Seth Stohs

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2580[/ATTACH] There are a lot of Twins players playing in Winter Leagues in warm climates. I thought it would be good to provide Twins Daily readers with a quick update on how some are doing. Of course, at this point, all of these numbers are incredibly small sample, so take them for what they’re worth. ARIZONA FALL LEAGUE On Monday, Kyle Gibson had his first clunker in four starts. The right-hander gave up six runs on eight hits and a walk in just two innings. All of the runs came in the 2nd inning. With the loss, he is now 3-1 with a 4.20 ERA in 15 innings. He has walked three and struck out 20 batters. Reliever Michael Tonkin has been terrific through his first five games. In 6.1 innings, he has given up no runs on three hits. He has one walk to go with five strikeouts. Relief pitchers’ numbers really can look great or bad due to small sample size. Lefty Caleb Thielbar has made six appearances. He is 1-0 with a 10.80 ERA. In 6.2 innings, he has given up eight runs on 11 hits and a walk while striking out five. In his first three outings, he gave up one hit and no walks in three innings. Then in his next two outings, he gave up eight runs on eight hits and a walk in 2.1 innings. Reports from Peoria indicate that a couple of bad calls may have contributed in some degree. He came back on Saturday with 1.1 scoreless innings. Lefty Logan Darnell has been a starter since being the 6th round pick in 2010 from Kentucky. He has thrown over 150 innings each of the past two seasons. However, in the Fall League, he is working out of the bullpen. He gave up one run in two innings on Monday. In six games, he has given up three runs on nine hits and three walks. He has struckout eight in 9.2 innings. Chris Herrmann was 5-10 with a double and two walks in his three AFL games. Last week, he was sent home with some minor inflammation in his left (non-throwing) shoulder. He was replaced by catcher Dan Rohlfing who has played in one game since arriving. In it, he went 1-3. He had two RBI, one on a sacrifice fly and the other when he was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Outfielder Evan Bigley is hitting .206/.270/.294 in nine games. He is 7-34 with three doubles. In his past four games, he is 4-12 (.333) [ATTACH=CONFIG]2581[/ATTACH]Through eight games, outfielder Nate Roberts (and his mustache) were hitting .522/.647/.652 (1.299) with three doubles. He also had six walks to go with just two strikeouts. On Monday, he went 0-3 and was hit by a pitch (something he is very good at and takes a lot of pride in) which dropped his average to .462. VENEZUELAN WINTER LEAGUE As you know, many Twins players play for Aragua in the VWL. Outfielder Oswaldo Arcia is hitting .182/.194/.303 (.497) through the first 13 games. He is 6-33 with a double. He hit his first home run over the weekend. He has walked just once and struckout 12 times. Catcher Josmil Pinto is 0-4 in two games for Aragua. Right-hander David Bromberg is 0-0 with a 2.08 ERA in three starts and 13 innings. The peripherals don’t look quite as good. In those 13 innings, he has given up 12 hits and eight walks while striking out nine. However, he has been able to go at least five innings in his last two starts. Lefty Edgar Ibarra is 1-2 with a 9.22 ERA through four starts and 13.2 innings. He has given up 20 hits, walked eight and struckout 15. Ibarra split his 2012 season between Ft. Myers and New Britain and made 42 appearances, all out of the bullpen. On October 18, he threw five shutout innings and gave up just two hits and a walk. His next start, he gave up eight runs on seven hits and three walks in just two innings. 19-year-old righty Angel Mata went 4-3 with a 3.38 ERA for Elizabethton this season. He is pitching out of the bullpen for Aragua. In five games, he has given up just one run on six hits and three walks in eight innings. He also has 11 strikeouts. Right-hander Miguel Munoz missed much of the 2011 season with an elbow injury. He returned in 2012 and pitched 63.2 innings in 28 games (6 starts). For Aragua, he has given up three runs on four hits and two walks in just two innings so far. Righty Dakota Watts had a very good season pitching in the bullpens for Ft. Myers and New Britain. He missed time at the start of the season due to shoulder tendonitis. He arrived in Aragua. In his first game, he gave up a hit to the one batter he faced. The next night, he gave up three runs on one hit, one hit batter and one walk. The hit was a home run. In his third game, he gave up one run in two innings. He has not pitched in a week. There are several other Twins players around the VWL. Aaron Hicks has come back down to earth for Margarita. In 11 games, he is now hitting .238/.347/.357 (.704) with two doubles, a home run and five RBI. He is 10-42 with seven walks and 15 strikeouts. In the four games he has played in over the past week, he is 1-12 with five walks and five strikeouts. Eduardo Escobar is a combined 3-24 (.125) with two teams this winter. Deolis Guerra has given up one run on three hits in 1.2 innings so far for Magallanes. Yorman Landa has given up three runs on three hits and six walks in 3.2 innings. He pitched for the GCL Twins in 2012 and is certainly considered a prospect. DOMINICAN WINTER LEAGUE The Twins have several players playing around the Dominican Republic as well. Coming in to play on Monday, Drew