DocBauer

I absolutely love the mentoring attitude of Donaldson! And while it isn't his job to coach, I sure he works with Blankenhorn. I've been intrigued by him since drafted. IIRC, he was a multi sport athlete in HS. Correct me if I'm wrong. It's not uncommon for those kinds of kids to take a little longer to hone their skills once they settle on a single sport. Kid is a good all around athlete with power and seemingly some hit potential. I've never heard he has a weak arm. Last year he concentrated on 2B and LF. He has the size for 1B and I would think he should be able to play at least a decent RF as well. I think it's a huge mistake to move him off of 3B so quickly. Now, I don't know, maybe he's just a butcher at the hot corner. But if he can play the position at least passably, or develop that ability, how valuable could he be as 5 position player with power?

I also thought for sure you were going to mention Duffey. I really liked what I saw of Littell last season, but there is absolutely room for improvement. And I mean that in a positive way. But if we're going to include Littell in this conversation, really curious why Stashak didn't make it an article about three potentials.

I appreciate the idea. I'd rather Kepler stay in RF if/when Buxton has any time off. Just not sure I can get behind trading any of our pitching for all the reasons given previously. I was really hoping there was a veteran FA flier to bring in on a milb deal for some insurance to start at Rochester and see if he rebounds. Not sure there is anyone left that fits that thought process. Might there be a similar player during the course of the season? Possibly. Could a trade option be available during the season? Also possible. I think I'd go status quo for now, see how the guys on hand actually do, and make a move if necessary rather than trade away a young pitching asset right now.

Just tossing this out there, but there's a neat article on the Twins website about Sano and Donaldson already creating a bond from day one. And let's not forget, Sano helped champion Donaldson joining the team via a video message he made. Sano has clearly been growing the last year or so from everything we have seen. I'd invite everyone to read the article.

Kind of stole my thunder Cap, and that's OK. I think where the Yankees pen exceeds the Twins is in 2 areas: 1] They probably have more experience. 2] NAME RECOGNITION Point #1 can now be argued, somewhat at least, as a non-factor with Romo and Clippard on board, plus the experience of Rogers and May over the past few season's. Point #2 is easily arguable, reflecting some back to point #1 as well, because no matter how good any of our pen is/may be, everything from time to press...not results...would favor the NAMES in the Yankees pen. Skipping to the rotation, you also made a valid point or two in regard to the Yankees vs the Twins. I am not denegrading the Yankees...or Astros, or anyone else...when I/we look at the rotation depth. And while there are certainly some things left to prove, I really don't knkw that anyone has the depth of talent/potential/numbers that the Twins do. I was literally lost in thought yesterday on a 3 mile walk rolling the rotation options over and over in my head. Berrios, Odorizzi, Maeda, Bailey and one of Chacin, Thorpe, Dobnak or Smeltzer to begin the season. Let's just suppose Chacin is toast, which I kinda doubt, and the 5th spot belongs to one of the kids. Mid May, Pineda is now ready. Unless someone is hurt or just stinks, someone has to get bumped. July comes around...and I'm playing the long game here...and Hill is ready for the second half and hopefully the stretch run and playoffs. Now who gets bumped? And what about a couple of these young guys raking in Rochester for depth? It's a long season for EVERYONE. While we may not, in February for sure, match up at the #1 spot, the depth is outstanding. Winning and getting there is half the battle. And from there, anything can happen. I think we match up pretty well. Are we the best team? I don't know. But the pen and rotation are good and deep. The lineup is one of the best in all MLB. The fact that we are even debating as to whether we are the "best" team at this point is exciting as he'll! Can't wait for the season to begin!

I thought Berrios and Romo both looked great. Alcala showed some life to his FB and had a few really nice breaking balls but was all over the place. I'm hoping that was mostly nerves/excitement and not truly indicative of his control. On Kepler, if he doesn't leadoff, I'd like to see him slot after Cruz and Donaldson and before Sano to break up the lineup. That should put him 4tn or 5th in the lineup most days.

