Thrylos

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch (where the graphics might be bigger and more readable) --- For a while I wanted to take a bit of a formalized look at the Twins' pitching this season to see what we have learned and see what would make sense for the team to do in the future. Also, it has been a while since I took a formalized look at Twins pitching, so it was about time. The metrics I like to use to do this have been some simple things of my own device: Pitching Effectiveness or PE and Expected Pitching Effectiveness or xPE. I fiddled around with PE in 2008 and with xPE in 2009. Here is the reason I devised PE and here is the reason I optimized it to xPE. My main arguments were a. I felt like xFIP and FIP and DICE weigh too much things like home runs (which anyone who watched the home runs by Miquel Cabrera and Delmon Young against the Twins yesterday cannot deny that they are a matter of inches and ballpark and luck and fielding performance from being a long fly ball). Also these formulae are hard to memorize and I wanted something simple I can calculate looking at a stat sheet and also something that you can calculate using splits (e.g. how has Brian Duensing or Glen Perkins been as a starter vs as a reliever); you can find xFIP around, but not in a spit form. So in 2008 I devised PE, which simple takes account three things: Strikeouts, walks and hits. So a pitcher who strikes out more people, walks fewer and gives lesser hits is more likely to succeed than someone who doesn't. And all hits are counted equal because the difference between a single and a triple might be the difference of having Delmon Young or Ben Revere play Left Field or the difference between a fly ball out and a home run might be the difference of having Torii Hunter or Rich Becker playing Center Field. And I use WHIP, K/9 and K/BB to calculate PR. xPE normalizes for BABIP to account for "luck" with hits. And unlike FIP and ERA, these two measures go the opposite directions (higher is better) and have a large variation (0.x to 100+) to allow for granularity in comparisons vs. compressing performance from 0 to 10 or so. Fast-forward to 2010: Matt Swartz and Eric Seidman in a series of 4 articles at Baseball Prospectus (part 1, part 2, part 3 and part 4) introduced the metric of Skill-Interactive Earned Run Average or SIERA. Automatically, I realized that these guys had something (because a lot of their argument of creating this measure were similar to my objections with FIP and xFIP) and the more and more I dug, the more and more I like it. It basically looks at individual ways of pitching skills like inducing ground balls vs fly balls, striking out people, not walking people etc. Which is great. I think that is has become my favorite ERA-like measure (it too is on a ERA scale and lower is better) to look, but it is also a pain to derive (one needs Excel, on the other hand it is available in places like Fangraphs), but good luck try to figure splits like ground balls allowed as a starter vs as a reliever... The formula for posterity's sake is: SIERA = 6.145 – 16.986*(SO/PA) + 11.434*(BB/PA) – 1.858*((GB-FB-PU)/PA) + 7.653*((SO/PA)^2) +/– 6.664*(((GB-FB-PU)/PA)^2) + 10.130*(SO/PA)*((GB-FB-PU)/PA) – 5.195*(BB/PA)*((GB-FB-PU)/PA) So, if it does not fit on a T-shirt (and it doesn't), I still need a quick way of looking at things. In the following table I took aggregate (i.e. Duensing's numbers are both for starting and relieving) Twins pitching numbers from 2012 from Fangraphs, including ERA, FIP, xFIP, SIERA and tRA (another measure I am not going to get into right now), calculated PE and xPE and looked at how all correlate with SIERA, xFIP and ERA: http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7137/7794563422_719e7c83fb_z.jpg As I mentioned PE and xPE go on a different direction (bigger number is better) than the others (ERA, FIP, xFIP, tRA and SIERA) so -1 is the best possible correlation factor for those (that would be a perfect match) Happy to say that xPE, xFIP and SIERA correlate really nicely with themselves than with FIP and tRA and they all do not correlate with ERA, which is a good thing. Actually, I can get more into the nitty gritty dirt and say that xPE seems to correlate better with SIERRA in good to average performances and less in the bad performances, but still a .89 vs .91 correlation factor difference with this sample size is not significant. (one of these off-seasons I promise I will play with bigger data samples, but I am keeping this about the Twins and their 2012 pitching....) So how about them Twins? I am looking at splits, so I am using xPE. And I am looking at starters vs. relievers vs. the league averages trying to compare the Twins rotation and pen to those and see if I can make any sense doing this. When I started this 3 and 4 years ago, PE and xPE average for AL starters was around 10 and for AL relievers around 11.5. And here are some ranges and classifications Rotation: xPE 35+ Ace 25-35 #1- #2 Starter 15-25 #2- #3 Starter 10-15 #3 - #4 Starter 7.5-10 #5 Starter Bullpen: xPE 35+ Closer 25-35 Closer-Setup 15-25 Setup- Long Relief 8-15 Long Relief-Mopup The dual classifications indicate positions in Championship-caliber teams vs average teams. So in other words, in a championship team you better have 3 start pitchers with xPE above 15 and 2 with and xPE above 25 and a forth with xPE above 10. Here is the data for the Twins rotation and pen (and for pitchers like Swarzak and Duensing I used their individual splits in each to calculate respective xPEs). Huge surprise (should not be huge but...) : By looking at the AL Averages, either pitching has improved, especially in the pen (where average xPE is 16; vs 12.5 in the rotation) or hitters do not hit the ball as well. A 2.5 point jump in averages for starters and 5 point jump for relievers is huge. And that would be an interesting thing to look during the off-season and might actually make me to adjust the classifications above upwards a bit. Here are the numbers for the Twins rotation: http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8292/7794560350_874a17217e_o.jpg and here for the bullpen: http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8282/7794560406_8cec4ae7bf.jpg So as far as the rotation goes: The Twins have had 4 number 3 type starters (and not all the time - a lot of Diamond's and De Vries' starts were given to Marquis, Walters and Blackburn) Pavano has been injured and Liriano has ranged from a number one to below replacement. Going forwards the Twins can build on the fact that they have a couple of pitchers who can be number 3 starters in a good team (Diamond and De Vries) and someone who can be a number 5 starter (Hendriks) and seek a couple #1 and #2 starters to make a competitive rotation. Brian Duensing and Anthony Swarzak are better in the pen Something needs to be done with Nick Blackburn As far as the pen goes: The Twins have a core of 3 very good relievers (Robertson, Perkins, Burton) Casey Fien has been a pleasant surprise Adding Duensing and Swarzak completes a nice pen that would need an additional arm (could be a free agent or some September call up to step up) It could be Capps, but his performance is not proportional to the $6.5 million option Alex Burnett, Jeff Gray, Jeff Manship, have not been effective (the jury is still out on Perdomo, Oliveros, Maloney and Waldrop because of the small sample )

