Seth Stohs

How a player/person will handle that kind of future security is a huge consideration in any long-term contract extension... And right or wrong, that it going to be a much larger concern for Sano than it will be for Buxton.

In the last week, we have considered potential contract extensions for Brian Dozier and Byron Buxton. Today, we will attempt to consider what a possible long-term extension might look like for Third Baseman/Designated Hitter Miguel Sano. Sano came up and showed his promise in the 2nd half of the 2015 season. He struggled in his sophomore season of 2016, a struggle that still included 25 home runs. In 2017, he was having his best season yet, but it came to an end six weeks too early when he fouled a ball off of his shin, causing a stress reaction. While there are obvious short term and long-term concerns with Sano, it is very clear that he can be a game-changer in the middle of any lineup in the game. He’ll likely set strikeout records, but he can also produce like few can.Sano will turn 25 in May. He ended the 2017 season with 2.095 years of service. He’ll be eligible for arbitration following the 2018 season unless an extension can be worked out. Sano signed back in 2009 for $3.15 million. He’s made league minimum, or a bit above the first three seasons in the big leagues. In the Byron Buxton article, I mentioned the salaries of Mike Trout and Bryce Harper. While I didn’t put Buxton - and won’t put Sano - in their level, there has to be an understanding that that is the level of player that the Twins tandem could become. Could. That is the risk in a long-term contract for Sano. He could make more going year-to-year and become a free agent at age. That’s the path that Manny Machado has taken. Or, he could take some serious cost certainty for a long time. There are several really good sluggers who have taken the cost certainty of a long-term deal. Here are a few: Those numbers give us something to start with. Paul Goldschmidt is one of the best, most underrated, perennial All Stars who have an MVP you’ll find. Anthony Rizzo’s deal looks like a steal now, but it was signed a year or two earlier in the process. Now obviously Ryan Zimmerman and David Wright signed their first long-term extensions a long time ago, so we’ll have to adjust from there. Kyle Seager, as you can see, signed a year later, and that’s how he got his deal to $100 million level. -------------------------------------------------------------- ** Before we get to unveiling what a potential Miguel Sano contract extension might look like, here is a quick pitch for your quintessential Hot Stove guide: The 2018 Twins Daily Offseason Handbook is now available for preorder. Click the link to claim your copy, and you'll get it as soon as it's ready, after the postseason concludes. Same deal as last year: name your price. Recommendation is $5, but you can pay as little or as much as you wish. We appreciate any and all support! Plenty more details are on the way in the coming weeks. You can check out last year's edition for an idea of what to expect. ** --------------------------------------------------------------- Here is what I would throw at Sano as an offer. Feel free to discuss. So that is a six year, $66 million deal with an option for 2024 at $25 million with a $5 million buyout. In that deal, the Twins buyout Sano’s final pre-arbitration season, three arbitration seasons and two free agency seasons (with an option for one more). Assuming the Twins would pick up that 2024 option on Sano’s contract, he would then become a 31-year-old free agent with the potential for one more huge payday. So what do you think? Is this a contract that the Twins should like? It may feel a little low, but it does include the $1 million pre-arbitration number and a reasonable arbitration-one season. There needs to be incentive for the Twins to make such a deal, rather than going year-to-year. Sano has shown a lot of potential, but he hasn’t done a lot of the things that Goldschmidt or others listed above had at this point in their careers. The dollars in the game are higher, so there’s some adjustment for that. Of course, Sano’s side would ask for more. The Twins side would likely ask for a little less. But to me, this feels like a good medium ground. One other possibility would be a three year deal to buy out two of his arbitration years allow him to get an arbitration offseason and become a free agent. Or, the two sides could re-evaluate the dollars in the game and Sano’s value in it. What would you offer? Click here to view the article

Trout signed a year later and didn't have the $1 million year in there... but I don't disagree... I might be a little light, maybe more in the first free agency year or two. But that's the purpose of signing a deal this year as opposed to next year or later. The numbers will keep getting bigger. I shouldn't have done the comparisons to Trout and Harper maybe, but I wanted to make sure people knew that it needs to be below that. I also have him higher than all the other guys I compared him to. I think it'd be hard to turn down $76 million guaranteed. And he'd still be a free agent at 30 and have time to get another big contract.

If Kevin Kiermeier got 6 years, $53+ million, then I really like my offer.

