Seth Stohs

You can view the page at http://www.twinsdaily.com/content.php?494-Twins-Minor-League-Starting-Pitcher-of-the-Month-April

Last night, I posted my choice for the Twins minor league relief pitcher of the month, Deolis Guerra. I also mentioned five other bullpen guys that deserved recognition for their strong starts. This morning, I’ll post my choice for the Twins minor league start pitcher for April. There were some pretty good options, but in the end, the choice was pretty easy. As always, I welcome feedback in the Comments if you have any thoughts, questions, or want to ‘vote’ for your choice. From a starting pitcher, I will mention Win-Loss record although it doesn’t really factor into the rankings. I do look a little bit more at ERA with starters than relievers, and WHIP is always important. Limiting base runners is a good way to limit runs allowed. For prospect status, strikeouts are important, but for this, I think that it’s important to look at walks and strikeouts in combination, and do so relative to innings pitched. And please remember, we are talking about a very small sample size of four to five starts. One of these pitchers mentioned below was the obvious choice as top starting pitcher for April until he struggled in his fifth start of the month. (So, how would you weigh one bad start with four terrific ones?) It can be a little subjective, but let's take a look at the top starting pitchers for the season’s first month. Number 6 – Beloit – Tim Shibuya - 5 GS, 1-1, 3.00 ERA, 1.42 WHIP, 24.0 IP, 30 H, 4 BB, 22 K Last year’s Appalachian League Pitcher of the Year had a solid first month in full-season ball. He started off a little slow, giving up some hits, but he stayed true to form and ended up with some solid numbers. He is the definition of a Twins pitcher, throwing strikes and yet, as you can see, he struck out nearly a batter per inning. He has a strong four-pitch mix that should succeed in the Midwest League. Number 5 - Rochester – Cole DeVries - 4 GS, 0-1, 2.91 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 21.2 IP, 16 H, 6 BB, 23 K Last April, DeVries was the easy selection as Twins minor league relief pitcher of April. After bouncing between the bullpen and rotation in 2011, he started in the AFL and enters 2012 as a starter as well. He had a terrific initial month to his season. He has terrific control and has found a way to get more and more strikeouts. He has good stuff, and he has been around for a while. He has also gained a little velocity on his fastball. Number 4 - Beloit – Jason Wheeler - 5 GS, 3-0, 2.33 ERA, 1.19 WHIP, 27.0 IP, 26 H, 6 BB, 19 K Last August, Jason Wheeler waited until the last day to sign with the Twins after they made him their 8th round draft pick out of Loyola Marymount. His first pro experience came in the Florida Instructional League, and this spring he made his official professional debut with the Snappers. The tall, burly south paw made a good impression. Two years ago, he was the pitcher of the year in the Northwoods League. Number 3 – Rochester – Scott Diamond - 5 GS, 4-1, 2.84 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, 31.2 IP, 32 H, 5 BB, 24 K Before his most recent start of the month (in which he gave up seven earned runs in six innings, he was the easy choice for the top minor league pitcher of the month. However, we can’t completely ignore that last start. It happened and affected his month’s numbers, but nowhere near far enough to keep him out of the top three. The lefty clearly made some adjustments from last year when he really struggled at AAA and with the Twins. The biggest thing might be a better defense behind him because he will need to rely on defense. Number 2 – New Britain – Luke French - 5 GS, 2-0, 1.80 ERA, 0.97 WHIP, 30 IP, 17 H, 12 BB, 18 K The Twins signed the left-handed former big leaguer shortly before the start of spring training. He went to minor league camp and despite a big league past, he started his season at AA New Britain. As should be expected, he had little problem with the level. Six of his walks came in one of his outings and he was able to wiggle out of trouble a couple of times. He was promoted to AAA Rochester and is expected to start on Wednesday in place of Sam Deduno. And the Twins Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Month is: Ft. Myers – BJ Hermsen - 4 GS, 1-0, 0.78 ERA, 0.91 WHIP, 23 IP, 16 H, 5 BB, 12 K Hermsen had a terrific 2011 season for the Twins organization. He spent most of the year in Beloit where he went 11-7 with a 3.10 ERA. He was promoted to Ft. Myers and made five starts. He made four starts in April for the Miracle before being promoted to AA New Britain where he is expected to make his first start for the Rock Cats tonight. Hermsen is not a pitcher who misses bats, so he relies on a strong mix of pitches. Despite a 6-6 frame, he doesn’t overpower hitters, and yet, when you look at the numbers, he gets results. Double-A may be a challenge for him, but he has earned this opportunity. A 6th round pick in the 2008 draft, the Twins will have to decide after the season whether to put him on the 40 man roster or not. We will see what happens going forward, but for April 2012, he was the Twins top minor league starting pitcher. [ATTACH=CONFIG]823[/ATTACH] (photo courtesy Jim Crikket, Knuckleballs) What do you think? I listed six pitchers here that got off to a nice start this season. There were not a lot of other choices. Who would your choice be? How would you rank these guys (and feel free to include others)? Be sure to check back later in the day for the April Starting Pitcher and Hitter of April. Also, tonight at 9:00 central time, you can listen to the SethSpeaks Weekly Minnesota Twins podcast while watching the start of the Twins/Angels game.

