Paul Pleiss

I, like Bark, think that the Twins need to build for the future, rather than try to spend for now, especially if spending now impacts what the team can do 2+ years from now. I think the front office needs to spend to make the team better, get back to .500 and put a quality team on the field, but to compete for a division title with little to no hope for a post-season run seems silly. -Paul ---------------------------- Follow me, @BaseballPirate, on Twitter www.PuckettsPond.com

Episode 11 of the Twins baseball podcast, Talk To Contact (@TalkToContact), is now available for download via iTunes or by clicking here. http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/11/56042_10100367579036021_1162141622_o-768x1024.jpg (This post originally appeared at www.PuckettsPond.com, pictured above is my friend Mondo and his spawn all dressed up for Halloween) This week the brothers Pleiss discuss the Gold Gloves and any perceived snubs, the Twins Diamond Awards and my feelings on photos of peoples children clogging up my Facebook/Twitter timeline. We also spend a few moments looking at Twins prospect J.O. Berrios, Twins Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett and some early happenings in the off-season before getting into a few other topics including a traveling stuffed banana. You can follow Eric on Twitter (@ERolfPleiss) or read his writing at the Knuckleballs Blog. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

Episode 11 of the Twins baseball podcast, Talk To Contact (@TalkToContact), is now available for download via iTunes or by clicking here. http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/11/56042_10100367579036021_1162141622_o-768x1024.jpg (This post originally appeared at www.PuckettsPond.com, pictured above is my friend Mondo and his spawn all dressed up for Halloween) This week the brothers Pleiss discuss the Gold Gloves and any perceived snubs, the Twins Diamond Awards and my feelings on photos of peoples children clogging up my Facebook/Twitter timeline. We also spend a few moments looking at Twins prospect J.O. Berrios, Twins Hall of Famer Kirby Puckett and some early happenings in the off-season before getting into a few other topics including a traveling stuffed banana. You can follow Eric on Twitter (@ERolfPleiss) or read his writing at the Knuckleballs Blog. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

In my last Down on the Pond post I took a look at how the Twins players were doing down in the Arizona Fall League, and rather than look back in at how they're doing, or even taking a look at the guys who are playing Winter Ball around the Southern Hemisphere, I thought I'd use my position here on the Pond to share some photos that players throughout the Twins system posted to the Twitter machine and use that as a jumping off point to talk about some of the guys that are toiling down in the Twins system who you may not have heard of. http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/05/down-on-the-pond.1-300x180.jpgThis post originally appeared at www.PuckettsPond.com We'll start first with a pre-Halloween trick. Hurricane Sandy (Post-tropical cyclone, as the hipsters are calling it) was not kind to Twins AAA reliever Bobby Lanigan (@BOBBYLANIGAN). Sandy flooded his street and took his car for a ride and totaled it in the process. I hope the insurance claim comes quick and that Bobby and his family are safe and dry. Lanigan finished the season 7-5 across AA New Britain and AAA Rochester throwing just over 70 innings on the season out of the bullpen in 44 appearances. He finished the season with an ERA over 4, and struck out only 49 batters to go along with a WHIP (walks+hits per inning pitched) of 1.373. At 25 and in his first season in AAA there still may be some hope for the young righty, but his numbers over his minor league career are not much better. Since being drafted in 2008 Lanigan has a career 4.05 ERA and has given up more than a hit per inning. This was his first season working out of the pen so it will be interesting how he fairs in a full season at AAA in 2013. I typically have no idea what Manuel Soliman (@SOLIMAN30)is tweeting because everything is in Spanish, and even though I could quickly translate using google or Tweetdeck, I'm generally not that interested. Here's a photo he tweeted a couple days ago that I thought was pretty awesome. Soliman signed with the Twins as a non-drafted free agent in 2007 and in 2009 converted from third base to pitcher. The move worked well and lead the Elizabethon Twins in strikeouts in 2010 (74). In 2012 Soliman threw only 5.0 innings after having been moved up to Ft Myers after a successful 2011 in Beloit. He had shoulder surgery early in the season and the Twins will be cautious with him as he makes his return, he may lose his "prospect" status if 2013 is not a big year for the young righty. James Beresford put up this photo on his twitter (@JamesBeresford2) that golfers around the world will recognize as the result of not hitting your tee-shot past the ladies tee. Beresford was promoted to New Britain last off-season and played second base and shortstop for the Rock Cats to the tune of .266/.330/.314 (AVG/OBP/SLG) in 114 games and committed only 10 errors in 491 chances, good enough for a .980 fielding percentage, but 9 of those errors were at SS where he played just over half of his games. While those offensive numbers are nothing to write home about, the Twins would have done well for themselves in 2012 had they had a big league SS who could have put up similar numbers. Daniel Rohlfing (@DanRohlfing), who replaced fellow AA catcher Chris Herrmann in the Arizona Fall League last week, posted this absolute GEM of a photo featuring all of the Twins AFL prospects sporting mustaches like their fellow Twins prospect Nate Roberts. Rohlfing played 91 games between A+ and AA this season and spent most of his time behind the plate but also saw a handful of games in the outfield. Rohlfing is not a monster at the plate, in fact he's rather more Drew Buteraish, as his slash line in 2012 across both levels was .235/.295/.311, but he did show skill behind the plate as a defensive catcher, throwing out 37% of would-be base-stealers. Alex Wimmers (@AlexWimmers21) does not hand out candy, he just puts out a bucket for the tricker-treaters to take what they want; he also carved a pumpkin. Wimmers pitched in only 2 games in 2012 and spent most of the year trying to rehab an elbow injury to avoid surgery. He will likely miss most of, if not all, of 2013 as he recovers from Tommy John surgery performed this past August. Can the former 2-time Big Ten pitcher of the year come back and be successful in a Twins uniform? All we can do at this point is wait and hope. The Twins 16th round pick in 2011, Austin Malinowski (@A_Mali24) carved a TC pumpkin for his doorstep. Malinowski pitched 31.2 innings for the Twins rookie league Gulf Coast Twins and struck out 32 batters while walking only 11 batters in his first year of professional baseball, but he did give up 35 hits as well. Mali was drafted out of high school and has a long road ahead of him if he ever hopes to make it up to the big leagues. P.J. Walters (@PJwalters33) who recently signed a minor league contract with the Twins after being removed from the 40-man roster last week is dressed as one of the Avengers and is off to save the world. Walters made 12 starts for the Twins last year posting a 5.69 ERA (gave up 41 runs (39 earned) in just 61.2 innings!); prior to his promotion he was 3-3 in 14 starts for the Rochester Red Wings with an ERA just a tick over four (4.01). Walters will join the Twins in spring training this spring, hopefully Terry Ryan and the front office bring in some better starters via trade of free agency or Twins fans may be getting more Walters in their lives and I don't foresee that being good for anyone. That's all for this week, I hope you all had a Happy Halloween full of treats and welcomed the Great Pumpkin into your hearts once more. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