It's always a fun topic. I haven't heard anything on it in a long time... But it is fun... Here are my four divisions, if those are the two new teams (Portland, Montreal): West: Seattle, Portland, San Francisco, Oakland, Dodgers, Angels, San Diego, Arizona. Northeast: Detroit, Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Philly, Cincinnati, Boston, NYY, NYM. Midwest: Kansas City, St. Louis, Minnesota, Cubs, White Sox, Milwaukee, Toronto, Montreal. South: Colorado, Texas, Houston, Atlanta, Tampa, Miami, Washington, Baltimore.

Last week, I considered what a potential long-term extension might look like for All Star Brian Dozier. Today, I want to do a little digging on what a potential long-term deal might be for Byron Buxton. Buxton will not be arbitration-eligible until after the 2018 season. He will have three years of arbitration before becoming a free agent (both sentences assuming that he is done with the minor leagues). While the Twins certainly should not feel like they have to sign him now, this might be the best time to get him at a reasonable cost.As we did in the Dozier article, research was done to consider comparable deals. It can be more difficult to find guys who have signed long-term deals after just over two years of service time, and how many of them put up over four WAR in large part due to his defense? But we tried and we’ll use the information we find to try to project what it might take to sign Buxton to an extension. For this analysis, let’s start out at the top of the spectrum. Mike Trout and Bryce Harper are at the top of the pay scales. One could argue that they are, especially considering their ages and ages at debut, the two more valuable players in the game today. Byron Buxton is at 2.064 years of service. That means, he will be arbitration-eligible following the 2018 season. Mike Trout signed for $1 million in 2014, his final pre-arbitration salary. Following another MVP caliber season, Trout signed a huge six year, $144.5 extension that bought out his three arbitration years and three years of free agency. His three arbitration-year salaries were $5.25 million, $15.25 million and $19.25 million. He then will get $33.25 million each of the next three years (those bought-out free agent years). Bryce Harper was the #1 overall pick in the 2010 draft to a Major League contract. He came up quickly and following the 2014 season, he was already approaching arbitration. Instead, he and the Nationals ripped up the final year of his original deal, and he signed for $2.5 million in 2015 and $5.0 million in 2016. He made $13.625 million this season, and earlier in the year, he signed for $21.65 million in what would have been his fourth arbitration year. *TBD will equal some really, really big numbers Now, Byron Buxton isn’t going to command the same contracts as Trout or Harper if he signs now. Those guys had MVPs and All Star experiences under their belt. Buxton’ hasn’t yet, but his 3.5 bWAR based highly on his defense certainly point in the direction of him being at a level just below those top two guys. So who are some others who signed this type of deal? In the chart below, I’ve listed some players that I think would be pretty comparable to where Buxton is right now, guys who signed long-term extensions. I should note that Christian Yelich signed his deal one year earlier in the process. Justin Upton was the most established at the point of his deal. He was also drafted at the top of his draft. Juan Lugares has won a Gold Glove. Odubel Herrera was an All Star. Christian Yelich was a high-ranking prospect of the Marlins and was part of Team USA this year. I also included Andrelton Simmons. Despite the fact that he’s an infielder, I think he is a good comp for Buxton. Early in Simmons’ career, he really struggled offensively, but his glove was elite. He won several Gold Gloves and was generally considered the best defensive player in baseball for several years. I think Buxton fits into that category, but at the same time, Buxton’s offensive potential is significantly higher. So with that information as the background, he is an estimate of the parameters that might make sense for a Buxton extension. That would equate to a seven year, $76.5 million.Obviously that is a huge investment, but Buxton still has a ton of potential beyond his golden glove and speed. He has power to go with it, and if he can reduce his strikeouts the way he did in 2017 again, he will be a multi-time All Star, and a potential MVP candidate. There is risk for the Twins, but if the Twins choose to go year to year with Buxton, he could cost more per year and could be gone to free agency after the 2021 season. However, the risk for the Twins in not signing him this offseason is that he could take another step forward offensively and end up with 30-50% higher annual salaries if they did a deal in a year. Of course, with Buxton banging into walls with frequency, injury is a potential risk as well. The risk for Buxton is just that. He could potentially make quite a bit more by going year to year and then become a free agent at age 28. At that time, he could look for an eight to ten year deal. So what do you think? Should the Twins consider a multi-year extension for Buxton? At what point would you be less comfortable? How many years of risk would you be willing to take while at the same time being realistic? Discuss. ----------------------------------------------------------------------- COMING SOON! A reminder, Nick Nelson is leading the way in the final steps of creating the Twins Daily Annual Offseason Handbook. More details, and the ability to pre-order, will be made available later this week. As we have in the past, we'll take a look at what options the Twins may have during the upcoming offseason. Trade Targets. Free Agents. Exclusive articles from the Twins Daily owners only available in the electronic book. Definitely something Twins fans will want at their fingertips. Click here to view the article

