Dman

That is a pretty nice list as well. Depending on how Graterol looks in camp he could get the nod to start this year will have to wait and see. Love your Sands pick. I have been watching him and he got better as the year went on. I don't think he has premium velocity but I think he has very solid secondaries. They should start him in AA This will be a big year for him. If he continues to do well he could end up in MLB this year. Not quite as low on Gordon as you are. He might not quite have what it takes to be a starter but I still think he might be a bit of a late bloomer with the man muscles. Once he fills out I still believe he can play shortstop and if not certainly play second base. We'll see how it turns out as this is yet another big year for him.

For me I would say Rhodery Diaz from the DSL. He hit 319/406.458 for a 864 OPS. I believe he is also a center fielder. Not a lot of guys hit 300 at his age in the DSL so I think he has very good contact skills. Donny Breek is another one to watch. He has done well the last two years. I don't think he is an uber hard thrower just yet but he just turned 20 so probably a little more in the tank yet. Osiris German I believe throws a little bit harder and will turning 21 hope to see him A ball this year. His K9 looks pretty good so hoping there is something there. I also will be keeping my eye on Will Holland and Eduard Jullian to see if the Twins might have gotten a couple of steals there.

Given the off-season the FO had so far they have to be banking on the fact that Thorpe is a legitimate starter this year and one that will have decent results. Otherwise why leave the slots open? Out of Smeltzer, Dobnak and Poppen, Thorpe has the best stuff IMO. Really the only thing holding him back is his fastball as it is far too hittable. If he can fix or improve that then I really believe he can be a mid rotation starter. If he can't then I think last years results pretty much define who he is as a pitcher moving forward. I mean even fangraphs acknowledged that he could have number three stuff because his secondaries are good enough. It is the fastball that somehow, someway has to get better. I sure hope the Twins know what they are doing.

If they do lose someone I hope it is Wisler as he can't be sent down as he has no options left. I don't love Harper but he was fairly effective especially early in the year. I assume that is why the Twins are hanging onto him as long as possible. I don't know if Poppens stuff will translate to MLB but would be nice to give him a longer shot than what he got last year. The Twins could also try and work a trade for Raley or Wade to clear a spot. They technically have one too many outfielders on the 40 man IMO. Needing to add Celestino this early kind of hurt and while Wade and Raley are nice 4th outfielder options we have Kirilloff and Larnach not far off in fact they might be ready later this year if things go right. Lot's of possibilities but my first choice would be Wisler.

I agree. They must really believe the farm is going to produce what they need. I sure hope Graterol, Duran and Balazovic turn into something this year or next year could be brutal for us.

I don't see them doing this but who knows. I still think they trade for a starter and I am starting to believe they believe they have the other starters they need in the system already. Why not use Thorpe and Smeltzer as they are likely as good as most other number 5 starters out there. Not sure if they want to depend on Graterol or not but if he comes in looking good this spring he looks like a decent option for a spot. You still have Poppen and Duran that should be able to fill in as well. They must believe those guys provide enough depth or they would have been more desperate to add Ryu than they were. I really think for good or ill they want to use the farm to supplement what they have rather than risk future payroll flexibility. I am sure they would also like to see if they can get a few more extensions done as well. They were right last year when all of us were worried about the pen. They believed in the guys they had and it worked out. Maybe that is the same plan they have for the starters this year?

That is a balanced article and comes to the same conclusion I posted earlier. Things have to go right with the young players for the Sox to win the division but the talent is there and they match up to us even closer than I originally thought. If the Indians or Twins stumble out of the gate Chicago could be tough to catch. Lots of things can happen between April and October and injuries and depth will play a role. The best team will win it in the end. I hope that team is the Twins.

The Sox need a lot of things to break right to win the division this year IMO. They lack depth for starting pitching and their infield. That being said if their pitching and infield hold up this year and Madrigal and Robert perform well then why couldn't they take the division? There lineup which used to be their weakness will be a strength. They have some young pitching with top of the rotation stuff. Their only other big weakness might be their bullpen. Their team has some warts and like I said things need to break right for them to take the division but they are getting close to being an elite team if you ask me.

He started the year off almost unhittable with a low ERA and Good K rate. As the year went on he seemed to wear down. Once back in the pen at the end of the year he did well again. He is not a sure thing by any means but I think you might be selling him short. He also has a chance to be an elite reliever with a few tweeks, He has a ways to go yet but I am very interested to see what he can do for a full season as a reliever. FYI most scouts always had him pegged as reliever from the beginning so thinking of him as a long term starter seemed a bit pie in the sky to me. If he doesn't pan out that makes the Pressly trade more brutal. Have to wait and see yet though.

