Shane Wahl

I do think that Doyle has potential with a year at AAA. Maybe instead of releasing players like Ciurcina and Pedro Guerra, they could have been kept around just long enough to offer up in exchange for Doyle? I still don't understand the story with those two. Maybe there were off the field issues. If so, that's fine to get rid of them, but maybe not until you see about the Rule 5 draft (actually I don't remember if the R5 draft was before or after the releasing??). Good lord, pass those off-the-field issues onto the White Sox!

And he strikes out. 11-4 going to the 4th.

Ramirez flies out to right. It's up to Alexi.

Bates doubles, Hughes walks. Wilkin Ramirez up. 11-4 in the 3rd. Good to see that Span stole another base.

Frankie. Nice.

You really have me stumped with this one. Some hint is needed . . .

FJ sucks me in again . . . While it is understandable to be frustrated with Burnett, it is true that he was up for too long in 2010 and really had no business being up in 2011 instead of working on stuff (literally) at Rochester. Once up in the Show, it is not always easy to continue to work on stuff. Rochester is the place to do and develop. The "free Chuck James" movement really was aka "the help Alex Burnett" develop movement. It was fairly uncharacteristic of the Twins to push Burnett like they did.

If that OF is ready by 2014, Willingham will be the DH.

In 2007 and 2008 he was essentially being molded into a closer role with the Reds. He was excellent as a setup guy. Then things took a turn in 2009 and he was out hampered by injuries in 2009 and 2010, and spent time in AAA those years and last year. He has a career 8.6 K/9 rate in the minors and 7.6 in the majors (this would be good for the Twins in 2012).

Sheesh, I forgot about Oliveros too. It's hard to keep track of all of these guys. How many pitchers are going to be cut this week, though? They can't all be destined for Rochester!

Good for him.

I wonder if NB will have Hicks-Herrmann 1-2 in the lineup? That is some serious isolated discipline (though maybe they could swing a bit more).

Prospect rankings don't only account for statistics. They also consider projected ceilings (Hicks' ceiling is very high, obviously) and how they play. Still, the statistics aren't that bad, especially his career OBP. That's coupled with stellar defense.

I like the things Valencia has said this spring. That hitting line would be nice. That's a big jump from last year, but it seems to be about middling between 2010 and 2011. In a more perfect world, Valencia semi-platoons with Burroughs.

I would like to see Gutierrez given the closer role at Rochester to see what he can do. I almost wish that Swarzak wouldn't have fooled people last year. I don't think he is very good, and seems to me to be a AAAA pitcher. But oh well. At this point I could see two of the following breaking with the Twins: Doyle, Waldrop, Maloney, Manship, and Wise. This would round out the bullpen with Capps, Perkins, Duensing, Burton and Swarzak. The other three should provide good depth at Rochester. I would like to see Burnett as the setup man for Gutierrez.

Yes, if we agree on something, it must be true. Seven will go north and they will probably need 12 solid relievers for the year, barring major health problems. Burton, Waldrop, and Gutierrez should certainly be in that top 12.

