Twins Fan From Afar

Yea, good point. I guess I discounted him because he played like 13 games this spring for Rochester before getting the call, so his promotion feels old to me. For the record, I also think he will be great. He's very young!

You can view the page at http://twinsdaily.com/content.php?r=2345-2013-A-Postmortem

Agreed, John. I'd say $25 million in starting pitching this off-season. No joke. Worst case: the "surplus" of starting pitching we've heard about, but never before seen.

Yes, I am aware that there are a couple weeks left in the season. But the Twins are dead. Dead as a door-nail. And they've been that way for months (years?). Shortly after this season comes to its pitiful end, the Twins' brass and field personnel will assemble, as they do every year, in Ft. Myers, for the organizational meetings. Among other topics, they will dissect the 2013 season, and what exactly caused this year's ineptitude. [TABLE=class: tr-caption-container] [TD=align: center]http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-54nrA06ATgQ/UjkCMObBZ9I/AAAAAAAAAr8/4SiRsD4Ooz4/s320/Gardy+2002.jpg[/TD] [TD=class: tr-caption, align: center]Ron Gardenhire: 2002[/TD] [/TABLE] If Terry Ryan, Ron Gardenhire or Dave St. Peter needs to do some cramming on the Delta flight down south, what follows is a short(ish) list of causes for this season's horrid, embarrassing play. Make no mistake, this is not an exhaustive or detailed list. And I'm not adding very many stats this time around (it's 2013: if you need statistical support for my proposition that Darin Mastroianni wasn't spectacular offensively, check out any number of websites). Without further ado, and in no particular order of importance, here are my Cliff's Notes for the 2013 Twins Organizational Meetings. 1. Aaron Hicks was Not Ready for Primetime The Twins made good trades, getting (potentially) quality arms for centerfielders Ben Revere and Denard Span. By getting rid of Revere and Span, however, the Twins' thrust Hicks into the spotlight. To be sure, he put on a good show at AA in 2012, and was dominant in Spring Training in 2013. But we know now -- hindsight being 20/20, of course -- that he was not ready for the major leagues. Yes, he had flashes of brilliance offensively, and was solid defensively, but this was too much, too soon, for Hicks, evidenced by the fact that he didn't earn a September call-up, and that the Twins selected a replacement-level centerfielder, Alex Presely, when they traded Justin Morneau to the Pittsburgh Pirates last month. 2. Low Power in the Middle of the Order Josh Willingham, who had a career year in 2012, was injured for a significant part of 2013, and his power numbers dwindled. He'll end up at around 15 home runs, and will be lucky to get 55 RBIs (last season, on an equally bad team: 35 dingers, 110 RBIs). Justin Morneau was serviceable, but also lacked the power that Twins fans enjoyed for the better part of a decade. Joe Mauer was good before his concussion, but his "power numbers" (dingers/RBIs) weren't high, mostly because no one was on base in front of him. In short, the guys that were penciled-in as the Twins' 3-4-5 hitters didn't do the damage that was expected. Make no mistake, RBIs are very much a team stat -- so perhaps it's more appropriate to say that the Twins as a whole under-delivered in giving the meat of the order opportunities to do damage. 3. Starting Pitching was Disgusting Terry Ryan got what he (while spending Pohlad family money) paid for. It makes me physically ill reciting Twins' starting pitching stats from this season, so I'm not going to. But it's basically what you would expect: way too many hits, way too few strikeouts, way too few guys getting deep into games, and a batch of guys that probably wouldn't deserve more than a "cup of coffee" at the major league level being given multiple starts with the Twins this season. One thing to note: Vance Worley -- who projected to be not fantastic, but serviceable, failed this season. I didn't see that coming, and it's probably not fair to blame the front office for that (but note, at the same time, that Trevor May -- a better pitcher under team control for more years -- was the larger piece in that trade as far as the future goes). 