Article: What's the Plan: Miguel Sano

[Nick Nelson]

You can view the page at http://twinsdaily.com/content.php?r=2225-What-s-the-Plan-Miguel-Sano

[Shane Wahl]

This is a very good picture of the possibilities. I think a September call and yet starting at AAA next season might be the best route. I don't think Plouffe would get buried in such a scenario, especially if Morneau ends up being claimed and traded. There's a DH spot for Sano and Plouffe, and Plouffe can get some work in at 1B, LF, and/or RF. Looking at 2014, if Morneau and Willingham are gone, Plouffe could be looking at a move somewhere anyway.

[Larsbars08]

I posted this on a different thread, but it's on topic so I'll include it here.

 

I admit I wasn't sure Sano should get a September call-up, but at this point, why not? He's been tearing AA pitching apart the last month or so. At this rate, he's going to be on the MLB team next year. Why not give him his cup of tea in September, wait for his super 2 status to pass next year and then call him up for good in June. Unless Plouffe starts tearing it up, there isn't really any reason to keep Sano down. He's going to strike out a ton, might as well let him start adjusting to major league pitching in September and give him something to work on during the offseason.

I don't have any problem seeing him come up in September.

 

I think my suggestion is a combination of the aggressive and conservative approach. Please let me know if I'm missing anything.

 

Edit: I posted this on the same article but in Nick's blog. Is there a difference between the two?

[Jdosen]

I really hope the Twins take a more conservative route with Sano. I wanted them to leave Hicks in AAA for a month in order to gain that extra year of control, which might not end up being worth a whole lot 6 years from now if it turns out he just can't hit. However for Sano, I think it will be very much in the Twins interests to hold him back in AAA a month or so as that extra year of Sano could be worth 20-30 million dollars down the road, as well as giving them an extra year to try and iron out a contract extension. I am very fearful they bring him up to open 2014 as the starting 3B.

[clutterheart]

I am hoping the Twins are conservative.

 

1 - No need to start his clock. He is a prospect who the Twins should play the service time game on.

2 - He had a hard adjustment to AA pitching. Obviously he has come along but why not give him the chance to adjust to the junk ball throwers at AAA?

3 - Plouffe is showing just enough that he could potentially be a RH bat bench at 3B and from reports ive seen, he seems to be a good clubhouse guy. I would like him to break camp at 3B.

 

Best case is Sano plays decent in Spring Training, get sent to AAA, does well then when late June rolls around he gets called up for good.

[darin617]

You can view the page at Twins Daily - What's the Plan: Miguel Sano

 

I thought the plan was for Sano to possibly get a September call up in 2015...

[darin617]

I am hoping the Twins are conservative.

 

1 - No need to start his clock. He is a prospect who the Twins should play the service time game on.

 

To bad this was not the thought with Aaron Hicks.

[CharacterGroove]

Put me down for the aggressive route. I think Sano will have a much more productive offseason after gettingng a feel for the what it takes. That, in turn, benefits the Twins.

 

To me a poor reason to hold Sano back is because of "team control." This reason alone likely results in a worse product on the field and a disgruntled top prospect.

[righty8383]

I would be very excited to see Sano this year, but I would have no complaints if he debuts next year, hopefully no later than May though.

[Tibs]

I think the Twins should go more towards the conservative route unless Sano completely forces the issue.

[Seth Stohs]

I'm normally big on the conservative route, and agree with letting him dominate AA the rest of this year (which is only 3 weeks). Then let him dominate AAA for a month or two (I don't care about the Super 2 thing, but gaining the extra year could come into play (although Sano is definitely a guy to lock up for a long time!).

 

My biggest reason for not giving him the September call-up is the 40 man. He doesn't have to be added this offseason, and you would hate to potentially lose someone because of a spot. Don't get me wrong, there are plenty on this roster who could clear waivers and I haven't yet looked at who needs to be added.

 

The fan in me would love to see him. I've had a couple of reports from New Britain and more from Ft. Myers that say he's already a better 3B option defensively than Plouffe... and that's not speaking to his ability to hit with power. If he came up, likely he would strikeout like 40-50% of the time, but that might be a good learning tool for him. I would love to watch him.

