dakotanative

I find it quite interesting that the All Stars from both leagues had high praise for how nice the Minnesota fans were and they are. Over the years I have lived in 13 states and three foreign countries and my time living in the Twins Cities ranks up there as the finest living experience for both myself and my family. However, how does one reconcile Minnesota Nice with Minnesota or Upper Midwest pessimism? On the many team sites representing Minnesota sports teams one sees a continual refrain of: Twins suck; Gophers suck; T-wolves suck; Wild sucks; Vikings suck. Its like watching the movie "The Music Man" and the contrariness of Iowa. Look, I am from Minot North Dakota and I know how the environment can impact one's outlook, but I am not of the opinion that these teams suck all the time. Now the T-wolves under Kahn did suck or at least their leadership did (had to root for the poor players), but Saunders is a pro and not a newspaper reporter. The Vikings under their former committee leadership team with Childress driving the boat were hard to live with and I will always be grateful to Farve for basically telling Childress to stick where the sun don't shine. So how do I feel about the Twins? While they won 3 out of 4 years under Smith, he gutted the foundation of the team. The fans, as a whole, loved the winning and ignored the rot setting in. Today Ryan has replaced the rot, restored the foundation and is now putting up the building's structure. He is doing a fantastic job. Now that statement will get numerous cat-calls, but when one looks at his track record what he is doing should not surprise us. Calls to gut the team and play all prospects is not wise. You have to grow your talent and promote it when it is ready. Do it too soon and your odds of failure go up substantially. Look at what Billy Beane is doing by resurrecting older prospects who were promoted too soon, failed and then thrown out on the trash heap. The 1982 Twins were horrible and wonderfully talented with Hrkek, Brunansky, Launder, Viloa, and soon to join Puckett. They were horrible because Griffith went cheap and dumped all of the veterans and saddled Twins fans with a good AA team. That team was poor until McPhail brought in some veterans to settle down the wild horses. Today we have seen our team improve its record by 7-8 games over last year. We are seeing greater team work and camaraderie. What a transformation Dozier has made and to think a year or two ago in the blogs it was Dozier this and Dozier that. If the Twins had dumped him as many in the blogs had wanted where would we be? The pitching has shown considerable improvement. They are sprinkling the team with prized prospects like Santana, Pinto, Gibson, Polanco, and Arcia. If it wasn't for injuries Sano would be on the team and Buxton a late season call up. Later this season we will see May and Meyers on the team and maybe Berrios and Vargas in September for a cup of coffee. I am doubtful if Rosario gets a September call up, but one never knows. Hicks is in the process of turning it around, not unlike old Twins favorite Torri Hunter who was up and down between the major and minors until he finally figured it out. In two years our outfield will probably be: Rosario, Hicks and Buxton and our starting staff will be Meyers, May, Gibson, Berrios, Nolasco (hate to say it but Nolasco will rebound and Stewart and Thorpe are too far away). Despite an occasional prospect failure, Ryan has done a super job in turning around the farm system and in setting up a future in which the Twins will be a dominate team for years to come.

Nice article and overview. You are right, his improvement needs to stand the test of time. We seen this show before where prized young players make a big splash and then struggle when the rest of the league adjusts. It is a game of adjustment and counter adjustment. Good thing is Parmelee is at the age when successful prospects make the necessary adjustments that propel their career to respectability. Man that would be nice if Parmelee, Plouffe, and even Colabello could finely reach the point of consistency where their hitting talent does their talking for them. The Twins lineup would produce some serious damage.

He is at that age where hitters start to figure things out. Years afo I read a quote from Tom Kelly where he stated that hitters start to hit their stride, or figure MLB pitchers, how they are pitching to you and realize their strengths and weaknesses, as hitters between 1500 to 2000 plate appearances. Well, Trevor is just shy of 1500 so I hope Kelly's statement is right. If so then we will be looking at our long term to solution to right field after Sano comes up. Good problem to have.

