Article: Twins Minor League Report (9/8): Red Wings Season Ends (7 players recalled)

[Monkeypaws]

Probably best to steer the top prospects clear of this Twins team - most of them have just come from playing meaningful games in September, a good note to end on.

 

In fact the guys they did recall are a perfect fit for this Twins team, and will be great trivia questions in 15 years when trying to come up with obscure Twins.

[IdahoPilgrim]

I, too, rather like the fact that occasionally a player gets called up in September just as a 'thank you' for their contribution. (Service awards?)

 

Yes, there are guys who will contribute down the road and maybe these guys aren't going to be part of that. So what? This isn't football.

 

I think it's classy that baseball has this way of acknowledging players who were almost good enough and were helpful to the organization as a whole.

 

I agree. I just don't see the point in getting too worked up, one way or the other, about a 1-month callup. And I liked Thrylos's comment on another thread - giving some of these journeymen one month of major league pay (which works out to about $80,000) is a decent way of saying thank you to them for contributing in a role nobody really wants - AAA filler.

[Rosterman]

And, I guess, as long as now one of importance was DFAed. That is the sticking point so much these days.....40-man roster spots.

[Physics Guy]

Hicks will NOT be in Minnesota next year. His lack of a callup should make that clear. CF next season will belong to Presley unless Hicks forces the issue. I'm fine with that, as I'd like the Twins to give Presley a full year to see what he can do. If he can figure things out, worst case is that you can trade him to make room for Hicks. If he doesn't, he becomes the 4th OF of the future when Hicks is ready.

 

Why not Hicks next year? They did the same with Dozier last year and it worked out fine. I can't say I necessarily agreed with it at the time, but it worked for Dozier.

[jokin]

I think we should wait to see what roles these guys play before getting mad. If Fryer is just a third catcher in case of injuries and Martis is only on the squad to eat innings in case of a 18-2 game or a game that goes into the 17th inning, then all the freaking out about why they're on the squad and how they're stealing experience from a real prospect is a bit outlandish.

 

I don't see anyone freaking out or getting mad, rather, rationally discussing options the Twins might have pursued to continue finding answers how to get out of the deep hole the Twins have dug for themselves the last 3 years. This largely comes from the far-from-outlandish proposal that he Twins should be mostly playing guys now in September with something to prove or show to the club, those who can at least help possibly start to make their case for how they are part of the solution.

 

The Twins already have a 3rd catcher on the active roster, and a 4th one (Escobar is the "emergency catcher"), and 5th one (should Mauer come off the DL) who can cover the situation for one day should the highly improbable event of 2 catchers getting injured in the same game somehow occur. And then of course, like with the Chris Herrman promotion last year, Fryer could be on the roster the next day. If they want to give Fryer strictly bullpen duties, that's fine, but Pinto and Herrman should be catching every inning of every game through to the end of the year.

 

In the case of Martis, why not have Trevor May get those "18-2 game" innings? He pitched just fine in relief for Rochester- there are no innings restrictions or injury concerns, and he's already on the roster.

[YourHouseIsMyHouse]

I'm sick of seeing Shairon Martis in the Twins organization. Promoting him provokes me even more.

[Jim H]

We are talking about the 31st and 32nd men on the active roster here. I see nothing wrong with rewarding organizational guys in this way. The idea that you can talk yourself into believing that there are "rational" reasons to criticize this kind of move is what is silly. Neither Martis or Fryer is likely to play much, and if they do it not the end of the world. The "rational" idea that a "real" prospects should have these spots really doesn't make any sense. A few innings or games at the end of the season isn't going to make anybody better or make them more ready to help next year. This just looks like another way that some can find to criticize the Twins.

[jorgenswest]

Is it necessary to attack a player simply for working hard and being called up? Is there any other way to express displeasure for the decisions of the Twins management? I hope some will reconsider and edit or delete their posts.

[DJL44]

Is Super Two part of why Hicks was not recalled?

[stringer bell]

Is Super Two part of why Hicks was not recalled?

Hicks would be right on the cusp if he spends no more time in the minors. He is going to have to be pretty special to avoid being optioned to start 2014. I think the Twins have decided that the time is now for Hicks to produce in order to play for the Twins. I really doubt they'll be swayed by a strong spring given what happened this year. It kind of makes sense to give Presley a long look, so Hicks wouldn't have had much playing time anyway.

[Don't Feed the Greed Guy]

Thanks for the daily minor league updates, Seth & Company. Your write-ups were a morning staple, with my first cup of coffee in the morning. Nice work.

[Rosterman]

Is it necessary to attack a player simply for working hard and being called up? Is there any other way to express displeasure for the decisions of the Twins management? I hope some will reconsider and edit or delete their posts.

