Seth Stohs

2012 was a frustrating, injury-plagued season for one of the newest members of the Minnesota Twins organization, Sean Gilmartin. It’s fair to say that he is excited about getting a fresh start with a new organization. The left-hander was the first-round draft pick of the Atlanta Braves in 2011 after a fine three-year career with the Florida State Seminoles. In December, the Twins acquired the southpaw in exchange for Ryan Doumit. At Twins Fest, Twins Daily had the opportunity to chat with Gilmartin and get to know a little more about him. Gilmartin spends his offseason at his home in Georgia. He made the trek north to the cold and winter weather of Minneapolis for Twins Fest weekend. Being new to the organization, he knew just one of his new teammates. As he said, “Everybody’s new except Trevor Plouffe. We actually went to the same high school together. He graduated two years before me. He played with my brother when my brother went there, so we know each other pretty well.” Crespi Carmelite high school (in Encino, California) has developed some pretty decent ballplayers. Along with Plouffe and the Gilmartin brothers, there are several other former big leaguers from the high school. Catcher Rick Dempsey made his big league debut as a 19-year-old in 1969 and stayed in the big leagues through the 1992 season. RHP Jeff Suppan had a 17 year big league career. Sean Gilmartin’s brother, Mike (26), was a 27th round pick of the Oakland A’s in 2009 out of Wofford. After four seasons in the A’s organization, he split 2013 between the Reds and Nationals organizations. Sean Gilmartin was selected in the 31st round of the 2008 draft out of high school. Instead of signing, he went across the country and played at Florida State where he became one of the top collegiate pitchers in the nation. It was pretty clear he would be taken somewhere in the first round of the 2011 draft. Heading into the draft, there was a lot of talk about the Twins being very much interested in the southpaw. “When I was in school my junior year, I think I talked back and forth with the Twins maybe three or four times leading up to the draft,” Gilmartin recalled, “Yeah, I had a couple of conversation with a few of their scouts.” That year, the Braves had the 28th overall pick. Two picks after Atlanta took Gilmartin, the Twins selected infielder Levi Michael. Recall that Alex Meyer was the #23 pick in that same draft, and that the Twins took Travis Harrison and Hudson Boyd in the supplemental first round. You may also be interested to know that two former Twins draft picks were taken earlier in the first round in 2011. The Astros took OF George Springer with the 11th pick (Twins 48th round pick in 2008), and the Cardinals drafted 2B Kolten Wong with the 22nd pick (Twins 16th round pick in 2008). In 2012, he began his season in AA where he posted a 3.54 ERA in 20 starts. He was promoted to AAA where he finished the regular season with seven more starts. He also had a very impressive showing in the Arizona Fall League. 2013 was a frustrating year for Gilmartin. He made 17 starts for AAA Gwinnett and posted a 5.74 ERA with a 1.59 WHIP. The reality is that he was pitching with shoulder tendonitis. He said, “It was tough last year, you know, being as close as I was to my goal of being in the major leagues. I started the year out pretty well and ended up getting hurt. Tried to pitch through an injury and figured out that isn’t the best thing to do. So, like you said, velocity is usually around 89, 90, 91, and I was throwing it up there at 83 to 85 and that doesn’t get it done.” In the Arizona Fall League in 2012, he was touching 93 at times. With tendinitis, continuing to pitch is just not really an option. Rest is the only way to improve. “(I) took time off, took about a month or so on the DL to get back. Made my last four starts. Came back healthy. It was basically just a little bit of deficiency in my shoulder program, so I’m working this year to get the shoulder strong.” What has the offseason plan been for Gilmartin in an attempt to regain his arm strength? “Not really a lifting program, just different shoulder exercises, a lot of manual resistance work with a PT guy.” His 2013 year ended with significant news for his career. After being a team’s first round pick less than 18 months earlier, he was traded to the Twins. What were his thoughts about the trade when he heard the news? “It’s a new opportunity, definitely looking forward to it. I’m thankful that the Twins were wanting to trade (for me), so I’m looking forward to the opportunity. It’s a new experience for me, so I’m enjoying it.” So when he is on, what does Sean Gilmartin throw, and what are keys to his success? Going right to