Article: Position Battle: Starting Center Fielder

[Paul Pleiss]

Aaron Hicks should start in AAA, when he proves he can hit there then bring him up. His defense is ready, but his bat is lagging behind. I wonder if he'll continue to switch hit despite his terrible splits.

[Oldgoat_MN]

I believe that the best reason to start Hicks in AAA is to get him confident in himself. A lot of AAA pitchers have been in MLB. He hits them and he should be confident he can hit MLB pitching.

 

When he is back in the major leagues I want him to succeed!

[MileHighTwinsFan]

I believe that the best reason to start Hicks in AAA is to get him confident in himself. A lot of AAA pitchers have been in MLB. He hits them and he should be confident he can hit MLB pitching.

 

When he is back in the major leagues I want him to succeed!

 

Why all the handholding? If he is a major leaguer, he needs to start playing with confidence and smarts now. We know he has the baseball IQ, he needs to play with confidence and resolve. There is little to gain from a stint at AAA.

[troyhobbs]

Aaron Hicks needs to be at AAA, Presley can be a leadoff hitter, this will be the biggest advantage to him starting the season as the starter. If Presley isn't starting, who on this club can leadoff, nobody!! It's really this simple!

 

There are arguably 6-8 spots in the batting order where the twins are lacking so who bats lead off is only the beginning of their troubles. I'd start Hicks in CF but would not bat him lead off. He's got talent just needs to catch a few breaks and build some confidence.

[Physics Guy]

I want Hicks in CF batting 8th. Presley would be the 4th OF (backup CF against good RHP, defensive sub for Willingham). Dozier can leadoff and Mauer #2 until/if Hicks shows he can slide up. I agree that Hicks needs to show he can play this year before Buxton pushes him aside.

[Kwak]

My preference isn't Presley, but I'm sure he will be the starter. I would start Hicks, but given how the roster was built for ST, I believe things will be veteran-friendly. The plan is to avoid losing 90 games and that's why lots of money was spent on FA pitchers and guys like Kubel, Bartlett and Suzuki were added. Veterans, guys "who have won before", guys who will "get after it", you get my drift.

[Major League Ready]

I think we should do whatever is best for Hick's development, whatever that might be. My preference would be to watch him play as I don't care for AP. However, he has been a slow starter so it might be best to start him in Rochester. IMO ... This whole season needs to be about team development and asset management. I could care less if we win 75 vs 72 games if the team progresses toward a much better team in 2015.

[Linus]

Why all the handholding? If he is a major leaguer, he needs to start playing with confidence and smarts now. We know he has the baseball IQ, he needs to play with confidence and resolve. There is little to gain from a stint at AAA.

 

Its not hand holding, its development. We all want Hicks to be our centerfielder but the real question is what is best for his development? I see no harm in letting him build some confidence in AAA and bring him up as soon as he shows that he is a competent hitter at the AAA level.

[Linus]

I think it depends on the other options. If Arcia is the 3rd OF, I'd want Hicks in LF to cover more space... plus, Arcia has a strong arm. If Rosario is the third OF, I would want Hicks in RF because of his arm, but also because Rosario would have very good range.

 

Clear as mud?

 

I agree with this scenario if they keep him. I still believe, however, that if he proves to be a solid centerfielder, the Twins should trade him. As we saw with Span and Revere, good centerfielders are valuable commodities - much more so than corner outfielders.

[stringer bell]

I agree with this scenario if they keep him. I still believe, however, that if he proves to be a solid centerfielder, the Twins should trade him. As we saw with Span and Revere, good centerfielders are valuable commodities - much more so than corner outfielders.

Yep. Aaron Hicks would seem to be a CF where all five tools project to average or better and a switch hitter. If he puts a good 3/4 season in, he will be very valuable and if Buxton continues his development, very expendible. Much like trading a very good catcher (AJ) because Mauer was on the horizon, I think this is the best possible scenario for the Twins. Perhaps they would get the near major league ready SS or another stud pitching prospect or both.