Butera was hitting .300/.462/.400 (.862) with two doubles and five RBI. However, on Monday, he went 0-4 to drop his average to .250. Pedro Florimon’s bat was off to a slow start. Coming into the game on Monday, he was 3-31 (.097). He was 0-3 on Monday night before a single in his final at bat. So, he is now 4-35 (.114) over the small sample of nine games. Outfielder Wilkin Ramirez is 3-21 (.143) with a double and triple through his first seven games. Miguel Sano made his DWL debut over the weekend and went 1-4 with a walk. Luis Perdomo gave up one hit in 1.2 scoreless innings in his only appearance to this point. MEXICAN WINTER LEAGUE Anthony Slama is pitching for Mazatlan. He has pitched in four games to this point. In 4.2 innings, he has given up no runs on three hits and two walks while striking out two. 1B Chris Colabello is hitting .234/.280/.362 (.642) with six doubles in his first 13 games. He is 11-47, so more than half of his hits have been for extra bases. In his past eight games, he is just 2-28 (.071). AUSTRALIAN BASEBALL LEAGUE The ABL has been playing an exhibition schedule the past ten days. The season officially kicks off on Thursday, November 1. Two team’s rosters do not have any current or former Twins. Here is a quick look at the Twins-related players on the four other rosters: Brisbane Bandits: Current Twins: LHP Aaron Thompson, 1B/OF Rory Rhodes, IF Logan Wade. Former Twins: RHP Tristan Crawford. Melbourne Aces: Current Twins: RHP Sam Gibbons, LHP Lewis Thorpe, OF Josh Hendricks. Former Twins: OF Justin Huber. Perth Heat: Current Twins: RHP Liam Hendriks. Former Twins: RHP Brendan Wise, C Allan De San Miguel, IF Luke Hughes. Sydney Blue Sox: Current Twins: RHP Tim Atherton, RHP Tyler Herr, IF Jacob Younis, OF JD Williams. Former Twins: LHP Brad Thomas, RHP Todd Van Steensel, RHP Matthew Williams, and Coach Glenn Williams. For the Fargo-Moorhead Redhawks fans out there, shortstop Zach Penprase also plays for the Blue Sox. That's a lot of players continuing their 2012 seasons with some more innings pitched or plate appearances. Note also that other players will get some time as well.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2573[/ATTACH] Now that the TwinsCentric Offseason Handbook is available, it’s time for me to hunker down and dive head-first into the 2013 version of the Twins Prospect Handbook. It’s hard to believe that this will be the 5th annual prospect book already. I enjoy doing the research and the writing, for sure. As I did last year, I want to welcome your feedback. To encourage that, I am sharing my early, preliminary Top 50 Twins Prospect list. As I research and write over the next two months, it is not only subject to change, but likely to change. So, here is my preliminary Top 50 list without much comment. Please feel free to discuss, disagree, ask questions, mention players that I didn’t, and generally just chat away. Seth’s Preliminary Top 50 [TABLE=width: 217] Rank Player POS 1 Miguel Sano 3B 2 Byron Buxton OF 3 Aaron Hicks OF 4 Oswaldo Arcia OF 5 Eddie Rosario 2B 6 Kyle Gibson RHP 7 Jose (JO) Berrios RHP 8 Max Kepler OF 9 Kennys Vargas 1B 10 Joe Benson OF 11 Travis Harrison 3B 12 Adrian Salcedo RHP 13 Danny Santana SS 14 Chris Herrmann C/OF 15 BJ Hermsen RHP 16 Alex Wimmers RHP 17 Adam Walker OF 18 Mason Melotakis LHP 19 Jorge Polanco IF 20 Pedro Hernandez LHP 21 Danny Ortiz OF 22 Matt Summers RHP 23 Luke Bard RHP 24 Levi Michael 2B 25 Hudson Boyd RHP 26 Nate Roberts OF 27 Niko Goodrum SS 28 Kuo-Hu Lo RHP 29 Michael Tonkin RHP 30 Madison Boer RHP 31 Bruce Pugh RHP 32 JD Williams OF 33 Angel Mata RHP 34 DJ Baxendale RHP 35 Tyler Duffey RHP 36 JT Chargois RHP 37 Zach Jones RHP 38 Randy Rosario LHP 39 Jason Wheeler LHP 40 Josh Burris RHP 41 Matt Hauser RHP 42 Josue Montanez LHP 43 Tom Stuifbergen RHP 44 Dereck Rodriguez OF 45 Corey Williams LHP 46 Romy Jimenez OF 47 Austin Malinowski LHP 48 Tyler Jones RHP 49 Brett Lee LHP 50 Jeremias Pineda OF [/TABLE] There you have it, 1-50. There are some names that I’m sure we all think have been left off. Guys like Pat Dean and Lance Ray and Evan Bigley have been on the list before. Left-handers who pitched incredibly well in Beloit (like David Hurlbut, Matt Tomshaw and 2012 draft pick Taylor Rogers) could be on this list. Minnesota native and former Gophers infielder Nate Hanson did a terrific job for the Rock Cats this year, especially after moving to second base. Fellow Rock Cat James Beresford would be on this list, but at this point, he has not re-signed with the Twins. Aderlin Mejia was an All-GCL choice this year. Candido Pimentel was the Appy League MVP. To come up with a Top 10 list of Twins prospects this year is really easy. However, I have not had this much trouble starting at about 16 or so in my 7-8 years of making these types of lists. It’s not that there isn’t some really good talent. There are a lot of players who were just recently drafted. There are some really talented, potentially impact relievers. Injuries have had some effect on this list, no question. I feel like Kyle Gibson, who I ranked #6, should be several places higher. However, I just can’t get myself to move him in front of the top 5. But that’s a great place to start the discussion. I think most would agree with who is in the top seven on this list, but what order would you have them in? Again, feel free to discuss, ask questions, make cases for players, whatever you like.

