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It was a big day for offense in the Twins minor league games. There were 11 players who had multiple-hit games for Twins affiliates. There was a game-winning home run by a big prospect in one game. One player that didn’t even start for his team on Friday night ended up with four hits and raised his batting average by .115 points. The big first baseman in Cedar Rapids had two extra-base hits and half of his team’s RBI. Of course, it isn’t all positive.One team was on the opposite end of the spectrum. Wander Javier did not play again on Friday. The first time he hurt his hamstring, he missed 16 days before playing two games. He re-aggravated the hamstring and has now not played again for two weeks.For the details of Friday in the Twins minor leagues, please continue reading. RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 8, Norfolk 6 Box Score Adam Brett Walker came through in the clutch for the Red Wings again. With the score tied at 6-6 in the bottom of the 8th Byung Ho Park recorded his first AAA double. Walker came up and belted his 17th home run of the season. It gave the Red Wings the lead and made them a winner. Walker led the Red Wings offense. He went 2-3 with a walk and his second triple to go with the home run. Darin Mastroianni was in the leadoff spot. He went 2-4 with two doubles and drove in two runs. Wilfredo Tovar went 2-3 with his 16th double. Logan Schafer went 2-4. Logan Darnell made his first start of the second half. The lefty gave up four runs on eight hits and a walk over just 3.2 innings. He struck out two as his ERA jumped to 3.53. Nick Greenwood came in and gave up one run on three hits over the next 2.1 innings. Sean Burnett threw an inning. He gave up an unearned run on two hits. Buddy Boshers gave up a hit and walked a batter in 0.2 innings. Alex Wimmers got the final out of the eighth inning and then three outs in the ninth to pick up the win. CHATTANOOGA CHATTER Chattanooga 2, Mobile 20 Box Score It happens to every team, and pretty much every year. Even the best teams have an absolute clunker. On Friday night, Chattanooga had one of those. Omar Bencomo made the start. He gave up five runs on seven hits and a walk in the first three innings. Ryan Eades came on, and he was charged with eight runs (six earned) on five hits and three walks. Luke Westphal came on and gave up seven runs (five earned) on eight hits and four walks. Jake Reed came on and got the final five outs, including two strikeouts. He gave up just one hit. The Lookouts didn’t have much offense either. They had just four hits. Dalton Hicks went 1-3 with a walk and his 20th double. Shannon Wilkerson went 1-3 with a walk and his eighth double. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 4, Tampa 3 (7 innings) Box Score The game was called on account of rain in the seventh inning. Fortunately, the Miracle were winning at the time. Randy LeBlanc had a quality start. He gave up three runs (two earned) on four hits over six innings. He walked one and struck out four. Offensively, the Miracle had just six hits. AJ Murray hit his sixth double. Joe Maloney drove in two runs with his fourth double. Logan Wade reached base twice without a hit. He walked and was hit by a pitch. He also stole a base. Nick Gordon added a single to extend his hitting streak to 10 games. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 6, Lake County 1 Box Score Dereck Rodriguez had another solid start, and in this one, he even got the win. He improved to 2-10. He had not been the winning pitcher in a game in two months. He gave up one run on six hits over the first six innings. He walked one and struck out four. Anthony McIver gave up one hit over two scoreless relief innings. Michael Cederoth got the final three outs to preserve the win. Zander Wiel led the Kernels offense. He went 2-3 with a walk, his 17th double and his eighth home run. The other three Kernels RBIs came from Luis Arraez who had an RBI in each of his first three plate appearances. Casey Scoggins led off and went 2-4 with a walk and his third double. Jermaine Palacios is now hitting .224 after going 2-3 with a walk and a hit-by-pitch in this game. Kevin Garcia went 2-4. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton 6, Danville 8 Box Score Roberto Gonzalez wasn’t even in the starting lineup on Friday night. For some reason (we’re looking into it), Luis Martinez left the game in the first inning and Gonzalez replaced him. He came into the game hitting just .111, but the powerful outfielder went 4-4 with two doubles and raised his average to .226. That’s the beauty of small sample sizes. Bryant Hayman had the big hit. He hit his first homer of the season and drove in three runs. Alex Kirilloff went 1-3 with a walk and his fifth double. Shane Carrier went 2-4. Tyler Wells made the start. He gave up four runs (two earned) on four hits over 3.2 innings. He walked three and struck out five. Quin Grogan came on and worked 2.1 hitless innings. He walked two and struck out three. Johan Quezada struggled. He gave up four runs (3 earned) on three hits and two walks and recorded just one out. Colton Davis got the final five outs, three of them on strikeouts. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 0, GCL Red Sox 3 Box Score Huascar Ynoa started again for the GCL Twins on Friday. The young right-hander gave up three runs on five hits over four innings. All three runs came in the second inning. Ynoa walked three and struck out four. Moises Gomez came on and threw two scoreless innings. He is yet to give up an earned run (and allowed just one unearned run) in 11.1 innings this season. Callan Pearce ran his scoreless inning streak to 10 with two more scoreless innings. He struck out three. Daniel Martinez pitched a clean ninth inning. Lean Marrero went 2-4 in this game. Jhon Alvarez hit his first double. Twins 2016 second-round picks Jose Miranda and Ben Rortvedt each went 1-3 with a walk. