Seth Stohs

Gotta make that phone call... and if so, gotta start the conversation with Luis Gil... and then you ask for Jasson Dominguez and "settle" for either Spencer Jones or George Lombard... and then add two flyers from the lower levels.

Outfielder DaShawn Keirsey put together a record-breaking season with the St. Paul Saints which earned him his first promotion to the Minnesota Twins. Seth chatted with him after the season about his terrific 2024 season. Image courtesy of Sep 29, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Twins center fielder DaShawn Keirsey Jr. (89) celebrates his first career home run with third base coach Tommy Watkins (40) as he runs the bases during the third inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images The Minnesota Twins selected outfielder DaShawn Keirsey out of the University of Utah in the 2018 MLB draft. The path to the big leagues was complete with peaks and valleys, winding left and right. After missing time early in his career with injuries, Keirsey has been healthy the last few seasons and with that, he has really elevated his play. He put together a terrific season in St. Paul. In 111 games, he hit .300/.368/.476 (.845) with 22 doubles, seven triples, 14 home runs, and 81 RBI. He also stole 36 bases. The triples and RBI were single-season Saints records, while his 133 hits also set the new mark for the Twins Triple-A affiliate. In early September, the Twins placed Max Kepler on the Injured List and called up Keirsey. He played in five games in center field before Byron Buxton returned, and Keirsey was optioned. On the final day of the season, Keirsey was called back up to play in that game. He recorded the first home run of his career. Recently, I chatted with the athletic 27 year old from southern California about his whole season. Here are some of the highlights. 1:20: Excited for Michael Helman. Assumed that he wasn't going to get called up. Two days later, he unexpectedly received The Call. Find out how he found out. 4:00: What kind of support did he get from the guys in the Saints clubhouse, from his Twins teammates, the coaching staffs, and from past teammates? 6:40: Keirsey was an official non-roster invite to Twins spring training in 2024. What was the experience like, anything stand out from the veterans or others? 8:15: He started the season fast, offensively. He was hitting anywhere in the Top 5 of the lineup, providing on-base skills and enough power. Was there something that just clicked technically with his swing or with his approach? 9:44: What mechanical change did he observe from Royce Lewis and the two worked on together that he also thinks helped his overall offensive game? 13:25: We watched one of Keirsey's at-bats and discussed his thought process on the AB. He spoke of committing himself to have an approach going into every single plate appearance. 16:00: Like Max Kepler in his last couple of minor-league seasons, Keirsey filled up the stat sheet. He is an all-around player, something he has always wanted to be. Keirsey considers himself an athlete who can play baseball. 20:00: He can play a great center field, but he has also spent a lot of time playing in the corners. When he was younger, he didn't like playing the corners, but now he is really glad that he has had plenty of time at both corners. 23:10: Who were the first phone calls when you got The Call? 26:10: Calling his dad was a huge, emotional deal. When he didn't get called up right away in September, they weren't expecting the call three days later, which might have made it even more special. 27:20: MLB debut in Tampa. He came in as a defensive replacement in center field late in the game. Immediately the ball found him. He had to run a LONG ways to try to catch the ball. He almost made the catch, a back-hand attempt in which the ball hit his glove and his glove hit the wall simultaneously. He later found out that the odds of that ball being caught was 0% 29:30: We look at a diving catch that he made in support of Pablo Lopez at Target Field. We discussed reaction and getting a good jump and the mentality to do what's needed. 32:00: With so many young players and the team's philosophy on platooning, did he know his role coming to the club? 34:05: Do you know who Keirsey got his first MLB hit off of? Does he? (also, here Keirsey mention the comedy of Matt Wallner for the second time.) 36:25: Do you remember who Keirsey hit his first home run off of? Do you think he did? His memory of that moment are pretty special too. Just as important, the support and the love that he got from his teammates meant the world. 39:30: We dig deeper into the timing mechanism that he worked with Royce Lewis on during spring training. "I'm not doing it for the looks. I'm doing it for the functionality." 41:03: Have you had a chance to reflect on the season? Did he have a moment when it all just sunk in? 44:30: Any fun offseason plans? Travel? "I live in a place that most people come to vacation." I hope you enjoyed the back-and-forth conversation. It was a lot of fun to live vicariously through Keirsey's memories from his 2024 season. Keirsey has previously done interviews for Twins Daily: March 3, 2021: Twins Spotlight (Get to Know 'Em) June 27, 2023: DaShawn Keirsey: Twins Most Underrated Prospect View full article

Starting a new MILB Transactions thread for the offseason. We know the big leaguers who became free agents with the conclusion of the World Series. Now we know which minor leaguers have officially become free agents too. That list is just below. This thread should be a place to talk about the minor-league free agents the Twins lost and when we learn about a player signing a minor-league contract with the Twins. Normally those won't garner a full article, though at times it could, but we want to track them here. In addition, feel free to discuss former Twins and Twins minor leaguers and where they sign too. I will try to compile that list as well in coming days. But let's start the thread with the players who have spent time in the Twins organization (some going back as far as 2017-2018) and others who just spent some time in 2024. RHP: Jeff Brigham, Daniel Duarte, Giovanny Gallegos, Adam Plutko, Zack Weiss, Hobie Harris, Regi Grace, Miguel Rodriguez, Danny Moreno. LHP: Rafael Marcano, Gabriel Yanez. C: Wilfri Castro, Chris Williams IF: Rixon Wingrove, Rylan Bannon, OF: Carlos Aguiar, Agustin Ruiz. My assumption is within coming days, this will also include IF Yunior Severino, RHPs Josh Winder and Scott Blewett (unless they re-sign with the Twins right away). In addition, last month, the Twins released LHP Jordan Carr and RHP Mason Fox, making them free agents. And, if you go to the very beginning of October, LHPs Cole Irvin and Scott Okert, RHP Trevor Richards, and both Diego Castillo's (IF and RHP) chose to become free agents after being outrighted. There have also been several DSL players released since their season ended: Infielders Luis Rodriguez and Ruben Velasquez, and RHPs Neftali Rodriguez and Ledwin Taveras. In late September, right after the minor league seasons ended, the Twins released the following players (in case you missed them): RHP Ben Ethridge, RHP Tomas Cleto, RHP Hector Garcia, catchers Matthew Clayton and Cole Elvis, and infielder Omari Daniel. Oh, and RHP Sean Mooney retired. As he said, just wasn't able to get and stay healthy. That should have us all caught up.