4. Trevor Plouffe Showed Little Improvement The Twins have given Plouffe, now 27, every chance. I know -- he showed great promise last season (I was at one of those games last July where he was just on fire, and it was exciting). But so far, those couple months have been, more or less, a flash in the pan. Although his average is a little higher than it was last year (.252 to .235), the OPS is lower, the defense isn't as solid as the team would like, and I'm not even sure how dedicated Plouffe is to the game (not my opinion -- based on a smattering of articles/tweets the past couple seasons from those "in the know"). With Miguel Sano on the rise, 2013 would have been a good season for Plouffe to establish himself as the Twins' starting third baseman to beat. Now, I expect the competition will be on in March, 2013. Sure, Plouffe will be better defensively than Sano, but will Plouffe be able to compete with Sano's power, and, equally as important, Sano's desire -- desire to succeed, to improve on defense, to be an All-Star? [TABLE=class: tr-caption-container] [TD=align: center]http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-OS8iJAmr-vU/UjkDJdcRIyI/AAAAAAAAAsI/fTp_NEmcLx4/s1600/Gardy+2013.jpg[/TD] [TD=class: tr-caption, align: center]Ron Gardenhire: 2013[/TD] [/TABLE] 5. No Help from the Top of the Order Aaron Hicks failed to get on base when the Twins gave him lead-off hitter duties. Here are some other guys that hit out of the 1-hole this season: Clete Thomas, Eduardo Escobar, Jamey Carroll, Alex Presley (and Brian Dozier, who really hasn't been bad in that position, but is an ideal 2-hole hitter). Not quite Denard Span-esque, huh? It's tough to give Dozier (when he's batting second, that is), Mauer, Morneau, Willingham, Oswaldo Arcia and Ryan Doumit the opportunity to do much damage with that rather pathetic crop of players occupying what is supposed to be a high on-base percentage spot in the lineup. 6. Little Assistance from the Farm Long story short, when the Twins really needed talent to come up from their farm system and produce, they didn't get results. Yes, there were bright spots. In fact, I'm sure every guy called up this season performed well at some point. But in the aggregate, it was insufficient. Hicks, Kyle Gibson (remember the "Free Gibson" movement?), Chris Parmelee, Chris Colabello (I hesitate to even put him here -- I'm a big fan, he performed so well at New Britain and in Rochester, and he's been up-and-down so much in 2013 that the Rochester-to-Minneapolis flight attendants probably know him by name -- but I've been let down), and Oswaldo Arcia (who started off well, and is doing all right now, but had a horrid stretch that resulted in a demotion to AAA) haven't given the Twins the boost they needed this season. And I'm not going to mention the rest of the pitchers (but I am glaring at Liam Hendriks, and he knows it). 7. No Top Prospect Forced their Way Up Don't get me wrong. Miguel Sano had a great, great season. He exceeded expectations. But in the end, he didn't deserve a call-up -- unless you believe his call-up would have been just for the fans this season (not an unreasonable proposition, by the way). Sano slowed down at AA, and was inconsistent (though powerful and exiting). Trevor May was stable, in the sense that he was uninjured, but was never good enough to warrant a promotion to AAA, much less the Twins. And the best pitching prospect, Alex Meyer, was limited because of injuries, thus never even entering the equation for a mid-or-late season promotion. I need to be measured in my observations, because Sano and Meyer were very, very good, and May did improve. But make no mistake, none of these guys really forced Terry Ryan's hand when it came to a September call-up. Accordingly, they were unable to breathe life into the dead MLB team. But maybe that's for the best. I'm not sure I want Miguel Sano's first game to be one where Mastroianni is batting leadoff and one where the Twins are about to lose their 90th game of the season in front of an "in-the-stands" Target Field crowd of 8,000. The end results: The Twins stopped playing meaningful games back in May or June. Again. Payroll decreased. Again. The Twins sold off an asset (Morneau). Fans stopped coming in person to the ballpark like they used to (even if they had paid for tickets in advance). There is hope in sight (a very good farm system), but I am not at all convinced that the talented prospects, alone, will bring relevance to this organization. As I mentioned, this was a non-exhaustive list. Please, leave a comment. Add your thoughts on what else factored into the Twins' failures this season. Thanks for reading.

