Today, we continue to work through my Top 50 Twins Prospects list by looking at my choices for prospects 11 through 20. Last week, we looked at prospects 21-30, prospects 31-40, and prospects 41 through 50. For those that don’t think the Twins have any shortstop prospects, you may want to check out this section. There are some high-quality, future big-league arms in this range. A couple of them were just drafted last year. Unfortunately, a couple of them are currently having some injury issues. There is also a guy who may be Ryan Doumit’s successor… or Joe Mauer’s?

Without further ado, let’s get to the list. Here are my choices for Twins Prospects 11-20:

#20 –Pedro Florimon, SS

The Twins claimed Florimon from the Orioles in December. Days later, they DFAd him and when he cleared waivers, the Twins out-righted him, a great strategy to bring in talent yet not lose a 40 man roster spot. The switch-hitting 25 year old was originally signed by the Orioles in 2004 out of the Dominican Republic. He played for AA Bowie last year and hit .267/.344/.396 with 27 doubles, four triples, and eight home runs. He also stole 15 bases. He went 1-8 with a walk, a double and six strikeouts with the Orioles in September. He impressed the Twins coaches this spring with his glove and arm. He began the season with 30 games in New Britain. He hit .283/.347/.372 with four doubles and two home runs. He moved up to Rochester where he has played 19 games and hit .257/.304/.378 with a double, triple and two home runs.

#19 – Matt Summers, RHP

Summers was drafted in 2008 by the New York Yankees, as an outfielder. Instead of signing, he went to UC-Irvine and gradually became a pitcher. The Twins used their 4^th round pick to take Summers. Due to innings, they had him pitch in the Elizabethton bullpen. In 20.2 innings ,he gave up 11 hits, walked five and struckout 36 batters. Moving to the Midwest League this year, has been a learning experience for Summers. He struggled early but has been much better in May. Overall, he is 4-3 with a 4.21 ERA. In 55.1 innings, he has given up 48 hits, walked 19 and struckout 29. Summers has a fastball in the mid-90s with a sharp slider as well.

#18 – Danny Santana, SS

The Twins signed Santana, the 22 year old shortstop, from the Dominican Republic in December of 2007. The 5-11, 170 pounder has an incredible tool set. Defensively, he has tremendous range and a great arm. Offensively, Santana is a very aggressive hitter. He is not one to walk much. That is evident by the fact that he hasn’t had an OBP over .300 since 2009 in the GCL. He isn’t a big guy, but he is aggressive and has good extra-base pop in his bat. Last year in Beloit, he hit 15 doubles, five triples and seven home runs. He also stole 24 bases. In 41 games with the Miracle this year, he is hitting .299/.322/.414 (.736) with five doubles, three triples and three home runs.

#17 – Madison Boer, RHP

The Twins went with a local product with their second round pick in 2011. They drafted the 22 year old right-hander from Eden Prairie out of the University of Oregon. In college, he went back and forth between the bullpen and the starting rotation. When he is a starter, his fastball sits between 92 and 94 mph, but when pitching out of the bullpen, he hits 97. He also throws a hard slider. After signing, he went to Elizabethton, where he predictably dominated. In 17.1 innings, he walked two and struck out 31. He struggled with a 6.75 ERA in eight Beloit innings, although he did walk just one and struckout twelve. He began this season with five starts in Beloit where he went 2-2 with a 3.58 ERA in 27.2 innings. He moved up to Ft. Myers where he has lasted just 20.2 innings in five starts. He is 0-5 with an 11.76 ERA. That said, in his most recent start, he gave up just one earned run in five innings.

#16 – Niko Goodrum, SS

The Twins used their 2^nd round pick in 2010 on a high school shortstop named Cartier Goodrum. “Niko” got off to a horrible start in the GCL after signing. Last year in Elizabethton, he was terrific but it was lost behind the big seasons of Miguel Sano and Eddie Rosario. He hit .275/.352/.382 with ten doubles, three triples and two home runs He stole eight bases, and although he committed a lot of errors, he has great range and a very strong arm. Long and lanky, he will need to bulk up a little to continue hitting for any power. The 20-year-old will go back to Elizabethton and hopefully put up some big numbers.

