Roger’s 2009 Twins Minor League All Stars

also available at www.SethSpeaks.net -

Over at Twinkie Town, our friend Roger Dehring does a tremendous job keeping Twins fans updated on the Twins minor league system. Every Saturday, he produces his Weekly Twins Minor League Update. Recently, he provided a top ten list of Twins minor leaguers by position. He has developed a formula that looks at all Twins minor leaguers, and how they perform. The formula is complex but it involves a point system using several statistics and comparing them to an average number. He also factors in several other things including age and level of competition.  He has been using and tweaking his formula for a couple of years. It is not a prospect list, it shows actual performance. Anyway, about this time each of the last several years, Roger has posted his annual Twins minor league all-star team here. So, I am happy to welcome today’s guest writer, Roger Dehring.

Here are Roger’s 2009 Minnesota Twins Minor League All Stars:

            This year’s edition of the Twins organization all-star team follows.  This year’s team is comprised of those players who had the best seasons at their respective positions, regardless of level of play.  This team also includes at least one player from all of the Twins minor league clubs. 

The starting nine for 2009:

            Ben Revere-CF           Ft. Myers Miracle                             

            Brian Dinkelman-2B   New Britain Rock Cats

            Wilson Ramos-C         New Britain Rock Cats

            Chris Parmelee-1B      Ft. Myers Miracle

            Danny Valencia-3B    Rochester Red Wings

            Rene Tosoni-RF          New Britain Rock Cats

            Erik Lis-DH                New Britain Rock Cats

            Angel Morales-LF       Beloit Snappers

Trevor Plouffe-SS       Rochester Red Wings

The lead-off hitter is also the Organization’s Player of the Year, Ben Revere.  After flirting with a .400 Average for much of the 2008 season at Beloit, Revere had an excellent follow up season for the Miracle, missing the FSL Batting Crown by only .002 as he finished his season hitting .311/.372/.369 in 466 at bats with the league’s most hits (145), third most runs scored (75), third most steals (45 in 62 attempts) and fourth best OBP (.372).  Revere took more walks (40) than he had strikeouts (34) and reports indicate that he has improved defensively.  Look for Ben to move up to New Britain next spring with a trip to Minnesota in his future sometime late in 2011.

Our second baseman, Brian Dinkelman, had a special year for the New Britain Rock Cats.  Dinkelman was an Eastern League All-Star who had the league’s eighth best average (.296) with the fifth best on base percentage (.383).  Dinkelman led the Rock Cats with 38 doubles, which was also the second most doubles in the league.  Dinkelman surprised local fans with his productivity with 8 home runs and 65 RBI.  Some have questioned his range, however, seven errors in 129 games is a clear indication that he has a solid glove defensively. 

Perhaps the top prospect in the organization is our number three hitter, catcher Wilson Ramos.  After being named last winter’s Caribbean League Championship Series MVP, Ramos got off to a tremendous start before going on the disabled list with a broken finger which was followed by a leg injury that would cost him much of his season.  Ramos is again tearing up his winter league where he is hitting near a .400 Average with 6 home runs early in the VWL season.  Ramos led the Rock Cats in hitting at .317/.341/.454 in 205 at bats with 4 home runs and 29 RBI.  Perhaps the best defensive catcher in the organization, other than Joe Mauer, Ramos has everything one would expect to become a future major league star.  All that remains is the question of when his major league career will begin?

The cleanup hitter was considered the best high school power hitter in the draft when the Twins made Chris Parmelee their first round pick in 2006.  Although Parmelee has played a lot of right field the past few years, he split his time between right field and first base this season at Ft. Myers.  He also has played exclusively at first base this fall in the AFL, thus, I have him in the lineup as our first baseman.  Parmelee was one of the most productive hitters in this season’s pitcher friendly Florida State League.  He finished his season with 16 home runs, which were the third most in the league with a league second best 73 RBI.  He is a young man who draws a lot of walks, 63, which enabled him to just miss being in the league’s top ten on base percentages (.359) while his .441 Slugging percentage was seventh best in the league.   

The third baseman is a player we have all heard a lot about the past year or so, Danny Valencia.  After beginning his season back at New Britain this past spring, Valencia was on fire immediately following his promotion to AAA when he hit .360/.372/.573 in his first 19 games.  Valencia went on to finish his AAA season by hitting .286/.305/.466 in 269 at bats for the Red Wings.  Much has been written the past six months about whether or not Valencia is ready for the big show and whether or not he is the heir apparent for the Twins third base job perhaps as early as next spring.  There have been questions about his defense, his hitting at Rochester the last half of the season and why a young man who normally took a reasonable number of walks only walked 7 times in 71 games in AAA.  We won’t know what type of major league player Valencia will be until he arrives in Minnesota; however, we do know that he had an excellent season last year at New Britain and Rochester.  If he isn’t ready for the Twins third base job this spring, he must be very, very close.

The right fielder is a young man who made the jump to AA last year after playing only 44 games beyond rookie ball.  Rene Tosoni first came to our attention in 2007 when he hit .301/.407/.428 for Elizabethton in his first year of professional ball.  This past season, Tosoni, was the lone Twins representative in the Future’s All-Star game, was one of the top hitters for Team Canada in the World Cup and is now representing the Twins in the Arizona Fall League.  As could be expected for someone with such little experience, Tosoni struggled at New Britain for his first couple of months, however, had an excellent second half to finish with .271/.360/.454 in 425 at bats with 15 home runs (tied for eleventh most in league) and the league’s eighth best 71 RBI.  Seth recently reported from personal observations that Tosoni is an excellent defensive outfielder who can play all three positions.  He also reported that he needs to work on his at bats against lefties.  It is likely however, that someone with such limited experience should be able to continue to improve his game as he works his way up to the Twins.

The designated hitter is a young man the Twins drafted in the ninth round of the 2005 draft out of the University of Evansville.  Erik Lis has been one of the organization’s best hitters every year since his rookie season at Elizabethton.  This season was no exception as Lis was one of the Eastern League’s better hitters, finishing with a league seventh best 17 home runs, tenth most RBI (69), and twelfth most doubles (29).  Lis, who struggled with an injury the last few weeks of the season, had the league’s sixth best slugging percentage (.462) to go with a .283 Average and .353 OBP.  With Justin Huber moving on to Japan, the door should be open for Erik to move up to Rochester next spring where he will again be one of the better hitters in the league.

The left fielder is a young man who may have as much upside potential as any player in the organization, Angel Morales.  Although Morales can also play center field, he played mostly corner outfield positions with the Snappers after Aaron Hicks joined the team.  A very young man who won’t turn 20 until later this month, Morales is another young player who struggled during his first six weeks of the season.  He also adjusted and was one of the leagues better players during the second half.  Although limited to only 376 at bats by an injury that he battled during much of June, Morales was amongst the top fifteen home run hitters (13) with a team high 62 RBI.  Morales finished his season hitting .266/.329/.455 with 19 stolen bases in 25 attempts.  What may be most important for a young man who struck out nearly 40% of his at bats in 2008, he lowered his strikeout rate to 27.7%.  People who have seen him play have said that the ball explodes off his bat.  There is no question that he is a very raw talent, but his future is as bright as any in the organization.   

Shortstop Trevor Plouffe has always been very young for his league since the Twins drafted him in the first round of the 2004 draft.  This past season was no exception as Plouffe didn’t turn 23 until mid-season even though it was his second season at AAA.  None of his numbers stand out, yet, he had a very solid season hitting .260/.313/.407 in 430 at bats with 23 doubles, 5 triples, 10 home runs and 60 RBI.  Plouffe finished his year playing for Team USA in the World Cup where he had an excellent tournament playing with many of the best players from throughout America.  Although he continues to make what may be considered too many errors, people who watch him defensively say he is above average.    

