Cody Christie

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Another Tuesday morning means that later tonight I will be posting about all of the minor league action for the Twins farm system. There are plenty of exciting things happening at each level of the Twins organization so make sure you are checking out the nightly updates on the Twins Daily homepage. It's only two weeks until the short season leagues start in the minor leagues so there will be a ton of action to follow across the Twins system. For now, here are a few headlines that are being discussed across Twins Territory. When a team is starting to play better baseball, the news is much more encouraging. So sit back, relax, and enjoy this weeks edition of "Tuesday Morning Tidbits." http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-_lfmrTCwP-s/T9ZPcNW9ECI/AAAAAAAACAI/leFION1e0jQ/s320/Hendriks.jpgHendriks staying hot in Rochester One minor league player had such a good week last week that he was honored by the International League as the Player of the Week. This is a good sign as the Twins could need to call on the services of Mr. Liam Hendriks in the next week. After the demotion of Cole DeVries, the Twins are left with only four pitchers in the starting rotation. The team had a couple of off days to save them from needing another starter but Hendriks could be back in Minnesota by the end of next weekend. The time Hendriks has spent in the majors hasn't been outstanding but something might have clicked in his recent demotion to Rochester. Since being demoted at the beginning of May, Hendriks has gone 5-0 for the Red Wings with a 1.94 ERA and a 0.906 WHIP. His strikeout to walk rate of 42 to 13 is also excellent and it looks like there is little left for him to prove at the Triple-A level. In his last outing on Saturday, Hendriks threw 8.2 innings of scoreless baseball before exiting the game. This would put him in line to start on Thursday for Rochester but the Twins have an opening in their rotation that will need to be filled on Saturday against the Brewers. If the Twins don't want to use Anthony Swarzak as a spot starter, it seems that Hendriks could be facing off against the Brew Crew at Target Field. Plouffe finding a home at third Since the Twins have been winning in the last couple weeks, one of the top contributors to the club has been Trevor Plouffe. The team entered the season thinking that he would be spending most of his time in the outfield but poor play from Danny Valencia forced the club to go in a different direction. In the middle of May, the Twins started to use Plouffe more at third base and it sounds like he is spending a lot of time learning the new position. He defensive continues to improve but his offense has always been the key. During the last ten games, the Twins are 8-2 and Plouffe seems to have found his stroke at the dish. He is hitting .359/.390/.821 with five home runs and three doubles during that stretch. By averaging an RBI per game, the Twins have been able to use him more frequently in higher spots in the batting order. If he were to keep this pace up for an entire year, he would hit 82 home runs and knock in 162 runners. Obviously, this pace won't continue for Plouffe but it is nice to see him finally put something together at the big league level. His batting average has finally gotten over the .200 mark and he hopes to never see the .100s again in his professional career. The plan was for Valencia to stick at third base but it is nice to see Plouffe step up and take on the role. Plouffe has the talent to be the Twins third baseman for the next couple of years so let's hope his offense stays consistent and that he shows he can handle the defensive side of the ball. Buxton deal gets done Byron Buxton, the Twins first round draft pick and the second player selected during last weeks draft, is in the Twin Cities this week to finalize his deal with the club. Part of this process includes taking a physical on Tuesday and the contract could be announce on Wednesday if everything checks out. Late last night word came out that the two sides had agreed to a deal and all that was left was the physical. In previous years, the first round picks for the Twins took awhile to get their deal finalized. Kyle Gibson was in negotiations with the team right until the deadline before agreeing to a deal. The new CBA changed the slotting system for first round picks and the deadline for signing picks has been moved up by almost a month. At this point, the Twins and Buxton could have been in negotiations until July 13 but the earlier he signs the faster he can start his professional career. With the new slotting system, the recommended bonus for the second pick in the draft is $6.2 million. There is a chance that he will come in under the slotted amount because the first pick in the draft signed for less than the amount he was slotted to receive. Carlos Correa was a surprise pick by the Houston Astros but he signed for $4.8 million when the recommended slot amount was $7.2 million for the first pick. If the Twins can save money on Buxton, that money can be spent on other players taken in the higher rounds of the draft.

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Q7mNspmKJf8/T9VryKzcHnI/AAAAAAAAB-Y/uRG9AuKuZHY/s320/ScottDiamond.jpg It has been a long strange ride to get to this point in the life of Scott Diamond. The Canadian-born pitcher was not even drafted out of college in 2008 and he had to sign with the Atlanta Braves as a amateur free agent. This forced him to have to prove his worth as he worked his way through the farm system of the Braves. The lower levels of the minors were very good to Diamond as should be expected from a left-handed pitcher with college experience. After not posting an ERA of over 3.52 at any level, he made it all the way to the Braves Triple-A affiliate in 2010. At the end of that season, the Braves left Diamond off of their 40-man so this allowed team's to select him in the Rule 5 Draft, a draft meant to prevent teams from stockpiling too many young players on their minor league affiliate teams when other teams would be willing to have them in the majors. He spent all of spring training in 2011 with the Twins but near the end of camp the Twins wanted to send him to Rochester. Under the rules of the Rule 5 Draft, the Twins would have to work out a deal with the Braves or offer him back to the organization. The Twins and the Braves were able to work out a deal with the Twins sending hard throwing prospect Billy Bullock back to the Atlanta organization in return for the rights to Diamond. At the time, there were many, including myself, that questioned the move by the front office. It seemed like the team was giving up a decent level prospect for a pitcher who hadn't shown any reason to think he would be a major factor at the big league level. It seemed like it was a high price to pay for Diamond. Diamond's first year with the Twins did not take away from the doubts that surrounded his arrival with the club. The transition to a new organization was not a smooth one for Mr. Diamond as he struggled through his worst season ever in the minor leagues. His 5.56 ERA with Rochester was over two runs higher than any ERA he had in the Braves system. The 24-year old made his debut in July for one start before heading back to Rochester but the Twins would need him again at the end of the year for a handful of mediocre starts. During the same time frame, Bullock spent most of the season pitching at the Double-A level as a 23-year old pitcher. He was very consistent in the fact that he could strike out a lot of batters but he also allowed a lot of walks. The Braves allowed him to get some save opportunities even with an ERA north of 4.50 for the year. It was a rough 2011 season for both of these players and it was hard to know what the future would hold for these young men. Flash-forward to the 2012 season and the move by the Twins to acquire Diamond is starting to look like it was a steal. In the seven starts he has made for the Twins, Diamond has won five contests and posted an incredible 1.61 ERA over 44.2 innings. One of the most positive signs could be the fact that he is controlling the strike zone by not walking batters and by increasing his strikeout rate. After walking 17 batters in 39 innings at the big league level last year, he has only walked four batters in close to 45 innings in 2012. Diamond has stepped up and been the most consistent man on the moundwhen it looked like the Twins would fumble through the season with all of their starters struggling. Meanwhile Bullock is spending his third straight year at the Double-A level and he continues to struggle with different parts of his game. He is walking close to a batter an inning and his strikeout numbers have dipped significantly since last year. His ERA of 4.00 is lower than last year at Double-A but it is still too high for a 24-year old that is repeating this level for the third time. He is going to need to focus on his control or he will never be able to find success in the higher levels of the minor leagues. Diamond has looked like the ace of the Twins pitching staff for the last month and there are few who would argue that point. He has turned skeptics into believers with his performance on the mound and the hope is that he will continue to be a very strong presence in the rotation. Even with a wide-open race in the AL Central and a recent winning streak, the Twins find themselves in a huge hole as the calendar inches into the middle part of June. While Bullock struggles in the minors, Diamond can be one of the bright stars for the Twins, a role few thought he would occupy a short time ago.

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Q7mNspmKJf8/T9VryKzcHnI/AAAAAAAAB-Y/uRG9AuKuZHY/s320/ScottDiamond.jpg It has been a long strange ride to get to this point in the life of Scott Diamond. The Canadian-born pitcher was not even drafted out of college in 2008 and he had to sign with the Atlanta Braves as a amateur free agent. This forced him to have to prove his worth as he worked his way through the farm system of the Braves. The lower levels of the minors were very good to Diamond as should be expected from a left-handed pitcher with college experience. After not posting an ERA of over 3.52 at any level, he made it all the way to the Braves Triple-A affiliate in 2010. At the end of that season, the Braves left Diamond off of their 40-man so this allowed team's to select him in the Rule 5 Draft, a draft meant to prevent teams from stockpiling too many young players on their minor league affiliate teams when other teams would be willing to have them in the majors. He spent all of spring training in 2011 with the Twins but near the end of camp the Twins wanted to send him to Rochester. Under the rules of the Rule 5 Draft, the Twins would have to work out a deal with the Braves or offer him back to the organization. The Twins and the Braves were able to work out a deal with the Twins sending hard throwing prospect Billy Bullock back to the Atlanta organization in return for the rights to Diamond. At the time, there were many, including myself, that questioned the move by the front office. It seemed like the team was giving up a decent level prospect for a pitcher who hadn't shown any reason to think he would be a major factor at the big league level. It seemed like it was a high price to pay for Diamond. Diamond's first year with the Twins did not take away from the doubts that surrounded his arrival with the club. The transition to a new organization was not a smooth one for Mr. Diamond as he struggled through his worst season ever in the minor leagues. His 5.56 ERA with Rochester was over two runs higher than any ERA he had in the Braves system. The 24-year old made his debut in July for one start before heading back to Rochester but the Twins would need him again at the end of the year for a handful of mediocre starts. During the same time frame, Bullock spent most of the season pitching at the Double-A level as a 23-year old pitcher. He was very consistent in the fact that he could strike out a lot of batters but he also allowed a lot of walks. The Braves allowed him to get some save opportunities even with an ERA north of 4.50 for the year. It was a rough 2011 season for both of these players and it was hard to know what the future would hold for these young men. Flash-forward to the 2012 season and the move by the Twins to acquire Diamond is starting to look like it was a steal. In the seven starts he has made for the Twins, Diamond has won five contests and posted an incredible 1.61 ERA over 44.2 innings. One of the most positive signs could be the fact that he is controlling the strike zone by not walking batters and by increasing his strikeout rate. After walking 17 batters in 39 innings at the big league level last year, he has only walked four batters in close to 45 innings in 2012. Diamond has stepped up and been the most consistent man on the moundwhen it looked like the Twins would fumble through the season with all of their starters struggling. Meanwhile Bullock is spending his third straight year at the Double-A level and he continues to struggle with different parts of his game. He is walking close to a batter an inning and his strikeout numbers have dipped significantly since last year. His ERA of 4.00 is lower than last year at Double-A but it is still too high for a 24-year old that is repeating this level for the third time. He is going to need to focus on his control or he will never be able to find success in the higher levels of the minor leagues. Diamond has looked like the ace of the Twins pitching staff for the last month and there are few who would argue that point. He has turned skeptics into believers with his performance on the mound and the hope is that he will continue to be a very strong presence in the rotation. Even with a wide-open race in the AL Central and a recent winning streak, the Twins find themselves in a huge hole as the calendar inches into the middle part of June. While Bullock struggles in the minors, Diamond can be one of the bright stars for the Twins, a role few thought he would occupy a short time ago.

