Seth Stohs

According to MLB Trade Rumors (via Mark Gonzales), the Minnesota Twins have claimed left-handed pitcher Brooks Raley from the Chicago Cubs. He takes the 40th roster spot vacated earlier this month by Andrew Albers. The lefty was the Cubs 6th round pick in 2009 out of Texas A&M University. He made five starts in 2012 for the Cubs, and made nine relief appearances in 2013. Combined, he has 38.1 MLB innings and sports a 7.04 ERA. Raley is 6-3 and 220 pounds. He is 25 years old.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Last year in AAA Iowa (of the PCL), he posted a 4.46 ERA over 141.1 innings. He had just 95 strikeouts to go with 45 walks. However, in 2012, he posted a 3.62 ERA in 14 starts in the Pacific Coast League. Raley does have a four-pitch mix. He has a fastball that averaged 89 mph last year with the Cubs. He also throws a lot of sliders, usually in the low-80s. He also has a changeup and a curveball. Frankly, he sounds an awful lot like Scott Diamond. The 2012 Diamond would be terrific for a team. The 2013 version, maybe not. It's also entirely possible that the Twins will now attempt to pass him through waivers.

“For me, (2013) is in the past. Last year is last year. I want to focus on this year and be able to be the guy I know I can be.” Those were the words of Twins center fielder Aaron Hicks last month at Twins Fest. A year ago at this time, the Minnesota Twins had traded its two centerfielders, Denard Span and Ben Revere. Aaron Hicks was coming off a season at AA New Britain in which he hit .286/.384/.460 (.844) with 21 doubles, 11 triples, 13 home runs and had 32 stolen bases as a 22 year old. The Twins were touting his athleticism and talent from Twins Fest until spring training. Hicks then put up tremendous numbers in spring training and won the starting centerfield job. After that, little positive occurred for the 23 year old.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Hicks was the Twins first round pick (14th overall) in 2008 out of high school in California. Four times, he was listed among the Top 100 prospects in baseball. Heading into the 2013 season, he was ranked #72 and a top five in the Twins system. He has a history of getting off to a slow start at each level. However, he has also shown the ability overcome the struggles and succeed with time. That just didn’t happen with the Twins in 2013. In 313 plate appearances over 81 games, he hit .192/.239/.338 (.597) and struck out almost 27% of the time. Late in the year, he was sent down to Rochester where he fought injuries the rest of the season. “Of course it bothered me. Normally, it takes a while for me to respond to the competition and then I respond. This year, I’m ready to respond. I know what I did wrong. I did everything this offseason to put it all together to have a better year this year.” After the season, there was talk about the Twins wanting Hicks to play winter ball. However, Hicks thought the right thing for him to do was to take time off during the offseason. “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. Really, just rest the body up. I’ve never had an offseason before. I’ve always played somewhere. It felt good to just relax.” Instead, Hicks did a few things to make himself better, mentally and physically. “I’ve just been mainly working out. I got a little heavier, trying to get a little bit stronger to do what I can to make the team again. And to be the guy I know I am.” He got bigger. “I’m 210 now. I think I came in last year at about 200. I just felt like I wanted to be stronger, to be able to generate more power.” He also continued to work out with and confide in a pretty solid baseball man. Who is the guy that he goes to when he’s struggling? “For me, it’d be (Rod) Carew because he’s been with me since AA and actually before that. He’ll ask me questions about little stuff and he really helps me out a lot.” He said that the two worked out and hit about three days each week, and sometimes on the weekend depending on their schedules. He also had time to think about what happened in 2013. “This game is so crazy that you can be hot one day or hot for two weeks and all of a sudden it can be like you’ve never hit before. It just happened. Maybe going to AAA helped me clear my mind and be able to just play, just enjoy playing the game. I felt like up here maybe I was trying to do too much.” Baseball is a game full of second chances. Hicks will compete with Alex Presley and Darin Mastroianni (who was removed from the 40-man roster this offseason) for the starting centerfield job for Opening Day 2014. So what are his thoughts as spring training is approaching? What is he expecting of himself this year? “I’m expecting to try to win a job again, just like last year. Hopefully it’s in the big leagues. If I go to AAA, do what I can to get back here.” It is also fair to note that Hicks better understands spring training after his 2013 season. “Spring training is different than the big leagues. I need to be focused and understand that it’s a process. It’s not just going to be easy for me. You’re going to have to take your lumps here and there. It was also a good learning experience, that it’s a grind every day.” Hicks knows that Byron Buxton is coming up quickly, but the two have a good relationship. “We don’t really ever talk baseball. I’m just trying to get used to him. If I can, give him a little bit of wisdom here and there. He’s been doing pretty good, so I’m just going to leave him alone.” Aaron Hicks will be just 24 through the 2014 season, but it is still a big year for him. At some point during the season, he will get another opportunity with the Twins. He plays tremendous defense and has a very strong arm, but will he be able to make adjustments at the plate to put up box score filling numbers again? If so, he still has a chance to be a very good, everyday player. “I had the worst of it all last year. I understand failure up here. I’d rather go through that and deal with it. Now I know going into this year how to prepare.”