I thought he should be traded last offseason too... made sense then. But if they weren't offered a halfway decent return a year ago, do we think he would bring back a haul this offseason? Buxton, Sano, Berrios, etc., won't get expensive until the final years of a 4-year Dozier extension. There's no reason they can't do both. Well, there are lots of reasons not to, but at the dollars I provided, it could work.

Like all but maybe 2-3 teams on either side, the Twins stay between 47 and 51% of revenues for their salaries.

Next 2B... just keep tabs on all of the shortstops in the organization... Polanco, Gordon would appear to be next in line, in some combination.

It is funny to me that so often we hear about how people think that because the Twins got a new stadium that they would be able to keep their stars. Brian Dozier is a star, and yet of the first six comments, five of them say to just let him go elsewhere. And while I understand the thinking for any player over 32, and I get that Polanco can move to 2B and Nick Gordon could be ready for SS in 2019... I wonder if people realize just how good Dozier has been. Even if he takes one WAR off over the next couple of years, there's value in having him the next couple of years. I would LOVE to see them sign him to just a two-year extension, but there's no reason for him to do that. Are you going to get 4 WAR out of Polanco or Gordon in 2019 and 2020? Will you get that between the two of them? I don't know... I'm not saying that the answer 100% is to sign him to an extension... but I don't think the answer can be not to just because he is going to be 32 (or 35 at the end).

I feel like if I would have replaced "aren't at the top of any lists" with "are average to a little bit below average," I would have saved you a lot of words. I think what I was trying to say is this: "We" have often said that with Buxton's defense alone, he can be a valuable player even if he's just an average or slightly below average hitter. Likewise, with Dozier, with his offense, if he can be an average or slightly below average second baseman defensively, that's a really valuable player. And I think that's shown by both of their bWAR and fWAR numbers... and other things too, I'm sure.