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Dereck Rodriguez, Cedar Rapids Kernels Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Roberto Gonzalez, Elizabethton Twins SATURDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Norfolk @ Rochester (5:05 CST) - LHP Andrew Albers Mobile @ Chattanooga (6:15 CST) - LHP Tyler Jay Ft. Myers @ Tampa (5:00 CST) - LHP Sam Clay Cedar Rapids @ Ft. Wayne (5:35 CST) – RHP Sam Gibbons Elizabethton @ Princeton (6:00 CST) - RHP Ryan Mason GCL Twins @ GCL Red Sox (9:00 am CST) - RHP Brady Anderson Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss Friday's games. Click here to view the article

Throughout the offseason, we have posted several Q&As with Twins minor league players in an attempt to help our readers get to know the people beyond the box scores and stat lines. Today, we have an interview with outfielder Roberto Gonzalez, a young player and a very good athlete.From the 2016 Minnesota Twins Prospect Handbook: “Scouting Report: The Twins selected Nick Gordon with the 5th overall pick in the 2014 draft out of high school in Orlando. The Twins didn’t draft another prep player until the 15th round when they took another great athlete, Roberto Gonzalez, from Orlando. Gordon called Gonzalez a great athlete and when asked if Gonzalez could be a five-tool talent, he immediately responded, “Oh yeah!” In 2014 in the GCL, Gonzalez played just 13 games before breaking his kneecap and missing the rest of the season. He is a hard worker. He has good speed and profiles more in the corner outfield. He is a good outfielder with a strong arm. He has a strong left-handed swing which could develop some power. Former Cardinals outfielder Oscar Taveras, who passed away in October of 2014, was a cousin of Gonzalez.” Recently, Gonzalez answered several questions for us. Continue reading to learn more about this very talented, young prospect in the Twins system. ------------------------------------------------------ Seth Stohs (SS): Growing up in Orlando, who was your favorite team to follow, and who were some of your favorite players? Roberto Gonzalez (RG): Growing up in Orlando was a big change for me, especially moving from New York when I was 7. While I was in Florida, my two favorite players to watch were Ken Griffey and Hanley Ramirez. I never really did have a team, but if I did have a team, it would probably be the Marlins because of Hanley. SS: What were some of your favorite high school memories, from baseball or other activities you were involved in? RG: Some of my favorite high school memories are when I had to travel for all the showcases and all of the workouts. It was a very humbling experience. Probably one of my favorite memories was hitting at Safeco Park and going to watch my very first Minnesota Twins game. SS: Drafted by the Twins in the 15th round in 2014. Is that about where you thought you might be selected coming into the draft? RG: I honestly thought I would go high, but to me it didn't matter. I just wanted to have an opportunity to play and show my talent. SS: What were your thoughts when you heard your name called by the Twins? RG: When I was drafted by the Twins, I had a lot of thoughts going through my head. It was so surreal when you hear your name being called no matter where you are in the rounds. You just have that huge weight lifted off of your shoulders, and I couldn't wait to get started. SS: You spent the end of your 2014 season rehabbing an injury. How frustrating was it for you to have signed and then not be able to play? RG: It was very frustrating. It was also more of a mental game than a physical game. Physically, I knew I would recover, but mentally it discourages you because you start to think how many at-bats you missed and also how many other opportunities you are missing out on. SS: What was the biggest adjustment you had to make, going from high school or amateur ball to the pro game? On or off the field? RG: There weren't any major adjustments, just probably being away from home for a long period of time without going back was the biggest adjustment I had to make. SS: How would you describe yourself as a player? What are your strengths at this time? RG: I would describe myself as a little of an undeveloped player. I have all the tools, I just need to put it together. My biggest strength is being able to put the ball in play. SS: What are the things that you feel you need to improve over the offseason and going forward? RG: There's not just one thing I need to improve. I need to improve on everything as a whole to continue to become a better baseball player. SS: How has your offseason been? (Have you started your baseball training, but also what do you enjoy doing away from the game of baseball?) RG: I never really had an offseason. Just because the game is over doesn't mean I don't need to continue working hard but the time I do spend off I spend it with family and my girlfriend enjoying the time that I do get to spend with them when I am home. SS: Can you talk a little bit about Oscar Taveras and the relationship the two of you had, and how he has impacted you on and off the field? RG: Oscar was like a role model to me. Whenever I had questions about the game or life in general, he was always there for me. Practicing with him, and just being around him, made me want to do so much better. Even if he is not here, I still can feel him here with me every step of the way. SS: Who are some of the coaches and others who have helped you get to this point in your career? RG: Mostly my parents got me to where I am. Also my neighbor Frank Fields, who gave me the best opportunity to meet Ken Griffey Jr. and learn from his ways as well. SS: Favorite Baseball Movie? RG: My favorite baseball movie would have to be The Sandlot with Squints and Wendy Peffercorn! That was one of my favorite parts of the movie. -------------------------------------------------------------- In a follow up, Roberto insists that he has not tried Squints’ move on Wendy Peffercorn. Gonzalez is likely to remain in extended spring training, but he should move up to Elizabethton when their season starts in June. Thank you very much to Roberto Gonzalez for taking time to answer our questions. Please feel free to comment or ask questions below. Click here to view the article