In my last Down on the Pond post I took a look at how the Twins players were doing down in the Arizona Fall League, and rather than look back in at how they're doing, or even taking a look at the guys who are playing Winter Ball around the Southern Hemisphere, I thought I'd use my position here on the Pond to share some photos that players throughout the Twins system posted to the Twitter machine and use that as a jumping off point to talk about some of the guys that are toiling down in the Twins system who you may not have heard of. http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/05/down-on-the-pond.1-300x180.jpgThis post originally appeared at www.PuckettsPond.com We'll start first with a pre-Halloween trick. Hurricane Sandy (Post-tropical cyclone, as the hipsters are calling it) was not kind to Twins AAA reliever Bobby Lanigan (@BOBBYLANIGAN). Sandy flooded his street and took his car for a ride and totaled it in the process. I hope the insurance claim comes quick and that Bobby and his family are safe and dry. Lanigan finished the season 7-5 across AA New Britain and AAA Rochester throwing just over 70 innings on the season out of the bullpen in 44 appearances. He finished the season with an ERA over 4, and struck out only 49 batters to go along with a WHIP (walks+hits per inning pitched) of 1.373. At 25 and in his first season in AAA there still may be some hope for the young righty, but his numbers over his minor league career are not much better. Since being drafted in 2008 Lanigan has a career 4.05 ERA and has given up more than a hit per inning. This was his first season working out of the pen so it will be interesting how he fairs in a full season at AAA in 2013. I typically have no idea what Manuel Soliman (@SOLIMAN30)is tweeting because everything is in Spanish, and even though I could quickly translate using google or Tweetdeck, I'm generally not that interested. Here's a photo he tweeted a couple days ago that I thought was pretty awesome. Soliman signed with the Twins as a non-drafted free agent in 2007 and in 2009 converted from third base to pitcher. The move worked well and lead the Elizabethon Twins in strikeouts in 2010 (74). In 2012 Soliman threw only 5.0 innings after having been moved up to Ft Myers after a successful 2011 in Beloit. He had shoulder surgery early in the season and the Twins will be cautious with him as he makes his return, he may lose his "prospect" status if 2013 is not a big year for the young righty. James Beresford put up this photo on his twitter (@JamesBeresford2) that golfers around the world will recognize as the result of not hitting your tee-shot past the ladies tee. Beresford was promoted to New Britain last off-season and played second base and shortstop for the Rock Cats to the tune of .266/.330/.314 (AVG/OBP/SLG) in 114 games and committed only 10 errors in 491 chances, good enough for a .980 fielding percentage, but 9 of those errors were at SS where he played just over half of his games. While those offensive numbers are nothing to write home about, the Twins would have done well for themselves in 2012 had they had a big league SS who could have put up similar numbers. Daniel Rohlfing (@DanRohlfing), who replaced fellow AA catcher Chris Herrmann in the Arizona Fall League last week, posted this absolute GEM of a photo featuring all of the Twins AFL prospects sporting mustaches like their fellow Twins prospect Nate Roberts. Rohlfing played 91 games between A+ and AA this season and spent most of his time behind the plate but also saw a handful of games in the outfield. Rohlfing is not a monster at the plate, in fact he's rather more Drew Buteraish, as his slash line in 2012 across both levels was .235/.295/.311, but he did show skill behind the plate as a defensive catcher, throwing out 37% of would-be base-stealers. Alex Wimmers (@AlexWimmers21) does not hand out candy, he just puts out a bucket for the tricker-treaters to take what they want; he also carved a pumpkin. Wimmers pitched in only 2 games in 2012 and spent most of the year trying to rehab an elbow injury to avoid surgery. He will likely miss most of, if not all, of 2013 as he recovers from Tommy John surgery performed this past August. Can the former 2-time Big Ten pitcher of the year come back and be successful in a Twins uniform? All we can do at this point is wait and hope. The Twins 16th round pick in 2011, Austin Malinowski (@A_Mali24) carved a TC pumpkin for his doorstep. Malinowski pitched 31.2 innings for the Twins rookie league Gulf Coast Twins and struck out 32 batters while walking only 11 batters in his first year of professional baseball, but he did give up 35 hits as well. Mali was drafted out of high school and has a long road ahead of him if he ever hopes to make it up to the big leagues. P.J. Walters (@PJwalters33) who recently signed a minor league contract with the Twins after being removed from the 40-man roster last week is dressed as one of the Avengers and is off to save the world. Walters made 12 starts for the Twins last year posting a 5.69 ERA (gave up 41 runs (39 earned) in just 61.2 innings!); prior to his promotion he was 3-3 in 14 starts for the Rochester Red Wings with an ERA just a tick over four (4.01). Walters will join the Twins in spring training this spring, hopefully Terry Ryan and the front office bring in some better starters via trade of free agency or Twins fans may be getting more Walters in their lives and I don't foresee that being good for anyone. That's all for this week, I hope you all had a Happy Halloween full of treats and welcomed the Great Pumpkin into your hearts once more. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

