Dman

I was thinking the same thing. An older player with some MLB experience but hasn't quite had the bat to make it. Plays all three spots and if he can get the bat working maybe he gets a chance. But just like last year he is pretty much a break glass in emergency type of player at this point.

We have very little info to go on so I am interested to see how well he does at 3rd this year. He looks in better shape and the bat has been really good this spring. I think he can be a solid defender at third but as noted with Lewis and Lee coming up I am not sure how long they will keep him there. If he keeps himself in good shape he should be able to be rotated to 3rd in the future it just seems given the future options he wouldn't be the primary option there. Just have to wait and see how he does. As mentioned above lot's of guys look rough at 3rd to start and get significantly better with time. I hope he does well as it just allows the team to mix and match more effectively.

Yeah I see the same thing per MLB.com below. One bad first spring training outing shouldn't be a precursor for doom but I get that none of us trust him when he is in. Always feels like a HR is just the next pitch away. I certainly get PTSD when he comes in but still willing to give him most of spring to figure things out. Several pitchers have righted the ship so to speak this spring after tough outings.

If they could get a Clase type deal I would do it. Yeah arms can fall off at any time but if he works out the savings would be substantial. Bullpen arms like that just don't come around that often. He throws 102 easy and all his pitches have good movement so I don't see much regression there. Only issue would be if his arm was damaged beyond repair for some reason. If they can get an extra year or two with an extension that could be a real difference maker down the road.

Agreed, I think this move was primarily because Celestino is injured. AAA depth is likely Contreras, Wallner, Garlick and Larnach if he gets squeezed out. So probably best to have one more guy that can play multiple outfield spots just in case. There is not much outfield depth at AA to move up. Keirsey probably starts there as it is probably the best place to jump start his bat. It might stink a bit for Prato as he can play Left for sure but he should have plenty of chances in the infield as well. Probably a good move to shore up depth.

I kind of agree with you and @chpettit19. They never have really used long relief well since Baldelli has been the manager IMO so kind of surprised it is something they are prioritizing this year. As @chpettit19mentioned what do they mean by long relief. If it is a guy just sitting around waiting for a blowout I don't see that as a very effective use of a bullpen arm. They don't want to do a six man rotation so why not piggy back Ober or Winder with a starter and save most of the pen for an entire game. It would give consistency to the pitcher in the long relief\piggy back role and give most of the pen the day off. If there is a blowout then use your two middle relief guys for a couple innings to cover and they get rested up with the piggy back game. A blowout is generally a loss no matter what but if the Twins have 6 effective pitchers why not use all 6 until an injury says you can't? Put your best arms on the 26 man to me that means Ober and if Ober they need to keep him stretched out. I think Maeda would be a good piggy back guy as he likely needs some pitch count protection coming back from TJ. If the Twins are just looking at a 2 inning guy from time to time then I guess the guys above qualify but I guess I don't completely understand the value of a guy that would only go two innings versus 1? You don't gain all that much IMO and he likely will need more rest before returning as well. I guess if one of our pitchers happens to go 6 innings and the two inning guy comes in then just need one more arm to close? Is that the theory? At any rate not sure how this all works but as I said earlier the best arms should be used on the 26 man not at AAA.

I want to be a Dobnak fan as I love the guy but the numbers this spring don't give me confidence. Yes he has a shiny 2.70 ERA this spring but his K9 still is subpar and his WHIP of 1.65 is terrible. Way too much traffic on the bases when he is pitching. He has always needed an out pitch and I don't think he has one yet. He should go to AAA and work on the out pitch. His command has looked bad at times too. I think he is going to need more time but we will see how things go the rest of this spring. I don't trust Sands either. Way too many HR balls and hard contact when he is pitching. He has some really nice looking pitches but the lack of consistency is just a killer IMO. De Leon has looked OK this spring. He seemed a bit wild the first two times I saw him but right now he has a good K rate and WHIP. While I don't like any of these options if I had to choose it would be De Leon right now for me. Unfortunately he is not on the 40 man so unlikely to make it. Hopefully we get to see Winder soon and he looks good otherwise I am in the camp to use Ober there and piggy back off of someone's start to keep his innings up but his arm seems to good to waste at AAA to me.

