Seth Stohs

You know it is coming, but certainly there will be some disappointment. With just two weeks before opening day, the Minnesota Twins made some more moves. They optioned Danny Santana, Eric Fryer and Kris Johnson. Five players were reassigned to minor league camp. They are Sean Gilmartin, Brandon Waring, James Beresford, Jermaine Mitchell and Darin Mastroianni. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Danny Santana was the biggest name on the list on Sunday as he was optioned to Rochester. That he was optioned at this time tells us that the team is comfortable with Pedro Florimon being ready for spring training. Santana was the player who likely increased his value most in spring training. In the clubhouse, Santana told the Pioneer Press's Mike Berardino that he was sent down and told to focus on making the routine play. He said he planned to be back "in a couple months." The Eric Fryer promotion means that it is between Josmil Pinto and Chris Herrmann competing to back up Kurt Suzuki. With Beresford sent back, Doug Bernier and Jason Bartlett are still around to compete for a possible second utility infielder role. Gilmartin came to the Twins this winter in exchange for Ryan Doumit. He pitched well in camp and hopes to return to form in 2014 after an injury-plagued 2013 season with the Braves. Jermaine Mitchell hit well early in camp. He is a veteran with plenty of minor league experience who could surface if the Twins need a fifth outfielder. (earlier in the week, I asked Mitchell what he enjoyed most about being involved in baseball) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UI6GeuvoE-g Darin Mastroianni was taken off the 40 man roster this winter. This demotion is pretty telling in what the Twins are thinking in the outfield. His ankle was hurt throughout the 2013 season affecting his best tool, his speed. Brandon Waring hit two home runs in spring training and showed he can be a good third baseman as well. That is consistent with what he has done with the Orioles in recent years, mostly in AA. He has very good power. The Twins now have 40 players remaining with the big league club in camp. They have 20 pitchers (4 non-roster), four catchers (one non-roster), nine infielders (four non-roster) and seven outfielders (two non-roster).

On Friday afternoon, the Minnesota Twins played the Baltimore Orioles to a 2-2 tie at Hammond Stadium. The big news of the day was that the Twins had restructured closer Glen Perkins’ contract. Meanwhile, on the back field, the two Twins' Class A affiliates were playing spring training games against the Class A affiliates of the Tampa Bay Rays. It may not sound all that great to many, but when the Cedar Rapids team threw three of the Twins top young pitching prospects, it made for must-see-MiLB! Kohl Stewart, Fernando Romero and Lewis Thorpe all took the mound for the Kernels. On the other field, minor league baseball’s top two RBI producers of 2013 started where they left off.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Let’s start with the Cedar Rapids game? Why? Because pitching is what wins, right? And the (distant) future of Twins pitching was on display. Making the start for the Kernels roster was 2013 first-round draft pick Kohl Stewart. He struggled a little bit with his control the first couple of batters. The leadoff batter hit a leadoff single up the middle. He stole second before the next batter singled to right field, the lead runner stopping at third. It was at that point Stewart took off a bit. He got a weak ground ball to first base (the run scored). He then struck out the next two batters on curve balls. In the second inning, he struck out the first two batters, both also on the curve ball. He walked the third batter on a close, 3-2 pitch. He had a two-strike count on the next batter when the base runner was caught stealing. In the third inning, Stewart got a broken-bat grounder to the short for the first out. He fielded his position well on a comebacker from the second batter. The third batter got hold of one and hit a triple off the wall in left field. However, Stewart recorded the third out on a soft liner to the third baseman. That was it for Stewart in the outing. He gave up one run on three hits. He walked one batter and struck out four. He was consistently throwing 93-94 mph with the fastball and touched 95 (and he makes it look easy). The curveball was a very impressive pitch and had other pitchers sitting behind home plate shaking their heads. Asked for his thoughts on his first outing, he said, “I felt good. I was a little wild in the first inning, but the more I went on, the more comfortable I was. I kind of settled in the second and third inning. There’s a lot more out there.” He threw three of his four (or more) pitch mix in the game. He didn’t even throw what some believe could be his best pitch, the slider. Said Stewart, “I only threw fastball, curve, change today, two-seam. I didn’t throw the slider today.” http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndE8-fO2g18 Next in for the Kernels was hard-throwing 19-year-old Fernando Romero. He came in and was very impressive. The strong-legged, strong-armed right-hander made things look pretty easy in his first inning. He got a broken-bat groundout to first base on the first batter. He then struck out the next two batters he faced. In his second inning, he struck out the first batter. The second batter hit a bounding ground ball. Shortstop Jonatan Hinojosa made a terrific play but the throw to first was just a little late. The next batter reached out and hit a grounder through the right side for a single. Romero responded with a strikeout. However, the sharp breaking ball got by the catcher for a wild pitch and a run scored. Romero did get the final two outs without further damage. So, Fernando Romero gave up one run on two hits in two innings. He walked none and struck out four. As impressive, the radar gun showed his fastball between 92-95 mph, touching 96 a couple of times. He breaking ball clocked in at about 84-86 mph. He also had a changeup in the 83 mph range. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WZTlWSGoCWQ For the 6th inning, the Kernels brought Lewis Thorpe into the game. Things weren’t easy for him in his first inning. The first batter singled. The next batter hit a ball to shortstop that was an error. He recorded the first out with a fly out to center field. The next batter had a single to right to load the bases. At that point, Thorpe bore down. He got a strikeout on a sharp curve ball. Then, he pumped up his best fastball of the day to get a strikeout for the third out of the inning. In the 7th, Thorpe walked the first batter. The next batter bunted, and Thorpe fielded his position well and got the out. With a runner on second, he got a line out to third base which was turned into a double play when the runner was too far off second base. In his two scoreless innings, he gave up two hits, walked one and struck out two. He sat between 89-91 mph with his fastball. His breaking pitch and changeup are in the low 80s. You can see the competitive fire, even in a game like this. When he had the bases loaded and just one out, he got the two needed strikeouts on two different pitches. The curveball was sharp, and the fastball hit 93 mph. He found that second gear, so to speak. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B89DegYAkYU Though the three pitchers threw for the Cedar Rapids Kernels work group today, it is unlikely that any of them will start the season with the Kernels. They will most likely start the season at Extended Spring Training. Christian Powell and Chris Mazza each pitched an inning as well. Offensively, Zack Larson had two singles in four at bats. Alex Swim caught the final six innings. He went 1-1 with a double and a walk. Chad Christensen went 2-2 with a two-run single. On the other field, the Ft. Myers Miracle played as well. They used five pitchers. Lefty Mason Melotakis went the first three innings and looked like he was throwing pretty hard and showing a good breaking ball. Minnesota-native Brandon Peterson worked the next two innings. The reliever from Wichita State throws really hard (I was unable to see a radar gun) and showed a sharp slider. He looks like he could be really effective out of the bullpen. Todd Van Steensel continues to impress. He looks like a guy who can come in and get hitters out. He gave up a couple of hits, but he looked strong. Finally, Alex Muren worked the final two innings. Pedro Florimon played for the Miracle. He batted each of the first three innings and played three innings in the field. In the first inning, he batted second and flew out to left field on the first pitch. In the second inning, he batted third and struck out looking. In the third inning, he batted second, swung at the first pitch and bounced back to the pitcher. In the second inning, he fielded a ground ball cleanly, but the throw short-hopped Dalton Hicks for an error. Two batters later, he got another ground ball, fielded it smoothly and made a strong, chest-high throw. Don’t be surprised if he gets a start for the Twins by Sunday. In 2013, Dalton Hicks led minor league baseball with 110 RBI. Coming in second was Adam Walker with 109. It appears that the duo is starting 2014 on the right track. In the second inning, Walker crushed a ball well beyond the fence in left field for a home run. In the sixth inning, he came up with the bases loaded and drove in two with a single up the middle. Logan Wade and Zach Granite scored. Hicks came to bat next and his double drove in two more. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=88bh8JTQCBM Walker was 2-4 with the three RBI. Max Kepler also hit the ball well. He had a line drive triple to the gap in left centerfield and displayed very good speed. He added a single later in the game. Hicks was 1-2 with a walk and the two-run double. Please feel free to comment and ask any questions that you would like.

It's been a struggle for Luke Bard to get on the mound since signing with the Twins in 2012. The 23-year-old right-handed pitcher is at his second big league camp, hoping he can get and remain healthy throughout the season. I had the chance to catch up with him following a workout and before he went to eat some lunch. In this two-part interview, I talked to him about how he's feeling and how spring is treating him. I also asked whether or not the surgery would affect his opportunity to start, or if he would be in the bullpen http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZRg6v0FiRI As you can tell, he is excited to get throwing off the mound and hopefully start moving up the organizational ladder. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=E9DWv5WMdBw Bard is another Twins prospect who is a tremendous person. He has worked very hard and wants to be very good. When healthy, he has the chance to be very good. Reports are his pitches have a lot of movement and bite on them. Hopefully he can get into games in April. Once healthy, he has the chance to move pretty quickly.