Episode 10 of the Twins baseball podcast, Talk To Contact, is now available for download via iTunes or by clicking here. (This post originally appeared at www.puckettspond.com) http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/10/IMG_1651-300x225.jpg This week Eric and I are joined by Chuck Ruether of www.AllSportsAlways.Blogspot.com to discuss the recent coaching assignments and 40-man roster predictions. We go on to discuss the arbitration process and take a look at how the Twins prospects down in the Arizona Fall League have done before getting into a host of other topics including Joe Benson, beer and the World Series. You can follow Eric on Twitter (@ERolfPleiss) or read his writing at the Knuckleballs Blog. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

Episode 10 of the Twins baseball podcast, Talk To Contact, is now available for download via iTunes or by clicking here. (This post originally appeared at www.puckettspond.com) http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/10/IMG_1651-300x225.jpg This week Eric and I are joined by Chuck Ruether of www.AllSportsAlways.Blogspot.com to discuss the recent coaching assignments and 40-man roster predictions. We go on to discuss the arbitration process and take a look at how the Twins prospects down in the Arizona Fall League have done before getting into a host of other topics including Joe Benson, beer and the World Series. You can follow Eric on Twitter (@ERolfPleiss) or read his writing at the Knuckleballs Blog. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

The Twins sent seven of their minor league players to go play in the Arizona Fall League that kicked off earlier this month. Teams each send a handful of their prospects to play in Arizona and each year several teams join together and field a team for the AFL (6 team league located in, you guessed it, Arizona). The Twins players play for the Peoria Javelinas (a 40-80 pound skunk pig, for those of you who are curious you can check out the wiki page) who join with players from the Cincinnati Reds, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres and the Seattle Mariners. The AFL is typically offense heavy as teams are fairly stingy when it comes to sending top level arms to get more work and expose them to injury, and if you do see MLB quality arms they are typically coming back from injury and hoping to log some innings, like the Twins' Kyle Gibson. (This post originally appeared at www.puckettspond.com) http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/05/down-on-the-pond.1-300x180.jpg This year the Twins sent Evan Bigley (AAA right-fielder), Logan Darnell (AA Left-handed starting pitcher), Kyle Gibson (AAA Right-handed starting pitcher), Chris Herrmann (AA catcher who made his MLB debut late this season), Nate Roberts (Low-A outfielder), Caleb Thielbar (AAA Left-handed reliever) and Michael Tonkin (High-A Right-handed relief pitcher). Let's take a closer look at how each of the Twins selections have faired after a couple of weeks in Arizona. Kyle Gibson has been the most impressive of all the Twins prospects in the AFL, and maybe the most impressive in the AFL. Gibson has made three starts and is 3-0 with a shiny .069 ERA and 19 strike-outs in 13 innings of work. 14 games into the young AFL season Gibson leads the league in innings pitched and strike-outs and of the 35 pitchers who have logged more than 7.0 innings, only Seth Blair (St. Louis) and C.J. Riefenhauser (Tampa Bay) have given up less earned runs. If Gibson continues to pitch like this well and his arm continues to progress from surgery it will be hard to keep him out of the Twins rotation next spring. Nate Roberts has been the Twins brightest star on the offensive side of the game. Roberts has seen action in 6 games and is 9 for 17 w/ 3 extra-base hits and 5 walks, his slash line is an impressive .529/.640/1.346!!! Obviously this is a small sample size, but things look bright for Nate Roberts who will most likely start next season in high-A Ft Myers after repeating a second season in low-A Beloit. Chris Herrmann has also done well at the dish down in Arizona, but in an even smaller sample size. Herrmann has only played in 3 games so far, but is 5 for 10 in limited action. Herrmann is hampered by the Javelinas' roster which also contains uber catching prospect Mike Zunino (SEA) and fellow catcher Tommy Joseph (PHI). Update: Chris Herrmann has injured his left shoulder and has been replaced by AA catcher Dan Rohlfing. The injury is to his non-throwing shoulder and is believed to bemild in nature. Rohlfing started the season in Ft Myers before moving up to New Britain and hit .235/.295/.311 across both leagues in 2012. Thanks to Twins prospect guru, Seth Stohs of Twins Daily, for the news. Michael Tonkin has had four appearances for the Javelinas this season and has yet to give up a run, earned or otherwise, in his 5.1 innings of work while striking out 4 and walking just a single batter. Tonkin struck out almost 13 batters per 9 between low/high-A in 2012 and his ability to get out high-caliber batters in the AFL is very good news. It will be interesting to see if Tonkin has earned a promotion to AA to start 2013 or if he starts in high-A where he posted a sub-3.00 ERA in 30+ innings. Logan Darnell has also appeared in 4 games for Peoria and has done well for himself. Darnell spent all of 2012 w/ AA New Britain where he made 28 starts and logged 156 innings but was less than spectacular striking out well under a batter per inning and giving up nearly 1.3 HR/9. In his 6.2 innings of work in the AFL Darnell has given up only 2 runs (both earned) and 7 hits to go with 5 K's and 2 BB's. Caleb Thielbar has been, to be nice, less than spectacular. In 5.1 innings of work Thielbar has given up 8 runs (all earned) and has a fancy 13.50 ERA to show for it. The good news is that although he gave up 4 runs in each of his first 2 appearances, he's kept batters in check during his last 3 appearances allowing only a single hit and no walks in 3.0 innings of work. Thielbar, who started the year in Ft Myers before getting called up to AA New Britain and eventually AAA Rochester had a strong season and finished w/ a 2.43 ERA between all three levels, helped in large part to 12.1 innings in Ft Myers where he gave up only 1 run (unearned). It will be interesting to see what Thielbar's future is with the Twins, who picked up Thielbar from the Saint Paul Saints after the 2011 season. Evan Bigley rounds out the Twins seven selections to the AFL, and his performance has been unimpressive to date. In 7 games of work Bigley has managed to hit only 5 for 29, has struck out 6 times and has yet to take a walk. His slash like is scary bad, .172/.241/.441. Bigley hit .268 for the Rock Cats before getting moved up to AAA to join the Red Wings where he hit just .251/.289/.409. Bigley will need to turn things around in a big way if he wants to stay in the Twins organization as anything other than an organizational guy, especially as the Twins farm system is full of high-value OF prospects. This may be Bigley's last big chance to impress the brass in Minnesota. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

