Article: Kepler Wins Third Ring, Gets The Call

[Seth Stohs]

On Monday night, Max Kepler was a member of the Southern League champion Chattanooga Lookouts. He was one of seven Lookouts players who also won a championship with the Ft. Myers Miracle in 2014 and the Elizabethton Twins in 2012. Following the game, he also learned that he was going to the big leagues for the final 13 games of the Twins regular season.After the Lookouts championship, the Minnesota Twins announced via Twitter that Max Kepler was heading to the big leagues.

 

It's been a great year for the German. He began the year with this second year at big league spring training. After injury meant his season started with a week with the Ft. Myers Miracle, and he then moved up to the Lookouts. From that point, he dominated the Southern League.

He went on to hit .322/.416/.531 (.947) with 32 doubles, 13 triples and nine home runs. As impressive, he walked 67 times and struck out 63 times.

 

He ended the season on a cold streak and hit just .188 in the playoffs. That said, he hit three homers in the playoffs and walked nine times (to go with 10 strikeouts).

 

Kepler was signed the same day the Twins signed infielder Jorge Polanco in July of 2009. Miguel Sano signed that October.

 

Kepler has been written about nearly every day at Twins Daily since about May 1. Last week, he was unanimously chosen as the Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Year.

 

Kepler can play all three outfield positions defensively as well as first base. I would guess that he will do some pinch hitting until (or if!) the Twins are officially eliminated from contention. If they are eliminated, he would likely play every day, somewhere.

Kepler will most likely spend a couple of months in Rochester at the start of the 2016 season. However, it is a nice "bonus" for Kepler as he will be able to learn from the veterans through observation. He'll also make about $35,000 to $40,000 for his two weeks with the club.

 

The other person from the Twins minor leagues who will be joining the Twins is Cedar Rapids Kernels manager Jake Mauer. He will join the Twins coaching staff for the final two weeks of the season.

 

Click here to view the article

[jimbo92107]

Fantastic news for Max Kepler. Well earned. Congrats to Der Kid!

[h2oface]

Good thing Kepler wasn't at his pitch limit or innings limit, and doesn't need to give his eyes a rest and be shut down. This should be interesting.

[ScrapTheNickname]

Hoch auf Max Kepler!

 

(3 cheers)

Edited September 22, 2015 by ScrapTheNickname

[spinowner]

Surprising and very interesting news. Surprising because I, like many, thought they'd not want to start his service time now. Interesting because this sends a message to Arcia and Hunter that they think he can do the job on the major league level. I think those two should plan their futures accordingly, Arcia to buckle down and work to become his best and Hunter to consider a new career path.

[twinssouth]

Fantastic news, Kep is a 3 time Champ, he needs to be on the Wheaties box

[Blackjack]

Congratulations to Max!!!

[amjgt]

He shouldn't have helped out his team so much in the playoffs.... he might have made another $40k

 

[sane]

He shouldn't have helped out his team so much in the playoffs.... he might have made another $40k

Chump change! He had $800,000 in the bank when he was 16-yrs-old.

[HitInAPinch]

Great season and news for Kepler!  Playing time?  meh.  The only message being sent here is Congratulations on a great year from an appreciative Twins management.

[Dantes929]

 

Fantastic news, Kep is a 3 time Champ, he needs to be on the Wheaties box

How about 4 time champ first?    Even though Sano missed a full season it is impressive that Kepler has made it this far this fast.    Very anxious to see what he brings to the plate.

[Seth Stohs]

 

Surprising and very interesting news. Surprising because I, like many, thought they'd not want to start his service time now. Interesting because this sends a message to Arcia and Hunter that they think he can do the job on the major league level. I think those two should plan their futures accordingly, Arcia to buckle down and work to become his best and Hunter to consider a new career path.

 

Like I said, he'll almost certainly start the 2016 season in Rochester, but he could be up in a month. The service time isn't an issue at all. Also, there are way too many examples with the Twins not worrying about service time to worry about that anyway. 

 

It may send a message to Arcia. That's not why Kepler is up, but the message is clear. It doesn't send Hunter any sort of message. Hunter isn't going to be threatened in any way.

[Monkeypaws]

The future keeps getting brighter, and closer too.

 

I feel like Wile E. Coyote at the entrance to a railroad tunnel.

