Article: WOLFSON: Zack Littell to Make MLB Debut Tuesday

[Otto von Ballpark]

Does the rule that a player needs to stay in the minors for 10 days after being sent down apply for the 26th man for a DH? If so, that is one reason Slegers could not be brought back up.

 

If not, I'm with you Howeda.

No, that rule does not apply for 26th man situations.

[Mike Sixel]

Congrats and good luck! It must be very exciting to have a dream come true like this.

[The Wise One]

Wrong again. What you asserted is simply not true. Romero has already been rewarded for his success at Rochester. And, as I noted before, besides Slegers, Littell has now leapfrogged over Slegers and 3 other SPs that have had either proven major league experience and/or some current or prior success at Rochester. Namely, May, Mejia and Gonsalves.

 

Make no mistake, this is a huge opportunity and a vote of confidence for Littell, the youngest SP in AAA for the Twins.

 

In a discussion of who is to be called up Romero is no longer an option if you haven’t noticed

[diehardtwinsfan]

I was wondering when this guy would get a chance. Makes sense to use him as the 26th man in a doubleheader.

And against the WhiteSox and their AAAA (for now) offense too. That's not a bad way to ease someone in.

[diehardtwinsfan]

I'm not sure we can say that with positive certainty. This game is rescheduled from early April. The fact is, Gonsalves has been a little shaky after his first two dominant AAA starts. If the Twins thought he was next up they could have adjusted the rotation schedule for him to pitch Tuesday on normal rest vs. today with Rochester.

They could have... and they didn't. I don't think there's a need to really do much adjusting. They have guys in Littell, Gonsalves, and Slegers that are all fairly close to or ready for the show. This is a perfect chance to get one of them a look (to be fair, they've already given Slegers a look) and Littell lined up. I don't think it's much more than that. I fully expect to see Gonsalves pitching up here at some point. Given all the weather issues we had, there's going to be a few more 26th man opportunities in the not so distant future.

 

I also think you'll see more of Slegers.

[Brock Beauchamp]

 

They could have... and they didn't. I don't think there's a need to really do much adjusting. They have guys in Littell, Gonsalves, and Slegers that are all fairly close to or ready for the show. This is a perfect chance to get one of them a look (to be fair, they've already given Slegers a look) and Littell lined up. I don't think it's much more than that. I fully expect to see Gonsalves pitching up here at some point. Given all the weather issues we had, there's going to be a few more 26th man opportunities in the not so distant future.

I also think you'll see more of Slegers.

Yeah, I suspect this was a "who lines up that day?" situation, not some in-depth analysis of a prospect's readiness.

 

Because no matter how bad or great the start is, the player is headed back to Rochester the moment the game ends. 

[Squirrel]

Yeah, I suspect this was a "who lines up that day?" situation, not some in-depth analysis of a prospect's readiness.

 

Because no matter how bad or great the start is, the player is headed back to Rochester the moment the game ends.

 

Yeah. And if it were for more than one start they likely would have worked to line it up in a particular way. It’s kind of nice, though, wanting to see a couple of the pitchers rather than choosing the least awful.

[Thrylos]

 

Does he have more than two pitches?  An ok 3rd pitch?  I worry about starters who only profile two pitches...

 

From here:

 

He has a two-seam fastball that sits at 89-91 and has a cutter like movement, a four-seamer that he throws at 92-93, which plays up because of high spin rate and advanced command. His main secondary offering is a true plus curveball. He also has an above average changeup that works well against LHBs.  Littell is a student of the game and he spends a lot of time in advanced preparation before each start studying the opponents' hitters, a practice that will serve him well in the bigs. He has the ceiling of a mid-rotation starter with the possibility of seasons better than that.  A young Phil Hughes is a good comparable for Littell, as far as the size and type of pitcher he is, as well as his potential.

 

So total of 4 pitches.

