All good things must come to a end. Oswaldo Arcia has been demoted back down to AAA today, after the one-hitter thrown by Anaibal Sanchez. During his a little over a months stay in the Major leagues, he hit .263 an OPS. Of .372 (4th best on the team might i add) along with 4 home runs and 14 RBIs. Much better then any other Twins rookie or second year player.


Yet he gets demoted back down to the minors only because the Twins are in desperate need of pitching. In which P.J. Walters will take his spot on the 25-man roster and will start sometime this weekend.


In my personal opioion Arica is deserving of a spot on the Major League roster. Obviously out performing players such as Dozier, Parmelee, Hicks and florimon. Respectively I do understand that Arcia is a outfielder and some of the players mentioned above are infielders, I am simply making a statement for Arica to stay in the majors while suggesting to have Florimon demoted inorder to bring Arcia back up and have Escobar take him over at short.


In summery, Arica should not only get back to the Majors soon but should stay there as well. Because if the past can tell us anything he will destroy AAA as he did in AA and high A. Leaving the Twins no choice but to promote him once again, in hopes of getting back to .500.

Origanlly posted in NorthagensBaseball.blogspot.com

After consecutive 95+ loss seasons where the Twins were easily one of the worst teams in either league, they break out a (current) 10-game losing streak in May of 2013, one in which they are repeatedly pummeled early in the game. An announcer said not only have the Twins allowed the most runs in the 1st inning, but that the runs allowed in the 1st are the most runs allowed in any inning by any team in baseball in 2013. Think about that: right when you take the field to get a good start, you perform worse than any team in baseball in any inning. Incredible.

In games where they grab significant leads, like 6-0 over Baltimore, 2 and 3 run leads against Chicago, Detroit and Atlanta, they find a way to lose. Usually, pitching, but also, increasingly, dumb plays, bloop hits, sloppy throws, poor defense. When your are a bad baseball team, it isn't hard to invent new ways to lose.

But really, it comes down to this: Is Gardenhire's contract going to be renewed? And really, the answer has to be "No" at this point. Not after the last two years. If Gardy could turn things around, he would have at this point. He follows up two unacceptably bad years with a 10-game losing streak and effectively relegated the last four months of the season to meaningless baseball games.

And the real issue is this: If Gardy is not going to be renewed then what are the Twins accomplishing by keeping him as manager? Are the players going to try harder because they know Gardy won't be around next year? Are they going to listen closer and try to learn from him? Are they going to even care what he says -- knowing that he won't be here? And, is that the kind of atmosphere you want in the clubhouse, a dead man walking and no one able to face the bald truth that the team is rudderless, the organization incapable of making a managerial move because.... because why?

I'm not a Gardy hater. I really don't care who the manager is as long as they play well and make games fun and interesting. But once the answer becomes Gardy isn't the guy going forward, then the question has to be: Why is he still the manager right now? Is this the right thing for what comes next?

Only a dysfunctional organization clings to the past when it's clear the future lies in a new direction. To renew Gardenhire at this point would be pathetic. He's had a good run -- though it needs to always be remembered how poorly the Twins played in the post-season under Gardy. It doesn't mean he's hated or a lousy manager. It just means it's time for a change. And when it's this clear that change is coming -- then there is no reason for it not to happen sooner rather than later. Like yesterday.

If seeing this makes you not watch tonight's Twins game, you can thank me later.

Ain't no sunshine when the Twins are on
It's not warm when they play
Ain't no sunshine when the Twins are on
And they've been gone for way too long
I'm not sure they know how to play.

One a less depressing note...

Transaction round-up for today:

Rochester fills the spot vacated by Deduno by activating #FreeAnthonySlama. If Anthony Slama was a cat, he'd be on his last life. The Red Wings will also need to create a roster spot to make room for recently-optioned Oswaldo Arcia.

Last night, the Miracle activated RP Chad Rodgers and DL'd Kyle Davies. The issue, per the team, is a right shoulder impingement. Davies was placed on the DL nearly two years ago with the same issue. If LL Cool J was a Miracle fan, I don't think he'd be calling this a comeback.

The Kernels activated Tyler Jones and sent Josh Burris back to EST.

To the farm we go...Rochester Red Wings 2, Charlotte Knights 4Box Score

The Twins and Red Wings essentially swapped pitchers for the day and the Red Wings pitcher, Pedro Hernandez, had a better performance than Samuel Deduno did for the Twins.

Hernandez managed to start off the game with five shutout innings before running into trouble in the 7th. He finished with 6.2 innings and four runs (three earned) on nine hits and a walk. He struck out seven. It will be interesting, going forward, to see if the Twins have Hernandez shifted to a bullpen role, though tonight's start was plenty encouraging.

Luis Perdomo blew a save, even though he wasn't charged with any runs.

Chris Herrmann had two hits and a stolen base. Clete Thomas hit a solo home run. Thomas returned last night after missing two weeks with a groin injury. That injury probably kept Aaron Hicks in the major leagues.

Kyle Gibson (3-5, 3.25) will look to bring some consistency to the mound tomorrow at 7:05 ET.

New Britain Rock Cats vs New Hampshire Fisher Cats

The game was suspended in the middle of the fourth with the Fisher Cats leading 3 to 2. The game will be completed at 5:05 ET and game two will begin at 7:05 ET with Pat Dean (1-5, 6.25) on the hill.

Fort Myers Miracle 6, Charlotte Stone Crabs 5
Box Score

Full disclosure: I'm a little embarrassed that I never realized - until this very moment - that there were two affiliated baseball teams from "Charlotte". I realize that they are two franchises in two different states, but I'm shocked that I have never gotten the two confused. Weird.

