Jim Crikket

I'm not sure I'd agree that AA has better ballparks than A. Most (if not all) of the FSL ballparks are Major League Spring Training ballparks. Even ballparks in the MWL, with just a handful of possible exceptions, are maintained very well. Certainly not enough difference in quality to warrant pushing a player up a level more aggressively than his performance otherwise warrants, imo.

We’ve moved one important step closer to having baseball in Cedar Rapids… the players have arrived! The 2013 Kernels roster arrived at Eastern Iowa Airport shortly before noon Tuesday. It’s pretty safe to say the weather was just a bit cooler than it was when they took off from Fort Myers. (This article was originally posted at Knuckleballsblog.com.) Manager Jake Mauer said the trip went well, though he did mention that there was a long line at the security check in Fort Myers and a couple of the players got to the departure gate without a lot of extra time to spare. All things considered, though, when you’re trying to get a couple dozen guys shepherded on to an airplane, a couple of close calls isn’t the worst thing that could happen. The team was being taken to dinner in the Amana Colonies, near Cedar Rapids, Tuesday evening and fans will have their first opportunity to meet the new Kernels Wednesday evening at the club’s “Meet the Kernels” event. Weather permitting, the team will get in a public workout on the field afterward. Thursday night, the official Opening Day game will see the Kernels hosting the Beloit Snappers at 6:35. For a number of the Kernels, who wore Beloit uniforms last season when the Snappers were the Twins’ Midwest League affiliate, it’s likely to feel just a little peculiar wearing a Kernels uniform and facing a squad of Oakland Athletics prospects in Beloit uniforms. I’ll leave you with a few pictures of the Kernels’ arrival, as well as a peek “behind the scenes” at the players’ new home for the summer, Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids. http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/KernelsArrival2.jpg Players claiming their bags at the airport http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/KernelsArrival3.jpg Loading the bags on the bus http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/PlayersEntrance.jpg Players entrance to the ballpark http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/PlayersEntrance1.jpg Sign above the Players Entrance features several former Twins who have played for Cedar Rapids over the years: John Roseboro, Alexi Casilla, Chili Davis, and Phil Roof http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/HomeClubhouse1.jpg The Kernels clubhouse http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/HomeWeightRoom3.jpg The Kernels Weight Room http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/IndoorCage.jpg Indoor Batting Cage http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/FamilyRoom.jpg There’s a waiting room for players’ families where they can watch the game on the TV and wait for the players to get dressed after games

We’ve moved one important step closer to having baseball in Cedar Rapids… the players have arrived! The 2013 Kernels roster arrived at Eastern Iowa Airport shortly before noon Tuesday. It’s pretty safe to say the weather was just a bit cooler than it was when they took off from Fort Myers. (This article was originally posted at Knuckleballsblog.com.) Manager Jake Mauer said the trip went well, though he did mention that there was a long line at the security check in Fort Myers and a couple of the players got to the departure gate without a lot of extra time to spare. All things considered, though, when you’re trying to get a couple dozen guys shepherded on to an airplane, a couple of close calls isn’t the worst thing that could happen. The team was being taken to dinner in the Amana Colonies, near Cedar Rapids, Tuesday evening and fans will have their first opportunity to meet the new Kernels Wednesday evening at the club’s “Meet the Kernels” event. Weather permitting, the team will get in a public workout on the field afterward. Thursday night, the official Opening Day game will see the Kernels hosting the Beloit Snappers at 6:35. For a number of the Kernels, who wore Beloit uniforms last season when the Snappers were the Twins’ Midwest League affiliate, it’s likely to feel just a little peculiar wearing a Kernels uniform and facing a squad of Oakland Athletics prospects in Beloit uniforms. I’ll leave you with a few pictures of the Kernels’ arrival, as well as a peek “behind the scenes” at the players’ new home for the summer, Veterans Memorial Stadium in Cedar Rapids. http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/KernelsArrival2.jpg Players claiming their bags at the airport http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/KernelsArrival3.jpg Loading the bags on the bus http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/PlayersEntrance.jpg Players entrance to the ballpark http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/PlayersEntrance1.jpg Sign above the Players Entrance features several former Twins who have played for Cedar Rapids over the years: John Roseboro, Alexi Casilla, Chili Davis, and Phil Roof http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/HomeClubhouse1.jpg The Kernels clubhouse http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/HomeWeightRoom3.jpg The Kernels Weight Room http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/IndoorCage.jpg Indoor Batting Cage http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/04/FamilyRoom.jpg There’s a waiting room for players’ families where they can watch the game on the TV and wait for the players to get dressed after games

MetroSportsReport.com's Mike Koolbeck posted a pair of stories after the Kernels arrived in Cedar Rapids Tuesday afternoon. Kernels will go as far as pitching carries them Jake Mauer discusses his rotation and names his Opening Day starter, among other things. and Buxton draws comparison to Trout Hitting coach Tommy Watkins likens Buxton to former Kernel Mike Trout.