the source, Gilmartin said, “(I’ve got a) four-pitch mix; fastball, changeup, curveball and slider. I think my most effective pitch, when my fastball location is where it needs to be, is my changeup. But everything stems off my fastball and my fastball command and being able to throw the fastball where I want.” It will be an interesting spring training for the lefty. He doesn’t need to be added to the Twins 40-man roster until after the 2014 season, but the Twins decided to make him a non-roster invite to big league camp. He’ll have an opportunity to put his injury and his frustrating 2013 season behind him. However, with the Twins depth of arms in the big leagues, with some out-of-options pitchers and some top prospects in the upper levels, it is possible that the Twins could send Gilmartin to either AAA Rochester or AA New Britain. What are Gilmartin’s hopes and expectations for spring training? He said, “I’ve been trying not to worry about where I’m going to start the year this year. I did a little bit of that last year, and it didn’t help me out in spring training. This year, I’m just going into spring training and getting myself ready for the season and getting people out. That’s the main thing as a pitcher is to get people out. Throw the ball over the plate, throw strikes, get people out, give your team a chance to win.” And what are his goals for the 2014 season? “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.” Sean Gilmartin enjoys hunting and golfing in his free time, a couple of hobbies that he is certain to share with several of his teammates. With the Twins, there will be no need whatsoever to rush Gilmartin. He will not turn 24 years old until May 8. He will be able to work on what he needs to work on to make himself more big league ready. He profiles as a mid-to-back-end of the rotation starter. Considering that the Twins were looking to trade Doumit, and he was not going to catch any more, getting a player of Gilmartin’s potential is a coup.

Join us over the next two weeks as Twins Daily will be counting down our Top 10 Twins prospects. The names and rankings created quite a debate among the Twins Daily writers, so hopefully it can create some discussion among our readers as well. We’ll look at a prospect each day leading up to those glorious headlines that baseball fans spend winter waiting for, “Pitchers and Catchers Report.” Today, we’ll begin our Top 10 Minnesota Twins countdown with our choice for #10, RHP Trevor May.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Age: 24 (DOB: 09/23/89) 2013 Stats NEW BRITAIN: 9-9, 151.2 IP, 4.51 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 159/67 K/BB 2012 Stats READING: 10-13, 149.2 IP, 4.87 ERA, 1.45 WHIP, 151/78 K/BB ETA: 2014 2013 Ranking: 9 Trevor May was the top high school player in the state of Washington as a senior. He was drafted in the 4th round by the Philadelphia Phillies in 2008. He agreed to sign when offered a $375,000 bonus. Following the 2011 season, he was named the top Phillies prospect according to Baseball America. After the 2012 season, May came to the Twins, along with Vance Worley, in exchange for outfielder Ben Revere. Taking a cursory glimpse at Trevor May’s 2013 statistics at New Britain and comparing them to his 2012 statistics for the Reading Phillies, also in the Eastern League, it appears he didn’t make much progress. However, closer inspection shows he improved in nearly every statistical category. His ERA and WHIP dropped. He pitched a couple more innings. If you’re a fan of FIP (Fielding Independent Pitching), he went from 4.88 in 2012 to 3.79 in 2013. Part of that may be because his BABIP increased from .292 to .329. His home run rate dropped from 1.32 in 2012 to 0.83 in 2013. When the Twins finally decided to shut down Kyle Gibson at the end of the season, May was promoted to AAA Rochester for the playoffs. It is likely he will begin the 2014 season with the Red Wings, and it is also likely he will make his MLB debut during the season. The Good Trevor May certainly fits the profile of what a team should be looking for in a starting pitcher. He is 6'-5" and about 240 pounds. He boasts a fastball that sits between 93 and 95 mph and has one of the best change-ups in the organization. He also has a solid curveball. In terms of ‘stuff,’ Trevor May has what it takes. Unlike most starting pitchers in the Twins (and any other) organization, he has the ability to miss bats. In 2013, he was one of just three Twins starters to strike out more than a batter per inning (Alex Meyer and former Twin Tim Atherton were the others). May can be described as sturdy. In fact, in a recent Talk to Contact podcast, May mentioned that he is doing yoga five days a