Shane Wahl

Well Rosario is not going to be starting with the Twins at the beginning of 2014, so there is time to figure this out. I don't really know what to do other than move Dozier to short permanently, start (whenever Rosario comes up) with a platoon with Rosario and Dozier at second and when Rosario is in play Dozier at short or third, OR either make Rosario the starting LF (why is Willingham still with the Twins, again?).

Alex Presley is not a high OBP guy. He is another example of a guy succeeding in AAA and then not doing so in the majors.

I was still cheering for the Twins to win in extra innings last night. I am not going to not cheer for them just so that they can get 1-3 better spots in the draft.

I am more ok with rolling the dice (eventually) with pitchers who COULD be 2s or 3s for a good team--Meyer, Gibson, and May--then I have been with rolling the dice to find out who could be a 5th starter for a good team. Clearly Meyer is going to be on an innings limit next year. If he can manage to get back to 2012 numbers through the AFL and whatever else, they can build towards 150-160. Now, DEAR GOD, can I get a witness on this now . . . don't do with Meyer what they did with Gibson this year. Do NOT do that. 100 innings for the Twins is what I want. There's a way to, you know, limit innings in AAA. Christ, this year's Albers might be Pat Dean down there next year, so let Pat Dean be Meyer's personal long relief guy. Hopefully the Twins can roll with Gibson, May, and Meyer all together by July 1st. Maybe Diamond's injury is figured out. Correia returns to mediocrity. Keep Hendriks and Hernandez around and shed more oldster AAA pitching. Give Darnell a try if things get that far in the toilet. These later three are young enough and have a modicum of upside. No more multi-millions spent on aging, declining pitchers who have no future in baseball.

Pelfrey? Pelfrey? He has been merely ok for the past month after being TERRIBLE for much of the season. I am flabbergasted every time someone mentions resigning complete mediocrity or worse for millions of bucks. The Twins can toss that out there for the league minimum and also hope that one or two of them turns the corner (Gibson and Worley or Hendriks).

I see Deduno has likely having some serious arm trouble and would be out of the picture. I would want the Twins to pursue one of the top 3-4 FA pitchers, throw money at one of them, and then hope for the best. I would NOT want them to try two mediocre pitchers again.

This. Exactly. Mauer is covered by both ends of the spectrum.

The HOF is a joke now anyway, but seriously . . . WAR is not much of a consideration for it right now and . . . wait . . . we're still debating this?

He is obviously a lock.

