Pitz

Agree with you on Thorpe. It really seems like he should be moved up. Another very strong outing today - 5 IP, 2 unearned runs, 4 hits, 1 BB , 8 Ks. Age is just another number. All of his pitching numbers suggest he's ready to face more advanced hitters.

I was thinking over the weekend about the 6 young arms in rookie ball this year that many people have been excited about around here. These young guys offer some hope of some high upside arms that might pan out to be more than 'back end starters' that Twins fans are far too familiar with. I know that there is only a small chance that all of these guys make it to the bigs and an even smaller chance that they all become front end starters, but for now they give us something to be excited about. I was wondering if there is any chance that these 6 make up the rotation for the Kernels in 2014. I'm sure there are people out there who are more familiar with the typical progression the Twins put their pitchers on and will be able to give a little more insight, which is why I'm putting this out there: CR - Stewart, Gonsalves, Jorge, Rosario, Landa, Thorpe Thorpe is probably the biggest jump, as he's a year younger than the rest. He has been terrific in the GCL. It will be interesting to see if he and Stewart see any time in E'town this year, which would go a long way in helping their chances for full season ball next year. Another issue will be managing innings for these young talents, but I would like to see the Twins be aggressive in promoting talent, allowing them to face better competition. A 6-man rotation will already help limit the innings, and they should be able to find other ways to keep innings in check as well. FtM - Berrios, Eades, Slegers, Lee, Melotakis (Atherton, Gruver) I think Berrios, Lee, and Melotakis have all shown enough this year in CR to move to high A next year. Eades and Slegers may be the key cogs in determining the fate of the younger guys. Baxendale started this year in FtM, and I'd rather see these college starters pushed. I don't really understand why they are in rookie ball right now, other than it's probably easier to manage when they get into games. NB - Wimmers, Duffey, Taylor Rogers, Baxendale, Tomshaw, Summers, Wheeler AA and AAA is where there's a log jam of the back end guys. Maybe Wimmers shows enough in the fall and spring and they move him to Rochester, or maybe Baxendale finishes strong this season and proves ready for AAA. Roch - Meyer, May, Darnell, Dean (Albers, Vazquez, Hendriks) What do you all think of these rotations and their likelihood?

2nd straight day? I'm pretty sure he played yesterday. 0-2 with 2 HBP - which may have something to do with why he's not playing, but I'm just speculating.

Everytime I think about May or see his pitching lines, I think of A.J. Burnett. I think Jackson is also a good comp. He's a guy who gets you excited about his stuff, will have a few dominant performances along with some that drive you crazy because of the lack of control. Hopefully the Twins are able to see that his 'consistency' is likely to always be inconsistent, but at the end of the year he'll probably have some pretty respectable overall numbers. It seems there is a lot of value to be had with that, especially if he can provide a substantial innings total every season. Edit: It would also be nice to see May get a September call up for a taste of big league action, since he's already on the 40-man. Or at the very least, a promotion to AAA. I think he's spent enough time at AA.

and Lewis Thorpe - 5 IP, 4 hits, 0 runs, 0 BB, 4 K

I know they don't fit the 1994 qualifier, but I'd like to add 2 more names to the list (they're 1995 babies). I think most people around here are familiar with Lewis Thorpe, who has put up some great numbers in the GCL thus far. Another name from the DSL that I've been tracking is Alexis Tapia from Venezuela. I haven't been able to find a scouting report on what he's got for stuff. I know DSL numbers don't necessarily mean a whole lot, but here are the things I like: Turns 18 on August 10. Size: listed at 6' 2" and 195 (almost identical to Kohl Stewart's listed height/weight) Ratios: 27 K's to 3 BB's and 2.12 GO/AO in 34.1 innings Like I said, DSL numbers don't necessarily mean too much, but for those who might care his ERA and WHIP are also terrific: 1.05 and 0.61 respectively. Link: Alexis Tapia Obviously all of these guys have quite a ways to go, but it's nice to have a nice number of potentially high upside arms.