[amjgt]

 

Chump change! He had $800,000 in the bank when he was 16-yrs-old.

 

People that don't care about $40k, don't mention ATM fees on their twitter feed.

 

 

[Seth Stohs]

 

The future keeps getting brighter, and closer too.

 

I feel like Wile E. Coyote at the entrance to a railroad tunnel.

 

Let's just hope for different results!!

[TRex]

 

How about 4 time champ first?    Even though Sano missed a full season it is impressive that Kepler has made it this far this fast.    Very anxious to see what he brings to the plate.

Is it wrong for me to hope for Sauerbraten... at least for 2015, anyway?

[Kwak]

The Twins showed that it was more important for their Chattanooga affiliate to win their league that for the Twins to advance to the playoffs.  I'm all for good relations with the Minor League teams, but... .

 

There was a "Ryan quote" in the Strib last week that dealt with the disparity of September promotions between the Twins and the Angels.  The Angels had expanded their "roster" to 37--and Ryan deemed that a bit much.  The quote included "...earned", and  "...service time considerations".  Kepler is a bit different than most, because he is permitted four options rather than the usual three.  However, it sure looks like he won't need all of them--and one was already used for 2015 anyway--so "promoting him" only cost the Twins a few thousand dollars.  That's only a few less limestone bricks in the never-ending program of fan-enhancements in Target Field.

[ashbury]

Fantastic news, Kep is a 3 time Champ, he needs to be on the Wheaties box

Since it's the minors, probably should be on one of those single-serving boxes.

[stringer bell]

Kepler gets this promotion as a reward for a fine minor league season. That is fair and right. Would he have helped the Twins for the last three weeks?  Maybe, but only because he would be a better pinch hitter than Danny Santana. It is not like he would be starting any games.  As Seth said, service time shouldn't be an issue at all. Kepler will almost certainly start 2016 in AAA. Instead of having to stay for three weeks to gain another year of control, it would be five weeks.

[dxpavelka]

 

How about 4 time champ first?    Even though Sano missed a full season it is impressive that Kepler has made it this far this fast.    Very anxious to see what he brings to the plate.

Not sure some Twins fans are gonna like this but what he brings to the plate is Joe Mauer with slightly more power and speed.  The speed difference is why he's an outfielder not a catcher.  Won't hit for as high an average as Mauer did for most of his career.  At his best he's Joe Mauer with the same warts.  Like it or not.  And here's a thought--If our OF is as stacked as we've been led to believe for the past few months and if a logjam exists there, and we know Mauer's not going anywhere for a few more years our biggest position of need is catcher why not send him to the AFL and make him a catcher? 

[Loosey]

 

Not sure some Twins fans are gonna like this but what he brings to the plate is Joe Mauer with slightly more power and speed.  The speed difference is why he's an outfielder not a catcher.  Won't hit for as high an average as Mauer did for most of his career.  At his best he's Joe Mauer with the same warts.  Like it or not.  And here's a thought--If our OF is as stacked as we've been led to believe for the past few months and if a logjam exists there, and we know Mauer's not going anywhere for a few more years our biggest position of need is catcher why not send him to the AFL and make him a catcher? 

I tried the catcher conversion question with Plouffe about a month ago.  It was purely hypothetical, but I don't think a month in Arizona will turn someone into a ML catcher.

[Loosey]

Clearly Kepler knows how to win, having 3 championships and all.  Good thing we got him up here to show the rest of the guys what to do!

[jokin]

 

Kepler gets this promotion as a reward for a fine minor league season. That is fair and right. Would he have helped the Twins for the last three weeks?  Maybe, but only because he would be a better pinch hitter than Danny Santana. It is not like he would be starting any games.  As Seth said, service time shouldn't be an issue at all. Kepler will almost certainly start 2016 in AAA. Instead of having to stay for three weeks to gain another year of control, it would be five weeks.

 

Like I said, he'll almost certainly start the 2016 season in Rochester, but he could be up in a month. The service time isn't an issue at all. Also, there are way too many examples with the Twins not worrying about service time to worry about that anyway. 

 

It may send a message to Arcia. That's not why Kepler is up, but the message is clear. It doesn't send Hunter any sort of message. Hunter isn't going to be threatened in any way.

