Jeremy Nygaard

Could it be a confidence things? Do you want your manager taking you out of the game the first time you come up late in the game? Give the guy a chance, let him prove that he can do it or that he can't do it. As for the pinch-running, though, I don't want to get started on that...

Or having that good hitter bunt a runner from second to third in the third inning.

Parker pointed out on Twitter last night that Sano had ZERO hits on balls in the top third of the zone last season. That's where the attack has been so far.

He's fouled off a lot of pitches and had a 8- or 9-pitch at-bat in both games. I don't know what the percentage is, but he's making a decent amount of contact, it's just not landing fair.

I think the most important thing is to not overreact so soon. We all knew there would be a ton of strikeouts, and they aren't disappointing us there! I'm not going to worry about low velo. Not yet. Not in the beginning of April.

If you have a have bad game or two and people point it out, someone will rush to your defense and claim, “well it’s only one (or two) games… don’t worry!” But when you do someone well in a game or two, those same people will praise you for making adjustments (even if you didn’t). Or maybe it’s the exact opposite…It was easy for many after the season opener to rip on Byron Buxton for his three strikeouts. And if you’re on Twitter, you may have seen a group take the opportunity to do so. Offensively, Buxton could probably use some seasoning in AAA, but it’s not as if he’s struggled at AA or AAA with the bat and his defense is so good that you simply couldn’t justify sending him to Rochester to start the season while letting someone else roam the middle of Target Field’s outfield. Despite the team-leading five strikeouts through Wednesday, Buxton is having some early-season success and getting - and taking advantage of - an opportunity to gain some valuable experience while hitting out of the 9-hole. Through two games and seven plate appearances, Buxton has seen 41 pitches, one more than Mauer (who has two more trips to the plate) and averages 5.86 pitches per plate appearances, which leds the team by over one pitch per trip. Yes, five of those have ended with Buxton walking back to the dugout, but if you’re looking for something that could foreshadow better days coming, this might be it. Download attachment: Screenshot 2016-04-06 at 9.47.55 PM.png On the flip side of that, Rosario (2.88 pitches/PA), Dozier (3.56) and Sano (3.75) have combined for two hits in 21 at-bats and both of those hits have come off of the bat of Rosario, who has had at-bats where he’s looked absolutely lost. But unless you can write off a football team’s whole season after going three-and-out in their first two possessions of the year, you probably shouldn’t worry too much about that trio or the lineup in general. So because it’s only been only two games, we’re not going to talk about anyone TRENDING in any direction. It’s too early. On the pitching side of the ledger, Trevor May was extremely impressive in his season debut on Monday. Pitching two innings, throwing mid-90’s gas and striking out four, May was filthy. The rest of Monday was far from ideal, losing your starting pitcher two innings into the game due to a rain delay and running out every available reliever with the exception of the guy you can only use on the road in the event that you’re winning in the bottom of the last inning (which they weren’t). While Casey Fien and Kevin Jepsen were inept in the Opener and Kyle Gibson didn’t pitch to expectations on Wednesday, it’s two games in… and there’s still plenty of time to trend. Good or bad. Click here to view the article

The season a player is drafted in is less than 90 days, so it doesn't count towards free agency. Wimmers will be a free agent after the season.