As I was reading about the Twins 'vanilla' personality and need for some fire, I couldn't help but think of Torii Hunter picking up the ball after being beaned and chucking it back at the pitcher. That is all. Thanks for the solid article.

You must have had a better view of the throw. I didn't realize that it hit Rohlfing. I thought the throw was really off the mark from my third base side vantage point. I didn't look up to see if the play was replayed on the big screen so I'll trust your perspective. I was watching Rosario and Baxendale to judge their reactions. My wife and I were hesitant to make the trip with the threat of storms and not knowing if Sano would play. We decided to check out some other things in the area before heading to the park so we only got there very shortly before the first pitch. I was looking forward to seeing Baxendale. I'm not sure that any of the pitches are plus, but that's only off of seeing him one time when he wasn't at his best. I think he has a good mix of pitches to keep hitters off balance enough to be able to be a back end starter. Command is going to be huge for him and learning how to use his repertoire effectively. Here's to hoping he can match what Radke was able to accomplish in his Twins tenure.

Appreciate the write up. I was at the game also, although I had seen enough after 5 innings. The only thing I'm a little unsure about was the error on Rohlfing. From my perspective, that was clearly an error on Rosario as it was a very poor throw. (It is listed in the box score as a Rosario throwing error). I'm not adding this to say anything about Rosario's defense. I think he is fine at second, but that particular throw was not good. Baxendale was definitely victimized by some poor defense, but yeah he did not seem to be very sharp. This was the first time I've seen him, but I'm hoping his stuff is a little better than what I saw last night. Thanks for your report.

By no means did Baxendale pitch well, but he also suffered from some poor defense in my eyes. In the first inning, there was a deep fly ball to center (a little right center) that seemed to me like it should have been caught, but Parraz couldn't get there I guess. Maybe he was shading too far to left center, but it sure seemed like the ball should have been caught. It was in the air for quite a while. There was also a pop foul that should have been caught. It was a long run for Bigley no doubt, but he got there - just didn't catch it. In the fifth, Baxendale got a ground ball to second with the bases loaded and no outs. Rosario uncorked a really bad throw home. 2 runs scored on the play and left runners on second and third with still no outs. Things continued to unravel from there. It was very disappointing not to see Sano in action. I'm ok with disciplining the guy, but this seems to be getting a little excessive. Did he kick somebody's dog or something? Overall, the team looked very 'bleh' on the field with little energy. I guess that comes with losing so many games in a row. They definitely need a lift.

I was also looking at going to the game this evening, but saw the forecast isn't looking too great. Here's to hoping the thunderstorms go away and Sano returns and makes some thunder of his own.

This whole discussion and the bits and pieces makes me a little nervous about the relationship between the Twins (management and coaches) and Sano. Hopefully we are all only really making a mountain out of what is only a molehill. I know there are some great issues being discussed and appreciate the contributions, but hopefully the coaches/management and Sano are getting on the same page. Hopefully, Sano fully understands why he has been benched, the message isn't that he needs to lose his bravado, but that he needs to respect his teammates, coaches, opponents and the game. Hopefully, Sano respects the decision, learns from it, grows, and continues to work his tail off to be the best person and baseball player he can be. Hopefully the Twins win multiple championships with he and Buxton leading the charge. That's a lot of hopefuls, but with the current state of the big league club, what more do we have? On another note, has there been any information about when Sano will return to the lineup? I just recently moved to the Philly area and have been really looking forward to seeing the Rock Cats for the first time in Reading this weekend. I already missed Buxton earlier this season when he had the thumb injury. It would be nice if I didn't have to miss Sano too.

Mauer became a new mom? He never ceases to amaze.

Pretty nice performance from Kohl Stewart, a lot of ground balls but some really poor defense. Nice to see that 3 straight errors when he entered the game did not seem to rattle him. It'd be pretty easy for any pitcher to lose it under those circumstances. I'm hoping Rosario is back in action soon, I'm looking forward to seeing him and Sano in Reading this weekend.