Over the weekend, I got to enjoy a couple GCL games of the GCL Minnesota Twins and GCL Boston Red Sox. Best part of these games are the closeness to the action you can get as well as VIPs lurking around. This weekend, Top Scout Mike Ratcliff was seen timing and evaluating the new talent. The following links are Youtube Videos that I took over the weekend of the prospects. The following are the pitching lines and charts for the 6/26/15 game, followed by video on Travis Blankenhorn, Trey Cabbage, Kerby Camacho, Lean Marrero, Brian Olson as well as pitcher Callan Pearce The Twins ended up losing the game 6-1 but the bullpen performed well. The following day, Saturday morning I caught the Red Sox vs Twins on Field One at the Twins' Centurylink Sports Complex. Williams Ramirez started the game off and went a strong 4 innings. Here the the pitcher's stat lines and pitch counts followed by video at bat compilation of Travis Blankenhorn, Trey Cabbage, Lewin Diaz, Roberto Gonzalez, and Bryant Hayman as well Rich Condeelis and Andrew Vasquez Here is the pitcher's stat line and pitch count: The Twins ended up losing Satuday's game 3-2 and was quite a pitcher's duel for the most part.

We hear the term "five tools" a lot, but few true five-tool talents exist in baseball. Byron Buxton certainly fits that category at this time. Nick Gordon is in that category. By the time those players get to the big leagues, will they still be considered five-tool guys, or four… maybe three? That is to be determined, of course. Today, I’m going to write about three young players who impressed me with their athleticism and talent. They aren’t household names, but who knows, maybe one or more of them will take a step forward in 2015.TYREE DAVIS Though he played shortstop through his career at Centennial High School in Compton, California, Tyree Davis moved to centerfield during his professional debut in 2014. Davis was the Twins 37th round pick in 2014. His high school team had serious potential and talent. According to Davis, one of his teammates “finished with a .600 batting average last year and stole 40 to 50 bases” and didn’t get drafted. Standing 6-2 and 185 pounds, Davis’s best tools are “my speed and defense are very strong right now.” He was clocked at 4.27 seconds from home to first a year ago. He is a switch hitter with a good approach at the plate and a smooth swing from both sides of the plate. In batting practice, he hit line drive after line drive from gap to gap, but he also has potential to add some power. His brother, Johnny Davis, is a minor leaguer in the Milwaukee Brewers farm system. In 2014, he played for the Wisconsin TimberRattlers in the Midwest League. Davis is young, and he is a raw athlete, learning more each day about the game of baseball. After signing in 2014, he played in the Gulf Coast League and hit just .087/.210/.146 with two doubles and two triples. Regarding his hopes for the 2015 season, the 19-year-old said, “This season I just want to show people that I can play better than I have in the past. Basically I want to make more contact than what I’ve recently made.” He will likely spend another summer with the Gulf Coast League Twins. ROBERTO GONZALEZ The Twins used their first-round pick in 2014 on Orlando’s Olympia High School shortstop Nick Gordon. They did not draft another high school player until the 15th round when then took another hitter from Orlando, outfielder Roberto Gonzalez from University High School. The two prep stars played against each other. When I talked to Gordon at Twins Fest, he said that Gonzalez was “a really great athlete.” When I asked if Gonzalez could be a five-tool talent, Gordon didn’t hesitate at all. He said, “Oh yeah! Oh yeah!” Like Davis and Gordon, Gonzalez has family ties in baseball. His cousin, on his father’s side, was Cardinals’ outfielder Oscar Tavares. Gonzalez was able to attend a few of Tavares’s games last year with the Cardinals, including some playoff games. He said that when he started hearing rumors about Tavares’s car accident, he called Oscar but got no answer. The family was devastated, and you can see that it is something that still affects Gonzalez. Gonzalez began his career with the GCL Twins. In just 13 games, he hit .233/.313/.302 (.615) with three doubles. He also stole four bases. Unfortunately, on a headfirst slide into second base, the shortstop landed on the back of his leg. His kneecap detached and had to be reconnected surgically with an OCD Repair. This spring, the just-turned-20-year-old is excited about spring training. Like Davis, he is likely to return to the GCL Twins after extended spring training. At 6-0 and about 200 pounds, Gonzalez runs well, though he’ll continue to gain speed as he gets further removed from his surgery. He has a strong left-handed swing and could develop more power in time. Whether he’ll hit for average will likely depend on whether he can