Tom Froemming

I like the enthusiasm going on here, but I'm with Cody on this one. On paper, Cleveland is still a decent margin above the Twins. They lost a couple pieces, yes, but they were 17 games better than the Twins last year and did bring in some replacements. Yonder Alonso was actually a better hitter than Carlos Santana last season, and while losing Bryan Shaw hurts, they still have Cody Allen, Andrew Miller and a few more solid arms in the pen.

Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press reported this morning that Tyler Duffey and Alan Busenitz have been optioned to Triple-A Rochester, providing some clarity on who may fill out the Opening Day pitching staff. These cuts leave just 13 active pitchers remaining in Twins camp.Duffey has logged 262.0 innings for the Twins over the past three seasons, making 36 starts over the 2015-16 seasons before shifting to the bullpen for 56 appearances last season. He was being stretched out this spring, having pitched 12.2 innings over five official appearances. Alan Busenitz was a pleasant surprise last season, pitching to a 1.99 ERA and 0.98 WHIP over 28 games with the Twins. He had a 7.27 ERA in nine games this spring, but also struck out 11 batters over 8.2 innings. These moves seem to indicate that there is a very high likelihood that both Phil Hughes and Rule 5 pick Tyler Kinley will make the Opening Day roster. Hughes is coming off his second thoracic outlet syndrome procedure, but he's owed $13.2 million this season and can refuse a minor league assignment. Kinley has only made eight appearances in Triple-A, but if he doesn't break camp with the Twins he would be offered back to the Miami Marlins. For more on Kinley's chase to make the roster, check this article from Cody: Clock's Ticking: The Tyler Kinley Decision. Click here to view the article

This sucks. I'll give Polanco the benefit of the doubt and believe his story, but if this is really the case teams really need to start doing a better job of monitoring who these guys are working with in the offseason and what they're putting into their bodies. You're a professional athlete. It's not a mystery what substances are and are not legal. Get it together.

Unless there is a medical issue, I would expect Hildenberger to break camp with the Twins. La Velle wrote up a nice update on Hildy and what he's been working on. Kinley's status probably has more to do with things like whether or not they go with a five man rotation, where Tyler Duffey and Phil Hughes end up and how many guys Molitor wants available on the bench.

I can't believe Guzman is going to be 40.