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch ---- By now the latest transaction of the Minnesota Twins is about half a day old. SS Brian Dozier was optioned to the Twins AAA club and SS Pedro Florimon was recalled. Dozier was benched for 2 games after a critical error on Sunday and he has been at about replacement level with the bat and been strugging on the field on occasion. Typical rookie season. Even here, yesterday morning the possibility the the Twins might have given up on Dozier temporarily, was mentioned. Also, it looks like this was not a unanimous decision by the Twins' management. In this article Joe Christensen suggests that the move has been debated for "weeks" among Twins' officials and reported that Ron Gardenhire didn't seem thrilled when it happened and he would not speak on the move. Rob Anthony answered all questions about the move. Clearly Gardhenhire has been of the loud Dozier supporters the past 2 seasons and it seems that he was against this decision. MLB.com Rhett Bollinger's piece does not have the Gardenhire information. Phil Mackey's ESPN 1500 story also suggests that there was a long discussion on the subject among the Twins brass and Mackey also adds that the particular play on Sunday and Dozier's reactions afterwards. could have been the decisive point in the demotion (the proverbial last piece of straw). Pioneer Press' Ben Goessling's article is also devoid of mentions of internal discussions and disagreements. Terry Ryan was at Rochester on Tuesday to watch the team and Pedro Florimon played SS; so the timing of his trip might be more than co-incidental. It will be interesting to see the cohesiveness of the Twins' management in what has been a clearly trying and frustrating season for the Minnesota Twins. Pedro Florimon will wear uniform number 25. The last player who wore it was Erik Komatsu earlier this season and Jim Thome before him. Interesting enough, this was Alexi Casilla's number and Jim Thome had to buy it from him. So maybe this is passing of the batton in a way from one Dominican to another in the Twins' middle infield. The most notable Twin associated with number 25 is Randy Bush, member of both Twins' World Championship teams, who wore if from 1982 to 1993. Pedro Florimon was born on December 10, 1986 in La Romana Dominican Rebublic and signed an amature free agent contract with the Baltimore Orioles organization in 2004 as a 17 year old. He came to the states as a 19 year old and played in Baltimore Appalachian League (Rookie) affiliate Bluefield Orioles and their Short Season A New York Penn League affiliate Aberdeen IronBirds. He ended the season hitting .293/.403/.369 with one HR, 13 RBI, 7 SB in 269 PAs. That was probably his best professional season in the Orioles system. His last season there was 2011, when he repeated AA Eastern League Bowie Baysox and hit .267/.344/.396 with 8 HR, 6 RBI and 15 SB. He was selected off Waivers by the Twins on December 5, 2011 at last off-season's winter meetings. Was invited at the MLB Spring Training camp last spring where he was one of the last cuts, and started his Twins' career with AA Eastern League New Britain Rock Cats and played 30 games before was promoted to Rochester. At New Britain he hit .283/.347/.372 2 HRs, 7 SB (improving his previous season performance in the same league) and for Rochester .251/.308/.344 in his first taste of AAA as a 25 year old. When I gave a mini scouting report when he was claimed by the Twins last September, I mentioned: Defensively, he has exceptional range and instincts, but he (more than occasionally) botches easy plays. In 602 games at SS, he has 174 errors but also turned 363 double plays. He has a strong arm and has some occasional gap power with the bat. All in all, he is very similar to a younger Alexi Casilla and would need some work with his concentration on the field. I think that the Twins signed him as organizational depth at this point, since there are no pure short stops in the higher levels of the organization. If he improves his error rate, he could possibly win a bench position with the Twins. That was before he played a single inning in a Twins' uniform. Based on his Spring Training performance and his steadiness with the Rock Cats and Red Wings this season, I think that he did turn the corner on the field and could even potentially challenge for a starting job next season, depending who is still with the team. On a good competing team, unless he progresses further with the bat (he is still 25,) he could be a bench player. A note: I am calling him a bench vs. a utility player. All his career, Florimon has played only at short stop exept of a single game at center field (2011, Bowie BaySox) and 2 at second base (2011, Bowie Baysox and 2009, Delmarva Shorebirds) in the Baltimore Orioles' organization. So, unless he receives additional instruction and playing time at second and third next off-season and spring training, his utility future might be uncertain. http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7107/7789132104_71d61b6ac6_o.jpg

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch ---- By now the latest transaction of the Minnesota Twins is about half a day old. SS Brian Dozier was optioned to the Twins AAA club and SS Pedro Florimon was recalled. Dozier was benched for 2 games after a critical error on Sunday and he has been at about replacement level with the bat and been strugging on the field on occasion. Typical rookie season. Even here, yesterday morning the possibility the the Twins might have given up on Dozier temporarily, was mentioned. Also, it looks like this was not a unanimous decision by the Twins' management. In this article Joe Christensen suggests that the move has been debated for "weeks" among Twins' officials and reported that Ron Gardenhire didn't seem thrilled when it happened and he would not speak on the move. Rob Anthony answered all questions about the move. Clearly Gardhenhire has been of the loud Dozier supporters the past 2 seasons and it seems that he was against this decision. MLB.com Rhett Bollinger's piece does not have the Gardenhire information. Phil Mackey's ESPN 1500 story also suggests that there was a long discussion on the subject among the Twins brass and Mackey also adds that the particular play on Sunday and Dozier's reactions afterwards. could have been the decisive point in the demotion (the proverbial last piece of straw). Pioneer Press' Ben Goessling's article is also devoid of mentions of internal discussions and disagreements. Terry Ryan was at Rochester on Tuesday to watch the team and Pedro Florimon played SS; so the timing of his trip might be more than co-incidental. It will be interesting to see the cohesiveness of the Twins' management in what has been a clearly trying and frustrating season for the Minnesota Twins. Pedro Florimon will wear uniform number 25. The last player who wore it was Erik Komatsu earlier this season and Jim Thome before him. Interesting enough, this was Alexi Casilla's number and Jim Thome had to buy it from him. So maybe this is passing of the batton in a way from one Dominican to another in the Twins' middle infield. The most notable Twin associated with number 25 is Randy Bush, member of both Twins' World Championship teams, who wore if from 1982 to 1993. Pedro Florimon was born on December 10, 1986 in La Romana Dominican Rebublic and signed an amature free agent contract with the Baltimore Orioles organization in 2004 as a 17 year old. He came to the states as a 19 year old and played in Baltimore Appalachian League (Rookie) affiliate Bluefield Orioles and their Short Season A New York Penn League affiliate Aberdeen IronBirds. He ended the season hitting .293/.403/.369 with one HR, 13 RBI, 7 SB in 269 PAs. That was probably his best professional season in the Orioles system. His last season there was 2011, when he repeated AA Eastern League Bowie Baysox and hit .267/.344/.396 with 8 HR, 6 RBI and 15 SB. He was selected off Waivers by the Twins on December 5, 2011 at last off-season's winter meetings. Was invited at the MLB Spring Training camp last spring where he was one of the last cuts, and started his Twins' career with AA Eastern League New Britain Rock Cats and played 30 games before was promoted to Rochester. At New Britain he hit .283/.347/.372 2 HRs, 7 SB (improving his previous season performance in the same league) and for Rochester .251/.308/.344 in his first taste of AAA as a 25 year old. When I gave a mini scouting report when he was claimed by the Twins last September, I mentioned: Defensively, he has exceptional range and instincts, but he (more than occasionally) botches easy plays. In 602 games at SS, he has 174 errors but also turned 363 double plays. He has a strong arm and has some occasional gap power with the bat. All in all, he is very similar to a younger Alexi Casilla and would need some work with his concentration on the field. I think that the Twins signed him as organizational depth at this point, since there are no pure short stops in the higher levels of the organization. If he improves his error rate, he could possibly win a bench position with the Twins. That was before he played a single inning in a Twins' uniform. Based on his Spring Training performance and his steadiness with the Rock Cats and Red Wings this season, I think that he did turn the corner on the field and could even potentially challenge for a starting job next season, depending who is still with the team. On a good competing team, unless he progresses further with the bat (he is still 25,) he could be a bench player. A note: I am calling him a bench vs. a utility player. All his career, Florimon has played only at short stop exept of a single game at center field (2011, Bowie BaySox) and 2 at second base (2011, Bowie Baysox and 2009, Delmarva Shorebirds) in the Baltimore Orioles' organization. So, unless he receives additional instruction and playing time at second and third next off-season and spring training, his utility future might be uncertain. http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7107/7789132104_71d61b6ac6_o.jpg

