Minnesota Twins: 2017 MLB Draft Recap First Ten Rounds
By Carl Vagle
Round 6; Pick 166
Ricardo De La Torre, SS – De La Torre (6’2″ 175lbs; 01/21/99) is from the Puerto Rico Baseball Academy and is committed to Auburn. Ricardo played in the Perfect Game All-American Classic with Twins first rounder, Royce Lewis. There was a chance of him being drafted in the first round before a subpar spring.
Round 7; Pick 196
Ryley Widell, LHP – Widell (6’3″ 180lbs; 06/01/97) is out of Central Arizona College a junior college in Coolidge, AZ. He is currently committed to North Carolina and his best pitch is his changeup. Ryley also features a slider and a curveball to go along with a fastball that sits around 90 MPH. He could be tough to sign.
Round 8; Pick 226
Bryan Sammons, LHP – Sammons (6’4″ 225lbs; 04/27/95) is a senior out of Western Carolina University. He should be easy to sign as he is done with college and looking to move into the professional ranks. Bryan was 8-3 with a 3.02 ERA in 104.1 innings with 108 strikeouts this spring.
Round 9; Pick 256
Mark Contreras, OF – Contreras (5’10” 185lbs; 01/24/95) a senior from UC Riverside hit .366 this past season in 42 games. He should be another easy signing for the Twins as they look to spend money on high school prospects. Contreras played Northwoods League summer collegiate ball with the Rochester Honkers (Rochester, MN) in 2015 and 2016.
Round 10; Pick 286
Calvin Faucher, RHP – Faucher (6’1″ 175lbs; 09/22/95) was the closer for UC Irvine where had 20 saves in two season with 92 strikeouts in 65 innings. He projects as a bullpen arm, but not a major league closer. His 12.74 strikeouts per nine innings would be welcomed to the Twins pen. Calvin should sign as he was a senior.