Kennys "Big Spoon" Vargas hit his 9th home run of the season. It was described as a mammoth shot. He also hit a walk-off sacrifice fly to secure the win. (FYI - I'm trying to get the Big Spoon nickname to stick because I watched him play last year in Beloit with someone (bigger than I) who shall remain nameless and had a Grade A Mancrush on Vargas. I'm sure you can connect the remaining dots.)


Big Spoon

Current Seth mancrush, Aderlin Mejia, had four hits to improve his batting average to .400. Angel Morales was 2-for-2 plus two walks. (New Britain, please.) Miguel Sano had two hits, including a run-producing dboule. Stephen Wickens added two hits.

Jason Wheeler worked a solid six innings. He scattered 10 hits and two walks, only allowing two earned runs (four total) while striking out four.

Zack Jones blew the save for the Miracle by giving up three walks and a hit in the ninth inning. He also struck out two and picked up the win when the Miracle won on a walk-off.

Cedar Rapids Kernels 4, Beloit Snappers 5
Box Score

The Kernels were swept by the Snappers and their five game lead in the Western Division has been cut to two games. Pohlman Field continues to scream "Home Field Advantage!"

Tyler Duffey gave up five runs in five innings. He struck out four and walked two. The bullpen combo of Steven Gruver and Tim Atherton combined to pitch three scoreless.

Offensively, everybody contributed with hits, but the team was only able to string them together enough to get four runs. Byron Buxton had one hit (.318). Jorge Polanco is batting .311. Niko Goodrum and Adam Walker both had two hits. Tyler Grimes had a triple.

Candido Pimentel (9), Buxton (22) and Goodrum (4) all had stolen bases.

Jose Berrios (3-1, 2.86) takes the ball at 6:35 for the Kernels tomorrow night.

Feel free to post your questions and/or comments below.

Aaannnddd... shameless self-promotion, I'll be making my radio debut (and maybe my last appearance ever, if I suck) on the Gleeman and the Geek radio show this Sunday to talk any and all things draft. So you may also mock and ridicule me in the comments below, if necessary.

Originally posted at Kevin Slowey was Framed!

If you are interested, I have recaps from 1998 and 1999 as well. Just click on the years and you will be transported to a wonderful new world filled with bad jokes, silly puns and petty insults aimed at baseball players far superior to me.

Here is my 2000 draft recap:

Welcome to the new millennium!!!!!! Do you remember the Willennium?

In 1999, the Twins finally added B.J. Garbe to their system. Coming off that massive high, the Twins had the second overall pick in 2000 and had to be pumping their collective fists and raising their collective roof. The Twins also had a second first-round pick, for reasons we will get to shortly. After two straight disappointing first rounds in 1998 and 1999, the Twins had to get that second overall pick right. Did they?

1st Round Picks

Sadly, no. The Twins selected Adam Johnson, a right-handed starter out of Cal State Fullerton. Johnson had previously been drafted by the Twins in 1997, but did not sign. Elephants and Twins' scouts never forget, so when given another chance to land Johnson, they jumped. Johnson flopped. He only appeared in nine games and posted an ERA over ten. At least he has a unique name.

But wait! The Twins were awarded another first (and a second for that matter) when Mike Trombley signed with the Orioles in the prior off-season. Mike Trombley was worth not one, but two picks! Wild. The Twins drafted Aaron Heilman out of Notre Dame, but he chose to go back to school instead of signing with the Twins. Outstanding.

Ah, but what if?

What if Johnson decided to be an accountant while in college? More appropriately, what if Johnson had signed three years prior? If he was already safely in the system, perhaps the Twins would have drafted a position player. Chase Utley was the 15th overall pick and I love Chase Utley. Imagine having Utley in the lineup for the last decade or so. I know he gets hurt a lot, but he certainly would have made the team a lot better. Adam Wainwright was drafted two picks prior to Heilman and I choose to believe that the Twins wanted him all along. If you believe, anything can be true.

Best Player Drafted

Kubes! I was actually surprised that Jason Kubel was drafted in the 12th round. I always assumed he was a second-round pick. I guess I just fail to see all 1s. Kubel's career WAR is just above six, which seems very low. He doesn't get much credit for his baserunning or defense. He has been an above average offensive player each year and was on a path to stardom before a nasty knee injury changed that path. He was a personal favorite of mine, and I fondly remember that game when he blasted a grand slam to complete the cycle against the Angels.

Worst Player to Reach MLB

Adam Johnson! Of course Adam Johnson! The answer to every "worst pitcher" question is Adam Johnson.

The One Who Got Away

Paul Maholm was the Twins' 17th-round pick but did not sign. I was never very impressed with Maholm when he pitched for Pittsburgh, but he has been pretty good for the Braves since they acquired him. I think the Twins would love to have a guy like Maholm right about now.

Best Name

Tagg Bozied again, just as it was in the 1997 recap. Oh yeah, the Twins drafted him twice too, this time in the second round!

Fun Facts

• The Twins drafted Johnson and Bozied a combined four times and received -1.1 WAR for their troubles.
• The Twins used their second-round Trombley pick on J.D. "The Real Deal" Durbin. I am all for having personality. In fact, I'd probably give myself an obnoxious nickname too. But, you gotta back it up too. Durbin was still kicking around independent baseball last year, but hasn't thrown an MLB pitch since 2007.
• Adam Johnson debuted roughly one year after being drafted. He pitched his final MLB game on my 12th birthday, going one third of an inning, giving up six hits and six earned runs. He did get Carlos Pena to pop out.
• I've totally met Twins' 20th-round pick T.J. Prunty. Jealous?
• Fifth-round pick Edgardo Lebron is of no relation to NBA star LeBron James, as they have completely different names.
• Seriously, Mike Trombley was worth two picks!

