Dman

Yeah with no Elizabethton short season this year there is going to be a high level of competition for those A ball spots to start the year. To me there seems to be a jam up in A ball for 2nd base and SS positions. With Javier and Severino having injured or bad years and needing to repeat A ball will there be room for Holland and Julien or Prato or Santana or Tademo? There are going to be some tougher decisions to make this year. The Twins took a ton of pitchers in 2019 and there won't be room for all of them in A ball either. Good players are going to just have to play against each other I guess. The GCL will be no picnic either as there are tons of young guys that could use the challenge like Urbina, Diaz, Aguiar, Baez, and Rosario and that doesn't even include the guys they will be drafting in 2021. Competition levels will be higher than ever before for spots in levels. I don't think systems will have room for late bloomers anymore. Independent leagues might end up with some pretty good talent to pick from at some point. This year is going to be very interesting to watch.

I followed Sands fairly closely last year and am a huge fan. I feel like he just attacks guys and dares them to hit his stuff. I know he has had some minor injuries but golly gee whiz he is fun to follow. If he can continue that type of production at AA and AAA look out he could be crazy good. Urbina is off to a great start and has the look of a star in the making but has a loooong way to go yet. Here's to hoping his bat continues to translate up the levels. I know it is a small sample size at the end of a long season but call me somewhat unimpressed with Wallner. The K rate is concerning and I don't feel like he dominated the lower levels that a good bat should dominate. I'm not saying he is horrible just that I have my concerns. Rooker surprised me. I thought he might be lost in the Majors but he was same hitter as he was at AAA. He has a big bat. I don't love him in the outfield but when Cruz is gone, if he ever is gone, Rooker seems like a decent replacement. I love what Celestino did at the end of A ball but A ball is not the true test. High A is the true test. I am curious to see if can keep things going as he moves up. If he can wow what a find. He and Buxton can probably share time if it comes to that or they can move him all over the outfield and improve the defense. He has a way to go and I hope he makes it because he could give the team great depth. There are some very good players in this mix it is just hard to say if they can pick up where they left off.

From what I read I believe the knock on Maeda is that he became less effective as the season wore on, thus the reliever role. It isn't often that a season is only going to be 60 games so I am not sure what to think just yet. Since we don't have a huge budget having a top of the rotation starter for the money he makes might be the biggest benefit the Twins got in the deal. It is incredibly hard to find a pitcher of his quality for the price commanded for the years of control. I don't see Graterol getting worse unless he ends up injured in a significant way so it is not like the Dodgers got robbed but trading a starter for a reliever usually makes it hard to win a trade. I think if Graterol reaches elite status as a reliever and the second round pick works out then the trade is closer. I think you need to look at this trade in greater context though. The Dodgers weren't concerned about "winning" this trade. They had guys to fill his spot and needed to put Price on the roster to help facilitate the Betts trade. If you add that in then the Dodgers came out just fine by getting one of the best players in baseball. I also wouldn't discount the second round pick. The Dodgers have been pretty darn good at identifying arms that can transition to MLB. I am sure they did their due diligence on the guys arm and they wouldn't have picked him in the second round if they didn't think he would make it. Friedman rarely loses a trade and I wouldn't bet against him on this one either, but even if he does lose this trade in the end he came out ahead with Betts and got something for a guy he felt they didn't have room for anyway. In essence from his perspective he has already won the trade as with the moves he made they won a World Series but yes in a vacuum this trade looks like a good one for Minnesota as well.

I don't know what to think of Ober with a fastball under 90 MPH and yet the K rate is crazy good and it has always been good. Fangraphs can't come up with a profile like his that has succeeded in MLB. Maybe he can do it maybe he can't but we need to find out soon as I believe he will be 26 in July. I have been disappointed in Miranda for a while now. I agree with what you have to say but it needs to show on the field hopefully this is the year. I don't know what to think about Solarie. I know they grabbed him for his hit tool and if he can play 2nd and left field that is good by me. I read somewhere that some scouts don't see the bat translating to MLB. I guess we will know more after this year or next but taking a guy with a good eye and good contact can't be a bad thing can it? I'll let other drool over Rortvedt. I think he is solid behind the plate but would like to see a better hit tool. Maybe this is the year? Colina has a plus slider but I believe the fastball lacks movement. I know it was just one shot in MLB but I am not sure the fastball will play there. He has had a lot of success and reliever seems like the best spot for him to succeed so hopefully he finds what he needs to be elite out of the pen. I like all of these guys but another year to evaluate should better help see where they are and whether they can make it or not.

