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On paper, Jim Miller’s major league statistics don’t exactly scream Cooperstown. During the six years he spent in the majors, bouncing around from the Baltimore Orioles to the Colorado Rockies, Oakland Athletics and finally the New York Yankees, Miller compiled a 2-3 record with a 3.48 ERA and 57 strikeouts in just over 67 innings of work. His time with the Yankees was short, as he pitched just 2 2/3 innings, but he had a longer stint with Oakland, pitching 48 2/3 innings with a 2.59 ERA in 2012. In fact, Miller’s biggest major league achievement might be that when he plunked Derek Jeter at Old Yankee Stadium while pitching for the Orioles in 2008, he became the last pitcher in that fabled stadium’s history to hit a batter. None of this would seem to make a strong case as to why the Minnesota Twins recently signed the 34-year old to a minor league contract, but digging a bit deeper shows why it actually makes sense. Despite not playing much in the majors, Miller was a three-time minor league All-Star during his four years in the Rockies organization after they drafted him in the eighth round in 2004. Last season, he played in 26 games with the Somerset Patriots of the Independent League and didn’t allow a single earned run in just over 25 innings of work. He ended the season with a record of 1-0, while the Patriots went 20-8 in games he played. In this video of one of his strikeouts, you can see the slider that he is known for. Looking at Miller’s recent success and the state of the Twins and their pitching staff, it’s easy to see why this signing makes sense. Minnesota was one of the most disappointing teams in the league last season with their 59-103, the worst record in baseball. Their team ERA was over five and only 59 of 162 starts were considered, “quality starts” in which the pitcher went at least six innings and gave up no more than three earned runs. Ervin Santana was their best pitcher (and even he finished with a 3.38 ERA and a 7-11 record) and he is potential trade bait at the moment. Their bullpen wasn’t any better, compiling a combined ERA of 4.68 and giving up a league-worst 78 home runs. In short, the Twins need help on the mound. While Miller will most likely start the season in Triple-A, pitching for the Rochester Red Wings, he fits the mold of what the Twins are trying to add to their bullpen to hopefully help the overall pitching roster, veterans and depth, so a call up at some point during the season certainly isn’t out of the question if Miller can perform anywhere near the level he did in Somerset last season. While some might think Miller’s age could be a factor, it probably won’t be for the Twins, who are reportedly interested in also signing 33-year old, left hander Clayton Richard, who did pretty good work during an 11-game stretch with the San Diego Padres last season, striking out 24 and compiling a 2.52 ERA. If nothing else, Miller can provide a veteran presence and mindset to a bullpen full of young potential that needs to learn how to pitch consistently in the big leagues. The deal will be a win for the Twins if they get that and any success on the mound would be an added bonus.

It was time for a change. On the first day of the 2016 Winter Meetings in National Harbor, Maryland, the Minnesota Twins announced a shake up within their scouting department. Deron Johnson, who was the director of scouting since 2007, has been promoted to senior advisor and will strictly evaluate the top talent here in the states and abroad. In a corresponding move, Sean Johnson was promoted from West Coast supervisor to director of scouting and will oversee all preparation for the upcoming MLB Draft, where the Twins will have the first overall pick in June. He will also manage the team’s 27-person scouting staff. The Twins scouting department has been considered to be one of the best in the majors since the 1980s. However, their recent draft history and amateur free agent signings have gained somewhat mixed results, with the top players such as 2B Brian Dozier and OF Max Kepler reaching the majors. Others (OF Brian Buxton, P Tyler Duffy and P Trevor May) have shown some promise, but all have struggled at the big league level and none appear likely to become a bona-fide superstar. Twins owner Jim Pohlad overhauled his front office following the firing of Terry Ryan in July, who went to the LA Dodgers. He wanted to join the growing trend of hiring a president of baseball operations as well as a general manager. Pohlad hired Derek Falvey as Chief Baseball Officer, who had the authority to bring Thad Levine in as the team’s GM. The franchise had only five GMs since moving to Minnesota over a half century ago. The culture of the Twins has changed dramatically from “The Little Engine That Could” to avoiding trading away quality players for a mediocre package of talent. Why? Well, it’s because the division has become more difficult to win each year. Levine felt these promotions reflected the evolution of the franchise and hopefully shape their philosophy in acquiring players moving forward. This was the final move in the team’s restructuring process of their front office, as they want to create a two-tier management structure that oversees the day-to-day operations while developing quality talent in their minor league system. All of these moves come off a hugely disappointing 2016 season the Twins just had. The Twins new management team wanted to expand Deron Johnson’s role within the organization, as they need to become a little more proactive in recognizing quality talent. He joined the Twins organization in 1994, and was apart of the decision process to select outfielder Aaron Hicks with the first pick of the MLB Draft later that summer. Sean Johnson became apart of the Twins organization as an area scout in 2002, and will have final say on all draft selections. He expects not to sleep much in his own bed after the holidays because there’s work to be done before the start of spring training. The Johnsons together are the right candidates for the job, as each are committed to building a championship team for the Twin Cities. The Pohlad family is still believe in letting their baseball people to make baseball decisions.

