Sweating Out A Roster Spot at Spring Training

[John Bonnes]

Let's check-in on some young roster hopefuls in Twins spring training camp.

Image courtesy of © Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images

Thursday’s afternoon’s 13-5 shellacking of the Pirates gave the Twins home crowd a chance to see a number of Opening Day hopefuls all in the same lineup. Twins manager Rocco Baldelli made it clear early in spring training that one of the themes of camp this year would be watching and evaluating some younger players who have shown promise but not consistency. When asked about one such player, Jose Miranda, he talked in general about what he wanted to see from them. 

“You could probably turn to two or three or four other players who have done some good things at the major league level and ask a similar question, and it would make sense,” Baldelli replied. “The response will probably be the same. I keep saying this, but it’s a healthy thing for an organization to have motivated guys that are going out there and want to earn their spot and their opportunities and their at-bats."

In Thursday’s afternoon game, it seemed to be working. The team initially faced Pirates pitcher Jared Jones, a promising 23-year-old who will be in the majors this year. After battling him, they feasted on some of the relievers, scoring 14 runs in the fifth and sixth innings. “What an awesome sight to see a bunch of guys out there, working their butts off, competing, trying to show everybody here what they’re capable of,” Baldelli said after the game. “All doing it. You draw up that picture, that’s the picture you want to see.”

All six players who are competing to fill out three back-end roster spots were painting that pretty picture. It seems like a good time to check in on where they are with Opening Day just two weeks away. 

Jose Miranda
Entering spring training, I would’ve thought Jose Miranda’ s spot was almost assured. That opinion hasn’t changed. The 26-year-old is far from a finished product but he showed in his at-bats today why he deserves to have at-bats invested in him. 

In his first at-bat versus Jones, Miranda took a called strike on the outside edge that probably should have been challenged. But when Jones followed it up with a slider in the same area, Miranda drove it to right field for an easy single. In his third at-bat, after drawing out a long at-bat, he smacked a fastball into right-center field for a long single. He’s doing what the Twins want him to do at the plate. 

Defensively, he’s also a decent fit. He isn’t an embarrassment at third base. It’s a little surprising we’ve only seen him have three starts at first base this spring, but that seems mostly about convenience; Baldelli needs to get Ty France, Edouard Julien, and Mickey Gasper at-bats, and that’s one of the few positions they play, so Miranda gets crowded out. He should make the roster and get 400+ plate appearances this year. 

Brooks Lee
In my mind, Brooks Lee and Julien represent the pivot point for the roster. If either shows enough to earn the everyday second base job, he’s the 12th (of 13) position player, and it makes the 13th player a matter of what Baldelli values most from his bench. If not, things get quite a bit trickier.

Lee’s glove separate him from the other guys on this list, and I suspect that will be why we’ll see him on the roster on Opening Day. Baldelli’s spring training lineups have made it clear that Lee’s ability to cover at shortstop is, at the very least, a nice luxury. The only other backup option to Carlos Correa is Willi Castro.

But Lee has to show he’s not overmatched offensively, which isn’t clear. What was clear was how the Pirates were attacking him: lots of offspeed stuff, especially early in the count. Lee confirmed postgame that he’s been seeing that most of the spring, and how he reacts to that will be worth watching as these last two weeks of games play out.

Edouard Julien
Julien showed just how dangerous he can be in 2023 when he posted a 130 OPS+ over 408 plate appearances before unraveling last year. He spoke early in spring training about retooling his swing to better handle offspeed pitches, which he thought was his Achilles heal.

The Pirates disagreed and paid the price yesterday. Julien saw a total of five pitches in his first four at-bats and smacked fastballs all around the stadium, going 3-5 with two doubles. (And he was robbed of a third in his first at-bat.) He hasn’t been nearly as productive for the spring, but we’ll see if this is the start of something that could position him as either a platoon player at second base or the dangerous bat as the 13th man on the roster. 

Mickey Gasper
The 29-year-old Gasper has gradually seen his starts with this younger group increase despite being the older outsider. (He joined the Twins when he was traded from the Red Sox this offseason.) He’s immediately demonstrated his offensive skill set: hitting for average and getting on base. He went 0-2 on Thursday but also had three walks. The Pirates liked to challenge him inside, which makes sense for a player who hasn’t hit more than 12 home runs in a season in the minors. His long-term outlook is undoubtedly tied to how he handles those. 