All those drafted who made it to the Bigs

Paul Maholm, Jason Kubel, Aaron Heilman, Daniel Davidson, Jason Miller, J.D. Durbin, Josh Rabe, and Adam Johnson

One Sentence Summary

Adam Johnson (while making the head-shaking motion).

Link to the Twins' 2000 draft from Baseball Reference

This is a very well done Kernels Promo. It would make me want to go to a game or two. That being said - I wondered what are some of the other affiliate promos out there? Post your teams promo link and lets see what affiliate does the best job of creating a buzz. What are your opinions on the following promos?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1YEToICXAKY
Come Out and See the Kernels

Also posted at wgom.org

Willy Miranda (1926)
Todd Rizzo (1971)

Infielder Guillermo (Perez) “Willy” Miranda did not play for the Twins, but was in their minor league system in 1961 at the end of his career. He was born in Velasco, Cuba and signed with Washington as a free agent in 1948. He was in the Washington farm system through 1951, spending three of those four seasons at AA Chattanooga. He did not hit much, averaging around .240, but got about six weeks in the majors as a reserve in 1951, going 4-for-9 in sparing use. He made the big leagues for good in 1952, although he moved around for a while. Washington traded him to the White Sox after the 1951 season, the White Sox traded him to the Browns in mid-June, the Browns put him on waivers two weeks later and he was selected by the White Sox again, he was traded back to the Browns after the 1952 season, he was sold to the Yankees in mid-June of 1953, and he was traded to the former Browns, now the Baltimore Orioles, after the 1954 season (the latter trade involved seventeen players, the largest swap between two teams in baseball history). He was a reserve in those years, known as a slick fielder, as tremendous with the glove as he was awful with the bat (many contemporaries proclaimed him the best-fielding shortstop they’d ever seen, while at the plate one manager said that “his weakness is pitched balls.”) The Orioles made him their regular shortstop in 1955, and he responded with his best offensive season. He still only hit .255 with no power, but it was enough for him to retain the shortstop job in 1956. He dropped to .217 that year, however, and his days as a regular were over. He stayed with the Orioles as a reserve through the 1959 season, but was traded to the Dodgers in mid-March of 1960. He spent the season in AAA and then found his way to the Minnesota system, playing at AAA Syracuse in 1961. He hit pretty much as he always had, majors or minors: .230/.307/.295 in 278 at-bats. That brought his playing career to an end. For his major league career, Willy Miranda hit .221/.282/.271 in 1,914 at-bats over nine seasons. After his career ended, Miranda moved back to Baltimore. Willy Miranda passed away from lung cancer on September 7, 1966.


Left-hander Todd Michael Rizzo did not play for the Twins, but was in their farm system in 2000. He was born in Media, Pennsylvania, went to high school in Concordville, Pennsylvania, and signed with the Dodgers as a free agent in 1992. He pitched in A ball for them that season, but did not do much and was released in June of 1993. He pitched in the Texas-Louisiana League in 1994 and caught the attention of the White Sox, who signed him for the 1995 season. Used exclusively in relief, he climbed the ladder at a pace of a level a season, posting good ERAs with high WHIPs. He was in AAA in 1997 and started 1998 in the majors. The Sox appear to have tried to use him as a LOOGY, but in a small sample size left-handers absolutely murdered him (11-for-19) while he did okay against righties (5-for-20). He went 0-0, 13.50 in 6.2 innings spread over nine appearances, which sounds worse than it was as all the runs scored on him came in three of the nine outings. Still, he was back in the minors by the end of April. He stayed there most of the rest of his career, getting one more brief shot at the majors for a week in July of 1999 with similar results. He became a free agent after the season and signed with Minnesota. Rizzo was with AAA Salt Lake all of the 2000 season, going 6-4, 3.39, 1.44 WHIP in 72.1 innings (62 appearances). He moved on after the season, pitching in the Dodgers’ and Giants’ organizations in 2001 and then playing for Camden in the independent Atlantic League from 2002-2006 with the exception of a stint in the Baltimore system in 2003. At last report, Todd Rizzo was an instructor for The Hit Doctor in the Philadelphia area. He’s also still pitching, as he led Wayne to the finals of the Delco Baseball League, an amateur baseball league in Delaware County, Pennsylvania.

It was a rough week for the Twins with nine straight losses. The club hasn't won a game since May 13th. Two fifths of the starting rotation was replaced including sending down Opening Day starter Vance Worley. Even on a night where Josh Willingham hits two home runs, the club still can't find a way to win.

Minnesota does have two of the best team's in all of the minor leagues. This can make it fun to dream about the future. Miguel Sano and Byron Buxton could turn into monster MLB players. The Twins will also have a chance to add another very good player when they have the fourth pick in the upcoming MLB Draft.

It was a busy week here at NoDak Twins Fan. Make sure to check out all of my posts and some of the other great work from around the web.

