Advertisement

Twins look to add depth during the final day of the draft

The draft is underway, as rounds 11-40 will be held today. The Twins will look to address organizational depth with their selections

June 14, 2017 at 5:29PM

We're already into round 17 of the draft. The Twins' picks so far:

11 - Gabriel Rodriguez, an outfielder from Adela Rolon Fuentes, (PR)
12- Bailey Ober, righthander from the College of Charleston
13 - Jared Akins, an outfielder from Fresno State
14 - Derek Molina, a righthander from Merced College
15 - Rickey Ramirez, a righthander from Fresno State
16 - Cade Smith, a rigthhander from the Mennonite Educational Institute.

Picks come rapid fire on the last day.

Twins scouting director Sean Johnson said last night that the focus today would be to fill organizational depth.

"The board has been picked over pretty good," he said.

But the Twins still have not drafted a catcher. Johnson said there were some they liked yesterday but they had other priorities to address.

Speaking of yesterday, what did we learn?

One, first round talents who fall to the third round can be bought out of their college commitments.

Advertisement
Advertisement

Two, when you need to save as much money as possible to overpay those first round talents, draft college seniors who have no bargaining leverage and who are ranked in the 200s and will be glad to get whatever bonus you give them. That's how you manage your bonus pool.

That's what the Twins did, and it landed them a first round talent in the third round in prep righthander Blayne Enlow. Enlow's slot number was $775,000 (for the 76th overall pick) but he will get around a $2 million bonus - which should end up being more than that the Twins pay for the 35th and 37th overall selections.

We should find out what the numbers are soon. After swapping a few texts last night with club officials, the Twins might be close to announcing some deals - once the players pass their physicals.

about the writer

about the writer

La Velle E. Neal III

Columnist

La Velle E. Neal III is a sports columnist for the Minnesota Star Tribune who previously covered the Twins for more than 20 years.

See Moreicon
Advertisement
Advertisement

To leave a comment, .

Advertisement