Short term, the switch-hitter might be the best option if the Twins decide that either Julien or Lee isn’t ready. He’s been getting starts at both first and second base, similar to Julien, and been solid defensively, which he was again yesterday, including making a nice catch on a foul ball down the first base line. He is setting a default demarcation line for this roster: someone is going to need to beat out this spray hitter to make this roster.

Austin Martin
I might’ve said that exact sentence about Austin Martin when camp started, but I think that’s Gasper’s job now. Martin hasn’t hit particularly well, has only made one start in the infield, and Thursday was only his fourth start in center field this spring. Even when it comes to being a platoon or late-inning defender for the Twins’ left-handed hitting corner outfielders, Martin is limited to playing left field. He is be being squeezed by the development of some other players on the roster, but the 25-year-old also needs to show he has something in his toolbag that a major league team values. We haven’t seen that yet.

DaShawn Keirsey Jr.
DaShawn Keirsey Jr. has put himself on the radar by having a decent camp offensively and an outstanding one defensively, reinforcing his skillset in the team’s mind. Seemingly every game, he’s made an excellent defensive play, including in Thursday’s game where he started in right field. If everyone else stays healthy, there isn’t really any role for a left-handed hitting defensive outfielder on the Opening Day roster. Still, I wouldn’t be surprised if he’s the first callup if there is an injury to any of the outfielders, even over Martin. 

The Twins haven’t had many of their positional prospects launch into the stratosphere when they had their first taste of the majors. But that kind of success is the exception, not the rule, in the major leagues. Several Twins players have shown that they have a chance to carve out a career or even thrive at an All-Star level if they make some incremental advancements in their games. This spring, the Twins have been providing a little tough love to encourage those advancements, and Thursday’s game was a single data point suggesting they may be close to paying off. 

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Who are your favorite young players on the Twins roster? Comment below. 

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[ashbury]

54 minutes ago, John Bonnes said:

Thursday’s afternoon’s 13-5 shellacking of the Pirates

Fact-checking isn't really a thing at Spring Training, but I'm still gonna say it was 15-3.

[NYCTK]

Dashawn Keirsey should get a call up before Martin for the OF. Many should get the call up before him in the IF. 

Austin Martin is effectively done. Post your favorite Austin Martin memory. Here's mine: 

https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/sporty-videos?playId=7d62d974-e14d-4cd6-a2c1-45744caeed2c

[Doctor Gast]

Miranda is very consistent when healthy. It's Baldelli's job to keep him healthy, which he has done a terrible job. Miranda has at best, an average arm. In '23, they gave the 3B job (you need a strong arm) to Miranda, he blew out his shoulder getting ready. In '24, Miranda was on a tear. Baldelli needed to keep Miranda at 1B/DH for him to recover from his injury & surgery. Baldelli went out of his way to keep him off 1B & to keep his bat in the line-up they shoved him at 3B. Now after his rehab his arm had to be weaker yet, to compensate, he ended up hurting his back. You think Baldelli would learn his lesson but nope. He outright gave 1B to hack Ty France & distributed out 1B time to everybody but Miranda, & where he shouldn't be playing (3B) he's played too much. Even though we have Lewis, Lee & Castro to play there. These decisions are head scratchers

Another is we have an over-abundance of true CFers & cOFers where there is a large log jam of capable players. Why hard press Martin to try to master CF? Settle Martin at 2B, which is his natural position so he can focus on his hitting & where there is a greater need. Julien isn't that good at 2B, Gasper isn't much better, Lee is much better at SS & 3B, which he could play more often than not. Castro should be moved around a lot. 

Why give Martin so much time in CF when our only true LH CFer Keirsey is much more needed there? While we have already 2 accomplished veteran LH cOFer that can play RF. IMO this ST should have been much more forthright but Falvelli have confused & complicated things. Where Miranda could have put forth a very consistently productive season at 1B, but more than likely will put in too much time at 3B to keep his bat in the line-up & end up getting hurt again & wreck his season. Then Baldelli will complain that Miranda isn't consistent enough. Give me a break.

[ashbury]

19 minutes ago, NYCTK said:

Austin Martin is effectively done. Post your favorite Austin Martin memory. Here's mine: 

https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/sporty-videos?playId=7d62d974-e14d-4cd6-a2c1-45744caeed2c

I don't want him on the infield dirt either.  There was that ball he fielded at second base but then hesitated, one-hopped the throw to the catcher, and failed to get the dead duck at home.  I don't know how to use the site you linked to find that one.

