Thrylos

So Komatsu (a hitter who should not be hitting higher than 8th - like Mastroianni last night) leads off today. Why? Because he is playing CF and that is where the CF has to start according the manager of the millennium?

It is a lot like the MLB free agent market. All these guys are free agents and can sign for any team for any amount they agree. Players who are playing professionally in Japan are an exception. Still not clear whether Cuban defectors are included here, but usually those do not have large bonuses; they have large contracts.

Per the new CBA all teams are restricted to a total of $2.9 M budget for international signings. So top signings will end up being max $1.5-2 M and that is really pushing it.

If the Twins are looking for the best player available (and happens to be an OF), they should try to sign this guy: 16-year old Gustavo Cabrera. (The link actually has a long video of him). By far the best 16 year old in the Dominican, probably a better bet than Buxton, lots of Sano comparisons and with the new CBA, cheaper than both Sano and Buxton and number 2. Just a thought...

I think that there are serious development issues. The guy who runs their minor league system has been in his position since before the Twins won any world series, is way beyond medicare rocking chair and porch time and is the only member of a MLB team's HOF who is still in the position he was elected for. Rantz has to go. He is stuck in the 80s. Time has passed him by. So a huge modernization in the player development and evaluation process (within the organization) is needed. (Like computers anyone?) Also, their last 3 high draft picks (as far as SPs go, Hunt, Gibson and Wimmers) developed issues. Before than they picked a lot of High Schoolers who take longer to develop and are more of a non-sure thing. To tell the truth, Bill Smith's drafts and international signings have been way better than Terry Ryan's, so there is a pipeline of talent. Unfortunately it is on high A, AA max....

He got a 4-game suspension

He has zero intend to hit the umpire. He just jammed the helmet down and the thing bounced up and touched the umpire softly. Clearly that umpire has blown at least those 2 strike calls and he could have potentially affected the outcome of the game. He should also be suspended. This league does not hold umpires accountable enough. Fines and suspensions for bad calls and especially when umpires trying to showing up players and managers (and I think that the last ball called strike in that case could be it, based on Lawrie's previous reaction) should be in order.

The payroll is a dead horse. If Ryan is spending $3M on Marquis, $5M + a draft pick on Capps, is the ownership to blame? The Twins have $105 M payroll. They just don't spend them in a smart way. Look at the payrolls of the teams that made last post-season. The Twins payroll this season is higher than a bunch of them. It is not how much; it is what. And as far as the draft budget goes, after the new CBA, it is fairly standard with the hard slots and penalties.

Here is another reason that you take the best player available and with the best ratings even if you do not have a foreseable need in that position: You can trade him a year later to fill a real need. The better the prospect the better the return.

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch --- With the Twins having a severe need for pitching in the organization as well as six picks among the top 100, it is certain that more than one of those picks (and probably the second overall pick) will be used to draft a pitcher. To this respect, I am presenting profiles of the top 22 pitching prospects for the 2012 MLB draft. I will be presenting these alphabetically, and at the end I will rank them. I will be doing about one a day and I will finish before the June 4th draft day. You can find all the profiles (in reverse alphabetical order) as they are presented here. I will start with RJ Alvarez and end with Kyle Zimmer. Each profile with contain a bit of background information and statistics, a mini scouting report and videos and photos. Profile 5: Max Fried Profile/Stats: Max Fried is a senior at Harvard-Westlake High School in Encino, CA, like another top High School pitching prospect, Lucas Giolito. Max Fried transferred there for from Montclair Prep for his senior season. It is interesting that both Fried and Giolito have committed to play for the same College, UCLA. He is listed at 6'4" and 175 lbs. He was born on January 18, 1994. He throws left handed. He is a 2012 Rollings first team All-American. In addition to pitching he has played in the OF and 1B where he compiled a .360/.455/.627 line as a Junior. As a Junior pitcher he pitched 69.2 innings, allowing 44 hits, walking 38 and striking out 100, for a 1.31 ERA. Mini Scouting Report: He has a plus fastball that sits at 89-90 and bursts into 92-93 with excellent movement and occasional sink. His best pitch is his plus plus curveball, which has a tight hammer-like break. His FB velocity is projected to increase as he fills up. He is throwing a changeup which is average at this point but projects to develop. His delivery mechanics are good, but he needs to maintain a consistent arm slot. He is releasing at 3/4. Has good control but needs to be able to command all his pitches better, especially low in the strike zone. Videos/Photos: Due to the difficulties in embedding videos here, please go to the original post to see 4 videos of Max Fried pitching http://www.perfectgame.org/images/profilepics/11NATTX4.jpg