Most players picked at 19 never make a top 30 list let alone the Majors. Given his profile coming in I thought he would be a reliever only prospect. Very surprised at how well he is doing to this point but as noted by others effectively wild only works for so long. I will say his K rate is astounding so he has put away pitches and the fact that his K rate actually improved as a starter is somewhat mind boggling to me. Very, very excited about what Nowlin's lefty arm could become. If he can refine the command and control he looks like a viable lefty starter to me. Hoping to see improvement in the WHIP without losing too much on that K rate. Could be one heck of a pick at 19 for the Twins if he puts it all together.

I am very intrigued by Ross and while you don't see many D2 kids drafted that high, his Cape numbers indicate the skills he has play just fine at higher levels of competition. Everything is a SSS right now so hard to get a read on much but his pro ball debut was good and he is even holding his own in spring training (not many chances I think 6 PA) with an .821 OPS mainly made up of walks. Still every time you look at his numbers he seems to be doing well and honestly he should be in way over his head in spring training. He is a bit skinny and or has a slighter build than I thought he would, but he also appears to run well and as noted earlier has a good eye at the plate. If his level of contact is as good as his past results I think the Twins might have gotten a steal in the 5th round as he has the skills of a player taken late first round to early second IMO. Still there is risk just based on the fact that his level of competition wasn't the same as your typical D1 player and his build is lean so not sure how that projects out. I really liked the pick where they got him and with a good full year in pro ball he could rise up prospect lists real quick. I am bullish on the pick and hoping he just keeps putting up the same numbers he has in the past.

Yeah super small sample size (and in spring training which means less) and it could just be a little hot streak but given all his other skills he has, it is fun to think about him breaking out and being another viable utility option. I agree AAA to start for sure as there is no room on the roster for him just yet and spring numbers just don't mean all that much as players are not that dialed in. Still if he finds some consistency at the plate he is a major league player IMO.

If the bat comes around isn't he a stud utility guy at minimum? Maybe even solid at 2nd if he has some power. Is it possible the Twins could actually run into a slightly late bloomer here? His numbers looked real good in 2019 at AAA and SSS 2020 in MLB. The next two years he is brutal with the bat though with a 650 OPS being his highest. In total 3 out of 4 Major league seasons with a 650 or lower OPS one season 2020 with good numbers in a fairly small sample size. So still lot's to prove but hopefully he can move past whatever kryptonite weakness pitchers have against him to this point. Maybe he is who he is? Obviously the Tigers think so but just a little improvement with the stick and he could be quite the find. It is only spring training and he has a ways to go to prove himself all over again but he is off to a good start.

Kala'i Rosario having himself quite the spring training so far. 3 HR's, 6 hits in 13 at bats for a 462/500/1.654 slash line. Granted he isn't going up against starter level pitching but considering his highest level was A ball to this point those numbers are still very impressive. Willie Castro another player with a hot spring and he has hit well against actual MLB pitching. Have to say right now he is my pick for Sire of Ft, Meyers but there is a ways to go. Did he have an opt out? He might wish that he got one if not; I thought Ober had a really good outing. No hits, no walks, no runs and 2K's in 2 innings. Pretty dominant start IMO. Kind of thought the Twins would get pummeled with the way the Jays have been hitting this spring but the pitchers gave no runs and only 2 walks all day.

The comparison was less style related and more they both had so, so first years and Headrick was much improved in his second year. Don't disagree with lower end fastball soft tosser label for Headrick but he is a top 30 prospect\added to 40 man after his improvements. Hoping for the same with Adams but he needs to be quite a bit better than last years numbers to get there.

No question he had a good year last year but if you want to make the top 30 you should be dominant at those levels especially out of college. All the numbers look solid but nothing really stands out other than maybe WHIP. That doesn't mean he can't follow the Headrick track. Headrick didn't have a great 1st pro year and then blossomed. It takes time to get used to the competition level in pro ball. He is going to need to keep those K numbers moving in an upward trend as having an out pitch or pitches is very important if you want to be better than average. It looks like he has the velocity and the control so no reason he can't breakout and make the top 30 this year. I will be rooting for him.

Miranda with 2 HR's. He is swinging a hot bat right now. Just hope that arm comes back soon.