??? If this is a serious statement, I suggest checking out the stats pages for E-Town - Individual Stats (Randy Rosario, Yorman Landa, and Felix Jorge) and GCL Twins - Stats (Lewis Thorpe) On top of that, recent draftees Kohl Stewart, Ryan Eades, and Stephen Gonsalves have all just recently made their debuts.

I would also prefer the written report.

Does anybody have any information on Alexis Tapia in the DSL. I've noticed that he's been putting up some very nice performances. Obviously, its a very very small sample size but in 10 IP he's got 11 K's and 1 BB with a 1.80 ERA and 0.70 WHIP. I also saw that he's only 17 and is listed at 6'2" and 195 lbs which seems like a pretty nice frame for a 17 year old pitcher. Sorry, I've got prospect fever and I'm just trying to find more arms in the Twins system to hope on. Has anybody heard anything about this kid?

Very nice to see Niko back in action (and having a great game).

Teams interested in Gonzalez: Dodgers, Red Sox, Twins, Cubs, Rangers One of these teams is not like the others, One of these teams just doesn't belong. I would be SHOCKED if the Twins were the highest bidder among those clubs. Also saw that he had bone spurs removed from his elbow while he was suspended, but is believed to be fully healthy. (Dodgers eyeing Cuban pitcher Miguel Alfredo Gonzalez) It would be nice to see the Twins continue to add (upside) arms, but I don't see this one happening.

Any updates on Niko's health?

Informative piece from Fangraphs about ages of minor leaguers: Minor League Leaderboard Context [TABLE=width: 300] [TR=bgcolor: #EDF1F3] [TH=align: center]AGE[/TH] [TH=align: center]17[/TH] [TH=align: center]18[/TH] [TH=align: center]19[/TH] [TH=align: center]20[/TH] [TH=align: center]21[/TH] [TH=align: center]22[/TH] [TH=align: center]23[/TH] [TH=align: center]24[/TH] [TH=align: center]25[/TH] [TH=align: center]26[/TH] [TH=align: center]27[/TH] [TH=align: center]28[/TH] [/TR] [TR=bgcolor: #FFFFFF] [TD=align: center]AAA[/TD] [TD=align: center]0.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]0.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]0.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]0.5%[/TD] [TD=align: center]3.3%[/TD] [TD=align: center]7.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]12.6%[/TD] [TD=align: center]22.4%[/TD] [TD=align: center]37.4%[/TD] [TD=align: center]48.6%[/TD] [TD=align: center]61.2%[/TD] [TD=align: center]70.6%[/TD] [/TR] [TR=bgcolor: #FFFFFF] [TD=align: center]AA[/TD] [TD=align: center]0.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]0.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]0.6%[/TD] [TD=align: center]1.8%[/TD] [TD=align: center]9.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]24.6%[/TD] [TD=align: center]46.1%[/TD] [TD=align: center]68.9%[/TD] [TD=align: center]83.8%[/TD] [TD=align: center]92.8%[/TD] [TD=align: center]97.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]98.2%[/TD] [/TR] [TR=bgcolor: #FFFFFF] [TD=align: center]A+[/TD] [TD=align: center]0.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]0.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]2.5%[/TD] [TD=align: center]12.4%[/TD] [TD=align: center]26.1%[/TD] [TD=align: center]54.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]75.8%[/TD] [TD=align: center]90.1%[/TD] [TD=align: center]97.5%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [/TR] [TR=bgcolor: #FFFFFF] [TD=align: center]A[/TD] [TD=align: center]0.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]2.4%[/TD] [TD=align: center]15.6%[/TD] [TD=align: center]34.1%[/TD] [TD=align: center]52.1%[/TD] [TD=align: center]80.2%[/TD] [TD=align: center]97.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]98.8%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [/TR] [TR=bgcolor: #FFFFFF] [TD=align: center]A-[/TD] [TD=align: center]0.8%[/TD] [TD=align: center]3.9%[/TD] [TD=align: center]19.4%[/TD] [TD=align: center]31.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]63.6%[/TD] [TD=align: center]89.1%[/TD] [TD=align: center]98.4%[/TD] [TD=align: center]99.2%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [/TR] [TR=bgcolor: #FFFFFF] [TD=align: center]R[/TD] [TD=align: center]6.8%[/TD] [TD=align: center]24.6%[/TD] [TD=align: center]53.1%[/TD] [TD=align: center]73.4%[/TD] [TD=align: center]85.3%[/TD] [TD=align: center]94.6%[/TD] [TD=align: center]99.2%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [TD=align: center]100.0%[/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] "Looking at the table above, we see that only 7% of players in Triple-A are 22 years old or younger. The bold diagonal lines, which starts from 17-year-olds in rookie ball and moves up and to the right to 22 year olds in Triple-A, outlines the path of elite prospects. The corner in the bottom right, shaded in red, shows the where players are “old” for their level." Also from Baseball America: The Top 10 Youngest Players In Each League ... - Baseball America Sano was the youngest player to start the year in the FSL, and I believe is now the youngest player in the Eastern League. When Buxton is promoted to Fort Myers, I believe he will be the youngest in the FSL. *These have probably been referenced/linked in other threads as they are not new articles but I thought they were relevant to the thread.

