stringer bell

Looks to me like Ventura is overmanaging his roster. I know Konerko is glacier slow, but there was a good chance that the game could come back to him. Also, he went through a lot of pitchers in a short time. The "defensive" changes that the Sox made directly led to the winning run. The ump had a big strike zone and the wind was blowing in from left, those are very good pitching conditions and both Worley and Peavey took advantage of that. Doumit ended up making an excellent baserunning move which might have made a difference in Ramirez' throw.

Who leads the Twins in home runs after this series? Does Arcia have more hits than Hicks when the series is over? Do the Twins get at least one win and stay ahead of the Sox in the standings? Do the Twins get two wins and leave Chicago with a winning record? Here are my predictions--Parmelee goes deep twice and takes the team lead in HRs or at least a share. Arcia gets three hits in two games and Hicks only gets one, so Arcia will have four and Hicks three. The Twins split the series and leave Chicago with a 7-8 record. Bonus prediction: Vanimal will be much better, but get a loss today.

Great article, Parker! I am in Dozier's camp this year. He looks like a natural at second, and I also think his approach is much improved at the plate.

Jamey Carroll is a player to be appreciated and admired. He has parlayed moderate at best talent into a long career. He is a utility player with limitations and he is 39 years old. He will not be part of the Twins when they contend for postseason play and because of that he shouldn't be getting much playing time. I also believe that the money matters to the club. That means there is even more incentive to keep him under 401 plate appearances.

I have mixed reactions to the postponement. 1) It was a good time to play the Angels and a good opportunity to win three against what will be a good team. 2) It would have been another cold and wet day with few fans in the seats. There likely won't be many more in the seats for the makeup game. 3) A makeup game will probably put pressure on the Twins' weak pitching staff in midsummer.

I liked what I saw of Santana in spring training. He's hitting modestly at NB, and has committed a lot of errors (6). I hope he gets it going as the weather warms.

My 2013 Adopt-a-Prospect is Mason Melotakis. Mason is a lefthanded pitcher. He was born June 28th, 1991 (22 year old), he's 6'2" and 206 pounds. He was drafted by the Twins in 2012 in the second round (63rd overall) and signed on June 17, 2012. Mason attended Northwestern (La.) State University and, of course, played baseball. He pitched in relief his senior year. After signing with the Twins, Melotakis pitched for Elizabethton going 1-1 with a 1.35 ERA in 7 appearances all out of the bullpen. He was promoted to Beloit, where he was 3-1 with a 2.08 in 13 relief appearances. Mason has started the 2013 season in Cedar Rapids and is being converted to a starting pitcher. He is 1-1 with a 2.89 ERA in two starts. He has worked 9+ innings, allowing 8 hits, while walking 3 and striking out 9. Melotakis features a mid-90s fastball and is developing complimentary pitches. I saw him pitch in spring training and he appears to have a decent slider to go with the fastball. Mason Melotakis could someday be the lefthanded power pitching complement to Alex Meyer and Trevor May.

I'll be 59 years old on Friday and I have never, never ever seen a "spring" like this. It can be reasonably accepted that it will rain some in April--unfortunately the cold and precip has been unrelenting this month. Perhaps there should be some adjustments, but if you wait to play your "once through" games until late, there are fewer possible make-up dates.

I just checked local radar and it looks like there might be a chance to get the game in. Depends on whether the front moves north. As far as Cedar Rapids playing, they looked locked in the storm front, not much chance there will be a game there.

I was wondering the same thing. It is not raining here in Rochester, but could start at any time. Regardless, there won't be any baseball tomorrow--a rain/snow mix with a possible accumulation of several inches of snow (did I just write that for April 18th?). So, if the game is postponed today, they will have to find a common off day to get the game in.

Aren't the three guys they brought in this year supposed to be a bridge to Meyer, May, Berrios, and Gibson? Worley might be a guy they are counting on long term--not sure--but Pelfry and Correia likely won't be here in 2015 and probably before that. To me, the idea was to hope to catch lightning in a bottle with the new acquisitions and in the likely they didn't strike gold with those guys, either dispatch by release or trade and make way for the real prospects, who will strike out guys and miss bats.

Gibson threw a nice 6 innings last night. I think he is in front of everybody if he puts together two or three good outings.

mlbtraderumors.com had a report that players on the 40-man roster (like Arcia) need to stay in the minors for 20 days of the season in order to avoid a full year of service time. If this is true, and Arcia stays up the balance of the season, then both Arcia and Hicks will get full years of service time for 2013. I thought I read in one of the newspapers (PP I think) that Arcia only need 12 days in the minors to avoid a full year, but I'm not sure of that.

The shin and the ankle are not the same thing, correct? Mastro hurt his ankle on Monday and the Twins played shorthanded on Tuesday because of that. On a related topic, who is the Twins' backup CF now? Escobar, Ramirez, Carroll? And the Twins' leadoff hitter until Hicks starts hitting is Dozier?

Good outing for Gibson. However, the Red Wings don't score and he loses 1-0.

Four very good at-bats today, plus he drew two walks yesterday. I think he will solve second base for this club. At least until Rosario is ready.

Three really good at-bats for Dozier. Maybe the Twins lucked into a good leadoff hitter? Of course, maybe Vargas isn't very good.

I don't want to read through this whole thread, but isn't it true that back of the roatation starters just don't last with their teams? Slowey might figure as a 4th/5th starter--hardly any of them remain with one squad for long. Who are the five worst pitchers that have been with the same team for five years? I would make an exception to this question for injury, but you don't find many guys who are 4th/5th starters that stay with one team.

Mason Melotakis

Well, it was a short audition, but he took good swings. Unfortunately, he dropped the fly ball, but I don't think he is a bad outfielder.

I didn't see every pitch, but IMHO Correia was sharper in both of his other starts. Almost all of the hits that the Angels got were well-stroked and there were some well-hit outs. He left two batting practice pitches in the middle of the zone to Harris and Bourgos, yielding his first two home runs. He did manage to get a few Ks and only allowed the two solos to cross the plate. I guess he deserved to be luckier after his first two outings.

Walters takes a step back from the fifth starter competition--13 hits, ouch!

Arcia and Colabello for Doumit and Morneau by the end of the season, perhaps. Maybe Willingham will be gone in place of one of the two I listed. I see Colabello getting a chance to DH and play some first base for the Twins sometime this year. It is hard to say if he will be able to hit well in the big leagues, but it is a good story and he is demonstrating enough ability to be considered for a spot.

That fills a spot on Twins Bingo, I think.

While I did predict three hits for Harris, I would love to see him take a called third.