Wonderful! Wish I was drunk enough or twisted enough to write this! Probably not far off how it actually happened.

This. At this point, it is about today and future tomorrows. Any mistakes or blame to anyone for any dark ages of drafting and development are moot. They are over and done. Just being honest, the jury will be out on the FO for a couple more years as virtually anyone they have drafted or acquired as a prospect has yet to reach the ML level. Early returns for development look very good for our current FO. Early returns on player acquisition outside the draft look very good. But for me, I am hopefully and enjoying what we are seeing and will refrain from any sort of judgment for another year or two. But yeah, I like what I'm seeing thus far.

To me, that is the entire key to any sort of "regular" order. (Though I'm sure Rocco will continue to mix things up as he did last season). There are good, sound reasons for Kepler, Polanco or Arraez all hitting #1. And it creates a bit of a trickle down affect. There are almost as many reasons for Arraez hitting 7-9 as there are for him hitting #1. Hitting between or behind less contact prone batters, for instance. You almost can't make a mistake however you make out the lineup.

I understand the arguments against. Phenomenally conditioned and determined, I see him growing "mentally" within the nuances of the game itself. The change seems to be improving but the curveball needs to come back. I have often mentioned stuff meeting experience. At only 26yo I see that happening, even if velocity dips some. Not speaking of Berrios directly, but if a guy drops from 96 to 94 while improving his secondary stuff and just further learns how to "pitch", that guy is usually better even with a decrease in pure velocity. I would absolutely like to keep him until or through age 30 if the contract demands aren't unreasonable.

I hate to be obvious, but I'd have to go with Chacin as he does qualify for the award. Gearrin is my second choice and more in keeping with the dark horse candidate status. He's had good seasons, is a veteran, someone could stumble or get hurt and I don't believe we HAVE to have that additional lefty. Am I wrong, or wasn't Kirlloff invited to ST? I know his stay won't be as long as the other guys, but i look for him to be impressive early, slide back over to the milb side of things, and then still make a couple additional appearances as they often "borrow" from the milb side for some games here and there. The bat is for real.

While I am very high on Thorpe and am basically predicting he is one of the starting 5 in 2021, with so many SP options in the chute for 2020, it would be easy to also list Dobnak, or even Chacin, as was mentioned. Kind of nice to reflect back on Odorizzi's year and realize that if he just repeats, and doesn't progress any further, that is a very, very fine pitcher right there! No 100% he's an X factor as Berrios taking a step forward, or Pineda being the same guy we saw from June 1st on could be named just as big of X factor, IMO. However, Buxton, no question, biggest X factor in 2020.

Nice to have a couple veteran bounceback fliers to call up in addition to the lines of Alcala and others.

I don't know about in season injury or nagging results from one that lingered. But missing all, or nearly all, of ST had to mess up his timing, approach, etc. The Twins thought they saw enough to bump him up to AA. His results in the AFL make me believe their choice was a correct one,and keeps his top prospect status in check. I was very disappointed in his 2019 as well. And if he struggles again in 2020 at least some of his luster is going be tarnished. But talent, previous results, the early oblique injury, his promotion and strong finish in the AFL keeps him amongst the top spots for me. For now. I begin to question him next off-season if we have a repeat.