develop a quicker swing. Defensively, he’s got good range and a very, very strong arm. In high school, he was clocked as high as 94 mph. As with Davis, Twins fans will need to be patient with Gonzalez. He has the tools that we all hope can become skills in time. EDGAR CORCINO The third possible five-tool athletic player is a little bit older than Davis and Gonzalez. Edgar Corcino is already 22-years-old. He was a 26th round draft pick in 2009 out of Puerto Rico by the Detroit Tigers. After spending three seasons in the Gulf Coast League, Corcino played all over for the Tigers in 2012. He played mostly for West Michigan (Midwest League) and Lakeland (Florida State League), but also got time in AAA Toledo. He didn’t hit much (.198/.271/.329) that year and was released. He has spent the last two seasons playing for Rockford of the independent Frontier League – the league from which the Twins have also signed RHP DJ Johnson and LHP Jose Velez in the last nine months. In 186 games over two seasons, he hit .294/.355/.452 (.807) with 30 doubles, 12 triples and 19 home runs. He also stole 19 bases. Watching him in minor league spring training, you can see his extreme athleticism. He was primarily playing left field, though he could certainly play center field too. In the past, he has played most of the infield positions as well. He is a switch-hitter with a good swing from each side. Though he is more of a speed guy, he’s got good strength and can definitely hit for extra base power. Speaking of the speed, from my observations, he was one of the fastest players in the system. In the offseason, he worked out in the same group as his good friend, JO Berrios. The Twins pitching prospect said that Corcino is a “very good athlete, very fast and strong. He works really, really hard.” Berrios continued, “He is an even better person than baseball player.” Corcino will likely need to make the Cedar Rapids roster to stick around, but with his work ethic and athleticism, it’s worth taking the chance. Tyree Davis, Roberto Gonzalez and Edgar Corcino were three great athletes I saw at Twins minor league spring training. Each has tremendous talent and athleticism, but they will need a lot of time and patience. That said, athleticism is a good place to start. Hopefully over time their great tools will become great baseball skills. Click here to view the article

The Twins were on the road again on Saturday. They made the trip to Bradenton to play the Pirates and got a win. I spent the full day over at the minor league practice. In fact, if you follow Twins Daily on Twitter or “Like” Twins Daily on Facebook, you can see that a LOT of pictures (probably 500) were taken of minor league players whom you have seen in box scores or the Twins Daily minor league reports each day through the season, but now you can put a face to them. I’ve been asked on numerous occasions what happens in a day at minor league camp. They definitely put in some work. Here is an approximation of a daily schedule as well as some of my observations. I included a few minor league notes at the end as well.There are 55 rooms in the new dormitory at the Twins complex, with two players in each room. Most of the younger players stay there. Some of the more veteran players or some of the guys who think they’ll play for the Miracle this season will find a place to live off-site. At the dorms, they are able to eat breakfast. At about 9 a.m., they will generally have a meeting to discuss the day’s practice. Before Friday’s first official practice, all of the minor leaguers and staff met in the new auditorium to go through things they would need to know. At around 9:30, the players will come out onto the fields. The pitchers will all go to one field and the hitters will go to the area that includes Perry’s Hill. The strength and conditioning coordinators go through a series of stretching exercises as well as some short jogging, just to loosen up. They have weights and stretchy bands as well as some devices that are essentially shake weights. They definitely get a full body stretch and a small workout to get everything ready for a full day of practice. When they’re done, the players split into four work groups. Work Group 1 is the most veteran group with a lot of players who will spend the season at AA or AAA. Work Group 4 is a lot of the guy who will likely begin the season in extended spring training. The hitters go to a field and usually start with some base running work. They’ll run from home to first, through the bag. They’ll start at first and work on their cross-over steps to steal second. They’ll go first to third. Finally they’ll go second to home. They’ll maybe do each thing a couple of times. At that point, the infielders break into ground ball drills. They put them through every situation imaginable, throwing to first and throwing to second. They’ll spend 10 minutes just working on backhands. The middle infielders will work with each other on flips, or giving each other a good target for a double play. You will see a coach with a fungo standing by third base, hitting line drives and one or two hoppers at the first basemen so that they can work on stretching and scooping baseballs. Pitchers will get ground balls shot out of a pitching machine to work on their reactions and hands. They make it a competition to keep it enjoyable. On their days, pitchers will throw their bullpens. They’ll work from the windup and from the stretch. As the spring wears on, those bullpen sessions will likely become more intense and pitchers will be working on more things. At the end of each pitcher’s bullpen, he and his catcher will meet in the middle, shake hands and talk for a minute about what they saw. Outfielders may be in