This discussion drives home another major difference between the current Twins organization and the Kernels' former parent, the Angels Even if/when some of the best Kernels on the Opening Day roster get promoted, there are a number of very promising prospects coming up behind them right now to finish out the season. That simply was not the case with the Angels in recent years.

Glad you found it of interest, glunn. It has been suggested it was too long and few would be interested in reading that much info.

glunn, you might find the following link of some interest. My Evil Twin, SD Buhr of MetroSportsReport.com compiled some information about each of the players on the Kernels opening day roster, with the help of course of the research done by Seth, Jeremy and Cody in their Prospect Handbook. Buxton coming to town with Kernels

Might be worth the price of admission in Ft. Myers just to watch those guys take BP.

Regardless of the level you're starting at, this would not be a good season to be a Twins minor leaguer who gets off to a really slow start.

Figure Leachman or Williams get bumped up when Kepler is ready.

Those two guys, Gonzales and Vargas, hit the two longest home runs I've ever personally witnessed in Cedar Rapids. A couple years apart, obviously, but they both launched moonshots here while playing for Beloit. Gonzales hit one down the RF line that went out about even with the top of the foul pole when it cleared the fence. Vargas hit one that cleared the scoreboard and may have hit the old Korean War vintage jet fighter that sits well beyond the RCF wall. Those fellas can make a pitcher pay for his mistakes, that's for sure.

Quesada Tweeted last week that he got great news, that the remainder of his suspension would run based on CR's season, not Elizabethton's. Not sure if they changed the rule or some other circumstance resulted in him getting treated differently. But if it's true, it's great news for him, obviously. I'm not sure how many days he has left, but I was thinking it's about a month for some reason.

When those 4 guys on the DL are activated, along with Quesada and, presumably, Berrios, Bard and Kepler, there are going to be a lot of decisions to be made. It's not like the levels above CR are all opening the year with openings on their rosters. A few guys might want to really think hard about getting off to a fast start.

I don't put much stock in the positions listed on those website rosters. For example, the Kernels roster on their website shows Tyler Grimes as a SS, but he's going to be catching regularly this year. In fact, the roster distributed to media outlets have him listed as a catcher. I just don't know who is responsible for putting out the rosters on MiLB web sites.

Kepler has an elbow issue and won't be added to the roster until it's resolved, hopefully by the end of the month. Berrios and Bard are supposedly getting their arms stretched out and would be added when they're ready to go deeper in to games. Wouldn't surprise me at all if all three miraculously are ready at about the same time game time temperatures in Cedar Rapids start hitting 65 degrees. I was surprised by a couple of names. I know Soliman is coming back from injury, but I thought he would return to high A. I'm not sure what difference it makes who's DL you're listed on, but Nate Roberts being on the Kernels roster in that capacity is curious. This should be a really good ballclub. The offense should put up plenty of runs and the pitching, if/when Berrios and Bard are added to the rotation, should be pretty darn good, too.

Pitchers: Atherton, Boyd, Duffey, Gruver, Hurlbut, Jones (Tyler), Lee, Mazza, Melotakis, Rogers, Soliman, Tomshaw Catchers: Arias, Grimes, Rodriguez Infielders: Goodrum, Harrison, Hicks, Leachman, Pimentel, Polanco Outfielders: Buxton, Jimenez, Walker, Williams Inactive: Gallant, Shibuya, Quesada, Bryant, Roberts

