Twins draft Gopher stars Derek McCallum and Eric Decker in second day of draft
Posted on June 10th, 2009 – 11:21 AMBy La Velle
The Twins have just selected Gophers second baseman Derek McCallum.
McCallum wass ranked as the 136th- best prospect by Baseball America. He hit .409 this year with 18 homers and 89 RBI.
The Twins have had their eye on McCallum, and have said many times that they want good players from this area in their system. McCallum, who’s from Shoreview, certainly fits that description.
Update: The Twins have just selected Eric Decker in the 27th round. Decker is a better pro football prospects than the sweet science, but you never know how things will shake out.
I’ll have more later….
Update: The Twins have selected catcher Tobias Streich, out of West Virginia Univ.., with their fifth round pick. Just found a recent story about him.
6th round: Christopher Herrmann, C, Miami: Interesting. Well, you can’t have enough good catching. And they can become tradeable commodities of they pan out.
7th round: Bradley Stillings, RHP, Kent State: Based on this story, Stillings is another pitcher with a pretty good fastball.
8th round: James Dozier, SS, So Miss: Isn’t So. Miss in the CWS? You all can size him up for yourselves…..
9th round: Nick Lockwood, SS, Tampa (Fla.) Jesuit High: Whew! Was worried for a minute that the Twins had totally forgotten that they are the team that drafts high schoolers. Just kidding! The Twins now are stocking up on shortstops, which isn’t a bad idea because you can move them anywhere if the bat is legit. Michael Cuddyer and Dan Gladden were drafted as shortstops, for example. I think this is Brad Radke’s old high school. Good program.
10th round: Michael Dean, OF, LSU: Batted .333. His 15 homers were second on the team. His 65 RBI led the Tigers. Second in walks. Strikeouts OK. Another kid to watch at the CWS. All these college players. What is going on with this organization!!!!
11th round: Ronnie Richardson, CF, Lake Region (Fla.) High: Listed at 5 feet, 6 inches, 171 pounds. Switch hitter. Sounds like another speed guy. BTW, MLB.com has scouting videos of a lot of these picks, if you want to check some out.
12th round: Anthony Davis, LHP, Florida: Was 5-0 with a 2.25 ERA out of the bullpen for the Gators this season. Held opponents to a .190 batting average. Twins are pillaging the Gators bullpen, with Davis and first-day selection Billy Bullock.
13th round: Clarence Davis, SS, Campbell (Ga,) High: Another middle infielder.
14th round: Matt Tone, LHP, SUNY-Cortland: Was a D-III All-American after going 8-0 with a 3.07 ERA. Walked 32 and struck out 84 in 67.1 innings. Guess Cortland is small-school power.
15th round: Steven Liddle, OF, Vanderbilt: This should create some talk. He’s the nephew of the Twins’ bench coach.
16th round: Dakota Watts, RHP, California St.- Stanislaus:Was 8-4 with a 3.65 ERA.
Gotta work on a story now, so I won’t be able to keep up with the picks as soon as they are made. But will catch up later.
Catching up..
17th round: Nicholas Tindall, C, O’Fallon (Ill.) High: Good size,6-4, 190.
18th round: Beau Stoker, SS, Bishop Ward High, Kansas:
19th round: John Stilson, RHP, Texarkana CC (Texas): 10-1, 2.15. Had 21 walks and 78 strikeouts in 75.1 innings.
20th round: Thomas Mackoul, LHP, UC Riverside: Stats say he only pitched two innings this year. Hmmmm.
21st round: David Holbrooks, RHP, Texas St: Looks like he prefers to be called Kane. Was the Southland pitcher of the year.
22nd round: Stewart Munroe, C, Florida: Wow. Gators West.
23th round: Eduardo Encinosa, RHP, Coral Park High (Miami, Fla.): Listed at 6-4, 210. Like his size. Check this out.
24th round: Mario Hollands, LHP, UC Santa Barbara: Went 6-6, 4.74 this season, was conference freshman pitcher of the year in 2008.
