Article: Twins To Call Up Miguel Sano

[Seth Stohs]

MLB.com's Rhett Bollinger tweeted that a "well-placed" person told him that Miguel Sano would be promoted to the Twins in time for Thursday's game in Kansas City.

 

Following the Twins Wednesday afternoon loss in Cincinnati, the team announced that DH Kennys Vargas was being optioned to AA Chattanooga. Speculation immediately became rampant.Since well before signing with the Twins in October of 2009, Sano has been a known commodity in the baseball world. He rose quickly through the Twins farm system. Unfortunately he missed all of 2014 after having Tommy John surgery.

 

He was added to the Twins 40-man roster following the season and reported to spring training this year. He definitely showed signs of rust. Through May 1, he was hitting just .152. Since then, he has been on fire. In 46 games since that day, he has hit .320/.398/.616 (1.014) with 16 doubles and 11 home runs. He has 44 strikeouts in 201 plate appearances (22.9%).

 

The hope is that he will inject some life into a stagnant Minnesota Twins offense. He is expected to be the Twins regular designated hitter, a position at which the Twins have struggled this year. The Twins designated hitters this year have posted a .663 OPS which ranks them second to last in the American League and far behind the league average of .755.

 

The reality is that they've been even worse than that. The number includes an .872 OPS by Torii Hunter and a .777 OPS by Joe Mauer, both of whom play other positions and who only play designated hitter when manager Paul Molitor wants to give them a rest. The bulk of the at-bats at that position have gone to Kenny Vargas, who has had a .587 OPS from the spot. Earlier today Vargas was demoted to AA-Chattanooga.

 

Sano was the #2 Twins Prospect in our Midseason Top 10 Rankings. He joins fellow Top 10 prospects Byron Buxton, Alex Meyer and Eddie Rosario on the Twins big league roster. Jorge Polanco has spent some time in the big leagues this season and last year. And JO Berrios was just promoted to AAA Rochester.

 

It's a good time for Twins prospects.

 

Sano signed with the Twins in 2009 and was one of the mostly widely hyped international prospects in years. If you would like to learn more about Sano, Twins Daily highly recommends the documentary Ballplayer: Pelotero, which you can watch for free if you have a Netflix account. It chronicles the efforts by several teams to sign Sano out of the Dominican Republic, and the seemingly shady tactics implemented by either some agents or Major League Baseball (depending on your interpretation of the events) to question Sano's age and restrict his ability to field offers in order to drive down his signing price.

 

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[nytwinsfan]

Super excited and happy for Sano.

 

Side note: How crazy/ironic is it that Sano will be called up on the exact same day that the Twins for the first time sign an international player (Javier Wander, SS) for more (expected to be $4 million) than the amount they paid Sano ($3.15 million). Kind of like the changing of the guard for international prospects or something.

[John Bonnes]

Well, this should be exciting. It really is amazing all the names we're seeing up here this year. Now we just need some of them to start catching fire. I'd love to see Sano lead the way in that regard. 

[John Bonnes]

Let me ask a question here....

 

The Twins are pretty clearly hoping Sano fixes their problems at DH. My question is, does his success or failure over the next three weeks really indicate if the Twins can trust him at that position for the rest of the year? If he has success over the next two weeks, should we really trust him? And if he doesn't, should we hand it over to him regardless?

 

I kind of think the answer to both is "no." And if that's the answer ... then isn't he going to be replaced in a few weeks one way or the other?

[Craig Arko]

Let me ask a question here....

 

The Twins are pretty clearly hoping Sano fixes their problems at DH. My question is, does his success or failure over the next three weeks really indicate if the Twins can trust him at that position for the rest of the year? If he has success over the next two weeks, should we really trust him? And if he doesn't, should we hand it over to him regardless?

 

I kind of think the answer to both is "no." And if that's the answer ... then isn't he going to be replaced in a few weeks one way or the other?

Replaced by who? Delmon Young?