week as well as using the Twins agility program in an attempt to be more agile. He said, “I’m a big, not necessarily agile human” so any increased flexibility and agility will only be helpful. However, he also believes his lack of flexibility has helped him be as durable and eat as many innings as he has. He believes his ability to remain healthy is, at least in part, due to “my appendages don’t bend the wrong way very far.” The Bad Although May did see a reduction in his walk rate from 2012 to 2013, it is still a major area of concern for him. In 2012, he walked more than a batter every other inning. He was still well over four walks per nine innings in 2013. We read a lot about consistency with Kyle Gibson in 2013; it may also be the biggest key to May’s success moving forward. In 2013, May had 17 starts in which he gave up three runs or fewer. He had ten starts in which he gave up four earned runs or more. Twice he gave up eight runs in an outing. The key in those games seems to be not getting off to a good start. When he struggled, he gave up early runs and was often unable to keep the damage to a minimum. The Bottom Line Trevor May certainly has the abilities to become a quality major league starter. He has plenty of fastball and a good array of secondary pitches. He also has the elusive (to the Twins) ability to miss bats. Unfortunately, control and consistency have not always been there for him from start to start and occasionally even from inning to inning. Some have said if he can’t gain enough control, he could make a transition to the bullpen. That may be true, but I don’t know how many late-inning relievers are counted on if they can’t throw strikes in key situations. May told the Talk to Contact guys that he thinks the mental side of pitching is really going to be key for him. He found success late last season and in the Arizona Fall League by being able to focus on the process of pitching. He spoke of the act of throwing pitches as being a process. That process involves knowing that regardless of who is standing in the box, he can repeat his motion and delivery (the physical) because he can focus on what he wants to throw and where he wants to throw it. If he can maintain that focus and consistency throughout the season and even reduce his walk rate by another half walk over nine innings, he has a chance to contribute to the middle of the Twins rotation for several years. Check back tomorrow to see who comes in at #9.

After a week of Twins Fest activities and the playing catch up, today I will be continuing a series of Q&As with Twins minor leaguers. Today, we will get to know a little bit more about Chad Christensen. He was the Twins 25th round pick in 2013 out of the University of Nebraska where he spent four years. Upon signing, he spent the summer playing in the Gulf Coast League. The Cedar Rapids native will compete this spring with the hopes of spending the season with the Kernels. He can play both corner infield and corner outfield positions. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] With that, here is the interview with Chad Christensen: ---------- Twins Daily (TD): Growing up in Iowa, who was your favorite team, and who were some of your favorite players to watch? Chad Christensen (CC): I grew up a big Yankees fan (sorry). My favorite player was Derek Jeter. I also was a big fan of Jorge Posada, Bernie Williams, and Mariano Rivera. TD: What are your best memories from your high school baseball days in Cedar Rapids? Did you play other sports? CC: I have a lot of great memories from high school baseball at Washington. Some of my best friends to date were teammates of mine from 2006-2009. The 2007 season was very memorable with myself and a friend as the young guys. The upper classmen were great teammates and players, and we had a great year. My senior year in 2009 was great beating Xavier to go to the state tournament for the first time since 2001, I believe. We had a dedicated group of guys and the season was one I will never forget. TD: Talk about your decision to go to Nebraska. Were you recruited elsewhere too? CC: I fell in love with Nebraska very early. On my visit, the stadium was packed with 7,000 fans for a Sunday game against Texas A&M. You don't get that at many places in the country. I was recruited elsewhere, but the decision was easy. I'm proud to be a part of Husker Nation and now an alumni. TD: What were your best memories/moments from your college playing days? CC: Beating Creighton in the first game at TD Ameritrade would be up there. I had some great teammates that will also be lifelong friends. Going through 4 seasons with some of those guys is something that can never be replaced. TD: When the Marlins