I agree. If there budget is 130M and they sign Donaldson then there is no room for Ryu. Maybe room for a bounce-back starter or they would need to trade for some one. Otherwise they have to rely on the farm and I don't think that would be a good idea. They must have a plan though. They know they need starting pitching. IN fact everyone in baseball knows they need starting pitching.

I am going to take back some of my snark since the FO is willing to go 4 years for Donaldson. I never thought they would hang in there until the end. I still think the Nats get him but I am happy to see them truly in the hunt. Also if they are going this hard after Donaldson they must have something up their sleeve for pitching then, right? A trade or do they really believe they have guys that can step up in house?

It could be any of them. It probably depends on how much they improve their stuff over the winter. If I had to choose I guess I would put my money on Dobnak. I think he is the most ready of the bunch. My next pick would be Thorpe as he is a lefty with a decent fastball. Unfortunately that fastball has been a little too hittable IMO. Graterol could top all them if he stays healthy and has a good spring. I guess I just don't trust that he will stay healthy and that the Twins will use him to start the year. Last would be Smeltzer but if he can improve the fastball a bit he could be as good as as Thorpe or Dobnack. I really think it could be any one of them or all of them that shine next year depending on if they can improve on what they did last year.

I agree they go after certain traits that they believe make a pitcher successful and I am guessing he didn't meet them. Also they have a playoff caliber team now so can't afford to mess with an unknown. If this was 100 loss team they likely would have nothing to lose by signing him but they are not so they must have felt he was not worth the risk.

To be honest I didn't like the trade when they made it. I didn't feel that Garcia was a needle mover and granted the price wasn't heavy but I really liked Ynoa. After they traded with the Yankee's I felt they would have been better standing pat. I see your point though. I feel like Littel was a big factor in stabilizing the pen this year. Granted he didn't do it on his own as May and Duffy also emerged but he played a big role as well. Not sure how our season turns out without him in that role but I have to agree with you that we likely don't make it to 101 without him. I still like Ynoa's potential better than Littel but it will take time to see how the value works out. I think you have a good point about the timing of Littel being able to help the team where Ynoa was not yet ready. That puts an up arrow next to Littel right now. This could be a trade that just works out well for both teams based on the timing of being ready to contribute. In fact given Atlanta's bullpen issues last year they might have wished they had gotten Littel from Yankee's instead of Ynoa.

Nice move! I really like the guys attitude and he was really good for us last year as well.

I was trying to find more info on Elieser Hernandez and found the following article. It looks like his slider took off and really helped propel him back to the major leagues. The thing is he has been prone to the long ball and he may be just a two pitch pitcher which might ultimately land him in the pen. If the guy could take the next step he might be a mid rotation starter as he has a good fastball and decent control. He could also regress and end up a AAAA player. Hopefully scouts have a better idea of what he most likely becomes. I know a lot of people on here are not big fans of Jake Cave but his OPS was as good as Rosario's last year and he is an above average defender in left field. He would be a good get for the Marlins especially for a Rule V pick that might not end up a starter. Even in a straight up one for one trade I think the Marlins have less risk for a good outcome than the Twins. For the Twins to make this trade they would have to see Hernandez as an upgrade over the current glut of fifth starter material they already have in Graterol, Thorpe, Smeltzer, Poppin, Dobnak, and Maybe Littel. Not to mention the guys on the way in Balazovich, Duran, Colina, Vallimont and Sands and possibly Enlow if he breaks out. That's a lot of guys with 5th starter potential. If they see him as a dominant reliever as his floor then maybe that changes things. The Twins know what they have in Cave and anything they get in return for him better be better than Luis Gill the guy they gave up to get him. I am not sure Hernandez is. On the other hand we have a glut of outfielders with more likely on the way so maybe this is the best they can get and it helps remove an outfielder from the 40 man and gain what appears to be Hernanadez's floor which is a solid reliever. Tough call for me on this one. Maybe that is what makes it a good trade?

I am torn. I do want them to overspend but only for three year deals and that might not get it done. I think they can work in an over pay for three years and not affect the club much especially if ownership is willing to push the budget now that the team is really good. On the flip side I hate to be hindered by an unproductive player and dead money for several years. With a 100 win team sitting there I hate to live on hope with our young pitching but if just a couple of guys out of potentially 7 come through it would sure help us keep this team together longer. It is a tough call for me. I am not sure which way is best to go. However, the FO does need to come through for us this is why they earn the big bucks. They need to be right when they make the tough choices. They cannot stand pat. Be it overpay or trade they need to do something to make this team better. They have the payroll space and the trade capital. They have a good team waiting in the wings they need to make a move. A move that helps this team compete in the playoffs.