The Chattanooga Lookouts announced their 2016 Opening Day roster today. The Lookouts, who began an affiliation with the Twins in 2015, are looking to defend their Southern League Championship. In their first year with the Twins, Chattanooga went 76-61 in the regular season and beat Biloxi 3-2 in the best-of-five championship series. Despite sending many of last year’s stars to Rochester and/or the parent club, the Lookouts will have another star-studded roster - though not to last year’s caliber - that includes many of the organization’s top-rated relief pitchers.THE COACHING STAFF Fans have been spoiled by Doug Mientkiewicz, who enters his fourth year managing in the Twins system. Mientkiewicz has led his team to the playoffs in all three of his seasons, including a Florida State League Championship with Fort Myers in 2014 and a Southern League Championship last year in his first season in Chattanooga. Mientkiewicz remains best known for the seven years he spent with the Minnesota Twins (1998-2004). Tommy Watkins joins the Lookouts as the hitting coach after spending the previous six years in the same capacity in Cedar Rapids. Ivan Arteaga has been working with Twins pitchers since 2001. He will begin his first year in Chattanooga after bouncing between Fort Myers and Cedar Rapids the previous three years. He’ll have the opportunity to work with some pitchers for the third consecutive season. THE ROSTER *Spent time with Lookouts in 2015 Last year’s roster included top offensive prospects such as Miguel Sano, Byron Buxton, Max Kepler and Jorge Polanco. The pitching staff featured Jose Berrios and Tyler Duffey. Those names have all moved on, but there are still a number of highly regarded prospects, with a number of them being found in the bullpen. PROJECTED ROTATION (listed alphabetically): P DJ Baxendale* P Ryan Eades LP David Hurlbut* LP Brett Lee* P Aaron Slegers* P Jason Wheeler* This sextet has a ton of AA experience, starting 70 games for the Lookouts last year. In fact, DJ Baxendale led the 2015 squad in both games started and innings pitched. David Hurlbut, who along with Jason Wheeler, appeared in AAA as well, led the team in wins (11). Brett Lee had the lowest ERA (3.10) and WHIP (1.192) of any of the returning starters. Aaron Slegers, the youngest of the six, joined the Lookouts for a half dozen starts late in the year. Ryan Eades will be the lone member of the rotation without AA experience. PROJECTED BULLPEN: P Jason Adam P Nick Burdi* P JT Chargois* LP Mason Melotakis P Brandon Peterson* P Jake Reed* LP Mike Strong P Marcus Walden LP Corey Williams* P Alex Wimmers* Nick Burdi headlines this group of prospects, but it will be a couple of weeks (minimum) before he is throwing in games after coming down with some soreness in his right (throwing) forearm. JT Chargois is expected to assume the closer role, as he led the Lookouts with 11 saves last year. Mason Melotakis returns after missing 2015 due to Tommy John surgery. Jake Reed was demoted after struggling in his Chattanooga debut, but is back and ready to return to his dominant form after getting back on track in the Arizona Fall League. Former first-rounder Alex Wimmers is back in the