Seth Stohs

Jhoan Duran was the obvious choice. He split the 2019 season between Ft. Myers and Pensacola. He is touted for his fastball which has hit triple digits on multiple occasions. He is viewed as a starting pitcher. The Twins acquired him in July 2018 from the Diamondbacks in the Eduardo Escobar trade. Dakota Chalmers came to the Twins in August 2018 from the A's in exchange for Fernando Rodney. Chalmers had recently undergone Tommy John surgery, but he is touted for having a big fastball. He also has the makings of plus change up and curveball. He returned to action in the second half of 2019 for the Ft. Myers Miracle. When their season ended, he and Jordan Balazovic were promoted to Pensacola for their playoff run. Gilberto Celestino joined the Twins in July 2018, with Jorge Alcala who was added to the roster in September, in the Ryan Pressly trade. After a slow start, he was on fire his final two-plus months in Cedar Rapids. He ended the season with a couple of weeks in Ft. Myers where he continued to hit. He also plays an elite caliber centerfield. Luke Raley came to the Twins with Devin Smeltzer in the July 2018 Brian Dozier trade from the Dodgers. He missed most of the 2019 season but returned to play in the Arizona Fall League. Travis Blankenhorn was the Twins third-round pick in 2015 out of high school in Pennsylvania. He spent about two weeks in Ft. Myers this year before hitting 18 homers for Pensacola. The biggest name left off of the roster is Wander Javier. The Twins signed the shortstop from the Dominican Republic in 2015 for a $4 million signing bonus. Griffin Jax and Luis Rijo are two starting pitchers who could potentially be lost in the Rule 5 draft. Share your thoughts on the Twins decisions. Here is our listing of players who were eligible to be protected.

With Stephen Gonsalves, Kohl Stewart and Martin Perez removed from the Twins 40-man roster on Monday, as well as six Twins players being free agents, the Twins 40-man roster is currently at 31 players. Here’s the quick version: Pitchers (16): Jorge Alcala, Jose Berrios, Randy Dobnak, Tyler Duffey, Brusdar Graterol, Ryne Harper, Trevor Hildenberger, Zack Littell, Trevor May, Sean Poppen, Taylor Rogers, Fernando Romero, Devin Smeltzer, Cody Stashak, Lewis Thorpe, Matt Wisler. Catchers (2): Willians Astudillo, Mitch Garver Infielders (7): Ehire Adrianza, Luis Arraez, CJ Cron, Marwin Gonzalez, Nick Gordon, Jorge Polanco, Miguel Sano Outfielders: (5) Byron Buxton, Jake Cave, Max Kepler, Eddie Rosario, LaMonte Wade DH(1): Nelson Cruz Recall that the players who are added to the 40-man roster can’t be DFA'd until spring training, so the team will likely not want to fill up their roster now. But as you can see, there are still players on this list that need to be offered arbitration (or not) and there are several players who could be DFA'd for when the team signs free agents. ---------------------------------- Last year, the Twins added three players to their 40-man roster. The “givens” at that time were Nick Gordon and LaMonte Wade. We included Luis Arraez as the first “on the bubble” name. The third “on the bubble” name mentioned here a year ago was RH RP Nick Anderson who was traded to the Marlins and pitched tremendously for the Marlins and the Rays as a rookie in 2019. ---------------------------------- So, let’s get to the players that the team will consider adding to their 40-man roster. As a reminder, here are some of the criteria for who is eligible for the Rule 5 draft if not protected. Here is this year’s criteria: Players who signed when they were 18 or younger in 2015 (during the minor league season). Players who signed when they were 19 or older in 2016. Players who were eligible in previous seasons are also eligible again. Players drafted or signed during the 2013 season became free agents after the World Series was complete. That includes Johan Quezada and Jose Martinez. That is why Kohl Stewart, who went unclaimed on Monday, was able to become a free agent. If the Twins signed them (or other minor league free agents) before the Rule 5 draft, they would be eligible for the Rule 5 draft. But back to the players needing to be added or risk losing to the Rule 5 draft, I’ll break them into a few categories. The Givens are players that I think have to be added or there is a high likelihood that they will be selected by another team. The next group is a group of players