Seth Stohs

Today, we'll round out the infield and vote for the preseason AL Central third baseman. Let's get the discussion going on "Which AL Central Third Baseman will be the best in 2012?" Vote now and comment your rankings. The Candidates (2011 stats) Minnesota Twins - Danny Valencia - .246/.294/.383 (.677) with 28-2B, 2-3B, 15-HR, 72 RBI Chicago White Sox - Brent Morel - .245/.287/.366 (.653) with 18-2B, 1-3B, 10-HR, 41 RBI Cleveland Indians - Jack Hannahan - .250/.331/.388 (.719) with 16-2B, 2-3B, 8-HR, 40 RBI Lonnie Chisenhall MLB - .255/.284/.415 (.699) with 13-2B, 0-3B, 7-HR, 22 RBI Lonnie Chisenhall MILB - .267/.353/.431 (.784) with 15-2B, 3-3B, 7-HR, 45 RBI Detroit Tigers - Miguel Cabrera - .344/.448/.586 (1.033) with 48-2B, 0-3B, 30-HR, 105 RBI Kansas City Royals - Mike Moustakus MLB- .263/.309/.367 (.675) with 18-2B, 1-3B, 5-HR, 30 RBI Mike Moustakus MILB- .287/.347/.498 (.845) with 15-2B, 1-3B, 10-HR, 44 RBI[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] SUMMARY Valencia burst on the scene in June of 2010 and hit .311. He hit .311 and came up big in many situations. 2011 was a very frustrating year for Valencia offensively and defensively. He was the lone Twins player who managed to stay pretty much healthy all year. He's off to a good start the spring, and hopefully that will carry into the season. Valencia will be 27 years old most of the season. (For much more, be sure to read Nick's Twins 3B Position Analysis.) Morel has been a prospect in the White Sox system for quite some time. He is solid with the glove, but he struggled at the plate in 2011. Morel will turn 25 years old in April. Cleveland has a little position battle brewing at third base. Cretin-Derham Hall grad and former Gopher Jack Hannahan is 32 and the definition of a solid, replacement level veteran. Lonnie Chisenhall was the team's 1st round pick in 2008 and has risen quickly up the system. He didn't hit as well as most believe that he will. He is just 23 years old. Miguel Cabrera is one of the best hitters in all of baseball. He has played in six All Star games. Although he's never been named league MVP, he has finished in the top five in voting five times. he has finished in the top three each of the past three seasons. He moves to third base this season with the Tigers' acquisition of Prince Fielder. That should be interesting for the soon-to-be 29 year old. Mike Moustakus has been a top prospect since being drafted by the Royals. He is a good combination of power and batting average. The 23 year old should hopes to make big strides in 2012 and give the Royals a great young nucleus with its corner infielders. There is the information, now it is time to vote. Who will be the best third baseman in the AL Central in 2012? My choice?

According to Hardball Talk, two Twins Minor Leaguers have been suspended 50 games for testing postive to a banned substance. Both players played in the Dominican Summer League in 2011. Yeison Florentino went 1-2 with 3 saves and a 3.16 ERA in 2011. In 25.2 innings, he gave up 22 hits, walked 15 and struck out 18. As an 18 year old in 2010, he was 1-2 with a 2.70 ERA. In 16.2 innings, he gave up nine hits, walked 22 and struck out 11. Ezequiel Zarzuela will be 21 years old throughout the 2012 season. In 2011, he went 3-2 with 3 saves and a 2.60 ERA. In 19 games and 34.2 innings, he gave up 30 hits, walked 19 and struck out 40. In 2010, he was 7-3 with a 2.68 ERA. In 53.2 innings, he gave up 50 hits, walked 20 and struck out 36. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Due to their advanced age in the DSL (yes, of 20 and 21), neither was considered a big prospect. Kennys Vargas was suspended 50 games last year while playing with Elizabethton. His suspension carries into the 2012 season.