Gotta like reading this!!

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2560[/ATTACH] On Wednesday, the Twins started their offseason reconstruction by removing several players from the 40 man roster. First, they declined Matt Capps’ option for the 2013 season by buying it out. There is no surprise there. Next, the Twins drooped several players from their 40 man roster. Pitchers PJ Walters, Esmerling Vasquez, Luis Perdomo, Kyle Waldrop, Jeff Manship and outfielder Matt Carson are no longer on the 40 man roster. In the one semi-surprise move of the day, the Twins lost Carlos Gutierrez to the Chicago Cubs. The Twins removed their hard-throwing former first-round pick from the 40 man roster. Unlike the other players, Gutierrez was claimed by another team, the Chicago Cubs. Coming off of shoulder, the Twins were likely hoping to sneak Gutierrez through and keep him around in 2013. However, they also know the rules of the game and were willing to take a chance that he would be taken. Because Scott Baker and Carl Pavano were on the 60 Day DL, the Twins ended the season with 42 players on their 40 man roster. With these eight moves, the Twins 40 man roster currently sits at 34. Pavano will come off of the list minutes after the World Series ends and he becomes a free agent. Also, the Twins will have to make their decision on the 2013 option of Scott Baker. There is little chance that they will pick up the $9.25 million option. However, it is also possible that the Twins and Baker would agree on a new contract in which he would stay on the roster. In late November, the Twins will need to add minor leaguers to the 40 man roster that they want to protect from potentially being selected in the Rule 5 draft. With the roster at 32 players (by that time), the Twins could technically add as many as eight players to the 40 man roster. That isn’t likely. They will likely save a spot or three for potential free agent signings and claims. Also, if they want to make a Rule 5 selection of their own, they will need to have no more than 39 on their roster. So, who is eligible for the Rule 5 draft? On a high level, it is anyone who signed when they were less than 19 in 2008 or if they were over 19 in 2009. Generally speaking, that means that high school players drafted in 2008 and college or junior college players drafted in 2009. Many international signings happen with 16 or 17 year olds, but occasionally there will be a 19 or 20 year old signed as well. Specifically, here is a list of the players that are eligible for the Rule 5 draft: Aaron Hicks, Kyle Gibson, Danny Santana, BJ Hermsen, Bruce Pugh, Michael Tonkin, Tom Stuifbergen, Adrian Salcedo, Evan Bigley, Danny Lehmann, Nick Blackburn, Anthony Slama, Caleb Thielbar, Bobby Lanigan, Daniel Turpen, Dan Sattler, Rene Tosoni, Nathan Hanson, Dan Rohlfing, Andrew Albers, Steve Hirschfeld, Jose Gonzalez, Dakota Watts, David Bromberg, Blake Martin, Marty Popham, Steve Liddle, Danny Ortiz, Danny Rams, Ricky Bowen, Nelvin Fuentes, Michael Gonzales, Jhon Garcia, Manuel Soliman, Rory Rhodes, Luis Nunez, Kelvin Ortiz, Wang-Wei Lin, Jairo Rodriguez, Tim Atherton, Jhonathan Arias. Also, six-year minor league free agents that have already signed with the Twins are also eligible. They include Deibinson Romero, Brian Dinkelman, Jhonathan Goncalves, Josmil Pinto, Edgar Ibarra and Miguel Munoz. In the Offseason Handbook (which is now officially available), I wrote an article giving more details on nine guys that I think should be at least considered to be added. In reality, the top five or six on that list are the players that I think will be most strongly considered. So of all of those names, who do you think the Twins will add to the 40 man roster, and why? Feel free to add comments or ask questions.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2548[/ATTACH] As the World Series combatants are now set, and we all start putting together our thoughts for what the Twins offseason should look like, one of the key positions discussed by many is the middle infield. Specifically, people are asking now who the Twins shortstop will be early in the 2013 season. Some will say Jamey Carroll. Pedro Florimon’s name is mentioned. Could the Twins go outside the organization to fill the spot? One name that is hardly ever mentioned at this point is that of Brian Dozier. One year ago at this time, Dozier was making a name for himself with some solid performance in the Arizona Fall League. That was coming off of a 2011 season that saw him named the Twins Minor League Hitter of the Year. In that 