The Twins sent seven of their minor league players to go play in the Arizona Fall League that kicked off earlier this month. Teams each send a handful of their prospects to play in Arizona and each year several teams join together and field a team for the AFL (6 team league located in, you guessed it, Arizona). The Twins players play for the Peoria Javelinas (a 40-80 pound skunk pig, for those of you who are curious you can check out the wiki page) who join with players from the Cincinnati Reds, Philadelphia Phillies, San Diego Padres and the Seattle Mariners. The AFL is typically offense heavy as teams are fairly stingy when it comes to sending top level arms to get more work and expose them to injury, and if you do see MLB quality arms they are typically coming back from injury and hoping to log some innings, like the Twins' Kyle Gibson. (This post originally appeared at www.puckettspond.com) http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/05/down-on-the-pond.1-300x180.jpg This year the Twins sent Evan Bigley (AAA right-fielder), Logan Darnell (AA Left-handed starting pitcher), Kyle Gibson (AAA Right-handed starting pitcher), Chris Herrmann (AA catcher who made his MLB debut late this season), Nate Roberts (Low-A outfielder), Caleb Thielbar (AAA Left-handed reliever) and Michael Tonkin (High-A Right-handed relief pitcher). Let's take a closer look at how each of the Twins selections have faired after a couple of weeks in Arizona. Kyle Gibson has been the most impressive of all the Twins prospects in the AFL, and maybe the most impressive in the AFL. Gibson has made three starts and is 3-0 with a shiny .069 ERA and 19 strike-outs in 13 innings of work. 14 games into the young AFL season Gibson leads the league in innings pitched and strike-outs and of the 35 pitchers who have logged more than 7.0 innings, only Seth Blair (St. Louis) and C.J. Riefenhauser (Tampa Bay) have given up less earned runs. If Gibson continues to pitch like this well and his arm continues to progress from surgery it will be hard to keep him out of the Twins rotation next spring. Nate Roberts has been the Twins brightest star on the offensive side of the game. Roberts has seen action in 6 games and is 9 for 17 w/ 3 extra-base hits and 5 walks, his slash line is an impressive .529/.640/1.346!!! Obviously this is a small sample size, but things look bright for Nate Roberts who will most likely start next season in high-A Ft Myers after repeating a second season in low-A Beloit. Chris Herrmann has also done well at the dish down in Arizona, but in an even smaller sample size. Herrmann has only played in 3 games so far, but is 5 for 10 in limited action. Herrmann is hampered by the Javelinas' roster which also contains uber catching prospect Mike Zunino (SEA) and fellow catcher Tommy Joseph (PHI). Update: Chris Herrmann has injured his left shoulder and has been replaced by AA catcher Dan Rohlfing. The injury is to his non-throwing shoulder and is believed to bemild in nature. Rohlfing started the season in Ft Myers before moving up to New Britain and hit .235/.295/.311 across both leagues in 2012. Thanks to Twins prospect guru, Seth Stohs of Twins Daily, for the news. Michael Tonkin has had four appearances for the Javelinas this season and has yet to give up a run, earned or otherwise, in his 5.1 innings of work while striking out 4 and walking just a single batter. Tonkin struck out almost 13 batters per 9 between low/high-A in 2012 and his ability to get out high-caliber batters in the AFL is very good news. It will be interesting to see if Tonkin has earned a promotion to AA to start 2013 or if he starts in high-A where he posted a sub-3.00 ERA in 30+ innings. Logan Darnell has also appeared in 4 games for Peoria and has done well for himself. Darnell spent all of 2012 w/ AA New Britain where he made 28 starts and logged 156 innings but was less than spectacular striking out well under a batter per inning and giving up nearly 1.3 HR/9. In his 6.2 innings of work in the AFL Darnell has given up only 2 runs (both earned) and 7 hits to go with 5 K's and 2 BB's. Caleb Thielbar has been, to be nice, less than spectacular. In 5.1 innings of work Thielbar has given up 8 runs (all earned) and has a fancy 13.50 ERA to show for it. The good news is that although he gave up 4 runs in each of his first 2 appearances, he's kept batters in check during his last 3 appearances allowing only a single hit and no walks in 3.0 innings of work. Thielbar, who started the year in Ft Myers before getting called up to AA New Britain and eventually AAA Rochester had a strong season and finished w/ a 2.43 ERA between all three levels, helped in large part to 12.1 innings in Ft Myers where he gave up only 1 run (unearned). It will be interesting to see what Thielbar's future is with the Twins, who picked up Thielbar from the Saint Paul Saints after the 2011 season. Evan Bigley rounds out the Twins seven selections to the AFL, and his performance has been unimpressive to date. In 7 games of work Bigley has managed to hit only 5 for 29, has struck out 6 times and has yet to take a walk. His slash like is scary bad, .172/.241/.441. Bigley hit .268 for the Rock Cats before getting moved up to AAA to join the Red Wings where he hit just .251/.289/.409. Bigley will need to turn things around in a big way if he wants to stay in the Twins organization as anything other than an organizational guy, especially as the Twins farm system is full of high-value OF prospects. This may be Bigley's last big chance to impress the brass in Minnesota. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