• Oswaldo Arcia hasn't been playing and some recent struggles are to blame for his benching.
• Maybe it is just a case of adjustment period for Arcia.
• I've liked Travis Harrison since the Twins took him in the draft. This Q&A will help you to get to know him a little better.
• Much like the MLB club, the Twins Double-A affiliate has fallen on some hard times. This link is worth a click just to see the picture.
• World Baseball Classic hero Sam Deduno is back in the rotation for the Twins. There will be walks, a few strikeouts, and hopefully some good defense behind him.
• The Twins have been telling the media that Kyle Gibson is staying in the minor leagues to find consistency but is the same standard being held for other pitchers.
• Is there a possibility that Aaron Hicks is improving?
• This Twins fan is keeping a close eye on his alcohol intake. Is it one of the best uses of a stadium promo ever?
• What happened to Vance Worley?
• According to Baseball America, the Twins have the top prospect tandem.
• The Twins Memorial Day jersey's look pretty cool.
• The Twitter feeds for the Twins and the Braves had quite the battle this week.
• Chris Colabello might be baseball's ultimate underdog.
• In 1997, the Twins drafted some very familiar names.
• If you were wondering, the Twins rotation has gotten worse.
• I was watching Seinfeld earlier this week and the kid behind the counter at the movie store was wearing a familiar baseball cap.
• MLB.com has quite the sense of humor when it comes to their error pages.
• The University of Cincinnati's baseball team has taken photobombing to an entirely new level.
• An employee at a Houston Astros game did something really gross this week.
• A rookie catcher for the Braves made a big mistake in a game against the Twins.
• Nick Punto is still making web gem gold in LA.
• A former member of the Twins organization is trying to revive his career after some drug problems.
• Nick Blackburn was very close to the devastating tornado in Oklahoma this week.
• The Royals broadcast sure screwed up a graphic this week. See if you can find all of the errors.
• The Orioles welcomed Kevin Gausman to the majors with lots of donuts.
• What if baseball had five bases?
• I had a dream this week that Francisco Liriano was 3-0 with a 1.00 ERA. Oh wait...

My Weekly Rundown

• Monday: Talk to Contact: Episode 38
• Who is Caleb Thielbar?
• Tuesday: Soul Patrol: Back with a Vengeance
• Wednesday: Who is Chris Colabello?
• Twins Minor League Report (5/22): O-fer Kind of Night
• Thursday: Twins MLB Draft Profile: Clint Frazier, OF

Video of the Week: Byron Buxton is already getting local sports media attention and he's still multiple levels away from the big leagues. His tremendous start in Cedar Rapids makes it look like the Twins made the right decision with the second overall pick in last year's draft. His interview skills might need a little improvement but his play on the baseball field is superior to the competition.

Figuring hitters out, a baseball lifer told me recently, is like trying to untangle a giant knot.

At first you just try to attack it in the easiest manner possible. If that does not work, you pick another course. And then another and another. You keep trying different things until something gives and you attack that spot until the knot becomes and unraveled mess of string with a sub-.200 batting average and a ticket back to Triple-A.

That, in short, is how teams approach players who are new to the league. Pitchers go right after hitters until the method proves fruitless. Then they start pitching away. Or they pitch up. They change speeds. Or they feed them breaking balls until they go cross-eyed. Meanwhile, the good hitters – the Joe Mauers’ of the world – adjust with the pitcher. They take that pitch on the outer-half to the opposite field. They lay off the high ones. They wait on the breaking ball. Those less experienced may fall right into the game plan of the other team.

Take Danny Valencia and Brian Dozier, for instance. Both of those players enjoyed immediate success but fell apart as teams began to exploit their tendencies to pull everything. Valencia has hit .234/.274/.365 since that exciting rookie season while Dozier is a career .226/.265/.319 hitting in almost 500 plate appearances. Chris Parmelee enjoyed his month of September back in 2011 but has been a pile of yarn in the batters’ box ever since, hitting just .218/.284/.351.

This brings me to the latest hot-hitting young Twin, Oswaldo Arcia.
Arcia began the month of May with an 8-game hitting streak. Within that stretch, he hit .438 with four doubles, a triple and a home run. That performance, spread out across three series, undoubtedly had advanced scouts saying “uh-oh, we’ve got to deal with this.”

In a USA Today article, Bob Johnson, an advanced scout for the Braves who the Twins just finished burning them hardcore on Twitter getting swept out of the south, explained a bit about his technique:

"I'm looking for tendencies," he explains. "If a guy sets his hands at a different position on different counts. I want to know his stance. Does he close up? Is he an open-style hitter? Does he dive into the pitch? … I first check his hands, then his feet. Then I check where his head goes on certain pitches."

{snip}

Back at the hotel, he writes up reports on the game and then emails them to the team's video coordinator, who compiles the various streams of research. The team's manager and staff will ultimately share the information with the players to help them prepare for future match-ups.

What advanced scouts saw with Arcia, is a hitter who has a great ability to keep his hands inside his swing and plenty of his power is generated that way. He is a hitter who has no trouble going to all fields, in fact he has hit the ball the opposite way (37% of balls in play) more than he has pulled it (31%). Teams realize that they need to get him to move his hands away from his body which requires avoiding pitching him middle-in.

The assumption may be that he is seeing fewer fastballs but the reality is he is seeing roughly the same number of fastballs, just fewer of those for strikes. Take a look at this animation of his swing on fastballs from the beginning of his season to when his hitting streak ended compared to his past 10 games.

Notice the cluster of fastballs near the heart of the plate in the first series and the lack of anything there in the second series.

The amount of in-zone pitches Arcia has seen has shrank significantly (his in-zone pitch percentage is 46%, well below the near 50% mark and has been at 39% the past two weeks). Arcia, so far, has not been the type of hitter in his professional career who takes walks. He is a power hitter who is ready to swing (his 54% swing rate is also well above the MLB average of 46%).

During the Atlanta series, Ron Gardenhire held Arcia out of the lineup, saying that the rookie was “misfiring” at the plate. True, the above numbers indicate that he is pressing hard at the plate with little to show in the past few weeks. Plus, his ninth inning pinch hitting appearance which resulted in a foul out to end the game was a prime example of why he was mired in this offensive quagmire. On a 1-0 pitch, Arcia was sitting dead-red on a fastball. While the Braves gave him one, it was on the outer-half, running away and the contact resulted in an easy third out for Justin Upton in foul territory.



In that situation, under those conditions, you can expect that the manager wants his player to be teeing up on a better pitcher - particularly when ahead in the count.

