Prospect Heaven: 5 Observations from the First Spring Breakout for the Twins

This is the best idea MLB has had since banning the shift and instituting the pitch clock.  We have some exciting prospects. Baseball is back!!

Sounds like the players were all really excited too. Love the enthusiasm...even if it led to some impulsive swings or pitches.

Fun to watch the young guys. Festa seemed to be 80% off-speed, not many fastballs. That surprised me. Most pitches were 88-89. 

Good read.  I concentrated on the pitching.  For me, it's always great to reconcile real velocity vs. what the scouting reports have been telling me.  For this game, I saw:

Festa hit 96.8 mph.  This kid sure seems like a lock to help the big club this season  Festa and Varland give us two high end velocity starters.  But both could have great careers as bullpen arms too if the starter thing doesn't work out.

Soto hit 98.5 mph.  Only 18 years old.  This kid will be fun to watch this year.  Looks like they gotta work on his control though.

Juan Mendez also hit 98.5 mph.  I never heard of this guy before.  He's already 25 years old and has been stuck in A ball the last two years (limited success).  Control seems to be an issue for him as well.

Alejandro Crisostomo hit 95.6 mph.  Another guy I didn't hear much about.  Looks like we signed him as a free agent last year.  Still only 23 years old with only 30 career innings pitched in the minors.

Miquel Rodriguez hit 95.7 mph.  He's 25 years old.  He started in A+ last year before being promoted to AA.  Based on stats, he'll probably have to go back to AA to start this season.

I know velocity isn't the end all.  But it's always fun rooting for the big arms and hoping they can find enough control to be successful.

10 hours ago, Fatbat said:

This is the best idea MLB has had since banning the shift and instituting the pitch clock.  We have some exciting prospects. Baseball is back!!

Pitch clock yes, shift a big heck no. Hit them where they ain't is baseball, not whiney pull happy strikeout machines at the plate 

I enjoyed the Spring Breakout game also. Festa and Soto were fun to watch as were a number of the position players. The day was very hot and humid and I think that is why many of the people in attendance left after the regular exhibition game. I believe the announced attendance was 7,240 for game one and by the time the SB game began I would be surprised if there were 2,000 people still there. As the second game moved along the crowd thinned considerably. The Twins/MLB gave away 1,000 packs of the top MLB prospects to the first arriving folks at the ballpark, I was not one of them. I think Nick did a nice job describing the action.

3 hours ago, HrbieFan said:

Pitch clock yes, shift a big heck no. Hit them where they ain't is baseball, not whiney pull happy strikeout machines at the plate 

Im all about not everyone being a pull happy slugger but I also don't like seeing a shifted defense that leaves half the field uncovered. That wasn’t good for the game imo.

Also attended the game

Lee and Martin seemed to have good chemistry and both looked good on the dirt (still want Martin to be our Alex Gordon in LF)

Tough time for 3rd baseman with the errors (it stood out the Rays guys were willing to dive and get glove dirty twins not so much)

Caminero was smooth at 3rd with great internal clock and Issac was fun too.

Fun auto session but surprised Rays had there guys there but didn't see many of twins top people when I got up there I. e. Jenkins, Lee (grateful for the caminero auto)

The A-AAA angle of this is really enlightening too. The minor leagues are such a unique piece of pro sports and this both spotlights prospects but also shows how their development varies.

Best idea for baseball fandom since WBC.

I'm in total agreement with most everyone else: this new idea for a game to showcase the minor league prospects is a fabulous idea. Hopefully, MLB runs with it and keeps this an annual event and does more promotion for the game, maybe even more than a single game if that's realistic. For us diehard fans, this was sheer pleasure!

On 3/17/2024 at 11:16 AM, mikelink45 said:

It is funny to read all the reactions - especially about Charlie Soto.  He did not impress me.  I am not down on him, but he has a ways to go before I start to see him as the high level prospect everyone else seems to see and want.  

I was impressed by the bats and I was not impressed with the Ray's arms.  

I really want more of these games. 

2 hours ago, mikelink45 said:

That is fine, but no matter what age, he was not that impressive to me.  I am glad he is for everyone else and I will celebrate when he breaks out as a professional.

You got high expectations then.  A kid with 2 plus plus pitches doesn't impress you that throws 98 mph.   Likely amped up for the game and pitching against hitters much more advanced than him.  This is going to be a major instructional year for him.  Chase Petty in 2021 looks like he was a little further along as a pitcher.  However between the Twins and Reds,  he decided to cut back on velocity,  focus more on location and quality of the pitches he is throwing.  He has had two years in a row of arm discomfort, so they are probably trying to reduce stress on the arm, while maximizing his ability.  He is a top 100 prospect but the ceiling is coming down. 

Soto's ceiling is sky high but he isn't currently in the realm of a Petty.  He seems very similar to Brody Brecht of the Hawkeyes who is a draft prospect this year and 21 years old.  He went 4 innings into friday game, 1 run,  proceeded to give up a hit and 2 walk and was pulled.  His ERA is like 1.8,  ton of strikeouts,  but is only throwing strikes at about 58-60% clip and his whip is 1.46.  Crazy amount of swing and miss will occur from both players, but they are going to have to learn to control the zone to become a high end pitcher in the big leagues.  I am ok with taking the gamble on Soto,  and he is exactly on the track I would expect for a pitcher who has really only been a pitcher for a year or two.  Wait and see.   

Everyone knows the risk is sky high with flame-throwing 18 year olds. Soto reminds me of Duran - big, somewhat stiff, very hard sinker, good secondary pitches. 

Soto is an exciting prospect despite the odds, because it's hard to find impact pitching.