Seth Stohs

I did a little research: Rankings............ Mejia ...............Garver Nick ......................7 .................... 12 Seth .....................12 ................... 11 Jeremy ..................8 .....................10 Cody .....................8 ..................... 13 BB Am ...................6 ......................17 BB Pro .................. 8 .................... No Mention Min Lg Ball ............ 7 ......................15 MLB Pipeline ..........9 ......................21 Mejia was a great get for Nunez, in my opinion... he just looks a little Mjaresque to me... not that I'm one to speak...

Hildenberger has told me that he's healthy, so I think he'll be ready to go when minor league camp starts. There is no need to not be conservative with Burdi. I don't get what you mean by "at this point." Because he missed a year? That would be a great reason to be conservative. Or, because he hasn't pitched well at AA yet as a pro? That's also a good reason. There is no rush to get him up fast. That said, if he dominated for the first 4-6 weeks, he should be moved up to AAA, and if he dominates there for 4-5 weeks, call him up. But he's only 23 still, so zero reason to do anything unnecessary.

Over the last two weeks, we’ve been making some roster projections for the teams from the Twins down to extended spring training. We predicted the starting pitchers earlier this week. Today we tackle the bullpen arms. Of course, there will be some crossover, especially in the lower levels. As always, the Twins brought in several additional pitchers on minor league contracts. Some will compete for a big league job. Some have opt-outs. Some are competing for AAA jobs, and others are competing to keep their careers going. There are few relievers who are absolutely guaranteed to be in the bullpen on Opening Day (pending injury), so there are a lot of questions. The same is true throughout the system, so let’s take a look at some of the names you’ll be hearing over the next six weeks.If you missed any of the other parts in this series, you can find them here: The Catchers, The Outfielders, The Middle Infielders, The Corner Infielders, and The Starting Pitchers. Minnesota Twins RHP - Brandon Kintzler (32), JT Chargois (26), Ryan Pressly (28), Matt Belisle (36), Tyler Duffey (26), Trevor May (27), Justin Haley (25), Ryan Vogelsong (39), Michael Tonkin (27) LHP - Taylor Rogers (26), Ryan O’Rourke (28), Craig Breslow (36), Glen Perkins (33-DL) The Givens: All right, let’s try to clear this up, if even just a little. These pitchers are ‘Givens’ to make the Opening Day roster, assuming health. Brandon Kintzler will likely start the season as the closer. Maybe he’s not the prototype for a big league closer, but he survived (and maybe even thrived?) in the role in the second half. Matt Belisle signed recently and is also a given to fill a role in the Twins bullpen. Ryan Pressly is a given. He was pretty solid in the 8th inning last year until he got overused. The other given is lefty Taylor Rogers who had a very solid rookie season last year. In my mind, JT Chargois should be a given. I don’t think that he necessarily is, but he needs to be in the big leagues. To Start Or Relieve: Tyler Duffey and Trevor May head to spring training with the same set of circumstances. Both have started in the past, and both have spent a lot of time in the big leagues. Duffey has started. May has primarily been in the bullpen the last couple of seasons. Both could be in the rotation. Both should probably be in the big leagues. However, each has an option remaining which could be used if the new regime thinks that they could develop into solid starters by spending any time in the bullpen. To Start Or Relieve (Part 2): The Twins have a few more players who could start or relieve, though the odds of starting are lower. Justin Haley was the Twins Rule 5 pick. As you know, that means that he has to stick on the Twins 25-man roster all season or be offered back to the Red Sox (or kept via a trade). Veteran Ryan Vogelsong was signed to a minor league deal. The 39-year-old could fit into the fifth starter competition or, like Haley, he could fill a long-relief type of role. The Lefties: There should be some good competition for the second lefty in the bullpen, alongside Taylor Rogers. If Glen Perkins is healthy and able, he will be in the bullpen, a given. More