On Thursday morning, the Twins made their first cuts of spring.

The following 40 man roster players were optioned and will report to minor league camp.

• Scott Diamond - LHP - it's not a surprise at all that Diamond will not be making the big league opening day roster, but it is somewhat surprising that he is cut this early. However, he will be starting in the minor leagues and needs to be stretched out. Matt Maloney's emergence likely makes this an easy decision.
  
• Deolis Guerra - RHP - This is Guerra's final option year. He had a rough first spring outing, but he has been decent the last two. It's a big year for Guerra to show if he has a big league future.
  
• Lester Oliveros - RHP - It is also a little surprising that Oliveros is cut this early. He has pitched alright so far this spring, but he was unlikely to make the big league roster for opening day anyway. It is best for his development to get more AAA time.
  
• Tyler Robertson - LHP - Robertson was just added to the 40 man roster last fall, so this is his first option. He had a good showing in his first big league camp.
  
• Darin Mastriaonni - OF - There were some that thought that Mastriaonni was a candidate if the Twins went with a 5-man outfield because of his speed and ability to play centerfield, but he didn't show much offensively or defensively. Interesting that the guy the Twins took off their 40 man roster in order to claim Mastroianni (Esmerling Vasquez) will remain in camp.
  
• Oswaldo Arcia - OF - Like Robertson, this is Arcia's first camp. He spent just half of last season in Ft. Myers, so there was no chance of him breaking with the big league club. But he had a couple of good moments in spring including a long, opposite field home run in a B game.
  

The following players were non-roster invites to big league camp that were re-assigned to minor league camp:

• Aaron Thompson - LHP - The lefty made his debut a year ago with the Reds and is still just 24 years old, so he has a chance yet. He'll go to minor league camp and it will be interesting to see if he starts or comes out of the bullpen. The fact that he's sent down this early tells me that he may be stretched out.
  
• Steve Pearce - 1B/3B/OF - Pearce was a very long-shot to make the big league roster anyway, but an injury that will keep him out about a week meant he had no chance.
  
• Danny Rams - C/1B/OF - Rams was invited to big league camp shortly after it started because the team wanted another catcher. So, it's no surprise that he's among the first cuts.
  

Any thoughts on this first round of cuts? The Twins are now down to 57 players in camp. They will need to cut another 22 players before Opening Day, so much more to come!

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