Originally Published at The Tenth Inning Stretch --- Here is this week's installment: Unfortunately Matt Capps' MRI did not show any improvement and he is not close to a rehab assingment yet. Probably threw his last pitch as a member of the Twins. And there might be some sugar coating but re-signing him and losing the 2 draft picks was one of the worst mistakes that Terry Ryan made. And there is no sugar coating for that. Congratulations to Oswaldo Arcia for named Eastern League player of the month for July and the Eastern League player of the week for the past week. Twins' RHP Scott Baker, who underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this season, is already playing catch. And he has been saying that he feels better than he felt for the last 2 years, which is really positive. Here are the most recent organization Transactions. Please notice the Carl Pavano shuttle. He is in the GCL and not in the FSL right now. Catcher Michael Quesada was suspended. He last played for the Elizabethton Twins (Rookie, Appalachian League.) He was suspended for 50 days because he tested positive for methylhexaneamine, a banned and dangerous diet supplement similar to ephedra Here is a great article on Cole De Vries. Lots of awards coming up, but Baseball America, named Twins' middle infielder Pedro Florimon, the "strongest infield arm" in the AAA International League. Former Twins' starting pitcher Jason Marquis took a no-hitter into the 7th and ended up with a two-hitter. Happy to see that Gardy and Andy helped him realize his full potential while with the Twins. In 13 starts with the Padres he has 3.66 ERA, 1.195 WHIP, 7.5 K/9 and 3.33 K/BB. Another success story for Andy and Gardy and Terry... The New Britain Rock Cats are celebrating their 30th year of existence in New Britain (after they moved from Bristol, CT) this season. Here is a great write up about the history of the Twins AA affiliate. Here is a great post by the Snappers' Director of Media relations, where she gets the Twins' A level players to give her the number one reason why they play baseball. Great stuff. Apparently the Minnesota Twins' ball cap, is preferred gear of a certrain hip hop artist Interim Twins' GM Terry Ryan, is related to the Republican Vice Presidential candidate In 5 games after his trade to the Twins, GCL Twins' Jeremias Pineda is hitting .273/.304/.273. He hit .421/.447/.534 before traded. Meanwhile, Danny Valencia, the other part of this trade was called up for Boston and has been hitless in 2 games. If you wonder what the Elizabethton Twins' players do in their days off, check this out. And the ones who are not doing that, are doing this Will a particular Twins' player have something going on that explains his offensive surge this season? Twins' product of the week is Minnesota Twins Throwback Gnomehttp://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=biowriters&l=as2&o=1&a=B0048CXQ6Q. The Twins need luck in any way possible, and this guy looks a bit like their manager as well... The parting shot today is of Brian Dozier who has been lagging both on the field and with the stick lately. I hope that the Twins do not give up on him, but this has been a long season for him. http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8444/7776474708_54949e2879_z.jpg

Originally Published at The Tenth Inning Stretch --- Here is this week's installment: Unfortunately Matt Capps' MRI did not show any improvement and he is not close to a rehab assingment yet. Probably threw his last pitch as a member of the Twins. And there might be some sugar coating but re-signing him and losing the 2 draft picks was one of the worst mistakes that Terry Ryan made. And there is no sugar coating for that. Congratulations to Oswaldo Arcia for named Eastern League player of the month for July and the Eastern League player of the week for the past week. Twins' RHP Scott Baker, who underwent Tommy John surgery earlier this season, is already playing catch. And he has been saying that he feels better than he felt for the last 2 years, which is really positive. Here are the most recent organization Transactions. Please notice the Carl Pavano shuttle. He is in the GCL and not in the FSL right now. Catcher Michael Quesada was suspended. He last played for the Elizabethton Twins (Rookie, Appalachian League.) He was suspended for 50 days because he tested positive for methylhexaneamine, a banned and dangerous diet supplement similar to ephedra Here is a great article on Cole De Vries. Lots of awards coming up, but Baseball America, named Twins' middle infielder Pedro Florimon, the "strongest infield arm" in the AAA International League. Former Twins' starting pitcher Jason Marquis took a no-hitter into the 7th and ended up with a two-hitter. Happy to see that Gardy and Andy helped him realize his full potential while with the Twins. In 13 starts with the Padres he has 3.66 ERA, 1.195 WHIP, 7.5 K/9 and 3.33 K/BB. Another success story for Andy and Gardy and Terry... The New Britain Rock Cats are celebrating their 30th year of existence in New Britain (after they moved from Bristol, CT) this season. Here is a great write up about the history of the Twins AA affiliate. Here is a great post by the Snappers' Director of Media relations, where she gets the Twins' A level players to give her the number one reason why they play baseball. Great stuff. Apparently the Minnesota Twins' ball cap, is preferred gear of a certrain hip hop artist Interim Twins' GM Terry Ryan, is related to the Republican Vice Presidential candidate In 5 games after his trade to the Twins, GCL Twins' Jeremias Pineda is hitting .273/.304/.273. He hit .421/.447/.534 before traded. Meanwhile, Danny Valencia, the other part of this trade was called up for Boston and has been hitless in 2 games. If you wonder what the Elizabethton Twins' players do in their days off, check this out. And the ones who are not doing that, are doing this Will a particular Twins' player have something going on that explains his offensive surge this season? Twins' product of the week is Minnesota Twins Throwback Gnomehttp://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=biowriters&l=as2&o=1&a=B0048CXQ6Q. The Twins need luck in any way possible, and this guy looks a bit like their manager as well... The parting shot today is of Brian Dozier who has been lagging both on the field and with the stick lately. I hope that the Twins do not give up on him, but this has been a long season for him. http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8444/7776474708_54949e2879_z.jpg

Those are fun There is a soda (pop) machine right by the bathrooms and the water in the water fountain (same area) is alright. I always get a water bottle with me when there and refill it from that. As far as figuring out who is who: if you venture behind the dugout cages, they post the line ups right by the opening of the cages to the field (you probably know what I mean) on a white board and update them as kids go in and out. As far as parking goes, the trees (even the little ones by those fields) are your friends. Enjoy!

Alright. Let me give you a business analogy, maybe this might help get my point across: A person is hired as an independent contractor in a commission basis to sell cars in a car dealership. The dealership does not pay him salary or benefits, all the money he is making comes from commissions from cars he sells for them. The dealership also has a repair shop. How would the people who own the dealership feel, if the guy, along with every car he sold, passed out a discount book for car shop services from a competitor? THAT simple. And No financial skin? The Twins are trotting a mufti-million dollar investment every day in Beloit (player bonuses) to play. If they did not do that, then it is tractor pulls and all you can eat cheese curd contests for those guys...

Let me put it this way: Mandelaro and I have talked quite a few times on the subject And I kind of get the natives' point of view, but without the Twins (or other MLB teams), they would have no teams (or good luck at the Independent Leagues). And by pushing their history vs. the Twins' history (esp. when there is conflict) alienates Twins fans and it is not respecting their contract. And there are more Twins' fans than Beloit fans, who watch Beloit games. When let to their own audience (i.e. non-travelling Twins' fans) they have 140 people in the ballpark. Would it be wrong to give out a Sano bobblehead instead ? Past is past, but it is the Twins who are putting butts on the seats and players on the field right now. Of course, my point of view is that of a Twins' fan who does not live there and root for the MLB local team and not the Twins. Sometimes I kind of like what the Yankees do, which is call most of their minor league affiliates Yankees. Solves those type of problems and helps convert the natives...