The Twins will play their final game in Fort Myers a week from today. Can you believe it? The regular season is right around the corner, which also means we’re heading into the final leg of competition for Sire of Fort Myers.In case you missed it, here’s my introductory post regarding the title of Sire of Fort Myers. Basically, the goal is to crown the player who had the most impressive spring. The caveat being that player has to either have never played in the major leagues or not be on the 40-man roster. This is not about identifying the player most likely to break camp with the team, or the player who has the highest upside. It’s all about performance. The mantra this time of year is “spring training stats don’t matter.” That’s definitely in the case of established major leaguers, but there are some players who have something to gain from a strong spring. Earlier this week, the Twins added another candidate for the crown into the fold. New Twin Jake Cave qualifies, since he has yet to appear in the majors. Cave was acquired from the Yankees in exchange for 19-year-old pitcher Luis Gil. Cave went 0-for-3 in his spring debut with the Twins and was hitting just .158/.304/.211 with the Yankees. So while he’s a technically a candidate, he’s not a contender at this time. Who is? Well, here’s what I figure are the top five frontrunners for Sire of Fort Myers. Ryan LaMarre This guy has been incredible. LaMarre is hitting .500 with a slugging percentage of .857. He’s leading the team in hits, total bases, RBIs and runs scored. Among all hitters with at least 30 plate appearances this spring, LaMarre’s 1.357 OPS ranks 11th. Back in 2014, LaMarre successfully recovered from the same surgery that Miguel Sano is recovering from this spring. Fernando Romero Wow. Romero has logged eight no-hit innings in big league camp with eight strikeouts against just one walk. He was optioned to minor league camp, so it doesn’t seem likely that he’ll appear in another office spring game, but he still has to be considered among the favorites. How does Romero fit into the big picture? Cody did an excellent job of addressing that question earlier this week. LaMonte Wade Wade is getting plenty of looks down in Fort Myers, despite the fact that the Twins have no lack of outfield options in camp. The only non-roster player with more plate appearances than Wade are former major leaguers Chris Heisey and Gregorio Petit. Wade is hitting an impressive .304/.469/.391 and has a team-high eight walks. Nick Gordon Another key contributor to last year’s Chattanooga Lookouts club, Gordon has also been making the most of his opportunities. He’s hitting .409/.435/.636 and is tied for fourth on the team in total bases. He’s been making hard contact all spring and has flashed his speed on the basepaths, hitting a pair of triples. Tyler Kinley Kinley is getting a lot of work this spring, which is no surprise given the fact he was a Rule 5 pick. Only six pitchers have topped his eight innings pitched, and he’s second on the team with nine strikeouts. His near triple-digit fastball and 90 mph slider have turned heads, but he has also walked five batters and given up seven hits in eight innings pitched. Just Missed Erick Aybar is hitting .296/.321/.407 and looks like he has plenty left in the tank. He figures to get a lot of playing time in the final week of spring. Brock Stassi has had a strong showing, hitting .429/.500/.476. Bobby Wilson, favorite to fill the third catcher spot, hit a home run off Masahiro Tanaka. Zack Littell looked great, but with just five innings pitched he’s on the outside looking in. Jake Reed has a 1.50 ERA and eight strikeouts over six innings, but he also has a 1.82 WHIP. Here’s a package of highlights from the past couple weeks of spring training action, featuring a couple of these Sire of Fort Myers candidates. Someone who hasn’t been mentioned yet is catcher Willians Astudillo. He has just a .330 OPS in 16 plate appearances, but you gotta see the no-look pickoff, which is featured at about the 15-second mark. Click here to view the article

If we go single/double/triple, why is a home run not a quadruple? A grand slam can be a 4x4

Did you know that marine scientists are making an effort to replace the name starfish with sea star? Neither did I, but these are the kinds of things you learn when you have a toddler (who decided it’s so important to know all the animals and what sounds they make?) Anyway, maybe it’s also time for us baseballogists to review the game’s nomenclature. The purpose behind renaming the starfish is due to the fact that it’s not, in fact, a fish at all. Per National Geographic, sea stars are more closely related to sea urchins and sand dollars. Makes sense, right? It seems to me like we could apply that same logic to the following terms: Baseball: Let’s just start right at the top. Calling the game baseball makes sense, but calling the actual ball itself a baseball? That’s ludacris if you really think about it. If anything, it should be called a seam ball. Or, the way things are going lately, maybe a space ball. Foul line/foul pole: If you hit one of these two things, it’s a fair ball. So why not just call them the fair line and fair pole? No hitter: This one works, but I always felt like maybe it’s too on the nose. You don’t call a shutout a no runner or a no scoresy. No-no is pretty solid, but how about we start calling them blankers? This has a double meaning: 1) The pitcher has put up nothing but blanks on the scoreboard, and 2) The opposing hitters probably spent the entire game saying “mother (blank)-er” to themselves. Instant replay: Replay. Batting average: Hit percentage. “Batting average” isn’t nearly as descriptive as its brethren in the triple slash line (on-base percentage and slugging percentage). Lineup card: Beat writer photo bait. Extra innings: This will remain the term for major league baseball, but in the minor leagues this will now be referred to as the “Intentional Walk and Bunt Showcase.” Hall of Fame: National Museum of Baseball. In very fine print under that would be listed “also includes the Hall of Baseball Writers’ Popularity Club.” Sacrifice Bunt: Sacrifice out. Productive out: Advancing out. The productivity part of it is highly subjective. Scoring position: This term is still considered current, but Byron Buxton’s ability to score from first base has caused this to be transitioned into the “under review” stage. Small ball: This term is also currently under review. If the baseballs continue to be juiced, this will be updated to “bad-idea ball.” Umpire: This is still current, but in a transitional stage. Preparations are being made to change this to either Mr. Roboto, Johnny 5 or RoboCop. That’s all I could come up with for now, but it is your duty as a fellow baseballogist to contribute to this project. Please offer up your own update suggestions in the comments. Have something more to say? Perfect! Start your own blog here at Twins Daily.