likely, he’ll start the season on the disabled list or rehabbing. Ryan O’Rourke is the best lefty in the organization against left-handed batters. If used in that role, he has a ton of value. However, depending on how well the starters pitch in 2017, the team may decide to go with someone else. Buddy Boshers signed out of the indy leagues last offseason and pitched well through 2016. Mason Melotakis will be ready at some point in 2017. It’s also possible that due to numbers the team could go with just one left-hander. Rochester Red Wings RHP - Jake Reed (24), Alex Wimmers (28), Trevor Hildenberger (26), Alan Busenitz (26), DJ Baxendale (26), Jim Miller (34) LHP - Buddy Boshers (28), Mason Melotakis (25) There are some guys coming through the system that we should see in 2017 (as we said in 2016). It will be interesting to see which guys come up, and in what order. Of the eight names mentioned here, only Boshers and Melotakis are currently on the 40-man roster, and they both have a legitimate chance to make the big league roster. Melotakis is at about the same point in his post-Tommy John surgery that JT Chargois was last year. Wimmers’ road to the big leagues was long and winding, but he got there last August and pitched pretty well the final month of the season. He came off the 40-man roster, but he signed back with the team quite quickly. Jim Miller has big league time with the Orioles, Rockies, A’s and Yankees going back to 2008. The 35-year-old signed a minor league deal with the Twins recently. DJ Baxendale could get another opportunity to start, but he pitched very well out of the bullpen once he was promoted to Rochester. It’s a role that fits his stuff well. Alan Busenitz came to the Twins last August 1st in the trade that sent Alex Meyer and Ricky Nolasco to the Angels. Busenitz isn’t a big guy, but he has the ability to reach 100 mph at times. Jake Reed and Trevor Hildenberger are the two that we’ll likely be hearing a lot about early in the season. They are two guys who could be ready at any time to help in the big leagues. Both were drafted in 2014, Reed in the fifth round and Hildenberger in the 22nd round. Hildenberger was the Twins Daily Relief PItcher of the Year in both 2015 and 2016. Chattanooga Lookouts RHP - Nick Burdi(23), Raul Fernandez (26), John Curtiss (23), Ryan Eades (25), Brandon Peterson (25), Luke Bard (26), Alex Muren (25), Todd Van Steensel (26), Matt Tracy (28), Zack Jones (26 - DL) LHP - Nik Turley (27), Cam Booser (24) 2016 was a very frustrating season for Nick Burdi. If healthy, he will likely return to the Lookouts to start over in 2017. Also if healthy, he has a good chance to debut in 2017. Speaking of healthy returns, Alex Muren missed the 2016 season after having thoracic outlet syndrome surgery. Zack Jones unfortunately will miss the 2017 season (or at least a large part of it) after shoulder surgery. Matt Tracy signed as a free agent. He pitched in one game for the Yankees in 2015. Raul Fernandez re-signed with the Twins this year and got an invitation to big league camp. He split 2016 between Ft. Myers and Chattanooga. The same can be said of Brandon Peterson, the Minnesotan, who has been one of the best relievers in the Twins system since he was drafted in 2013. Luke Bard spent some time with the Lookouts last year as well. His fastball reaches 97 mph, so with some improved control he could move up as well. Todd Van Steensel finally got called up to AA at the end of the 2016 season. He will be pitching for Team Australia in the upcoming WBC. Ryan Eades pitched for the Lookouts last year. Halfway through the season he moved into the bullpen. While he could still start, his stuff may play out well for him in the 'pen. John Curtiss suffered through a couple of injuries in 2015. He began 2016 in Cedar Rapids, but after dominating for a month, he moved up to Ft. Myers. He pitched well in the Arizona Fall League as well. Ft. Myers Miracle RHP - Nick Anderson (26), Williams Ramirez (24), Michael Cederoth (24), Thomas Hackimer (22), Confesor Lara (26), Max Cordy (23), Zach Tillery (24), Logan Lombana (22) LHP - Michael Theofanopoulos (24), Anthony McIver (24), Sam Clay(23) Nick Anderson signed late in the 2015 season out of the independent leagues. The Brainerd area native has pitched very well since signing and came on strong late in 2016 with the Miracle. Thomas Hackimer was a closer