 

It could be just a few weeks for Kepler before his 2016 Twins call-up, but Sano and Buxton weren't called up until the bean counters assured management that they were safely beyond the Super 2 date- and, in the other "obvious" case- despite dominating Double A and Triple A- and the Twins desperately needing spot starts in July and a live arm for the stretch run, Berrios never got the call at all.

 

And, as others have noted, there's already a major log jam at all of the positions where Kepler might play.  Would they really call up Kepler in the 3rd-4th week of April/1st week of May, if there's no place to play? Buxton is also highly likely to start out in Rochester, so you gotta ask yourself- "Which of these two will get the first call?"  Rosario got the early call-up this year- because there was a place to play. 

 

Ironically, what happens with Trevor Plouffe this offseason is the first indication of where they see Kepler fitting into their plans in 2016.  How many times have they "counted on" a rookie early on, and how many times have they turned to the rookie only after injury or a failed veteran made an opportunity available (the Aaron Hicks nightmare debut hasn't likely been soon forgotten)?

 

In contrast to expecting an early call-up, I think it would be just as safe to predict that we won't be seeing Kepler until as late as June or July- as in the cases of Sano and Buxton- possibly with Plouffe gone- as the new DH/p-t 1st Base/4th OF- maybe with Hunter accepting a 5th OF/DH role to help make room for Kepler to play more regularly.

Edited September 22, 2015 by jokin

[stringer bell]

I don't think there are any guarantees about the future. Having a Kepler waiting at AAA in the event of injury or hard regression is a good problem to have, especially if he continues to develop. What is slated to happen can be derailed by the player's own struggles (see Arcia, Oswaldo) as well as others who figure to play the same positions.

 

As far as Kepler's profile, yes, there are real similarities to Mauer--sweet LH swing, contact and strike zone discipline and late-developing power. I am not willing to write Kepler off as a big slap hitter just yet. He's hit the ball for extra bases more this year and the homers mostly came late in the season. He just might develop 20+ homer power.

[nytwinsfan]

 

It could be just a few weeks for Kepler before his 2016 Twins call-up, but Sano and Buxton weren't called up until the bean counters assured management that they were safely beyond the Super 2 date- and, in the other "obvious" case- despite dominating Double A and Triple A- and the Twins desperately needing spot starts in July and a live arm for the stretch run, Berrios never got the call at all.

 

And, as others have noted, there's already a major log jam at all of the positions where Kepler might play.  Would they really call up Kepler in the 3rd-4th week of April/1st week of May, if there's no place to play? Buxton is also highly likely to start out in Rochester, so you gotta ask yourself- "Which of these two will get the first call?"  Rosario got the early call-up this year- because there was a place to play. 

 

Ironically, what happens with Trevor Plouffe this offseason is the first indication of where they see Kepler fitting into their plans in 2016.  How many times have they "counted on" a rookie early on, and how many times have they turned to the rookie only after injury or a failed veteran made an opportunity available (the Aaron Hicks nightmare debut hasn't likely been soon forgotten)?

 

In contrast to expecting an early call-up, I think it would be just as safe to predict that we won't be seeing Kepler until as late as June or July- as in the cases of Sano and Buxton- possibly with Plouffe gone- as the new DH/p-t 1st Base/4th OF- maybe with Hunter accepting a 5th OF/DH role to help make room for Kepler to play more regularly.

Crushed it. LOL, jokin, i'm hard pressed to think of a single instance in which i've even mildly disagreed with you.

Edited September 22, 2015 by nytwinsfan

[mgilhoi]

Maybe I missed it - who were the other six players who won championships with him last year in Fort Myers and 2012 with Elizabethton?

[clutterheart]

 

Not sure some Twins fans are gonna like this but what he brings to the plate is Joe Mauer with slightly more power and speed.  The speed difference is why he's an outfielder not a catcher.  Won't hit for as high an average as Mauer did for most of his career.  At his best he's Joe Mauer with the same warts.  Like it or not.  And here's a thought--If our OF is as stacked as we've been led to believe for the past few months and if a logjam exists there, and we know Mauer's not going anywhere for a few more years our biggest position of need is catcher why not send him to the AFL and make him a catcher? 