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch --- With the Twins having a severe need for pitching in the organization as well as six picks among the top 100, it is certain that more than one of those picks (and probably the second overall pick) will be used to draft a pitcher. To this respect, I am presenting profiles of the top 22 pitching prospects for the 2012 MLB draft. I will be presenting these alphabetically, and at the end I will rank them. I will be doing about one a day and I will finish before the June 4th draft day. You can find all the profiles (in reverse alphabetical order) as they are presented here. I will start with RJ Alvarez and end with Kyle Zimmer. Each profile with contain a bit of background information and statistics, a mini scouting report and videos and photos. Profile 5: Max Fried Profile/Stats: Max Fried is a senior at Harvard-Westlake High School in Encino, CA, like another top High School pitching prospect, Lucas Giolito. Max Fried transferred there for from Montclair Prep for his senior season. It is interesting that both Fried and Giolito have committed to play for the same College, UCLA. He is listed at 6'4" and 175 lbs. He was born on January 18, 1994. He throws left handed. He is a 2012 Rollings first team All-American. In addition to pitching he has played in the OF and 1B where he compiled a .360/.455/.627 line as a Junior. As a Junior pitcher he pitched 69.2 innings, allowing 44 hits, walking 38 and striking out 100, for a 1.31 ERA. Mini Scouting Report: He has a plus fastball that sits at 89-90 and bursts into 92-93 with excellent movement and occasional sink. His best pitch is his plus plus curveball, which has a tight hammer-like break. His FB velocity is projected to increase as he fills up. He is throwing a changeup which is average at this point but projects to develop. His delivery mechanics are good, but he needs to maintain a consistent arm slot. He is releasing at 3/4. Has good control but needs to be able to command all his pitches better, especially low in the strike zone. Videos/Photos: Due to the difficulties in embedding videos here, please go to the original post to see 4 videos of Max Fried pitching http://www.perfectgame.org/images/profilepics/11NATTX4.jpg

I think that you are confusing Front Office baseball operations with "Ownership". Unlike owners like Steinbrenner, the Pohlads are letting the Front Office run things. And I agree, the Front Office is to blame for a lot of what is happening here...

Interesting... in a couple of ways. 2009 was in the Metrodome and 2012 at Target Field so that might be part of the equation. On the other hand, something is seriously wrong with those charts if the Metrodome and Target Field are shown as the same shape park with the same dimensions....