My head hurts

I appreciate your comments. I appreciate your comparisons. I think it's also fair to NOT compare individual prospects, especially very young ones, as there are many variables to be considered, not the least of which is injury. Lewis 2017: 36G in the GCL and 18G at CR, bypassing Elizabethton: Composite: .279/ .381/ .407/ .788 Lewis 2018: 75G at CR and 46G at FTM: Composite: .255/ .352/ .451/ .803 His numbers dropped at FTM, which shouldn't be unexpected due to age and experience. A fine all around FIRST FULL SEASON in pro ball. Lewis 2019: 94G at FTM and 33G at PNS: Composite: .236/ .290/ .371/ .661 February 23rd of last season it was reported Lewis had an oblique injury in the field that would set him back and cause him to miss a chunk, if not most of, ST. I think we all know and understand how an oblique injury can really mess with ballplayer. What's interesting is that his stats from A+ to AA Pensecola were very close to the same, though disappointing, despite the raise in level. Further, despite his struggles, the FO saw enough in improvement to advance him to the next level. The FSL is known to be tough on hitters. Larnach, a top prospect, did well there. Great! Awesome! He was a college player a good 2yrs older, if I'm not mistaken. Alex Kirilloff had a great half season at FTM in 2018, I think 1yr younger but coming off his injury missed season. And I love AK and think he's special. But he was also fully healthy in 2018. Royce, now healthy, was sent to the AFL at the end of the season in which the competition is considered roughly AA level, which is where he ended the year. Lewis AFL 2019 in 22G: .353/ .411/ .565/ .975 I am NOT saying Lewis is a finished product guaranteed phenomenoninal success. But so young, so talented, and battling a fairly significant, nagging injury and finishing the season should not only garner optimism, but also help excuse some poor early results to last year. There are absolutely things to work on and develop. But I also think there is WAY too much consternation for a poor/mediocre 2019 in regards to his potential and ranking.

Considering position player vs pitcher, the value of a quality rotation arm, much less a top of the rotation arm, I think you could easily shuffle the top 5 and be right. (Taking Graterol our of the rankings). And I have no problem with that. But I do think souring on Lewis, or Kiriloff, after off 2019 seasons is silly. You have professional scouting at the HS level and general consensus that each is a special and top talent. You have quality pro results. You flash and have great numbers, then you get a little dinged up and have a down or so-so season and suddenly you just aren't as good as you were expected/hoped to be. Kiriloff basically raked again when healthy in 2019. Lewis went to the AFL, healthy, and while SSS, theoretically played against competition as good or better than what he faced during the season. And he was the best player there. Not everyone is the next Griffey Jr, Trout or Harper.

Fantastic opinions/debates from Chief and Brian and Stringer. And really, you're all right, and saying a lot of the same things, albeit from different angels. Kudos! I would only chime in that I think Rocco is pretty smart and seems to have a good feel for the pulse of the team. So far, one year in, I'd say he's done a pretty good job of getting everyone involved. The Kirilloff debate is interesting, though not exact. There is still a difference in Cave seizing opportunity and improving as a player, including defensively, vs a top prospect being brought up to play or languish on the bench after his clock starts. I know Cave is just an example that is under the microscope in these discussions, and we could instead speak about Rooker, Gordon, etc. IMO, Cave has had opportunity. And he will have opportunity. He flashed in 2018, didn't do so well early in 2019, and then did very well the latter part of the season. I still think it falls somewhat on the player. Yes, he needs opportunity to succeed. But he also has to take advantage. So far, I really like the way Rocco uses his roster. I do feel he could have done a little better job in regard to Garver and Castro last year. But then again, that might have been more of a veteran and young player situation. I have a feeling that will change in 2020. I'm not entirely sold on Gibson and Perez vs the kids last year. And on record for that. But I also understand the drive to win and hoping for a couple things to break right for the veterans to contribute. I think this team is deep enough, talented enough, that leashes will be shorter for guys who aren't getting the job done. But I also feel opportunity is there, this manager will provide opportunity, and it's up to the player to take advantage.

