CHAMPAIGN — The national conversation after the Minnesota Twins selected Tyler Jay with the sixth overall pick in the 2015 MLB First-Year Player Draft surrounded the Illinois closer potentially experience a rapid advance through the Twins’ minor league system, and possibly reaching the majors immediately.
Fellow lefty Brandon Finnegan took the same path a year before, going from TCU closer to the Kansas City Royals bullpen in a matter of months.
Jay was assigned to the Fort Myers Miracle after becoming the highest drafted Illinois player in program history.
And that’s where he stayed, spending his first half-season as a professional in the Class A Advanced Florida State League, with the Twins cautious about the workload his $3.