The Minnesota Twins just added Triple-A catching prospect Mitch Garver to their 40-man roster. This is good news for Twins fans as Kurt Suzuki has entered free agency this offseason. Suzuki has been the starting catcher for Minnesota for the past three seasons, and it appears that the Twins will need a replacement. Garver just could be the right man for the job. The 26-year-old catcher was drafted in 2013 out of New Mexico. A ninth-round pick, Garver has made steady progress every year since he was drafted. After playing well at Double-A Chattanooga this summer, Garver was promoted to Triple-A Rochester late in the season. He shone at the higher level, and he took that momentum and built on it in this year’s Arizona Fall League. Actually, Garver has played well in the last two Arizona Fall League seasons. Last year, he batted .317 with a staggering .916 over 12 games in his Arizona Fall League campaign. That great performance saw him bumped up from A+ at the end of last summer to AA-ball at the start of this year. After doing well at Double-A Rochester this year, he earned his shot at Triple-A ball. While Garver has been steadily improving and climbing throughout his minor league career, it was at the recently concluded Arizona Fall League that the true potential of Garver began to be unveiled. Although his average was only .262, he managed to hit four home runs in just 11 games. That is the kind of power behind the plate that gets major league scouts very excited. During his minor league career, Garver has had to share time with other developing catchers at all of his stops. This meant that he could not start every game. In fact, he only started about half the games at some of his stops. However, whenever he was not catching, his managers were always getting him into the game in other ways. He often was in the starting lineup as DH, and other times he was getting starts at first base. Garver is a well-rounded athlete who can add a lot of value to a big league ball club. He throws out runners at a very high percentage, and his big bat means that he will be valuable to his team even when his manager decides to give Garver’s body a night off from catching. It would be very surprising not to see Garver join the Twins at some point in 2017. Although it is not likely that he will start the season with the team, he will almost certainly be called up if he continues to make the consistent forward progress that he has demonstrated to this point in his professional career. After their widely disappointing 2016 season, the Twins are more willing to give players’ chances than other teams right now. With the Twins’ roster very thin at catcher right now after the departure of Suzuki, giving a talented young prospect like Garver some major league experience next year is a no-brainer.