The Reserves:

            Josmil Pinto-C Elizabethton Twins

            Brock Peterson-1B      Rochester Red Wings

            Steven Singleton-2B   New Britain Rock Cats

            Brian Dozier-SS          Elizabethton Twins

            Wander Guillen-3B     DSL Twins

            Oswaldo Arcia-LF      GCL Twins

            Aaron Hicks-CF          Beloit Snappers

            David Winfree-RF      Rochester Red Wings

Justin Huber-DH         Rochester Red Wings 

            The reserves are led by two members of the Division Champion Elizabethton Twins, designated hitter,  Josmil Pinto and shortstop Brian Dozier.  Pinto was the fifth best hitter in the Appy League with a .332 Average and the league’s best slugging percentage, .610.  Pinto also led the league with 13 home runs and had the league’s second most RBI, 55.  Brian Dozier stepped into the lineup when Tyler Ladendorf was promoted to Beloit.  Dozier, a 2009 draft pick, finished with the league’s second best average and on base percentage, .353/.417.

The Rochester Red Wings placed three reserves on this year’s team, right fielder David Winfree, first baseman Brock Peterson and designated hitter Justin Huber.  Although Peterson’s 316 at bats were a few short of the number needed to qualify for the league titles, his .304 Average and .376 OBP would both have been ninth best.  He also was the Rock Cats top hitter if one doesn’t include Jose Morales who spent about half his year in Minnesota.  David Winfree also had a special rookie season, hitting .273/.317/.460 with 14 home runs, 61 RBI and a team best 31 doubles.  Huber, who recently left the Twins organization for Japan, led the Red Wings with 22 home runs and 76 RBI while hitting .273/.356/.482 in 440 at bats. 

The Beloit Snappers are represented by center fielder Aaron Hicks.  Hicks began his season in EST before joining the Snappers where he hit a respectable .251/.353/.382 in his first season of A ball.  Hicks is considered a “5” tool player also stole 10 bases in 18 attempts with nearly as many walks (40) as strikeouts (55).  Hicks was honored recently when Baseball America named him the Midwest League’s Top Prospect.

The second baseman is Steven Singleton, who began his year in Ft. Myers before a mid-season promotion to New Britain.  Singleton hit .269/.329/.424 in 297 at bats at Ft. Myers.  As is not often the case, Singleton’s numbers soared when he arrived in New Britain where he hit .291/.319/.418 in 158 at bats.

One of this year’s best new players in the six team system was GCL Twins left fielder Oswaldo Arcia.  Arcia hit .275/.337/.455 in 167 at bats with a team best 11 doubles.  He had a team high 5 home runs which also was ninth best in the league.  Arcia, who didn’t turn 18 until this past May, stole 8 bases in 8 attempts.

The last reserve is third baseman Wander Guillen.  Guillen joined the DSL Twins in July when he was sixteen years old, then proceeded to lead the team in hitting at .336/.443/.409 in 110 at bats.  Although he didn’t have enough at bats to qualify, his .336 Average was the fourth best in the league while his .443 OBP tied teammate Romy Trinidad for fifth best in the league.       

The Starting Rotation:                      

            David Bromberg         Ft. Myers Miracle

Steven Hirschfield      Ft. Myers Miracle

Anthony Swarzak       Rochester Red Wings

B.J. Hermsen               GCL Twins

Adrian Salcedo           GCL Twins

            While at Beloit, David Bromberg led all of minor league baseball in strikeouts in 2008 with 177 in 150.0 innings.  This season Bromberg moved up to Ft. Myers where he led the Florida State League with 148 strikeouts in 153.1 innings.  Bromberg was named the FSL Pitcher of the Year and the Twins organization Pitcher of the Year while winning the second most games in the league, 13-4.  Bromberg finished his award winning season with a league fourth best 2.70 ERA and ninth best WHIP of 1.23.      

            Stephen Hirschfield began his season in the Ft. Myers bullpen before moving to the starting rotation when several starters moved up to New Britain.  Hirschfield joined Bromberg as one of the best starters in the FSL, where he had a 7-7 record with the league’s second best ERA (2.23) and best WHIP (1.03).  Hirschfield, who struck out 86 while walking only 31 in 117.0 innings, pitched so well that he earned an assignment to the Arizona Fall League.

            Twins fans are familiar with the third starter, Rochester’s Anthony Swarzak.  Swarzak had a 4-5 record for the Red Wings with a 3.28 ERA and 45 strikeouts with only 21 walks in 79.2 innings.  Considering that he allowed 10 earned runs in 8.1 innings in the two starts following his return to Rochester from the Twins and it is easy to see how dominant he was this season for the Wings.  Swarzak made 12 starts for the Twins, finishing with a 3-7 record, 6.25 ERA and 34K/20BB in 59.0 innings.   

            The fourth starting pitcher is one of two all-star starters from the GCL Twins, B. J. Hermsen.  Pitching in his first season of professional ball following his signing after the Iowa high school season last summer, Hermsen was as good as any pitcher in the Gulf Coast League.  Hermsen finished his season with a 6-2 record, the league’s third best ERA (1.35) and best WHIP (0.68).  Hermsen had 42 strikeouts in 52.1 innings while allowing only 4 walks. 

            The fifth starter is another young pitcher from the GCL Twins, Adrian Salcedo.  Salcedo also was one of the top pitchers in the league, finishing with a 3-2 record and the league’s seventh best ERA (1.46), fifth most innings (61.2), third most strikeouts (58) and eighth best WHIP (1.02).  What is most remarkable, however, is that Salcedo allowed only THREE walks or one walk every 20.4 innings or 0.44 walks per 9 innings pitched. 

The Bullpen:

Closer – Alex Burnett

Short Relief – Andrei Lobanov

            Short Relief – Anthony Slama

            Relief – Joe Testa

            Relief – Matt Tone

            Relief – Kyle Waldrop

            Relief – Zach See 

            The Closer is this year’s top rated pitcher, Alex Burnett.  Burnett had been a starter prior to this year including 2008 when he had an 8-6 record with a 3.76 ERA for the Ft. Myers Miracle.  In last fall’s Instructional League, the Twins began the process of converting Burnett to a short reliever.  He began this year back at Ft. Myers where he appeared in 18 games (22.2 innings) with a  2-1 record, 4 saves, 1.99 ERA, 0.93 WHIP and 26K/7BB.  That performance earned Burnett a mid-season promotion to New Britain.  Whereas many pitchers hit a wall when promoted to AA, Burnett flourished.  His numbers were as good if not better than at Ft. Myers, appearing in 40 games (55.1 innings) with a 1-2 record, 9 saves, 1.79 ERA, 0.99 WHIP and 52K/19BB.  I ranked Burnett as the top pitcher in the organization this year and indications are that he is now on the fast track to Minnesota.

            The left handed short reliever is a young man from Moscow, Russia who pitched for the GCL Twins this season.  Andrey Lobanov, 19, appeared in 15 games (22.0 innings) for the Twins with a 2-1 record, 7 saves, 0.82 ERA, 0.68 WHIP and 35 strikeouts (1.59 strikeouts per inning) with a Dominance Ratio of 2.333.  Perhaps more astonishing however, is the fact that Lobanov walked only 1 batter this season…or 0.41 walks per nine innings pitched.  Can Lobanov continue to dominate hitters as he moves up through the organization, only time will tell.  If he can, this young lefty may be special!

            The right handed short reliever is a young man we should see in Minnesota sometime next year, Anthony Slama.  Following a 2008 season when he was the Twins Relief Pitcher of the Year, Slama repeated that performance this year.  He began his season in New Britain where he appeared in 51 games (65.1 innings) with a 4-2 record, 2.48 ERA, 1.19 WHIP and 93K/32BB.  Slama moved up to Rochester late in the year where he appeared in 11 games (15.2 innings) with a 0-2 record, 3.45 ERA and 19K/8BB.  Slama again led the organization this year with 29 saves while his 25 saves at New Britain led the Eastern league. 