[Lonestar]

I'd rather see the team playing for the terrific future than playing for the mediocre now.

That resonates because that is what we all want. We just differ as to how to play for the future.

 

Some would say if we were playing for the future last year, Hicks would have started the year in AAA. Many of us would not have subjected Hicks to so much futility in the majors last year -- that is, demoted him earlier.

 

I put no stock in Spring Training small sample size. I would send Hicks to AAA because that's what his track record indicates. I'm guessing the Twins decision will be based on the health and spring trainings of Presley and Mastro. Then again, Mastro is not on the 40-man roster.

 

Depending on the nature of his call up, I would start him 50-90% of the time. I would bat him 9th because I think he will be a better hitter than Florimon and would rather have him batting before the top of the order. He might become a lead off hitter or a #6 or #7 hole hitter.

 

We'll see what his future is. Is he more like Jaque Jones or Ben Revere or Torii Hunter or Joe Benson?

[cmathewson]

We'll see what his future is. Is he more like Jaque Jones or Ben Revere or Torii Hunter or Joe Benson?

 

If he was just a right-handed batter, he'd project similar to Hunter, IMO. As a switch hitter, he's kind of Hunter from the right side and Span from the left side.

[zak4221]

I hope Willingham has a strong first half, when buxton is ready, they will trade willingham and move hicks to left.

[Don't Feed the Greed Guy]

I like this progression during the 2014 regular season, based upon on-the-field performance, not merely potential:

 

J.D. Williams: (et al.) A to AA

Buxton: AA to AAA, September call-up to MLB

Hicks: AAA to MLB

 

I would like to see these players on the field every day, whether in the minors, or when their performance makes Kubel, Willingham, Parmelee, Mastro and/or Presley expendable/releasable/tradable around the All-Star break, if not earlier.

 

The tricky balance is allowing for a natural progression of talent, rather than creating a logjam at the highest levels in the organization.

 

Throw in Rosario as the wild card as he comes off his 50 game suspension.

[Oxtung]

The optimism here boggles my mind.  Hicks' just had one of the worst rookie seasons of the last 50 years. In fact his .192 BA is the 5th worst. He gets sent to AAA and doesn't show anything there either. Now people want him to start again in the majors to begin the season?

 

<---- Mind Boggled

[TKGuy]

I guess I don't see the logic of not starting Hicks. Learn on the job and as long as he has matured, he should be in CF until Buxton comes. Then Hicks can move A corner spots. I like Presley as a 4th OF. It's time for Mastro and Ramirez to go, so keep Hammer, Hicks, Arcia, Presley and Parmalee.

 

I think same thing goes for Pinto, why not get some experience and see if he is the future, and if not, we have some other options working up the system

[Oxtung]

I guess I don't see the logic of not starting Hicks. Learn on the job and as long as he has matured, he should be in CF until Buxton comes. Then Hicks can move A corner spots. I like Presley as a 4th OF. It's time for Mastro and Ramirez to go, so keep Hammer, Hicks, Arcia, Presley and Parmalee.

 

I think same thing goes for Pinto, why not get some experience and see if he is the future, and if not, we have some other options working up the system

 

In education you don't just drop a student into a situation they aren't ready for and say "sink or swim". When you're teaching mathematics you don't take a kid that can't add and try to teach them multiplication. All learning is a step by step process and you need to have a grasp on step X before you can move onto Step Y.

 

It's pretty clear after last season that Hicks hasn't mastered the fundamentals needed to succeed at the MLB level. He has missed a step or three along the way and needs to relearn some things.

 

Why not let him learn in the majors? Failing for a short amount of time can be a good thing. It can force a student to refocus or accept that the previous fundamentals were important to learn.

