Twins have selected right fielder Adam Walker from Jacksonville U in the third round of the MLB draft. He strikes out some but the Twins apparently are impressed with his power potential. He's listed at 6-4, 225 pounds.
Twins select outfielder Walker in the third round
Twins go for big outfielder from Wisconsin
By lavelle neal
His father was a replacement player for the Vikings during the 1987 NFL labor strike.
Here's BA's take:
A Wisconsin native, Walker comes from an athletic family, as his father (also Adam Brett) was an NFL replacement player in 1987 and a longtime football and track coach, while his mother was a college high jumper and volleyball player. Walker chose baseball and went South to play in college, helping lead Jacksonville to regionals in 2011 as the Atlantic Sun Conference player of the year. He hit .409/.486/.682 with 13 home runs and ranked in the top 10 in the nation in hits, RBIs and total bases. He also struck out 63 times, and then hit .216/.269/.336 with 56 strikeouts in 134 Cape Cod League at-bats last summer. Jacksonville has had a dreadful season with injuries but Walker has produced, though not quite as well as last season when the whole team was going well. Walker is an above-average runner who could move to the outfield if necessary, despite fringe-average arm strength. His value is in his bat, though, and he struggles to lay off breaking pitches or fastballs up and out of the zone. While he has cut his strikeout rate from 26 to 22.5 percent, his propensity to swing and miss may have cost him a shot at the first round.
about the writer
lavelle neal
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