bullpen after starting 18 games for the Lookouts and being second on the team in innings pitched (115.1). Wimmers was one of the last pitchers moved as pitchers were being sent down from the Twins roster. PROJECTED LINEUP: SS Engelb Vielma 2B Levi Michael* RF Daniel Palka 1B DJ Hicks* LF Travis Harrison* DH/C Mitch Garver C Stuart Turner* 3B Niko Goodrum* CF Shannon Wilkerson* PROJECTED BENCH: C Carlos Paulino* C Jairo Rodriguez* 3B Leonardo Reginatto OF Zack Granite OF Joe Maloney INF Aderlling Mejia* (DL) All eyes - at least early - will be on the powerful bat of Daniel Palka. Can he put balls in the seat like Adam Brett Walker did last year? Engelb Vielma, the youngest position player by nearly two years, could play shortstop right now for the Twins, but will he hit enough? Stuart Turner and Mitch Garver, who teamed up in the Arizona Fall League, will be professional teammates for the first time for a Twins affiliate. It will be interesting to see not only how they split up time behind the plate, but also additional at-bats, whether that be at DH or 1B, potentially. The experience of Levi Michael, Niko Goodrum, DJ Hicks and Travis Harrison will be leaned upon heavily. How many league titles have those guys won? THE PROSPECTS Though many of the highest-rated prospects have moved on, there are still plenty on the Chattanooga roster. Here is a quick look at which Lookouts found their names in a variety of Twins Prospect Rankings. Twins Prospect Rankings Twins Daily Top 10: Burdi (10) Seth Stohs Top 30: Burdi (7), Chargois (12), Vielma (15), Reed (18), Turner (23), Garver (24), Palka (25), Slegers (28), Harrison (30) Jeremy Nygaard Top 30: Burdi (13), VIelma (16), Chargois (17), Turner (22), Garver (24), Harrison (28) Cody Christie Top 30: Burdi (14), Vielma (16), Turner (18), Harrison (23), Chargois (24), Goodrum (25), Melotakis (27), Reed (30) Nick Nelson Top 10: Burdi (10) Steve Buhr Top 15: Vielma (9), Burdi (12), Reed (13), Chargois (15) Baseball America Top 31: Burdi (10), Chargois (15), Turner (16), Vielma (18), Reed (20), Melotakis (28) FanGraphs Top 25: Chargois (11), Burdi (14), Vielma (19), Turner (20), Melotakis (21), Garver (23), Eades (24) Keith Law Top 20: Burdi (9), Reed (11), Melotakis (19) John Sickels Top 20: Burdi (10), Turner (14), Chargois (15), Harrison (16), Eades (18) Aaron Gleeman Top 40: Burdi (9), Peterson (15), Chargois (17), Vielma (18), Slegers (21), Reed (24), Eades (30), Garver (31), Melotakis (32), Turner (33), Harrison (35), Palka (37) Ted Schwerzler Top 15: Burdi (9), Chargois (13), Reed (15) MLB.com Top 30: Burdi (9), Chargois (10), Reed (16), Vielma (17), Melotakis (20), Turner (23), Harrison (24), Palka (29) Baseball Essentials Top 20: Burdi (9), Chargois (13), Harrison (15), Palka (18), Vielma (19), Turner (20) PREDICTIONS First Hitter Promoted to Rochester: 1.) Travis Harrison, 2.) Levi Michael First Starting Pitcher Promoted to Rochester: 1.) D.J. Baxendale, 2a.) Brett Lee, 2b.) Jason Wheeler First Relief Pitcher Promoted to Rochester: 1.) Alex Wimmers, 2.) JT Chargois TWITTER FOLLOWS Chattanooga Lookouts: @ChattLookouts Radio Voice: @LWtheVoice Lookouts Media Relations: @RedFoxFanatic Click here to view the article

