Minnesota Twins 2025 MLB Draft Day 1 Recap: A Solid Shortstop & High Octane Arms

[Jamie Cameron]

The dust has settled on a frenetic day one of the 2025 MLB Draft. After 105 picks in an expanded opening day, the Twins have new prospects likely to join the organization soon. Here’s a rundown of their day one picks.

16. Marek Houston, SS, Wake Forest (18th by consensus), slot value: $4,929,600
Here’s an excerpt of our write-up on Houston from the consensus board:

It's plus defense at shortstop, with good lateral quickness, soft hands, a great internal clock, and a plus arm combining for a complete offensive profile. He's 1B to Billy Carlson's 1A defensively for shortstops in this class.

There's plenty to like in the offensive profile, too. It's a hit over power profile, headlined by strong bat-to-ball metrics and a history of walking more than he strikes out wherever he plays, including an excellent stint on the Cape after the 2024 season.

Houston's power numbers (under the hood) didn't really hold up in ACC play. He finished the season with a .354/.458/.597 (1.055) line with 15 home runs and identical 15.4% strikeout and walk rates. Even so, it's an above-average hit and run, with plus defense and a plus arm at shortstop. He's a first-half of the first-round type of guy in this class.

36. Riley Quick, RHP, Alabama (32nd by consensus), slot value: $2,692,000
Here’s an excerpt of our write-up on Quick from the consensus board:

Quick is another riser in the 2025 cycle on the pitching side. A physically imposing frame at 6'6, 250, the stuff and the results are starting to come together for the Alabama righty after recovering from TJ surgery.

Quick's fastball is a sinker that sits in the mid-90s. He can reach back for 98 mph. It generated a ground ball rate north of 60% in 2024, and it's easy to see why, with the pitch creating 20 inches or so of run. Quick has a relatively low release height for his size. He mixes in a sweeper, which is already above average and could be plus in time. His changeup, like his sinker, gets a ton of horizontal break.

Quick delivery is relatively consistent for such a physical pitcher. It's easy to see him carrying a significant workload as a pro if he can stay healthy. Despite the size and stuff, Quick hasn’t missed the amount of bats you’d like to see. In 2025, he finished with a 3.49 FIP, 25.9 K%, and 8.9 BB% in 62 IP. If the right organization gets him, you can see him being a tweak or two away from being a monster.

54. Quentin Young, SS, Oaks Christian HS, CA, (51st by consensus), slot value: $1,761,100
Here’s an excerpt of our write-up on Young from the consensus board:

At 6'5, 215, Quentin Young (nephew of Delmon and Dmitri) is a physical monster with a ton of projection in a super athletic frame. A right-handed hitter, there's a ton of raw power here, combined with some swing and miss concerns, particularly against off-speed stuff. It's a violent swing and aggressive approach at the plate that could be reined in to get to a little more refinement with his swing decisions and control of at-bats. He's easily got a plus arm, and with infield and outfield experience, that's likely a 3B/RF profile in time.

How the hit tool develops and the pitch recognition, in particular, will likely govern Young's ceiling. He's committed to LSU, which may be a tough connection to break, depending on where he's taken.

88. James Ellwanger, RHP, DBU, (86th by consensus, slot value: $893,000
Here’s an excerpt of our write-up on Ellwanger from the consensus board:

Ellwanger was a notable prospect prior to the 2023 draft and slipped due to signability concerns. He was taken by the Nats in the 19th round and is their type of prep power arm. It's an intriguing combination of size, stuff, and refinement needed, particularly on the secondary pitches and with his control.

Ellwanger stands 6'5, 205, it's a lean frame with more strength to add. Even so, he can run his fastball up into the high 90s with good ride and armside run. There's a good curveball present too, an above-average pitch, with a slider and changeup that haven't proven to be as effective yet. Strike throwing has also been a challenge for Ellwanger at times. Despite too many free passes (13.5%), he's performed solidly in 2025. It's a 3.07 FIP and 33 K%. You'll need a drafting organization that knows what they're doing with pitchers, but the arm talent is considerable.

Analysis
We often talk about draft classes like financial portfolios. You want diversity in your class. The Twins accomplished that in some unique and fun ways on day one. In Houston, you have a high-floored, low-variance college shortstop who should stick at the position. If you’ve ever wondered what the Twins player development team could do with higher-octane starting arm talent, you’ll get that look with both Quick and Ellwanger. In Young, they’ve landed some of the best raw power in the draft class.