So far we have voted on the Preseason AL Central Catcher, First Baseman and Second Baseman choices. Now let's get the discussion going on "Which AL Central Shortstop will be the best in 2012?" Vote now and comment your rankings. The Candidates (2011 stats) Minnesota Twins - Jamey Carroll - .290/.359/.347 (.706) with 14-2B, 6-3B, 0-HR, 17 RBI Chicago White Sox - Alexei Ramirez - .269/.328/.399 (.727) with 31-2B, 2-3B, 15-HR, 70 RBI Cleveland Indians - Asdrubal Cabrera - .273/.332/.460 (.792) with 32-2B, 3-3B, 25-HR, 92 RBI Detroit Tigers - Jhonny Peralta - .299/.345/.478 (.824) with 25-2B, 3-3B, 21-HR, 86 RBI Kansas City Royals - Alcides Escobar - .254/.290/.343 (.633) with 21-2B, 8-3B, 4-HR, 46 RBI SUMMARY Looking for a settling influence for an infield that really struggled in 2011, the Twins look to Carroll in 2012. The veteran is solid with the glove. He is also terrific as a top of the order, on-base guy. Don't expect much, if any, power from him, but it is fair to expect to see him help the Twins with the glove and in the lineup. The 38 year old played 146 games for the Dodgers in 2011. Alexei Ramirez finished second in rookie of the year voting in 2008. In 2010, he won the AL Silver Slugger Award for shortstops. The 30-year-old Cuban had a down year in 2011, but he does provide some good extra-base hit power near the bottom of the lineup. Asdrubal Cabrera was a first-time All Star in 2011 and won his first Silver Slugger Award. I think many were surprised that he was not named a Gold Glove winner because he is very good with the glove. The 26-year-old has a lot of power and turned it into home run power in 2011. He also stole 17 bases. Jhonny Peralta was moved to 3B when he was traded from Cleveland to the Tigers, but last year he moved back to the middle of the diamond. He posted his best season in 2011 and played in his first All Star game. Although he has been around a long time, he will turn 30 at the end of May. When the Royals traded Zach Greinke before the 2011 season, they received several players that will impact them for several years. They wanted to improve their shortstop defense so one of the players they received from the Brewers was Alcides Escobar. He is a free swinger who occasionally gets an extra base hit, and with his great speed, he turns singles into doubles and doubles into triples. He turned just 25 years old in December and played in 158 games in 2011. There is your information, now it is time to vote. Who will be the best first baseman in the AL Central in 2012? My choice?

Manager Ron Gardenhire wanted him up in the big leagues last summer. Teammates praise his leadership as well as his ability to do anything and everything needed with the bat. Pitchers love when he is playing shortstop behind them. How can Brian Dozier make the Twins Opening Day Roster? There are many things going against Dozier this spring, at least in terms of making the opening day roster. The biggest thing he has going for him is his play and his personality. Let’s start with the reasons that he will not make the Opening Day Roster: Jamey Carroll and Alexi Casilla – The Twins brought in Jamey Carroll and paid him enough that he will get a starting job. He’s earned that by playing in 140+ games the last two years, being solid defensively and getting on base at a very good clip. The Twins are committed to giving Alexi Casilla another shot as a starter at second base. Even if the leash on Casilla isn’t real long, he will get a shot to start. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Brian Dozier is a real prospect – In other words, they are not going to keep him on the big league roster if he isn’t going to play nearly every day. It would be best for Dozier’s development to go to Rochester and play every day. Dozier will not come up as a utility player yet. 40 man roster – Dozier is not on it. Sure, it would be easy to add him to the 40 man roster, especially with Joel Zumaya’s roster spot available when he is put on the 60 Day Disabled List. But the Twins may use that to add a reliever. Dozier doesn’t need to be added to the 40 man roster, so unless he proves himself in a short period of time to be vastly better than the other options, there is little reason to add him now. Free Agency – It’s weird to look six or seven years in advance, especially in baseball where year-to-year is often not a guarantee. However, if the Twins wait to add Dozier to the 40 man roster until after about April 20th, it would be an extra season before he could become a free agent. Is having him up two or three weeks earlier worth losing a full season of his best years? Hasn’t spent a day in AAA – This isn’t a complete deal-breaker, but it is unusual for players to be promoted directly from AA without spending time in AAA. It’s happened. The Twins did that with Joe Benson and Chris Parmelee last year in September and Ben Revere