Seth Stohs

Before the 2013 season, the Minnesota Twins had two prospects in Baseball America’s Top Ten minor leaguers. Miguel Sano ranked #9, and Byron Buxton ranked #10. Such lofty rankings often raise lofty expectations. One of the best stories in the Twins organization in 2013 is that both these top prospects not only met expectations, but greatly exceeded them. In fact, when Baseball America comes out with its 2014 preseason prospect rankings, it is likely that both will be among their Top Five prospects. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] Sano has been making news since well before the Twins signed him for $3.15 million in October of 2009. It is his immense power potential that gets people talking. He began the season in Fort Myers where, in 56 games, he dominated the pitcher-friendly Florida State League to the tune of .330/.424/655 with 15 doubles, two triples and 16 home runs in 56 games. He helped the Miracle clinch the first half division title early and the next day he was promoted to New Britain. With the Rock Cats, he was a bit streaky but those hot streaks are what make him so exciting. Despite a low average and a bunch of strikeouts, he accounted for some tremendous power. He hit .236/.344/.571 with 15 doubles, three triples and 16 home runs. He drove in 103 runs on the season as well. As encouraging, Sano greatly improved his defense. In 2012 while in Beloit he accumulated 42 errors. In 2013, between the two teams, he had just 23 errors. Obviously the concern right now is Sano’s right elbow. However, if healthy, Twins fans will most likely see him in a Twins uniform by midseason. With Sano, it is his power that is exciting. With Byron Buxton, his speed is electric. However, he is the #1 prospect in all baseball because of his overall game. Buxton began the season in the Midwest League (Cedar Rapids) as most first-round picks do in their first full season. Unlike most every young player to start the season there, he played so well and was so advanced that he spent only about half the season with the Kernels before moving up to Fort Myers for the second half. Not even Joe Mauer did that. In 68 games with the Kernels, Buxton hit .341/.431/.556 with 15 doubles, ten triples and eight home runs. Then, in 57 games with the Miracle, he hit .326/.415/.472 with four doubles, eight triples and four home runs. Buxton’s speed is elite. From the right-handed batter’s box, few in baseball history have been able to get to first base more quickly. He is able to beat out regular ground balls. He turned doubles into triples. Combined, he stole 55 bases, though he was also caught 19 times so that is something he will need to continue to work on. Defensively, he has great range because of his speed, but he actually takes good routes to the ball. He also has a great arm. Buxton is more than just his speed. He is a solid all-round hitter, patient at the plate, yet aggressive with his swing. He uses the entire field and has enough power to hit home runs. As he matures physically and learns the game through experience, he will hit for more power. Consider this: Baseball America commented that Buxton’s tools are even better than Mike Trout’s were as a prospect. Buxton was named the Minor League Player of the Year by many sources. He was named the top prospect in the Midwest League and the Florida State League. Buxton and Sano were the Twins representatives in the 2013 Futures Game and it is possible they will play in the 2014 Futures Game at Target Field. It is also possible that following that game, they could both stay with the Twins. Hopefully these two upper echelon prospects are able to continue to improve and reach their full potential. The best part of this story is that Buxton and Sano were not the only Twins' prospects who moved up in the minds of baseball people. Alex Meyer’s stuff and showing in the Arizona Fall League impressed. Eddie Rosario continued to move up at the same pace as Sano. Kohl Stewart is another Top 4 pick who has the stuff to be a future ace. Jorge Polanco took a major step forward in Cedar Rapids. Josmil Pinto continued to hit in the upper levels and had a terrific big league debut in September. Lewis Thorpe grew and came out of nowhere as a top prospect. Max Kepler showed his power potential with the Kernels in the second half. Adam Walker showed he has Sano-like power. Elizabethton had five or six starters that show potential. There are a few bullpen arms that reach into the upper-90s as well. The farm system is loaded, and that’s a huge story of 2013. However, it all starts with Byron Buxton and Miguel Sano. They are truly elite prospects and in 2013 they continued their exciting treks to Target Field. A look at other Twins stories from 2013 includes: #13 – Twins in the WBC #12 – Drew Butera Traded to Dodgers #11 – Twins Sign Kubel, Trade Doumit #10 - Brian Dozier Breaks Through #9 - Kyle Gibson Promoted #8 - Aaron Hicks' Lost Year #7 – Twins Draft Kohl Stewart #6 – Justin Morneau Traded to Pirates #5 – Twins Dismal Starting Pitching

