Edouard Julien’s Triple-A Improvement Checklist

IMO you did a very good job Cody in evaluating Julien's needs in AAA. Julien has played 1B & IMO it's his best position & where they need to focus on because 2B isn't his best position. With Polanco back & other worthy prospects (Lewis, Lee, Martin & Helman) are better than him there.

IMO Julien has at best an average arm so I'd rule out 3B & OF & again we have also better players & prospects there. Julien is our best candidate at lead off, so we need to get him in eventually into our line up. So 1B is our best option, he's quick & has some experience there. I was disappointed that they didn't give him any playing time at 1B while he was up, so we could have a look at him.

I think where Julien sees the bulk of his time could be telling.  If they play him at 2B, it tells me that they may be ready to move on from Polanco (after the season?).  If they play him at 1B, they are tabling the Polanco discussion and really trying to find him a position that will get him reps this season.  There really isn't another "position of need" at the moment.

Continuing to play Julien at 2B seems odd with the way the Twins' system currently looks. We can have Polanco return at a reasonable $10.5 million salary next year, a no-brainer if he plays like the borderline all-star he's been before when healthy. Royce Lewis' long-term home also seems to be 2B, though he can also play 3B, all 3 OF spots, and serve as our backup SS. Brooks Lee looks like he'll either play 2B or 3B. Austin Martin could contribute at 2B as well.

All 4 of those players seem likelier to stick at 2B than Julien because of their defensive chops. There's also a bit of a logjam at 1B, with Kirilloff and Miranda likely platooning at 1B when Lewis or Lee take over at 3B for Miranda. That leaves the corner OF spots, where hopefully Larnach, Wallner, and Martin develop into long-term starters. 

It seems like Julien's path to playing time lies in his versatility, mixing and matching at 1B, 2B, LF, and DH. This post might be wishful thinking in believing that our young players will be long-term contributors. But 2B seems like the MOST clogged position in the Twins system, and I would love to see Julien show some versatility. 

This article correctly points out what Julien needs to accomplish in order to compete at the highest level: defense, hitting off speed pitches, and the K/W rate. Watching Julien play for St. Paul, via milb.com (it would be obviously better to evaluate his play in person), we can see his value.

Julien is still a work in progress but his positives are noteworthy. First off, while it is correct that his arm is not very strong, it is close enough to adequate or similar to what we see from Miranda. Julien is not slick in the field but he gets to balls better than often given credit for, which we saw when he flagged down several grounders while playing for the Twins. He is improving but we should not ever expect him to be Roberto Alomar. I trust Julien's glove ahead of either Solano or Gordon.

A guy who can carry an on base percentage above .400 with power, stolen base ability, and a high average  is a valuable player in any lineup. Julien just needs to keep hitting and improving in small increments. I believe he would be a real valuable leadoff hitter versus right handers and DH for the Twins. Whether Buxton is now a full time DH beyond May is another story.

Lastly (I noted this previously in other threads), I cannot recall a player having more strikes called on them when the pitch is so far out of the strike zone. I saw this last season when following Julien and we saw this a number of times this year when he was with the Twins. It happens to all players just as they benefit from some calls but Julien is seemingly a magnet for the 3-2 pitch (4 inches off the plate) being called a strike. This may be a standard for players who test an umpires patience with how often they are deep in counts such as a guy like Carlos Santana, first with Cleveland and now with Pittsburgh. 

The path for Julien to have consistent playing time with the Twins will be tough given the barriers at 2B, 1B, or DH but wouldn't it be nice to have a guy lead off who gets on base at such a high rate or crushes a home run to begin games?

Could you take a look at the pitchers Julian faced while he was with the Twins? If I recall, he faced some pretty tough competition that the rest of the lineup also had trouble with. 

I'm also watching Michael Helman, who could very well morph into the Twins utility guy for a couple of years, showing both power and speed. Maybe not quite cut for regular play, but he has been evrsatile in the field.

The ABS system will be used in AAA starting Friday, apparently. Batters with a really good eye should benefit.

If Julien can take his game and numbers that he put up at AA forward I don't see either Lewis or Lee matching that offensive production. However, folks are correct to point out that Jorge Polanco is a stalwart for the Twins and looking good right now. I do think that a bat like Julien would really look good DHing versus right handed pitchers.

I see him swing through way too many fastballs.  That really needs to be corrected.