The poor guy is an indecision/bad-decisions machine out there.  He's Jake Cave.  I kind of feel sorry for him, but you just can't have him out there like that.

[cheeseheadgophfan]

I just have a hard time believing Miranda would not be on this roster, or that his spot was ever in jeopardy.  When healthy, the dude can hit.  I don't care about exit velocity or other metrics,  Anyone who gets hits in 12 consecutive AB's in the major's can hit. 

[Fatbat]

Martin = Bad decision machine. Best explanation I have ever heard about him. 
I’d blame someone in coaching but I don’t know for a fact that that to be the case. 
 

[chpettit19]

I'm not sure why Miranda is on this list. Has there ever been a question about him making the roster? Hasn't he had the 1B/3B/DH rotation spot locked up the entire time?

The other 5 are the ones fighting for the last opening day jobs. By my count there have been 11 spots locked up since they signed Bader and France. The 5 non-Miranda guys on this list are fighting for the last 2. I think Keirsey has the longest odds and likely has almost no shot at making the roster without multiple injuries to others. The other 4 are fighting over the last 2 spots. Hard to handicap it at this point as none are running away with it and none are completely blowing their chances.

The final roster decision probably comes down to where they feel comfortable playing each of them and how they can make the pieces fit in the platoon and rest heavy style they prefer.

[LA Vikes Fan]

Miranda has been on the 26 man for a month. I suspect that there is really only one battle going on for the last spot. Lee is hitting and on the roster out of ST. Martin is not and is not. The other 3 are battling for that last spot. It comes down to what skill set do want? Semi - Proven hitter with some defensive flexibility between 1B and 2B - Julien. Unproven hitter and older, but good ST hitting, can play 2B, 1B, and be a 3rd Catcher - Gaspar. 5th OF with good defense but unproven bat who tore up AAA last year - Keirsey.

My guess is Julien stays, with Gaspar down as AAA IF depth and Keirsey the first OF called up for injury, especially if the injury is to Buxton or Bader. I could see Gaspar over Julien but I would pick Julien if I were betting. Like John says, it all depends on what skill set you value most. Watch. we'll have an injury or two and they will all make the team. 

[I Never Bet On Sports]

I tend to agree that Miranda is almost a lock, and I think Lee is the best choice for 2nd Base. I am a fan of Julien but find myself really rooting for Mickey Gasper to make the team.  I would like to see how he hits and gets on base during the season. If Lee or Gasper stumbles then Julien gets called up.

Here are my projections on the odds of each making the opening day roster:

Miranda        >95%

Lee                  75%

Gasper            55%

Julien              45%

Martin             25%

Keirsey Jr.       <5%

[tony&rodney]

This post is really good and correctly identifies items noteworthy for the players involved.

Sadly, I'm depressed about how the Twins operate and the inclusion of Jose Miranda as a guy fighting for his job is just one part.

So it goes.

[DJL44]

Gasper and Keirsey are both old and both have 3 options remaining. Their job is to shuttle back and forth to AAA. Martin has 2 options left.

Julien is down to his last option. They may keep him in the majors just for that reason. Or, they might trade him off before the season starts.

 

[yeahyabetcha]

Miranda should be a lock as the opening day Dh.  If Correa and Castro can cover SS the first month, Lee should start in St Paul.  Gasper should start the season with the big club.  And for me it comes down to Julien versus Martin…..just not sure yet 

[Doctor Gast]

11 hours ago, NYCTK said:

Dashawn Keirsey should get a call up before Martin for the OF. Many should get the call up before him in the IF. 

Austin Martin is effectively done. Post your favorite Austin Martin memory. Here's mine: 

https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/sporty-videos?playId=7d62d974-e14d-4cd6-a2c1-45744caeed2c

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QatYpNuXfWk

 

[NYCTK]

13 hours ago, ashbury said:

I kind of feel sorry for him, but you just can't have him out there like that.

Eh. Don't feel too bad. He got a 7 million dollar check 5 years ago, which I hope he's saved properly. 

 

2 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QatYpNuXfWk

 

It's just a shame that player didn't develop any skills at all. I can understand why scouts thought the incredible athlete would improve some facets of his game, but they were sadly mistaken. 

[Doctor Gast]

13 hours ago, Fatbat said:

Martin = Bad decision machine. Best explanation I have ever heard about him. 
I’d blame someone in coaching but I don’t know for a fact that that to be the case. 
 

