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FORT MYERS - Seth discusses the last day or so at Twins spring training. Topics include Miguel Sano not being suspended, the roster moves, Erick Aybar, Ryan Lamarre, Tanner English's big blast and some notes from minor league spring training, including a couple of transactions there too. You can listen to it here, or better yet, subscribe to it on your smartphone using the directions below.To add this podcast to your iPhone podcast app, do the following: 1. Open up this page in your iphone and copy this link: http://twinsdaily.libsyn.com/rss 2. Go into your iPhone podcast app and click on the "Library" tab at the bottom and then click on "Edit" in the upper right-hand corner: 3. Click on "Add a Podcast by URL..." 4. Paste the link you just copied into the dialog box and click on 'Subscribe'. Now you'll get every episode delivered to your phone to listen to whenever you want Click here to view the article

FORT MYERS - On Thursday morning, the Twins announced that right-handed relief pitchers Alan Busenitz and Tyler Duffey were optioned to Rochester. Following the game, outfielder Jake Cave was also optioned to Rochester, and 1B Brock Stassi was sent to minor league camp. Also, the team announced that outfielder Chris Heisey asked for and received his release. In addition, several players, including Erick Aybar, were told they would not make the Opening Day roster. He can opt out of his contract tomorrow. With these roster moves, the Twins Opening Day roster is becoming more clear.Here is a quick look at those players remaining in big league camp: Catchers: Jason Castro, Mitch Garver As expected, it appears that Mitch Garver will be Jason Castro's backup behind the plate. Garver can also provide flexibility with his ability to play first base and left field. Infielders: Joe Mauer, Logan Morrison, Brian Dozier, Eduardo Escobar, Miguel Sano, Ehire Adrianza, Jorge Polanco (Restricted List) Joe Mauer will play first base. Brian Dozier will play second base. Absent an MLB suspension, Miguel Sano will play third base. With Jorge Polanco suspended, Eduardo Escobar will be given the first opportunity to start at shortstop. Ehire Adrianza will be the lone utility infielder (if there is not a Sano suspension). Obviously that might create other needs. Taylor Featherston and Gregorio Petit remain on the roster for now. Outfielders: Eddie Rosario, Byron Buxton, Max Kepler, Robbie Grossman, Zack Granite The "Nothing Falls But Raindrops" outfield remains intact. Eddie Rosario, Byron Buxton and Max Kepler will start. Robbie Grossman will play the corners and occasional DH and pinch hit. At this point, it appears that Granite will also make the roster. Ryan LaMarre remains on the Twins spring training roster. Starting Pitchers: Ervin Santana (DL), Jose Berrios, Kyle Gibson, Jake Odorizzi, Lance Lynn, Phil Hughes, Michael Pineda (60 Day DL) With Tyler Duffey being optioned on Thursday, the starting staff appears to be set. After the game, Paul Molitor announced that the team will start the year with a four-man rotation. Jake Odorizzi will be the Opening Day starter. He'll be followed by Kyle Gibson and Jose Berrios. Lance Lynn will make the team's fourth start of the year. Molitor mentioned April 11th as the date that the Twins might need a fifth starter. Relief Pitchers: Fernando Rodney, Addison Reed, Zack Duke, Trevor Hildenberger, Ryan Pressly, Taylor Rogers, Tyler Kinley, Gabriel Moya, Trevor May (60 Day DL), Right now, it appears that one of the only roster decisions needed to be made will be between Rule 5 pick Tyler Kinley and left-hander Gabriel Moya. The team will leave Ft. Myers on Monday and travel to Washington DC to take on the Nationals in an exhibition game. Jose Berrios will start that game. So, to summarize the above, the Opening Day roster is close: Catchers: Jason Castro, Mitch Garver Infielders: Joe Mauer, Logan Morrison, Brian Dozier, Miguel Sano, Eduardo Escobar, Ehire Adrianza Outfielders: Eddie Rosario, Byron Buxton, Max Kepler, Robbie Grossman, Zack Granite Starting Pitchers: Jake Odorizzi, Kyle Gibson, Jose Berrios, Lance Lynn, Phil Hughes (long relief until needed as a starter) Relief Pitchers: Fernando Rodney, Addison Reed, Trevor Hildenberger, Ryan Pressly, Zack Duke, Taylor Rogers (and either Tyler Kinley or Gabriel Moya). Also remaining in camp: Catchers: Bobby Wilson, Willian Astudillo Infielders: Taylor Featherston, Gregorio Petit Outfielders: Ryan LaMarre Click here to view the article