I am hoping that Will Holland can find his stroke and prove he should have been a 1st round draft pick in 2019. We really could use another up the middle prospect with speed that could move fairly fast. So hopefully he has a good year. Out of this list I am the most excited about Windor. He had a really, really good first full season in A ball and if that velocity increase is for real I have a really good feeling he could be a mid rotation starter. So far most all of it is hype but hoping he shows he is ready to back it up. I haven't been hearing a ton of buzz about Chalmers but I am a big believer in him as a reliever. Would be nice to hear that his change up is improving and that his fastball gained more movement but I haven't heard a thing so really waiting to see how he does in an extended season of work. I got to watch Spencer Steer in Beloit and he looked good at the plate although he did go 0 for 3 that night. Nice eye at the plate, good hard swing, he looks like a hitter but he'll need to be better to make it. For pitcher I am betting on Windor to make the most movement on this list and I am going out on a limb and saying Holland for the bat, stolen bases and defense to move him up the rankings. Let's see if those other guys can prove me wrong.

Nick that was a great article absolutely loved it! Very well written. I totally agree with you as well. The luster has worn off for all of us but you can't keep a ball player like Willians down for long. I think he bounces back and I too like his versatility for this team. If there are injuries he is a great player to plug in. I am still a believer. I just love what he brings to the game. I admire that despite his physical limitations he can play the game at the highest level. He might not be a superstar but he is an inspiration to many of us. He's had some tough times but this guy is a fighter I think he finds some of that magic again this year. Can't wait to watch him play.

Not sure I can agree with you on Lewis. None of the players ahead of him have 5 tool potential he is the only one and prospect lists are based on potential not stats. I agree his hit tool is suspect and he might not be a 5 tool player in the end but he is only 22 with only one bad year so far. I think it is too early to have him that low. Surprised by your Kirilloff, Larnach switch but I can get behind it. I know Kirilloff's bat is "special" but having a good eye and making pitchers work is a very important if underrated skill to have and Larnach has it. I think I still like Kirilloff slightly better as I think he has the better power profile but I can see your point. No one has put Jeffers that high mainly based on potential but I agree catchers who can hit and defend are rare and should be treated as the special commodity they are. Two is a little high for me but again I can see it so not that big of a deal for me. I was more disappointed than you with Wallner. Granted he hasn't had much time to prove himself but I am questioning the bat a bit right now. I wouldn't have him this high yet but it is such a small sample size I could be wrong. He has the arm for right but is still a bit of liability defensively there since he doesn't run that well so that brings him down some for me. Power is his calling card but the bat needs to be special to be in this territory IMO and I am not sure it is just yet.

Yeah I did hear the FO believes Chalmers can start and they might know best but he is a pitcher that has had high WHIPs pretty much all the way up and that's not good for a starter. He has already had TJ surgery once so I don't think I would push it. Fangraph's has him as a reliever and I think the Twins should keep him as a reliever. I mean they already have Balazovich, Duran, and Canterino on the rise with Sands and maybe Windor not far behind with starter type arm's that haven't needed TJ to this point. He has never pitched over 60 innings in a season to date why tempt fate? Chalmer's is a potential elite pen arm and I think he is best suited to that role. Ober is technically a starter and has the WHIP to be one but almost no one at the MLB level throws as slow as he does with any success. He is a control artist that teams would likely catch on to the third time around if not sooner. He has also complained about how his body feels after pitching and he has been hurt pretty much every year. Again Fangraphs has him pegged for the pen and I tend to agree. He has a variety of pitches that could make him good to elite out of the pen and isn't exactly young turning 26 this July. I think the pen is the most likely place he finds success and they need to figure out if he can be successful at the higher levels or not as he is taking up a valuable 40 man spot. I would hope the Twins would put both of those players in the roles their bodies are most acclimated for and give them a chance to make the MLB sooner rather than later.

I think that list looks pretty accurate. I agree Thorpe has the inside track on a spot as he is a lefty without options. Ian Hamilton looks very interesting and like someone who could help this year in low leverage situations. I think he has good enough control that we could see him this year. I wouldn't sleep on Chalmers and Ober as they are not not on the 40 man just to take up space. I know Chalmers has control problems but if we are expecting the Twins to fix Anderson then they should be able to help Chalmers who has a good fastball and elite curveball. Ober is a long shot but he has had some very good results in the past. He actually has good control and could leap frog all the other guys with control problems if he continues to have success with his repertoire of pitches.

Cruz did the right thing by waiting to see if the NL got the DH. He was right to try and get the Twins to give him two years as he just gave them two years of outstanding production. If I was in charge of the FO i probably would have bent for the two years. The FO came out OK on this one only because they had a solid plan B. Although I think that plan might have back fired if they lost Cruz but I guess we will find out this year when we see if Cruz continues to Cruz or regress. It is the best outcome the FO could have gotten IMO and if Cruz does well this year I think this works out well for him as well as there will be big bidders for his services once the NL has the DH likely next year. So Kudos to both sides I think in the end they both will get what they wanted.