A year ago, the Twins were coming off of a 103-loss season, and all of the talk was about whether or not Brian Dozier would be traded for prospects. A deal was not able to be worked out, and Dozier remained with the Twins. Things have changed after a 2017 season that saw the Twins win 85 games and make the playoffs for the first time in seven years. With Derek Falvey and Thad Levine preaching long-term, sustainable, championship caliber team as the goal, what will they attempt to do with Brian Dozier this offseason? To trade, or to sign to a long-term contract? That is the question.Yesterday, Brian Dozier was named the 2017 Twins MVP for the third straight year. He’s coming off of another big season. With the team’s success in 2017, the idea of trading Brian Dozier would not go over well with the fan base. That, however, is not the ultimate concern for the front office, though it certain will be a factor. However, when the Twins were unable to acquire a sufficient package for Dozier after his 42 home run season, with two more years left on his contract, it’s hard to believe they would get a better offer for one season of Dozier. If that is the case, then the discussion has to turn to whether or not they should consider attempt to sign him to another long-term contract or let him become a free agent at the end of the 2018 season. Dozier, who turned 30 in May, has averaged 4.5 bWAR and 4.25 fWAR over his five full big league seasons. Over the last two seasons, he’s been worth approximately 5.5 WAR. In my opinion, an attempt should be made, or at least a conversation should be held regarding an extension for Brian Dozier. So, I thought I’d consider what a long-term extension for Brian Dozier might look like. To do so, I had to look at some of the great second basemen in baseball that have signed in the recent past. Jose Altuve - The Astros wisely locked in Altuve before the 2014 season. He signed a four year, $12.5 million contract with two option seasons. Assuming the Astros don’t tear up that deal, his option seasons of $6 million and $6.5 million for 2018 and 2019 will be picked up. There is nothing in that deal to compare to Dozier. A quick look and we’ll see that the four year, $20 million deal gave him deals that lined up nearly identically with the contracts signed at that same time in the careers of Dustin Pedroia, Jason Kipnis, Ian Kinsler and Robinson Cano. Starting in 2015, Dozier’s annual salaries have been or will be $2 million, $3 million, $6 million and $9 million. Dustin Pedroia got $1.5 million in 2009, followed by salaries of $3.5 million, $5.5 million, $8 million and then $10 million.Jason Kipnis’s deal started in 2014 and provided salaries of $2 million, $4 million, $6 million and $9 million.Ian Kinslers deal, starting in 2009, gave him salaries of $3 million, $4 million, $6 million and $7 million.Robinson Cano’s deal started in 2008, and he got $3 million, $6 million, $9 million and $10 million (though it started a year later). He also had $14 million and $15 million options picked up in 2012 and 2013.Rougned Odor signed a deal that started in 2017 in which he got $1 million, $3 million, $7.5 million, $9 million, $12 million, $12 million and an option for $13.5 million in 2023.Of course, in 2023, Odor will be 29 years old. Of this group, Dozier was the eldest as far as when he made the deal. That has to be factored in, but more into the length of the contract, not so much the dollars. Understanding that Dozier’s deal lined up so closely with so many quality second baseman, it is clear that the next step for us is to look at what type of contract each of those players got following their initial deal. How much did their post-free agent-eligible years cost. Here’s the quick rundown. Dustin Pedroia - The Red Sox second baseman jumped to $12.5 million in 2014, and then was paid $12.5 million, $13.0 million and $15.0 million in the three years since. He still has four years remaining on his contract with salaries of $16 million, $15 million, $13 million and $12 million in 2021 (age 37).Jason Kipnis - Cleveland paid Kipnis $9 million in 2017. He will make $13.5 million in 2018, $14.5 million in 2019 and he has an option for $16.5 million in 2020 (age 33 season) with a $2.5 million buyout.Ian Kinsler - The Tigers second baseman signed his deal back in 2013 while with the Rangers. He made $13 million in 2013, $16 million in 2014 and 2015, $14 million in 2016 and $11 million in 2017. He has a $10 million option for 2018, his age 36 season, with a $5 million buyout. (It was also a vesting option and because he got over 600 plate appearances in 2017, it was picked up.)Robinson Cano had his options for 2014 and 2015 picked up for a combined $29 million. Of course, he then became a 30-year-old free agent and signed a 10-year, $240 million deal with the Mariners.So, what does all that mean for Brian Dozier? Well, it gives us some parameters for an extension. Those All Stars or former All Stars signed similar contracts as when Dozier signed his, and they have signed for several years after when that contract ran out. We have to account for baseball salaries continuing to rise since those deals as well as Dozier’s age as he enters the extension. Brian Dozier is set to make $9 million in 2018. Using those other contracts as a baseline, here is what I would think a potentially realistic extension for Dozier could look like: 2015 - $2 million 2016 - $3 million 2017 - $6 million --------------------------------------- 2018 - $9 million (unchanged) --------------------------------------- Signing bonus - $3.5 million (paid in 2018) 2019 - Age 32 - $14.0 million 2020 - Age 33 - $14.5 million 2021 - Age 34 - $15.0 million 2022 - Age 35 - $14.0 million 2023 - Age 36 - $12.0 million (option with a $4 million buyout, which would vest with 600 PA in 2022.) --------------------------------------- If that is the deal, we are looking at a 4 year, $65 million with an option that could make it a five year, $73 million deal. 2024 would be Dozier’s Age 37 season, so it is likely that Derek Falvey and Thad Levine would prefer a contract extension be more in the three or four year range, maybe even if that means a higher annual salary. They could get creative and put a couple of options on the end of it. They may want to give Jorge Polanco and Nick Gordon another year to develop to see what a lineup without Brian Dozier in it looks like for 2019. Also, understanding that they may need to sign some long-term deals in the not-too-distant future with some of the youngsters, they may be more willing to frontload a contract. Dozier is one year from free agency. If he gets there, and stays healthy, there should be a good market for him. Maybe that would allow him to make a little bit more. At the same time, as a free agent entering his age-32 season, he may not receive more than four year contract offers… or he could get six years. With all of that at your fingertips, what would you do as it relates to Brian Dozier? Still look to trade him? Let 2018 play out. He’ll become a free agent, and take your chances then. Or, should they spend the offseason discussing a long-term extension to keep him as a leader of the Twins for the foreseeable future? ------------------------------------------------------------------------ COMING SOON! A reminder, Nick Nelson is leading the way in the final steps of creating the Twins Daily Annual Offseason Handbook. Keep checking back next week for many more details. As we have in the past, we'll take a look at what options the Twins may have during the upcoming offseason. Trade Targets. Free Agents. Exclusive articles from the Twins Daily owners only available in the electronic book. Definitely something Twins fans will want at their fingertips. Click here to view the article

Correct... their defense certainly plays into their value... hopefully the Gold Glove voters will agree with us on Mauer and Buxton.

