Matt VS

The AA level seems to be where Bax is meeting his match. He was placed on the DL with shoulder issues mid-June, but has bounced back quite nicely in three starts since then. The strikeout numbers aren't what they have been, but he was very efficient in his return (55 pitches in 5 IP) and beat a division-leading Harrisburg team last night 4-3. Here are his stats in three starts since returning from the DL: 2-1 15.1 IP 4 ER (2.38 ERA) 17 H 2 BB 5 K

Baxendale's latest outing (7 IP, 1 ER, 4 H, 4 K) must have been the tipping point for the Twins to promote him to AA New Britain. DJ has dominated the lower levels of the organization over his two seasons of service. Here are his career stats to date: 76 IP 79 K/13 BB (6.08 K/BB) 47 H (5.6 H/9) 1.07 ERA 0.79 WHIP According to Andrew Walter (@mnfanfromafar) It looks like he will be taking BJ Hermsen's spot in the rotation, which if the rotation holds, would have him make his Rockcats debut tomorrow (5/29) vs Richmond.

Didn't realize it had been so long since I've updated, but I have good reason to brag about D.J.'s recent success! Since being named Minor League pitcher of the month for April, he has been the definition of consistent. In three starts, he has: Thrown 7 IP in each. Given up 3 H in each. Allowed 0 ER in each. He struck out a season high 10 batters in a victory over the Tampa Yankees on 5/6. He has gone 21 innings without allowing an earned run while putting up a 19:3 strikeout to walk ratio. His 1.07 ERA ranks #1 in the FSL. His 0.77 WHIP ranks #1 in the FSL. His 6 wins rank #1 in the FSL. His 44 K's rank #8 in the FSL.

Baxendale ends April with a perfect 4-0 record while sporting a 1.84 ERA in 29.1 IP. He holds a 25:6 K/BB ratio and has allowed just 21 hits. As a result, I would like to congratulate DJ on being named the Twins Minor League pitcher of the month for April! Read the summary by the Twins HERE, or Seth's summary of all candidates HERE.

Baxendale leads the Miracle with 20 K's on the season. (T-15th in FSL) He is 1st among Miracle starters with 6.2 H/9 (5th among starters in FSL) He is 2nd among Miracle starters with 1.7 BB/9 (T-13th among starters in FSL) Next scheduled start: Tuesday, April 30th at Clearwater.

DJ Baxendale Drafted in the 10th round of the 2012 MLB June Draft out of the University of Arkansas. 2012 Season: Split time between Elizabethton (Rk) and Beloit (Low-A). Threw a combined 18 2/3 innings with a 31:2 K:BB ratio while allowing 13 hits. Appeared in 17 games, all in relief. 2013 Stats: (Ft. Myers-High A) 2 GP 1-0 W-L 10.1 IP 0.87 ERA 11 K 3 BB 6 H

Seth, I'll take DJ Baxendale. Had him last year and I'll stick with him again!

I think it would be a smart idea to call up Vasquez to take his spot in the rotation. Why not give the guy you haven't seen yet this year a couple starts before Sep. 1st? Let Walters go another rehab start and Hendricks continue to work at a level where he's gaining confidence. What difference would it make to see Hendricks or Walters for 1-2 additional starts when we have a pretty good idea what they offer at the MLB level? Now I'm waiting for the Gray/Slama flip...