at St. John’s. After signing, he spent the remainder of last season with the Kernels. He should make the move up to Ft. Myers. Michael Cederoth stayed healthy in Cedar Rapids and is now ready to move up. Williams Ramirez came on last year with the Kernels and has the ability to throw very hard with a good slider. Max Cordy throws 95 as well, and he did well after moving up from extended spring. Zach Tillery missed most of the 2016 season with injury, but he’ll need to make the move up to Ft. Myers. Logan Lombana served a 50-game suspension last year. Late in the season, he moved up and ended the season with the Miracle. Confesor Lara signed with the Twins for the last couple of weeks of the season after being let go by the Tigers organization. Michael Theofanopoulos repeated in Cedar Rapids during the first half of the 2016 season. He pitched well and then did well in the second half with the Miracle. McIver spent the season with the Kernels and very quietly put together a strong season. Sam Clay pitched in the Midwest League All-Star Game for the Kernels. He did move up to Ft. Myers to end the season. Drafted out of Georgia Tech where he was a reliever, it’s likely Clay moves to the bullpen at some point during the season. Cedar Rapids Kernels RHP - Colton Davis (23), Johan Quezada (22), Alex Schik (22), Clark Beeker(24), Patrick McGuff (22), Quin Grogan(23), Hector Lujan (22) LHP - Andrew Vasquez (23), Alex Robinson (22) It becomes really difficult to project who will be in the lower level bullpens. Several of these pitchers were starters in college at this time last year. That group includes Colton Davis, Alex Schik, Clark Beeker, Patrick McGuff and Quin Grogan. Davis and Beeker ended the season in Cedar Rapids’ bullpen. McGuff joined the Kernels for their playoff run last year after dominating the GCL and at Elizabethton. Johan Quezada became quite popular last year when it came out that he grew a bunch and started throwing fastballs that occasionally touched triple digits. Hector Lujan was a 2015 draft pick. He pitched in Elizabethton, and he actually made one appearance in Ft. Myers too. Andrew Vasquez made a couple of appearances in Elizabethton before moving up to Cedar Rapids where he dominated.. In 38.1 innings, he struck out 51 batters (12.4 per nine). Alex Robinson was used as a starter at the start of the 2016 E-Twins season, but he completely lacked control. He’s likely a bullpen guy, but he’ll have to get a lot better control to do that. Extended Spring Training RHP - Moises Gomez (20), Juan Gamez (22), Blair Lasko (23), Callan Pearce (21), Matz Schutte (19), Garrett Kelly (22), Zach Strecker (23), Vadim Balan (23), Petru Balan (20) LHP - Domenick Carlini (23), Austin Tribby (22) Unlike many years, the Twins signed several undrafted players after the draft. Zach Strecker went to Kentucky and then pitched out of the GCL bullpen. Blair Lasko couldn’t throw strikes at Buffalo, but he found some control in the summer league and threw well, and hard, and the Twins took a shot. Garrett Kelly went to Wake Forest where he was a catcher, but he moved to the mound. He throws 95, but he’s got a lot of room to grow. Juan Gamez was drafted in 2016, but he has a similar story. He was a catcher in college, but the Twins quickly moved him to the mound as well. This offseason, the Twins signed Petru Balan, the younger brother of the Vadim Balan. The two are from Moldova. Vadim Balan pitched just a couple of times in the GCL in 2015 before having some back issues that caused him to miss all of 2016. Callan Pearce, from South Africa, has pitched in the GCL the last three years. He’ll jump up to Elizabethton. Matz Schutte is from The Netherlands and has pitched in the GCL the last two years. The 20-year-old Moises Gomez pitched the last two seasons in the GCL. In 2016, he was 4-0 with a 1.19 ERA. Lefties Domenick Carlini and Austin Tribby were drafted in 2016 and pitched in Elizabethton. They could pitch in Cedar Rapids in 2017 as well. Top Prospects 1.) JT Chargois 2.) Jake Reed 3.) Nick Burdi 4.) Trevor Hildenberger 5.) Mason Melotakis 6.) Thomas Hackimer 7.) John Curtiss 8.) Andrew Vasquez 9.) Alan Busenitz 10.) Alex Wimmers So what do you think? Who will comprise the Twins bullpen, and how will things trickle down the system? Which prospects are you most looking forward to seeing perform in 2017? Click here to view the article

