Seth Stohs

One of the Twins minor league games was postponed due to rain on Friday, but there were still five games to follow. The Kernels got two terrific starting performances and Trevor May was better than that (or, a-mays-ing?) in his start for the Rock Cats. Kennys Vargas had a couple big hits for the Miracle and Adam Walker remains red hot for Cedar Rapids. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Carlos Correa played in Game 1 in the matchup of last year’s #1 overall pick against last year’s #2 overall pick (Buxton). Were the two able to impress? Well, you’ll just have to keep reading to find out! Rochester Red Wings, Columbus Clippers Rains in upper New York caused this game to be postponed. The teams will play a doubleheader on Saturday. Game 1 - New Britain Rock Cats 4, Portland Sea Dogs 6 Box Score Cole De Vries made his second rehab start, his first with the Rock Cats. He gave up five runs (2 earned) on four hits in five innings. He walked two and struck out five. Blake Martin gave up one run on two hits and a walk in the 6th inning. AJ Achter worked a perfect seventh inning. Danny Santana went 2-3 with his fourth triple. (He also committed his 12th error of the season!) Danny Ortiz went 1-3 with a walk and his 11th double. The Rock Cats had five hits and six walks in the game. Game 2 - New Britain Rock Cats 6, Portland Sea Dogs 0 Box Score The story of Game 2 was the work of Trevor May. The hard-throwing right-hander went all seven innings. He gave up two hits and a walk and no runs. He struck out ten, the most by a Rock Cats pitcher in almost two years, when Kyle Gibson struck out ten on May 15, 2010. Antoan Richardson went 3-4. Dan Rohlfing went 2-3 with his second and third doubles. Jhon Goncalves went 1-1 and walked twice. Ft. Myers Miracle 5, Jupiter Hammerheads 2 (11 innings) Box Score Kennys Vargas played the role of hero in this game. In the second inning he hit a solo homer, his sixth of the year. Then with the bases-loaded in the 11th inning, he drilled a single to drive in two runs to give the Miracle the lead. In all, he was 2-4 with a walk and three RBI. Eddie Rosario was back in the lineup on Friday. He was 2-5 with his third stolen base. Stephen Wickens and Angel Morales each went 2-5. Taylor Rogers went five innings in the start. He gave up two runs on six hits and a walk. Chad Rodgers came on and struck out two in two scoreless, one-hit innings. Zack Jones struck out five and walked one in two hitless innings. Adrian Salcedo struck out three in two scoreless innings, improving to 3-0. The win puts the Miracle at 27-7. Game 1 - Cedar Rapids Kernels 2, Quad Cities Bandits 0 (11 innings) Box Score Game 1 was certainly a pitchers duel. Hudson Boyd was at his best. He threw six shutout innings. He gave up just two hits, walked one and struck out four. He didn’t allow a hit until one out in the fifth frame. Steven Gruver came on and threw 3.1 scoreless innings. He gave up four hits, walked one and struck out two. Tim Atherton got the final five outs, three of them on strikeouts. In the 11th inning, Dalton Hicks drilled a double that scored Jorge Polanco with the game’s first run. Travis Harrison then drove in Hicks with an insurance run. Adam Walker went 3-5 with his eighth double. He also stole his third base. Hicks went 2-4 with his tenth double. Jorge Polanco went 2-4. It is also noteworthy that for the first time this season Byron Buxton did not reach base in a game. Carlos Correa, the #1 overall pick in last year’s draft, returned from the DL to play in Game 1. He went 0-3 with a walk. Game 2 - Cedar Rapids Kernels 5, Quad Cities Bandits 1 Box Score The Twins got another very good start in Game 2. Lefty Mason Melotakis threw 5.1 scoreless innings. He gave up three hits, walked three and struck out nine. Josh Burris went the final 1.2 innings. He gave up one run on one hit and two walks. He struck out one. After not scoring for ten innings in the first game, the Kernels tallied four runs in the first inning of the second game. Adam Walker went 2-3 with his third and fourth triples. Travis Harrison went 2-3 with his tenth double. Niko Goodrum was 2-4 with his first triple. Dalton Hicks hit his 11th double. It was a rough day for Byron Buxton as he also did not get on base in the second game. He is now 3-20 (.150) in the last five games, a streak that most hitters experience once or twice by this point in the season. The Kernels are now 23-9 with the double-header sweep. Please feel free to comment or ask questions below. View full article

In two weeks, the Minnesota Twins will start their trek north for the start of the regular season. In the last few days, the Twins have sent several players down to minor league camp. There are still 50 players in camp and half of them will not be on the active roster on Opening Day. Here is this week’s look at my Twins Roster Projection.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Let us know what you think. There are still a few roster spots up for grabs. Do you think any of the other players are givens? Which question marks do you think will make it? Go on record in the comments and see how your opinions change from week to week. 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, Drew Butera What we know: Of course Joe Mauer and Ryan Doumit are givens. What we don't know: The big question at this point is whether or not the Twins will carry a third catcher, or if they’ll be able to trust Eduardo Escobar to be the emergency catcher. If they think Escobar can do the job if absolutely needed, Mauer and Doumit can still be in the lineup most every day and Ron Gardenhire can have an offensive (in the good sense of the word) 25th man on the roster. As of today, I still think that Butera is the favorite, but now he is not competing with just other catchers, but he’s also competing with all potential bench bats too. Infielders: Justin Morneau, Brian Dozier, Trevor Plouffe, Pedro Florimon, Jamey Carroll, Eduardo Escobar What we know: We know that Justin Morneau, Trevor Plouffe and Jamey Carroll will be on the roster. Those are easy. This week, I did chance Dozier, Florimon and Escobar to givens. As was expected, Florimon is the shortstop and Dozier will be the second baseman. Escobar has also grabbed that second utility spot, and his willingness to be the emergency catcher (as he was with the White Sox a year ago), just solidifies that he’ll fill a role on this roster. What we don’t know: How long will Plouffe be hurt? Who plays at third base if Plouffe needs to go on the Disabled List? I assume it will be Jamey Carroll, although there is a chance that Eduardo Escobar could start there a bit as well. Is there any chance that the Twins could use Mark Sobolewski at the hot corner if Plouffe ends up being out for a while? I’d say doubtful, but it does have to be asked. Finally, I believe that Chris Colabello is in the race for that 25th spot on the roster, with Drew Butera and Joe Benson. Outfielders: Josh Willingham, Aaron Hicks, Chris Parmelee, Darin Mastroianni What we know: Josh Willingham will be the left fielder and hit. Chris Parmelee will be the starting right fielder as the season begins. We know that Darin Mastroianni will be on the roster. What we don’t know: Aaron Hicks was certainly the story of the first three weeks of minor league camp. He hasn’t had a hit in a couple of games, so he’ll need to show that he is able to handle some struggles in a positive way. Joe Benson really struggled the first three weeks of minor league games. However, he is hitting the ball hard and getting on base the last several games. If he has a strong next week to ten days and Hicks doesn’t rebound, this race is still up for grabs. Finally, Mastroianni is not going to sit back and let the other guys take the centerfield job. He missed about a week with his hamstring injury, but he came back and hit again. So, I still believe that Hicks is the current favorite for the starting job, but it is not completely settled yet. Benson could still be competing for the 25th spot on the roster, a bench bat with some pop. Starting Pitchers: Kevin Correia, Vance Worley, Scott Diamond, Mike Pelfrey, Liam Hendriks, Cole De Vries (Diamond likely to start season on DL) What we know: Kevin Correia, Vance Worley and Mike Pelfrey are all new to the organization, and they are all givens to make the rotation. Scott Diamond would be a starter, but he is yet pitch in a game and likely will begin the season on the disabled list. Kyle Gibson was competing for a job in the rotation, but his struggles got him sent back to Rochester to start the season. What we don’t know: Two spots in the rotation are open to start the season. Liam Hendriks and Cole de Vries are certainly the leading candidates, and those two haven’t changed on this list since last week. Hendriks gave up three homers in his start this week, but he was quite good in the first three. De Vries has been good throughout the spring. However, a couple of pitchers are getting noticed. PJ Walters has pitched very well in spring training, as he did last year until his injury. If he is an option for the rotation, he should get a start or at least get extended. Sam Deduno has pitched very well for the Dominican WBC team. He pitched well against Spain and Thursday night against the USA team. No question that Deduno has stuff, but can he throw enough strikes consistently? Can he get through five innings consistently? Deduno and Walters are not on the 40 man roster which reduces their chance of being on the Opening Day roster, but if they pitch well in Rochester, they will get another opportunity. Bullpen: Glen Perkins, Jared Burton, Brian Duensing, Casey Fien, Josh Roenicke, Ryan Pressly, Tim Wood, (Anthony Swarzak-DL) What we know: Perkins is going to be the closer. Burton and Duensing will be set up men. Swarzak becomes a given for the 25 man roster because he will be on the Disabled List. What we don’t know: Pretty much everything else. Alex Burnett has gone from being nearly a sure-thing to his odds being no better than 50% to make the Opening Day roster with a really rough spring training. He has an option remaining, as does Casey Fien. With Fien, the option might be the lone thing that keeps me from calling him a given. After that, the questions only get more difficult. Pressly has been really good all spring training and the odds of the Twins keeping him on the roster are quite high. Josh Roenicke and Tim Wood are both out of options. Roenicke threw a ton of innings last year as a long-man with the Rockies. Especially with Swarzak out to start the season, Roenicke provides value. Wood had one really rough outing, but he has been pretty solid. Walters and Deduno could still be candidates for a long term role if the Twins go in that direction. The other option is Tyler Robertson. He was roughed up in his first couple of spring outings, but he has been very good since. If the Twins decide that a third lefty is necessary, Robertson will be the choice. And, Pedro Hernandez has done a very nice job as a lefty out of the bullpen this spring as well. What are your thoughts? What does your roster look like two weeks before the season opener? View full article

Last weekend, Dalton Hicks drove in two runs for the Ft. Myers Miracle and became the second minor leaguer this season to drive in 100 runs. The other? His teammate for the first three months of the season, Kernels outfielder Adam Walker. As of today, Walker leads minor league baseball with 106 RBI while Hicks is second at 103. The only other minor leaguer with 100 RBI this year is Astros slugging prospect George Springer, at 102. While Walker has driven in each of his runs for the Cedar Rapids Kernels, Hicks has spent a quarter of his season with the Ft. Myers Miracle. He has 21 RBI with the Miracle after knocking in 82 runs with the Kernels. Download attachment: Adam Walker RP.jpg During the first half of the season, the two sluggers benefited from hitting in the middle of a lineup that including Byron Buxton and Jorge Polanco setting the table. Walker, the Twins 3rd round pick in 2012 out of Jacksonville Univeristy, has hit 29 doubles, seven triples and 26 home runs. Hicks, a lumbering first baseman drafted in the 17th round of the 2012 draft out of Central Florida, has hit a combined 37 doubles to go with 17 home runs. We frequently talk about how RBI are so much dependent upon those hitting in front of the batter. I do believe that RBI can be overrated, but as we watch a Twins team struggling to hit with runners in scoring position, I think it's important to remember that someone needs to drive run in! Download attachment: Dalton Hicks 2.jpg The two become the 33rd and 34th Twins minor leaguers since 1980 to have a 100 RBI season. The list of names below tell us that RBI is certainly not a indicator of future big league success. (However, it is fun at times to go into the Way Back Machine and read about names we may not have thought about in years.) [TABLE=class: grid, width: 500, align: center] 2013 Adam Walker 106+ Cedar Rapids 2013 Dalton Hicks 103+ Cedar Rapids/Ft. Myers 2012 Miguel Sano 100 Beloit 2005 David Winfree 101 Beloit 2004 Kevin West 109 New Britain/Rochester 2004 Jason Kubel 100 New Britain/Rochester 2002 Michael Ryan 101 Edmonton 2002 Todd Sears 100 Edmonton 2000 Brian Buchanan 103 Salt Lake 1999 David Ortiz 110 Salt Lake 1999 Michael Restovich 107 Quad Cities 1999 Steve Hacker 100 New Britain, Salt Lake 1998 Tommy Peterman 110 Ft. Myers 1998 Corey Koskie 105 Salt Lake 1997 David Ortiz 124 FM/NB/SL 1996 Todd Walker 101 Salt Lake 1994 Bernardo Brito 122 Salt Lake 1992 Marty Cordova 131 Visalia 1992 Steve Dunn 113 Visalia 1991 Paul Russo 100 Kenosha 1990 Ray Ortiz 102 Visalia/Orlando 1989 Paul Sorrento 112 Orlando 1989 Terry Jorgenson 101 Orlando 1986 Gene Larkin 104 Orlando 1986 Tim Schwarz 101 Visalia 1985 Mark Funderburk 116 Orlando 1985 Mark Davidson 106 Orlando 1985 Gene Larkin 106 Visalia 1984 Stan Holmes 101 Orlando 1983 Stan Holmes 115 Visalia 1983 Tim Teufel 100 Toledo 1982 Greg Wells 107 Toledo 1981 Kent Hrbek 111 Visalia 1981 Tim Laudner 104 Orlando [/TABLE] There are a few guys on that list that have a couple of World Series rings and tremendous careers. There are several players who never got a taste of the big leagues. Miguel Sano is currently at 94 RBI, so there is a chance that he will hit the century mark for a second straight year. Kennys Vargas currently has 86 RBI and would need a torrid stretch to get there, but it's possible. I'm sure people reading this will also be excited to hear that Scott Ullger drove in 108 runs for Visalia. Next season, Walker should join Hicks in the Ft. Myers lineup to start the season. However, I would anticipate that both will be up in New Britain by season's end, maybe even by the All Star break. Click here to view the article

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. Click here to view the article

The Twins losing streak went to seven games with a tough loss in Atlanta. They’ll have to get over it quickly for a noon game (Eastern) on Wednesday. Twins Daily has learned that Chris Colabello will be attempting to join the Twins in time for the game. Virgil Vasquez made a spot start in place of the promoted Sam Deduno. Trevor May had one of the craziest line scores you’ll see. One Twins minor leaguer hit a homer for the third straight game on Tuesday, and it isn’t the same guy who homered twice on the day. Cedar Rapids had a well-deserved day off. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Here is what happened in the Twins minor league system on Tuesday: Rochester Red Wings 2, Lehigh Valley IronPigs 9 Box Score Virgil Vasquez had not pitched for about eight days. When Sam Deduno was summoned to pitch for the Twins, Vasquez made was called to make the start. He gave up five runs (all in the first inning) on seven hits in four innings. He walked three and struck out three. Dan Turpen came on and gave up four runs (1 earned) on five hits and a walk in 1.1 innings. Luis Perdomo got the next five batters out, three on strikeouts. Tyler Robertson gave up one hit in a scoreless inning. The Red Wings had just seven hits. The lone extra base hit was Joe Benson’s seventh double. He also drove in one of the two runs. Chris Colabello drove in the other. New Britain Rock Cats 9, Binghamton Mets 3 Box Score When you see Trevor May’s pitching line, you might presume that I have flip-flopped the score. May worked five innings and gave up eight hits and walked five. Yet somehow, he gave up just two runs. He struck out six. He was relieved by Blake Martin who gave up two hits and two walks in two scoreless innings. He struck out… two. Bruce Pugh followed and he gave up a run on three hits and a walk in two innings. Danny Santana led the offense, going 3-5 with his eighth stolen base. James Beresford and Josmil Pinto were each 2-5. Dan Rohlfing was 2-3 with a walk. Reynaldo Rodriguez went 1-2 with two walks and his tenth double. Deibinson Romero homered for the third straight game. Jordan Parraz made his Rock Cats (and Twins organization) debut. He doubled in his first at bat. Game 1 - Ft. Myers Miracle 5, Lakeland Tigers 3 Box Score In game one of this doubleheader, Miguel Sano had a(nother) big game. He went 2-3 with a walk, his 11th double and his 12th home run. He also stole his sixth base. Aderlin Mejia went 2-4 with his fourth steal. Jairo Rodriguez went 2-4. Kennys Vargas hit his eighth home run. Tom Stuifbergen started the first game. He went four innings and gave up three runs on six hits. He walked none and struck out two. Matt Hauser came on and gave up one hit, walked one and struck out one in two scoreless innings. Corey Williams recorded his eighth save with a one-hit scoreless inning. Game 2 - Ft. Myers Miracle 2, Lakeland Tigers 3 Box Score Miguel Sano was back at it in Game 2. He had one of the four hits for the Miracle; the hit was his 13th home run. Angel Morales added his third homer. Levi Michael notched his eighth double. Kyle Davies started for the Miracle. He gave up three runs on six hits in three innings. He walked two and struck out three. Cole Johnson came on and threw three scoreless innings. He gave up four hits, walked one and struck out three. Cedar Rapids Kernels No Game Scheduled. Please feel free to comment or ask questions below. View full article