25th round: Anthony Bryant. RHP, Kennewick (Wash.) High:
26th round: Michael Giovenco, RHP North Park (Ill.) Univ.: Here’s some video of him.
27th round: Eric Decker, OF, Gophers: Decker hit .319 with 4 homers, 25 RBI and 11 stolen bases as a member of a pretty good Gophers offense. Decker is one of the best receivers in the Big Ten and, batting injury, shoulder get drafted much higher in the NFL draft than he did today.
28th round: Pat Light, RHP, Cristian Brothers Academy (NJ):
29th round: James Wright, LHP, Los Alomitos (Calif.) High: Plenty of upside here. Has committed to Cal-Irvine. Throws 88-92 with a big curveball.
30th round: Trayvone Johnson. C, No school: The only things I could find are that he worked out at the Urban Youth Academy in Compton, was drafted by the Phillies in 2006 (the same draft class as Kyle Gibson) didn’t sign was was playing junior college ball. The mystery continues….
115 Responses to "Twins draft Gopher stars Derek McCallum and Eric Decker in second day of draft"
Tobias?
Of course they did. Why are Minnesotan’s such homers? Try a good player from California or Texas for once. This is why our sports teams suck.
La Velle, Chris Herrmann also played 3B. The Twins selected him as a catcher, but time will tell. Streich is very raw as a catcher, look for him as a 1B
Stillings had a no-hitter earlier this season
Another college guy — James Dozier, SS
Wondering if there is any interest in me teaching the Twins’ pitchers the Vulcanball
can derek play second tonight.
Any chance Dozier can replace Pundoza?
La Velle,
Dozier is hurt and probably won’t play.
Sounds like LNP jr. Here is an article
http://southernmiss.cstv.com/sports/m-basebl/spec-rel/051109aaa.html
Dozier was just activated for the CWS
announced today
http://southernmiss.cstv.com/sports/m-basebl/spec-rel/061009aac.html
Well those that complained about the lack of middle infielders should be happy about today’s picks. 2 shortstops and 1 2B in their first 6 picks today.
Good work, thrylos and funkytown. I’ve got a couple plates spinning right now and can’t dive into everything.
Surgery? I had a compound fracture of my collarbone as a kid and just needed a brace for six weeks.
McCallum will make it to the Bigs someday. He’s too good of a hitter with an above average glove. Only knock on him is he’s not blessed with blazing speed, which teams usually look for in a middle infielder.
thrylos, sounds like LNP??? This kid can hit.
Are Blake Dean and Michael Dean from LSU the same person?
I’m really happy about McCallum. Stillings worries me though because of that 7+ ERA at kent state, hopefully we can tap into that fastball. In the scouting video for Herrmann I was not impressed with his swing, hopefully we can fix that too but he looks a while away. Streich confuses me a bit but we’ll see. And finally some SS, this makes me happy.
Are Blake Dean and Michael Dean from LSU the same person?
yes. Michael is his 1st name but he uses Blake, his middle name
“McCallum will make it to the Bigs someday”
No such thing as a sure-thing drafted in the fifth round.
It’s a prediction, not a guarantee. There is no sure thing but Derek is about as close as it gets for a 4th rounder. His ceiling isn’t anywhere close to Chase Utley but he has the makeup, bat, and glove to be an everyday player. Like almost every other player drafted, he’ll have to prove himself in the minors but it’s a great pick for the Twins in the 4th round.
Any indication where McCallum will start within the Twins organization if he signs?
The Twins seem to make some odd 5th round picks, I’m sure there’s no rhyme or reason to it but still curious. Streich doesn’t seem terribly interesting, developmental backup catcher. At least Herrmann might be able to hit a little.
I wonder what the knock on Dean is, not enough power? He’s been on the baseball radar for quite a while.
It will be fun to watch a couple of Twins draft picks at the CWS this weekend.I’ve gone every year for the last fifteen and have seen a boat load of future MLB talent.Always a great time.