Originally posted at The Tenth Inning Stretch --- Here is this week's installment: The Danny Valencia trade to the Boston Red Sox last Sunday is old news, but if you have not checked it yet, here is a mini scouting report of Jeremias Pineda, the Dominican switch-hitting Center Fielder the Twins received in return. Speaking of the Danny Valencia trade, here. here are a couple of reactions on his trade by current Twins' players. Danny's reactions are here: part 1, part 2 and part 3. Here is an article by Tom Powels lamenting the Twins' inertia during the trade deadline and discussing Terry Ryan's stuck in the past methods. Can you believe that AJ Pierzunski did that and did not leave Target Field with a ball on the helmet? Reason is that he was too much of a coward to start in the Wednesday game. But the Twins are playing the White Sox again... The Twins have signed 18 year old Australian RHP Josh Guyer. He will join the team in Spring Training. This is what he looks like. Apparently he is pretty good with the bat also. This article is as close as it comes to talk about his skills. It is mentioned that he is throwing the ball at 150 kph (this is 93.2 mph), which is alright for a high school kid. On the organizational movement front: I decided that minor league transactions deserve their own space, so you can find them all here (most recent on top) on a weekly basis. I will be updating every Saturday. Listening to Bert Blyleven trying pronounce Samuel Deduno's last name, makes me think of If you wonder how glamorous team meals in the minors are, check this out RHP Lester Oliveros has been shut down and will have surgery to clear bone chips from his pitching elbow. And, speaking of MLB-ready relievers, Anthony Slama was assigned to the GCL yesterday for a rehab assignment. Chris Parmelee was named International League hitter of the week for last week. Here is an interesting article on him The Twins are about to be attacked (or at least some Twins' fans) by those of Leeds United a British Premier League Football (Soccer) Club Speaking of places that do not like the Twins, you might want to add Rochester, NY and Beloit, WI, which seem to have lost the priviledge to host a Twins' minor league affilate for 2013 and beyond. I expect announcements to this effect to come on September 1st (the first day franchises can announce new affiliations officially.) To add insult to injury, the Beloit Snappers were giving away bobbleheads of Price Fielder in a Milwaukee uniform. Last time I checked, the guy is playing for one of the major Twins' rivals. Not too good. Because I did not mention it before and I have not seen it mentioned widely: The Twins signed a 30-year committment to their Spring Training facilities at Lee County (Fort Myers) after the county voted to do the improments they required. On related news, Lee County is intensifying its efforts to get a third team in the area to occupy the old Red Sox' facilities. Another former Twins' player is reaching his potential. It is called entering his prime nad not giving up on players before their prime (something the Twins are not exactly great about.) Here is a contest where fans pick current AAA players who will have the most impact as September call ups. The Twins' AAA representative is Pedro Florimon. I think that speaks volumes The Twins' product of the week is the Minnesota Twins Slingbackhttp://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=biowriters&l=as2&o=1&a=B005H14GZW; hey it's back to school shopping time. The parting shot today is of Tsuyoshi Nisioka (and his sidekick Ryo Shinkawa - never leaves home without it) who was recalled with the Twins Sunday, after Danny Valencia was traded to the Boston Red Sox and his made his MLB-debut for this season last night at Cleveland: http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8426/7720566978_a3c5fc2c4a_o.jpg

Originally posted at The Tenth Inning Stretch --- Here is this week's installment: The Danny Valencia trade to the Boston Red Sox last Sunday is old news, but if you have not checked it yet, here is a mini scouting report of Jeremias Pineda, the Dominican switch-hitting Center Fielder the Twins received in return. Speaking of the Danny Valencia trade, here. here are a couple of reactions on his trade by current Twins' players. Danny's reactions are here: part 1, part 2 and part 3. Here is an article by Tom Powels lamenting the Twins' inertia during the trade deadline and discussing Terry Ryan's stuck in the past methods. Can you believe that AJ Pierzunski did that and did not leave Target Field with a ball on the helmet? Reason is that he was too much of a coward to start in the Wednesday game. But the Twins are playing the White Sox again... The Twins have signed 18 year old Australian RHP Josh Guyer. He will join the team in Spring Training. This is what he looks like. Apparently he is pretty good with the bat also. This article is as close as it comes to talk about his skills. It is mentioned that he is throwing the ball at 150 kph (this is 93.2 mph), which is alright for a high school kid. On the organizational movement front: I decided that minor league transactions deserve their own space, so you can find them all here (most recent on top) on a weekly basis. I will be updating every Saturday. Listening to Bert Blyleven trying pronounce Samuel Deduno's last name, makes me think of If you wonder how glamorous team meals in the minors are, check this out RHP Lester Oliveros has been shut down and will have surgery to clear bone chips from his pitching elbow. And, speaking of MLB-ready relievers, Anthony Slama was assigned to the GCL yesterday for a rehab assignment. Chris Parmelee was named International League hitter of the week for last week. Here is an interesting article on him The Twins are about to be attacked (or at least some Twins' fans) by those of Leeds United a British Premier League Football (Soccer) Club Speaking of places that do not like the Twins, you might want to add Rochester, NY and Beloit, WI, which seem to have lost the priviledge to host a Twins' minor league affilate for 2013 and beyond. I expect announcements to this effect to come on September 1st (the first day franchises can announce new affiliations officially.) To add insult to injury, the Beloit Snappers were giving away bobbleheads of Price Fielder in a Milwaukee uniform. Last time I checked, the guy is playing for one of the major Twins' rivals. Not too good. Because I did not mention it before and I have not seen it mentioned widely: The Twins signed a 30-year committment to their Spring Training facilities at Lee County (Fort Myers) after the county voted to do the improments they required. On related news, Lee County is intensifying its efforts to get a third team in the area to occupy the old Red Sox' facilities. Another former Twins' player is reaching his potential. It is called entering his prime nad not giving up on players before their prime (something the Twins are not exactly great about.) Here is a contest where fans pick current AAA players who will have the most impact as September call ups. The Twins' AAA representative is Pedro Florimon. I think that speaks volumes The Twins' product of the week is the Minnesota Twins Slingbackhttp://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=biowriters&l=as2&o=1&a=B005H14GZW; hey it's back to school shopping time. The parting shot today is of Tsuyoshi Nisioka (and his sidekick Ryo Shinkawa - never leaves home without it) who was recalled with the Twins Sunday, after Danny Valencia was traded to the Boston Red Sox and his made his MLB-debut for this season last night at Cleveland: http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8426/7720566978_a3c5fc2c4a_o.jpg

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch --- Unfortunately there is not a single place that lists all the transactions in a particular teams' organization in a timely format. Baseball America has a week or two delay in reporting those, so I felt like I should start one, since I am doing it in twitter anyways and on the Tuesday posts. I will be doing it on a weekly basis, Friday to Friday and post them on Saturdays. Promotions and demotions will be listed under the team where the player currently plays (this means promotions to the Minnesota Twins will not be listed here.) This week featured 4 new members of the Twins' organization making their debuts: Pedro Hernandez and Eduardo Escobar with Rochester, Luke Bard with Elizabethton and Randol Rogers in the DSL. Also, Garrett Jewell was released from the organization. Here are the transactions in all levels in the Twins organization from July 27 until yesterday August 3: Rochester Redwings (International League, AAA): 8/3 - Rochester Red Wings placed RHP Lester Oliveros on the 7-Day disabled list. 7/29 - Minnesota Twins optioned LHP Pedro Hernandez to Rochester Red Wings. 7/29 - Minnesota Twins optioned Eduardo Escobar to Rochester Red Wings. 7/27 - RHP Daniel Turpen assigned to Rochester Red Wings from New Britain Rock Cats. New Britain Rock Cats (Eastern League, AA): 7/27 - RHP Matthew Hauser assigned to New Britain Rock Cats from Fort Myers Miracle Fort Myers Miracle (Florida State League, A+): 7/28 - LHP Ryan O'Rourke assigned to Fort Myers Miracle from Beloit Snappers. Beloit Snappers (Midwest League, A): 7/31 - LHP Corey Kimes assigned to Beloit Snappers from Elizabethton Twins. 7/31 - Beloit Snappers activated 2B/OF Eddie Rosario from the 7-Day disabled list. 7/31 - Beloit Snappers placed RHP Cole Johnson on the 7-Day disabled list. Elizabethton Twins (Appalachian League, Rk+): 7/29 - RHP Luke Bard assigned to Elizabethton Twins from GCL Twins. 7/29 - Elizabethton Twins released RHP Garrett Jewell. GCL Twins (Gulf Coast League, Rk): 7/31 LHP Andrew Albers assigned to GCL Twins. (Rehab) DSL Twins (Dominican Summer League, Foreign Rk): 8/3 - RHP Randol Rogers assigned to DSL Twins.