Justin Morneau will be flying back to the Twin Cities to see the hand doctor. I hate to speculate, but if it was really just "sore", wouldn't they give him a day or two off rather than rushing him off to the hand specialist? We can hope now. He was staying healthy and making himself tradeable. Hopefully this is nothing serious!

How about an opportunity in the 8th?? Burton gets Pujols on a pop up to CF.

He's actually been pretty solid since early May of last year... I mean, when he was healthy. He's a solid bottom-of-the-order, middle infielder when healthy.

Morneau's got a sore left wrist, according to Bremer. Concerning, for sure.

My rankings: 6 - Ricky Bowen 5 - Michael Tonkin 4 - Anthony Slama 3 - AJ Achter 2 - Caleb Thielbar 1 - Deolis Guerra What do you think? How would you vote?

You can view the page at http://www.twinsdaily.com/content.php?493-Twins-Minor-League-Relief-Pitcher-of-the-Month-April

Each month here at Twins Daily, we will be posting choices for Twins minor league relief pitcher, starting pitcher and hitter of the month. First, I want to share with you some of the top relief pitchers in the Twins minor league system in the month of April. I'll follow up over the next 24 hours with the starting pitcher and hitter of the month. However, let's start with the Top 6 Relief Pitchers in April: Number 6 – Ft. Myers – Ricky Bowen - 8 G, 1.96 ERA, 1.09 WHIP, 18.1 IP, 18 H, 2 BB, 17 K, .269 BAA The Twins signed the veteran Bowen last May and he pitched in several roles. Those close to the Miracle say that his stuff profiles well to the bullpen as he has two very good pitches, including a sharp slider which is his strikeout pitch. He’s off to a great start in April. Number 5 - Beloit – Michael Tonkin - 8 G, 0.64 ERA, 1.00 WHIP, 14.0 IP, 11 H, 3 BB, 14 K, .216 BAA In 2010, due to injury, Tonkin was pushed up to Beloit where he made several starts before going back down to Elizabethton. Last year, he pitched in the Snappers bullpen, and he’s back there again. If his April numbers were the lone indicator, he shouldn’t remain in the Midwest League much longer. Number 4 - Rochester – Anthony Slama - 8 G, 0.79 ERA, 1.24 WHIP, 11.2 IP, 6 H, 8 BB, 18 K, .158 BAA Slama is healthy again after an injury-plagued 2011 season. He is back to pitching like he always has. He walks a few too many, but unlike most of the hard-throwers the Twins have signed in recent years, he has the ability to get a lot of strikeouts. Unlike most pitchers in the organization, Slama actually has the ability to miss bats. Number 3 – Beloit – AJ Achter - 7 G, 0.56 ERA, 0.81 WHIP, 16.0 IP, 8 H, 5 BB, 19 K Achter was the Twins 49th round pick in 2009 out of Michigan State. Instead of signing right away, he went to the Cape Cod League, improved his status and signed late. He was brought up to Beloit last year and made 19 starts for the Snappers. He was sent back to Wisconsin to start this season and moved to the bullpen. So far, so good. He has a three-pitch mix and could potentially make starts later in the season. Number 2 – Ft. Myers/New Britain – Caleb Thielbar - 8 G, 0.00 ERA, 0.55 WHIP, 12.2 IP, 4 H, 3 BB, 16 K, .098 BAA Thielbar has yet to allow a run, and he has already been promoted to New Britain (where he came in and got the final out of a 1-0, 12 inning win on Monday night), so how is he not #1 on this list? Well, the Twins have had quite a few strong bullpen performances this first month and the lefty