            Joe Testa is a long reliever who had about as good of a season as any pitcher in the organization.  Testa began this year at Beloit where he was the Snappers lone all-star, appearing in 25 games (45.2 innings) with a 0-2 record, 2.56 ERA and 63K/23BB.  Testa moved up to Ft. Myers following the all-star break, where he appeared in 21 games (37.0 innings) with a 5-0 record, 1 save, 1.22 ERA, 1.27 WHIP and 53K/18BB.  Testa finished his season with an excellent 1.208 Dominance Ratio which was higher than any pitcher in the organization not playing rookie ball.

            Matt Tone was a fourteenth round pick in this year’s draft.  The left handed Tone was assigned to the Elizabethton Twins where he was as good as any reliever in the Appy League.  Tone compiled a 4-1 record in 16 appearances with 1 save, a 1.31 ERA, 1.05 WHIP and 45K/23BB in 34.1 innings.

            Kyle Waldrop, who was one of the twins first round picks in 2004, had been one of the organization’s top starting prospects as he rapidly moved through the organization.  That all ended last year when he spent the entire season on the disabled list following shoulder surgery.  Waldrop returned this season working out of the bullpen at Ft. Myers and later in New Britain.  While in New Britain, Waldrop was one of the best relievers in the league.  He finished this season with the Rock Cats with a 2-3 record in 31 games (55.2 innings) with a  1.46 ERA and 30K/18BB.  Earlier, he appeared in 20 games for the Miracle with a 3-2 record, 3.09 ERA and 20K/7BB in 35.0 innings.  Perhaps his biggest achievement this season however, was staying healthy and pitching better throughout the year.

            The last reliever is Zach See who was signed as a non drafted free-agent this past winter.  See was another young reliever who had an incredible year with the GCL Twins this year.  He appeared in 13 games with a 2-0 record, 2 saves, a 0.69 ERA, 1.00 WHIP and 34K/10BB in 26.0 innings.     

 

There you have it. Roger’s 2009 Minnesota Twins Minor League All Star team. What are your thoughts? If so, Send me an e-mail, or leave your Comments here.

SethSpeaks.net Top Ten Twins Prospects

also available at www.SethSpeaks.net -

On Monday, I posted my choices for Twins Prospects 36-50. Wednesday, Twins prospects 21-35 were presented. Yesterday, I found that I had completely forgotten one of my top 20 prospects, so he had to be added, and that means that I presented Twins prospects 11-21. That brings us to the topic that I’m sure most of you look forward to in any prospect lists. Here are the SethSpeaks.net Top 10 Minnesota Twins Prospects. You’ve done a great job in the comments section throughout the week, so be sure to Click Here to leave your Comments or Questions.

(To read the player profiles and more, be sure to go to www.SethSpeaks.net)

The SethSpeaks.net Top Ten Minnesota Twins Prospects

#10 – Adrian Salcedo – RHP – 18 (4/24/91)

 

#9 – Rene Tosoni – OF – 23 (7/2/86)

 

#8 – Miguel Sano – SS – 16 (5/8/93)

 

#7 – Ben Revere – OF – 21 (5/3/88)

 

#6 – David Bromberg – RHP – 22 (9/14/87)

 

#5 – Kyle Gibson – RHP – 22 (10/23/87)

 

#4 – Danny Valencia – 3B – 25 (9/19/84)

#3 – Wilson Ramos – C – 22 (8/10/87)

#2 – Angel Morales – OF – 19 (11/24/89)

#1 – Aaron Hicks – OF – 21 (10/2/89)

So there you have it, the SethSpeaks.net Top Ten Twins Prospects. If you have any feedback, comments, opinions or suggestions, please feel free to Send me an e-mail, or leave your questions or comments here.

Hicks named MWL Top Prospect

also available at www.SethSpeaks.net -

Baseball America is currently going through each minor league and providing a list of the top 20 prospects in each league. Today, they posted their choices for the Top 20 Prospects in the Midwest League. Twins OF prospect and 2008 #1 pick Aaron Hicks was selected as the #1 prospect in the league. I like that. Again, I have been told that he is as good of a prospect as the Twins have had in years.

What is absolutely inexplicable to me is that Angel Morales did not make the list. The Snappers outfielder hit .266/.329/.455 (.784) with 22 doubles, five triples, 13 homers, 62 RBI and 19 (out of 25) stolen bases. I fully understand that prospect rankings, especially at the lower levels, have little to do with the numbers that are put up by the players. It’s all about tools and potential. But Angel Morales is younger than Aaron Hicks, he has the tools of power, speed, good defense and a strong arm. He will strike out a lot, but for those other tools, he should absolutely be in the top 20. I am not saying he should be ahead of Hicks. I don’t think anyone would say that (although I think the argument could be made if you want!). I just think his ceiling is hilarious!

Any thoughts?

Friday Night Lights

also available at www.SethSpeaks.net -

Here are the summaries of the Twins game tonight, an incredible performance by Scott Baker and the offense, and the Twins minor league affiliates, where you will find a few excellent performances but none more impressive than that of 20 year old Deolis Guerra!

Have a great weekend! I am really looking forward to seeing a few of you at the SBG Convention at Minnehaha Falls from 11-2 today!

TWINS 11, CLEVELAND 0

Scott Baker, on his second pitch of the game, hit Grady Sizemore. That isn’t the way any pitcher wants to start a game. And yet, Scott Baker not only started the game for the Twins, he finished it. Baker worked the complete game shutout and allowed just two hits in the game.  Threw six innings, he had allowed just one hit and throw 73 pitches. After a four pitch eighth inning, he was at just 85 pitches. He ended up with 94 pitches thrown and 65 of them went for strikes. It was as impressive a pitching performance that the Twins have seen this year. It was just what the Twins needed after a rough, disappointing Royals series. It was just what the Twins, and their fans, needed coming into this very important series with Cleveland. It certainly set the tone for how the Twins need to pitch throughout the remainder of the season if they want a chance to contend in the AL Central.

Although he didn’t really need it, Baker was given plenty of run support too. The Twins scored three runs in the third inning and six runs in the fourth inning before adding two more runs in the sixth inning for the 11-0 win. Joe Mauer was again very impressive He went 3-3 and walked twice. Jason Kubel went 3-5 with his career-high-tying 20^th home run and five RBI. Justin Morneau was 2-4 with two RBI. Just to summarize, the Twins 3-4-5 hitters (Mauer, Morneau, Kubel) combined to go 8-11 with three walks and nine RBI.

Anthony Swarzak will take the mound for the Twins Saturday afternoon against Cleveland lefty David Huff.

MINOR LEAGUE REPORT

Friday – SethSpeaks.net Hitter of the Day – Brian Dozier, Elizabethton Twins

Friday – SethSpeaks.net Pitcher of the Day – Deolis Guerra, New Britain Rockcats

ROCHESTER REPORT

Friday – Rochester 3, Syracuse 4 – Matt Tolbert went 3-4 with a walk and his 10^th double. Brock Peterson and Jose Morales each had two hits. Brian Buscher came in as a pinch hitter, played some 2B, and then hit a solo home run in the 9^th inning that cut the lead to one, but it wasn’t enough on this night. Yohan Pino started and gave up two runs on eight hits in 5.2 innings. He walked one and struck out four. Juan Morillo gave up two runs on one hit and two walks in 1.1 innings. Tim Lahey struck out two in a perfect inning.  

ROCKCAT RECAP

Friday – New Britain 7, Akron 0 – What an incredible game for 20 year old Deolis Guerra! The tall righty worked the first six innings for the Rockcats. He gave up no runs on no hits. He walked three and struck out nine. Let me repeat, NO hits! The pitch count caught up to him, and so Loek Van Mil was brought in to make his AA debut. He threw two shutout innings. Unfortunately, he did allow a single that ended the team’s no-hit bid. Spencer Steedley pitched a perfect ninth inning for the team. Erik Lis led the offense by going 3-4 with his 21^st double. Wilson Ramos went 2-3 with a walk and his 10^th double in his return to the lineup. Brian Dinkelman went 2-4 with his 33^rd double.  

