Shane Wahl

Standings: Purdue 14-4, 35-9 Indiana 11-7, 24-24 Michigan State 10-8, 29-16 Minnesota 10-8, 28-22 Penn State 10-8, 24-23 Ohio State 11-10, 27-20 Nebraska 9-9, 29-18 Illinois 7-11, 19-24 Michigan 6-12, 19-28 Northwestern 5-16, 16-29 Draft watch: Kevin Plawecki, C, Purdue .367/.460./.566, 17/2/4, 20/7, 2/5 Draft projection: 2-3 rounds Eric Charles, 2B, Purdue .374/.443/.443, 10/1/0, 20/18, 15/18 Draft projection: 20-24 rounds Cameron Perkins, 3B, Purdue .355/.395/.519, 12/0/6, 6/13, 8/10 Drafted in 43rd round by Mariners in 2009 out of high school Draft projection: 25-29 rounds Nick Wittgren, RH RP, Purdue 30.1, 2.08, 32/9 Draft projection: 3-4 rounds Blake Mascarello, LH RP, Purdue 54.0, 1.83, 37/8 Draft projection: 30-35 rounds TJ Oakes, RH SP, Minnesota 84.2, 1.70, 74/13 Draft projection: 6-8 rounds Josh Scheffert, INF, Nebraska .363/.411/.615, 10/0/8, 10/18, 1/1 Draft projection: 15-18 rounds

Standings: Purdue 14-4, 35-9 Indiana 11-7, 24-24 Michigan State 10-8, 29-16 Minnesota 10-8, 28-22 Penn State 10-8, 24-23 Ohio State 11-10, 27-20 Nebraska 9-9, 29-18 Illinois 7-11, 19-24 Michigan 6-12, 19-28 Northwestern 5-16, 16-29 Draft watch: Kevin Plawecki, C, Purdue .367/.460./.566, 17/2/4, 20/7, 2/5 Draft projection: 2-3 rounds Eric Charles, 2B, Purdue .374/.443/.443, 10/1/0, 20/18, 15/18 Draft projection: 20-24 rounds Cameron Perkins, 3B, Purdue .355/.395/.519, 12/0/6, 6/13, 8/10 Drafted in 43rd round by Mariners in 2009 out of high school Draft projection: 25-29 rounds Nick Wittgren, RH RP, Purdue 30.1, 2.08, 32/9 Draft projection: 3-4 rounds Blake Mascarello, LH RP, Purdue 54.0, 1.83, 37/8 Draft projection: 30-35 rounds TJ Oakes, RH SP, Minnesota 84.2, 1.70, 74/13 Draft projection: 6-8 rounds Josh Scheffert, INF, Nebraska .363/.411/.615, 10/0/8, 10/18, 1/1 Draft projection: 15-18 rounds

You really like Lexi, don't you? I used to, but I just don't see it anymore. The Twins cannot wait forever for this guy and he is not playing well offensively this year. I hope that Mauer does move up to the 2-spot.

Thanks for this. Now maybe Span can get some respect for his defensive ability around here . . .

Good stuff. That is an interesting lineup--players all over the place now.

Off the top of my head: C--Dan Rohlfing, Chris Herrmann 1B--Chris Colabello 2B--Eddie Rosario SS--Brian Dozier MI--Danny Santana 3B--Miguel Sano OF--Angel Morales OF--Matt Carson OF--Aaron Hicks OF--Evan Bigley OF--Lance Ray Pitchers: Scott Diamond, A.J. Achter, Michael Tonkin, Luke French, Steve Hirschfield, Cole DeVries, Deolis Guerra, Lester Oliveros, Jeff Manship, Casey Fien, Caleb Thielbar, B.J. Hermsen

