What Molitor Knows About Prospects Not Named Sano & Buxton?

[lightfoot789]

Everyone knows about Molitors relationship with Buxton and Sano, but what does he know about non top 10 prospects in the system? How many of them does he see as promising with true MLB talent?

[drock2190]

There is no really way to answer that unless your in his shoes. Or head so to speak.

 

Plus its mainly Ryans job to evaluate the talent and promote the players that are capable of success. 

[maxisagod]

I have no Idea what he thinks, or who he liked, if someone wants to go through old interviews, that would be interesting. That being said, before he was a coach last year he worked with all the position players from Rookie to AAA. When they set the 40 man, look at the position players on the roster and those are guys Molitor will have a say in who makes the team. So Roserio and Polanco could be two guys that find themselves in a position to make the team sooner than later. 

[Seth Stohs]

Yeah, it's impossible to know unless one were to be able to ask him individually. Obviously Buxton and Sano are the ones who will get asked about. I believe Berardino asked Rosario about him in Arizona, but no one has asked Molitor about Rosario. 

 

I do know this. Over the last bunch of years (likely since 2005 or whenever he became a minor league instructor, he has received daily updates on every minor league team and most every minor league player. He's read all of those reports, I'm sure. He's also seen all of them, likely aside from those brought into the organization the last year or two.

[stringer bell]

I have no Idea what he thinks, or who he liked, if someone wants to go through old interviews, that would be interesting. That being said, before he was a coach last year he worked with all the position players from Rookie to AAA. When they set the 40 man, look at the position players on the roster and those are guys Molitor will have a say in who makes the team. So Roserio and Polanco could be two guys that find themselves in a position to make the team sooner than later.

Polanco is a ways away and there are established players in front of him. Unless he's considered for a bench position, he's not coming north, barring a couple of injuries. Rosario has no one in his way and thus could be in Minnesota before all the snow melts.

[maxisagod]

Polanco is a ways away and there are established players in front of him. Unless he's considered for a bench position, he's not coming north, barring a couple of injuries. Rosario has no one in his way and thus could be in Minnesota before all the snow melts.

I agree. The thing about being on the 40 man is your one injury away from being on the big league team. Or in Polanco case two. As unlikely as that might be, last year show that to be a possibility.  More and more of the Twins 40 man is going to be made up of prospects and if a couple of infielders go down in spring training, it will be in Molitor's court to decided to go with a young guy sill developing or a minor league free agent they need to make room for on the 40 man, he's got a good background to make an informed decision. Final say is always Ryan's of coarse. 

[Thrylos]

Polanco is a ways away and there are established players in front of him. Unless he's considered for a bench position, he's not coming north, barring a couple of injuries. Rosario has no one in his way and thus could be in Minnesota before all the snow melts.

 

Polanco played in the majors last year and held on his own.  Unfortunately the manager did not play him enough.   I would not be surprised if he is the Twins' starting SS by mid-season 2015.  Much higher ceiling (and floor) than Santana & Escobar.  And we kinda saw Santana's ceiling last season.  Hope we don't get to see his floor.

[stringer bell]

I know you are enthusiastic about promoting prospects, Thry, but six at-bats is way, way, way, too small of a sample to say that Polanco "held his own". Ryan mentioned that he didn't master AA in one of the last pre-game interviews and I concur. Further, as much as I suspect Santana would have problems as an everyday shortstop, I have more doubts about Polanco's ability to hold such a position. I think he needs another full year at shortstop in the minors to show whether or not he is a potential major league starting SS.

[bird]

Polanco played in the majors last year and held on his own.  Unfortunately the manager did not play him enough.   I would not be surprised if he is the Twins' starting SS by mid-season 2015.  Much higher ceiling (and floor) than Santana & Escobar.  And we kinda saw Santana's ceiling last season.  Hope we don't get to see his floor.

I doubt you could find a single professional talent evaluator that would agree with you that we saw Santana's ceiling last year.

[Rosterman]

The evils of the 40-man. You can't have ALL the excess holes filled with prospects THAT CAN'T step into a major league at-bat or inning on a moment's notice. You need a few musical chair players (usually pitchers). And then you carefully have to handle anyone that you may add during the season, because if you waive them off the 40-man, you might jsut lose them outright, too. In that way, it would be nice if major league baseball did have a system where a player claimed on 40-man roster waivers DOES have to stay on that team's roster for x-amount of days. It would allow you to feel more comfortable about cutting that Neshek guy off the roster in spring training (or Pelfrey, for example), and also a Parmelee. But then you bring a Parmelee back and you start the whole system over again, you keep him, or you might lose him, as the reason you more than likely advanced him (beyond the need) was because of his play at AAA, which most any otehr team might make a grab.

 

 

Right now the Twins have some guys on the cusp, Colabello, Fryer for two. Nunez is being bandied around because of cost, as is Duensing and Swarzak. You also have fringe pitchers like Thielbar / Thompson / Darnell that no other team may 40-man (or Oliveros). But you do need some dead weight in case you sign a free agent or two. And also when the time comes and you add one of those 5-year minor guys of whatnot.

 

But back to this post. Paul Molitor has to have an excellent idea of the class of players coming up in the system. He probably has a first hand relationship with more of the players than any minor league manager or coach, of even any front office people. A few players are probably saying "man, I wish I had listened to this guy, or at least showed that I was listening" and others are happy that they have.

 

He is probably more into player set than if you had brought in any of the minor league managers, even though he has been a year removed from roving about. Combine that with Hernandez and Glynn, so far, and you have a pretty good evaluation of Rochester and the teams below and who is who, especially with Hernandez, who has been roving everywhere himself.

[lightfoot789]

wouldn't it be nice if someone asked Molitor who he deems as promising in our minor league system?  He has worked with most of them and could give us a better indication as to how deep our system really is?  If they don't as k Molitor it would be nice to know what Glynn and Hernandez think.  Both work and see these kids every spring training.  I think it would be a great question for Seth or whomever to ask one of these guys.  And I'm talking about the non obvious guys (Not Top 10.