Twins add LHP Sharpe to UDFA haul (source)
The Twins added a relatively small class of four players to their organization over the two days of the 2020 MLB Draft, and in the aftermath, scouting director Sean Johnson said that the Twins still had their eyes on several non-drafted amateur prospects that they would like to bring into the system.
Because non-drafted players are eligible to choose between all 30 clubs for a signing bonus capped at $20,000, it won't necessarily be easy to find matches. The most talented non-drafted college juniors could return to school for another year, for example, while high school students could go to a four-year college or junior college and try their luck for a larger signing bonus in a future Draft. Moreover, the Twins need to convince their targets to sign with them instead of one of the other 29 teams.
• Team-by-team: Undrafted free agent signing tracker
Johnson hopes it won't be such a tough sell given the robustness of the player development operation that the Twins have built up since chief baseball officer Derek Falvey and general manager Thad Levine began their overhaul of the system. Much like the club approached free agent pitcher Martín Pérez with concrete ideas about how to improve him, Johnson said the Twins want to make similarly targeted pitches to amateur players.
"I think, at the heart of it, we want to show the player we want them in our system and [then say] here are the things we see either with your swing or your pitches or your body that we can do to enhance you and optimize you to give you a chance to be a Major League prospect," Johnson said. "Our player development has an incredible staff. They have a plentiful amount of tools to educate and show the player the path towards becoming a prospect one day."
Look no further than Randy Dobnak, for example, who was undrafted and pitched in a little-known independent league before he was picked up and the Twins developed him into their Game 2 starter in the American League Division Series against the Yankees. That's not to mention relatively low Draft picks like Cody Stashak (13th round) and Sean Poppen (19th round) that both surfaced in the Majors in 2019.
"I think there's other variables to that we may not be able to control," Johnson said. "But those are the ones we can and we're basically going to show the player, 'Here's what we have to offer you and we hope you want to be a part of it.'"
Stay tuned here for a running tracker of the Twins' non-drafted free-agent class. The club has not announced any signings.
Zarion Sharpe, LHP, UNC Wilmington
The Twins agreed to terms with another big-bodied pitcher, this time the 6-foot-5, 207-pound Sharpe, a redshirt junior left-hander from Greenville, N.C., who overlapped with 2018 MLB Draft second-round selection Ryan Jeffers for two seasons at the University of North Carolina Wilmington. The club has not announced the signing, but a source confirmed that an agreement is in place, and UNC Wilmington also made an announcement on social media.
Sharpe had a 4.07 ERA in 38 appearances -- including 33 starts -- over parts of his four seasons at UNC Wilmington, tallying 147 strikeouts in 157 innings. He missed most of his sophomore season with a shoulder injury, but rebounded with strong numbers as a junior in 2019 and had a 2.18 ERA over four starts in the pandemic-shortened 2020 season. He was selected in the 19th round of the 2019 MLB Draft by the Cardinals but did not sign and instead returned to UNC Wilmington for another season.
John Stankiewicz, RHP, Fordham
A source told MLB.com that the Twins have reached an agreement with big Fordham pitcher John Stankiewicz, a junior from Cherry Hill, N.J., as their first non-drafted prospect of the 2020 class. The 6-foot-4, 230-pound right-hander was the 2019 Atlantic 10 Pitcher of the Year and was Fordham's first All-American since 1997. The club has not announced any signings.
Stankiewicz originally broke through as a reliever in 2018 before he moved to the starting rotation in '19 and posted strong strikeout and walk rates alongside his exemplary traditional stats. His 1.47 ERA in 17 appearances -- including 13 starts -- was complemented by 102 strikeouts and only 20 walks in 92 innings. Impressively, he only allowed 13 extra-base hits over that full season: six doubles, a triple and six homers.
He was off to another fast start in 2020 with a 1.71 ERA in four starts before the season was cut short due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Lucas Sweany, LHP, Pacific
A reliever for much of his time at Pacific, the 6-foot-6 left-hander doesn't boast overwhelming strikeout numbers in the West Coast Conference (93 strikeouts in 113 innings over parts of three seasons), but he walked only 32 batters in that stretch, including only three free passes in 21 2/3 innings in his shortened 2020 season. He has an agreement with the Twins, according to a source. It was also announced by the Pacific athletic department.
The native of Vacaville, Calif., had a 4.62 ERA over 38 appearances, including 13 starts, over his collegiate career.
"Playing professional baseball has always been a dream of mine, and today that lifelong dream came true," Sweany said in a statement. "Thank you to the Minnesota Twins for making all of this possible ... I am so thankful for everyone that has helped me achieve this dream. Thank you to Pacific for being my home the last three years ... thank you to all of the coaching staff for developing me into the player that I am today… I truly couldn't have done it without all of you."
Allante Hall, C, Pensacola State College
A source confirmed the Twins have reached an agreement with Hall, a catcher originally from Blue Springs, Mo., who played two seasons in junior college before finding this opportunity in professional baseball. During his freshman season at Howard College (Texas), Hall went 12-for-44 with a home run, 10 strikeouts and 12 walks in 22 games. He moved to Pensacola State for his sophomore season, going 9-for-42 with a pair of doubles in the shortened 13-game campaign.