The Twins completed a busy first day of the MLB Draft by taking right-handed starter Landon Leach with the first pick of the second round (No. 37 overall) out of Pickering High School in Pickering, Ontario.
Leach — a recent convert from catcher to pitcher according to a team release — was on the Canadian Junior National team as the closer, and was a member of the Toronto Mets 16U rotation in 2016 and played on the Blue Jays scout team and Tournament team as the Perfect Game WWBA Championships in 2015.
Leach is 6-foot-4, 205 pounds and, like Lewis drafted first overall, was born in 1999 (July 12), in case we all needed any reason to feel older.
If you’re wondering about the Twins drafting a “Johnny-come-lately” to the pitching game, keep this in mind: He was committed to play baseball at Texas — a traditionally strong program that ranked No. 21 in Baseball America’s latest NCAA Top-25 rankings.
Here’s what people are saying about Leach:
https://twitter.com/hudsonbelinsky/status/874455491279192064
Baseball America had Leach as their No. 85 prospect in their Top-500, suggesting that he “opened eyes on the national scene with a strong showing at the Rivalry Classic at Fenway Park in the fall.” The guys at BA had Leach’s fastball peaking at 93 in the fall but up in the 95 range in the spring. He’s got a good sinking fastball that’s tough to square up, they say, and has a repeatable delivery, a good frame and athleticism to hopefully help offset the fact that he’s rather inexperienced on the mound.
2080Baseball.com had Leach as the No. 78 prospect in their Top-125 rankings, while MinorLeagueBall.com had Leach at No. 102 on their list.
Here’s some good YouTube footage of Leach:
Listen to Brandon every week on Midwest Swing