A few notes from the past week regarding the 2012 Draft Class: Jose Berrios jumps to the #1 ranking thanks to a dominant performance last Friday against Kingsport (5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 11 K) As I suspected last week, Taylor Rogers made his next appearance out of the bullpen, likely due to his high number of innings pitched. Three players didn't accumulate any stats this past week. Luke Bard, who I suspect is still dealing with the injury that caused him to leave his Aug 10th appearance after one batter. Carson Goldsmith, who hasn't appeared since Aug 2nd. Jake Proctor, who missed the last part of his college season due to an injury. Anyone have any updates on Goldsmith or Proctor? I do realize that in the lower levels of professional ball, pitchers have the upper hand and their stats do inflate their value a bit, but I am excited to see that the top performers so far are pitchers who are posting K/9 numbers that are beyond promising. I am also excited the Twins got a few bats with pop (Walker, Buxton, Proctor when healthy). There are always early-round busts, but I'm looking forward to seeing more positives out of disappointing starts from Buxton, Bard, Martinez, and Hurt. As usual, comments are welcome and appreciated! [TABLE=width: 641] Rank Player Position Round Age Team Stats 1 Jose Berrios RHP 1 18 GCL-ELZ 0.70 ERA, 0.55 WHIP 2-0, 25.2 IP, 43 K/4 BB 2 D.J. Baxendale RHP 10 21 ELZ-BEL 0.68 ERA, 0.53 WHIP 0-0, 13.1 IP, 25 K/1 BB 3 Zack Jones RHP 4 21 GCL-BEL 0.57 ERA, 0.77 WHIP 0-0, 15.2 IP, 25 K/6 BB 4 Taylor Rogers LHP 11 21 ELZ-BEL 2.68 ERA, 1.16 WHIP 3-3, 53.2 IP, 62 K/15 BB 5 J.T. Chargois RHP 2 21 ELZ 2.02 ERA, 0.96WHIP 0-0, 13.1 IP, 17 K/4 BB 6 Mason Melotakis LHP 2 21 GCL-BEL 2.60 ERA, 1.21 WHIP 4-2, 17.1 IP, 21 K/6 BB 7 Tyler Duffy RHP 5 21 ELZ 1.80 ERA, 0.60 WHIP 2-0, 15.0 IP, 22 K/2 BB 8 Adam Walker OF 3 20 ELZ .256/.314/.522 21 XBH, 3/3 SB, 67 K/16 BB 9 Zach Larson OF 20 18 GCL .270/.341/.351 2 XBH, 3/3 SB, 9 K/3 BB 10 Andrew Ferreira LHP 32 21 ELZ 1.04 ERA, 1.27 WHIP 1-0, 8.2 IP, 12 K/4 BB 11 D.J. Hicks 1B 17 22 ELZ .269/.387/.419 8 XBH, 1/1 SB, 31 K/16 BB 12 Joel Licon IF 25 21 GCL .254/.352/.331 9 XBH, 5/7 SB, 33 K/17 BB 13 Byron Buxton OF 1 18 GCL-ELZ .208/.304/.400 14 XBH, 6/9 SB, 34 K/14 BB 14 Bryan Santy C 30 22 GCL .300/.419/.380 4 XBH, 1/4 SB, 9 K/8 BB 15 Jorge Fernandez C 7 18 GCL .291/.319/.314 2 XBH, 1/1 SB, 22 K/3 BB 16 Bryan Haar 1B 34 22 GCL .235/.309/.326 9 XBH, 3/6 SB, 31 K/13 BB 17 Christian Powell RHP 8 21 ELZ 5.74 ERA, 1.60 WHIP 1-0, 15.2 IP, 20 K/7 BB 18 Alexander Muren RHP 12 20 GCL 1.59 ERA, 0.93 WHIP 3-2, 22.2 IP, 11 K/9 BB 19 Luke Bard RHP 1 21 GCL-ELZ 3.86 ERA, 1.71 WHIP 0-0, 7.0 IP, 7 K/7 BB 20 John Murphy OF 19 22 GCL .204/.285/.270 9 XBH, 13/19 SB, 34 K/15 BB 21 Kaleb Merck RHP 33 22 ELZ 5.82 ERA, 1.48 WHIP 2-1, 17.0 IP, 21 K/5 BB 22 Bo Altobelli C 21 21 ELZ .216/.273/.255 2 XBH, 0/0 SB, 10 K/4 BB 23 Carson Goldsmith RHP 28 22 GCL 6.75 ERA, 2.00 WHIP 0-0, 4.0 IP, 5 K/5 BB 24 Andre Martinez LHP 6 19 GCL 6.30 ERA, 1.70 WHIP 0-1, 10.0 IP, 6 K/8 BB 25 Will Hurt SS 16 18 GCL .141/.221/.141 0 XBH, 1/3 SB, 23 K/7 BB 26 Travis Huber LHP 23 22 ELZ 10.80 ERA, 2.16 WHIP 1-0, 8.1 IP, 8 K/4 BB [/TABLE]