MIRACLE MEMOS

Friday – Ft. Myers 1, Sarasota 3 – Rain delayed this game’s start by almost an hour and it almost ended it prematurely before the ninth inning. Tyler Robertson was on the mound to start. The young lefty went six innings. He gave up two runs on four hits and two walks. Michael Allen struck out four in two perfect innings. Blair Erickson gave up an unearned run in his inning. Joe Benson went 2-3 with a walk and his fifth stolen base. Chris Parmelee hit his 26^th double. Jair Fernandez hit his 13^th double.  

SNAPPERS SNIPPETS

Friday – Beloit 2, Clinton 0 – Bruce Pugh pitched very well in just his fourth start for the Snappers (he has come out of the bullpen 26 times). He worked six shutout innings, allowing just two hits. He walked three and struck out seven. Brad Stillings struck out two in a scoreless inning in his first Beloit appearance. Steve Blevins struck out two in a scoreless eighth. Billy Bullock recorded the save with a scoreless ninth. Aaron Hicks went 2-3 with a walk and his fifth stolen base (he was also caught stealing for the seventh time). Ramon Santana was 2-4 with his 24^th double. Jon Waltenbury was 2-4. Danny Rams hit an RBI double (his 11^th) for the insurance run.

E-TWINS EXTRAS

Friday – Elizabethton 4, Bristol 3 – Angelo Sanchez went the first six innings in this game. He gave up three runs on six hits. He walked just one and struck out ten batters. Matt Tone went the final three innings without allowing a run or a hit for his fourth win. He walked three and struck out two. Brian Dozier went 4-5 in the game. Steve Liddle knocked his first home run of his career in the game.

• The performance of Matt Tone simply can not be ignored any more. Tone was the Twins 14^th round pick this June out of SUNY-Cortland. With his three hitless innings tonight, he has not allowed a hit in 16 innings. Read that last sentence again a time or two! He has not allowed a hit in 16 innings. He has not allowed a run in 18 innings. Simply amazing, regardless of what level of baseball he is at!

GCL TWINS GOINGS ON

Friday – GCL Twins 6, GCL Reds 3 – Daniel Santana led the Twins offensive attack. He went 2-5 with his fifth triple, third homer and three RBI. Oswaldo Arcia and Nick Tindall each went 2-4. Eliecer Cardenas started the game and worked four shutout innings. He allowed three hits, walked none and struck out three. Nelvin Fuentes gave up two runs on six hits over the next two innings. Jean Mijares struck out three (and walked one) in a scoreless inning. Edison Alvarez gave up a run on two hits in his inning. Jay Rehacek pitched a perfect ninth for his first save.  

Please feel free to Send me an e-mail, or leave your questions or comments here.

Updated Top 50 Twins Prospects

also available at www.SethSpeaks.net -

Generally speaking, I post my Top 50 Twins Prospects list in early June and then after the season, in September sometime. Usually I will post a quick update right before spring training starts. I thought it would be fun to do an updated Top 50 Prospect list today. I’m not going to do the full profiles like I do in the main ones. In fact, this is just a list to create conversation. Tell me that you’re surprised by someone’s ranking and ask questions and help each other learn more about these guys. Tell me I’m an idiot for having someone too high or too low. I’m always interested in what other people think of these players. So again, let’s have a really good discussion about the Twins minor leaguers using this list as a starting point.

1. Aaron Hicks, OF, Beloit Snappers
2. Angel Morales, OF, Beloit Snappers
3. Wilson Ramos, C, New Britain Rockcats
4. Danny Valencia, 3B, Rochester Red Wings
5. Ben Revere, OF, Ft. Myers Miracle
6. David Bromberg, RHP, Ft. Myers Miracle
7. Rene Tosoni, OF, New Britain Rockcats
8. Joe Benson, OF, Ft. Myers Miracle
9. Deolis Guerra, RHP, New Britain Rockcats

10.  Adrian Salcedo, LHP, GCL Twins 

11.  Chris Parmelee, 1B/OF, Ft. Myers Miracle

12.  Danny Rams, C/1B, Beloit Snappers

13.  Carlos Gutierrez, RHP, New Britain Rockcats

14.  Jeff Manship, RHP, Minnesota Twins

15.  Tyler Robertson, LHP, Ft. Myers Miracle

16.  BJ Hermsen, RHP, GCL Twins

17.  Anthony Slama, RH RP, Rochester Red Wings

18.  Rob Delaney, RH RP, Rochester Red Wings

19.  Luke Hughes, UT, New Britain Rockcats

20.  Kevin Mulvey, RHP, Rochester Red Wings

21.  Tom Stuifbergen, RHP, Elizabethton Twins

22.  Steve Singleton, MI, New Britain Rockcats

23.  Oswaldo Arcia, OF, GCL Twins

24.  Trevor Plouffe, SS, Rochester Red Wings

25.  Josmil Pinto, C, Elizabethton Twins

26.  Michael McCardell, RHP, New Britain Rockcats

27.  Steve Tolleson, IF/OF, Rochester Red Wings

28.  Alex Burnett, RH RP, New Britain Rockcats

29.  Andrei Lobanov, LH RP, GCL Twins

30.  Blayne Weller, RHP, GCL Twins

31.  Jose Morales, C, Rochester Red Wings

32.  Martire Garcia, LHP, Elizabethton Twins

33.  David Winfree, OF, Rochester Red Wings

34.  Brian Dinkelman, 2B, New Britain Rockcats

35.  Billy Bullock, RH RP, Beloit Snappers

36.  Deibinson Romero, 3B, Ft. Myers Miracle

37.  Bobby Lanigan, RHP, Ft. Myers Miracle

38.  Whit Robbins, 1B, New Britain Rockcats

39.  Evan Bigley, OF, Ft. Myers Miracle

40.  Michael Tonkin, RHP, GCL Twins

41.  Matt Bashore, LHP, Elizabethton Twins

42.  James Beresford, SS, Beloit Snappers

43.  Chris Herrmann, OF, Elizabethton Twins

44.  Brian Dozier, SS, Elizabethton Twins

45.  Brad Tippett, RHP, Beloit Snappers

46.  Daniel Santana, SS, GCL Twins

47.  Liam Hendriks, RHP, Beloit Snappers

48.  Reggie Williams, UT, Elizabethton Twins

49.  Ben Tootle, RH RP, Elizabethton Twins

50.  Juan Morillo, RH RP, Rochester Red Wings

51.  Bonus – Yohan Pino, RHP, Rochester Red Wings

52.  Bonus – Loek Van Mil, RH RP, New Britain Rockcats

OTHERS TO CONSIDER – Dustin Martin, OF, Rochester Red Wings – Erik Lis, DH, New Britain Rockcats – Cole DeVries, RHP, New Britain Rockcats – Matt Fox, RHP, New Britain Rockcats – Santos Arias, RHP, Ft. Myers Miracle – Steve Hirschfeld, RHP, Ft. Myers Miracles – Ramon Santana, IF, Beloit Snappers – Shooter Hunt – RHP – Jon Waltenbury, 1B, Beloit Snappers – Derek McCallum, 2B, Elizabethton Twins – Michael Gonzalez, 1B, Elizabethton Twins – Wang Wei-Lin, OF, GCL Twins – Jairo Perez, IF, GCL Twins -

Alright, so this is a non-official ranking. My post season rankings will still appear after the minor league seasons sometime. But I hope that this updated list will create some fun discussion about the Twins prospects. Keep it educational and informative, please. Please leave your Comments here.  

TWINS 7, ROYALS 1

The story of this game was Francisco Liriano. He had not pitched in a game for a week, and he had just one start in nearly three weeks. In the first inning, he looked good, but he also gave up a solo home run to Willie Bloomquist. It was a controlled optimism for me at that point. I mean, he’s shown glimpses before. But after that, he was excellent. Liriano went seven innings and gave up just that run on just three hits. More important, he walked just one and struck out eight. He looked like a different, better pitcher, and the Twins need that. Hopefully this is something that he can build on for the rest of the season. We can hope. We have seen good starts before. He just has to put together a nice run. I think the argument could be made that the Twins postseason chances are directly related to the success of Liriano the rest of the way.