The goal is always to compete, win, reach the post season, and try to win the WS, of course. But each year, only one team succeeds in the ultimate goal. I have always believed that what you can control is putting the best, most competitive team you can. That being said, sometimes you have to trade a prospect or two to augment your roster. The Twins did that with Maeda. With 30-32 starts, based on his career, if he gets us 170ish IP, wins 12-16 and pretty much does what he always does, he is a very nice addition and helps the Twins do that. It will be a "win" for the Twins and you just can't reflect back 3 years from now on what Graterol might do and lament a "loss". A FO has to make decisions on what they know and believe to be true NOW. Think back to the AJ trade to the Giants all those years ago. Did the Twins make out like bandits? Yes they did. But AJ was a very good player and a need for the Giants. Nobody knew how good Nathan would turn out, or Liriano, or how solid Bonser would be for a couple seasons. Now, retrospect offers IP it's own perspective in the Capps deal. But sometimes a deal can look questionable at the time, not just in the rearview mirror. Capps was solid, he helped, but as I recall the trade from memory, there was a lot of head scratching at the time. Personally, I don't feel that way about the Maeda deal because i feel people, me included, were in love with the IDEA of what Graterol might be. The FO didn't agree, or felt sure enough about their projections to move forward. I don't argue the Capps trade stung, and still stings. But IMO, the love of prospects has more to do with the Metrodome days, the tighter budgets, etc, and the hope in a mid market team self sustaining itself via the milb pipeline. Especially in regard to SP as that has long been an Achilles heel of the system. Ergo, despite a new FO and an almost entirely new way of doing things, there still exists a "want" for prospects to reach success. In reality, other then SP, we have seen that kind of reward with our current Twins. I have no clue how other fan bases for different teams, especially the big markets, regard their farm system and prospects. They may feel the same, or, they may see those prospects as a commodity who may or may not be kept, but more as a means to an end. As someone who has followed the Twins farm system since the early 80's, I have seen a plethora of "can't miss" pitching prospects do exactly that. I'm very excited about some of the guys on their way up. I have a personal list of 5 "no trade" guys I have high hopes for. But the Capps deal doesn't haunt me, personally. It is more about how thing used to be, and just wanting our "own" players to make it big.

What a great introduction to our new coach! Great article Seth!

Cody, love you dude, but this revisionist history has to stop. I appreciate the OP and the idea, but enough is enough. Hicks was thrust in to a position he wasn't ready for. So was Hunter. Plouffe recently stated that the Ramos for Capps move might look bad, but the Twins don't win without that move. Span and Revere for Meyer and May didn't turn out the way we hoped. But at the time, it was a pair of moves seldom seen by the Twins FO. EVERYONE had Meyer dialed in as a stud #1 and May as a #2-3. Never worked out, though May has found himself as an important piece. Aggie turned out to be OK didn't he? So did Liriano before his arm blew out. Bonser was solid for a brief time. That potential HOF guy Nathan was pretty good, right? Different times, different eras. Maybe Graterol develops in to something special and we have serious regrets. Maybe he doesn't. Maybe he does and yet Maeda helps us win something. We just need to leave the past in the past and worry about now and an entirely different FO and infrastructure.

A straw-man arguement at this point. There should be no reason, as of now, that he isn't one of our best 4. But when October comes, if he isn't, for some reason, then he would be chasing a ring in the pen as happens every season as teams re-configure their entire roster. Honestly, not even worth thinking about at this point.

Nice to see Colina get a little love. I think some are sleeping on him. Hopefully he can find a solid change of some sort. Otherwise, velocity and previous results should have everyone excited about another pen option.

Push come to shove, I am absolutely a prospect guy and it isnt even close. Now, I mean how I want it to turn out. I am and have always been in favor of fliers that could hit and pay dividends. There is a really, really good chance Chacin looks like his old self again and gives the Twins another fine SP option. And that's a good thing! But if you ask me who I'd rather have, he or a 24-25yo Thorpe/Dobnak/Smeltzer with youth and potential on their side of course I take youth and promise. That being said, Chacin and Wisler don't have options. Everyone else does. If cut, once gone, they are gone. So if they show something, look for them to make the roster initially over the kids. It only makes sense.

I don't question Buxton offensively, despite not a full season, because we know his talent and potential and what we saw last year. My only question is health. NONE of his injuries are chronic or repeat injuries. Has he just been snakebit? Or is he just one of those guys, for whatever reason, tight and taught and not flexible in the right way who is always dinged? If he could fight instinct, hold up just a bit, become the 4th or 5th best defensive CF in baseball and play 140 games, I think I'd go for that. He is just too talented to not be on the field.