is no different. The former St. Paul Saint has definitely made himself into a prospect to watch. And the Twins Minor League Relief Pitcher of the Month is: New Britain/Rochester – Deolis Guerra - 8 G, 0.57 ERA, 0.57 WHIP, 15.2 IP, 7 H, 2 BB, 17 K Ever since being moved to the bullpen halfway through last season, Guerra has been a different pitcher, a great pitcher. Although he doesn’t throw hard, his changeup is the best in the organization. One phrase that annoys me more than most is that Guerra is “the last player remaining from the Johan Santana trade.” That isn’t his fault and yet too many fans seem to hold it almost against him. Guerra impressed the Twins coaches in spring training. He was great in seven games with AA New Britain before being promoted to Rochester where he pitched three shutout innings over the weekend. [ATTACH=CONFIG]821[/ATTACH] So what do you think? I’ve listed six players here and there are a few bullpen guys in the Twins farm system that could (should?) be recognized for their great start to their 2012 season. Who would your choice be? How would you rank these guys (and feel free to include others)? Be sure to check back later for the April Starting Pitcher and Hitter of April.

That's why it's best for us not to pay too much attention... It's easy for me to say "I'd lean toward Zimmer." But I don't know. Ha!

Players can still be "adopted" here as there are still several prospects available. At this point, just set up an inital forum for them and he's yours (if he was available). Here is the quick update. Alex Wimmers - Twins Fan from Afar Corey Williams - jnygaard Max Kepler - LuckyLager James Beresford - Jim Crikket Jeff Manship - John Bonnes Daniel Turpen - glanzer Miguel Sano - Seth Stohs Chris Herrmann - shanewahl Aaron Hicks - gunnarthor BJ Hermsen - seanmiz Josh Burris - Thrylos Levi Michael - TwinsTakes-RD Darin Mastroianni - ashburyjohn Madison Boer - Hogs2 Eddie Rosario - twinsmvb Adrian Salcedo - Cody Christie Oswaldo Arcia - bkucko Angel Morales - nicksaviking Hudson Boyd - TwinsFaninPhilly Deolis Guerra - Rosterman Matt Hauser - Teflon Brian Dozier - Mr. Ed Drew Butera - LimestoneBaggy Carlos Gutierrez - JakeE141414 Michael Tonkin - twinsfanstrief Daniel Ortiz - SouthDakotaTwinsFan AJ Pettersen - Gernzy Travis Harrison - travistwinstalk Kyle Gibson - enge0280 Niko Goodrum - MarcusE Pedro Florimon - James Tyler Grimes - Miles Joe Benson - Jontler Logan Darnell - Neinstein Caleb Thielbar - Cap'n Pirahna Dereck Rodriguez - StormJH1 Brian Dinkelman - Kirsten Brown Andrew Albers - mom2fourtwinsfans Lester Oliveros - stringer bell Angel Mata - Your House is My House Liam Hendriks - twinsnorth49 Jairo Perez - righty8383 Ben Revere - AT4MVP Tyler Robertson - LaserED62 Tim Shibuya - Mike in SD Jason Wheeler - MWLFan Danny Rams - joeboo_22 Danny Santana - SDTwinsFan Anthony Slama - gromit Nate Roberts - raindog Evan Bigley - striker_86 Brett Jacobson - danoo Cole DeVries - SirLoin Chris Colabello - Republican22 Manuel Soliman - dv3 Lance Ray - Land of 10,000 Beasts AJ Achter - shs_59 Scott Diamond - sweetluis Jorge Polanco - TRex Ryan O'Rourke - SnapperJP Steve Hirschfeld - lecroy24fan Pat Dean - TKGuy Cole Nelson - nickpuntoismygod Blake Martin - ssp833 Dan Rohlfing - fslbaseball Ray Chang - Coach J Luis Perdomo - PeanutsfromHeaven Brett Lee - Justin JD Williams - Wachsta Mark Dolenc - TCBurgerGuy Tsuyoshi Nishioka - Andy4Twins Luke French - Riverbrian