drafted you in the 35th round in 2012, was it a difficult decision to return to college? CC: Being drafted by the Marlins was exciting. But I had to make a decision, and for me, the best decision was to return to Nebraska for my senior season and finish my degree. TD: As the draft approached, were you seeing or talking to more scouts? Did you have much conversation with any Twins scouts? CC: I talked to lots of scouts for a lot of teams as the draft was coming up. I had talked to Mark Wilson a lot with the Twins, so I was hopeful that the Twins might give me a shot. TD: What was it like to play for Darin Erstad? CC: Playing for Coach Erstad was awesome. I like when coaches are up front with you and make it clear what is expected of their players. Coach Erstad did that well. We had fun, but we had fun by respecting the game and playing the right way. If you respect the game and work hard, you'll love playing for that guy and you won't have any issues. TD: When the Twins took you in the 25th round, where were you and what was that experience like? (Was that about where you were expecting to be picked?) CC: When the Twins picked me in the 25th round, I was at a gas station buying a Red Bull. I was waiting at my house all day to be picked. I finally had to get going to get to my brother's baseball game. It was later than I anticipated, but once I got the call from Mark and saw I had been picked by the Twins, I was very amped up. I had always hoped the Twins would pick me being from the Midwest and with the Kernels in Cedar Rapids. It was a great day when I got drafted. TD: What was the adjustment to pro baseball like for you? CC: I enjoyed the transition to pro ball. I played in the GCL so playing all day games was different. It was a lot of baseball, but I like that. You really have to take care of your body to stay healthy and alert every day. I'm glad I got a short season in to learn some things before this season. TD: If you were to write up a scouting report on yourself, what would it be? What would you say are your strengths, and an area you want to work on to improve most? CC: I want to be looked at as a good athlete who plays the game the right way, who is a good teammate, brings energy, and does whatever it takes to win every game no matter what that is. TD: Who are some of the people who have helped you get to this point in your career? CC: There are so many people who deserve credit for me getting into professional baseball. My parents and brothers for pushing me and supporting me. My coaches from the time I was 10 for making the game enjoyable. My teammates at Washington and Nebraska. Coach Erstad for showing how the game should be played, and Coach Bolt for giving me a solid approach to hitting. And obviously Mark Wilson for drafting me. TD: Outside of baseball, what do you enjoy doing? Hobbies, etc? CC: I'm a big college football fan, and college basketball fan. I love Monday and Sunday night football. I'm also a personal trainer in the off season, so I am big into working out and teaching others how to work out and stay healthy. TD: As spring training is now just a couple of months away, what are you most anxious and excited about? CC: I am excited mostly just to get back on the field and start playing again. I'm in good shape and ready for the season. I am also excited for some Florida sunshine and to get out of the midwest winter. I'm ready to be back with all the boys again in Ft. Myers. TD: What will it be like for you if you played in your hometown, for the Cedar Rapids Kernels. CC: Playing for the Kernels will be exciting for me. I grew up going to those games and playing in that stadium. So to be a part of the Kernels and play for the city of Cedar Rapids would be very satisfying and special for me. TD: Have you set any goals for yourself for the 2014 season? Are there certain stats you think are important for you? CC: I try not to think about set numbers. For one, I don't want to underestimate myself. My goals are to always improve and bring focus and energy every day. To play the game to win wherever I am. Talking to guys who have done it and things that work for them. Taking care of my body, eating well, getting plenty of rest are all things that will help performance. If I do all those things the numbers will take care of themselves throughout the course of a long season. TD: Favorite baseball movie? CC: Sandlot, no doubt. TD: What is one thing about yourself that you would want Twins fans to know? CC: My brother Austin and I are tied for the Cedar Rapids metro all-time high school home run record. -------- Thank you very much to Chad Christensen for taking his time to answer these questions. Best of luck to him in the 2014 season.