A few notes from the past week regarding the 2012 Draft Class: Jose Berrios jumps to the #1 ranking thanks to a dominant performance last Friday against Kingsport (5 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 11 K) As I suspected last week, Taylor Rogers made his next appearance out of the bullpen, likely due to his high number of innings pitched. Three players didn't accumulate any stats this past week. Luke Bard, who I suspect is still dealing with the injury that caused him to leave his Aug 10th appearance after one batter. Carson Goldsmith, who hasn't appeared since Aug 2nd. Jake Proctor, who missed the last part of his college season due to an injury. Anyone have any updates on Goldsmith or Proctor? I do realize that in the lower levels of professional ball, pitchers have the upper hand and their stats do inflate their value a bit, but I am excited to see that the top performers so far are pitchers who are posting K/9 numbers that are beyond promising. I am also excited the Twins got a few bats with pop (Walker, Buxton, Proctor when healthy). There are always early-round busts, but I'm looking forward to seeing more positives out of disappointing starts from Buxton, Bard, Martinez, and Hurt. As usual, comments are welcome and appreciated! [TABLE=width: 641] Rank Player Position Round Age Team Stats 1 Jose Berrios RHP 1 18 GCL-ELZ 0.70 ERA, 0.55 WHIP 2-0, 25.2 IP, 43 K/4 BB 2 D.J. Baxendale RHP 10 21 ELZ-BEL 0.68 ERA, 0.53 WHIP 0-0, 13.1 IP, 25 K/1 BB 3 Zack Jones RHP 4 21 GCL-BEL 0.57 ERA, 0.77 WHIP 0-0, 15.2 IP, 25 K/6 BB 4 Taylor Rogers LHP 11 21 ELZ-BEL 2.68 ERA, 1.16 WHIP 3-3, 53.2 IP, 62 K/15 BB 5 J.T. Chargois RHP 2 21 ELZ 2.02 ERA, 0.96WHIP 0-0, 13.1 IP, 17 K/4 BB 6 Mason Melotakis LHP 2 21 GCL-BEL 2.60 ERA, 1.21 WHIP 4-2, 17.1 IP, 21 K/6 BB 7 Tyler Duffy RHP 5 21 ELZ 1.80 ERA, 0.60 WHIP 2-0, 15.0 IP, 22 K/2 BB 8 Adam Walker OF 3 20 ELZ .256/.314/.522 21 XBH, 3/3 SB, 67 K/16 BB 9 Zach Larson OF 20 18 GCL .270/.341/.351 2 XBH, 3/3 SB, 9 K/3 BB 10 Andrew Ferreira LHP 32 21 ELZ 1.04 ERA, 1.27 WHIP 1-0, 8.2 IP, 12 K/4 BB 11 D.J. Hicks 1B 17 22 ELZ .269/.387/.419 8 XBH, 1/1 SB, 31 K/16 BB 12 Joel Licon IF 25 21 GCL .254/.352/.331 9 XBH, 5/7 SB, 33 K/17 BB 13 Byron Buxton OF 1 18 GCL-ELZ .208/.304/.400 14 XBH, 6/9 SB, 34 K/14 BB 14 Bryan Santy C 30 22 GCL .300/.419/.380 4 XBH, 1/4 SB, 9 K/8 BB 15 Jorge Fernandez C 7 18 GCL .291/.319/.314 2 XBH, 1/1 SB, 22 K/3 BB 16 Bryan Haar 1B 34 22 GCL .235/.309/.326 9 XBH, 3/6 SB, 31 K/13 BB 17 Christian Powell RHP 8 21 ELZ 5.74 ERA, 1.60 WHIP 1-0, 15.2 IP, 20 K/7 BB 18 Alexander Muren RHP 12 20 GCL 1.59 ERA, 0.93 WHIP 3-2, 22.2 IP, 11 K/9 BB 19 Luke Bard RHP 1 21 GCL-ELZ 3.86 ERA, 1.71 WHIP 0-0, 7.0 IP, 7 K/7 BB 20 John Murphy OF 19 22 GCL .204/.285/.270 9 XBH, 13/19 SB, 34 K/15 BB 21 Kaleb Merck RHP 33 22 ELZ 5.82 ERA, 1.48 WHIP 2-1, 17.0 IP, 21 K/5 BB 22 Bo Altobelli C 21 21 ELZ .216/.273/.255 2 XBH, 0/0 SB, 10 K/4 BB 23 Carson Goldsmith RHP 28 22 GCL 6.75 ERA, 2.00 WHIP 0-0, 4.0 IP, 5 K/5 BB 24 Andre Martinez LHP 6 19 GCL 6.30 ERA, 1.70 WHIP 0-1, 10.0 IP, 6 K/8 BB 25 Will Hurt SS 16 18 GCL .141/.221/.141 0 XBH, 1/3 SB, 23 K/7 BB 26 Travis Huber LHP 23 22 ELZ 10.80 ERA, 2.16 WHIP 1-0, 8.1 IP, 8 K/4 BB [/TABLE]