After a humbling rookie season, how much should the Minnesota Twins bet on and rely upon Brooks Lee in 2025? Image courtesy of © Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images Welcome to the 2025 Offseason Handbook! This year, we’re offering the format online only through our Caretakers program. The Offseason Handbook is a comprehensive look at what challenges the Twins face in the coming winter to field a competitive team in 2025. To become a Caretaker, visit this page. On top of receiving exclusive access to the Offseason Handbook, Caretakers also receive in-depth analysis from national writers you cannot find anywhere else. You will also receive exclusive access to events and an ad-free browsing option. In celebration of the Offseason Handbook’s release, we’re offering 20% off all Caretaker programs for the next week. Use the code HANDBOOK at checkout to receive 20% off your purchase! The old saying in sports goes something like this. “A starter should not lose his job because of injury.” Vikings linebacker Blake Cashman joined the organization this offseason, playing for his home state team. He was leading the team in tackles, but he has missed time in recent weeks due to injury. When he comes back, it shouldn’t be as a bench player. He will come back and take over his spot. Karl Anthony Towns missed a lot of the 2023-2024 NBA season with injury, but as soon as he was healthy, he returned to the Minnesota Timberwolves starting lineup. Carlos Correa missed two months of the 2024 season with a second bout of plantar fasciitis. When he returned to the lineup, he was playing shortstop and batting in the middle of the Twins lineup. Similarly, the way an organization feels about a prospect should not change based solely on injury either. When Royce Lewis first tore his ACL a few years ago, it altered his timeline to the big leagues, but I can’t imagine anyone in the organization worrying about Lewis’s long-term future. When Miguel Sano and Alex Kirilloff missed seasons in the minor leagues due to Tommy John surgery, they remained top 20 global prospects. Likewise, Twins fans need to look beyond the offensive struggles of Brooks Lee in the big leagues in 2024. Yes, the numbers weren’t “good.” There is no denying that. In his first six big-league games, the Twins prospect went 11-for-24 (.458) with one double and one home run. Over his next 20 games, he went 14-for-75 (.187) with one double and one home run. He missed more time with injury, and he returned to play 24 games in September. He went 13-for-78 (.178), though he had four doubles, a triple, and a home run. Fortunately, that isn’t the full story of Brooks Lee, baseball player. As we all know, the Twins were thrilled when Lee fell to them with the eight-overall pick in the 2022 draft out of Cal-Poly, San Luis Obispo. The coach’s kid, he was called by many the most pure overall hitter in that year’s draft. After signing, he reached Double-A Wichita for their playoff run that season. That’s where he started the 2023 season, and when he was promoted to Triple-A later in the season, he was leading all Double-A hitters in doubles. In 125 combined games (between Double-A and Triple-A), he hit .275/.347/.461 (.808) with 39 homers, three triples, and 16 home runs. While his numbers in St. Paul dropped, it really was just the batting average. His walk rate dropped 1%, and his strikeout rate increased by 0.8% His Isolated Discipline and his Isolated Power both remained strong. In fairness, he appeared to be just months away from being big-league ready. He was invited to big-league spring training again and really impressed coaches and teammates. Unfortunately, just days before the start of the season, he was optioned to St. Paul. When the Saints announced their Opening Day roster, we saw Lee on the Injured List. Originally the injury was called back spasms. After further evaluation, he was diagnosed with a herniated disc. According to Twins Daily’s resident physical therapist Lucas Seehafer (click here to review much more detail on the particular injury and rehab), non-surgical recovery averages around six months. In baseball, there is a program that is designed for eight weeks. Lee worked through that program, and began a rehab assignment on May 20th. He played five games in the Florida Complex League. Then he played five rehab games for Low-A Fort Myers. On June 5, he returned to the Saints. In 20 games, he hit .329/.394/.635 (1.029) with five doubles and seven home runs. He appeared to be back in form. At that point, Royce Lewis was injured and Lee was promoted to the big leagues. On July 3rd, he made his debut. After those first six games, it was a struggle for the talented switch-hitter. He wasn’t himself at the plate, His walk rate dropped to just 5.9% His strikeout rate dropped just under 15% The goal isn’t to walk, but it is to have an approach at the plate where you don’t go outside of the zone and attack strikes. It’s an example of the phrase that a player needs for the game to slow down. You hear about that with quarterbacks often. The pass rushers get to him a lot quicker. Holes that he easily ran through in college close much quicker. And open receivers just don’t stay open quite as long. How a quarterback responds to the changes and how quickly he can slow the game down in his mind, the better. How quickly can Brooks Lee slow the game down? His reputation as a professional hitter, even long before he was actually a professional hitter speaks to his ability to make adjustments. Unfortunately, because his season was broken apart by a two-month injury at the beginning of the season, and another month of missed time meant that he never really got real extended, consecutive time to make needed adjustment. In 2011, Mike Trout played in his first 40 games with the Angels. He hit .220/.281/.390 (.672) with 11 extra base hits in 135 plate appearances. Fair to see that the game slowed down for him the next year when he was an All Star, Silver Slugger, the AL Rookie of the Year, and finished second in MVP voting. That was Trout’s Age-19 season. 2024 was Brooks Lee’s Age-23, so we aren’t comparing apples to apples. But it’s important to point out that you certainly can’t judge a player's career and potential by their first 40 or 50 games, good or bad. What Would I Do? Let’s just pretend for a moment that Derek Falvey hired me as an assistant general manager. On Day 1, my responsibility was to make a case for one transaction for this offseason. For me, I would try to lock up Brooks Lee to a long-term contract. The comparison I would use would be the contract that the Detroit Tigers signed Colt Keith to a year ago. Colt Keith was the fifth round pick of the Tigers in the 2020 draft out of high school in Biloxi, Mississippi. Always a solid prospect, Keith made big strides in 2023. That season, Keith, like Lee, split the season between Double-A and Triple-A. It’s fair to say that Keith arrived in Triple-A about six weeks before Lee did. In 126 games combined, he hit .306/.380/.552 (.932) with 38 doubles, three triples, and 27 home runs. Before the 2024 season, Colt Keith ranked in the top 30 overall prospects by Baseball America (#28), MLB Pipeline (#22), and Baseball Prospectus (#22). Brooks Lee ranked #35 at Baseball America, #18 at MLB Pipeline, and #52 at Baseball Prospectus. Before the start of this season, the Tigers and Keith agreed to a six-year, $28,642,500 deal that includes options for up to three more seasons. If those are picked up, it would be worth up to about $65 million over nine years. He got a $2 million signing bonus. He made $2.5 million in 2024, $3.5 million in 2025. He will make $4 million in both 2026 and 2027. Then he’ll make $5 million in 2028 and 2029. The minimum salary in MLB was up to $740,000 in 2024 (he got $4.5 million). The minimum salary moves up to $760,000 in 2025 and to $780,000 in 2026. Instead of making about $2.4 million over those first three years, he will make $12 million over that time. Then for his three arbitration seasons, he will play for a combined $14 million. If things go well, they could make $4-10 million more than that. But then the Tigers will have options to keep him for up to three of his free agent seasons at very reasonable amounts. Because of that signing, the Tigers called Keith up to the big-leagues for Opening Day and kept him up all season. In 148 games, he hit .260/.309/.380 (.689) with 15 doubles, four triples and 13 home runs. He played second base. He walked just 6.5% of his plate appearances and struck out 19.8% of the time. It was a year of ups and downs. He hit .154 with a .387 OPS in March/April. Then in May he hit .343 with a .881 OPS in May. In June, he hit .220 with a .567 OPS. Then in July he hit .322 with a 1.048 OPS. In that month, he hit seven of his 13 home runs. Then his OPS was .628 and .664 in September/October. If Brooks Lee is open to a similarly-constructed contract signed by Colt Keith, I would sign it, feel great about it and hand him the Twins second base job. Lee’s track record of offensive prowess is much longer than Keith’s, and if they believe in him like they have said all along that they believe about him, the contract would pay for itself with a solid Return on Investment. Let him work through any of those ups and downs. How concerned are you about the rookie struggles of Brooks Lee? How do you see him fitting into the Twins plans moving forward? Is the idea of locking him up to a long-term contract logical at this point? View full article