the September before that. In each of those cases, it was simply for an opportunity to see the players, and in Revere’s case, his speed could be used in late innings as a pinch runner during a pennant race. Brad Radke came up from AA. Others have, including Joe Mauer. Tsuyoshi Nishioka – What will the Twins do (or be able to do) with Nishioka and his contract? Would they send him to Rochester? They may be willing to keep him up as a utility player an not play him very much. I’m sure you can add other reasons for why the Twins would choose not to put Brian Dozier on their opening day roster. However, there are some reasons that it should not be considered completely out of the realm of possibility for Dozier to leave camp with the Twins. Offense – After putting up fairly pedestrian numbers in 2010 at Beloit and Ft. Myers, Dozier had an incredible 2011 season in which he was named the Twins Minor League Hitter of the Year. In 49 games in Ft. Myers and 78 games in New Britain, he combined to hit .320/399/.491 with 33 doubles, 12 triples, nine home runs and 56 RBI. He stole 24 bases. He had ten sacrifice bunts. Defense – Although scouts tend to be mixed on whether or not he can be an everyday shortstop or a second baseman or a utility infielder, he makes the routine plays. That’s all that the Twins brass asks a player to do. He credited his Arizona Fall League manager Joe McEwing with helping him increase his range with just a couple of quick alterations. Versatility – He can play shortstop and second base, so if Carroll or Casilla were to be hurt, he could fill in for either of them. Carroll is also versatile, so if the Twins feel, at some point, that Alexi Casilla needs to move back to the bench, Carroll could move to second and Dozier could play shortstop. Leadership – it isn’t a measurable quality, but teammates at each level talk about his ability to lead. He isn’t a loudmouth, but he leads by example and isn’t afraid to take charge on the field. Obviously we know that is important to Ron Gardenhire. Tsuyoshi Nishioka - Because the Twins clearly are not big supporters of Nishioka at this point, it is possible that they would release the middle infielder, give Dozier a starting gig and move Carroll or Casilla to a bench role. The odds are stacked against Brian Dozier, who went 2-3 with a triple yesterday in exhibition play, to make the Twins Opening Day roster. However, the odds are definitely in favor of Brian Dozier being promoted to the Twins at some point in 2012. The odds are also very good that once he is called up, he will remain a starter with the Twins for several seasons.

The voting for preseason AL Central catcher and first basemen will continue for another day, but let's get the discussion going on "Which AL Central Second Baseman will be the best in 2012?" Vote now and comment your rankings. THE CANDIDATES (2011 stats) Minnesota Twins - Alexi Casilla - .260/.322/.368 (.691) with 21-2B, 3-3B, 2-HR, 21 RBI Chicago White Sox - Gordon Beckham - .230/.296/.337 (.633) with 23-2B, 0-3B, 10-HR, 44 RBI Cleveland Indians - Jason Kipnis MLB - .272/.333/.507 (.841) with 9-2B, 1-3B, 7-HR, 19 RBI (MILB - .280/.362/.484 (.846) with 16-2B, 9-3B, 12-HR, 55 RBI) Detroit Tigers - Brandon Inge - .197/.265/.283 (.548) with 10-2B, 2-3B, 3-HR, 23 RBI [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Kansas City Royals - Johnny Giavotella - .247/.273/.376 (.649) with 9-2B, 4-3B, 2-HR, 21 RBI (MILB - .338/.390/.481 (.871) with 34-2B, 2-3B, 9-HR, 72 RBI) SUMMARY Alexi Casilla was so bad in April of 2011 that his numbers don't show that he was pretty solid after May. Of course, he also missed the last two months of the 2011 season because of a hamstring injury. He is still just 27 years old. Gordon Beckham was so bad in 2011 that his sophomore slump didn't look bad at all. He did play in a career-high 150 games as Ozzie Guillen continued to stand by him. He will be 25 years old throughout the season. 35-year-old Brandon Inge was so bad in 2011 that he was designated for assignment and no one claimed him or his contract. He accepted going to AAA and when he came back, he accepted a bench role. In 2012, he will be given an opportunity to play 2B since Miguel Cabrera is moving to 3B. The .846 OPS that Kipnis put up in AAA-Columbus was the lowest he had at any minor league stop since Cleveland made him their 2nd round pick in 2009. He debuted with the Indians and showed a lot of power. He will turn 25 right before the season begins. Giavotella was the Royals 2nd round pick in 2008. He struggled in the lower levels, but has lit up AA in 2010 and AAA in 2011. He debuted with the Royals late last year and played 46 games. Following the season, he had hip surgery. He is already playing in Royals spring training. There is the information, now it is time to vote. Who will be the best second baseman in the AL Central in 2012? My choice?