Personally I don't think it will be Tortuga. If they have injuries his versatility is too nice an asset to remove. I don't remember who said it but someone on the board mentioned it and I agree that the Twins don't need three relief pitcher Slider plus pitch waiver claims on the 40 man. One of them needs to go. Colina and Chalmers are essentially the same type of pitcher as those three so there is plenty of redundancy there. I think it will be Gibaut or Waddell I have no idea who they like better Waddell looks more like a normal pitcher but from what I read Gibaut supposedly has wicked spin on his slider. IMO it really needs to be one of those guys.

Of all the waiver claims stat wise this one is the best one this year. At least this guy can throw strikes and his low WHIP means he doesn't walk many and doesn't give up tons of hits. I wonder why other teams ahead of us didn't want to pick him up? Too many full 40 man's? IMO I think this was a decent pickup for a change.

It has got to be Gibaut or Waddell. They only need so many pitchers on the 40 man. My vote is Gibaut but might be wrong as I think he has a good slider as well but you guessed it control problems. HIs high WHIP is holding him back. I like Waddells line a little better but both of those guys could be AAAA players as their stuff hasn't played well at the higher levels. I guess we will know soon enough what the Twins think.

Thanks for the article. I was wondering how he walked so many guys and I guess now we know why. Appears to be over-throwing his fastball. Isn't this somewhat the same issue Poppen was having? He is going to need two pitches he can rely on to make it so hopefully the Twins can tame him somewhat. I have my doubts but the FO has made me look bad before so I will wait and see on this one.

You could be right. The trade does appear to be a wash the more I look into it. I just like Wades odds better. He was never below an 800 OPS through AA. He did struggle in AAA (700 OPS) and MLB ( under 700 OPS avg.) so as the pitching got better he had a harder time making good contact. Having a good eye at the plate should help him though as he adjusts to the pitching at the higher levels. He hasn't had a ton of MLB at bats. His kryptonite though is power. He is OBP over power and likely always will be. In todays game that can be a liability that keeps him in the 4th outfielder position. Still I think he has a chance for greater impact than the pitcher we received in trade but that is just my opinion. Anderson who was a starter had OK numbers coming up but his K rate was never great. The higher the level the higher his hits allowed and WHIP so he gives up a lot of contact and knows it so tries to dance around the zone. He does appear to have an elite slider but right now it looks like he needs his fastball to improve as he is giving up too many hits and too many walks. Granted those numbers were better at the lower levels of MiLB ball but very concerning when it comes to MLB ball. He looks kind of like Poppen to me at this point although his slider is probably better. While the Twins did well with Harper and Wisler (in a shortened season) It seems there might be limits to what they can achieve with these types of players. Once teams figured out Harper he was far less effective and the Twins let Wisler walk for peanuts so they seem to understand the limits of what these guys bring. Harper had a decent K rate last year but his ERA was 7.61 with 1.61 WHIP. If he wasn't hitting with his breaking stuff guys waited for his fastball and that was that. Yeah his K percentage was decent but you need two good to very good pitches to make it. I am not sure Anderson has that. Relievers that make it have to have a pitch that they trust they can put in the zone and dare the batter to make solid contact. Right now the numbers don't show that to be the case. He was a starter though so he does have three pitches to work with so that might help. Can the Twins turn him around and make him better I think they can but I am not sure they can make these cast off types last for long. If they can help him find another gear and get the walks under control then I am happy to agree with you but I think that is a lot of ifs. I mean I think Colina and Chalmers likely have equal or better stuff than this guy. If they can't fix those guys how are they going to fix Anderson? I like Andersons potential I really do and I agree with you that there was no room for Wade. Carrying 7 outfielders on the 40 man was a burden so the Twins are better off this way. I just believe in Wade soo much and know more about him that I believe the Giants will get the better end of this deal in the end.

This is good take on the situation and I concur with your analysis. They were always going to need to trade Wade as he doesn't have the power the Twins crave and his batting average wasn't great. Yeah his OBP was good to great at times but he was always going to be 4th outfielder material IMO. Don't get me wrong the Giants get a very good player. A batter with a good eye and a tough out but he is flawed as well. This move frees up space for Larnach who needs to be added next year and they get a reliever with traits they like and have done well with in the past. I still think the Giants got the better deal but as others have noted it can be hard to get anything in trade for 4th outfielders and at least they got something for Wade instead of nothing. With Cave, Kirilloff, Rooker and Larnach in the wings Wade was taking up 40 man space. Kudos to the FO again for at least getting something instead of nothing for a guy that just wasn't in a good spot to make this team. A relief pitcher with his stuff and options could come in pretty handy this year so personally I like this deal for the Twins as well.

