Draft low on talent

BY GORDON WITTENMYER
Pioneer Press

Baseball's June amateur draft is only six weeks away, but don't bother asking major league scouting directors who they plan to take in the first round, especially if they're drafting anywhere near the Twins' 20th position.

Even the Kansas City Royals, who have this year's top pick, have expanded their pool of potential first picks to more than a dozen because of a weak draft class that doesn't have a player teams consider worthy of the $5 million-$6 million bonus price for a top pick dictated by recent seasons.

That probably means negotiating with a player willing to take much less because of a projected lower draft position. And for the Twins that means, "You've got no clue who's coming at 20," said Twins scouting director Mike Radcliff. "I don't know if we're any better off than the Royals or anybody else at this point.

"The quality is not very good. Normally there are breaks in the draft — these five guys for sure (at the top), and then the next five or 10 guys. This year it's a giant pool of mediocrity. Good players — don't get me wrong. But for what you've got to pay (in the first round), just not a good draft."

FIRST WATCH

Outfielder Denard Span (.358, .419 OBP, 11 runs) and third baseman Matt Moses (.346, three homers, nine RBIs), the Twins' top picks in 2002 and 2003, are off to the kinds of starts at Class AA New Britain that are inviting comparisons with the paired fast track then-prospects Joe Mauer and J.D. Durbin rode from Class A to AA in 2003 and eventually a major league starting debut for Mauer the next year.

Through Thursday they ranked second and third in Eastern League batting and could be in line for midseason promotions to Class AAA.

MINOR MATTERS

Class AAA Rochester's 13-4 start was the best by the Red Wings since 1958, when they were a Baltimore affiliate. The bullpen, led by Jason Miller and Kevin Cameron, produced a 0.87 earned-run average with 37 strikeouts in 33 innings during that span.

Rochester left fielder Josh Rabe (11th round, 2000) leads the International League with a .412 batting average.

Outfielder Jason Grove was released to make room on the Class AA New Britain roster for outfielder Alex Romero, who was sent down after a .192 start at Rochester.