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My first Twins game was May 30, 1994 when the Twins took on the Seattle Mariners. As a kid, I was excited to be at my first big league game but it's fun to look back on the caliber of players in both line-ups. Future Hall of Famers Kirby Puckett, Randy Johnson, and Dave Winfield all played in the game.Two other members of that Mariners team are prominently featured on this year's Hall of Fame ballot, Ken Griffey Jr. and Edgar Martinez. Griffey is in his first year of eligibility and he will be enshrined this year with close to 100% of the vote. Martinez has been on multiple ballots but he doesn't get as much support since he played the majority of his career at designated hitter. Besides Griffey's almost assured enshrinement, there will likely be others to join him in Cooperstown this summer. Here's a look at the 2016 Hall of Fame Ballot in three different categories: the Class of 2016, Future Inductions, and May Never Get In (But Still On My Ballot). Class of 2016 Jeff Bagwell: It's going to be close but I think Bagwell gets just over 75% of the vote needed to get into the Hall of Fame. There are some who have questioned his candidacy because he was a big power hitter in the midst of the steroids era. Bagwell is tied with Ty Cobb for third most seasons with a .420+OBP, .540+ SLG, and 15+ stolen bases. Only Ed Delahanty and Barry Bonds are higher on the list. Ken Griffey Jr: The only question surrounding Griffey is whether or not he will be listed on 100% of the ballots. There has never been a Hall of Famer listed on 100% of the ballots and that trend will likely continue this year. Griffey battled through numerous injuries in his career, otherwise he might be considered the greatest player in the history of the game. His tremendous defense in center field and his sweet swing at the plate make him a hands down pick for the class of 2016. Mike Piazza: He may go down as the best hitting catcher of all time and this should be enough to get him in on his fourth time on the ballot. Much like Bagwell, there have been some who haven't voted for him because of him being a power hitter in the steroid era. I think he makes it in this year and does it pretty easily. If Bagwell falls short, this year's class might only include Griffey and Piazza. Future Inductions Tim Raines: Raines continues to gain steam in recent years and I think he falls just short on this year's ballot which will set him up for election in 2017, his last year on the ballot. He is one of the best leadoff hitters ever. He is fifth in stolen bases, 13th in stolen base percentage, and 41st in win probability added. He will need a 20 percent increase from last year's ballot and that might be too much to do in one year. Curt Schilling: Schilling is one of the most dominant postseason pitchers of all time and the longevity of his career should help his case. He has received under 40% of the vote in each of his three years on the ballot but he should see a big jump this season. It will likely take a few more years but he should get in at some point. Trevor Hoffman: For a few seasons, he held the all-time record for career saves before being passed by Mariano Rivera. Even as a relief pitcher, he finished second in the Cy Young voting twice and had two other top six finishes. He was the first pitcher to reach 500 saves and one of two players to have reached the 600 save mark. Relief pitchers have a tough time getting in but he was a trailblazer at the position. May Never Get In (But Still On My Ballot) Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Edgar Martinez, Mike Mussina Even though they are two of the best players of all time, Bonds and Clemens have the cloud of steroids surrounding their candidacies. Martinez was a designated hitter and it seems like the voters are holding that against him even though he has strong numbers as a power hitter. Mussina was a good pitcher for a long time but he won't get enough support and he was the last name on my ballot. Others on the ballot: Garret Anderson, Brad Ausmus, Luis Castillo, David Eckstein, Jim Edmonds, Nomar Garciaparra, Troy Glaus, Mark Grudzielanek, Mike Hampton, Jason Kendall, Jeff Kent, Mike Lowell, Fred McGriff, Mark McGwire, Gary Sheffield, Lee Smith, Sammy Sosa, Mike Sweeney, Alan Trammel, Billy Wagner, Larry Walker, Randy Winn So who do you think gets in? Who else should have been on my ballot? Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. Click here to view the article