Episode 9 of the Twins baseball podcast, Talk To Contact, is now available for download via iTunes or by clicking here. http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/10/A3b_yWzCUAAbUYE.jpg-large-300x224.jpeg (This post originally appeared at http://www.puckettspond.com) It's been a slow week in Twins news, but we still found some things to talk about in episode 9. Eric talks about Twins related items that he's trying to acquire from Ebay for less than a quarter (shipping included) and why he hates the St. Louis Cardinals. We discuss JIm Rantz' pending retirement and what it means for the club and check in on the Twins players down in the Arizona Fall League, among other things. We also bring you a couple new beer selections and weigh in on the loveliness of Delmon Young's mustache. You can follow Eric on Twitter (@ERolfPleiss) or read his writing at the Knuckleballs Blog. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

Episode 9 of the Twins baseball podcast, Talk To Contact, is now available for download via iTunes or by clicking here. http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/10/A3b_yWzCUAAbUYE.jpg-large-300x224.jpeg (This post originally appeared at http://www.puckettspond.com) It's been a slow week in Twins news, but we still found some things to talk about in episode 9. Eric talks about Twins related items that he's trying to acquire from Ebay for less than a quarter (shipping included) and why he hates the St. Louis Cardinals. We discuss JIm Rantz' pending retirement and what it means for the club and check in on the Twins players down in the Arizona Fall League, among other things. We also bring you a couple new beer selections and weigh in on the loveliness of Delmon Young's mustache. You can follow Eric on Twitter (@ERolfPleiss) or read his writing at the Knuckleballs Blog. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

Episode 8 of the Twins baseball podcast, Talk To Contact, is now available for download via iTunes or by clicking here. (This post originally appeared at www.puckettspond.com) http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/10/pumpkin-beer.jpgI love beer, and baseball, and pumpkins. In Episode 8 Eric and I discuss the Twins prospects in the Arizona Fall League, 2013 Payroll commitments, Justin Morneau and possible infield arrangements for the Twins in 2013. We take a closer look at Aaron Hicks, make our declarations for the top 3 prospects in the organization and we talk about beer.You can follow Eric on Twitter (@ERolfPleiss) or read his writing at the Knuckleballs Blog. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

Episode 8 of the Twins baseball podcast, Talk To Contact, is now available for download via iTunes or by clicking here. (This post originally appeared at www.puckettspond.com) http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/10/pumpkin-beer.jpgI love beer, and baseball, and pumpkins. In Episode 8 Eric and I discuss the Twins prospects in the Arizona Fall League, 2013 Payroll commitments, Justin Morneau and possible infield arrangements for the Twins in 2013. We take a closer look at Aaron Hicks, make our declarations for the top 3 prospects in the organization and we talk about beer.You can follow Eric on Twitter (@ERolfPleiss) or read his writing at the Knuckleballs Blog. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

I'd like to see the Twins spend big money this off-season, and I'd also like to take a trip to the moon. Span has most likely played his last game as a Twin, get used to an OF of Revere, Hammer and Parm. Hopefully the Twins can sign at least one competant FA starter and get another in a trade and then just see what happens. I'd love to go into 2013 with some hope.

The part of the call which I found to be particularly bad was the untimeleness of the call. The rules specifically state it is for the benefit of the runners, such a late call, on this occasion, makes the call especially bad, as the runners were camped half-way and the call had no impact on them becuase of how late the call was made. But the call, as far as I'm concerned, was much BETTER than the recation of the fans. Bad show Atlanta.

I like the idea of Brunansky getting a shot to manage in the minors and bringing up AA coach Rudy Hernandez. As always, well done JC.

