Twins Fan From Afar

[TABLE] http://media.zenfs.com/en_US/Sports/AP_MLB/201302191444530758115-p2.jpg [TD][/TD] [/TABLE] There's Joe Mauer. Then a big, big gap. Sure, Ryan Doumit can technically sit there and intercept a pitch before it hits the umpire. But to call him a full-time catcher -- or even an adept one -- may be a stretch. Nothing against Doumit as a baseball player and hitter, but a reliable catcher he is not. And of course there was Wilson Ramos, but enough has been written on that chapter. And finally, Drew Butera. Calls a great game and has a great arm, but cannot hit his way out of AAA. Long story short, the Twins have been searching for their next catcher for quite some time.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Last season, I was on the Chris Herrmann bandwagon. And I still am, to an extent. He put together a very nice 2012, demonstrating that he could hit, he could catch and that he could even play left field. Rightfully, he started 2013 at AAA Rochester. Unfortunately, 2013 has been rough thus far for Herrmann. He's hitting only .242/.308/.274 with 3 doubles. Yes, it's still very early in the season, and that's important to note. But it's also accurate to state that the first month-plus of 2013 has been disappointing for Herrmann. There's no reason to write him off -- he still has more than 300 at-bats to accumulate this summer -- but I am disappointed that Herrmann has been so slow out of the gate in what is a very important season for him. This preamble brings me to Josmil Pinto. While Herrmann has struggled, Pinto has flourished. Pinto, who turned 24 at the end of March, earned an "August call-up" to the Rock Cats last season after batting .295/.361/.473 with the High-A Ft. Myers Miracle. As I've written before, Pinto didn't disappoint. In 47 Rock Cats at-bats last season, he hit a nice .298/.365/.553. It's too small a sample size to determine anything other than that Pinto did indeed belong in AA. This brings me to 2013. Pinto has undoubtedly been the Rock Cats' best hitter. As New Britain's starting catcher, Pinto has hit .341/.414/.550 in his first 129 at-bats. He has 7 doubles, 1 triple, 6 home runs, and 29 RBIs. Here's some league-wide information on Pinto, as of the date of this post. He's 3rd in the entire Eastern League in runs with 25; 2nd in hits with 44; tied for 2nd in home runs with 6; 1st in RBIs with 29; 1st in total bases with 71; 7th in on-base percentage at .414; 4th in slugging percentage at an even .550; 2nd in average at .341; and 2nd in OPS at .964. I should reiterate that we are only in the second week of May. Pinto has not yet been around the league that proverbial "second time." But at the same time, he's demonstrating thus far that he has improved from 2012, that he can catch a good game (he has a good arm from what I've seen, but I have heard that he needs work framing pitches), and that it's time to start considering where he sits on the Twins' depth chart. For my Twins' catching depth chart, I'm simply not going to count Drew Butera. It's the fan's prerogative, right? Nothing personal, but I've seen enough. He's earning more than major league minimum and the Twins have 2 other catchers that can do his job for less. So as of today, my Twins' depth chart at catcher is: Joe Mauer, Ryan Doumit, Chris Herrmann, Josmil Pinto. If Pinto keeps that average above .300, keeps hitting for extra bases -- and if Herrmann fails to correct his early season slide -- I'm prepared to switch those final two positions as soon as July, when Pinto more than likely will catch at New Britain Stadium as a member of the Eastern League All-Star Team. But calling Pinto the next Twins' catcher is too simple a conclusion. Herrmann had a very good year last season and in my opinion, from having seen both catch a handful of games, Herrmann is a better receiver. There's a lot of baseball to go in 2013 and I'd like to see both Herrmann and Pinto have strong campaigns that force the Twins' front office to make a tough decision in 2014. As this team rebuilds, isn't that what we, as fans, want -- competition from qualified applicants for a spot on the team that will cost only $500,000? And competition that might make Ryan Doumit a tradeable asset this season or next? There's a long way to go in 2013. But so far, so good with Josmil Pinto.