that I think will probably be added, though not quite as obviously. The final group includes players that I would consider On The Bubble. It will be interesting to see which of these guys are added later this month. How many spots will be available on the team’s 40-man roster at that time? The Givens Several players that would have been Givens were already added to the 40-man roster and called up late in the season. In fact, there were several guys who may have been borderline who were added already. For instance, Brusdar Graterol and Jorge Alcala were going to be added. No question. Here are a couple more. RHP Jhoan Duran - He came to the Twins in July 2018 from the Diamondbacks in the Eduardo Escobar trade. Duran throws hard. He hit triple-digits with a fastball several times in many of his starts. He went just 2-9 despite a 3.23 ERA in 16 games (15 starts) for the Miracle. He had 95 strikeouts in 78 innings.He moved up to AA Pensacola where he went 3-3 with a 4.86 ERA in seven starts. He struck out 41 batters in 37 innings. The 21-year-old stands 6-5 and has the potential for a starting pitcher’s mix. RHP Dakota Chalmers - Chalmers was a third-round pick of the Oakland A’s in 2015 out of high school in Georgia. He throws hard, but he has often struggled with control. He also fought injury and had Tommy John surgery early in 2018. The Twins acquired him in August in the Fernando Rodney trade. He returned to the mound in the second half of the 2019 season. After rehabbing in the GCL, the 23-year-old finished the regular season in Ft. Myers with the Miracle. He pitched for the Blue Wahoos in the playoffs and then headed to the Arizona Fall League to get more innings. He has a mid-90s fastball and good spin on his curveball. He also throws a changeup that is good when on. The Probables 2B/3B Travis Blankenhorn - The 23-year-old struggled in 2018 in Ft. Myers, as many do in the Florida State League, so he began 2019 with the Miracle. After just 15 games, he was promoted to AA Pensacola. He took off from there. In 93 games with the Blue Wahoos, he hit .278 with 18 doubles and 18 home runs. He was the Twins third-round pick in 2015 out of high school in Pennsylvania. He is one of the best athletes in the organization and has power and speed. OF Gilberto Celestino - The same year Javier signed with the Twins, the Astros signed Gilberto Celestino to a $2.25 million signing bonus. He came to the Twins in 2018 in the Ryan Pressly trade (with Jorge Alcala). He began 2019 by really struggling in Cedar Rapids, but he was on fire the final three months of the season and ended the year with the Miracle. And there, in 30 at-bats, he hit .300/.344/.433 (.767) OF Luke Raley - Raley was the Dodgers seventh-round pick in 2016 out of Division 2 Lake Erie College. He played well, and in July 2018, he came to the Twins with Devin Smeltzer in the Brian Dozier trade. He started 2019 in Rochester and was playing well when he hurt his ankle and needed surgery. It ended his season though he did play in the Arizona Fall League. He has power, and can play all three outfield positions, though center field is a stretch. On the Bubble RHP Luis Rijo - He came to the Twins from the Yankees in the July 2018 Lance Lynn trade. In 2018 in Cedar Rapids, he impressed by often hitting 95 and 96 mph with his fastball. He went 5-8 with a 2.86 ERA over 107 innings pitched. If he had spent time in Ft. Myers, he would probably be a Given, but could a team stash him for the full 2019 season? SS Wander Javier - When you sign an amateur to a $4 million signing bonus, you’d like to think that this decision would be easy, and maybe it is. But Javier has unfortunately missed nearly two seasons because of injury (most of 2016 in DSL and all of 2018). His 2019 started late and in 80 games, he hit just .177 with nine doubles and 11 home runs. He also had 17 errors. So, could he play in the big leagues today? Probably not. But he has as much talent as anyone in the organization, so a team might be willing to stash the 20-year-old on their big league roster for his potential. RHP Griffin Jax - The Twins third-round pick in 2016 out of the Air Force Academy. He signed and while he had commitments to the military, he pitched each summer. He has been able to pitch consistently since early in the 2018 season. He spent most of the 2019 season in Double-A Pensacola but made a couple of starts at Triple-A Rochester