2011, just the second full season in the pros for Dozier, he split time between Ft. Myers and New Britain. He combined to hit a robust .320/.399/.490 with 33 doubles, 12 triples, 9 home runs, 56 RBI, 92 Runs scored, and 24 stolen bases. He filled the stat page while quickly proving himself as a team leader and a solid defender in the field. Despite being in a prolonged slump, Dozier made his Twins and Major League debut as a 24-year-old. In his time with the Twins, Dozier showed some flashes of the kind of talent he had displayed in 2011. He showed a little bit of power. He made some nice plays with his glove and arm. But overall, he really struggled in his debut. In 84 games and 340 plate appearances, he hit .234/.272/.332 with 11 doubles, a triple and six home runs. He was successful on nine of eleven stolen base attempts. As you know, John Bonnes was able to interview Twins GM Terry Ryan yesterday for the Offseason GM Handbook. During their discussion, the middle infield was one of many, many Twins topics mentioned. When asked whether he thought there were any Twins minor league middle infielders who he felt could fill the shortstop role for the next several years, Ryan said, “Yeah, yeah we do.” When pushed, Ryan continued, “Well, it depends what you think of some of the guys we’ve got. What do you think about (Brian Dozier)? What do you think about Pedro Florimon?” The answer to those two questions may come with very different answers for many of you. Coming into the 2012 season, I was quite high on Brian Dozier. I ranked him as my #11 Twins prospect. Now, #11 doesn’t shout out elite prospect or perennial All-Star. I agree. I don’t know of anyone who ever said that Dozier would be (although in spring training, we certainly read a few articles that pushed a reader to think that way). My thought on Dozier continues to be that he can be a solid, every day shortstop for a half-dozen years. Considering the Twins frequent musical chairs seasons at the position, a ‘solid, every day shortstop for a half-dozen years’ sounds pretty good. Will he get there? As with any prospect, #1s, #11s or #111s, no one knows that answer. But to jump off of the Brian Dozier bandwagon because of 84 games in his first stint in the big leagues is not something that should happen. Dozier has had success in the upper levels of the minors filling out a stat line and showing leadership qualities and of solid defense. What does Mr. Ryan think of the Florimon/Dozier/Shortstop situation? “They’ve got the skills to play shortstop and it didn’t quite go as well, but they’re not the first guy that has come and had to go back. About every player that comes up here has to go back once or twice. We’ve got hope for Dozier and Florimon and we think they’re certainly capable of doing that job. They need some more polishing and consistency and taking a quality at-bats and all that stuff. But they have enough arm. They have enough speed. They have enough range. They have enough agility. And more importantly, they have enough baseball intellect to play the position. So. One of them is 25 [years old] and the other one is 25. And they’re getting to the point now where we should expect them to take the next step forward and we’ll be anxious to see what they look like in spring training.” Now, Pedro Florimon has had very little offensive success in his long minor league career. However, he is known to be an elite defensive shortstop. Back in the day, that used to be enough, and frankly, assuming health, the Twins should have enough offense to account for a little less offense from a strong defensive shortstop. But this isn’t a backup catcher who plays once every five games or so. We are talking about the starting shortstop position, a guy that plays every day, so there does need to be some minimal offensive threshold. I don’t know if Florimon can reach that number. If he can, he becomes a legitimate shortstop option, and in that case, Brian Dozier could easily transition to second base where he would do well. With Jamey Carroll around, there is always competition and a backup plan or two. Frankly, I would not spend money on another middle infielder when I believe almost all money should go to pitching. I think Dozier is very capable of stepping up in 2013 as a solid contributor. So, I will concur with one thing that Terry Ryan said in his interview. “Don’t give up on Dozier and Florimon yet!” To read the full transcript of John’s terrific, in-depth, exclusive interview with Terry Ryan, be sure to order your copy of the Offseason GM Handbook today.

