fell to the Twins I would be fine with them grabbing a college bat.

If things fall like they did above and the Twins still want to go college bat at 21 it leaves some names I don’t particularly like in Kaelen Culpepper, Tommy White, Vance Honeycutt, Dakota Jordan and Brody Brecht.  Granted they all have some great tools but Culpepper Honeycut and Jordan all have trouble controlling the strike zone and or swing and miss issues.  That type of player hasn’t worked out well for the Twins in the past.

I get that Honeycut is probably Byron Buxton II in the field, but the 40 hit tool and K rate screams he’ll never make it to me. Jordon slightly better hit tool but still problematic IMO. Culpepper might not stick at short and appears to lack power.  Not a Twins pick IMO and he is a very aggressive swinger likely to be exploited at the MLB level if not sooner. Possibly Delmon Young II at the plate.

Tommy White has a good eye and great bat.  He has exit velocities the Twins love and good bat to ball skills if I understand correctly.  I like the bat, I really do but he looks like he is stuck at 1^st base or DH.  I just don’t love taking that type of hitter at 21 overall.  Up the middle talent is so hard to come by it always goes early in the draft.  White might be an OK pick but it would be nice to find a player with more positional upside and not have to bet on just the bat.

If you think Brecht will ever discover some kind of control he would be a steal at 21.  It sounds like he hasn’t been pitching long so maybe there is hope there, but guys with lack of control generally don’t find it later and if the great Wes Johnson couldn’t fix Anderson I don’t really want to risk Brecht at 21. Maybe 33 but not 21.

What are your thoughts on Honeycut, Culpepper, Brecht, White and Jordon? Would they make sense at 21 for the Twins?

There is going to be something good that drops to 21. I just hope they bet on the bat and not tools that may never come into play like Cavaco.

[Jamie Cameron]

30 minutes ago, Dman said:

 

Jamie, maybe you will be covering this in your show but While there is a top 10 or 11, after those picks it seems to be trending more college bats from 11 to about 17 with James Tibbs, Cam Smith, Seaver King, Carson Benge, Ryan Waldschmidt, and maybe Christian Moore.  Tucked in there are two pitchers Trey Yesavage and Cam Caminiti that appear destined to go in the top 20. If any of those names fell to the Twins I would be fine with them grabbing a college bat.

If things fall like they did above and the Twins still want to go college bat at 21 it leaves some names I don’t particularly like in Kaelen Culpepper, Tommy White, Vance Honeycutt, Dakota Jordan and Brody Brecht.  Granted they all have some great tools but Culpepper Honeycut and Jordan all have trouble controlling the strike zone and or swing and miss issues.  That type of player hasn’t worked out well for the Twins in the past.

I get that Honeycut is probably Byron Buxton II in the field, but the 40 hit tool and K rate screams he’ll never make it to me. Jordon slightly better hit tool but still problematic IMO. Culpepper might not stick at short and appears to lack power.  Not a Twins pick IMO and he is a very aggressive swinger likely to be exploited at the MLB level if not sooner. Possibly Delmon Young II at the plate.

Tommy White has a good eye and great bat.  He has exit velocities the Twins love and good bat to ball skills if I understand correctly.  I like the bat, I really do but he looks like he is stuck at 1^st base or DH.  I just don’t love taking that type of hitter at 21 overall.  Up the middle talent is so hard to come by it always goes early in the draft.  White might be an OK pick but it would be nice to find a player with more positional upside and not have to bet on just the bat.

If you think Brecht will ever discover some kind of control he would be a steal at 21.  It sounds like he hasn’t been pitching long so maybe there is hope there, but guys with lack of control generally don’t find it later and if the great Wes Johnson couldn’t fix Anderson I don’t really want to risk Brecht at 21. Maybe 33 but not 21.

What are your thoughts on Honeycut, Culpepper, Brecht, White and Jordon? Would they make sense at 21 for the Twins?

There is going to be something good that drops to 21. I just hope they bet on the bat and not tools that may never come into play like Cavaco.

