Dman

To me Rosario has always been a streaky hitter. When he is on he can go 4 for 5 and when he falls into the abyss 2 for 20. Granted everyone has slumps but IIRC he seems more prone to them than most. I would say he is on one of his hot streaks and once he comes crashing down he won't be able to buy a hit. Having said that I do like him as a player. I think he can hit and hit for more power than most project and I like his defensive versatility. If he gets just a little more consistent I think we have our left fielder.

I agree with you with you for the most part. I don't think the Twins will roll with Meyer out ST. I think Pelfrey will get that last spot and will have to underperform to lose it. If Meyer looks like he has things under control at AAA then someone will need to move to the pen. The big issue facing the Twins is the 40 man. You are spot on that they need to move on from Swarzak and Duensing and Burton. I like your idea of finding out what they have in Presley and others because they there is a crop of high velocity guys coming up soon. If any of those are guys are good then we can create trade value as the 40 man decisions get even tougher the next year. I really think the Twins need to roll with what they have. It could mean another tough year but I think they should be loaded with young talent come 2016. The core should be there in 2016 and it will be interesting to see how well they compete with the rest of division and league,

As fans you don't HAVE to be patient you can vote with your feet and not come to games or invest your time. The reality is that there are 30 teams competing and some team is going to be the best and another the worst. The Twins made mistakes for several years and now they are paying for them. You don't have to be patient and wait for the core to emerge but as a fan I am going to follow them into the abyss and out of it. They are my team and I am always going to hope for the best. The Twins have gone worst to first before. They can do it again. It might just take some time.

I really like steady Eddie and always have. I don't see All-Star in his future but I think he can be a middle of the pack SS. For the short term I don't mind Santana in center. I would like see Eddie stick at short for next year if for nothing else than to build his trade value. Santana, Polanco and Dozier are going to have to battle it out for who starts in the future.

I believe service time does matter and I wouldn't start either of those guys out of Spring training. Until Sano's defense and Buxton's Offense are MLB caliber there is plenty for them to learn in the minors. No teams like to burn service time for players unless they are in a playoff hunt. When rebuilding you want your core guys to be able to play together for as long as possible. The young potential ace pitching we have coming up is a couple of years behind the position players. The closer that gap becomes the more years they have to play together. Thinking that the Twins can extend two super star players seems a bit pie in the sky to me. We have only seen them do it once for Joe Mauer and with prices going up I doubt the extensions some feel likely to happen will happen. Trades are the more likely scenario. I am sure they have room for one extension but again maximize your service time and don't waste it on player development that can happen in the minors. The minor leagues are designed to get you as close to major league ready as possible. You dominate a level and then move to the next one. When you have nothing left to learn in the minors and do well then you get your shot. Although both players appear to be great they still have things they can learn and holding them back a year would be ideal to me. If they both light up the minors and have nothing left to prove there then bring them up. I have no problem with an earned promotion. IMO they haven't earned it yet.

I guess I don't understand the no love for Duffy. At 23 his control and ERA are better than Trevor Mays were at that age and league. He throws nearly as hard as May and his control is better at 23 than May as well. He strikes out a lot of batters and doesn't walk many guys either. Seems just as exciting if not more than May to me. Minier is younger than Polanco last year but his potential is pretty exciting as well. Hu, Gonsalves and Thorpe are very exciting prospects. Maybe I am drinking too much Twins prospects kool aid but I am excited about that 11-20.

I guess I could see it going both ways. I prefer to think when you are that close you have essentially met the spirit of the agreement. If his pitching stunk and he just missed I could see some reservation but he pitched well and I think he deserves the money. I think in the end it pays to reward him even though he is one out short. Sticking to the letter of the law works but if you alienate the player what have you gained. Better for both sides to feel good about it in my opinion. The Twins got what they wanted out of Hughes this year so just pay the man. It is the right thing to do.

Wow that is a nice list and the ten guys behind them aren't that far behind them either. Nice to see a lot of good pitching coming up. I think Kohl deserved to be in the top 6 but that is my only quibble. IMO leaving Meyer out makes sense as he had trouble going deep in games, walked a lot of betters and didn't have a great ERA for a supposedly dominant pitcher. Maybe my expectations are just higher for him than they should be but I was somewhat disappointed in his performance this year. Yes he K's a lot of guys but when you can't throw a strike when you need one that is a problem and his ERA shows that.

I'd go Minier for number 1 based on the numbers, but it is the GCL so you could get me to change my mind. Vavra looks like a pretty good pick for round 33. It is tough to hit .340 for a month no matter what league you are in. I probably couldn't hit .340 in a softball league so that is impressive. These days however for the positions he plays would like to see a couple of home runs in those numbers. So that knocks him down IMO. I like Garvers numbers as well especially OBP. With good plate discipline he could be a fast mover. Always have a soft spot for ABW but I think #2 is where he belongs here. Personally I would swap Vavra for Minier and call it good.

Personally I wouldn't mess with the offense that much as things are clicking and we have Sano, Buxton and Polanco to add to the mix likely by the end of next year. Also Pinto, and Herman have been hitting well in AAA and Hicks appears to have gotten better but who knows. At any rate there just isn't room for everybody as it is. The pitching stinks for the most part but what will the Twins do about it? Probably hope they get better. Hughes is the only pitcher I can watch and actually pay attention to as I love that he throws strikes and forces guys to be aggressive at the plate. Although I agree with the article that nothing much will be added via FA I also agree with Mike in that how can we expect a different result with virtually the same pitching staff as last year? We need a boost there if we plan to get better. Please, Berrios or Meyer have ace stuff and get moved up soon.

In my last post about Arcia I pretty much predicted that pulling the ball all the time was going to make him too predictable and lead to poor results. Right now he is making me look like an idiot so I am just gonna say I hope he continues to have success no matter how he does it.