There are few Twins prospects who frustrate Twins fans as much as Aaron Hicks. He was extremely highly regarded when he was drafted and he has not performed at the level he was expected to, even at a young age. But upon examining Hicks in more detail, it seems clear that people need to hold off on the criticism--he's about right where he needs to be and there is a recent precedent for a breakout career. Aaron Hicks: switch hitter, 6'2", 185, DOB: 10/2/89 (Age: 22.5) Aaron Hick minor league statistics: 2008: GCL: 204 PA, .318/.409/.491, 10 doubles, 4 triples, 4 homers, 12/2 SB/CS, 28/32 BB/SO 2009: Beloit: 297 PA, .251/.353/.382, 15 doubles 3 triples, 4 homers, 10/8 SB/CS, 40/55 BB/SO 2010: Beloit: 518 PA, .279/.401/.428, 27 doubles, 6 triples, 8 homers, 21/11 SB/CS, 88/112 BB/SO 2011: Fort Myers: 528 PA, .242/.354/.368, 31 doubles, 5 triples, 5 homers, 17/9 SB/CS, 78/110 BB/SO 2011: Arizona Fall League: 120 (AB+BB) PA, .294/.400/.559, 8 doubles, 5, triples, 3 homers, 5/4 SB/CS, 18/21 BB/SO Defensively, Aaron Hicks is regarded as basically ready for MLB in center field. Hicks was drafted with a lot of acclaim and a lot of hope was placed in his potential to be the next Kirby Puckett or Torii Hunter. Then, 2009 happened. Hope was restored in 2010 as he repeated a level. Overall those are pretty good numbers for a 20-year-old in Beloit playing stellar defense. 2011 was a frustrating year for Twins fans who were previously enamored with Hicks' potential. The extra base hits look good, but there isn't a lot of homer power. A lot of Twins fans probably didn't look into what happened in the Arizona Fall League. The AFL is regarded as an offensive paradise for prospects at AA and AAA. That being the case, Hicks' AFL performance might not seem too important. But, he wasn't a AA or AAA player last year and it is possible that he starts this year in Fort Myers again. The hitting in that league is always overhyped because it is a hitters' league, but Hicks was a single-A player playing in a AA/AAA prospect league. He struggled early, but then was dominant . . . in his last ten games his OPS was 1.268. Hicks is much better at the plate from the right side, so much so that there have been murmurings about him shifting to hitting right-handed only. This is a doubtful move at this point in his career, and obviously there isn't much of a comparison to be made between Hicks vs. righties as a LH hitter and as a RH hitter. For the doubters about his performance, one only needs to look to the minor league career of Torii Hunter who put up very pedestrian numbers until he was 23. An important appeal to Hicks' potential is the fact that there is no one else in the system that highly regarded who is really a leadoff hitter. Hicks looks to be Denard Span's eventual replacement. And speaking of Span, Hicks appears to project as a kind of Span/Hunter hybrid. He will play excellent defense, strikeout a lot, walk a lot, and hit 10-15 home runs a year. Even if he starts the year in Fort Myers, I would be surprised if he doesn't finish in New Britain, perhaps splitting time 50/50. This is a big season for Hicks, and I will be disappointed if he doesn't have a strong season. But I won't be totally dismayed until he actually starts to regress. It appears that a clear directive can be given to him to help substantially: swing the bat more!

There are few Twins prospects who frustrate Twins fans as much as Aaron Hicks. He was extremely highly regarded when he was drafted and he has not performed at the level he was expected to, even at a young age. But upon examining Hicks in more detail, it seems clear that people need to hold off on the criticism--he's about right where he needs to be and there is a recent precedent for a breakout career. Aaron Hicks: switch hitter, 6'2", 185, DOB: 10/2/89 (Age: 22.5) Aaron Hick minor league statistics: 2008: GCL: 204 PA, .318/.409/.491, 10 doubles, 4 triples, 4 homers, 12/2 SB/CS, 28/32 BB/SO 2009: Beloit: 297 PA, .251/.353/.382, 15 doubles 3 triples, 4 homers, 10/8 SB/CS, 40/55 BB/SO 2010: Beloit: 518 PA, .279/.401/.428, 27 doubles, 6 triples, 8 homers, 21/11 SB/CS, 88/112 BB/SO 2011: Fort Myers: 528 PA, .242/.354/.368, 31 doubles, 5 triples, 5 homers, 17/9 SB/CS, 78/110 BB/SO 2011: Arizona Fall League: 120 (AB+BB) PA, .294/.400/.559, 8 doubles, 5, triples, 3 homers, 5/4 SB/CS, 18/21 BB/SO Defensively, Aaron Hicks is regarded as basically ready for MLB in center field. Hicks was drafted with a lot of acclaim and a lot of hope was placed in his potential to be the next Kirby Puckett or Torii Hunter. Then, 2009 happened. Hope was restored in 2010 as he repeated a level. Overall those are pretty good numbers for a 20-year-old in Beloit playing stellar defense. 2011 was a frustrating year for Twins fans who were previously enamored with Hicks' potential. The extra base hits look good, but there isn't a lot of homer power. A lot of Twins fans probably didn't look into what happened in the Arizona Fall League. The AFL is regarded as an offensive paradise for prospects at AA and AAA. That being the case, Hicks' AFL performance might not seem too important. But, he wasn't a AA or AAA player last year and it is possible that he starts this year in Fort Myers again. The hitting in that league is always overhyped because it is a hitters' league, but Hicks was a single-A player playing in a AA/AAA prospect league. He struggled early, but then was dominant . . . in his last ten games his OPS was 1.268. Hicks is much better at the plate from the right side, so much so that there have been murmurings about him shifting to hitting right-handed only. This is a doubtful move at this point in his career, and obviously there isn't much of a comparison to be made between Hicks vs. righties as a LH hitter and as a RH hitter. For the doubters about his performance, one only needs to look to the minor league career of Torii Hunter who put up very pedestrian numbers until he was 23. An important appeal to Hicks' potential is the fact that there is no one else in the system that highly regarded who is really a leadoff hitter. Hicks looks to be Denard Span's eventual replacement. And speaking of Span, Hicks appears to project as a kind of Span/Hunter hybrid. He will play excellent defense, strikeout a lot, walk a lot, and hit 10-15 home runs a year. Even if he starts the year in Fort Myers, I would be surprised if he doesn't finish in New Britain, perhaps splitting time 50/50. This is a big season for Hicks, and I will be disappointed if he doesn't have a strong season. But I won't be totally dismayed until he actually starts to regress. It appears that a clear directive can be given to him to help substantially: swing the bat more!