I saw Stillings pitch against my nephew when Miami of Ohio played KS. They rocked him pretty good. He walks a ton of people, plus his fastball doesn’t move. Goes along way when its hit though…
Ronnie Richardson, 5-6.. shorter than Ben Revere
I wonder what the knock on Dean is, not enough power? He’s been on the baseball radar for quite a while.
More than enough power. The knock is that he is like Brian Buscher on the field.
I suspect the sudden prediliction for college players may indicate a recognition that the organization has near-term needs, and that they view college players because as more projectable because they’re older, and because of the higher level of competition faced.
Tell me why we would draft tony davis. his ERA is bigger than his hight. there has to be something more right?
Eric in Tx
I think the Twins only look at numbers on a page, just like you. There isn’t something more.
pitchability
A second baseman and three shortshops drafted today…too bad we can’t call them up now.
FYI…Here is the probability of players signing with the team given the round they were drafted. I looked back at the entire 2 previous drafts(not just the Twins) and here are the odds. I grouped rounds based on similar signing percentages for those rounds. Thought you all might find this interesting…
Rounds 1 thru 9 (including Supplemental): 95.6% chance of signing
Rounds 10 thru 16: 85.7%
Rounds 17 thru 30: 72.7%
Rounds 31 thru 38: 49.2%
Rounds 39 thru 50: 25.4%
Basically, you can stop nitpicking about picks after round 30 as it becomes more likely they don’t sign than they do, which I know everyone here knows already but here are the stats to back it up.
“Any indication where McCallum will start within the Twins organization if he signs?”
Usually he would start at E-Town. That would make the most sense.
Anyone know if players with Minnesota connections (other than McCallum and Scheppers) have been drafted yet?
I wonder if I am related to Tobias…?
Happy to see McCallum get picked by the Twins.
LEN3 you must be scrambling to get the good info on each player in a timely manner - and not get a little behind.
Greg, nice work…if possible, could you break into smaller chunks, at least for the first 10-12 rounds?
Looks like they drafted Streich for his bat and Herrmann for his glove.
the Liddle pick is not nepotism. He is actually the best Vandy hitter and decent OF
That won’t stop people here…..:)
The Twins Organization must have really not liked what they have seen from the Catchers in the Minors. It doesn’t look like they are messing around picking 3 catchers today. Granted they may not sign all 3.
some of these catchers may move positions though, it’s really hard to stay behind the plate
yeah, if liddle is playing for vandy, he cant be all bad.
Down here in Baton Rouge, 10th round pick Michael Dean is known as Blake Dean.
La Velle, no one is complaining about Gardy’s kid are they? They shouldn’t.
Beau Stocker just sounds like a baseball player
La Velle — Thanks for the running commentary on the Twins draft picks. Much appreciated!
LaVelle, great job! Glad to see McCallum in a Twins uniform. Hope the kid makes the club and is a Twin for a long time!
Drafting the college kids makes it more likely that they’ll be signable, one would think. Even if they’re just juniors, having the option of playing one more year of college ball isn’t exactly a ton of leverage. The HS kids that have signed letters at good programs can more easily walk away.
Here are the other picks so far:
17 (522): Nick Tindall, C, RHB, 6′4″, 190 lbs, O’ Fallon HS, IL.
18 (552): Beau Stoker, SS/3B, LHB, 6′1″, 200 lbs, Bishop-Ward HS, KS.
19 (562): John Stilson, RHP, 6′4″, 190 lbs, Texarcana CC
20 (592): Thommy Mackoul, LHP, 6′3″, 105, Shophomore UC Riverside
I’m live blogging the draft, if you care:
http://tenthinningstretch.blogspot.com/2009/06/mlb-draft-live-coverage-day-ii-rounds-4.html
thrylos98–thanks for the update
“20 (592): Thommy Mackoul, LHP, 6′3″, 105, Shophomore UC Riverside”
Tell me the 6′3″ 105 lbs is a typo?? that would be the definition of LANKY
6′3″, 105,
He’s a tall drink of water 
205 
This draft is shaping up nicely - I like to see the infusion of power arms and middle infilders into the system.
Does anyone know how Joe Loftus’s season at Vanderbilt went? Did he play? Redshirted?