the batting cages taking swings. At some point in the morning, they get that pitching machine and launch fly balls from it positioned near the left field line to the outfielders who are standing in centerfield. They will make them come forward or go backwards. It’s all about repetition and getting to see the ball in the air. Pitchers fielding practice (PFP) is something that we hear about all of the time. On Friday, the pitchers worked on it on all three fields. Infielders will help with it as well. The pitchers need to do a variety of things in preparation for what could happen during the season: Covering first base on a grounder to the first baseman.Fielding a bunt to each the first or third base line.Fielding grounders straight back to them.Communicating with the first baseman on grounders that way that maybe the pitcher can field.Finding a ball that is near the mound and calmly throwing to first base.Getting a ground ball and throwing to second base for a force out, or maybe even a double play.Fielding a bunt down the third base line and throwing to third.Pick off throws to first, second or even third base. I’m certain that I left out some of the scenarios. They go through some I hadn’t even thought of and yet that scenario may come up during the course of the season. In fact, on Saturday, they worked on where to go to back up a play if they have picked off a runner from one of the bases, starting with how to run toward them and make the runner commit to a base. It’s really amazing to watch the precision of a minor league practice with four work groups on five fields. They have stations. They have certain things that they need to do and they get them done. On Saturday before lunch, all of the pitchers had to do the shuttle run. Mini-cones were placed 25 yards from each other. A group of six to eight pitchers will get on the line and do six down and backs, about 300 yards. They are timed and the times are recorded. Most finish between 53 and 60 seconds. A few get between 61 and 65. And then after each of the groups does it once, they get to do it a second time. A few of them maintain their mid-50s time, but most are closer to 60 the second time and a few more trickle to just above 60 seconds. It’s actually kind of impressive. The players generally have lunch for about 30 to 45 minutes. At that point, the hitters come out and they take batting practice on three fields. They get a lot of swings. There was even a bunting station on each field where three or four guys would rotate just to work on bunting. It is an impressive showing of efficient use of the field. Pitchers generally will be shagging fly balls throughout this time. On Friday, they hit until about 2:00. At that point, the hitters went over to the area to do their two shuttle runs. You can tell the catchers, but again, the times were typically between 55 and 60 seconds. There were several that trickled over 60 seconds, but for the most part, they did well. When you watch it, the players are generally doing something. However, in the Florida heat, I also think they do a good job of mixing coaching with executing. In other words, not only do they take ground balls or work on different plays, but they will spend a lot of time huddling in a group to discuss what they will be doing and why. If a coach sees something that a guy should work on, he'll work with him right away, or hit him another ground ball so that he can continue to learn. They are encouraged to get water frequently. The players are on the field from basically 9:30 until 2:30 with a 30 to 45 minute lunch, but they are well taken care of and each field has one athletic trainer around in case there is a need. If you get a chance to spend a day watching a full Twins minor league practice during spring training, I would encourage it. Again, I am amazed by the efficiency. They are able to keep somewhere around 140 baseball players busy, but more important, they are coaching them up at every opportunity. I'm certain that I didn't cover it all. There is so much going on. Here are a couple of quick notes: I talked to Luke Bard for a little while. As you know, he had surgery last May and it is expected to be a 12 month recovery. As I’ve written before, once they found the issue, they were amazed that he was able to throw at all. As he said, a lot of really good doctors missed it. Bard said he feels good and is on track to this point. He’s such a good person that you want to see him get healthy and see what he can do. Reports from teammates when he was able to pitch were that he had some really nasty stuff.I also talked to David Hurlbut, a left-handed starting pitcher who was named to the Florida State League All-Star team in 2014. He didn’t pitch from that point forward and was rehabbing throughout the offseason. He told me that he kept having bullpens and thinking he was good and then he wouldn’t be able to pitch again for a couple of weeks. He did say that the last couple of weeks, he has felt very good. He’s now doing bullpens and involved in all activities with the hope to be ready for opening day.Jason Kanzler shaved the mustache for photo day. I actually felt bad. I was chatting with outfielder Zach Granite between fields, and Kanzler walked by on his way to another field. I had to do a double take. We chatted later and Kanzler said, “Yeah, didn’t think you knew it was me.” I agreed and said that I had to do a double-take just to believe that it was him.There is a belief that flame-thrower Brandon Poulson has a chance to be really good, dominating someday as a pitcher. Though he is 25 years old, he hasn’t played a lot of baseball. He’s 6-4, 240 pounds and as Tom Powers of the Pioneer Press wrote today, he has just 8% body fat. Right