Adopt-A-Prospect 2014 will start right here... at 9:00 a.m. CST. Again, to adopt a Twins prospect, just put their name in the forum. If no one has already adopted that player, he's yours. As a reminder, on Wednesday at 9:00 a.m. CST, Twins Daily members can adopt a second player. A note will be made on this forum when that can happen. AT 9:00 a.m. CST this morning, I will post a message saying "Let the adoptions begin." Once that is there, you can start. I will try to post an update from time to time of who has been adopted by whom. Remember, any Twins minor leaguer can be drafted, players at Rochester, New Britain, Ft. Myers, Cedar Rapids, or at Extended Spring Training.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Here are the Rules of Twins Daily Adopt-a-Prospect, and a Note that you don't really get to Adopt them, just get to write about them on Twins Daily. Download attachment: Sam Perlozzo.jpg As we have done here at Twins Daily the last two years, we will be hosting a Twins minor league Adopt-A-Prospect. With a couple alterations, the rules should make for more information shared about more of the minor league teams throughout the farm system. Starting at 9:00 Central Time on Tuesday (April 1), you will be able to adopt any Twins minor leaguer (who hasn't already been adopted). Those players can come from either of the four Twins full-season affiliates (Rochester, New Britain, Ft. Myers, Cedar Rapids) or players who will begin the season at Extended Spring Training. At 9:00 Central Time on Wednesday, people can adopt a second Twins minor leaguer (Again, only those available). http://twinsdaily.co...46&d=1394372717 Here are the Rules of Adopt-A-Prospect 2014: (Note, the actual player adoption will be conducted in another thread "SIGN UP FOR ADOPT A PROSPECT 2014" which will be located in this "Adopt a Prospect 2014" Forum.) Rules of Adopt-A-Prospect 2014: 1) Each Twins prospect can only be adopted once. It will be first-come, first-serve in a new thread here that will be opened at 9:00 a.m. CST on Tuesday morning. On Wednesday morning at 9:00 a.m. CST, Twins Daily readers can adopt a second prospect. 2) Once you have confirmed that you have that player, you can post a thread. The title of the thread you start should just be that player's name, hyphen - 2014 (example - Miguel Sano - 2014). The first post must be an introduction of the player. The format of the post is up to the individual, but please be sure to get all the important information needed on the player. For Example, Name, Position, Handedness, Drafted/Signed/Acquired (out of where/what round), Previous Stats, etc. Feel free to make it as detailed as you want and feel free to find video. (There are a lot of websites you could link to such as their Baseball-Reference, The Baseball Cube, First Inning, Fan Graphs, MiLB.com, affiliate’s websites, etc.) 3) After the initial post (and throughout the season), you MUST update the thread AT LEAST once every other week. If you fail to do this, the prospect can be taken away from you. [if a player is inactive due to injury or suspension, this requirement is waived, as appropriate.] If you would like to update more often, please feel free. Updates should, at least, include year-to-date numbers for the player. The more information given, however, the better. Brag up your prospect! 4) Any major event (i.e. Promotion/Demotion/Trade/Perfect Game/multi- hit or HRs in a game...) must be reflected in the thread within a day of the event. Failure to update for this purpose may result in losing your adoptee. 5) If a player is placed on the 25-man roster, this is wonderful news and you cancontinue that player’s thread. Reward for your player getting to the big leagues is that you can adopt another prospect at that point. Even if the first player is eventually sent back to the minor leagues, you can maintain both prospect threads. 6) All other rules which are enforced on the main board will be enforced here. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask here. Click here to view the article

Twins Fest is a great opportunity for Twins fans to start really getting excited about the upcoming season. In just over two weeks, pitchers and catchers will be reporting to Ft. Myers for the start of spring training. For the first time, Twins Fest was in Target Field. I had the opportunity to talk to a lot of Twins players on Friday and Saturday and thought I would share one quote from each. Consider this a Best Of Twins Fest Quotes article. Over the coming weeks, I’ll be writing some more in-depth stories about some of these players.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Download attachment: Twins Media.jpg A portion of the Twins media (L to R): LaVelle E. Neal (Star Tribune), Mike Berardino (Pioneer Press), Rhett Bollinger (TwinsBaseball.com), Tyler Mason (FS North) ALEX MEYER on last season’s shoulder injury: “It wasn’t anything more than, I woke up one morning just sore. It wasn’t sore when I went to bed so I didn’t know what was going on. We went in and got checked out. It was funny, the MRI I got this time was more clean than the one when I got drafted. My shoulder looked better now than it did then. I knew nothing was wrong. I just didn’t know why I was hurting. I never had anything like that. Just a bump in the road now. It’s time to move past it and get back on the mound.” BYRON BUXTON on all the postseason accolades: “It’s really just an honor. God blessed me with a lot of talent and I just try to come out every day and use it and not let it go to waste.” ANDREW ALBERS when the first question he was asked in a small group was about the Korea situation: “Oh, here I thought we were going to do an interview about Saskatchewan.” ANDREW ALBERS on the Twins: “The Twins have been so great to me. They’ve given me so many opportunities. They took a chance on me when nobody else would. That makes it a really, really tough decision.” (By the way, the Albers situation should be resolved within the next couple days.) JASON KUBEL on Ron Gardenhire: “He’s great. I’ve only played for a few managers, but he’s the best. I wasn’t worried. He’s just too good for them to let him go.” TREVOR PLOUFFE on if he thinks 2014 is a big year for him personally with Miguel Sano being so close: “Not really. I mean, I’m not really concerned about that. I want to help the team win. That’s all I care about. Miguel is a great player, and if he comes up and helps our team, we want him. We want anyone that can help the team.” BRIAN DOZIER about his power in 2013: “Bruno (hitting coach Tom Brunansky) helped a lot, him being a power hitter. He kind of saw that I wasn’t actually getting everything out of my swing. We made a lot of adjustments to create more power. I think that you try to find the kind of hitter you are. I think I did that last year. Got comfortable. I like where I’m at.” SEAN GILMARTIN on which stat is most important to him: “For any pitcher, really, you look at the amount of innings pitched a starting pitcher throws. That’ll give you an indication of whether he’s doing his job or not.” JOE MAUER on changing diapers of his twin daughters: “I can, yeah. Well, they’re six months old, but I think I have 12 months of experience.” JOE MAUER on his brother Jake Mauer (manager of the Cedar Rapids Kernels): “Jake’s one of those guys. He’s got a high baseball IQ. I think when he played, you could kind of tell that whenever he decided to be done, he’d be a manager. He always thought two pitches ahead or a play before it even happened. It’s fun. We’re brothers. We talk about a lot of things. That’s one thing that we share, the love of the game. And trying to get better at it, and finding better way of doing things.” ERIC FRYER on his big league debut with the Pirates: “I got thrown at in my big league debut, and I had a collision at home plate with David Ortiz. So that was certainly memorable. He didn’t hit me super hard.” KURT SUZUKI on calling a game: “I love calling the game. I love preparing myself. I really take pride in messing with hitters and being able to get my pitching staffs through a game flawlessly. That’s my goal every game.” MIGUEL SANO on his home run goal for 2014: I asked Sano, “So, you hit 30 home runs in Beloit two seasons ago, and 35 last year. Do you have a goal to hit 40 this year?” You’ve already seen his response: “No… I hit 45 this year… more games… maybe 55, you never know. Working hard. Getting good pitch. That’s it.” ROB PLUMMER, Sano’s agent on what Sano wants to learn this spring training: “Joe (Mauer) says he’s going to try to see (Sano) in the cage and see how he is with his plate discipline and strike zone judgment. He’s going to try to give him hints about what pitchers are looking for in certain spots, and try to get him the plate discipline that Joe has. For me, I’ve been doing this 20 years, I think Miguel can walk 100 times a year. I think that he knows how important that is to add to his On Base-Slugging Percentage, to have an OPS over 1.000. We go over that stat a lot.” It was neat to hear what an agent views and finds important. Of course, ballplayers with OPS over 1.000 tend to make a lot of money! Asked if 100 walks is a goal, Sano said, “120… 150…” MIKE PELFREY on coming back last year from Tommy John: “There were a lot of times where I couldn’t get the necessary feel of the ball coming off my fingertips. That’s kind of important out there pitching. Obviously I think the results reflected that. I got a little better in the middle. Then I think I kind of wore down in September. In hindsight, I probably should have waited, maybe come back at 13 months which is June, when I started to get a little more of that feeling back. Obviously being a competitor, you want to be out there as soon as you can.” AARON HICKS on his decision not to play winter ball: “I thought a little about it, but I felt like it would be better for me to relax and think about stuff I need to do and get ready for another season rather than go right into another season. Just rest the body up. I’ve never had an actual offseason before. I’ve always played somewhere. It felt good to just relax.” KYLE GIBSON on his mental preparation: “I feel like this offseason, mentally, I’ve taken a lot of steps that I need to be prepared. I thought I was prepared last year when I got up there, and I think to a point, I was. But, as I started to struggle, I think I tried too hard to correct it. I was out there not allowing the adrenaline to help me, but rather making it force things and get in my own way mentally instead of doing what I’ve done my whole career, just getting out there, seeing the pitch I’m throwing. Picture it, and execute it and move on.” So there you have a taste of what was talked about at Twins Fest by some of the players. Certainly they are all looking forward to spring training and the start of another season. Dustin Morse and his PR staff deserve a ton of credit. Behind the scenes, they are the ones that get the players going to the right places and making Twins Fest go well. Dustin, along with Andrew Heydt, Mike Kennedy and Mitch Hestad aren’t the guys signing autographs, but they are the guys who make it all happen. Feel free to discuss the quotes above and ask questions that you may have. Click here to view the article

On Tuesday, the Minnesota Twins minor leaguers report to the Twins minor league complex in Ft. Myers. Soon after, the players will have their first full-squad workouts. In between, the players will have to run a mile, and the pitchers will also need to do a shuttle run. After a few days of workouts, the players will start playing some intra-squad games. Eventually they’ll start getting into some games against other teams, and then in early April, most of the players will be put on a roster and head to their Opening Day destinations. Starting today, I will start looking at the Twins organizational depth chart, starting with the outfielders. We will consider which players are in line for roster spots with the Twins and each of their minor league affiliates. I’ll try to project which players will start the season with the various teams.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Please note that this is my educated guess. This information could be altered by an unexpected free agent signing or a trade. This exercise is not so much an attempt to perfectly predict where each and every player will wind up. The reality is that some players will be placed at a lower level than I project just due to numbers. Some will go on the Disabled List. The unfortunate reality is that some of the players who report to spring training will be released. Hopefully readers will be reminded who is in the organization or see who the team has added since last season. Today, we will begin this series with a look at the Outfielders: Minnesota Twins Josh Willingham (LF), Aaron Hicks (CF), Chris Parmelee (RF), Darin Mastroianni Willingham sure made Target Field look like a regular-sized ballpark, with a career-high in home runs and RBI. We also know that Chris Parmelee will be the primary starter in right field. Centerfield remains the question mark. It’s clear that many with the Twins really want Aaron Hicks to win the job to start the season. Darin Mastroianni is certainly a given to be on the roster and could start, but most likely will be the team’s fourth outfielder. Rochester Red Wings Wilkin Ramirez (LF), Joe Benson (CF), Oswaldo Arcia (RF), Clete Thomas, Brian Dinkelman, Brandon Boggs, Evan Bigley At least a couple of these outfielders could still be with the Twins on Opening Day. Joe Benson is still in the running for the centerfield job, and if the Twins decide to carry a fifth outfielder, he could be that player. The Twins would likely prefer he play every day. That would open the door for the likes of Dinkelman, Ramirez, Thomas and Boggs, all of whom have big league service time under their belts. Dinkelman play for the Twins in 2011 when he hit .301 in two stints with the team. Boggs spent time with the Rangers from 2008 through 2010, and with the Brewers in 2011. Thomas played 142 games with the Tigers between 2008 and 2009. Then he played in three games for Detroit in 2012 before they cut ties with him and the Twins claimed him (and he struckout an impressive 16 times in 29 plate appearances). Ramirez was once a top prospect with the Tigers. He played 15 games for Detroit in 2009 and then 20 games with the Atlanta Braves in 2011. In 2012, after missing much of the first half of the season with injury, he hit 18 doubles and 15 home runs in just 98 games with the Red Wings. Although he will catch much of the time, expect to see Chris Herrmann playing a bit in left field as well. New Britain Rock Cats Angel Morales (LF), Antoan Richardson (CF), Oswaldo Arcia (RF), Lance Ray, Danny Rams There was likely a chance that Arcia would have started the 2013 with AAA Rochester, but having missed his time in big league camp with injury may affect where he begins the year. He crushed the ball in the Venezuelan Winter League and was poised to make a strong showing in camp. Unfortunately, he has been completely limited because of the intercostal injury. The key is for him to, first, get healthy, and then, play every day. None of the guys listed in Rochester will block the path of Arcia’s tremendous upside to the majors. 29-year-old Antoan Richardson is a Ben Revere clone. He is about 5-8 and very fast. He was drafted four times before signing with the Giants in 2005. He remained with the Giants organization and reached AA before signing with Schaumburg of the Independent Northern League. He began the 2010 season in Schaumburg before signing with the Braves. In September of 2011, he was promoted to the Braves where he hit .500 in 9 games (just 2-4). In 2012, he was with the Orioles organization. In 90 AA games, he hit .279 and got on base at an incredible .415 clip. It is a huge make or break season for Angel Morales. The one-time, top prospect has struggled mightily the last two years. He can become a minor league free agent following the season, so he will either want the Twins to put him on the 40 man roster, or play well enough for another organization to be interested in giving him an opportunity. Lance Ray (23) hit just .234 but hit 13 home runs in Ft. Myers . He will play a lot and likely hit quite a few home runs. He can also play some first base and DH. Danny Rams was a Twins 2nd round pick as a catcher. In 2012, he moved out to the outfield. After struggling immensely early in the season and went on the DL. When he returned, he was much better. Like Morales, he will need to have a solid year and make an impact as he can become a free agent following the season. Primarily a catcher, don't be surprised to see Dan Rohlfing get some time out in the outfield. Ft. Myers Miracle Drew Leachman (LF), Jhonatan Goncalves (CF), Danny Ortiz (RF), JD Williams, Nate Roberts Ortiz had a successful Puerto Rican season. On a team that included Kennys Vargas and Eddie Rosario, Ortiz was the team’s #3 hitter. He spent the first month of 2012 back in Beloit, but he played much better after his promotion to the Miracle. Goncalves could have become a free agent following the 2012 season, but he chose to return by signing with the Twins. Leachman was a late-round pick in 2011 from a Division III school. He began 2012 in Extended Spring Training but after his promotion to Beloit, he became a solid, fairly consistent, middle-of-the-lineup hitter. JD Williams could, and probably should, spend another half-season in the Midwest League before moving up to the Miracle, but as you will see shortly, there are very good outfielders who should head to Cedar Rapids. Here We Go Again - After leading the Arizona Fall League in 2012 in Batting Average, On-Base Percentage and Slugging Percentage, many hoped to see Nate Roberts skip Ft. Myers and jump straight to AA New Britain. That may still be possible, but unfortunately, it isn't likely to happen right at the beginning of the season. Twins Daily has learned that while working out this winter, Roberts tore his meniscus and needed surgery. He is rehabbing and may not miss a lot of the season, but it is certainly a set back and likely will keep him in Ft. Myers. Cedar Rapids Kernels Max Kepler (LF), Byron Buxton (CF), Adam Walker (RF), John Murphy, Romy Jimenez, Jeremias Pineda Buxton is the big name here. The 2nd overall pick just last season impressed in his professional debut in which he played in the Gulf Coast League and at Elizabethton. It certainly is not unusual for the Twins to send first round high school hitters to the Midwest League the year after their draft. That’s where players like Michael Cuddyer, Torii Hunter, Joe Mauer, Denard Span, Matt Moses, Chris Parmelee and Joe Benson went. It has occurred less in recent years, likely due to players signing so late and not debuting in the year that they were drafted. It will certainly be a challenge for the 19-year-old. Max Kepler spent the last two years at Elizabethton. In 2012, he was much improved. The young outfielder from Germany can certainly play centerfield. In fact, he played the position in Elizabethton right up until Buxton came to town. He remains a five-tool talent with a lot of power potential. Speaking of power potential, if 2012 3rd round pick Adam Walker can make contact, he has as much power as anyone in the Twins system. Romy (formerly Trinidad) Jimenez was very good in Elizabethton in 2012 until he tore his meniscus. Jeremias Pineda came to the Twins last August in the trade that sent Danny Valencia to the Red Sox. John Murphy is the brother of the Mets’ Daniel Murphy. He was a 2012 draft pick. Extended Spring Training/Short-Season Jake Proctor, Zach Larson, Kelvin Mention, Kelvin Ortiz, Dereck Rodriguez If not for a hamstring injury, Dereck Rodriguez may have moved up to Elizabethton during the 2012 season. He was hitting very well, showing power even, until the injury. As you recall, he is the son of former big league catcher Ivan Rodriguez. Jake Proctor is said to be a five-tool type of athlete. He was expected to be drafted last year earlier than when the Twins got him (14th round), but he had arthroscopic knee surgery was not cleared to play until after the season. 2013 will be his professional debut. He is listed at 6-2 and 221 pound, but his best tool is said to be tremendous speed. Zach Larson was taken last year in the 19th round out of high school and given $190,000 to sign (because the Twins had extra available to spend). He is a great athlete in high school, having accumulated three varsity letters in football despite not playing his senior season to focus on baseball. Kelvin Mention was JD Williams’ high school teammate in high school. Unfortunately, he has not played much since signing late in 2010. He was hurt for the 2011 season and didn’t play a lot at Elizabethton last year, which is probably where he will return in 2013. Ortiz was considered a bit of a prospect while playing in the Dominican Summer League for a couple of season. However, the transition to the States and the GCL have not been easy for Ortiz who will likely need to make the Elizabethon roster. TOP PROSPECTS 1.) Byron Buxton, 2.) Oswaldo Arcia, 3.) Aaron Hicks, 4.) Max Kepler, 5.) Joe Benson, 6.) Adam Walker, 7.) Danny Ortiz Buxton is in all of the Top 100 lists, generally in the Top 20. Baseball America his him at #10, one spot behind Miguel Sano. Arcia was the Twins minor league hitter of the year in 2012 and had a strong Venezuelan Winter League performance. Hicks is generally in the second half of Top 100 lists. Kepler and Benson are generally found in the 10-12 range of Twins top prospect lists but on opposite ends of the prospect range. Kepler is young and raw and still needs to play for a full season team. Benson is now 25, has seen big league team, went through a lost 2012 season due to injury and is now hoping to regain his status as a part of the Twins future. Walker has tremendous power potential, and Ortiz is just a solid all-around player that is often forgotten because of the high-upside guys. SUMMARY The Twins have long been strong on outfielders throughout the system. They have a knack for finding and developing at this position. They had enough depth throughout the organization that they were able to acquire two hard-throwing pitching prospects (Alex Meyer, Trevor May) and a solid pitcher with over 2 years of solid big league pitching (Vance Worley) for two talented starting big league outfielders (Denard Span and Ben Revere). Josh Willingham was tremendous with the bat in 2012, winning a Silver Slugger Award, but the deals have opened up opportunities for others to show what they can do. Chris Parmelee will get an everyday gig. And Mastroianni, Hicks and Benson will be one of the better storylines to follow throughout spring training. There is still talent down below, although the risk is now much higher for outfielders. We will likely see Oswaldo Arcia in 2013, but the rest of the prospects are now in the lower levels. This is not a bad thing, however, as the Twins outfield will be very young by the end of the 2013 season. If you have any further questions, please feel free to leave your thoughts in the Comments Section! View full article