[Kwak]

The twins have been shouting about the quality of their MiL System for several years.  A very promising season is teetering--the promotions:  Buxton, Sano, et al--are "up" to save this season and justify all of the hype about them.  I wish them well, but they will have a tough row to hoe (sorry for that one) and the harvest might be bitter roots.  We shall wish for the best.  But the month of July is crucial, "June swoon" had better not be followed by "July poke-in-the-eye".

[Monkeypaws]

This is good news - I like giving our top propsects a taste of what they are in for, even if they don't stick the first time around.

 

I think the legacy chestnut of "Twins slow to promote" can be laid to rest this season. The escalator is running fast.

Edited July 1, 2015 by Monkeypaws

[twinssouth]

Big news, congrats to Sano. Wow, the Twins are really getting aggressive. Now, if they want more offense, bring up Kepler too. Great to see our prospects moving up.

[davidc3915]

If Vargas was sent to AA because Chattanooga needs a 1B, then is it safe to assume they aren't playing Kepler at 1b anymore?

[kab21]

I am surprised but Vargas continues to struggle and the Twins need a legitimate bat to DH.  Maybe Sano is ready although I would have liked for him to get one more month in the minors.

[Thrylos]

 

Let me ask a question here....

 

The Twins are pretty clearly hoping Sano fixes their problems at DH. My question is, does his success or failure over the next three weeks really indicate if the Twins can trust him at that position for the rest of the year? If he has success over the next two weeks, should we really trust him? And if he doesn't, should we hand it over to him regardless?

 

I kind of think the answer to both is "no." And if that's the answer ... then isn't he going to be replaced in a few weeks one way or the other?

 

I hope that the Twins give Sano a sporadic duty of DH.  They can rotate:

 

Sano/Plouffe: 3B/DH

Plouffe/Hunter: OF/DH

Mauer/Plouffe: 1B/DH

 

if they do that, Sano should be the starting third baseman 8 out of 10 games.

 

You don't give up on kids that young to make them DHs...  As a matter of fact, Sano's glove (and arm) at third (now) is better than Plouffe's was at the beginning of last season.  And methinks that Plouffe is a better OF than Escobar and/or Santana, so that is a win win.  

 

I expect (Danny) Santana for Hicks next.

 

[HitInAPinch]

Miguel Sano HAS been called up.   So sayeth LEN3

 

http://www.startribune.com/minnesota-twins-lose-2-1-to-reds-with-reserve-filled-lineup/311269081/

 

To me, it's pretty admirable what the Twins have done (41-37) with what they have.

Sano is what will be a continuing line of auditions from the Twins farm system.  They can't be happy with the 2 guys that were successful last year (Vargas and Santana)

or Hicks this year (+2), Buxton not improving at least somewhat at the plate (now hurt again and out for a month) and the group of relievers that has been a mixed bag.

Rosario is the only one really hanging in there. 

 

I wish the best of luck to Sano.  The big club could really use it.

Edited July 1, 2015 by HitInAPinch

[birddog]

Twins bats are asleep and TR had to do something to help our pitching, which has been very good. May deserved a W today but you look up and down the lineup and wonder who can win a close game for us. Dozier and Torii have had all-star type seasons. I like the at bats that Rosario takes, but we need a Sano type of bat who can win a close game with one swing. I was hoping Vargas would resurrect his 2014 season after his latest promotion but the power wasn't there consistently enough. 

 

We have to be patient with Sano--just like all the young kids coming up--but if he can drive the ball like he's capable of, we can handle a lower batting average. We need to see some ropes to the gaps and down the lines, as well as the balls over the fence. Sano has been a run producer at every level and he scores a lot of runs. He is one of those players who should make everyone else around him better. Love seeing him up. If he's overmatched, at least he got a taste of what he's working for. I like what TR has done this season.

[stringer bell]

Sano probably is the DH most of the time. If Mauer is the DH, then Plouffe can play first and Sano third. They can give Plouffe a game off each week and DH him. Not sure that having Hunter DH would get Sano on the field.

 

I'm wondering if Hicks is coming up. Escobar shouldn't be a regular left fielder and Santana needs to go back to the minors.