too. In 23 starts, he went a combined 5-7 with a 2.90 ERA. In 127 1/3 innings, he walked just 27 and struck out 94 (6.6 K/9). The Next This is a group that contains some intriguing names. While they aren’t obvious choices, there could be a team that likes them enough to take a shot with a Rule 5 pick. 1B Zander Wiel - The 26-year-old hit .254 with 40 doubles, five triples and 24 RBI at AAA Rochester in 2019 while performing adequately at first base. IF/OF Trey Cabbage - The 22-year-old was the Twins 4th round pick in 2015 out of high school in Tennessee. He is incredibly strong and hit a combined 15 homers in 2019 between Cedar Rapids and Ft. Myers. LHP Sam Clay - Fourth round pick in 2014 from Georgia Tech, Clay reached AAA in 2019. In 123 2/3 innings above High A, he has not given up a home run. In 69 1/3 innings in 2019 (2/3 of the innings in AA), he walked 28 and struck out 72 batters. RHP Moises Gomez - The 22-year-old Venezuelan posted a 1-4 record with 10 saves and a 2.91 ERA this season between Cedar Rapids and Ft. Myers. He also struck out 15 batters in 11 innings in the Arizona Fall League (we won’t mention the nine walks). RHP Jake Reed - We have brought him up as a Must-Add each of the last few seasons. He hasn’t been added, and he hasn’t been selected. Now 27, he is coming off of a 2019 season in which he posted a 5.76 ERA in Rochester (though he struck out 92 batters in 75 innings). RHP Tom Hackimer - The side-winding 25-year-old was the Twins 4th round pick in 2016 from St. John's. When healthy, he has been very productive. In 56 2/3 innings in 2019, he struck out 75 batters. The Rest Here is a list of other players who are eligible for the Rule 5 draft in the Twins organization. LHP Alex Robinson RHP Miguel De Jesus LHP Lachlan Wells RHP Yancarlos Baez RHP Melvi Acosta RHP Adam Bray RHP Andro Cutura LHP Zach Featherstone RHP Randy LeBlanc RHP Hector Lujan RHP Andriu Marin RHP Ryan Mason LHP Jovani Moran RHP Alex Schick RHP Carlos Suniaga LHP Andrew Vasquez LHP Tyler Watson RHP Tyler Wells IF Joe Cronin SS Yeltsin Encarnacion C Caleb Hamilton 3B Brian Schales OF Aaron Whitefield OF Malique Ziegler In the comments below, discuss my ranking and rank them by how you would protect them. We saw in 2019, and in 2018 too, that the Twins front office will make moves and keep that Rochester Connection quite active, so being on the 40-man roster is a big deal, but we have also seen that it can be altered frequently throughout a season. So, who do you think will be added? Does the fact that the Twins 40-man roster is currently at just 31 and there are others who could be DFAd still make you think they will add as many as eight players in two weeks?

The Twins family learned of a devastating loss late on Sunday night or early Monday morning. Ryan Costello, who split the 2019 season between the Ft. Myers Miracle and Pensacola Blue Wahoos, passed away in New Zealand. Costello arrived in New Zealand about a week ago. He was set to play for the Auckland Tuataras of the Australian Baseball League. He was drafted in the 31st round of the 2017 draft by the Seattle Mariners out of Central Connecticut State University in New Britain. He came to the Twins in the July 2018 trade that sent Zack Duke to the Mariners. He had been playing for former Twins infielder Denny Hocking with the Low A Clinton LumberKings. He joined the Ft. Myers Miracle and his big home run helped the Miracle to the Florida State League championship. He split the 2019 season between the Miracle and Blue Wahoos. With the Miracle, he hit .213/.337/.375 (.712) with 11 doubles and eight home runs in 68 games. In 40 games with Pensacola, he hit .240/.353/.473 (.826) with five doubles and seven home runs. News of his death started arriving on social media around midnight overnight. https://twitter.com/ABL/status/1196305660985724929 Teammates and those who knew him took to Instagram and other forms of social media to express their sadness. He was a very popular teammate. https://twitter.com/MarshallKelner/status/1196360547203272704 Last offseason, I chatted with Costello for this Get to Know 'Em story on Costello. The Minnesota Twins released a statement on Monday morning. Nick English, the owner of Munger English Sports Management (Costello's agents), provided the following statement: We extend out deepest condolences to the Costello family and friends and to all those in the Twins organization.