Over the past three weeks, I have been posting my choices for the top 50 Minnesota Twins Prospects. As the lists have been posted, there has been some tremendous discussion in the Comments about the lists. So below, I will post my top 50 as presented. I encourage you to let me know who is too high, or to low? Then, I've been encouraging you to prepare your own person Top 10 or Top 20 or Top 50 Twins prospect list. It would be interesting to see who others rank where because we all have our own personal favorite prospects that we may rank a little higher than others. It's all part of the fun.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Here is a quick breakdown of my Top 50 Twins prospects by position: RH Starting Pitchers: 14 LH Starting Pitchers: 11 RH Relief Pitchers: 5 LH Relief Pitchers: 0 Catchers: 3 Corner Infielders: 6 Middle Infielders: 5 Oufielders: 6 Download attachment: Eddie Rosario NB.jpg With that, here are my choices for Top 50 Twins Prospects. Discuss. #50 – Adrian Salcedo – Ft. Myers – RH RP (22) #49 – Josue Montanez – Cedar Rapids – LH SP (21) #48 – Aaron Slegers – Indiana/Elizabethton – RH SP (21) #47 – Stuart Turner – Mississippi/Elizabethton/New Britain – C (21) #46 – AJ Achter – New Britain/Rochester – RH RP (25) #45 – Mike Kvasnicka – Ft. Myers – OF (24) #44 – Levi Michael – Ft. Myers – 2B (22) #43 – Pat Dean – LH SP (24) #42 – Zach Larson – OF (20) #41 – Danny Ortiz – OF (23) #40 – Alex Wimmers – RH SP (24) #39 - Tim Atherton – RH SP (23) #38 – Tyler Duffey – RH SP (22) #37 – Mason Melotakis – LH SP (22) #36 – Brian Navarreto – C (18) #35 – Matt Summers – RH SP (24) #34 – Tyler Jones – RH RP (24) #33 – JD Williams – OF (23) #32 – Luke Bard – RH SP (22) #31 – Logan Darnell – LH SP (24) #30 – Dalton Hicks – 1B (23) #29 – DJ Baxendale – RH SP (22) #28 – Randy Rosario – LH SP (19) #27 – Brett Lee – LH SP (23) #26 – Yorman Landa – RH SP (19) #25 – Michael Tonkin – RH RP (23) #24 – Miguel Sulburan – LH SP (19) #23 – Amaurys Minier – 3B (17) #22 – Zack Jones – RH RP (22) #21 – Felix Jorge – RH SP (19) #20 – Niko Goodrum – SS (21) #19 – Taylor Rogers – LH SP (22) #18 – Fernando Romero – RH SP (18) #17 – Ryan Eades – RH SP (21) #16 – Kennys Vargas – 1B (23) #15 – Danny Santana – SS (22) #14 – Stephen Gonsalves – LH SP (19) #13 – Trevor May – RH SP (24) #12 – Travis Harrison – 3B (21) #11 – Josmil Pinto – C (24) #10 – Adam Walker – OF (22) #9 – Lewis Thorpe – LH SP (17) #8 – Max Kepler – OF/1B (20) #7 – Jose (JO) Berrios – RH SP (19) #6 – Jorge Polanco – 2B (20) #5 – Eddie Rosario – 2B (22) #4 – Kohl Stewart – RH SP (19) #3 – Alex Meyer – RH SP (23) #2 – Miguel Sano – 3B (20) #1 – Byron Buxton – OF (19) There it is. Discuss. And if you missed any of the ten pieces, check them out here: Part 1: 46-50 Part 2: 41-45 Part 3: 36-40 Part 4: 31-35 Part 5: 26-30 Part 6: 21-25 Part 7: 16-20 Part 8: 11-15 Part 9: 6-10 Part 10: 1-5 Click here to view the article

It is now late May, and the Twins season is at a crossroads. The team has lost eight straight games as it embarks on a four-game series in Detroit against the Tigers. The season is in flux, and right now the roster, specifically the starting rotation, is in flux. Before tonight's game, the Twins will add Samuel Deduno to their 40 man roster and then their 25 man roster. Most likely, Tim Wood will be put on the 60 day disabled list. Following another poor performance on Thursday, the Twins optioned RHP Vance Worley to AAA Rochester. That leaves an open spot on the 25-man roster and the need for a 5th starter on Monday. So, who will it be?[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] I present to you the three options with their numbers: RHP Kyle Gibson is 3-5 with a 3.25 ERA. In 52.2 innings, he has allowed 46 hits, walked 14 and struck out 46. Opponents are hitting .240 against him. RHP PJ Walters is 4-2 with a 3.31 ERA. In 54.1 innings, he has allowed 55 hits, walked 16 and struck out 46. Opponents are hitting .271 against him. LHP Andrew Albers is 1-2 with a 2.34 ERA. In 42.1 innings, he has allowed 41 hits, walked 12 and struck out 40. Opponents have hit .255 off of him. All three have pitched well and a case could be made for each. Quite possibly the biggest advantage for Gibson is his first-round pedigree. However, the bigger disadvantage to Walters and Albers is that they are not on the 40 man roster. The question often is asked: who could the Twins take off their 40 man roster to make room for either of them? Well, assuming Wood goes on the 60 Day DL, they do not have another player eligible to put there (the DL). So, the team would have to DFA (designate for assignment) someone to make room for Monday's starter. It's never fun to look at who could be made available for other teams to claim, but if you think Walters or Albers is the right guy, it's an exercise that needs to be done. Here are some candidates: Joe Benson - His name has been mentioned as a possible DFA candidate. After an injury-plagued 2012 season, Benson has struggled to keep his batting average above .200 this spring with Rochester. He will be out of options next season, but because of his immense athletic talents, I believe that he would be claimed and lost. Drew Butera - The much-maligned backup catcher who plays tremendous defense but can't hit his weight is another name that people mention. He broke his wrist and hasn't played, though he should be getting into games soon. If there is a time that he could go unclaimed, it might be now. Cole De Vries - The 28-year-old Minnesotan was on the Opening Day roster, but he went on the disabled list. In his three rehab starts and one Red Wings start, he has really struggled. I think he would clear waivers and could be kept in Rochester. Liam Hendriks - Though it appears that the Twins brass has soured on the Australian right-hander, he's just 24 years old and until this year has been terrific at each minor league level. He is now on the Rochester disabled list. There is no question that he would be claimed if made available. BJ Hermsen - Last year Hermsen was the Twins minor league starting pitcher of the year, and was very good in 2011 as well. Last year, he got outs and pitched very well in New Britain. This year, after going to big league camp, he was hurt. He has now made a handful of starts and struggled to regain his 2012 form. Although he doesn't have great velocity, he has two option years left, size and smarts. I think he would be claimed, but it might be more 50/50. Chris Herrmann - Another is Herrmann. A year ago, or even earlier this spring, I would have said that was crazy. Now I don't think it's quite as unlikely. The Twins have five catchers on the 40 man roster. Joe Mauer and Ryan Doumit aren't going anywhere. Josmil Pinto has proven the team wise in keeping him. Herrmann is off to a slow start in his first AAA season. He can catch. He can play multiple positions and thus gives flexibility. He won't hit for average, but until his slow start, he has generally walked quite a bit and hit some doubles. I think he would be claimed. Wilkin Ramirez - With Chris Colabello on the roster, the Twins have a right-handed bat off the bench. However, as the roster is currently set up, Ramirez is the backup centerfielder making it unlikely he would be made available now. I think he would clear waivers if or when they make him available. So, there are some candidates for removal from the 40 man roster if the Twins believe that PJ Walters or Andrew Albers is the right man to bring up now. It's been a rough season so far. We are just starting to see some transactions, and I anticipate we will see several more. View full article

Though the Minnesota Twins fell back to .500 with a 6-2 loss on Sunday to Felix Hernandez and the Seattle Mariners, it wasn’t all bad news in the Twins organization. In fact, all four Twins full-season affiliates won their games. Three lefties led the highest level teams to victory while the Cedar Rapid Kernels had to come back to end their big losing streak. TRANSACTIONS Following the Twins game, OF/C Chris Herrmann was promoted back up to the Twins while reliever Michael Tonkin was sent back to Rochester. The move gives manager Ron Gardenhire an extra bat on the bench this coming week while playing in National League ballparks. In the ten days that Herrmann was in Rochester, he hit .400 (14-35) with three doubles, a triple and a home run. Tonkin, meanwhile, had a 5.84 ERA in 12.1 innings with the Twins. Download attachment: KrisJohnson2.JPG Let’s look at the goings on in the Twins system: RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 2, Toledo 1 Box Score Last week, when the Twins decided to option Oswaldo Arcia, it was likely because he had not yet been able to play more than two games in a row without a set back with his wrist injury. Since then, he has now played in seven straight games. In the last four, he has six hits. On Sunday, he went 2-4 with a double and his third home run. In other words, he finally appears to be healed and ready to return to the big league club. James Beresford went 2-4. Josh Willingham was in the lineup, batting fifth and serving as the Red Wings DH. He went 0-2 with two strikeouts. He was also hit by a pitch. Kris Johnson continues to pitch well in the International League. Last year’s IL ERA leader went six innings and gave up only an unearned run. He gave up four hits, walked two and struck out seven. Ryan Pressly recorded his first professional save. He gave up three hits over three scoreless innings. He didn’t walk a batter and struck out four. It was the sixth straight win for the Red Wings. It was also their ninth straight win at home at Frontier Field. ROCK CATS REVIEW New Britain 5, Harrisburg 3 Box Score Taylor Rogers has been pitching very well the last month. On Sunday, he posted his fifth straight quality start. For the first time, he completed seven innings. He gave up three runs on eight hits. He walked one and struck out four. He recorded a win for the fourth straight start. You may recall, in April, he went 0-3 with a 9.33 ERA. In May, he is now 4-0 with a 2.49 ERA. Cole Johnson gave up one hit and two walks, but also struck out three in two scoreless innings. It was his third save and he reduced his ERA to 1.23. Kennys Vargas went 2-4 with his tenth double, eighth home run and three RBI. Tony Thomas was 2-4 with his second triple. Mike Kvasnicka was 2-4 with his fifth double. Reynaldo Rodriguez went hitless, snapping his 13 game hitting streak. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 10, Daytona 1 Box Score Brett Lee made his first start for the Miracle since April 30, and the Miracle got a big blast in a blowout win. Lee worked the first five innings and gave up only an unearned run. He allowed four hits, walked none and struck out six. Tyler Jones came on and threw 2.1 scoreless frames. He gave up one hit, walked two and struck out four. Steve Gruver recorded the final five outs, two on strikouts. Jorge Polanco had a first-inning error that allowed the unearned run to score. It was hit 14th error of the year. However, he also went 3-5 with his ninth double of the season to extend his hitting streak to 15 games. Travis Harrison went 1-3 with a walk. Niko Goodrum was 2-4 with a walk. Adam Walker was also 2-4 with five RBI. He came to the plate in the 7th inning with the bases loaded and uncoiled for a grand slam. It was his seventh homer of the season and his second grand slam in the past four games. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 7, Burlington 6 Box Score The Kernels fell behind early. Down 4-0 after three innings, and 5-2 after five innings, the Kernels scored three in the top of the 6th inning to tie the score at five. In the 7th inning, Jake Mauer was ejected from the game, so he didn’t get to see the ninth inning when his team scored two runs and held on for the one-run win. The win snapped their eight game losing streak. Ethan Mildren started and gave up five runs in the first five innings. The Bees scored in four of the five innings. He gave up nine hits, walked one and struck out five. Derrick Penilla came on and gave up just one hit over three scoreless innings. He struck out four. Todd Van Steensel came in for the ninth. He gave up a solo home run, but he struck out two to record the first save of his professional career. The Kernels got six hits from their top two hitters. JD Williams was 3-5 with his fourth and fifth doubles. Tanner Vavra was also 3-5 and doubled for the eighth time this season. Bo Altobelli went 2-5. All nine Kernels’ hitters had at least one hit. Bryan Haar (6), Mitch Garver (11), Michael Quesada (5) and Joel Licon (3) each added a double. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – Kris Johnson, Rochester Red Wings Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Kennys Vargas, New Britain Rock Cats MONDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Toledo @ Rochester (6:05 CT) – Trevor May (Listen) Richmond @ New Britain (5:35 CT) – Tyler Duffey (Listen) Daytona @ Ft. Myers (9:35 am CT) – JO Berrios (Listen) Beloit @ Cedar Rapids (6:35 CT) – Josue Montanez (Listen) Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Sunday games. Click here to view the article