It’s Opening Day! http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/openingday2013-600x375.jpg Alas, we still haven’t elected a President with the balls to do the right thing and make Opening Day a legal Federal Holiday and mandate that everyone who doesn’t work in a sports bar must be given the day off (and those who do work in sports bars must be paid double-time just for putting up with the rest of us who would spend our entire day drinking beer and watching baseball at said sports bars). (This article was originally posted at Knuckleballsblog.com) Yes, I’m aware that the season officially opened Sunday night in Houston, but I ignored that game completely (and, from what I hear, so did the Rangers, apparently). Opening Day is supposed to be all about promise and hope. But if you read the stuff being written about our Minnesota Twins (and you must, or you wouldn’t be reading this), there isn’t much promise or hope for the Twins in 2013. Everyone… and I mean that in a very literal sense… is picking the Twins to finish dead last in the American League Central Division again this season. I haven’t seen a prognostication that foresees anything else. It’s understandable. Almost everyone… fans and so-called “experts” in the industry, alike… has been underwhelmed by the moves made by the Twins’ front office this offseason, except as those moves pertain to the Twins’ fortunes two or three years down the road. But for 2013, the consensus is that the team did not do enough to rebuild last season’s attrocious pitching staff to make any significant move toward contention this summer. It’s hard to disagree. I won’t recite all the criticisms that have been lobbed at General Manager Terry Ryan, but suffice to say that, while he certainly has different pitchers in his team’s rotation and bullpen this year, there is little belief outside of the Twins organization itself that the Twins pitching is significantly improved. And maybe that’s a good thing. You get a sense, listening to those inside the organization… players, their manager, certainly their GM and others inside the front office… that they DO believe they are a much better team this season. They believe they can contend with the rest of the Division, including the Tigers. The players aren’t buying that Ryan’s offseason marching orders were to slash payroll and re-load for 2015 and beyond, leaving manager Ron Gardenhire to twist in the wind and take the fall when the inevitable 2013 collapse occurs. Nor should the players buy in to that. I hope they greet the season with an Us vs. Them attitude. Like the Indians team that Lou Brown managed in the film, Major League, they should be set on giving all of us naysayers a “big ol’ ****burger to eat.” As fans, we have every right to be disappointed in the team’s performance on the field the past two years and their front office’s performance this offseaston. As players, they have every right to be disappointed in their fans for not believing in them. It’s how it should be. We’ve all talked at times about how the Twins lack leadership… even lack character. Well, this season, we’ll see just what kind of character this team has. This season will challenge their character and even their manhood. They’re going to get knocked down a few times, but will they get back up and punch back? After two gawdawful seasons, Twins fans are dying for something to root for. I know I am. I don’t need a World Series Championship to get me cheering this team on. I don’t even need one of those Division Pennants that everyone was saying a couple of years ago wasn’t enough anymore. I just need to see some fight in this team. Show me you don’t give a damn whether I or anyone else thinks you can win. Show me you believe in yourselves and your team mates and your manager. Show me you’re a professional who won’t stop swinging until the final bell rings. If this year’s Twins can do that, I’ll be right there with them cheering them on, all season long. And I don’t think I’ll be alone. - JC