Current Big Ten standings: (Conference record, overall record) 1. Purdue 12-3, 31-6 2. Michigan State 7-5, 26-13 Minnesota 7-5, 23-19 4. Nebraska 8-7, 26-15 5. Penn State 6-6, 18-21 6. Indiana 6-6, 18-22 7. Ohio State 7-8, 22-18 8. Illinois 5-7, 22-17 Iowa 5-7, 16-19 10. Michigan 4-8, 17-24 11. Northwestern 5-10, 13-23 Standings summary: There are only 4 teams in the conference that could be called good. Purdue is well ahead of the pack. Top 5 Big Ten draft prospects: 1. Kevin Plawecki, C, Purdue: 140 AB, .357/.456/.564 16 doubles, 2 triples, 3 homers, 19 BB/6 K, 2 SB/5 SBA Plawecki is good defensively behind the plate (his pitchers trust him to call games and he has been very successful doing so, making plenty of average pitchers perform at a higher level). He is a great contact hitter but also has doubles power. The 19/6 BB/K ratio is perhaps most impressive. 2. Nick Wittgren, RHR, Purdue: 23 IP, 1.57 ERA, 26/6 K/BB Scouts will start to wander around the stadium in the middle of Purdue's Big 10 games, but when Wittgren comes in they sit down with their radar guns. Well above the other pitchers in the conference, he has the stuff to move to a starting role. 3. Tony Bucciferro, RHS, Michigan State: 68 IP, 3.04 ERA, 60/13 K/BB Bucciferro is a solid all-around pitcher. Not overpowering, but he has good enough strikeout potential and has improved in that area this year. 4. Torsten Boss, 3B, Michigan State 154 AB, .331/.448/.513, 12/2/4, 29/28, 9/9 Boss is developing a balanced offensive game. Like Purdue's Cameron Perkins (honorable mention), may project to being a corner IF/OF util guy. 5. Ryan Jones, 2B, Michigan State 171 AB, .386/.447/.497, 9/2/2, 21/11, 6/7 Great range defensively and is a very good contact hitter with some pop. With Plawecki, two of the hardest guys to strike out in the conference. Honorable mentions (Cameron Perkins, 3B, Purdue, and T.J. Oakes, RHS, Minnesota--drafted in 41st round by the Twins last year) No surprise that the top two teams in the conference dominate the top of the draft prospect ranks. With the two honorable mentions, I would not be shocked if these were the top 7 Big Ten players selected in the June draft.

Current Big Ten standings: (Conference record, overall record) 1. Purdue 12-3, 31-6 2. Michigan State 7-5, 26-13 Minnesota 7-5, 23-19 4. Nebraska 8-7, 26-15 5. Penn State 6-6, 18-21 6. Indiana 6-6, 18-22 7. Ohio State 7-8, 22-18 8. Illinois 5-7, 22-17 Iowa 5-7, 16-19 10. Michigan 4-8, 17-24 11. Northwestern 5-10, 13-23 Standings summary: There are only 4 teams in the conference that could be called good. Purdue is well ahead of the pack. Top 5 Big Ten draft prospects: 1. Kevin Plawecki, C, Purdue: 140 AB, .357/.456/.564 16 doubles, 2 triples, 3 homers, 19 BB/6 K, 2 SB/5 SBA Plawecki is good defensively behind the plate (his pitchers trust him to call games and he has been very successful doing so, making plenty of average pitchers perform at a higher level). He is a great contact hitter but also has doubles power. The 19/6 BB/K ratio is perhaps most impressive. 2. Nick Wittgren, RHR, Purdue: 23 IP, 1.57 ERA, 26/6 K/BB Scouts will start to wander around the stadium in the middle of Purdue's Big 10 games, but when Wittgren comes in they sit down with their radar guns. Well above the other pitchers in the conference, he has the stuff to move to a starting role. 3. Tony Bucciferro, RHS, Michigan State: 68 IP, 3.04 ERA, 60/13 K/BB Bucciferro is a solid all-around pitcher. Not overpowering, but he has good enough strikeout potential and has improved in that area this year. 4. Torsten Boss, 3B, Michigan State 154 AB, .331/.448/.513, 12/2/4, 29/28, 9/9 Boss is developing a balanced offensive game. Like Purdue's Cameron Perkins (honorable mention), may project to being a corner IF/OF util guy. 5. Ryan Jones, 2B, Michigan State 171 AB, .386/.447/.497, 9/2/2, 21/11, 6/7 Great range defensively and is a very good contact hitter with some pop. With Plawecki, two of the hardest guys to strike out in the conference. Honorable mentions (Cameron Perkins, 3B, Purdue, and T.J. Oakes, RHS, Minnesota--drafted in 41st round by the Twins last year) No surprise that the top two teams in the conference dominate the top of the draft prospect ranks. With the two honorable mentions, I would not be shocked if these were the top 7 Big Ten players selected in the June draft.

