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Of course, if this season continues to tumble into the dismal place that is a return to the Top 5 of the draft, we’ll have to shed some light onto the 2017 draft. But we’re not there yet and we still have the 2016 draft to focus on.
Some housekeeping first: The Twins first-round pick (15th overall) is worth $2,817,100. Their total pool is worth $7,997,200, eleventh most in baseball. One thing you can’t look past - it’s still really early. In fact, not everyone has even started their season yet - which you can understand if you’re living in an area that accumulates snow and/or gets really cold.
In poking around to prepare for this article, I learned a few things or, at a minimum, verified things I already thought I knew: The states of California and Georgia are “loaded.” I was also warned that you might see a lot of deals get cut in the days leading up to the draft. Take that with a grain of salt, though, because I hear that almost every year… and then the draft happens. The reason for the belief this year is that after less than a dozen elite prospects, there are a jumble in the next tier... and the difference between being the 15th pick and the 45th pick is a lot of money.
In no way is this intended to be a comprehensive list of guys the Twins are considering at #15. Nowhere on Earth does that list exist. Not now and really not until the days leading up to the draft.
But if a discussion is what you want… so let’s start that discussion right now about five guys right now. (I’ll include each player’s ranking from Baseball America, Keith Law and MLB.com in parenthesis.)
The Peaches from the Southeast
William Benson, OF, Georgia HS (23;20;18) - Benson is huge (6’ 6, 225), young (won’t turn 18 til after the draft) and oozes with athleticism (he helped lead his basketball team to a 21-3 record before being ousted early in the playoffs). But there are questions about his bat - as there are with most prep hitters. He’s shown plenty of raw power and has the arm strength to remain in right field.
Braxton Garrett, LHP, Alabama HS (35;9;41) - A Vanderbilt signee and Boras advisee, Garrett has a fastball that is usually in the low-90s, a 70 curveball almost every time he throws it and a plus change-up when he’s on. Garrett is going to be become a more prominent prospect as the draft approaches and will probably - despite what the draft rankings show - be gone before the Twins get an opportunity to select him.
Josh Lowe, 3B/RHP, Georgia HS (11;18;17) - The Twins have drafted two-way studs before (like Aaron Hicks) and given the player the chance to succeed as a position player. Lowe is very athletic and has a bat that packs a lot of power. As far as where he could play defensively, he could be a plus defender at 3B or any of the OF spots. The question, again, is how the bat plays. Unlike Benson, though, the fallback plan for Lowe would be to move to the mound where he’s raw, but has the ceiling of a #2 starter.
Going Back to Cali
Cal Quantrill, RHP, Stanford (29;21;20) - Before blowing out his elbow in March of 2015, Quantrill was a player frequently talked about as having 1-1 stuff. He’ll be back pitching for Stanford within the next month and the Twins will be watching closely. As it’s been in the past with Jeff Hoffman (8th), Lucas Giolito (16th) and Erick Fedde (18th), the 15th spot in the draft could be a prime spot to nab a TJ-recoverer, especially one with the ceiling of a staff ace. Could the Twins shave some dollars from the abundance of Top 100 picks and offer Quantrill, who is repped by the other superagent Casey Close, more money in hopes of having him slide?
Matt Manning, RHP, California HS (25;12;NR) - His season just starting, Manning is going to be all over national boards until teams have an opportunity to see him, something the Twins and scouting director Deron Johnson did earlier this week. Reports indicate that Manning was throwing “hard.”
If it came down to drafting one of these five, who do you want? And why?
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