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch --- Unfortunately there is not a single place that lists all the transactions in a particular teams' organization in a timely format. Baseball America has a week or two delay in reporting those, so I felt like I should start one, since I am doing it in twitter anyways and on the Tuesday posts. I will be doing it on a weekly basis, Friday to Friday and post them on Saturdays. Promotions and demotions will be listed under the team where the player currently plays (this means promotions to the Minnesota Twins will not be listed here.) This week featured 4 new members of the Twins' organization making their debuts: Pedro Hernandez and Eduardo Escobar with Rochester, Luke Bard with Elizabethton and Randol Rogers in the DSL. Also, Garrett Jewell was released from the organization. Here are the transactions in all levels in the Twins organization from July 27 until yesterday August 3: Rochester Redwings (International League, AAA): 8/3 - Rochester Red Wings placed RHP Lester Oliveros on the 7-Day disabled list. 7/29 - Minnesota Twins optioned LHP Pedro Hernandez to Rochester Red Wings. 7/29 - Minnesota Twins optioned Eduardo Escobar to Rochester Red Wings. 7/27 - RHP Daniel Turpen assigned to Rochester Red Wings from New Britain Rock Cats. New Britain Rock Cats (Eastern League, AA): 7/27 - RHP Matthew Hauser assigned to New Britain Rock Cats from Fort Myers Miracle Fort Myers Miracle (Florida State League, A+): 7/28 - LHP Ryan O'Rourke assigned to Fort Myers Miracle from Beloit Snappers. Beloit Snappers (Midwest League, A): 7/31 - LHP Corey Kimes assigned to Beloit Snappers from Elizabethton Twins. 7/31 - Beloit Snappers activated 2B/OF Eddie Rosario from the 7-Day disabled list. 7/31 - Beloit Snappers placed RHP Cole Johnson on the 7-Day disabled list. Elizabethton Twins (Appalachian League, Rk+): 7/29 - RHP Luke Bard assigned to Elizabethton Twins from GCL Twins. 7/29 - Elizabethton Twins released RHP Garrett Jewell. GCL Twins (Gulf Coast League, Rk): 7/31 LHP Andrew Albers assigned to GCL Twins. (Rehab) DSL Twins (Dominican Summer League, Foreign Rk): 8/3 - RHP Randol Rogers assigned to DSL Twins.

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch --- This continues the dialy trade talk updates for the Twins and of action around the league that influences the Twins trade moves, up until the deadline. You can find all the older updates here, in reverse chronological order. This is the last of the talk. Potential trade action will happen up till 3:00 PM today. I will post a Twins Trade Deadline Retrospect after the dust settles tonight or tomorrow (probably tomorrow because I want to look at potential reactions) and will pubish August waiver trade talk as it comes. Here is the Twins Trade Talk the past 24 hours or so: Jon Heyman indicates that the Toronto Blue Jays, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Fransisco Giants are interested in Justin Morneau. Meanwhile, Ken Rosenthal suggests that the Los Angeles Dodgers are out on Justin Monreau. because they have nothing suitable. He also suggests that the Twins are looking for a team to take his salary and want a young MLB-ready starting pitcher in return. Heyman also suggests that Jamey Carroll may be traded, without linking him to particular teams. Darren Wolfson tweets that the Toronto Blue Jays had plenty of scouts at the Twins' game last night. Jerry Crasnick reports that Glen Perkins is in "high demand". http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8014/7684108038_5bc6290935_z.jpg

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch --- This continues the dialy trade talk updates for the Twins and of action around the league that influences the Twins trade moves, up until the deadline. You can find all the older updates here, in reverse chronological order. This is the last of the talk. Potential trade action will happen up till 3:00 PM today. I will post a Twins Trade Deadline Retrospect after the dust settles tonight or tomorrow (probably tomorrow because I want to look at potential reactions) and will pubish August waiver trade talk as it comes. Here is the Twins Trade Talk the past 24 hours or so: Jon Heyman indicates that the Toronto Blue Jays, Los Angeles Dodgers and San Fransisco Giants are interested in Justin Morneau. Meanwhile, Ken Rosenthal suggests that the Los Angeles Dodgers are out on Justin Monreau. because they have nothing suitable. He also suggests that the Twins are looking for a team to take his salary and want a young MLB-ready starting pitcher in return. Heyman also suggests that Jamey Carroll may be traded, without linking him to particular teams. Darren Wolfson tweets that the Toronto Blue Jays had plenty of scouts at the Twins' game last night. Jerry Crasnick reports that Glen Perkins is in "high demand". http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8014/7684108038_5bc6290935_z.jpg

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch ---- Here is this week's installment, heavily influenced by today's trade deadline: Fransisco Liriano to the White Sox is old news. Here are profiles of the players the Twins received in return. And this is a very sad sight. Luis Perdomo is the newest Twins' member. He was called up from Rochester (where he was a swing man who started a few games) to take Anthony Swarzak's spot who went to the 15 day DL with soulder issues that were called "mild rotator cuff strain", which is not too good. Apparently replay in MLB will be expanded to include trapped ball calls and balls hit down the line. When and how and other details remain to be worked out. On the organizational movement front: Danny Turpen promoted to AAA Rochester, Jose Gonzalez and Matt Hauser promoted to AA New Britain. Steve Liddle and Ryan O'Rourke promoted to high A Fort Myers. DJ Baxendale and Taylor Rogers promoted to A Beloit. Chris Mazza and Luke Bard promoted to Rk+ Elizabethton. Pedro Hernandez and Eduardo Escobar, whom the Twins received from the White Sox in the Liriano trade were optioned to AAA Rochester. Brian Compton was assigned to the Rk GCL Twins. LHP Steven Evans (A Beloit Snappers) and RHP Garrett Jewell (Rk+ Elizabethton Twins, but did not pitch in 2012) were released from the organization. The Twins have signed free agent SP Eric Hurley (released by the Angels) and assigned him to AAA Rochester Redwings. Eddie Rosario is back from reconstructive face surgery after hit on the face with a ball and playing with the GCL Twins since last Wedensday, joining Alex Wimmers who was also rehabing there until he had a set-back the other day; he may require Tommy John surgery. Yesterday was Scott Diamond's 26th birthday This did not apparently deserve air time in any of the "major" press outlets, but there are a lot of hints that MLB team contraction might again be upon us Buy me some peanuts and cracker jacks? Not in a particular section of Target Field in particular games. Interesting to see few of the first articles in the local Twin Cities area correctly pointing fingers at the interim General Manager for the Twins' pitching issues. Previously, Terry Ryan and Ron Gardenhire and company have had teflon. Very refreshing to see a change in the local Minnesota press' attitudes. And as soon as I wrote that, here comes another this morning Interesting article about Rick Anderson's relationship with Fransisco Liriano. Also the "interim" tag remains for Terry Ryan, based on his words to Phil Mackey. Ryan realizes that he might lose his job and does not deserve to have the tag removed after this awful season If you were wondering what the Twins do in "all staff" meetings, here is your answer. If anything, this twitter profile picture change by a Twins' player (happened a while ago) speaks tons about how he feels about the organization and the way he has been treated, and I cannot say that I disagree much. Can anyone rationalize why something like this belongs to the official site of the Twins' AAA team and is anyone wondering why the Twins need to get the hey out of Rochester? Pelotero, the movie featuring Twins #1 prospect Miguel Sano and other Dominican players, was produced by current Boston Red Sox' skipper Bobby Valentine. Twins' tweet of the week is this one by Jake Proctor For the Kevin Slowey fans: His dad now is on twitter. Not Twins' related, but my home team, the Lehigh Valley IronPics wore this atrocity last week. Makes the blue custodian uniforms the Twins wore in Kansas City look "nice". The Twins' product of the week is the Minnesota Twins 1965 Cooperstown Legendary Victory Short Sleeve Tee Shirthttp://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=biowriters&l=as2&o=1&a=B006YIMTH4, which is actually a killer deal at $14 at L and $13 at XL The parting shot today is of the newest member of the Minnesota Twins Luis Perdomo who made his MLB Twins' debut last Saturday. http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8028/7653075494_1eb7d51345_z.jpg