Will be at CWS this weekend - first time. While there, am helping ooach a local 14 year old team that is in a tournament that coincides with CWS. Can anyone offer us suggestions of things to do while in Omaha and at CWS? I hear there are tents, houses, etc for each college team…? Sounds like fun, wish our Goophers were there ~
Seth,
Loftus started almost every game this year. He DH’ed for the most part and played a little inf.
He hit .264 with 4 HR and 28 RBI. Problem is he struck out a lot.
Unbelievable!
The streets around Rosenblatt Stadium and in downtown Omaha are like a State Fair, during the CWS.
It’s a GREAT atmosphere!
sane, have you seen Mario Hollands pitch?
Sane, if Dozier reminds some of LNP…can we expect him to slide head first into the dugout between innings?!? Would like to see that while I’m in Omaha ~
“have you seen Mario Hollands pitch?”
No, he is a NoCal (Oakland) kid who pitched at UC Santa Barbara.
He may have pitched locally against the Dirtbags, but I don’t see a lot of their games.
Anyone have a scouting report on Sammy Solis? He’s a 6′-6″ sophomore lefthander at San Diego (and son of Bob Hickey who was a stud pitcher from Minnetonka/Benilde/Notre Dame). Sammy was projected to be a first round selection this year until he hurt his back lifting weights. Don’t think he was drafted…might be a top pick next if he heals well…
“can we expect him to slide head first into the dugout between innings?!? ”
All the CWS teams have players who would slide head-first into the Mississippi River to score a run.
Unbelievable!
The whole area around Rosenblatt Stadium is like a Giant Baseball Carnival.Plenty of things to see for first timers and teenaged kids.
There are also plenty of local watering holes around the Stadium, for those so inclined, before and after (and even during) the games.The scenery around the ballpark (read college co-eds!)is also pretty darned good!There is also a section in the downtown area,I believe the locals call it “old town” that has plenty of bars and restaurants.And they are hopping with people from all over the country during the CWS.The LSU contingent is always large and alot of fun.And they like to include everyone in their partys!
If you are into golf and have the time(with your tourney, I doubt you will),There are alot of very good tracks and the price is cheap compaired to the Twin Cities courses.We go down a day early and play 18 holes,devote Saturday and Sunday to the four CWS games,then play 18 on Monday before coming home.
Baseball,Golf,Beers,and Babes!Can’t beat it!
Unbelievable!,
Golf, beers and babes for your 14-yr-old baseball team is great, but the bail bondsmen are not open on Sundays.
Eric Decker taken by the Twins in Round 27
“Eric Decker taken by the Twins in Round 27″
Just a shot-in-the-dark in case Decker is injured during early summer football drills.
Thanks for the updates La Velle and Thrylos. Good stuff.
I suppose Decker could sign, but he’ll be a third round pick in the NFL (2nd if he can stay healthy and they have a QB that can highlight his skills more). He’s got a shot to be a starter or number three guy in the NFL, which is a lot more money than he’s likely to make in baseball.
Couldn’t the Twins sign him to a low contract just to keep his rights incase he tanks in football this year? It is much easier to make money in baseball than in football. There is a reason guys like Jeff Samardzija skip trying football to play baseball. I understand that it is much harder to get to the bigs than the NFL but just a though.
Decker has one year of College Baseball elgibility left doesn’t he?
sane,
have seen James Wright pitch?
Twins just picked James (Beau) Wright LHP from Los Alamitos HS.
He was lights-out as a Junior and lights-off as a Senior, after his parents and his HS coach had a dispute.
The dispute cost the coach his job and cost Beau Wright a little MLB money, but the Twins made a good low-risk pick in the 29th round.
thrylos,
I have seen Beau Wright pitch very well many times.
If he can recover from this year’s disasterous experience, he could be a steal on the 29th round.
guess he goes by Beau Wright
is decker a good baseball prospect?? that merits a 27th round pick?