After Liriano gave up the run in the first inning, the Twins came back. With two outs, Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau singled. Jason Kubel singled in Mauer. Michael Cuddyer singled in Morneau. And then Joe Crede launched his 15^th home run of the season to give the Twins a 5-1 lead. Crede went 3-3 in his first game back after his second cortisone shot.

Matt Guerrier pitched a scoreless eighth inning. He had not pitched since Sunday. Joe Nathan struck out the side in the 9^th. He had not pitched since last Friday, so it was good to get both of them into an inning. Some thought that Jeff Manship should have thrown those final two innings. I disagree, and here is why. In Tuesday’s debacle, Brian Duensing, Bobby Keppel and Jesse Crain pitched enough that they could not pitch on Wednesday and ideally would not have to pitch on Thursday. So, if Carl Pavano has a short site this afternoon, it would still be good to have Manship available to go four or five innings, if necessary.

MINOR LEAGUE REPORT

Wednesday – SethSpeaks.net Hitter of the Day – Rene Tosoni, New Britain Rockcats

Wednesday – SethSpeaks.net Pitcher of the Day – Miguel Munoz, Elizabethton Twins

TRANSACTION SUMMARY

OK, it was a day full of transactions yesterday, so as a reminder, I’ll list what I believe to be all of them here.

• Glen Perkins put on the Disabled List.
• Jeff Manship added to the 40 man roster and promoted to the Twins. Kevin Slowey put on the 60 Day Disabled List.
• Anthony Slama promoted to Rochester.
• Loek Van Mil promoted to New Britain.
• Wilson Ramos to be activated from the Disabled List and return to New Britain.
• Bobby Lanigan promoted to Ft. Myers.
• Brad Stillings promoted to Beloit.
• Kelvin Mota and Jhon Garcia promoted to Elizabethton.

ROCHESTER REPORT

Wednesday – Rochester 4, Buffalo 7 – Reid Santos found out earlier in the day that he would be starting this game instead of Jeff Manship. It didn’t go so well. He gave up six runs on five hits and two walks in five innings. Jason Jones gave up an unearned run on three hits in three innings. The Red Wings managed just six hits in this game. Brock Peterson hit his seventh home run. Danny Valencia added his sixth homer.  

ROCKCAT RECAP

Wednesday – New Britain 4, Erie 1 – Mike McCardell came off of the Disabled List and gave up just one run over five innings. He allowed four hits, walked two and struck out four. Carlos Gutierrez worked a scoreless sixth. Frank Mata threw two scoreless innings. Alex Burnett takes over the closer’s role from Anthony Slama. He recorded his third save with a scoreless ninth. Rene Tosoni led the offense. He hit his 23^rd double and his 13^th home run. Luke Hughes hit his ninth double.

MIRACLE MEMOS

Wednesday – Ft. Myers 3, Palm Beach 10 – Deibinson Romero went 2-4. Estarlin de Los Santos hit his tenth double. But the pitching and defense just weren’t good. Michael Tarsi started and in six innings, he gave up six runs (3 earned) on nine hits and two walks. Joe Testa gave up three runs (1 earned) on four hits and a walk in 1.2 innings. He did strike out three. Henry Arias got the final four outs, two on strikeouts. He gave up one run on one hit.   

SNAPPERS SNIPPETS

Wednesday – Beloit 2, Clinton 4 – Brad Tippett pitched very well again. In 6.2 innings, he gave up two runs on three hits. He walked one and struck out five. Dan Osterbrock got the final out of the 7^th, but not until he gave up another run on one hit and two walks. Kyle Carr threw two innings. He gave up a run on two hits and a walk. Angel Morales went 2-4 with his 19^th double. Ramon Santana and Jonathan Waltenbury were each 2-4 as well.

E-TWINS EXTRAS

Wednesday – Elizabethton 5, Greeneville 1 – Miguel Munoz has struggled quite a bit this season, so it was great to see him have such a good start. He gave up just one run on three hits and a walk in eight innings. He struck out six. Matt Tone struck out two in a scoreless ninth. Josmil Pinto went 2-4 with his ninth home run. Paul-Michael Klingsberg went 2-4.  

GCL TWINS GOINGS ON

Wednesday – GCL Twins, GCL Rays – This game was suspended after just three innings due to rain. I obviously won’t go back and look at old box scores, so here are a couple of highlights. Jairo Perez had a double and a triple to that point. BJ Hermsen threw three innings and gave up just one hit, walked one and struck out five.

Please feel free to Send me an e-mail, or leave your questions or comments here.

Sweep Complete! One More Day

Also available at www.SethSpeaks.net -

Alright, as you know, about a month ago, John Bonnes, Parker Hageman, Nick Nelson and I started a venture which on July 13^th turned into the TwinsCentric 2009 Trade Deadline Primer. We are pretty proud of the e-book and hope that those of you who did purchase it really enjoyed it and found it interesting, thought-provoking and entertaining. For a little over a month, the trade deadline has been a fairly consuming part of my life. Doing the research, writing the pages of the book and also on this blog, and the never-ending cycle of rumors are exhausting. And now here we are, one day away from the July 31^st non-waiver trade deadline, and I need sleep. But I suspect the rumors and predictions will only be stronger today and tomorrow, right up until Friday’s 3:00 central time deadline. It should be a lot of fun to see.

So where are we as Twins fans as it relates to the trade deadline? Just a month ago, the team had two alarming needs, in the middle infield and in the bullpen. Alexi Casilla, Matt Tolbert and Nick Punto were terrible. Jesse Crain had just been sent down. Sean Henn had been DFA’d, and the bullpen situation was horrible. Since then, the Twins have brought back Alexi Casilla and Jesse Crain and signed 2B Mark Grudzielanek to a minor league contract. And the Twins still have holes. The middle infield, both SS and 2B now, have holes. The bullpen still needs one or two arms. The bench is in need of upgrade. And now with Kevin Slowey out for the season, Francisco Liriano having forearm issues and pitching pretty poorly, Glen Perkins up and down starts, Nick Blackburn’s struggles since the All-Star break and Scott Baker’s inability to put hitters away quickly, this team could use a starting pitcher. This team is in need of change and improvement, and yet, we are at the end of July and they are just two games back of the Detroit Tigers after sweeping the White Sox tonight. 

That tells us two very different things. First, it is very much possible that this team could still win the AL Central division even if they don’t make a move. I don’t think it would happen, and I would still argue that their chances of finishing 3^rd would be as good as their chances of finishing 1^st. It also says that a couple of additions in key spots could be enough to put the Twins over the top in the division. And once you make the playoffs, you jus never know what could happen if the Twins are playing well then. 

I know many Twins fans are more than frustrated that Twins GM Bill Smith is yet to make a move. I admit, I have been too. The key to remember is that the trade deadline is July 31^st, not July 29^th or 27^th. From rumors we have heard, teams who have been in talks with the Twins about sending veterans to Minnesota have asked for a couple of names; Aaron Hicks and Danny Valencia. And why wouldn’t they? If they don’t start negotiations there, they should be fired. And on the same hand, if the Twins front office traded either of those players at this time, they should be fired. With time on their sides, the teams (like the Pirates or Blue Jays) have the right to ask for a bunch. But as that trade deadline approaches, some of that advantage is gone. If those teams want to add prospects and/or reduce payroll, they need to deal as much as the Twins or other teams in contention. So, it is very possible that asking prices could be down by waiting.

That said, the jewel of available middle infielders this July, Freddy Sanchez, is now not an option. He was traded by the Pirates to the San Francisco Giants for AA pitcher Tim Alderson. Keith Law ranked Alderson the 26^th best prospect in all of baseball. Don’t let the fact that he is generally ranked the 3^rd or 4^th best prospect in the Giants system fool you. They have Buster Posey and Madison Bumgarner at the top of their list. The Twins don’t have a prospect in their system that is as highly thought of as Bumgarner or Posey. Aaron Hicks would be close. And I know I wouldn’t trade Aaron Hicks, or Danny Valencia, for anyone, including Freddy Sanchez. 