Prior to Thursday’s game against the Tigers, Gardenhire informed the media that his starting lineup would not include Arcia for a fourth consecutive game. When pressed for an explanation, the manager said that he wanted to play the matchups and that Ryan Doumit was 4-for-10 off the Tigers’ starting pitcher, Rick Porcello. This reasoning, based on absurdly small sample size, is likely the cover for the manager and coaches wanting Arcia to slow down and recognize how pitchers are approaching him. He had fallen into a pattern of trying to force everything. Don’t swing so much, don’t expand the zone and let the game come to him.

Based on his tools, Arcia has a bright future. In order to realize this potential, Arcia will need to refrain from chasing after everything that moves. His mechanics are solid and his strength will ensure that he will blister pitches that come into his swing path. As major league pitchers continue to pick at his weakness, he needs to adjust with them.

I’ve been following the Twins minor league system pretty much daily for the past eight years. I can honestly say that I have not seen a pitcher have a stretch like DJ Baxendale has to start this season. His May numbers (see below) have been incredible. But there were other great performances including a 22-year-old southpaw throwing eight innings in New Britain. And Ft. Myers continues to get offense from unlikely sources.

Check out what happened in the Twins minor league system on Thursday:

Rochester Red Wings 4, Charlotte Knights 3
Box Score

Rochester got another Quality Start from Andrew Albers. The left-hander gave up three runs on ten hits. In six innings, he walked one and struck out six. Then Aaron Thompson came on for his second Red Wings appearance. The lefty worked three perfect innings and struck out three for the save.

Brian Dinkelman led the offense. He went 3-3 with his sixth and seventh doubles. Doug Bernier went 2-3.

New Britain Rock Cats 1, Binghamton Mets 0
Box Score

Lefty Logan Darnell pitched a tremendous game on Thursday morning. He gave up no runs on six hits and a walk in eight innings. He struck out nine to drop his season ERA to 2.47. He has given up just one run in his past two starts (15 innings). Need innings? The 24-year-old Darnell, the Twins 6^th round pick in 2010 out of the University of Kentucky, has thrown 23 innings over his past three starts.

Michael Tonkin came on and pitched a perfect ninth for his sixth save of the year.

There was very little offense from the Rock Cats in this game. James Beresford raised his average to .346 by going 2-4, but Danny Ortiz’s sixth home run of the year was all the offense the team would need. Twins Daily’s AJ Pettersen went 1-3. He now has a modest three game hitting streak and is hitting .375 in it.

Ft. Myers Miracle 6, Lakeland Tigers 1
Box Score

The DJ Baxendale story just continues to get better and better. On this night, the 22-year-old righty gave up only an unearned run over seven innings. He gave up three hits, walked two and struck out four. It reduces his season ERA to 0.94. After being the choice for Pitcher of the Month of April, he has not yet allowed an earned run in 28 innings in May.

photo by Greg Wagner

Nelvin Fuentes came on and struck out one in a scoreless inning. Then Corey Williams gave up a walk and a hit in a scoreless ninth inning.
Aderlin Mejia was a GCL All Star a year ago, the lone member of last year’s GCL Twins team to do that. He was at Extended Spring Training, waiting for the Elizabethton season to begin. The Miracle had a need, and Mejia was called upon for a short time. Well, that short time has now become 13 games, and he is doing the job. He is now hitting .360 after going 3-5 on Thursday. He also stole three bases in the game and has seven on the year.

Angel Morales should soon be promoted to New Britain. He went 2-4 with his fourth home run and third stolen base. Kyle Knudson went 3-4 with his third double. Levi Michael went 2-5. Miguel Sano and Kennys Vargas each hit their 12^th double. Sano stole his seventh base.

Cedar Rapids Kernels 3, Beloit Snappers 5
Box Score

It was a rough one for Mason Melotakis. The lefty gave up five runs on seven hits. He walked four and struck out three in 4.1 innings. Alex Muren came on and got the next five outs. He walked two and struck out one. Josh Burris and David Hurlbut each gave up a hit and struck one out in his inning.

Byron Buxton went 2-4 with a walk, his 11^th double and his 21^st stolen base. Candido Pimentel was 2-4 with a walk and his eighth stolen base. JD Williams was 2-4 with his ninth stolen base.

Note also that the Twins Dominican Summer League schedule is about to get started. On Thursday, they played an exhibition game against a Canadian national team.

Please feel free to comment or ask questions below.

Who IS This Guy?
Frazier is a high school center fielder from Georgia. He is widely considered to have the best bat speed in the entire draft. This enables him to have very good raw power. His 5-foot-11 frame has a muscular build at 190 pounds. This makes it tough to project him adding more weight but he looks like an MLB player. He also plays with a ton of energy.

On the defensive side of the ball, there are some questions about whether he can stick in center field. He is starting to track the ball well and he continues to improve his ability to finish plays. His arm strength is very good, even with some tendonitis concerns, but he needs to work on his accuracy.

Originally posted at http://nodaktwinsfan.com

Who Could He Be?
There is the potential for Frazier to develop into a five-tool player at a premium position. He has the chance to make multiple All-Star teams or be a solid regular player.

One of the biggest holes in his game has been his pitch recognition. He goes up to the plate looking fastball and he can destroy hanging breaking balls. Pitchers have been able to get him out with below average breaking pitches. If this can improve, he could be a monster on the offensive side of the ball.

Tendonitis issues have lowered Frazier’s arm strength from plus to above average. If he could get back to his previous level, his defensive value would pair nicely with his solid offensive projections.

There is some risk with Frazier but he could reward a team by becoming a perennial All-Star.

How Soon Could He Be Playing In Target Field?
Frazier will be 18 years, 9 months old on draft day. This would put him on a similar path to the major leagues as Byron Buxton. He would spend the end of this coming summer in rookie ball.

Like Buxton this year, he could start 2014 at Low-A. He would spend 2015 at High-A and 2016 at Double-A. This could leave him close to making his big league debut.