I guess I would respectfully disagree with this. To me, there is a huge difference between 'value to a team' and 'trade value.' I mean, otherwise Nick Gordon might be more valuable than Brian Dozier at this stage.

We know that Major League Baseball keeps its definition of “valuable” as in “Most Valuable Player” intentionally vague. While many believe that it is an attempt to keep people talking about it longer, it is also simply because people define value in different ways. Some believe it should be an award simply given to the best player. Others will argue that other intangibles such as leadership and clutchness should factor in. Some believe that an MVP should be part of a playoff team. Others think that it should be a player from a team that at least contended for a playoff spot. Others don’t care about team’s success in an MVP discussion. As it relates to a team MVP - as opposed to a team’s MVP - other factors can come into play as well. Some may be statistical. Others may be perceived leadership or a willingness to answer the tough questions from the media following a good or bad game. Fortunately for the Twins, and their fans, in 2017 the Twins had several players that made big improvements and factor into consideration for Twins 2017 MVP. Today we announce our panel’s choice for team MVP. Congratulations to the Twins Daily 2017 Twins Most Valuable Player, Brian Dozier!For the third straight year, the Twins Daily Twins MVP goes to their second baseman, Brian Dozier. In 2015, the Twin Cities media voted Miguel Sano team MVP while Dozier received the Twins Daily nod. In 2016, Dozier hit 42 home runs for a 103-loss team to be the easy choice for MVP. In 2017, the choice was much more difficult because there was not a shortage of candidates. THE OFFENSE Offensively, Brian Dozier led the way. He was the Twins leader in many statistical categories including: Games Player (152) Plate Appearances (705, 108 more than the next) Runs (106, went over the century mark for the fourth stretch season) Hits (166) Home Runs (34) RBI (93) Walks (78, including six intentional) Hit By Pitch (8) All of that out of the leadoff spot. He did a good job of getting on base and providing power and production. While we knew that it was likely that Dozier would regress from his 42-home runs season, it could be argued that his 2017 season was more impressive. It’s always more important to see that kind of production when the team is experiencing success, including such a dramatic improvement year-over-year. Dozier’s 1.51 WPA was a career-high. Dozier also led the team in wRC+ (124) and wOBA (.361). His Offensive WAR (from FanGraphs) was 24.2. The next Twins player on the list was at 11.0. While he finished behind Byron Buxton and Ervin Santana in bWAR, Dozier led the team in fWAR at 4.9. Dozier finished second to Miguel Sano in OPS (.853) and OPS+ (126 vs 127 for Sano). He was also second only to Byron Buxton in Stolen Bases with 16. OTHER IMPROVEMENTS Brian Dozier turned 30 years old in May but still found areas to improve. Over the last three seasons, Dozier has improved his ability to use the whole field. In 2015, he pulled the ball 60.2% of the time, hit the ball to center 24.2% of the time and to the opposite field just 15.6% of the time. In 2016, his opposite field percentage was about the same (15.3%), but his pull percentage dropped to 56.4% and his hits to center bumped up those 4% to 28.3% In 2017, his pull percentage dropped to 50.4%. His percentage to centerfield bumped up another 4% to 32% His Opposite field number jumped up to 17.6% While that may seem inconsequential, it was clear there were several times that he put the ball in play with two outs, punching a single past the infield shift to drive in a run. He also hit more home runs to right field. Also, he swung at 23.4% of pitches outside the strike zone, an improvement of five to six percentage points from where he had been the previous seasons. As we saw with Eddie Rosario, that seemingly small difference can make a huge difference in production. DEFENSE While Dozier’s range statistics aren’t at the top of any lists, his ability to make the plays that he gets to continues to improve. He had just five errors on the entire season. His defensive WAR stats put him at league average. Combined with his offense, that is a very valuable trait. LEADERSHIP When Torii Hunter retired following the 2015 season, some questioned who would take over the helm as the leader of the Twins clubhouse. Hunter himself also noted that Dozier had the qualities to be a great leader. But leadership takes time and isn’t (or shouldn’t be) handed to anyone. It took time. But in 2017, it was clear that Brian Dozier was the leader of the Twins clubhouse. It isn't just because he is great with the media and willing to talk about good or bad. Sure, leadership can be unquantifiable. You can’t put a number value to it, but