Yeah, they have surprised me this year (mainly Bigley and Romero). They should only get better. And Angel Morales is looming . . .

Yeah, it is mildly or more than mildly disgusting that you could accurately predict that about a player this year already. Souhan is such a crime against sports commentary.

Yeah, this is pretty much exactly the case.

Swarzak is not very good. His minor league numbers since 2007 (!) show that pretty clearly. He has no business being a major league starter. He's the Luke Hughes of the pitching staff . . .

What the hell was Thome expecting?

I am going to ignore the Wimmers thing because I choose to not panic about the entire pitching personnel throughout the whole organization at the moment . . . But, sorry, have De Los Santos and Dolenc at the top of the lineup coming to the plate the most is not going to produce as many wins as otherwise. I was taken aback when I saw the lineup. I would probably go with Hicks and Florimon at the top.

This has been a few years in the making, and until now I have been completely against it because his value as a starter seemed so immense when he was on, but now it is time to move Francisco Liriano to the bullpen. Here are the reasons: 1. Aside from 2010, he has been marginally good to pretty bad as a starter for the past 4+ seasons. 2. Starters who move to the bullpen generally throw harder given that they are amped up for one or two innings as opposed to 6-9. 3. Given 2, a 94-95 mph fastball coupled with a very good slider and good changeup would be devastating in high leverage situations. 4. The Twins have an issue with the entire pitching staff and a great shaking up is needed. 5. A Duensing-Liriano-Perkins LH bullpen provides great depth and situational value, (esp. in the playoffs which is where the Twins will be by 2013 if they make this move). 6. Given 5, either Liriano or Perkins will emerge as the closer by the beginning of 2013 at the latest (the other will be the lefty setup man). 7. Money. Moving Liriano immediately to the bullpen is going to make him cheaper to sign. Maybe he will be totally pissed and not want to play for the Twins . . . but then the Twins can given him more money (for his role, but along the lines of this year's salary) if this works out as expected (Perkins is signed already). 8. The guy has talent but loses his head when starting. Something is visibly amiss. There is little reason to think that he won't be fairly dominant in this role. 9. Given 8, let's remember something: Liriano in 2006 was fantastic . . . starting the season as a reliever and dominating. That confidence after dominating meant something for him as a starter. That confidence was shattered with his injury. This is the last chance to get that confidence and dominance back. 10. I doubt the trade value is going to be on the Twins' side. No selling low of Francisco Liriano is acceptable. Hopefully this starts a good discussion.

This has been a few years in the making, and until now I have been completely against it because his value as a starter seemed so immense when he was on, but now it is time to move Francisco Liriano to the bullpen. Here are the reasons: 1. Aside from 2010, he has been marginally good to pretty bad as a starter for the past 4+ seasons. 2. Starters who move to the bullpen generally throw harder given that they are amped up for one or two innings as opposed to 6-9. 3. Given 2, a 94-95 mph fastball coupled with a very good slider and good changeup would be devastating in high leverage situations. 4. The Twins have an issue with the entire pitching staff and a great shaking up is needed. 5. A Duensing-Liriano-Perkins LH bullpen provides great depth and situational value, (esp. in the playoffs which is where the Twins will be by 2013 if they make this move). 6. Given 5, either Liriano or Perkins will emerge as the closer by the beginning of 2013 at the latest (the other will be the lefty setup man). 7. Money. Moving Liriano immediately to the bullpen is going to make him cheaper to sign. Maybe he will be totally pissed and not want to play for the Twins . . . but then the Twins can given him more money (for his role, but along the lines of this year's salary) if this works out as expected (Perkins is signed already). 8. The guy has talent but loses his head when starting. Something is visibly amiss. There is little reason to think that he won't be fairly dominant in this role. 9. Given 8, let's remember something: Liriano in 2006 was fantastic . . . starting the season as a reliever and dominating. That confidence after dominating meant something for him as a starter. That confidence was shattered with his injury. This is the last chance to get that confidence and dominance back. 10. I doubt the trade value is going to be on the Twins' side. No selling low of Francisco Liriano is acceptable. Hopefully this starts a good discussion.