I'm surprised that you think Mastroianni is a possibility for being removed from the 40 man. I thought he did more than enough to put his name in PEN as the team's 4th OF next year. Good stuff though! It lays out the situation quite well.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2521[/ATTACH] The story lines at Twins Daily and in most Minnesota media circles on Wednesday was the performance of Kyle Gibson so far in the Arizona Fall League. Simply stated, through two starts, he has been remarkable and given Twins fans reason to hope. As you know, Gibson is joined in the AFL by pitchers Logan Darnell, Caleb Thielbar and Michael Tonkin as well as hitters Chris Herrmann, Evan Bigley and Nate Roberts. To this point, the focus has been on the Fall League, but there is plenty of Winter League baseball for us to watch, at least through box scores. There are leagues in the Carribbean, and the Australian Baseball League continues to improve. Aaron Hicks has been the story to follow early in the Winter League seasons. The recently-turned 23-year-old is off to a fast start in Venezuela. He is hitting .412 with two doubles and two stolen bases through the first five games. His team, Bravos de Margarita, is 5-0. He’s been the team’s leadoff hitter and centerfielder. Other Twins players currently on rosters in Venezuela include: Aguilas de Zulia (OF Darin Mastroianni) Caribes de Anzoategui (RHP Lester Oliveros, who had Tommy John surgery in September so won’t play) Tigres de Aragua (RHP David Bromberg, LHP Jose Gonzalez, LHP Edgar Ibarra, RHP Angel Mata, RHP Miguel Munoz, C Josmil Pinto, OF Oswaldo Arcia) Arcia went 0-8 with five strikeouts in his first three games before going 2-3 with a walk and a double in the team’s fourth game. There are also several Twins players in the Dominican Winter League this year: Estrellas de Oriente (C Drew Butera, C Jhonatan Arias) Gigantes del Cibao (RHP Adrian Salcedo, IF Alexi Casilla, IF Estarlin de Los Santos) Leones del Escogido (SS Pedro Florimon, Toros del Estes (Wilkin Ramirez) Twins top prospect Miguel Sano was the first overall pick in the Dominican Winter League draft (Which took place in mid-August) by the Estrellas de Oriente. He’s not yet listed on the roster, but that could be for a couple of reasons. Twins Instructional League just finished up last Friday, and he could get a break for a bit. I also wouldn’t expect him to get a lot of playing time at this stage of his career. Anthony Slama is one of several Twins minor leaguers playing in the Mexican League. The others are: Algodoneros de Guasave (1B Chris Colabello) Tomateros de Calican (RHP Gonzalo Sanudo) Several of the Twins prospects from Australia are playing in the Australian Baseball League, as well as a couple of US players: Brisbane Bandits (Aaron Thompson, Rory Rhodes) Canberra Cavalry (Tim Atherton) Sydney Blue Sox (Jacob Younis) Melbourne Aces (Sam Gibbons, Markus Solbach, Josh Hendricks) Perth Heat (Brendan Wise) I have heard that RHP Tyler Herr is also playing in Australia, but he is not currently listed on a roster. That is likely the case for any of these leagues. Particularly in Venezuela, it is about producing, and quickly. If not, players are released and replaced by others. There are several reasons that players go to these leagues. First, often times their teams encourage it. They want players to get additional at bats in an intense environment. A pitcher like David Bromberg is going to get extra innings in Venezuela that he lost in 2012 due to injury. Some players understand that they don’t make much money in the US during the regular season, and they need to take advantage of the years that they can get additional pay in these leagues. For young players from those countries, it is a pretty neat opportunity to play in front of their friends and families. If nothing else, it can certainly be fun to follow box scores throughout the winter!

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2513[/ATTACH] Although there have been many storylines throughout the playoffs to this point, on the may not be getting enough play is that the Detroit Tigers have handed over so much playing time to 21-year-old Avisail Garcia. Consider, he began this season in the Florida State League and played just 55 games at Double-A Erie. The Tigers called him up to the big leagues on August 31, making him eligible to compete in the post season. Garcia has just three hits in 12 at bats this postseason, but he has driven in three pretty important runs. He has one RBI in each of the games against the Yankees. He is starting in right field against left-handed pitchers, like Andy Pettitte in Game 1 of the ALCS. With a righty on the mound for the Yankees in Game 2 (Hiroki Kuroda), Quinton Berry got the start, but when the Bombers went to lefty Boone Logan later in the game with the game at hand, Garcia came through with a pinch-hit RBI single. The similarities between Garcia and the Tigers Triple Crown man, Miguel Cabrera, are incredible. Garcia is listed at 6-4 and 240 pounds. Cabrera is listed at 6-4 and 240 pounds. Their batting stances are very similar as are their mannerisms in the batter’s box. Hey, if there is a hitter that a kid from a small town in Venezuela should emulate (on the field only!), it certainly would be Cabrera. As I see Garcia playing and contributing to this Tigers playoff run, I can’t help but also see similarities between Asivail Garcia and the Twins Oswaldo Arcia. Like Garcia, the 21-year-old Arcia started the season in the Florida State League before moving up to the Eastern League for the season’s second half. I can’t help but wonder, if the Twins had made a playoff run in 2012, would