Something like this: http://twinsdaily.com/_/minnesota-twins-news/about-twins-daily/twins-daily-site-refresher-course-r5279

To be fair... the last two years, when the Mets pitching was good too, they had a 40-42 year old Bartolo Colon which would throw off the numbers. I get what you're saying though.

Weighed in at 250 at Instructs.

His name is on my relief pitcher list. Maybe should have mentioned him here, but I think he'll be a bullpen guy fairly soon.

Correct... though they also count the innings that Romero threw in Extended Spring Training, which was likely around another 25-30. He also threw some in Instructs, maybe 10-15? Either way, I agree. I do think he could be a late season bullpen option for the Twins, and I think he'll move up to Chattanooga fairly quickly. I think he could end the year in Rochester.

I'd argue that the sample size for Blankenhorn at Cedar Rapids is pretty meaningless. I also wouldn't say that Arraez is better defensively than Blankenhorn (Which isn't a positive necessarily for either). Blankenhorn is a much, much better athlete than Arraez. Arraez is a wonderful singles hitter, and that's just fine. Blankenhorn could add a lot of power yet.

I don't think he's set as a 2B. He could still play some 3B. He may even get some time in the outfield.

Mejia is a fairly decent prospect at AAA. And yes, the group of Gonsalves, Stewart, Jay, Jorge, Romero will likely be ready in 2018, though we could see a couple of them in 2017.

I didn't really have any expectations. I was curious... I hadn't really kept track of how many page views I had on SethSpeaks.net, so when I started seeing some of the page view numbers at Twins Daily, it was very exciting. The surprise has been some of the doors that it has opened.

Tyler Benninghoff... I just added him. He's likely to miss the full year, though maybe he can get into a couple of late games in the GCL. Thorpe has been in Ft. Myers. I saw he was throwing off the mound just yesterday. He did not pitch in Australia this winter.

