Smcginnity

At the time in the draft, the Sam Clay pick baffled me and his stats are backing that up. He probably wouldn't even have been drafted until the 20th rounds yet the Twins took him in what? The 3rd or 4th? Makes no sense!

Yesterday I looked at the standings and although we are only 6.5 games out of first, that could be 10+ in less than a week the way the Royals are playing. Also, we are 7th worst in all of MLB according to record. So, if we become sellers, who goes? I would assume Morales is definitely gone. Suzuki is a nice trade chip. Willingham could get a decent AA or High-A player. The way Correia is pitching the last couple starts, he may fetch a decent prospect too. So, here's what I got: Morales - Yes (unless he has a no trade clause?) Suzuki - Maybe (depends how much they value him for next year over Pinto) Willingham - Yes (this is obvious) Correia - If someone comes hunting for him, then absolutely Yes Who else from there? Nunez? Fien? Burton? Plouffe? Hicks? Diamond? It will be interesting if we are in a sell-mode because we have LOTS to get rid of to open spots for youngsters.

Simple answer - YES

So, then we are just waiting on Burdi (which sounds done basically) and Curtiss? Then, it's just additional "hopefuls" at that point?

If you go to Jake Reed's Twitter (jakeyreed5), he's saying his goodbyes to Oregon so this is a done deal from the sounds of it even though he's a Junior. So, he should be finalizing just fine.

There are some under the radar guys that I keep seeing pop up in the box scores of these reports. The first one and most impressive has been Todd Van Steensel. This guy seems to be a stud. Jason Kanzler and Ryan Walker are the others I keep seeing. These may be some quality prospects in a couple years.

Zach Granite is back today! Ivory Thomas tried to provide the same level of play during his absence and wasn't able to sustain it. Ivory Thomas was released and Granite was brought off the DL to play today. Can't wait to see how it goes!

Keaton Steele looks good! Like his outlook. Power arm that looked really good in his final starts (when he got the opportunity)

Keaton Steele looks good! Like his outlook. Power arm that looked really good in his final starts (when he got the opportunity)

I wish they would just release Diamond and bring up Rogers or Gilmartin and then slot Berrios in AA and slot Stewart in high A.

I agree with this. And, I think they need to keep addressing it head on. Pitchers are the most valuable commodity to have. You can always trade pitchers for hitters but not always the other way around. Draft pitchers early always, I my opinion. That's why I'm all in on the Nola, Toussaint, Holmes, Aiken, bandwagon

Ugh. This was a disappointing read. Seriously...Vargas is the only true positive out of this it feels like Vargas needs to move up to AAA in my opinion. The guy is ready. Meyer is the epitome of frustration. How can you be so dominant and then so mediocre.

Polanco is so ready to move up and be challenged. The kid is a stud. The middle infield future is bright with Rosario, Meija, Santana, Dozier and Polanco