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch ---- Here is this week's installment, heavily influenced by today's trade deadline: Fransisco Liriano to the White Sox is old news. Here are profiles of the players the Twins received in return. And this is a very sad sight. Luis Perdomo is the newest Twins' member. He was called up from Rochester (where he was a swing man who started a few games) to take Anthony Swarzak's spot who went to the 15 day DL with soulder issues that were called "mild rotator cuff strain", which is not too good. Apparently replay in MLB will be expanded to include trapped ball calls and balls hit down the line. When and how and other details remain to be worked out. On the organizational movement front: Danny Turpen promoted to AAA Rochester, Jose Gonzalez and Matt Hauser promoted to AA New Britain. Steve Liddle and Ryan O'Rourke promoted to high A Fort Myers. DJ Baxendale and Taylor Rogers promoted to A Beloit. Chris Mazza and Luke Bard promoted to Rk+ Elizabethton. Pedro Hernandez and Eduardo Escobar, whom the Twins received from the White Sox in the Liriano trade were optioned to AAA Rochester. Brian Compton was assigned to the Rk GCL Twins. LHP Steven Evans (A Beloit Snappers) and RHP Garrett Jewell (Rk+ Elizabethton Twins, but did not pitch in 2012) were released from the organization. The Twins have signed free agent SP Eric Hurley (released by the Angels) and assigned him to AAA Rochester Redwings. Eddie Rosario is back from reconstructive face surgery after hit on the face with a ball and playing with the GCL Twins since last Wedensday, joining Alex Wimmers who was also rehabing there until he had a set-back the other day; he may require Tommy John surgery. Yesterday was Scott Diamond's 26th birthday This did not apparently deserve air time in any of the "major" press outlets, but there are a lot of hints that MLB team contraction might again be upon us Buy me some peanuts and cracker jacks? Not in a particular section of Target Field in particular games. Interesting to see few of the first articles in the local Twin Cities area correctly pointing fingers at the interim General Manager for the Twins' pitching issues. Previously, Terry Ryan and Ron Gardenhire and company have had teflon. Very refreshing to see a change in the local Minnesota press' attitudes. And as soon as I wrote that, here comes another this morning Interesting article about Rick Anderson's relationship with Fransisco Liriano. Also the "interim" tag remains for Terry Ryan, based on his words to Phil Mackey. Ryan realizes that he might lose his job and does not deserve to have the tag removed after this awful season If you were wondering what the Twins do in "all staff" meetings, here is your answer. If anything, this twitter profile picture change by a Twins' player (happened a while ago) speaks tons about how he feels about the organization and the way he has been treated, and I cannot say that I disagree much. Can anyone rationalize why something like this belongs to the official site of the Twins' AAA team and is anyone wondering why the Twins need to get the hey out of Rochester? Pelotero, the movie featuring Twins #1 prospect Miguel Sano and other Dominican players, was produced by current Boston Red Sox' skipper Bobby Valentine. Twins' tweet of the week is this one by Jake Proctor For the Kevin Slowey fans: His dad now is on twitter. Not Twins' related, but my home team, the Lehigh Valley IronPics wore this atrocity last week. Makes the blue custodian uniforms the Twins wore in Kansas City look "nice". The Twins' product of the week is the Minnesota Twins 1965 Cooperstown Legendary Victory Short Sleeve Tee Shirthttp://www.assoc-amazon.com/e/ir?t=biowriters&l=as2&o=1&a=B006YIMTH4, which is actually a killer deal at $14 at L and $13 at XL The parting shot today is of the newest member of the Minnesota Twins Luis Perdomo who made his MLB Twins' debut last Saturday. http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8028/7653075494_1eb7d51345_z.jpg

Hard to tell what the best offer is. Actually in most cases you have to wait a few years. We all thought that the Bullock for Diamond trade was a bust last season, but this season is different. What I am talking about is more a matter of principle: You don't help division opponents and you don't trade within your division no matter what. Now the Twins have traded with everyone but the Royals in the division within the last calendar year.

Some of us think that if he helps the White Sox make the post season (ie. add more $ to their coffers because of ticket sales, so they have more $ to spend to field a better team in the future) is a bad move... Nobody can ruin the Twins season. Ryan and Gardy and Co took care of that

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch ---- This continues the dialy trade talk updates for the Twins and of action around the league that influences the Twins trade moves, up until the deadline. You can find all the older updates here, in reverse chronological order. Here is the Twins Trade Talk the past 24 hours or so: Fransisco Liriano to the Chicago White Sox is old news. Here are profiles of the players the Twins received in return. Apparently the Twins did not even talk about an extension at this point. and the Boston Red Sox were finalists up to the trade time. I wonder what their offer was to make the Twins' interim GM, Terry Ryan, trade within the division... The last trade between the Twins and the White Sox was on September 3, 1986 when the Minnesota Twins traded Pete Filson to the Chicago White Sox for Kurt Walker. The last trade between the two teams that involved a decent player was on February 19, 1985 when the Twins traded Roch Scheer and Randy Johnson (Not THAT Randy Jonhson) to the White Sox for current TV analyst Roy Smalley. And both of those times, the White Sox were in a different division (AL East vs AL West.) The first ever trade between the two franchises was in June 13, 1903 when Ducky Holmes was traded by the Senators to the White Sox for a player to be named later and became Davey Dunkle a week afterwards. Meanwhile, Twins' players were disappointed by the Liriano trade and White Sox GM Kenny Williams apparently thinks that they see some flaws they can fix to improve Liriano. Here are some additional reactions of Twins' players and coaches. Liriano himself was surprised by the trade. On the Ron Gardenhire show on ESPN 1500 yesterday morning, Gardenhire said that there have been discussion about Justin Morneau and he really does not want Josh Willingham to leave the Twins. Bob Nightengale indicates that the Twins are talking to other teams about Denard Span, but unlike what Terry Ryan said (ie. that he is after single A prospects,) he is looking for an MLB-ready pitcher in return. This is a strange one (but very true) : The Seattle Mariners are interested in Josh Willingham. A package of Héctor Noesí and/or Erasmo Ramírez and maybe even Taijuan Walker could be in the works Justin Morneau, Matt Capps, Carl Pavano and Nick Blackburn all make Jon Heyman's list of players who can get traded via waiver trades after tomorrow's deadline. Nick Blackburn? That is hopeful. http://media.thestate.com/smedia/2012/07/23/23/17/533-VyFXC.Em.55.jpeg