Yeah, Alex Burnett . . . good lord. Another prospect who should been kept at Rochester last year instead of sucking, pushing too much, and changing his approach before he was ready. I like Jared Burton and Kyle Waldrop.

To reiterate, for 2012, Ben Revere's best value is as a LF platoon player (batting ninth) who serves as a late-inning pinch runner and defensive replacement, and a backup CF. LF at Target Field is very spacious and Revere makes that position dramatically better. RF is smaller and requires a strong throwing arm. Span's speed is lost there and his arm is not a RF arm. Of course this can change depending on his performance (strange things like hitting lefties better than righties, throwing a football (this is just a STUPID idea, in my view---they require different throwing motions, grips, etc.--he should be throwing baseballs) somehow miraculously bolsters arm strength (seriously, whose idea was that?), he bats .320+ and learns to take walks at a decent rate, etc.). And I don't think Ben Revere is the long-term solution in LF. We had better hope not. It would mean that Tosoni, Benson, Hicks, and Arcia basically all couldn't stick in the majors (Maybe if Hicks sticks as Span's replacement, Revere is left isn't terrible). I think people shouldn't complain too much. We will get to watch Ben Revere in the field and on the bases and not Delmon Young.

Hendriks has #2 upside and is most likely a #3. Gibson, Wimmers, and Salcedo all could be 1/2 starters.

I also think that I did a pretty good job discussing prospect list movement between 2011 and 2012 in my last blog. Conclusion is that lefty starters, righty relievers (power arms), catchers, and 3rd basemen are needed first and foremost in the system, and the 2011 draft may have addressed some of that already (but the playing time sample from many of them is non-existent or very limited). Hudson Boyd as a closer down the road around 2015 is not out of the question. I do think the Twins need to find a way to sign a top-25 starter to be their number 1, and the minor league system can produce the rest of the rotation.

Plouffe has actually been fine in LF in ST. The worry now is probably more about his bat. One cannot seriously maintain that Plouffe was more valuable to the Twins last year than Revere. The ideal situation for 2012 is CLEARLY a platoon of Revere and Plouffe in LF. There is no doubt about this. Except, probably, in Gardy's mind. I am sure Terry Ryan is aware, however, so I have hope there. I would assume that Revere is not in the long term plans if Tosoni, Benson, and Hicks pan out.

Great stuff. I particularly like the dashboard. It is informative in such a simple way.

Ok, I guess I can see why it doesn't matter so much. I certainly don't want to continue the conversation along those lines to feed the stupid speculation anyway. And clearly his growth points to being a growing young man as opposed to 20+. If he's in the majors at 22, that will be exciting. Maybe even a September call-up in 2014.