Not all minor leaguers are top prspects,, but once given an opportunity, you never know what will happen. Our guests today weren't first-round picks, but they have found themselves in good positions, worked hard and found success in their young careers. Austin Schulfer and Caleb Hamilton are climbing the ladder, and they're trying to get to the big leagues where our third guest, Nick Anderson reached in 2019. Anderson wasn't a prospect. He came through the independent leagues and gives hope and motivation to all minor leaguers that if they work hard and things break right, the big-league dream is out there for anyone. Austin Schulfer was the Twins 19th round draft pick in 2018 out of the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee where he set several pitching records. He spent the 2019 season with the Cedar Rapids Kernels where he worked five innings in a combined no-hitter. Off the field, he has developed a large gamer following on his Twitch TV link. (his interview begins at the 12:30 mark) http://traffic.libsyn.com/sethstohs/GTKE_Podcast_Ep_8.mp3 Caleb Hamilton was the Twins 23rd round pick in 2016 out of Oregon State. It was the second time he had been drafted, but his journey (which involved a AA All Star appearance and reached AAA in 2019) hasn't always been smooth. Find out about his trek, his long-time relationship with now-former Twins catching coordinator Tanner Swanson, playing at Oregon State, becoming a catcher and working with some of the very hard-throwing Twins pitching prospects. (39:35 mark) http://traffic.libsyn.com/sethstohs/GTKE_Podcast_Ep_8.mp3 Nick Anderson's story is pretty incredible. Born in Crosby, Minnesota, he attended Brainerd High School. He played three years at St. Cloud State before heading to Mayville State for his senior year. He was drafted by the Brewers but never offered a contract. He played independent ball until the Twins signed him late in the 2015 season. He moved up the organizational ladder and pitched well in 2018 at Rochester. In his offseasons, he worked construction in Minnesota winters. He didn't receive a September call-up and instead of adding him to their 40-man roster, the Twins drafted the hard-throwing right-hander to the Miami Marlins. He made the Opening Day roster and pitched well. At the trade deadline, he was sent to the Tampa Bay Rays where he struck out 17.3 batters per nine innings. He became a reliable late-inning arm for the Rays in their playoff run. We talked to him about being traded, making the Marlins roster, finding success, getting traded and much more. (1:16:10 mark) http://traffic.libsyn.com/sethstohs/GTKE_Podcast_Ep_8.mp3 You can subscribe to the Get to Know 'Em podcast on iTunes. or follow Libsyn for new episodes here as well. PAST EPISODES Episode 1: Get to know Niko Guardado (Actor and son of Eddie Guardado) Episode 2: Get to know Pat Dean, Brent Rooker Episode 3: Get to know Royce Lewis, AJ Achter Episode 4: Get to know Devin Smeltzer Episode 5: Get to know Jaylin Davis, Tyler Wells Episode 6: Get to know: Travis Blankenhorn, LaMonte Wade Episode 7: Get to know: Matt Wallner (and Ten Minutes with Tyler Wells) Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Not registered? Click here to create an account. To stay up to date, follow Twins Daily on Twitter and Facebook.

A 23-win increase from 2018 to 2019 helped the Twins manager edge out Yankees Aaron Boone for the AL Manager of the Year. Baldelli and Boone each received 13 first-place votes, but Baldelli received 13 second-place votes to gain the advantage. Kevin Cash, whom Baldelli coached for as recently as the 2018 season, finished third place. https://twitter.com/DanielAlvarezEE/status/1194395509403860995 Baldelli is the fourth Twins manager to win this award. The others are Tom Kelly (1991), Ron Gardenhire (2010) and Paul Molitor (2017). Baldelli became the winningest first-year manager in Twins/Senators franchise history. He was also the seventh first-year manager in baseball history to reach 100-plus wins. The Twins’ 101 wins marked the second-most in Minnesota history, behind only the 1965 American League Champions, who went 102-60. Baldelli joined Billy Martin (1969), Bill Rigney (1970) and Ron Gardenhire (2002) as the fourth Minnesota skipper to lead the team to the postseason in his first season at the helm. Minnesota's writers who voted for this award were Patrick Reusse and Dave Campbell. Both gave Baldelli their first-place vote. https://twitter.com/Patrick_Reusse/status/1194396315171594241 According to the Star-Tribune's Phil Miller, Baldelli, 38, becomes the youngest person to win the Manager of the Year award. More response to the Baldelli award: https://twitter.com/IamTrevorMay/status/1194395874345938951 https://twitter.com/TwinsPrez/status/1194395623988051969 Mike Schilt of the St. Louis Cardinals was named the 2019 National League Manager of the Year, edging out Brewers manager Craig Counsell.