Time flies when you’re having fun! And, at Twins Daily, we’ve been having a lot of fun, and hopefully you have too. It is hard to believe that in the next week, Twins Daily will turn five years old. In fact, when one of the Twins Daily owners recently mentioned that we were about to turn five, we all did a double-take. Fortunately, we had the screenshot from the first day to prove it has been five years. Over the next few days, we’ll be sharing our thoughts on our old sites, Twins Daily, and some of our favorite things about this community. And that community is what Twins Daily really is all about, at least in my opinion. When John, Parker, Nick and I first started meeting and discussing consolidating our individual blogs, we spoke frequently about building a community of Twins fans. As you can see from the Day 1 web page, Twins Daily has come a long ways in five years. Arguably the best decision in Twins Daily history was bringing on Brock Beauchamp. OK, not arguably. It was. -------------------------------------------------------------------------- Note that this is Part 1 of a series of articles. Each of the Twins Daily owners will share their thoughts on the site's first five years and what it has meant to them. --------------------------------------------------------------------------I think I speak for all of the owners when I say that I am proud of the Twins Daily site and the community that has grown over our first five years. In May of 2003, SethSpeaks.net began. It started, in large part, thanks to the old Twins Geek site. Maybe some of you even remember the old Dickie Thon Twins Fan Forum. I figured I was a baseball guy with a lot of years of playing, but also a willingness to listen to other thoughts and ideas. At the time, SethSpeaks.net was a baseball blog, but I also wrote about basketball, football, movies, TV, and generally whatever I wanted. I figured that I wanted a site that represented me, and that would be something I would want to read. I just hoped eventually a few others might read and that we could discuss and share ideas. Over time, SethSpeaks.net became much more TwinsCentric (hmmm… that’s an interesting name). I began diving further and further into the minor leagues. One of my favorite things to do on that site and on Twins Daily is doing Q&As with players, getting to know the minor leaguers. Of course, when I started doing that at SethSpeaks.net in the mid-’00s, things were different. I actually hand-wrote letters with questions for players and sent them to the minor league affiliates’ media relation types. I got responses from some players, including Kevin Slowey, Matt Garza and others. As we have moved ahead, social media has made it a lot easier. I admit, sometimes I miss what SethSpeaks.net was. There were some great relationships that grew from e-mail (people can still e-mail me, my e-mail address is on this site, in my profile). But at Twins Daily, the community is wonderful (most of the time). Through our get togethers and through the events such as the Winter Meltdown, it has been wonderful getting to know so many of the Twins Daily readers. It’s always nice hearing people come up and introduce themselves and say Thank You. And, even more, it’s nice being able to say Thank You to our readers in person. And though that isn’t possible to say Thank You in person to everyone, well, you can read it here. I really do Thank You for all of the support, not only over the last five years, but the support I’ve felt for almost 13 years. Being a part of Twins Daily has provided many opportunities. I know I’m looking forward to getting down to Ft. Myers again in March to cover the Twins and the minor league fields for our Reports from The Fort. The Twins have been very accepting of Twins Daily, and that means a lot and is very appreciated. It’s been wonderful to earn the respect (hopefully) of the terrific Twins beat writers. It’s been fun getting to work with people from each of the Twins affiliates, especially those in Cedar Rapids where I enjoy spending 3-4 days each summer too. It's been fun going to fantastic events like Twins Fest and the Diamond Awards. I am proud to be a part of Twins Daily. Sure, it has had its ups and downs, as does everything, but I am proud. The thing that I am most proud of is that I believe that Twins Daily is the go-to place online for Twins minor league information. I’m excited that we’ll be doing daily minor league reports again in 2017. We get tremendous feedback on those daily reports from our readers and I know that the players and their families enjoy reading them as well. Thank you to Jeremy Nygaard, Cody Christie, Eric Pleiss and Steve Lein for helping to write those. Also thank you to Steve Buhr in Cedar Rapids for his great Kernels articles. And Jeremy Nygaard’s work makes Twins Daily the best spot for MLB (and Twins-specific) draft information. I have always believed that the minor leaguers deserve credit for the work they put in. Those who have purchased the annual Twins Prospect Handbook know that it means a lot to me. That’s why I want to do Q&As and Get To Know ‘Em interviews with players, top prospects or not. They all deserve that. It’s always fun for me to get to know players when they get drafted and watch them grow on and off the field. Many don’t get to the big leagues, but it’s always fun to see guys who put in their time get an opportunity in the big leagues. Likewise, it has been a lot of fun to watch Twins Daily grow over the past five years. I think we are willing to try new things in the internet era, both on our site, on social media, and in our events. It’s been fun to watch how the site, the audience, the events and the fun has all grown. I remember 1987 and 1991 very well. I enjoyed the years from 2001 through 2010. These last few years have been tough (which again makes me glad that I enjoy following the minor leagues!), but hopefully things will turn around, starting in 2017. We are all Twins fans, first and foremost. Hopefully our passion shines through in our writing - whether it is positive or negative. Part of the allure of Twins Daily was that I wouldn’t have to write five or more times each week as I did at SethSpeaks.net. Well, looking at the numbers, I’ve been still writing 5-10 articles every week. Why? Because I enjoy it. So again, as we celebrate five years of Twins Daily, I just want to say thank you to everyone who makes this such a special place, a place I enjoy checking out many times each day. Click here to view the article