On Tuesday night, Seth was joined by Topper Anton (Curve for a Strike) on the SethSpeaks.net Weekly Minnesota Twins Podcast. Topper spent time in Ft. Myers last week and reported on what he saw at minor league camp and at a couple of Twins games. The rest of the show, Seth answered questions from the chat room about the Twins 25 man roster, some tough decisions, the minor league rosters, Twins Daily and more. The one-hour show can be heard by clicking here. However, the SethSpeaks.net Weekly Minnesota Twins Podcast needs your help really badly. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Since the SethSpeaks.net site has now merged into this Twins Daily site, the podcast needs a new name. What do you think? What are your suggestions? Any ideas? Leave your comments on the show or show names in the Comments! Download attachment: HelpWanted.jpg Click here to view the article

The Sunday Tweet of the Day comes from yours truly (@SethTweets). Before the game started, I tweeted, “After that pregame and national anthem rendition, is there any questions that @TPlouffe24 is planning to hit a home run or two for #America?” Josh Willingham hit a big three-run home run that tied the game at five. He also tied Trevor Plouffe with 17 home runs. Plouffe came up and knocked the first Bruce Chen pitch he saw in the at bat for his second home run of the day (18th of the year) and more important, he gave the Twins a lead that they would hold for the win. The Twins now have a three-game winning streak as they head to Detroit to take on the Tigers. For all this and more, here is a look at the Twins minor league scores and highlights from Sunday:[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] ROCHESTER 5, EMPIRE STATE 3 PJ Walters made his first rehab start for the Red Wings and it didn’t start out well, but after struggling in the first inning, he did alright. In total, he went four innings and gave up three runs on five hits. He walked two and struck out two. Caleb Thielbar came in and gave up only one walk over the course of two innings. He struck out two and was credited with first AAA win. Luis Perdomo came in and struck out five over three perfect innings to record his first save with the Red Wings. He became the seventh Red Wings pitcher to record a save. Pedro Florimon went 2-4 with his eighth double. Brian Dinkelman and JR Towles were each 2-4. Wilkin Ramirez hit his sixth home run. NEW BRITAIN 6, BOWIE 2 Aaron Hicks has been very good since returning to the field after his sprained ankle. In this game, he was 2-3 with a walk, his tenth double and his 17th and 18th stolen base. Dan Rohlfing went 2-4 with his fourth double. Oswaldo Arcia went 2-4 with two RBI. Chris Herrmann hit his 20th double. He was also hit by a pitch and stole a base. Aaron Thompson started and gae up two runs on seven hits and a walk in five innings. He struck out three. Dakota Watts and then Bruce Pugh each pitched a scoreless inning in which they gave up a hit and a walk. FT. MYERS 4, ST. LUCIE 2 Madison Boer has started to pitch much better and on this day he helped the Miracle to their third straight win. The Eden Prairie right-hander gave up two runs (1 earned) on seven hits and two walks in six innings. Ricky Bowen came in and walked three in one scoreless inning. AJ Achter came in and gave the final six outs for his first save. He was not closing games in Beloit, so when asked about being in the closer role, the talented right-hander said, “I think that Jake (Mauer) and (Steve) Mintzy forgot what inning it was.” Josmil Pinto led the offense. He went 3-3 with a walk and his 13th double. Danny Santana went 2-4 with his sixth triple. Danny Ortiz went 2-4 with his 11th double. BELOIT 4, CEDAR RAPIDS 3 Could it be that Miguel Sano is breaking out of his huge slump? On Sunday, Sano was 2-3 with a walk, his 18th home run and his sixth stolen base. In ten games since the Midwest League All Star break, he is hitting .281/.425/.625 (1.050 OPS) with two doubles and three home runs. The three home runs and all come in the last four games. Steve Liddle went 1-3 with a walk, his sixth double and two RBI. Those were the Snappers only three hits in this game. Matt Summers started and gave up three runs on five hits and a walk in 5.2 innings. He struck out seven. Tyler Jones came out of the bullpen and recorded his first win thanks to 2.1 scoreless innings. He gave up three hits, walked none and struck out three. Corey Williams came in and got the final three outs for his 11th save on the season. ELIZABETHTON 4, PRINCETON 6 Romy Jimenez continues to hit well. On this day, he was 3-4 with his second and third doubles. Jhonathan Arias was 3-4. Stephen Wickens went 2-4 with a walk and his second doubles. Candido Pimentel went 2-4. Corey Kimes got the nod for the E-Twins. The lefty went five innings and gave up four runs on six hits. He walked one and struck out one. Hein Robb gave up two runs on four hits in 1.1 innings. He struck out one. DJ Baxendale finished playing in the College World Series and must have been anxious to sign with the Twins. On Sunday, he made his professional debut for Elizabethton. He struck out four in 1.2 innings. GCL TWINS There are no scheduled GCL games on Sundays. --- Players of the Day for Sunday, July 1, 2012 Pitcher of the Day – Luis Perdomo Download attachment: LuisPerdomo.jpg Hitter of the Day – Josmil Pinto Download attachment: JosmilPinto3.jpg --- A Look Ahead – Monday, July 2, 2012 Schedule Rochester @ Pawtucket – RHP Sam Deduno New Britain vs Bowie – RHP Shairon Martis Ft. Myers vs St. Lucie – LHP Pat Dean Beloit vs Cedar Rapids – LHP David Hurlbut Elizabethton @ Princeton – RHP Angel Mata GCL Twins @ GCL Rays – No Game Scheduled --- If you have any questions or comments on the Twins minor league system, players, teams, etc., leave them in the Comments and I’ll try to answer them! Click here to view the article

On Monday night, the Minnesota Twins began a three game series in Detroit against the Tigers. It was Mike Pelfrey facing Max Scherzer. You likely watched the game or saw the box score already when you read this, so you know that the Twins fell by the final score of 4-3. It was interesting to watch the game while at the same time calculating the Twins Win Expectancy after each and every play throughout the game.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Win Expectancy is a number that changes with every game situation. Someone who had too much time on his hands looked at every play in MLB games from 1957 through 2005. It assigns a percent likelihood of a team winning based on what happened over nearly 100,000 games. Here is a look at the Top 5 Plays from tonight’s Twins-Tigers game in terms of effect on Win Expectancy. #5 – Florimon Turns Double Play from Back Side. It was the bottom of the 5th inning and the Twins led 3-1. Mike Pelfrey had allowed a lead-off single to Alex Avila. With Avila on 1st, the Twins’ Win Probability was at 66.1% Omar Infanta blasted a one-hopper right at the Twins shortstop. Florimon fielded the ball cleanly but as he was throwing to second base, he was falling backwards. Despite his imbalance, he made a perfect feed to Brian Dozier who quickly turned and fired to first base to complete the double play. Now with two outs and no one on, the Twins’ Win Expectancy increased to 76.2% Win Expectancy Change – 10.1% #4 – “Hammer” Homers to give Twins 1-0 Lead. A visiting team’s Win Expectancy when the game starts is just 46.1% Brian Dozier and Joe Mauer flied out. When Josh Willingham stepped to the plate, that Win Expectancy was down to 42.1%. Scherzer didn’t give up many hard hit baseballs through the game, but Willingham did get a hold of this one for a solo home run that gave the Twins the 1-0 lead. Following the homer, the Twins Win Expectancy was 53.0% Win Expectancy Change- 10.9% #3 – Dirks Homers to Cut Twins’ Lead in Half. In the 2nd inning, the Twins added a second run on an Aaron Hicks’ ground out to take a 2-0 lead (which increased the Twins Win Expectancy by 4.3% to 69.8% After the Tigers and the Twins each posted "three up-three down" innings, Andy Dirks came up with two outs and no one on base in the bottom of the third. The left-hander’s solo home run cut the Twins’ lead to 2-1. It also cut the Twins’ Win Expectancy from 71.0% to 58.9% Win Expectancy Change – 12.1% #2 – Arcia Double Gives Twins 3-1 Lead. The Tigers (Dirks) had cut the Twins lead to one run in the bottom of the third, but the Twins were able to get two doubles to get that run back and reclaim a two-run lead. With one out, Chris Parmelee doubled to very deep right center field. After Trevor Plouffe struck out for the second out, Oswaldo Arcia fell behind Scherzer 0-2. However, he was able to fight off a fastball and hit a soft liner just inside the left field line for an RBI double. After the Plouffe strikeout, the Twins Win Expectancy was 57.8% However, after the RBI double, the Twins Win Expectancy jumped to 71.6% Win Expectancy Change – 13.8% #1 – Fielder Blast Gives Tigers 4-3 Lead. If you watched the game, or saw highlights, it was pretty clear which play of the game had the biggest impact on Win Expectancy. When the bottom of the 6th inning began, the Twins’ Win Expectancy was at 73.3% After an Andy Dirks bunt single to lead off the inning, it fell to 67.5%. Following the Miguel Cabrera walk to put runners on 1st and 2nd the Win Expectancy fell to 59.5%. However, after Pelfrey’s first pitch to Prince Fielder landed behind the wall in centerfield, the Twins Win Expectancy was just 23.1% Win Expectancy Change – 36.4% (Please note that this chart shows the Win Probability for the HOME team, the Tigers, throughout the game.) Pelfrey was very good through the first five innings. Unfortunately, the struggles in the sixth inning happened, and happened quite quickly. Win Expectancy is a nice, fun tool that can be used to see the impact of individual plays on the game. Like all statistics, it isn’t a perfect tool. For instances, when Fielder came up, the Twins Win Expectancy was 73.3% whether it was Prince Fielder or Don Kelly or Tom Kelly stepping to the plate. If you take a look at the Win Expectancy change for each player in the Twins lineup, it can show who had the biggest impact, positive or negative, in the game. It is extremely important to point out that this is a one-game sample, so performance (or clutchness), good or bad, has to be taken for what it’s worth. For this one game, here are the Twins hitters impact on Win Expectancy. Brian Dozier -15.5% Joe Mauer -9.2% Josh Willingham +5.6% Justin Morneau -11.4% Chris Parmelee -4.4% Trevor Plouffe -4.9% Oswaldo Arcia +14.3% Aaron Hicks -2.1% Pedro Florimon -0.1% It is safe to say that Oswaldo Arcia was the Twins player who gave the team the best chance to win on Monday night. Win Expectancy is just one way to look at a game. It is kind of fun to see how much each play, from the first to the last, affects the game. On this night, one pitch completely altered the outlook of the game. Unfortunately, it was one pitch that meant a Twins loss instead of a Twins win. View full article