Yes, Cave is on the 40-man. Here's the language used on the team's press release: "To make room for Cave on the 40-man roster, the Twins have designated first baseman Kennys Vargas for release or assignment."

Great stuff here. The audio quality is really solid, even on the clip you had from Falvey.

I think this article and a lot of the early comments are on point. It was great to see Joe have a renaissance season, but he's still a replaceable commodity, especially if this shift in the free agent market is going to continue. His OBP and defense (still getting over how badly he was robbed in the Gold Glove voting), make Joe particularly valuable to this team, but seeing Logan Morrison have to settle for the deal he did has to be an eye opener. Mauer is a franchise icon, will be in the Twins Hall of Fame and there will probably be a No. 7 gate one day, but I don't see any reason the front office should address his future until next offseason. So many of the other pieces influence Mauer's future/fit on this team. I hope enough of those boxes are checked that we see him back in 2019, but the folks in charge have every incentive to see how things play out.

I guess those comp balance picks are protected. Lynn is signing with the Twins and everyone is confirming that info from spycake, that they'll give up the No. 95 pick. Works for me.

The Twins offseason puzzle is now complete. Jon Heyman reported that the Twins were closing in on a deal for free agent starting pitcher Lance Lynn. That report was confirmed by Jon Morosi, who added it's a one-year pact worth $12 million. Phil Miller of the Star Tribune was first to report that the Twins have released Anibal Sanchez to make room on the 40-man roster.Lynn, 30, was considered one of the four best starting pitchers on the free agent market. After missing the 2016 season due to Tommy John surgery, the right-hander bounced back strong in 2017 with the St. Louis Cardinals to post a 3.43 ERA over 186.1 IP. He is considered a reliable middle-of-the-rotation arm, though it’s worth noting that his ERA last year would have ranked second on the Twins staff. He is part of a trio of free agent starting pitchers that have been victimized by an historically slow free agent market, as estimates last October predicted he would likely get a deal as high as $60M over four years. Just last week it was reported that he turned down a two-year deal from the Twins for $20 million. The one-year, $12 million deal is likely a compromise. It allows Lynn to explore the free agent market next year and gets the Twins a solid starter at a reasonable rate with no long-term commitment. A lot has changed over the course of this offseason, but you'd still be hard pressed to paint this deal as anything other than an incredible bargain for the Twins. When it was announced Ervin Santana would miss the beginning of the year due to an injured finger, it would have been easy for Derek Falvey and the rest of the front office to panic and overpay the first free agent starting pitcher they could get to sign on the dotted line. Instead, they signed veteran Anibal Sanchez to a low-risk deal (again, he has now been released) and traded from a position of depth to acquire Jake Odorizzi. Those moves afforded the front office the ability to take a hard stance on the rest of the free agent market, waiting for a good deal to land in their laps. Lynn is not completely without concerns. His strikeout rate was down (7.4 K/9) and his walk rate up (3.8 K/9). He limped to the finish line last year with a 9.20 ERA over his last four starts. He also had the lowest BABIP among all qualified pitchers at .244, which is a far cry from his career mark of .297. Furthermore, he had by far the worst strikeout-to-walk ratio (1.96) of his career, which has been entirely in the National League. While there are certainly some red flags, it's important to remember that was Lynn's first season back from Tommy John surgery. Also, among the 144 pitchers who logged at least 500 innings from 2011-16, Lynn ranked 21st in FIP (3.36). That's a great track record upon which to rely when he is completely recovered. Lynn most likely joins the Twins starting rotation plans immediately. That looks to be Jose Berrios, Jake Odorizzi, Kyle Gibson and Lynn, as the tentative plan is for a four-man rotation at the beginning of the season, with a fifth starter only necessary a handful of times before mid-May. The Twins best pitcher last year, Ervin Santana, will likely return late April or early May to take the permanent fifth spot. It remains to be seen how prepared Lynn will be to join the Twins on Opening Day. He reportedly has been working out in Jupiter, presumably building his pitch count. Most Twins pitchers are at the 60 pitch mark as of today, leaving about three more starts to get them to the 90-100 pitch mark. Depending on where Lynn is in his routine, he could begin the year with a few shorter than usual outings. Since Lynn had the qualifying offer attached to him, the Twins will forfeit a draft pick. MLB Pipeline is reporting that'll be the No. 95 overall pick in the draft. The signing puts the Twins payroll near $130 million for the year, up about $25 million from last year and the highest payroll in team history. Here are the details: Download attachment: Payroll after Lynn.PNG Here's a live stream on Twitter, if you're interested. I talked for 18 minutes, getting into some details about Lynn's aggressive TJ rehab schedule and usage by the Cardinals in 2017, as well as the rotation and 40-man roster fallout. Click here to view the article

