Minnesota Twins select Aaron Hicks, Outfielder, Woodrow Wilson High School, Born 10/02/1989
Height: 6'2" Weight: 170 lbs
Bats/Throws: Right/Right
Comments from MLB.com's Draft Tracker:
Hicks is one of the more athletic outfielders in the high school ranks and perhaps in the Draft class. How high he gets drafted depends on how highly people project what he can become. He's got a ton of tools, but will he learn how to use them? Someone is sure to take that chance.
From MLB.com's Draft Central Scouting Report:
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| Hitting Ability: | Hicks generally has an idea of what he wants to do at the plate, but sometimes gets away from it, using his athleticism more than a polished game plan. |
| Power: | He has raw power potential, showing flashes of it in BP. He's more gap-to-gap in games now, but should develop the ability to hit the ball out of the park as he gets bigger. |
| Running Speed: | He's a plus runner who ran a 6.6-second 60-yard dash at the showcase. |
| Base running: | He needs some work on his technique and jumps. He can outrun some throws at the high school level, but will start getting caught stealing once he advances. |
| Arm Strength: | He's got a plus, plus arm from the outfield and has even shown the ability to throw in the mid-90s from the mound. |
| Fielding: | He's a plus defender who glides to the ball with very fluid actions. |
| Range: | With his plus speed, he covers a lot of ground in center field from gap to gap. |
| Physical Description: | Hicks is a very athletic, projectable, toolsy outfielder. |
| Medical Update: | Healthy. |
| Strengths: | Plus athletic ability; projectable tools in all areas; plus arm and speed. |
| Weaknesses: | If he doesn't hit, those raw tools will be wasted. It's been mostly projection with glimpses of performance. |
| Summary: | Hicks is one of the more athletic outfielders in the high school ranks and perhaps in the Draft class. How high he gets drafted depends on how highly people project what he can become. He's got a ton of tools, but will he learn how to use them? Someone is sure to take that chance. |
From Keith Law's in-progress first-round draft analysis at ESPN.go.com:
In terms of tools, Hicks is one of the top three or four players in the draft. He's first-rounder as an outfielder and a pitcher. He is relatively unpolished, so he should take a long time to get to the majors. He's gotten by a lot on strength and bat speed for now. The Twins will have to work with him on his hitting approach. He has a chance to be a switch-hitting Andrew McCutchen, one of the top prospects in the minors.
HS Stats at Wilson HS:
Batting
| Season | GP | BA | OBP | SLG | PA | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | SF | HBP | SB/Att |
| 2008 | 34 | .473 | .624 | .839 | 134 | 93 | 50 | 44 | 12 | 5 | 4 | 23 | 37 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 37/41 |
| 2007 | 35 | .370 | .496 | .550 | 137 | 100 | 46 | 37 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 21 | 27 | 19 | 4 | 2 | 44/45 |
| 2006 | 28 | .379 | .471 | .494 | 103 | 87 | 23 | 33 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 15 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 26/26 |
Fielding
| Season | Pct. | E | A |
| 2008 | .967 | 2 | 13 |
| 2007 | .947 | 3 | 8 |
| 2006 | .913 | 4 | 1 |
Pitching
| Season | W | L | SV | ERA | IP | H | K | BB | BA | WHIP | WP | HBP | GS | CG | SO | R | ER |
| 2008 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 1.16 | 72.1 | 41 | 112 | 31 | .157 | 1.00 | 7 | 10 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 26 | 12 |
| 2007 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 1.13 | 18.2 | 12 | 27 | 8 | .188 | 1.07 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 2006 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 3.1 | 1 | 5 | 2 | .100 | 0.90 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
From John Manuel, who's live-blogging over at Baseball America:
As expected, Minnesota selected Aaron Hicks and announced him as an outfielder. Hicks has pushed his fastball up to 97 mph, and many teams liked him better on the mound. But Hicks wants to hit, and BA’s Dave Perkin has been on Hicks as a hitter since, well, before we hired him.
From ESPN's Draft Tracker (Insider Required):
...As a hitter, Hicks has outstanding bat speed from both sides of the plate, accelerating his wrists from a fairly deep load to still generate plus plate coverage. He generates power from the right-hand side just from his wrists and forearms, similar to Andrew McCutchen. From the left side his swing has a little more loft and he gets good carry on balls. His power is easy and is only going to improve with better instruction, but he's still raw as a hitter, with poor pitch recognition and an unwillingness to use the count to his advantage. In right field, his instincts aren't great, but he covers a good amount of ground and has a rifle for an arm. As a pitcher, Hicks works in the 92-95 mph range but has hit 97 repeatedly this spring, and could settle in at 94-97 as he matures physically. He throws a hard, downward-diving slider and a changeup with a hard tumble -- in fact, everything he does as a pitcher is hard, from his lightning-quick arm to a stiff front leg as he lands....