In his 15th major-league season, first baseman Carlos Santana earned his first Gold Glove for his terrific play at first base for the 2024 Minnesota Twins. Image courtesy of © Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images When Carlos Santana made his MLB debut way back in 2010, he was a hit-first catcher. Yes, he was a catcher, but he was in the big leagues because he could hit. Over the course of the next four seasons, he got more and more playing time at first base in Cleveland. Santana was very reliable with the bat early in his career, nearly guaranteed to hit 19 or more home runs and drive in a bunch of runs. He also walked over 90 times most seasons. But, he was a bat-first first baseman which works when you are providing as much offense as he typically did. On Sunday night, after the conclusion of his 15th season in the big leagues, and at 38 years old, Santana won his first Gold Glove Award. And he was the clear choice at the position. While the overall Twins defense was very poor at many positions throughout the season, Santana really stood out for his great defense. It was the first Gold Glove won by a Twins player since Byron Buxton and Brian Dozier were recipients in 2017. However, he has continued to work on his defense, and was rewarded for those efforts with the Gold Glove. Ryan Mountcastle of the Orioles and Nathaniel Lowe of the Rangers were the other two finalists for the award. No one looks simply at Fielding Percentage, but Santana had just four errors and a .996 fielding percentage. Mountcastle was at .997, and Low was at .995. No AL first baseman played more than the 1,250 innings that Santana played. Santana accumulated 14 Outs Above Average (OOA). In the AL, Lowe was second with 7 OAA. Mountcastle had just 2 OAA. Do you prefer Defensive Runs Saved? Santana and Mountcastle tied for the AL lead at 7 DRS. Another FanGraphs defensive stat, "Range," finds Carlos Santana tops among all MLB first baseman. His "11" is one better than Arizona's Christian Walker. Number 3 on that list are Bryce Harper and Nathaniel Lowe at just "5." Gone are the days when offensive numbers played a factor in Gold Glove voting. Over about the past decade, as defensive metrics have vastly improved, these are truly defensive awards. Gone are the days - like 1999 - when Rafael Palmeiro won his third straight AL Gold Glove at first base despite playing just 28 games at the position. That year, Palmeiro hit .324/.420/.630 (1.050) with 30 doubles, 47 RBI, and 148 RBI. Of course, Twins fans remember Doug Mientkiewicz playing the season at first base, with a .997 fielding percentage, a very high Range Factor, and Web Gems galore. Of course, he hit just .229/.324/.330 (.655) with 21 doubles and two home runs. FYI - Mientkiewicz was the last Twins first baseman to win a Gold Glove. He earned it in 2001. Vic Power of the Twins was the AL Gold Glove winning first baseman in 1962 and 1963. It is a great thing that the Gold Gloves are now handed out based on defensive abilities! Over the past four seasons, Carlos Santana has been a bit of a nomad. He has spent time with the Royals, the Mariners, the Pirates, and the Brewers before joining the Twins on a one-year deal before the 2024 season. As of last week, at the conclusion of the World Series, Santana again became a free agent. With last week's abrupt retirement by Alex Kirilloff due to a back injury, the Twins have an early-offseason hole at first base. Could that increase the likelihood of Santana returning to the Twins? Should it? We shall see. Join us in congratulation Carlos Santana on his well-deserved Gold Glove! View full article

Zero percent chance he gets non-tendered... I think.

I am a pretty nice guy...

My initial thought was Yes. Then the name that popped into my head was Jacque Jones, who also isn't in. The three names you mentioned... they all should be in the Twins HOF, Smalley first and foremost. But yeah, Kepler would fit in with that group.

Yes. Maybe.

Pretty much every reliever with any extended time in the big leagues has had a failed game or several. That said, yes, the key to Moran's success is his ability to throw strikes. When he throws strikes, he can be incredibly dominant with a good fastball and great changeup. That will continue to be the question mark around him after Tommy John.

