In what has been another most unusual round of voting, Dakota Watts picked up 161 of 425 votes (37%) the first time he was eligible in this year's poll. Anthony Slama received 90 votes with Scott Diamond a distant third with 44 votes.
Unlike the previous vote that we redid, the votes for Watts began last night and continued strong throughout the morning and afternoon, with him receiving half of his votes since 7am. I expect this vote may have come from people who don't visit our site every day. Having new readers visit our site is good for Twinkie Town and I would encourage them to register and continue with this process. In the future, leaving comments about who you voted for does help me understand the process when there is an unusual occurance.
Two players didn't received two percent of the vote, Daniel Ortiz and Anderson Hidalgo, and will be dropped from the next round. Added to the Twenty-Third round will be Jorge Polanco, Brandon Roberts and Tyler Robertson. As was pointed out in the comment section yesterday, Robertson is the lone member of last year's Top Twenty that hasn't been included in any of the rounds. The big lefty was in the AFL this fall and appears to be heading to the bullpen at either Rochester or New Britain next spring after pitching 144.2 innings in New Britain with a 5.41 ERA. Brandon Roberts was one of the top hitters in the organization with an excellent year at New Britain (.316/.441/.404 in 114 at bats with 7 stolen bases) and Rochester (.333/.386/.425 in 153 at bats with 9 stolen bases). Unlike previous seasons, Roberts was healthy most of last year. Is he ready to battle for a backup outfielder spot? Jorge Polanco received a similar bonus to Kepler-Rozycki a year ago and had a similar season to Sano, ie, began in EST, then played in the DSL before returning to the GCL Twins. Considered as an outstanding defensive shortstop, Polanco surprised many with his bat as he hit .233 average in 163 at bats at the two stops as a seventeen year old.
Please leave comments as to who you are voting for. Voting for the next round will continue through 3pm, Thursday, January 6th.