I'll be following Cedar Rapids Kernals Outfielder (CF) Zach Granite and his progress. Granite is a native of Staten Island, NY and was selected by the MN Twins in the 2013 first year player draft in the 14th round. Granite played college ball at Seton Hall where he was a standout player. Zach "The Flash" Granite as he was called at Seton Hall was a stolen base efficiency machine swiping 68 of the 79 steals he attempted during his three years at Seton Hall. His college freshman year he was named Big East co-freshman player of the year, awarded all-NJCBA first team honors, and selected to the Big East All-tournament team. His freshman year Granite batted .290 with a .396 OBP% and .342 SLG% Granite's sophomore campaign included all-big east third team honors. Granite started all 41 games and led the team and Big East with 21 stolen bases. He tied for the team lead with 34 runs scored, ranked second on the team in batting average (.302), second on the team in walks (23), second on team in OBP% (.387) and second on team in triples (3). He also completed the season with a perfect fielding percentage and was honored as a Big East Academic All-Star. So...he's smart too! In Granite's final season at Seton Hall (his junior season), he collected a ton of honors! He was named to the All-Big East first team, named to the Rawlings/ABCA All-East Region Second Team, named to the NJCBA First Team, named Seton Hall Junior Male Athlete of the Year, he started all 56 games in CF. Granite batted .304 with a .390 OBP% in his final season. Granite also led the team and ranked second in the Big East with 35 stolen bases. He led the team and ranked second in the Big East with 59 runs scored. He tied for second in the Big East with 6 triples. Granite also tallied 21 multiple hit games which was tied for second most on the team. He was named Big East Player of the Week when he batted .444 with 5 RBIs and 6 stolen bases in four games vs. Wagner and Houston. And AGAIN, he was named a Big East Academic All-Star in his final season at Seton Hall. After Granite was drafted in 2013, the Twins were excited to get him. scouting director Deron Johnson had the following to say at the time "He can really run. He's a plus runner, not a lot of power, but he's got good bat control. He plays a small man's game. He's a good bunter and he can spray the ball around; he's a gap-type hitter." Granite was sent to Elizabethton where he didn't slow down. Granite was inserted as the leadoff hitter and continued to rake. He finished the season batting .286 with a .386 OBP% and a SLG% of .343. He finished with 16 stolen bases which was 3rd in the Appalachian League. He was third in the Appalachian League in hits as well with 69. Granite also led the Appalachian League in at bats with 242. He was also ranked 5th in the league in runs scored. Granite was also the only Appy League all-star from the Twins organization in 2013. This season Granite will start at Cedar Rapids as the starting Center fielder. You will also notice that Twins Daily ranked Zach Granite the most underrated hitter on the Cedar Rapids Kernals. Although Granite is not huge at 6'1 and 175 pounds, the boy can run which of course, can lead to hits and a potential long-term leadoff hitter if he maintains plate discipline. Granite bats left and throws left as well. Here's a great image of the type of player he is:

My problem isn't his stats but his lack of clutch hitting. The guy clearly does not deserve $25 million but we are now stuck with that monstrosity of a contract. When you are the face of the team, do something special. 4 for 4 with 4 singles doesn't do anything for me. Mix in some extra base hits and big hits in clutch situations! Just gets so frustrating with him

I'll pass on Diaz and Verkerk for now. Maybe in 2015.

Ok! I'm taking Zach Granite

So, can we follow someone like Lewan Diaz or Verkerk?

Nevermind. My CTRL F didn't find Thorpe for some reason. I see it now

Whoa! Am I missing something or is Lewis Thorpe not taken yet??

wow. I'm so mad at this team right now. How can you honestly decide to keep Bartlett on the team!?? Unbelievable. I'm so sick of these decisions. Go young! It's the only shot we have at making any type of run which is already very minimal.

I think Diamond is going to make a great long reliever. He reminds me of a younger Duensing. If you look at his numbers, he seems to always get hit hard the second time through the lineup but does great the first couple/three innings. I would love to have him as the primary long reliever. Bartlett is done. Let him go! Parmelee is tough to gauge...would I prefer him over Kubel? Not sure...but he's younger and with similar production and flexibility to play OF and 1B so...yes, I probably prefer him over Kubel but let's be honest. That's not going to happen!

I'm not sure if my comment was deleted the other day but I vented a little bit about Gardy and his enabling tendencies. I don't think I said anything inappropriate but here it goes again. Gardy still has Bartlett on the roster...why? Because he's a "veteran" and he's comfortable with him. He does this far too often and I'm getting so frustrated with it. I miss the days of Tom Kelly where he drops guys to the minors for not doing the little things (sac flies, sac bunts, hitting the other way, etc.). Veterans are given far too much leeway in comparison to the youngsters and the veterans barely get blamed in comparison as well. If he really bats Suzuki second, I will be very, very disappointed. So, you want to keep Kubel on the roster? Fine, I get it. He's two years removed from good production. Colabello deserves a spot with his production. Parmalee should be traded or be attempted to sneak through waivers. I'm just getting so sick of Gardy's unwillingness to adjust to modern baseball strategies (platooning, sabermetrics, etc.). Gardy is far too old school and in my opinion, this needs to be his last year.

Yea, it's pretty amazing the opportunities that exist for these things today. I think my buddy and I are going to try and catch him for a game in KC since that's where I live.

This guy is writing a book about spirituality and baseball. He is visiting every baseball part in the U.S. this summer and writing about his experience. Above is the link to his kick starter and his request for assistance/lodging. I heard about this today and thought I'd pass it along.