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ It's finally Friday and the Twins are coming home to welcome a couple of teams that have yet to make a trip to Target Field. Interleague play means the Cubs and the Phillies will make their inaugural trek to Minneapolis to explore the friendly confines of Target Field. Some people love interleague play and others hate it. I see both sides of the argument but I do enjoy getting to see some National League players that I wouldn't normally get to see otherwise. Lucky enough for the Twins, the Cubs and the Phillies have also been struggling through the early portion of the season. Both teams are under .500 and the Cubs are one of two teams in all of baseball that have fewer wins than the Twins. The Phillies do play very well on the road with a 16-12 record so far but the Twins should be able to put up a good fight in the next couple series. The MLB Draft was the main story for most of the week but there was still plenty of other news and notes from around the league. Check out this week's edition of "Friday Links-N-Thinks." The Twins selected high school outfielder Byron Buxton with the second pick in the draft on Monday. You can like his page on Facebook or you can follow him on Twitter for the latest updates. Here is the official video of Bud Selig announcing Byron Buxton as the Twins pick along with his reaction. If you want to know more about Buxton, check out this profile on him. Speaking of the draft, I was on the Seth Speaks Weekly Minnesota Twins Podcast to discuss the draft and the current situation with the Twins. Former Twins pitcher RA Dickey is having an amazing year for the Mets and he seems to be one that got away. Twins catching prospect Chris Herrmann sat down for an interview with Twins Fan From Afar. After the draft, the next major milestone in the season will be the trade deadline and there could be more than one team vying for the services of Denard Span. Span was taken in the draft that took place 10 years ago. So what happened to all of those players? Trevor Plouffe was called out and he seems to have answered with a recent hot streak. Last Friday former Twins ace Johan Santana pitched the first no-hitter in Mets history and the ticket stubs are selling for more than games that have yet to be played. Here is the complete list of players that the Twins took in all 40 rounds of the draft. There was an issue with Jeff Manship's jersey on Wednesday night and something like this has happened to him before. http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WCBMrV7E1gQ/T9FmK6u_B8I/AAAAAAAAB8o/i67bJY6drKM/s400/jeffmanshipormanhsip.jpg It didn't take long for Jason Marquis to get back to the majors but the results in his first start were similar to when he was with the Twins as he got the loss. There was a crazy first pitch at a Rochester Red Wings game this week. Jim Thome is back from the DL in enough time to make a return trip to Target Field. Earlier this week, it was the anniversary of D-Day and there are some baseball connections to this historically significant day. The Territory Train went to Beloit last week and here are some thoughts on some of the best players for the Snappers. Did the Twins stay with the pitch-to-contact approach in the draft for too long? Miguel Sano headlines a group of Snappers headed to the Midwest All-Star Game. The Twins have been winning more games lately but could this be a bad thing? My Weekly Rundown Monday: 2012 Twins MLB Draft Primer Tuesday: Twins go with Buxton over Appel Tuesday's Trip through the Minors Thursday: Liriano seems to be changing his release point Video of the Week: Denard Span did an interview with MLB Network's Intentional Talk while the team was in Kansas City. The whole interview is a lot of fun and it is always cool to see the players kick back and have some fun. So take a couple minutes and watch Denard talk about some silly topics

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ It's finally Friday and the Twins are coming home to welcome a couple of teams that have yet to make a trip to Target Field. Interleague play means the Cubs and the Phillies will make their inaugural trek to Minneapolis to explore the friendly confines of Target Field. Some people love interleague play and others hate it. I see both sides of the argument but I do enjoy getting to see some National League players that I wouldn't normally get to see otherwise. Lucky enough for the Twins, the Cubs and the Phillies have also been struggling through the early portion of the season. Both teams are under .500 and the Cubs are one of two teams in all of baseball that have fewer wins than the Twins. The Phillies do play very well on the road with a 16-12 record so far but the Twins should be able to put up a good fight in the next couple series. The MLB Draft was the main story for most of the week but there was still plenty of other news and notes from around the league. Check out this week's edition of "Friday Links-N-Thinks." The Twins selected high school outfielder Byron Buxton with the second pick in the draft on Monday. You can like his page on Facebook or you can follow him on Twitter for the latest updates. Here is the official video of Bud Selig announcing Byron Buxton as the Twins pick along with his reaction. If you want to know more about Buxton, check out this profile on him. Speaking of the draft, I was on the Seth Speaks Weekly Minnesota Twins Podcast to discuss the draft and the current situation with the Twins. Former Twins pitcher RA Dickey is having an amazing year for the Mets and he seems to be one that got away. Twins catching prospect Chris Herrmann sat down for an interview with Twins Fan From Afar. After the draft, the next major milestone in the season will be the trade deadline and there could be more than one team vying for the services of Denard Span. Span was taken in the draft that took place 10 years ago. So what happened to all of those players? Trevor Plouffe was called out and he seems to have answered with a recent hot streak. Last Friday former Twins ace Johan Santana pitched the first no-hitter in Mets history and the ticket stubs are selling for more than games that have yet to be played. Here is the complete list of players that the Twins took in all 40 rounds of the draft. There was an issue with Jeff Manship's jersey on Wednesday night and something like this has happened to him before. http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-WCBMrV7E1gQ/T9FmK6u_B8I/AAAAAAAAB8o/i67bJY6drKM/s400/jeffmanshipormanhsip.jpg It didn't take long for Jason Marquis to get back to the majors but the results in his first start were similar to when he was with the Twins as he got the loss. There was a crazy first pitch at a Rochester Red Wings game this week. Jim Thome is back from the DL in enough time to make a return trip to Target Field. Earlier this week, it was the anniversary of D-Day and there are some baseball connections to this historically significant day. The Territory Train went to Beloit last week and here are some thoughts on some of the best players for the Snappers. Did the Twins stay with the pitch-to-contact approach in the draft for too long? Miguel Sano headlines a group of Snappers headed to the Midwest All-Star Game. The Twins have been winning more games lately but could this be a bad thing? My Weekly Rundown Monday: 2012 Twins MLB Draft Primer Tuesday: Twins go with Buxton over Appel Tuesday's Trip through the Minors Thursday: Liriano seems to be changing his release point Video of the Week: Denard Span did an interview with MLB Network's Intentional Talk while the team was in Kansas City. The whole interview is a lot of fun and it is always cool to see the players kick back and have some fun. So take a couple minutes and watch Denard talk about some silly topics

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vSvl6iOahYM/T8-F17I5WOI/AAAAAAAAB3Q/EuFU9nXv3r0/s320/LirianoRelease.jpg When the Twins were forced to send Francisco Liriano to the bullpen at the beginning of last month, there was plenty of things for the left-handed pitcher to improve during his time away from starting. In his last four starts before being relegated to the bullpen, Liriano lost all four outings and posted an ERA of over 9.00 while only averaging a little over four innings a start. Opponents had an OPS of over 1.000 against him and it was time for something to change. His relief appearances were not outstanding as he walked too many batters but he managed to escape many of the outings without allowing a run. These little steps helped him to improve his low confidence and it helped the team to be able to trust him when they were ready to let him return to the rotation. Some other situations forced the team to return him to the rotation last week and so far the results have been very positive. In two starts since being back in the rotation, Liriano has pitched six innings in each outing and given up one earned run total. His 17 strikeouts compared to three walks is a far cry from where he was in the early part of the year. Opponents OPS has dropped to .437 and Liriano has dropped his ERA to 0.75 over the two games. Most fans are going to look at the two opponents, the Oakland A's and the Kansas City Royals, and say they are not prolific offenses. From the Twins point of view, any positive starts from Liriano are steps in the right direction as the team needs him to be a consistent starter to help the team to victories. So what changed for Liriano since the last time he was in the rotation? Some of his improvement can be chalked up to the poor teams the Twins were playing. But overall, there must be another reason for this new and improved version of Liriano. One of the changes that stands out from some of the different PitchFX data is the fact that Liriano seems to have changed the release point on some of his pitches. In the past, he has been known to change his position on the rubber because of the handedness of the batter. This can obviously impact his release point; but over the course of the game, his release point graphic should still end up looking somewhat similar. Take a look at the images below from Brooks Baseball of Liriano's release point in the two starts he made before his trip to the bullpen. Coincidentally, both starts came against the Angels at the beginning of May. http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EWjD7U8WpoU/T9AfEZkjoLI/AAAAAAAAB5A/AR2NxBapF0o/s400/release5-1.png http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ddtl3-tgMGo/T9AfN7dBYTI/AAAAAAAAB5I/QyfScN-GdnY/s400/release5-7.png For the most part, his release point was very consistent for all of his pitches. This can be a good thing for a pitcher because then the hitter can't tell what kind of pitch that is coming because of where it is being released by the man on the mound. The problem for Liriano was that he was throwing too many balls and being hit very hard. Over the course of the two games shown above, Liriano gave up three home runs, walked six batters, and had an ERA near 7.00 when all was said and done. Since returning to the bump, Liriano's results on the field have been much better but take a look at his release point and how it compares to the pictures above. http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Nn3-G7PGPmI/T9AhFx9WatI/AAAAAAAAB5Q/VnII6nb7FHY/s400/release5-30.gifhttp://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3e0Am_GCIwg/T9AhLB1YfJI/AAAAAAAAB5Y/xDV2zw5XAVA/s400/release6-6.png Instead of there being one solid grouping for all of his release points, there are two distinctly different release points in the new and improved Liriano. It's also important take note of the the results from this new release point. A majority of the pitches in this area are swinging strikes or balls that were put into play where outs were recorded. This subtle change seems to have a major improvement in the results on the field for Liriano. The next two starts for Liriano are scheduled to come at Target Field against the Chicago Cubs and the Milwaukee Brewers. These teams have each faced their fair share of offensive struggles so far in 2012. If Liriano is going to continue his recently found success, it will help to play teams that are not prolific offenses. It will be key for him to continue to find the zone with his fastball so he can keep hitters off balance with different pitches and his multiple release points.