Eddie Rosario's path through the Minnesota Twins farm system has directly mirrored that of Miguel Sano. When Rosario was the Twins 4th round pick in 2010 out of Puerto Rico, he spent the summer as Sano’s teammate in the GCL. The next summer, the two put up incredible numbers at Elizabethton. Rosario led the league in most categories including home runs and was named the league’s Most Valuable Player. They were together in Beloit in 2012. In 2013, the two started in Ft. Myers before being promoted to [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]New Britain on the same day. No wonder that a player who has hit .307/.358/.510 (.867) over his four-year minor league career is often overlooked and overshadowed. Of course, as spring training is soon to begin, there is another, darker shadow Rosario will need to overcome. The Good Eddie Rosario is an offensive talent. Listed at just 6-0 and 175 pounds, Rosario has incredible quick and strong hands and can generate a lot of bat speed. Though he has never approached the 21 home runs he hit in the small parks of the Appalachian League, he is capable of 12 to 15 home runs a year. He profiles as a guy whose line drive swing will turn into a lot of doubles. He has very good speed and can turn doubles into triples. Because he has such quick hands, he is able to allow the ball to travel a little deeper over the plate. At his best, he is drilling line drives to the opposite field. However, he has the ability to turn on a good fastball and pull it a long way. Rosario has very good speed. He also is a terrific defensive outfielder,including the ability to play centerfield, with good range and a very strong arm. The Bad Rosario is a very good defensive outfielder but for the last two years he has been primarily playing second base. You see, two years ago at this time, the Twins lacked any second base prospects, so they took the athletic outfielder and moved him to second base. The transition has not affected Rosario's offensive output. To be fair, there have been mixed reports on Rosario’s defense. Playing on the major league caliber infield of Hammond Stadium in Ft. Myers, most reports called Rosario’s defense adequate. Other reports indicate that Rosario is unlikely to ever be anywhere near an adequate defensive second baseman. Of course, his perceived value (relative to his position) would be much higher as a second baseman than as a corner outfielder. Rosario tends to put together some quality at-bats, though he is not one who wants to walk. In MLB in 2013, the average Isolated Discipline (IsoD, on base percentage minus batting average) was 0.065. Rosario’s was 0.060 at Elizabethton, but at every other level his IsoD was between 0.046 and 0.049. As mentioned, Rosario has good speed. In his two rookie league stops, he stole 38 bases in 50 attempts (78%). However, the last two seasons, in full-season leagues, he is just 21 of 42 in steal attempts, a rate of just 50%. The Ugly Obviously there is one topic that has to be addressed when talking about Eddie Rosario. Last month, he was given a 50-game suspension for testing positive for a drug of abuse. The 50 game suspension means it was his second positive test. The bigger concern is not so much the suspension. In my mind, the concern is that he had the first test, knew what a second failed test would mean, and still did it. A 50 game suspension is a slowing down of his development. Sure, he played another 70 or so games this past offseason between the Arizona Fall League and the Puerto Rican Winter League. His winter team finished second in the Caribbean Series this past weekend. The frustration is simply be that it was unnecessary. The suspension is obviously not ideal. Hopefully losing game time will make him think and realize the opportunity he has. His prospect status, as a 22-year-old who has put up tremendous numbers, should not be altered by the suspension. His future remains as bright as ever. Rosario also missed a few games in 2013 at Ft. Myers after being benched by Manager Doug Mientkiewicz. Rosario is incredibly talented, especially as a hitter. He has been included in some national Top 100 lists this offseason and is likely right on the border of those in which he didn’t make the list. As a second baseman, his offense has the potential to stand out a little. On the field, 2013 was a good year for Rosario. He began with 52 games in Ft. Myers. He hit .329/.377/.527 (.903) with 13 doubles, five triples and six home runs. Like Sano, the day after the Miracle clinched the first-half title, Rosario was promoted to New Britain. In 70 games with the Rock Cats, he hit .284/.330/.412 with 19 doubles, three triples and four home runs. That all came after being named to the Puerto Rican WBC team in which he started half the games in left field. 2014 is going to be an interesting year for Rosario and the Twins second base depth. Brian Dozier is looking to show that his performance starting in late May is something he can sustain. Rosario will miss 50 games before likely heading back to New Britain, probably after a handful of games in Ft. Myers. On his heels is Jorge Polanco, another Top 10 Twins middle infield prospect. Previous 2014 Twins Daily Top Twins Prospects: #10 – Trevor May #9 – Lewis Thorpe #8 – Jorge Polanco #7 – Josmil Pinto #6 – Jose Berrios #5 – Eddie Rosario