For at least two more days, Max Kepler will be the longest-tenured Minnesota Twins player. When the World Series ends, there will be a new player at the top of this list. In fact, several of these players will become free agents. If nothing else, let's acknowledge them for their years in the Twins organization. Image courtesy of © Brad Rempel-Imagn Images Two World Series games are already complete. In theory, the World Series could be over as early as Tuesday night. If it needs to go to a Game 7, it would be on Friday night. When the World Series is over, players eligible to become free agents will become free agents. That's true of both major-league and minor-league players. The player being talked about the most by Twins fans along those lines is Max Kepler. The 31-year-old outfielder has literally been a member of the Twins organization for more than half of his life. As it relates to this article, there will be a new player atop the list of the longest-tenured players in the Twins organization. That's not to say the longest in the big leagues. No, in the organization. When did the player sign with the Twins (or were acquired by the Twins via trade, free agency, etc.)? I think it's important to recognize players that give such a long time to the Twins organization. Kepler got a nice bonus, He spent parts of 10 seasons in the big leagues. He earned a long-term contract. He ranks in the Top 20 in many, if not most, offensive categories in Twins history. But when you read the list below, you just might be surprised by several of the names of players who have given a lot of years to the organization. In reality, below you will find quick blurbs on the 12 players with the longest tenure in the Twins organization, at least for a few more days. The #10 spot is covered by three players that signed on the same day. And yes, this list will change fairly significantly at the end of the World Series. So let's give these players their due today. THE TOP 10 LONGEST-TENURED TWINS #10a, 10b, 10c - Wilfri Castro, Danny Moreno, Miguel Rodriguez - 7/3/17 The Twins signed three players on the second day that they could sign international players. Actually they signed several more players, but these are the three players who have remained in the Twins organization. Wilfri Castro played primarily behind the plate and was the definition of an organizational player. He played in the DSL in 2018 and 2019. He played in the FCL in 2021, 2022 and 2023. This year, he got into 22 games with Low-A Fort Myers. Danny Moreno fought a lot of injuries. He also had some really good stuff, so it’s worth keeping a guy around. He pitched in the DSL in 2018. He pitched in the GCL/FCL in 2019, 2021, and 2022. He spent the past two seasons with Low-A Fort Myers. Early this season, he was touching 96 mph. At the end of the season, he was topping out around 94 mph. Miguel Rodriguez is a guy that, at times, was an intriguing pitching prospect. He was a starter early in his career, but the past two seasons he has pitched exclusively out of the bullpen. He was fantastic in 2023 at Cedar Rapids. He posted a 2.85 ERA and had 14 saves. He also had a strikeout per innings. He ended last season at Wichita and was there all of 2024. In 50 total Double-A games, he went 4-9 with a 4.73 ERA and a 1.46 WHIP. He had 66 strikeouts, but 26 walks, in 59 innings. He’s already 25, but he might be a guy the Twins consider trying to bring back this offseason. #9 - With their 12th round pick in 2017, the Twins selected Bailey Ober out of the College of Charleston. He signed with the organization on June 22, 2017. An All American as a freshman, he had Tommy John surgery and missed his sophomore season. It took time for him to come back which allowed the Twins to draft him when they did. The Twins were also very patient with him because of the injury concerns. But when he pitched, he was great. In 2019, he made 13 starts and went 8-0 with a 0.69 ERA. In 78 2/3 innings, he had 100 strikeouts to just nine walks. He didn’t pitch at all in 2020. So it was somewhat surprising that he was called up to the Twins early in the 2021 season and made 20 starts as a rookie. He made just 11 starts in 2022 due to injury, but it was a leg injury. He took off in 2023. He was 8-6 with a 3.43 ERA in 26 starts. He had 146 strikeouts in 144 1/3 innings. In 2024, he had 191 strikeouts in 178 2/3 innings over 31 starts. #8 - Based on their play in 2016, the Twins earned the #1 overall pick in the 2017 draft. The Twins were thrilled to select Royce Lewis with the top pick out of JSerra Catholic High School in California. He signed with the team on June 17, 2017. He homered in his first professional at-bat in the GCL and ended that season in Cedar Rapids. He spent about two-thirds of the next season with the Kernels before ending that season in Fort Myers. Lewis’s career has been filled with ups and downs. He was at the alternate site in 2020, and then he missed the 2021 season with a torn ACL. He returned in 2021 and even played a dozen games in the big leagues. Unfortunately, he tore the ACL again and missed another year of playing time. In 12 big-league games he hit .300 with two homers. In 58 games in 2023, he hit .309 with 15 homers. This season, he homered in his first at-bat, but then he got hurt and missed about two months. He started out fast but struggled down the stretch. He ended the year hitting .233 with 16 doubles and 16 homers, and he will be a major factor in the Twins lineup for years to come. Here is an interesting reference point. Derek Falvey was named the Twins President of Baseball Operations in October 2016). He named Thad Levine as the team’s GM a month later. #7 - This one might surprise a lot of people. Outfielder Jeferson Morales signed with the Twins way back on October 6, 2016. He debuted in the DSL in 2018. He moved to the GCL in 2019. After the lost 2020 season, he spent most of the 2021 season with Fort Myers before ending the season with Cedar Rapids. He spent most of 2022 and 2023 with the Kernels. He could have become a minor-league free agent last offseason but very quickly signed to stay with the Twins. This season, he made the move up to Wichita. In 88 games, he hit .278/.356/.431 (.787) with 21 doubles and nine homers. He earned the opportunity to finish the season with about a month in St. Paul. In 17 games, he hit a robust .359/.433/.585 (1.018) with seven doubles, a triple, and a home run. When the World Series ends, he will have the opportunity to be a free agent again. Will he return? #6 - In 2016, Jose Miranda was the Twins third of four high school hitters drafted in the first two rounds. Alex Kirilloff and Ben Rortvedt were drafted ahead of him, and Akil Baddoo was drafted one pick after Miranda. The Puerto Rican signed on June 23, 2016. His progress through the minor leagues started slowly, one level per year. However, when he returned after the lost Covid year of 2020, he was a new and improved player. He dominated in the minors and in 2022 he made his MLB debut. As we have seen with others, he has certainly had ups and downs since being called to the big leagues, and he has had a few injuries as well. #4b - Alex Kirilloff was the 15th overall pick in the 2016 draft out of Plum High School, in Pittsburgh. He signed on June 21, 2016. He’s had a bit of a roller coaster career. He’s fought a lot of injuries, from Tommy John in his first full season to a ton of wrist injuries the past four or five seasons. At times, he has shown the offensive prowess that made him a Top 10 prospect in baseball. He’s second-year arbitration eligible this year and it isn’t as easy of a decision as we would have hoped. #4a - In the third round of the 2016 draft, the Twins made Griffin Jax the highest-drafted player from the US Air Force Academy. He signed on June 21, 2016. He was only able to pitch for a couple of weeks that season and the next. He came up as a starting pitcher in 2021, and in 2022, he spent the season in the bullpen. The past two seasons, he has literally been one of the best relief pitchers in MLB. #3 - You just might have forgotten about this guy. Lefty Jovani Moran had Tommy John surgery following the 2023 season but soon after signed a two-year minor-league deal to remain in the organization. With his ability to get swings and misses, he could jump back into the Twins bullpen in 2025 and be a huge factor… depending upon when and how he returns. Moran is the last remaining member of the Twins 2015 draft class. The 27-year-old was the Twins seventh-round pick from the Carlos Beltran Baseball Academy and signed on July 9, 2015. If he comes back, can he get back to 2022 form (2.21 ERA, 1.06 WHIP, 4.0 BB/9, 12.0 K/9) or will we get closer to the likely injured 2023 season (.5.31 ERA, 1.47 WHIP, 5.7 K/9, 10.2 K/9)? #2 - The Twins were not a good baseball team in 2011 and truly earned the second overall pick in the 2012 draft. As you know, the Astros selected shortstop Carlos Correa with the first pick. The Twins selected prep outfielder Byron Buxton with the next pick and signed him on June 13, 2012. In the minors, he was once a minor-league player of the year, and twice the #1 overall prospect in the game. He made his debut in June of 2015. He was 21, and really wasn’t ready, but he filled a need. In 2017, Buxton not only won the Gold Glove award, but he was named the Platinum Glove winner as the top defensive player in all of baseball. The assumption was he’d have several more Gold Gloves, but since that season (when he played 140 games), he has played in more than 60 games in center field just twice (2019 and 2024). Injuries are part of the story over Buxton’s career, but when he is in the lineup, generally speaking, he performs at a very high level. Since 2019, he has posted an OPS over .800 five of the six seasons. In 772 games with the Twins, he’s got a .780 OPS. He has hit 157 doubles, 24 triples and 133 homers. He is signed through the 2028 season. #1 – On July 11th, 2009, the Twins signed highly-regarded German outfielder Max Kepler. At the time, he was just 16 years old and he finished up high school in his first offseason. Now 31, Kepler has literally spent more than half of his life as a member of the Minnesota Twins organization. While his six-year, $41.13 million contract has run out, and he will become a free agent when the World Series is complete, for now he remains in the #1 spot on this list. His big-league career began late in the 2015 season. He played in three games after leading the Chattanooga Lookouts to a Double-A Southern League championship. His first hit came on the final day of the season, a single off of Johnny Cueto. Over the next nine seasons, he played in 1,069 more games and hit 205 doubles and 161 home runs. For his career, he posted a .318 on-base percentage and a .429 slugging percentage. He scored 554 runs and drove in 508 runs. His best year was in 2019 when he hit .252 with 32 doubles, 36 homers and 90 RBI. While Kepler is likely to go to another organization, and if healthy, he could play another five to eight years. And a few years after he retires, he will join the Twins Hall of Fame. So there you have it, the players in the Twins organization who have been in the system the longest, consecutively. I’ll guess that at least a couple of the names may not surprise you. I’m certain that you wouldn’t have guessed all 12 players on this list. I wouldn’t have. Who is Next? #13 - Randy Dobnak - 7/28/17 #14 - Carlos Aguiar - 9/19/17 #15 - Yunior Severino - 12/8/2017 #16a-d - Kody Funderburk, DaShawn Keirsey, Ryan Jeffers, Chris Williams - 6/13/2018 #20 - Josh Winder - 6/18/2018 View full article