After struggling during the first week of spring training with the bat, the Twins go three home runs on Sunday afternoon to top the New York Yankees 5-1. Joe Benson got the Twins on the board with a long, solo home run in the 5th inning. In the bottom of the 7th, Danny Valencia gave the Twins a 2-1 lead with his second home run in as many days. In the bottom of the 8th, Michael Hollimon hit a long, 3-run homer into the wind that gave the Twins the 5-1 lead. (Hollimon is now 4-6 on the spring with the Twins.) The Twins continued to pitch well also. Nick Blackburn started and threw three scoreless innings. He gave up three hits and was helped by his defense. With speedy Brett Gardner on first base, Curtis Granderson hit a long drive to center field. When Joe Benson (who was in the lineup because Denard Span had a stiff neck) realized he couldn't make the catch, he played the ball perfectly off the wall. He uncoiled a strong throw toward the infield. Alexi Casilla grabbed the throw and relayed a perfect strike to Joe Mauer to get Gardner easily at the plate. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] The bullpen was terrific again. Brian Duensing pitched a scoreless inning. Matt Capps walked one but did not allow a run. Aaron Thompson came in and gave up a run on two hits in the 6th. Jeff Manship came in and looked very sharp in a scoreless seventh inning. Carlos Gutierrez pitched the 8th frame. He consistently hit 96 mph with his fastball. He threw two offspeed pitches, neither of which was close to the strike zone. Brendan Wise gave up a single to lead off the 9th, but he got a double play and another ground out to end the game.

The voting for preseason AL Central catcher will continue for another day, but let's get the discussion going on "Which AL Central First Baseman will be the best in 2012?" Vote now and comment your rankings. The First Basemen (2011 stats) Minnesota Twins - Justin Morneau - .227/.285/.333 (.618) with 16-2B, 4-HR, 30 RBI Chicago White Sox - Paul Konerko - .300/.388/.517 (.906) with 25-2B, 31-HR, 105 RBI Cleveland Indians - Casey Kotchman - .306/.378/.422 (.800) with 24-2B, 2-3B, 10-HR, 48 RBI Detroit Tigers - Prince Fielder - .299/.415/.566 (.981) with 36-2B, 1-3B, 38-HR, 120 RBI Kansas City Royals - Eric Hosmer - .293/.334/.465 (.799) with 27-2B, 3-3B, 19-HR, 78 RBI[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] SUMMARY It has been a rough year and a half for the Twins first baseman. Morneau has played in four All Star games, won the 2006 MVP and finished 2nd in 2010. But since getting kneed in the head by John McDonald in July of 2010, he has not been himself. Can he be again? We (Twins fans) sure hope so, but no one knows. He will turn 31 years old in May. 36-year-old Konerko is a guy who people keep thinking will drop off in his production, and then he put up another .900+ OPS season in 2011 despite fighting an injury most of the second half of the season. He also didn't get the kind of protection last year that most thought he would. Consider what numbers he could put up if Adam Dunn comes back with a solid season. Casey Kotchman was the 13th overall pick in 2001 out of high school. He is just 29 years old and hit well for the Rays in 2011. Cleveland will be his sixth team since 2008, and he is again on a one year contract. Eric Hosmer was the third overall pick in 2008 out of high school, so he will be just 22 years old throughout the 2012 season. He finished third place in AL Rookie of the Year voting last year with an impressive debut season. Can he fight off a sophomore slump and improve upon hi first year numbers? The Tigers surprised many in the baseball world by signing free agent Prince Fielder to a monster, nine-year, $214 million contract. He can flat-out hit, and no one seems worried about the 27 year old for the next couple of years. He has played in no less than 157 games in his full, big league seasons. He has finished in the Top 5 in NL MVP voting three times. He has even won two Silver Slugger Awards in a league that included Albert Pujols. However, switching leagues does often impact a player's numbers in year one. There is the information, now it is time to vote. Who will be the best first baseman in the AL Central in 2012? My choice?