now, he has trouble with this control, and the Twins will be patient with him. Why? Because he has little problem hitting 98 mph with his fastball. If it takes him a couple of years to gather his control and maybe a second or third pitch, and he could get to the big leagues at 28 years old with a 98 to 101 mph fastball, then it’s all worth it. I know you were wondering the same thing I was, but they were able to get THEOFANOPOULUS on the back of a Twins jersey. Three guys to keep an eye on for years down the road, possibly, are outfielders Roberto Gonzalez, Tyree Davis and Edgar Corcino. All three fit the profile of athlete. They are all very fast. They all have good strength and they’re all baseball guys. Obviously they’re all young and a long way from big league ready, but if you’re looking for some names of sleepers in the low levels, those guys could be very interesting.One thing I’ve noticed in watching so many bullpens the last couple of days: The Twins have a lot of pitchers that throw pretty hard. I know they’re not completely airing it out in the first bullpen sessions, and I’m not necessarily seeing their best secondary pitches either, but it’s very clear that there is more velocity.On Saturday, the Twins are on the road again, this time across the state in Jupiter, so I’ll be at the minor league facilities again. As you can see, I really enjoy this and I hope that passion comes through when you read me write about the Twins minor league system and the players in it. There really is a lot of talent. Then consider that some of their top prospects are still over in the major league camp and that talent pool just continues to grow. Nick Nelson will be arriving in Ft. Myers later this afternoon, so look forward to his terrific writing the next week or so. He and I will both cover the Twins on Sunday, so be sure to check back often. Click here to view the article

19-year-old Nick Gordon, the Twins first-round draft pick last June out of high school in Orlando, Florida, made the trek north to Minneapolis last weekend for Twins Fest. The talented, young shortstop debuted at Elizabethton in 2014 and played well. Coupling immense talent with his poise and maturity make him one to watch in 2015!Of course, it takes more than maturity to be drafted as high as Gordon was (5th overall) as a high school kid. It takes a ton of talent. Gordon is currently a four-tool talent though many believe that over time he will also add the ability to hit for power and become a five-tool player. Twins Minor League Director Brad Steil pointed out in the Minnesota Twins Prospect Handbook 2015 why the Twins brass decided to have him skip the Gulf Coast League completely and spend his entire season at Elizabethton. “With the maturity and skill level we saw from him in high school, we thought he’d be able to compete at that level and handle any adversity. He was probably more prepared for pro ball than most high school players, having been around it most of his life because of his dad and brother.” The Twins have not had a high school player jump straight to Elizabethton after the draft since 2004 when Trevor Plouffe did that. Before him, Joe Mauer hit .400 in Elizabethton after signing with the Twins after being the first overall pick in 2001. Asked this weekend how having a father (Tom) and a brother (Dee) with big league experience has helped him out, Nick responded by saying he’s learned a lot from each of them. “It’s always great. You know, my dad played for 21 seasons. He knows the game. He’s been around it. My brother as well. Going to them, they know all the ropes. They know everything I’m going through because they’ve been through it all already. They’re always there for me.” Gordon held his own against many players significantly older than he is. Many players in the Appalachian League have three or four years of college under their belt, or they have been in pro ball for one to three years already. In 57 games, he hit .294/.333/.364 (.699) with six doubles, four triples and a home run. He stole 11 bases. In 49 games at shortstop, he had just eight errors and posted a .964 fielding percentage. These numbers don’t jump out, but they are impressive when put in the context of his age and experience relative to the league. Unfortunately, in the season’s final game, he was jammed by a pitch and broke a finger. Asked how his finger is now, Gordon said, “Finger was OK after a couple weeks. I got back after it. It kind of bothered me a little bit, but now it’s just baseball.” So what was the biggest adjustment for him to professional baseball? One might think that adjusting to wood bats, especially coming out of high school could be difficult, but Gordon said that wasn’t the biggest adjustment for him. “In the summer, all we used was wood bats in Florida. We played baseball all year around, so that’s the great thing about playing in Florida, we were constantly using wood bats.” He continued, “It’s just mainly playing every day. Coming from high school, you played every other day. That was the biggest adjustment for me. Once I got it, after about a month or two, it felt good. It felt like I was in the swing of things.” He now has his first pro experience under his belt and says that his offseason has been very good. “I’ve just been working out, trying to put on some weight, and stay fast. Stay to my game. I’m loving the process.” His goal for 2015 is pretty simple and yet his offseason work is an attempt to help him achieve his goal, to “stay healthy. That (added) weight is important. You have to be physically ready. Playing close to 100 games a year, you’ve got to be ready to go. I’m ready to get out there and I’ve been working on conditioning.” In an interview with 1500 