it’s also clear that it is a very important intangible necessary on any team. In early September, Nick wrote an article on how Brian Dozier took the lead. The Twins traded both Jaime Garcia and Brandon Kintzler at the trade deadline. Dozier spoke out, unafraid to say how disappointed he was, but also specifically saying that he and the team would prove a lot of people wrong. “Book it!” it what he would often say. It’s fun to hear a player make that kind of bold statement, but Dozier backed it up. In August, he hit .319/.419/.603 (1.023). In September, he hit .298/.393/.596 (.990). That’s putting a team on your back. But don’t discount what it means to players for him to acknowledge them in postgame interviews for doing their job. For instance, remember Dozier’s huge eighth-inning, three-run homer in Cleveland to give the Twins a lead and help drop their Magic Number to one. Before Dozier’s at bat, Niko Goodrum had pinch run at first base. On a single, Goodrum advanced to third base. Dozier allowed him to score easily with the home run, but in the postgame, he talked about how important it was for Goodrum to get to third base, making Dozier’s only job to get a ball up in the zone and drive it to the outfield. That isn’t the first time he’s done that. He pushed teammates. He encourages them through these types of means, not to mention what he does behind clubhouse doors. He worked hard with Jorge Polanco, his double play partner, giving him confidence when things were going well, but especially when Polanco went through a tough stretch. Dozier led the way in discussing how the Twins wouldn’t have won a lot of early-season games without the defense of Byron Buxton, even when Buxton was struggling at the plate. He backed pitchers when they had their rough stretches. For all those reasons, Brian Dozier was the Twins 2017 MVP. It is just nice to see that being the case for a playoff team where many players had strong, productive seasons. CANDIDATES Byron Buxton, who was our choice for Most Improved Player in 2017, made the vote quite close. Because of his status as best defensive outfielder in baseball, his Wins Above Replacement statistics are very high. His bWAR was a team-top 5.1, just ahead of Ervin Santana and Dozier. And there is a sense that when Buxton plays well and hits at all, his abilities carry the team. Ervin Santana, our choice for Twins Best Pitcher in 2017, gave the Twins exactly what they needed early in the season. During the season’s first two months, he was unhittable. He threw complete games and shutouts, he hardly gave up base runners, much less runs. He was a deserving All Star and won some big games down the stretch. Joe Mauer put together his best season, by far, since his concussion in 2013. He returned to form, hitting over .300 and was among the league leaders in on-base percentage. He also played a gold-glove caliber first base. Eddie Rosario figured out a way to swing at less pitches and in doing so, he showed how dangerous he can be as a hitter. For long periods of time, he carried the Twins offense. He had a career-high 27 home runs and some of them were very clutch. When he was hurt in mid-August, Miguel Sano was a likely MVP candidate for the Twins due to his power and production. He also showed that he can be a very good defensive third baseman if he wants to be. THE BALLOTS Here's a look at the ballots from each of our nine voters. Opinions varied greatly on this one. Four players got first-place votes and seven players got votes. Seth Stohs: 1) Brian Dozier, 2) Byron Buxton, 3) Joe Mauer, 4) Eddie Rosario, 5) Ervin Santana Nick Nelson: 1) Brian Dozier, 2) Byron Buxton, 3) Miguel Sano, 4) Eddie Rosario, 5) Joe Mauer Parker Hageman: 1) Byron Buxton, 2) Brian Dozier, 3) Eddie Rosario, 4) Ervin Santana, 5) Jose Berrios John Bonnes: 1) Ervin Santana, 2) Joe Mauer, 3) Brian Dozier, 4) Byron Buxton, 5) Miguel Sano Jeremy Nygaard: 1) Byron Buxton, 2) Joe Mauer, 3) Ervin Santana, 4) Brian Dozier, 5) Eddie Rosario Cody Christie: 1) Brian Dozier, 2) Byron Buxton, 3) Joe Mauer, 4) Miguel Sano, 5) Ervin Santana Steve Lien: 1) Brian Dozier, 2) Byron Buxton, 3) Ervin Santana, 4) Eddie Rosario, 5) Miguel Sano Tom Froemming: 1) Ervin Santana, 2) Brian Dozier, 3) Eddie Rosario, 4) Byron Buxton, 5) Joe Mauer Ted Schwerzler: 1) Byron Buxton, 2) Brian Dozier, 3) Ervin Santana, 4) Miguel Sano, 5) Jose Berrios POINTS Brian Dozier: 37 Byron Buxton: 34 Ervin Santana: 23 Joe Mauer: 16 Eddie Rosario: 13 Miguel Sano: 9 Jose Berrios: 2 Do you agree with our committee's pick? Who would be your choice for Twins Most Valuable Player and why? PREVIOUS TWINS DAILY MOST VALUABLE PLAYER 2015: Brian Dozier 2016: Brian Dozier 2017 TWINS DAILY AWARDS 2017 Most Improved: Byron Buxton 2017 Rookie of the Year: Trevor Hildenberger 2017 Pitcher of the Year: Ervin Santana 2017 Most Valuable Player: Brian Dozier Click here to view the article