Baxendale is being used sparingly out of the Beloit bullpen, while maintaining a high K/9 rate. Listed below are the top five K/9 pitchers in the organization. Player/Teams/K/9 Baxendale (ELZ/BEL) 16.9 Berrios (GCL/ELZ) 15.1 Slama (GCL/ROC) 14.5 Jones (ELZ/BEL) 14.1 Tonkin (BEL/FTM) 12.4

Here are my updated Class of 2012 Power Rankings. In short, a few things that jump out: Honestly, any one of the top three (Baxendale, Berrios, Jones) could be ranked #1. I have Baxendale there because of his unbelievable K/BB and K/9 ratios. 11th round pick Taylor Rogers out of the University of Kentucky has now thrown a total of 140 innings this year (89.1 in college, 50.2 as a Twin). His numbers for Beloit, although not terrible, are significantly worse than the numbers he was putting up at Elizabethton. He has 10 total appearances with the Twins, all starts. I wouldn't be surprised to see him come out of the bullpen soon if not shut down completely. Adam Walker continues to impress with the stick. He has four HR's in his last ten games which, according to Seth's Minor League leaderboard, places him in the top 10 among all Twins minor leaguers in just 45 games. [TABLE=width: 641] Rank Player Position Round Age Team Stats 1 D.J. Baxendale RHP 10 21 ELZ-BEL 0.79 ERA, 0.53 WHIP 0-0, 11.1 IP, 23 K/1 BB 2 Jose Berrios RHP 1 18 GCL-ELZ 0.87 ERA, 0.58 WHIP 1-0, 20.2 IP, 32 K/4 BB 3 Zack Jones RHP 4 21 GCL-BEL 0.00 ERA, 0.73 WHIP 0-0, 13.2 IP, 23 K/6 BB 4 Taylor Rogers LHP 11 21 ELZ-BEL 2.66 ERA, 1.15 WHIP 3-3, 50.2 IP, 59 K/15 BB 5 Mason Melotakis LHP 2 21 GCL-BEL 2.20 ERA, 1.22 WHIP 3-2, 16.1 IP, 20 K/6 BB 6 J.T. Chargois RHP 2 21 ELZ 2.19 ERA, 0.81 WHIP 0-0, 12.1 IP, 15 K/4 BB 7 Adam Walker OF 3 20 ELZ .264/.316/.527 21 XBH, 1/1 SB, 58 K/13 BB 8 Zach Larson OF 20 18 GCL .308/.400/.423 2 XBH, 3/3 SB, 7 K/3 BB 9 Tyler Duffy RHP 5 21 ELZ 2.53 ERA, 0.75 WHIP 2-0, 10.2 IP, 13 K/2 BB 10 Christian Powell RHP 8 21 ELZ 3.29 ERA, 1.31 WHIP 1-0, 13.2 IP, 18 K/5 BB 11 Joel Licon IF 25 21 GCL .260/.355/.344 9 XBH, 4/6 SB, 31 K/15 BB 12 Andrew Ferreira LHP 32 21 ELZ 1.17 ERA, 1.30 WHIP 1-0, 7.2 IP, 9 K/4 BB 13 D.J. Hicks 1B 17 22 ELZ .256/.368/.367 6 XBH, 1/1 SB, 30 K/14 BB 14 Byron Buxton OF 1 18 GCL-ELZ .218/.312/.436 13 XBH, 5/8 SB, 30 K/12 BB 15 Bryan Santy C 30 22 GCL .333/.463/.429 4 XBH, 1/4 SB, 7 K/8 BB 16 Jorge Fernandez C 7 18 GCL .299/.325/.325 2 XBH, 0/0 SB, 19 K/2 BB 17 Bryan Haar 1B 34 22 GCL .227/.310/.300 6 XBH, 3/5 SB, 28 K/12 BB 18 Alexander Muren RHP 12 20 GCL 1.96 ERA, 1.15 WHIP 2-2, 18.1 IP, 10 K/9 BB 19 Luke Bard RHP 1 21 GCL-ELZ 3.86 ERA, 1.71 WHIP 0-0, 7.0 IP, 7 K/7 BB 20 John Murphy OF 19 22 GCL .214/.300/.286 9 XBH, 12/18 SB, 30 K/15 BB 21 Kaleb Merck RHP 33 22 ELZ 5.74 ERA, 1.40 WHIP 2-1, 15.2 IP, 19 K/5 BB 22 Carson Goldsmith RHP 28 22 GCL 6.75 ERA, 2.00 WHIP 0-0, 4.0 IP, 5 K/5 BB 23 Bo Altobelli C 21 21 ELZ .208/.255/.250 2 XBH, 0/0 SB, 10 K/3 BB 24 Andre Martinez LHP 6 19 GCL 9.64 ERA, 1.93 WHIP 0-1, 9.1 IP, 3 K/9 BB 25 Will Hurt SS 16 18 GCL .132/.213/.132 0 XBH, 1/2 SB, 20 K/6 BB 26 Travis Huber LHP 23 22 ELZ 14.21 ERA, 2.84 WHIP 1-0, 6.1 IP, 5 K/4 BB [/TABLE]