Five catchers so far? Are they not confident about signing Mauer?
sane,
got any idea about the story of Treyvone Johnson (the 30th round pick)? He is listed as a catcher from LA with no school
“is decker a good baseball prospect?? that merits a 27th round pick?”
Yes.
His signability dropped him to the 27th round, and (SIGNABLE) good prospects are already drafted by then.
Decker could be a coup.
Johnson was drafted a couple of years ago by the Phillies and didn’t sign. He’s from Community Harvest Charter HS in CA.
That’s all I could dig up on him.
Not sure why he didn’t sign and what he’s done since then.
“got any idea about the story of Treyvone Johnson (the 30th round pick)? He is listed as a catcher from LA with no school”
Not much of an idea.
I believe he played for Los Angeles City Community College and hung around the Compton Urban Baseball Academy, where he was noticed by some Twins scouts.
That is not a verified story.
Just a hunch.
http://www.lacitycollege.edu/athletics/baseball/meetcoach.html
The LACC coaches have ties to the Academy and to the Twins.
“Golf, beers and babes for your 14-yr-old baseball team is great, but the bail bondsmen are not open on Sundays.”
Sane, you’re already in the running again for best blog quips of 2009.
We’ll have fun and keep it clean!
Interesting draft so far… The Twins drafted 11 pitchers 6′4″ or taller of which 5 are 6′6″ or taller. They really went for a different type of pitcher in this draft…
WOW! The Washington Nationals have ALREADY signed their #1 pick (#10 overall) Drew Storen. That’s quick!
Hopefully MN can follow suit and sign most of these guys before the GCL league play starts June 23rd
I’m going to play devils advocate here. The Twins are drafting a catcher to plan for the future when Mauer leaves?…..
Good old Freddy “I’m a Hall Of Famer in the Making” Toliver coaches for LACC.
By my count, 17 pitchers out of 31 picks.
Now I don’t want to overreact, and ‘best available’ is almost always the best draft strategy, but that seems a little top heavy for an organization sorely short of legitimate position player prospects.
You people aren’t really serious critiquing a baseball draft are you? Good grief, quick one of you pull out your draft card from five years ago and compare your predictions with what has happened. There is nothing to critique, they have so many rounds because it is throwing mud against the wall and keeping what sticks.
Chief, it may not be so top-heavy given the sorry pitching results in full-season ball this year. A few of these guys must be better than whay we’re seeing in Beloit right now.
How many catchers have we drafted so far? 5? 6? Why so many?
About a third of the players drafted today and most of the players who will be drafted tomorrow, will not sign anyways, so it is way too early to talk about relative balances…
The Twins have just selected Eric Decker in the 27th round. Decker is a better pro football prospects than the sweet science, but you never know how things will shake out.
Unless the Twins try to pay second round money, he probably will not sign. BTW, once you singed a pro contract with any team in any sport, you are disqualified from NCAA competition, so he cannot play Football with the Gophers this fall.
Probably a very mediocre draft based on blog response.
Maybe Bayshore got most criticism. So he could work out.
In the last 2 drafts, the best players “so far”…are the 2 picks almost universally denounced…Revere and Gutierez.
Last year, maybe the most celebrated… “Can’t Shoot Straight” Hunt is sinking slowly in the West.
Will be interesting to see how things change over the next several years.
Regards,
Can someone tell me why we’ve drafted 5 CATHCHERS!
Thry
I thought if you signed a pro contract you were only unable to participate in that sport in college but would still be eligible for other sports.
sane,
are you talking about this incident re: Beau Wright?
http://www.californiabaseballzone.com/messageboard/forums/thread-view.asp?tid=844&posts=18
I’ve seen McCallum play for the River Bats in St. Cloud for the past few summers. Looks very good with the wood bat. Hit about .328 with 4 homers and something like 30 RBI this past summer. His swing reminds me of JD Drew.
thrylos98 says:
The Twins have just selected Eric Decker in the 27th round. Decker is a better pro football prospects than the sweet science, but you never know how things will shake out.
Unless the Twins try to pay second round money, he probably will not sign. BTW, once you singed a pro contract with any team in any sport, you are disqualified from NCAA competition, so he cannot play Football with the Gophers this fall.
