boylan

Not what my HDTV radar gun said last year. And, I'm uninterested in him at 88-89. As an aside, Alex Burnett cleared waivers today and got out-righted to Des Moines.

One thing that is super clear to me after reading this thread and some of the 10,000+ pages of the Benson thread is that the Twins are in no way hesitating to drop their marginal players off the 40 man roster spot as needed. Does make me wondering - do the Twins have a bumper crop of prospects that will be need to be added to the 40 man roster after the season?

He threw 93-94 last year with the Twins end of last year. He actually looked pretty good at the time and I was wondering if he'd push Duensing down to AAA this year. Obviously he didn't perform this spring and his velocity is apparently down a lot (I haven't seen him pitch this year but others are saying 85mph !?!?).

Butera is signed for $700K this year and I've seen on non-Twins sites that there is interest in him as a back-up catcher but several teams. So, he is not getting DFA'ed. I don't think he is that much worse that Tim Laudner. Worse at the plate obviously but better behind the plate. And Laudner play like 9 seasons for the Twins.

Cruel, just cruel. I haven't been following Benson but the Ranger's AA assignment and comments from Ryan were telling.

This move makes no sense to me. Robertson seemed like he had potential last year and he's 25. He's got (had, will have?) +velocity,gets it done L-L, obviously walked a lot of guys mostly righthand'ers But, isn't he more of a prospect that Clete Thomas who is nearly 30? Robertson is for sure not going to clear waivers. He might even be tradable. Does this say something about Hicks?

Gray would be a great pick but Law has this backwards. Gray will be gone before Appel. I think there is a decent chance Appel drops to (at least) the Twins because (supposedly) he's wants the moon and he has Boras as an agent. Bryant supposedly more rational even though Boras is said to be advising him.

I was sitting next to you at the game. I agree with everything you said but one thing to note is that he had family at the game that he paid a lot of attention to after he was taken out so he probably felt some extra pressure. I didn't think he pitched that well. I saw few pitches over 90mph and from my angle behind the dugout he his pitches looked flat and a little higher than I would have liked.

Very cool set of numbers. In this case I'm not sure they are relevant however. Don't know whether he was sent or went but it appeared to me to be a case of stealing a base simply as part of transitioning to the majors. Hicks has been on base so little he really hasn't had a chance to get "use to" or get any exposure to stealing bases in the majors. With that lead I would have been shocked he wasn't sent/went in practically any situation.

I think this is a very good point. What, 1/3 of the first round will play in the majors? To balance out a Moran (Astros) or McGuire pick you would probably need to sign several HS players in later rounds that wouldn't otherwise sign (and who were worthy of 2nd money) because the money wasn't enough. Can you get 3 kids in the 40+ round to sign for 500,000 - 700,000? No clue. But you've only got about a day to figure it out once the first round ends.

First off, unless Appel drops to 4th there is no player that's going to help the twins in 2014 so pick the best player. Kohl Stewart. HS pitchers are notorious draft washouts. Scouts love the power but they tend not to polish up as they finish filling out. I disagree that he is any more muscular than the typical HS pitcher. He weights the same as Berrios and Berrios is the smallest looking 6-0 in person that I've ever seen. The scouting video I've seen shows he looks at his feet mid-motion on every pitch and picks up the target late. His release point is very inconsistent and his pitches wander all over the plate area as a result. Whether the Twins can convince him that his feet aren't going anywhere I don't know. I've never seen coaches use a dog funnel but he needs it. A lot of kids can't break this habit. On the flip side is that he throws some REALLY sweet pitches. Reese McGuire. Defensively he's the real deal. I agree with the comments that he's almost major league ready although no idea how he would be at calling a game. Got the arm, catches the ball, frames well and throws down to 2nd well. Batting he needs to work at getting his arms better extended/hitting the ball out in front of him a bit better. Quiet swing, loads up and moves towards the ball with a little leg lift/step. He's seen Puckett video. I agree that he doesn't seem like he'll hit got a lot of power but I think he makes much better contact than he has been given credit for. Bottom line, take McQuire if he'll go under slot and see if the Twins can pick up a hard to sign HS arm with a protected pick. Or even a draft end pick. This strategy makes more sense if the Astros are successful in hinting to HS players they will do the same with a 1-1 Moran pick.

I've read several scouting reports that Stewart has the highest ceiling of the three Appel/Gray/Stewart he's just further away. Gray is still far enough away that time to majors is not a factor in helping this team and therefore no factor in picking him.