Always happy to weigh in lol. So I think there is a tier of guys who might go higher, who, if available, I'd  be all over. Seaver King and Christian Moore fall into that category for me. Benge and Cam Smith too. Tibbs won't be there, Waldschmidt is interesting, I like him a ton, but 21 is too rich for most boards. I'd take him at 33 in a hurry.

Honeycutt - K rate over 27% is really high. I think I remember reading only 5 or 6 other college bats were drafted in the first with a K% over 25%. One of them was Trevor Larnach. There's swing and miss but the tools are so loud. At worst, you're getting an outstanding defensive outfielder, he'll accrue value even if he doesn't hit.

Culpepper - I was a bit down on him too, then he made some swing change prior to regionals. The results? A 3 run bomb of Hagen Smith and hitting for the cycle. No carrying tool and a bit too much chase. He doesn't get me super excited, but not sure any player does at 21. I'd be comfortable with him.

Brecht - Twins haven't take a day 1 college RHP since they started drafting well (2021). I don't see it. I can't get on board with Brecht, especially with so many solid bats. Pass for me.

White - HAS to mash to accrue value and swing at everything. Seen him to Twins in tons of mocks. Best choice of the guys I'm unsure on. Chance for plus hit, plus power.

Jordan - Feels like a profile for the Astros or Dodgers. Contact% in the 60s, tons of strikeouts, not my flavor of risk profile.

In terms of comfort taking them, I'd be good with Honeycutt and Culpepper, little leary of the others.

[Dman]

9 hours ago, Jamie Cameron said:

Always happy to weigh in lol. So I think there is a tier of guys who might go higher, who, if available, I'd  be all over. Seaver King and Christian Moore fall into that category for me. Benge and Cam Smith too. Tibbs won't be there, Waldschmidt is interesting, I like him a ton, but 21 is too rich for most boards. I'd take him at 33 in a hurry.

Honeycutt - K rate over 27% is really high. I think I remember reading only 5 or 6 other college bats were drafted in the first with a K% over 25%. One of them was Trevor Larnach. There's swing and miss but the tools are so loud. At worst, you're getting an outstanding defensive outfielder, he'll accrue value even if he doesn't hit.

Culpepper - I was a bit down on him too, then he made some swing change prior to regionals. The results? A 3 run bomb of Hagen Smith and hitting for the cycle. No carrying tool and a bit too much chase. He doesn't get me super excited, but not sure any player does at 21. I'd be comfortable with him.

Brecht - Twins haven't take a day 1 college RHP since they started drafting well (2021). I don't see it. I can't get on board with Brecht, especially with so many solid bats. Pass for me.

White - HAS to mash to accrue value and swing at everything. Seen him to Twins in tons of mocks. Best choice of the guys I'm unsure on. Chance for plus hit, plus power.

Jordan - Feels like a profile for the Astros or Dodgers. Contact% in the 60s, tons of strikeouts, not my flavor of risk profile.

In terms of comfort taking them, I'd be good with Honeycutt and Culpepper, little leary of the others.

Thanks so much for responding! I really appreciate you indulging me.

OK one last post on this one.  if they are all there and they could be is Caldwell still your choice? If both Honeycutt and Caldwell are there at 21 who are you picking? Would you pick Culpepper over Gillen? Would you do White over Gillen and Caldwell? I am just curious as there are so many players lumped into 19 to 33 that don't seem too far off from one another. It seems like tools would be the deciding factor, but contact rate and power are very important tools and can trump everything else. Just curious what your deciding factors would be.

[2wins87]

I like this potential draft quite a bit for the Twins.

I think there are going to be some tempting college bats available, but if the high school guys that they really like are still available I always like grabbing them early.

Caldwell is easily my top HS position player outside of Rainer and Griffin.  I do dream of a Corbin Carroll type with him, but even with more limited power you have to like the rest of the tools.

I don't really know much about the HS pitchers, but based on the Twins developmental strengths, I tend to like the idea of pitchers with really good secondary characteristics on their fastballs moreso than present velocity, and a big frame is always nice too.  Oakie does seem to fit that description quite well so I like it.

