ThePuck

For me, I'd go Mauer, Arcia, Sano. I think Arcia is a better OVERALL hitter (combination of Power, OBP and BA) than Sano, whereas Sano is more of a power guy. I like mostly power guys in the 5 spot. It's just a matter of preference...don't think Gardy could go wrong either way.

Probably just bump Arcia to 4th and Sano to 5th

yeah, and isn't THAT horrible... :-)

because salary dumping is what Ryan does.

The reason we' need' Butera (or a player like him) is because we have two catchers who carry bats potent enough to want in the lineup together as much as possible by slotting them at DH or 1B or wherever Gardy's crystal ball says they should play if they aren't playing catcher. It's an issue created by having two catchers who can also hit very well. It's still not a reason to carry three catchers cause, at worst, one happens to be at DH when the other is hurt catching and we have the pitcher bat a whole 2, 3 times in that game before another catcher can be recalled for the next game. If Doumit wasn't on the team, or was just the DH, and Butera (or someone like him offensively) was the #2 catcher, we'd only need two catchers...

So, that's a yes? Are you forgetting Doumit does more than catch?

Are you saying that if given the choice between having Butera on the roster or Doumit on the roster you'd pick Butera?

Doesn't matter, the duties of the umpire are the same. I've only umpired as high as lower level colleges myself, but it's the same job. Done the same way, same positioning. If you can't see the glove, there's a positioning problem. That's all I'm saying. And yes, you make your decision on where the ball crosses the plate, but if that pitcher is consistently hitting the glove without it having to move...over and over and over again...he'll normally get the benefit of the doubt by many umpires

Have you ever umpired? I've done it on and off, mostly on, for over 25 years...I see the glove every time. Your view is grooved in between the batter and the catcher, full view. Back in the day, umpires positioned themselves right behind the catcher, so it was hard to see the glove on a low pitch, but framing is usually more important on the edges than up and down anyway.

He didn't say top picks, he was just amazed that an high school player signed a major league contract after being drafted. Was it common for high schoolers to get major league contracts upon being drafted? Cause that's what he was amazed by.

Pretty much :-)

Yup, drafted, signed, put right on the 40 man roster. He's not the first guy to sign one, but you're right it's rare.

Heck, if he ends up being a decent #2, or a very good #3 (and I don't mean decent #2 or very good #3 based on current Twins value), it's still very good. I don't see any reason not to be high on him.

From The Scouting Book Drafted as a teenager from Puerto Rico to open 2012's compensation round, Jose Orlando Berrios is a smallish righthander with good arm strength from a compact but strong frame. His short delivery bodes well for mechanical soundness, with a fastball that can pop at 96mph and a breaking ball that looks like a real plus offering. He'll slow-cook in Minnesota after signing, but if he stays healthy, it won't be long before he's seen as a TOP-FLIGHT PHENOM in a system good at maximizing pitcher value.

John Sickels scouting report: Minor League Prospect Note: Jose Berrios, RHP, Minnesota Twins One of my favorite pitchers from the 2012 draft is Jose Berrios (sometimes referred to as J.O. Berrios), a high school pitcher from Puerto Rico drafted in the supplemental first round by the Minnesota Twins. Berrios has been outstanding in pro ball. He threw five shutout innings for Elizabethton in the Appalachian League on Friday, allowing two hits, walking nobody, while fanning 11. Overall, in 25.2 innings split between Elizabethton and the Gulf Coast League, Berrios has allowed two runs (0.70 ERA), just 10 hits, only four walks, while fanning 43. That's right, 43/4 K/BB in 25.2 innings with 10 hits allowed. Standing 6-0, 190, the 18-year-old Berrios is showing a mid-90s fastball, and both his breaking ball and changeup are exceeding his pre-draft scouting reports. The breaking ball is variously described as either a hard curve or a slider, depending on which source you're talking to, but either way it is effective. His changeup is advanced for his age. He also tinkered with a cutter and a slow curve as an amateur. Although he doesn't have much physical projection remaining in terms of size, he is athletic, repeats his mechanics well, and has mature mound presence. The Twins used him in relief at first in the Gulf Coast League to get him acclimated to pro ball, but he's starting now and has the arsenal to stick there. His control has been very sharp, and obviously his performance has been outstanding so far. I like him a lot and he could end up being one of the best pitchers in the draft class.

Yup, the speedy Carlos Gomez finally got over an OBP in the .300s...just barely, but he did it....only took him 5 seasons

And even into 2010. His OPS against LH starters was over 1.000, and his OPS against LH pitchers overall was .966

I have high hopes for Worley...I really do. He could end up being his 2011 self. That'd be great. I guess I'm just trying to say, it doesn't make sense to say we don't need a Saunders because we have so many pitchers.

That sounds like a very good time.

Delmon signed a major league contract when he was drafted, they had no choice but to promote him. Tampa only had 3 option years.

On pace...we still don't know what he can do in a full year,,,cause he's never had one. His ERA+ 127 was in like 130 innings. It's gotta be taken with a grain of salt, IMO. I like Worley, I think he has the potential, but Saunders, based on history, will give likely give us a lot of innings and an ERA+ over 100. And Saunders is still only 31 :-) If we can get him for 2 years and a mutual option, or 3 years, it's a no brainer to do it...

Based on actual results of what the pitchers have actually done at the ML level, if we signed Saunders, he'd likely be our best starter this year...better than Pelfrey, better than Correia, likely better than Worley, likely better than Diamond. -Diamond has ONE year under his belt, posted an ERA over 4.00 in the 2nd half. He and Worley are the only ones who MIGHT be better than Saunders, but they are unknowns. No real history. -Pelfrey is coming off TJ surgery, and in two of his last three years he posted ERA+ of 78 and 81. -Worley has never pitched even 135 innings in a major league season one year, didn't pitch well last year, and was then hurt. We don't know what we have there. -Do I even really need to explain Correia, Deduno, DeVries or Blackburn? As far as Meyer and May, they won't be here. As far as Gibson he hasn't throw a major league inning yet. Now, it's not like Saunders is a stud, but he's got a track record of being pretty decent, slightly above average while pitching a good amount of innings. Who else can we say that about in our long list of candidates? None of them

I can't believe the As gave up Cole by himself to get Jaso. Getting Cole, another prospect and a PTBNL was big for the Nats

I have no issues with it at all...quite the contrary.

The risk... Jayson Stark just wrote an article about this, basically debunking this sentiment . . . Here is the link if you'd like to read it: http://espn.go.com/mlb/blog/_/... but here are the interesting parts if not: •Players who didn't play in the WBC in 2009 were nearly twice as likely to spend time on the disabled list in April that year as players who did take part in the WBC -- 17.8 percent of non-WBC participants versus 9.5 percent (just 11 of 115) of those who did participate. •There were 73 players on the disabled list when the 2009 season opened. Only two of them were players who were involved in the WBC. Just one (Rick Vandenhurk) was a pitcher. The other wasn't actually "injured." He was out with an ulcer. • In only two of the last eight seasons has baseball started the season with under 9 percent of active players on the disabled list. It happened to be the two years in which the WBC had just taken place during spring training -- 2006 and 2009.