You have got to like the K rate for Thorpe. To me it says he has got nasty stuff he just needs to refine things a little bit and he should be dominant. I am very excited about his potential I just hope he stays healthy.

Rosario has been a Twins top 10 prospect for several years now and has hit extremely well until AA. Teams at the bottom of the standings would likely be interested in the now versatile Rosario as a lottery ticket player that could play as a fourth outfielder and backup second base. I don't think you give up on a top 10 prospect after one bad year. You have to make room for him and hope for better things next year. If he improves just a bit more with the bat he might even be up with the Twins next year.

I agree with you on Pelfrey. Just DFA him and get it over with. I like the guy and wasn't unhappy when they signed him but there just isn't room on this team for him. They need to go young and find out what they have pronto as this exercise gets even tougher next year.

I agree with you on Achter and Ibarra. I don't think their stuff translates to MLB all that well and we have Pryor, Tonkin and Oliveros to fill those roles with Burdi and Z Jones power arms likely coming up soon anyway. I too like Parmelee and Nunez not sure if Parmelee makes it or not but I think he will. I do disagree on Gilmartin. Although I am not in love with his stuff he is a solid lefty and I think they get rid of the Chris Johnson before letting someone grab the near MLB ready Gilmartin. Would a team claim him probably not but I don't think you can take that kind of risk.

My two cents on the remaining 21. I doubt we clear 9 spots I think more likely 7 but I put the nine I would keep and I could be persuaded to switch some of these guys as I just don't know enough about them. The Twins have some tough decisions to make. Alex Meyer: Keep he will starting for the Twins next year. Miguel Sano: Keep he will be starting for the Twins at some point next year. Lester Oliveros: Keep he will in the Twins pen next year. Jason Wheeler: Keep I think Wheeler could be tempting for another team to take as 5th starter or long relief option he has upside. Sean Gilmartin: Keep, A lefty that could be good in a long relief or 5th starter role. Too dangerous not to keep him on. Jason Adam :Keep, he is the lottery ticket the twins wanted might as well keep him. Eddie Rosario: Keep I think he will bounce back and we may need him to play for Twins next year. Levi Michael: Keep, he seems to have found something and we should see if he can maintain it up to AAA. Aj Achter Keep:, he seems solid, not sure if his stuff translates to MLB. Cole Johnson: Not sure odd man out could be between him and Achter. Danny Ortiz: Not sure seems good but not special James Beresford: He is very good and would be an excellent Utility player but Twins have better options. Niko Goodrum: No way he would make an opening day roster on another team. Deolis Guerra: He is good but I don't think good enough to make most teams. I think we have better options. Tyler Jones: No way he would make an opening day roster on another team. Mike Kvasnicka: Could go either way here if they take Parmelee and Cola off then Maybe they put him on. Brett Lee: Has pitched well but doesn't K a lot of guys. Would be a stretch for him to make an opening day roster. Aderlin Mejia: Not enough power to warrant keeping him on and there are better options. Deibinson Romero: A good player who likely is MLB ready but the Twins have no room for him. Adrian Salcedo: Hate to give up on him but we have better options if someone else takes him. Alex Wimmers: Hate to give up on him but we have better options if someone else takes him.

Yeah I knew he had hit a couple in close situations but wasn't thinking\feeling in the 70% range. Good call out. I think my frustration at watching him strike out so much clouded my memory. I also didn't know where to go to check. Lazy deserves to be called out.

That is what happens when you don;t check facts. Egg on the face.

I don't think anyone is saying Arcia is horrible and will never be any good but several are questioning an approach based solely on hitting the ball over the fence. If a HR is the only goal then even if he hits 50 of them in a season he will bat .100 or less. The issue is instead of looking at what a team is giving you defensively and trying to take advantage, his suggestion is don't change your approach at all. Hit into the teeth of defense that is playing you to pull the ball, but wait no worries just put it over the fence or in Arcia's case just strike out and never put the ball in play at all. That will show them. If I am a pitcher just throw Arcia a couple of balls in the dirt and something low and away and it is an easy out. Most of his home runs have come when the other team is way ahead or behind and they decide to actually challenge him and throw legitimate strikes. When guys are on base too often he is an easy out usually via a K. Having said all that I like the guys enthusiasm. He really seems to enjoy the game and certainly swings with everything he has. His Fielding seem like it has improved but still needs some work but I think he can be average in the field. He seems a lot like Gomez when he came up so maybe he gets it in the next couple of years. I sure hope so because we need him. Right now I don't care for his approach.

Yeah this team is going to have some interesting 40 man decisions this year and the years after, They have so many bullpen arms that appear close to Major league ready that I wonder if they can trade some of the guys they already have to make more room. There are going to be some tough decisions on the farm in the future.

Cool, hope he does well. He is young so a little patience could go a long way. But I like the potential of a lot of the guys we have coming up better. Hopefully he figures it out with us.

It is a good depth pickup for KC and they didn't give up anything significant to get him. Also it takes away a homerun threat when they play the Twins. Twins get yet another bullpen arm. Maybe they can help him get his mojo back to start. It is a good trade for the Twins as they free up space for others to play and get someone with potential as well. I guess it's a win, win.

That is awesome news!! I am not a huge May fan but am anxious to see what he can do at the MLB level. I hope we see more fresh faces.

Would have been nice to see at least one AAA guy in the top 5. Hard to get too excited about the guys at the lower levels as AA is where things become make or break and you find out what you have. I am excited about the depth the Twins have at pitching. The next couple of years should be fun to watch as they climb there way up to the top.

When does Derek move up? I know he just started pitching but seems like he should get moved up given how well he has been doing.