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-vSvl6iOahYM/T8-F17I5WOI/AAAAAAAAB3Q/EuFU9nXv3r0/s320/LirianoRelease.jpg When the Twins were forced to send Francisco Liriano to the bullpen at the beginning of last month, there was plenty of things for the left-handed pitcher to improve during his time away from starting. In his last four starts before being relegated to the bullpen, Liriano lost all four outings and posted an ERA of over 9.00 while only averaging a little over four innings a start. Opponents had an OPS of over 1.000 against him and it was time for something to change. His relief appearances were not outstanding as he walked too many batters but he managed to escape many of the outings without allowing a run. These little steps helped him to improve his low confidence and it helped the team to be able to trust him when they were ready to let him return to the rotation. Some other situations forced the team to return him to the rotation last week and so far the results have been very positive. In two starts since being back in the rotation, Liriano has pitched six innings in each outing and given up one earned run total. His 17 strikeouts compared to three walks is a far cry from where he was in the early part of the year. Opponents OPS has dropped to .437 and Liriano has dropped his ERA to 0.75 over the two games. Most fans are going to look at the two opponents, the Oakland A's and the Kansas City Royals, and say they are not prolific offenses. From the Twins point of view, any positive starts from Liriano are steps in the right direction as the team needs him to be a consistent starter to help the team to victories. So what changed for Liriano since the last time he was in the rotation? Some of his improvement can be chalked up to the poor teams the Twins were playing. But overall, there must be another reason for this new and improved version of Liriano. One of the changes that stands out from some of the different PitchFX data is the fact that Liriano seems to have changed the release point on some of his pitches. In the past, he has been known to change his position on the rubber because of the handedness of the batter. This can obviously impact his release point; but over the course of the game, his release point graphic should still end up looking somewhat similar. Take a look at the images below from Brooks Baseball of Liriano's release point in the two starts he made before his trip to the bullpen. Coincidentally, both starts came against the Angels at the beginning of May. http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-EWjD7U8WpoU/T9AfEZkjoLI/AAAAAAAAB5A/AR2NxBapF0o/s400/release5-1.png http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Ddtl3-tgMGo/T9AfN7dBYTI/AAAAAAAAB5I/QyfScN-GdnY/s400/release5-7.png For the most part, his release point was very consistent for all of his pitches. This can be a good thing for a pitcher because then the hitter can't tell what kind of pitch that is coming because of where it is being released by the man on the mound. The problem for Liriano was that he was throwing too many balls and being hit very hard. Over the course of the two games shown above, Liriano gave up three home runs, walked six batters, and had an ERA near 7.00 when all was said and done. Since returning to the bump, Liriano's results on the field have been much better but take a look at his release point and how it compares to the pictures above. http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Nn3-G7PGPmI/T9AhFx9WatI/AAAAAAAAB5Q/VnII6nb7FHY/s400/release5-30.gifhttp://4.bp.blogspot.com/-3e0Am_GCIwg/T9AhLB1YfJI/AAAAAAAAB5Y/xDV2zw5XAVA/s400/release6-6.png Instead of there being one solid grouping for all of his release points, there are two distinctly different release points in the new and improved Liriano. It's also important take note of the the results from this new release point. A majority of the pitches in this area are swinging strikes or balls that were put into play where outs were recorded. This subtle change seems to have a major improvement in the results on the field for Liriano. The next two starts for Liriano are scheduled to come at Target Field against the Chicago Cubs and the Milwaukee Brewers. These teams have each faced their fair share of offensive struggles so far in 2012. If Liriano is going to continue his recently found success, it will help to play teams that are not prolific offenses. It will be key for him to continue to find the zone with his fastball so he can keep hitters off balance with different pitches and his multiple release points.

Don't look now but it looks like Francisco Liriano might have remembered how to pitch. His last two starts have looked much better than the horrendous pitcher that was on the mound at the beginning of the year. This might be jumping the gun a little since his last two outings came against two poor offenses, the Oakland A's and the Kansas City Royals. The Twins offense couldn't back the strong outing by Liriano because Bruce Chen shut them down at the plate. Jonathan Broxton made the ninth inning a little interesting with two men getting on base but he was still able to preserve the 1-0 win for the Royals. After a couple more games with the Royals, the Twins will head home to start a couple weeks of interleague play. The Cubs, Phillies, and Brewers will all visit Target Field and there is a chance for the Twins to do well with the way some of these teams have looked on the field. For now, let's look at the abbreviate minor league schedule from Tuesday night. ROCHESTER 4, NORFOLK 6 The Red Wings were facing a Tides roster full of players with major league experience in this game. Miguel Tejada, Brian Roberts, and even former Twins player Lew Ford were all in action on Tuesday evening. Roberts had the biggest game out of this grouping with a 3-for-5 night including two doubles. Red Wings manager Gene Glynn must not have liked all of the MLB talent on the Tides because he got ejected for arguing a close play at the plate. As far as the Red Wings go, there were some decent nights at the plate even though it was in a losing effort. Rene Rivera went 3-for-3 with a couple of RBI and his third home run of the year. Pedro Florimon added a couple doubles in four at-bats to help raise his batting average to .270 for the year. After quite the hot streak in recent weeks, Chris Parmelee was held hitless in three trips to the plate. Matt Maloney started the contest for the Red Wings and there was some rough defense behind him with three errors charged to Rochester. He pitched five innings and allowed four runs on nine hits but only two of those runs were earned. Carlos Gutierrez was saddled with his second loss of the year for giving up two earned runs in the sixth inning. Casey Fien and Tyler Robertson combined to pitch three scoreless innings to end the game but it wasn't enough on this night. NEW BRITAIN 2, AKRON 6 Akron got to the Rock Cats starter BJ Hermsen with one run in the first and two runs in the third. It was Hermsen's first loss since the first week of May and he only gave up one earned run. An error by Estarlin De Los Santos cost the Rock Cats two runs in the fifth and it was hard for the team to recover from that point. It was a night for managers getting ejected as the Rock Cats manager Jeff Smith didn't stick around for much of this game as he was tossed in the top of the third. Andrew Albers followed Hermsen on the mound and he managed a very dubious distinction; he gave up two runs on no hits. The three walks he allowed came back to haunt him. The only pitcher to record an out for New Britain and not give up a run was Luis Perdomo and he only pitched one-third of an inning. Delbinson Romero went 2-for-4 with his seventh home run of the year in support of the Rock Cats. Evan Bigley also hit a home run but that would be all of the scoring for New Britian. Rene Tosoni had a double but he also had a couple of strike-outs in the contest. Aaron Hicks left the game after trying to break-up a double play at second base so hopefully this is nothing serious. FORT MYERS -, TAMPA - The field conditions in Tampa were unplayable on Tuesday night after hours of rain during the day. This means the Miracle and Yankees will have to play a double-header on Wednesday to make-up for the lost game. Both games are scheduled to be seven inning affairs tomorrow evening. On Monday, Oswaldo Arcia was named Player of the Week by the Florida State League so make sure you check out the press release on his award. BELOIT (Off Day) After back-to-back losses at the hands of Wisconsin, the Snappers got a day of rest on Tuesday before they start a series versus Burlington. Two weeks from tonight the MWL All-Star Classic will be held and seven Snappers were named to the team. Miguel Sano will start the game at third base and he will be joined by fellow position players John Goncalves, Tyler Grimes, and Eddie Rosario. The pitchers from the Snapper to make the team were A.J. Achter, Michael Tonkin, Jason Wheeler. --- Players of the Day for Tuesday, May 29, 2012 Hitter of the Day- Rene Rivera http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-x3B8LuXugOI/T87VjDXTAjI/AAAAAAAAB1Y/UWEMDyxyYRE/s320/ReneRivera.jpg Pitcher of the Day- Casey Fien http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I6tfPwtaIQU/T87VnH7LciI/AAAAAAAAB1g/nrBIAT-0qYc/s320/CaseyFien.jpg --- A Look Ahead- Wednesday, June 5th Schedule Rochester at Norfolk-RHP Steve Hirschfeld New Britain at Akron- RHP Brett Jacobson Fort Myers at Tampa (1)- RHP Marty Popham Fort Myers at Tampa (2)- LHP Cole Nelson Beloit at Burlington- LHP Jason Wheeler --- If you have any questions or comments on the Twins minor league system, leave them in the comments section and Seth or I will try to answer them.

Don't look now but it looks like Francisco Liriano might have remembered how to pitch. His last two starts have looked much better than the horrendous pitcher that was on the mound at the beginning of the year. This might be jumping the gun a little since his last two outings came against two poor offenses, the Oakland A's and the Kansas City Royals. The Twins offense couldn't back the strong outing by Liriano because Bruce Chen shut them down at the plate. Jonathan Broxton made the ninth inning a little interesting with two men getting on base but he was still able to preserve the 1-0 win for the Royals. After a couple more games with the Royals, the Twins will head home to start a couple weeks of interleague play. The Cubs, Phillies, and Brewers will all visit Target Field and there is a chance for the Twins to do well with the way some of these teams have looked on the field. For now, let's look at the abbreviate minor league schedule from Tuesday night. ROCHESTER 4, NORFOLK 6 The Red Wings were facing a Tides roster full of players with major league experience in this game. Miguel Tejada, Brian Roberts, and even former Twins player Lew Ford were all in action on Tuesday evening. Roberts had the biggest game out of this grouping with a 3-for-5 night including two doubles. Red Wings manager Gene Glynn must not have liked all of the MLB talent on the Tides because he got ejected for arguing a close play at the plate. As far as the Red Wings go, there were some decent nights at the plate even though it was in a losing effort. Rene Rivera went 3-for-3 with a couple of RBI and his third home run of the year. Pedro Florimon added a couple doubles in four at-bats to help raise his batting average to .270 for the year. After quite the hot streak in recent weeks, Chris Parmelee was held hitless in three trips to the plate. Matt Maloney started the contest for the Red Wings and there was some rough defense behind him with three errors charged to Rochester. He pitched five innings and allowed four runs on nine hits but only two of those runs were earned. Carlos Gutierrez was saddled with his second loss of the year for giving up two earned runs in the sixth inning. Casey Fien and Tyler Robertson combined to pitch three scoreless innings to end the game but it wasn't enough on this night. NEW BRITAIN 2, AKRON 6 Akron got to the Rock Cats starter BJ Hermsen with one run in the first and two runs in the third. It was Hermsen's first loss since the first week of May and he only gave up one earned run. An error by Estarlin De Los Santos cost the Rock Cats two runs in the fifth and it was hard for the team to recover from that point. It was a night for managers getting ejected as the Rock Cats manager Jeff Smith didn't stick around for much of this game as he was tossed in the top of the third. Andrew Albers followed Hermsen on the mound and he managed a very dubious distinction; he gave up two runs on no hits. The three walks he allowed came back to haunt him. The only pitcher to record an out for New Britain and not give up a run was Luis Perdomo and he only pitched one-third of an inning. Delbinson Romero went 2-for-4 with his seventh home run of the year in support of the Rock Cats. Evan Bigley also hit a home run but that would be all of the scoring for New Britian. Rene Tosoni had a double but he also had a couple of strike-outs in the contest. Aaron Hicks left the game after trying to break-up a double play at second base so hopefully this is nothing serious. FORT MYERS -, TAMPA - The field conditions in Tampa were unplayable on Tuesday night after hours of rain during the day. This means the Miracle and Yankees will have to play a double-header on Wednesday to make-up for the lost game. Both games are scheduled to be seven inning affairs tomorrow evening. On Monday, Oswaldo Arcia was named Player of the Week by the Florida State League so make sure you check out the press release on his award. BELOIT (Off Day) After back-to-back losses at the hands of Wisconsin, the Snappers got a day of rest on Tuesday before they start a series versus Burlington. Two weeks from tonight the MWL All-Star Classic will be held and seven Snappers were named to the team. Miguel Sano will start the game at third base and he will be joined by fellow position players John Goncalves, Tyler Grimes, and Eddie Rosario. The pitchers from the Snapper to make the team were A.J. Achter, Michael Tonkin, Jason Wheeler. --- Players of the Day for Tuesday, May 29, 2012 Hitter of the Day- Rene Rivera http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-x3B8LuXugOI/T87VjDXTAjI/AAAAAAAAB1Y/UWEMDyxyYRE/s320/ReneRivera.jpg Pitcher of the Day- Casey Fien http://4.bp.blogspot.com/-I6tfPwtaIQU/T87VnH7LciI/AAAAAAAAB1g/nrBIAT-0qYc/s320/CaseyFien.jpg --- A Look Ahead- Wednesday, June 5th Schedule Rochester at Norfolk-RHP Steve Hirschfeld New Britain at Akron- RHP Brett Jacobson Fort Myers at Tampa (1)- RHP Marty Popham Fort Myers at Tampa (2)- LHP Cole Nelson Beloit at Burlington- LHP Jason Wheeler --- If you have any questions or comments on the Twins minor league system, leave them in the comments section and Seth or I will try to answer them.