Interesting that Gobert is losing his $45 million contract for next season but starting a deal that will average a little less. Should be better for the Wolves over time. What are your thoughts?

Correct. The fact that Correa missed 2+ months, Buxton missed a month, and Kepler missed a month. And losing Joe Ryan was arguably the biggest loss. The hitters certainly struggled. Doesn't mean the hitting coach is a bad hitting coach.

I was a huge fan of USA Today's Baseball Weekly. I coached little league and such in high school and had Fridays off for a couple of those years. I would ride my bike to the Holiday store a few blocks away in the morning, and then sit outside and read it... Almost the whole thing... This was a very fun read... There were several others, as has been mentioned above... I'll add Alan Newman to the conversation. 1989 Bowman cards were best best!!

Well, we have had a little time since the long and brutal end to the Twins season, but if there's something that can always cheer us up, it's talking about the minor leagues. Hey, we haven't voted to update the Twins Daily Prospect rankings in a few months. We need to do that. It's prospect voting time again! A rundown of the rules again: 1. You must have an account and be logged in to vote. If you don't have an account, click here. It literally requires 60 seconds to create an account. 2. Review our current top 20 prospect list, catch up on stats, rankings, etc. (you can do so from the voting page link below) 3. Have your prospect list in your dirty little paws? Then flip on over to the new prospect voting page (after reading the rest of this, please). https://twinsdaily.com/prospect-voting 4. Voting is super simple, you drag-and-drop players in the order you wish them to be. After you move a prospect, the list automatically renumbers so you don't lose track of the order. This works on mobile devices but it's a *vastly* better experience on desktop. Sorry, that's just how this kind of thing works. There's no great way to make something like this be as awesome on a phone screen. 5. Each prospect has a comment section where you can add any commentary you have on that player. At the bottom of the list, there is a general comment section to explain over-arching things you wish to mention. 6. Don't see a prospect you want to put on the list? Just pop back here and give me a mention (in a comment, start typing @Brock Beauchamp or @Seth Stohs as they appear). Mention the prospect you want added and I will do that asap. 7. Once you're done with all of it, click Save. You've now voted! 8. When the voting closes, a new thread will automatically generate in this forum with all of your rankings and comments for everyone to read and talk about. 9. You can only vote once. If you have voted in error, pop back here and tag Brock, asking to have your vote deleted. It will be removed and you can vote again. Voting will close at end of day Thursday, October 24th!

They made a pretty significant organizational philosophical change last offseason. After all the strikeouts the previous year, they cut down that number significantly this year. And, talking to some guys in Cedar Rapids and elsewhere, that was voiced throughout the organization. I think the big area of focus this year needs to be on the situational hitting and understanding.

News broke this afternoon that the Twins will be bringing Matt Borgschulte in as the new hitting coach. He is not new to the organization. Image courtesy of USA Today Network Following the conclusion of the frustrating end of the 2024 regular season, the Minnesota Twins announced the firings of assistant bench coach Tony Diaz and hitting coaches David Popkins, Rudy Hernandez and Derek Shomon. Brandon Warne was the first to tweet the news today that the Twins will be hiring Matt Borgschulte as Rocco Baldelli's next hitting coach. He was a finalist for the same role three years ago when they selected Popkins. He was with the Twins as a hitting coach from 2018-2021 at various levels from the Gulf Coast League to Triple-A St. Paul in 2021. He became one of two hitting coaches for the Baltimore Orioles starting with the 2022 season. Just think of some of the hitters he has worked with and helped develop in Baltimore. To what level of credit a hitting coach gets (or should get), he has worked with likes of All Stars Gunnar Henderson, Adley Rutschman, and Anthony Santander. He's worked with other young, talented Orioles hitters like Colton Cowser, Heston Kjerstad, Jordan Westburg, and Jackson Holliday. As the Twins look to continue adding to their coaching staff, it's important to remember how well they have done in naming minor-league coaches and coordinators. How do we know? Because other teams have taken them from the Twins and placed them in the big leagues. A quick look at the AL East is a good reminder of that. Along with Borgschulte, the Red Sox hitting coach is Peter Fatse. He avoided Boston's mass coaching changes announces recently. He was the Twins Minor League Hitting Coordinator in 2019. The Red Sox hired him as an assistant hitting coach after that season. He became the team's hitting coach before the 2022 season. Obviously James Rowson, the Yankees hitting coach, was the Twins hitting coach given a lot of credit for the 2019 Bomba Squad. Of course, he left to join Derek Jeter and the Marlins, which didn't exactly go well. He spent some time with the Tigers in 2023, but given the role with the Yankees and suddenly he's one of the top hitting coaches in baseball. In addition, the Twins hired Wes Johnson from the college ranks as the big-league pitching coach in 2019. That same year, they brought in Pete Maki to be the minor-league pitching coordinator. Maki joined the big-league staff for the 2020 season, and when Johnson went back to college, he took over as the pitching coach. In addition, Royals Director of Major League Pitching Strategy and Assistant Pitching Coach Zach Bove spent four seasons in the Twins organization, starting in the Florida Complex League and eventually became the assistant minor-league pitching coordinator before Matt Quatraro brought him onto the Royals' big-league staff. Of course, Bove was the assistant minor-league pitching coordinator under Justin Willard. Last offseason, the Red Sox plucked the Canadian from the Twins and made him the organization's Director of Pitching. He spends significant time working with Red Sox pitching coach Andrew Bailey but also a lot of time with pitchers and pitching coaches in the rookie leagues. Of course, the pitching coach of the New York Mets is former Twins coach Jeremy Hefner. When he retired, he joined the Twins as an advanced scout in 2017. In 2019, he was named the Twins assistant pitching coach (and bullpen coach). Following the 2019 season, the Mets hired him as their pitching coach. The Twins hired Tanner Swanson as the organization's first minor-league catching coordinator after the 2017 season. He immediately was given a ton of credit for working with Mitch Garver. After the 2019 season, the Yankees hired him as their major-league quality control coach and catching coordinator. I recall at the time, the Twins wanted to avoid losing him by offering him a big-league spot, but at the time, there wasn't a spot available. Soon after, 2018 and 2019 Twins bench coach Derek Shelton was named the manager of the Pittsburgh Pirates starting in the 2020 season. While he inherited a really bad team, he's helped the Pirates improve. He has one of the most exciting young pitching staffs in baseball which should make Pittsburgh a playoff team starting as soon as 2025. It is great to hear that Matt Borgschulte will be the Twins new hitting coach. Will he get one assistant or two assistants? We shall see. Names to consider include a few from within the organization. The current minor-league hitting coordinator is Bryce Berg. Ryan Smith is the assistant minor-league hitting coordinator. Both of them are highly respected in the organization and around baseball. While it's impossible to score 100% in hires, the Twins have done a nice job of hiring coaches and coordinators and promoting them from within with a lot of success. View full article