We have projected all of the hitters in the Minnesota Twins organization over the last couple of weeks. Today we dive into what could very possibly be the most important part of any baseball team. The bullpen is important, but it can be helped by starters being good and giving six and seven innings consistently. The hitters obviously have to score runs, but the starting pitchers have to give the offense a chance. There are plenty of questions as it relates to starting pitching with the Twins, as you would expect. There are some veterans who will get a shot, but there are also some high-end, talented pitchers who will likely get an opportunity in 2017 as well. If you missed any of the previous articles, you can find them here: Catchers, Middle Infielders, Corner Infielders, Outfielders.So let’s get to it. At the end, discuss your thoughts on the Twins starting pitcher roster projections. Minnesota Twins - Ervin Santana (34), Hector Santiago (29), Kyle Gibson (29), Phil Hughes (30), Jose Berrios (21), (Trevor May (27), Tyler Duffey (26), Ryan Vogelsong (39), Justin Haley (25)) Ervin Santana may not be an “Ace” but he’s been a very solid MLB pitcher for most of the past decade. 2016 was one of his better seasons. Beyond Santana, the Twins are going to have to hope for improvements and a return to past success. While most aren’t terribly excited about Hector Santiago’s outlook, due to his walks and home runs allowed, the hope should be that he can get back to a sub-3.75 ERA. It isn’t an unattainable number for Santiago. It’s something he had done for four straight seasons before 2016. Kyle Gibson was the Twins Pitcher of the Year in 2015 when he posted a 3.84 ERA. Last year, he missed six-plus weeks due to shoulder issues and struggled the remainder of the season to find success. Phil Hughes is now two full seasons separated from his historic (K/BB rate) 2014 season. He also had thoracic outlet syndrome surgery last summer and hopes to return healthy in 2017. After that, it will be very interesting to see how things play out. Obviously any setbacks with the aforementioned starters would open up a second rotation spot. In my opinion, if Jose Berrios reports to spring training and shows much improved fastball command, he will be in the big leagues. Trevor May will report to spring training with an opportunity to start again. If he and Berrios pitch well in spring, there may have to be another transaction. Of course, at least a couple of others will be given a shot at a rotation spot. Tyler Duffey has certainly shown flashes but with a two-pitch mix, he may be best suited for the bullpen. Justin Haley will likely get some starter innings in spring while competing for a long relief position. Ryan Vogelsong is likely in the same boat, competing as a starter and for a long relief job. Others you’ll see below. Rochester Red Wings - Jason Wheeler (26), Adalberto Mejia (23), Aaron Slegers (24), Nick Tepesch (28), David Hurlbut(27), Drew Rucinski (28), Nick Greenwood (29), Yohan Pino (33) Adalberto Mejia is the one pitcher on this list who is on the Twins 40-man roster. He came to the Twins in the Eduardo Nunez trade last summer. At various times in his career, he’s been considered a prospect. He could be a back-of-the-rotation guy in time. Jason Wheeler and David Hurlbut are pretty similar pitchers, southpaws who rely on fastball command and decent secondary stuff. Both have been in the Twins system since 2011. Nick Greenwood fits the same mold, though he came to the organization mid-season last year from the independent leagues. He had pitched for the Cardinals in 2014 and 2015. The Nick Tepesch and Ryan Vogelsong signings were announced on the same day. Vogelsong is nearly 40 but his representatives like to say that his arm didn’t get used as much early so it’s still strong. Tepesch debuted with the Rangers and spent a couple of years with them, though he missed all of 2015 and most of 2016 with injury. A college teammate of Kyle Gibson, if he returns to form, he too can be a back of rotation guy. Drew Rucinski spent last year with the Cubs AAA team in the PCL. He spent some time with the Angels big league club in 2014 and 2015. Chattanooga Lookouts - Stephen Gonsalves (22), Felix Jorge (23), Tyler Jay (22), Kohl Stewart (22), Randy Rosario (22), Keaton Steele (25) Last year, the big story early in the year was the starting rotation of the Ft. Myers Miracle. That group should all start the season in Chattanooga in 2017 as well. All but Steele ended their season in Chattanooga. Stephen Gonsalves emerged as arguably the Twins top starting pitching prospect with his strong 2016 season which was actually even better once he moved up to the Lookouts. He was the Twins' and Twins Daily’s Starting Pitcher of the Year in 2016. Adding a slider to his pitch mix helped him increase those strikeout numbers. Kohl Stewart began the season by repeating in Ft. Myers, where he increased his strikeout rate. When he moved up to AA, the K-rate completely dropped again, so he should spend the full 2017 season with the Lookouts. Felix Jorge remained remarkably consistent. Some observers contend he was the best of the group in Ft. Myers, and it would be hard to argue. He struggled in his first couple of starts in Chattanooga, but after that he again became an aggressive innings-eater. He was added to the Twins 40-man roster in November. Tyler Jay had expected ups and downs in his first full pro season and in the transition to starting pitcher. In six starts between May 4 and June 8, he posted a 0.70 ERA in 38.1 innings. In that stretch, he showed why there were a lot of teams interested in him as a starter. He has a four-pitch mix, but finding a consistency with them will be key. Or, he could move to the bullpen and dominate. Randy Rosario got through his first full season after Tommy John surgery healthy. He had moments with the Miracle, though the strikeout numbers were down. He throws mid-to-high 90s, left-handed, so he remains very intriguing. Keaton Steele was the veteran of the rotation in Ft. Myers. He