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lDXQDNRTNeE/T81-89L7ggI/AAAAAAAABzs/csxp8S1LVDU/s1600/buxton_draft.jpg When the Houston Astros made a surprise selection of Carlos Correa with the first pick of the 2012 MLB Draft, the Twins were left with a decision of picking between high school outfielder Byron Buxton and college pitcher Mark Appel. Before the draft started on Monday night, it seemed that Appel was going to be a sure bet for the number one selection. This didn't happen because of some perceived signability concerns and the Twins still took the player that they had highest on their draft board, Byron Buxton. Buxton was the number one ranked player by both Baseball America and MLB.com before the draft started on Monday night. The five-toll outfielder has been compared to many current outfielders but the one mentioned most often is Justin Upton of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Even Buxton himself thinks he plays a lot like Upton on the field. From the sounds of reports and tweets, the Twins scouting director Deron Johnson was extremely happy with the pick and it seems that the sky could be the limit for this young man. "He's a five-tool player," Johnson said. "Tremendous ceiling. He's a really good kid. Hard worker. Two-sport athlete. Everybody talks about his athleticism. He's got a really good swing. We think he's going to hit. We think he'll hit anywhere from No. 1 in the order to No. 3." To get a number one caliber pick with the second selection in the draft has to be a thrill for the front office of the Twins. He showed tremendous offensive skills this season by batting .513 with 17 doubles and 35 RBI. His tremendous speed helped him to be a plus defensive outfielder and to steal more than a base per game during his senior year. One of the most valuable tools could be his arm in center field. He showed off some of this ability by pitching in his high school state championship game last week and striking out 18 batters to lead his team to the title. The Twins will let Buxton focus his attention as an outfielder but he is a tremendous athlete that could have gone on to play college football for the University of Georgia. Buxton was the best player on the board but Appel could have provided the Twins some pitching depth in the system that seems low on top level arms. Appel could have been on the fast track to Target Field but Buxton will take awhile to develop in the minor league system. A lot of the Twins top minor league talent is in the lower levels so Buxton might have been the correct pick for the team that is a few years away from contending again. Buxton, who goes by "Buck," has until July 13 to sign with the Twins and become a very rich recent high school graduate. As of Monday night, the Twins expressed little concern over signing Buxton and it would be nice for him to get some time in the rookie leagues by the end of the summer. It might a few seasons before fans are wearing Buxton #3 jerseys (he will have to change away from his high school number) at Target Field, but he seems to be destined for big things in the coming years.

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-lDXQDNRTNeE/T81-89L7ggI/AAAAAAAABzs/csxp8S1LVDU/s1600/buxton_draft.jpg When the Houston Astros made a surprise selection of Carlos Correa with the first pick of the 2012 MLB Draft, the Twins were left with a decision of picking between high school outfielder Byron Buxton and college pitcher Mark Appel. Before the draft started on Monday night, it seemed that Appel was going to be a sure bet for the number one selection. This didn't happen because of some perceived signability concerns and the Twins still took the player that they had highest on their draft board, Byron Buxton. Buxton was the number one ranked player by both Baseball America and MLB.com before the draft started on Monday night. The five-toll outfielder has been compared to many current outfielders but the one mentioned most often is Justin Upton of the Arizona Diamondbacks. Even Buxton himself thinks he plays a lot like Upton on the field. From the sounds of reports and tweets, the Twins scouting director Deron Johnson was extremely happy with the pick and it seems that the sky could be the limit for this young man. "He's a five-tool player," Johnson said. "Tremendous ceiling. He's a really good kid. Hard worker. Two-sport athlete. Everybody talks about his athleticism. He's got a really good swing. We think he's going to hit. We think he'll hit anywhere from No. 1 in the order to No. 3." To get a number one caliber pick with the second selection in the draft has to be a thrill for the front office of the Twins. He showed tremendous offensive skills this season by batting .513 with 17 doubles and 35 RBI. His tremendous speed helped him to be a plus defensive outfielder and to steal more than a base per game during his senior year. One of the most valuable tools could be his arm in center field. He showed off some of this ability by pitching in his high school state championship game last week and striking out 18 batters to lead his team to the title. The Twins will let Buxton focus his attention as an outfielder but he is a tremendous athlete that could have gone on to play college football for the University of Georgia. Buxton was the best player on the board but Appel could have provided the Twins some pitching depth in the system that seems low on top level arms. Appel could have been on the fast track to Target Field but Buxton will take awhile to develop in the minor league system. A lot of the Twins top minor league talent is in the lower levels so Buxton might have been the correct pick for the team that is a few years away from contending again. Buxton, who goes by "Buck," has until July 13 to sign with the Twins and become a very rich recent high school graduate. As of Monday night, the Twins expressed little concern over signing Buxton and it would be nice for him to get some time in the rookie leagues by the end of the summer. It might a few seasons before fans are wearing Buxton #3 jerseys (he will have to change away from his high school number) at Target Field, but he seems to be destined for big things in the coming years.

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3ftP6wghsQ4/T8wu4YaZSzI/AAAAAAAAByA/4U98fG4JcrQ/s320/2012MLBDraftPrimer.jpg A little after 6 p.m. CT on Monday night, the Minnesota Twins will be making a franchise altering pick when the scouting staff and the front office will decide on the number two pick in the 2012 MLB Draft. On the heels of a disappointing 2011 season, the Twins earned the second pick in the first round based on the fact that the team finished with the second worse record last year. The Houston Astros were the only team to finish with less wins than the Twins and this allows the Astros to take the first pick. The last time the Twins drafted this high in the first round was back in the 2001 when the team selected Joe Mauer with the first pick. Mauer has gone on to win an MVP and multiple batting titles since his selection and now he is being paid to be the face of the franchise. The other option for the top pick that year was Mark Prior and he has battled with injuries for most of his career. It looks like the team made the right decision in 2001 but that is not always the case. In the year before Mauer was picked, the team took Adam Johnson with the number two pick in the first round and he only made nine appearances at the MLB level. This is a mistake the Twins can ill-afford to make again in a draft class that, much like 2000, is considered to be weak. The team needs to hit a home run with their selection and find a player that can be a highly effective at the MLB level for multiple seasons. There will also be two compensation round picks made by the Twins on Monday night for to make-up for the loss of free agents Michael Cuddyer and Jason Kubel. The first pick in the compensation round (No. 32) belongs to the Twins for the Rockies signing Cuddyer. Ten picks later (No. 42), the Twins will select another player since Kubel was signed away by the Diamondbacks. These picks are also very important in the grand scheme of things. There are plenty of aspects for a franchise to consider as they prepare for the draft. Previous draft picks, the organization's top prospects, and the scouting reports of the top available players will all be used to decide the fate of the franchise. Below you will find a few of the things that could impact the team's decision when they make the second pick on Monday night. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 2007-2011 Twins Draft Capsules The Twins have followed some similar patterns in recent drafts with college pitchers and young high school outfielders often being taken in the first round. This trend could continue on Monday night with the Twins looking at a variety of college arms or a high school outfielder that is considered by many to be the best available player. There have been some hits and some misses along the way but the core of a franchise is formed from previous drafts. Full posts can be found by clicking on the links below: 2011 MLB Draft Capsule: The team took college middle infielder Levi Michael with their first round pick to help solidify a position of weakness in the organization. Both of their compensation round picks are young but could offer some of the biggest upside of any players in the farm system. 2010 MLB Draft Capsule: For the second year in a row, the Twins took a collegiate arm in the first round of the draft. Alex Wimmers has hit some bumps along the way and he is currently rehabbing his elbow. Eddie Rosario, one of the top prospects in the organization, was a steal in this draft for the Twins. 2009 MLB Draft Capsule: It seemed the Twins got lucky when one of the top pitching prospects in the draft fell to the team because of some forearm injury concerns. Kyle Gibson quickly showed there was nothing to worry about as he flew through the minor leagues. A dreaded Tommy John surgery took away most of this season for Gibson but he should be pitching in games later this summer. 2008 MLB Draft Capsule: The last time the Twins had a pick in the top 15 was when they took Aaron Hicks with the 14th pick in 2009. The switch-hitting outfielder has been tremendous on the defensive side of the ball while still working on his offensive approach. Carlos Guitierrez is another player who could make an impact from this draft. 2007 MLB Draft Capsule: Ben Revere is the only first round pick out of the last five years to make a mark on the team at the big league level. His speed and defensive skills have been highly touted as he moved through the minor leagues and he has shown some positives signs with the Twins. Angel Morales was also taken in this draft and the Twins hope he can avoid injury concerns in 2012. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Minnesota Twins Top 10 Prospects Before entering the draft, it is important to know where a club's strengths and weaknesses are in regards to the prospects in the organization. The Twins hope their first round selection will jump to the top of this list in the not so distant future and that he will make a major impact in the minor leagues along the way. There are only a couple first round picks who made this list so the Twins need to make sure they find a top notch player with the number two selection. Miguel Sano is widely considered to be the best prospect in the Twins system and he could see himself near the top of the top prospect lists for all of baseball by the time this season is done. His powerful swing has been something to marvel at for the last couple of seasons and the Twins have their fingers crossed that he will be a superstar in the future. There has been some movement in the top prospects in the Twins organization but there are some very talented players trying to work their way toward Target Field. Who follows Sano in the top 10 list? You will have to read the full post to find out. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 2012 MLB Draft Player Profiles With no clear-cut favorites near the top of the draft this year, there is a wide-pool of players the Twins could be considering for the number two pick. According to sources, the Twins have narrowed down their focus to three or four players but their true choice won't be known until some time on Monday. It seems that Mark Appel is likely to go to the Astros with the first pick so one of the other names listed below will most likely be in a Twins jersey whenever he signs on the dotted line. There are college pitchers, high school position players, and one college catcher and only one player can call the Twins organization his home. Full posts can be found by clicking on the links below: 1. Byron Buxton- a high school outfielder that is ranked by many scouts as the best player available in the draft. He has the potential to be a five-tool player but it would take he multiple years to reach the MLB level. 2. Mark Appel- a collegiate right-handed pitcher who most likely will be off the board with the first pick by the Houston Astros. With the roots of his childhood based in Houston, it seems like a perfect storyline for the franchise. 3. Mike Zunino- a catcher that is considered to be the top collegiate position player in the draft. His poor play in SEC play this year might have hurt his draft stock but he will still be one of the first seven players selected on Monday. 4. Kevin Gausman- a right-handed pitcher that might be the best college arm on the board and he could end up being even better than Appel. He needs to refine some of his offspeed pitches and his body could use some more weight but his 94 mph fastball holds plenty of potential. 5. Carlos Correa- a shortstop that should become the highest player selected from the island of Puerto Rico. The Twins have held multiple private workouts for this young middle infielder in the last couple weeks and he has apparently been very impressive. 6. Kyle Zimmer- the third college pitcher on this list and he might be the most polished arm besides Appel. His strikeout to walk rate is something the Twins front office has to love and this is only helped by his heater that reaches 97 mph. *Bonus Profile* Mitch Brown- a right-handed high school pitcher that is from Rochester, Minnesota and a top 50 prospect for the draft. The Twins have the No. 32 and No. 42 selections in the compensation round and this is right where Brown's name is expected to be called.