I like Mauer over Willy for Twins MVP. I think Dicky for NL Cy Young is risky, I agree he should get it, just don't think he will, same goes for AL MVP, I think Trout gets it, I can't explain why I think he will (aside from his awesome numbers this year, way better than Cabrera), but I think the voters get it right, and there is no way Braun gets the nod in the NL, just wont happen, MVPosey

I'm excited to see both the hitters, and the pitchers that the Twins have down towards the bottom of their system (EST, lower-levels), obviously projecting that far down is always a bit of a crap-shoot, but I think there is a lot of talent down there and I'm excited to watch those guys grow and mature as thay make their journy towards Minnesota. And I agree that Goodrum should have a bounce back season in 2013, too much talent there for it not to.

Who were the best pitchers in the Twins minor league system in 2012? Earlier this week I took a look at my predictions from this spring for who I thought would be the best minor league hitters in 2012 and who actually was. Today I'll look into the pitchers. See the predictions made by some of the other Twins bloggers here (position players) or here (pitchers). http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/05/down-on-the-pond.1.jpgTwins related news and notes from the minor leagues Breakout Pitcher (Upper Levels) Pre-Season Pick: Tyler Robertson. Robertson will be back in Rochester for the first time since getting moved to the bullpen at the beginning of 2011. Although Robertson doesn't have any pitch that is outstanding, he commands his pitches well and I look forward to the lefty making big strides in his second full season working out of the pen. Robertson had a solid year out of the pen in 2012, 3.77ERA w 33 strike outs and 13 walks in 33 games (28.2 innings), but he was by no means the breakout star that I had him pegged for this spring. Many of the quality arms from both AA and AAA were called upon this season by the big league club who struggled finding quality arms to put in the rotation making picking the pitchers for awards from the upper levels even more difficult. Winner: Bruce Pugh (RP). Pugh started the season in Ft Myers where he put up great numbers out of the pen and was called up to New Britain where he performed even better. Pugh finished the season with a 1.94 ERA in 69.2 innings pitched between Ft Myers and New Britain. Bruce held AA hitters to a .182 average and struck out 48 in 42 innings of work giving up only 26 hits. Best Pitcher (Upper Levels) Pre-Season Pick: Alex Wimmers who moves up to AA New Britain this year after a season at Ft. Myers hopes to build off of the late season success from 2011. Wimmers who started 2011 by walking six batters is hoping that his control issues from last season remain in the past. Wimmers only pitched 40.2 innings in A+ last season in addition to the added competition of AA, Wimmers will need to log a bunch of innings. If Wimmers can get back to his 2010 form it's not unreasonable to expect him to move up to AAA by the end of the season. Alex Wimmers made one start for New Britain and was shut down eventually under going season-ending Tommy John surgery on August 2nd. The injury bug strikes again! So much promise for the 2010 first round draft pick who will miss most of, if not all of 2013 as he rehabs from the injury. What will become of Alex Wimmers who is already 23? Winner: B.J. Hermsen was selected by the Twins as their minor league pitcher of the year, who am I to argue with the organization I know and love? I'm a blogger, disagreeing with the Twins is practically my main duty, but you'll get no argument from me on this on. Hermsen had a good season, he made one start for Ft Myers and was called up to New Britain where he made another 22 starts. Hermsen finished the season with a 2.88 ERA to go with 87 strike outs and only 25 walks in 162.2 innings. Honorable mentions to Anthony Slama who dominated at the back of the AAA bullpen and Liam Hendriks who posted a 2.20 ERA in 16 starts for Rochester while striking out more than 5 batters per start. Breakout Pitcher (Lower Levels) Pre-Season Pick: Madison Boer. Boer is a hometown kid from Eden Prairie, MN and will be given a chance to start in Beloit this season and with a solid defense behind him and an offense that will impress, Boer should put up some eye-popping numbers in his first full season in Beloit. Madison Boer put up some eye popping numbers, but not in a good sense. Boer started the season in Beloit where he posted a 3.58 ERA but was then called up to Ft Myers where he struggled. Boer finished the season, between both levels, with a 5.84 ERA 86 strike outs and 42 walks. Batters hit .309 off of him, .322 in AA. Winner: A.J. Achter. Achter started the season in Beloit where he pitched 40 innings out of the pen before getting called up to Ft Myers where he walked only 3 batters in 34.1 innings of work and struck out 37, holding the high-A hitters to a .168 average. Achter was in the rotation last year for Beloit but moved to the pen this year where he thrived. A.J. finished the season with an ERA of 1.70 and 86 strikeouts to go with only 15 walks in 74.1 innings of work. Best Pitcher (Lower Levels) Pre-Season Pick: Adrian Salcedo. Salcedo was outstanding last year and although he's moving up from Beloit to Ft Myers this season I look for him to continue to be a shining star in the lower levels of the Twins organization. Unlike most "classic" Twins style pitchers Salcedo is not a pitch to contact control guy, and while his control is above average, he also misses a lot of bats, striking out 281 while only giving up 56 walks since singing late in 2007. Salcedo pitched only 30.2 innings in 2012 after getting hit in the face during a game in late April that broke his nose. There was a lot of buzz surrounding Salcedo going into 2012, but the injury bug took it's toll on the lanky right-hander, hopefully he'll be able to get back on track in 2013. Winner: David Hurlbut. Hurlbut pitched 111.0 innings for the low-A Beloit Snappers in his first full season of professional baseball. Hurlbut was drafted in the 28th round of the 2011 draft out of Cal State-Fullerton. He ended the season with 85 strike-outs and only 25 walks to go with his 2.76 ERA. Hurlbut will most likely start next season in high-A Ft Myers. He doesn't throw that hard, but he has good command and an above average change-up. Breakout Pitcher (Extended Spring Training) Pre-Season Pick: Hudson Boyd. Boyd was drafted out of HS last season and signed late so he'll make his professional debut this season in EST. As a high school pitcher he is a raw talent, but he throws hard and has good control. If he can stay healthy and keep his weight under control he should put up good numbers in 2012. Boyd led the Elizabethon Twins in innings pitched this season and had a nice 2.95 ERA for his 58 innings of work, however he only struck out 36 and walked 23. 2012 was a good season for Boyd but he gave up almost 2 home runs per 9 innings pitched (1.86 HR/9). He'll need to keep the ball in the park and work on an out pitch as he continues to move through the Twins system. He is young and talented. Winner: Joshua Burris. Burris finished his season a sparkling 7-0 with a 1.75 ERA, 40 strike-outs and 21 walks in 36 innings of work out of the Elizabethon bullpen. Burris has great stuff but has struggled with his command. He was drafted in the 17th round of the 2011 draft and signed late so 2012 was his first taste of professional baseball. Burris is one of several very talented pitches in the lower levels of the Twins organization. Best Pitcher (Extended Spring Training) Pre-Season Pick: Steven Evans was drafted in the 13th round last year, signed quickly and put up eye popping numbers after he reported to Elizabethon. Coming back for a full season Evans will continue to impress against hitters in the Appy League. Already with an impressive arsenal of pitches, 2012 should be a successful season for the young lefty. Evans pitched only 19.0 innings this season, 10 for Elizabethon and then 9 more after getting called up to Beloit. He was not dominant and ended the year with a 4.74 ERA to go with 12 K's and 5 walks. The tall lefty will have to work hard this off-season and come back ready to make an impact in 2013. Winner: Angel Mata. Mata signed as a non-drafted free agent out of Venezuela in 2010. 2012 was his 2nd year in Extended Spring but his first with Elizabethon (he pitched for the Gulf Coast Twins in 2011) and he showed good stuff. Mata started 13 games for the E-Twins and struck out 55 in 53.1 innings of work, holding opposing batters to a .171 average. Mata is only 19, look for him in Cedar Rapids in 2013.

