Minnesota Twins: 2017 MLB Draft Picks First Taste of MiLB
With the signing period wrapping up for the 2017 MLB Draft the Minnesota Twins selections are getting their first taste of MiLB action.
The Minnesota Twins have signed all of their picks in the top ten rounds and ended up over spending their bonus pool. They only spent a $10,000 bonus on their picks in round eight, nine and ten. Here is a tweet showing slot value and what the Twins spent on each pick in rounds one to seven.
The Twins have signed or agreed to terms with 29 of their 41 selections and will look to sign a few more. The signing period ends on July 7th so teams will try to sign as much of their draft class as they can before then. Only one player drafted after round ten can be given more than a $125,000 bonus.
The players who have signed have been assigned to Elizabethton and the GCL Twins with the season just getting underway. Elizabethton is a higher level of competition than the GCL Twins and college players are typically assigned there.
Elizabethton Twins (Appalachian League)
OF – Brent Rooker (Compensatory A) Mississippi State University: Rooker is slashing .400/.438/.867 through four games to go along with two home runs, four runs and four RBI’s.
RP – Bryan Sammons (Round 8) Western Carolina: In one relief appearance so far he has pitched 0.2 innings with one strikeout and one hit.
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OF – Mark Contreras (Round 9) UC-Riverside: He has played one game for the Twins and went 2-5 with a two-run homer and scoring two runs.
RP – Calvin Faucher (Round 10) UC-Irvine: In his lone relief appearance he walked one batter and struck out three in one inning of work.
C – Andrew Cosgrove (Round 17) NC State: In his one game played behind the plate he went 2-4 with two runs and an RBI.
IF – Jordan Gore (Round 19) Coastal Carolina: Gore went 3-4 in his first appearance for Elizabethton with two runs, two doubles and two RBI’s.
OF – T.J. Dixon (Round 24) Samford: He has appeared in two games going 1-3 with a stolen base and a run scored.
2B – Carson Crites (Round 25) SE Louisiana: Carson has three RBI’s, a double and a run after going 2-5 in his first game.
1B – J.J. Robinson (Round 33) Lewis-Clark State: J.J. struggled in his first appearance going 0-4 with three strikeouts.
GCL Twins (Gulf Coast League)
SS – Royce Lewis (Round 1) JSerra Catholic HS: Lewis homered in his first at-bat to centerfield and finished 2-4. The Twins put him in the number two spot in the lineup.
OF – Jared Akins (Round 13) Fresno State: Jared went 0-2 with a walk and a run batting cleanup in the Twins first game.
OF – Colton Burns (Round 18) UC-Santa Barbara: Burns went 1-2 with a run and a walk in the Twins 5-2 win over the Orioles.
1B – Benjamin Rodriguez (Round 38) Pepperdine: In his first game he went 0-3 batting 5th with one strikeout.
Next: Twins: 2017 MLB Draft Recap, First 10 Rounds
As the Twins continue to sign players they will assign them to their minor league teams. Brent Rooker should end up in Cedar Rapids with the Kernels before the season is over. Other prospects will get a chance to adjust to wooden bats and professional baseball. The success they have already shown in the start of the season could be a good thing for the future of this draft class.