FORT MYERS: On Sunday, the news broke that the Minnesota Twins starting shortstop Jorge Polanco had been suspended for the first 80 games of the season. After the initial shock, the questions turned to who would become the team’s primary shortstop. Would Ehire Adrianza get the opportunity? Could Erick Aybar be a factor? Or would manager Paul Molitor turn to old reliable Eduardo Escobar? On Wednesday, we got that answer, or at least we know who is going to be given the first shot. Of course, pending a decision from MLB on the Miguel Sano situation, it is all subject to change again.On Wednesday night at Hammond Stadium, the Twins played against the Pittsburgh Pirates. Before the game, manager Paul Molitor talked to the assembled media.Earlier in the day, Polanco had spoken to his teammates and apologized to them for getting suspended. Moliitor said, “I don’t think I should be trying to even try to talk about something that personal would be appropriate.” Polanco can’t play in major league games, but they will be checking to see when he can start playing in minor league games. So the question turned to his shortstop position. Molitor said, “Esco’s going to get the chance to hopefully get. He’s going to get from now on the majority of the time. We don’t have a ton of games left. We’ll mix it up a little bit. He’s not going to be in all the games. We have to get Ehire in there too. Molitor believes in Escobar. He’s been able to come through when needed in the past, and he hopefully will again. “It’s definitely helpful when something like this occurs and you can plug somebody in who is accustomed to playing significant roles in previous go-rounds, including last year where he not only filled in at third base for Miggy, but put him in some big slots in the lineup, and he was productive. He’s one of those guys who always says whenever you need me I’m going to be ready, and I need him. Escobar started at shortstop for the Twins on Wednesday night, and when his outing was complete, he said that it meant a lot to have the manager’s confidence in him. He also feels that he’s earned the opportunities he’s been given because of his work ethic. “I come in every day and work hard. All positions; third base, second base, shortstop. For me, I’ll be ready Any time he puts me in the lineup, I love it. I love to play the game. I love to hit. I just play and Molitor has given me a lot of opportunities. I work hard all the time and when I get the opportunities again, I’ll be ready.” While we know that the advanced defensive metrics don’t grade out well for Escobar at shortstop, mostly due to some lack of range, Escobar has typically been reliable with the plays that he can get to. Molitor noted, “We’ve seen him play it a lot over the last three or four years. He’s a steady defender. He’s an accurate thrower. My confidence is solid. He and Jorge are different in how they move and how they play, but more than one model works, so to speak.” Ehire Adrianza, a very solid defender at shortstop, will fill Escobar’s role as the team’s top utility infielder. Then again, Derek Falvey said that they are still expecting to hear from MLB regarding a possible season-starting suspension for Miguel Sano which may alter this thinking. That decision will again impact that roster and the potential Opening Day roster and lineup. ERICK AYBAR DECISION COMING SOON A decision is also looming later this week on Erick Aybar. If he’s still on the roster after noon on Friday, he will receive a retention bonus of $100,000 because of his status as a XX-B player (basically a player with over six years of MLB service time who signed a minor league contract). He also has an opt-out in his contract, believed to be March 27th (next Tuesday). As noted earlier in the week, Derek Falvey said that he only learned about Polanco’s suspension on Sunday morning so it was coincidental that the team signed Aybar to a minor league contract just less than a month ago. Falvey said that there were several reasons for signing Aybar including potential versatility. “We talked to Torii Hunter at one point around... one thing we’ve said all along is that we’re looking for leadership in guys, guys that can impact our younger guys. That goes back to last year on some of the guys we acquired. That goes to Addison Reed and Zack Duke and other guys. We had heard that Erick Aybar was somebody who could be a great leader around some of our young Latin players.” In his 12 year major league career, Erick Aybar has played a