The Twins let Aaron Hicks skip Triple-A and Frazier has the potential to make that type of move. If he takes care of some of his flaws, he could be an everyday starter by 2017.

If the Twins Draft This Guy, They Messed Up Because...
Frazier might end up busting out in the minor leagues. He doesn't have any room to grow into his body so the potential to add power isn't there.

There will likely be better players available at number four. He also has red hair and apparently a good big league player can't have red hair according to old school scout analysis.

The Twins could work out a deal with Frazier before the draft to sign him for less than slot value then the team could use the extra money for a pick later in the draft.

If the Twins Draft This Guy, They Nailed It Because...
Without risk, there is never any reward. Frazier's bat speed and five-tool potential could help him to move quickly through the system.

Buxton might be the team's center fielder of the future but Frazier could slide into a corner spot and be an above average regular. Imagine the Twins starting outfield in 2017 with Buxton in CF, Frazier in RF, and Arcia or Hicks in LF.

Frazier is an unbelievably hard worker and he shows this on the field. He is a natural leader and he will push himself. There might be work ethic questions surrounding other prep players but there is no doubt about Frazier's make-up.

Plus it would be cool to have a guy with bright red hair in the middle of the line-up on an everyday basis.

MLB Draft Player Profiles:

• Monday, May 20-- Sean Manaea, SP
• Tuesday, May 21-- Austin Meadows, OF
• Wednesday, May 22-- Trey Ball, OF
• Thursday, May 23-- Ryan Stanek, RHP

With the Twin not having a win in over week, it was obvious there was a need for change. The first change came earlier this week with the long over due demotion of Pedro Hernandez to AAA. Only to bring up a iffy pitcher in Samuel Deduno who excelled in the WBC, while allowing one too many walks per 9 innings.


The other change, came more as a surprise to me, coming yesterday on Wednesday, demoting Vance Worly to AAA. At first this move didn't make any sense, knowing that the Twins traded for this guy this past off-season, so they had to have had some faith in him, thinking he could excel in the American League. Going into the season I was thinking he was going to be the only reliable starter in the rotation, a side from Scott Diamond. Little did I know that it would be Kevin Correia being the next man up behind Scott Diamond.


So with Worly now in the minor leagues and a now open spot in the rotation, who will fill it? And more importantly what does his demotion mean for the Twins?


First off with the surprising move of promoting Samuel Deduno ,seemed to have closed the door for Kyle Gibson to get his Major League debut any time soon. And now it seems as if that door for his Major-League debut has opened once again. It looks like a no brainer -for me at least- for the Twins to promote Gibson now rather then later. Especially if they are going to be strict on that innings limit they put on him (120-130 innings) earlier this year. If Gibson is't going to get the call to the big leagues then it would either be P.J. Walters or Andrew Albers. Both pitcher well in AAA.


Now as for where does this leaves the Twins for till possible mid-June.


Well...in a word, desperate. Even more now. The Twins experiment with Worly has been put at a halt for now. Which makes the trade between the Twins and the Philles seem like a bust for both teams. Revere has been off to a slow start to the season. But it is a little to late to be saying that, after one-third of the season is over. So he has been under performing, if you will. As for the Twins, Worly and May are both now in the minors (May started in the AA this year, and a possible September call-up) and the Twins seem to find themselves in the same boat they found themselves in last year. In the bottom tier of ERA in the AL. In which they have to go the same route they went last year, where they brought up pitcher after pitcher. That just don't look ready to face a Major League hitter.


If Pelfry gives up one or possibly two more bad starts you could see him join Worly and Hernandez in AAA. Only to be replaced by Gibson, Walters, Alber, or even Devires if he is ready by then.


Anyway, it seems as if this year's rotation has only gotten a little better with Correia joining the team. But a sides from that, if Worly doesn't turn it around soon, the rotation will not be any better then last year's rotation. Putting not only the Front office but Gardenhire in in a rough position that could possibly only get worse by the minute. With the rotation continually getting worse.

As seen on NorthagensBaseball.blogspot.com

We are in the middle of an 8-game losing streak which has seen the Twins outscored 51-22 and completely inept at times. The starting rotation is in shambles and managed to make it through just 29.1 innings in these games with only 2 starts getting past the 5th inning. Needless to say, the offense hasn't been much better. A bad starting rotation and an anemic offense amount to losing games in bunches.

How do we fix it? Luckily for the 3 people that read this,I know all the right answers. Paying for a legit starting pitcher 6 months ago would have helped. Fortunately, there is a little light in the tunnel for the Twins. I'm not sure if now is the right time to make big moves like the ones I'll be advocating, but at some point it might be necessary. I'm just going to talk about 3 guys that could come up and provide quality starts. One of them, Gibson, is likely to be on his way to Minnesota already with Worley being sent down. Mostly, the rotation needs help and Terry Ryan should be under a lot of heat for not properly addressing it in the offseason.

First, I'm baffled by the Twins expectations and inconsistencies in their player handling. Hendriks (not one of the 3 since he is hurt) started the year a few "meh" starts, the second seemingly better than the first. Yet was sent down after 2 average starts while Worley was allowed to be the worst starting pitcher in the MLB for 10 starts. Currently, he has a 1.004 OPS against, that is combined, not just against Miguel Cabrera. Anyway, the 3 I'm talking about are Gibson, Albers and Meyer. Deduno, however, is not part of my list, and will most likely show why in his brief (my prediction) time with the Twins this year.

Gibson is most likely to make his appearance soon. I wanted consistency from him before going to the MLB, but he is going to be up for good at some point and his complete game shutout in his last start is enough evidence to me he is ready. Need I say more?