put up pedestrian overall numbers though he came on stronger in the season’s second half. Ft. Myers Miracle - Fernando Romero (22), Cody Stashak (22), Dereck Rodriguez (24), Randy LeBlanc (24), Henry Centeno (22), Lewis Thorpe (21) Fernando Romero missed two seasons due to Tommy John surgery and a 2015 knee surgery. He returned in early May to the Kernels, but his stay was short there because he dominated. He moved up to the Miracle and continued to rack up impressive numbers before being shut down late. He is another very strong candidate for Twins top pitching prospect. Randy LeBlanc had a terrific 2016 season. For the first time, he was a full-time starter. He began the season by going 6-2 with a 0.74 ERA in Cedar Rapids. He posted a 4.70 ERA in Ft. Myers, but he then posted ten scoreless innings in Chattanooga to end the season. Cody Stashak went 8-5 with a 3.16 ERA in Cedar Rapids. At the end of the season, he moved up to Ft. Myers and gave up just one run in 16.2 innings over three starts. Dereck Rodriguez started the season in Cedar Rapids and really struggled, but he figured things out and was promoted to Ft. Myers where he continued to pitch well. It’s been an interesting offseason for the right-hander. He carried some momentum into the Puerto Rican Winter League where he pitched very well out of the bullpen. He carried that success onto the Puerto Rico WBC roster. The Twins signed Henry Centeno as a minor league free agent out of the Rays organization. Still just 22, he went 5-1 with a 1.34 ERA in nine outings (six starts) in the Midwest League. He moved up to the Florida State League and went 3-3 with a 2.72 ERA. In 93 innings, he walked 29 and struck out 83. Lewis Thorpe has missed the last two seasons after Tommy John surgery. He hopes to get back on the mound in 2017. Since he’s missed so much time, they may choose to ease him back in, maybe some EST or maybe out of the bullpen. Hopefully by the end of the year, he’ll be making quality starts. Cedar Rapids Kernels - Lachlan Wells (19), Eduardo Del Rosario (21), Tyler Wells (22), Miguel DeJesus (21), Tyler Beardsley (22), Ryan Mason (22), Brady Anderson (24), Sean Poppen (22) Lachlan Wells came up to the Kernels in late June and was lights out. The Australian southpaw went 6-4 with a 1.77 ERA in 12 starts as a 19-year-old. He was recently named to Australia’s WBC team. Eduardo Del Rosario came up a month earlier. After some early struggles, he came on pretty solidly at the end of the season. He went 6-2 with a 3.67 ERA in 16 starts. Miguel DeJesus split 2016 between the GCL and Elizabethton. The right-hander throws hard, up to mid-90s, but he’ll need to work on secondary stuff. Tyler Beardsley and Sean Poppen are 2016 draft picks who each pitched a handful of games with the Kernels. Tyler Wells was also drafted last year. After a slow start in Elizabethton, he pitched very well late including seven scoreless innings of one-hit, 14-strikeout ball. It was followed by six shutout innings and two hits. He was in Cedar Rapids for their playoff run, though not on the roster. Ryan Mason was also drafted last season and pitched in Elizabethton. Brady Anderson wasn’t drafted last year out of Florida Gulf Coast, but he pitched so well in the GCL (2-0, 0.98 ERA in 27.2 innings) that he jumped up to the Kernels rotation and pitched well there too (3-1, 2.62 ERA, 34.1 innings). Extended Spring Training - Huascar Ynoa (18), Brusdar Graterol (18), Jordan Balazovic (18), Jovani Moran (19), Taylor Clemensia (19), Jose Martinez (20), Matt Jones (18), Bo Hellquist (22), Tyler Fox (23), Tyler Benninghoff (DL - 19) It seems a little funny to say, but it’s OK to be excited about the starting pitchers in this EST group. Huascar Ynoa and Brusdar Graterol have the talent and potential to be Top 10 Twins prospects at this time next year. Ynoa is the younger brother of White Sox reliever Michael Ynoa. He’s young, but he has really good stuff besides a fastball that’s 92-95. Speaking of fastballs, Graterol has a huge one. In Instructs, he was sitting 95-97 and touched 100 a couple of times. He has just a dozen or so innings pitched in the DSL before he had mid-season 2015 Tommy John surgery, but he has immense upside. Jordan Balazovicisn’t too far behind those two when it comes to potential. The 2016 draft pick from the suburbs of Toronto was very impressive in his debut, and reports say that he was even more impressive in Instructs. Moran was drafted in 2015, but he missed the 2016 season after having some bone chips removed from his elbow. The Puerto Rican has some good stuff from the left side. Another lefty, Taylor Clemensia, is from The Netherlands. A great athlete, he played a lot of outfield in his amateur days. He’s got good stuff on the mound, but he’s still very raw. Martinez struggled last year in Elizabethton, so expect him to head back there. Jones signed late last year after being drafted out of Canada. He’ll likely go back to the GCL. Tyler Benninghoff was drafted in the 11th round last year and immediately had Tommy John surgery. He will most likely miss the entire 2017 season. Bo Hellquist and Tyler Fox were non-drafted free agents signed after the draft. Hellquist pitched at Minnesota-Duluth, and Fox was one of the best pitchers at Nebraska-Omaha. They could compete for spots in Cedar Rapids or spend time in extended spring. Top Prospects 1.) Stephen Gonsalves 2.) Fernando Romero 3.) Tyler Jay 4.) Felix Jorge 5.) Adalberto Mejia 6.) Kohl Stewart 7.) Huascar Ynoa 8.) Lachlan Wells 9.) Brusdar Graterol 10.) Lewis Thorpe So, there are a lot of questions to discuss in this segment. Of course, it all starts with the big league rotation. Who will be the five there? After meeting expectations in Ft. Myers last year, how will the guys who start in Chattanooga do in 2017? Can Fernando Romero take the next step and become a true ace? How many of these guys could we see in 2017? (Gonsalves? Romero? Jay? Jorge? Mejia?) Which starters will come out of nowhere and become prospects a year from now? Click here to view the article

