Sunday Insider: Central Intelligence

June 20, 2015 at 11:49PM
Kansas City Royals first -ound draft pick Ashe Russell looks over the facilities before a baseball game between the Royals and the Milwaukee Brewers at Kauffman Stadium in Kansas City, Mo., Wednesday, June 17, 2015. Russell is a right-handed pitcher from Cathedral High School in Indianapolis. (AP Photo/Orlin Wagner) ORG XMIT: MIN2015061917522081
Russell (The Minnesota Star Tribune)

CENTRAL INTELLIGENCE

When the Twins drafted Tyler Jay with the No. 6 pick in the MLB draft, they started a trend for the entire AL Central. Here are the pitchers the rest of the division chose with their first picks:

Indians: Cleveland hopes it got a steal at No. 17 by taking Brady Aiken, the lefthander who was taken first overall by Houston last year but could not reach a contract agreement because of concerns about his arm. He has had Tommy John elbow ligament replacement surgery, so he won't begin his pro career for a while, but the Indians believe it was a gamble well worth taking.

• • •

Royals: At 6-foot-4, righthander Ashe Russell is an intimidating presence on the mound, especially since he already throws a pro-quality slider. The Indianapolis high school pitcher, taken No. 21 overall, has unusual ability to sustain his mid-90s velocity deep into games, scouts say.

• • •

Tigers: With 132 strikeouts in 71 innings while pitching for Weatherford (Texas) High, righthander Beau Burrows impressed Detroit scouts enough to draft him 22nd overall, earlier than he had been projected. Burrows, whose fastball reaches 98 mph, had committed to Texas A&M but chose the Tigers instead after becoming a first-rounder.

• • •

White Sox: They moved college lefthanders Chris Sale and Carlos Rodon to the majors quickly, and they could do the same with Vanderbilt righthander Carson Fulmer, taken with the eighth pick. With a high-90s fastball and excellent curve, some project him as a closer, but Chicago wants him to start.

about the writer

about the writer

More from Twins

card image

As moves with Harrison Bader and Danny Coulombe became official, team President Derek Falvey said he’d been “greenlighted” by Joe Pohlad to “add a little bit here.”