***
David Shinskie a former Twins minor league pitcher is going to play QB at Boston College and JR House was in the Pirates organization and then played football at West Virginia.
Dragon,
I actually think it’s up there with 2005, when the Twins drafted Garza and Slowey.
Rick,
the key words are former and was. Once you sign with a team you are not eligible for NCAA participation unless you retire/quit/are released.
I was one who was pissed about Revere
Shows what I know
but I still like ou rdraft
BTW, Decker is on the record today saying that he will go to college next fall and then weight his options:
http://www.twincities.com/ci_12560835?source=most_viewed
last paragraph
BTW, the 2005 draft, the Twins drafted 20 pitchers in the first 30 rounds and still managed to get Thompson, Kelly, Tolleson Lis and Tosoni. Among the pitchers who are still with the organization: Slowey, Duensing, Mullins, Kirwan, Burnett, Allen and Bromberg.
Good work today LaVelle, and others time for a cold one.
Did’nt Kieth Legree(sp?) play basketball for Louisville and play minor league ball?
Speaking of that cold one…
Decker is going to be a Senior captain on a Gopher football team that is opening a new on campus stadium, not to mention one of the best offensive players in the Big Ten. There is no way he gives that up for a signing bonus.
Teams knew that, which is why he was available in the 27th round. I think he might be a better football prospect than baseball one anyway.
Love the Derek McCallum pick, he is as good as 3/4 of our system’s 2nd basemen right now.
RyanW,
well said. And to add, Decker would have been about 5th or 6th in the CF prospect depth charts for the Twins
The NCAA changed the rule on playing a few years ago, but I don’t remember the details.
The Twins drafted Ricky Manning a few years ago. He played football, for LSU I think, in the fall and baseball for the Twins during the summer. There have been other cases of that.
“You people aren’t really serious critiquing a baseball draft are you? Good grief”
Well stated. Half the players taken in the first round never make it to the major leagues. Once they get beyond the first 100 players, the chances are something like 1 in 100.
Guys like Blackburn or Kubel are like catching lightning in a bottle. The Twins minor league development probably has more to do with any successes like that than their scouting for the draft.
thrylos98,
“sane, are you talking about this incident re: Beau Wright?”
That is the incident.
Here is my second-hand version:
What was not mentioned is that Beau’s parents made him ditch practice (against his HS coach’s direct orders)to attend the WBC Japan-Korea championship game to which they had already bought tickets.
The coach cancelled Beau’s next start which was to be attended by all the MLB scouts.
His parents were outraged because the game was very important to their culture, and they went after the coach with everything they could muster.
Beau’s motivation and his season went down the drain and the coach was fired at the end of the season.
Bottom line, Beau Wright went from one of the top LHP’s in SoCal HS baseball to a JAG, and all he did was honor his parents orders.
Very unfortunate for everyone.
sane,
thanks. I get both sides, but you know the kid can learn something from watching the WBC game… I think that the coach was a bit of a hard a$$ here… it’s High School. And that was a total passive aggressive think to do by the coach.
Anyways, any of your kids drafted yet?
thrylos98,
‘Anyways, any of your kids drafted yet?’
Our catcher was drafted in the 16th round.
Our shortstop is going to USC on scholarship and wasn’t going to be offered enough money to make him signable.
BTW, I would have given Beau permission to attend the WBC game, but I don’t think the coach (who happened to play for me in Little League and Pony all-Stars many years ago) understood the cultural significance of that game to Beau’s family until it was too late.
sane,
I agree with you… if you coach high school you are a teacher too…
Great reporting, LaVelle. Thanks for all of the hard work and for keeping us all updated.
McCallum is very talented. Underrated defensively. The Twins missed an ex-teamate of his from the younger years. Probably one of the fastest and one of the most athletic in Metro area. Nearly a .400 hitter all through college, all-conference every year. They seem to waste draft picks on players that are not even signable, whether they are HS players with full rides to college, or guys like Decker….wasteful