Last week, amid concerns that 25-year-old Twins pitching prospect Alex Meyer is too old to still be in the minors, I researched all major league starting pitchers since 1980 who were within an inch of Meyer's towering 6' 9" frame. Turns out their average debut age was 25 years old. I also found something I didn't expect.There weren't a lot of pitchers with high strikeout numbers. That surprised me because when one thinks of tall pitchers, one focuses on the best tall pitcher: Randy Johnson, who ranks second all-time in strikeouts. The pitchers were: Mike Smithson (6’ 8”), who debuted in 1982 as a 27-year-old, Randy Johnson (6’ 10”), who debuted in 1988 as a 24-year-old, Eric Hillman (6’ 10”), who debuted in 1992 as a 26-year-old, Mark Hendrickson (6’ 9”), who debuted in 2002 as a 28-year-old, Chris Young (6' 10"), who debuted in 2004 as a 25-year-old, Chris Volstad (6' 8"), who debuted in 2008 as a 21-year-old, Jeff Niemann (6' 9"), who debuted in 2008 as a 25-year-old and Doug Fister (6' 8"), who debuted in 2014 as a 25-year-old. Looking at their minor league records, Smithson, Hendrickson, Volstad and Hillman all had very mediocre strikeout rates, with the highest at 6.2. Fister’s was only 6.70, though he might end up being the second most valuable starting pitcher on this list. He was fairly effective when he debuted at 25 years old, but it wasn’t until he was traded to Detroit as a 27-year-old that he ratcheted up his control and started posting sub-4.00 ERAs. Meyer, on the other hand, has a 10.4 K/9 in his minor league career. That’s higher than even Randy Johnson had in the minors. The only other pitchers with a rate above mediocre are Chris Young (7.4 K/9) and Jeff Niemann (8.9 K/9). Young debuted as a 25-year-old, was decent as a 26-year-old, and looked like a future star as a 27-year-old. But his career was derailed shortly thereafter by multiple injuries and three surgeries, including facial reconstruction from a hit to the face and two independent shoulder surgeries. He is a great “what if?” (Thanks to Thrylos for helping research this.) But Meyer, who has been shut down each season due to a sore shoulder, reminds me most of Niemann. Niemann was drafted fourth overall and, as the Rays then were apt to do, signed to a major league contract. That’s significant because that meant he was on the 40-man roster and his three option years were needed as he worked his way through the minors. Niemann posted some outstanding numbers in the minors, but also suffered from shoulder and groin injuries, including an offseason shoulder surgery. He made a brief appearance in the majors in 2008 but was promoted to the club for good in 2009 as a 26-year-old, because he was out of options. He had a good rookie year and started well the next year, but faded badly as the season went on due to shoulder and back problems. The next two years were decent, but both were marred by injuries; he made just 31 starts over the two seasons. In his fifth year, he was battling for a job in spring training as a 30-year-old in the Rays rotation when they discovered that he had to undergo shoulder surgery. He hasn’t pitched in the minors or majors since. So to recap, Niemann was "rushed" to The Bigs as a 26-year-old. His career lasted a little over four years. He started less than 100 games. His overall record was 40-26 with a 4.08 ERA. Meyer and the Twins have a luxury that Niemann and the Rays did not; Meyer's demotion this year will only use the first of his three options. He won't need to be promoted for good until he is 28 years old. And as for caring for his shoulder, it's easier to limit and care for a pitcher who is out of he glare of the bright lights of The Show. It could also be, like Johnson, he's going to need some additional time to work through his control issues. Meyer posted a 4.4 BB/9 rate in Rochester last year, which is about 50% worse than average in the majors. At the beginning of this year, that rate is much worse, with a walk rate over 8 per nine innings. And, of course, it's likely to get worse in the majors. But he has three more years to work through those issues in Rochester if he needs them, without starting his service time clock. It may be that delaying his debut in the majors hurts his prospect ranking, but it's not clear that it hurts his long-term development. A look at other tall pitchers reveal that they often need extra time to harness their control and need to be cautious about with their workload to avoid injuries. Those areas should be the focus, not their age. if you would like to know more details about how this list of pitchers was assembled, see Part 1 of this story. Thanks to Thrylos, Hosken Bombo Disco, Jokin, 70charger & Kevin for their assistance in researching this study. Click here to view the article