 

After they fail however they have to have time to go back and relearn those fundamentals in a lower pressure environment. If a student fails at multiplication because they can't add, hammering them over and over that they're a failure because they can't multiply does no good. In fact it can cause long term damage. It leads to resentment and a loss of confidence which in turn leads to feeling worthless at a given task. When that happens you've now removed any desire a student once had for learning the task. They dread the task now.

 

Another reason for sending him back to AAA is that while the major league staff might be the best at teaching the advanced concepts that pitchers need to understand to be successful that does not mean they are the best at teaching the previous steps that lead up to the advanced stuff. The whole point of the AAA staff is to teach those concepts. Another benefit is that Hicks will be surrounded by guys learning the same concepts and he can talk with them about it.

 

Recap: We know Hicks has failed in the majors and needs to learn some of the fundamentals he's missing. By going back to AAA he is in a lower pressure environment more conducive to learning, surrounded by others learning those same concepts and with a staff that is dedicated to teaching those specific concepts. Once he is starting to master those missing fundamentals he will also be at a level that is easier for him to be successful leading to more confidence which in turn reinforces the fundamentals. At that point he is ready for a second attempt at MLB.

[cmathewson]

The optimism here boggles my mind.  Hicks' just had one of the worst rookie seasons of the last 50 years. In fact his .192 BA is the 5th worst. He gets sent to AAA and doesn't show anything there either. Now people want him to start again in the majors to begin the season?

 

<---- Mind Boggled

 

Correction, he had about the worst first fourteen days of a major league career you can have. But he made adjustments and did decently for a rookie thereafter.

 

In March and April, his OPS was .356. In May is was .707. In June, it was .708. In July it was .671. You do him a disservice by ignoring the improvement he made last year. From May through July, Hicks had a higher OPS than Presley did in September (.699).

[stringer bell]

No question, Oxtung made some good points. Hicks made the team in 2013 on the basis of having good tools, having his best minor league season, and having a fine 2012 minor league season. Since he fell somewhere between disappointment and failure, we can discount the spring training performance and since he is coming off a poor 2013, his promotion couldn't be based on his previous season. The Twins aren't going to platoon him with a LH hitter or bring him up as a fourth OF, so he needs everyone else to fail miserably or be injured or he has to be beyond good in spring training games.

[bird]

I guess I question how much of Hick's struggles were due to lack of "knowledge". We can take that math student, send him to take part in the school play, feel comfortable that he has his lines down, and then watch him step onto the big stage under the bright lights and stumble through his lines. I wonder if Hicks had a bit of stage fright. Sometimes it just takes getting used to the spotlights.

[cmathewson]

I guess I question how much of Hick's struggles were due to lack of "knowledge". We can take that math student, send him to take part in the school play, feel comfortable that he has his lines down, and then watch him step onto the big stage under the bright lights and stumble through his lines. I wonder if Hicks had a bit of stage fright. Sometimes it just takes getting used to the spotlights.

 

There's a lot to that. His whole family in attendance. Leading off against Verlander. First pitch strike on a curve ball that went six inches around the plate. That was like choking on your first line. After that, his confidence took a nosedive. The fact that he recovered is encouraging.

[Jdosen]

I'd like to be optimistic on Hicks, and I think if he's handled correctly he can still be a valuable player, but if I had to guess, I would say most players who are as bad as he was last year never amount to much.

 

I want to see Hicks in AAA on Opening Day. Not only has he not yet shown that he can hit Big League pitching, he certainly hasn't shown that he can hit AAA pitching yet either. I'd like to think that he can, and 5-7 weeks in Rochester will only help his development. If he's having success (not only in numbers, but if the coaches feel his approach is ready), then call him up and set him loose.

 

Whatever the Twins do, I hope to God they don't let ST numbers (good or bad) decided anything. Hicks is not the only example for ST numbers not correlating with success in the regular season. Another one I remember is 2012 Liriano who tore it up in ST and was in the bullpen by May.

[Kwak]

 

 

Whatever the Twins do, I hope to God they don't let ST numbers (good or bad) decided anything. Hicks is not the only example for ST numbers not correlating with success in the regular season. Another one I remember is 2012 Liriano who tore it up in ST and was in the bullpen by May.