The Minnesota Twins have certainly had a strong connection to Australia, especially the past dozen years. They have signed pitchers such as Michael Nakamura, Grant Balfour and Liam Hendriks. They have even signed hitters like Glenn Williams and Luke Hughes. In 2005, the Twins signed an infielder from Australia named James Beresford. Since signing with the Twins, he has represented Australia in several international competitions including the World Cup and the World Baseball Classic.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] He has had the opportunity to become a free agent each of the past two seasons, yet he has decided to remain with the Twins. Last year, he made it to the highest minor league level and put up his best offensive numbers. He is again at big league camp looking to make a positive impression. Beresford is likely to spend much of the 2014 season in Rochester with the Red Wings, but he is being given an opportunity to compete for a bench job with the big league club. “It’s been fun. I can’t really control how much game time you get, but they’ve given everyone a bit of opportunity. It has been great to go out there and play. It’s been a good start. Just enjoying it and hoping to get a few more at bats in the next week or two.” Considering his long road to get to this point, these types of opportunities are pretty special. When he was signed, he was very young and very thin. He was the definition of a project and has had to work very hard to move up each level. He spent a year with the GCL Twins, a year with the Elizabethton Twins, two full seasons in Beloit and a year in Ft. Myers. In 2012, he played in New Britain. He returned to New Britain to start the 2013 season. He played 45 games and hit .316 before moving up to Triple-A Rochester. He played in 58 games for the Red Wings and hit .298 and helped the team get to the playoffs. Combined, he got on base just over 36% of the time as well. The 25-year-old has needed that time to develop properly. He needed to mature, physically and mentally. Each level gets a little bit tougher. Regarding the move to AAA, Beresford said, “It’s just been a progression. Moving up to AAA, I struggled for the first two weeks, getting used to the league and that type of thing. The pitchers… you’re typically not going to see guys who throw as hard, but they throw a little more offspeed in hitter’s counts. So you can’t always be gearing up for fastballs. You just have to adjust because they don’t have the 96 mph fastball. They tend to throw their sliders and changeups for strikes in hitter’s counts. That’s the biggest adjustment. It turned out to be a fun season, making the playoffs. It was a good year.” This past offseason, Beresford became a six-year minor league free agent for the second straight year. This time around, he quickly re-signed with the Twins. There were several reasons that made the decision pretty easy for him. “Just the things the Twins said to me. Pretty candid things. The positive things they had to say. The opportunities they said they were going to give me. And, I definitely saw a chance to get up to the big leagues this year provided I play well. I don’t see a big difference. I signed a little bit later last year just because I wanted to see what the market was like. After we saw what was going on, we decided that signing with the Twins was the best option. This year, they were just really aggressive and I wanted to get back straight away so it was a positive thing.” Beresford played almost exclusively second base in 2013. In 2012, he spent equal time between shortstop and second base. Prior to that, he played nearly exclusively short. The move to second base likely has much more to do with Danny Santana than Beresford who feels prepared to play all three infield positions as a utility player if needed. “I’m pretty comfortable playing all three positions. Probably most comfortable at shortstop and second just because that’s where I’ve played the last couple of years. The good thing about third is it’s just a reaction position. Ball is hit hard, you don’t have much time to move and think. So I think third is probably a little easier to pick up. Second base has been good to work on the pivots and double plays. It’s a lot different than shortstop where momentum’s taking you toward first base. At second, there’s a different turn, so that was the biggest adjustment I had to make last year.” Being an Australian playing baseball in the United States certainly presents challenges not only for the player but for his family. Beresford says that his parents come to the States every year, usually for about two weeks. However, technology has allowed them to watch him play most of his games. “They get to see me at home, which is nice. They follow at home. At AAA, it was nice because all the games are televised on the computer.” However, that isn’t as easy as it may appear. Beresford continued, “The day games, the 1:00 games, are usually like 3:00 in the morning. They’re usually up for those as well, provided I’m in the lineup, so they’re along for the ride too.” Asked if he was disappointed to hear about Zach Greinke’s comments about not wanting to play games this spring, Beresford understood. “Obviously you have to look at the bigger picture. These guys are established big leaguers and just want to be ready for the season. Obviously traveling to Australia is a long trip. I understand where he’s coming from, but at the same time, it’ll be a great experience. The travel is obviously going to be hard, but I think once they do it, they’re going to see how much of a nice place it is and enjoy it.” Back to the subject at hand. We’re about two weeks from knowing the Twins opening day roster, and James Beresford is still in camp. Still competing for a job. Still working hard to show the Twins coaches and front office that even if he’s not on the opening day roster, he can contribute to the team in a role when needed later in the season. What would it mean for him to get that call, whenever it is, that he is heading to the big leagues? “It would be pretty special. I think it’s so far away. That’s kind of how I look at it. I don’t look at it as trying to get called up. I’m just trying to play hard, have fun and enjoy it. If it does happen sometime, it would be pretty special.” “I know that if I go out there and do what I’ve been doing the past couple of years which is just take it day by day and as long as my process is right, then the results will take care of themselves.”

