Twins Video
If you didn't keep up on all of Thursday's happenings, I'll throw a whole bunch of links at you. You could start with the Day One Thread. It might take you an hour (or four) to sift through all the information.
If you just want the cliff notes versions, read all that's been written about the four players already selected: Alex Kirilloff, Ben Rortvedt, Jose Miranda and Akil Baddoo.
And if you don't want all the facts to help color your narrative, pass on the clicks and I'll tell you how to feel below.
Before that though, don't forget that the Godfather John Bonnes and myself will be broadcasting on KFAN on Friday night from 7-8. We'll be recapping the Top 10 rounds.
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As the draft had approached, it never offered much clarity as it got closer. I knew the Twins had always like Kirilloff, but the talk on the national-level always focused on power-pitchers. As prep arms started to price themselves out of the Twins price range, I broadened the search to include college arms. To be completely honest, there weren't a ton of pitchers that I really liked: Braxton Garrett, Cal Quantrill, Ian Anderson and, towards the end, Justin Dunn.
Anderson went off the board at #3, Garrett at #7 and Quantrill at #8. When it came time for the Twins to read off their card, I figured it was between Dunn and Kirilloff and I had come around to prefer Dunn, which is odd because I typically prefer high-ceiling preps over stale collegiates.
It didn't take me too long to come back around on the only hitter I liked at #15. Kirilloff is going to be a very good player. Twins made comps of Christian Yelich and Todd Helton, but when I heard the Max Kepler comp, I thought that made sense. (Probably because I had that comp earlier in the process.) Kirilloff isn't close and he doesn't need to be, but he adds a high-ceiling prospect to the stable. And the value is in his bat, which seems to become a trend later in the day.
There have been many complaints about the lack of catching in the organization and I understand it, though I don't necessarily agree that it's as empty as many claim. I thought they'd pop a guy sometime on Day 2, but they were able to get the top prep catcher in the nation, Ben Rortvedt, at #56. He profiles as a catcher who could stick and also have a decent bat while doing it, so that's great. What I worry about it that a majority of fans have already written his name in stone as the "future catcher". He's no where near that. He's four, maybe five years from contributing. Rortvedt, no matter how good he is - and he can be really good, isn't going to solve the problem we're watching on TV every night.
The Twins got the neat opportunity to draft two players consecutively at the end of the night. These are picks awarded, potentially, to teams who receive part of the league revenue (revenue-sharing). Having already taken two prep players, I figured we'd see the franchise transition to safer (college) arms with lower mileage (relievers!).
I was pleasantly surprised to hear Brad Radke call off two more prep names: Jose Miranda, a high-ceiling Puerto Rican shortstop who probably plays third but has the bat for it, and Akil Baddoo, a plus athlete who profiles as a left fielder but will someday hopefully fill the charismatic void that Torii Hunter left when he retired. Baddoo also has the makings of a good hitter. Both players are 17 years old.
All in all, there's nothing to not like about Day One (without getting nit-picky). The Twins will make eight more picks on Friday, with the first pick probably coming between 12:15pm and 12:30pm.
It's going to be another fun day. Chime in below. Share your thoughts. Ask questions (though I apologize, I can't respond to nearly as many as I'd like too.)
Twice as many picks on Friday. Twice as much fun.
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