Here are my updated Class of 2012 Power Rankings. In short, a few things that jump out: Honestly, any one of the top three (Baxendale, Berrios, Jones) could be ranked #1. I have Baxendale there because of his unbelievable K/BB and K/9 ratios. 11th round pick Taylor Rogers out of the University of Kentucky has now thrown a total of 140 innings this year (89.1 in college, 50.2 as a Twin). His numbers for Beloit, although not terrible, are significantly worse than the numbers he was putting up at Elizabethton. He has 10 total appearances with the Twins, all starts. I wouldn't be surprised to see him come out of the bullpen soon if not shut down completely. Adam Walker continues to impress with the stick. He has four HR's in his last ten games which, according to Seth's Minor League leaderboard, places him in the top 10 among all Twins minor leaguers in just 45 games. [TABLE=width: 641] Rank Player Position Round Age Team Stats 1 D.J. Baxendale RHP 10 21 ELZ-BEL 0.79 ERA, 0.53 WHIP 0-0, 11.1 IP, 23 K/1 BB 2 Jose Berrios RHP 1 18 GCL-ELZ 0.87 ERA, 0.58 WHIP 1-0, 20.2 IP, 32 K/4 BB 3 Zack Jones RHP 4 21 GCL-BEL 0.00 ERA, 0.73 WHIP 0-0, 13.2 IP, 23 K/6 BB 4 Taylor Rogers LHP 11 21 ELZ-BEL 2.66 ERA, 1.15 WHIP 3-3, 50.2 IP, 59 K/15 BB 5 Mason Melotakis LHP 2 21 GCL-BEL 2.20 ERA, 1.22 WHIP 3-2, 16.1 IP, 20 K/6 BB 6 J.T. Chargois RHP 2 21 ELZ 2.19 ERA, 0.81 WHIP 0-0, 12.1 IP, 15 K/4 BB 7 Adam Walker OF 3 20 ELZ .264/.316/.527 21 XBH, 1/1 SB, 58 K/13 BB 8 Zach Larson OF 20 18 GCL .308/.400/.423 2 XBH, 3/3 SB, 7 K/3 BB 9 Tyler Duffy RHP 5 21 ELZ 2.53 ERA, 0.75 WHIP 2-0, 10.2 IP, 13 K/2 BB 10 Christian Powell RHP 8 21 ELZ 3.29 ERA, 1.31 WHIP 1-0, 13.2 IP, 18 K/5 BB 11 Joel Licon IF 25 21 GCL .260/.355/.344 9 XBH, 4/6 SB, 31 K/15 BB 12 Andrew Ferreira LHP 32 21 ELZ 1.17 ERA, 1.30 WHIP 1-0, 7.2 IP, 9 K/4 BB 13 D.J. Hicks 1B 17 22 ELZ .256/.368/.367 6 XBH, 1/1 SB, 30 K/14 BB 14 Byron Buxton OF 1 18 GCL-ELZ .218/.312/.436 13 XBH, 5/8 SB, 30 K/12 BB 15 Bryan Santy C 30 22 GCL .333/.463/.429 4 XBH, 1/4 SB, 7 K/8 BB 16 Jorge Fernandez C 7 18 GCL .299/.325/.325 2 XBH, 0/0 SB, 19 K/2 BB 17 Bryan Haar 1B 34 22 GCL .227/.310/.300 6 XBH, 3/5 SB, 28 K/12 BB 18 Alexander Muren RHP 12 20 GCL 1.96 ERA, 1.15 WHIP 2-2, 18.1 IP, 10 K/9 BB 19 Luke Bard RHP 1 21 GCL-ELZ 3.86 ERA, 1.71 WHIP 0-0, 7.0 IP, 7 K/7 BB 20 John Murphy OF 19 22 GCL .214/.300/.286 9 XBH, 12/18 SB, 30 K/15 BB 21 Kaleb Merck RHP 33 22 ELZ 5.74 ERA, 1.40 WHIP 2-1, 15.2 IP, 19 K/5 BB 22 Carson Goldsmith RHP 28 22 GCL 6.75 ERA, 2.00 WHIP 0-0, 4.0 IP, 5 K/5 BB 23 Bo Altobelli C 21 21 ELZ .208/.255/.250 2 XBH, 0/0 SB, 10 K/3 BB 24 Andre Martinez LHP 6 19 GCL 9.64 ERA, 1.93 WHIP 0-1, 9.1 IP, 3 K/9 BB 25 Will Hurt SS 16 18 GCL .132/.213/.132 0 XBH, 1/2 SB, 20 K/6 BB 26 Travis Huber LHP 23 22 ELZ 14.21 ERA, 2.84 WHIP 1-0, 6.1 IP, 5 K/4 BB [/TABLE]

