Seth Stohs

Longoria is one that should probably be on this list... Others I considered were Granderson (he's been pretty good), Tulo and Hanley.

I will go with: 1.) Josh Hamilton 2.) Miguel Cabrera 3.) Albert Pujols 4.) Ryan Braun 5.) Jose Bautista 6.) Paul Konerko 7.) Joey Votto 8.) Matt Kemp 9.) Prince Fielder 10.) Carlos Beltran

This is a topic that I have been trying to figure out how to put into a blog, but I just can't. I think it's a good forum topic though. What is the difference between a #4 or #5 starter, a long reliever, a AAAA pitcher or a AAA Pitcher? As the Twins have gone from some veteran #4 and #5 starters to guys like Scott Diamond and PJ Walters and Cole DeVries, I can't help but think about this question. Diamond is a prospect in that, until last year, he really had put up very good minor league numbers. Walters is considered a AAAA pitcher who hasn't had a ton of success in AAA and very little in the big leagues. He's already 27. De Vries is 27 and just made his major league debut. Nick Blackburn was projected to be a back-of-the-rotation starter and has been just that. His first two big league seasons, he was very solid, very league average. Anthony Swarzak has been a decent-at-times big league starter and a solid-enough long reliever. So, what happens? These are just some current examples. Every organization has these types of pitchers. So, again, what is the difference? 1.) Is it just about opportunity or lack of opportunity? There is a team need, a guy gets a chance and either takes advantage of it quickly or doesn't. 2.) Is there a difference in stuff? Maybe a #4 has one really good pitch and two average pitches, whereas a AAA or AAA may have 3 average pitches? 3.) Draft status? Obviously signing bonuses create opportunities, but they still have to be taken advantage of. Can anyone help me out? I don't think it's an unimportant question because a guy who could be a #4 pitcher can still get a long-term, multi-million contract. AAAA and AAA guys are generally looking for jobs every off season.

Twins Lineup (vs Max Scherzer): Denard Span CF Ben Revere RF Joe Mauer DH Josh Willingham LF Justin Morneau 1B Brian Dozier SS Alexi Casilla 2B Drew Butera C Jamey Carroll 3B SP: Carl Pavano

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Twins Lineup: Denard Span CF Ben Revere RF Joe Mauer C Josh Willingham DH Justin Morneau 1B Brian Dozier SS Trevor Plouffe LF Alexi Casilla 2B Jamey Carroll 3B SP Anthony Swarzak

I think that it was crazy to find more value to make determinations on Doyle based on 3-4 appearances this spring than the 200 IP he threw last year. I really think that DeVries, Walters and Doyle are all about the same. I do think Diamond can become a pretty decent mid-rotation guy.

I think that Scott Baker, at healthy and at his best, is a #2 starter. I think that is the ceiling for Hendriks, and I'm comfortable saying that. More than likely, he's a 3 or 4, but I'll stand by it. 1.) he's got good control. 2.) he's been able to get strikeouts through the minors. 3.) He has about the same velocity as Baker (2-seam 88-91, 4-seam 92-93), with good movement on the 2-seamer, 4.) has the CB and CU that are already solid, but to get to #2 level will have to get more consistent, 5.) not afraid to wear some emotions on his shoulder on the mound (I sometimes think this is a good thing, he is very competitive), 6.) having talked to him many times about pitching, he knows what he's doing and know how to make adjustments. Sure, more than likely, he'll be a #3, but I think it's fair to say his ceiling is a #2. I'm fine with others disagreeing with me, but I know I'd be really happy if he turns into a healthy Scott Baker (and you can argue with whether that is a #2 or a #3 too).

I count 39 as well. One thing to remember is that Kyle Waldrop has already missed almost 50 days, so he could be put on the 60 Day DL to open up a spot. Waldrop would just need to be put back on when he's done rehabbing...

This is probably the key...

It didn't make sense to me either, but the pitches that hit 91-92 did cut, so I'm not sure how that works. It hit 92, but it was generally 89-90.