I don't know that for a fact either, but it seems our players who come up are very ill-prepared to play their positions. I've been waiting for years, for Ricardo Olivar who has all the tools to be a good defensive catcher to progress, but nothing. For years, Wallner to be very good OFer. Royce Lewis has played some 3B in MiLB & has been settled in there in MLB but only now discovered that he has a problem with his throwing (maybe that was because Trevor Plouffe had pointed that out) & wanted to shift him to 2B instead of fixing the problem. They also get strange ideas where to place players according to their bats & not their defensive abilities & try to shove them there. Julien isn't a 2Bman & would have been better suited at 1B. But Julien would look better on paper at 2B. They figured they could hide him there even though the Shift was banned yet they thought Correa & Santana could cover for him. Miranda doesn't have the strong arm to play 3B but that's where he is even after shoulder surgery & an injured back. Kiriloff with a long history of arm problems was often trotted out in the OF. Finally Martin who they tried to force to a SS & slugger, then they left him alone in '23 & he excelled at 2B. In '24 they needed a RH platoon OFer (they had already crowned Julien as their 2Bman) so they threw him in the OF & early in the season, because appointed backup CFer was terrible ill-prepared Martin was thrown there.

I'm afraid too much of the league & the Twins have gone over the edge as far as analytics go. Where hitting HRs & looking good on paper is all that matters & SOs, defense development, player evaluation, scouting, fundamentals & etc don't compute as to win games. The good coaches that we had lost were not replaced by good coaches but by coaches that adhere to Falvey's weird analytics, Maybe Martin sometimes being lost isn't his fault but Twins' lack of player evaluation, development & coaching. & maybe his lack of hitting is a result of him being hard pressed in positions he's not suited or prepared to play.

[Paul D]

I've grown to enjoy what Gasper brings to the roster. The combination of 3rd catcher and switch hitter is a huge plus in my mind. It certainly makes Jeffers DHing on days Vazquez catches less of a risk. I feel bad for the odd man out but see almost no time for Julien at 1B with France getting the bulk of starts and Miranda getting his share. Defesively Eddie just isn't as good as the others. Perhaps a trade could solve the issue.

[Doctor Gast]

59 minutes ago, NYCTK said:

Eh. Don't feel too bad. He got a 7 million dollar check 5 years ago, which I hope he's saved properly. 

 

It's just a shame that player didn't develop any skills at all. I can understand why scouts thought the incredible athlete would improve some facets of his game, but they were sadly mistaken. 

What do coaches get paid for? Yes, it's a shame how Martin was managed & sadly when a player isn't managed to fulfill his potential. So why do you blame Martin? You need to go to the root of the problem. If Martin were handled like Julien, settled in 2B his natural position, we'd have much different results. Maybe not the HRs that you overrate, but results resembling more his last year in AAA.

[madtowntwin]

Gasper has been a great Spring Story - Jefferson Morales has been another with coms to Jean Segura. Good article in the Star Tribune about him today. Check it out....

[Fire Dan Gladden]

16 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

Miranda is very consistent when healthy. It's Baldelli's job to keep him healthy, which he has done a terrible job. Miranda has at best, an average arm. In '23, they gave the 3B job (you need a strong arm) to Miranda, he blew out his shoulder getting ready. In '24, Miranda was on a tear. Baldelli needed to keep Miranda at 1B/DH for him to recover from his injury & surgery. Baldelli went out of his way to keep him off 1B & to keep his bat in the line-up they shoved him at 3B. Now after his rehab his arm had to be weaker yet, to compensate, he ended up hurting his back. You think Baldelli would learn his lesson but nope. He outright gave 1B to hack Ty France & distributed out 1B time to everybody but Miranda, & where he shouldn't be playing (3B) he's played too much. Even though we have Lewis, Lee & Castro to play there. These decisions are head scratchers

Another is we have an over-abundance of true CFers & cOFers where there is a large log jam of capable players. Why hard press Martin to try to master CF? Settle Martin at 2B, which is his natural position so he can focus on his hitting & where there is a greater need. Julien isn't that good at 2B, Gasper isn't much better, Lee is much better at SS & 3B, which he could play more often than not. Castro should be moved around a lot. 