Hey now, these guys are now Twins Daily All Stars. This season, they got their game on and went and played. Which Twins minor league pitchers were voted as Twins Daily All Stars for the 2024 season. Twins Daily’s minor-league writers voted for the awards and for an all-star team of Twins prospects. To reiterate, this isn’t a Top Prospect ranking or list, but which players in the Twins system had the best seasons in 2024. We’ll vote for Twins top prospects again here soon. Each writer chose five starting pitchers, a right-handed reliever, a left-handed reliever, and two more relievers. Before we get to the All Star pitchers, here are our 2024 Twins Daily Award winners (and links to the articles to see who else received votes). Short-Season Hitter of the Year: Eduardo Beltre Short-Season Pitcher of the Year: Melvin Rodriguez Minor League Hitter of the Year: Luke Keaschall Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year: Zebby Matthews Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Year: Spencer Bengard Twins Minor League All-Star Hitters Read through our choices for each position. And then discuss and cast your votes as well. Here we go. Starting Pitchers RHP Zebby Matthews - Cedar Rapids Kernels, Wichita Wind Surge, St. Paul Saints Acquired: Twins 8th round draft pick in 2022 out of Western Carolina University 2024 MILB Stats: 6-3, 2.60 ERA, 0.87 WHIP, 0.6 BB/9, 10.6 K/9 2024 MLB Stats: 1-4, 6.69 ERA, 1.65 WHIP, 2.6 BB/9, 10.3 K/9 What a season 2024 was for the sturdy right-hander from North Carolina. The 2022 draft pick began the season with the Cedar Rapids. After four starts, he was 3-0 with a 1.59 ERA and a 0.75 WHIP. He moved up to Double-A Wichita and he pitched 10 times (9 starts). He was 2-1 with a 1.95 ERA and a 0.76 WHIP. It was time to move up again. He made four starts in St. Paul. Two went well. Two didn’t. That ended his minor-league season. The numbers shown above look great, and they are. Just to put the counting numbers out here instead of the rate numbers. In 97 innings, he had 114 strikeouts to just seven walks. Seven walks. Jeepers! And that’s about the time that Joe Ryan got hurt and missed the rest of the season. Matthews was called up and on August 13th, he made his first start of the season. He gave up two runs on five hits over five innings to earn his first Win against the Royals. He made nine starts for the Twins. I would argue that six went pretty well and three went poorly. In my opinion, it’s clear that he has the ‘stuff’ to pitch in the big leagues. His fastball averages 94.9 mph. His cutter comes in at 90.9 mph. His slider drops a little bit more than a cutter and averages 87.2 mph. Those three account for 85% of his pitches, but he also throws the occasional mid-80s changeup and low-80s curveball. In the minor leagues, he threw an incredible number of strikes and dominated. In the big leagues, it’s clear that command is just as important as control, spotting pitches and consistently. ETA: August 2024 RHP Andrew Morris - Cedar Rapids Kernels, Wichita Wind Surge, St. Paul Saints Acquired: Twins 4th round draft pick in 2022 out of Texas Tech 2024 Stats: 10-5, 2.37 ERA, 1.08 WHIP, 2.2 BB/9, 9.0 K/9 Andrew Morris has always been young for his level, going back to when he skipped a grade in elementary school. He was a 17-year-old freshman at Colorado Mesa University. After going 18-2 in his three years at the Division II school, he transferred to Texas Tech and went 8-2 as a 20-year-old senior. The Twins made him their fourth-round pick in 2022. He began his first full-season in Fort Myers and went 3-1 with a 2.59 ERA in 11 games (10 starts). He moved up to Cedar Rapids and went 5-1 with a 3.28 ERA in seven regular-season starts. He helped the Kernels to the 2023 Midwest League Championship. That’s where he began the 2024 season. He went 3-1 with a 2.15 ERA in seven starts before moving up to Double-A. With Wichita, he pitched in 12 games (10 starts and two games finished). He went 6-3 with one save with a 1.90 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP. He ended his season with seven starts in St. Paul. He went 1-1 with a 3.48 ERA and a 1.13 WHIP. In 133 total innings, he had 133 strikeouts and just 32 walks. Essentially, Morris found himself about eight-to-ten starts behind Matthews. He is 15 months younger than Matthews and has a similar pitch mix. His fastball sits between 93 and 96 mph. He throws a lot of sliders and throws them anywhere from 84-91 mph. His changeup currently is about seven to 10 mph slower than his fastball. He throws an occasional slow curveball too, maybe just to show it. ETA: June 2025 LHP Christian MacLeod - Cedar Rapids Kernels, Wichita Wind Surge, St. Paul Saints Acquired: Twins 5th round draft pick in 2023 out of Mississippi State 2024 Stats: 4-4, 3.41 ERA, 1.30 WHIP, 4.5 BB/9, 10.4 K/9 Christian MacLeod, like most Twins pitching prospects, stands at least 6-4. He’s a lanky lefty with a smooth motion and delivery. While he doesn’t throw as hard as many of the other prospects, he is able to really mix and match his velocities to keep batters off balance. His fastball sits right around 90 mph. He mixes it well with a lot of changeups. He also throws a quality slow curveball. MacLeod grew up around the game. His dad, Kevin MacLeod, was drafted by the Oakland A’s in 1987 and reached Double-A over four minor-league seasons. Christian grew up in Alabama and went to Mississippi State where he pitched in the College World Series. The Twins took him in the 5th round of the 2022 draft and he had five strikeouts over 1 2/3 innings in the FCL. Unfortunately, he needed Tommy John surgery and missed the 2022 season. He came back midway through the 2023 season with two games in Fort Myers before pitching in 15 games (14 starts) in Cedar Rapids. He began the 2024 season with 12 starts for the Kernels. In 48 2/3 innings, he had 58 strikeouts but 25 walks. He was 3-1 with a 2.77 ERA. He moved up to Wichita and pitched eight times (7 starts). He was 1-2 despite a 3.72 ERA. He also made one late-season spot start for the Saints in St. Paul. He gave up four earned runs in five innings. In 92 1/3 total innings, he had 107 strikeouts and 46 walks. The southpaw is still working his way back. The lefty throws a fastball in the 89-91 mph range. He throws a lot of changeups and is able to get swings and misses with both. The walks have been a bit high, but that should improve as well as her distances himself from surgery. ETA: May 2026 RHP Ty Langenberg - Fort Myers Mighty Mussels, Cedar Rapids Kernels. Acquired: Twins 11th round draft pick in 2023 out of University of Iowa 2024 Stats: 8-5, 3.67 ERA, 1.26 WHIP, 2.5 BB/9, 9.7 K/9 Langenberg grew up in Urbandale, Iowa, just outside of Des Moines. After high school, he stayed in-state and went to the University of Iowa in Iowa City. In 2022, he went 7-2 in 14 games. In 2023, he went 6-3 with a 4.15 ERA. The Twins liked what he showed and made him their 11th round draft pick that summer. After two appearances in the FCL, he made three appearances in Fort Myers. This season, he began with nine starts in Fort Myers. He went 3-3 with a 3.38 ERA. And then he got to head back home, sort of. He was promoted to Cedar Rapids in mid-June and pitched 12 times, likely with friends from just down the road at his old college stomping grounds. He went 5-2 with a 3.90 ERA. Combined, he threw 108 innings and had 116 strikeouts with just 30 walks. Langenberg throws five different pitches. He has a four-seam fastball that sits between 91 and 93 mph, but he touched 95 at times. . He also throws a sinker that is thrown at about the same speed but with a little different movement. He throws a cutter between 86 and 91 mph. His changeup is a mid-80s. Finally, he has a breaking ball in the high-70s and low-80s. ETA: May 2027 RHP Travis Adams (24) - Wichita Wind