BabyJesusBuxton

It is safe to say that there is not currently a SS within the organization that will provide both the defense needed and an OPS above 0.750. Everyone continues to bring up Florimon's bat as the reason he shouldn't play everyday but the way I see it is you can either have terrible defense and give the other teams extra runs, or have a subpar bat and lose offensive production. IMO it is more beneficial to have the latter, eliminate defensive miscues, and play small ball with the subpar bat at the bottom of the order as the Twins did with the Piranhas of the early 2000s. With that approach I think Florimon will be serviceable for foreseeable future. Everyone knows that both developing all star caliber SS and finding one on the FA market is not easy. Most SS prospects either change positions due to range/arm strength issues or don't pan out with the bat and most teams tend to lock up elite SS long term ASAP.

I don't see anyone currently in the starting rotation either at AAA or with the Twins replacing one of the current bullpen members barring injury or trading Burton/Perkins. The bullpen has been a large factor in the amount of success the Twins have had and I don't see why Gardy/TR would want to mess with what has been a very good unit. If one of the AAAA pitchers without options has to be sent down and doesn't clear waivers it just makes the short term starting picture clearer until the prospects arrive.

Ramirez is still dealing with concussion symptoms.

It's not necessarily that Clete should play over Hicks but rather what is best for Hicks' development. Honestly, I don't know if time at AAA will be beneficial or not but I have seen Hicks improving his approach at the plate since April. If it is decided he will remain with the Twins after this DL stint I am okay with that especially for the his defense in center.

As a Twins fan I am excited to watch Gibson pitch in person and watch him develop as a MLB pitcher instead of hearing about his starts as a prospect in the minors! His addition, along with Hicks and Arcia, has made this year enjoyable to watch for the most part (albeit I had low expectations coming into the year which helps keep it enjoyable as apposed to frustrating). I have to say that Gibson getting called up may have been merited about a month ago based on his performance at AAA and the performance of the Twins rotation as a whole. However, there have been several valid points others have brought up or hinted at that may shed light as to why it took as long as it has. (I chose not to go back through the 7 pages of irrelevant posts about negativity to find previous quotes) 1. Super 2 status. Although the FO will never admit this was a reason for delaying a promotion, I believe this did factor into the decision a small amount to the extent that the Twins kept him in the minors for an extra start or two. 2. Extra time for guys in the rotation. Giving the current rotation members time to either A. improve their numbers prior to the trade deadline to increase trade value (ie Pelfrey) or B. give the younger pitchers enough time to provide a larger sample to judge future potential on (ie Walters). 3. Season Outcome. The Twins are in a rebuilding year so there wasn't a huge hurry for Gibson to help the Twins win games to the extent that it would change the season's outcome. Whether he makes 8 starts or 20 starts this year I don't see that as being the difference between making the playoffs vs. trying to play 0.500 ball. Most benefits of having Gibson in the majors this year relates to the typical Twins fan. By this I mean your neighbor who makes it to one game a year, watches a couple games on TV each week, but doesn't really get into prospects, advanced metrics, etc. I think this person makes up a majority of the Twins fan base. To these fans Gibson was one of the biggest names they have heard of and his promotion should sell some extra tickets and jerseys and boost interest in the Twins season.

Agreed but all that basically means is that he has a pulse.

1. The park factor doesn't make up the difference on a 5.76 ERA and 1.54 WHIP to the point where it is worth the money he is being paid. 2. My main point was that with the SP available on the free agent market, that was attainable by the Twins, there weren't really any good options out there that would put the Twins into contention for a final playoff spot. We are better off using in house options with the hope that we can find another "Diamond" in the rough (pun intended) and not signing mediocre pitching that will block young prospects from the rotation in the next couple years. For every 1 FA pitcher from last off season you can find that is performing well, my guess is that I could find 2-3 at the same price range with poor numbers.

I think the trades for quality starting pitching prospects with high upside was a must with the Twins situation at the end of the year last year. Especially considering the free agent market. (Just think we could have Edwin Jackson's bloated 5+ ERA right now for the minimal price tag of 52 million over 4 years.. Or Lohse at 33 million/3 years and give up our 2nd round pick) With that said I think our CF situation now is only a short term issue brought on by injury. Hicks has been improving since his horrid April which is what the Twins want out of him - to continue to develop. People are blowing the arbitration issue way out of proportion. IMO he is more valuable to the Twins now than he will be in his final year of arbitration because of the outfield talent coming up in the minors. If he can play a sound CF while learning to hit MLB pitching he will have a lineup spot for the next few years (until Baby Jesus arrives). The fact that Benson was lost on waivers (not released as some people seem to think) shortens the list of viable options but with the offensive numbers he was putting up in AAA there is no guarantee he would have been called up anyways.

Here is a related link to Baseball America's Draft database. It includes the amount each player is signed for, and the current amount of the pool used vs allotted value. Worth taking a look at as more players are signed. 2013 MLB Draft Signings Central - BaseballAmerica.com Here is a list of the slot values for the top 10 picks. Each pick after has an allotment not to exceed $100,000.: TWINS Round Pick Assigned Value 1 4 $4,544,400 2 43 $1,294,100 3 78 $703,000 4 110 $468,200 5 140 $350,500 6 170 $262,500 7 200 $196,600 8 230 $158,600 9 260 $148,100 10 290 $138,400 Bonus Pool $8,264,400

I don't think I would be very excited to see Morneau shipped so that a career minor league player 3 years younger gets additional playing time. The only way I would be happy with him being traded, regardless of who gets additional playing time is if the return is a top 150 prospect. Otherwise, it makes more sense for the Twins to offer him a qualifying one year deal at the end of the year and get an additional draft pick next year if he opts to go elsewhere. As long as Arcia and Parmelee are getting everyday at bats I would rather see Morneau in a Twins uni for the remainder of the year.