the Twins have considered bringing up Oswaldo Arcia and playing him in October? The prevailing answer in my head is “Probably not.” The Twins would not have put Arcia in that situation, for a couple of reasons. First, and foremost, the Twins had plenty of outfielders that were playing well. Josh Willingham was in left field. Denard Span in Centerfield. Ben Revere was in right field. Also, Chris Parmelee could have been put in right field as well after crushing AAA pitching all season. Frankly, there were other options for the Twins, even in a rotten 2012 season, that Arcia did not need to be rushed. It’s different with the Tigers. They have Austin Jackson in centerfield. Andy Dirks has earned every day playing time in the outfield. Quinton Berry had a nice rookie season, but he made a perfect platoon option. Brennan Boesch also hits left-handed, so he wasn’t a platoon option. The right-handed hitting Garcia was a good match with Berry. Also, I’m guessing it wasn’t a very difficult decision for Tigers’ manager Jim Leyland to keep the free-swinging Boesch off of the playoff roster. I also don’t think it would be fair to say that the Twins would never consider bringing up a young player from the minor leagues in September (or August 31) and playing him in the playoffs. In 2003, Michael Cuddyer got recalled to the Twins for September and was the starting right fielder in the ALDS. He started in place of “Dusty Kielmohr” (Bobby Kielty and Dustin Mohr) and went 5-13 (.385) with 3 walks in the series against the A’s. How does Oswaldo Arcia rank as prospect compared to Avisail Garcia? When Baseball America came out with its lists of top prospects by league, both players made two lists. In the Florida State League (High-A), Arcia was listed as the #7 prospect while Garcia was #13. In the Eastern League (AA), Arcia ranked #6 while Garcia ranked at #11. Here are their 2012 numbers, for comparison’s sake: FLORIDA STATE LEAGUE [TABLE] Name Team Games BA/OBP/SLG OPS 2B 3B HR Oswaldo Arcia Ft. Myers 55 .309/.376/.517 .893 16 3 7 Avisail Garcia Lakeland 67 .289/.324/.447 .771 8 5 8 [/TABLE] EASTERN LEAGUE [TABLE] Name Team Games BA/OBP/SLG OPS 2B 3B HR Oswaldo Arcia New Britain 69 .328/.398/.557 .955 20 5 10 Avisail Garcia Erie 55 .312/.345/.465 .810 9 3 6 [/TABLE] Both players were quality Venezuelan prospects and signed just days apart from each other in July of 2007. 2008 – Arcia played in the Dominican Summer League. Garcia played in the Venezuelan Summer League. 2009 – While Arcia moved up one level at a time, starting in the GCL, the Tigers had Garcia start the 2009 season in the Midwest League, playing for West Michigan. Arcia put together a solid season in the GCL, posting a .792 OPS. Garcia struggled, as you would expect, with a .613 OPS. 2010 – Garcia returned to West Michigan in 2010 and improved slightly as a 19 year old. He posted a .669 OPS. Meanwhile, Arcia put together his monster season for Elizabethton. It was the year that he hit .375/.424/.672 (1.096 OPS) with 21 doubles, seven triples and 14 home runs. 2011 – Last year, Arcia started the season in Beloit where he hit .352/.420/.704 with 14 extra base hits in April. He had elbow surgery, and when he came back in June, he went right to Ft. Myers where he posted a .763 OPS for the Miracle with 24 extra base hits. Garcia spent all of 2011 with Lakeland, also in the Florida State League, where he posted a .686 OPS with 33 extra base hits. 2012 – Both started the season back in the Florida State League. Arcia posted an .893 OPS in 55 games before moving up to AA New Britain where he was even better (.955 OPS). Garcia posted a .771 OPS with Lakeland in 67 games before moving up to AA Erie where he posted an .810 OPS. Garcia got the promotion to the Tigers still on August 31 and hit .319 for the Tigers in 23 games. He had 15 singles in 47 at bats. As Oswaldo Arcia is beginning his Venezuelan Winter League season in Aragua (the hometown of Garcia), Garcia is playing in the ALCS against the Yankees. As I watch Garcia contribute for the Tigers in the playoffs, I can’t help but get excited about the Twins future with Oswaldo Arcia (and Aaron Hicks, who ranked #8 in Baseball America’s Eastern League rankings and is also beginning his season in Venezuela with Margarita – where he is 5-14 (.357) to start the season) being a big part of it.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2506[/ATTACH] Last night, in Game 1 of the ALCS, the New York Yankees lost an extra-inning game to Delmon Young and the Detroit Tigers. More important, they lost their captain Derek Jeter for the rest of the season because of a broken ankle. The news is devastating considering he is one Yankees hitter who is actually hitting. Alex Rodriguez is taking all of the heat, but Robinson Cano, Nick Swisher, Curtis Granderson and others are doing very little. The news is devastating to the Yankees and fans of the Yankees. It also is disappointing to fans who just want to watch greatness. The Yankees will go on, and they may even be able to win the ALCS and even the World Series. But to pretend that losing Jeter and replacing him with Jayson Nix at shortstop is anything but devastating is just not understanding. As Toronto Star columnist Richard Griffin tweeted on Sunday, “Jeter is to Nix as gift basket+limo is to Skittles+subway token.” It got me thinking again about what of the most perplexing things about some Twins fans. Why does Derek Jeter get booed so loudly when he comes to Minnesota?? I’m going to try to answer that question, or at least propose some ideas. Maybe you have more? Feel free to voice them in the Comments. “He’s Overrated” OK, we used to hear that one all