The replies to the question are sounding like a bunch of Minnesotans. You know Vikings suck; Twins suck; Wild sucks; Wolves Suck - well maybe they do. Having lived in Blaine and opened up some Home Depots in the area I am always amazed at how nice the people are and how they tend to view their teams in a negative light - even if they are having good years. Maybe this year's Twins team will lose more games, but it does not mean they suck. Take a look at the 1982 Twins. They had all of those young players that eventually won two World Series titles. When the season started they were on track to lose 120 plus games. It was painful watching them play. However, each day under Kelly's guidance you could see them improve. I believe their record in the second half of the season was around .500 and they ended up with 102 losses. This year we will see a number of veterans like Willingham sent to greener pastures. We will see Burton disappear sometime in July. Coreia as well. We will see Hicks, Arcia, Gibson, Pinto, Plouffe, Florimon grow in experience, skills and over all baseball ability. We will see Meyers added to the rotation and he will cut his teeth and struggle a bit. Tonkin will be back and I have no doubt that some of the hard throwing relief prospects will be on the team later in the year as well. Growth is the issue and if we see it, then it is a good year. We know Buxton will make an appearance this year and lets hope for a fast start in AA so we can see an outfield of Arcia, Buxton and Hicks sooner than later. Sano's injury is a bummer and we have to wait until next year, but this year is not lost and, as I enjoyed watching the 1982 team mature, I will enjoy watching this team do so as well. We have more potential on the team and coming up than that team and our pitching will be far superior, as well. I am looking for a win range of 71 to 75. If we get it and the kids grow we will have done well.

Nice article. I remember well the Soul Patrol and the League of Nations infield. One scout described the Twins infield as one having four shortstops. They could cover the ground. I always felt that Doug Meintkiewicz was the best fielding first baseman in all of baseball. His flops to the right field side save many an error for Koskie. However, I see Rosario taking Arcia's place in the outfield and Arcia being a DH. Eventually Polanco will be the second baseman with Santana at short. Rosario can flat out hit and needs to have a home as does Arcia. The outfield of Rosario, Buxton and Hicks will cover some serious ground and make out pitchers seem like all starts. On another note Mike Schmidt hit under .200 his first year in the majors and went on to have a great career. At this time I do not think Hicks is a Mike Schmidt. Well, I will not even entertain that thought, but if he is closer to Hunter, who also got off to a bad start, I will be happy. Regardless, over the years I have seen four waves of talent come forth from the Twins system. The first wave won two World Series Title, the third one and parts of the fourth won 6 division titles, but this latest wave is flat out the best in my 40 years as a Twins fan. I long to see them smack around the American League East and the fulfillment of my desires is just around the corner.

I always supported Hendricks and wanted him to succeed. Back in the early 1980's I was part of a Marine Corps Expeditionary Force and we were practicing Desert Storm before there was Desert Storm. Well we brought thousands of Marines to the west coast of Australia. I was there for well over a month and had the opportunity to spend a week in Perth and was a guest of a local family for several days. Perth is one fine town and the weather out there is out of this world - very much like San Diego, but it was the hospitality that floored me. What great people and they loved the Marines. Well, I kind of looked at Perth as one of my favorite spots on the globe and took interest in one of their natives trying to make it to the Show with the Twins. Well, here is to Perth, Aussies in general and Liam Hendricks - God bless you all and good luck. P.S. - If you are ever in Waikiki, HI the best bar on the strip is a two story Aussie bar and man can they party. Fun people! However, I have not seen the place since the late 1990s so it may be closed.

I see Wilkins as an outfielder that is stashed at Rochester in the event of an Injury. I see no clear path to him making the roster.

I remember well the struggles Tori Hunter went through before he finally stuck in the show. Hicks ability to have good at bats deteriorated as he struggled with MLB Pitching. If I was the manager I would be looking for increased maturity as a hitter from him. I would also be looking for better routes being taken to the ball and be seeing fewer spectacular plays that are the result of poor fundamentals. Finally I would also be looking for him separating his hitting from his fielding. In other words not allowing mistakes to carry over from one part of his game to the other. If he does this and the Twins see him and Presley on the same field he will win the starting job. Hicks hitting .260 with a .320 OB and .410 slugging is more valuable than Presley.

I cannot imagine the Twins extending him. It is all down hill from here given his age and recent injuries. There is always a need for that veteran bat off the bench, but that is a luxury a contending team enjoys. Besides if he is extended what prospect is being held back as a result?

