Hey Marcus, know anything about?

chezboots · 10-19-2009, 01:29 PM

Know anything about this guy from your native land that the Twins just signed, is he a huge prospect?

Max Kepler-Rozycki

The big signing of the summer out of Europe was the Twins' surprise move to grab German outfielder Max Kepler-Rozycki for $775,000. He is one of the best position-player prospects we have seen from that continent -- a freakishly talented athlete who, in addition to excelling at baseball, played at Steffi Graf's tennis academy on a scholarship from ages 7 to 10, and has passed up opportunities to play soccer professionally in Germany so that he could pursue his baseball career. Right now, Kepler is a four-tool player who can run, throw, field and hit for power. But the biggest hole in his game now is his hit tool because of his swing. He has strong hands and good bat speed, but his back side collapses greatly and he ends up with a forced uppercut swing that will make him very vulnerable to American pitchers who can change speeds on him and show him better breaking stuff than he has seen before. Kepler is just 16 years old and is young enough to change his swing mechanics with improved instruction, and he projects better than many U.S. high school prospects who have similar or better tools but are already two to three years older, like first-rounders Anthony Hewitt and Wendell Fairley.

StyxNCa · 10-19-2009, 01:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chezboots

Know anything about this guy from your native land that the Twins just signed, is he a huge prospect?

Max Kepler-Rozycki

The big signing of the summer out of Europe was the Twins' surprise move to grab German outfielder Max Kepler-Rozycki for $775,000. He is one of the best position-player prospects we have seen from that continent -- a freakishly talented athlete who, in addition to excelling at baseball, played at Steffi Graf's tennis academy on a scholarship from ages 7 to 10, and has passed up opportunities to play soccer professionally in Germany so that he could pursue his baseball career. Right now, Kepler is a four-tool player who can run, throw, field and hit for power. But the biggest hole in his game now is his hit tool because of his swing. He has strong hands and good bat speed, but his back side collapses greatly and he ends up with a forced uppercut swing that will make him very vulnerable to American pitchers who can change speeds on him and show him better breaking stuff than he has seen before. Kepler is just 16 years old and is young enough to change his swing mechanics with improved instruction, and he projects better than many U.S. high school prospects who have similar or better tools but are already two to three years older, like first-rounders Anthony Hewitt and Wendell Fairley.

That's Markus' alias.

molarmite · 10-19-2009, 03:24 PM

Where did you find this info?

Malleus Dei · 10-19-2009, 03:26 PM

BaseballAmerica.com: Blog: Baseball America Prospects Blog Blog Archive Twins Sign German OF Max Kepler

conception · 10-19-2009, 04:11 PM

I guess somebody turned on the "hidden players" option. Max Kepler-Rozycki has been added to their shortlist.

chezboots · 10-19-2009, 04:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by molarmite

Where did you find this info?

http://insider.espn.go.com/espn/blog/index?entryID=4499499&name=mlb_draft

I was reading an article about the 2010 draft position and this article was on the column for clicking on, so I clicked on it.

Malleus Dei · 10-19-2009, 06:15 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by conception

I guess somebody turned on the "hidden players" option. Max Kepler-Rozycki has been added to their shortlist.

Markus Heinsohn · 10-20-2009, 05:30 AM

I do not know this guy personally. But he put up good stats as a 16-year old in the top german league (Bundesliga).

I did use to play with Tim Henkenjohann, who was signed by the Twins as well. He was my catcher when I played with him in an allstar game of our league in the year 2000, but this guy threw a lot harder than me. The Twins signed him as a pitcher, but he never reached higher levels than single-A. He is now a member of a German Bundesliga team and also part of the German National Team. He tops out at 92 mph, which is, as far as I know, the top fastball of any german player. He also had a wicked curveball, but never really could control it.

Killebrew · 10-20-2009, 01:16 PM

I'm not crazy about Kepler's swing. His upper body being out front like that looks so unnatural, like a righthander throwing lefty. Still, as a Twins fan I really hope he makes it

.

TwinsTHunter · 10-20-2009, 08:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Killebrew

I'm not crazy about Kepler's swing. His upper body being out front like that looks so unnatural, like a righthander throwing lefty. Still, as a Twins fan I really hope he makes it

.

Agreed.

10-19-2009, 01:29 PM	#1 (permalink)
chezboots Minors (Double A) Join Date: May 2005 Location: New Orleans, LA Posts: 164 Thanked 15x in 10 posts	Hey Marcus, know anything about? Know anything about this guy from your native land that the Twins just signed, is he a huge prospect? Max Kepler-Rozycki The big signing of the summer out of Europe was the Twins' surprise move to grab German outfielder Max Kepler-Rozycki for $775,000. He is one of the best position-player prospects we have seen from that continent -- a freakishly talented athlete who, in addition to excelling at baseball, played at Steffi Graf's tennis academy on a scholarship from ages 7 to 10, and has passed up opportunities to play soccer professionally in Germany so that he could pursue his baseball career. Right now, Kepler is a four-tool player who can run, throw, field and hit for power. But the biggest hole in his game now is his hit tool because of his swing. He has strong hands and good bat speed, but his back side collapses greatly and he ends up with a forced uppercut swing that will make him very vulnerable to American pitchers who can change speeds on him and show him better breaking stuff than he has seen before. Kepler is just 16 years old and is young enough to change his swing mechanics with improved instruction, and he projects better than many U.S. high school prospects who have similar or better tools but are already two to three years older, like first-rounders Anthony Hewitt and Wendell Fairley.

10-19-2009, 03:24 PM	#3 (permalink)
molarmite Hall Of Famer Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Minnesota Posts: 4,745 Blog Entries: 1 Thanked 75x in 48 posts	Where did you find this info? __________________ From the wise mind of Davey Eckstein[/SIZE] "Now all you need is a signature. A quote or initial, perhaps."

10-20-2009, 05:30 AM	#8 (permalink)
Markus Heinsohn Developer OOTP Join Date: Dec 2001 Location: Germany Posts: 12,984 Thanked 4,990x in 906 posts	I do not know this guy personally. But he put up good stats as a 16-year old in the top german league (Bundesliga). I did use to play with Tim Henkenjohann, who was signed by the Twins as well. He was my catcher when I played with him in an allstar game of our league in the year 2000, but this guy threw a lot harder than me. The Twins signed him as a pitcher, but he never reached higher levels than single-A. He is now a member of a German Bundesliga team and also part of the German National Team. He tops out at 92 mph, which is, as far as I know, the top fastball of any german player. He also had a wicked curveball, but never really could control it. __________________ Buy OOTP Developments' Games ... OOTP is on Twitter now ... And, a Facebook page too!

10-20-2009, 01:16 PM	#9 (permalink)
Killebrew Hall Of Famer Join Date: Dec 2001 Posts: 3,271 Thanked 15x in 11 posts	I'm not crazy about Kepler's swing. His upper body being out front like that looks so unnatural, like a righthander throwing lefty. Still, as a Twins fan I really hope he makes it. __________________ FOBL Capital City Metropolitans CDL Minnesota Twins

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10-19-2009, 04:11 PM	#5 (permalink)
conception All Star Reserve Join Date: Jan 2008 Posts: 861 Thanked 77x in 45 posts	I guess somebody turned on the "hidden players" option. Max Kepler-Rozycki has been added to their shortlist.