stringer bell

To the bullpen after another disappointing start.

OK, we're talking about two games. I suppose Morneau can be a defensive replacement as soon as tomorrow. If Mauer is ready to catch by Friday, Sweet Drew could be sent down then, perhaps replaced by Dozier. Carroll was moved out of the #2 hole, is demotion to utility status next? If Dozier is not promoted they could promote a utility type (Hollimon, Florimon or even Nishioka) and if they get by Fragile Frankie's start without burning the whole bullpen, they probably can demote a pitcher, although there really isn't one that has been consistently bad in the bullpen.

While it isn't fair to judge Burroughs on 18 plate appearances, I don't think anyone will claim him and he'll have a chance to go to Rochester and get some at-bats and perhaps return to the team later in the season. I don't know how severe Mauer's injury is, but as long as Butera stays away from the field, it isn't that important. The bench is short for the rest of the Angels series, but they'll have enough pitchers and there aren't that many who could be hit for.

Florimon played second almost exclusively in ST. It is almost comical to see him standing next to Alexi and Carroll because he is so much taller.

They could go back to 12 pitchers--after they've had two consecutive "quality starts"! If they do go back to 12 pitchers, any of Gray, Burnett and Maloney could be demoted/optioned/DFAed. No one has been consistently bad in the bullpen, so it isn't an easy choice. Maloney had one putrid outing, Gray has allowed a lot of baserunners, but hasn't allowed his runners to score, and Burnett has been pretty good, but has allowed runs his last two outings and has an option.

I think Florimon would be a candidate for promotion if he were on the 40-man roster. He has the skills to handle both SS and 2B, the speed to be a pinch runner and at least a chance to get a hit. Here's hoping he gets moved up to Rochester soon and gets a chance by September to help the big club.

And unless there are extra innings, Casilla will finish April with a .300 batting average.

Gameday says the problem is Morneau's wrist. Well, he has admitted that the wrist has bothered him and it is not more concussion symptoms......but still, I wouldn't be surprised if he goes on the DL.

All I have for today is Gameday. I am wondering the same thing.

I'm a Casilla fan as well. He is intriguing because he has ranged from not ready for Little League to outstanding. He has always seemed to have focus issues, but as he has gone on, he seems to be better at keeping his head in the game. On a team that lacks both speed and power, he provides speed. He does have a knack for stealing bases. 5-5 this season.

Luke Hughes will be 28 this summer. He OPSed less than Casilla in over 300 PAs and isn't either a proven platoon player or pinch hitter. Hughes isn't a good defensive player, although he is versatile. I hope he finds another major league job because he seems like a nice guy, but he isn't a huge loss for the Twins or the A;s.

The A's didn't know that the superior option (Inge) would be available. They were playing him every day at third, and he was 1-13 with three errors--not the way to endear yourself to a new organization.

One correction rosterman. Guerra is a righthander.

Revere probably can be a big league regular, but he's not a real good fit with a power-starved team if he has to play a corner outfield position. If Span were to be traded and Revere could assume patrolling center field, then it might be a fit. As a hitter, Ben needs to be more selective (draw more walks) and probably become a better bunter. The weak arm and the lack of power are well-documented. It kind of does limit his upside, but if Revere can be a .300 hitter with a .350 or so OBP, he can be an asset. I'd love to see an outfield with Revere (or Span), Benson and Hicks--hitters would have a real tough time hitting gaps between those three and Hicks and Benson have powerful arms.

My adopt-a-prospect is Lester Oliveros. Oliveros is relatively new to the Twins organization, as he was acquired from the Tigers as the player to be named later in the Delmon Young trade on 8/16/2011. Oliveros is a righthander who has made all but two of his appearances in professional baseball out of the bullpen. Oliveros will be 24 years of age on May 28th. Oliveros was born and raised and still makes his home in Venezuela. He is 6'0" and 226 lbs. Oliveros' best pitch is a fastball, which was rated as the best in the Twins organization by Baseball America. Lester is on the Twins 40-man roster and pitched in 19 big-league games last year--10 for the Twins, nine for the Tigers. Oliveros didn't make the Twins out of spring training and was surprisingly sent to AA New Britain. Given the state of flux of the Twins pitching staff and Oliveros' tools, it is likely that he will get another shot in the big leagues this year.

This was posted in the wrong forum.

The idea was that Burroughs could pinch hit. He did a lot of that last year, with decent success IIRC. Burroughs hasn't had enough PAs especially as a pinch hitter to prove anything. So far, though, the results aren't promising.

French starts the ninth--hey, I guess he wants out of the Eastern League.

Burton & Duensing--bullpen doesn't look too bad. Still worried about Perkins and Cappsie, though.

I see Florimon was taken, how about Oliveros?

Pedro Florimon--I think that's how it's spelled.

Two factors on why the Twins should be patient with Danny V--1) There's really no replacement in the minors. 2) He's cheap and under team control for a long time. Yes, he had a tough weekend in St. Petersburg, but so did a number of others.

The schedule early is truly brutal. Perhaps the Twins will catch a break because the RSox are in disarray right now, but something tells me they will get well soon, as will the Angels. Certainly, the starting pitching has been below par and prospects aren't that great for the immediate future. I do think patience for the players is in order. A good series can change stats in a hurry. While Doumit hasn't been great, he drove in seven runs on the road trip. Just an example of how numbers even out. Currently, the scapegoats are the bottom of the order--Valencia, Thomas, Casilla, plus Liriano. I think the position players should be given more time, but the lousy starting pitching that Liriano has served up really sucks the life out of the team.

There are alternatives to playing Clete. I would rather they start Plouffe or Doumit in RF before putting Clete in RF. He should be the fourth OF.

Ok, I've seen enough of Clete Thomas now. Too many whiffs so far, although he does show decent pop.