It's no secret that the Twins have really struggled offensively to this point in spring training. That remained the case on Saturday when, in this sixth inning, the Twins were down 2-1 to the Pirates. Valencia stepped to the plate with two runners on and uncorked a long home run to give the Twins a 4-2 lead. The bullpen held the lead and the Twins got the win. For Valencia, it was his first home of the spring. For the Twins, it was just their third spring home run (Chris Parmelee and JR Towles had the other two). In his previous at bat, Valencia had ripped a double to the right center field gap. On the day, the Twins managed just four other hits. Terry Doyle got hit pretty hard by the Pirates. In 2.2 innings, he gave up two runs on seven hits and a walk. He was aided by a popped up bunt and a runner caught stealing on a pitch-out. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] He was helped by another terrific performance by the bullpen. Anthony Swarzak got the final out of the third inning and pitched a scoreless fourth frame. Jared Burton, Matt Maloney, Kyle Waldrop, Lester Oliveros and PJ Walters each threw a scoreless inning. ----- Earlier in the day, the Twins and Pirates played a "B" game. Scott Baker was to start, but he was unable to get loose on time, so Jeff Gray pitched the first inning. Then Alex Burnett pitched the second. Baker finally pitched in the 3rd. He was able to record just one out before the inning was called. He pitched a second inning and struggled. In all, he gave up six runs in 1.1 innings. Following the outing, Baker said his elbow was fine, he just couldn't get the ball down. Oswaldo Arcia hit a long, opposite field home run. Chris Parmelee hit two doubles.

I thought I'd start a new series here and see how it plays out. I thought it would be fun for Twins Daily readers to vote on the preseason All AL Central team. The question with each of these rankings will be "Which player do you think will have the best season in 2012?" In other words, it has nothing to do with what happened in 2011 or earlier, and it isn't asking which you would build a team with. It is, which player will be the best in 2012. (Click Here to Vote!) Let's start with the Catcher candidates: Minnesota Twins - Joe Mauer - (2011 numbers - .287/.360/.368 (.729) with 15-2B, 3-HR, 30 RBI) Chicago White Sox - AJ Pierzynski - (2011 numbers - .287/.323/.405 (.728) with 29-2B, 1-3B, 8-HR, 48 RBI) [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Cleveland Indians - Carlos Santana - (2011 numbers - .239/.351/.457 (.808) with 35-2B, 2-3B, 27-HR, 79 RBI) Detroit Tigers - Alex Avila - (2011 numbers - .295/.389/.506 (.895) with 37-2B, 4-3B, 19-HR, 82 RBI) Kansas City Royals - Salvador Perez - (2011 MLB numbers - .331/.361/.473 (.834) with 8-2B, 2-3B, 3-HR, 21 RBI) Kansas City Royals - Salvador Perez - (2011 Min Lg numbers - .290/.331/.437 (.769) with 19-2B, 10-HR, 53 RBI) SUMMARY 2011 was a forgettable season for Joe Mauer. He had knee surgery in the offseason, tried to come back too quick from that, was hurt by a bad Bi-Lateral Leg Weakness disagnosis, struggled, and his season ended early with mild pneumonia. Mauer will turn 29 years old on April 19 and is just two years removed from being the league's MVP. The Twins will likely move Joe Mauer around a little bit, letting him DH and get some starts at 1B. Cleveland has been doing that for years with Victor Martinez and now with the powerful, patient Carlos Santana. Although the batting average was low, he has a good on-base percentage and a ton of power. Santana will turn 26 years old on April 8. Alex Avila was a big surprise for the Tigers in 2011. He got his playing time behind the plate and managed to stay healthy all year. He did a nice job behind the plate, but he really took off with the bat, hitting for average and good extra base hit power. Avila recently turned 25 years old. AJ Pierzynski has been a solid big league catcher for a long time, and his durability has been impressive. With Pierzynski now 35, the White Sox may give Tyler Flowers more and more at bats. The Royals made news a couple of weeks ago when the inked Salvador Perez to a long-term deal. He played in just 39 big league games with the Royals last year as a 21 year old and hit very well, continuing a season that started with 79 games in AA before 12 games in AAA. He will turn 22 years old in early May and with Brayan Pena around, the Royals can be smart in allowing his development. Two years ago, the argument could be made that Joe Mauer was the best player, much less the best catcher in baseball. Now, an argument could be made that he is the third best catcher in the AL Central. But that's coming off of a bad 2011 season. What will 2012 bring? Who is your choice for AL Central Preseason Catcher for 2012? Please feel free to vote in the poll. (in case you're wondering, my choice is...)