I do think they can find some college hitters a little later in this draft.  The guy that's interested me most recently that still feels like he's ranked way too low on most boards is Gage Miller.  I always like a guy that's been rapidly improving/moving up in competition levels.  I get some slight Julien-esque vibes from him too, though the plate approach might be fairly different.  Feels like a guy that could be worthy of a second round/comp B pick particularly if they are thinking about signability with HS guys early.

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

I would still lean into Brecht if available.   I'm not sure he will be available and not sure the twins will give a shot but let me give my reasoning.  

The pitching coach for Iowa was abysmal.  Gone after 2 years. The coach had immense talent on team  struggled to get it to perform and specifically to throw strikes.  Second Brecht has until last summer been playing both football and baseball, not a full commitment to baseball so I think there is a great chance for additional instruction (especially considering the firing of the pitching coach to improve mechanics and command.    The knock on Brecht has been an inability to locate the fastball,  and questions about the third pitch.  The elite velocity on his fastball and the elite slider are reasons why the potential is so high.  This year, his ability to land the slider waivered (what has been considered his best pitch).  However,  his command of the fastball improved and the splitter he has been working on,  really started to become affective.  Now some of this was against lower level competition but his stats the last month were crazy good,  like Skenes good.  The question has been the walks and the velocity.  Worst case I think you have a potential elite closer.  Otherwise you have a shot at a #1 pitcher with more refinement.  I see no other batter that has the potential to be elite like Brecht.  I've mentioned before I really think Langenberg will be key on getting intel on both Iowa pitchers in the draft and discussing the issue with the coach.  Its not surprising Langenberg struggled last year when the the new coach arrived.  Langenberg has done extremely well with the Twins and we just promoted him to A+ ball.   

[Jamie Cameron]

6 hours ago, Dman said:

Thanks so much for responding! I really appreciate you indulging me.

OK one last post on this one.  if they are all there and they could be is Caldwell still your choice? If both Honeycutt and Caldwell are there at 21 who are you picking? Would you pick Culpepper over Gillen? Would you do White over Gillen and Caldwell? I am just curious as there are so many players lumped into 19 to 33 that don't seem too far off from one another. It seems like tools would be the deciding factor, but contact rate and power are very important tools and can trump everything else. Just curious what your deciding factors would be.

Caldwell over Honeycutt for me (wouldn't be mad though, they're close)

Gillen over Culpepper (also close). Caldwell and Gillen over White bc if the bat doesn't hit on White, there's nothing else. Just my opinions but I like to ride with my board mostly.

[nicksaviking]

I think they should pick whomever the Orioles are planning on picking at 22.

[jishfish]

Finally started digging into this draft class over the last week or so, and really unsure how I feel about things.

I think right now my dream scenario at 21 is for one of the college hitters (Cam Smith, Seaver King, James Tibbs or Carson Benge) to fall, although all of those seem pretty unlikely at this point. If none of those four fall, I think Caldwell and Gillen are two players I'd be happy to see them take.

Do you think there's any scenario where they cut a deal with a lower-ranked college player at 21 (Jared Thomas and Mike Sirota are two that caught my eye) and then float a prep pitcher/SS down to 33 and/or 60? With 5 picks in the top 100 they have a lot of flexibility, but MIL and AZ are in a similar position, so maybe limits the flexibility there (it's also way too early to have any insight into this, but perhaps an intersting thought exercise over the next month)

[ashbury]

Outfielder with a questionable arm and not much power potential doesn't excite me.

[Mike Sixel]

Just say no to HS pitchers.....the odds are soooooooooo small. So very small.

[Hawkeye Bean Counter]

20 hours ago, Mike Sixel said:

Just say no to HS pitchers.....the odds are soooooooooo small. So very small.

I think the original seemingly success of Petty in 2021 even though traded, was enticing enough to try again.  Right now the 2 high school bats taken in last years draft are doing pretty well,  while the 2 high school pitchers are scuffling.  I still think it is early on both pitchers to write them off.  However,  the Twins have done well to follow the percentages and I would be fine if they did it again.  I like Brecht immensely but would be fine with 2 bats in the 1st round.