After many rumors, the Minnesota Twins announced their third free agent signing of the offseason in mid-December. After signing Ricky Nolasco and Phil Hughes, the Twins re-signed Mike Pelfrey to a two-year contract that has several achievable incentives. He is excited to be back, and so are a couple of the Twins young pitchers. According to Pelfrey, “I had another offer on the table. It wasn’t where I wanted to be. Also, Terry Ryan was pretty tough at negotiations. He said ‘take it or leave it.’ I said, ‘Hey Terry, I’m going to take it. I want to come back. I told you that all along.’”[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] His teammates were encouraging him throughout the process and excited when he finally signed. He said, “I’d get texts from guys saying ‘How come you haven’t signed yet?, and I’d say, ‘Hey, if they wanted to sign me back, they would have done it by now, OK.’ So, we’d be go back and forth and joke around.” Why did Pelfrey want to return to the organization? There were several reasons, but the people had a lot to do with it. “This organization is great. A lot of very good dudes to be around. So I’m obviously excited to come back and see those guys.” However, that isn’t enough for him. He has goals for himself, but also for his team. “The only other thing is we’ve got to win. That’s the thing that we’re missing. We had fun last year, but winning is fun. We need to get that back.” So, why does he think that winning may be on the horizon? “I honestly believe that we’re heading in the right direction. We have Buxton. We have Sano.” He also singled out one prospect that he is really excited about. “We have Alex Meyer, who I think that, when he is ready, he’ll be the ace of the staff. His stuff is that good. I’m a huge believer in him.” So, what is it that he likes about Meyer and how good he can become? Pelfrey commented, “He’s got the best stuff on the team. No offense to anyone else on the team. He’s got the best stuff. He just does. I think when he realizes that, and harnesses that a little bit, he’s going to be dominant. He’s 6-9, throws downhill, mid-to-upper-90s. He’s got a pretty good breaking ball, but just needs to harness it and pull it together which is going to happen with a little more seasoning. You know, that power-strikeout guy that this organization has been wanting and fans have been wanting, I think he’s coming. I think when he’s ready, which is maybe in spring, maybe later on the year, that they’re going to make room for him and he’s going to be an impact guy.” Meyer also spoke highly of Pelfrey. Meyer said, “I was really happy about Pelfrey coming back. I really liked Mike a lot. He talked to me a lot in spring training. He took me out to dinner a couple of times, just to talk. We have the same agent. That’s kind of how it fell into place. It was good for me to be out there and be around him. I’m excited to go out there and learn from him. When Rick Anderson called me and told me ‘I put you in the same group in spring training as Mike Pelfrey so he can show you the way.’” Meyer isn’t the only young Twins pitcher who has leaned on Pelfrey. Kyle Gibson had some ups and downs in his first big league campaign, but Pelfrey was the guy he leaned on too. “I think some of it was he went through the same surgery, pretty similar timelines. Maybe because he’s just a funny guy and likes to talk a lot and that’s how I am too. He was really helpful. He’s real easy to talk to, real easy to ask questions to.” Pelfrey is looking forward to starting over after a rough return from Tommy John surgery in 2013 with the Twins. What is his personal goal for 2014? “I think you go in, your goal is always 200 innings. Even last year, coming off surgery. They said they were going to put me on an innings limit. Save it. My goal was 200 innings. But my goal was 200 innings and I fell way short of it. At the end of the year, there was no other way to put it. I had a bad year. Coming off surgery or not coming off surgery, whatever, I had a bad year. I definitely need to get back to what I had done years before.” He acknowledged that although he is a competitor and wanted to come back, he may have come back too quickly. The mental aspect of his return may have been just as difficult as the physical. “I think the mental part is fully trusting that you’re ok, that you can let it go and snap it at the end. I thought I got through that. It’s all mental. I talked about the physical part of it, the feel, which I couldn’t get until month 13. I think it’s a little bit of both (physical and mental) and getting that assurance back that you’re really OK.” With the additions the team has made this offseason, Pelfrey feels good about the 2014 Twins. “Obviously going into the offseason having the highest ERA in baseball as a starting staff is definitely not acceptable or what we expected. I think they knew that was an area of need and they went out and addressed it. The inner competition that you can create among each other is good and brings out the best out of people. It’ll be good. I think, looking at the rotation, we’ll have a chance to win every night. Guys are going to give us a chance to be in the ball game and have a chance. Hopefully we’ll go and do that and win a lot more games.” It goes back to why Pelfrey wanted to return to the Twins. “This organization is going to turn it around in a hurry as long as everything works out. I think things are changing and we’re heading in the right direction.” Fans of the Minnesota Twins who have endured the past three seasons certainly hope that is true too!