Yeah, I don't think he pitched 'very well' last night. What I do think is that I saw enough to say that he does need to get 3-5 starts to see what he can do. I mean, it was his major league debut, so I expect the nerves were all over the place. The pitches weren't all consistent, but 1.) he threw strikes, 2.) he has a good curveball, and 3.) his cutter at 92 is a very nice pitch.

Gwinnett's offensive stats in the International League (AAA): .248/.327/.363 (.690). Chicago's offensive stats in the American league (MLB): .249/.315/.407 (.722). My point isn't to say that DeVries pitched better, or even all that well, but it isn't like the circumstances they were pitching under were identical. MLB vs AAA MLB Debut vs Another Start in AAA Prospect standing Arbitration timelines Wanting to make sure that the guy you believe can be a 2/3 type of pitcher is taken care of an they're doing what's best for him.

It won't be long. I think that it's good for him to have 6-8 weeks of this kind of success to remind himself that he's good and that he can be a 2-3 type of starter. he was clearly jarred a little early in the season, and I think pushing him back too quickly could be negative. But that said, I don't think it'll be too long.

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The debut of Cole De Vries was a game with several ups and downs. De Vries struck out Alejandro de Aza, the first batter he faced. He threw a scoreless first inning. Then in the second frame, AJ Pierzynski got him. He was charged with three unearned runs in the third inning after an error, a pop up and a blooper. He then got seven batters out. Given a 5-4 lead, he went out for the 6th inning and served up back-to-back home runs to Paul Konerko and Alexi Rios and his debut was over. His line at the end of the day was six runs (3 earned) on six hits and a walk in five innings. He struck out four, but three solo home runs added up. Brian Duensing came in and gave up three hits and a walk. The biggest hit in his inning was a grand slam. Jeff Gray threw a scoreless inning. Jared Burton gave up a run in the eighth inning. The Twins fell 11-8 to the White Sox. The highlight for the Twins had to be Justin Morneau’s day at the plate. He was 3-5 with his seventh and eighth home runs, both long blasts. Joe Mauer was 2-4 with a walk and his second home run. Alexi Casilla was 2-4 with a double. Denard Span was 2-5 with his tenth double. If you missed it last night, be sure to listen to last night’s Twins Minor League Weekly. Seth was joined by Kyle Gibson, David Bromberg and Drew Leachman. Here is a look at the Twins minor league scores and highlights from Thursday: ROCHESTER 3, GWINNETT 1 After a day off, the Red Wings got a tidy win on the road in Gwinnett. Liam Hendriks started and gave up only an unearned run on five hits and two walks in seven innings. He struck out nine and improved to 3-0. Anthony Slama came in to start the eighth inning. He struck out one batter but gave up two hits. Tyler Robertson came in and got the Red Wings out of the jam. Casey Fien came in and threw a scoreless ninth inning to record the save. JR Towles went 2-4. Sean Burroughs was 2-4 with an RBI. Matt Carson hit his 12th double. Clete Thomas and Danny Valencia each drove in a run. The Red Wings are now 20-26. NEW BRITAIN 6, BINGHAMPTON 4 BJ Hermsen was back on the mound for the Rock Cats. The righty went seven innings and gave up four runs (3 earned) on ten hits. He walked none and struck out three. Caleb Thielbar pitched the last two innings. He didn’t allow a run and struck out four and picked up his second win. Deibinson Romero went 2-3 with a walk, his fourth home run and two RBI. Matt Rizzotti hit his second homer and drove in two. They improved to 28-18, and they are 1.5 games ahead of Reading. FT. MYERS 1, CLEARWATER 2 Madison Boer threw his best game with the Miracle. He gave up two runs (1 earned) on three hits in five innings. He walked none and struck out three. Matt Hauser struck out three in two shutout innings. Bruce Pugh struck out two in two scoreless innings. Danny Ortiz went 3-4 with his fourth and fifth doubles. He went 0-12 in his first three games with the Miracle. Since then, he has gone 20-64 (.313) in 16 games. Josmil Pinto also hit his ninth double. Danny Rams was taken off of the Disabled List. The Miracle are now 18-29 and 18 games back in the division. BELOIT 9, CEDAR RAPIDS 2 The Snappers played on Thursday afternoon and came out with a big win. AJ Achter got a spot start. He gave up two unearned runs in five innings. He gave up two hits, walked one and struck out five. Tyler Jones, a Milwaukee native, threw three scoreless innings. He gave up four hits, walked two and struck out five. David Hurlbut threw a scoreless innings. Adam Bryant went 3-5. Eddie Rosario went 2-5 with his fourth homer run. Drew Leachman was 2-5 with his second double, third home run and three RBI. Kyle Knudson was 1-2 with three walks. Miguel Sano continues to struggle. He was 0-3 with two walks and two strikeouts. He is now 1-30 in his last seven games and 3-39 since turning 19. Nate Roberts as activated from the DL. Rory Rhodes went back Extended Spring Training. Jones was promoted with Bart Carter going on the D Disabled List. The Snappers are now 28-19, a game and a half back of Wisconsin. --- Players of the Day for Thursday, May 24, 2012 Pitcher of the Day – Liam Hendriks [ATTACH=CONFIG]1042[/ATTACH] Hitter of the Day – Danny Ortiz [ATTACH=CONFIG]1043[/ATTACH] --- A Look Ahead – Friday, May 25, 2012 Schedule Rochester @ Gwinnett – LHP Matt Maloney New Britain @ Portland – LHP Andrew Albers Ft. Myers vs Palm Beach – RHP Miguel Munoz Beloit vs Cedar Rapids – RHP Tim Shibuya --- If you have any questions or comments on the Twins minor league system, players, teams, etc., leave them in the Comments and I’ll try to answer them!