For the first time since 2008, the Minnesota Twins have two Silver Slugger Award winners. https://twitter.com/morsecode/status/1192594955644153856 Mitch Garver won the Silver Slugger after a season in which he hit .273/.365/.630 (.995) with 16 doubles and 31 home runs. Garver becomes the first Twins catcher to win a Silver Slugger since Joe Mauer won his fifth in 2013. That was the most recent Twins Silver Slugger win. The numbers are impressive, but consider that he spent about three weeks on the Injured List with an ankle injury and he was splitting time behind the plate with Jason Castro. Garver made 73 starts behind the plate and had just three starts as the team's DH. Gary Sanchez of the Yankees hit .232/.316/.525 (.841) with 12 doubles and 34 home runs this season. He and Red Sox backstop Christian Vasquez were the other finalists. Nelson Cruz came to the Twins and mashed all year! The 39-year-old played in 120 games and hit a remarkable .311/.392/.639 (1.031) with 26 doubles and 41 home runs. The competition at DH came from Red Sox JD Martinez and the Royals Jorge Soler. Twins left fielder Eddie Rosario was one of six finalists in the American league outfield. The winners were the Astros George Springer, Red Sox Mookie Betts and the Angels Mike Trout. Former Twins infielder Eduardo Escobar was a finalist for the National League Silver Slugger at third base. Anthony Rendon was the winner. 2019 American League Silver Slugger Winners 1B: Carlos Santana 2B: DJ LeMahieu 3B: Alex Bregman SS: Xander Bogaerts OF: Mike Trout, Mookie Betts, George Springer C: MITCH GARVER DH: NELSON CRUZ Who votes for the Silver Slugger Awards? Per the league's 2018 announcement. Related Content: Twins Daily Most Improved Player 2019 College Coach Not Surprised by Mitch Garver's 2019 Success Mitch Garver's Other Big Improvement Nelson Cruz and His Unlikely Quest for 400 Home Runs Nelson Cruz Defying Father Time

Matt Wallner was the Twins Competitive Balance pick in 2019, the 39th overall pick in the 2019 draft. In 2016, the Forest Lake, MN, native was the Twins 32nd round pick but instead of signing, he went to Southern Mississippi where he became a three-time All American. We discussed several topics with him including his high school playing days, being Mr. Baseball in 2016, the draft(s) and beginning his professional career. http://traffic.libsyn.com/sethstohs/GTKE_Podcast_Ep_7.mp3 We need a good name for our bi-weekly segment with Twins RHP prospect Tyler Wells. We went with Ten Minutes with Tyler. Well, we went about 15 minutes, but that's OK. We discussed several topics including losing minor league coordinators, what's going on at the Twins academy in the offseason, the 40-man roster, his status and rehab updates and more. http://traffic.libsyn.com/sethstohs/GTKE_Podcast_Ep_7.mp3 7:00 - Ten Minutes with Tyler 25:40 - Matt Wallner interview Leave questions or comments below on this podcast. Send me names of people you would like to see interviewed in the future. And send your questions for Tyler Wells as well, as he will return to the show in two weeks to answer your questions. You can subscribe to the Get to Know 'Em podcast on iTunes. or follow Libsyn for new episodes here as well. PAST EPISODES Episode 1: Get to know Niko Guardado (Actor and son of Eddie Guardado) Episode 2: Get to know Pat Dean, Brent Rooker Episode 3: Get to know Royce Lewis, AJ Achter Episode 4: Get to know Devin Smeltzer Episode 5: Get to know Jaylin Davis, Tyler Wells Episode 6: Get to know: Travis Blankenhorn, LaMonte Wade Please share your thoughts in the comments below. Not registered? Click here to create an account. To stay up to date, follow Twins Daily on Twitter and Facebook.