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3ftP6wghsQ4/T8wu4YaZSzI/AAAAAAAAByA/4U98fG4JcrQ/s320/2012MLBDraftPrimer.jpg A little after 6 p.m. CT on Monday night, the Minnesota Twins will be making a franchise altering pick when the scouting staff and the front office will decide on the number two pick in the 2012 MLB Draft. On the heels of a disappointing 2011 season, the Twins earned the second pick in the first round based on the fact that the team finished with the second worse record last year. The Houston Astros were the only team to finish with less wins than the Twins and this allows the Astros to take the first pick. The last time the Twins drafted this high in the first round was back in the 2001 when the team selected Joe Mauer with the first pick. Mauer has gone on to win an MVP and multiple batting titles since his selection and now he is being paid to be the face of the franchise. The other option for the top pick that year was Mark Prior and he has battled with injuries for most of his career. It looks like the team made the right decision in 2001 but that is not always the case. In the year before Mauer was picked, the team took Adam Johnson with the number two pick in the first round and he only made nine appearances at the MLB level. This is a mistake the Twins can ill-afford to make again in a draft class that, much like 2000, is considered to be weak. The team needs to hit a home run with their selection and find a player that can be a highly effective at the MLB level for multiple seasons. There will also be two compensation round picks made by the Twins on Monday night for to make-up for the loss of free agents Michael Cuddyer and Jason Kubel. The first pick in the compensation round (No. 32) belongs to the Twins for the Rockies signing Cuddyer. Ten picks later (No. 42), the Twins will select another player since Kubel was signed away by the Diamondbacks. These picks are also very important in the grand scheme of things. There are plenty of aspects for a franchise to consider as they prepare for the draft. Previous draft picks, the organization's top prospects, and the scouting reports of the top available players will all be used to decide the fate of the franchise. Below you will find a few of the things that could impact the team's decision when they make the second pick on Monday night. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 2007-2011 Twins Draft Capsules The Twins have followed some similar patterns in recent drafts with college pitchers and young high school outfielders often being taken in the first round. This trend could continue on Monday night with the Twins looking at a variety of college arms or a high school outfielder that is considered by many to be the best available player. There have been some hits and some misses along the way but the core of a franchise is formed from previous drafts. Full posts can be found by clicking on the links below: 2011 MLB Draft Capsule: The team took college middle infielder Levi Michael with their first round pick to help solidify a position of weakness in the organization. Both of their compensation round picks are young but could offer some of the biggest upside of any players in the farm system. 2010 MLB Draft Capsule: For the second year in a row, the Twins took a collegiate arm in the first round of the draft. Alex Wimmers has hit some bumps along the way and he is currently rehabbing his elbow. Eddie Rosario, one of the top prospects in the organization, was a steal in this draft for the Twins. 2009 MLB Draft Capsule: It seemed the Twins got lucky when one of the top pitching prospects in the draft fell to the team because of some forearm injury concerns. Kyle Gibson quickly showed there was nothing to worry about as he flew through the minor leagues. A dreaded Tommy John surgery took away most of this season for Gibson but he should be pitching in games later this summer. 2008 MLB Draft Capsule: The last time the Twins had a pick in the top 15 was when they took Aaron Hicks with the 14th pick in 2009. The switch-hitting outfielder has been tremendous on the defensive side of the ball while still working on his offensive approach. Carlos Guitierrez is another player who could make an impact from this draft. 2007 MLB Draft Capsule: Ben Revere is the only first round pick out of the last five years to make a mark on the team at the big league level. His speed and defensive skills have been highly touted as he moved through the minor leagues and he has shown some positives signs with the Twins. Angel Morales was also taken in this draft and the Twins hope he can avoid injury concerns in 2012. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Minnesota Twins Top 10 Prospects Before entering the draft, it is important to know where a club's strengths and weaknesses are in regards to the prospects in the organization. The Twins hope their first round selection will jump to the top of this list in the not so distant future and that he will make a major impact in the minor leagues along the way. There are only a couple first round picks who made this list so the Twins need to make sure they find a top notch player with the number two selection. Miguel Sano is widely considered to be the best prospect in the Twins system and he could see himself near the top of the top prospect lists for all of baseball by the time this season is done. His powerful swing has been something to marvel at for the last couple of seasons and the Twins have their fingers crossed that he will be a superstar in the future. There has been some movement in the top prospects in the Twins organization but there are some very talented players trying to work their way toward Target Field. Who follows Sano in the top 10 list? You will have to read the full post to find out. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ 2012 MLB Draft Player Profiles With no clear-cut favorites near the top of the draft this year, there is a wide-pool of players the Twins could be considering for the number two pick. According to sources, the Twins have narrowed down their focus to three or four players but their true choice won't be known until some time on Monday. It seems that Mark Appel is likely to go to the Astros with the first pick so one of the other names listed below will most likely be in a Twins jersey whenever he signs on the dotted line. There are college pitchers, high school position players, and one college catcher and only one player can call the Twins organization his home. Full posts can be found by clicking on the links below: 1. Byron Buxton- a high school outfielder that is ranked by many scouts as the best player available in the draft. He has the potential to be a five-tool player but it would take he multiple years to reach the MLB level. 2. Mark Appel- a collegiate right-handed pitcher who most likely will be off the board with the first pick by the Houston Astros. With the roots of his childhood based in Houston, it seems like a perfect storyline for the franchise. 3. Mike Zunino- a catcher that is considered to be the top collegiate position player in the draft. His poor play in SEC play this year might have hurt his draft stock but he will still be one of the first seven players selected on Monday. 4. Kevin Gausman- a right-handed pitcher that might be the best college arm on the board and he could end up being even better than Appel. He needs to refine some of his offspeed pitches and his body could use some more weight but his 94 mph fastball holds plenty of potential. 5. Carlos Correa- a shortstop that should become the highest player selected from the island of Puerto Rico. The Twins have held multiple private workouts for this young middle infielder in the last couple weeks and he has apparently been very impressive. 6. Kyle Zimmer- the third college pitcher on this list and he might be the most polished arm besides Appel. His strikeout to walk rate is something the Twins front office has to love and this is only helped by his heater that reaches 97 mph. *Bonus Profile* Mitch Brown- a right-handed high school pitcher that is from Rochester, Minnesota and a top 50 prospect for the draft. The Twins have the No. 32 and No. 42 selections in the compensation round and this is right where Brown's name is expected to be called.

On Friday night, the Twins watched Carl Pavano struggle through another rough outing as he tries to find a way to fight through the shoulder problems that have plagued him in 2012. In less than five innings of work, Pavano gave up two home runs including a grand slam. By the time he left the mound, the Twins were in a 7-0 hole and it can be a challenge to come back from that big of a hole. The three-game winning streak for the Twins came to an end on Friday night so let's look around the minor leagues to find some standout performances. Since there was not a minor league recap written last night for the Twins Daily site, you will find short summaries of the Thursday night games including the pitcher and hitter of the night. ROCHESTER -, COLUMBUS - The Red Wings were washed out on Tuesday night and their game with Columbus will have to be made up as part of a double header on Saturday. Both games will be scheduled for seven innings. Thursday Night Notes: Rochester lost 5-1 on Thursday evening versus the Charlotte Knights. The only member of the Red Wings with more than one hit was Chris Parmelee who has been on quite the run since being demoted to Rochester. Matt Maloney started for Rochester and he allowed two earned runs in 4.2 inning on the hill. NEW BRITAIN 10, HARRISBURG 3 On Friday night, the Rock Cats exploded for seven runs in the bottom of the second inning to separate themselves from the Senators. Matt Rizzotti had one of the big hits in the inning by smacking a double with two outs to drive in two runs. He would add a second double later in the contest to help keep the offense moving in the right direction. In his first big game since being demoted from Rochester, Rene Tosoni had three hits and two RBI in support of the Rock Cats win. Evan Bigley added two RBI of his own with his fifth home run of the year in the seventh inning. By the end of the game, Chris Herrmann would be the only member of New Britain that failed to record a hit but he reached base with a walk. Steve Hirschfeld started for New Britain and pitched himself out of some jams over the course of seven innings. In the end he surrendered nine hits but he was able to escape with minimum damage as only two runs crossed the plate. Bobby Lanigan and Blake Martin covered the last two innings to help the Rock Cats to their 31st victory of the season. Thursday Night Notes: After the Rock Cats jumped out to a 6-1 lead, the team had to hang on to win by a final score of 6-5 versus New Hampshire. Chris Colabello had a tremendous night at the plate with a double, a home run, and six runs batted in. Andrew Albers picked up his second win of the year by throwing six innings and only allowing one earned run. FORT MYERS 16, DAYTON 7 In direct contrast to the big second inning by the Rock Cats, the Miracle surrendered a big frame in the second inning of their game with the Cubs. Dayton pumped across six runs in the top of the frame and five of those runs were charged to Marty Popham, the starter for Fort Myers. The game would only get worse from there as the Cubs piled on the runs in the top of the fifth inning. Levi Michael hit his third triple of the year as he tries to dig himself out an early season slump. Daniel Ortiz racked up three extra-base hits with two doubles and a triple in the game and he finished with three RBI. In the fourth inning, Josmil Pinto hit his fifth home run of the year but it would not be enough on this night. Two errors in the game by Fort Myers lead to five unearned runs for Dayton. Even with the unearned runs, it was an ugly night on the mound for Miracle pitchers. In his first start since May 22, Popham would finish by giving up nine earned runs on 10 hits. Jose Gonzalez had a tough time in relief of Popham as he surrendered five runs in 1.2 innings.Dakota Watts stopped some of the bleeding by pitching the last three innings and only giving up one run on a solo home run. Thursday Night Notes: Every batter in the Miracle line-up had a hit except for Anderson Hidalgo but it still wasn't enough to beat the Marauders. One of the problems was Fort Myers managed one extra-base hit and that came off of the bat of Andy Leer. Matthew Hauser was saddled with his first loss of the year after giving up a run in 2.1 innings. The final tally was Bradenton 2 to 1 in 10 innings. BELOIT 11, QUAD CITIES 5 Seth Stohs and a group of other Twins fans made the trip on the Territory Train this weekend to catch two games with the Beloit Snappers. They were treated to a powerful offensive outing from the Snappers with 12 total hits and 11 runs on the board for Beloit. The biggest offensive night was put together by JaDamion Williams who finished 3-for-5 with a home run, a double, and four runs batted in. Drew Leachman matched William's three hits and knocked in two runners of his own. Matthew Koch hit a 2-run shot in the fifth inning to cap a wild offensive night. The Snappers only used two pitchers in the game with Jason Wheeler starting the game and going five frames. Besides giving up five runs, he was still able to secure his seventh win of the year. David Hurlbut earned his first save of the year by pitching four scoreless innings to end the game. The River Bandits failed to get past second base after Hurlbut entered the contest. Thursday Night Notes: Eddie Rosario and Matthew Koch each had a home run to pace the Snappers offense in a night where five players had runs batted in. Miguel Sano hit his eleventh double and knocked in his 41st RBI of the campaign. Steven Gruver allowed a solo shot in the first inning but then he settled down and finished with 8.1 innings and the win. --- Players of the Day for Friday, June 1, 2012 (Thursday night too) Pitcher of the Day- Steve Hirschfeld (Steven Gruver) http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5gU7yiFgke8/T8l4rDdkZaI/AAAAAAAABug/evuFE-rlcGA/s400/Slide1.jpg Hitter of the Day- JaDamion Williams (Chris Colabello) http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uRMZiraunNs/T8l4xJhWAkI/AAAAAAAABuo/hFsX4oMXVIE/s400/Slide2.jpg --- A Look Ahead- Saturday, June 2nd Schedule Rochester vs Columbus (Game 1)- LHP Luke French Rochester vs Columbus (Game 2)- TBA New Britain vs Harrisburg- LHP Logan Darnell Fort Myers vs Dayton- LHP Pat Dean Beloit vs Wisconsin- RHP Matthew Summers --- If you have any questions or comments on the Twins minor league system, leave them in the comments section and Seth or I will try to answer them.