I'm no scout, but watched both a bunch in New Britain. I'd give Herrmann the nod defensively.

Great as always. That pic of you at 8 .... Nightmare-inducing.

I'll say. DreInWA should start writing his own pieces. Or at least cut-and-paste this one as his first

Thank you!

I disagree, Thry. I think it should start off with a middle school-esque "Do you like me? Check YES or NO" folded piece of paper that is circulated from, say, Mauer, to a few select players to determine interest. Obviously it will culminate with white smoke coming from Target Field -- be careful not to confuse it with smoke coming from the adjacent Hennepin County Recovery Center as they burn trash.

For sure. There's nothing wrong with loyalty. I'll be a Twins fan until I die. But right now, the way I'm "expressing" my fandom is by complaining (from time to time) about the frustrating state of affairs, and by turning my attention to the farm system.

Thanks for the comments. Another (kind of) related question: What if the team wasn't hosting next year's All-Star Game? Would their offseason moves be different, would they feel more pressure to put a winner on the field in 2014?

You can view the page at http://twinsdaily.com/content.php?r=2319-The-Late-Summer-of-My-Discontent

When Target Field opened, I was living in Connecticut (as I do now), but harbored a dream of moving back to Minnesota. I was naive. I thought -- even though I was an attorney licensed to practice in Connecticut only, even though I owned a home in Connecticut, and even though many of my professional ties to Minnesota had dwindled -- that I could somehow easily move across the country and re-establish things back home. For many, many reasons (the prolonged economic crisis being one of them), that didn't happen. I'd be lying if I said that a part of me doesn't dream of going back to the Twin Cities, but I am very happy personally and professionally now. But that's not the focus of this post, believe it or not (but for my self-help blog, ). No, I do aim to write about the Twins tonight. So read on, it's all connected.When I thought, or, rather, naively dreamed, that Minnesota was in the cards for me, I filled out a form and paid something like $200 to get in the "On-Deck Circle" for Twins season tickets. I was only interested in a 20-game plan, which was the lowest that was offered. Yes, there was a time when demand for season tickets -- any package, anywhere in the stadium -- was so significant that the Twins simply couldn't supply tickets and seats for everyone that was interested. Long story short, I ended up getting out of the "On-Deck Circle," and of course am still writing this blog from Connecticut (side note: there's no "On-Deck Circle" for my awesome Rock Cats seats, which I very much enjoy). The amazing part of this story is that my membership in the on-deck circle, and exit therefrom, took place in 2010. Only 3 years ago. Tonight, I could click on this link and place a deposit for up to 8 tickets for a 2014 20-game, 40-game, or full season plan for the team who will host next season's All-Star festivities, a team only 3 years removed from being one of the best teams in baseball playing in one of baseball's best stadiums. What frustrated me in 2010 was that there was a certain hubris in the Twins organization. "We can't offer you any season ticket plan this year, or maybe not even next year or the year after, but we will hold your $200 in trust in the event that something ever becomes available. Then, we'll give you a call and take the rest of your money. OK? Talk to you later." [TABLE=class: tr-caption-container] [TD=align: center]http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-J1TpJTrYsD4/Ui5yL3T0wBI/AAAAAAAAArI/ZpLD4HP7JhM/s320/Crowd.jpg[/TD] [TD=class: tr-caption, align: center]Good Seats Still Available[/TD] [/TABLE] And now, in September, 2013, here is the Twins' crowd tonight (first image from Brandon Warne's Twitter account) as Pedro Hernandez was taking his warm-up tosses just before the game started. Yes, many of these seats were paid for, so the Twins received that money, but they sure are missing a lot of food, merchandise and beer revenue