Been around for two years, heh? What a great site. What a great group of writers and commenters. Every morning while I am having that first cup of coffee I hit sports spyder - twins and Twins Daily. Got to have my fix. With such interesting expectations going into the season I imagine my time on the site will double and I might actually go up a level or two in commenting on what is being written. Well done and wish you many years of growing success.

Let see...., Keith Law has a degree with honors from Harvard - sociology and economics and a masters degree in business admin. Does not appear to have ever played baseball much less coached it. No doubt about he is well qualified to scout players and to speculate on when they will arrive to the show. Personally I have no issues with Keith except he is a bit full of himself. One can look at all the baseball stats in the world and still not know what they are talking about or what they are seeing. Years ago when the debate about Moneyball school of baseball verses the "old school" raged, Keith consistently talked down the Twins for not embracing it. He always downgraded their prospects and the team as a whole. Did he have a point - yes. Did the Twins have a point - yes. Today we are seeing a blending of the sabermetrics approach with the good old fashion scouting and as a result our Twins are on a roll. The quality of the players, outside of the top 20, they have signed and are developing is amazing. When this next group of prospects hits the Show our Twins will be competitive for years to come as the farm system produces quality players to fill positions that become empty. To Keith's credit he did rank the Twins farm system quite high. However, a number of teams appear to court his favor and he tends to wax eloquent on their players. I do not see him ever being objective in regards to the Twins. Baring any serious setbacks Stewart will be in the Show in three years. Look at the trajectory of superior talent through out the years and they jump through their team's farm systems very quickly. If Stewart is a superior talent as they say he is, then he will be there sooner rather than later.

Nice lineup. I love your optimism. One note: Arcia belongs in leftfield and Hicks in right. Need to take advantage of Hicks' range and great arm. Also, I suggest getting rid of Willingham. Kubel and Plouffe can rotate through that position. Finally, there is a lot of youth in the that line up and scoring runs might be a challenge. Now scoring runs in 2016 is a different issue - a little seasoning goes a long way.

Making the list and making it and staying in the show are two different things.

For a team to be greater than the sum of its parts it needs players who are more concerned about the team than their own situation or stats. Pelfrey is demonstrating leadership in taking Meyers under his wing. This is a very positive sign and it will carry on through the development of other pictures like Berrios and Thorpe. I fully expect Meyers to be the Twins fifth starter this year. I cannot wait to see him pitch. I live in the Manassas Virginia area and tried to see him pitch in Richmond last season and just missed him.

GeeWiz, let me think for the price of a 2nd round pick who has maybe a 15% chance of being on a major league bench I can sign a fairly young, highly experienced shortstop who is going into his prime. What is the holdup? Is Boris asking for too much?

I do not know if one can really say that. KLaw did rank the Twins system as number two and that doesn't sound like hating to me. Now having said that I do think he is a bit full of himself and does not like to admit he is wrong and he has been wrong about many things on the Twins.

I have a hard time swallowing projections like this. In a 100 years I cannot imagine Mauer going backwards in OPS. It anything manning 1st base should result in beefed up numbers all around. We will be seeing greater productivity from Plouffe, Floriman, Dozier, Hicks, Arcia etc. this year. It is Tom Kelly's maxim that a hitter needed 1500 to 2000 ABs before they hit their stride. We will see if that is true with these players. I would love to see Sano, Buxton and Meyer make the team sometime this year. I see having a great outfield defense with Hicks and Buxton out there sometime this year. I see their pitchers reaping some benefit from an improved defense. How much? Let's say 5% to 8%. I see our starting pitchers going deeper into their starts and less wear and tear on the bullpen. Now will all of this result in a winning season? Beats me! I do think they will win 74-77 games. I see 2014 setting the stage for 2015 when we will see a more mature Twins team on the field with Pinto, Sano, Buxton, Arcia and Hicks as fulltime players and maybe Rosario is on the team in some role. We should also see Meyers, Gibson and May playing larger roles. This team has more potential talent than the 1982-1986 teams that won two World Series and we have front row seats in watching them mature and realize their potential. I cannot wait for the day when the rest of the talent has arrived like Thorpe, and Berrios and Kepler and Santana. I will enjoy watching them stick it to the Yankees and the American League East. I have friends who are Yankee fans who have been rubbing it in for the past ten+ years and it is time they got what they have coming to them. I will just sit back and smile.