On Friday night, the Twins watched Carl Pavano struggle through another rough outing as he tries to find a way to fight through the shoulder problems that have plagued him in 2012. In less than five innings of work, Pavano gave up two home runs including a grand slam. By the time he left the mound, the Twins were in a 7-0 hole and it can be a challenge to come back from that big of a hole. The three-game winning streak for the Twins came to an end on Friday night so let's look around the minor leagues to find some standout performances. Since there was not a minor league recap written last night for the Twins Daily site, you will find short summaries of the Thursday night games including the pitcher and hitter of the night. ROCHESTER -, COLUMBUS - The Red Wings were washed out on Tuesday night and their game with Columbus will have to be made up as part of a double header on Saturday. Both games will be scheduled for seven innings. Thursday Night Notes: Rochester lost 5-1 on Thursday evening versus the Charlotte Knights. The only member of the Red Wings with more than one hit was Chris Parmelee who has been on quite the run since being demoted to Rochester. Matt Maloney started for Rochester and he allowed two earned runs in 4.2 inning on the hill. NEW BRITAIN 10, HARRISBURG 3 On Friday night, the Rock Cats exploded for seven runs in the bottom of the second inning to separate themselves from the Senators. Matt Rizzotti had one of the big hits in the inning by smacking a double with two outs to drive in two runs. He would add a second double later in the contest to help keep the offense moving in the right direction. In his first big game since being demoted from Rochester, Rene Tosoni had three hits and two RBI in support of the Rock Cats win. Evan Bigley added two RBI of his own with his fifth home run of the year in the seventh inning. By the end of the game, Chris Herrmann would be the only member of New Britain that failed to record a hit but he reached base with a walk. Steve Hirschfeld started for New Britain and pitched himself out of some jams over the course of seven innings. In the end he surrendered nine hits but he was able to escape with minimum damage as only two runs crossed the plate. Bobby Lanigan and Blake Martin covered the last two innings to help the Rock Cats to their 31st victory of the season. Thursday Night Notes: After the Rock Cats jumped out to a 6-1 lead, the team had to hang on to win by a final score of 6-5 versus New Hampshire. Chris Colabello had a tremendous night at the plate with a double, a home run, and six runs batted in. Andrew Albers picked up his second win of the year by throwing six innings and only allowing one earned run. FORT MYERS 16, DAYTON 7 In direct contrast to the big second inning by the Rock Cats, the Miracle surrendered a big frame in the second inning of their game with the Cubs. Dayton pumped across six runs in the top of the frame and five of those runs were charged to Marty Popham, the starter for Fort Myers. The game would only get worse from there as the Cubs piled on the runs in the top of the fifth inning. Levi Michael hit his third triple of the year as he tries to dig himself out an early season slump. Daniel Ortiz racked up three extra-base hits with two doubles and a triple in the game and he finished with three RBI. In the fourth inning, Josmil Pinto hit his fifth home run of the year but it would not be enough on this night. Two errors in the game by Fort Myers lead to five unearned runs for Dayton. Even with the unearned runs, it was an ugly night on the mound for Miracle pitchers. In his first start since May 22, Popham would finish by giving up nine earned runs on 10 hits. Jose Gonzalez had a tough time in relief of Popham as he surrendered five runs in 1.2 innings.Dakota Watts stopped some of the bleeding by pitching the last three innings and only giving up one run on a solo home run. Thursday Night Notes: Every batter in the Miracle line-up had a hit except for Anderson Hidalgo but it still wasn't enough to beat the Marauders. One of the problems was Fort Myers managed one extra-base hit and that came off of the bat of Andy Leer. Matthew Hauser was saddled with his first loss of the year after giving up a run in 2.1 innings. The final tally was Bradenton 2 to 1 in 10 innings. BELOIT 11, QUAD CITIES 5 Seth Stohs and a group of other Twins fans made the trip on the Territory Train this weekend to catch two games with the Beloit Snappers. They were treated to a powerful offensive outing from the Snappers with 12 total hits and 11 runs on the board for Beloit. The biggest offensive night was put together by JaDamion Williams who finished 3-for-5 with a home run, a double, and four runs batted in. Drew Leachman matched William's three hits and knocked in two runners of his own. Matthew Koch hit a 2-run shot in the fifth inning to cap a wild offensive night. The Snappers only used two pitchers in the game with Jason Wheeler starting the game and going five frames. Besides giving up five runs, he was still able to secure his seventh win of the year. David Hurlbut earned his first save of the year by pitching four scoreless innings to end the game. The River Bandits failed to get past second base after Hurlbut entered the contest. Thursday Night Notes: Eddie Rosario and Matthew Koch each had a home run to pace the Snappers offense in a night where five players had runs batted in. Miguel Sano hit his eleventh double and knocked in his 41st RBI of the campaign. Steven Gruver allowed a solo shot in the first inning but then he settled down and finished with 8.1 innings and the win. --- Players of the Day for Friday, June 1, 2012 (Thursday night too) Pitcher of the Day- Steve Hirschfeld (Steven Gruver) http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-5gU7yiFgke8/T8l4rDdkZaI/AAAAAAAABug/evuFE-rlcGA/s400/Slide1.jpg Hitter of the Day- JaDamion Williams (Chris Colabello) http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-uRMZiraunNs/T8l4xJhWAkI/AAAAAAAABuo/hFsX4oMXVIE/s400/Slide2.jpg --- A Look Ahead- Saturday, June 2nd Schedule Rochester vs Columbus (Game 1)- LHP Luke French Rochester vs Columbus (Game 2)- TBA New Britain vs Harrisburg- LHP Logan Darnell Fort Myers vs Dayton- LHP Pat Dean Beloit vs Wisconsin- RHP Matthew Summers --- If you have any questions or comments on the Twins minor league system, leave them in the comments section and Seth or I will try to answer them.

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Get out the brooms because the Twins just got done sweeping the A's in a series at Target Field. It wasn't the prettiest of sweeps but a walk-off home run from Josh Willingham and an interesting outing from Francisco Liriano put the cap on the three game set. The A's aren't exactly the cream of the crop in the American League but at this point the Twins are just trying to play better baseball. The Twins head to Cleveland for a weekend series with the Tribe but many Twins fans have turned their attention to the MLB Draft that will take place at the beginning of next week. A franchise can be altered by the selection made by their front office and the scouting department. The number two selection in the draft will belong to the Twins and the team needs to hit a home run with this pick. Throughout the week, I've been been putting up posts related to the MLB Draft and I will continue to put together all of this information in a "2012 MLB Draft Primer" for the beginning of next week. Until then, enjoy these great links from throughout the week. It seems, for better or worse, that the Twins are going to be depending a lot on Brian Dozier at shortstop in the future. This reliance on Dozier could be tough with teams adjusting their approach with the young rookie. With the draft on Monday, it is important to reexamine the top prospects in the minor league system of the Twins. It might be too early to start all of the trade speculation with the trade deadline still a couple months away. That being said, Justin Morneau could be one of the players that exits the team when the July trade deadline rolls around. Liriano's contract is over at the end of the season and there is a good chance he will be on the trading block. A couple of days ago Liriano had a good start but what does that mean for the future? There have been plenty of throwback uniforms in baseball this year and the Twins will join the party with their Minneapolis Millers jerseys. With 30% of the Twins schedule behind them, there have been some interesting offensive numbers so far in 2012. For only the second time in the history of Target Field, there was a walk-off home run. There was a special surprise waiting for Willingham at the end of the day. http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-J4z8Mj_BI3I/T8gxUISIicI/AAAAAAAABkI/gTJIpN6cWVk/s320/WillinghamShower.jpg This list looks at the all-time draft roster for the history of the Twins. PJ Walters honors his daughter's memory before every game with a touching gesture. Former Twins player Jason Kubel is going to be a dad again. The Twins broadcast team isn't great but Hawk Harrelson is terrible. Sometimes the number two pick in the draft doesn't always produce a great player. After getting hit hard as a member of the Twins rotation, Jason Marquis is forced to prove himself at Double-A for the Padres. One of the most talked about stories of the week revolved around a former Twins prospect and his growth in the steroids era. Torii Hunter was finally able to return to the Angels after dealing with a terrible family situation. My Weekly Rundown Tuesday: Tuesday Morning Tidbits Tuesday's Trip through the Minors Wednesday: 2011 Twins MLB Draft Capsule 2010 Twins MLB Draft Capsule 2009 Twins MLB Draft Capsule Thursday: 2008 Twins MLB Draft Capsule 2007 Twins MLB Draft Capsule Minnesota Twins Top 10 Prospects Video of the Week: One of the best moments of the year for the Twins happened earlier this week and this video celebrates Willingham's blast in very retro fashion. A shout out is in order to That's Twins Baseball for putting together this wonderful clip.