from that American Legion-esque crowd. The part that bothers me, aside from the fact that the Twins are cruising toward their 3rd straight 90+ loss season, is that what I would consider to be the requisite humility from the front office simply isn't present. On the one hand, they are saying the right things, as in: "The losing is unacceptable"; "We're committed to doing better"; "This isn't the `Twins Way.'" But on the other hand, these are the exact sentiments fans heard after 2011. And after 2012. Heck, there was even anger in 2010 after they were swept -- again -- by the Yankees. I swear they recycle the same press releases. On paper -- in the win-loss ledger -- there hasn't been improvement. [TABLE=class: tr-caption-container] [TD=align: center]http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-fkk65tC52n0/Ui50YxbK-RI/AAAAAAAAArU/qfk3YnK7Wa4/s320/wheresthecrowd.jpg[/TD] [TD=class: tr-caption, align: center]Thank you to @Tappen2Feet for this image[/TD] [/TABLE] I'll be the first person to tell you that the organization is in much better shape than it was a couple years ago. To be sure, I watched it all summer with Miguel Sano, Eddie Rosario, Josmil Pinto and others. But with the exception of Pinto, those guys aren't contributing to the major league team now, and probably won't be on Opening Day 2014. I hit a point where I need more. I need more than the promise of prospects (even though I understand that good prospects are the best way to build a sustainable winning franchise). I need actual accountability. I need results. On Twitter, I noted, after the Twins were swept at Target Field by the Yankees in a 4-game series over the 4th of July, that some managers in Ron Gardenhire's tenuous position would have been fired after that series. Not for losing 4 consecutive games, mind you, but for how those 4 games, against the Yankees, at home on a holiday weekend with fans having paid "premium prices," were representative of this organization's deficiencies. [TABLE=class: tr-caption-container] [TD=align: center]http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-9rEoUjDYM5g/Ui50-QSV34I/AAAAAAAAArc/_-kzkGgRWno/s320/UpperDeck.jpg[/TD] [TD=class: tr-caption, align: center]As @Kayla_86 noted, the upper deck is empty[/TD] [/TABLE] The Twins can't sell me, and many fans, on the All-Star Game in 2014. I wouldn't be there anyway, and it's really just a few events. At some point, the Twins have to sell fans on at least a few established players purchased in free agency. I'll just say it: they need to spend probably $30 million in free agency in order to make this team competitive for 2014. They have to make at least some changes at the very top levels of management, if for no other reason than that is the way it works in the business world. The problem with the Twins, though, is that unlike most businesses, even when their "product" is awful, they still turn a significant profit. So understand that the impetus might not be there to make the wholesale changes that some expect. There is no grand point to this post, so apologies if you are looking for it. I would, however, sum it up this way: The organization doesn't have the humility I would expect for a team that has been one of the very worst in baseball for the past 3 seasons, and I am not at all confident that losing records are sufficient -- on their own -- to force the organization into wholesale changes. As fans, I guess we are forced to hope that this solid group of prospects does indeed pan out. I have little faith in the Twins hitting a home run on each one of their Top 10 prospects. One final note: 2013 was the first year since Target Field opened that I didn't make it there for a game. In fact, I didn't make it to a Twins game in Boston, Baltimore or New York, either. I -- not intentionally, really -- didn't purchase any memorabilia related to a current Twins player. Heck, I didn't even renew my Twins radio subscription for $21.95 (or so) a season. I guess I'm unwilling to pay for this product. In the end, while I'll pay to watch the minor leaguers any day of the week, I'm unwilling to pay to watch the Twins waste the rest of Joe Mauer's prime years.