[TABLE=class: tr-caption-container, align: center] http://www.milb.com/assets/images/7/3/4/45176734/cuts/meyer480_yw1gwbv3_yjk0mgqz.jpg [TD=class: tr-caption]Alex Meyer, probably throwing a really, really hard fastball. Courtesy of Kevin Pataky at MiLB.[/TD] [/TABLE] For a Twins fan, I had perhaps the best seat in the house. One row behind me -- same seat number in fact -- Minnesota Twins' General Manager Terry Ryan sat with a pencil, scorecard and notepad. In the two rows in front of me were radar guns, operated by a scout I didn't know, and by Rock Cats' pitcher Logan Darnell (who actually tossed a great game tonight). I saw the speed and location of every pitch. From right behind home plate I watched arguably the Twins' best pitching prospect since Johan Santana throw and I wasn't disappointed.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] I'm not going to lie. I was pretty excited for the game. And I can tell you, Alex Meyer is as advertised. I'm not saying he's a perfect prospect -- obviously he was far from perfect last night -- but I can tell you, from this small, small sample size, I have no doubt that the Twins made a great trade. Let's talk specifics. I watched Alex Meyer's worst Rock Cats start. The start was not bad. One inning was bad, and here's the rundown: Meyer's third inning started off with a liner out to center, and then a weakly hit roller down the third base line. Mark Sobolewski couldn't make the play, and it went for an infield single. Thereafter, there was a sharp single to right field, and Meyer must have become rattled, because he walked the next two batters. He clearly was off -- the missed fastballs to righty batters were up and out, not even close to strikes. There was a mound visit. In other words, something with both his composure and control was off. That second walk resulted in a run, and the next batter singled on, what I remember to be, a sharply hit grounder to the hole between shortstop and third base. The next batter hit a legitimate sacrifice fly to left, and all the sudden it's a 4-run inning. Meyer's fastball throughout his start was consistently 94-95 and hit 96 multiple times. His stuff wasn't slower, or weaker, during that bad third inning, and his velocity was just as good out of the stretch. He simply lacked control and precision during those 20 minutes. One takeaway: AA players can hit a 96 MPH fastball down the middle, when they are expecting it. Meyer's breaking stuff -- see this excellent piece from the Hartford Courant's Dom Amore -- was consistently around 79. Here's the best part of the story -- and also the reason why I have no concern with Alex Meyer: that third inning was an aberration. Instead of giving up as Terry Ryan and other scouts watched him scuffle, Meyer battled and pitched 3 more innings, walking 0, allowing one single and striking out three. Rather than throw in the towel, Meyer demonstrated in innings 4-6 that he is the genuine article; he can be what we expect him to be. Alex Meyer dominated most of the hitters he faced. There were many embarrassing swings, many called strikes that baffled batters and many weakly hit grounders and fly balls. And I will note (as a fan, not a 100 percent objective observer), that Meyer did get pinched on a few pitches in that rough third inning. I did hear a couple of groans from Mr. Ryan. So here's the bottom line, based on this one Alex Meyer start: he throws really, really hard, and it intimidates batters. . The fastball reached 96 on a night when it was in the low 50s in Connecticut (he has reached 98 in better weather). He has a great knuckle-curve that breaks down sharply. He didn't give up an extra-base hit in his "worst" start, although there were a few deep fly balls. He did get rattled when he got in trouble in that inning, but again, the next 3 innings suggest that he can rebound from a rough frame. The "line": 6 inning, 4 earned runs, 5 hits, 8 Ks, 3 BBs and a loss. The real story: one very bad inning in front of a nerve-wracking crowd, and an otherwise dominating start. And one hell of a fastball. Please also check out New Britain Herald writer Matt Straub's write-up on this game here. http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-BBXRoUgvB18/UYHWyKFDgiI/AAAAAAAAAiI/fTy4HbIZ2w0/s320/nh-a13-james-beresford-front.jpg One other strange item from last night: James Beresford, probably my favorite Rock Cats player this season, was tossed from the game. I've been asked a few times what happened, so here is the story as I witnessed it: To preface this story, I should note that going back to last season I really have enjoyed watching Beresford play. He is an above-average defender, and although he will never hit for big power, I have held out hope that he can become a singles and walk machine such that he can keep advancing up the system. James is on his way. As of tonight, he's batting .333 on the season after having to fight off a couple of other players at the last-minute for a starting role. He's taking good at-bats, is walking when he can and he had extra-base hits in consecutive games last week. In short, a good start for Beresford. Last night, in a mid-game at-bat against a tough LOOGY, Beresford took a fastball for a strike, which I believed (from my home plate vantage point) to be a few inches outside of the zone. He took longer than normal between pitches, speaking with the ump. The next pitch looked like it hit the outside corner, but Beresford also took that one, again speaking with the ump. The third pitch was a breaking ball in the dirt, which Beresford swung at. The ump rung him up, and James indicated that there was a foul tip. Nonetheless, it was a third strike for the third out. As Beresford bent down and undid his shin guard, some words must have been exchanged, because he was immediately tossed. So there's the story as I saw it. It was a strange game. I went expecting Alex Meyer to dominate, and he didn't. But at the same time, I saw just how scary and dominating he can -- and will -- be. Going from 96 to a wicked 79 mph knuckle-curve is devastating. Not many AA pitchers can do that. Twins fans, rest assured, I believe that this was a great trade. Nothing against Denard Span -- one of my favorite Twins when he was in uniform -- but Meyer will be an excellent return for many, many years to come.