Surge, St. Paul Saints Acquired: Twins 6th round draft pick in 2021 out of Sacramento State 2024 Stats: 5-9, 3.90 ERA, 1.16 WHIP, 2.5 BB/9, 8.4 K/9 A California native, Adams headed north to attend Sacramento State. In college, he had impeccable control to go with good stuff. Following the draft, Adams made one appearance in the FCL. In 2022, he made 15 starts in Fort Myers before ending the season with seven starts. Combined, he had 108 strikeouts and 26 walks over 22 starts and 100 2/3 innings. The Twins aggressively pushed him to Double-A Wichita where he pitched in 26 games (25 starts). While the numbers weren’t great (4-10, 5.66 ERA), he made every start and went 109 2/3 innings. He returned to the Wind Surge to start this season. He pitched in 22 games for the Surge (19 starts). He went just 5-7 with a very solid 3.67 ERA and 1.14 WHIP. He earned his promotion to St. Paul late in the season and pitched in four games. Combined, Adams worked 127 innings. He had 118 strikeouts and just 35 walks. Adams has a very interesting pitch mix. He has no less than six pitches, and he throws them anywhere from the mid-70s to the mid-90s. He throws both a two-seam (sinker) and four-seam fastball. He throws those pitches between 93 and 95 mph. He throws a cutter in the 87-92 mph range. He has a slider between 83 and 86 mph. And he throws a slow curveball in the high-70s and low-80s. Finally, his changeup sits 86-89 mph. I’m sure he would like to drop that a couple of mph. As you can see, he’s got a strong variety of pitches. He’s got multiple fastballs. He’s got multiple breaking pitches. And he’s got a changeup. He certainly has the pitch-mix to be a starter. ETA: August 2025 Bullpen Right-Handed Relief Pitcher: Spencer Bengard (22) - Ft. Myers Miracle, Cedar Rapids Kernels Acquired: Twins 15th round draft pick in 2023 out of California Baptist University 2024 Stats: 8-2, 1 Save, 1.51 ERA, 0.98 WHIP, 1.5 BB/9, 7.8 K/9 Spencer Bengard grew up in southern California and went to Valley View High School in Moreno Valley. He stayed very close to home and went to California Baptist in Riverside. While there, he was teammates with fellow Twins prospects C.J. Culpepper and Liam Rocha, as well as Anthony Silva in 2022. He transferred to Riverside City College and was the Twins 16th round pick in 2023, one round after they took Bengard. Bengard got into two games with the FCL Twins last summer before the end of the season. This year, his season started about a month late. He began his season in Fort Myers where he went 7-2 with a 1.64 ERA and a 1.01 WHIP in 13 games (7 starts). He ended the season with six games (1 start) with the Kernels. He went 1-0 with a 1.17 ERA and a 0.93 WHIP. He fits into the “reliever” category because just eight of his 19 appearances were starts. However, even pitching out of the ‘pen, it was almost always in a long-relief role. He completed five innings in 10 of his outings. He went less than three innings only twice. Bengard isn’t a flame-thrower. His fastball tops out at 93 mph but sits 89-92 mph. He also throws both a slider and a changeup in the low-to-mid 90s. Occasionally, he will throw the breaking ball a bit slower, in the upper-70s. ETA: May 2017 Left-Handed Relief Pitcher: Samuel Perez (24) - Fort Myers Mighty Mussels, Cedar Rapids Kernels Acquired: signed as free agent (6/3/21) from Venezuela 2024 Stats: 2-1, 3 Saves, 2.49 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, 3.0 BB/9, 10.2 K/9 Originally signed by the Angels in 2017 from Venezuela, he came to the Twins organization during the 2021 season. He was the Twins Daily short-season pitcher of the year that year. And he has spent a lot of time with the Mighty Mussels since then. He was briefly in Cedar Rapids in 2022. He pitched 35 times this season for the Mussels and ended the year with five games for the Kernels. Perez is unique in the game, and maybe it helps him find success. The lefty’s “fastball” tops out at about 86-87 mph. He’s also got a changeup and a curveball that comes in about 10 mph slower and keeps hitters off balance. ETA: May 2029 Relief Pitcher: Kyle Bischoff (25) - Cedar Rapids Kernels, Wichita Wind Surge, St. Paul Saints Acquired: signed as undrafted free agent (May 30, 2023) 2024 Stats: 5-2, 6 Saves, 3.23 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 3.8 BB/9, 11.4 K/9 Bischoff certainly has an interesting back story. In 2018, he started at the University of Toledo where he pitched for four seasons. Given an extra season, he pitched for Michigan State in 2022. He went undrafted and went to the United Shores Baseball League where he pitched for Westside in 2022. He made two USBL appearances in 2023 before he signed a minor-league free agent contract with the Twins. He spent that summer in the FCL. In 2024, Bischoff rose all the way from the cornfields of Iowa to one call away from the big leagues in St. Paul. He pitched in 28 games with the Kernels, 14 games at Double-A Wichita and ended the season with three games with the Saints. The 6'2", 210 pound righty put up stronger numbers in Wichita than Cedar Rapids and held his own in St. Paul. Bischoff is primarily a two-pitch pitcher. He throws a two-seam fastball that sits 94-96 mph. He also throws a cutter at 87 to 90 mph. He’s got good velocity and a pitch that moves each horizontal direction. That can make it difficult for a batter to guess. ETA: August 2025 Relief Pitcher: Nolan Santos (23) - Ft. Myers Miracle, Cedar Rapids Kernels Acquired: Twins 7th round draft pick in 2023 out of Bethune-Cookman University 2024 Stats: 4-5, 11 Saves, 2.93 ERA, 1.14 WHIP, 3.5 BB/9, 10.6 K/9 A Florida native, Santos headed to Bethune-Cookman University in Daytona Beach after a season at Miami Dade College. In 2022, he had 113 strikeouts and 33 walks in 90 1/3 innings. In 2023, he had 138 strikeouts and 35 walks in 97 1/3 innings. The Twins drafted him in the seventh round and then pitched five games and 6 1/3 innings between the FCL and Fort Myers. He pitched in 29 games for the Mussels this season before ending the season with 14 games in Cedar Rapids. In 67 2/3 combined innings, he had 80 strikeouts with 26 walks. To this point, he keeps the pitches down and the ball in the ballpark. Santos isn’t a flamethrower, but he is a true pitcher. He leads with his four-seam fastball which comes in between 89 and 93 mph. He also breaks bats and misses barrels with a mid-80s cutter. And then he throws a slow curveball, like low-70s curveball. ETA: May 2027 So there you have it. The first annual Twins Daily Minor League All Star team. Who would get your vote? Below are the votes/selections of our Twins Daily Minor League writers: Previous Twins Daily Minor League All Stars Looking Back: 2016 Twins Daily Minor League All Stars RH SP: Fernando Romero, LH SP: Stephen Gonsalves, RH RP: Trevor Hildenberger, LH RP: Michael Theofanopoulos. Looking Back: 2017 Twins Daily Minor League All Stars RH SP: Clark Beeker, LH SP: Stephen Gonsalves, RH RP: John Curtiss, LH RP: Andrew Vasquez. Looking Back: 2018 Twins Daily Minor League All Stars RH SP: Tyler Wells, LH SP: Stephen Gonsalves, RH RP: Cody Stashak, LH RP: Andrew Vasquez. Looking Back: 2019 Twins Daily Minor League All Stars RH SP: Randy Dobnak, LH SP: Devin Smeltzer, RH RP: Moises Gomez, LH RP: Zach Neff Looking Back: 2021 Twins Daily Minor League All Stars SP (4): Louie Varland, Josh Winder, Cole Sands, Jordan Balazovic, RH RP: Jordan Gore, LH RP: Jovani Moran. Looking Back: 2022 Twins Daily Minor League All Stars SP (4): Louie Varland, Simeon Woods Richardson, David Festa, Brent Headrick, RH RP: Cody Laweryson, LH RP: Evan Sisk. Looking Back: 2023 Twins Daily Minor League All Stars SP (4): Cory Lewis, Pierson Ohl, Zebby Matthews, David Festa, C.J. Culpepper, RH RP: Miguel Rodriguez, LH RP: Kody Funderburk, RP: Regi Grace, John Stankiewicz. View full article