Earlier this spring I listed 10 mid-lower tier prospects to watch this year as I expected breakout seasons from each of them. This is an update on eight of them (Nate Roberts is on the DL and Angel Mata is in extended spring training) as well as an introduction to two more players off to strong starts this season. BELOIT: JD Williams, OF (Age: 21.5, SH): Williams is off to a slow start with the bat, but is still getting on base. Stats: 26 AB, .115/.324/.154, 1 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 7 BB, 8 K, 3 SB, 4 SBA. Tyler Grimes, IF (21.10, RH): Grimes is also starting slowly this year playing SS for the time being. Stats: 32, .188/.333/.313, 4/0/0, 4/5, 1/2. Tim Shibuya, RHS (22.8): Shibuya had a rough first outing, but got it together for 5 scoreless frames in his second start. Stats: 8.2 IP, 3.12 ERA, 4 K, 3 BB. FORT MYERS: Danny Santana SS/2B (21.6, SH): Santana got off to a blazing start and has cooled somewhat. He has split time equally between SS and 2B. I still think his OBP is too weak to be at the top of the lineup. Stats: 48, .313/.327/.417, 2/0/1, 1/6, 2/4. Lance Ray, LF/RF (22.8, LH): Ray has started better than last season and is really slugging the ball so far. He has split time between the two corner outfield positions. Stats: 38, .237/.295/.500, 4/0/2, 4/11, 0/0. Matt Hauser, RHR (24.1): Hauser has been up and down so far, but has been OK after a poor first appearance. Stats: 7, 6.43 4/2. Pat Dean, LHS (22.11): Dean has started 2012 pretty well, though the strikeouts are not there yet. Stats: 11.2, 1.54, 6/2. Addition: A guy who was injured a significant portion of 2011 and whose prospect status dropped somewhat: Angel Morales, CF (22.5, RH): It is very good to see Morales hitting well early. He has been in CF exclusively, but that would likely change if he is promoted to New Britain, which should happen if he can trim his strikeout rate. Stats: 44, .409/.460/.545, 1/1/1, 5/12, 3/4. NEW BRITAIN: Logan Darnell, LHS (23.3): Darnell is picking up where he left off in 2011. Stats: 10, 0.90, 5/3. Addition: A guy losing momentum the past two seasons, but who has rebounded so far: Evan Bigley, RF (25.1, RH): Bigley is not on hardly any Twins prospect lists, even those extending to 50 players. He did have some promise a few years ago. This year he is starting strong. Stats: 45, .311/.360/.467 2/1/1, 4/7, 1/3.

Earlier this spring I listed 10 mid-lower tier prospects to watch this year as I expected breakout seasons from each of them. This is an update on eight of them (Nate Roberts is on the DL and Angel Mata is in extended spring training) as well as an introduction to two more players off to strong starts this season. BELOIT: JD Williams, OF (Age: 21.5, SH): Williams is off to a slow start with the bat, but is still getting on base. Stats: 26 AB, .115/.324/.154, 1 2B, 0 3B, 0 HR, 7 BB, 8 K, 3 SB, 4 SBA. Tyler Grimes, IF (21.10, RH): Grimes is also starting slowly this year playing SS for the time being. Stats: 32, .188/.333/.313, 4/0/0, 4/5, 1/2. Tim Shibuya, RHS (22.8): Shibuya had a rough first outing, but got it together for 5 scoreless frames in his second start. Stats: 8.2 IP, 3.12 ERA, 4 K, 3 BB. FORT MYERS: Danny Santana SS/2B (21.6, SH): Santana got off to a blazing start and has cooled somewhat. He has split time equally between SS and 2B. I still think his OBP is too weak to be at the top of the lineup. Stats: 48, .313/.327/.417, 2/0/1, 1/6, 2/4. Lance Ray, LF/RF (22.8, LH): Ray has started better than last season and is really slugging the ball so far. He has split time between the two corner outfield positions. Stats: 38, .237/.295/.500, 4/0/2, 4/11, 0/0. Matt Hauser, RHR (24.1): Hauser has been up and down so far, but has been OK after a poor first appearance. Stats: 7, 6.43 4/2. Pat Dean, LHS (22.11): Dean has started 2012 pretty well, though the strikeouts are not there yet. Stats: 11.2, 1.54, 6/2. Addition: A guy who was injured a significant portion of 2011 and whose prospect status dropped somewhat: Angel Morales, CF (22.5, RH): It is very good to see Morales hitting well early. He has been in CF exclusively, but that would likely change if he is promoted to New Britain, which should happen if he can trim his strikeout rate. Stats: 44, .409/.460/.545, 1/1/1, 5/12, 3/4. NEW BRITAIN: Logan Darnell, LHS (23.3): Darnell is picking up where he left off in 2011. Stats: 10, 0.90, 5/3. Addition: A guy losing momentum the past two seasons, but who has rebounded so far: Evan Bigley, RF (25.1, RH): Bigley is not on hardly any Twins prospect lists, even those extending to 50 players. He did have some promise a few years ago. This year he is starting strong. Stats: 45, .311/.360/.467 2/1/1, 4/7, 1/3.