Last month, when Twins pitching prospect Alex Meyer was taken off of the spring training roster, I asked Twins Manager Paul Molitor if the fact that Meyer is 25 years old and hasn’t reached the majors yet was a concern. “Not to me,” replied Molitor. “Just different people at different times. Sometimes different body types take a little longer to fix issues like [mechanics], too. He’s got a lot of time to be really good.”Meyer has a “different body type” in that he’s 6’ 9”. Tall pitchers are generally viewed as both a blessing and curse. Their height can result in more leverage, higher velocity and different angles to which the hitter must adjust. But they also tend to struggle with their mechanics and thus, their control, which Meyer did in the spring training start before he was sent down and again yesterday. Could this mean that taller pitchers tend to develop later than other pitchers? Since 1980, there are only eight 6'8" or taller pitchers who have had at least 30 major league starts and were primarily used as starting pitchers for their career. Here’s the list: Mike Smithson (6’ 8”) debuted in 1982 as a 27-year-oldRandy Johnson (6’ 10”) debuted in 1988 as a 24-year-oldEric Hillman (6’ 10”) debuted in 1992 as a 26-year-oldMark Hendrickson (6’ 9”) debuted in 2002 as a 28-year-oldChris Young debuted in 20014 as a 25-year-oldChris Volstad debuted in 2008 as a 21-year-oldJeff Niemann debuted in 2008 as a 25-year-oldDoug Fister debuted in 2014 as a 25-year-oldThe average age of those guys at their debut is a little over 25-years old. Of course, there are a lot of factors for when a player makes their debut beyond “Are they ready?” The rotation's relative strength, the hype of the prospect and how many options the prospect have can all play a part. We think of talk pitchers as strikeout machines, like Randy Johnson, whose career strikeout rate was 10.1 K/9. (Read that last statistic again.) Johnson’s not only in the Hall of Fame, he ranks second all time in strikeouts. But it’s worth noting that he was a late bloomer. Not only did he not debut until he was 24 years old, he was still posting walk rates in the majors over 6 BB/9(!) through his age 27 season. He didn’t become the ace everyone remembers until he was 28. And then he pitched until he was 45. “A lot of time to be really good” indeed. Johnson should also be given credit for transforming the way baseball treated tall pitchers. In the 88 years before he debuted, there had only been three pitchers with 30 or more starts who were 6’ 8”, and none that were taller. In the 26 years after, there have been seven. But they are not all strikeout machines. In fact, most of them are not. Part two will look at each of our tall pitchers a little more in-depth, looking for pitchers that also compare to Alex Meyer's minor league strikeout rate. Thanks to Thrylos, Hosken Bombo Disco, Jokin, 70charger & Kevin for their assistance in researching this study. Click here to view the article

Not to be too harsh, but if you're reading this and have not made time to geek out at spring training, you might want to re-evaluate the path your life is following. I don't think I'm overstating this. This is a red flag. This is an intervention. This is a cathartic episode. Do you want to know if you should be going to spring training? Here's the litmus test: do you read Twins Daily? If you do, then you should be going to spring training.It's everything you want it to be. It's warm. It's having both road and away games within driving distance, every day. It is peeks of minor leaguers and up close access to major leaguers. It is watching Byron Buxton glide into a triple and Tom Kelly feeding fungoes and encouragement to Kenny Vargas about ten yards away. It is new ballparks. It's hot dogs on the grill, and cold beer on a grass lawn overlooking left field. It is mist off the Gulf and dew on the grass. And all of these are only tastes; let me get you the main course. It's an extra month of baseball at exactly the time at which you want an extra month of baseball. The human spirit needs baseball in March. (This truth is multiplied ten-fold for those who have experienced a Minnesota winter.) The spirit needs to unburden itself of the triple layer of fleece it is under and take flight. It needs to soak up a mixture of Vitamin D and Hope, more potent than anything Walter White could have cooked up. Spring training is fuel. It is depth. It is color. It is Mecca, worthy of a pilgrimage, and if that's how you need to frame it in your mind to overcome the stasis in which you're imprisoned, then start pilgriming. If you can't make it in the next two weeks, use that time to start booking next year's trip. Get that PTO on the