total of 1,337 games at shortstop, 55 games at second base, and 13 games at third base. Aybar has played around the infield throughout spring training including time at third base on Wednesday night. Molitor said, “”When he came into camp, we knew he would have to play around to see where he was at as far as being flexible on defense. He’s been open about it. Obviously he’s played a lot more short than anything else. He’s fine. I thought he made a nice play on a ball he knocked down and recovered tonight.” While Molitor admitted that it’s been tougher to get him playing time of later with starters getting more work, it appears that he and the front office are comfortable with what they’ve learned about Aybar this spring. “We’ve got a good idea, not only what we’ve seen but who he is and what he’s done. We’ll see how it all comes together.” Again, this situation does remain fluid pending an MLB decision on a potential Miguel Sano suspension. If nothing changes, it does appear that Sano would play third base with Escobar getting most of the shortstop innings. The Twins are prepared with contingency plans for the Sano situation. One would have to think that a suspension could move Escobar back over to third base with Ehire Adrianza moving in as the starting shortstop. Click here to view the article

The Minnesota Twins had made it through 24 days of their spring training game schedule. Although Ervin Santana needed surgery, the timeline looked favorable and the organization had seen no other hiccups. Free agents were being amassed in droves, and the 2017 Wild Card team looked like it was eyeing an opportunity to close the gap in the AL Central. Then it happened; March 18th came.If St. Patrick's Day is about luck, the day following saw Minnesota have next to none. Ervin Santana reportedly cannot yet make a fist, let alone grip a baseball. That reality puts a May 1 return to the mound in serious jeopardy. The bigger bomb came in the early evening however, as starting shortstop Jorge Polanco was popped with an 80-game suspension after testing positive for PEDs. When looking at the Twins 2018 outlook, it's unquestionably the loss of Polanco that impacts the club most. Despite suggesting he unknowingly ingested the banned substance Stanozolol (which coincidentally was the PED of choice for Santana back in 2015), the reality is he made a poor judgment in failing to fact check what a trainer in the Dominican may have handed him. Ideally there would've been a greater level of ownership, removing the "unknowingly" caveat, but he's decided to bypass an appeal and serve the suspension immediately. For the Twins and Paul Molitor, the question becomes where the club turns from here. As I profiled just last week, Polanco was set to become the first shortstop since Pedro Florimon (13/14) to start back-to-back Opening Days for Minnesota (and just the second since Cristian Guzman in 2004). Now, Molitor will likely turn the reins over to Eduardo Escobar, who last owned the job during the 2016 season. Escobar has played a solid utility role for the Minnesota Twins during his tenure following the swap that brought him over from the Chicago White Sox. The 1.6 fWAR a season ago was a nice rebound from the -0.6 fWAR he posted in 2016. The problem however, is that the negative number came with Escobar assuming the role of everyday shortstop. Across 579 innings at short in 2016, Escobar was worth -7 DRS (Defensive Runs Saved). Stretched out to a full season's worth of games (579 innings accounted for 66 starts), Escobar would be staring at a -17 DRS. Dating back to 2002 (where Fangraphs data begins), only 16 shortstops have posted a worse DRS over a full season. In fact, a -18 DRS was posted in 2012 by a 38-year-old Derek Jeter, just to provide a visual for what that may look like. In short, it's not much of a surprise why the Twins played Escobar at short in just 16 games a year ago, even with the emergence of Polanco. For Eduardo, his calling card with Minnesota has been and will continue to be his bat. His positional flexibility is relative, given that he can play many, but is below average (-5 DRS in 600+ innings at 3B in 2017) at all of them. Coming off a career best .758 OPS with 21 homers, it's hard not to like the idea of his bat getting more reps. What both Molitor and the front office will need to evaluate is whether or not the negative cost in the field is outweighed by the boost his bat brings. If not for Escobar, then Minnesota currently has three options. First