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch ---- This continues the dialy trade talk updates for the Twins and of action around the league that influences the Twins trade moves, up until the deadline. You can find all the older updates here, in reverse chronological order. Here is the Twins Trade Talk the past 24 hours or so: Fransisco Liriano to the Chicago White Sox is old news. Here are profiles of the players the Twins received in return. Apparently the Twins did not even talk about an extension at this point. and the Boston Red Sox were finalists up to the trade time. I wonder what their offer was to make the Twins' interim GM, Terry Ryan, trade within the division... The last trade between the Twins and the White Sox was on September 3, 1986 when the Minnesota Twins traded Pete Filson to the Chicago White Sox for Kurt Walker. The last trade between the two teams that involved a decent player was on February 19, 1985 when the Twins traded Roch Scheer and Randy Johnson (Not THAT Randy Jonhson) to the White Sox for current TV analyst Roy Smalley. And both of those times, the White Sox were in a different division (AL East vs AL West.) The first ever trade between the two franchises was in June 13, 1903 when Ducky Holmes was traded by the Senators to the White Sox for a player to be named later and became Davey Dunkle a week afterwards. Meanwhile, Twins' players were disappointed by the Liriano trade and White Sox GM Kenny Williams apparently thinks that they see some flaws they can fix to improve Liriano. Here are some additional reactions of Twins' players and coaches. Liriano himself was surprised by the trade. On the Ron Gardenhire show on ESPN 1500 yesterday morning, Gardenhire said that there have been discussion about Justin Morneau and he really does not want Josh Willingham to leave the Twins. Bob Nightengale indicates that the Twins are talking to other teams about Denard Span, but unlike what Terry Ryan said (ie. that he is after single A prospects,) he is looking for an MLB-ready pitcher in return. This is a strange one (but very true) : The Seattle Mariners are interested in Josh Willingham. A package of Héctor Noesí and/or Erasmo Ramírez and maybe even Taijuan Walker could be in the works Justin Morneau, Matt Capps, Carl Pavano and Nick Blackburn all make Jon Heyman's list of players who can get traded via waiver trades after tomorrow's deadline. Nick Blackburn? That is hopeful. http://media.thestate.com/smedia/2012/07/23/23/17/533-VyFXC.Em.55.jpeg

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch ---- This continues the dialy trade talk updates for the Twins and of action around the league that influences the Twins trade moves, up until the deadline. You can find all the older updates here, in reverse chronological order. Yesterday there was more action that talk, because the Twins have traded their ace Fransisco Liriano to the hated Chicago White Sox for SS Eduardo Escobar and LHP Pedro Hernandez. At first thought, The Frankie Trade has the potential to be seen as bad as The Garza Trade by Twins' fans everywhere. Furthermore trading him to the most hated by the Twins' fans team within the division means that somebody or something possessed Terry Ryan, a feeling that is accentuated by a look at Eduardo Escobar's career minor league OPS: .666. Both players are on the 40-man roster. The Twins would need to make a related move to open one more spot. Both players are heading to Rochester and are assigned to the Red Wings. This definitely has to be the work of the devil or something. On the other hand, let's see who the Twins received in this trade and see whether there is a silver lining: Pedro Hernandez Pedro Hernandez, a LHP, is a 23 year old Venezuelan, born on April 12, 1989 in Barquisimeto, who was one of the two pitchers the White Sox received by the Padres in the Carlos Quentin trade. He is listed at 5'10" 200 lbs. Hernandez was rushed (to AAA) by the Padres in 2011 and (to the majors for one start) by the White Sox this season. He has dominated AA in 2011 and was doing a fine job this year. He had 3.40 ERA, 1.185 WHIP, 9.4 K/9, 4.30 K/BB in AA San Antonio in 2011 in 8 starts and 2.75 ERA, 1.252 WHIP, 4.8 K/9 and 2.06 BB in AA Birmingham earlier this season in 12 starts. In 2 stars (3 games) in AAA Charlotte this season he was 3.71 ERA, 1.235 WHIP, 9.0 K/9 and 5.67 K/BB. His AAA numbers are better than any of any Twins' AAA pitchers (including Scott Diamond) this season. He has four pitches: Fastball, Cutter, Curve and Change. Good command of all 4 of his pitches His best pitch is his change up and it is a plus pitch and definitely an out pitch. His fastball has above average movement and the velocity is at low 90s with occasional mid-90s spurs. He has developed a cutter recently, which projects as a plus pitch once he gets a better feel for it. It sits in the mid-high 80s. His curveball is an average pitch, its a slow curve in the 70s and he is using it as a change of pace type of pitch. He has been projected as a back of the rotation starter or a bullpen piece, but does have potential. A lot of it depends on the development of his cutter and fastball. He will probably spend a while in Rochester, might get up to the majors in September and fight for a rotation spot for 2013. He is what the Twins were looking for: an MLB-ready young pitcher who can help the 2013 rotation. And he is a Lefty. http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/lacrossetribune.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/5/fa/5fa92983-2ff8-5fcc-9836-337cdaa6cf6e/500795678633f.preview-620.jpg Eduardo Escobar Eduardo Escobar is also a 23 year old Venezuelan, born on January 5, 1989 in Villa de Cura, and also is 5"10", but that is where the similarities with Hernandez end. He is generous listed at 165 lbs, is a Switch Hitting ShortStop and has incredible skills with the glove. Baseball America has listed him as the best fielding infield prospect with the White Sox the last 4 seasons. And defense and speed are his main weapons. Another player rushed through the system (in AAA last season and all season in the majors this season), his bat has not matured as fast as his glove. His career minor league line is .270/.315/.351, which is discouraging. He spent this season with the big club and he hit .207/.281/.276 in 98 plate appearances, which is Drew Butera-like at first sight. On the other hand, hitting as a RHB against LHP, he career MLB line is .333/.357/.481, which is very encouraging (but this is just 28 plate appearances) Also his MiLB career splits indicated that he is at least and average hitter as a RHB against LHPs. Maybe if he abandons switch hitting he might improve with most consistent repetitions. He is headed to Rochester to work with Tom Brunansky. All in all, he projects as a defensive replacement, utility hitter, unless he can turn the corner with the bat. He might return to the majors in September but expect him to be in a fight for a 25-man roster position in 2013 if one or both of Alexi Casilla and Jamey Carroll are not with the team. http://www.trbimg.com/img-4f721c25/turbine/chi-sox-game-day-another-opportunity-for-escob-001/600 All in all, it is hard to know how the Twins did in this trade. They received two 23 year olds for Liriano, including a MLB-ready pitcher (who could be a mid of the rotation pitcher or could be like PJ Walters) and a sleek fielding SS. Both have the potential, whether they realize it, it is to be seen.