The Twins haven’t recently drafted elite arm talent from college arms on day one. There are prep examples (Soto, Hill), but this represents a different approach. It also represents them leaning into one of the best demographics in the draft class. I wouldn’t expect to see Quick or Ellwanger pitch in 2026, and I’d equally expect to be blown away by the stuff in 2026.

The Twins' recent pick most similar to Young is Brandon Winokur. Young has elite power for a prospect his age. His batting practice at the Draft Combine was nukes drilled into the seats at 112-115 mph. I’d expect to see rawness, refinement needed in the hit tool, and absolutely massive home runs when he debuts.

Finally, there’s Houston. I didn’t love his profile, but that’s more of a personal preference. I like the pick plenty in the context of the other picks. So let’s dig in on some of his numbers from 2025. It’s an 86th percentile walk rate, 70th percentile strikeout rate, and 87th percentile in zone contact rate. Even if the power is fringe average, that’s a skill set that should provide solid value as he’s going to get on base and hit plenty. It’s a plus arm and above average speed, too (19/21 in stolen bases in 2025). If we’re looking at which tools will accrue value, for Houston, the org is betting on hit, run, defense, with 15 home run power at a premium defensive position. It makes sense.

What are your thoughts on the Twins' day one? Share your thoughts in the comments.

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[Doctor Wu]

Reading about these picks earlier today, I have to admit that I wasn't very excited. At first glance they seemed solid picks, but nothing spectacular. But after reading more about these players on TD I actually AM quite excited now. Definitely a lot of potential to be tapped with these four players. Hopefully, our coaches and "development process" will bring some positive results. Looking forward to Day 2.

[tarheeltwinsfan]

Thanks Jamie. I am pleased with the two  6' 5" college flame throwers, the power potential with Young and the "fielding first" choice of Houston. The timing is right to start looking for a fielding first SS to be mentored by C-4 to eventually take C-4's place at SS. Brooks Lee is solid, but Houston brings more fielding skill at SS. Lee can do well at 2B or at utility (like Castro- a switch hitter) if LK is the real deal at 2B. Houston seems to be a Noah Miller type fielder, who can make contact with the bat. I like the picks. Now it's time to find a young catcher, with a rifle for an arm. 

[Jamie Cameron]

27 minutes ago, tarheeltwinsfan said:

Thanks Jamie. I am pleased with the two  6' 5" college flame throwers, the power potential with Young and the "fielding first" choice of Houston. The timing is right to start looking for a fielding first SS to be mentored by C-4 to eventually take C-4's place at SS. Brooks Lee is solid, but Houston brings more fielding skill at SS. Lee can do well at 2B or at utility (like Castro- a switch hitter) if LK is the real deal at 2B. Houston seems to be a Noah Miller type fielder, who can make contact with the bat. I like the picks. Now it's time to find a young catcher, with a rifle for an arm. 

Yeah agree with all that assessment. This is a notable tweak from previous classes of getting a higher starting bar of arm talent, which I think is simply leaning into the strength of the class. Quick and Ellwanger is an exciting pair.

[Fatbat]

As always, I am GEEKED about the day 1 picks!! A SS that can play great defense and an absolute banger for a “young” pun intended. He is going to light up target field in 2027!! 
Finally some front line pedigree college SP!!! Flame throwing guys that know how to get guys out. Would not be surprised if they are both in the 2027 rotation. 
A great start to the draft.,.. now go get the catcher of the future. 

[Cory Engelhardt]

Also, the live feed was awesome. Thank you for doing that!

[rdehring]

Thanks Jamie for doing a great job in keeping us informed about this year's draft.

What surprised me the most was that all four picks were right around where the pundits had them ranked.  If memory serves, that is unusual for the Twins.

Loved the first pick when I heard several of the guys on ESPN talking about his being the best defensive player in the draft.  I value defense more than most and am of the opinion the Twins need a lot of help.  With C4 starting to slow down defensively, hopefully he can get here by mid-2027 at the latest.  Agree with the above comments about the two flame throwers.  Please Lord, let one of 'em be the real deal.  As for Young, expect they are rolling the dice and hoping they don't come up snake eyes.

Should be fun seeing what they get today.  As also mentioned above, hopefully there will be a catcher, or two coming soon.  As for the draft in general, was surprised with both the number of shortstops selected in the first dozen or so picks and the number of high school kids taken in the first round.  Was that expected, Jamie?