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Get out the brooms because the Twins just got done sweeping the A's in a series at Target Field. It wasn't the prettiest of sweeps but a walk-off home run from Josh Willingham and an interesting outing from Francisco Liriano put the cap on the three game set. The A's aren't exactly the cream of the crop in the American League but at this point the Twins are just trying to play better baseball. The Twins head to Cleveland for a weekend series with the Tribe but many Twins fans have turned their attention to the MLB Draft that will take place at the beginning of next week. A franchise can be altered by the selection made by their front office and the scouting department. The number two selection in the draft will belong to the Twins and the team needs to hit a home run with this pick. Throughout the week, I've been been putting up posts related to the MLB Draft and I will continue to put together all of this information in a "2012 MLB Draft Primer" for the beginning of next week. Until then, enjoy these great links from throughout the week. It seems, for better or worse, that the Twins are going to be depending a lot on Brian Dozier at shortstop in the future. This reliance on Dozier could be tough with teams adjusting their approach with the young rookie. With the draft on Monday, it is important to reexamine the top prospects in the minor league system of the Twins. It might be too early to start all of the trade speculation with the trade deadline still a couple months away. That being said, Justin Morneau could be one of the players that exits the team when the July trade deadline rolls around. Liriano's contract is over at the end of the season and there is a good chance he will be on the trading block. A couple of days ago Liriano had a good start but what does that mean for the future? There have been plenty of throwback uniforms in baseball this year and the Twins will join the party with their Minneapolis Millers jerseys. With 30% of the Twins schedule behind them, there have been some interesting offensive numbers so far in 2012. For only the second time in the history of Target Field, there was a walk-off home run. There was a special surprise waiting for Willingham at the end of the day. http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-J4z8Mj_BI3I/T8gxUISIicI/AAAAAAAABkI/gTJIpN6cWVk/s320/WillinghamShower.jpg This list looks at the all-time draft roster for the history of the Twins. PJ Walters honors his daughter's memory before every game with a touching gesture. Former Twins player Jason Kubel is going to be a dad again. The Twins broadcast team isn't great but Hawk Harrelson is terrible. Sometimes the number two pick in the draft doesn't always produce a great player. After getting hit hard as a member of the Twins rotation, Jason Marquis is forced to prove himself at Double-A for the Padres. One of the most talked about stories of the week revolved around a former Twins prospect and his growth in the steroids era. Torii Hunter was finally able to return to the Angels after dealing with a terrible family situation. My Weekly Rundown Tuesday: Tuesday Morning Tidbits Tuesday's Trip through the Minors Wednesday: 2011 Twins MLB Draft Capsule 2010 Twins MLB Draft Capsule 2009 Twins MLB Draft Capsule Thursday: 2008 Twins MLB Draft Capsule 2007 Twins MLB Draft Capsule Minnesota Twins Top 10 Prospects Video of the Week: One of the best moments of the year for the Twins happened earlier this week and this video celebrates Willingham's blast in very retro fashion. A shout out is in order to That's Twins Baseball for putting together this wonderful clip.

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan ~~~~~~~~~~ The MLB Draft takes place next week and the Twins hope to be able to take some difference makers with the five picks they have in the first couple of rounds. With the number two pick, the Twins should be getting a player that will jump straight into the top 5 of the list below. It's great to see where the organization is sitting before they enter the draft. A team's future is decided by the players they select in the draft and a team can be made or broken because of some tough decisions. The team is always in need of adding more pitching depth especially with the onslaught of injuries that have hit some of the top pitching prospects for the team. Even since the offseason when I put together my last prospect list, the players have shifted around for a variety of reasons. There is still plenty of talent in the Twins system and the draft should only strengthen the future of the club. [/url] 1. Miguel Sano, 3B, Low-A Beloit Snappers Acquired: Signed as a non-drafted free agent (2009) .245/.351/.527, 13 HR, 10 2B, 2 3B, 40 RBI, 32 R He is hands down the best prospect in the Twins organization and you will get very few who will argue the fact. Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus recently wrote an article that named Sano as the best power-hitting prospect in the entire minor leagues. He is off to a very good start with Low-A Beloit and one of the most positive signs could be his increased rate of walks. Many fans of the Twins pull up the box score of the Snappers on any given night to see what kind of game Sano had at the plate. He is still a work in progress at third base with 19 errors in 165 chances this year. His 19-year old frame continues to fill out and the Twins are excited about what Sano can mean to the future of this organization. 2. Eddie Rosario, 2B/OF, Low-A Beloit Snappers Acquired: 4th round pick (2010) .284/.356/.458, 16 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 33 RBI, 25 R The Twins saw Rosario blossom last season with the Elizabethton Twins and he continues to impress during his third season with the club. He put up monster numbers for the E-Twins in 2011 and he was named co-MVP of the Appalachian League. Rosario has shown power to all fields and his defense had been outstanding in the outfield. The word "had" is used in the previous sentence because the team decided to transition Rosario from outfield to second base. He has found a few struggles at his new position but he has multiple levels to make it through before the major leagues. This should give the 20-year old plenty of time to prove he can handle the rigors of second base. 3. Liam Hendriks, RHP, Triple-A Rochester Red Wings Acquired: Signed as a non-drafted free agent (2007) W-L (3-0), 1.40 ERA, 0.896 WHIP, 23 K, 8 BB, 25.2 IP Hendriks has made eight starts in the major leagues with very little to no success but his return trip to Rochester seems to be just what the doctor ordered. He has been impressive so far in his four appearances for the Red Wings and he should get another shot in the major leagues before the season is done. The calling card for Hendriks during his time in the minor leagues has been his ability to control the strike zone and avoid walking batters. Last year he lead the Twins organization in strikeouts with 127 and he was second in wins with 12. The Twins will have openings in the starting rotation for next year and Hendriks should solidify a spot in the starting five in the coming months. 4. Aaron Hicks, OF, Double-A New Britain Rock Cats Acquired: 1st round pick (2008) .246/.335/.392, 8 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 26 RBI, 29 R At 22-years old, the Twins are still waiting for Hicks to break out and prove he can be the player he was when they selected him in the first half of first round of the draft in 2008. He played in the Arizona Fall League this past offseason and some scouts thought he was a little lost at the beginning of his tenure. Hicks was able to work through some of those issues and end the AFL by making some improvements to his approach at the plate. The switch-hitting outfielder still struggles as a left-handed batter by hitting .205/.313/.344 so far this year but 10 of his 14 extra-base hits have come from this side of the plate. His defense continues to be outstanding in the outfield and Baseball America ranked him as the top defensive outfielder and top defensive arm in the Twins system. 5. Joe Benson, OF, Double-A New Britain Rock Cats Acquired: 2nd round pick (2006) .173/.264/.299, 3 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR, 10 RBI, 11 R It has been a very rough start to the season for Benson in 2012 as he was suppose to be thriving at Rochester and busting down the door to the major leagues. Things haven't gone exactly to plan and he finds himself demoted to New Britain to try and find his swing. He struggled last season during his September call-up with the Twins but this still didn't take away from the promise he has shown in his minor league career. He was the 2010 player of the year for the Twins farm system and the team hopes he can get back to that level in the near future. 6. Oswaldo Arcia, OF, High-A Fort Myers Miracle Acquired: Signed as a non-drafted free agent (2007) .298/.351/.482, 13 2B, 3 3B, 4 HR, 21 RBI, 13 R It seems as if Arcia could find himself shooting up this prospect list with his performance in 2012. He is currently outperforming many of the names listed above him and it should only be a matter of time before he finds himself in the outfield of the Rock Cats. He has never played more than 81 games in a season so it will be interesting to see how he fairs towards the end of a long campaign. 7. Kyle Gibson, RHP, Triple-A Rochester Red Wings Acquired: 1st round pick (2009) Gibson is in the midst of rehabbing his way back from Tommy John surgery and he should be throwing off of a mound at the beginning of June. The Twins hope to get Gibson into some minor league games by the end of the summer and he could be set to join the Twins starting rotation in 2013. When he was healthy, he moved through the minor league system very quickly so it will be great to see what he can do with his surgically repaired elbow. 8. Travis Harrison, 3B, Extended Spring Training Acquired: Supplemental 1st round pick (2011) When the Twins took Harrison in the supplemental round of last June's draft, there were some lofty expectation thrown on the high school power hitter. As a prep player, he showed tremendous power potential and the team was happy to take him with one of their early round picks. His size and body type make it hard to believe that he will stick at third base but his bat projects to be one of the biggest in the system. 9. Brian Dozier, SS, MLB Minnesota Twins Acquired: 8th round pick (2009) .228/.247/.337, 4 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 13 RBI, 8 R It is looking like Dozier won't be on this prospect list for long as the team has inserted him into the role of everyday shortstop at the major league level. After getting off to a hot start in his first handful of games, the rest of the league has made some adjustments and Dozier has come back down to earth. The Twins are committed to Dozier at this point and he looks like he will be entrenched at shortstop until he proves he can't handle the job. 10. Adrian Salcedo, RHP, High-A Fort Myers Miracle Acquired: Signed as a non-drafted free agent (2007) W-L (0-1), 5.64 ERA, 1.881 WHIP, 13 SO, 15 BB, 22.1 IP So far this year, Salcedo has run into some strange situations on the mound. He was forced to leave one start this year after a one-hopper broke his nose. A blister on his finger in a different outing caused him to leave the game. Now Salcedo is on the disabled list with an elbow injury as he tries to rehab his way back onto the field. Mr. Salcedo has seen success at every level of the minor leagues so hopefully the start of this year is just a small hiccup. Just missing the list: Chris Parmelee 1B, Alex Wimmers RHP, Hudson Boyd RHP, Chris Herrmann C, Levi Michael IF