Remember the game well. Here is a summary of where he played through the 2000 season. When he went down at the beginning of the 2000 season he tore up triple A pitching. I think they pissed him off after he spent all of the previous season on the big club. Regardless, he came back motivated and has had a fine career as a result. [TABLE=width: 288] [TD=class: xl65, width: 64, bgcolor: white]Year[/TD] [TD=class: xl65, width: 64, bgcolor: white]Age[/TD] [TD=class: xl65, width: 64, bgcolor: white]Tm[/TD] [TD=class: xl65, width: 64, bgcolor: white]Lg[/TD] [TD=class: xl66, width: 64, bgcolor: white]G[/TD] [TD=class: xl66, width: 64, bgcolor: white]PA[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]1993[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]17[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]MIN-min[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]Rk[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]28[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]114[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]1994[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]18[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]MIN-min[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]A[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]91[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]372[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]1995[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]19[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]MIN-min[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]A+[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]113[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]447[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]1996[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]20[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]MIN-min[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]AA,A+[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]103[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]405[/TD] [TD=class: xl70, width: 64, bgcolor: white]1997[/TD] [TD=class: xl71, width: 64, bgcolor: white]21[/TD] [TD=class: xl70, width: 64, bgcolor: white]MIN-min[/TD] [TD=class: xl70, width: 64, bgcolor: white]AA[/TD] [TD=class: xl71, width: 64, bgcolor: white]127[/TD] [TD=class: xl71, width: 64, bgcolor: white]528[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]1997[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]21[/TD] [TD=class: xl69, width: 64, bgcolor: white]MIN[/TD] [TD=class: xl69, width: 64, bgcolor: white]AL[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]1[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]0[/TD] [TD=class: xl70, width: 64, bgcolor: white]1998[/TD] [TD=class: xl71, width: 64, bgcolor: white]22[/TD] [TD=class: xl70, width: 64, bgcolor: white]MIN-min[/TD] [TD=class: xl70, width: 64, bgcolor: white]AA,AAA[/TD] [TD=class: xl71, width: 64, bgcolor: white]108[/TD] [TD=class: xl71, width: 64, bgcolor: white]435[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]1998[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]22[/TD] [TD=class: xl69, width: 64, bgcolor: white]MIN[/TD] [TD=class: xl69, width: 64, bgcolor: white]AL[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]6[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]19[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]1999[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]23[/TD] [TD=class: xl69, width: 64, bgcolor: white]MIN[/TD] [TD=class: xl69, width: 64, bgcolor: white]AL[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]135[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]422[/TD] [TD=class: xl70, width: 64, bgcolor: white]2000[/TD] [TD=class: xl71, width: 64, bgcolor: white]24[/TD] [TD=class: xl70, width: 64, bgcolor: white]MIN-min[/TD] [TD=class: xl70, width: 64, bgcolor: white]AAA[/TD] [TD=class: xl71, width: 64, bgcolor: white]55[/TD] [TD=class: xl71, width: 64, bgcolor: white]227[/TD] [TD=class: xl67, width: 64, bgcolor: white]2000[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]24[/TD] [TD=class: xl69, width: 64, bgcolor: white]MIN[/TD] [TD=class: xl69, width: 64, bgcolor: white]AL[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]99[/TD] [TD=class: xl68, width: 64, bgcolor: white]358[/TD] [/TABLE]