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch ---- This is the second version of the 'who is hot in the Twins' minors' series for 2012. About a month and a half into the minor league seasons now, a lot of changes have happened on the pitching leaders from the last "who is hot" list, mainly because of promotions and because PJ Walters and Scott Diamond are now excluded from the list. Nice to see that there are reliable relief corps throughout the organization, including the AAA. The bats have cooled considerably, but there are a lot of new bats in the minors and Wilken Ramirez and Miguel Sano continue their domination. Here is the list, going from AAA to A. The clubs represented are AAA Rochester Red Wings, International League, AA New Britain Rock Cats, Eastern League, A+ Fort Myers Miracle, Florida State League, A Beloit Snappers, Midwest League (does not include yesterday's games) : http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5152/7098789651_02fb66b359_z.jpg Catchers: Matthew Koch (RHB, 23, A) .235/.409/.353, 6 2B, 68 PA Infielders: Deibinson Romero (RHB, 25, AA) .264/.350/.430 3 HR, 21 RBI, 140 PA Jairo Perez (RHB, 24, A+) .257/.367/.450 3 HR, 13 RBI, 128 PA Miguel Sano (RHB, 19, A) .293/.410/.639 11 HR, 35 RBI, 161 PA Eddie Rosario (LHB, 20, A) .289/.381/.467 3 HR, 21 RBI, 7 SB, 155 PA Outfielders: Clete Thomas (LHB, 28, AAA) .280/.333/.480, 1 RBI, 28 PA Matt Carson (RHB, 30, AAA) .289/.367/.413, 1 HR, 8 RBI, 121 PA Wilkin Ramirez (RHB, 26, A+/AA/AAA) .359/.388/.688, 4 HR, 7 RBI, 2 SB, 67 PA Aaron Hicks (SHB, 22, AA) .258/.347/.414 4 HR, 21 RBI, 9 SB, 150 PA Oswaldo Arcia (LHB, 21, A+) .286/.349/.455 2 HR, 21 RBI 127 PA Lance Ray (LHB, 22, A+) .239/.331/.440 4 HR, 25 RBI, 130 PA 1st basemen/DH: Chris Colabello (RHB, 28, AA) .242/.326/.442 5 HR, 21 RBI, 139 PA RH Starters: Liam Hendriks (23, AAA) 1.54 ERA, 0.857 WHIP, 9.3 K/9, 3 K/BB (11.2 IP) Cole DeVries (27, AAA) 4.19 ERA, 1.241 WHIP, 7.22 K/9, 4.43 K/BB (38.2 IP) BJ Hermsen (22, A+/AA) 1.66 ERA, 0.900 WHIP, 5.19 K/9, 3.57 K/BB (43.1 IP) Tim Shibuya (22, A) 2.83 ERA, 1.257 WHIP, 7.71 K/9, 4.29 K/BB (35 IP) LH Starters: Andrew Albers (26, AA) 4.50 ERA. 1.310 WHIP, 7.29 K/0, 11.33 K/BB (42 IP) Jason Wheeler (21, A) 2.84 ERA, 1.289 WHIP, 6.16 K/9, 2.89 K/BB (38 IP) RH Relievers: Anthony Slama (28, AAA) 0.51 ERA, 1.132 WHIP, 14.26 K/9, 2.55 K/BB (17.2 IP) Deolis Guerra (23,AA/AAA) 1.14 ERA, 0.761 WHIP, 9.51 K/9, 5 K/BB (23.2 IP) Lester Oliveros (24, AA/AAA) 1.42 ERA, 0.895 WHIP, 7.58 K/9, 2.29 K/BB (19 IP) Dan Turpen (25, AA) 3.79 ERA, 0.947 WHIP, 10.42 K/9, 22 K/BB (19 IP) Bobby Lanigan (25, AA) 2.84 ERA, 1.211 WHIP, 8.53 K/9, 9 K/BB (23 IP) David Bromberg (24, AA) 3.91 ERA, 1.217 WHIP, 8.61 K/9, 2.2 K/BB Miguel Munoz (23, A+) 2.77 ERA, 1.000 WHIP, 5.54 K/9, 4 K/BB (13 IP) Ricky Bowen (24, A+) 1.93 ERA, 1.114 WHIP, 7.33 K/9, 3.8 K/BB (23.1 IP) AJ Achter (23, A) 0.86 ERA, 0.952 WHIP, 9.86 K/9, 4.60 K/BB (21 IP) Michael Tonkin (22, A) 2.05 ERA, 1.136 WHIP, 9.00 K/9, 7.33 K/BB (22 IP) LH Relievers: Caleb Thielbar (25, A+/AA) 1.35 ERA, 0.950 WHIP, 9 K/9, 4 K/BB (20 IP) Nelvin Fuentes (23 A/A+) 3.05 ERA, 1.210 WHIP, 9.15 K/9, 3.5 K/BB (20.2 IP) Ryan O'Rourke (24, A) 4.08 ERA, 1.132 WHIP, 7.13 K/9, 3.5 K/BB (17.2 IP) Matthew Tomshaw (23, A) 2.54 ERA, 0.988 WHIP, 7.31 K/9, 5.75 K/BB (28.1 IP, 4 GS) Corey Williams (21, A) 3.77 ERA, 1.326 WHIP, 11.30 K/9, 2.57 K/BB (14.1 IP)