The following story was originally published in January, in my Minnesota Twins Prospect Handbook 2012. The day after the 2011 season ended, I named the SethSpeaks.net Twins Minor League Player of the Year (Brian Dozier), the Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year (Liam Hendriks) and the Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Year (Andrew Albers). For my book, I was fortunate to get in contact with all three of those players and interviewed each of them for a story. Over the weekend, it became official that Liam Hendriks had made the Twins Opening Day starter. He will make his 2012 debut on Sunday against the Orioles. I thought it would be fun, and timely, to post the Liam Hendriks article here. (If you want to read the Dozier and/or Albers article, and read over 160 player profiles of Twins minor leaguers and much more, you can order a paperback book here, or you can get an electronic version here.) Here is the story on Hendriks: [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Download attachment: LiamHendriks.jpg For the second straight year, Liam Hendriks was the choice for the SethSpeaks.net Pitcher of the Year award. And for his efforts, he received a September call-up to the Twins. “Without a doubt, it was fantastic. I mean, that’s the reason that I came over to America. I’m living the dream at the moment.” The Twins went to Australia and signed Hendriks in February of 2007. After signing, he came to the States and pitched for the GCL Twins. He made ten starts and went 4-2 with a 2.05 ERA. In 44 innings, he walked 11 and struck out 52. However, he had to miss the entire 2008 season due to injury. It wasn’t his first injury. “I’ve had injuries even before I signed. I mean, I signed just after having my second knee surgery. I had my first knee surgery in 2006. It was a week before I was to go to Mexico with the Under-17 Australian team, so that was probably the hardest for me. The next one (happened) during a tournament in Australia, the biggest tournament in Australia for my age group, the under-18 national tournament. It was the semi-finals. I came in to close, and I was meant to start, in the playoff game and hurt my knee on the mound.” In 2008, the injury was a little different. “I had a pinched nerve in my spine, and it was my ulnar nerve. It ran all the way through my shoulder, down past my elbow and to my fingers. I was pitching with it, but every now and then, I would tilt my neck and would feel a shooting, like pins and needles. I didn’t think anything of it. One day, I was pitching and it just started to burn. That’s when I finally said something. I had surgery the last day of the season, in early September. I had surgery and six weeks later, I was back and playing for the Perth Heat.” Hendriks was frustrated by missing the full season, but he made the best of it and put it in proper, optimistic perspective. “It was definitely tough not being able to play that year, but if I had played, I wouldn’t have been able to win a championship with the Perth Heat. I wouldn’t have been able to go to the World Baseball Classic or play for the Australian team in the World Cup in Italy. Without being injured, I wouldn’t have been able to do those things.” Few Twins fans knew his name when he was selected to the Australian team for the World Baseball Classic. He began the 2009 season in Extended Spring Training before making three starts for the Elizabethton Twins. In 17 innings, he walked just one and struck out 13. He went 2-0 and opponents hit just .271. He was promoted to Beloit where he made 11 starts. He went 3-5 with a 3.51 ERA. In 66.2 innings, he walked 15 and struck out 62. He successfully made his return from surgery. Hendriks returned to Beloit to start the 2010 season. There, he made six starts and was 2-1 with a 1.32 ERA. In 34 innings, he gave up just 16 hits, walked four and struck out 39. Opponents hit just .138 against him. He advanced to Ft. Myers and made 13 appearances (12 starts). He went 6-3 with a 1.93 ERA. In 74.2 innings, he gave up 63 hits, walked eight and struck out 66. Opponents hit just .225 off of him. It was his first full season, and he pitched 108.2 innings with a 1.74 ERA and a 0.84 WHIP. Included in his season highlights was his selection to represent Australia and the Twins for the World Team at the Futures Game in Anaheim. Unfortunately, he needed an emergency appendectomy and was forced to miss a month. When 2011 began, the assumption was that Hendriks would go back to Ft. Myers for another ten starts before moving up to New Britain. Instead, he began the 2011 season in the Rock Cats rotation. He certainly proved himself ready and capable by going 8-2 with a 2.70 ERA in 16 games (15 starts). In 90 innings with the team, he gave up 85 hits, walked 18 and struck out 81. He was selected to pitch in the Eastern League All Star game. He was also selected to participate in the 2011 Futures Game for the second straight year, and this time he was able to play in the game. Following the All-Star games, he was promoted to Triple-A Rochester where he experienced ups and downs on the mound for the first time in his career. In his first three games, he gave up eight runs in 19.2 innings. He then had back-to-back clunkers. He gave up eight runs (7 earned) on eight hits in just two innings against Norfolk. That was followed by a game in which he gave up six earned runs on six hits in just five innings. However, he rebounded well. In his final four starts, he gave up just four runs in 22.2 innings. In those four game he gave up no walks and struck out 17. That was really the story of his time with the Red Wings. In 49.1 innings, he walked just three batters and struck out 30. Think about that. In 139.1 innings total in 2011, Hendriks struck out 111 and walked just 21 batters. And then he thought his 2011 season was over. There were times in which he was hoping and almost expecting a call up. “I had a little bit of a feeling that I might be (promoted), but then Kyle Waldrop had been called up about 30 to 45 minutes before me. In my mind, I thought, ‘OK, obviously they’re taking him, and that’s it. I’m done for the year. I actually sent my girlfriend back to Ft. Myers. I was putting my bags on the bus for an eight hour trip to Pawtucket. As I got back, one of the clubbies came up and said Chief (Rochester manager Tom Nieto) wants to talk to you. He came in and said, ‘You’re not going on the bus to Pawtucket. You’re going up to Minnesota and you leave tomorrow!’” “It was definitely very exciting! The first thing I did was call my girlfriend. She was happy, but she was like, ‘Oh, I’ve got to get on another flight?!’” She didn’t mind. At all! Hendriks came to the big leagues on Labor Day. The Twins had a double header against the Chicago White Sox. “I was lucky. I was able to pick the brain of some of the older guys and see what the White Sox lineup had to offer.” What were his recollections of his first start and some of his big league firsts? “I tried not to get overwhelmed. It was definitely cool walking out on the field, walking out to the bullpen. I liked the fact that I threw to Rene Rivera, who I’d thrown to before, so that definitely made it a lot easier.” “As I was warming up, they announced that I was making my debut and would be going up against Jake Peavy. As they said that, he (Peavy) leaned over the fence and said, ‘Good Luck! Don’t get nervous, and go out there and give ‘em hell!’ It was really cool of him to do that, and it gave me a lot of confidence.” Juan Pierre was the White Sox leadoff hitter that game. “I remember the first two pitches because the balls are a little bit different from the big leagues to the minor leagues. Usually I’ve got a good grip on the ball, but I think I was nervous. Well, obviously I was nervous! The first two pitches were up and away. The third pitch was also up and away but at least it was in the strike zone and he put it in play. We had him played pretty well and Rene Tosoni took the catch in left field.” “And then the strikeout, all I remember was getting ahead of a guy. I can’t remember if I shook off or not, but I knew that the curveball was the pitch I wanted to throw. I was able to get it low and in, and luckily, he swung and Rene (Rivera) did a great job of catching the ball on the bounce.” Hendriks is very proud of his Australian roots and how baseball has taken a bit step forward in the past decade. He knows that he is the 31st Australian to play in the big leagues. He understands the intricacies of the game. He has the pitches to be very successful in the big leagues. He has great control of a fastball that is thrown between 88 and 93 mph with some movement. He also has a slider, a curveball and a changeup. “I was lucky because when I was younger, I didn’t throw very hard, so I had to throw strikes. I was able to keep it up and as I started throwing harder it stuck with me which is always good. I can locate most (of my pitches) pretty well. I think my changeup is my best pitch, but at times, it is the slider, and every now and then, it’s even the curve ball. I’ve got the pitches so if one isn’t working, I can hopefully fall back on another one.” “Philosophy-wise, just get ahead. You look at the averages up 0-2, rather than down 2-0. As soon as you get ahead, it makes the hitters sweat a little bit. Most of the time, guys aren’t going to hit you hard.” Teammates and analysts talk about his competitive fire and his very high baseball intelligence. He understands how to pitch. He also understands the value of being able to field his position. “I take a lot of pride in my defense. I remember when I went to the Australian baseball academy, reaction balls were hit straight at us from about 35 feet away. That definitely helped me a lot. I was almost signed by the Angels as a 3B/LF. I’ve always been able to field a little bit, but I couldn’t hit, so 3B/LF was out for me. I always pride myself on my defense, and I get quite angry at myself if there’s a ball that I think that I can get that I don’t. Defense is a big thing for me because, even when I was in the big leagues, I was able to save two or three base hits, so that could have changed a lot of games for the worse.” It has been a meteoric rise through the Twins farm system the past two years. In the 2010 and 2011 seasons, he pitched in Beloit (Low A), Ft. Myers (High-A), New Britain (AA), Rochester (AAA) and with the Twins (MLB). “Every now and then, I’ll think back and think that this takes guys six to eight years to do at times. And I’ve gone from Low A in my first full season in pro ball to the major leagues in two years. I look at it that way and think, ‘Oh Wow! That doesn’t happen often, especially to guys who were signed or drafted out of high school like myself.” “As I was saying to Luke Hughes, the stars had to align for me to get the call up this year. Luckily enough they did, and hopefully I’ve opened up some eyes up there. I’m hoping to head to spring training and open some more.” “There’s a high chance I’ll go back to Triple-A, and there’s a small chance I’ll start with Minnesota. At the same point, I’m just going to work as hard as I can in the offseason to try to get into the best physical shape that I can. For the first time, Hendriks stayed in the States following the season. He worked out throughout the offseason at the Twins facilities in Ft. Myers with Twins strength trainer, Perry Castellano. There is no question that Liam Hendriks has big league stuff. He also has all of those intangibles that often allow pitchers to be really good. Had the Twins not been so injury-plagued in 2011, we probably would not have seen Hendriks yet. He now has a sense for what it is to be a big leaguer. He most likely will head to Rochester with a better understanding of what it takes to be successful, and when he gets another opportunity (and he will), he will be prepared. --- Any thoughts? Download attachment: MN Twins Prospect Handbook 2012 Cover.jpg Click here to view the article

The Twins lost on Saturday to David Price and the Rays by a score of 5-1. The positive for the Twins was that they were able to turn five double plays in the game. In other words, it could have been worse. They will try today to avoid the sweep. Trevor May returned to the mound for the Red Wings after missing almost a month. JO Berrios made his second start for New Britain and was tremendous. A couple streaks came to their ends. Continue reading to see what happened in the Twins minor leagues on Saturday: RED WINGS REPORT Rochester 2, Norfolk 4 Box Score Trevor May returned to the mound for the first time in almost a month. The right-hander gave up one run on three hits and a walk in three innings. Mark Hamburger came on and threw two shutout innings, walking one. Edgar Ibarra pitched a scoreless sixth inning. However, in the 7th frame, he gave up a single and a walk before being replaced by AJ Achter. Achter issued a walk to load the bases. He got a pop up for the first out, but then he walked another batter to force in a run. The next batter hit a two-run single to make the score 4-0. Achter got the next two outs. In that inning, Chris Herrmann had to leave the game after being hit by a foul tip on his right hand. Deolis Guerra struck out two in a perfect eighth inning. James Beresford went 2-4 with his 17th double. He drove in both the team's runs. He now has a seven-game hitting streak and he has two hits in each of his last four games. Chris Rahl also had two hits. It was the team's seventh straight road loss. They are now 20-29 on the road (and 34-18 at home). 18 of their next 24 games will be on the road. ROCK CATS REVIEW Game 1 - New Britain 0, Reading 1 Box Score JO Berrios made his second AA start for the Rock Cats on Saturday. He had given up five runs in five innings in his debut. His previous appearance was his one-inning start for the World Team in the Futures Game on Sunday. On this day, he was at his finest. He gave up just one run on four hits in six innings (in the sixth inning). He didn't walk any, though he hit one, and he struck out five. However, due to lack of offensive support, he falls to 0-2. The Rock Cats had just three hits. Eddie Rosario went 1-2 with a walk. Game 2 - New Britain 2, Reading 3 Box Score http://twinsdaily.co...263&stc=1Taylor Rogers made his first start since pitching an inning in the Eastern League All-Star game. He went just four innings and gave up one run on five hits. He didn't walk any and struck out one. Dan Turpen came in and was charged with an unearned run. He walked two and struck out three. Cole Johnson falls to 1-6 after giving up one run on three hits and a walk in 0.2 innings. Brandon Waring went 2-2 with his ninth home run. He was also hit by a pitch. Kennys Vargas went 2-3 with his 14th double. Eddie Rosario went 2-4. MIRACLE MATTERS Ft. Myers 5, Daytona 3 Box Score DJ Baxendale pitched well and improved to 4-1. In seven innings he gave up three runs on five hits. He walked three and struck out seven. Madison Boer walked two and struck out three in 1.2 innings. Steven Gruver came on and struck out the one batter he faced to record his second save of the season. Travis Harrison went 3-5. Mike Gonzales was 2-5 with three RBI. Adam Walker and Aderlin Mejia each doubled for the tenth time this season. Max Kepler went 1-1 with three walks. KERNELS NUGGETS Cedar Rapids 4, Lake County 3 Box Score With Jeremy Nygaard in attendance, the hitting streaks of Alex Swim (14) and Jason Kanzler (7) came to an end. I'm certain there is no correlation. However, the Kernels won for the fourth straight time and for the ninth time in their last ten games. Lewis Thorpe started and gave up two runs on three hits and a walk in 4.1 innings. He struck out six. Chris Mazza came in and gave up one run on four hits over 2.1 innings. He struck out two. Hudson Boyd gave up a single in 1.1 scoreless innings. Nick Burdi came in for the ninth inning to protect a 4-3 lead. He struck out two in a 1-2-3 inning for his second save. Engelb Vielma went 2-4. Chad Christensen hit his sixth triple. Mitch Garver drove in two runs. Tanner Vavra reached all three times, twice on walks and was also hit by a pitch. E-TWINS E-NOTES Elizabethton, Burlington Box Score The game was rained out. The teams will play two games on Sunday. GCL TWINS TAKES GCL Twins 1, GCL Red Sox 10 Box Score The Twins were held to just three hits. Amaurys Minier, Ariel Montesino and Jack Barrie each had a single. Levi Michael went 0-2 with a walk while playing shortstop again. Onesimo Hernandez gave up three runs (two earned) on four hits in four innings. He walked two and struck out five. In 1.1 innings, Callan Pearce was charged with four runs on two hits, three walks and a hit batter. He struck out three. Eduardo Del Rosario was charged with two unearned runs on two hits and a walk in 1.2 innings. He struck out two. Zach Hayden gave up an unearned run in his inning. He struck out two. Seth Wagner pitched a scoreless, perfect inning. TWINS DAILY PLAYERS OF THE DAY Twins Daily Minor League Pitcher of the Day – DJ Baxendale, Ft. Myers Miracle Twins Daily Minor League Hitter of the Day – Brandon Waring, New Britain Rock Cats SUNDAY’S PROBABLE STARTERS Rochester @ Norfolk (5:05 CST) – Logan Darnell New Britain @ Reading (12:35 CST) – Jason Wheeler Brevard County @ Ft. Myers (3:05 CST) – Tim Shibuya Ft. Wayne @ Cedar Rapids (2:05 CST) - Ryan Eades Burlington @ Elizabethton (DH @ 4:00 CST) – Derrick Penilla, Michael Cederoth GCL Twins – No Game Scheduled Please feel free to ask any questions and discuss the Saturday games. Click here to view the article

You have now read about the June Starting Pitcher of the Month and the June Hitter of the Month. Today, I'll be posting the June Relief Pitcher of the Month. As has been the case with the previous "awards", there are a lot of good candidates this month. Relief pitchers often are taken for granted as they are not really noticed unless they have a bad game. So, it's only fair that we recognize them when they do pitch well. Let's start with the Honorable Mentions. HONORABLE MENTION Aaron Thompson - Rochester - 11 G, 10.0 IP, 6 H, 4 BB, 11 K, 0-0, 0.90 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, .171 OBA.Mason Melotakis - Ft. Myers - 8 G, 12.2 IP, 9 H, 5 BB, 14 K, 1-0, 1.42 ERA, 1.11 WHIP, .200 OBA.Brandon Peterson - Ft. Myers- 9 G, 12.2 IP, 11 H, 2 BB, 20 K, 1-1, 2.84 ERA, 1.03 WHIP, .234 OBA.Let's get to the Top 5: #5 - Todd Van Steensel - Cedar Rapids - 10 G, 11.2 IP, 7 H, 1 BB, 15 K, 0-0, 4 Saves, 1.54 ERA, 0.69 WHIP, .175 OBA. In my mind, the return of Van Steensel is one of the better stories in the organization this year. He was a starter for Elizabethton just a few seasons ago, but he was let go. He's been playing in Australia and other places, but he re-signed with the Twins before spring training this year. He has been a different pitcher. He is now a reliever. He has the funky, high leg-kick, the goggles and he throws harder. He had a terrific month in Cedar Rapids and has now been promoted to Ft. Myers. #4 - Ryan O'Rourke - New Britain - 9 G, 5.1 IP, 2 H, 2 BB, 12 K, 0-0, 3.38 ERA, 0.75 WHIP, .111 OBA. I remember seeing O'Rourke starting for Beloit back in 2011. He was animated and intense, but my overriding thought was "This guy could be a LOOGY (left-handed one-out guy) in the big leagues right now!" Well, it hasn't happened in the big leagues yet for him, but it is the role he has for New Britain. Consider this... from May 24 through June 27, he pitched six innings over 11 games. He faced 19 batters. He gave up one hit and struck out 15. His slider is legit and he throws hard enough that he can pitch to lefties in the big leagues now, I'm convinced. #3 - Lester Oliveros - New Britain/Rochester - 9 G, 10.1 IP, 5 H, 1 BB, 13 K, 1-0, 5 Saves, 0.87 ERA, 0.58 WHIP, .135 OBA. Oliveros has been on this list in previous months and finally was promoted to Rochester. The hard-thrower came to the organization from Detroit in the Delmon Young trade. He missed most of 2013 with Tommy John surgery after debuting with the Twins in 2012. He's back, and he's throwing hard. He's missing bats and opponents are not hitting him hard. He's not on the 40 man roster, but if he succeeds in Rochester, he'll get another opportunity. #2 - Edgar Ibarra - Rochester - 8 G, 14.1 IP, 8 H, 4 BB, 10 K, 0-0, 0.00 ERA, 0.84 WHIP, .157 OBA. The left-hander was tremendous in 2013, splitting the season between New Britain and Rochester. It was an easy decision, I'd think, to add him to the Twins 40 man roster after the season. The left-hander throws hard (touching 95) with a nasty slider. He can fight control issues at times, but he has a chance to contribute to the Twins at some point yet this year. Some very good performances, but this month's Minnesota Twins Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month, like this month's other winners, was a fairly easy choice and one you've read about before. http://twinsdaily.co...ntid=8164&stc=1 #1 - AJ Achter - Rochester - 7 G, 14.0 IP, 4 H, 8 BB, 14 K, 1-0, 1.29 ERA, 0.86 WHIP, .091 OBA. Seriously, I am thinking that this award should just be the AJ Achter award. He was my choice for Twins minor league reliever of the year in 2012. In 2013, he was terrific in New Britain and Rochester. This year, he has been tremendous. He was recognized last week as the Red Wings lone All Star this year. He actually had back-to-back games earlier in the month in which he walked most of his hitters. Generally, he has great control, works fast, has four pitches and yet isn't hit very hard. He doesn't sit at 95. He sits 90-92 and can touch 94, but he has other pitches that have worked. He is not on the 40 man roster, but like others above, he has earned an opportunity. Hard to believe that we are more than three months into the minor league season. There are two months to go. We will continue to dive into the minor leagues here at Twins Daily. Please feel free to share your thoughts on anything. Click here to view the article