ESPN over the weekend, Gordon said that one of his favorite players (non-relative category) growing up was Derek Jeter. It wasn’t just for his great talent, but he admired his leadership. Gordon hopes that he can be a similar type of player. “I know I can go out there, and I know I can play. It’s just about competing and making myself and my teammates better.” The Twins selected Gordon in the first round. They did not draft another high school player until the 15th round when they drafted an outfielder named Roberto Gonzalez, another Orlando native. Gordon went to Olympia high school in Orlando while Gonzalez went to University high school. “Yeah, I played against him in high school. We always played against each other. Mostly in the summer though.” Gordon was asked to describe Gonzalez and said, “He’s a really good athlete.” When I asked if Gonzalez could be a five-tool talent, without hesitation, Gordon said, “Oh yeah! Oh yeah!” Twins Fest was not Gordon’s first trip to Target Field. After being drafted last summer, he came to Target Field to sign his contract. His thoughts on the stadium? “It’s beautiful. Even with the snow on the field.” He certainly seemed to enjoy his Twins Fest experience. “It’s amazing. It’s nice meeting the people. It’s nice coming out here where people are so excited about baseball. It’s great to get out here and meet the fans and have fun with the kids and interact.” Asked if there were any players he was excited to meet last weekend, Gordon said, “I look up to pretty much all these guys. I talk to (Byron) Buxton a lot, and he’s a really good guy. I kind of look to him a lot. And Torii Hunter, I watched him when I was growing up.” Next up for Gordon, he’ll head to Ft. Myers in early March to go to his first spring training. “I’m ready for it. I can’t wait to get there.” After seeing all the fans at Twins Fest and the atmosphere there, I think it’s fair to say that we all can’t wait. Nick Gordon is one player that fans will be watching and monitoring over the next several years. He’s got a world of talent and the potential to be an impact player for a long time. Those who spoke with him continue to speak of his great maturity, attitude and poise. It’s no wonder that the Twins scouts, and scouts from every team, liked him so much. Click here to view the article

After a busy week last week with the Minnesota Twins naming their new manager, we are returning to our look at the Twins organizational depth chart. This week, we’ll be reviewing the outfielders throughout the system. Since there are nearly fifty outfielders, I am going to split it into two parts. Today, I’ll look at that outfield depth in the Twins four lowest affiliates; Dominican League Twins, GCL Twins, Elizabethton Twins and the Cedar Rapids Kernels. Later this week, I’ll discuss the players in the upper levels.Coming Soon - The Minnesota Twins Prospect Handbook 2015 will be available soon here at Twins Daily. In it, there will be much more detailed prospect profiles and much more.> Dominican Summer League Down in the DSL, there were six players that got significant time in the outfield. Looking at the statistics in the lowest levels can be quite fruitless, but it’s always interesting to get to know the names. A couple of these players could wind up coming to the States and playing in the GCL or even Elizabethton in 2015 or beyond. Francisco Hernandez led the DSL team with 31 games in centerfield. He was 18-years-old this year and in 42 games he hit .210/.369/.210. At 5-10 and 160 pounds he has very little power (no extra-base hits) and had just seven stolen bases. 18-year-old Antonio Tovar spent his second season in the DSL in 2014. The 6-0, 195 pounder was the leader in games played in left field with 32, though he played 26 games in centerfield as well. He hit .253/.381/.335 (.716) with six doubles and five triples. After going 12-13 in stolen base attempts in 2013, he went just 9-20 in 2014. He walked 41 times and struck out 35 times. Junior Amarante turned 19 before the 2014 season started. It was his third season with the DSL Twins and by far his best. He played 31 games in right field and eight games in left. He hit .287/.383/.337 (.720) with five doubles and two triples. He was also 22 of 24 in stolen base attempts. He is 5-11 and 185 pounds. Edgar Herrera is a 17-year-old from Venezuela. He played 26 games in right field and 13 games in left field. At 6-0 and 170 pounds, he hit .259/.361/.302 with two doubles and two triples. He walked 23 times and struck out 23 times, as well. Jorge Parra is 6-0 and 176 pounds. In his second DSL season, he played in 52 games and hit .260/.356/.345 (.700). He added nine doubles and three home runs. He played 19 games in left field and 15 more in right field. Luis Martinez was an 18-year-old in his first DSL season. He played in 23 games and hit .328/.443/.414 (.857) with three doubles and a home run. He also stole 14 bases and walked as much as he struck out. He played 15 games in centerfield and one in right. Gulf Coast League Tyree Davis was the Twins 37th round draft pick in 2014. The now-19-year-old played 36 games in centerfield for the GCL Twins. In 38 total games, he hit just .087/.210/.146 (.356). He went 9-103, but he had two doubles and two triples. He is a great athlete, a five-tool athlete. The graduate of Centennial High School in Compton, California, is looking to become the school’s 11th major league player and the first since Lonnie Smith retired in 1994. At 6-3 he has a lot of power potential. Amaurys Minier was the Twins top international signing in 2012. He debuted in the GCL in 2013 and went back to the GCL in 2014. He had offseason shoulder surgery, and he moved from third base to left field where he started 34 games. In 53 games, he hit .292/.405/.520 (.925) with 11 doubles, two triples and eight home runs. At 6-2 and 190 pounds, he has terrific power. He also spent a lot of time at first base. Frank Encarnacion led the GCL in games played at right field with 16, though he also played seven in left field. After a year in the DSL, he moved to the States where he played in 26 games and hit .198/.244/.235 (.479) with three doubles. 