If you follow the tremendous work of 1500 ESPN's Phil Mackey, you know that every Sunday, he posts an updated 25 man roster projection. Phil is in Ft. Myers and talking to players, coaches and front office personnel, so he may have some insider information. But, I think that we can all do our own roster projections because until we get to April and the team has to announce their 25 man roster, anything can happen. I hope to post my projection updates each Friday and hope that you will leave your projections in the comments and discuss. The players in Red are players that I believe are givens to make the roster (obviously pending injury). Those in black are potentially up for grabs. Catchers: Joe Mauer, Ryan Doumit, JR Towles Although Towles isn't exactly an exciting prospect like he was 5 years ago, he likely is an improvement over Drew Butera. If the team insists on three catchers, I now believe Towles tops Butera. Infielders: Justin Morneau, Alexi Casilla, Danny Valencia, Jamey Carroll, Tsuyoshi Nishioka, Luke Hughes It certainly doesn't sound like the Twins really want to keep Nishioka around. I personally think that in terms of a pure utility infielder, Ray Chang would be the right choice. I think Luke Hughes is on the bench for power, if he is not placed on the disabled list. Outfielders: Ben Revere, Denard Span, Josh Willingham, Trevor Plouffe As much talk as there has been about Plouffe taking over in LF with Revere as the 4th outfielder, Plouffe will have to improve tremendously with the glove for that to happen consistently. Starting Pitchers: Carl Pavano, Francisco Liriano, Scott Baker, Nick Blackburn, Jason Marquis No changes, no surprises here, although Terry Doyle and Liam Hendriks have looked good in their couple of outings early in spring. Bullpen: Matt Capps, Glen Perkins, Brian Duensing, Anthony Swarzak, Jared Burton, Jeff Manship, Terry Doyle The first four appear set. Burton was the non-roster invite who garnered the most attention coming in to camp, and he's been good so far. Too many people have forgotten about Jeff Manship as a bullpen option, and he's been good. If Terry Doyle continues to pitch well, the Twins will certainly want to keep their Rule 5 investment. It is early, and we know guys like Kyle Waldrop, Alex Burnett, Lester Oliveros, Jeff Gray, Esmerling Vasquez, Matt Maloney and others will try to make an impression. I admit as well that I am intrigued by Brendan Wise as well. Those last three names are certainly debatable and subject to change over the next three or four weeks. What are your thoughts? What does your roster look like?

The Twins announced this morning that left-handed relief pitcher Glen Perkins had agreed to and signed a three year contract extension worth $10.3 million. The contract includes an option for 2016. UPDATE - According to Joe Christensen of the Star Tribune via Twitter, "#Twins will pay Perkins $2.5 million in 2013, and $3.75 m in both 2014 and 2015. Option (2016) is for $4.5 m with $300K buyout." In January, Perkins and the Twins avoided arbitration by agreeing to a $1.55 million contract for 2012. We do not yet have the breakdown for his annual salaries going forward, but an average annual salary of $3.43 million puts him in line with other top young bullpen arms. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] The contract essentially buys out his final year of arbitration and two years of free agency, with an option for a third year. The Minnesota native and former Minnesota Gopher will continue to pitch in key roles for the Twins through at least the 2015 season. Remember just one year ago today, most Twins fans would have been happy if the Twins had just released Perkins rather than offer him arbitration. However, the Twins insisted that his move to the bullpen would be fruitful, that the ball was 'really coming out of his hand well.' Perkins responded very well, posting an ERA of 2.48 and a WHIP of 1.23. In 61.2 innings, he walked 21 and struck out 65. The Twins haven't had the best of luck with long-term deals of late, but this one makes a lot of sense. What do you think of the deal and the Twins signing a long-term deal with one of its top bullpen arms?