There are 20 players born in 1989 who make my end of 2013 Twins prospect list. I remember the very day that one of them was born, Michael Tonkin, because he was born on my ninth birthday and I remember it well. The 1989 bunch range from AAA/MLB players in Tonkin and Josmil Pinto down to current low-A pitchers, Tim Shibuya and Madison Boer. 1989 (20): 10. Josmil Pinto, C, RH, DOB: 3/31/89 2013 AA/AAA/MIN (AA/AAA stats): 528 plate appearances, .309/.400/.482 (.882) (.790 career), 32-1-15, 66 walks, 83 strikeouts, 0 steals, 2 times caught stealing. Pinto is now up with the Twins for the month of September after smashing his way throw AA and AAA. Pinto is a capable defender behind the plate and is a much-needed RH bat to play the position in the post-Butera era. Pinto's position with the team is going to depend on whether the Twins make the smart move and trade Ryan Doumit in the offseason. If they do, Pinto will join Chris Herrmann as Joe Mauer's support. I like what I see in Pinto as he has catapulted up this list after making his appearance on it around 50 at the end of 2011. 33. James Beresford, 2B/SS/3B, LH, DOB: 1/19/89 2013 AA/AAA (combined stats): 403, .306/.363/.346 (.708) (.671), 12-1-0, 30/51, 10/2 Beresford is a good defender in the middle infield and has been consistent with the bat, especially since 2010. He possesses no power and will survive if he hits well, draws some walks, and is surrounded by guys with big bats like Miguel Sano, Eddie Rosario, and Kennys Vargas. It is not clear why he hasn't played SS much more this year because he is likely going to make it either as a utility infielder (third base should be no problem for him) or as a starting SS. Beresford should start the season next year at AAA and try to improve his slugging somewhat before replacing Eduardo Escobar or Pedro Florimon if he play merits it. 46. Logan Darnell, LHS , DOB: 2-2-89 2013 AA/AAA (combined stats), 153.2 innings pitched, 3.22 ERA, 120/45 (6.2/2.5 career rates) Darnell bounced back from a lackluster 2012 to pitch effectively. He has brought his strikeout rate up nicely in 2013 and could factor in as a lefty out of the bullpen if needed for the Twins. He will start with Rochester to begin the season. 18. Michael Tonkin, RHR, DOB: 11/19/89 2013 AA/AAA/MIN (AA/AAA stats), 57, 3.47, 66/16 (9.2/2.4) Tonkin had some very limited time with the Twins this year and is definitely the frontrunner to join the Twins 'pen out of the gate next year if the Twins don't bring Josh Roenicke back or if someone else falters or is injured. I would hope that the Twins try to trade off some relievers as soon as the market for them begins to sour in the offseason. Tonkin throws heat and could be an effective setup man. 59. Pat Dean, LHS, DOB: 5/25/89 2013 AA/AAA (combined stats), 165, 4.04, 83/22 (5.5/1.6) It is hard for me to imagine Dean being a major league starter. He will start in Rochester in 2014 and hopefully the K rate improves. Otherwise he is a less effective version of Andrew Albers. Now it is possible that he could regain some velocity and be a serviceable lefty out of the bullpen down the road. 58. Edgar Ibarra, LHR, DOB: 5/31/89 2013 AA/AAA (combined stats): 60.2, 1.93 54/29 (7.8/3.9) Ibarra had split time as a reliever and starter up through 2011 and he was not very good. In 2012 he was not very good as a reliever, but in 2013 he emerged as quite effective, really limiting the number of hit off of him. But he continues to walk a lot of batters and his strikeout rate is declining. This coming season he could rise in the Rochester bullpen as the left-handed setup man. I put him one spot ahead of Dean because Dean could potentially be Edgar Ibarra 2.0 will a similar move to the bullpen. 70. Deolis Guerra, RHR, DOB: 4-17-89 AAA, but 2013 GCL: 4, 4.50, 3/1 (6.8/3.3) Guerra will still be 24 on opening day 2014. It is hard not to think of his as closer to 30 than 20, but he has simply been around forever since very young. His only hope is as a middle reliever in the future, but he might be a very effective one. If he remains in the Twins organization, he will be in Rochester. 63. Angel Morales, OF, RH, DOB: 11/24/89 2013 A+/AA (combined stats): 418, .239/.304/.427 (.731) (.761), 23-5-12, 32/127, 8/7 When Morales lost most of the 2011 season, one might have thought that it was just one lost season and that it was no big deal in the long run. But it wasn't until 2013 that Morales finally showed mastery of A+ ball. Once a part of a dynamic quartet of Twins OF prospects (with Revere, Benson, and Hicks . . . wow), Morales is now struggling to stay in the system. His AA performance was shockingly bad. That he was still able to ascend a level leads me to believe that the Twins should still not give up on him and hope that another year of AA baseball will help him, but he certainly cannot remain on the same timetable. 