[Thrylos]

Re: Littell vs Gonsalves vs Others.  Littell is the most rested.  Plus the last 10 days for Gonsalves:  2 GS, 5-2/3 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 7 BB, 6 K.  The Twins smartly are going with the most rested and hotter arm.

 

That said,  Omar Bencomo is the hottest starter they have, but like May, he is not on the 40-man roster.  As far as May goes, when he moves up, he will move up for good, and someone will need to be taken off the roster.

[jokin]

 

Yeah, I suspect this was a "who lines up that day?" situation, not some in-depth analysis of a prospect's readiness.

 

Because no matter how bad or great the start is, the player is headed back to Rochester the moment the game ends. 

 

 

Re: Littell vs Gonsalves vs Others.  Littell is the most rested.  Plus the last 10 days for Gonsalves:  2 GS, 5-2/3 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 7 BB, 6 K. 

 

The Twins smartly are going with the most rested and hotter arm.

 

That said,  Omar Bencomo is the hottest starter they have, but like May, he is not on the 40-man roster. 

 

As far as May goes, when he moves up, he will move up for good, and someone will need to be taken off the roster.

 

Yep. Littel is the hotter arm of the 3. You can't tell me that Gonsalves' and May's recent struggles didn't play at least a small part in the decision.

 

It still leaves a question mark on if Slegers "passed the test" or not vs. KC?

 

Good point on May. Who will be moving down? Magill?

 

Is Bencomo a legit call-up or just emergency depth?

Edited June 3, 2018 by jokin

[Mike Sixel]

I hope they aren't going off tiny, hot, sample sizes, and are calling up the person that best for the context.

[Brock Beauchamp]

 

I hope they aren't going off tiny, hot, sample sizes, and are calling up the person that best for the context.

I doubt recent performance is much of a factor. This move makes sense, as the candidates are:

 

1. May: no way do you call this guy up and end his rehab for one start when you don't need to make a decision for a couple more weeks, especially given his recent performance.

 

2. Slegers: eh, whatever.

 

3. Gonsalves: maybe you want to call him up but do you really want to do it for one start when he doesn't really align well in the rotation to do so? Also, he had an absolutely terrible outing last time around (0.2 IP).

 

4. Littell: a good enough prospect but likely nothing to write home about, a guy you don't really care whether you bounce him around a bit in spot starts.

 

Slegers and Littell make the most sense here and the Twins have already seen Slegers.

[puckstopper1]

 

No, that rule does not apply for 26th man situations.

 

Thanks for confirming Spycake!

[gil4]

 

Who cares about all the other crap, I hope he blows them away!

Since "all the other crap" is most of what we discuss here, I'd say there's at least a few crazies who care about it.  I'm sure we all agree the we hope he blows them away (and uses the experience as a springboard to dominate AAA, then gets called back up and had a long and productive MLB career. And always beats the team we acquired him from.)

[diehardtwinsfan]

I doubt recent performance is much of a factor. This move makes sense, as the candidates are:

 

1. May: no way do you call this guy up and end his rehab for one start when you don't need to make a decision for a couple more weeks, especially given his recent performance.

 

2. Slegers: eh, whatever.

 

3. Gonsalves: maybe you want to call him up but do you really want to do it for one start when he doesn't really align well in the rotation to do so? Also, he had an absolutely terrible outing last time around (0.2 IP).

 

4. Littell: a good enough prospect but likely nothing to write home about, a guy you don't really care whether you bounce him around a bit in spot starts.

 

Slegers and Littell make the most sense here and the Twins have already seen Slegers.

I think you're a tad low on Littell. I think he and Gonsalves have very similar ceilings for what that's worth. The team will likely want to see both this year and Littell lined up perfectly.

[Brock Beauchamp]

 

I think you're a tad low on Littell. I think he and Gonsalves have very similar ceilings for what that's worth. The team will likely want to see both this year and Littell lined up perfectly.

Maybe. I'm not super high on Gonsalves, either.

 

But you're right, they're not terribly different pitchers.