 

However, in 2013, Liriano was instrumental in helping his team qualify for the playoffs for the first time in 20 years, and was named comeback player of the year in the National League.

[Jdosen]

However, in 2013, Liriano was instrumental in helping his team qualify for the playoffs for the first time in 20 years, and was named comeback player of the year in the National League.

He certainly was, but that doesn't change the fact that his ST numbers don't correlate to regular season numbers.

[Mike Sixel]

I want Hicks in LF, with Pressley in CF until Buxton is up in September. Get Hicks used to his LT position (assuming Rosario is at 2B or traded).......no need for Willingham to see the outfield for this team. IF they are seriious about not being in big holes at the beginning of games, they need OF defense.

[cmathewson]

I'd like to be optimistic on Hicks, and I think if he's handled correctly he can still be a valuable player, but if I had to guess, I would say most players who are as bad as he was last year never amount to much.

 

I want to see Hicks in AAA on Opening Day. Not only has he not yet shown that he can hit Big League pitching, he certainly hasn't shown that he can hit AAA pitching yet either. I'd like to think that he can, and 5-7 weeks in Rochester will only help his development. If he's having success (not only in numbers, but if the coaches feel his approach is ready), then call him up and set him loose.

 

Whatever the Twins do, I hope to God they don't let ST numbers (good or bad) decided anything. Hicks is not the only example for ST numbers not correlating with success in the regular season. Another one I remember is 2012 Liriano who tore it up in ST and was in the bullpen by May.

 

Most player struggle when they come to the majors. Ben Revere had one of the worst Septembers I ever remember in his debut. Hunter was bad when he came up, in fact, the whole 99 team sucked that year.

 

Michael Cuddyer. Jason Kubel. Justin Morneau. Jason Bartlett. The list goes on. More recently, Carlos Gomez says hi. Brian Dozier was horrible in his debut.

 

Everybody fixates on the season opener and forgets the rest of the year. I don't get it.

[cmathewson]

I want Hicks in LF, with Pressley in CF until Buxton is up in September. Get Hicks used to his LT position (assuming Rosario is at 2B or traded).......no need for Willingham to see the outfield for this team. IF they are seriious about not being in big holes at the beginning of games, they need OF defense.

 

You'd rather have Pressly hitting than Kubel? Good luck with that.

[Mike Sixel]

I'd rather have Pressley fielding. No idea what to do about the hitting. But since they already punted on the hitting, let's put the best defense out there. Two mediocre things are less valuable in sports than 1 good and one bad thing. Prevent the runs, get lucky with the hitting, win a few more games. Or, just be bad at field and at hitting....

[Alex]

I'd rather have Pressley fielding. No idea what to do about the hitting. But since they already punted on the hitting, let's put the best defense out there. Two mediocre things are less valuable in sports than 1 good and one bad thing. Prevent the runs, get lucky with the hitting, win a few more games. Or, just be bad at field and at hitting....

 

We'll see how Kubel hits this season, but he was terrible last year, way worse than Presley.

[Alex]

Correction, he had about the worst first fourteen days of a major league career you can have. But he made adjustments and did decently for a rookie thereafter.

 

In March and April, his OPS was .356. In May is was .707. In June, it was .708. In July it was .671. You do him a disservice by ignoring the improvement he made last year. From May through July, Hicks had a higher OPS than Presley did in September (.699).

 

Presley didn't have the power Hicks had but his .336 OBP makes him far more valuable if he can continue to produce that, which may be doubtful and that's why you see the difference in OPS. That's the most concerning aspect of Hicks's struggles is that he never found the ability to even draw walks and he's always had a high number of strikeouts, which we can expect to be higher in the majors. It wasn't good, not really ever, with the exception of facing LHP, but that's the less frequent platoon split, and he's too young to be platooned since you want him to get as many at bats as possible.