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch ---- This is the second version of the 'who is hot in the Twins' minors' series for 2012. About a month and a half into the minor league seasons now, a lot of changes have happened on the pitching leaders from the last "who is hot" list, mainly because of promotions and because PJ Walters and Scott Diamond are now excluded from the list. Nice to see that there are reliable relief corps throughout the organization, including the AAA. The bats have cooled considerably, but there are a lot of new bats in the minors and Wilken Ramirez and Miguel Sano continue their domination. Here is the list, going from AAA to A. The clubs represented are AAA Rochester Red Wings, International League, AA New Britain Rock Cats, Eastern League, A+ Fort Myers Miracle, Florida State League, A Beloit Snappers, Midwest League (does not include yesterday's games) : http://farm6.staticflickr.com/5152/7098789651_02fb66b359_z.jpg Catchers: Matthew Koch (RHB, 23, A) .235/.409/.353, 6 2B, 68 PA Infielders: Deibinson Romero (RHB, 25, AA) .264/.350/.430 3 HR, 21 RBI, 140 PA Jairo Perez (RHB, 24, A+) .257/.367/.450 3 HR, 13 RBI, 128 PA Miguel Sano (RHB, 19, A) .293/.410/.639 11 HR, 35 RBI, 161 PA Eddie Rosario (LHB, 20, A) .289/.381/.467 3 HR, 21 RBI, 7 SB, 155 PA Outfielders: Clete Thomas (LHB, 28, AAA) .280/.333/.480, 1 RBI, 28 PA Matt Carson (RHB, 30, AAA) .289/.367/.413, 1 HR, 8 RBI, 121 PA Wilkin Ramirez (RHB, 26, A+/AA/AAA) .359/.388/.688, 4 HR, 7 RBI, 2 SB, 67 PA Aaron Hicks (SHB, 22, AA) .258/.347/.414 4 HR, 21 RBI, 9 SB, 150 PA Oswaldo Arcia (LHB, 21, A+) .286/.349/.455 2 HR, 21 RBI 127 PA Lance Ray (LHB, 22, A+) .239/.331/.440 4 HR, 25 RBI, 130 PA 1st basemen/DH: Chris Colabello (RHB, 28, AA) .242/.326/.442 5 HR, 21 RBI, 139 PA RH Starters: Liam Hendriks (23, AAA) 1.54 ERA, 0.857 WHIP, 9.3 K/9, 3 K/BB (11.2 IP) Cole DeVries (27, AAA) 4.19 ERA, 1.241 WHIP, 7.22 K/9, 4.43 K/BB (38.2 IP) BJ Hermsen (22, A+/AA) 1.66 ERA, 0.900 WHIP, 5.19 K/9, 3.57 K/BB (43.1 IP) Tim Shibuya (22, A) 2.83 ERA, 1.257 WHIP, 7.71 K/9, 4.29 K/BB (35 IP) LH Starters: Andrew Albers (26, AA) 4.50 ERA. 1.310 WHIP, 7.29 K/0, 11.33 K/BB (42 IP) Jason Wheeler (21, A) 2.84 ERA, 1.289 WHIP, 6.16 K/9, 2.89 K/BB (38 IP) RH Relievers: Anthony Slama (28, AAA) 0.51 ERA, 1.132 WHIP, 14.26 K/9, 2.55 K/BB (17.2 IP) Deolis Guerra (23,AA/AAA) 1.14 ERA, 0.761 WHIP, 9.51 K/9, 5 K/BB (23.2 IP) Lester Oliveros (24, AA/AAA) 1.42 ERA, 0.895 WHIP, 7.58 K/9, 2.29 K/BB (19 IP) Dan Turpen (25, AA) 3.79 ERA, 0.947 WHIP, 10.42 K/9, 22 K/BB (19 IP) Bobby Lanigan (25, AA) 2.84 ERA, 1.211 WHIP, 8.53 K/9, 9 K/BB (23 IP) David Bromberg (24, AA) 3.91 ERA, 1.217 WHIP, 8.61 K/9, 2.2 K/BB Miguel Munoz (23, A+) 2.77 ERA, 1.000 WHIP, 5.54 K/9, 4 K/BB (13 IP) Ricky Bowen (24, A+) 1.93 ERA, 1.114 WHIP, 7.33 K/9, 3.8 K/BB (23.1 IP) AJ Achter (23, A) 0.86 ERA, 0.952 WHIP, 9.86 K/9, 4.60 K/BB (21 IP) Michael Tonkin (22, A) 2.05 ERA, 1.136 WHIP, 9.00 K/9, 7.33 K/BB (22 IP) LH Relievers: Caleb Thielbar (25, A+/AA) 1.35 ERA, 0.950 WHIP, 9 K/9, 4 K/BB (20 IP) Nelvin Fuentes (23 A/A+) 3.05 ERA, 1.210 WHIP, 9.15 K/9, 3.5 K/BB (20.2 IP) Ryan O'Rourke (24, A) 4.08 ERA, 1.132 WHIP, 7.13 K/9, 3.5 K/BB (17.2 IP) Matthew Tomshaw (23, A) 2.54 ERA, 0.988 WHIP, 7.31 K/9, 5.75 K/BB (28.1 IP, 4 GS) Corey Williams (21, A) 3.77 ERA, 1.326 WHIP, 11.30 K/9, 2.57 K/BB (14.1 IP)

One of the few times I almost agree with Souhan. On the other hand, since the pitching has been more problematic than the hitting, how do you fire Vavra and let Andy stand? Yeah, Marquis needs another start or 2 and then I'd see if I can send him to Rochester before cut him...

I decided to do the ones I have ranked as the top 22 (since I had 22 days until the end of this month.) pitchers. Buttery did not the cut. I think that he is not a consensus first rounder. He is a high school pitcher and there are probably 7-8 high school pitchers who are better than at this point

Plouffe or Burroughs with either Valencia or Burroughs or Carroll at 3B.

True. But Gardenhire (and his coaches) and Ryan are also given multiple chances to prove themselves...

