Twins 2019 Draft Day Two: Picks 3-5

Welcome back to the second day of the 2019 MLB Draft. Today will consist of the 3rd through 10th rounds of the draft. These draft picks will all have specific Bonus Slots, descending as the day progresses.

The Twins first pick of the day, the 90th overall pick in the third round, has a value of $657,600. Their fourth round selection, pick 119, carries a value of $483,000. Their fifth round pick, 149, is valued at $360,800.

The Twins notably drafted Blayne Enlow with their third round pick in 2017, signing him for well-above slot value at $2 million. Enlow is now the Twins #9 prospect, according to MLB Pipeline.

We will update this post with the Twins selections in the 3rd, 4th, and 5th rounds of the draft, so stay tuned!

With the 90th pick in the 2019 MLB Draft, the Twins select:

Spencer Steer, 3B/2B, Oregon

Steer is a bit of a surprise pick here, lacking scouting grades from both MLB Pipeline and Fangraphs. The Twins current regime is no stranger to taking “their” guy, as Ryan Jeffers was a bit of a surprise in the second round last year.

Steer is the kind of guy who does everything well and has had some good college projection, but doesn’t have any outstanding tools. This year for the Ducks he hit .349/.456/.502 which was his best college season by far, although he has been a starter all three years in college and was drafted out of high school by the Indians in 2016. He also performed well in the Cape Cod league last summer where he hit .304/.351/.481.

The Twins actually announced Steer as a shortstop when they drafted him, but it is more likely that he plays 2B or 3B, where he is pretty solid defensively but lacks the pure athleticism needed to play SS.

Baseball America has Steer listed as their 192nd best prospect who might project as a utitlity type player. There is likely some saved money with this pick, but you can never be sure.

With the 119th Selection in the 2019 MLB Draft, the Twins select:

Seth Gray, 3B, Wright State

MLB Pipeline Grades, 176th Overall Prospect
Hit: 45 | Power: 50 | Run: 40 | Arm: 55 | Field: 55 | Overall: 45

Another college infielder, Seth Grey is another guy who has been a three year starter in college and really came on in his junior year. He hit .351/.483/.630 this season wih 11 homers and 30 extra-base hits overall.

At the plate Grey is actually more power over hit tool, even though he didn’t really hit for much power until this year. If the Twins can get his hit tool to work and tap into that power, he will be a solid contributor.

Defense is where Grey really shines, considered an above average fielder at the hot corner with an above average arm. He should certainly be able to stay there long term and has the power potential to profile there.

With the 149th Pick in the 2019 MLB Draft, the Twins select:

Will Holland, SS, Auburn

MLB Pipeline Grades, 62nd Overall Prospect
Hit: 45 | Power: 50 | Run: 60 | Arm: 55 | Field: 55 | Overall: 50

Fangraphs Future Grades, 67th Overall Prospect
Hit: 40 | Power: 45 | Run: 70 | Arm: 55 | Field 50 | Future Value: 40

If Will Holland would have been able to replicate his sophomore season this year, he would have been a first round, maybe even in the top 20. But he didn’t repeat his .936 OPS season and strugged heavily to a .248/.378/.416 line with 9 homers and 14 stolen bases.

At the plate Holland has a very wide stance and aggresive approach. Some of the evaluators think that if he can get more upright with his stance and hone his aggresiveness, he will be a slightly below bat-to-ball guy but with enough power to make up for it. He does have good bat speed, which is a definitive theme the Twins have targeted this draft.

On defense Holland has far fewer question marks, with speed that is at least plus and the sort of arm that can stick at SS. He will have to smooth out some of his mechanics and be more consistant with the glove, but he should be able to stick up the middle thanks to his arm.

Holland struggled this year but his athleticism and defensive potential is a solid floor, and if he can get his swing back in line he could be a 20/20 player from the right side of the plate.

Thanks for checking in and be sure to look for our next post, covering picks 5-10!