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan ~~~~~~~~~~ The MLB Draft takes place next week and the Twins hope to be able to take some difference makers with the five picks they have in the first couple of rounds. With the number two pick, the Twins should be getting a player that will jump straight into the top 5 of the list below. It's great to see where the organization is sitting before they enter the draft. A team's future is decided by the players they select in the draft and a team can be made or broken because of some tough decisions. The team is always in need of adding more pitching depth especially with the onslaught of injuries that have hit some of the top pitching prospects for the team. Even since the offseason when I put together my last prospect list, the players have shifted around for a variety of reasons. There is still plenty of talent in the Twins system and the draft should only strengthen the future of the club. [/url] 1. Miguel Sano, 3B, Low-A Beloit Snappers Acquired: Signed as a non-drafted free agent (2009) .245/.351/.527, 13 HR, 10 2B, 2 3B, 40 RBI, 32 R He is hands down the best prospect in the Twins organization and you will get very few who will argue the fact. Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus recently wrote an article that named Sano as the best power-hitting prospect in the entire minor leagues. He is off to a very good start with Low-A Beloit and one of the most positive signs could be his increased rate of walks. Many fans of the Twins pull up the box score of the Snappers on any given night to see what kind of game Sano had at the plate. He is still a work in progress at third base with 19 errors in 165 chances this year. His 19-year old frame continues to fill out and the Twins are excited about what Sano can mean to the future of this organization. 2. Eddie Rosario, 2B/OF, Low-A Beloit Snappers Acquired: 4th round pick (2010) .284/.356/.458, 16 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 33 RBI, 25 R The Twins saw Rosario blossom last season with the Elizabethton Twins and he continues to impress during his third season with the club. He put up monster numbers for the E-Twins in 2011 and he was named co-MVP of the Appalachian League. Rosario has shown power to all fields and his defense had been outstanding in the outfield. The word "had" is used in the previous sentence because the team decided to transition Rosario from outfield to second base. He has found a few struggles at his new position but he has multiple levels to make it through before the major leagues. This should give the 20-year old plenty of time to prove he can handle the rigors of second base. 3. Liam Hendriks, RHP, Triple-A Rochester Red Wings Acquired: Signed as a non-drafted free agent (2007) W-L (3-0), 1.40 ERA, 0.896 WHIP, 23 K, 8 BB, 25.2 IP Hendriks has made eight starts in the major leagues with very little to no success but his return trip to Rochester seems to be just what the doctor ordered. He has been impressive so far in his four appearances for the Red Wings and he should get another shot in the major leagues before the season is done. The calling card for Hendriks during his time in the minor leagues has been his ability to control the strike zone and avoid walking batters. Last year he lead the Twins organization in strikeouts with 127 and he was second in wins with 12. The Twins will have openings in the starting rotation for next year and Hendriks should solidify a spot in the starting five in the coming months. 4. Aaron Hicks, OF, Double-A New Britain Rock Cats Acquired: 1st round pick (2008) .246/.335/.392, 8 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 26 RBI, 29 R At 22-years old, the Twins are still waiting for Hicks to break out and prove he can be the player he was when they selected him in the first half of first round of the draft in 2008. He played in the Arizona Fall League this past offseason and some scouts thought he was a little lost at the beginning of his tenure. Hicks was able to work through some of those issues and end the AFL by making some improvements to his approach at the plate. The switch-hitting outfielder still struggles as a left-handed batter by hitting .205/.313/.344 so far this year but 10 of his 14 extra-base hits have come from this side of the plate. His defense continues to be outstanding in the outfield and Baseball America ranked him as the top defensive outfielder and top defensive arm in the Twins system. 5. Joe Benson, OF, Double-A New Britain Rock Cats Acquired: 2nd round pick (2006) .173/.264/.299, 3 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR, 10 RBI, 11 R It has been a very rough start to the season for Benson in 2012 as he was suppose to be thriving at Rochester and busting down the door to the major leagues. Things haven't gone exactly to plan and he finds himself demoted to New Britain to try and find his swing. He struggled last season during his September call-up with the Twins but this still didn't take away from the promise he has shown in his minor league career. He was the 2010 player of the year for the Twins farm system and the team hopes he can get back to that level in the near future. 6. Oswaldo Arcia, OF, High-A Fort Myers Miracle Acquired: Signed as a non-drafted free agent (2007) .298/.351/.482, 13 2B, 3 3B, 4 HR, 21 RBI, 13 R It seems as if Arcia could find himself shooting up this prospect list with his performance in 2012. He is currently outperforming many of the names listed above him and it should only be a matter of time before he finds himself in the outfield of the Rock Cats. He has never played more than 81 games in a season so it will be interesting to see how he fairs towards the end of a long campaign. 7. Kyle Gibson, RHP, Triple-A Rochester Red Wings Acquired: 1st round pick (2009) Gibson is in the midst of rehabbing his way back from Tommy John surgery and he should be throwing off of a mound at the beginning of June. The Twins hope to get Gibson into some minor league games by the end of the summer and he could be set to join the Twins starting rotation in 2013. When he was healthy, he moved through the minor league system very quickly so it will be great to see what he can do with his surgically repaired elbow. 8. Travis Harrison, 3B, Extended Spring Training Acquired: Supplemental 1st round pick (2011) When the Twins took Harrison in the supplemental round of last June's draft, there were some lofty expectation thrown on the high school power hitter. As a prep player, he showed tremendous power potential and the team was happy to take him with one of their early round picks. His size and body type make it hard to believe that he will stick at third base but his bat projects to be one of the biggest in the system. 9. Brian Dozier, SS, MLB Minnesota Twins Acquired: 8th round pick (2009) .228/.247/.337, 4 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 13 RBI, 8 R It is looking like Dozier won't be on this prospect list for long as the team has inserted him into the role of everyday shortstop at the major league level. After getting off to a hot start in his first handful of games, the rest of the league has made some adjustments and Dozier has come back down to earth. The Twins are committed to Dozier at this point and he looks like he will be entrenched at shortstop until he proves he can't handle the job. 10. Adrian Salcedo, RHP, High-A Fort Myers Miracle Acquired: Signed as a non-drafted free agent (2007) W-L (0-1), 5.64 ERA, 1.881 WHIP, 13 SO, 15 BB, 22.1 IP So far this year, Salcedo has run into some strange situations on the mound. He was forced to leave one start this year after a one-hopper broke his nose. A blister on his finger in a different outing caused him to leave the game. Now Salcedo is on the disabled list with an elbow injury as he tries to rehab his way back onto the field. Mr. Salcedo has seen success at every level of the minor leagues so hopefully the start of this year is just a small hiccup. Just missing the list: Chris Parmelee 1B, Alex Wimmers RHP, Hudson Boyd RHP, Chris Herrmann C, Levi Michael IF

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan In preparation for next week's MLB First Year Player Draft, I have put together some short draft capsules to look at the prospects the Twins have taken with their early round picks in recent memory. In the coming days, I will release these list with some short profiles on what the players have done since joining the organization. Selecting the right players in the draft can separate a winning club from a losing club so it is important to know what the Twins have done in the past. ~~~~~~~~~~ http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AhH4IioaBPk/T8ZIYfWrAnI/AAAAAAAABgw/ToJHE5MkI-A/s320/BenRevereCatch.jpg 1st Round Pick 28: Ben Revere, OF Current Level: MLB Minnesota Twins .300/.344/.417, 5 2B, 1 3B, 1 RBI, 8 R Fans of the Twins saw a lot of what Ben Revere could offer the club in 2011 when he played in 117 games as a rookie. His speed and defensive skills thrilled fans across baseball and his tremendous catch in a game at Target Field will be replayed for years to come. In 2012, Revere started the year in Minnesota but the team sent him to Rochester to get more playing time and to find success at a level he basically skipped in the minors. He is back with the club and his offense has looked more promising because of the amount of extra-base hits he has managed to accumulate. Last season, he looked like he would only be a singles hitter; but if he can continue to find extra-base hits, he could be very valuable asset for the club. 2nd Round Pick 92: Danny Rams, C Current Level: A+ Fort Myers Miracle .057/.195/.057, 0 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R Since signing with the Twins out of the draft, Rams has run into some difficulties with hitting the ball. So far in 2012, he only has two hits to his name in 41 plate appearances for the Miracle and neither of those hits are for extra bases. He is a decent defensive catcher but he is going to need to make some strides at the plate for the Twins to keep him around in the organization. As a 23-year old light hitting catcher that is in High-A for the second year in a row, time could be running thin for him to prove to the Twins that he was worth the second round selection. 3rd Round Pick 122: Angel Morales, OF Current Level: A+ Fort Myers Miracle .214/.272/.277, 5 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 8 RBI, 16 R The 22-year old outfield prospect is spending his second summer in Fort Myers after missing a big chunk of last season with an injury. Morales ranks as one of the best prospects in the organization even though he is off to a slow start to the 2012 season. He combines power and speed to be an offensive threat and his defense is also above average in the outfield. Between 2010-2012, he has played 150 games at the High-A level so it would be nice to see him turn things around for the second half of this year. He is still young enough that there will be plenty of hope following him as he moves his way through the system. 4th Round Pick 152: Reggie Williams, 3B Highest Level (w/ Twins): A+ Fort Myers Miracle Williams spent the last four years in the Twins minor league system and he never really put it together. After being drafted as a third baseman, the Twins wanted Williams to develop into a power threat but he failed to hit over seven home runs in any single season. With how uneventful his career was with the Twins, he might be more known for the homophobic Twitter rant he went on earlier this year. Other notables: Danny Lehmann, C (8th round, pick 272), Steve Hirschfeld, RHP (9th round, pick 302) (Statistics current as of games played on May 29, 2012)

Original post from North Dakota Twins Fan In preparation for next week's MLB First Year Player Draft, I have put together some short draft capsules to look at the prospects the Twins have taken with their early round picks in recent memory. In the coming days, I will release these list with some short profiles on what the players have done since joining the organization. Selecting the right players in the draft can separate a winning club from a losing club so it is important to know what the Twins have done in the past. ~~~~~~~~~~ http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-AhH4IioaBPk/T8ZIYfWrAnI/AAAAAAAABgw/ToJHE5MkI-A/s320/BenRevereCatch.jpg 1st Round Pick 28: Ben Revere, OF Current Level: MLB Minnesota Twins .300/.344/.417, 5 2B, 1 3B, 1 RBI, 8 R Fans of the Twins saw a lot of what Ben Revere could offer the club in 2011 when he played in 117 games as a rookie. His speed and defensive skills thrilled fans across baseball and his tremendous catch in a game at Target Field will be replayed for years to come. In 2012, Revere started the year in Minnesota but the team sent him to Rochester to get more playing time and to find success at a level he basically skipped in the minors. He is back with the club and his offense has looked more promising because of the amount of extra-base hits he has managed to accumulate. Last season, he looked like he would only be a singles hitter; but if he can continue to find extra-base hits, he could be very valuable asset for the club. 2nd Round Pick 92: Danny Rams, C Current Level: A+ Fort Myers Miracle .057/.195/.057, 0 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R Since signing with the Twins out of the draft, Rams has run into some difficulties with hitting the ball. So far in 2012, he only has two hits to his name in 41 plate appearances for the Miracle and neither of those hits are for extra bases. He is a decent defensive catcher but he is going to need to make some strides at the plate for the Twins to keep him around in the organization. As a 23-year old light hitting catcher that is in High-A for the second year in a row, time could be running thin for him to prove to the Twins that he was worth the second round selection. 3rd Round Pick 122: Angel Morales, OF Current Level: A+ Fort Myers Miracle .214/.272/.277, 5 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 8 RBI, 16 R The 22-year old outfield prospect is spending his second summer in Fort Myers after missing a big chunk of last season with an injury. Morales ranks as one of the best prospects in the organization even though he is off to a slow start to the 2012 season. He combines power and speed to be an offensive threat and his defense is also above average in the outfield. Between 2010-2012, he has played 150 games at the High-A level so it would be nice to see him turn things around for the second half of this year. He is still young enough that there will be plenty of hope following him as he moves his way through the system. 4th Round Pick 152: Reggie Williams, 3B Highest Level (w/ Twins): A+ Fort Myers Miracle Williams spent the last four years in the Twins minor league system and he never really put it together. After being drafted as a third baseman, the Twins wanted Williams to develop into a power threat but he failed to hit over seven home runs in any single season. With how uneventful his career was with the Twins, he might be more known for the homophobic Twitter rant he went on earlier this year. Other notables: Danny Lehmann, C (8th round, pick 272), Steve Hirschfeld, RHP (9th round, pick 302) (Statistics current as of games played on May 29, 2012)