I think that Doumit has been a good replacement for Kubel at a fraction of the price. His defense is Kubel-like, but where Doumit really added value in this team was to keep Bu-terror in the minors. Now that the Manager of the Millennium has nixed that and starts Buterror in 40% of the games, Doumit's value lessens. I still think that he brings a lot to the table and could be a good deadline trading chip. Starting pitching, especially the "veterans" Pavano and Marquis have been horrid. Marquis' acquisition is shaping to be worse than that of Livan, Ponson, Ramon Ortiz, if you factor in the money. At this point, the Twins are better hanging the "For Sale" sign early, get a bunch of young pitchers in return and see what they can do in the majors in preparation for next year. As far as Marquis goes, he would make a good starter in Rochester, and that might apease the natives who have been screaming that the Twins have gutted their team. I am just thankful that Ryan still has the "interim" tag and that Gardy and his cohorts' contracts are expiring in 2013.

Well, this explains the release of Aaron Bates, but still don't like it

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch ---- With the Twins having a severe need for pitching in the organization as well as six picks among the top 100, it is certain that more than one of those picks (and probably the second overall pick) will be used to draft a pitcher. To this respect, I am presenting profiles of the top 22 pitching prospects for the 2012 MLB draft. I will be presenting these alphabetically, and at the end I will rank them. I will be doing about one a day and I will finish before the June 4th draft day. You can find all the profiles (in reverse alphabetical order) as they are presented here. I will start with RJ Alvarez and end with Kyle Zimmer. Each profile with contain a bit of background information and statistics, a mini scouting report and videos and photos. Profile 6: Zach Eflin Profile/Stats: Zach Eflin is a senior at Hagerty High Scholl in Oviedo,FL. He is listed at 6'5" and 200 lbs. He was born on April 8, 1994 and he throws Right Handed. In his current season, Eflin is 5-2 with a 0.55 ERA and 57 strikeouts in 38 innings pitched. ESPN published great article on Zach,discussing how he used baseball to escape from a difficult home situation. Eflin nissed all the month of April with tricep tendonitis, but his MRI is clear and has returned to action earlier this month. He committed to play for the University of Central Florida. Mini Scouting Report: Efling has good control of his above average fastball that averages 91-93 mph with occasional 94-95 mph spikes and good movement. His changeup is a plus pitch, sits from 79-82 mph and has good fade an sink. He is working on spike curveball which is a major work in progress and will probably turn into a slider as he progresses. His stamina is somewhat questionable, since the velocity and effectiveness of his fastball has been decreasing in the later innings. His delivery is effortless and his frame is projectible. Videos/Photos: Due to the difficulty in embedding Videos here, please go to the orginial post for Videos of Zach Eflin. http://www.perfectgame.org/images/profilepics/11NATTX4.jpg

Originally published at The Tenth Inning Stretch ---- With the Twins having a severe need for pitching in the organization as well as six picks among the top 100, it is certain that more than one of those picks (and probably the second overall pick) will be used to draft a pitcher. To this respect, I am presenting profiles of the top 22 pitching prospects for the 2012 MLB draft. I will be presenting these alphabetically, and at the end I will rank them. I will be doing about one a day and I will finish before the June 4th draft day. You can find all the profiles (in reverse alphabetical order) as they are presented here. I will start with RJ Alvarez and end with Kyle Zimmer. Each profile with contain a bit of background information and statistics, a mini scouting report and videos and photos. Profile 6: Zach Eflin Profile/Stats: Zach Eflin is a senior at Hagerty High Scholl in Oviedo,FL. He is listed at 6'5" and 200 lbs. He was born on April 8, 1994 and he throws Right Handed. In his current season, Eflin is 5-2 with a 0.55 ERA and 57 strikeouts in 38 innings pitched. ESPN published great article on Zach,discussing how he used baseball to escape from a difficult home situation. Eflin nissed all the month of April with tricep tendonitis, but his MRI is clear and has returned to action earlier this month. He committed to play for the University of Central Florida. Mini Scouting Report: Efling has good control of his above average fastball that averages 91-93 mph with occasional 94-95 mph spikes and good movement. His changeup is a plus pitch, sits from 79-82 mph and has good fade an sink. He is working on spike curveball which is a major work in progress and will probably turn into a slider as he progresses. His stamina is somewhat questionable, since the velocity and effectiveness of his fastball has been decreasing in the later innings. His delivery is effortless and his frame is projectible. Videos/Photos: Due to the difficulty in embedding Videos here, please go to the orginial post for Videos of Zach Eflin. http://www.perfectgame.org/images/profilepics/11NATTX4.jpg

Thanks. Any opinions on Gophers' Dustin Klabunde? I've heard good things about him (and I know he is older)

Really cool! Happy Birtday to all