IF anyonehas any questions for Gibson, Bromberg or Leachman, please leave them here. Later in the show, I'm happy to take your questions about anything in the TWins farm system as well. You can leave those here as well, or through Twitter or the shows chat room.

Kyle Gibson, David Bromberg and Drew Leachman will be guests on tonight's Twins Minor League Weekly show. The show will start at 10:00 central time, and you can listen live or download later through this link. Kyle Gibson is about two weeks away from throwing off of a mound for the first time in about 10 months. We'll get updated on how he is doing. David Bromberg had a frustrating 2011 season, and his 2012 season certainly didn't start out well. But since returning to a starting role, he has been one of the best starters in the Twins farm system. What made the difference? Drew Leachman was drafted by the Twins in 2011. He began this season in Extended Spring Training, but was promoted to Beloit a couple of weeks ago. Today, he hit his second double and third home run of his abbreviated season, helping the Beloit Snappers to a win. We'll learn about him, EST, and his time in Beloit. There could be more guests, and we'll talk about who is hot and who is not in the Twins farm system. So, be sure to join us live tonight at 10. If you can't, you'll definitely want to listen later. If you have any questions or comments for me or the guests, please feel free to ask them here, or in the chat room here, or via my twitter feed. I'll be sure to answer them.

Twins Lineup; Denard Span CF Ben Revere RF Joe Mauer DH Josh Willingham LF Justin Morneau 1B Brian Dozier SS Alexi Casillia 2B Drew Butera C Jamey Carroll 3B Cole De Vries SP

I don't associate speed with stolen bases at all. I do associate it with base running, 1st to third on singles, score from first on a double, etc. Also, range on defense regardless of position. I'm not saying that the Twins are good overall in those categories either. If Ben Revere was playing every day to this point in the season, you could probably add another 15-20 stolen bases already.

According to Paul Molitor in his weekly interview on 1500 espn, Benson will be having surgery on his hamate bone. Could miss at least 6 weeks.

Paul Molitor on 1500espn interview said that Benson still struggles with the Emotional Side of the GAme... Physically, he's got the talent. Also said that he has to have surgery on his hamate bone, likely to miss the next 6 weeks, at least.

Gaub was claimed by the Rangers today.