[Possumlad]

Something I found odd based on previous write-ups (along w/ the one above) on Houston: in both the ESPN & CBS recaps, they seem to question the narrative of Houston being a "field-first" pick... ESPN goes so far as to call him a "hit-first infielder." 

From CBS Draft Recap: 

Houston doesn't have as much power as his 15-homer season indicates -- he recorded just two extra-base hits across 27 Cape Cod League contests last summer -- making it an open question as to how his bat will fare against professional pitching. The scouts I spoke to were split on whether he was actually a plus shortstop defender, too.

And from Riley McDaniel (ESPN) this morning: 

The Twins took two hit-first college infielders as their first picks last year (Kaelen Culpepper and Kyle DeBarge), took another one in the 2023 second round (Luke Keaschall), and two more in the top two rounds in 2022 (Brooks Lee, Tanner Schobel) -- and also took one with their first pick this year in Marek Houston.

[Jamie Cameron]

9 minutes ago, rdehring said:

Thanks Jamie for doing a great job in keeping us informed about this year's draft.

What surprised me the most was that all four picks were right around where the pundits had them ranked.  If memory serves, that is unusual for the Twins.

Loved the first pick when I heard several of the guys on ESPN talking about his being the best defensive player in the draft.  I value defense more than most and am of the opinion the Twins need a lot of help.  With C4 starting to slow down defensively, hopefully he can get here by mid-2027 at the latest.  Agree with the above comments about the two flame throwers.  Please Lord, let one of 'em be the real deal.  As for Young, expect they are rolling the dice and hoping they don't come up snake eyes.

Should be fun seeing what they get today.  As also mentioned above, hopefully there will be a catcher, or two coming soon.  As for the draft in general, was surprised with both the number of shortstops selected in the first dozen or so picks and the number of high school kids taken in the first round.  Was that expected, Jamie?

I think it may have been a record setting year for SS taken in the first round, but prep infielders was one of the best two demographics in the draft this year (along with college pitching)

[Jamie Cameron]

4 minutes ago, Possumlad said:

Something I found odd based on previous write-ups (along w/ the one above) on Houston: in both the ESPN & CBS recaps, they seem to question the narrative of Houston being a "field-first" pick... ESPN goes so far as to call him a "hit-first infielder." 

From CBS Draft Recap: 

Houston doesn't have as much power as his 15-homer season indicates -- he recorded just two extra-base hits across 27 Cape Cod League contests last summer -- making it an open question as to how his bat will fare against professional pitching. The scouts I spoke to were split on whether he was actually a plus shortstop defender, too.

And from Riley McDaniel (ESPN) this morning: 

The Twins took two hit-first college infielders as their first picks last year (Kaelen Culpepper and Kyle DeBarge), took another one in the 2023 second round (Luke Keaschall), and two more in the top two rounds in 2022 (Brooks Lee, Tanner Schobel) -- and also took one with their first pick this year in Marek Houston.

I think that's maybe talking at cross purposes a bit. I'm assuming their 'hit first' phrasing is referring to what is carrying the offensive profile and taking defense off the table, if that makes sense.

[chpettit19]

I like, don't love, the Houston pick. I probably would've gone Irish if there's any chance he's a catcher (I think his arm and the ABS system coming means he can catch if you're willing to wait 2 years even with the bat being ready in 1), but am happy with the Houston pick. No real problem with it, as this team very much needs more defense and athleticism. 

Love the Quick pick. Dial in his release point to improve his command and tunneling and you may have a font-line starting pitcher. Seems like a sturdy floor as a flame throwing reliever if he can't ever lock in the command. 

Appreciate the upside play on some of the best raw power in the class with Young, but just am not a big fan of 40 hit tool guys. No real problem with the pick at that point of the draft as it's mile high potential if he can figure out the contact and how to pick up spin, but he's just not my type of prospect. I prefer contact guys who you teach how to lift the ball more over guys you have to teach how to hit the ball. But huge upside if he can put it together.

Ellwanger is a lot like Quick in that there's high octane stuff there already and you have to dial in the command. He feels like more of a reliever to me, and I may even have a relatively short leash on him trying to figure it out as a starter, but it's certainly a live arm. Even if he turns out to be a reliever, he could be a quick mover with that stuff and be the next shutdown arm out of the pen.