 

Then again, I think the Twins need the extra month for Plouffe to play. I wouldn't mind them giving Deibinson Romero a month to see what he might be able to do or if they want to bring him back in 2014.

 

This is not an easy topic. It's not an easy decision by any means.

 

However, at this point, I fully expect that Miguel Sano will be the Twins opening day third baseman.

[troyhobbs]

I thought Hicks and Arcia should have got Sept call ups last year as a reward for strong minor league seasons. Hicks Sano comparisons are irrelevant because Sano is a way more highly touted prospect than Hicks ever was and a top 3 in all of baseball. My vote is call him up in Sept and start him in AAA next year. This was supposed to be the year Plouffe took the starting 3B job and ran with it and that didn't happen so I don't have a problem with him losing meaningless at bats to Sano come September.

[Oldgoat_MN]

AAA pitchers are better than AA pitchers. That's why they are in AAA and the AA pitchers are in AA. Many of them have been in MLB and are trying to get back there.

 

They are savvy, tricky, many of them pitch intelligently. Good enough, in fact, to have pitched in MLB and/or have attained a roster spot in AAA.

 

I like the idea of Sano proving that he can rock AAA pitching before we 'bring him up for good'. Cannot see a scenario where he starts at 3B in April next year.

 

I would not object to a September call up this year, but the 40 man roster thing is an issue, as Seth points out.

[troyhobbs]

Devries, Bernier, Thomas, and Ramirez are a few guys that could potentially clear waivers but I do see the issue there. I'd also be interested to see what we have in Romero but unfortunately he's not on the 40 man either.

[jokin]

AAA pitchers are better than AA pitchers. That's why they are in AAA and the AA pitchers are in AA. Many of them have been in MLB and are trying to get back there.

 

They are savvy, tricky, many of them pitch intelligently. Good enough, in fact, to have pitched in MLB and/or have attained a roster spot in AAA.

 

I like the idea of Sano proving that he can rock AAA pitching before we 'bring him up for good'. Cannot see a scenario where he starts at 3B in April next year.

 

I would not object to a September call up this year, but the 40 man roster thing is an issue, as Seth points out.

 

Bye-bye Hermsen, Hello Sano. Issue resolved.

[twinstalker]

The question is simply: is Sano good enough that you want to control him through 2020 instead of just 2019?

 

It's not like he won't learn something in AAA. It will be the first time he consistently sees breaking balls at any count. It will be interesting to see how long it takes him to crush AAA. He only needs to not be on the 25-man for 11 major league days. It's too bad he's not eligible for the Arizona Fall League (foreign players from countries with winter leagues are not eligible).

[scottsilvi]

You also gotta wonder (or, er, I do) about how the St Peters & Pohlads would feel about a Sept call up. I have to imagine attendance would spike... I know I would attend a couple games a week to see this kid play, and I've only been to a handful of games all year.

[twinstalker]

I keep reading that Hicks may not hit. I don't think that's going to be an issue. He's been rushed, but I'd think he'd hit better next year than Clete Thomas is hitting this year. Eventually he'll be .270/.350/.430, good for a CF but not anything too special for a corner guy.

[twinstalker]

You also gotta wonder (or, er, I do) about how the St Peters & Pohlads would feel about a Sept call up. I have to imagine attendance would spike... I know I would attend a couple games a week to see this kid play, and I've only been to a handful of games all year.

I don't see that as an issue here. While the Twins do stupid things in the name of "image," they aren't going to mess this up to make a few bucks.

[Steve Penz]

Starting in AAA makes such good sense. Folks need to face the idea that when his current deal is up that the Twins will not be able to or will choose not to afford him. The team needs to preserve every year of control.

[beckmt]

I think a few months at AAA would not hurt. If he tears up AAA by late May or June then call him up. He is a part of the future of this ball club. I would not give him a September call up, Plouffe needs to play and see what he has for the future. Unless he can move to first, he will be more of a super utility guy after next year(when Buxton arrives)

[Badsmerf]

I'm torn about bringing him up. Plouffe will have the rest of this month and still the majority of September to prove his worth, so bringing Sano or (more likely) Romero up for a coffee would be to give them a taste. Similar to Benson and Parmelee, I don't think this is too far fetched at all. The 40-man thing might be a hindrance, but if they are planning on him taking over 3b sometime next season (better be) they are going to have to add him anyway.