How many times this offseason have you heard the phrase, “The Twins have some really good prospects but they don’t have any in the upper levels of their farm system?” I hear it all the time, and frankly, it kind of hits a nerve with me. In 2011, the Twins had a season in which pretty much everyone got hurt and missed significant time. That meant more playing time for Luke Hughes and Trevor Plouffe and Ben Revere which may prove valuable as early as 2012. Those guys were rushed. Ben Revere and Rene Tosoni had hardly any AAA at bats. Those four no longer are technically prospects, but they will still be young, inexperienced players on the 2012 Twins roster. There’s no question that the Twins top prospect is Miguel Sano, and yet, he will likely spend the 2012 season playing in Class Low-A Beloit. He will be joined there by another top prospect Eddie Rosario. Aaron Hicks and Oswaldo Arcia are top 5 prospects who ended the 2011 season in Ft. Myers and could very well start there again in 2012. Those four prospects are all high ceiling prospects that are at least three promotions from the big leagues. But that does not mean that the Twins do not have prospects in the upper levels. The Twins have several prospects at the upper levels waiting for an opportunity to contribute to the big league club. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] The Twins outfield appears to be pretty set with Ben Revere, Trevor Plouffe, Denard Span and Josh Willingham. At AAA, the Twins will have Joe Benson and Rene Tosoni. Both can use that AAA time, but both will also be able to contribute should the Twins have a need. Benson profiles to be a starter and an impact player. He probably is already the best defensive outfielder in the organization. Tosoni could probably be an everyday player although his splits indicate he will likely best be served as a platoon candidate and a left-handed bench bat with good power. Darin Mastroianni is also big league ready but probably profiles as a fourth or fifth outfielder. With Joe Mauer behind the plate and Ryan Doumit as his backup, the Twins top two catchers are quite solid. Drew Butera, JR Towles and (to a lesser degree) Rene Rivera are competing for a possible third catcher job. Frankly, Danny Lehmann is as good as any of them offensively and defensively. But, by season’s end, Chris Herrmann could be in the picture as a call-up at catcher. Although he would be a backup catcher to Mauer this year, he can also play in the outfield and hit and walk. Chris Parmelee put up solid numbers in 2011 in AA New Britain. It wasn’t as strong as teammates Benson, Brian Dozier or even Yangervis Solarte, but he was consistent and showed a good approach at the plate. His swing is sound and he has a good approach at the plate. If there was an injury to Justin Morneau or even Ryan Doumit, Parmelee could be brought up and be a starter and he could be a starter for years. In the middle infield, the Twins will start the season with Jamey Carroll and Alexi Casilla. Most likely Tsuyoshi Nishioka will be the team’s utility infielder. Brian Dozier is a guy who has a chance to be with the Twins at some point in the 2012 season. No, he doesn’t profile as an All-Star, but he is another guy who can be a solid starter for five or six years. Pedro Florimon has the best range and arm among middle infielders, although he may not have enough bat. Ray Chang isn’t a prospect due to his age, but he likely is a much better utility infielder option than Nishioka. The Twins have their starting five pretty well set. If there is an injury early in the season, the team may go to Terry Doyle to make some starts and see how he does. If it is a few months into the season, Liam Hendriks will likely be ready. Although he doesn’t profile as a #1 or #2 starter, he does profile very similarly to Scott Baker when he came up to the Twins. Kyle Gibson does profile as a #2 type of starter, but he will likely not pitch with the Twins in 2012. Maybe in September? Scott Diamond is a spot starter and a long reliever most likely. Then comes the question mark that is the bullpen where there are more than a dozen pitchers trying to win three open spots. Kyle Waldrop is a groundball machine, capable and ready for an opportunity to pitch in the big leagues. Carlos Gutierrez has the stuff to be a solid back of the bullpen reliever if he can be more aggressive, throw more strikes and stay healthy. Deolis Guerra has just one more year worth of options and, despite a very rough first outing of spring on Tuesday, his performance the second half of 2011 gives hope that he can be a good 7th inning guy. Tyler Robertson was terrific the second half of 2011 as the Rock Cats closer. Lester Oliveros is a hard-throwing reliever who needs a little more AAA time and is just 23 years old. He should get time in Rochester to continue to develop. Finally, Alex Burnett has been in the Twins bullpen for the past two seasons and yet he never had time to develop in Rochester. He could use that time, and he’s just 24 years old, making him younger than half of the guys in this paragraph. As you can see, the Twins do have a lot of prospects in the upper levels of the minor leagues that can contribute to some degree in the big leagues. Guys like Chris Parmelee, Joe Benson, Brian Dozier and Liam Hendriks can play very important roles as starters for the next several years. Others can fill roles as needed by the team due to injury or production. What would be great is if a couple of these guys (or others) played so well at New Britain and/or Rochester that the Twins simply had to make room for them on the roster and in the lineup. And then we wait for Miguel Sano, Eddie Rosario, Aaron Hicks, Oswaldo Arcia, Tom Stuifbergen, Alex Wimmers and Adrian Salcedo.