51. Dan Rohlfing, C/corner OF, RH, DOB: 2/12/89 2013 AA/AAA (combined stats): 432, .267/.352/.341 (.693) (.650), 15-2-3, 48-96, 0-1 Rohlfing is following the Chris Herrmann route in demonstrating positional versatility while being a primary catcher. This likely is his one path to the majors. He is still young and showed a bit of promise in Rochester and should hopefully start 2014 there with Knudson. 8. Trevor May, RHS, DOB: 9-23-89 2013 AA: 151.2, 4.51, 159/67 (10.7/4.6) May is going to the Arizona Fall League to get more innings and build off a season of incremental improvement in his second year in the Eastern League. The ERA is still high as he cannot get his WHIP under control. That said, he did strike out a few more and walk a few less. Really, the Twins should be happy with this performance because at the least it looks like May will be consistent and maybe be able to provide some low-4.00 ERAs with some improvement. Getting a 4th starter out of the Revere deal is good, even if it took a bit to get there. I have to think that May starts 2014 in AAA and is going to be due for a 2014 arrival with the Twins at some point around mid-season. 37. Nate Roberts, LF/RF, LH, DOB: 2/25/89 2013 A+ 5 .250/.400/.500 (.900) (.897), 1-0-0, 0-0, 0-0 Roberts played in one game in 2013 and he maintained his crazy HBP standard by getting plunked. This injury business is killing his career and hopefully he can have a healthy 2014. The Twins really just need to move him to AA and hope he is healthy--there is no point for him to play at lower levels at this point. There is significant potential here and it is a shame that it is going to waste. 34. Matthew Summers, RHS, DOB: 8/17/89 2013 AA/A+ (combined stats): 142.2, 3.09, 100/46 (6.7/3.2) 2013 was a season of solid improvement for Summers. He is inching his K rate up and lowered his walk rate. He is keeping the hits down both in number and literally--he gave up only three homers all year. If that stat is not a fluke than his future is promising as he climbs the ladder. 2014 should see him start in New Britain. 55. Nelvin Fuentes, LHR, DOB: 4/7/89 2013 AA/A+ (combined stats): 51.1, 4.03, 58/17 (10.1/2.8) Fuentes can really strike guys out and in 2013 he started to limit hits given up at a more acceptable rate for A+ ball. He's a talented lefty who should get a second shot at starting in AA next season and hopefully he continues to progress. 61. Steven Gruver, LHR, DOB: 6-30-89 2013 A-/A+ (combined stats): 79, 2.85, 76/29 (7.0/2.7) Gruver has moved to full-time relieving duties. He did not pitch very well in a small amount of A+ time in 2013, so he will be headed back there for 2014. He's one of a ton of left-handed middle relievers in the organization, so he is going to have to distinguish himself. 80. Lance Ray, LF/RF/1B, LH, DOB: 9-2-89 2013 GCL/A+ (combined stats): 127, .207/.299/.279 (.578) (.743), 5-0-1, 14-26, 2-1 After taking a lateral step with his promotion in 2012 to Fort Myers, Ray took a step back with injury and poor performance in 2013. He is going to have to bounce back and improve even on his 2012 A+ time in order to be relevant in the organization going forward (and I was once very high on him). 38. Tyler Jones, RHR, DOB: 9/5/89 2013 A-/A+ (combined stats): 52.1, 2.58, 66/20 (10.8/3.5) Jones improved on his 2012 numbers and could be a real force to be reckoned with out of the bullpen. He got hit a little in the FSL, but his stuff is very impressive. Should be a bi-level player again next year and be tapping at the Twins door in 2015 if all goes well. 71. David Hurlbut, LHP, DOB: 11/24/89 2013 A-/A+ (combined stats): 70.1, 2.82, 64/13 (7.3/1.8) Hurlbut did start some this year, but he is more effective as a reliever and his K rate is only really acceptable as a reliever for right now. Given his, he has to get in line behind a lot of middle relief types in this organization. 78. Manuel Soliman, RHP, DOB: 8/11/89 2013 A-/A+ (combined stats): 80, 5.40, 63/50 (8.0/3.7) Soliman just turned 24, so not all is lost. The Twins used him primarily as a starter in Fort Myers, but there is no way that this will continue. Hopefully he can get under control, get his K rate back up, and prove to be an effective reliever. 77. Tim Shibuya, RHP, DOB: 9/14/89 2013 ELZ/A- (combined stats): 57, 1.42, 38/8 (7.2/1.5) Shibuya's 2012 was a mess after a promising 2011 season. He was successful at Cedar Rapids this year, but he should be successful there at his age. The strikeouts aren't coming anymore. He has great control and keeps the hits low. He will be tested next year in Fort Myers. 69. Madison Boer, RHP, DOB: 11/9/89 2013 GCL/A-/A+ (combined stats): 40.1, 5.13, 33/15 (7.1/2.6) Boer's health is a concern and his performance has been very underwhelming the past two years. He will start 2014 in Fort Myers again, and should probably be relegated to the bullpen. There are the 20 players born in 1989 cracking my top 80 Twins prospects list. Two of them (May and Pinto) made the top 10 and Lance Ray rounds out the list at number 80. The next installment features players born in 1990.