Mauer signed one year later than where these guys are right now, and he signed a 4 year, $33 million contract that bought out (I believe) one year of free agency. Then came the big deal. The Twins - under Ryan - signed a lot of guys to these types of deals, buying out 1-2 years of arbitration. They did it with Morneau, Cuddyer, Hunter, Johan and a few others.

The Twins used their 32nd-round pick in 2015 to take a tall, left-handed pitcher out of Westmont College. While he was patiently worked with by the Twins early in his career, he has moved quickly in the last 12 months. He has become one of the most intriguing left-handed relievers in the Twins organization. I’ve seen him work in the bullpen in Ft. Myers, and I’ve seen him in games in Cedar Rapids. Catchers who are working with him often use the word “nasty” to describe his stuff. My non-professional scouting opinion is that he has a good, heavy fastball. He’s tall and his motion makes it look as if he could be a bit wild, but he gets a lot of movement and generally throws a lot of strikes. He also has a really good slider. In 37 games and 58 innings between Cedar Rapids and Ft. Myers, he posted a 1.55 ERA and struck out 85 batters with just 21 walks.His emergence led to the opportunity to play in the Arizona Fall League. On Tuesday afternoon, he made his first appearance for the Surprise Saguaros. The left-hander gave up a two-out double, but he struck out two batters in a scoreless inning. Recently, Vasquez took some of his time to answer questions, and today we're happy to share that. Feel free to share your thoughts or ask further questions in the comments below. Let the Q&A begin! Let’s get to know, LHP Andrew Vasquez, including which former Twins-killer was his role model growing up. Seth Stohs (SS): Growing up in California, who was your favorite team to follow? Who were some of your favorite players? Andrew Vasquez (AV): As a kid, I was more of a general baseball fan. If I had to pick, I would say the Dodgers. My father had the opportunity of coaching Mike Sweeney (Royals) in high school so we spent many summers going to see his games across the country. Mike was a great role model because he was a grinder on the field and a great person off the field. My favorite pitcher, however, would definitely be Randy Johnson and later Clayton Kershaw. SS: What were some of the better memories of your high school baseball career? Did you play other sports or were you involved in other activities? AV: I was selected to our high school all-star game which included schools across the Inland Empire, and I struck out 5 of 6 batters. Other than that, we never really got far in CIF playoffs. I tried out for the basketball team but opted out of playing their fall league. If I could go back, I would definitely play my senior year just for fun. SS: You were drafted by the Royals out of high school. How difficult was the decision to say no and go to college? AV: My whole life I had dreamed about playing pro ball, but surprisingly this was an easy decision. My parents were both educators and pushed me to get an education. I wanted to get my degree as a fallback plan if baseball didn't pan out. SS: What was your college baseball experience like, both at Santa Barbara and at Westmont? What were a couple of your highlights? AV: I really enjoyed my college experience at both schools. Santa Barbara was an awesome school, where I ended up getting my degree. Baseball was great my first year as I was the Friday starter for most of the year. I had the experience of pitching against teams like Cal State Fullerton and Long Beach State in conference, and teams like Oregon State and UCLA out of conference. I had a rough two years following, which resulted in me finishing out at Westmont College. I learned a lot from this time, and I am very grateful for the opportunity that Westmont gave me. There I was able to get back on track, and given the opportunity to continue my career. SS: The Twins took you in the 32nd round out of Westmont College. What was your interaction with scouts, and was that approximately where you expected to be taken? AV: I had talked to a few area scouts and was invited to a few workouts after our college season was over, but I was just hoping to hear my name called. Being a senior from a small school, I wasn't expecting much. I just wanted a chance. SS: When you did hear your name in the 32nd round, where were you? What your reaction