Solid first day. I don't get overly excited or hateful on draft picks. It's all a crap shoot in every draft. I can see the logic in every pick and a route to success for all of them. That's all I can ask for.

[madtowntwin]

Not quite the way we saw things pre-draft yesterday!! However, Marek Houston was the most referenced player to the Twins at that spot by the national pundits. Watched him play and he can definitely field his position. His offensive game progressed and the kid became a real RBI Hound. He is a bit of a Noah Miller balm with more advanced offensive skill - Not from Wisconsin of course....

Speaking of my fair state...Both Gavin Kilen 2B and Nate Snead 2B are off the board. What a first round for middle infielders!! Anyway, the state prize - Peter Kussow RHP Arrowhead HS 6'5" 215# is still on the board. Biting my tongue right now as I really wanted to comp him to Riley Quick!! Damn...Anyway - He would probably need to go early today to lure him from college commitment with bonus money. 

Oh, and since the Twins are apparently drafting a Summer NBA team - One of YOUR selections could add to their dominating height and athleticism....Joseph Dzierwa LHP MSU 6'7". Love the draft. Win Twins!! Thanks for the coverage and comments everybody. 

 

[Heistyman]

I’m digging the draft class thus far😎

[Dman]

Jamie thanks for the live feed! I really enjoyed the analysis!  Much more fun and engaging as we wait for the Twins picks than just watching the TV.  Gotta say your knowledge is amazing. I try to stay up on a lot of the top 50 guys but you know guys way down the board. 

I guess I am a grass is greener kind of guy.  I really liked a lot of other teams drafts better than the Twins.  As you know I am a big pitcher first advocate and I would have preferred a prep arm where they took Young.  I will say they were tied to Neyens and I would guess that with Young still there and a pretty similar profile they couldn't help themselves.

I like the Houston pick better than most.  They had a top 16 pick and they should have and did get an up the middle player.  There were better bats and some with louder tools but how many more second baseman can this team use.  They also seem to find guys that can play second later in the draft. It is really hard to find good defensive and offensive up the middle players.  I will say the lack or power and lower exit velo's does concern me. I love Austin Martin but the fact he can pretty much only hit singles leaves me wanting more out of most any position be plays.  The Twins have helped several players to develop pull side power and it looks like Houston tried more of that this past year.  Granted he needs even more, but it seems like something they might help him with and if he does hit for average power this is a very, very good pick IMO.  There was early chatter about him going from pick 11 and comps to Swanson who went number 1 his draft year.  I like the pick.

I was ecstatic when the Twins took Quick.  Not only was it solid value, but for prospect system watchers like me it was a need.  The system especially the lower levels is void of difference making arms.  There is no one to hype up other than Hill and Soto and Maybe Bohorquez who are all quite far away. Grabbing a work horse type arm with good stuff who could move quickly if he can refine some things made a ton of sense.  Absolute A+ for me on the Quick pick.

As noted earlier they did grab a player with very loud tools in Young.  I just get the willies when they talk about swing and miss even though I know that is a part of the power game.  As much as I have cried and complained about Wallner over the years I do love watching his majestic home runs. This is probably a much better pick than I am giving it credit for but I would have gone high school pitcher there since I feel arms are a larger system need.  Twins scouts know more than I do and Young was a severe up arrow prospect late.  We'll see if they are right in 5 years or so as power bats are generally very slow to develop.

I don't know much about Ellwanger.  He looks like a two pitch pitcher with two very good pitches.  he seems to have some of the high end tools the Twins like.  Might take longer for him to develop but I love the pick.  happy they got two nice arms early this year.

Overall my strategy would have been closer to what Boston did.  Just take high end pitching.  You look at the system and the top 5 guy are hitters in Jenkins, Rodriguez, Keaschal, Culpepper and Gonzalez.  Raya and Preilipp have looked shaky so far this year and there isn't much behind them until the high school arms.  The Twins might need to sell off arms in the not too distant future so they need more arms.  Was happy they got two good ones and would have like a third one as mentioned a high school arm, but despite my reservations I think this was a very good balanced draft.  I always get hung up on certain players profiles that I love, but I don't get to "really see" these guys so what do I know other than what is fed to me by other analysts.

It was a good day one now they need to crush day 2 finding those diamonds in the rough.

[Possumlad]

21 minutes ago, Jamie Cameron said:

I think that's maybe talking at cross purposes a bit. I'm assuming their 'hit first' phrasing is referring to what is carrying the offensive profile and taking defense off the table, if that makes sense.