 

 

There is something to rewarding these guys and adding them to the 40-man, with the prospect that it might encourage them to resign as minor league free agents with you again in 2014 if they don't get better offers...the major league salary for 20+ games is surely a great seasonal bonus.

 

Is there someone more deserving, that might open the season with the Twins next year, and not on the 40-man. That is the question to ask.

 

I thought there might be. And maybe even like another poster said, more innings for Trevor May in blowouts (who is on the 40-man) for example.

 

No one was truly cut, so that is a blessing.

 

But it may be brutal this offseason. And some of these AAA guys will stay on (shades of Drew Butera) in case the Twins need roster adjustment/movement further down the road. (Which is when Deduno may be cut if his injury is year long...other rosters are set waaay too well and you can usually sneak a guy or two thru during the winter meetings or the end of the free agency period that will still stay in the organization in some capacity).

 

Plus, it is pretty amazing how many 41st-44th players are out there or as minor league free agents. We saw a few of them this season with the Twins, and short-term in the Twins system.

[jokin]

We are talking about the 31st and 32nd men on the active roster here. I see nothing wrong with rewarding organizational guys in this way. The idea that you can talk yourself into believing that there are "rational" reasons to criticize this kind of move is what is silly. Neither Martis or Fryer is likely to play much, and if they do it not the end of the world. The "rational" idea that a "real" prospects should have these spots really doesn't make any sense. A few innings or games at the end of the season isn't going to make anybody better or make them more ready to help next year. This just looks like another way that some can find to criticize the Twins.

 

Since we're trying to make rational arguments here, apparently according to your line of thinking- "a few innings or games at the end of the season isn't going to make anybody better or make them more ready to help next year."

 

Therefore, this begs the question, why call anyone up, then, but to give each organizational guy his service medal? Has Josmil Pinto benefitted his career prospects from his September call-up? If Tonkin puts a series of zeroes up over the last 3 weeks, does it help him or hurt him going into Spring Training? And how does not getting Major League experience in the lower-stress environment of out-of-contention September, help guys like May and the other more legit prospects who actually have good chances of building on that experience going into next year? And I don't recall anyone saying that non-prospects playing is the end of the world, just that it's a waste of resources and opportunities. And to follow the logic in your post, since in your view, the club is just looking to reward organizational guys, why not call up all 40 on the roster, they all pretty much fill the bill as "organizational guys", don't they? Wouldn't that be even more "classy"?, or would that be the kind of move that's "silly"?

 

This looks like another way that some can find to defend the Twins at all costs, even in the midst of the third consecutively comical and drearily dreadful season of 90+ losses. That changes and reprioritizations aren't critically necessary at this point in breaking the cycle, sending a message that enough is enough, and consciously changing the direction of the club, says a lot about those in charge, and the element of the fan base still willing to wallow in the financially-tax-subsidized success, but on-field failure, Stockholm-syndrome style.

[Oxtung]

I am a little surprised that Danny Santana didn't get a call up. SS has hardly been a bastion of stellar play and Santana could either show he is ready or give the message to Florimon that he needs to improve to keep the job. Since Santana is already on the 40 man it wouldn't have taken any roster moves.

[diehardtwinsfan]

This looks like another way that some can find to defend the Twins at all costs, even in the midst of the third consecutively comical and drearily dreadful season of 90+ losses.

 

Funny you should say this, I was going to post something similar about the opposite being true, as it looks like a pretty silly reason to bash the front office. I don't get the consternation over this one, I really don't. No one got cut to make room for these guys. The org just handed out a couple of very large bonuses that will more than double the yearly salary of several minor leaguers who will likely not see another paycheck like that again. Perhaps they want to look at them just a bit as well. Some of these more ready guys are also headed to play winter ball and the AFL. They are going to get extra work in, so perhaps the Twins decided to let them have September off. There's good reason to get upset at the front office. This isn't one of them, and it's hardly a "defend the front office at all costs" type situation.

 

Besides, I can think of only one poster at TD who defends the front office at all costs (and I suspect he would disagree with that). I'm not sure why arguments are constantly being tailored in this way. It really does sell short a lot of good arguments. Just something to think about.

[Jim H]

I agree with diehard. It isn't a matter of defending the front office at all costs, it is picking fights that matter. Of course Pinto is helping his cause a bit for the future. He is getting to play everyday. Whoever the 31st and 32nd guys are, won't. It might as well be Fryer and Martis as anybody else you might name. Also there are other considerations that get miminized or ignored. Some pitchers have put in a lot of innings already(such as May) and may get more (May in the AFL). I think largely, the late season promotion thing can be interesting, but because it is such a small sample, its results tend to be overblown. Clearly most of the evaluation on these guys is based on their season long work, not some potential few innings or games at the end of a long season. Even if they occur in the majors.