and the reaction of those close to you? AV: I was at home with my parents. It was honestly a sense of relief. For me it was either get drafted or start my life in the real world so I was very relieved to have that decision made for me. I was excited to see where this new adventure in life would take me. SS: Were you surprised or excited to see that your college teammate (at both schools) Hector Lujan was drafted by the Twins just a few rounds later? Are you surprised by how he performed in 2017? AV: I was surprised to hear it, but seeing that we both went to UCSB and Westmont, it was fate that we would be drafted by the same team. SS: What has the adjustment like for you, from the amateur/college game to the professional game, both on and off the field? AV: Baseball is a game of adjustments, so the transition hasn't been too crazy. Playing in college gave me a good sense of the work I needed to put in, and I had learned a lot about myself through that time. This has proved to be invaluable for my career. The hardest adjustment is being away from home and playing on the road. In college, you have a weekend series then head back home. It is a much shorter season in college as well. Learning how to keep up with the long season has been an adjustment. SS: You helped the Kernels to a first-half playoff berth, and then helped the Miracle to earn a playoff spot in the second half. How much fun was it being part of winning teams? AV: It's always fun to be a part of a winning team. Everyone is much more relaxed and the games are definitely more fun when you win. We came up short this year so it gives you a bit of motivation to get better and come back stronger. SS: What pitches do you throw, and what would you consider your out pitch? AV: .I mainly throw fastball/slider, but occasionally I will mix in a change up or a curve ball. My slider is definitely my out pitch, although recently I have been learning how to pitch with my fastball better. SS: At this stage in your career, what would you say are your biggest strengths? AV: I think my strength is my slider. Being tall probably helps too. SS: What are the areas of your game that you would like to spend time working to improve in the offseason and going forward? AV: I've spent a lot of time working on my fastball and command, so I'll continue that and work on my mental game. Like I said, baseball is about adjustments so I am always trying to become the best I can be. SS: When did you find out about going to the Arizona Fall League? Are you excited about the opportunity, and what are you hoping to gain from the experience? AV: I found out about a week after getting home for the offseason. I am very excited about this opportunity to face some of the top minor league talent and future big leaguers. I hope to gain some baseball knowledge and experience. SS: What are some of the things you enjoy doing away from the game of baseball? AV: My hobbies include surfing, hiking, cycling, and cooking. SS: Who are some of the people who have helped you get to this point in your career? AV: My parents have played a huge role in my life and baseball career, but my mentor/trainer Dave Coggin has helped me become the pitcher I am today. A family friend always said that we are the sum of our experiences, so there are many people who have helped lead me through life. As I mentioned earlier, my journey would not have been possible without Westmont College, and the support from all the coaches there. (Robert Ruiz and Tony Cougoule) A Huge Thank You to Andrew Vasquez for taking time to answer our questions today at Twins Daily. The southpaw is certainly one to watch in 2018, but even now in the Arizona Fall League. If you you have any questions, please feel free to ask. I can get back to Andrew and you never know, maybe he’ll answer himself. Click here to view the article

Eades pitched in AAA (a little) in 2017. He could be a 2018 option. If healthy, Jay's got great stuff and could move up quickly. Vasquez and Hackimer ended in Ft. Myers, so they're longer shots, but they could easily get to AAA. And maybe even MLB. Hackimer was thought to be a potentially quick mover when he was drafted.

The Twins sent Chris Paul, who can play 1B or 3B... and besides him, the Surprise roster has 2 other 3B. Miller is one of three shortstops, but he can play all over the place.

No question. They've sent guys there from Cedar Rapids before and more and more are coming from Ft. Myers.