Hard to believe I am saying this but Jimmy P. is stepping up and giving the team a chance. Baseball is fickle and things have to go right to get where we want to go but I am happy he is digging deep to get it done for a change. It was a loooong rebuild to get back to this point with many years being more excited about the farm than the actual club. We all suffered through that so I am glad he isn't selling the team short. No guarantee that spending money gets you where you want to be but it sure can help. After the Cruz signing I figured they were done. After the Colome signing I assumed it would only be minor league signings so it is interesting to hear that they are ready to pull the Trigger and make more moves. While I wouldn't mind a few more vets I am wondering who they plan to bump off the 40 man when they do make those moves.

The 40 man is now full. If they want to add more they will have to subtract first. Do you think they would let go of Gibaut or Waddell to add Clippard or try for one of the starters on a one year deal or are they done now and rolling with what they have? I am not sure what to think of Colome as I usually like to see guys with high K rates but it looks like he is guy who gets the job done. Price seems about right so not complaining there. I still think one of the young guys they have in AA or AAA might be able to come up and help this year if needed so they should be in pretty good shape.

And keep in mind Arraez has had knee problems so they can protect him if needed by having other players pitch in. I think getting Arraez more rest will be beneficial to keeping him healthy so I think this is a good strategy all the way around.

Totally agree with this. In the years we didn't stand a chance I was OK with where they had payroll at. Now we have a decent team, a team that could get hot and win it all. Need to open it up and give this team the most opportunity we can for success. Another starter would help. I hope they get someone for that last 40 man spot.

I am happy with that deal. It is right in the ballpark or what I hoped they could get him for. I presume this will be the last year we have him as they will likely open the DH for the NL next year and we might get priced out or he falls off a cliff and nobody wants him. I am not too worried if Cruz gets hurt as the Twins have a decent backup plan of rotating guys through the DH spot so this is pretty much a win, win IMO. I am a little worried about starting pitching as there will be injuries but I guess the Twins feel OK with the Thorpe\Smeltzer combo if too many guys go down. Here is hoping for another move or two to help with pitching.

I think those are good points we definitely could get priced out on Cruz. I don't think the FO wants to spend much more than they have in the past for Cruz. Cruz isn't getting younger so I can see why he wants a two year deal. It was a two year deal that brought him to the Twins granted one was an option year. Not sure what the bidding for Odo is but I find it doubtful that they would bring him back on a three year deal. He always has trouble the third time through the order and last year was injured and he isn't exactly young for a pitcher either. I think they get priced out there as well. Ozuna just doesn't make sense given all the slow plodding hitters the Twins have currently and stacked in the system. I don't see them going bullpen unless it is a lower priced one year deal as they have Colina and Chalmers pretty much ready to go and they I think they need to keep Gibaut and Waddell on the 40 man as well so they have options. Ober would likely be used in relief as well so I don't see them being too worried when it comes to relief. Paxton and Walker seem like possibilities if they come with one year deals. Next year Twins might need to bring up Canterino, Duran and Balazovic so might need a spot or two next year anyway. Also they could pitch in relief for the big club if absolutely needed. With the exception of Cruz I think it is bargain time or they are done. They will roll with what they have.

Really nice write up. Balanced with good and bad. Particularly enjoyed the Enlow and Cavaco write ups. I like where you placed Cavaco as well. There are too many unknowns to have him in the top 10 IMO. His bat and pitch recognition don't appear to have ever been strong and that can spell doom for many prospects. He obviously is gifted physically and if he could manage to be a five tool player he will have been a steal in that spot. Personally I think he sells out for power and ends up at third but a guy can dream. There is a fairly decent chance the bat never comes around ala Corey Ray of the Brewers. Loved the write up on Sabato and agree. The Twins don't seem to care about physical attributes as long as a strong hit tool profile is there. That philosophy probably makes sense until your farm system is full of guys like that. In a vacuum that pick makes sense but given we have a fleet of slow footed hitters there is a point where picks like that make less sense. They could focus on pitching in the higher rounds at least one year every five or so. I like what you wrote and my board would be similar. Might have Cantarino a little higher given all the helium but he fine where you have him as well. Thanks for sharing!

Not excited to face Rosario multiple times per year I think the Indians got a good deal there but he does have his flaws. We'll see how well he handles this coming year.

Yep Arraez never made a top 100 list and now other teams drool over the prospect of finding a way to get him on their team. It just shows the limitations of top100 lists as there are players that break all the rules and become great despite their supposed limited potential.