the time, but when you can make a case that he is the greatest shortstop of all time, it kind of stops meaning much. The only shortstop in big league history that I think is probably a little bit better than Captain Clutch is Honus Wager, and his final season was in 1917. I think an argument could be made for the baseball of today being a little better than that of a century ago. Of those playing in the last few decades, there simply aren’t many to compare Jeter to. Alex Rodriguez and Nomar Garciaparra joined Jeter as AL shortstop beasts for a while, but Jeter has far outlasted them. Garciaparra struggled with injuries before retiring several years ago. Rodriguez moved to 3B when he joined the Yankees. While Jeter has played 2,585 games at the position, A-Rod has played just 1,272 games there. Similarly, Hall of Famer Robin Yount played 1,479 games at shortstop before moving to the outfield when he played over 1,200 games. Ernie Banks played just 1,125 games at shortstop and 1,259 games at first base. Of course, Jeter’s career OPS (to this point) is .829, and Yount’s was .772 while Banks’ was at .830. Cal Ripken is the one that we can compare Jeter to as he played over 2,300 games at shortstop before finishing his career with another 675 games at the hot corner. [TABLE] Name Games H/AB BA/OBP/SLG (OPS) 2B/3B/HR RBI/Runs Derek Jeter 2,585 3,304/10,551 .313/.382/.448 (.829) 524/65/255 1,254/1,868 398 SB Honus Wagner 2,794 3,420/10,439 .328/.391/.467 (.858) 643/252/101 1,475/1,739 723 SB Cal Ripken 3,001 3,184/11,551 .276/.340/.447 (.788) 603/44/431 1,695/1,647 Alex Rodriguez 2,524 2,901/9,662 .300/.384/.560 (.945) 512/30/647 1,950/1,898 Robin Yount 2,856 3,142/11,008 .285/.342/.430 (.772) 583/126/251 1,406/1,632 271 SB Ernie Banks 2,528 2,538/9,421 .274/.330/.500 (.830) 407/90/512 1,636/1,305 [/TABLE] “Because he’s a Yankee” Jeter grew up in Kalamazoo, Michigan and graduated from high school in 1992. With the 6th overall pick in that draft, the New York Yankees drafted him. He became a top prospect and was up with the team by September of 1995. He became a star, and like so many others throughout history, he has stayed with the same team. Kirby Puckett stayed with the Twins his whole career. Cal Ripken is synonymous with the Baltimore Orioles. The all-time great Yankees throughout history like Lou Gehrig, Mickey Mantle, Joe Dimaggio, Whitey Ford and Yogi Berra all stayed with the team their whole career. Derek Jeter is a lifelong New York Yankee, and that’s the way it should be. If you don’t like the Yankees because they spend so much money, well, I guess that’s cool. Lots of fans don’t, and that’s fine. But, Derek Jeter has nothing to do with those decisions. “He’s a Winner” In most places in society, that is considered a good thing, isn’t it? Has he been the sole reason for the five World Series championships (and two other World Series teams) that the Yankees have had in his career? Of course not, but no winning team has just one great player. Has he been a big part of those championships? Without question. Jeter has essentially played an extra season in his career, in the playoffs. He has played 158 playoff games and hit .308/.374/.465 (.838) with 32 doubles, five triples, 20 home runs, 61 RBI and 111 runs scored. (By the way, in case anyone is wondering, those numbers are not included in his career numbers listed above.) In the World Series, Jeter has been just as good. He has hit .321/.384/.449 (.832) in 58 games. “The Media Loves Him” Yup… and I can’t blame them. He’s great in interviews. He’s always been and shown tremendous class. He talks during good and bad times. It’s like the Brett Favre situation, or Duke basketball. Since Tim Tebow was added to the New York Jets this past summer, they certainly fit into this category too. I’m not sure what people want in these scenarios. What do people want Tim Tebow to do? Not be himself? Do they want him to become a jerk? Same thing with Jeter. Is he supposed to not act classy? Should he try to get in trouble with the law? He isn’t asking for all the extra attention, and he shouldn’t have to ask that people stop loving him the way they do. He’s put himself into the upper echelon of elite baseball players of all time, and he has handled it with class since day one. As a fan, that’s pretty impressive. As a parent, I would think he would be quite the role model for kids. He has even won the Roberto Clemente Award for community service. “He Dates Women that We Dream About” Mariah Carey. Jordana Brewster. Vanessa Minnillo. Miss Universe (Lara Dutta). Scarlett Johansson. Jessica Biel. Jessica Alba. Minka Kelly. Yup. He does. But let’s be honest here. If they weren’t dating Derek Jeter, they probably still would not have been dating you either. “If we boo him, it will distract him!” One of the things I’ll never understand is why home fans boo when the opposing pitcher throws over to first base on a pick-off attempt. It’s part of the game! I’ve been told that some fans do that in an attempt to distract the pitcher, and sometimes they take credit for a pitcher throwing wildly. The pitcher wasn’t distracted by the booing. He just threw wildly. Maybe there are some Twins fans who think that booing Jeter distracts him from hitting. Well, in 52 games at the Metrodome, he posted a .779 OPS, and in ten games so far at Target Field, his OPS is .778. So, it’s not working. Overall against the Twins, he is hitting (in 125 games) .323/.388/.470 (.857) with 32 doubles, two triples, 13 homers and 57 RBI. So yes, he is better at Yankees Stadium than he is when hitting in Minnesota, but I would venture to guess that is not unusual. “The Twins Can’t Develop a Shortstop” Since