Who were the best pitchers in the Twins minor league system in 2012? Earlier this week I took a look at my predictions from this spring for who I thought would be the best minor league hitters in 2012 and who actually was. Today I'll look into the pitchers. See the predictions made by some of the other Twins bloggers here (position players) or here (pitchers). http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/05/down-on-the-pond.1.jpgTwins related news and notes from the minor leagues Breakout Pitcher (Upper Levels) Pre-Season Pick: Tyler Robertson. Robertson will be back in Rochester for the first time since getting moved to the bullpen at the beginning of 2011. Although Robertson doesn't have any pitch that is outstanding, he commands his pitches well and I look forward to the lefty making big strides in his second full season working out of the pen. Robertson had a solid year out of the pen in 2012, 3.77ERA w 33 strike outs and 13 walks in 33 games (28.2 innings), but he was by no means the breakout star that I had him pegged for this spring. Many of the quality arms from both AA and AAA were called upon this season by the big league club who struggled finding quality arms to put in the rotation making picking the pitchers for awards from the upper levels even more difficult. Winner: Bruce Pugh (RP). Pugh started the season in Ft Myers where he put up great numbers out of the pen and was called up to New Britain where he performed even better. Pugh finished the season with a 1.94 ERA in 69.2 innings pitched between Ft Myers and New Britain. Bruce held AA hitters to a .182 average and struck out 48 in 42 innings of work giving up only 26 hits. Best Pitcher (Upper Levels) Pre-Season Pick: Alex Wimmers who moves up to AA New Britain this year after a season at Ft. Myers hopes to build off of the late season success from 2011. Wimmers who started 2011 by walking six batters is hoping that his control issues from last season remain in the past. Wimmers only pitched 40.2 innings in A+ last season in addition to the added competition of AA, Wimmers will need to log a bunch of innings. If Wimmers can get back to his 2010 form it's not unreasonable to expect him to move up to AAA by the end of the season. Alex Wimmers made one start for New Britain and was shut down eventually under going season-ending Tommy John surgery on August 2nd. The injury bug strikes again! So much promise for the 2010 first round draft pick who will miss most of, if not all of 2013 as he rehabs from the injury. What will become of Alex Wimmers who is already 23? Winner: B.J. Hermsen was selected by the Twins as their minor league pitcher of the year, who am I to argue with the organization I know and love? I'm a blogger, disagreeing with the Twins is practically my main duty, but you'll get no argument from me on this on. Hermsen had a good season, he made one start for Ft Myers and was called up to New Britain where he made another 22 starts. Hermsen finished the season with a 2.88 ERA to go with 87 strike outs and only 25 walks in 162.2 innings. Honorable mentions to Anthony Slama who dominated at the back of the AAA bullpen and Liam Hendriks who posted a 2.20 ERA in 16 starts for Rochester while striking out more than 5 batters per start. Breakout Pitcher (Lower Levels) Pre-Season Pick: Madison Boer. Boer is a hometown kid from Eden Prairie, MN and will be given a chance to start in Beloit this season and with a solid defense behind him and an offense that will impress, Boer should put up some eye-popping numbers in his first full season in Beloit. Madison Boer put up some eye popping numbers, but not in a good sense. Boer started the season in Beloit where he posted a 3.58 ERA but was then called up to Ft Myers where he struggled. Boer finished the season, between both levels, with a 5.84 ERA 86 strike outs and 42 walks. Batters hit .309 off of him, .322 in AA. Winner: A.J. Achter. Achter started the season in Beloit where he pitched 40 innings out of the pen before getting called up to Ft Myers where he walked only 3 batters in 34.1 innings of work and struck out 37, holding the high-A hitters to a .168 average. Achter was in the rotation last year for Beloit but moved to the pen this year where he thrived. A.J. finished the season with an ERA of 1.70 and 86 strikeouts to go with only 15 walks in 74.1 innings of work. Best Pitcher (Lower Levels) Pre-Season Pick: Adrian Salcedo. Salcedo was outstanding last year and although he's moving up from Beloit to Ft Myers this season I look for him to continue to be a shining star in the lower levels of the Twins organization. Unlike most "classic" Twins style pitchers Salcedo is not a pitch to contact control guy, and while his control is above average, he also misses a lot of bats, striking out 281 while only giving up 56 walks since singing late in 2007. Salcedo pitched only 30.2 innings in 2012 after getting hit in the face during a game in late April that broke his nose. There was a lot of buzz surrounding Salcedo going into 2012, but the injury bug took it's toll on the lanky right-hander, hopefully he'll be able to get back on track in 2013. Winner: David Hurlbut. Hurlbut pitched 111.0 innings for the low-A Beloit Snappers in his first full season of professional baseball. Hurlbut was drafted in the 28th round of the 2011 draft out of Cal State-Fullerton. He ended the season with 85 strike-outs and only 25 walks to go with his 2.76 ERA. Hurlbut will most likely start next season in high-A Ft Myers. He doesn't throw that hard, but he has good command and an above average change-up. Breakout Pitcher (Extended Spring Training) Pre-Season Pick: Hudson Boyd. Boyd was drafted out of HS last season and signed late so he'll make his professional debut this season in EST. As a high school pitcher he is a raw talent, but he throws hard and has good control. If he can stay healthy and keep his weight under control he should put up good numbers in 2012. Boyd led the Elizabethon Twins in innings pitched this season and had a nice 2.95 ERA for his 58 innings of work, however he only struck out 36 and walked 23. 2012 was a good season for Boyd but he gave up almost 2 home runs per 9 innings pitched (1.86 HR/9). He'll need to keep the ball in the park and work on an out pitch as he continues to move through the Twins system. He is young and talented. Winner: Joshua Burris. Burris finished his season a sparkling 7-0 with a 1.75 ERA, 40 strike-outs and 21 walks in 36 innings of work out of the Elizabethon bullpen. Burris has great stuff but has struggled with his command. He was drafted in the 17th round of the 2011 draft and signed late so 2012 was his first taste of professional baseball. Burris is one of several very talented pitches in the lower levels of the Twins organization. Best Pitcher (Extended Spring Training) Pre-Season Pick: Steven Evans was drafted in the 13th round last year, signed quickly and put up eye popping numbers after he reported to Elizabethon. Coming back for a full season Evans will continue to impress against hitters in the Appy League. Already with an impressive arsenal of pitches, 2012 should be a successful season for the young lefty. Evans pitched only 19.0 innings this season, 10 for Elizabethon and then 9 more after getting called up to Beloit. He was not dominant and ended the year with a 4.74 ERA to go with 12 K's and 5 walks. The tall lefty will have to work hard this off-season and come back ready to make an impact in 2013. Winner: Angel Mata. Mata signed as a non-drafted free agent out of Venezuela in 2010. 2012 was his 2nd year in Extended Spring but his first with Elizabethon (he pitched for the Gulf Coast Twins in 2011) and he showed good stuff. Mata started 13 games for the E-Twins and struck out 55 in 53.1 innings of work, holding opposing batters to a .171 average. Mata is only 19, look for him in Cedar Rapids in 2013.

