gunnarthor

Two of those 2nd rounders were traded for Scott Diamond and Cabrera, IIRC. All the rest of the 2nd rounders since 2010 are still in the system, although some are probably on their way out. And, of course, Joe Benson was a top 100 prospect whose release created one of the most epic threads ever at Twins Daily. But again, Deron Johnson's drafts haven't been as succesful as Radcliff's were.

Blankenhorn write up on mlb.com - A left-handed-hitting infielder from eastern Pennsylvania, Blankenhorn had a very good summer on the showcase circuit, playing well at both the East Coast Pro Showcase in Syracuse and the Metropolitan Baseball Classic held at Citi Field in New York. That performance didn't carry over at first to this spring, but he started coming on strong as the spring wore on. Strong and athletic, Blankenhorn has a solid left-handed swing and a good approach at the plate. There is some raw power to tap into from his frame, though he'll have to make sure he doesn't get too stiff and muscle-bound. A shortstop in high school, he'll likely move to an infield corner, where his above-average arm and solid hands should play well. Whether Blankenhorn can profile as an everyday corner infielder remains to be seen, but those who see his plus makeup and work ethic won't want to count him out.

Ryan has traded away a lot of pitching over the years and gotten some solid deals in return.

That's all possible, but for the 73rd pick I'm pretty happy.

Fulmer is expected to be a reliever for two reasons - 1) Height (see all Berrios threads) and 2) a max effort delivery. Of all the guys in the draft, he was the one I was most frightened of drafting. Jay is a good pick. His stuff grades out well and scouts think he can start. Had he been a starter this year, we wouldn't have gotten him at 6.

We do and I even said that. But you're passive aggressive rips on the Twins and Buxton were what was driving this.

Well, that's a problem but it's also how you get a diamond in the rough. McDaniel noted "Cody came on down the stretch and there's buzz he could go in the top 30 picks to the right team.."

I figure Jay is probably 6th, behind Buxton, Sano, Berrios, Meyer and Gordon but ahead of Stewart. Cody probably falls in the 12-15ish range behind Burdi, Gonsalves, Rosario, Kepler, Polanco (in some order).

Well, if it comes to that, they can trade pitching. That's usually pretty valuable.

Over his last 15 games, he's hitting .305/.423/.373 with 10 walks against 13 strike outs. The power isn't showing up yet but it does look like he's getting more comfortable at the plate.

Actually, not really. The only list that has had Correa ahead of Buxton before the season was Sickels. BA, BP, Mayo/Callis, Klaw, McDaniel etc all had Buxton ahead. And that was with Buxton coming off of a ruined year.

I really liked the Cody pick. I was hoping he could pitch himself into the top 10 at the beginning of the year. McDaniel on him: "Cody is an enigma, as a massive righty that throws three above average pitches at times and can run his sinker into the mid-90's, but he was jerked around by his coaches this year, is a lower energy player that doesn't always respond well to adversity and the secondary stuff and command came and went at times. Cody came on down the stretch and there's buzz he could go in the top 30 picks to the right team." mlb.com, who ranked him #40, wrote: "As a huge right-hander who didn't experience much success in his first two years at Kentucky yet has a chance to become a first-round choice following his third, Cody is following Alex Meyer's career path. But while Meyer significantly improved his slider and command as a junior, Cody struggled for much of this spring before getting back on track in mid-May. A Wisconsin high school product drafted in the 33rd round by the Phillies in 2012, Cody had the highest radar-gun reading (97 mph) at the 2014 Cape Cod League All-Star game. His 6-foot-7, 245-pound frame allows him to generate velocity with little effort and maintain it deep into games. He usually works at 93-96 mph and uses his height to throw on a tough downhill plane. Cody has continued to impress with his velocity in 2015, but his lack of command has led to his fastball getting hit more than it should. He'll show flashes of improvement with his low-80s slider and some feel for his mid-80s changeup, but both secondary pitches remain inconsistent. He'll profile as a workhorse starter if everything comes together, and if not, his fastball could approach triple digits if he's used as a reliever."

If he's there at 73, go for it. But I don't think he'll fall much further.

I haven't seen that - I did read Martin's quote that the show runners were more blood thirsty than he was and they were going to kill people that didn't die in the books but I didn't see anything about Martin killing Shireen (although it's certainly possible). I didn't like it at all and not following the books was just a small part of it.