office calendar and start researching flights or condos or whatever. Don't be the 98% who read this and put it off. Here's why: As you get older, you're going to start recognizing that life is shorter than you thought. And that's because it is. It certainly is for you. You're closer to your death than you have ever been and it's time you started taking that s*** seriously. Find a way to free yourself and get to spring training. This is why you are alive. ---- In manager Paul Molitor's postgame talk today, there was understandably a lot of talk about Alex Meyer, who was demoted to the minor league camp this morning. The issue that is mentioned by detractors regarding Meyer is his age, as he's already 25 years old. Molitor was asked if Meyer's age raised any concerns. "Not for me," replied Molitor. "Sometimes different body types take a little longer to fix issues like that. He's got a lot of time to be really good." The "body type" reference is likely in regard to Meyer's 6'9" frame. There was an interesting discussion in the forums in the story about Meyer's demotion where I wondered out loud if it takes taller pitches longer to gain a requisite level of consistency and control. So tonight I looked up Randy Johnson's career. Johnson didn't debut in the majors until he was .... 25 years old. His strikeout rate was rather pedestrian until he was 27. And he had a walk rate that was 6+ BB/9(!) in his 27 and 28-year-old seasons. He didn't really become the Big Unit until he was 29, at which point he had accumulated more than four years of service time. That comparison can be looked at either way. On the one hand, it might show how big guys blossom late. Or it might show that pitchers who could be elite need to be able to work their craft and make adjustments in the majors. But at the very least, it seems to demonstrate that age might not be a big concern for large pitchers. In fact, it makes me question why we ever thought it was. -------- An underrated aspect of any vacation: picking out the cheap sunglasses you're going to wear for the duration. Will you go for the Top Gun fighter, or Joel Goodson's Ray Bans, or maybe the sporty volleyball player wrap arounds? Who are you going to be this week? It's some of the best $20 you can spend on vacation. The ones I picked were labeled "Player". Damn straight. #47YearOldDad -------- I know you're waiting for the Hammond (now CenturyLink) Stadium beer report, so here goes: Bud products rule the most taps, and they aren't even the real craft brews like Goose Island or Red Hook; it's mostly Shocktop and Longboard. But the Twins have done a nice job finding room for a wide variety of other beers if you look. First, Yuengling Lager is everywhere (one of the underrated aspects of Florida) and also their Black & Tan is in the stands behind first base. Across the aisle from it, you can find a Fat Tire kiosk, and the right field line has a similar kiosk with English import ales. Leinie's is easily found in a few places and I heard that Summit Pilsner is available, though I didn't find it. But if you really want to find some local craft brews go to the bar next to the right field foul pole, where you'll find Blue Point, Sweet Water and Jai Alai IPA all on tap. Finally, I'd be remiss to not mention that a new stand down the right field foul line has beer milkshakes. They include three flavors and the Young's Double Chocolate Stout was recommended highly by a friend of Thrylos, so that is happening at some point this week, diet or no. Click here to view the article

Yesterday, we looked at one candidate for the Minnesota Twins’ fifth starter job out of spring training, Mike Pelfrey. Today, we continue this series by looking at another candidate. He’s the tallest candidate, but he also has the biggest fastball and the most devastating slider. Can Alex Meyer stake claim to a spot in the Minnesota Twins starting rotation on Opening Day?The Background Alex Meyer was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 20th round of the 2008 MLB Draft. He was offered $2 million but chose to go pitch at the University of Kentucky. Three years later, he received that $2 million bonus anyway. He was drafted by the Nationals with their first round pick, the 23rd overall pick, seven picks before the Twins took Levi Michael. The Nationals had him start in Low-A where he made 18 starts before moving up to High-A for seven more starts. Following the season, the Twins acquired the right-hander in a deal that sent Denard Span to the Nationals. In 2013, he made 13 starts for New Britain (in which he struck out 84 batters in 70 innings). Unfortunately, he felt some shoulder discomfort and pitched