[twinssouth]

Today Arcia went 4 for 5, 1 hr, 3 rbi's  and Hicks was 3 for 5 and the Twins still went with Sano.  I couldn't be happier. 

[HitInAPinch]

 

 

Let me ask a question here....

 

The Twins are pretty clearly hoping Sano fixes their problems at DH. My question is, does his success or failure over the next three weeks really indicate if the Twins can trust him at that position for the rest of the year? If he has success over the next two weeks, should we really trust him? And if he doesn't, should we hand it over to him regardless?

 

I kind of think the answer to both is "no." And if that's the answer ... then isn't he going to be replaced in a few weeks one way or the other?

I'd be pretty stunned if Sano were successful in the next 3 weeks.  Nothing against Sano, but what's the Twins recent history in moving a player from AA to MLB?  If his hitting doesn't improve over 3 weeks, he needs more MiLB time (AA to rebuild confidence and a quick jump to AAA).  If he really is successful (i.e.  continued improvement, similar to Eddie Rosario) he's good to go the rest of the year and beyond.

[HitInAPinch]

 

 

Today Arcia went 4 for 5, 1 hr, 3 rbi's  and Hicks was 3 for 5 and the Twins still went with Sano.  I couldn't be happier. 

Just when I was gonna start cursing both Arcia and Hicks names again, they done went and did something good. 

[Eephus]

 

I hope that the Twins give Sano a sporadic duty of DH.  They can rotate:

 

Sano/Plouffe: 3B/DH

Plouffe/Hunter: OF/DH

Mauer/Plouffe: 1B/DH

 

if they do that, Sano should be the starting third baseman 8 out of 10 games.

 

You don't give up on kids that young to make them DHs...  As a matter of fact, Sano's glove (and arm) at third (now) is better than Plouffe's was at the beginning of last season.  And methinks that Plouffe is a better OF than Escobar and/or Santana, so that is a win win.  

 

I expect (Danny) Santana for Hicks next.

I like the Plouffe in the OF occasionally idea. If they really want to win, start using Mauer behind plate once in a while, too. 

[Wyorev]

Any suggestion that Mauer should catch seems dismissive of the reality of brain injury, and callous towards the well being of a person.

Mauer told Buster Posey to catch as long as he can.

Too many people are a bit cavalier about such things...

I will leave it at that...

Looking forward to seeing Mr. Sano!

[jimbo92107]

First, a hearty congratulations to Miguel Sano. He's getting to live the dream; now let's see him make some dreams come true at the plate!

 

Condolences to Kennys Vargas. He's a good guy, but needs to get his mojo back at the plate. My suggestion: Swing more like that guy with the Red Sox, what's his name...David Ortiz.

 

My prediction for next position player call-up is easy: Twins need a shortstop that looks a lot like Jorge Polanco. After that my eyes grow heavy and my sight grows dim, I'll have to stop for the night... ;-)

 

But I'll guess that Hicks comes up before Kepler. But I won't bet much on it because Kepler looks like a legit hitter.

 

Interestinger and interestinger.

[TheLeviathan]

I know I'm going to be tuned in tomorrow to see him hit. 

 

Patient with the expectations people.  Let the kid adapt.

[shs_59]

I agree with the Bonnes man, I'd say "probably No". If Sano has success in the next 2 weeks? The Twins will trust him. I'm not expecting him to have success however. (not this year)

 

But, Unlike the Buxton decision, I am more behind this promotion.

 

http://mlb.mlb.com/schedule/?c_id=min#y=2015&m=7&calendar=DEFAULT

the schedule coming up is nasty, and the Twins are just hoping to catch fire in Sano's bat.

 

If he hits, great, he could help save the season.

 

If he doesn't, we, the Twins might find ourselves 10-12 GB of K.C. and lose ground to the Tigers 5 or 6 GB and probably fall just below the Indians before you know it.

 

 

GO MIGUEL SANO!

 

and front office, you got this one right,

 

Still NO ExcuseS for the Buxton debacle, in my mind.

