Twins fail to sign key pick, pitcher Kyle Cody elects to return to Kentucky
The Minnesota Twins were unable to sign one of their top draft picks before Friday's 4 p.m. deadline.
That means the Twins lose the rights to pitcher Kyle Cody. The hard-throwing righty announced his decision to return to the University of Kentucky on Twitter Friday afternoon.
By failing to sign Cody the Twins forfeit the $839,700 slot. They selected Cody in the competitive-balance round between Rounds 2 and 3 of last month's Major League Baseball draft.
According to the Pioneer Press, Twins scouting director Deron Johnson compares Cody to Mike Pelfrey.
Losing Cody means the Twins will receive the No. 74 pick in the 2016 draft as compensation for failing to sign Cody. The Twins lost their second-rounder in 2015 as compensation for signing free-agent Ervin Santana, who rejected a qualifying offer from Atlanta.
247 Sports notes that Cody was projected as a possible first-round pick after he was an all-star in the 2014 Cape Cod League, but Cody struggled for a lot of his junior season at Kentucky.
He finished 4-4 with a 4.91 ERA in 14 games on the season. Cody struck out 63 and walked 17 in 66 innings, while opponents hit .255 against him.
