nicksaviking

Interesting that the offensive player who had a hot spring, but whom no one had previously heard of, made the team when there didn't seem to be a logical opening for him, but the reliever who had a hot spring, but whom no one had previously heard of, did not make the team despite there seeming to be a logical opening for him.

If I'm honest, I'm just not a huge Dobnak fan. He always seemed like a nice story but without the velocity, spin rate or stats to really support being more than a flash in the pan. I figured he'd end up slotting somewhere between Scott Diamond and Les Straker in Twins lore. However, the team also seems to value velocity, spin rates and advanced stats so this extension seems kind of puzzling to me. I'm wondering if this new slider is going to turn out to be a beast and the team is fairly confident that it will be a game changer for him.

Could be and it might be a good idea if they can manufacture pitchers with ease like Cleveland does. But this front office wasn't involved with the Cleveland organization when they started trading those guys. Cleveland also appears to be trying to shed payroll in the last few years while the Twins have been fairly consistent and don't seem to be headed for a rebuild.

These guys almost always take a full year of not being a starter to become a good reliever, sometimes two. They rarely seem to click in the years they are yo-yoed back and forth between AAA and the majors and the rotation and bullpen. Which makes sense; the approach is totally different. Perkins and Hendricks are good examples we've seen first hand as Twins fans. Trevor May and LaTroy Hawkins as well Duffey was one of those that took two years. Taylor Rogers had his wings clipped in Rochester; also a great move. But then you have Brad Hand, Wade Davis, Andrew Miller and Zach Britton. If the team waits until next year to commit, then there is no margin for error; he'll have to be DFA'd if he struggles with the transition. There's no room for him in the rotation now anyway.

I'm still a Thorpe believer, but I think they have to commit to him to the pen before they fall into the classic trap of trying too long to make a lefty starter out of a lefty reliever only for the player's next team to realize his potential.

Also, I don't see Thorpe listed in the projections, but regardless of that fourth year option, I bet he makes the club over Thielbar. They should have another long man in the pen besides Dobnak. Especially if Stashak is going down. I know Thielbar started off dinged up, but only 2 2/3rds innings so far this spring doesn't seem like a good omen for him.

I assume you think Riddle must be a good defensive player because he clearly can't hit? I see no evidence that he's any better than Polanco defensively. Either way, there's no reason to waste an active roster spot for a guy who can't hit just to be an emergency defensive player in today's game.

Since it seemed to be a competition between he and Rooker and team could also just as easily manipulate Rooker's service time, I don't think there's anything malevolent here. Kirilloff is going to get way more personalized instruction and see more live pitching in extended spring training than he would being the last man on the bench seeing one spot start a week and being last in line for the batting cages.

Buxton, Kepler, Sano and Cruz have all had their injuries in recent years. Should they both produce, I'd give solid odds on both Rooker and Kirilloff getting a chance to regularly coexist in the same starting lineup sometime this season.

I'm really excited to see Kirilloff. Larnach, Wallner and Sabatao too. But to be the fourth OF, or more likely the fifth OF as Arraez is going to be getting regular playing time, I don't need to see him just sitting on the bench when Cave is also MLB ready. I don't think there is or should be a specific clock on how long he stays down. There's just not a starting gig for him. If everyone stays healthy and productive he could stay down most of the year. Lucky for him, though unfortunately for Twins fans, OF and corner IF health has been an issue the last several years so he'll likely get a good look real soon.

I really wish this wasn't as contentious as it is. Obviously Rooker doesn't have the national prominence of Kirilloff, but man, he's been an organizational top prospect for several years now, has hit at every level and as a rookie looks like he's in line to make the opening day roster without having to dance the delayed-service-time rumba. Normally this would be cause for high-fives.

Seems to me that the past two years, when the rest of the OF was healthy (which admittedly was rare) Cave was mostly used as you'd expect a 4th OF to be used. I'd guess if Rooker ends up being the starting RF, he'd more likely see his playing time infringed upon by Arraez, more so than Cave.