That makes sense. "Hit-first" in the sense of hit tool over power tool for offense. Still found the CBS write-up odd, as it's the first I've seen anyone suggest maybe Houston isn't widely viewed as plus defender at SS.

[nicksaviking]

I don't love the Houston pick. Glove-first hitters don't tend to be more than utility players at the MLB level and the Twins desperately need offense. The guy is going to have to end up hitting, and not just singles.

I like the pitchers, but if it becomes clear that they both should be relievers, I don't want the Twins farting around for years trying to force the issue as starters.

Young's bat sounds like a huge boom or bust profile, but I'm all for rolling the dice. 

[LambchoP]

Between Culpeper and now Houston it sure looks like the Twins are trying to lock down Correa insurance, or dare I say.... replacement. Not sure Brooks Lee will ever hit enough to be our everyday starting SS.

[Dman]

36 minutes ago, Possumlad said:

That makes sense. "Hit-first" in the sense of hit tool over power tool for offense. Still found the CBS write-up odd, as it's the first I've seen anyone suggest maybe Houston isn't widely viewed as plus defender at SS.

Jamie had said last night Houston's OAA(Outs above average) wasn't that great this year.  More average than above average,  Personally I am not too hung up on whether he would be plus there, just that he can play there and there was consensus that he would stay at short. 

It takes a lot to be plus, but average isn't bad.  Have to take some of these evals with a grain of salt.  Last year most scouts felt Culpepper sticking at short was unlikely.  When the Twins drafted Miller there were questions about his speed and defense and he looked plus out there. Scouts see players at different times defensive stats are a bit fickle and players aren't finished products yet.  I would say that even if ultimately he isn't a plus defender not a huge deal as he likely can still make all the plays just maybe not some of the elite ones.

[twinstalker]

20 to 80 on talent relative to slot

Houston   30

Quick        65

Young       35

Ellwanger 65

In my limited (to 30-40 players) knowledge, I'd have taken at least 6-10? guys on the board (including Quick) before I took Houston.  The top three being Cunningham, Irish, Neyens.  I would have taken Quick, I think, at 36.  I would have passed on Young.  Twins development hasn't been able to help Cavaco, Sabato, Winokur, and others targeted "sluggers."  I don't know why anyone would expect them to help Young.  On the flip side, Twins know what they're doing in pitching development, and they know who to target.  I'm not sure this FO has drafted a college pitcher as high as either of these guys (edit: Canterino, Prielipp), so it will be fun to see what they can do with a more talented sort.

[twinstalker]

21 minutes ago, LambchoP said:

Between Culpeper and now Houston it sure looks like the Twins are trying to lock down Correa insurance, or dare I say.... replacement. Not sure Brooks Lee will ever hit enough to be our everyday starting SS.

Are you suggesting we put Lee at catcher?

[jmlease1]

I think one of the things we're seeing in this draft is that the Twins aren't all that dogmatic in their player profiling for what they "want" in a draft pick. To me, I look at this draft and see a team looking to get the most value they can with wherever they're picking.

Lot of variety in this group to me, but all are reasonable/interesting picks for where they went.

I don't think the Twins show a lot of interest in drafting for need, as a rule. Which is probably going to frustrate those who are worrying about the dearth of catching prospects in the system (I have concerns myself) or 1B depth. But considering how much of a crapshoot player development still is...I'm not too hung up on it.

 

[Fatbat]

29 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

I don't love the Houston pick. Glove-first hitters don't tend to be more than utility players at the MLB level and the Twins desperately need offense. The guy is going to have to end up hitting, and not just singles.

I like the pitchers, but if it becomes clear that they both should be relievers, I don't want the Twins farting around for years trying to force the issue as starters.

Young's bat sounds like a huge boom or bust profile, but I'm all for rolling the dice. 

Its hard to pigeon hole the pitchers as likely relievers the day after being drafted.  Yeah, thats there floor, but isn't that a floor every pitching prospect has? At 20 years old, I’d bet they are closer to solid SP than just a high octane 2 pitch reliever. Lets save that until they are 25 and cant get thru the lineup 3 times. 

[nicksaviking]

3 minutes ago, Fatbat said:

Its hard to pigeon hole the pitchers as likely relievers the day after being drafted.  Yeah, thats there floor, but isn't that a floor every pitching prospect has? At 20 years old, I’d bet they are closer to solid SP than just a high octane 2 pitch reliever. Lets save that until they are 25 and cant get thru the lineup 3 times. 