Jokin, I respect your arguments that the Twins need to recognize the special talent they have. I would also like to see the precocious talents like Buxton and Sano moving up and continually tested. Hopefully they are able to meet those challenges and reach the big leagues soon. However, I think your argument about the Twins may have been brushing with too broad of strokes. I feel the Twins have in the past recognized great talents and been more aggressive in their promotions rather than always slow playing them. Thats not to say that there weren't players who couldn't have been promoted more quickly or started out at a higher level than they did, but I don't think the Twins have one set track that they keep all prospects on. The Twins recognized Mauer as a great talent and he moved through the system very quickly (especially for a catcher). Oswaldo Arcia has been promoted more aggressively than many other prospects (and while we all have high hopes for him, is not considered an 'elite' talent). While some believe Sano can hit major league pitching now, a lot of people also have serious questions about his ability to hit quality breaking stuff. His defensive development is also important (Harper, Trout, and Machado are all terrific defensive players). I think the Twins have done alright with their promotions with him when considering his all around (player and personal) development. Buxton is a much more complete player but it's too early to judge the Twins' promotions of him. So far, I think he's right about where he should be. Most people have been a bit surprised at how quickly his tools have translated and how much success he's had so far. If the Twins don't promote him soon, I'll be upset as well, but I don't think I can get too mad at them right now. I'm not saying the Twins can do no wrong. They've frustrated me more than their fair share, but I don't think their player promotion timetable is as all encompassing as you have made it out to be.

Like others have said, I hope the Twins take full advantage of their international signing pool asset, one way or another. In regards to the original article. The situation with the Rangers and Jairo Beras seems RIDICULOUSLY SHADY. I can't believe that MLB approved the deal, the Rangers didn't face any punishments, and Beras only had to sit out a year (which in reality amounted to only about a month). In another article on BA, Badler discusses another player with a similar situation and says this at the end of the article: "If Aybar would have tried to copy Beras, it appears unlikely that MLB would have approved his contract. Then again, major league rules indicate that the league shouldn’t have approved Beras’ contract either, so while it probably would have been a longshot, it’s hard to say for certain that it wouldn’t have worked." Should 'Obispo Aybar' Have Tried To Copy Jairo Beras ...

I honestly don't know a lot about Eades or the rest of the guys drafted surrounding him. Read a few brief scouting reports, saw BA had him ranked 37, and I feel the Twins did alright with this pick. Maybe they could have gone after a higher ceiling (although I'm guessing that would also involve greater risk and possibly signability concerns). I like that they backed up a prep pitcher with a college senior.