Jeremy Nygaard

One of my favorite things to do in regards to this website - whether in conjunction with the Prospect Handbook or not - is to have an ongoing dialogue with scouts in the organization. My favorite article I've ever posted still remains the interview I did with West Coast Scouting Supervisor Sean Johnson. In the 2013 edition of the handbook, I had an interview with Jack Powell, who is the scout responsible for signing Byron Buxton. The full interview was available in the book, with a brief preview here. [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK] In an effort to make/keep the tradition of featuring a scout in each year's handbook, I reached out to one of the newest members of the Twins scouting fraternity: Freddie Thon. This picture of Freddie was during his minor-league All-Star days of 2006, but you get the point - he's a former baseballer and now his job is to locate the next generation of Twins prospects. Located primarily in southern Florida and Puerto Rico, Thon's job is especially important, given the success the Twins have had in that area. I'd love for you to read the whole interview, but that's only going to be available in the Handbook (which is available in both paperback and eBook versions). Some excerpts here: Freddie talks about his background, which is very baseball heavy and also his path from high school through college and into the minor leagues. Of course, I had to ask him about next year's draft class: Freddie spoke at length about many other things as well. Pick up the Handbook, you won't be disappointed.

The Winter Meetings have come to an end and with that, so will our special edition Google Hangouts. We do have one left, though, and you can watch it here, live at 9pm. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/1v0aMRMDe-0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> [PRBREAK][/PRBREAK]Wednesday night we talked about potentially adding Pelfrey and/or Arroyo and what it could mean for the starting pitching staff. We also discussed Josmil Pinto's shoulder, the signing of a Indy League MVP, the return of former scouts and the future of Liam Hendriks. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/cWMRlzaRW5E" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> You can also use the links below to find it on iTunes and on YouTube. ------ Tuesday night's episode featuring John Bonnes can be seen below. MIKE PELFREY!! <iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/Wm5xzNjE8q0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> While the Big Pelf took up a too-large segment of our show, it was very entertaining to visibly see John Bonnes's blood pressure go up at the idea of re-signing him. John also talked about TwinsDaily's Winter Meltdown and other current endeavors (not limited to TwinsDaily's re-upping with the Cedar Rapids Kernels). We addressed other news of the day - such as the rumored interest in Stephen Drew - and answered random questions. So once you get by the first three minutes of confusion, you're in for a real treat! You can view the video embed above, the link to or the audio-only version here on iTunes at https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/twinshangout-podcast/id776886965?mt=2.--------- Guestless on a Monday. Seth and I spent an hour talking about today's Twins news. Well, it was like 57 minutes of talking about the Twins and four minutes of utter confusion when Jeremy's volume stopped working. We were able to reconnect the old school way - telephone - to complete our discussion and even made some room for the day's newest news: Rajai Davis to the Twins? Oh, just another day in the life of a Twins fan. <iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/d5Wc5BU3ZWc" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> You can view the video embed above, the link to or the audio-only version here on iTunes at https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/twinshangout-podcast/id776886965?mt=2 (though that seems to be an episode behind).----------------------------- Sunday edition: Seth and Jeremy were joined by 1500 ESPN/Eyewitness News' Doogie Wolfson as we kicked off our Winter Meetings Edition. When it comes to local sports, no one knows it better than Doogie. Doogie suggested the Twins might be busy this week, what positions they may be targeting as well as a few players who the team might be targeting for extensions. He also mentioned one (surprise?) name that may be available in trade talks. Drink it all in. video or Audio-only?<iframe width="420" height="315" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/kKpwZaCotQk" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe> --- Please leave your questions/comments below. If you're viewing live, you can ask questions during the show using the Q and A feature that we enable. These Hangouts are unlikely to last full hours each night, but this is great way to catch up on your Twins-related news of the day without having to pay close attention for the rest of the day.