The latest cover of Sports Illustrated features Hunter Greene as "Baseball's LeBron or the new Babe." No pressure. That is Babe Ruth, the Great Bambino, and LeBron James, four-time NBA MVP, to whom the teenager is being compared.
If Greene really is that good, then the Twins should have their No. 1 pick for the June 12 MLB draft already locked in. "He's 17. He mashes. He throws 102. Hunter Greene is the star baseball needs," the magazine headline continues. "First he has to finish high school."
The 6-4, 210-pound star from Notre Dame High School of Sherman Oaks, Calif., is projected by many scouts to be one of the top two picks the upcoming draft. The Twins own the No. 1 pick after their franchise-worst 103-loss season.
Greene would be the first righthanded high school pitcher ever taken with the top pick. Also, his ability to hit and play shortstop have been compared to Alex Rodriguez. So if he flops as a pitcher, the next A-Rod is a nice backup plan.
JASON GONZALEZ