A fan/writer in the stands at Veteran’s Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids was watching a group of six or seven Kernels players working in the batting cage on bunting for hits. It was five hours before game time. Manager Jake Mauer was observing. Twins minor league hitting coordinator Bill Springman was feeding the pitching machine. Hitting coach Tommy Watkins was joyfully encouraging the players, but the 34-year-old former Twins infielder put his money where his mouth was. He took a regular spot in the group and managed to bunt the ball three feet in from the third base foul line every time. Only twice did he bunt the ball elsewhere, and those were the two times he pushed a bunt to within two feet of the first base line. Download attachment: Watkins2014e.jpg all Tommy Watkins photos by Steve Buhr All the while, Watkins exuding passion for the game, encouraging the players to work but be sure to have fun as they’re doing it. As his friend and Kernels manager Jake Mauer said, “I wish these guys would have had a chance to see him play, the energy and how he went about his business, and just his overall attitude to the game. It’s the reason he got there, without a doubt.” Watkins’ career path has been rather non-traditional. That he became a big leaguers, even if just for two weeks, is remarkable. He grew up in Ft. Myers where baseball can be played all year long. However, it wasn't his lone priority growing up. Watkins said, "There is a lot of baseball in Florida, but I played football in high school, so I never got a chance to play year round like a lot of people do. I played football and I had a job. I worked in the summer. So I never played in the fall or the summer. I just played during the (high school) baseball season. I actually got a chance my senior year to play in a couple of tournament games, maybe a weekend or two. Now they go every weekend and play all the time. Definitely I think the people in Florida take advantage of being able to play baseball year round." On the gridiron, Watkins said he played wide receiver and linebacker, "two positions that don't go together." The Twins used their 38th round pick in June of 1998 on the infielder. He recalled, "I didn't hear much about it. I really didn't have any offers to go to college. I ended up getting a call the day of the draft in school. I had in my mind that I wanted to sign. I thought that's what I wanted to do." He signed just a couple of days later. "I didn't know much about minor league baseball when I signed. I thought I was going to Minnesota. Little did I know... " Little did he know the journey he was about to embark on. It began with two seasons in the Gulf Coast League. In 2000, he moved up to Elizabethton, Tennessee. In 2001, he was a 21 year old playing for Quad Cities in the Midwest League. He spent two full seasons with the Ft. Myers Miracle. He spent 2004 and 2005 with the New Britain Rock Cats. He began 2006 back in New Britain before getting a callup to Rochester in mid-June. He became a very popular personality wherever he played. Download attachment: Watkins2014c.jpg Morrie Silver, who is in the Red Wings front office was happy to talk about Tommy Watkins, "Tommy was known as The Mayor in Rochester. His efforts in the community were truly unbelievable. Besides his countless Little League visits, I remember Tommy coming into our front offices here in Rochester and getting on the phone to sell tickets after bringing our staff Dunkin' Donuts. Tommy cared for everyone in Rochester. It didn't matter who you were. He treated everyone like he was the most important person there. Tommy comes to Thanksgiving at my house and he just brings a different vibe to Rochester. It's truly amazing. When he had his shoulder surgery, he stayed at our house and still did everything he could in the community. Tommy Watkins is a one of a kind. He's the kind of person that doesn't come around." Similar stories about Watkins are told everywhere he has played or coached. He spent 2007 with the Red Wings. In early August, he made a phone call to his dad. He recalled, "I wasn't struggling, but I wasn't feeling right at the plate. 'I'm never going to get a chance.' He said 'Just keep playing and having fun.'" The Red Wings were in Syracuse, and GM Terry Ryan happened to be in town. Watkins and most of his teammates were at the batting cage taking some cuts before the game. The team's trainer came to the cage with a message for the players. They had a team meeting right away. As Watkins tells it, "We used to try to have one once a month. We had a meeting a couple of days before." They picked up the baseballs and headed to the clubhouse where the manager spoke. As Watkins continued, "Stan (Cliburn), our manager, was talking to everybody about baseball and how time flies. He remembered Barry Bonds in winter ball or something and he had just hit his 650th home run the night before. Terry Ryan's in town, and he's got something he'd like to say to you guys." Watkins continued to recount the story, "So Terry started talking to us about the Twins organization and how they like to promote from within. He said that Brian Buscher was going going on the DL, and one of you guys is going to the big leagues. It felt like an hour before he said it. So when he said it, my heart just kind of sank. He said, 'Tommy Watkins, you're going to the big leagues.' Everybody in the clubhouse started screaming and yelling and clapping. They all came over and I was just bawling, crying." Players started yelling, "Speech!" Watkins acknowledged, "I can't! I couldn't say anything." Terry Ryan came over to Watkins to congratulate him but also to tell him he wasn't getting called up just to be a big story. "Terry came over and said 'Congratulations, and it'll probably be a big story, you've been in the minor leagues forever. You're going up there to help the team, not to be a story. Don't worry about BP. Get out of here. Go call your dad, your mom and tell them.' So, I called my dad and my mom. I called them both." This conversation with his father was a little different than the one several days earlier. His father said, "WHAT? You're doing what?" Ten years in the minor leagues. All those stops. Dream fulfilled. In fact, he contributed to the team. After pinch-hitting in his debut, and going 0-3 two days later against the Angels, he made a start on August 15th in Seattle. He went 2-4. His first hit came off of Jarrod Washburn. "It was the first pitch. It was up. It was my second at-bat. Fastball up, and I hit it to centerfield." He went on to start the next six games at third base and had at least one hit in each of them. Unfortunately, an injury put him on the disabled list and ended his season. In his nine games, he went 10-28 and hit .357/.438/.357 (.795). He didn't get back to the big leagues again, but he knew what he wanted to do after his playing career. "I played two more years after that year in AAA. The playing time went down a lot. I always knew when I got done playing that I wanted to coach. So, I think it was an easy transition for me to go from player to coach. I knew if I ever got the chance to coach third base, I would. I ended up going down to Florida in August and helped Jake out with the GCL. At night, I would go over to the Florida State League games. So I was doing both of those things for a month. I really got to see another part of the baseball. I still enjoyed it. It was still fun to go to the park." So his learning continued. "I did the Instructional League that year. I left Florida and went to Arizona for scout school (where I) learned how to scout and write reports. I went back and finished Instructional League and then they offered me the job, hitting coach in Beloit." Tommy Watkins is now in his fifth season as the Twins Low-A Midwest League hitting coach. The first three years were in Beloit, and the last two have been in Cedar Rapids. Download attachment: Watkins2014b.jpg The last two years, he has coached with Jake Mauer. Mauer said, "Tommy keeps it simple. He doesn't try to overload guys with complex terms and really complicate things. He really keeps things simple. He works more on approach. A lot of these guys have ability, no doubt. It's how you approach it, and how you're going to be able to use that ability that is going to make the difference." There are many difficulties in being a minor league hitting coach. The job has many roles, starting with hitting. Here are some of his thoughts on his role. Batting Stance: "Everybody is different. We try to stick to some basic things like getting your foot down on time, reading a pitch and reacting to it. Try to keep it simple. I think the main thing is making sure they're on time. Everybody has a different batting stance. Everybody's hands are different, but when the hands are ready to fire, they should be in a similar position. Just making sure they get to that position, being on time and they recognize the pitch." Approach: "I like to talk a lot about approach too. How do you approach different guys. Lefties down and away, you don't want to pull the ball, that kind of stuff. We get into mechanics a little, but it's the mental side too." When it comes to scouting, Watkins says things are getting better: "We'll get a lot of what they throw in different counts and stuff like that. What they throw for strikes and balls. We play a lot of these guys a lot. If a guy gets up in the bullpen, we'll say, he's got this and this, tries to do this to me." Motivational: "I try to be motivational. That's the way I played. I had to play like that, with a lot of energy. You try to get the guys to have a little of energy. It's fun to win. When you win, there should be a lot of energy, and I think we're getting to that point." Watkins and Mauer have been long-time friends. As Watkins said, "We played together for five years. We used to room together a lot. He used to boss me around then, and he's still doing it again. We've become good friends over the years. I was actually in his wedding in 2008. I was still playing. He had started coaching. We've been good friends for a long time." He also has a lot of respect for the Kernels' manager. "He does a good job of trusting his coaching staff and letting his staff work. Same thing with Ivan (Arteaga) and Gary Lucas last year. He'd tell them, you're the pitching coach. You spend the most time with them. They're your guys. He does the same with me. If he wants to work with somebody, I never have a problem with that. I trust him to do whatever. He's the boss anyway. I trust him to do whatever he's got to do." The respect is mutual as Mauer described Watkins as a coach. "Tommy's a baseball guy. He's been around it a long time. He's very prepared for what he does. In the offseason, they'll send him down to the Dominican where they'll have him work with the kids. Tommy has been very valuable hitting guy, and he's going to be a really good manager someday too." When asked how he evaluates himself at the end of the year, he noted that it had to be more than simply about the statistics. "It's not stats-based. I'll look at the stats a little bit. I saw we were in the top six in hitting. It's knowing that I did my job in trying to get every guy better, which is good for me. We may not be in the top of hitting, or the top of fielding, but maybe our record's not as good. If you know you left everything out there and you gave it your all, just like a player, when the season's over, when you're career's over, you don't want to be like, I wish I would have done this. I wish I would have done that." In doing so, Watkins has become more prepared each season. He wants to continue to improve. As you would expect, he has big goals. "I'd love to coach in the big leagues. Manage. Coach first base, coach third base. Whatever it may be. It's something that I've always wanted to do, whether it's as a player or a coach." It is a realistic goal. He has earned everyone's respect over time. He's certainly a guy to continue to root for. [/hr]The Twins hung on to beat Cleveland on Monday so today you can get a half-price large or extra-large pizza at PapaJohns.com by using the code 'TWINSWIN'. Click here to view the article

The Twins two-game winning streak came to an end on Friday night with a 4-1 loss at the hands of lefty Matt Harrison and the Texas Rangers. Anthony Swarzak gave up four runs in seven innings. He was seeing-eye-singled to death in the 4th when the Rangers started swinging at Swarzak’s first pitch and scored three times. Ian Kinsler added a little insurance with a solo home in the 7th. For the first time this season, the Twins scored first in this game. Josh Willingham scored on a screaming liner to left off the bat of Danny Valencia. Ryan Doumit had two hits in the game. Josh Willingham had a single, a walk and was hit by a pitch. Jared Burton and Matt Maloney each threw a strong inning in relief. The Twins will get to see Yu Darvish on Saturday at noon. Nick Blackburn will be making his second start of the homestand. Liam Hendriks will pitch on Sunday. There were plenty of highlights in the Twins minor league system on Friday night despite going just 2-2 on the night. Here is a look at the night in the minors. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] ROCHESTER 3, PAWTUCKET 4 Cole DeVries was terrific in his second start of the season. The right-hander from Eden Prairie gave up only an unearned run over the first five innings. He gave up just one hit, walked two and struckout four. Carlos Gutierrez came in and walked the first batter he faced and then hit the second batter. After a line out, a passed ball and a wild pitch, he gave up a three-run homer to mega-prospect Will Middlebrooks. Gutierrez then left the game alongside a trainer. Casey Fien came in and gave up just one hit in 2.1 scoreless innings. In the ninth, Brendan Wise gave up three hits and got two outs. Tyler Robertson came in with the bases loaded and struckout the next two batters to leave the score 4-3 going to the bottom of the 9th. Unfortunately, the Red Wings were unable to score. Michael Hollimon led the offense. He went 2-4 with his first double and his first home run of the young season. When Brian Dozier hit a double in his first at bat, it extended his hit streak to eight games. INJURY NOTES – Rene Tosoni was put on the 7-day Disabled List on Friday night. Another transaction is expected on Saturday (my guess is that Wilkin Ramirez will come off the DL). I will update this place when I learn more about Carlos Gutierrez. NEW BRITAIN 6, NEW HAMPSHIRE 1 The Rock Cats got a good start, good bullpen work and plenty of offense to beat New Hampshire on Friday night. Steve Hirschfeld made his second start of the young season. He threw five shutout innings and gave up just four hits and two walks. He struckout four. Luis Perdomo gave up one run on four hits over the next two innings. He struckout two. Lester Oliveros struckout two in his scoreless frame, and Daniel Turpen pitched a 1-2-3 ninth. Chris Herrmann went 3-5 with his second and third doubles. Chris Colabello was 2-3 with his first double, first homer and four RBI. Aaron Hicks was 1-3 with a walk. Pedro Florimon was 2-4. FT. MYERS MIRACLE 2, BRADENTON 3 (10 innings) For the third time in just over a week, the Miracle went to extra innings. In this game, they were on the losing end. This game was about the pitching matchup. The Miracle sent BJ Hermsen to the mound against the Pirates’ Jameson Taillon. Taillon gave up just one run in five innings. Hermsen was even better. He threw six shutout innings, allowing just two hits. He walked three and struckout three. He left with a one run lead. Matt Hauser came in and pitched a scoreless seventh. Unfortunately, he gave up a two-run homer in the 8th that put the Miracle down a run. Caleb Thielbar got out of the eighth and pitched a scoreless ninth. Offensively, the Miracle had just four hits. Angel Morales was 2-4 and drove in the first run of the game. Jairo Perez hit his second double. Lance Ray’s second home run gave the Miracle a 2-1 lead. It was 2-2 going to the tenth. Thielbar remained in the game. He gave up a double. The next batter bunted, but Thielbar threw the ball away for an error which ended the game. Fun Note – Hermsen has now thrown 11 innings this season without allowing a run. BELOIT 5, CLINTON 2 The Snappers made their fair share of errors, but they used some Clinton walks and poor defense to take a lead in the 8th and held on. Tim Shibuya was very good in his second start as well. He gave up two unearned runs on three hits in five innings. He walked two and struckout four. Matthew Tomshaw struckout two in two scoreless innings. Then Corey Williams duplicated Tomshaw with two strikeouts in two scoreless innings. Danny Ortiz led the offense going 3-5. Jairo Rodriguez went 1-3 with a walk, a double and two RBI. Jhonathan Goncalves was 1-3 with two walks and a stolen base. Tyler Grimes hit his fourth double. Not-So-Fun Note - The uber-talented Beloit infield of the Snappers (Rhodes, Rosario, Grimes and Sano) each committed an error in this game. --- Players of the Day for Friday, April 13, 2012 Hitter of the Day – Chris Herrmann Download attachment: ChrisHerrmann.jpg Pitcher of the Day – BJ Hermsen Download attachment: BJHermsen.jpg --- A Look Ahead – Saturday, April 14, 2012 Schedule Rochester @ Lehigh Valley – RHP Sam Deduno New Britain @ New Hampshire – LHP Logan Darnell Ft. Myers vs. Bradenton – RHP Adrian Salcedo (vs Gerrit Cole) Beloit @ Clinton – LHP Jason Wheeler --- If you have any questions or comments on the Twins minor league system, players, teams, etc., leave them in the Comments and I’ll try to answer them! Click here to view the article