You can view the page at http://twinsdaily.com/content.php?r=2296-2013-Rock-Cats-MVP-Josmil-Pinto

[TABLE=class: tr-caption-container] [TD=align: center]http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-pfGvYWNUy-U/Uiadg78Eu1I/AAAAAAAAAq4/5S1qwvRBrms/s400/Pinto.jpg[/TD] [TD=class: tr-caption, align: center]Rock Cats, Red Wings, and now Twins catcher, Josmil Pinto [/TD] [/TABLE] I'll be the first to admit that the bulk of my Rock Cats coverage this season has centered around Miguel Sano. And it's for a reason -- he's the best prospect that has played for New Britain since I have been following the team. People were interested in watching grainy videos of his #PowerBanana shots, and were curious about his defensive progression. Also, he's simply an electric personality. Trust me, you'll experience it firsthand in Minnesota next season. But there was much more to this team than Sano. And in my opinion, Sano wasn't the team's most valuable player, even in the months he was here. That honor belongs to Josmil Pinto. What a 6 months it's been for Josmil Pinto. He started in April as the Rockcats' everyday catcher, and produced offensively and defensively. In fact, he hit .308/.411/.482. Watching him in person several games, it wasn't just his line drive swing that impressed me. He is a decent catcher with a very good arm. He was promoted on August 1 to AAA Rochester. That alone is a significant accomplishment. But Pinto didn't slow down. He continued to excel as a Red Wing, hitting .314/.333/.486, and is now a member of the Twins. He'll see significant playing time behind the dish, I expect, as the Twins would be wise to exercise caution with Joe Mauer. The Twins gave Pinto at least 2 major votes of confidence: first, giving him 2 in-season promotions; and second -- and just as important -- trading Drew Butera at the deadline. These moves suggest that, between Chris Herrmann and Pinto, the Twins' back-up catching spots are covered. To be sure, many guys offered great contributions this season in New Britain. Miguel Sano, Danny Santana, Trevor May, Michael Tonkin, Daniel Ortiz, Alex Meyer (pre-injury), and Nate Hanson (played all over the field very well) all come to mind. But none of these guys was as valuable on both sides of the ball, and was as consistent, as Pinto. He hit over .300, had a good K-to-walk ratio, showed good power, and continued to improve on defense. Yes, he still has a ways to go on the defensive front, but it won't stop him from being able to contribute to the Twins this September and next season. And in my opinion, the fact that he left the Rock Cats the last few weeks (give or take) of the season wasn't significant enough for another of the guys previously listed to trump his place. Being completely honest, my decision is swayed in part by Joe Mauer's concussion. The concept of "most valuable" is subjective. I happen to see more "value" in places where it's needed. A prospect's value isn't tied solely to his current team so much as it is to the organization as a whole. In the Twins' present situation, we might see more value in prospects at shortstop, third base, starting pitching (ouch) and catcher, especially considering Mauer's advancing age and the recent concussion. In short, Herrmann and Pinto will need to step up. If not in 2014, then in 2015. The fact that Pinto has taken major strides this season, while Herrmann had, for the most part, a rough go of it, reinforces that Pinto is going to get the shot to prove himself at the major league level. Congratulations, Josmil Pinto, on one hell of a season.

You can view the page at http://twinsdaily.com/content.php?r=2284-Twins-Minor-League-Report-(9-1)-Red-Wings-Playoff-Hopes-Still-Alive