#15 – Levi Michael, SS

To say that the last twelve months have been tough for Levi Michael might be an understatement, well, other than that seven-figure signing bonus. His North Carolina team advanced to the College World Series, but he struggled mightily. He fell to the Twins with the 30^th pick even though many draft experts ranked him much higher. He signed at the very last minute, and he didn’t play at all last season because he had so many injuries. The Twins started him in Ft. Myers this year, and he has really struggled. Just 21 years old, he is quite young for his draft class thanks to skipping his senior year of high school to go play in college. The switch-hitter should eventually hit for average with some gap power. He has a good glove and hands, but average range and arm, so most believe he’ll eventually move to second base.

#14 – BJ Hermsen, RHP

The 22-year-old was the Twins 6^th round pick in 2008 out of high school in Iowa. The Twins went well over slot to sign him and keep him from going to Oregon State. Hermsen split the 2011 season between Beloit and Ft. Myers. He was my runner-up for 2011 Twins minor league pitcher of the year. He went 13-8 with a 3.33 ERA and a 1.34 WHIP. In 151.1 innings, he walked just 37 and struck out 101. Despite a 6-6 frame, Hermsen relies on control of an 85-89 mph two-seam fastball that has very heavy sink. His four-seamer can touch 91-92. He has a very good curveball and changeup, but teammates are most impressed by his poise. He made just nine starts at Ft. Myers (5 last year, 4 this year) before being promoted to AA New Britain. In five starts there, he has already pitched 35 innings. He is 2-1 with a 2.83 ERA and a 0.97 WHIP. The Twins will need to decide following the season whether to add him to the 40 man roster or not. It’s hard to imagine that they wouldn’t, at this point.

#13 – Adrian Salcedo, RHP

The Twins signed Salcedo out of the Dominican Republic in December of 2007. The 21-year-old has been very successful at every step up the ladder. In 2011 in Beloit, he went 6-6 but posted a 2.93 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP. In 135 innings, he walked just 27 and struck out just 92. At 6-4 and 175, he is lanky and very athletic. His fastball is in the low-90s. He also has a good curveball and a good changeup that sit between 84 and 86 mph. This year he moved up to Ft. Myers and really struggled. In seven starts, he went just 22.1 innings. Twice he left in the first inning. Once, due to a one-hopper that broke his nose, and the other time due to a blister. However, he allowed 27 hits, walked 15 and struckout 13. With control issues that he had never fought before, immediately there was concern about his elbow. He was put on the disabled list with an elbow injury and has had an MRI. For now, he will be rehabbing.

#12 –Alex Wimmers, RHP

Speaking of rehabbing, that is what Wimmers is doing down in Ft. Myers despite being diagnosed with a partially torn UCL. You can’t help but feel bad for the 2010 first-round draft pick from Ohio State. When he was drafted, his changeup and poise were deemed most major league ready. 2011 was a tough year, and yet by the end, he had overcome Blass Disease and finished the season with a 7-inning, no-hitter. The 23-year-old began this season with New Britain and made one start. That’s when the elbow issue started, and he hasn’t pitched since, and reports I’m hearing indicate it might be awhile before he pitches again. However, when healthy, the two-time Big 10 Pitcher of the Year has a good fastball at 88 to 92 mph. He throws a curveball, and his changeup is terrific.

#11 – Chris Herrmann, C

The Twins used their sixth round pick in 2009 draft on the athletic, versatile Herrmann. In college, he played all over the infield and outfield. The Twins drafted him as a catcher. He has played a lot of outfield in his time in the Twins system, but in the last two years, he has spent the majority of his time honing his catching skills. In 2011, he split time between Ft. Myers and New Britain and hit a combined .269/.385/.399 with 19 doubles, six triples, eight homers, 62 RBI and ten steals. He went to the AFL and hit .380/.456/.620 with six doubles and two homers. For the second straight season, he was invited to big league spring training where he continued to impress. He started out slow in New Britain this spring, but he is now hitting .260/.310/.410 with 14 doubles and four home runs. Herrmann could be with the Twins as early as September.

So, there you have my choices for Twins prospects 11-20. Later this week, I’ll be back with my next installment which will be The Top Ten Twins Prospects.

If you have any questions or comments on any of these prospects, please feel free to ask.

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(photo courtesy milb.com)