Cliff Lee was traded from Cleveland to Philadelphia. Last year’s Cy Young winner in the AL was exchanged for three solid AAA prospects and the jewel of that deal, Jason Knapp, who is still in A ball. A very nice haul for Mark Shipiro. Could the Twins have acquired Lee? Maybe, but it would require four top 10-12 prospects in the system, and how many of them would come back to bite the Twins over the next six to eight years that they are in the same division. 

The interesting thing is that none of the prospects in the Roy Halladay to the Phillies rumors were needed to acquire Lee. That means, in theory, that the Phillies could still get Roy Halladay too.

Hey, I’m all in favor of the Twins dealing from their stable of prospects. I fully understand the you have to give up something to get something. My opinion is simply that it has to make sense. Yes, it has to make sense for 2009. But it also has to make sense for 2010, and beyond. If the Twins literally had just one hole to fill, I’d be willing to give up a little more, maybe, but this team si likely more than one player away from being a good baseball team, not just a good AL Central team. But each trade needs to be judged on its own merit. And it has to make sense.

David Eckstein – not going to make a difference. I think I’d rather wait for Grudzielanek. My guess is that the Twins will still try to make a move for a bullpen arm. It will be seen as minor, and probably will be. But that is a need. They could use a starting pitcher. Maybe Arizona would be willing to move Jon Garland or Doug Davis for a lesser package? Starting pitching is at such a premium, and as much as some of the Twins young starters have struggled, there is tremendous value in keeping them.

 

Any thoughts as the deadline approaches? What do you think?   

TWINS 3, WHITE SOX 2

I went to last night’s game with my parents, who were celebrating their 37^th wedding anniversary, my sister and my daughter. So that was a lot of fun, and thankfully the Twins no only won the game, but it wasn’t too long. A few notes:

• Brian Duensing found out just a few hours before the game that he would be starting in place of Francisco Liriano who was experiencing some swelling in his left forearm. Then he went out and pitched a very good game. He went five innings and gave up just two runs. The first was on a solo home run to Jayson Nix that was just out of the reach of Denard Span in left. The second was a no-doubter to dead center by Carlos Quentin. He gave up just one more hit, a single, and he walked just one. The team had to be thrilled with getting that from Duensing.
• Then Jesse Crain came in, which I’m sure still makes a lot of Twins fans nervous. But he did just fine too. He gave up a single to the first batter he faced, but got out of that inning. He gave up another single the next inning and was able to get a double play ball to end that inning. The Metrodome radar board showed him hitting 95 a few times. If he can come back and be what he was from 2004 until his injury in 2007, the Twins will be thrilled.
• Matt Guerrier was excellent again in the 8^th inning. He had a perfect inning which dropped his ERA to 1.99 and his WHIP to 0.85. I know he doesn’t profile as the dominant 8^th inning type that we all want, but he’s been incredible.
• And Joe Nathan got the 9^th. He certainly made things interesting as it took him two or three batters to find any control. Gordon Beckham got ahead in the count and laced a single to left. Then after striking out Jermaine Dye looking, he walked Paul Konerko. He was able to strike out Chris Getz on a slider in the dirt, but in doing so, the two runners advanced to 2^nd and 3^rd. Bobby Jenks was now warming up. Mark Kotsay, who just arrived with the team that day, came up and on the first pitch hit a hard line drive that Michael Cuddyer did not have to move for at all to end the game and give Nathan his 29^th save. After a cheap, one-out save the night before, Nathan had to work for this one!
• The Twins jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the 2^nd when Alexi Casilla knocked an RBI ground-rule double to the left centerfield gap. The second run scored on a ground out by Denard Span. Then with two outs in the bottom of the 6^th inning, Casilla lined a soft single into centerfield that scored Joe Crede from second base with the go-ahead and eventual game-winning run.
• Casilla needed that. He was 2-3 with two important RBI. He also added a stolen base and advanced to 3B. His average is at .171, and like with Crain, if Casilla can go on a run the last two months, he could be very important. I don’t think any of us expect him to hit .300 the rest of the way, but if he can hit .270, play good, smart defense and run a little, he could be decent at the bottom of the order. And again, Mark Grudzielanek is putting his work in and could be ready in a couple weeks.
• Denard Span did a nice job of being a leadoff hitter again. He was on base three times, with two singles and a walk. You can’t ask for much more than that.
• The Twins managed just two other hits in the game. Jason Kubel singled in the first. Carlos Gomez had a single and a stolen base in the game.
• The Twins have a much-needed off day at home today. They have now won four straight games and are 52-50, one game ahead of the White Sox, and two games behind the Detroit Tigers in the AL Central

Now a couple of other baseball game etiquette notes:

• I think people here know about how dumb I think that The Wave is, right? Well, sitting near the left-field foul pole, I now have a new-found dislike for the beach ball. I just don’t get that thing at all. After the first out of the 4^th inning last night, people in the left field upper deck must have agreed to something ahead of time because as soon as the first out was recorded, about 40 beach balls were knocked into the air. Some would fall to the lower level. A couple fell onto the field. Explain this to me. First, why is that fun? Second, watch the game. Third, because some people then don’t watch the game, anything can happen. As this was happening, a White Sox batter lined a foul ball into the bleachers behind the Twins bullpen. Someone got hit in the head and needed assistance. Now yes, that can happen any time, but it could also be not paying attention. And finally, it’s inevitable that one or more will fall onto the playing field, and that means that a ball boy has to run out there and pick it up. It delays the flow of the game. Anyway, there is my game rant of the day.
• Secondly, do people at games realize there is a reason that ushers generally ask fans to wait until the end of an at bat before letting people go back to their seats? It’s so that people can watch the game and see. I don’t know how many times people were asking people to stand up and let them through to their seat mid-at bat. Maybe that’s a left-field thing? But that is annoying.

Any other thoughts on the Twins sweep of the White Sox or what they need to do by tomorrow at 3? Leave your thoughts here.

MINOR LEAGUE REPORT

Wednesday – SethSpeaks.net Hitter of the Day – Deibinson Romero, Ft. Myers Miracle – Aaron Hicks, Beloit Snappers

Wednesday – SethSpeaks.net Pitcher of the Day – Santos Arias, Ft. Myers Miracle – BJ Hermsen, GCL Twins

ROCHESTER REPORT

Wednesday –Rochester 4, Gwinnett 4 – Reid Santos got the start in this game. He gave up four runs on ten hits in seven innings. He walked one and struck out two. Juan Morillo came in and struck out two in a perfect eighth inning. Trevor Plouffe went 2-4 with his 15^th double. Steve Tolleson was also 2-4.  

ROCKCAT RECAP

Wednesday – New Britain 4, New Hampshire 5 – The struggles of Matt Fox continued in this game. He fell to 6-7 on the year after giving up five runs on five hits in six innings. He walked three and struck out three. Frank Mata pitched a scoreless seventh inning. Anthony Slama walked one and struck out two in a shutout inning. Erik Lis provided the offense. He went 2-4 with his 13^th home run.    

MIRACLE MEMOS

Wednesday – Ft. Myers 4, Brevard County 2 – Deibinson Romero had a great day at the plate, and Santos Arias was excellent on the mound in the Miracle win. Romero went 2-2 with two walks and his fourth home run. Evan Bigley knocked his 15^th double. Estarlin de Los Santos went 1-3 with two walks and his fifth stolen base. Arias improved to 5-1 with seven shutout innings. He gave up just five hits, walked one and struck out three. Blair Erickson got the next five outs, but he left the game in the 9^th with the bases loaded. Loek Van Mil came in and allowed two inherited runners to score on a hit before recording the final out and his third save.   

SNAPPERS SNIPPETS

Wednesday – Beloit 2, Great Lakes 4 – Aaron Hicks and Angel Morales both had good games at the plate, but it wasn’t enough for the Snappers on this night. Hicks went 2-3 with two walks, his second triple and fourth stolen base. Angel Morales was 2-4 with his 13^th double. Dan Berlind got his 10^th loss of the season. In five innings, he gave up four runs on five hits and three walks. Kyle Carr struck out two in 1.2 scoreless innings. Bruce Pugh struck out the only guy he faced. Billy Bullock pitched another scoreless inning.   