[DocBauer]

Stick a fork in him. He's done!

 

What..........................................too soon?

[shs_59]

Also people need to temper their enthusiasm on Max Kepler DOWN a bit.

 

Remember Jason Kubel, Michael Restovich, Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau hit like Kepler is hitting right now in the Minors NEARLY EVERY single year in their minors career, before they got to the big leagues.

 

THIS is the 1st Season Kepler has hit like this in his ENTIRE profesional career.

 

 

MAX KEPLER will be nothing more than a September call-up at best.

He's the kind of guy that HAS to see AAA pitching before you can expect anything from him.

[ckrolak]

It just seems really obvious that minor league success in the Twins' system doesn't translate to the major league club.  I am happy with what Rosario is doing, however.  He really seems to be comfortable up here.  I'm just wondering if it is something systemic in how the hitters are being coached in the major league club.  Most of the hitters are still having problems and weren't exactly on fire even in May.  They were just hitting in a timely manner.  I still have faith in Molitor, though.  I don't know what can turn around this lackluster performance.  The Cincinnati series was ugly.  Even the game they won.

[nicksaviking]

 

Also people need to temper their enthusiasm on Max Kepler DOWN a bit.

Remember Jason Kubel, Michael Restovich, Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau hit like Kepler is hitting right now in the Minors NEARLY EVERY single year in their minors career, before they got to the big leagues.

THIS is the 1st Season Kepler has hit like this in his ENTIRE profesional career.


MAX KEPLER will be nothing more than a September call-up at best.
He's the kind of guy that HAS to see AAA pitching before you can expect anything from him.

 

Agreed, I have high hopes for Kepler, but I think we're all forgeting he started the year in A bal, and here we are in July asking for him to be called up.  I'm not normally against such moves, but he's been a one level a year guy, and not exactly a guy who has caught on quickly.  Until this year.

 

Side note, what the heck did the team expect Vargas to do upon his recall when they never gave him consistant at bats?  Inconsistant at bats is going to happen to a ton of corner bat prospects if this team doesn't learn to manage their assets better.  Time to get creative.

[Puckett34]

 

Happy Canada Day indeed.

[TheLeviathan]

 

Side note, what the heck did the team expect Vargas to do upon his recall when they never gave him consistant at bats?  Inconsistant at bats is going to happen to a ton of corner bat prospects if this team doesn't learn to manage their assets better.  Time to get creative.

 

Generally I agree, but Vargas looked pretty lost.  The mistake was sending him down the first time, this time seems justified.  But this team is caught in a weird in-between of rebuilding and contending and that is forcing them to act in a weird in-between way.

[d-mac]

This is good news - I like giving our top propsects a taste of what they are in for, even if they don't stick the first time around.

 

I think the legacy chestnut of "Twins slow to promote" can be laid to rest this season. The escalator is running fast.

 

I think that's a bit of over-simplification. I think they tend to be waaaaayyyy too aggressive when promoting hitters from AA to AAA to the majors, or in many cases straight to the majors from AA. Conversely, I think the ARE too conservative when I comes to promoting pitchers. I also think they move players up too slowly through the low minors (Rookie ball through the Midwest League) and that is even more the case with college players.

[Richie the Rally Goat]

It just seems really obvious that minor league success in the Twins' system doesn't translate to the major league club.  I am happy with what Rosario is doing, however.  He really seems to be comfortable up here.  I'm just wondering if it is something systemic in how the hitters are being coached in the major league club.  Most of the hitters are still having problems and weren't exactly on fire even in May.  They were just hitting in a timely manner.  I still have faith in Molitor, though.  I don't know what can turn around this lackluster performance.  The Cincinnati series was ugly.  Even the game they won.

1) Duh! Very few prospects make it. It's really obvious that minor league success doesn't translate to major league success in general.

 

2) its less about coaches and more about the players. Escobar, Nunez, Schafer, Robinson and Hicks have been staples in the lineup. Good teams have one of those as regulars, not all of them.