 

I'd like to see him get the call in September just to see MLB pitchers. The game will be different and getting a taste will only make him better. He should still start the season in AAA until his arb clock is past in May. Then call him up and keep him up for good. Plouffe will need to start producing a little more to garner a starting spot. I doubt the Twins dump him anytime soon since he is cheap, provides position flexibility, and has some pop in his bat.

[troyhobbs]

I think a few months at AAA would not hurt. If he tears up AAA by late May or June then call him up. He is a part of the future of this ball club. I would not give him a September call up, Plouffe needs to play and see what he has for the future. Unless he can move to first, he will be more of a super utility guy after next year(when Buxton arrives)

 

I think we know what Plouffe has at this point. .230 hitter with potential to hit 20 HR has a poor glove and has shown little to no improvement over the last 3 years. I don't hate him but don't think he's vital to Twins' future either.

[mk]

I think it depends on what TR plans to do with Gardenhire at the end of the season.

 

It seems Sano would NOT be a Gardenhire guy - brash, confident, not a light hitting middle infielder, etc. If Gardy will be gone by 2014, I think it would be better to wait to call up Sano until the new manager arrives so Gardy doesn't insist on him slapping singles to right field..

[Badsmerf]

I think it depends on what TR plans to do with Gardenhire at the end of the season.

 

It seems Sano would NOT be a Gardenhire guy - brash, confident, not a light hitting middle infielder, etc. If Gardy will be gone by 2014, I think it would be better to wait to call up Sano until the new manager arrives so Gardy doesn't insist on him slapping singles to right field..

I'm not a fan of Gardy, but this goes a little far. I don't like how he's handled young guys in the past, but he's handled Arcia pretty well IMO. He also gave Hicks way more leash than he deserved. I'd like to move on from Gardy too, but not because he's a terrible manager and messed up the team. Lets look at things objectively.

[Brandon]

The 40 man roster issue of having Sano on it or not is not an issue till the rule 5 draft. We will want to have as much talent protected as possible plus we may want to have an open spot for a pick ourselves. We could find another Pressley/ Mack/ Santana (woulda rule 5 picked him) Buscher (minor league part of draft) .....

 

Then there is the cost of contract and playing time. Unless we have 5 solid starting pitchers next April so that we can compete for the division next year, We should leave Sano in the minors till June or so to delay FA a year. we should also see if he is interested in signing a long term (Longoria like) contract extension.

[SurroundedByTigers]

I want Sano up in the big leagues in September so he can stand on the same field and watch Miguel Cabrera hit and play 3B. Sano will learn more from watching Cabrera than any other player in baseball. Unless Sano is lights out, he starts next season at AAA and comes up midseason.

[orangevening]

I think we know what Plouffe has at this point. .230 hitter with potential to hit 20 HR has a poor glove and has shown little to no improvement over the last 3 years. I don't hate him but don't think he's vital to Twins' future either.

 

Remember too that Plouffe is the too laid back/ lack of focus California type. Seems like a few times this year (& last) they have mentioned Romero publicly just to get some fire under Plouffe's feet. Calling up Sano in Sept., even just to sit, would get Plouffe's attention.

[diehardtwinsfan]

How many AA at bats does he have now? I just don't see him starting in MLB next year and I don't see him getting called up in Sept. I don't think it's overly conservative either if they let him finish out the year in AA (or perhaps promote him to Rochester for the playoff run) and then start next year in AAA. Let's not pretend he has nothing to learn in AAA. He might not have much to learn, but I'd much rather my prospects learn all they can in the minors before coming to the majors... That's just me.

 

Besides, like Plouffe or not, I think he should get next year to see what value he has. If you call up Sano, you start running into more PT issues. The Twins need to figure out if he's the future or trade bait. While he hasn't been lights out this season, he's shown enough with the bat to give him some more time. If he gets hurt next season or continues to hit in the low .200s with some power, I think you trade him.

[Brock Beauchamp]

I think it's becoming more evident that Sano is the type of guy that you absolutely want to control for seven years. Hicks was borderline (and I was against his call-up at the time) but Sano is dominating the high minors at such a young age that it's hard to envision him with a floor lower than "pretty good third baseman" with a ceiling of "holy *&^%".