E-TWINS EXTRAS

Wednesday – Elizabethton, Johnson City – Postponed by Rain again.

GCL TWINS GOINGS ON

Wednesday – GCL Twins 4, GCL Rays 0 – BJ Hermsen continues to impress. He improved to 5-1 and reduced his ERA to 1.05. He threw six shutout innings and allowed just four hits and a walk in six innings. Zach See threw two scoreless innings before Jean Mijares pitched a perfect ninth. Brian Bistagne went 2-3. Mark Grudzielanek went 1-3. Oswaldo Arcia went 1-3 with a walk, his fifth double and sixth stolen base.  

Please feel free to Send me an e-mail, or leave your questions or comments here.

Minor League Update

also available at www.SethSpeaks.net -

• As I mentioned last night, I spent some time chatting with Twins 3B prospect Danny Valencia last night and he agreed to doing an interactive Q&A with SethSpeaks.net readers. So, if you would like to ask the future Twin a question (or two, or up to 3), please e-mail me and I will send him the questions. I will accept questions until Wednesday night (around 10:00 p.m.).
• And, of course, as the Trade Deadline is fast approaching, please consider picking up a copy of the TwinsCentric 2009 Trade Deadline Primer for just $9.95.

Rain and a scheduled off day limited the Twins minor league action on Tuesday, and with the Twins game just starting in Oakland, I figured a separate posting for the Twins minor league report made sense. Hopefully tonight’s game won’t be quite as exciting… or at least quite as long! I have learned that sleep is good!

But I thought I would throw in a few (OK, five) Twins minor league topics for you to discuss in the comments section while watching the Twins game. 

Untouchable? – In my Star Tribune blog yesterday (Twins Need to Deal), I wrote that the only two Twins minor leaguers that should be untouchable in nearly any trade would be Aaron Hicks and Danny Valencia. Would you add anyone else to that list?

Shut Down? – Since being promoted to AA New Britain, Carlos Gutierrez has thrown 36.1 innings. He has given up 51 hits (including six home runs). He was walked 18 and struck out just 17. He didn’t throw much last season between the University of Miami and Ft. Myers. This year, he did alright at Ft. Myers before struggling with the Rockcats. Since moving to the bullpen, he has given up 15 runs on 19 hits in just 8.1 innings while walking seven and striking out just five. Should he be shut down at this point, maybe given a couple of weeks off, or just keep throwing him out there and working through it? 

Arm Chair Psychologists – This is a tough situation because Shooter Hunt clearly is struggling. I have to think that he hit rock bottom with his last outing in which he faced seven batters, walked six of them and hit the other before leaving the game. Hunt as all the talent in the world. I don’t think anyone questions that, but right now, it just isn’t happening. What do you do? Keep throwing him out there? Shut him down? Is there even a right answer? 

Pecking Order – Alright, the Twins need a 2B. Alexi Casilla, Nick Punto and Matt Tolbert have all had their chances. So, I’d like to ask you how you would rank the potential Major League impact that the following Twins minor league 2B options could have. Alexi Casilla, Matt Tolbert, Steve Tolleson, Matt Macri, Trevor Plouffe, Brian Dinkelman, and Steve Singleton. Singleton’s .600 start since his recent promotion to New Britain certainly makes you think, doesn’t it? I can’t help but think he may be the guy in the long term.

Upcoming 40 Man Roster Decisions – Every year it is interesting to find out who the Twins add to their 40 man roster. Who needs to be added before the December Rule 5 draft? To keep it general and simple, please drafted out of college in the 2006 draft would have to be added or be potentially lost in the major league portion of the Rule 5 draft. High school players drafted (and many international players signed when they are 16 or 17) in 2005 would also be eligible to be selected in the Rule 5 draft if not protected. Here is a list of several players that will likely have to be added (or at least they will have to consider adding) after this season:

College Players Drafted in 2006:

• 4^th Round – 1B Whit Robbins
• 6^th Round – C Jeff Christy
• 8^th Round – 2B Brian Dinkelman
• 11^th Round – 2B Steve Singleton
• 14^th Round – RHP Jeff Manship
• 15^th Round – OF Mark Dolenc
• 19^th Round – 3B Danny Valencia
• 39^th Round – RHP Anthony Slama
• Not Drafted – RHP Rob Delaney (signed as free agent right after the draft)

I would say there are a couple of very easy choices here, and a couple of possible adds, and a couple of probably not’s. Now, when you think of the 2005 draft, the Twins drafted Matt Garza, Kevin Slowey, Brian Duensing and Ryan Mullins in the first three rounds out of college. They did not have as much success (or luck, particularly injury luck) with their early high school picks. Hank Sanchez was really bad and then he served a 50 game suspension for being really bad, and then the Twins released him. Drew Thompson is having a nice comeback after missing two full seasons with injury. Paul Kelly’s knees just have not been able to keep him on the field either. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t a couple of 2005 high school draft picks that the Twins will have to strongly consider adding to the 40 man roster:

High School (and a JuCo Guy) Drafted in 2005:

• 12^th Round – RHP Alex Burnett
• 32^nd Round – RHP David Bromberg
• 36^th Round – OF Rene Tosoni (Junior College)

I think that all three of them have put themselves in a position that they will have to be added. Another player who has performed to a level that he should be considered is RHP Loek Van Mil who is doing great in his comeback from rehabbing his arm. Has David Winfree’s play this year in Rochester earned him a spot on the Twins 40 man roster? Before the season, I think we would have all assumed that Dustin Martin (another 2006 college draftee) would be a lock to be added. Do we still believe that? What about Deolis Guerra? He has struggled, but he signed in July of 2005 and still is just 20 years old and very talented and has done well in his short stint in New Britain. You would think a team like the Nationals would love to take a chance on him.

In other words, the Twins have some difficult decisions ahead of them at the end of the year. Maybe potential deadline trades will help clean up some of the questions, but it certainly is worth thinking about already. 

What do you think about any of these topics? What would you do? Leave your comments here. 

With that, I’m going to post this. I will be back later with thoughts on Game 2 of this Twins/A’s series. 

MINOR LEAGUE REPORT

Tuesday – SethSpeaks.net Hitter of the Day – Daniel Santana, GCL Twins

Tuesday – SethSpeaks.net Pitcher of the Day – Andrei Lobonov, GCL Twins  

ROCHESTER REPORT

Tuesday – Rochester, Pawtucket  – Postponed by Rain. 

ROCKCAT RECAP

Tuesday – New Britain, Portland – Postponed by Rain.    

MIRACLE MEMOS

Tuesday – Ft. Myers 4, Dunedin 6 – Chris Parmelee homered yet again, his 14^th on the season, but that was about it for the Miracle offense in this game. Evan Bigley and Nick Romero each doubles. Michael Tarsi took his first FSL loss. He went 6.2 innings and gave up three runs on eight hits. He walked four and struck out five. Henry Arias went the final 2.1 innings. He gave up three runs on four hits and a walk.     

SNAPPERS SNIPPETS

Tuesday – Beloit  – No Games Scheduled in the Midwest League.     

E-TWINS EXTRAS

Tuesday – Elizabethton 2, Princeton 3 – Reggie Williams hit another homer, his third, but it wasn’t enough on this night. Brad Stillings started for the E-Twins and went the first six innings. He gave up two runs (1 earned) on four hits and two walks. Edgar Ibarra took the loss by giving up one run on two hits in two innings. Peter Kennelly pitched a scoreless inning. Josmil Pinto went 2-4 with his eighth double.    