I guess if there is one positive to having three straight 96+ loss seasons, it is the high draft picks that the Minnesota Twins have received. In 2011, the Twins had the second worst record in baseball, so they had the second overall pick in the 2012 draft. With it, they selected Byron Buxton. In 2012, the Twins had the fourth worst record, so in 2013 they had the fourth pick.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] The selection was something that had Twins Daily buzzing for a month leading up to the draft. Would the Twins use the pick to take one of the three big college players? Would they work out a pre-draft deal with Reese McGuire and then use extra bonus money later in the draft? The Houston Astros took Mark Appel with the first overall pick. Third baseman Kris Bryant was selected by the Chicago Cubs with the second pick. Then the Colorado Rockies drafted Jonathan Gray with the third pick. The player the Twins were most rumored to want all along, right-handed pitcher Kohl Stewart, fell to them with the fourth pick and they were excited to draft him. (Jeremy, John and Seth talked about the pick at the end of the first day of the draft.) Stewart was the 6th-ranked quarterback in the nation and had signed to play at Texas A&M. However, when he was drafted he made it clear he had every intention of signing quickly with the Twins. In a conference call following his selection, Stewart said, “Football has always taken rank over baseball, especially in high school with it being so demanding and such a big deal here in Texas. I look forward to being able to just sit down and work on baseball for once. I’ve never been able to do that. I really didn’t start pitching at the level I have been pitching at until high school and then football came again and took away from that. So I’m really looking forward to being able to really focus on one thing and focus on that for a long period of time.” Stewart is blessed with some great gifts. He has a mid-90s fastball and has been clocked at up to 97 mph. He has a slider in the upper-80s. He has a curveball and a change up and he is also working on a sinker. Scouts said he had as much pure stuff as anyone in the draft, including Appel and Gray. Though some considered him fairly advanced for his age, he still has a lot of developing to do. In his 2013 high school season, he went 5-1 with a 0.18 ERA. He also struck out 59 batters in his 40 innings. After signing, he went to the Gulf Coast League where he posted a 1.69 ERA and a 0.94 WHIP. In 16 innings, generally two or three inning stints, he walked three and struck out 16. He was promoted to Elizabethton where he made just one start. He threw four shutout innings, giving up one hit, one walk and striking out eight. However, he experienced some soreness in his right shoulder and the Twins were wise to shut him down. In 2014, Stewart will certainly be one to watch. He will likely pitch for Cedar Rapids, in their six-man rotation. One thinks they will have him on some sort of innings limit or plan since he doesn't have a lot of innings on his arm. In 2014, the Twins will have the fifth overall pick in the draft which means that selection will be a top story in 2014. The Twins have added a couple elite prospects through their high first-round picks the last two years. As a pitcher with a big fastball and huge potential, Stewart will be a key to the Twins staying strong for years to come. A look at other Twins stories from 2013 includes: #13 – Twins in the WBC #12 – Drew Butera Traded to Dodgers #11 – Twins Sign Kubel, Trade Doumit #10 - Brian Dozier Breaks Through #9 - Kyle Gibson Promoted #8 - Aaron Hicks' Lost Year

2013 was a big year for Brian Dozier. He had been hyped (maybe over-hyped) in spring training in 2012, and when he finally made his big league debut as a 24-year-old in early May, it proved to be a major struggle for him. Dozier learned a lot from 2012, and came into 2013 ready to take the next step. By season’s end, he was an easy choice for the Twins' most improved player. Some even made an argument that he could have been named the team’s MVP.[PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] To understand where Dozier entered 2013, we really need to go back and look at his 2012. He was named the 2011 Twins' Minor League Hitter of the Year. When he came up in 2012, he hit just .234/.271/.332 (.603) in 84 games. He was sent down to Rochester in mid-August and did not get called up when rosters expanded in September. However, when he came to Fort Myers for spring training 2013, he was handed a new job, starting second baseman. His defense at the position solidified his roster spot. But after going 1-5 with on May 27 he was hitting just .197/.238/.270 (.508). To their credit, the Twins stood by him, and he made that decision look great. In his final 110 games of the season, he hit .259/.335/.461 (.796) with 30 doubles, two triples and 17 home runs. It was a topic that Parker Hageman addressed in spring training when he said Dozier’s swing was something that Twins fans needed to watch. In August, Parker went back and reviewed Dozier’s swing and showed some of the reasons behind his improved production. Dozier gave a lot of credit to hitting coach Tom Brunansky for working with him through a couple technical glitches. A quick look at how his numbers after May 27 compare to other top second basemen shows that he can play with the best. His .796 ranked behind only Robinson Cano, Matt Carpenter, Jason Kipnis, and Chase Utley. His 49 extra base hits was behind only Carpenter’s 54 (39 doubles, 7 triples, 8 home runs) and three ahead of Cano (30 doubles, 14 home runs). No one else had more than 38 (Kipnis). Dozier’s defense was a constant throughout the 2013 season, as well. He made enough great plays to fill up a couple highlight reels. At season’s end, he was named the Twins recipient of the Wilson’s Twins Top Defender. Now, Dozier will be the first to tell you he’s still got plenty of room for improvement. He would like to increase his batting average, something that would be helped by cutting down his strikeout count. Overall, he hit .244/.312/.414. His OPS of .726 was exactly league average. However, his WAR (by Baseball-Reference) was 3.8, and his Fan Graphs WAR was 2.8. Photo by Betsy Bissen The Twins will be counting on Dozier to continue that improvement track in 2014. In 2013, his emergence was certainly one of the bigger Twins stories. A look at other Twins stories from 2013 includes: #13 – Twins in the WBC #12 – Drew Butera Traded to Dodgers #11 – Twins Sign Kubel, Trade Doumit