 

My Goodness.  Have you looked at either's minor league stats or are you just trolling?  They are pretty dissimilar except for being a sweet swinging LH hitter with a decent eye at a plate.

 

If he has the career of Mauer Twins got amazing value for his signing bonus and the scout who brought Kepler into the org deserves to be in the HOF.  Mauer was on a HOF track before being derailed.

[nytwinsfan]

 

My Goodness.  Have you looked at either's minor league stats or are you just trolling?  They are pretty dissimilar except for being a sweet swinging LH hitter with a decent eye at a plate.

But add "with limited power" for both Mauer and Kepler, and isn't that exactly what Mauer's offensive profile is and was as a prospect? That's like saying, "except for the two or three most important aspects of hitting, they are totally different hitters." Granted, if Kepler turns out to be Mauer, that would be way way above his expected value.  So I'm not expecting that and I don't think dxpavelka was either. But he's right that there is a similarity in their offensive profiles.

[Seth Stohs]

 

It could be just a few weeks for Kepler before his 2016 Twins call-up, but Sano and Buxton weren't called up until the bean counters assured management that they were safely beyond the Super 2 date- and, in the other "obvious" case- despite dominating Double A and Triple A- and the Twins desperately needing spot starts in July and a live arm for the stretch run, Berrios never got the call at all.

 

And, as others have noted, there's already a major log jam at all of the positions where Kepler might play.  Would they really call up Kepler in the 3rd-4th week of April/1st week of May, if there's no place to play? Buxton is also highly likely to start out in Rochester, so you gotta ask yourself- "Which of these two will get the first call?"  Rosario got the early call-up this year- because there was a place to play. 

 

Ironically, what happens with Trevor Plouffe this offseason is the first indication of where they see Kepler fitting into their plans in 2016.  How many times have they "counted on" a rookie early on, and how many times have they turned to the rookie only after injury or a failed veteran made an opportunity available (the Aaron Hicks nightmare debut hasn't likely been soon forgotten)?

 

In contrast to expecting an early call-up, I think it would be just as safe to predict that we won't be seeing Kepler until as late as June or July- as in the cases of Sano and Buxton- possibly with Plouffe gone- as the new DH/p-t 1st Base/4th OF- maybe with Hunter accepting a 5th OF/DH role to help make room for Kepler to play more regularly.

 

 

With Sano, they waited until they felt he was ready after missing a full season. With Buxton, it was an injury that brought him up, not that he was ready. Kepler may be ready now. He may be ready on Opening Day or a month in, or next July. No way to know. 

 

I don't expect an early call up at all for him in 2016. I think it would be awhile. Rosario and Hicks will be in the OF. Arcia is out of options. Hunter could come back. Buxton may be an Opening Day possibility, though I think he could use another couple months or a half-season in AAA too.

[nytwinsfan]

 

With Sano, they waited until they felt he was ready after missing a full season. With Buxton, it was an injury that brought him up, not that he was ready. Kepler may be ready now. He may be ready on Opening Day or a month in, or next July. No way to know. 

 

I don't expect an early call up at all for him in 2016. I think it would be awhile. Rosario and Hicks will be in the OF. Arcia is out of options. Hunter could come back. Buxton may be an Opening Day possibility, though I think he could use another couple months or a half-season in AAA too.

I agree, but I also agree with jokin that even with Buxton and Kepler starting at AAA, a roster that includes Rosario, Hicks, Hunter, Arcia, Mauer, Sano, and Plouffe is pretty crowded in terms of OF/3B/1B/DH types. In terms of position players, that leaves spots for Dozier, Escobar, Suzuki, 2nd catcher, and one back-up utility infielder (probably Nunez, Santana, Polanco, or someone else). That's 12, and that assumes (A) Vargas starts in AAA (B ) the Twins don't want a fast 4th outfielder like Robinson, and © the Twins are ok with just one back-up infielder.  (A) seems possible, but I'm skeptical of (B ) and ©.  I guess one solution is to make Santana the backup utility-infielder AND the fast 4th outfielder, but I'm not that high on him right now and think he should start at AAA.  Given all of this, I think the Twins would be wise to (1) see if there is good value to be had for trading Plouffe, and if not, either (2) trade Vargas or Arcia and/or (3) not resign Hunter.

Edited September 22, 2015 by nytwinsfan