Before I go into detail on these two players, I want you to look at their A-AAA stats, as well as parts of two MLB seasons. Player A [TABLE=class: grid, width: 500] League G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS MLB 84 299 265 25 58 12 1 10 32 3 3 28 65 .219 .304 .385 .689 AAA 163 697 613 112 206 52 3 49 163 9 8 66 141 .336 .405 .670 1.075 AA 107 467 414 66 109 30 0 20 80 7 1 45 100 .263 .334 .481 .815 A+ 84 364 317 49 88 28 0 8 44 5 0 41 71 .278 .357 .442 .799 A 85 361 328 49 104 27 0 9 53 2 1 28 75 .317 .374 .482 .856 [/TABLE] Player B [TABLE=class: grid, width: 500] League G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS MLB 61 208 184 18 49 11 1 6 20 0 0 21 41 .266 .351 .435 .786 AAA 42 187 154 30 54 11 0 12 34 1 1 32 27 .351 .465 .656 1.121 AA 253 1073 941 127 265 55 7 19 127 3 3 111 164 .282 .355 .416 .771 A+ 145 594 502 70 136 29 2 18 90 2 3 78 120 .271 .370 .444 .815 A 208 817 695 99 166 34 8 29 121 11 7 103 229 .239 .341 .436 .777 [/TABLE] Both players were drafted out of high school in consecutive years. Without going into the history of these players, simply by digging into the stats, here's what I see: 1) Player A moved quickly through the lower levels of the minors and developed power after reaching the AA level; Player B moved much slower through the lower levels, showing the ability to get on base via the walk and hit for marginal power before struggling at the AA level. 2) Both players have shown the ability to consistently hit HR's throughout their years in the minors (Player A: 27.3 AB/HR, Player B: 28.6 AB/HR) 3) MLB WAR comparison: Player A- 2011: -0.4, 2012: 1.0, Total: 0.6 WAR Player B- 2011: 1.3, 2012: -1.0, Total: 0.3 WAR 4: Age: Player A- 23 years Player B- 24 years 5) Both players' MLB teams suffered through 90+ loss seasons in 2011. Fans and writers for Player A team couldn't wait for "the future" to arrive. Fans and writers for Player B's team would rather he stayed in AAA for the 2012 season, even after ripping AAA pitching for a .351/.465/.656 line and 12.8 AB/HR. Alright, enough with the stats although many of you may have figured out who the two players are already (or just scrolled down like I always seem to do on these comparisons). Player A is 1B Anthony Rizzo of the Chicago Cubs while Player B is 1B/OF Chris Parmelee of our Minnesota Twins. I do realize that there are factors than stats to consider, such as Morneau's contract through 2014, but it is interesting to compare the two young sluggers. Living in the Chicago area, I was in the midst of the buzz that surrounded Rizzo when he was finally called up after raking AAA pitching. Since his callup the Cubs aren't much better (going 17-18 since June 26th), however, Rizzo is batting .292/.329/.518 while finding his niche at 1B on the north side. I've been following the discussions in the forums on Parmelee (trading or promoting) and Morneau (trading or extending). I'm not going to pretend I have the right answer as far as which option is better, but I do believe that one of these options must be done before the start of the 2013 season: 1) Trade Morneau and promote Parmelee 2) Trade Parmelee and extend Morneau What I would be disappointed to see is Morneau begin the 2013 season as the starting 1B with Parmelee beginning the year in AAA. In my opinion, another minor league season would not do the Twins or Parmelee any good. Any ideas on what your best option would be?