The day the front office puts guys on the roster because of their prospect ranking or talent level instead of because of production, is the day they probably need to be replaced. It was Rooker's job last year before he got hurt. Rooker was hitting very well last year. Rooker is now not hurt and has resumed hitting well. Kirilloff has not hit well. I don't think we are the one's over thinking this.

Previously it seemed like a situation where Buxton may have been happy to bet on himself and hit the free agent market, but considering the news of a possible extension came directly from Buxton's own lips, I'd guess he's receptive.

If you are trying to blame either the Twins or Simmons, you clearly only read the headline and skipped the article.

I'm a big leg-kick fan, if he can keep that good contact rate with that swing, it looks like he's got plenty of room to develop more power. That's a real fun looking swing.

Great news about Thorpe and his increased velocity. While it would be optimal for him to still develop as a starter, I really dislike when the Twins lose the fringe starter prospects without giving them a full season to show what they can do in the bullpen. It seems like it's now or never for Thorpe, so I hope the yo-yo has stopped and they'll settle on him in relief this year. It would be really nice if Rooker unquestionably grabbed the LF gig this year. Just thinking back to early this century it seemed like success was contagious for the entire group of corner prospects. It was hard not to think Cuddyer, Kubel, Morneau, Kielty, Ford, Mohr, Restovich, Mike Ryan, Josh Rabe and Garrett Jones weren't all pushing each other trying to land one of the few available spots on the MLB roster. As for Odorizzi, if he has to settle for a one year deal, and with his injuries last year I don't think that's unreasonable, I could see the Twins jumping back in. But I'm not terribly comfortable with pitchers who hold out for a bigger deal and end up signing in the middle of spring training. Their track records are 50/50 at best.

Nice write up. But I want to see the list of the best Twins players over 40.

Yeah, I just pulled a number out of the air, but I don't think there should be a 100M gap between the floor and the luxury tax. I think the floor should be uncomfortable for enough clubs to compel greater revenue sharing, which will in turn compel more teams to pay their young stars market value. An uncomfortably high floor may in turn provoke a better broadcast situation too. The big clubs may be incentivized to not let the small and mid market clubs succumb to unfriendly TV deals. Heck, it then might just be easier for the league to consolidate broadcasting under one umbrella like every other sport, finally making the game more accessible.

It's not about their value, it's about moving them and still getting a return for them before they jet off to the big markets. The earlier their initial service time is up, the earlier the clubs will have to reckon with losing them.

I'm all for fixing it, but I don't see any solution that doesn't greatly help the big spending clubs and greatly hurt the small spending clubs. If Carlos Beltran or Manny Machado now have to be traded when they are 23-24 instead of when they are 25-27 the talent disparity is going to be exasperated to an even greater degree. I really think this has to be done in tandem with a greater revenue sharing system. Even if no one can agree to a hard salary cap, there has to be a hard salary floor, and it has to be significantly higher than clubs like Pittsburgh, TB and Oakland are currently willing go to. If the luxury tax threshold is 210M, the floor has to be something like 150M.

I might get behind Kirilloff if Rooker wasn't also an option. Rooker is more advanced, has been just as impressive in the minors and most importantly bats right handed. Kirilloff has the pedigree and the prospect rankings on his side, but I think Rooker is the right option at the moment.

Ouch what a blow. I was really hoping he'd get a chance to tear it up in St. Paul. Good luck to Royce, I'm sure he's more devastated than anyone. Hey guys, could we all just agree we know who is going to be #1 on the list and maybe avoid tempting fate with another write up for the final prospect tomorrow?

It used to be a fairly regular talking point, but I don't remember hearing of many concerns about a player who "couldn’t pull pitches inside" since the 80's and 90's. Seems like it's probably either fixable, or, you know, putting the ball into leftfield on inside pitches isn't exactly the end of the world.

Very talented. Keep 'em coming!