This will only be Murphy's second full season in CR. He was promoted from E-town at the end of his draft season. Paul will be a serviceable third baseman, but I'd guess Blankenhorn sees a lot of corn fields this summer.

I'm curious to see who takes Cederoth's spot if he goes on the DL as expected. I was surprised to see neither Alex Robinson nor Francisco Romero (though letting it warm up before sending him north makes sense) make the rotation.

On Sunday, the Cedar Rapids Kernels announced their 2016 Opening Day roster. Last year, the Kernels qualified for the Midwest League playoffs thanks to a 41-29 first-half record. They finished with a 77-63 record and swept their opponents in both the quarterfinals and the semifinals. The run stopped there as the Kernels bowed out to West Michigan 3-2 in the MWL Championship Round. The Kernels had two chances to capture the crown and fell short by one run in both games. THE COACHING STAFF Jake Mauer returns for this fourth season as the Kernels manager. Over his eight years as a minor-league manager, Mauer has accumulated a record of 434-373 (.538) and made the playoffs five times, including all three seasons he’s managed the Kernels. Mauer, who played minor league ball in the Twins system, will be joined by former Twin Brian Dinkelman and another former farmhand, J.P. Martinez. Both Dinkelman (hitting coach) and Martinez (pitching coach) will be in the first year with Cedar Rapids after spending their first professional coaching season with the GCL Twins. THE ROSTER *Spent time with Kernels in 2015 Cedar Rapids will return many players who played with them in last year’s playoffs. They’ll also welcome in a handful of players who had successful years in rookie ball. PROJECTED ROTATION (listed alphabetically): P Michael Cederoth* LP Sam Clay* P Andro Cutura P Sam Gibbons* P Randy LeBlanc* P Dereck Rodriguez* Michael Cederoth, who Fangraphs ranks at the Twins #22 prospect, returns to the Kernels rotation after missing an extended period of time last season with an undisclosed illness. Cederoth has recently been dealing with a strained oblique, so his status as the season opens is in question. Andro Cutura will join Cedar Rapids after pitching for Elizabethton. Cutura made an impressive spot start for Fort Myers, a game that was wiped out by rain. After making 15 low-A starts last season, Sam Gibbons could be the first option to be promoted if Fort Myers has a need. Randy LeBlanc led the Kernels in wins (9) last season despite pitching primarily out of the bullpen. Dereck Rodriguez, who made two starts for the Kernels, was named Appalachian League Pitcher of the Year in 2015. PROJECTED BULLPEN: P Nick Anderson* P John Curtiss* P CK Irby* P Kuo-hua Lo P Logan Lombana LP Mike Theofanopolous* P Zach Tillery* The Kernels return a lot of low-A experience to their bullpen, with only two new members. Expect some of these arms to get a few starts. Zach Tillery (13) and John Curtiss (7) both made a number of starts for last year’s Kernels. PROJECTED LINEUP: SS Jermaine Palacios 2B Luis Arreaz CF LaMonte Wade* 3B Chris Paul* 1B Zander Wiel RF Max Murphy* DH Jorge Fernandez* C AJ Murray LF Chris Cavaness PROJECTED BENCH: C Bryant Hayman C Rafael Valera* INF Sean Miller* On the heels of a season that saw him hit .370 with an OPS of .939, Jermaine Palacios is the highest-rated position player on the team, checking into the Top 20s of both Fangraphs (#17) and Baseball America (#18) and just missing MLB.com’s (#21). LaMonte Wade missed most Top 30s, but Fangraphs ranked him #12. Chris Paul (#39) made Aaron Gleeman’s Top 40. Zander Wiel, who missed some time after getting hit by a pitch shortly after signing last season, is an advanced hitter who could open some eyes. Max Murphy was the Appalachian League Player of the Year in 2014. At 19, Luis Arreaz will be the youngest player on the roster after skipping Elizabethton. Rafael Valera played around the infield for the Kernels last year, but is transitioning to behind the dish. THE PROSPECTS Here is a quick look at which Kernels found their names in a variety of Twins Prospect Rankings. No Kernels made any national Top 100s. Twins Prospect Rankings Twins Daily Top 10: None Seth Stohs Top 30: Palacios (21) Jeremy Nygaard Top 30: Palacios (10), Wade (27) Cody Christie Top 30: None Nick Nelson Top 10: None Steve Buhr Top 15: None Baseball America Top 31: Palacios (19) FanGraphs Top 25: Wade (12), Palacios (17), Cederoth (22) Keith Law Top 20: Rodriguez (14) John Sickels Top 20: Palacios (12), Wade (20) Aaron Gleeman Top 40: Palacios (16), Cederoth (19), Wad (29), Paul (39) Ted Schwerzler Top 15: None MLB.com Top 30: Palacios (21), Wade (28) Baseball Essentials Top 20: None PREDICTIONS First Hitter Promoted to Fort Myers: 1.) Zander Wiel, 2.) LaMonte Wade First Starting Pitcher Promoted to Fort Myers: 1.) Dereck Rodriguez, 2.) Sam Gibbons First Relief Pitcher Promoted to Fort Myers: 1.) Mike Theofanopolous, 2.) Zach Tillery TWITTER FOLLOWS Rochester Red Wings: @CRKernels Radio Voice: @Morgan_Hawk Beat Writer - The Gazette: @jeje66 Retired Super Fan: @jimcrikket Click here to view the article

Things like this should be talked about more.

I'm ok with most of that. I'm ok with having a mentor. I don't agree with the last sentence. I say it's rather uncommon for mentor/big brother/manager to publicly do what Ortiz is doing. But as was mentioned above, someone stuck the recorder in Ortiz's face, knowing the quotes would be there and controversial.

I'll stand by my statement that Palka is the only player in the organization that offers 70+ power from the left side. I'd put Vargas at 65. I'd put Sano, Walker and Park at 70+.

I actually don't think it started til after... and Vargas was suspended for using a diuretic not a PED. But still, Cano mentors Sano... and I haven't heard Robby say anything about how the Twins are using Sano. But who is? Papi.

Fair to assume the mentoring started before Vargas's suspension?