I have been a die hard Twins fan since 1965 when a team of Twins coaches came to my home town of Minot ND and in the old cement ballpark with a 500' centerfield fence game us a skills clinic. I was 12 at the time and I have been a faithful follower since. Over the years I have seen different waves of talent come forth from the minors or in trades. The most memorable being the wave from the early 1980s that brought us Hrbek, Viola, Puckett, etc. and two world championships. I remember the wave that came with Becker, Banks, Stahoviak, etc. - man what a failure. Of course I assume most of us know the Hunter, Lawton, Guzman wave, which was augmented with Santana, Mauer and Morneau. Well, except for the last extended wave all previous waves were proceeded by losing teams and changing economics and, unfortunately, we are in a losing trough now. From my 48 year vantage point we are looking at what may be the finest group of talented prospects the Twins have ever produced. I see Ryan and the organization sifting that young talent, looking for a many gold nuggets. Nuggets that mature into solid major league players. Thus far the ones being sent down are being sifted. How do they respond? Can they take instruction and get their heads back on? Do they have the character to mature into professional major leaguers? I agree with what Ryan is doing. I am a retired Marine and I earned that title. Being a Major League Baseball Player is a title that must be earned and not given away. If there is any fight in these players they will respond and come back is be productive major league players. Trust me this this will continue with Sano, Buxton, Meyer, Rosario, etc. until they earn the right to stay. How many tips to the minors did it take Hunter to grow into a major leaguer? It is better to taste the major leagues, fail, be sent down to learn and then come back to test what you learned, than to play everyday in the majors and to continue to fail without a chance to clear your head. Baseball is littered with talented players who needed a break, but were not given it and failed as a result. Not every prospect will be a Joe Mauer or Kent Hrbek. Most will be like Hunter if they are going to make it.

John - congratulations to you and the Twins Daily team. Day-in and day-out one of the first places I check for the latest Twins news and opinions is Twins Daily. Before there was Twins Daily we had Twins Geek, Seth Speaks, Puckett's Pond, Aaron Gleeman's blog, etc. There were a few community boards that help fill the Twins news and opinion void, but the group of dedicated Twins fans who, on a daily basis, had the courage to post their opinions, research, analysis, etc. on the web, I and thousands of others owe a debt of gratitude. Thank you for teaming together to get this done. I had read over a year ago some pundit's (maybe ESPN?) view that the Minnesota Twins had the finest group of bloggers supporting their team and that there was no one close. Need I say more.

This article is soooo true. How many times was Tori Hunter sent back to the minors before he finally matured as a player to stick with the big club - 2-3? As with all sports patience is required when developing talented players (this is true in business as well). The attitude of the player and the player developing culture of the organization is the key. We do not have a Steinbrenner or, in the case of football, a Dan Snyder running the team. With Ryan and Gardenhire we at least have a leadership team with a track record of patience in the development of talented young ballplayers. Doesn't always work - just ask Luis Rivas - but we have a wave of talented kids coming that will rival any group of kids in the history of the Twins. We and they will go through our ups and downs, but it is the prospect of seeing a line up with Hicks, Buxton, Rosario, Santana, Sano, Harrison, etc., along with a staff of Meyer, Barrios, May, Tonkin, etc. in it that keeps me reading Twins Centric and excited for the future of our beloved Twins.

I remember a time when they did run prospects to the big show as quickly as possible. Realizing this predates the current regime, but Calvin Griffith purged his roster in 1981 and 1982 and brought forth the likes of Hrbek, Gaetti, Bush, Ward, Eisenreich, Laudner, Viola and Havens to the show. Puckett came a little later. But he was rushed as well. That 1982 team started off so poorly the Mets 1962 record of 120 losses was in danger of being surpassed. The second half of the season the team was very good and they finished with 102 losses. However, I believe six players made some sports magazine all rookie team and I recall reading where the same magazine predicted that this team would be in the 1987 World Series. Now having said all of this, I am pleased that the current management takes its time with prospects and allows them to grow up as ballplayers.

Excellent article. Being exposed to the inner working of scouting has always interested. I have coached numerous teams over the years from t-ball to high school to travel and the more a coach can be exposed to the way the pros think the better they can prepare their (high school and travel) kids to compete at the next level. Years ago we were at a travel tournament in Myrtle Beach, SC and had a break in the schedule so we took the team to see the local minor league team play. Well the game was the day before the MLB trading deadline and the stands were full of scouts. I had many informative conversations with these guys and so did my kids. I was hoping to run into a Twins scout, but no luck. These guys are the salt of the earth and Sean Johnson is very much like those I have met. Good luck in finding more jewels in the bushes.