On Wednesday, I posted a Q&A with Ryan Walker, a minor league infielder who the Twins drafted in the 2013 draft. Today I'm posting another Q&A with a Twins prospect. Brian Gilbert was the Twins 7th round pick in 2013 out of Seton Hall University. He spent time as a starter his first two seasons, but he became a strong prospect his junior season when he was the team's closer. After signing, he spent time with Elizabethton and Cedar Rapids. Combined, he posted a 0.78 ERA and a 0.71 WHIP. He also struck out 14 while walking just one.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Download attachment: Brian Gilbert.jpg Enjoy today's interview with Brian Gilbert, and feel free to discuss and ask questions in the comments below. ---------------- Twins Daily (TD): Growing up in New Jersey, who was your favorite team, and who were some of your favorite players to watch? Brian Gilbert (BG): Being from New Jersey you'd think I'd be a Yankees, Mets or Phillies fan. Not me. I was a Red Sox fan. I really enjoyed watching Pedro Martinez, Manny Ramirez, Jon Lester, Dustin Pedroia and David Ortiz throughout the years. TD: What are your best memories from your high school baseball days? Did you play other sports? BG: Winning back to back Group IV State Championships at Toms River High School North and breaking the single season HR and slugging percentage records my senior year. I only focused on baseball in high school. TD: Talk about your decision to go to Seton Hall. Were you recruited elsewhere too? BG: After visiting other schools, walking on to Seton Hall’s campus I just felt a sense of comfort right away, seeing the history and how beautiful the campus is and meeting the coaches, walking around the baseball field and knowing I could be a part of such a historic program. It just seemed like the perfect fit. Schools such as Oral Roberts, Fordham and a few others were recruiting me but none were as appealing as Seton Hall University. TD: What were your best memories/moments from your college playing days? BG: My freshman year I was in the starting rotation. We had an up and down season but ended up winning the Big East Championship and advancing to a regional. My junior year and final season I was the team's closer and had the most games finished in the Big East, along with being selected 3rd Team All Big East. TD: As the draft approached, were you seeing or talking to more scouts? Did you have much conversation with any Twins scouts? BG: With the draft approaching I was in contact with numerous scouts. The Twins came in the picture late. That's when scout John Wilson invited me to a pre-draft workout and going to the workout turned out to be one of my best decisions. John Wilson and the Twins ended up taking me in the 7th round. TD: When the Twins took you in the 7th round, where were you and what was that experience like? (Was that about where you were expecting to be picked?) BG: I was at home with my family when I was selected. It had to be the most anxious I have ever been in my life waiting for that phone call. Between rounds 4-8 is what we were expecting so everything worked out great. TD: What was the adjustment to pro baseball like for you? (In E-Town, and then with the move up to Cedar Rapids) BG: The adjustment wasn't too bad especially since I had my teammate from school, Zachary Granite. I adjusted quickly with the situation and it was a sense of relief knowing that baseball is my job now. I kept my same mentality pitching from school to E-Town up to Cedar Rapids and that led to success. Being promoted from E-Town to Cedar Rapids was a great feeling, along with a confidence boost. TD: I've read and been told that you have a "closer's mentality." What does that mean to you, and would you say it is accurate? BG: Having those words next to my name is a great sight to see because I want nothing more than to be a major league closer. And yes, I would say that's accurate because I love when the pressure is on and I have to get the last three outs of the game. TD: I've also heard that you could be a starter, at least early in your pro career. What are your thoughts on starting versus being a reliever? Do you have a preference? BG: I've started, and I've closed. To be honest, I feel that I am more valuable as a reliever. I like the adrenaline rush from being a reliever. I like the high pressure situation at the end of the game, and I really like pitching with full-out, maximum effort. I definitely prefer relieving especially with my personality and my mentality. TD: Who are some of the people who have helped you get to this point in your career? BG: My parents, grandparents, friends, teammates, coaches, everyone along the way has helped me in some way whether it was baseball-related or not. TD: Outside of baseball, what do you enjoy doing? Hobbies, etc? BG: Outside of baseball, I enjoy fishing, crabbing, cooking, music and movies. TD: As spring training is now just a couple of months away, what are you most anxious and excited about? BG: I'm anxious to just start pitching in game situations again and prove myself to my coaches and teammates. I'm excited to meet other players and coaches I have not met before and learn from them and take in as much information and helpful tips as I can. TD: Have you set any goals for yourself for the 2014 season? BG: My main goal is to compete to the best of my ability and help win ball games for my team. As far as individual goals, my main individual goal is to stay confident and stay positive if/when I struggle and come across some adversity. I believe if I do that the numbers will be what I want them to be. TD: Favorite Baseball movie? BG: Even though I rooted for the Red Sox, my favorite baseball movie is 61*. TD: What is one thing about yourself that you would want Twins fans to know? BG: I was one win away from playing in the Little League World Series when I was 12 with Toms River Little League in 2005. ---------------- Thanks for reading, and thank you to Brian Gilbert for taking the time to answer our questions. He's got a chance to move up the Twins ladder quickly if he is in the bullpen. Click here to view the article

I recently got my newest issue of Entertainment Weekly. It was the Fall TV preview issue. As I was flipping through the pages to see what shows spark my interest, some of them made me start thinking about the Twins season, and how the Twins have played in September. Yes, I acknowledge that that makes me kind of sad, but you can understand, I’m sure. Below you’ll find some of the TV shows and how they got me thinking about the Minnesota Twins. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] It seems everyone has caught on to the Breaking Bad phenomenon. I was late to the game. About two months ago, I was able to pick up Seasons One through Five, and I started watching. I’m now several episodes into Season 4, and trying my best not to read on Twitter what’s going on this season with Walt and Jesse and the gang. Download attachment: Breaking Bad.jpg For the Twins, things have been Breaking Bad! While the Twins fought to stay afloat until recently, things have not been good since they lost the third game of a series in Houston. They have won just twice in their last 11 games. More recently, they have lost five of their last six, and by a combined score of 52-12. They have been brutal at Target Field and are in serious need of some Home Improvement! The silver lining is that, if the season were to end today, the Twins would pick fifth in the 2014 MLB Draft. It is definitely a Grimm situation for the hometown nine. Reading the comments on sites like Twins Daily, and maybe more importantly, seeing the declining attendance numbers at Target Field tells me that there are a bunch of Mad Men in Twins' fandom these days. It’s certainly A Different World from what we experienced through most of the last decade. Gardy, and the Twins announcers, often speak about sending out The A-Team to face teams in playoff contention, but it is hard to find an A-Team right now, especially with Joe Mauer out of the lineup. Of course, after three straight horrific seasons by the Twins, some fans are looking for a Revolution. That’s not exactly how the Twins tend to work. They are an organization that strongly believes in building from within, both on the field and in the front office. All in the Family, one might say. There will be change. However, most likely, there will be little change in the front office. Then, you’ve got people like me who are Raising Hope by touting the strong Twins' farm system. However, caution must always follow optimism, especially when it comes to minor league prospects. As good and as much hype as prospects get, there is always a chance they don’t become what you think they can become. They don’t always continue to develop as you think they will. One perfect example of this Arrested Development is last night’s starter, Liam Hendriks. Last night, the Australian right-hander was unable to get out of the first inning against the White Sox. Hendriks was a guy who flew through that Twins farm system. I ranked him as high as #3 in my Twins prospect rankings. Why? He was tremendous in the minor leagues. He pitched well in Beloit and Ft. Myers in 2010. He pitched very well in New Britain and Rochester in 2011. In fact, he got a September call up that season out of necessity. But it was more than that. Reports on Hendriks were that he had a fastball that hit 92 mph with movement. That he had a very good changeup and a good curveball. At times in his 30 starts with the Twins, he has shown all of those things. Let’s not forget the game he lost 1-0 to Felix Hernandez and the Mariners. The talent is there. The pitches are there. For some reason, it just has not come together. I guess you could say that Rick Anderson is the X-Factor when it comes to Twins pitchers. He often gets blamed when pitchers don’t become what we think that they should become. He gets roasted when a young pitcher struggles with the Twins and then succeeds when he goes elsewhere, even though that could just as easily be a byproduct of more experience, maturity and other variables. But how much did Anderson have to work with in 2013? He certainly did help Sam Deduno and over his years he has as many, if not more, successes than failures. Hendriks is one of several players on the Twins roster they will need to determine if they will Love It or List It? It will be another interesting offseason for the Twins, and there are some 40 man roster decisions that will not be easy. Who will come off of the 40 man roster? Hendriks joins a list of possibilities that includes (but not limited to) Andrew Albers, Cole De Vries, BJ Hermsen, Shairon Martis, Eric Fryer, Doug Bernier, Chris Colabello, Wilkin Ramirez and Clete Thomas. They will also have to determine if they will offer arbitration to the likes of Brian Duensing, Josh Roenicke, Anthony Swarzak and Trevor Plouffe. Some of that will be determined by their thoughts on the most interesting Person of Interest in the organization, Miguel Sano. Will the Twins brass be willing to let him be the Opening Day third baseman in 2014? Should they? But he is certainly not the only person whose development will factor into 2014 planning. Many may want an Extreme Makeover, but consider how many high-level prospects the team needs to open spaces for in 2014. Consider the following: Aaron Hicks – He was given the right to compete for the Opening Day centerfield job in 2013, and he won that spring training contest in the most recent example of why spring training numbers mean nothing. He struggled in his time with the Twins and was allowed to struggle beyond anything I’ve seen before. When he was finally sent down to Rochester, he lost time due to three separate injuries. He did not receive a September call up and says he will not play winter ball in Puerto Rico. What is his status going into 2014? One thing for certain is that Twins fans should not give up on him. Though Byron Buxton is near, Hicks can still be a long-term fixture in the Twins outfield. Trevor Plouffe – He has really struggled at third base at times, and his offense has been quite inconsistent. Miguel Sano is very close, and reports indicate that his defense is better than Plouffe’s at the hot corner already. What do they do with Plouffe? Can he become a Super Utility player who plays all over? Eddie Rosario – Like Sano, Rosario has been a fast mover in the Twins system. He started in Ft. Myers and then hit well in New Britain. He won’t be ready for Opening Day, but do not be surprised if he is with the Twins by mid-season. Will it be at second base, or has Brian Dozier cemented himself there? Rosario certainly could be an outfielder as well. Alex Meyer – This might be the biggest piece to the puzzle. He missed nearly three months of the 2013 season with a shoulder injury. When he returned, he was throwing 100 mph with a nasty curveball. He is the Ace that the Twins and their fans have been looking for, if he continues to develop and improve. He too could be up by June. Trevor May – 2014 will be his final option season. After a solid, but unspectacular second season in AA, May needs to show something in 2014 if he wants to remain a starter, otherwise, he’ll go to the bullpen, where he can still be a valuable pitcher. Josmil Pinto – Can Pinto be an everyday catcher? Can he hit, and can he field/throw enough for the team to feel comfortable moving Joe Mauer to another position at least half the time. He certainly has made a strong first impression with his September performance. Chris Herrmann has shown his value is his versatility, with his ability to play the corner outfield spots well and be solid behind the plate. Michael Tonkin – He was tremendous in the minor leagues until he got his first promotion to the Twins. Since that time, he has really struggled. He may be gassed, but he’ll have to show something to put himself into position to be on the Twins opening day roster next season. No question, however, he will be up with the team at some point in 2014. Byron Buxton – He is the best prospect in baseball, and he can do it all. He should start the 2014 season in New Britain, and as I’ve been saying since I saw him in Cedar Rapids in April, he could be with the Twins by July (yes, of 2014). He is that good. He will come to big league spring training, not necessarily to win a starting job, but he can make an strong impression. It won’t be long.Imagine a Twins outfield in September that includes Aaron Hicks, Byron Buxton and Eddie Rosario. That group could cover the vast, Green Acres of Target Field’s outfield. Oswaldo Arcia can spell them and be the primary DH. Miguel Sano at third base with Joe Mauer getting a lot of time at first base. Trevor Plouffe can spell Mauer at 1B when he catches. Josmil Pinto can be behind the plate half the time as well. Brian Dozier has certainly bought himself some time at second base with a strong glove and enough bat to be excited about. Pedro Florimon’s glove is so good that his bat could be better hidden if the rest of the lineup hits. Alex Meyer and Trevor May should be in the rotation by that time, and who knows who else will step up and contribute. This September has been and likely will continue to be tough to watch over the final 13 games. If you follow me on Twitter, you noticed that I spent a lot of time watching Cheaper by the Dozen 2 during the Twins game. I’m not proud of that, though it is an excellent movie!! Cheers to those of you who made it through the entire game (something you may not be proud of?)! At this point in the 2014 season, in the final month, it should be a very interesting time to be watching the Twins of the future play. At that point, we could live in our own Fantasy Island and dream of Happy Days. Good Times! Click here to view the article

Since Opening Day of the minor league season, we have been doing daily Twins Minor League Reports here at Twins Daily. Each day, we were following the Rochester Red Wings, the New Britain Rock Cats, the Ft. Myers Miracle and the Cedar Rapids Kernels. Meanwhile, many Twins minor leaguers have been in Ft. Myers, working out and playing in extended spring training. Later this week, those players – along with signed 2014 draft picks – will begin their official seasons. The Elizabethton Twins (Advanced Rookie) open on Thursday while the Gulf Coast League Twins (Rookie) start on Friday afternoon. Today, we’ll take a look at the Elizabethton Twins roster as their season begins. Tomorrow, we’ll look at the Gulf Coast League roster. Note that these are very brief bios, so feel free to ask any questions you would like. Download attachment: S Gonsalves.jpg The Starting Pitchers Stephen Gonsalves – The Twins 4th round pick in 2013 pitched really well last year for the GCL Twins and the E-Twins in his professional debut. He combined to post a 0.95 ERA and a 1.02 WHIP in 28.1 innings. He walked 11 and struck out 39. If I’m being honest, I’m shocked that he isn’t in Cedar Rapids, and I expect he’ll perform well again. Sam Gibbons – The 20-year-old Australian has pitched in the GCL each of the last two seasons. Chih-Wei Hu – The stocky, 20-year-old from Taiwan went 2-0 with a 2.45 ERA last year with the GCL Twins. He walked eight and struck out 39 in 36.2 innings. Felix Jorge – A year ago, Jorge went 2-2 with a 2.95 ERA in 12 starts for the E-Twins. In 61 innings, he walked 18 and struck out 72. He began this season in Cedar Rapids, but went 2-5 with a 9.00 ERA in 12 games for the Kernels. In 39 innings, he walked 20 and struck out 23 before being sent back to EST. Derrick Penilla – The 22-year-old lefty was the Twins 15th round pick a year ago. He pitched for the GCL Twins a year ago. He began this season at EST but was promoted to Cedar Rapids where he pitched in just seven games before heading back down. Mike Cederoth – Cederoth is the hard-throwing third round pick from San Diego State. He signed just last week. He pitched primarily out of the bullpen where his 98 mph fastball plays well. He has had opportunities to start in college, but his downfall has been his control. The Twins are going to give him a chance to start. The Relief Pitchers Cameron Booser – He signed after the 2013 draft after not being drafted. He pitched in just three games at the end of the GCL season. Reports from spring training indicate that the 6-3, 225 pound lefty throws really hard. Sam Clay – The Twins 4th round pick this year out of Georgia Tech. Some think he may be able to start at some point, but he’ll likely continue to work out of the bullpen for the E-Twins this summer. Andro Cutura – He was the Twins 7th round pick this season out of Southeastern Louisiana University. CK Irby – Irby was the Twins 10th round pick just last year out of Samford University. He pitched in ten games last year for the E-Twins. Randy LeBlanc – LeBlanc was the Twins 10th round pick this year from Tulane University. He was a fourth-year, redshirt junior. Kuo Hua Lo – Lo pitched for the E-Twins a year ago. In 38 innings, he walked 14 and struck out 34 in 38 innings. He was 2-1 with a 2.37 ERA. The right-hander from Taiwan is 21 years old. Dereck Rodriguez – The Twins selected Ivan Rodriguez’s son with their 6th pick in the 2011 draft out of high school. After hitting .216/.279/.336 (.615) over three years in the rookie leagues, he has been moved to pitcher where the hope is his strong right-arm will be able to get hitters out. Keaton Steele – He was the Twins 8th round pick this year out of the University of Missouri, which has been a hot bed for big league pitchers in the last half-dozen years. Catchers Brett Doe – Doe was the Twins 38th round pick this year out of Baylor University. Brian Navaretto – Navaretto was the Twins 6th round pick last year out of high school in Jacksonville, Florida. The 6-4, 220 pound (at least), 19-year-old hit .226/.318/.365 (.683) with ten doubles and three homers with the GCL Twins last year. He is quite impressive in spring training and has a ceiling of Salvador Perez. Alex Real – He was the Braves 48th round pick out of high school. He went to the University of New Mexico where he was a teammate of Kernels' catcher Mitch Garver. Real played first base and DH his first two years as Garver caught. He caught this year. The Twins selected him with their 24th round pick this year. INFIELDERS Nick Gordon – The Twins top pick will begin his professional career with Elizabethton. This is not a typical Twins move as even Kohl Stewart and Byron Buxton began their careers with the GCL. It will be interesting how Gordon adapts to professional ball, wood bats and life away from his family. Don’t worry at all about the stats, but it is very exciting to see him get started. Jonatan Hinojosa – He is a 21 year old who spent three seasons in the Dominican Summer League. He spent last season in the GCL where he hit .236/.310/.336. He began this season at EST but was promoted to Cedar Rapids where he played one game before being suspended for 50 games. His suspension continues. Will Hurt – Hurt was drafted in the 16th round in 2012 out of Lexington High School, the same school Ben Revere went to. He has spent the last two seasons in the GCL. Last year, he hit .342 but had a .387 OBP as he walked 16 times and struck out 17 times. He’s a speed guy who can play both middle infield positions. Pat Kelly – Kelly was the Twins 12th round pick out of the University of Nebraska. The Red Wings, MN, native had a solid three-year career with the Cornhuskers. He should play a lot of second base. Tyler Mautner – Mautner was the Twins 14th round pick this year out of the University of Buffalo, the same school as Kernels outfielder Jason Kanzler. The third baseman is believed to have good power. Blake Schmidt – Another Eden Prairie native, Schmidt was the Twins 26th round pick after three years at the University of Maryland. Trev Vavra – He was the Twins 33rd round pick this year out of Florida Southern University. As you know, he is the son of Twins third base coach, Joe, and the brother of Kernels second baseman, Tanner. OUTFIELDERS Dutch Deol – Deol was the Cardinals 17th round pick out of high school in 2011. He has spent the last three years in the rookie leagues and was hurt most of last year. He hit .152/.245/.230 over those three years and the Cardinals let him go. He’s a good athlete so the Twins took a shot, signing him to a free agent contract. Austin Diemer – He was the Twins 28th round pick after his career as a centerfielder at Cal State-Fullerton. He is a good athlete. Max Murphy – Another Minnesota native, Murphy was the Twins 9th round pick this year out of Bradley University. Another guy drafted as a centerfielder, he will get a chance to play around the outfield. He is from Robbinsdale, MN. DISABLED LIST Josh Burris – RHP JT Chargois – RHP Jorge Fernandez – C Carson Goldsmith – RHP Jake Proctor – OF Tyler Stirewalt – RHP Ryan Tufts – OF Click here to view the article

