Article: The Cuts Continue, 7 Twins Reassigned

[Seth Stohs]

You can view the page at http://twinsdaily.com/content.php?r=1461-The-Cuts-Continue-7-Twins-Reassigned

[PopRiveter]

It frustrates me that so many of the players I am most curious about seeing are cut before getting to see them play a televised game. I wanted to see Hicks, Arcia, Colabello and Santana this spring. Guess I'll have to settle for just Hicks.

[Seth Stohs]

Santana played in the first televised game, I believe.

 

Hicks and Arcia started on Friday night in a televised game, and Colabello came in for the second half of the game.

[Halsey Hall]

I mentioned to Colabello this morning I was surpised to see him cut, and it must be to get him more at bats. He just said "Ah, that's alright, as long as I get to play baseball".

 

He should make it to Minnesota sometime this summer, and maybe sooner than later.

[YourHouseIsMyHouse]

All expected cuts, but nice to see progress being made nonetheless. Are the Twins going to cut 2 pitchers now? Plus, what are the chances they keep Wilkin Ramirez on as depth?

[h2oface]

Cutting Chris Colabello............ I dislike the braintrust more and more. It will be a fine day when Gardenhire and Ryan are back on the interstate, going somewhere, anywhere else. The twins need a "feel good" story. badly. When they have one....... they just basically throw it away.

[DaveW]

There was zero reason to keep colabello on the roster at this point...

[Mr. Brooks]

Cutting Chris Colabello............ I dislike the braintrust more and more. It will be a fine day when Gardenhire and Ryan are back on the interstate, going somewhere, anywhere else. The twins need a "feel good" story. badly. When they have one....... they just basically throw it away.

 

This isnt Disney, this is major league baseball.

I get that Chris Colabello is a nice story and all, but if he's one of your 25 best players, you ought to be ashamed and embarrassed as an organization.

The guy OPS'd only .836 as a first baseman at AA last year, as a 28 year old playing against a bunch of kids many not even old enough to buy a beer.

[h2oface]

.....I get that Chris Colabello is a nice story and all, but if he's one of your 25 best players, you ought to be ashamed and embarrassed as an organization.

 

You have a great point there........... one ought to be ashamed and embarrassed as an organization......... for more reasons than one.

[Thrylos]

Pleasantly surprised to see Dan Rohlfing being the last catcher standing other than the 2 locks and Butera. He had a great spring and apparently opened some eyes over there. Add the facts that he can play 1B and OF in a pinch and is a great defensive catcher and you might have a surprise in the making (but likely next season...)

 

Surprised that Burnett is still there... frankly.

[Mr. Brooks]

You have a great point there........... one ought to be ashamed and embarrassed as an orginization......... for more reasons than one.

 

So you want them to pile on by bringing some novelty north on the opening day roster?

I get that they've had a rough couple of years, but lets not turn them into the St. Paul Saints just yet.

[FrodaddyG]

So you want them to pile on by bringing some novelty north on the opening day roster?

I get that they've had a rough couple of years, but lets not turn them into the St. Paul Saints just yet.

Anyone know if Eddie Gaedel has any grandkids floating around?

[h2oface]

So you want them to pile on by bringing some novelty north on the opening day roster?

I get that they've had a rough couple of years, but lets not turn them into the St. Paul Saints just yet.

If he earns it, yes. Definitely. But keep him around and see if he earns it. I don't think of him as a novelty. Butera is much more of a novelty - a player that can't hit at all taking up an active roster spot for how many years now? Paying Correia 10 million for 2 years is a novelty. I also think performance in the WBC should count big (and CC hit .333 while leading Team Italy with two homers and seven RBIs in the WBC), and is more important than spring training games and Gardenhire's School of Basics.

[FrodaddyG]

If he earns it, yes. Definitely. But keep him around and see if he earns it. I don't think of him as a novelty. Butera is much more of a novelty - a player that can't hit at all taking up an active roster spot for how many years now? Paying Correia 10 million for 2 years is a novelty. I also think performance in the WBC should count big (and CC hit .333 while leading Team Italy with two homers and seven RBIs in the WBC), and is more important than spring training games and Gardenhire's School of Basics.

http://i3.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/010/692/19789999.jpg

[Mr. Brooks]

If he earns it, yes. Definitely. But keep him around and see if he earns it. I don't think of him as a novelty. Butera is much more of a novelty - a player that can't hit at all taking up an active roster spot for how many years now? Paying Correia 10 million for 2 years is a novelty. I also think performance in the WBC should count big (and CC hit .333 while leading Team Italy with two homers and seven RBIs in the WBC), and is more important than spring training games and Gardenhire's School of Basics.

 

I guess I don't look to tiny sample sizes such as ST and the WBC to determine if a guy is one of the 25 best players or not.

[Rosterman]

Remember, just because they are now in minor-league camp...they can still get called to play in major league camp for a game or three. Mostly to just give them more playing time. The Twins still have too many players that need to start playing more often than not. It also helps if you are on the 40-man.

[Laroosh1]

Remember, just because they are now in minor-league camp...they can still get called to play in major league camp for a game or three. Mostly to just give them more playing time. The Twins still have too many players that need to start playing more often than not. It also helps if you are on the 40-man.

 

 

 

It is a shame that Colabello has been sent down to kinrs as he was having a good spring. Hopefully he goes to aaa so he will be called up.