only in rehab the rest of the season. He went to the Arizona Fall League where he made seven starts to get more work. It was clear that the Twins had one main goal for Alex Meyer in 2014: to keep him healthy through the season, and they were successful. He moved up to Rochester and made 27 starts. He went 7-7 with a 3.52 ERA and a 1.38 WHIP. In 130.1 innings, he struck out 153 (10.6 per nine), but he also walked 64 (4.4 per nine). Following the season, Meyer was added to the Twins 40-man roster. The Hope The Twins last had a true #1, ace starting pitcher in 2008 when Johan Santana was still with the team. Yes, Francisco Liriano had an ace-like season in 2010, but he was unable to show any consistency from year to year, much less month to month. When the Twins acquired Meyer, he immediately gave Twins fans a hope for a future ace, whether that was fair or not. Meyer is blessed with good pitches. He has a fastball that sits between 95 and 98 and has even hit triple-digits a few times. He is known to have a devastating slider. With his height, he is able to release his pitches just a little bit closer to the plate which makes it jump on hitters. He has an improving, though still inconsistent changeup. He credited Rochester teammate Yohan Pino for helping him with that pitch. We love strikeouts. Missed bats are exciting. We don’t want quick outs. We want strikeouts. One thing that Alex Meyer can do is get strikeouts. In 2012, he struck out 9.7 per nine. In 2013, he struck out 11.0 per nine innings. In 2014, he averaged 10.6 strikeouts per nine innings in AAA. The Concerns Walks will haunt, right? After walking 3.1 per nine in 2012 and 3.4 per nine in 2013, Meyer walked 4.4 per nine inning at Rochester in 2014. Baseball people often say that for tall pitchers it is more difficult and takes longer to find a consistent release point for their pitches. There are many such examples. In an interview on 1500ESPN at Twins Fest, Meyer was asked about that theory. He said that he is fully aware of it, but he finds it to just be an excuse for not throwing strikes. That’s a very responsible, accountable response to the theory. Regardless, for Meyer to be an effective starting pitcher in the big leagues, he is going to have to harness and control his terrific stuff. Moving up the baseball ladder means facing hitters who are generally more patient and don’t swing at as many pitches outside the zone. Big league hitters will make him throw strikes. One concern is that Meyer, because of the number of walks and strikeouts, needs to throw a lot of pitches. He frequently was able to only go five innings or less because he was at 85 to 100 pitches by that point. In 11 of his starts, he failed to get an out in the sixth inning. The Twins have a rule that if a pitcher throws more than 30 pitches in an inning, he will not come out for the next inning. That is a pretty standard rule across baseball. He had a three-start stretch in mid-June where he couldn’t get to the fourth inning because of pitch count. He followed that with a stretch of five straight games in which he went exactly six innings, something he did just one more time over his final eight starts. That leads to many people wondering if he wouldn’t best be served working out of the bullpen, something he would not be against. However, the goal at this time remains for him to be a starter, and hopefully a frontline starter. More Hope and Unfair Comps If he does not win the fifth starter job, it is possible that Meyer could begin his career as a bullpen arm. That is how the Twins eased Johan Santana onto the roster (obviously under different – Rule 5 – circumstances), and he turned out well. Meyer could replace Anthony Swarzak as a long reliever and work three to five innings when necessary. Of course, he could also go to the back-end of the bullpen and be a more dominant set-up man. He pitched an inning in relief for Team USA in the Futures Game at Target Field in 2014. Many want to compare Meyer to 6-10 Randy Johnson who was just voted into the Hall of Fame last month. He debuted as a 24 year old in 1988 with the Expos. In 1989, he pitched 160.2 innings between Montreal and Seattle and walked 5.4 batters per nine innings while striking out just 7.3 per nine. He then led the league in walks from 1990 through 1992. He finally put it all together in his age-29 season of 1993. He cut his walks in half and became an annual Cy Young candidate, winning five awards and finishing second three more times. It’s fun to compare what Meyer could be to what Randy Johnson was. Is it fair? I don’t know. Comparing a prospect with zero big league innings to a Hall of Famer is fine, as long