Exclusive: CIA Files Prove America Helped Saddam as He Gassed Iran - By Shane Harris and Matthew M. Aid | Foreign Policy "In 1988, during the waning days of Iraq's war with Iran, the United States learned through satellite imagery that Iran was about to gain a major strategic advantage by exploiting a hole in Iraqi defenses. U.S. intelligence officials conveyed the location of the Iranian troops to Iraq, fully aware that Hussein's military would attack with chemical weapons, including sarin, a lethal nerve agent.The intelligence included imagery and maps about Iranian troop movements, as well as the locations of Iranian logistics facilities and details about Iranian air defenses. The Iraqis used mustard gas and sarin prior to four major offensives in early 1988 that relied on U.S. satellite imagery, maps, and other intelligence. These attacks helped to tilt the war in Iraq's favor and bring Iran to the negotiating table, and they ensured that the Reagan administration's long-standing policy of securing an Iraqi victory would succeed. But they were also the last in a series of chemical strikes stretching back several years that the Reagan administration knew about and didn't disclose"

If the Tigers fall, anything is possible in this division next year.

It just gets so bizarre sometimes at TD. This is another bizarre thread that started out quite admirably! I remember something about $3 million being the value for a top prospect, I think (this is me paraphrasing Gleeman, so . . .). Paying Justin's salary would mean that the Pirates get him for free in a win-it-all-now move. It is obvious that they would be willing to part with more if that were the case. There are top prospects, strong prospects, average prospects, weak prospects, non-prospects, and players who are bad in the minors. These two are weak-to-non-prospects.

As the minor league seasons wind down and the trading period is over for the season, I have established my new Twins prospect list heading into the offseason. While I will post the full list at the end of this series, I decided to take a different approach and list the players not in rank order, but in year of birth order. Within each calendar year I then order players by level in the system, not by actual birthdate. The period goes from 1986 to 1996, which was an interesting fact alone. Organizing the system in this way actually helped me construct a better rank order anyway, so without further ado: 1986 (1): 40. Deibinson Romero, 3B/1B, RH, DOB: 9/24/86 2013 AA/AAA (stats from AAA): 358 plate appearances, .266/.369/.421 (.790) (.759 career), 15 doubles, 1 triple, 10 homers, 47 walks, 75 strikeouts, 4 steals and 0 times caught stealing. Romero is an adequate defensive third baseman and has also played first. His future looked very bright about fours ago but then the Twins soured on him and he has been a slow-mover in the system. That said, the Twins ought to be feeling tired with Trevor Plouffe, and especially with Trevor Plouffe at third base. Furthermore, if Wilkin Ramirez and Chris Colabello don't prove to be good enough RH bats off the bench, Ramirez would deserve a look. Finally, if Miguel Sano is not ready at the beginning of 2014, Romero could be the fill-in if the Twins either move Plouffe via trade or via position change. 1987 (3): 32. Dakota Watts, RHR, DOB: 11/16/87 2013 A+/AA (AA stats): 35.1 innings, 0.76 ERA, 29 k/10 bb (8.2/4.6 k/bb career) Watts has struggled with inconsistency and injuries in his career, but is currently lights out in the Eastern League. He could challenge for a bullpen spot in ST next year or he will certainly be the setup man or closer for Rochester when the season starts. I hope for the Twins to give him a chance by trading away Jared Burton and Casey Fien. 65. Kyle Knudson, C, RH, DOB: 9-12-87 2013 A+/AA (combined stats): 200, .273/.355/.352 (.707) (.660), 8-0-2, 18-31, 0-1 Knudson is a good catcher with decent offensive capabilities. If the Twins finally part with Danny Lehmann and also opt not to bring Eric Fryer back (both wise moves) next year, Knudson should join Danny Rohlfing in Rochester next year and be the next guy in line after Mauer, Doumit, Herrmann, and Pinto. Given that Mauer is likely going to see a steady decline at the plate, Doumit should be traded, and the latter two aren't established, Knudson might see some time in the big leagues in 2014 or 2015. 73. Evan Bigley, RF/LF, RH, DOB: 3/9/87 2013 all over the place, ending with New Britain (AA stats): 201, .216/.264/.308 (.572) (.727), 9-1-2, 11/56, 0/1 Bigley was injured this year after doing well in 2012 in AA. He could have been a contender for a Twins roster spot this year given the outfield calamity of 2013 for this organization. And now the Twins have added Alex Presley into the mix for no good reason. To me it seems that Bigley might be best served by signing with another organization in the offseason because the Twins continue to fill-in with older AAAA types. 1988 (6): 26. A.J. Achter, RHR, DOB: 8/27/88 2013: AA/AAA (combined stats): 59.1, 2.58, 56/33 (9.6/3.2) Achter is off to the Arizona Fall League and is surely the reliever next in line to get a gig with the Twins after Michael Tonkin and before Watts. Achter is a very solid pitcher with a good fastball and is another reason why trading Burton and Fien is ideal. 41. Matt Hauser, RHR, DOB: 3/30/88 2013 A+/AA (AA stats): 39.0, 6.00, 35/12 (8.4/3.8) Hauser has a solid start to his AA campaign but then had several terrible outings. I was looking for him to emerge as the next setup type for the Twins, but it would appear that this project is on hold for another year. 67. Ryan O'Rourke, LHR, DOB: 4/30/88 2013: A+/AA (combined stats): 44, 3.27, 39/15 (8.5/2.5) O'Rourke is a lefty and he doesn't walk all that many guys. This is going to be useful for him, but he has to continue to strike batters out. He may not be spectacular, but no one really thought of Caleb Thielbar as spectacular either. 54. Cole Johnson, RHR, DOB: 10/6/88 2013: A+/AA (combined stats): 59, 3.20, 65/20 (9.7/2.6) Johnson could shoot up the list quickly if he can maintain this strikeout rate. I imagine he will start at AA next year, but could be quick to ascend if anyone at AAA or with the Twins falters (and someone likely will). 49. Alex Wimmers, RHS, DOB: 11/1/88 (AA), but 2013 GCL stats: 15, 7.20, 18/15 (9.8/4.2) Any stats don't matter at all as long as Wimmers has a 2014 with at least several dozen innings pitched with effectiveness. Seven dozen innings would be more than his current career innings total. Any more significant setbacks and Wimmers' career is in total jeopardy. Hopefully he rises on this list by midseason 2014. 60. Matthew Koch, C, RH, DOB: 11/21/88 2013 A+: 393, .278/.346/.401 (.749) (.768), 20-1-7, 35/75, 1/1 Koch has a solid bat and I was surprised that the Twins didn't promote him in the second half of the season this year. If he starts the season well at New Britain next year, this could lead to a jump on this list. There you have it, the Twins prospects from 1986-1988 years of birth. The prospects range from Achter at no. 26 to Bigley at no. 73. My next entry with focus exclusively on the 20 Twins prospects born in 1989.