The next choice is Albers. Albers hasn't had a look in the MLB yet, but is putting together a nice season. A TJ surgery victim in 2009, he has missed some of his prime development time. While I don't think Albers is a saving grace, I do think he could put together respectable starts. This season's statistics might be a little skewed by sample size though, since he is striking out batters much better than ever before. Mainly, he doesn't walk people (averages 1.8 BB/9 through the minors) and has been great at not giving up HR's (averages .4 HR/9). Combined with being a lefty on a staff dominated by righties and he might have some success.

Next is Meyer. He should be up after super-2 status is past. Reasoning? Because he has ****ing talent you dimwaud. He would instantly be the best pitcher in the rotation, and most likely to get the best results. Going forward if the Twins take their time with their best prospects they are going to lose fans. Nobody wants to go see a scrub rotation give up 8 or 9 runs and not get through the 5th inning. Keep this up and the bullpen is going to break down and the Twins would be in a world of hurt if Perkins or Burton get hurt. Meyer will be competing for a spot in the 2014 rotation, and if he doesn't make it out of spring it wont be long until he forces his way in. Again, because he has ****ing talent, the thing that Terry Ryan and co. have neglected to draft or trade for in almost 10 years (slight exaggeration). This opinion might be premature on Meyer since his results haven't been sparkling, but I think he will start building a case quickly.

How do you get these 3 in the rotation? Worley is already down and Gibson up, so one down. When Deduno fails (which he will), Albers is then primed for a call-up. He has to be added to the 40-man so pass Butera through waivers. A no-hit catcher that is on the DL shouldn't have much problem passing. Around the deadline when it is obvious this team is going nowhere and someone is traded you can then add Meyer and put him in the rotation. This rotation wont magically make a run in August, but it will be much more interesting and easier to watch than the current version.

Also posted at wgom.org

Ramon Ortiz (1973)

Right-hander Ramon Diogenes Ortiz was a member of the Minnesota Twins for about four and a half months in 2007. A native of Cotui in the Dominican Republic, Ortiz was signed by the Angels as a free agent in 1995. He generally pitched well in the minors, although he appears to have been slowed by an injury in 1998. He reached AAA in 1999 and after only nine starts there was promoted to the majors in August. He was immediately thrown into the rotation, but he wasn’t ready, going 2-3, 6.52. He split the next year between AAA and the majors, but by 2001 he was in the big leagues to stay. He was in the Angels starting rotation for three full years, from 2001-2003. His best year was clearly 2002, when he went 15-9, 3.77 with a WHIP of 1.18. His ERA soared to 5.2 the next year, and when he got off to a poor start in 2004 Ortiz was sent to the bullpen. The Angels traded him to the Reds for 2005, but while he stayed in the rotation he really did not pitch any better than he had the year before. A free agent after the season, he signed with Washington for 2006 and again spent the entire year in the rotation despite pitching poorly. He signed with Minnesota as a free agent for 2007. He was again in the rotation and pitched well in his first three starts, but slipped to average for his next two and bad for his next five. Ortiz went to the bullpen after that and was traded to Colorado in mid-August for Matt Macri. As a Twin, he was 4-4, 5.14 in 28 appearances, ten of the starts. He pitched 91 innings for Minnesota. Ortiz became a free agent after the 2007 season and played in Japan for the Orix Blue Wave in 2008, where he continued to not pitch very well. He came back to the United States for 2009, pitching at AAA Phoenix in the Giants’ organization. He signed with the Dodgers for 2010 and made sixteen appearances in the majors, most of them poor ones. The Dodgers released him in early June, he was in the Mets’ organization for about a month and a half, and he finished the season at AAA with Tampa Bay. He was released by the Rays in March of 2011, but signed with the Cubs a month later and battled his way back to the big leagues, spending half the season in Chicago. A free agent again after the season, he signed with San Francisco for 2012. He was released near the end of spring training, but signed with the Yankees and spent the season with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, where he had a fine season in AAA but did not get another shot at the majors. Once again a free agent after the season, he signed with Toronto for 2013. He started this season in AAA but made it back to the majors and is currently in the Blue Jays’ rotation. He’s 40 years old today and hasn’t had a good major league season since 2004 (and even that season was really nothing to shout about), but somehow he keeps getting chances. One has to assume that the Ramon Ortiz story is not done quite yet.

It is now late May, and the Twins season is at a crossroads. The team has lost eight straight games as it embarks on a four-game series in Detroit against the Tigers. The season is in flux, and right now, the roster, specifically the starting rotation, is in flux.

Before tonight's game, the Twins will add Samuel Deduno to their 40 man roster and then their 25 man roster. Most likely, Tim Wood will be put on the 60 Days Disabled List. Following another poor performance on Thursday, the Twins optioned RHP Vance Worley to AAA Rochester. That leaves an open spot on the 25-man roster and the need for a 5th starter on Monday. So, who will it be?

I present to you, the three options by their numbers:

• RHP Kyle Gibson is 3-5 with a 3.25 ERA. In 52.2 innings, he has allowed 46 hits, walked 14 and struck out 46. Opponents are hitting .240 against him.
• RHP PJ Walters is 4-2 with a 3.31 ERA. In 54.1 innings, he has allowed 55 hits, walked 16 and struck out 46. Opponents are hitting .271 against him.
• LHP Andrew Albers is 1-2 with a 2.34 ERA. In 42.1 innings, he has allowed 41 hits, walked 12 and struck out 40. Opponents have hit .255 off of him.

All three have actually pitched well and a case could be made for each. Quite possibly the biggest advantage that Gibson is his first-round pedigree. However, the bigger disadvantage to Walters and Albers is that they are not on the 40 man roster.

The question often is asked: So, who could the Twins take off of their 40 man roster to make room for them? Well, assuming Wood goes on the 60 Day DL, they do not have another player eligible to put on there. So, the team would have to DFA (Designate for Assignment) someone to make room for Monday's starter.

