Pitz

The Twins generally don't seem to be all that forthcoming with information about promotions. It is good to see Burdi back in AA and have a successful outing, but I'm curious as to how they determined he was ready to head back to Chattanooga. Were they able to figure out/correct something mechanically or otherwise? Did they just want to get him back up before the AA playoffs so that they can see if he will be an asset out of the pen come postseason time? Are they just hoping he will be better this time around?

Lachlan Wells has pretty quietly put together a quite successful GCL campaign. I was wondering how he compared to Lewis Thorpe's GCL season. A comment about a month ago from Bob Sacramento mentioned this comparison. As I looked at the numbers, they are very similar except in one major category (which is why Thorpe deservedly received more publicity than Wells is getting). Thorpe 2013 - 44.0 IP, 2.05 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, .203 AVG, 32 Hits, 2 HR, 6 BB, 64 K Wells 2015 - 42.1 IP, 2.13 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, .205 AVG, 31 Hits, 3 HR, 10 BB, 44 K Can anyone verify Wells' height/weight? His player page has him listed at 5'8" 163, but also lists him as a right handed pitcher.

I thought I posted this earlier, but I must have encountered some sort of error - or I'm going crazy. Thanks for the excellent report. I have questions about 3 players that may have been addressed elsewhere and I missed them. If so, my apologies. What is Zander Wiel's injury? I hope this missed time doesn't prevent him from starting in CR next year. Any information on Brusdar Graterol? I recall it being mentioned several weeks ago that he had come stateside and I thought that meant he would be joining the GCL team. He is not listed on the roster though and hasn't pitched since June 20th. Is he dealing with an injury as well? Also wondering about Taylor Clemensia who is on the E'town roster but has yet to pitch in any games.

I think it does say something about the Twins' opinion of Blankenhorn that they drafted him ahead of Cabbage (who, iirc, was viewed by most as the better prospect) and promoted him to Elizabethton already as a high school draftee. Of course his performance carries the small sample size caveat, but it is still great to see him having early success.

Blankenhorn is really this good and this is not just a SSS.

I believe the Kernels have already clinched a playoff spot by finishing second in their division in the first half. I doubt the Twins would promote him at this point. I was actually going to comment that Engelb Vielma has had a fantastic June and July. I would guess that the Twins would like to keep Vielma and Gordon at separate levels as long as possible so they can both continue to play SS everyday. (Unless Gordon really forces the issue at some point next year.)

His 27+% k rate suggests otherwise

Comparing counting stats doesn't make a whole lot of sense when there is a pretty significant difference in the number of games played.

Are we trading Oswaldo for his younger brother?

Very surprised to see Graterol promoted to GCL at only 16. He hasn't pitched in any DSL games since June 20th. But he has put up impressive numbers in a small sample striking out 17 and walking 1 in 11 innings. does this mean the Twins regard him higher than Ynoa?

Is that information correct? It also lists him as right-handed, but in the various images that come up in a google search he appears to throw lefty. I also thought I had found different height/weight for him elsewhere but can't find it and don't recall where - so maybe I just imagined it.

After starting the season 1 for 19, Palacios is hitting .553 over his last 12 games with 4 doubles and a triple, 7 walks and 5 strikeouts.

What makes Valera a better prospect? Not saying you're wrong, but the major scout/media outlets disagree with you and the Twins seem to as well. Can you say a bit more to provide some support for your statement beyond the "..."? Goodrum spent 3 years in the rookie leagues before making it to A ball. Gordon has made that jump much more quickly, so I don't really understand your second statement either.

I was thinking the same thing. I'd definitely take Revere's offense from a solid defensive SS (which of course means he needs a stronger arm than Revere). Sure I hope Gordon develops a bit more "pop" than Revere, but Revere's offense would be very useful out of a shortstop.

Great to see Randy Rosario back and pitching well.

A bit surprised to see Blankenhorn promoted, but I won't complain. I'm guessing it probably had more to do with the numbers of corner infielders at the 2 short season clubs. Could it also be an indication that Kolton Kendrick is coming off the DL and making his debut soon?

Sorry, I didn't intend my comment in a negative way. I really appreciate the analysis and it certainly gives insight into where Dozier is experiencing so much success and how successful he has been in comparison to others. His success is fantastic and coming from a guy who was never considered much of a prospect is remarkable. I just didn't know if there was some mechanical change, or change in approach, etc. that might indicate why he's been able to essentially remake himself as a hitter. But Dozier doesn't seem to want to give that away and fairly so.

I've got mixed feelings about Arcia. He's been on a power binge of late and certainly that would be great to add to the lineup (or bench). However, his K and BB rates are concerns. In those last 11 games mentioned previously, he's K'd 12 times and has 1 BB. If we expand the arbitrary starting point, in his last 18 games he has 22 K's and still only the 1 BB (and his HR and Double totals don't increase at all). But over the last 23 games, he's slashing .289/.333/.567 which would be a nice boost to the offense. Do they make up for his defensive liabilities? Would his poor plate discipline continue to be much more exposed at the big league level?

Great article, but I think the title is a bit misleading. The information is fantastic, but it doesn't really tell us why he's been so good as much as it tells us more specifics about what he's good at and how good he's been at it. Of course its difficult to analyze the 'why,' especially when the player is not going to give away the reasons. Thanks for the analysis, Parker.

I think a case could be made for promoting all or either of Slegers, Eades, and Hu. (Edit: And yes likely the strongest case for Hu.)

Yes, but it may raise a bit of concern about his projections as a starter. Is it a stamina issue? (Somewhat hard to believe given the conditioning work he does) Maybe it is a matter of getting through a lineup multiple times. Perhaps at AAA, hitters are making more in-game adjustments. This could be an important step in the development of Berrios - learning to make adjustments and game planning for how to vary his pitches as he works his way through a lineup multiple times. I'm not going to doubt the kid though as he has shown incredible makeup - I believe he'll get the most out of his talent. And the first five innings do serve as a reminder that he has the "stuff" to succeed.

That is indeed the question.

The Twins' pool according to Baseball America is $3,948,500. + 5% = $4,145,925 (If my math is correct).

There has been considerable debate on TD about whether the Twins should be willing to blow past there pool as some other teams have done and be willing to take the penalties in hopes of signing a great class of talent. It is not my intention to reopen that discussion and the ethics of the international signing strategies. What I will say is that if the Twins aim to stay within the rules and the spending limits, I think they have done a pretty solid job of trying to mix in high dollar guys and also 'spreading the net fairly wide.' When they see a player (such as Javier) who they think is worth the big bonus and they have a good chance to sign, they are willing to do so, but they have also mixed in a good number of smaller bonus signs that have also shown some promise. Signing these guys is complex and there appear to be so many factors that dictate where a player will sign, I do not have any problem with the Twins approach as they have (at least up to this point) worked within the rules and pools set forth by MLB.

I think we're actually trying to say the same thing. I wasn't claiming he should get all the credit for the wins or losses. The original post suggests that Molly is responsible for 4 losses - I was wondering if he is similarly responsible for some number of wins?