The opinions of an agent regarding a baseball front office overhaul aren’t usually considered terribly important. However, when that agent is Scott Boras, the comments he makes tend to be worthy of closer attention from both fans and the media. In this case, the front office in question is the Minnesota Twins, which has brought in two key executives to run the team. Former Cleveland Indians assistant general manager Derek Falvey was named the Twins’ chief baseball officer and Thad Levine was tabbed as Minnesota’s general manager after working for the Texas Rangers. Boras met with the duo to get acquainted with them during the annual general managers’ meetings being held this week in Scottsdale, Arizona. During this period, agents often lay the groundwork with teams to consider potential discussions about players they represent. After the meetings were over, Boras offered praise for what he perceives as a different approach to the Twins’ past dealings with him. Much of those past discussions were with the team’s former general manager Terry Ryan, who was fired in July. While Ryan was able to build a number of winners during his two tenures with the team, his approach focused more on traditional aspects of scouting and assessments of players. In contrast, both Levine and Falvey have moved up during their respective careers by paying closer attention to the analytics side of the game. The analytics approach has been used in the past by franchises with tight budgets, a group that includes the Twins. Most notably, the Oakland Athletics enjoyed an extended level of success, which led to the book and movie, Moneyball. Crunching numbers is often at the heart of analytics, with the idea being that it will help uncover less expensive options that will produce for a team. The Pohlad family, which has owned the team for more than three decades, has never been one to throw out the kind of money that Boras usually asks for with his clients. Ryan and Boras generally had few discussions, though Boras respected his baseball acumen. However, Ryan generally would hold on to a draft pick rather than give it up to sign a free agent, no matter if it was a Boras client or not. Boras has a number of free agents available during this offseason, with Philadelphia Phillies pitcher Jeremy Hellickson one of the main options. However, he’s been given a $17.2 million qualifying offer from the Phillies, so he’ll either be re-signing with them or asking for more. Neither option makes it likely that he’ll be wearing a Twins uniform in 2017. Another key player among Boras free agents will be Baltimore Orioles catcher Matt Wieters. With the Twins’ starting catcher, Kurt Suzuki, also a free agent, this would seemingly be an option. However, it isn't likely that the team will meet Boras’ asking price for a player who made $15.8 million last year. Still, the melting ice in this once-frosty relationship is a good sign. The Twins were overconfident going into the 2016 season, and are now being much more realistic about their team. The amicable relationship with Boras should serve as a catalyst for some big offseason moves.

Now that the World Series is over, teams in Major League Baseball are able to announces changes on the coaching staff and roster. The most recent big announcement came from the Minnesota Twins when they stated their plans to hire Thad Levine as their new general manager. While Levine gets one of the most prestigious titles in baseball, he will still have to work with executive vice president/chief baseball officer Derek Falvey to make any changes in the Twins organization. Thad Levine may not be recognized by casual baseball fans, but he has a long history in the sport. Levine play college baseball for four years at Haverford College in Pennslvania before working in business development for the Los Angeles Dodgers. He joined the Colorado Rockies organization in 1999 and quickly became senior director of baseball operations. Levine has been the assistant general manager for the Texas Rangers since 2005 before getting hired by the Minnesota Twins today. It is hard to know the exact changes that Thad Levine will bring to the Minnesota Twins organization, but he specialized in player development and statistical analysis during his time with Cubs baseball. Analytics have been a huge part of baseball in recent years, and the Minnesota Twins are one of the last teams to embrace the change in the game. It is hard to ignore the power of analytics after the Chicago Cubs used it to help them build a World Series winning roster in only a few years. A study by ESPN in 2015 found that only two teams in the MLB trusted analytics less than the Minnesota Twins. The hiring of Thad Levine proves that they are ready to trying something else in the organization. The Twins roster is loaded with a lot of hitters that have high strikeout and low walk rates. Only five teams in the league struck out more than the Twins this season. If Thad Levine is able to construct a roster the way he wants, then the high strikeout totals should be coming to an end soon. You can handle the strikeouts from a player when they produce like Brian Dozier did this year, but it is hard to take from someone that is not hitting on a regular basis. Miguel Sano and Brian Buxton simply did not produce enough at the plate to excuse the high number of strikeouts. It would not be surprising to see either of these players in a different uniform in the next few seasons. The player development and analytic mind of Thad Levine should also keep the Twins from making horrible signings on the free agent market. The Twins play in a small market, so they have to be as smart as possible when it comes to signing free agents. They can't afford to overspend on someone that does not help the team. Ricky Nolasco is a great example of a recent failing by the front office of the Twins. A $49 million contract to an aging pitcher is never a good idea, and it came back to haunt the Twins. It may take a few years, but the Twins finally appear like they are on the right track to make the playoffs again.