This week I will focus on the in-conference games, discussing each series, and how some draft prospects performed. Minnesota vs. Northwestern: The Gophers swept the Wildcats 2-1, 2-1, and 6-0 in the weekend series. Friday's game featured the dominance of pitcher T.J. Oakes, who gave up 1 run in 8 1/3 innings pitched. He struck out 7 without giving up a walk. In the second game of the series, D.J. Snelten picked up where Oakes left off. Snelten went 7 2/3 innings, giving up only one run while striking out 5 and walking 3. Third baseman Dan Olinger went 1-4 with an rbi. For Northwestern, Brandon Magallones also pitched very well. He whiffed 7 in 8 1/3 innings, giving up two runs on 6 hits and one walk.In the final game, Olinger again went 1-4 with an RBI. Purdue vs. Illinois: The Boilermakers swept the Illini 3-0, 4-1, 5-3. In the series for Purdue, catcher Kevin Plawecki went 1-7 with 1 run and 3 walks. Eric Charles went 3-10 with 3 runs, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K and a double. Cameron Perkins also went 3-10 with a run, RBI, walk, and double. Stephen Talbott also went 3-10 with a walk. Nick Wittgren threw 2 1/3 innings, giving up a run and fanning one while issuing one free pass. Blake Mascarello pitched 3 innings and gave up an unearned run. Finally, Lance Breedlove pitched 7 2/3 innings, striking out 7 and walking 2.For Illinois, Jordan Parr went 4 for 12. Nebraska vs. Ohio State: Nebraska took two out of three, losing 10-2 before winning 5-4 and 17-9. For Nebraska, Michael Pritchard was 3-13 with 2 runs, 2 RBI and 2 BB. Chad Christensen was 2-14. Josh Desze was 7-16 with 3 doubles, 2 runs, and 2 RBI. Jaron Long was dominant in 9 innings, while giving up 2 runs with a 5/0 K/BB ratio. Indiana vs. Michigan State: IU lost 2 out of 3. Indiana won the first game 3-2 and then lost the next two 6-0 and somehow 20-10. Catcher Kyle Schwarber was 5-11 with 2 walks, a homer, double and triple. Sam Travis really struggled. He went 0-13 with 7 strikeouts. Matt Dearden went 1/3 of an inning and gave up three runs. For MSU, Jordan Keur went 6-14. Ryan Jones was 7-16 with 34 runs. Torsten Boss was 4-10. Tony Bucciferro pitched 7 2/3 innings, with 7 Ks and 4 BBs. Michigan vs. Penn State: Penn State took 2 out of 3, dropping the first game 7-3, but coming back with 14-1 and 6-4 victories. 1B Jordan Steranka was the star of the series, going bonkers with 3 homers, a triple, 6 runs, and 7 rbi on 6-13 hitting. Patrick Biondi drew four walks for the Wolverines in the series. Boilermakers Plawecki and Wittgren are still my top two ranked prospects in the conference, and two guys the Twins should definitely take a long look at. Plawecki is a great hitter and solid defensive catcher. Wittgren is closing now, but could make it as a starter with his mix of three pitches (92-93 mph fastball, mid-70s curve, and upper-70s changeup (which still needs work)).