19-year-old Roberto Gonzalez is another five-tool outfielder whom the Twins drafted in 2014 (15th round) out of Orlando. He played in just 13 games due to knee surgery. In 43 at-bats, he hit .233/.313/.302 (.615) with three doubles. At 6-0 and 195 pounds, he has very good speed and a lot of power potential. He stole four bases in five attempts. He will need to be able to make more contact. Rafael Valera came to the States in 2014 after two seasons in the DSL. He played in 47 games for the GCL Twins, but he also had a couple of stints (and three games played) in Ft. Myers. With the GCL, he played eight games in right field solely and three games in right and left. He also played around the infield. He hit .254/.370/.341 (.710) with eight doubles and two triples. After four seasons in the Dominican Summer League, 21-year-old Dubal Baez finally got to move to the States. He played 40 games in the GCL and hit .281/.351/.331 (.681) with six doubles. He played 18 games in centerfield, 11 games in right field and nine games in right field. After a season in the DSL, Ariel Montesino hit .165/.233/.220 (.454) with four doubles and a triple. He also stole 10 bases. He played 13 games in left field and 10 games in right. He turned 19 since the end of the season. Elizabethton Twins Max Murphy was the Twins ninth round pick in 2014 out of Bradley. The 21-year-old Minnesotan was the Appalachian League Player of the Year and spent only 35 games with the E-Twins, but he hit .378/.483/.723 (1.206) with seven doubles, two triples and ten home runs. He then played 32 more games with the Cedar Rapids Kernels where he hit .242/.314/.395 (.709) with seven doubles and four home runs. Combined, he played 35 games in centerfield, 20 games in left field and six games in right. Tanner English was the Twins 11th round pick in 2014 out of South Carolina. He played in 32 games for the E-Twins and hit .316/.439/.474 (.913) with five doubles, two triples and three homers. He was also five for six in stolen base attempts. Despite being just 5-10 and 160 pounds, he is far from a slap-hitter. All 26 games he played defense, he played in centerfield. Austin Diemer was the Twins 26th round out of Cal State Fullerton. He played 37 games in centerfield for Elizabethton and another 18 games in left field. In 55 games, he hit .227/.305/.286 (.591) with six doubles and two homers. He stole ten bases. Jeremias Pineda spent most of the 2013 season with the Cedar Rapids Kernels, minus his 50-game suspension. He began 2014 in Cedar Rapids, but he was sent back down to Elizabethton where he played 58 of his 73 games. In all, he hit .224/.301/.295 (.597) with six doubles, four triples and two homers. He has good speed and stole 27 bases in 34 attempts. Trey Vavra was the Twins 33rd round pick in 2014 out of Florida Southern. He primarily played first base for the E-Twins, but he also played 13 games in left field. He hit .319/.392/.454 (.846) with 20 doubles, a triple and a home run. Cedar Rapids Kernels JD Williams advanced to Ft. Myers in the second half of 2013, but a spring training broken thumb and rehab sent him back to the Kernels. He played 52 games in left field. In 75 games total, he hit .245/.330/.383 (.713) with 19 doubles, four triples and three homers. The 23-year-old will need to get to Ft. Myers to start 2015. Zach Granite began the season in Cedar Rapids, but unfortunately the centerfielder missed time with two injuries and played in just 21 games with the Kernels. The 21-year-old hit .291/.321/.367 (.689) with two doubles and two triples for the Kernels. He is very fast and has the skill set to be a good leadoff hitter. Zach Larson began the season as the Kernels right fielder. The 20-year-old hit .265/.325/.358 (.683) with 11 doubles and a homer. Unfortunately, he dealt with a hamstring issue most of the rest of the season. Despite being a 20th round draft pick out of high school in 2012, he is a very good hitting prospect. Chad Christensen primarily played first base for the Kernels, but the versatile athlete also played 20 games in left field, ten games in right field and six games in center. The 24-year-old was the Twins 25th round pick in 2013 out of the University of Nebraska. In 127 games total with the Kernels, he hit .272/.339/.404 (.744) with 24 doubles, seven triples, nine home runs, 73 RBI, 84 runs scored and 30 stolen bases. Alex Swim had almost solely been a catcher until mid-June when he came up to the Kernels. He went on a hot streak and then he was moved out to right field to keep his bat in the lineup. He played 46 games in right field. In 63 total games, he hit .311/.352/.349 with nine doubles. SUMMARY In Part 2 of the outfield depth chart later this week, we’ll discuss players who are closer to the big leagues. However, Part 1 does show a lot of players with some big-time potential. A few have the potential to be great. Of course, at the low levels, the odds are markedly against them. Amaurys Minier and Zach Larson are arguably the two top prospects in this list. Players like Max Murphy, Chad Christensen and Tanner English have the opportunity to advance after strong showings. Players like Tyree Davis and Roberto Gonzalez have a long way to go, but they are two players that legitimately have five tools. Click here to view the article