I'm not writing them off, I'm just advocating that the Twins make the switch early if the evidence starts piling up that this is the most likely spot on the team.

But with some command concerns and lack of innings, I'd say these two have the look of a reliever more than most of the Twins other recent draft picks. 

[Fatbat]

16 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

I'm not writing them off, I'm just advocating that the Twins make the switch early if the evidence starts piling up that this is the most likely spot on the team.

But with some command concerns and lack of innings, I'd say these two have the look of a reliever more than most of the Twins other recent draft picks. 

I just gotta respectfully disagree on the length of SP leash. The twins have a great strategy of how to put a top 10 bullpen together year after year. Not many guys under 25 with SP 1-3 potential are gonna be sent to the pen before they get to their arbitration eligibility. 

[Jamie Cameron]

Thanks y'all for the engagement and the kind words about the stream. We really enjoy doing it. Will have videos, articles, podcast etc. breaking down day two and beyond in the next few days.

[nicksaviking]

12 minutes ago, Fatbat said:

I just gotta respectfully disagree on the length of SP leash. The twins have a great strategy of how to put a top 10 bullpen together year after year. Not many guys under 25 with SP 1-3 potential are gonna be sent to the pen before they get to their arbitration eligibility. 

Agreed that they've done great turning former starters into relievers. However, they blew a year of service time on Jax and Sands trying to force them into the rotation despite it being clear their stuff wasn't going play to there, and they blew two years on Varland. 

[Fatbat]

I’ll grant ya a year on Varland but he was still developing the year before so the time spent on the AAAA taxi squad was probably worth it. It seems to be paying off now and he has a long career ahead. 
I don’t want to see Jax as a starter but some TD’r simply won’t let that die. He needs to get his payday and be a Twin stopper for the next 6-8 years. 
Sands seemed to develop late to me.  Not ever been much of a fan but he seems to be excelling as a 2 inning opener. Long men are a difficult group for me to access…. @nicksaviking

[Dman]

1 hour ago, twinstalker said:

20 to 80 on talent relative to slot

Houston   30

Quick        65

Young       35

Ellwanger 65

In my limited (to 30-40 players) knowledge, I'd have taken at least 6-10? guys on the board (including Quick) before I took Houston.  The top three being Cunningham, Irish, Neyens.  I would have taken Quick, I think, at 36.  I would have passed on Young.  Twins development hasn't been able to help Cavaco, Sabato, Winokur, and others targeted "sluggers."  I don't know why anyone would expect them to help Young.  On the flip side, Twins know what they're doing in pitching development, and they know who to target.  I'm not sure this FO has drafted a college pitcher as high as either of these guys (edit: Canterino, Prielipp), so it will be fun to see what they can do with a more talented sort.

Draft rankings don't mean much. Often times there isn't much difference between a player taken at 16 and 30.  It is often based on preference.  For those of us (myself included) who feel the Twins "reach" on players this year in the first few rounds it looks like they found value on three out of the four picks with the fourth taken verry close to where ranked.

Houston ranked 15 taken 16

Quick ranked 38 taken 36

Young ranked 37 taken 54

Ellwanger ranked 76 taken 88

So according to MLB.om anyway they made value picks pretty much every pick.  Again not that it means much except that in past years the Twins seem to go off board sooner than most.  Even just last year Culpepper was ranked 32 and they took him at 21. despite what the board said it turned out to be a great pick.

[tarheeltwinsfan]

2 hours ago, chpettit19 said:

I like, don't love, the Houston pick. I probably would've gone Irish if there's any chance he's a catcher (I think his arm and the ABS system coming means he can catch if you're willing to wait 2 years even with the bat being ready in 1), but am happy with the Houston pick. No real problem with it, as this team very much needs more defense and athleticism. 

Love the Quick pick. Dial in his release point to improve his command and tunneling and you may have a font-line starting pitcher. Seems like a sturdy floor as a flame throwing reliever if he can't ever lock in the command. 

Appreciate the upside play on some of the best raw power in the class with Young, but just am not a big fan of 40 hit tool guys. No real problem with the pick at that point of the draft as it's mile high potential if he can figure out the contact and how to pick up spin, but he's just not my type of prospect. I prefer contact guys who you teach how to lift the ball more over guys you have to teach how to hit the ball. But huge upside if he can put it together.