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch ---- This continues the dialy trade talk updates for the Twins and of action around the league that influences the Twins trade moves, up until the deadline. You can find all the older updates here, in reverse chronological order. Yesterday there was more action that talk, because the Twins have traded their ace Fransisco Liriano to the hated Chicago White Sox for SS Eduardo Escobar and LHP Pedro Hernandez. At first thought, The Frankie Trade has the potential to be seen as bad as The Garza Trade by Twins' fans everywhere. Furthermore trading him to the most hated by the Twins' fans team within the division means that somebody or something possessed Terry Ryan, a feeling that is accentuated by a look at Eduardo Escobar's career minor league OPS: .666. Both players are on the 40-man roster. The Twins would need to make a related move to open one more spot. Both players are heading to Rochester and are assigned to the Red Wings. This definitely has to be the work of the devil or something. On the other hand, let's see who the Twins received in this trade and see whether there is a silver lining: Pedro Hernandez Pedro Hernandez, a LHP, is a 23 year old Venezuelan, born on April 12, 1989 in Barquisimeto, who was one of the two pitchers the White Sox received by the Padres in the Carlos Quentin trade. He is listed at 5'10" 200 lbs. Hernandez was rushed (to AAA) by the Padres in 2011 and (to the majors for one start) by the White Sox this season. He has dominated AA in 2011 and was doing a fine job this year. He had 3.40 ERA, 1.185 WHIP, 9.4 K/9, 4.30 K/BB in AA San Antonio in 2011 in 8 starts and 2.75 ERA, 1.252 WHIP, 4.8 K/9 and 2.06 BB in AA Birmingham earlier this season in 12 starts. In 2 stars (3 games) in AAA Charlotte this season he was 3.71 ERA, 1.235 WHIP, 9.0 K/9 and 5.67 K/BB. His AAA numbers are better than any of any Twins' AAA pitchers (including Scott Diamond) this season. He has four pitches: Fastball, Cutter, Curve and Change. Good command of all 4 of his pitches His best pitch is his change up and it is a plus pitch and definitely an out pitch. His fastball has above average movement and the velocity is at low 90s with occasional mid-90s spurs. He has developed a cutter recently, which projects as a plus pitch once he gets a better feel for it. It sits in the mid-high 80s. His curveball is an average pitch, its a slow curve in the 70s and he is using it as a change of pace type of pitch. He has been projected as a back of the rotation starter or a bullpen piece, but does have potential. A lot of it depends on the development of his cutter and fastball. He will probably spend a while in Rochester, might get up to the majors in September and fight for a rotation spot for 2013. He is what the Twins were looking for: an MLB-ready young pitcher who can help the 2013 rotation. And he is a Lefty. http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/lacrossetribune.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/5/fa/5fa92983-2ff8-5fcc-9836-337cdaa6cf6e/500795678633f.preview-620.jpg Eduardo Escobar Eduardo Escobar is also a 23 year old Venezuelan, born on January 5, 1989 in Villa de Cura, and also is 5"10", but that is where the similarities with Hernandez end. He is generous listed at 165 lbs, is a Switch Hitting ShortStop and has incredible skills with the glove. Baseball America has listed him as the best fielding infield prospect with the White Sox the last 4 seasons. And defense and speed are his main weapons. Another player rushed through the system (in AAA last season and all season in the majors this season), his bat has not matured as fast as his glove. His career minor league line is .270/.315/.351, which is discouraging. He spent this season with the big club and he hit .207/.281/.276 in 98 plate appearances, which is Drew Butera-like at first sight. On the other hand, hitting as a RHB against LHP, he career MLB line is .333/.357/.481, which is very encouraging (but this is just 28 plate appearances) Also his MiLB career splits indicated that he is at least and average hitter as a RHB against LHPs. Maybe if he abandons switch hitting he might improve with most consistent repetitions. He is headed to Rochester to work with Tom Brunansky. All in all, he projects as a defensive replacement, utility hitter, unless he can turn the corner with the bat. He might return to the majors in September but expect him to be in a fight for a 25-man roster position in 2013 if one or both of Alexi Casilla and Jamey Carroll are not with the team. http://www.trbimg.com/img-4f721c25/turbine/chi-sox-game-day-another-opportunity-for-escob-001/600 All in all, it is hard to know how the Twins did in this trade. They received two 23 year olds for Liriano, including a MLB-ready pitcher (who could be a mid of the rotation pitcher or could be like PJ Walters) and a sleek fielding SS. Both have the potential, whether they realize it, it is to be seen.

Good catch with the August/July thing... I corrected it. Garza plays for the Cubs (unless he got traded)

Originally posted at The Tenth Inning Stretch ----- This continues the dialy trade talk updates for the Twins and of action around the league that influences the Twins trade moves, up until the deadline. You can find all the older updates here, in reverse chronological order. Here is the Twins Trade Talk the past 24 hours or so: Ben Goessling of the Pioneer Press reports that Twins' interim General Manager, Terry Ryan, "is making and taking calls". This is the first time that it was reported that Ryan is making calls, i.e. actively shopping Twins' players. In the same piece the names of the usual suspects (Justin Morneau, Fransisco Liriano, Josh Willingham and Denard Span) are mentioned without being linked to suitors. Also mentioned is that the Twins will be looking to get "hard-throwing arms" with a "high-upside" in return. Interesting article here in the Chicago Tribune from the Cubs' perspective, but suggests that it might starting to be a buyers' market for Starting Pitchers, which does not bode well for the Minnesota Twins and Fransisco Liriano. On the other hand, Chigaco's own Matt Garza is shut down with a triceps situation, which might take one pitcher off the market at the deadline. Phil Mackey connects the Atlanta Braves, who were shun by Ryan Dempster, with Fransisco Liriano. Over at the ESPN rumor central, they have Liriano linked to: St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, Washington Nationals, Texas Rangers, Cincinnati Reds and Baltimore Orioles. In other words, half the league is after Liriano. Jim Bowden indicates that the Cincinnati Reds are "chasing" Denard Span, among others. Here is a name not mentioned before: Glen Perkins. John Morosi tweets that there have been "heavy interest" and that the Twins' price is "very high" Jason Start reiterates that Justin Morneau is available Any of these guys will be still be wearing Twins' uniforms for the 7:10 PM CDT game on July 31st? http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8146/7656400424_ea03cea14f_o.jpg

Originally posted at The Tenth Inning Stretch ----- This continues the dialy trade talk updates for the Twins and of action around the league that influences the Twins trade moves, up until the deadline. You can find all the older updates here, in reverse chronological order. Here is the Twins Trade Talk the past 24 hours or so: Ben Goessling of the Pioneer Press reports that Twins' interim General Manager, Terry Ryan, "is making and taking calls". This is the first time that it was reported that Ryan is making calls, i.e. actively shopping Twins' players. In the same piece the names of the usual suspects (Justin Morneau, Fransisco Liriano, Josh Willingham and Denard Span) are mentioned without being linked to suitors. Also mentioned is that the Twins will be looking to get "hard-throwing arms" with a "high-upside" in return. Interesting article here in the Chicago Tribune from the Cubs' perspective, but suggests that it might starting to be a buyers' market for Starting Pitchers, which does not bode well for the Minnesota Twins and Fransisco Liriano. On the other hand, Chigaco's own Matt Garza is shut down with a triceps situation, which might take one pitcher off the market at the deadline. Phil Mackey connects the Atlanta Braves, who were shun by Ryan Dempster, with Fransisco Liriano. Over at the ESPN rumor central, they have Liriano linked to: St. Louis Cardinals, Los Angeles Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers, Washington Nationals, Texas Rangers, Cincinnati Reds and Baltimore Orioles. In other words, half the league is after Liriano. Jim Bowden indicates that the Cincinnati Reds are "chasing" Denard Span, among others. Here is a name not mentioned before: Glen Perkins. John Morosi tweets that there have been "heavy interest" and that the Twins' price is "very high" Jason Start reiterates that Justin Morneau is available Any of these guys will be still be wearing Twins' uniforms for the 7:10 PM CDT game on July 31st? http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8146/7656400424_ea03cea14f_o.jpg