Derek Jeter took over as the Yankees shortstop at the start of the 1996 season, the Twins have used 31 players at shortstop. It may not be all that impressive, but I think we can all admit that it isn’t Jeter’s fault. In fact, the #1 on this list came to the Twins because he was never going to get a shot with the Yankees. This is a fun list to review, if only to remember some futility. Cristian Guzman (833), Pat Meares (433), Jason Bartlett (310), Nick Punto (248), Denny Hocking (243), Juan Castro (123), Brendan Harris (122), JJ Hardy (100), Brian Dozier (83), Alexi Casilla (77), Tsuyoshi Nishioka (60), Trevor Plouffe (55), Matt Tolbert (51), Adam Everett (44), Pedro Florimon (43), Jamey Carroll (37), Jeff Reboulet (37), Chris Gomez (17), Jason Maxwell (17), Luis Rodriguez (12), Luis Rivas (8), Augie Ojeda (7), Eduardo Escobar (6), Ariel Prieto (4), Cleatus Davidson (4), David Lamb (4), Brent Gates (2), Dave Hollins (1), Chuck Knoblauch (1), Jon Shave (1), Tommy Watkins (1). “He shouldn’t have won (those FIVE) Gold Gloves” You’re probably right, but he’s certainly not the only player to win a Gold Glove because of his offense. That happens all the time. Twins fans likely still remember when Rafael Palmiero won a Gold Glove at 1B despite playing just 17 games at first base (And the rest as a DH) while Doug Mientkiewicz was making all the plays with his first baseman’s mitt. He doesn’t have much range, but it’s not like Jeter is a butcher at shortstop. Jeter was also the 1996 AL Rookie of the Year. He has played in 13 All Star games. He won four Silver Slugger Awards. In 2006 and 2009, he was the Hank Aaron Award winner as the top hitter in the league. Three times he has finished in the Top 3 in the league in AL MVP voting. In fact, many very wise baseball people made the strong argument that Jeter, and not the Twins Justin Morneau, should have won the 2006 award. So, as Derek Jeter’s 2012 playoff runs comes to an end, I can’t help but ask, “Why do Twins fans boo Derek Jeter?” Why?

[ATTACH=CONFIG]2490[/ATTACH] The Twins season ended a week ago, and we’ve all had a chance to look back at another 95+ loss season. Likely, you’ve also already started thinking about what you would do to get the Twins back to being a perennial contender in the AL Central. The question I have for readers today is: If you were in charge, would you look toward winning in 2013, 2014 or something in the 3-5 year range? How you would go about building your blueprint is largely dependent upon your answer to that question. At Twins Daily, we are putting the final touches on the Offseason GM Handbook. I’m working on the final pieces of my blueprint, and that is the question that I am fighting the most. Obviously I want the Twins to contend in 2013! If I’ve learned anything from the past two years, it’s that I’m stronger in my conviction that the 162 games of the regular season is much better to watch when the team is competitive! But I also fully believe that going heavily the free agent direction can’t be successful long-term. If we’re all in agreement that the Twins 2013 payroll will likely be a little less than it was in 2012 (somewhere between $85-94 million), would your blueprint be one that looks to contending in 2013, 2014 or beyond? If your answer is to compete in 2013, the Twins should keep all of their veterans which means they will only have room to add a couple of mid-tier free agents. They could also trade prospects to bring in help for 2013. If your answer is to compete in 2014, then the Twins will need to determine which veterans to keep around and which to trade for some final pieces. You could probably bring in one quality free agent, but it’s also going to require that you be patient with some young players, hoping that a couple of them take a big step forward and can be counted on in 2014. That includes the likes of Pedro Florimon, Liam Hendriks and Brian Dozier, but it also includes the likes of Trevor Plouffe who will get the year to find out if he can be the 3B of the future. It also means some July trades and second-half playing time for the likes of Kyle Gibson, Joe Benson, Oswaldo Arcia and Aaron Hicks. If you’re thinking that the team is more than two years from competing, the free agents that you bring in really need to be tradeable at the July deadline. Guys who are on one-year, make-good types of deals would be ideal. It should be all about youth and player development. That doesn’t necessarily mean in the big leagues, It’s an interesting question because there is no right or wrong answer. The Twins do have a nice core of players, but they need a ton of pitching. Starting from scratch seems silly, in some ways. Consider the Oakland A’s. In recent years, they have traded away players and pitchers who were performing very well, yet they have been able to acquire some players, particularly pitchers, who are helping the A’s to their unlikely 2012 season. However, it was their first season in which they finished above .500 since 2006. The Kansas City Royals are perennially a team that has some of baseball’s top prospects. They are always supposed to be the team on the rise when all those young players develop. Well, the Royals have had just one winning season in the last 20 years. The Orioles typically go in the opposite direction. In recent years, they have been active in free agency, often signing some veteran players to deals that are too high. The last time that the Orioles had a winning season was 1997. So, there is no answer that guarantees winning or losing. So, it’s up to you, and I’ll ask again: If you were in charge, would you look toward winning in 2013, 2014 or something in the 3-5 year range?