as fans realize that that result is pretty rare. In other words, patience is a must for Meyer, the Twins and Twins fans. So many look at the fact that he turned 25 in January and think that he’s now too old to be a prospect. People really need to stop that. The guy has immense talent, but he does still have things to work on. If he is called up by midseason, he’s still up at 25 and can have a strong career for 12 to 15 years. The Twins need to not listen to any of that and do what is in the player’s best short- and long-term interest. Meyer Percentage So, if I were to guess the odds that Alex Meyer begins the season as the Twins fifth starter, I would probably put the odds at close to 10%. I think there is a slightly better chance that he starts the season in the Twins bullpen, just due to numbers. If he begins the year in Rochester, this would allow him to work as a starter, getting more innings, working in, and hopefully out of, more situations and continuing to work on his third and fourth pitches. Either way, I have little doubt that he will be up in the big leagues before June, whether it is due to injury or ineffectiveness in the rotation or in the bullpen. When Jeremy and I asked Meyer in November what his goals are for 2015, the pensive Meyer responded by saying, “Every year I’ve set goals, and this year I won’t. I want to let them come to me. I don’t want to set any expectations because you never know what can happen. I’m going to go out there, wherever they send me, whether it’s Minnesota, Rochester, or in Cedar Rapids. I just want to go out there and pitch as well as I can, continue to get better as a pitcher, and whenever the big leagues calls, you want to make sure you’re ready. I just want to go out there and throw as well as I can. I just hope I can help the team sometime during the year, whether it’s from Game 1 in April or whenever that time would be.” Click here to view the article

This year was going to be tough. The writers of the BBWAA have to narrow a stacked ballot down to the ten most worthy names. There are going to be some worthy candidates who aren't elected and some might even fall off the ballot. That's what happens when writers are limited in how many names they can have on the ballot.I am a member of the Baseball Bloggers Alliance and a different approach was taken this year to avoid the roster crunch. Members were asked to make a simple "Yes" or "No" vote in relation to every man on the ballot. The results for my ballot were 13 names but I will pick out the top 10 names I would have put on my ballot had I been limited to that number. My official ballot (in alphabetical order) Jeff BagwellCraig BiggioBarry BondsRoger ClemensRandy JohnsonEdgar MartinezPedro MartinezMike PiazzaTim RainesJohn SmoltzIt seems likely that a minimum of three players will be elected when the official results are announced on Tuesday afternoon. (Update: they've been announced.) Johnson and (Pedro) Martinez are first -time nominees and should both be locks as inductees. Biggio came painfully close last year and he should be able to pick up the necessary votes to be enshrined this year. Bagwell could get closer and Raines should get a bump but I don't know if either will have enough support. As I've said in previous years, it is clear that Bonds and Clemens were on their way to Hall-of- Fame careers before their steroid use. Piazza is the best hitting catcher of all time and he deserves to be in. Smoltz was a great starting pitcher and a great closer. (Edgar) Martinez was one of the best hitters of his era and a trailblazer at the designated hitter position. My other "Yes" Votes Mike MussinaCurt SchillingAlan TrammellMussina won more games during his playing career than any pitcher besides Greg Maddux, an inductee last year. Mussina hasn't had a ton of support but his candidacy will start to gather steam in the years to come. Schilling is one of the best postseason starting pitchers of all-time and he is the all-time leader in strike/walk ratio. I didn't have enough spots on my ballot this year but I suspect Schilling will be elected in the next handful of years. Trammell is in his final year on the ballot and I became more convinced of his place in history over the last year. He won't get elected this year but somewhere down the line he could be added through the Veteran's Committee. Now it's your turn. Leave a COMMENT and start the discussion. Who would be on your ballot? Should the writers be able to vote for more than ten players? For more from Cody Christie make sure to follow him on Twitter @NoDakTwinsFan and to read his other work at http://www.NoDakTwinsFan.com Click here to view the article