GCL TWINS THOUGHTS

Tuesday –GCL Twins 10, GCL Red Sox 6 – There was plenty of offense for the GCL Twins in this game. Daniel Santana went 3-6 with his third triple and two stolen bases. Nick Lockwood went 3-5. Jhonatan Arias went 2-4 with a walk, his fourth double and four RBI. Nick Tindall went 2-4 with his third double. Nick Freitas went 2-3 with two walks. Jhon Garcia went the first five innings and gave up two runs on five hits and two walks. He struck out six. Eliecer Cardenas gave up four runs (3 earned) on five hits and two walks in 2.1 innings. He struck out three. Andrei Lobonov had quite the game to record his second save. He pitched to five batters and struck all five of them out.    

Please feel free to Send me an e-mail, or leave your questions or comments here.

Twins Win; Slowey Wins 10th, Hicks Debut Delayed

also available at www.SethSpeaks.net -

Massive amounts of rain in southern Wisconsin have caused the delay of tonight’s game between Beloit and Quad Cities. The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader tomorrow night. Twins fans have had to wait over two months for Aaron Hicks’ full-season debut, we can wait another day, right?

A bunch of minor league transactions today. As you have probably heard, Jeff Christy is headed back to Rochester. Allan de San Miguel is headed back to New Britain. Juan Richardson is moving up to Ft. Myers. The Twins released minor league veteran and Minnesota native Ben Hendrickson this afternoon. Also Zach Ward was released from New Britain.

On a more positive note, David Bromberg has been selected to start for the west team in the Florida State League All Star game on Saturday.

The Miracle team is on the All-Star break, although a half-dozen of them will be playing in the game. So, no game tonight.

New Britain just completed a 5-4 win over Bowie. Jeff Manship improves to 6-4 and drops his ERA to 4.28. In 6.2 innings, he gave up no runs on three hits and two walks. Alex Burnett got out of the seventh, but got just one out in the eighth and gave up three runs. Both outs that he got came via the strikeout. Anthony Slama came in and got out of the 8^th before giving up a solo home run in the 9^th, but he struck out three (in 1.2 innings) and got his 14^th save. Danny Valencia led the offense. He went 3-4 with his 14^th double and seventh home run. Brandon Roberts was also 3-5. Juan Portes went 2-4.

Philip Humber had arguably his best start of the season tonight for the Rochester Red Wings. He gave up one run on four hits over seven innings. He walked one and struck out ten. Juan Morillo got the save with two shutout innings in which he walked none and struck out three. The Red Wings got the 2-1 win despite just three hits. Drew Butera hit his fifth double. Alexi Casilla and Trevor Plouffe drove in the runs.

Did you play a game of Blyleven Bingo during Friday night’s Twins game?? If not, be sure to do so on Saturday’s game!

Kevin Slowey captured his Major League leading 10^th win tonight as the Twins beat the Houston Astros 5-2. Slowey gave up just one run over six innings in the game despite a career-high four walks. Something must not have been right as Slowey left the game after the sixth inning with an apparent rib injury. He will be evaluated throughout the weekend. Matt Guerrier pitched a scoreless 7^th inning. Jose Mijares came in for the 8^th and got the first two hitters out before Jeff Keppinger hit a solo home run that cut the Twins lead to 3-2. Joe Nathan came in and got Miguel Tejada for the final out of the 8^th. In the bottom of the inning, the Twins got two insurance runs when a Delmon Young rope was lost in the lights by the left fielder. Two runs scored on the double, Young’s second double of the game. Nathan got a 1-2-3 ninth and the Twins finally are a game over .500.

Jason Kubel and Michael Cuddyer were each 2-4 with a double. Nick Punto was 1-1 with two sacrifice bunts, one of which scored Delmon Young on a perfectly executed suicide squeeze.

The same two teams will play again on Saturday at 6:10. It will be Scott Baker taking the mound against Brian Moehler.

And finally, Travis has posted his choice for Twins Prospect #9. Check it out.

Thursday Game Notes

also available at www.SethSpeaks.net -

First things first, be sure to check out my new StarTribune.com/yourvoices blog… our favorite TV analyst is the general topic. I’m curious what you think. Also, if you missed it, I took questions in the Live Chat right up until this posting was posted and I went to bed! Lots of question on the Twins and their minor leagues.

Since I have a few more articles to write, please check out Parker’s Twins Game Recap from Nick Blackburn’s impressive complete game win for the Twins. After winning two out of three against the Pirates, the Twins will now face off against the Houston Astros. Here are the pitching matchups for the weekend series:

• Friday – 7:10 – Kevin Slowey (9-2, 4.23, 1.39, .307) vs Roy Oswalt (3-3, 4.37, 1.34, .274)
• Saturday – 6:10 – Scott Baker (4-6, 5.30, 1.34, .274) vs Brian Moehler (3-4, 6.66, 1.68, .337)
• Sunday – 1:10 – Glen Perkins (2-3, 5.09, 1.32, .273) vs Wandy Rodriguez (5-6, 3.33, 1.35, .262)

MINOR LEAGUE REPORT

Thursday – SethSpeaks.net Hitter of the Day – Michael Harrington, Beloit Snappers

Thursday – SethSpeaks.net Pitcher of the Day – Matt Fox, New Britain Rockcats

TRANSACTIONS AND NOTES

• I assume everyone heard that Aaron Hicks has been promoted to Beloit?
• Travis posted his choices for Twins #10 prospect. See who got that spot, and then follow him through his top ten.

ROCHESTER REPORT

Thursday –Rochester 4, Columbus 2 (10 innings) – Anthony Swarzak returned to the mound for the Red Wings and had another nice start. He gave up two runs on eight hits and two walks in seven innings. Rob Delaney came in and gave up just one hit (and two walks) in three innings to gain the Win. Steve Tolleson and Alexi Casilla each went 2-5. Tolleson hit his eighth double. Justin Huber went 2-3 with two walks. Alejandro Machado went 1-3 with two walks.  

ROCKCAT RECAP

Thursday – Game 1 – New Britain 7, Altoona 0 – Matt Fox continues to impress. He improved to 6-2 with a 2.45 ERA after throwing five shutout innings. He gave up just three hits. He walked three and struck out three. Alex Burnett then threw two shutout innings. Brandon Roberts went 2-4 with his seventh stolen base. Yancarlos Ortiz went 2-3 with a walk and his first steal. Rene Tosoni was 1-3 with a walk and his tenth double. Juan Portes went 2-2 with a double to raise his average to .331.

Thursday – Game 2 – New Britain 2, Altoona 4 – Carlos Gutierrez got the start in game two. He gave up four runs on seven hits (including two home runs) and three walks in four innings. Jose Lugo and Anthony Slama each worked a scoreless inning in relief. Danny Valencia was 2-3. Yancarlos Ortiz went 1-1 with two walks.    

MIRACLE MEMOS

Thursday – Ft. Myers 7, Dunedin 2 – Mike McCardell came back from his unfortunate start to have a strong start. In five innings, he gave up two runs on four hits. He walked none and struck out five. Santos Arias came in and struck out three in two shutout innings to improve to 4-0. Spencer Steedley and Blair Erickson each pitched a scoreless inning. Erickson struck out two. Ben Revere went 2-4 with a walk. Steve Singleton and Deibinson Romero each went 2-5.

SNAPPERS SNIPPETS

Thursday – Beloit 3, Quad Cities 2 – Michael Harrington continues to impress. In this game, he went 3-4 and with two doubles, extended his organization doubles lead to 21. Ozzie Lewis was 2-4. Dan Osterbrock had a strong start. He gave up two runs on six hits in seven innings. He walked none and struck out six. Matt Williams struck out three in two perfect innings to record the win.     

Please feel free to Send me an e-mail, or leave your questions or comments here.

FINALLY! Hicks to Beloit!

also available at www.SethSpeaks.net - 

All is right in the world!

LaVelle E. Neal posted this afternoon that the Twins have sent Aaron Hicks to Beloit. It should be very interesting to see how he adjusts to the Midwest League. It would be fun to see he and Angel Morales roaming the same outfield! Travis from Travis Talks will be in Beloit this weekend to witness the festivities! Call me officially jealous! 

Any thoughts? Leave your Comments here. And don’t forget to sign up for a reminder for tonight’s SethSpeaks.net Live Chat.