Less than a week from Opening Day, we’ll take one final preseason look at who’s trending. There’s been plenty of roster-shaping news in the last seven days, much of which will shape this week’s version.Ricky Nolasco, Fifth Starter It’s probably unfair that we turned Monday into a Nolasco vs Duffey competition for the fifth spot in the rotation considering that Duffey was facing major league competition and Nolasco was facing a group of high-A minor leaguers. But that’s essentially what happened. Because Duffey wasn’t very good, Nolasco’s decent performance against inferior competition was enough to convince the team brass that Duffey would be better in Rochester while Nolasco gets another chance to secure a rotation spot. (Or at least that’s how it appeared publicly.) It was only last Wednesday when Ricky Nolasco kept the door open to make the rotation with a performance that included six scoreless innings in which he struck out seven and only allowed three hits (no walks). While many point at the two years and $25 million remaining on his contract as the reason that Nolasco is in the rotation, let’s not forget that he is only two seasons removed from having pitched 185 or more innings in five of the last six seasons. If he can get his BABIP closer to his career average (.319) instead of .354 and .392 he’s allowed in his two seasons as a Twin, he could be more than a serviceable back-end piece. At the end of the day, though, Nolasco set the stage for a showdown with the team’s decision-makers when his agent stated publicly that he didn’t want to pitch out of the bullpen. But instead of lying down and putting himself in a situation for that showdown to happen, he went out and performed well enough to earn - at a minimum - a handful of major league starts to prove to the Twins - and other teams around the league - that’s he’s still capable of taking the ball every five days. TRENDING: Into the rotation (though that isn’t guaranteed to be the case a month from now). Kurt Suzuki, All-Star Catcher What? He was. Though we haven’t seen that Suzuki much or consistently lately, the Suzuki that showed up to spring training has performed at a very high level offensively. Yes, it’s only 26 at-bats and, yes, it’s only eight hits. Four of those hits, however, have been home runs. (He hit five all of last season). Having an alternative at the catching position in John Ryan Murphy - and an incentive to not let Suzuki appear at the plate 485 times - we could see a better-rested Suzuki make a better offensive impression in 2016 TRENDING: Towards less playing time, but more impact while in the lineup. David Ortiz, Diarrhea of the Mouth We get it Papi. You felt like you were wronged by the Twins. And that treatment created an enormous chip that you filled with PEDs, World Series rings and a future in Cooperstown. It also provided you with an apparent avenue to rip on the Twins on multiple occasions… while mentoring some of their more impressionable youth. Your act has grown tired and the whole population is an agreement that you should just shut up and play out your career before drifting off into the sunset. TRENDING: Past annoying. Daniel Palka, Next Babe Ruth? Palka has gotten a handful of at-bats with the Twins during spring training and he’s turned three pitches around and deposited them into the seats. Before we anoint him the next anything, though, he’s still got a lot to prove and he’ll get the opportunity to do that in Chattanooga. Palka, along with a number of others in the organization, has 70+ power, but he’s the only one that offers it up from the the left side of the plate. Palka, expected to be added to the 40-man roster in November, has a decent chance of leading the organization in home runs this season. TRENDING: Towards everyone's Top 20, even before he's played a meaningful game. There you have it. Another week and more players to discuss. Who's trending in your mind? Click here to view the article

Paul Molitor said a couple things last night while being interviewed on MLB Network that address your question: He said the Twins didn't expect to win the bidding on Park. But when they were able to get him, they had to adjust. He also said that he doesn't want to make a 22-year-old kid a full time DH (which he's said before). Now that doesn't address WHY it's Sano that has to be in the outfield, but I'd guess they feel he's the one that can be most successful with the change (but, like you, I question if that's a correct assumption).

This is from MLBTR this morning... If you sub out Schwarber with Sano, catcher with third base and left field with right field, it's 100% accurate. "Schwarber’s defensive future has been the subject of much debate, as he’s scheduled to see most of his playing time in left field this year even though his fielding prowess is still a question mark. It’s also unclear if Schwarber can handle being a regular catcher"

Miguel Cabrera and Kyle Schwarber come to mind as two really good hitters that were put in the outfield (without much experience) just to get their bat in the lineup. Kris Bryant played 98 innings in the OF last year without any prior experience there at all, including 18 innings in CF. I wouldn't really consider it a common practice... but it's not unheard of. It's not going to be pretty; I just don't want it to be a train wreck.... it makes for a good story to follow though. (And did anyone question Joe Maddon?)

You're right. Pressly is probably the favorite to make the team. Who would serve as long man? Maybe Darnell has a shot too.