Until I read this I was thinking we don't need another number 5 starter with 5 ERA. I checked and you are correct he did have outstanding year in AAA. I don't think any of our young number 5's posted a 1.13 ERA along with his awesome K rate. So he appears to have the stuff but can he get it to translate? He also doesn't have a track record of being overly dominant from level to level throughout his career so he might be just like the number 5's we already have with a little more potential or he might not have the stamina to be a starter and need to move to the pen. It is a more interesting proposition though now that I dig deeper.

I always liked him because he didn't strike out much. I thought with his ability to put the ball in play even if his BABIP number were lower he could still have a decent average. He proved me wrong on that assumption this past year. Maybe it's the cheer for the underdog in me but I still really like the guy. I am hoping for a rebound year at the plate for him.

Yeah I have to say I was surprised. Surprised that the other teams didn't value any of the players we had available, Ouch! I also thought more chances might be taken with a 26 man roster but again I was wrong. The FO did a good job of identifying who to put on the 40 man. Honestly I think teams have gotten smarter about the rule V draft. Most players taken are not quite ready for MLB. Teams are better off getting left overs from free agency and signing them to low dollar contracts. I mean the top half dozen teams really bad teams probably have nothing to lose in Rule V so why not pick someone anyone, but after that most teams are better off not wasting the roster spot.

Yeah looks like K rate must be King for these kind of signings. Other teams must have figured Jax's stuff wouldn't play well at the MLB level or he would have been selected. Glad no one Grabbed Rijo that was the only one I thought might kind of hurt. I know Wander and his 4M price tag might have hurt as well but he hasn't shown much to this point yet. Hopefully next year is his breakout year.

I think he is indicating that these guys could be used in the five spot but you would hope they end up a mid rotation piece in that role instead of staying a five. These types of pickups are always a gamble because you can end up with a pitcher that is worse than a rookie number 5 as well. Not sure if now is the right time for the Twins to take that kind of gamble though as they are trying to improve or at least maintain a 101 win team. The Twins should be shooting for surer production not gambles. I do agree with others that if the coaches are good enough to improve those guys why can't they improve the young guys we already have? Poppen, Smeltzer, Thorpe, and Dobnak, have already done well at the AA levels and pretty well at the AAA levels as well. Aren't they a tweak or two away as well? Not to mention Graterol, Duran, and Balazovich who have heavy fastballs and are set to dominate in AA this coming year. Even Cole or Vallimont could surprise us this year. Let's work some magic with the some of the guys we have.

I think we are going to miss out on the second tier pitchers this year. They might add some higher end relief pitchers if they can get short term deals. I think they play their typical waiting game now as once the big fish are gone the prices will likely drop for the guys who are left. They will get their bargain 5th starter that way. With the Eddie news it looks like they are going to have to try and find their pitcher upgrade with a trade. I would hate to see Eddie go as he still has All Star upside and is going to be a good hitter for a long time. If a team can teach him patience at the plate he will be a really, really good player for a long time. Guys with great contact skills tend to hang around. I am a little bit surprised at how high the dollar values went for pitching in FA this year. I thought we would better be able to compete. Even the LAD and LAA lost out on getting Cole so they have to be bummed out as well. Teams had to go big or go home empty this year and that is not the Twins MO. I still think the Twins can find a pitcher to upgrade the team out there and I have hope that some of the pitchers in AA step up and become better than 5th starters as well.

I was surprised at the lack of interest in Odo by other teams. Surely another team could have offered Tampa more than Palacios. A straight up one for one trade so that Tampa could dump some salary was a great move by the FO. Everyone on the Twins side liked that trade. I can't think of anyone who didn't like it. Trades like that don't happen often.

I don't know if it is negativity as much as disappointment. Like expecting or hoping to get an Iphone for Christmas for the last ten years and getting a flip phone every year instead. The flip phone gets the job done but isn't elite like the I-phone. I am not saying the FO is wrong not to take on some of these deals but I really thought given how the market worked out the last few years that we had a really good chance at a decent deal with one of the tier two starters. Given the years and dollars or both plus teams with an inside track to resign those players things look grim for upgrading the rotation IMO. While our pitching might be good enough to win the division or manage a wild card berth it doesn't look capable of handling teams in the playoffs. The window is open and we are close it would have been nice to find a pitcher to give us a chance to get over the hump.