It’s Opening Day! http://knuckleballsblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2013/03/openingday2013-600x375.jpg Alas, we still haven’t elected a President with the balls to do the right thing and make Opening Day a legal Federal Holiday and mandate that everyone who doesn’t work in a sports bar must be given the day off (and those who do work in sports bars must be paid double-time just for putting up with the rest of us who would spend our entire day drinking beer and watching baseball at said sports bars). (This article was originally posted at Knuckleballsblog.com) Yes, I’m aware that the season officially opened Sunday night in Houston, but I ignored that game completely (and, from what I hear, so did the Rangers, apparently). Opening Day is supposed to be all about promise and hope. But if you read the stuff being written about our Minnesota Twins (and you must, or you wouldn’t be reading this), there isn’t much promise or hope for the Twins in 2013. Everyone… and I mean that in a very literal sense… is picking the Twins to finish dead last in the American League Central Division again this season. I haven’t seen a prognostication that foresees anything else. It’s understandable. Almost everyone… fans and so-called “experts” in the industry, alike… has been underwhelmed by the moves made by the Twins’ front office this offseason, except as those moves pertain to the Twins’ fortunes two or three years down the road. But for 2013, the consensus is that the team did not do enough to rebuild last season’s attrocious pitching staff to make any significant move toward contention this summer. It’s hard to disagree. I won’t recite all the criticisms that have been lobbed at General Manager Terry Ryan, but suffice to say that, while he certainly has different pitchers in his team’s rotation and bullpen this year, there is little belief outside of the Twins organization itself that the Twins pitching is significantly improved. And maybe that’s a good thing. You get a sense, listening to those inside the organization… players, their manager, certainly their GM and others inside the front office… that they DO believe they are a much better team this season. They believe they can contend with the rest of the Division, including the Tigers. The players aren’t buying that Ryan’s offseason marching orders were to slash payroll and re-load for 2015 and beyond, leaving manager Ron Gardenhire to twist in the wind and take the fall when the inevitable 2013 collapse occurs. Nor should the players buy in to that. I hope they greet the season with an Us vs. Them attitude. Like the Indians team that Lou Brown managed in the film, Major League, they should be set on giving all of us naysayers a “big ol’ ****burger to eat.” As fans, we have every right to be disappointed in the team’s performance on the field the past two years and their front office’s performance this offseaston. As players, they have every right to be disappointed in their fans for not believing in them. It’s how it should be. We’ve all talked at times about how the Twins lack leadership… even lack character. Well, this season, we’ll see just what kind of character this team has. This season will challenge their character and even their manhood. They’re going to get knocked down a few times, but will they get back up and punch back? After two gawdawful seasons, Twins fans are dying for something to root for. I know I am. I don’t need a World Series Championship to get me cheering this team on. I don’t even need one of those Division Pennants that everyone was saying a couple of years ago wasn’t enough anymore. I just need to see some fight in this team. Show me you don’t give a damn whether I or anyone else thinks you can win. Show me you believe in yourselves and your team mates and your manager. Show me you’re a professional who won’t stop swinging until the final bell rings. If this year’s Twins can do that, I’ll be right there with them cheering them on, all season long. And I don’t think I’ll be alone. - JC

I'd vote for letting us keep the guy we adopted last year... maybe give people a few days to speak up and claim who they had in 2012. Regardless, I think it was kind of a cool idea and hope TD does it again. Could probably wait until a few weeks in to the season to allow players to build up a little bit of a stat line first.

It's a sad commentary on my own writing ability, I know, but I have nothing original to add to the comments above. I just want to second many of them. I can't begin to explain how much enjoyment the blogging community has brought to me, especially since we set up Knuckleballs 3 years ago and joined the fun ourselves. I'd forgotten how much I enjoyed writing.

I don't think MLB imposes their blackout policies on MLB.tv games during spring training. At least I've been able to watch this month and I'm pretty sure I'll be blacked out when the games begin to count.

While it would run a bit against the Twins' MO to promote a guy like Kepler mid year, it really wouldn't surprise me. Everyone seems to expect Kepler, Buxton and Walker to man the Kernels OF all season, but they aren't the only outfielders the Twins are going to want to see get Class A experience this season. Romy Jimenez could (and probably should) start the season in CR, too. I could see the Twins wanting to have guys like Jeremias Pineda or even Dereck Rodriguez see Class A before the end of the year, as well. To do any of that, there will have to be some promotions to Fort Myers and if the Twins do need to make a 40-man roster decision about Kepler after the season, I could see them wanting to get a look at him against higher level pitching before that decision has to be made.

I can't remember why, but for some reason Ted Uhlaender struck an immediate chord with me when he joined the Twins. In fact, somewhere buried in an old family album is a polaroid picture of a pre-teen "Jim Crikket" standing with Uhlaender during one of the annual "Camera Day" promotions the Twins held back in the Met Stadium days. This, despite the fact that the "rule" was that you took the players' pictures but didn't leave the warning track to actually go near them or pose with them. Fortunately, my dad was one of those fathers far more interested in laying down rules than following them himself, and he talked Uhlaender in to posing with me. Thanks for the trip down memory lane, Seth.

Deduno's performance in the championship game of the WBC came after I wrote and published this article. Certainly, another good start there helped his case. I probably actually give his WBC performance more weight than a lot of people do, but even I'm not prepared to say he's shown enough yet to overcome his lack of a 40-man roster spot, especially if we're talking about him being the #5 starter who just gets one start before Diamond returns. I'm going to be very interested to see if his success continues with Twins catchers calling his pitches the next couple weeks. I'm rooting for him, if for no other reason than he's got different "stuff" than the rest of the rotation members and if you're going to have 5 right handed starting pitchers, it's probably a good idea to have a couple that at least show hitters a little something unusual.

You can view the page at http://twinsdaily.com/content.php?r=1470-The-Two-Week-Warning