This week I will focus on the in-conference games, discussing each series, and how some draft prospects performed. Minnesota vs. Northwestern: The Gophers swept the Wildcats 2-1, 2-1, and 6-0 in the weekend series. Friday's game featured the dominance of pitcher T.J. Oakes, who gave up 1 run in 8 1/3 innings pitched. He struck out 7 without giving up a walk. In the second game of the series, D.J. Snelten picked up where Oakes left off. Snelten went 7 2/3 innings, giving up only one run while striking out 5 and walking 3. Third baseman Dan Olinger went 1-4 with an rbi. For Northwestern, Brandon Magallones also pitched very well. He whiffed 7 in 8 1/3 innings, giving up two runs on 6 hits and one walk.In the final game, Olinger again went 1-4 with an RBI. Purdue vs. Illinois: The Boilermakers swept the Illini 3-0, 4-1, 5-3. In the series for Purdue, catcher Kevin Plawecki went 1-7 with 1 run and 3 walks. Eric Charles went 3-10 with 3 runs, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 K and a double. Cameron Perkins also went 3-10 with a run, RBI, walk, and double. Stephen Talbott also went 3-10 with a walk. Nick Wittgren threw 2 1/3 innings, giving up a run and fanning one while issuing one free pass. Blake Mascarello pitched 3 innings and gave up an unearned run. Finally, Lance Breedlove pitched 7 2/3 innings, striking out 7 and walking 2.For Illinois, Jordan Parr went 4 for 12. Nebraska vs. Ohio State: Nebraska took two out of three, losing 10-2 before winning 5-4 and 17-9. For Nebraska, Michael Pritchard was 3-13 with 2 runs, 2 RBI and 2 BB. Chad Christensen was 2-14. Josh Desze was 7-16 with 3 doubles, 2 runs, and 2 RBI. Jaron Long was dominant in 9 innings, while giving up 2 runs with a 5/0 K/BB ratio. Indiana vs. Michigan State: IU lost 2 out of 3. Indiana won the first game 3-2 and then lost the next two 6-0 and somehow 20-10. Catcher Kyle Schwarber was 5-11 with 2 walks, a homer, double and triple. Sam Travis really struggled. He went 0-13 with 7 strikeouts. Matt Dearden went 1/3 of an inning and gave up three runs. For MSU, Jordan Keur went 6-14. Ryan Jones was 7-16 with 34 runs. Torsten Boss was 4-10. Tony Bucciferro pitched 7 2/3 innings, with 7 Ks and 4 BBs. Michigan vs. Penn State: Penn State took 2 out of 3, dropping the first game 7-3, but coming back with 14-1 and 6-4 victories. 1B Jordan Steranka was the star of the series, going bonkers with 3 homers, a triple, 6 runs, and 7 rbi on 6-13 hitting. Patrick Biondi drew four walks for the Wolverines in the series. Boilermakers Plawecki and Wittgren are still my top two ranked prospects in the conference, and two guys the Twins should definitely take a long look at. Plawecki is a great hitter and solid defensive catcher. Wittgren is closing now, but could make it as a starter with his mix of three pitches (92-93 mph fastball, mid-70s curve, and upper-70s changeup (which still needs work)).

Mauer, Span, and Morneau are the best overall hitters. Willingham and X (hopefully Valencia) are in the second tier. The best overall should bat 1,2 and 4 with the speedy obp guy 1 and the slugger 4. A slugger should also bat third. So I would go Span, Mauer, Willingham, Morneau, Valencia, Doumit . . .

I am glad for Colabello. Now if Dolenc is removed from that lineup (promoting Angel Morales would help), it could be potent. I am hopeful for Evan Bigley to turn it around this year.

I like this idea, but there essentially is nothing to "protection" whatsoever.

Like Liam Hendriks, Dozier makes me like him more simply by being on your podcast and presenting himself he way he does. Consider that vs. what Alexi Casilla has to offer (and next year at, what, 1.5 million more?).

I have said that it is actually a bit odd given that there is actually a lack of OF depth at Beloit and Fort Myers while there IS depth at the middle infield positions. Diversifying is a great thing at this point.