This post originally appeared at www.puckettspond.com Episode 7 of the Twins baseball podcast, Talk To Contact, is now available for download via iTunes or by clicking here. http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/10/moon_man_2.jpgNew Glarus Moon Man, one of the best Wisconsin has to offer In Episode 7 my brother Eric and I discuss who we believe are the Twins deserving of the Talk To Contact awards for rookie of the year, starting pitcher, reliever, position player and MVP. We go on to get into the recent coaching changes, prospect talk, beer and post-season predictions.You can follow Eric on Twitter (@ERolfPleiss) or read his writing at the Knuckleballs Blog. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

This post originally appeared at www.puckettspond.com Episode 7 of the Twins baseball podcast, Talk To Contact, is now available for download via iTunes or by clicking here. http://puckettspond.com/files/2012/10/moon_man_2.jpgNew Glarus Moon Man, one of the best Wisconsin has to offer In Episode 7 my brother Eric and I discuss who we believe are the Twins deserving of the Talk To Contact awards for rookie of the year, starting pitcher, reliever, position player and MVP. We go on to get into the recent coaching changes, prospect talk, beer and post-season predictions.You can follow Eric on Twitter (@ERolfPleiss) or read his writing at the Knuckleballs Blog. __________________ Follow @BaseballPirate on Twitter

Is it fair that I counted Parmelee as a minor leaguer even though he is officially a rookie this season? I say yes. If you have an issue, just substitute Arcia in his place to give him three victories.