The Minnesota Twins returned to Hammond Stadium on Wednesday to play their first game there since Sunday. The Twins lost 8-4 to the Pittsburgh Pirates. Things didn’t go well for Kevin Correia or Vance Worley in the game, but Oswaldo Arcia returned from his food poisoning time off. Aaron Hicks was not in the starting lineup, neither was Chris Colabello, but the two provided some strong offense for the Twins. Before we begin, a reminder that you should “Like” the Twins Daily Facebook page where well over 100 photos have been uploaded. Also, expect to see some more Twins Daily YouTube video.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Here are several notes from the day at Hammond Field: CORREIA GIVES UP HOMER TO FRIEND Kevin Correia was charged with four earned runs on seven hits over three innings. He said he was happy with his control over the first two innings, but he did give up three runs in the third inning. Jaff Decker led off the inning with a double. Correia got the next two batters out. However, Pedro Alvarez acme up and launched a long home run, nearly out of the ballpark in right centerfield. The two were teammates with the Pirates as recently as 2012 and are good friends. Correia said, “I talked to him (Alvarez) a little before the game. The wind was blowing out to right pretty good. I told him, ‘Gonna try to get one?’ He said, ‘No way.’ Sure enough, he got it. More important is what Correia said next. “It’s also one of those things. I almost got out of that inning. In a situation with a runner on second and two outs and Pedro Alvarez coming up… In a normal (regular) season situation, he’s not going to get a fastball right there to hit. It’s one of those spring training type deals.” CORREIA ON WORKING WITH PINTO Correia talked briefly about working with Josmil Pinto in this start. I asked if they had worked together yet this spring. “I haven’t this spring yet. Last year I did at the end of the season. Had a few starts with him. But that was our first outing this year together. (He’s) still young and we haven’t had a lot of work together. We’re really working to get it nailed down by the end of spring, and hopefully we’ll be on the same page come opening day. ” THE CHANGEUP OF DEOLIS GUERRA Deolis Guerra came on for the fourth inning and was again very impressive with a 1-2-3 inning. His changeup is absolutely big league and Ron Gardenhire knows it. “He’s got a good one. He’s got a good angle going. His velocity is 88-90. He’s got a nice angle over the top. He’s healthy. He’s always had a great changeup. Watched him pitch last year. His changeup is a dominant pitch. He can throw it just about any time. It’s a really tough pitch for him. He’s throwing real good in spring training and let’s see how we go along here. A guy we thought a lot of when we got him in that trade. He’s had some injuries and hasn’t gone as far as we wanted him to yet, but he’s coming along pretty good. Ball’s coming out of his hand pretty nice. He’s a young kid. A really young kid.” WORLEY’S PERFORMANCE Vance Worley was charged with four runs on four hits and two walks in 3.2 innings. The numbers don’t look great, but there are some positives. For instance, his first inning produced four ground balls. He missed on a pitch to Travis Ishikawa who hit it onto the batter’s eye for a home run. Worley said he felt good and had better command of his pitches. He also said that the home run wasn’t off of his best pitch. “Threw three changeups today, one of them was the bomb. Fourth best pitch, but it was working well in the ‘pen. I figured today would be a good day to work on it.” Worley said that in his previous start, he felt too good in the bullpen. This time, he didn’t. “Today, I wanted to make sure I wasn’t too good in the ‘pen and use all the good stuff.” He said that with a sly smile. THE RETURNS OF HICKS AND ARCIA Oswaldo Arcia has not played in over a week due to food poisoning. He was in the Twins starting lineup on Wednesday. He had a rough go of it as he was 0-3 with three strikeouts. It was a much better return for Aaron Hicks, who also was out for over a week. He was not in the starting lineup again, which caused more consternation. Rob Antony described it as mild inflammation in his elbow, though it only caused pain when he hit. Hicks came into the game in the middle innings to replace Alex Presley. On