Good for KC. They sucked for a longtime and now their fans are really into the game.

BA on him: “The pitcher more scouts seem to believe in than ever is Illinois lefthander Tyler Jay. It is ironic to say the least that it’s the college closer in Jay—who leads the nation in ERA and ranks fifth in strikeout-to-walk ratio—whom most scouts believe can start, and the two starters scouts see as big league impact relievers in Fulmer and Tate. “If you’re going to take a short college pitcher,” one scouting director said, “and you compare Jay to Fulmer, Jay does it easier, does it cleaner. He throws as hard (92-96 mph), maybe not as firm as Tate but he’s no slouch. He has as good or better breaking ball (a devastating mid-80s slide piece). He’s shown a good changeup. He’s been extended. He’s as athletic. And he’s lefthanded.”

Dave just won the internet.

I'm ok with the pick. I figure they'll put him in the pen for the rest of the year and then let him start next year.

Sounds like a Gleeman thing. But it's a pretty big conspiracy theory if you actually think about it. The theory is that Hunter's really just a big old d-bag who has tricked the media into pushing some incorrect image of him because he's a good quote and easily accessible. The problem is that for this to be true, he would have had to fool the press in MN, LA and Detroit, who all rave about him, and (to a lesser extent) the national media who covers baseball. But maybe he's that great a quote. But that would still require his teammates, who know he's a d-bag and getting all this undeserved great press, to not comment on him. And that doesn't happen. Even Jeter always had a whisper campaign made by other players against him. And even if the press didn't let those voices be heard, it would still require Sciosia, Molitor, Gardy and Leyland to all be in on it. And, if they were, all of those managers would have lost their club house. So it's more likely that Hunter is a really well liked and respected person in baseball. Oh, it would also require the teammates, who know who Hunter really is, to lie and accept blame for some of the things that Gleeman is alluding to. And since these Hunter positive mentor stories pop up in the Boston Globe and the USA today there's probably something to it. I said before the season that there are some people that don't like Hunter simply b/c he's an outspoken black man and I think a lot of the backlash against him is racially motivated to some degree.

Sure, things could fall right but that's because they already screwed up last years draft about as bad as you could. They lost the 1-1 pick in a strong draft (and a 5th rounder and 1m dollars) to pick second in this draft. So they didn't get an extra guy - they lost a year of development to get that extra pick this year. And Buxton is better.

http://www.bostonglobe.com/sports/2015/06/06/baseball-executives-looking-for-some-real-characters/SLNi37gvg0TPGKbau9iQLP/story.html?s_campaign=bostonglobe%3Asocialflow%3Atwitter Interesting piece on the importance of a guy like Hunter on a team from the Boston newspaper. "what did Royals general manager Dayton Moore do when Ibanez retired after last season? He put a full-court press on Torii Hunter, who eventually signed with the Twins, another team looking for a high-character guy. Hunter, according to a group of scouts, GMs, coaches, players, and baseball writers we asked, is the embodiment of a winning player and a leader. He no doubt has made a huge difference for the transformed Twins. The Royals, Mariners, Orioles, and Rangers all competed for Hunter’s services." The article also noted that bad players can hurt a clubhouse - "The executives we asked believe one player can make a huge impact, but on the other side one player can be destructive. Names such as Milton Bradley and Carl Everett were mentioned. The Dodgers, for instance, seem better off without Matt Kemp and Hanley Ramirez." Character guys are "“Hard to find,” said one American League GM. “We all search for that guy. When you get him and it clicks, it’s a beautiful thing.”

Yeah, in the short run, he'll struggle - although I wouldn't be surprised if he has a good series against Chicago. But most young players struggle - Trout had a .281 OBP during his first call up.

Wow, imagine the venom in this thread if the Astros had a better record ...

Lots of rumors about Cameron. Some suggest that the Astros can save enough money with their first two picks to nab him at 37 and still pay out a ton. Others say he doesn't drop past the Yankees or Braves, no matter what. Personally, I think he's high on the Twins wish list and could easily get picked by us.

I think a good chunk of the guys on this team will be here again next year. Obviously, some might have smaller roles.