mnfanforlife

Twins' website said Torii and LaTroy were quite impressed with Berrios' stuff yesterday.. New catcher Murphy praised his control and poise. Oh and praised his talent too. Maybe the best pitcher in the entire organization will make the cut for big club on Opening Day?

They're definitely paying attention to Molitor. And by "they're," I mean the Twins' FO. The Gardy admin is over now. Many things have changed. I see the Yankees are going to be leaning on their 21-yr-old heavily this season. Stashed Berrios in my fantasy league.

I have two reasons to believe Berrios would be a better major league option than Duffey, right now, here in the present. 1. Berrios throws 95-96 with movement. Duffey's 4-seamer is pretty straight at 89 2. Berrios throws a nasty breaking pitch, call it whatev u want. Duffey throws a bugs bunny curveball That being said, I would like to see both in the rotation when the Twins head north.

This is great. Byron's body type resembles BJ's more than Justin's.

This kid is a great example of why arm strength is so important for moving up in baseball. If Dereck didn't have a good arm, it's tough to imagine him playing for a MLB affiliate right now. Work on your arm strength, kids. Even college teams will keep an arm that throws 80-85. Dereck is obviously a great athlete, who's versatility has allowed him to continue playing pro ball. Sincerely hope to see him pitching in the big leagues someday.

Yeah...the idea was...that they would be an awesome defensive outfield in 2016...

Possible that Berrios, and Sano for that matter, are doing the politically correct thing.....saying they are fine with Ryan's decisions to delay service time and transition positions, respectively. But when it comes time to pick between the Twins and some other Major League organization...they will not be forgetting how this organization valued their services as burgeoning stars. And other teams will not hesitate to remind these guys how things went down in Minnesota. "They never believed in Big Papi. They never believed in you, Miguel. It will never work for a star as bright as yours in Minnesota. Its not the Twins way"

Does anyone else think that the improvement in the Twins' pitching last year, was mainly due to Aaron Hicks, Eddie Rosario, and Byron Buxton playing a bunch of games in the outfield? Remember Dicky B and Bert going on and on about how great the Twins' outfield defense was going to be in 2016, and how much that was going to help the pitching staff?

.....Just read about Miguel Sano's lack of preparation for the transition to playing outfield in the MAJOR LEAGUES over the off-season. (thanks TwinkieTown) Looks like he really, really doesn't want to play outfield.

.....Just read about Miguel Sano's lack of preparation for the transition to playing outfield in the MAJOR LEAGUES over the off-season. (thanks TwinkieTown) Looks like he really, really doesn't want to play outfield......

The only reason the Twins would want to secure team control for an additional year for any of their young talents.....is if they feel like they will not be able to extend any of their young players past their arbitration years. The business side of baseball can strain relationships between players and organizations. Berrios obviously wanted to make his debut last Sept during the playoff push. The organization would like to delay that start of his service clock ($$$$$$). This could put a damper on future negotiations. Berrios respects Ryan's decision, but that doesn't mean he likes it, or the org's way of handling his career. Spring Training should be full of reasons to start Berrios in the show.

Good news! Molitor is going to be open minded about the possibility of Berrios making the roster on opening day!

Did you see that Berrios is ranked #4 among RHP prospects? MLB columnist Callis was also curious why the Twins failed to see how Berrios could have propelled them further at the end of last season.

If Berrios starts the season with the Twins, i will be shocked. Thrilled. But shocked. $$$$$$$$

There are no facts to lean on here. Had Berrios been given a shot last year, we would have a better idea of how bad he is being hosed. But he is clearly, plainly, and simply being hosed in order to secure an extra year of team control, which is a fact. A disputable fact, yes. But a fact that we see play out all the time in MLB. Fact #2: Berrios is a better pitcher right now than anyone they sent out last year. Its hard to argue that anyone in the Twins org is better suited to get hitters out. Nobody else has the "stuff" combined with the poise, that Berrios has displayed over the past three years. These financial situations create two groups of supporters. Those that support the club's (owner's) rights, and those that would rather support the idea of the players getting a larger share of the owner's profits.

The fans deserved Berrios. Plain and simple. TR claimed he was doing the right thing for the "kid" by sending him home in early Sept. But its clear he was acting on behalf of the owner for strictly financial reasons. Its plain to see that Berrios is a better pitcher RIGHT NOW than anyone they sent out for a start last season.

Agree with all of this

Berrios is very young. But also very good. After this coming season, he will probably be the guy Molitor picks for a wild card game or a "game 163" (if that's still possible with the new system??). I just think he should have some major league experience by now... what with his dominant numbers/stellar character/radar gun/ wipe -out slider? This looks like its all about the money. Meaning...less money for Berrios, more for the owner...long term. Maybe he could break his own record for starts in the Futures game? Also agree that Polanco is getting hosed. Maybe there isn't a spot on MN's roster for him (although I did want to trade Dozier right now! while his value is somewhat valuable), but Polanco is major league ready, and has been for some time.

I just think the club may have ticked Sano off a bit with this whole move to the outfield thing. Much in the way the club asked Ortiz to collect singles to LF rather than try to pull for power. And Ortiz wasn't overly hyped like Sano, but turned out to be a first ballot HOF type of player. Lets hope the club doesnt mess it up with Sano And, in my opinion, Sano has better tools for 3rd base than Trevor Plouffe. But he also has better tools than Trevor Plouffe for any position, based on his arm strength and atheticism compared to Plouffe's. Could we really not find anything of value in trade for Plouffe this offseason?

And what is up with Jose Berrios? This guy should have definitely been up to help with the playoff push last year as a STARTING pitcher, of course. But now, he is going to start the year at AAA. Joke. The Twins are running the risk of mismanaging their best young pitcher in Berrios, and their best young hitter in Miguel Sano with the whole transition to the outifeld. Its all stupid, in my opinion. If I was Berrios or Sano, I would be looking for a way out.

Does anyone else get the feeling that this whole Miguel Sano moving to the outfield thing...could result in catastrophic player mismanagement? It doesn't sound like Sano ever intended to be switching positions. Imagine that Sano has a few "down" years in production, or gets injured a lot in the next few seasons. His value would be low enough that any team could make a swap for Sano, and the Twins would probably feel like a trade would be in the club's best interest?

have you seen his brother? his bat would play just about anywhere, and the two brothers look pretty similar physically. Nick's bat looked pretty good in his 19-yr-old season at CR. My prediction: his offense gets him to the majors quickly, and if he can stick at SS, then...great

Also, if the Twins were able to find a suitable trade partner for Dozier....Danny Santana would love a shot to make the club as the everyday second baseman. An open competition between Santana and Polanco would be good spring time entertainment.

As stated in the original post....both Dozier and Plouffe could greatly contribute to the Twins in 2016. But, we know the limitations of both all too well. And we should be able to agree that Sano has much more long term potential at 3B, while Polanco or Nick Gordon could be a better long-term option at 2B, than Plouffe and Dozier, respectively. I am still not sold on Gordon sticking at SS. And I think Molitor will, rightfully, give the starting job to Eduardo Escobar for the foreseeable future.

I do like Eduardo Escobar and think he should be given the sarting job this spring. So....not sure where Nick Gordon fits into the picture. They want him to stick at SS, but he could end up being an All-Star 2B if his brother showed us anything. Gordon is probably better offensively and faster on the bases than Jorge Polanco? So, maybe the Twins do target a young SS prospect this winter.