would be secondary utility man, Ehire Adrianza. Profiled as relatively opposite to Escobar, Adrianza is slick with the glove and leaves something to be desired at the dish. Logging just over 200 innings at short for Minnesota last year, Adrianza was worth 1 DRS. His .707 OPS was a career best, and a massive jump from the .598 OPS he'd compiled across his first 145 career games. Having been used out of position some since joining Minnesota, Adrianza looked disinterested or lost at times while playing left field or even third base. Defensively, shortstop is his home, but his bat must prove worthy of consistent starts. Brought in as Miguel Sano insurance, veteran Erick Aybar is now all but guaranteed a 40-man roster spot with Minnesota. Barring a Sano suspension or injury to start the year, Aybar likely would've been looking for a new team. At 34 years old, Aybar is hardly a spring chicken, and he cuts the duo above somewhere down the middle. A .685 career OPS is reflective of a guy that's basically all average, with little boost from on-base or slugging skills. Unfortunately for him, 2015 is the last time his average was at .270 or above, and would need to be a relative baseline for acceptable production. With the glove, he's played at least 790 innings at short every season since 2009, but he's been no better than -3 DRS since 2012. Not the abomination Escobar is, but calling him slick with the glove would be a stretch as well. Rounding out the options for the Twins is a name that's not currently present. Nick Gordon isn't ready to fill in at the big league level on an every day basis yet (and there's valid concerns about him at SS anyway), and both Royce Lewis and Wander Javier are too far away. The "not currently present" designation would also need to apply to a player outside of the organization. Veteran J.J. Hardy is currently a free agent still (though he's arguably a worse option than any of the internal trio), and the trade market has any number of fits. For Derek Falvey and Thad Levine to explore that path however, it'd likely be a stopgap player with upside than some sort of drastic move that changes future projections. At the end of the day, my hope is that the Twins play it safe here. A lot of work has been done to increase the overall ability of the roster this season, and wavering too far on one side or the other could throw off a lineup or defense with an immense amount of talent. Escobar is a risk at a vital position, while Adrianza has all the makings of a rally killer. Start Erick Aybar, know what you've got, and inject both the utility men on a semi-regular basis. Escobar has thrived in that role before, and Adrianza was productive enough a year ago. It's not at all flashy, but if I'm Molitor, Aybar gives you the least opportunity to be exposed. Click here to view the article

Hi friends! We have a new show for you. Chargois, Odorizzi, Aybar, and LoMo are on the docket for Twins topics. We also brought in Sean to talk about Eric Hosmer going to SD (pukes everywhere) and what that means for the Royals going forward. Check out this show, and all other shows using the link below, or search "Twins And Losses Supershow" on iTunes, Google Play, Stitcher, and Pocket Casts. #TampaBayTwins https://www.spreaker.com/show/twins-and-losses-supershow

LaVelle E Neal from the Star Tribune is reporting that the Twins will sign shortstop Erick Aybar to a minor league contract. The veteran of 12 major league seasons will join the Twins at spring training soon. He'll compete with Ehire Adrianza for a utility infield spot or be the second utility man option for the time Miguel Sano is either on the disabled list or potentially suspended.Aybar debuted as a 22-year-old in 2006 with the Angels and remained in their organization through the 2015 season. He was an All-Star in 2014. He split 2016 between Atlanta and Detroit, and he played in 108 games for the Padres in 2017. There have been rumors (or guesses) that the Twins might be making a move because of the DFA of JT Chargois which opened up a 40-man roster spot. However, this is a minor league deal which doesn't - at least not yet - require addition to the 40-man. Erick Aybar is known for his defense at shortstop. In fact, he won a Gold Glove in 2011. He hit .234/.300/.348 (.648) with 15 doubles and seven home runs last year in San Diego. In his career, he has hit .271/.313/.372 (.684). The Dominican turned 34 in mid-January. More to come if details present themselves. Click here to view the article