News broke moments ago that the Twins will not be bringing back Thad Levine, the organization's general manager for the past eight years. Image courtesy of Mark J. Rebilas-USA TODAY Sports Days after announcing several changes to their coaching staff, the Twins announced on Friday morning that the team's Senior Vice President and General Manager Thad Levine will not return. According to Levine (via press release), "The time is right for me to pursue my next enriching, professional challenge." I will forever cherish the friendships that I have made in the Minnesota Twins organization and throughout Twins Territory." Levine was hired as general manager in November of 2016 by Derek Falvey who had been hired about a month earlier. He had spent the previous 11 seasons as an Assistant GM with the Texas Rangers. Before that, he spent six years as senior director of Baseball Operations with the Colorado Rockies. He also spent a year in the Dodgers Business Development group. Prior to a life in baseball, he worked in marketing for companies such as Coca-Cola, the Rockport Company and Reebok. The press release notes that he will "pursue new challenges and opportunities, both inside and outside of baseball." Falvey noted, "Thad's impact on the Minnesota Twins cannot be overstated. He has been a true partner and leader, always striving to elevate the organization and care for people around him. That helped create a strong team culture, one focused on excellence and collaboration. We are equally excited to see the next chapter of his journey unfold, and we wish him nothing but success in his future endeavors." There was no announcement on who might become the next Twins General Manager. Certainly a search will take place, though there are several very strong candidates from within. Jeremy Zoll and Daniel Adler are both Assistant GMs at this time. Adler leads the Twins efforts regarding arbitration, international scouting and baseball R&D. Zoll works with Dr. Chris Camp, the team's physician, to oversee the organization's performance team and continues to work in developing initiatives in the minor leagues. Kevin Goldstein has spent three years in the organization and is currently the VP of International Scouting and Special Advisor to Baseball Operations. Often a GM can come through the scouting ranks. Maybe VP of Amateur Scouting, Sean Johnson, would be considered. Brad Steil has held a number of roles over his 25 years in the organization. He is currently the Twins Direction of Professional Player Procurement. There are likely several others within the organization who could fulfill the role, and Falvey may have some ideas from other organizations. Since Falvey and Levine (lovingly referred to as Falvine by many), the Twins have spent seemingly up to and even slightly beyond their payrolls. They are responsible for handing out nine-digit contracts to Carlos Correa and Byron Buxton. They also outbid teams for Josh Donaldson. They had a few good trades (Donaldson to the Yankees, and Arraez to the Marlins for Pablo Lopez). They had several bad trades, as every organization does. Levine was also part of the Twins ending their long playoff losing streak. So, as frustrating as the final six weeks of the 2024 season was for the Twins and their fans. On a different level, Levine was enjoyable to listen to in the rare times he spoke publicly. He has a tremendous sense of humor and the vocabulary to impress. So, what do you think, Twins fans? Is this a good transition move for the Twins? How do you see it playing out? View full article