TJW

I love Garver's bat. At this point, he needs as much time at catcher as possible and maybe his pitch framing will improve. But - the man cannot catch the ball. I have never seen a catcher drop the ball as much as he does. It must be a concentration issue as he does not seem to do it as much during important plays or when someone is on base. But, with that said, he seems to drop the ball with runners on base more than most catchers. Am I the only one or has anybody noticed this. Wilson has had his chance and the Twins need to develop players. But, how many times has Garver dropped a pitch down the middle and the camera pans to Molitor with that look on his face like someone farted. I think that is the biggest reason Garver isn't catching. Molitor just doesn't trust him behind the plate.

Seth wrote something on Twitter last night that Royce Lewis grounded out and started limping after he landed awkwardly on first base. Any updates?

Hammond Hombre? Fort Myers Foremost? Fort Myers MVP?

Do you think organization wide, they discouraged teaching players like Buxton how to bunt? He tried to bunt at least once every at bat, but never made contact most of the time.

Mauer with the difficult duo of being thrown out at First and Third in same game. Can he be thrown out for the cycle? Once at each base in the same game? Has anyone ever done that?

Hicks . . . surprisingly Hicks! Hicks came back from the dead this year, and has earned a shot as an everyday player. Yes, he had a hot streak that improved his numbers - but he was carrying some awful numbers from earlier in the year. Defensively, he is our second best outfielder, with Buxton first. Rosario had a good year in the outfield but is not at Hicks' level. Kepler may be good, but we don't know yet. Offensively, he is probably 2nd or 3rd best (Rosario better, Kepler may be better, but we don't know), but he has improved so dramatically, I think you have to wait on him. I do not think TR trades him (although TR loves to trade young centerfielders). Arcia will be dumped/traded before regular season as he does not do things the "Twins way." So, that leaves Kepler and Buxton

Very interesting. Nice to see the up to date stats on these guys. I see with the Twins stinking it up the last 4 years, they haven't put out many players lately that other teams will want.

Hicks . . . Surprisingly Hicks Unfortunately, Hicks is exactly the type of guy the twins trade - an enigmatic center fielder who has a talented player who may take his place - see Gomez, Spann and Revere. I would rather keep Hicks and Buxton and trade/platoon any of the other options. However, we know that TR likes to get rid of talented young centerfielders for garbage - so my guess is he gets traded. Most likely, TR will wait until Hicks goes hitless for a couple of games so he can sell lower.

Hicks . . . Surprisingly Hicks!!! He just has looked like a different guy since returning from the DL. He walks differently, and he seems to have so much more confidence. Good to see. Hopefully, he keeps it going. Plus - they intentionally walked him to get to Mauer. The Mauer haters must have been going crazy.

In my opinion, the big play of the game was when Joe West was assigned as the umpire. What is the Twins record with Joe West behind the plate? In the top of the 2nd, Nunez got hit in the head with the ball running to first base, and Joe West called him out. Terrible call. Shoemaker's strike zone was huge, and Gibson got squeezed. Doe Joe West hate the Twins or is he just terrible?

Houston Jiminez aka Alfonso Gonzales Why did he need two names?

Great article!

Hicks!! he's been a Monster since last Friday: 22 PA, 3 R, 5 H, 1 2B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 3 BB, 1 K, .265 AVG, .364 OBP, .579 SLG, .943 OPS

Hicks - he's been a Monster since last Friday!: 22 PA, 3 R, 5 H, 1 2B, 2 HR, 4 RBI, 3 BB, 1 K, .265 AVG, .364 OBP, .579 SLG, .943 OPS

I love this article. I have thought for a long time that, at a minimum, part of Mauer's production drop is due to defensive shifting. Finally, someone did the hard work and looked at the numbers.