Minnesota Twins 2017 draft class has a star in Royce Lewis and great depth
By Nate Palmer
No. 37 Overall Selection: RHP Landon Leach
With their first selection in the second round, the Minnesota Twins took right-handed high school pitcher Landon Leach out of Canada. He opened his time in professional baseball with the GCL Twins. In five games he went 2-0 in two starts, 13.1 innings with a 3.38 ERA and 1.28 WHIP. Leach has an interesting mix of pitches that he will continue to work on as he has started 2018 in extended spring training.
Round 3, Pick 1: RHP Blayne Enlow
Because the Twins were able to save some money earlier in the draft, they were able to pay over slot for Louisiana high school right-handed pitcher Blayne Enlow. Enlow was a huge get for the Twins as he was rated as high as the top-15 by some talent evaluators and certainly closer to the first round than the third round by most. In Enlow’s first taste of professional action with the GCL Twins, he pitched in six games, went 3-0 in one start, pitched 20.1 innings with a 1.33 ERA, 0.69 WHIP, and 19/4 strikeout to walk ratio.
After a stint on the disabled list, Enlow has been pitching for Single-A Cedar Rapids in 2018. In five starts since coming off of the DL Enlow has pitched 18.2 innings holds a 4.34 ERA, 1.87 WHIP and a 14/7 K/BB ratio. Prospect writer Chris Blessing said of Enlow after seeing him pitch in a start recently, “Blayne Enlow up to 95 (mph) early. Lost some velo(city) into 4th. Flashing two plus pitches. Very raw thrower. Loads of potential.”
Round 4, Pick 1: LHP Charlie Barnes
Charlie Barnes was selected by the Twins out of Clemson and went to Elizabethton after the draft. Barnes pitched in six games, starting five of them, was 2-1 with 22.2 innings pitched and had a 1.19 ERA, 1.06 WHIP. That earned Barnes a promotion to Cedar Rapids where he went 2-1 in six starts, 25.2 innings with a 3.86 ERA, 1.21 WHIP and a 23/8 K/BB.
Barnes’ performance in 2017 earned him a start in Single-A Fort Myers in 2018. In eight starts he hasn’t performed quite as well as he did at the other two levels. Barnes has logged eight starts and 38.2 innings. He holds a 1-4 record, 4.42 ERA, 1.52 WHIP, and a 36/18 K/BB.
Round 5, Pick 1: 3B Andrew Bechtold
The Twins don’t have a lot in the way of third base prospects but Andrew Bechtold is one of them. Drafted out of Chipola College, Bechtold spent 2017 at Elizabethton where he hit .299/.406/.424 with a .829 OPS. He scored 33 runs, had 10 doubles, a triple, two home runs, and 19 RBIs. After a good season at rookie ball, Bechtold began 2018 at Cedar Rapids where he has struggled in 34 games and is slashing .165/.263/.198 with a .461 OPS.