Engelb Vielma lost on waivers to Giants

[Bob Sacamento]

I didn't see it posted anywhere on here so thought I'd mention it.  Everyone was worried about all the "SS" in the system, there goes one of them.

 

 

 

Slick-fielding shortstop Engelb Vielma was lost on waivers to the San Francisco Giants, according to a person with direct knowledge.

 

The slender switch-hitter was promoted to Triple-A Rochester this season but hit just .206 with a .493 OPS in 296 at-bats for the Red Wings. Vielma, 23, had been named best defensive infielder in the Twins system for several years running by Baseball America, but a wave of talented young shortstops is pushing up from below.

 

“It’s potentially a very high-end defender,” Molitor said. “The bat, no one can really say how far that’s going to come. It was a risk that we took. I think we were hopeful that we could hold onto him, but it didn’t work out that way.”

 

Vielma was designated for assignment to make room for fellow Venezuelan Gabriel Moya, one of seven left-handed relievers on the Twins’ 40-man roster. Moya, a dominant Double-A closer acquired from the Arizona Diamondbacks for catcher John Ryan Murphy, joins fellow relievers Buddy Boshers, Dietrich Enns, Glen Perkins, Taylor Rogers, Randy Rosario and Nik Turley on the 40-man roster.

 

[ashbury]

I'm not outraged, but disappointed. He was a guy I kept rooting for - even took him in the Adopt-A-Prospect project here one year. Kept hoping he would find some little missing piece to let him at least slap singles against major league opponents. I don't rule out that he may still do so - he's 23 and I usually give a guy a couple more years to figure things out. But, you know my favorite saying, you shake the baseball tree and 99 gloves fall out before one or two bats do. And rebuilding teams eventually hit a numbers crunch for their decent prospects.

[bluechipper]

Not disappointed at all. In addition to the weak bat, Vielma was just 3 for 11 in stolen bases this year. He's just got too many weaknesses in his game to think he can be anything more than a fringe 40 man guy.

[Mr. Brooks]

With that bat, it doesn't matter how good his defense is.

Nothing to see here.

[spinowner]

Somebody had to go, and he was the logical choice. I wish him well but I'll be surprised if he turns into a bona fide major leaguer.

[jokin]

 

Not disappointed at all. In addition to the weak bat, Vielma was just 3 for 11 in stolen bases this year. He's just got too many weaknesses in his game to think he can be anything more than a fringe 40 man guy.

 

Vielma was a "prospect" born of the mind-set of the past regime, in the hoped-for image of "Gardy over-acheiver", ala Lil Nicky, Pedro Florimon, Drew Butera and JR Murphy.

[drjim]

 

Vielma was a "prospect" born of the mind-set of the past regime, in the hoped-for image of "Gardy over-acheiver", ala Lil Nicky, Pedro Florimon, Drew Butera and JR Murphy.

 

That's not especially fair. By all accounts he has an elite glove at SS, and he was a league average in 500 PAs in AA as a 22/23 year old. Seems like the kind of guy you would put on the 40 man.

 

I have no problem letting him go as others have passed him up, but it made lots of sense last offseason. (And he was originally added to the 40 man by the current regime to boot).

[TRex]

I think this year made it clear that Vielma's bat was not ready for a starting role, and Adrianza has proven to be a very versatile backup middle infielder.

[Mike Sixel]

Not a big deal, imo. 

[Brock Beauchamp]

He's the kind of guy you'd like to keep in the org but also a guy you don't cry over losing. The Twins are going to have a ton of 40-man movement over the next six months and I'm not too worried about Vielma. I'm far more concerned about the bigger names that could be in play.

[Otto von Ballpark]

I suspect they are both fringe guys, but who would you rather lose at this point, Vielma or Palka? Maybe "both" will be the answer before too long.

 

I will miss the autocorrected "Velma" though, and its Scooby Doo connotations.

[drjim]

 

I suspect they are both fringe guys, but who would you rather lose at this point, Vielma or Palka? Maybe "both" will be the answer before too long.

I will miss the autocorrected "Velma" though, and its Scooby Doo connotations.

 

I suspect both were coming off the 40 man this offseason. But I personally prefer Vielma.

[Brock Beauchamp]

 

I suspect they are both fringe guys, but who would you rather lose at this point, Vielma or Palka? Maybe "both" will be the answer before too long.

I will miss the autocorrected "Velma" though, and its Scooby Doo connotations.

I'd prefer to keep Vielma but it's close enough that I don't really care.