Ellwanger is a lot like Quick in that there's high octane stuff there already and you have to dial in the command. He feels like more of a reliever to me, and I may even have a relatively short leash on him trying to figure it out as a starter, but it's certainly a live arm. Even if he turns out to be a reliever, he could be a quick mover with that stuff and be the next shutdown arm out of the pen.

Solid first day. I don't get overly excited or hateful on draft picks. It's all a crap shoot in every draft. I can see the logic in every pick and a route to success for all of them. That's all I can ask for.

CH, I too was initially hoping the Twins would draft Ike Irish at 16, but I wonder why he didn't catch much, if any, this past season. I know he had a broken scapula, but I don't know how much that factored into the decision for him to play RF this season after the injury. He may have played RF because he is too good  a hitter to risk injuries at catcher. Or Auburn's second string catcher may have been better than Auburn's second string RF'er. Another considertion is that the Twins top two prospects (Jenkins and Rodriguez) are left-handed hitting outfielders and Irish bats lefty. In addition, Wallner and Larnach both bat lefty also and they are both  relatively young and still developing.  I just think the Twins have enough young lefty hitting outfielders and didn't want to take a chance on Irish's catching ability. 

[tarheeltwinsfan]

2 hours ago, Dman said:

Jamie thanks for the live feed! I really enjoyed the analysis!  Much more fun and engaging as we wait for the Twins picks than just watching the TV.  Gotta say your knowledge is amazing. I try to stay up on a lot of the top 50 guys but you know guys way down the board. 

I guess I am a grass is greener kind of guy.  I really liked a lot of other teams drafts better than the Twins.  As you know I am a big pitcher first advocate and I would have preferred a prep arm where they took Young.  I will say they were tied to Neyens and I would guess that with Young still there and a pretty similar profile they couldn't help themselves.

I like the Houston pick better than most.  They had a top 16 pick and they should have and did get an up the middle player.  There were better bats and some with louder tools but how many more second baseman can this team use.  They also seem to find guys that can play second later in the draft. It is really hard to find good defensive and offensive up the middle players.  I will say the lack or power and lower exit velo's does concern me. I love Austin Martin but the fact he can pretty much only hit singles leaves me wanting more out of most any position be plays.  The Twins have helped several players to develop pull side power and it looks like Houston tried more of that this past year.  Granted he needs even more, but it seems like something they might help him with and if he does hit for average power this is a very, very good pick IMO.  There was early chatter about him going from pick 11 and comps to Swanson who went number 1 his draft year.  I like the pick.

I was ecstatic when the Twins took Quick.  Not only was it solid value, but for prospect system watchers like me it was a need.  The system especially the lower levels is void of difference making arms.  There is no one to hype up other than Hill and Soto and Maybe Bohorquez who are all quite far away. Grabbing a work horse type arm with good stuff who could move quickly if he can refine some things made a ton of sense.  Absolute A+ for me on the Quick pick.

As noted earlier they did grab a player with very loud tools in Young.  I just get the willies when they talk about swing and miss even though I know that is a part of the power game.  As much as I have cried and complained about Wallner over the years I do love watching his majestic home runs. This is probably a much better pick than I am giving it credit for but I would have gone high school pitcher there since I feel arms are a larger system need.  Twins scouts know more than I do and Young was a severe up arrow prospect late.  We'll see if they are right in 5 years or so as power bats are generally very slow to develop.

I don't know much about Ellwanger.  He looks like a two pitch pitcher with two very good pitches.  he seems to have some of the high end tools the Twins like.  Might take longer for him to develop but I love the pick.  happy they got two nice arms early this year.

Overall my strategy would have been closer to what Boston did.  Just take high end pitching.  You look at the system and the top 5 guy are hitters in Jenkins, Rodriguez, Keaschal, Culpepper and Gonzalez.  Raya and Preilipp have looked shaky so far this year and there isn't much behind them until the high school arms.  The Twins might need to sell off arms in the not too distant future so they need more arms.  Was happy they got two good ones and would have like a third one as mentioned a high school arm, but despite my reservations I think this was a very good balanced draft.  I always get hung up on certain players profiles that I love, but I don't get to "really see" these guys so what do I know other than what is fed to me by other analysts.

It was a good day one now they need to crush day 2 finding those diamonds in the rough.

Excellent analysis Dman.