Today was the first full day in Twins Territory without Justin Morneau. Although most people weren't too surprised to see him depart, it does leave a large, Canadian void at first base. He had one hell of a Twins career. I wrote a piece on my blog about his departure. So check it out if you're interested. Now, onto today's minor league action. ROCHESTER 3, SCRANTON W/B 2 As a result of today's win, the Red Wings' season will come down down to a final game Monday. Per the Red Wings: "The win pulled the Red Wings within a half-game of wild card leader Norfolk, whose game in Durham started at 8 pm Sunday night after a lengthy rain delay. If the Wings finish tied with, or ahead of, Norfolk at end of play Monday, Rochester will get the wild card spot and open the playoffs at home Wednesday night." In any event, I'm sure the good fans in Rochester have appreciated winning baseball this season. In tonight's game, Pat Dean earned the win, tossing 7 innings of 1-run baseball. A.J. Achter and Michael Tonkin also threw tonight, as well. Offensively, Aaron Hicks, Ray Olmedo, Chris Parmelee and Jeff Clement all notched 2 hits. Hicks, by the way, had a triple and an RBI. Here's the link to the box score. NEW BRITAIN 5. READING 4 Unfortunately, New Britain is not on the cusp of the playoffs, as they had been the two previous seasons. Still, though, there's a lot to play for. Kyle Davies and Daniel Turpen each pitched 3 innings tonight, giving up 2 runs and 1 run (earned), respectively. Cole Johnson tossed 2 scoreless innings, striking out 3 and walking none, and Dakota Watts earned the win throwing a scoreless 9th, striking out 2. Up until the 9th inning, it looked as though the Rock Cats were due for another loss. They were down 4-2. Then, with one out, Kyle Knudson, Brad Boyer and Angel Morales all singled (the latter scoring Knudson). The next batter, Danny Santana, reached on a fielder's choice, scoring Boyer, and Eddie Rosario ended the game with a sacrifice fly scoring Morales. On the night, Santana, Knudson and Morales had multi-hit efforts. Miguel Sano was 0-for-3. New Britain closes its season out Monday afternoon. I'll be there (after which I'm going to begin experiencing pretty substantial minor league withdrawal), so expect some sort of a recap tomorrow night. Here's a link to the box score. FT. MYERS 3, BRADENTON 2 (10 innings) The Miracle, of course, are already in the playoffs, but that didn't stop them from doing a little extra work today. Matt Tomshaw had a solid start, going 7 innings, allowing 2 runs, striking out 4 and issuing 0 free passes. Luke Bard struck out 2 in a perfect 8th inning, and Adrian Salcedo picked up the win, tossing the 9th and 10th innings. He struck out 3 and gave up no hits or walks. Some encouraging pitching performances from the Miracle today. Kennys Vargas was the hero on the offensive side today. He went 3-for-4 with a home run (his 19th on the season), 2 RBIs and a walk. Minnesota's own Adam Pettersen had 3 hits and an RBI of his own, and Levi Michael was 2-for-2 with a double. Just because you're probably scanning for his name as you read this, Byron Buxton was 0-for-3 and, if I'm reading the box score correctly, actually grounded into a double play. But don't worry, he still has a .326/.415/.472 line at High-A. And he's like 15 years old or something. Here's a link to the box score. CLINTON 3, CEDAR RAPIDS 1 Cedar Rapids, much like Ft. Myers, has had one heck of a season. They finished at 87-50 and are headed to the playoffs. Say what you will about minor league playoffs, but I think that there's something to be said for these young guys learning to play winning Twins baseball early in the developmental process. Today Cedar Rapids came up on the short end, but there were some good performances. Starter Tim Atherton took a tough loss. He threw 6 innings, allowed 2 runs (only 1 earned -- the Kernels had 2 errors today), struck out 4 and walked 0. Alex Muren and Madison Boer tossed the other 2 innings, Boer giving up the third and final Clinton run. The Kernels amassed only 5 hits today, doubles from Jonathan Murphy and Tyler Grimes, and singles from Mike Gonzales, Niko Goodrum and Jeremias Pineda. Here's the link to the box score. That's it for today's minor league action. Please leave any questions or comments. Thanks for reading!

Just tweeted this, thought I would post here: Worth noting on Trevor May -- he's second in the Eastern League in strikeouts, with 149 in 144 & 2/3 innings.

You can view the page at http://twinsdaily.com/content.php?r=2262-Miguel-Sano-Relegated-to-First-Base-Already-You-Must-be-Joking