Nine out of 52 #5 overall picks have had a career bWAR over 15. There have been some good ones like Buster Posey, Ryan Braun, Mark Teixeira, JD Drew, Vernon Wells, Jack McDowell, Dwight Gooden and Dale Murphy. Twenty-three of 52 never made it to the big leagues. If he becomes a solid, average MLB shortstop, that would be wonderful... especially for this organization!

He was 263 last spring training... not sure where he is now, but that certainly could be a concern.

Of course, the fences at the stadium in Eizabethton are also quite a bit deeper than they were back then. He's definitely a high-risk prospect, but if he works he has a high ceiling.

No question. He'll start in Cedar Rapids.

Correct... Numbers play a very small role in prospect ranking, especially for those in the lowest levels. The numbers there are almost meaningless - though the assumption also should be that the talent and tools will at least somewhat show up in the stats. I ranked Diaz #6 due to his power potential, but also his athleticism. Told he was pretty nimble around first base. And, he's more than just a power hitter. Obviously that comes with the risk of his size and that he's got a long way to move up still.

1.) I've said before that I talked to Mike Radcliff at spring training last year while Wade was hitting. He said that he doesn't really have any tools that jump out at you, but he also doesn't have a real weak spot in his game either. He said that his makeup is plus-plus. His approach and thinking at the plate is very advanced. I was told that he has some sneaky power too. He's not a big guy, but when he does look to pull the ball, he can drive it a long way. 2.) Palka is similar to AB Walker, in my opinion. I think he can be a solid MLB hitter in time. He certainly can hit a ball a long way. He certainly will strike out a lot. His defense is describe as 'shaky.' He can probably play some 1B, but he won't get great there either. I woudln't be surprised, and I think it would be good, if he did play some 1B in 2017 just to give him more versatility. 3.) I'm definitely a believe in Garver as well. I think you nailed it. None of his skills necessarily jump out, but he does everything pretty well. 4.) Jorge is easily Top 10 for me, but for the TD voting, he dropped some.

I've never been real high on Vargas, but i have no problem with them giving him 500 PA in 2017 to see. The power is certainly there.