In a move that is rather surprising, Twins Daily has learned the 2012 first-round draft pick Byron Buxton and supplemental first-round pick Jose (J.O.) Berrios have been promoted to short-season Elizabethton. Buxton, an 18-year-old outfielder from rural Georgia, was the #2 overall pick in this June's draft. He signed a $6 million signing bonus and reported to Ft. Myers. He missed about ten days with a hamstring injury, but has been playing well of late. In 27 games with the GCL Twins, Buxton is 19-88, hitting .216/.324/.466 (.789). He has four doubles, three triples, four home runs and 14 RBI. He has also stolen 14 bases. Berrios, an 18-year-old right-hander from Puerto Rico, was the first of two supplemental first round picks the Twins had in the 2012 draft. He has been terrific for the GCL Twins. In eight games, he has thrown 16.2 innings. He has given up just seven hits, walked three and struckout 27 baters. He is 1-0 with four saves and a 1.08 ERA. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Buxton and Berrios will join the Twins other second-round pick in Elizabethton. Right-hander Luke Bard also recently started pitching for the E-Twins after signing and doing some rehab work in the GCL. Also, the two Twins supplemental draft picks from the 2011 draft, 3B Travis Harrison and RHP Hudson Boyd are playing for the E-Twins. The Elizabethton Twins find themselves in a familiar place a top the Appalachian League West Division. They are currently 29-14 and 5 1/2 games ahead of Johnson City and Greeneville. Download attachment: Byron_BuxtonCard.jpg Download attachment: Jose_BerriosCard.jpg (Check out this site for more "Cards" of top 2012 draft picks) Click here to view the article

On Thursday night, the short-season Elizabethton Twins opened their season with a win in Greeneville. This afternoon, the Gulf Coast League Twins begin their schedule. Today, I’ll be taking a look and trying to familiarize Twins Daily readers with these young players. The GCL squad is always an interesting mix of players from all over the world and with all kinds of experiences and backgrounds. This season is no different. There are some 17 year olds who signed internationally a year ago, and there are some 22 year olds who just finished their fourth year of college baseball. Some of these players will work their way up to Elizabethton later in the season. Maybe next year a couple of them will work their way up to full season Cedar Rapids. Please feel free to ask any questions you may have. Download attachment: NelsonMolina.jpg Nelson Molina The Pitchers Mat Batts – The Twins drafted former Baseball America intern in the 17th round this month out of UNC-Wilmington. He will not use Batts to earn his pay in baseball. Instead he will use his left arm, which may not hit 90 on a radar gun, but can throw three pitches. He went 6-3 with a 2.69 ERA and a 1.05 WHIP in 15 starts. In 103.2 innings, he walked just 18 and struck out 105. Eddie Del Rosario – Eddie Del Rosario made his professional debut last summer in the Dominican Summer League. In 44.1 innings, the right-hander gave up just 22 hits. He also walked 25 while striking out 30. The now 19-year-old went 2-3 with a 2.03 ERA. Brandon Easton –The Twins drafted Easton in the 24th round last year as a left-handed pitcher out of Lakeland Community College. There, he played a lot of first base, but at 6-5, he profiled more as a pitcher. He throws hard, but he’s still learning to pitch. Last year in the GCL, he went 1-3 with a 7.45 ERA and a 1.97 WHIP. In 19.1 innings, he gave up 25 hits, walked 13 and struck out 11. Onas Farfan –The Twins took Farfan in the 21st round this year out of Ridgewater College which is in Willmar/Hutchinson. The Venezuelan moved to Minnesota when he was 16 to live with relatives. It is being pointed out that he was the first player drafted out of the Minneapolis RBI program. He is left-handed, hits 91 and made a name for himself with an impressive showing in the Northwoods League in 2013. Miguel Gonzalez – The 19-year-old right-hander pitched in 20 games out of the bullpen last year in the GCL. In 25.2 innings, he gave up just 20 hits, walked nine and struck out 33. He went 0-0 with three saves and a 1.05 ERA and a WHIP of 1.13. Josh Guyer – The Twins signed the right-hander out of Australia in 2012. Last year, he made his professional debut with the GCL team. He went 1-2 with a 5.30 ERA and a 1.66 WHIP in just 18.2 innings. He gave up 18 hits, walked 13 and struck out 22. Zach Hayden – 23rd round 2013, U South Carolina – Zach Hayden was the Twins 23rd round pick out of the University of South Carolina, in Aiken, S.C. Last year he pitched just nine innings in the GCL. He went 1-0 and didn’t give up a run. He walked five and struck out six. Onesimo Hernandez – Though Hernandez is already 22, 2013 was his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League. In 46 innings, the right-hander gave up 48 hits, walked 17 and struck out 32. he was 2-3 with a 4.11 ERA and a 1.41 WHIP. Trev Hildenberger – He was the Twins 22nd round pick just this year out of Cal-Berkley. He was the team’s closer and pitched in 28 games. In 47.2 innings, he gave up 41 hits, walked 11 and struck out 48. He went 3-3 with 10 saves with a 2.83 ERA and a 1.09 WHIP. Wilfredy Loranzo – The 19-year-old righty made his pro debut last year in the DSL. He went 3-4 with a 3.07 ERA and a 1.17 WHIP. In 51 innings, he gave up just 21 hits. He walked 27 but struck out 62. Miles Nordgren – Nordgren was the Twins 23rd round pick this year out of Birmingham Southern. He was 8-2 with a 1.37 ERA in 78.2 innings. He walked just 11 and struck out 62. Callan Pearce – The Twins signed Pearce from Australia last year when he was just 16. 2014 will be his professional debut. Alexis Tapia – Tapia spent 2013 as a 17-year-old in the Dominican Summer League. The right-hander went 2-1 with a 2.13 ERA with a 0.87 WHIP. In 42 innings, he issued just five walks while striking out 31. Mike Thoefanopoulos – If nothing else, the Twins 30th round pick will make things difficult for Twins writers and bloggers. The left-hander went to the University of California at Berkley. He went 7-27 (.259) with a home run as a hitter for the Golden Bears this season. In 25.1 innings on the mound, he gave up 29 hits, walked 11 and struck out 24. Zack Tillery – Zack Tillery is a hard-throwing, right-handed reliever the Twins drafted out of Florida Gulf Coast this year in the 13th round. He hit .314/.388/.476 (.864) with 17 extra base hits, but he was drafted as a pitcher. He pitched 35.2 innings and gave up 39 hits, walked 14 and struck out 28. Seth Wagner – Wagner was the Twins 39th round pick a year ago after his high school career in Pennsylvania. The lefty signed fairly late and pitched 10.2 innings over six games in the GCL. He gave up only five hits, but he walked seven while striking out eight. Reyson Zoquiel – Zoquiel is a left-hander who throws hard. In 2013, he made his US debut in the GCL after two seasons in the DSL. He worked just 14 innings, in large part due to control issues. He gave up 17 hits and 17 walks leading to his 2.49 WHIP. The Catchers Gabriel Ojeda – Ojeda was the Twins 27th round pick this year out of high school in Puerto Rico. A young but strong, athletic catcher. He has an average arm, but has put up some very good pop times. Offensively, he could develop some power. Jarrard Poteete – Poteete was the Twins 19th round pick this year out of Connors State College (a junior college). He hit .390/.481/.538 (1.019) with 15 doubles, a triple and four home runs. Rainis Silva – Silva, who is just 18 years old, made his professional debut last summer in the DSL. He hit just .223/.289/.250 (.539) with four doubles. He has a strong arm. The Infielders Jack Barrie – The Twins signed the lumbering 18-year-old from Australia late last year. He certainly has a lot of power potential. Manuel Guzman – In 2013, Guzman was an 18 year old making his pro debut in the DSL. He hit .291/.392/.378 (.770) with four doubles, three triples and a home run. He stole 12 bases. It should be noted as well that he walked 23 times while striking out 19 times. Nelson Molina – A year ago, Molina was the Twins 11th round pick out of high school in Puerto Rico. It was a tough debut with the bat as he hit just .110/.178/.119 (.297) with one double. However, at 6-3 and 175 pounds, he has a chance to grow. Defensively, the belief is that he can be a big league shortstop, though he will also play some second base. He compares favorably, in my mind, with Engelb Vielma. Ariel Montesino – A year ago, Montesino was a 17 year old making his pro debut in the DSL. He hit .270/.393/.419 (.812) with two doubles, three triples and a home run. He also stole eight bases. Joel Ramirez – Last year was Ramirez’s first year in the DSL. He hit .252/.394/.315 (.709) with seven doubles and a triple. He also stole 20 bases. Although he played around the infield, he was mostly at shortstop. Rafael Valera – Valera has spent each of the past two years in the DSL. As an 18-year-old last year, he hit .262/.420/.315 (.736) with five doubles and two triples. He stole 19 bases. He played all over the infield and outfield, but primarily at third base. Ruar Verkerk – He was signed last offseason as a 16 year old from Netherlands. He's now 17 and will likely play mostly at third base. The Outfielders Dubal Baez – After spending four seasons in the DSL, the 21-year-old Baez will make his debut in the US with the GCL Twins. Last year, he hit .335/.447/.396 (.844) with eight doubles and a triple. He also stole 27 bases. He primarily played in center field, but also got time in the middle infield. Tyree Davis – Davis was the Twins 37th round pick earlier this month of out high school in Compton, California. A great athlete with speed, Davis fits the profile of toolsy, athletic type. He is a switch-hitter who can play a good centerfield. Frank Encarnacion – Last year in the DSL, Encarnacion hit .267/.344/.422 (.766) with 13 doubles, a triple and two home runs. The 18-year-old played all three outfield positions, mostly in left field. He’s one of those rare players who bats right-handed and throws left-handed. Roberto Gonzalez – This toolsy outfielder from Orlando was the Twins 15th round pick this year. He has very good speed and can play good defense. Depending on how many of his tools become skills, he is certainly one to watch. Amaurys Minier – Just 18, Minier made his US debut last year in the GCL. He hit .214/.252/.455 (.707) with five doubles, two triples and six home runs. He played third base. This spring, he had shoulder surgery so he missed a lot of time. That is likely part of the reason that he is back in the GCL, and may be part of why he is now in the outfield. Disabled List Jose Abreu – 21, RHP Damian Defrank – 18, RHP Leonel Zazueta – 19, RHP Jhon Silva – 21, RHP (After three years as an outfielder in the DSL, he was moved to pitcher last year. This is his US debut.) Joel Polanco – 21, C/1B Click here to view the article

Happy New Year’s Eve, Twins Daily!! Hopefully you have enjoyed our first year at Twins Daily and that we can continue to make strides and improve our Twins coverage. Your feedback is always welcome. Enjoy your New Year’s Eve, but don’t forget to be safe! Today, we are bringing you another 12 Questions interview. Austin Malinowski was the Twins 16th round pick in 2011 after he was named the Minnesota High School Player of the Year. He played for Centennial High School in Circle Pines, MN, and had committed to play for the University of Arizona. On the final day he could, he reached an agreement and signed with the Twins. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Download attachment: AustinMalinowski2.jpg Too late to play in 2011, his debut came in 2012 with the Gulf Coast League Twins. They lefty pitched well. He went 3-2 with a 2.27 ERA. In 31.2 innings, he gave up 35 hits, walked 11 and struckout 32 batters. He made six starts and came out of the bullpen five times, but he is definitely viewed as a starting pitcher. He just turned 19 one month ago and is certainly one to watch as he develops and moves up the farm system. Recently, Malinowski took the time to answer some questions for Twins Daily. Enjoy, and please feel free to ask questions in the comments below. 12 QUESTIONS WITH… Austin Malinowski Twins Daily (TD): Growing up in Minnesota, should we pretty easily assume who your favorite team was? Who were some of your favorite players? Austin Malinowski (AM): Of course my favorite team was the Twins. But some of my favorite Twins were Johan and Torii Hunter. TD: Tell us about your high school career (baseball and/or other extra-curriculars). AM: In high school, I played 3 sports (football, basketball and baseball). Other than that I didn't have much time for anything else because I also played legion ball for 3 summers. Download attachment: AustinMalinowski.jpg TD: The Twins drafted you in the 16th round in 2011. You had committed to Arizona, but signed with the Twins. How difficult was that decision to sign with the hometown team rather than play at a southern college program? How many times did you change your mind? AM: I still think about my decision to sign sometimes. They have a great program, and I always wanted to go to a big time school. When they won the national championship last year, I knew I could have played a big role on that team, but I'm in the position they want to be in already. Signing was the right choice. TD: What were you hearing before the draft? Were you expecting to go around where you did, and did you have much communication with Twins scouts before that? AM: Honestly, I was hearing I would actually go in the top ten rounds. So when I dropped to the 16th, it was a little surprising. But I did a Twins showcase and they attended quite a few of my games before the draft so I knew they were looking at me. TD: After signing, your first real experience came on the Instructional League in Ft. Myers. What did you learn right away that fall? AM: I learned that pro ball was much more difficult than anything I had done before. I struggled for the first time in a long time so I learned how to pitch rather then throw like I did before. TD: You pitched in the GCL in 2012. How would you describe your adjustment to pro baseball and what did you learn from that first season? AM: The pro season is so long. I think that is the biggest difference and challenge for me. Staying healthy and consistent over a long season is tough. I had to grow up quickly mentally because if I didn't pro ball wouldn't be too kind. I just had to mature on the field. TD: I assume you’ll be at Twins Fest signing autographs again this year. Had you been to Twins Fest previously, and what was your impression of that event as a member of the Twins organization? AM: Yes, I will be at Twins Fest. I was invited there last year, and I thought it was really cool. So many Twins fans are supporters of the young minor leaguers as well as the big league stars. Great fans. TD: I believe you came back to Minnesota for the offseason. As you begin to workout and throw in preparation for the 2013 season, what is your routine? AM: Well starting after the New Year, I’ll be throwing every day at Augsburg. I’ll wake up early, drive down there, and get my throwing and some conditioning done. Drive back home and work out at the YMCA near me. Go home, eat lunch, and relax. TD: Looking to 2013, what are some of your goals? Are there certain statistics or numbers that you look at the judge yourself? AM: Some of my goals are to improve my mental toughness every day. This will help everything else. But I would like to at least play for E-Town. I would love to finish the year in Cedar Rapids. Two biggest stats for me are WHIP and ERA so it's important I keep those two low. That will help the team I'm on and obviously help me make a name for myself. TD: Who are some of the people who have helped you get to this point in your career as a baseball player? AM: First of all, my dad was the one who helped me get started playing and my high school coach Lynn Buehner and my legion coach Rollie Goertzen was a huge influence on me. But during my pro career, Eric Rasmussen and Henry Bonilla have helped me improve a lot. TD: How would you describe yourself as a pitcher? If you were a scout, what would the report be? AM: I'm a pitcher who doesn't want to get beat throwing off-speed stuff. I have a good 2-seam fastball that moves a lot. My slider and changeup are good out pitches but can be inconsistent. 3/4 arm slot. I just like to challenge guys and try to get quick outs. Thank you to Austin! We definitely appreciate the time he spent to respond. As I said above, he is certainly a prospect worth watching the next couple of years as he develops. Click here to view the article