Before I go into detail on these two players, I want you to look at their A-AAA stats, as well as parts of two MLB seasons. Player A [TABLE=class: grid, width: 500] League G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS MLB 84 299 265 25 58 12 1 10 32 3 3 28 65 .219 .304 .385 .689 AAA 163 697 613 112 206 52 3 49 163 9 8 66 141 .336 .405 .670 1.075 AA 107 467 414 66 109 30 0 20 80 7 1 45 100 .263 .334 .481 .815 A+ 84 364 317 49 88 28 0 8 44 5 0 41 71 .278 .357 .442 .799 A 85 361 328 49 104 27 0 9 53 2 1 28 75 .317 .374 .482 .856 [/TABLE] Player B [TABLE=class: grid, width: 500] League G PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS MLB 61 208 184 18 49 11 1 6 20 0 0 21 41 .266 .351 .435 .786 AAA 42 187 154 30 54 11 0 12 34 1 1 32 27 .351 .465 .656 1.121 AA 253 1073 941 127 265 55 7 19 127 3 3 111 164 .282 .355 .416 .771 A+ 145 594 502 70 136 29 2 18 90 2 3 78 120 .271 .370 .444 .815 A 208 817 695 99 166 34 8 29 121 11 7 103 229 .239 .341 .436 .777 [/TABLE] Both players were drafted out of high school in consecutive years. Without going into the history of these players, simply by digging into the stats, here's what I see: 1) Player A moved quickly through the lower levels of the minors and developed power after reaching the AA level; Player B moved much slower through the lower levels, showing the ability to get on base via the walk and hit for marginal power before struggling at the AA level. 2) Both players have shown the ability to consistently hit HR's throughout their years in the minors (Player A: 27.3 AB/HR, Player B: 28.6 AB/HR) 3) MLB WAR comparison: Player A- 2011: -0.4, 2012: 1.0, Total: 0.6 WAR Player B- 2011: 1.3, 2012: -1.0, Total: 0.3 WAR 4: Age: Player A- 23 years Player B- 24 years 5) Both players' MLB teams suffered through 90+ loss seasons in 2011. Fans and writers for Player A team couldn't wait for "the future" to arrive. Fans and writers for Player B's team would rather he stayed in AAA for the 2012 season, even after ripping AAA pitching for a .351/.465/.656 line and 12.8 AB/HR. Alright, enough with the stats although many of you may have figured out who the two players are already (or just scrolled down like I always seem to do on these comparisons). Player A is 1B Anthony Rizzo of the Chicago Cubs while Player B is 1B/OF Chris Parmelee of our Minnesota Twins. I do realize that there are factors than stats to consider, such as Morneau's contract through 2014, but it is interesting to compare the two young sluggers. Living in the Chicago area, I was in the midst of the buzz that surrounded Rizzo when he was finally called up after raking AAA pitching. Since his callup the Cubs aren't much better (going 17-18 since June 26th), however, Rizzo is batting .292/.329/.518 while finding his niche at 1B on the north side. I've been following the discussions in the forums on Parmelee (trading or promoting) and Morneau (trading or extending). I'm not going to pretend I have the right answer as far as which option is better, but I do believe that one of these options must be done before the start of the 2013 season: 1) Trade Morneau and promote Parmelee 2) Trade Parmelee and extend Morneau What I would be disappointed to see is Morneau begin the 2013 season as the starting 1B with Parmelee beginning the year in AAA. In my opinion, another minor league season would not do the Twins or Parmelee any good. Any ideas on what your best option would be?