14 people still need to create their Forum for their Adopt-a-Prospect: Eddie Rosario, Hudson Boyd, Drew Butera, Carlos Gutierrez, Daniel Ortiz, Travis Harrison, Ben Revere, Tyler Robertson, Danny Rams, Danny Santana, Nate Roberts, Brett Jacobson, Jorge Polanco, Cole Nelson

Twins Lineup: Denard Span CF Jamey Carroll SS Josh Willingham LF Justin Morneau DH Danny Valencia 3B Ryan Doumit C Trevor Plouffe RF Chris Parmelee 1B Alexi Casilla 2B SP: Nick Blackburn First day off for Joe Mauer... Well deserved... They're going to have to get a day off for Carroll and Span at some point too.

none. I like Hughes, think he could be a decent platoon guy, but clearly the organization isn't all that enthralled by him. And with where they need to go, I think they can use the 40 man roster spot differently.

I dont think either John or Aaron was wrong... but frankly, 1/2 hour on the topic was strange... The goal of every team going into the season is the win a World Series, but the first way to do that is to win the division. The Twins are in the AL Central. They shouldn't have to apologize for that. Just the way it is. So, I don't care if they are the Blue Jays.

If you haven't posted your introductory blog for your player, be sure to do that soon. Also, transactions are starting to happen, so be sure to pay close attention to your player.

I think he'll remain a starter for the time being to work on pitches, strengthen arm, etc. they like to have college pitchers work out of the bullpen after they sign to keep innings down.

That's just it. I think that the defense has been the least of the team's concerns. Gray is the easy answer, but he's pitched well (although I think the walks will eventually catch up to him). But you're right, MWW, I wouldn't be surprised if there is an open spot in a month.

I dont' think that the Twins have really ever thought that. If they did, Slama and Delaney would have had real chances. It's just amazed me that Slama has never been given a real big league chance despite always getting a ton of strikeouts. He has walked too many, sure, but less than the likes of Gray, Vasquez and several other guys that they seem to like. So, I may never understand that situation. Manship has been tremendous in Rochester as well this season. I think he and his curveball/slider can do ver well in a bullpen role. Guerra's best pitch is his changeup, which is as good as anyone in the organization. All three of these guys throw about the same in terms of velocity.

Why in a month or so? I guess he's on the 40 man roster, but Manship and Slama have to be ahead of him at this point.

Sam Deduno was placed on the DL by Rochester, and they called up Guerra. Hermsen could be in New Britain primarily to fill in for Wimmers, although no one knows how long he is out. Boer moves up to take Hermsen's spot. I think that Thielbar takes Guerra's spot, with Fuentes taking Thielbar's spot and Hurlbut taking Thielbar's spot. I guess I anticipate most of them sticking, but it is kind of early for these types of mass movements.