After approximately the first two weeks of the 2013 season, the New Britain Rock Cats stand at a respectable 8-7, tied for second place in the Eastern League's Eastern Division. Reading, who always seems to put a good team together, stands at 7-6 -- a slightly better winning percentage. I try not to read much at all into small sample sizes, but there are several players that have had noteworthy performances thus far. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]I'll start with offense. One player I've been very impressed with is infielder James Beresford. He had to fight for playing time the first week or so, but has demonstrated that he deserves to be the Rock Cats' starting second baseman. In 36 at-bats, Beresford has a .333/.444/.389 slash line, including 3 stolen bases. There's not much power to speak of, but Beresford can be successful as a singles hitter with a good eye (7 walks already) and above-average speed. Additionally, Beresford is an excellent defender. This is his second full season in Connecticut, and he's 24 years old. If he keeps the batting average up, and continues to demonstrate a good eye, I think a promotion to AAA is in his future. As I've said before, aside from starting pitching, if there's one area where Twins prospects should quickly advance in the system, it's the middle infield. [TABLE=class: tr-caption-container] [TD=align: center]http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-EctjgVfwZLE/UXLSVCXvCbI/AAAAAAAAAhY/21kS0rHiBc8/s400/IMAG0425.jpg[/TD] [TD=class: tr-caption, align: center]This picture of Justin Morneau hangs in a suite at New Britain Stadium. The Rock Cats do a great job of paying tribute to the Twins' greats that have come and gone from this stadium. [/TD] [/TABLE] [Originally published at Twins Fan From Afar] With a .345/.391/.638 line in 58 at-bats, outfielder Daniel Ortiz has impressed. He has 3 home runs, 6 doubles, a triple, and 13 RBIs. He does lead the Rock Cats with 16 Ks, so there is room for improvement, but it's fair to state that the 23-year-old Ortiz has exceeded expectations, and has helped this club make up for the absence of players like Aaron Hicks and Oswaldo Arcia in the lineup. The final hitter I'm going to highlight for the moment is Josmil Pinto. He ended 2012 with the Rock Cats, looking good in 47 at-bats. Currently with a .295/.394/.574 line, Pinto leads New Britain with 4 home runs and 14 RBIs. He's also hit safely in 9 of his last 10 games, including 4 multi-hit games. On the whole, I've been impressed with the offense. They haven't quite replicated the Arcia/Hicks/Herrmann/Colabello power from 2012, but players like Beresford, Ortiz, Pinto, and even Antoan Richardson, have helped keep the team in games. Starting pitching has been exciting. Right now -- and probably only until the All-Star break -- the Rock Cats have both Alex Meyer and Trevor May, both top 10 prospects in the Twins' organization. Both have been as advertised. Meyer has a 1-0 record, a 1.69 ERA, and has struck out 19 and walked 7 in 16 innings. His WHIP is 1.25. Rock Cats broadcaster Jeff Dooley noted that Meyer hit 98 mph on the radar gun in one of his starts. He's doing exactly what we expect:: missing bats. Hopefully, the control will improve just a little, and he'll be in AAA by July. Trevor May has an 0-1 record, and a 3.14 ERA, but has 19 Ks and 10 walks in 14 and 1/3 innings. His WHIP is 1.60. Yes, there are control issues, but there's no reason that those can't be ironed out. May, who is 23, has a promising future, and he, too, can be out of New Britain later this season if he gets his control under control. As a fan, it's exciting to see Meyer's and May's (the new M & M Boys???) strikeout totals. Twins fans should be excited. The Rock Cats are currently on the road in Portland, Maine, and lost a tough one, 12-1, last night. I'll be in attendance and reporting when they return to New Britain Stadium next weekend, so expect some good content in the near future.