Well if the Twins cannot somehow manage to trade for players under the age of 27 because they aren't willing to pay Morneau's salary, I don't mind seeing them target Indy league players to see if another Colabello emerges.

Though I should say that the problem with the trade isn't Welker, it's Pressley. There are so many other players in the Pirates org. that are worthwhile to take a look at. TWO fill-in players, only one of which is really going to be deserving of any MLB time is not good.

oooppppsssss, didn't see the PTBNL was already named. Well, it isn't a good return at all then. A 27-year-old reliever to come in and serve as a Burton replacement isn't terrible given the money involved, but Dakota Watts is not that far removed from this and he is a year+ younger.

2012 was really such a disaster for him. He's getting a little old and I expect that he really pretty much needs a good showing in Fort Myers next year to stick with the organization.

Thinking about the Twins being not willing to pay Morneau's salary sends me into conniption fits. It's just crazy, and I agree with the sentiment, John. If the PTBNL is not a Pirates top 20 prospect, I will be very disappointed in this trade. $2.3 million is about the right amount for a decent prospect.

Strangely, I think I have actually nothing to add to this! You guys were pretty thorough . . . Sidenote: Eugene Jarecki's "Why We Fight" might be the most important documentary that all Americans should watch. And his new one "The House I Live In" (about the "war" on drugs) is also fantastic.

This gives Justin a chance to win now and maybe the PTBNL is good enough to matter.

That is very good news and he certainly deserves it.

Since there was nothing here, I figured I would start this. It looks as though the U.S. is headed, again, into another conflict. What are thoughts about this? I certainly have mine, but it would take me more time than I have at the moment to fully articulate it. I will say that I have an Iraq war veteran in my class who was completely beside himself with anger and frustration that the same story, the same buildup, the same stupidity, etc. has reared its head again.

haha, Michigan Twins!!!! Anyway, if ending one's switch-hitting were so easy, more players would do it. They don't do it. So . . .

Romero has clearly been overlooked by most Twins fans. Few have probably even heard of him. Beresford will only be a Twin because of big bats around him. Otherwise no amount of defense is going to make up for his lack of punch. Grimes should have been promoted to Fort Myers at some point this year, yes. And Vargas should have been promoted to New Britain. Koch is interesting, but you make age claims about Grimes and not about Koch? Evan Bigley is never going to be a major league baseball player. Talk about starting to get old! Your post confuses me.