Last night I had a brief, and sort of strange, Twitter exchange with Tom Powers of the Pioneer Press. He tweeted "I'm still waiting for the Twins organization to hand Miguel Sano a first baseman's mitt." We exchanged a few respectful replies - this definitely wasn't a Twitter argument or war -- but it was still very confusing to me, and I still firmly believe I'm correct. (Here's the link to the first of the Tweets.) First, let's agree on one thing: Powers is correct that Sano's defense had nowhere to go but up. Improvement was expected, for sure. But let's look at the data: Sano currently has 21 errors on the season (in 111 games thus far); in 2012 he had 42 errors in 126 games. He's playing at higher levels in 2013 than in 2012, and his fielding percentage has increased from .884 to .932. In fact, he's likely to cut his errors almost in half. Yes, that's not deep analysis, but it's something. I've watched Sano in person about 10-12 games this summer. He is not going to be elite defensively, but I hope if you were fortunate to watch this past week's game on FSN, you saw Sano make a fantastic play coming in on a slow roller down the line. He fielded it expertly and made a strong throw to get the runner. He still makes bad plays, but fans who think he's some kind of stone-handed giant at the hot corner are simply wrong. [TABLE=class: tr-caption-container] [TD=align: center]http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-wxQ3gI13Xic/UhkyW7RwlTI/AAAAAAAAAqQ/0n6proboJSs/s320/Sano+Futures.jpg[/TD] [TD=class: tr-caption, align: center]Miguel Sano for the World team at the 2013 Futures Game. Image courtesy of me. [/TD] [/TABLE][Originally published at Twins Fan From Afar] Sano's defense is not where it eventually needs to be -- just like his bat is not yet at the major league level. But would the Twins really move him, at age 20, to an "easy" defensive position and give up on him playing third base, which has been a position of need for this team for many years since I have been born (excepting the Gary Gaetti and Corey Koskie years)? In one word, that sounds foolish. Moreover, here is a short list of guys who could play first base for the Twins in 2014 that are not Miguel Sano: Justin Morneau (if the Twins got him for a year cheap); Chris Colabello (will he get a shot at a long stint in the majors starting to see if he is better than a AAAA player?); Joe Mauer (he almost certainly will play fewer games behind the plate in 2014 than in 2013, but the team needs that bat in the lineup); and Chris Herrmann (Twins fans, please pay attention: he is arguably the most versatile player on this team). The Twins certainly don't need him at first base, and that's certainly not his only shot to the majors. Let's talk about third base depth for just a minute. Trevor Plouffe, 27 years old, is hitting .231/.292./.386 for the Twins this season. He has 9 errors in 88 games at the hot corner, and his fielding percentage at third base is .959 this season. I'd be an idiot to state that his defense isn't better than Sano's -- of course it is. But is he that much better? Will he eventually be that much better on defense than Sano might? Open question, but I tend to think that the guy who is 20, a better prospect than Plouffe ever was, and -- let us not forget -- is still learning to play third base after growing up as a shortstop -- will eventually equal or surpass Plouffe defensively. Not to mention that Plouffe's hitting has been awful this season. Finally, I should mention Deibinson Romero for a second. I like him, and he has some pop in his bat. I watched him all last season at New Britain, and he's a fun guy to follow. This season, he has a .952 fielding percentage up at Rochester, to go with a .264/.369/.418 line. He'll turn 27 next month. I'd hardly call him a legitimate prospect, but it's possible he could see major league time. Hypothetically, though, if the Twins are going to invest time and innings (while the team is bad) in a prospect that needs to improve defensively (and offensively), wouldn't you rather Sano get the chance, than Romero? In fact, I'd rather Sano get the chance at some point in 2014 (assuming continued improvement in the minors) over Plouffe. The bottom line is this: when the Twins are next competing for a division title, Miguel Sano -- and not Trevor Plouffe or Deibinson Romero -- is going to be playing a crucial role. To give up on him at third base now, when things honestly don't matter since the reset of the team is so bad, is incredibly short-sighted. The idea that the Twins -- headed for their third straight 90 loss season -- would give up on their second best prospect, who just turned 20, at a position of defensive importance for the franchise -- is preposterous. Perhaps Powers was trying to drum up conversation or say something provocative, but I think it came off as crazy. Yes, maybe someday, if Sano doesn't continue to improve defensively, he will become a right fielder (he does have a good arm) or a first baseman. But that day won't occur in 2013. In fact, I'd be shocked if it came before the end of the 2015 season.