Why give Martin so much time in CF when our only true LH CFer Keirsey is much more needed there? While we have already 2 accomplished veteran LH cOFer that can play RF. IMO this ST should have been much more forthright but Falvelli have confused & complicated things. Where Miranda could have put forth a very consistently productive season at 1B, but more than likely will put in too much time at 3B to keep his bat in the line-up & end up getting hurt again & wreck his season. Then Baldelli will complain that Miranda isn't consistent enough. Give me a break.

I get the feeling that there is some belief Baldelli is responsible for the all Twins injuries now too...

[Fire Dan Gladden]

14 hours ago, I Never Bet On Sports said:

I tend to agree that Miranda is almost a lock, and I think Lee is the best choice for 2nd Base. I am a fan of Julien but find myself really rooting for Mickey Gasper to make the team.  I would like to see how he hits and gets on base during the season. If Lee or Gasper stumbles then Julien gets called up.

Here are my projections on the odds of each making the opening day roster:

Miranda        >95%

Lee                  75%

Gasper            55%

Julien              45%

Martin             25%

Keirsey Jr.       <5%

I would flip-flop Gasper and Lee, but I think this is pretty solid.  I have said elsewhere that 2B would be a rotating position unless someone grabbed it.  Right now, Gasper has grabbed it.

[Squirrel]

15 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

It's Baldelli's job to keep him healthy

I mean, Baldelli can be and should be faulted for many things but Miranda’s health isn’t one of them. That’s a very long reach, at best.

And I pretty agree with what chpettit said above. I think Miranda was already a lock but it’s the others battling for two spots. If I had to choose today, I don’t know if I could. I’d probably take Lee and Kiersey… but that could change depending on the rest of ST

[LambchoP]

No doubt Miranda needs to be in the lineup everyday, even if it's just as a DH. Then I would initially give the 2b job to Lee. He can backup SS and 3rd if need be. Then, I'd probably give the last spot to Gasper. Switch hitter and can cover 1b 2b and be the emergency catcher. In the OF I would have Keirsey be the first guy called up, then Martin. It's nice we actually have some halfway decent depth options for once:)

[I Never Bet On Sports]

2 hours ago, Fire Dan Gladden said:

I would flip-flop Gasper and Lee, but I think this is pretty solid.  I have said elsewhere that 2B would be a rotating position unless someone grabbed it.  Right now, Gasper has grabbed it.

I agree Gasper is doing better than the others, but I think the Twins will want both Lee and Julien to get regular, substantial playing time at 2nd either in the majors or at AAA. I believe Gasper makes the team as the 26th man and not the starting 2nd baseman. If he were to go several days without playing I don't think that would bother the Twins as much as it would if that happens to Lee or Julien. Maybe he plays two or three games a week and gets a chance to prove he can hit in the majors and grows playing time from there.

One factor I think tips things in Gasper's favor is his ability as a 3rd, albeit emergency, catching option which opens the door for Jeffers to DH or pinch hit more often when Vasquez is catching.

[Fire Dan Gladden]

1 hour ago, I Never Bet On Sports said:

I agree Gasper is doing better than the others, but I think the Twins will want both Lee and Julien to get regular, substantial playing time at 2nd either in the majors or at AAA. I believe Gasper makes the team as the 26th man and not the starting 2nd baseman. If he were to go several days without playing I don't think that would bother the Twins as much as it would if that happens to Lee or Julien. Maybe he plays two or three games a week and gets a chance to prove he can hit in the majors and grows playing time from there.

One factor I think tips things in Gasper's favor is his ability as a 3rd, albeit emergency, catching option which opens the door for Jeffers to DH or pinch hit more often when Vasquez is catching.

I agree that Lee needs AB.  He only has 2+ years or pro ball, they have been pretty quick with him.  I would like to see him him tear up AAA for a month and come up rocking, unlike last year....

Deserved or not, I think the leash on Julien will be short.  He feels like the odd man out right now: no trust at 2B, no trust at 1B, no confidence with the bat.  If gasper continues to hit, I could easily see Julien getting traded at some point.

[gman]

I don't think either Julian or Martin make the roster out of Spring Training. I believe they will both have big league careers, just not with the Twins. Martin would work better as a small ball, second baseman. The Twins wanted him to be a slugging shortstop, he just isn't.  Julian has too much competition to play second base for the Twins. If it isn't lee, Keaschall will be up soon, maybe mid season and could replace both of them.

[Greglw3]

John, I wonder if DaShawn Keirsey, Jr.’s ability to hit lefties comes into play. He hit .279 vs lefties with a .798 OPS in 2024 in his big season with the Saints.