a 1-0 pitch in that first at bat, Hicks crushed a long home run just to the left of the centerfield batter’s eye. Asked what his approach was in that first at bat, he said, “Trying to get a good pitch to hit, got one, and it was a good first at bat.” What was the pitch that he got? “Fastball, little two-seemer inside. Got out front and hit it pretty well.” Pretty well. Probably 420 feet well!! COLABELLO: TEAM’S BEST HITTER THIS SPRING Chris Colabello has been pretty impressive so far this spring. He homered on Wednesday and is now 7-15 with two doubles and the homer. Gardy has certainly noticed. “All I know is he’s swinging really well right now, putting nice swings on the ball, driving it all over. He’s been our best hitter so far in spring training. I do know that.” But he isn’t going to say that is solely due to the mechanical adjustments that Colabello worked on in the offseason. Hitting well is nothing new for the first baseman. “You’ve got to remember the guy had a pretty good year last year of hitting. He’s off to a good start which you have to do in spring training.” Colabello discussed the home run following the game. “Trev(or Plouffe) was on second base, nobody out. Situation like that, still looking to drive the ball, but really making sure that worst case, getting the runner to third. Threw me a breaking ball 0-0, bounced it, so I was kind of dead red. Ran in on me a little bit, so I kind of had to force it that way.” Regarding his manager saying he’s been the team’s best hitter this spring, Colabello took it in stride. “It’s obviously good. My job here is to come in every day and play hard, try to have good at bats, work to get better every day and let the cards fall where they may.” He also credits some of his success to being more comfortable. “I’m more comfortable in my environment, and this year obviously I know the guys a little bit and the coaching staff. One day at a time.” Yes, it’s a bit of a cliché, but when you’ve played independent league ball for as long as he did, it’s like the only way he knows how to think. DEIBINSON ROMERO CAN HIT Deibinson Romero hit a ground rule double in Wednesday’s game. On Sunday, he hit a triple over the head of Ben Revere in centerfield. He is now 6-14 (.429) on the season with three doubles and a triple. Gardenhire has noticed. “Debby’s swinging really well. He always seems to come up and get the barrel to the ball. Absolutely. He missed all of camp last year because of visa problems and didn’t get a chance to take a look at him, but he had a pretty decent year at AAA. He wanted to re-sign back with us. We re-signed him. Brought him in to camp, and he’s playing well. Doing very well and getting the barrel to the ball.” Asked whether his defense is something he would feel comfortable with, Gardy responded, “He catches the ball. If you go by all the scouting reports, which is all I have to go by until I see him, limited range, but he catches the ball he gets to but he caught the ball well, and he moves around OK.” WILL TWINS CARRY TWO UTILITY INFIELDERS? Eduardo Escobar is certainly the favorite for the utility infield spot. He is a solid defensively player and is out of options. Asked if it is conceivable for the Twins to have two utility infielders, Rob Antony mentioned several variables, including whether they bring 12 or 13 pitchers up for Opening Day. He mentioned that Gardy will determine his 25th roster spot. “It’s all going to depend on how he sees these guys playing. How he plans on using them and everything.” The second utility infielder would come from a group including Jason Bartlett, James Beresford and Doug Bernier. How has Gardy seen them play so far this spring. Well, Beresford and Bernier will provide tremendous defense in the infield, and Bartlett is shaking off some rust. Offensively, it’s a different story. Beresford is 2-11 (.182) so far this spring. Bernier is 1-8 (.125) Bartlett went 0-3 on Wednesday and is now 0-17 (.000). On Thursday, the Twins will host the Boston Red Sox at Hammond Stadium. Phil Hughes is expected to make the start. Sam Deduno is slotted into the bullpen. I will again be sure to check out the minor league workout in the mornings. The affiliates will again be playing the affiliates of the Boston Red Sox. I will also be tweeting during the game from the Twins Daily twitter account, so follow that.