I spoke to a National League scout who watched Jed Lowrie in the Arizona Fall League, and he was very negative about Lowrie’s defense, using the words “hard hands.” The scout said there’s “not a snowball’s chance” Lowrie plays shortstop in the big leagues.

Lowrie was playing second base when the scout saw him in the AFL. Lowrie played primarily shortstop for Class AA Portland this year, and then played 31 of his 40 games at Class AAA Pawtucket at shortstop, seven at second base. Keep in mind, the Red Sox have Dustin Pedroia entrenched at second base, so it would make sense for them to groom Lowrie as a shortstop.

Lowrie is a good hitting prospect, no question. The Twins have holes at both shortstop and second base, so they are somewhat flexible. But traditionally, they have shied from players who are considered defensive liabilities. The scout told me he views Alexi Casilla as a far better all-around prospect than Lowrie.

After hearing all that, it’s no wonder there is now a buzz from Nashville that the Twins could be looking for a 5-for-1 offer from the Red Sox. We’ll keep you posted if we hear other potential names.

This entry was posted on Tuesday, December 4th, 2007 at 1:41 pm and is filed under Around MLB, Twins thoughts. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.