It's never fun to look at who could be made available for other teams to claim, but if you think Walters or Albers is the right guy, it's an exercise that needs to be done. So, here are some candidates:

• Joe Benson - His name has been mentioned as a possible DFA candidate. After an injury-plagued 2012 season, Benson has struggled to keep his batting average above .200 this spring with Rochester. He will be out of options next season, but because of his immense athletic talents, I believe that he would be claimed and lost.
• Drew Butera - The much-maligned backup catcher who plays tremendous defense but can't hit his weight is another name that people mention. He broke his wrist and hasn't play, though he should be getting into games soon. If there were a time that he could go unclaimed, it might be now.
• Cole De Vries - The 28-year-old Minnesotan was on the Opening Day roster, but he went on the Disabled List. In his three rehab starts and one Red Wings start, he has really struggled. I think he would clear waivers and could be kept in Rochester.
• Liam Hendriks - Though it appears that the Twins brass has soured on the Australian right-hander, he's just 24 years old and until this year, he has been terrific at each minor league level. He is now on the Rochester Disabled List. There is no question that he would be claimed if made available.
• BJ Hermsen - Hermsen was the Twins minor league starting pitcher of the year, and was very good in 2011 as well. Last year, he got outs and pitched very well in New Britain. This year, after going to big league camp, he was hurt. He has now made a handful of starts and struggled to regain his 2012 form. Although he doesn't have velocity, he has two option years left, size and smarts. I think he would be claimed, but it might be more 50/50.
• Chris Herrmann - Another name that I hear people think could be made available is Herrmann. A year ago, or early this spring, I would have said that was crazy, but now I don't think it's quite as unlikely. The Twins have five catchers on the 40 man roster. Joe Mauer and Ryan Doumit aren't going anywhere. Josmil Pinto has proven the team wise. Herrmann is off to a slow start in his first AAA season. He can catch. He can play multiple positions and give flexibility. He won't hit for average, but until his slow start, he generally walks quite a bit and hits some doubles. I think he would be claimed.
• Wilkin Ramirez - With Chris Colabello on the roster, the Twins have a right-handed bat off the bench. However, as the roster is currently set up, Ramirez is the backup centerfielder so it's unlikely he would be made available now. I think he would clear waivers if or when they would make him available.

So, there are some candidates for removal from the 40 man roster if the Twins believe that PJ Walters or Andrew Albers is the right man to bring up now.

It's been a rough season so far. We are just starting to see some transactions, and I anticipate we will see several more.

Originally posted at Twins losing streak reaches eight | Twinstrivia.com

Today was the first time this season I did not watch a single inning of the Twins game. My modem and router went on the blink and so I spent most of the day troubleshooting that issue and getting a replacement so I could get back on the internet.


The Twins lost in Atlanta today 8-3 and it marked their eighth loss in a row. The team is playing really poorly right now and it is hard to find any silver linings or moral victories. Moral victories are meaningless anyway, all that counts is wins and the Twins can't find a win to save their life right now. The Twins starters keep allowing the opposition to score first and it just sucks the life out of the team and to be honest it really makes watching a Twins game a real chore. I love baseball and the Twins and I will keep watching but I want to see a team that is showing some life and making some progress towards being a competitive team and right now this bunch of players wearing the Twins uniform is doing nothing for me. These players realize they are not a very good team and they are playing to their expectations.


The Twins management stubbornly hangs on to their statement that the team is doing all it can to win but I think that management is starting to realize that a major rebuild is in order here. The other day they sent starter Pedro Hernandez down and brought up reliever Caleb Thielbar to help with all the extra innings the bullpen has had to throw. Reports are that Samuel Deduno will be brought up to start in Detroit on Friday and he will probably takes Vance Worley's spot on the roster since he was the second starter in the last few days to change his address to Rochester. The Twins will need to make another roster change in a couple of days to get a starter to pitch on Monday in Milwaukee and you have to think that Kyle Gibson might be the guy. Trevor Plouffe took a knee to his head on Tuesday night at second base, reminiscent to Morneau getting hurt in Toronto a couple of years ago and the Twins called up last weeks Twins minor league player of the week 1B/OF Chris Colabello to fill in for Plouffe while he recuperates on the 7 day concussion DL. You can sense that the Twins will be making roster changes frequently as the season approaches the 50 game mark in the next week.


I have always liked Ron Gardenhire as a manager and Terry Ryan as the GM but right now it appears to me that they have no plan and the Twins look like a "Chinese fire drill" and the team seems to be in a death spiral. Gardy appears to be grasping at straws and trying to go with who ever was hot the day before and making them a regular part of the line-up. Mr. Ryan seems to be missing in action when he should be leading the charge to make this team better. This team is going nowhere this year! Put the young guys in the line-up day in and day out and let them make their mistakes and learn the game until they get so sick of losing that they start playing the game the right way. Gardy keep pulling players like Chris Parmelee and Brian Dozier and putting them on the bench when they struggle and he would do the same with Aaron Hicks if he had anyone that could play center field. You only hurt the long-term future of the Twins when you don't let these guys play every day. Jamey Carroll is a utility player and a good one but I should not be seeing his name in the line-up 3 or days in a row unless he is filling in for an injury like with Plouffe.


You won't hurt fan interest by going with the young guys, everyone knows the team isn't going anywhere so bring us the future and let's see what and who we can look forward to watching in the next few years. I can take short-term pain for long-term gain but if major changes are not made to this team soon we are doomed to watching a team that has no wins, no hope and no future. You kill a fan base by taking away their hope, I hope that is not where the Twins are taking us.


No one said that running a baseball team was easy but that is what Gardy and Mr. Ryan signed up for and they get paid the big bucks to make the Twins a winning baseball team. I know these gents are up to the task, but we need to see some results soon boys!