Zach Granite was just named the winner of the Sherry Robertson Award, sharing the title with Double-A teammate Stephen Gonsalves. The award is given annually to the Minnesota Twins minor league player of the year. This is a major step forward for the Twins prospect. It points towards a bright future and a possible call-up to the big leagues in the not-too-distant future. With the 2016 season that the Twins had, Zach might just be at the right place at the right time. Here is a closer look at what makes Granite such a special player to watch. Seton Hall Product Granite was drafted by the Twins in 2013 after playing his college ball at Seton Hall. The Twins selected him in the 14th round of the draft. It has taken a while for Granite to adjust to the professional game. It is a big transition to handle pitching at this level when you are using a wooden bat for the first time in your life. Every player is different when it comes to making the transition, but it appears like something clicked for Granite this year. Growing up in New York City, Granite was exposed to many different leagues around the area, which has certainly helped with this adjustment. His hard work growing up has certainly paid off, as he is as fundamentally sound as any prospect in the Twins organization. Doing Damage at Double-A In his three previous seasons in the minor leagues, Granite was never able to get above Class A. However, the Twins thought he did enough last year to warrant some time with the big league club this spring. Granite was able to do enough during his time with the Twins in spring training to be promoted to the Double-A Chattanooga Lookouts. Granite was surprised that he got to start the year with Chattanooga. He had thought he would be back in Single-A with the Ft. Myers squad. He let the promotion inspire him, and he had a great season with Chattanooga. He batted .295, scored 86 runs and stole 56 bases. He also showed the same great defense in centerfield that he has displayed since he was drafted. Granite is a freak of an athlete who was also a standout hockey player in high school, demanding looks from Pittsburgh Penguins scouts. The speed of Granite is his most valuable asset. It allows him to make stellar plays in the outfield and steal bases with great success. It was his bat that had kept him from progressing through the minor league ranks in his first three seasons. Zach was drafted as a skinny speed-demon from Staten Island, but has since bulked up to improve his hitting. After demonstrating a solid bat over an entire Double-A season, it seems likely that Granite will start next season at the Twins’ Triple-A affiliate, the Rochester Red Wings, as long as he does well in spring training. The Twins had high expectations going into 2016, but times have changed and it might be a promising immediate future for Zach. With the terrible defense that the Twins played in the outfield in 2016, they can only hope that Granite will handle the leap from Double-A to Triple-A well. If he does, you can expect him to get a call-up to the Twins sometime next year.

http://www.twincities.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/wpid-20150413__150414twinsmauer.jpg The career of Joe Mauer has been one that’s seen plenty of highs over his 13 seasons, but injuries and the inevitable aging process have taken their toll. Beginning as the hometown kid who was the top pick in the 2001 Draft, he was a popular figure who was a six-time All-Star and winner of the 2009 American League Most Valuable Player award. That accolade was why the Twins, never known to throw money around, signed Mauer to an eight-year, $184 million contract. All those concerned breathed a sigh of relief at the time, assuming that it would help keep a future Hall of Famer in the fold. The Decline Begins Part of the supposed value of that deal was that having a power-hitting catcher who hits for average was a rare commodity that often arrives only once in a generation. However, the power shown by Mauer during that MVP season effectively disappeared and has never returned. Meanwhile, a 2013 concussion eventually moved Mauer to first base and has affected his RBI numbers, a slide that continued through the 2016 campaign. Problems like blurred vision have been connected to that issue, so to combat it, he became a more aggressive hitter. That only boosted his strikeout numbers. Now, instead of building on a resume that points Mauer toward Cooperstown, the only thing the Twins are seeing is the $23 million per season that they’re contracted to pay Mauer for the next two years. The Hovering Contract That’s brought questions about whether it would be better for all involved if Mauer simply retired. Mauer has been loyal to a single team, though that loyalty presumably doesn’t extend to magnanimously walking away from $46 million so that another rebuilding effort can be expedited. While Mauer has a no-trade clause in his contract, there would be no chance that any team would take on the remaining $46 million on his deal, unless Minnesota paid a good chunk of that amount. Given the Pohlad family’s long aversion to paying anything more than absolutely necessary, that idea is simply a non-starter. Mauer’s offensive production isn’t necessarily terrible, but it’s simply not worth what the Twins are paying him. The fact that he turns 34 next April and has been on the decline the past few years are fairly strong indicators that his numbers at the plate won’t improve. The Reality The fact is that Mauer should retire, yet the reality is that the Twins will likely have to bite the bullet until the end of the 2018 season. Finding someone to improve on his numbers will cost money in the form of a free agent, yet the team would still be on the hook for Mauer’s contract. Unless new Chief Baseball Officer Derek Falvey has a silver tongue that can convince him to retire, the best option is to develop someone to replace him by the end of 2018.