[nicksaviking]

Any chance Colabello was passive-agressively punished for playing in the WBC instead of staying with the Twins camp? The 25th roster spot was always going to come down to Butera vs Gardy's request for power on the bench. Colabello seems like an unlikely choice at first glance, but it would not have been a novelty pick, there simply were just few options. I would have to assume the bench bat to counter the Butera option now falls to Wilken Rameriz who is hardly less of a novelty than Colabello.

 

Of course they could decide to sign Thome, or perhaps Colabello's reassignment could be a show of power by Ryan showing Gardy now before he can get public support, that no, he will not get a bat for thebench.

[jorgenswest]

Any chance Colabello was passive-agressively punished for playing in the WBC instead of staying with the Twins camp?

 

 

No chance.

[spideyo]

With Morneau and Mauer back, and Parmelee still needing as much time as he can get practing RF, Colabello wouldn't be getting many opportunities to play. We know he wouldn't be starting anyways, why not let him get game time with the minor league squads so our starters (and our guys battling for starting jobs) can get more at bats and fielding opportunities?

[Kavan]

Can someone explain to me why we are excited about Colabello. Isn't he 29 and thus far topped out at AA experience? I'd love it if he were a prospect, but he's not going to get any better.... am I missing something?

[Nick Nelson]

Can someone explain to me why we are excited about Colabello. Isn't he 29 and thus far topped out at AA experience? I'd love it if he were a prospect, but he's not going to get any better.... am I missing something?

 

Just a nice story, that's all. In seasons like this one, sometimes those are the things you root for.

[Guest USAFChief]

Can someone explain to me why we are excited about Colabello. Isn't he 29 and thus far topped out at AA experience? I'd love it if he were a prospect, but he's not going to get any better.... am I missing something?

He's not Drew Butera?

[IdahoPilgrim]

It's a chance for those who are going to gripe about management to add something new to their arsenal. Give it a couple of months and we'll be back to complaining about this or that pitcher who hasn't been given a fair shot or about Gardy's batting order or some off--season signing (or lack of signing).

 

Can someone explain to me why we are excited about Colabello. Isn't he 29 and thus far topped out at AA experience? I'd love it if he were a prospect, but he's not going to get any better.... am I missing something?

[Mr. Brooks]

Or perhaps some of us think that if they are going to shed payroll significantly, and presumably rebuild, that maybe any extra AB's they have available should go to someone who actually has a chance to be part of that rebuilt team, rather than waste them on a 29 year old career minor leaguer?

If any AB's go to Collabello then it doesnt look as much like rebuilding as it does just plain being cheap.

I think after buying them a very nice new stadium, its not too much for the paying customers to ask that they do one or the other of rebuild OR build a team with an appropriate payroll.

I am not demanding they be better, I am not demanding they raise payroll. I am fully behind cutting payroll and rebuilding, as long as that is what they are actually doing.

[glunn]

If Colabello can perform in Rochester, then I would expect that he will be called up at some point. This move makes sense to me, considering his lack of experience at AAA and the need to get Parmelee maximum game time during spring training.

[ashbury]

This isnt Disney, this is major league baseball.

I get that Chris Colabello is a nice story and all, but if he's one of your 25 best players, you ought to be ashamed and embarrassed as an organization.

The guy OPS'd only .836 as a first baseman at AA last year, as a 28 year old playing against a bunch of kids many not even old enough to buy a beer.

 

Just a quibble, but AA isn't quite as young a league as you make it out to be. Of the top 100 Eastern League batters (by plate appearances) in 2012, 5 were in their age-20 season or younger, and 4 more reached 21 in the season - maybe you meant 9% by "many". Even fewer when you look at the top 100 pitchers, I see 4 in their age-21 season, none younger. Someone posted age averages per league level a while back, but just eyeballing it the average EL age seems about 24. Yes, Colabello was old for the league, but not even the oldest.

[Mr. Brooks]

If you are only filtering by the batting leaders, of course not very many of them are going to be under 21. It would make sense that the older hitters would have the better hitting numbers. I would guess that if you look at ALL the hitters in AA, the number is probably closer to 15 to 20%.

 

And yes, being 4 years older than the average competition is a huge difference when it comes to the minor leagues.

Look at how the Twins college relievers put up video game numbers in rookie ball last year.

[Mike Sixel]

Can someone explain to me why we are excited about Colabello. Isn't he 29 and thus far topped out at AA experience? I'd love it if he were a prospect, but he's not going to get any better.... am I missing something?

 

Because people want to hear Gardy say "CCesie"?

[ashbury]

If you are only filtering by the batting leaders, of course not very many of them are going to be under 21. It would make sense that the older hitters would have the better hitting numbers. I would guess that if you look at ALL the hitters in AA, the number is probably closer to 15 to 20%.

 

There might be a greater percentage of the really young batters getting 50 plate appearances or pitchers getting 20 innings, I don't know; but when evaluating Colabello's performance those smaller numbers for comparison end up being noise. I re-sorted by plate appearances and innings pitched instead of the defaults, and the counts I quoted remain essentially the same.

 

Colabello at 28 is significantly older than his competition. As I said, my observation was only a quibble - characterizing the league as "many" being under legal drinking age is not false if that word means under 10%.