CLEVELAND – The Twins chose three Minnesotans on the final day of the MLB draft Wednesday. But even the man who drafted them doesn't expect two of them to sign.
Pitchers Drew Gilbert and Will Frisch, teammates at Stillwater High School, were selected by the Twins in the 35th and 36th rounds. But both plan to attend Oregon State next season, and the limits on signing bonuses — basically, the Twins cannot offer more than $125,000 without subtracting from what they can offer their draftees from the first 10 rounds — mean the Twins probably can't persuade them to forgo college careers.
"There's no intention to make them an offer yet, because there's no way they're going to take what we have left to spend at this point," said Sean Johnson, the Twins' scouting director. "I hope they feel honored — we feel honored to be able to select them. We're proud of our backyard and the players who come out of the state."
That includes Louis Varland, a righthanded pitcher from Concordia (St. Paul), whom the Twins chose in the 15th round. The North St. Paul High grad posted a 3.58 ERA for the Golden Bears this season, and was rated the No. 2 prospect in the Northwoods League last summer.
"He came to our predraft workout, and our area scout, Joe Bisenius, did a good job tracking him all spring," Johnson said. "[Varland] was a guy who was in play for a lot of teams in that range. He had a great year this year, and we're glad we got him in the spot we got him."
After forgoing pitchers for much of the first two days — a reflection of a weaker crop of prospects than normal — the Twins used 12 of their first 13 picks on pitching Wednesday. Over the three days, the Twins picked a dozen infielders but only four outfielders and two catchers. They picked 23 pitchers overall, four of them lefthanded.
Carrasco ailing
The Twins were surprised to learn they wouldn't be facing scheduled Indians starter Carlos Carrasco on Wednesday, manager Rocco Baldelli said. And they were saddened to learn the reason.
The Indians announced Wednesday afternoon that the 32-year-old Carrasco has been diagnosed with a blood disorder and has been placed on the injured list while he "explores the optimal treatment and recovery options."