I'm pretty sure you were right the first time and the Twins would lose the 75th pick. Per MLB: "A team that receives revenue sharing will lose its third-highest selection in the following year's Draft. If it signs two such players, it will also forfeit its fourth-highest remaining pick." The Twins top picks are No. 20 overall, No. 60 and No. 75, their Competitive Balance Round B pick, right? Unless those picks are protected, which I can't find anything indicating that's the case.

If 2017 Lance Lynn is who he is now, he'd be an upgrade, but there's not a lot to get excited about. But, that was his first season back from Tommy John. Prior to that, he had pitched to a 3.36 FIP over almost 800 innings. That puts him 21st among the 144 pitchers who logged at least 500 innings from 2011-16. So how much you value Lynn is going to hinge on how much you believe he can bounce back.

The calendar has turned over to March, yet here we are, still waiting to see where Jake Arrieta, Lance Lynn and Alex Cobb end up playing in 2018. What are their odds of signing with the Minnesota Twins? Well, here are the current betting odds on where those three will sign, as well as the odds on who will win the World Series and individual awards.The folks at My Top Sportsbooks have tabbed the Twins as the favorites to sign Lynn. They put 5/4 odds on a Lynn/Twins union. For Cobb, the Twins are set at 6/1 odds, which trails the Orioles (2/1), Rangers (7/2) and Brewers (4/1). Minnesota was not listed among the most likely landing spots for Arrieta. Mike Berardino of the Pioneer Press recently reported that a rival scout said the Twins were “still looking for another starter.” In that same article, he noted that the Twins offered Lynn a two-year, $20 million deal, which was quickly declined. Lynn rejected a qualifying offer from the Cardinals, worth $17.4 million, so it’s not surprising he turned down the lowball offer from the Twins. Prior to the start of the offseason, MLB Trade Rumors projected that he’d sign for four years, $56 million. A lot has changed since then. With Ervin Santana out, the Opening Day rotation figures to be Jose Berrios, Jake Odorizzi, Kyle Gibson and some combination of Adalberto Mejia, Phil Hughes, Anibal Sanchez and Aaron Slegers. Paul Molitor is considering starting the year with a four-man rotation, but that’s not set in stone. While there are no shortage of options to fill out the rotation, that’s not a projected staff that will inspire World Series aspirations. Speaking of which … World Series Odds The Twins still only have 40/1 odds at winning the World Series, per the same article mentioned above. There are 15 other teams listed ahead of the Twins, with the Cubs, Astros, Dodgers and Yankees all tied for the best odds of winning the Fall Classic at 7/1. On the other end of the spectrum, there are seven teams who have 200/1 odds or worse, three of whom are in the AL Central (I think you can guess which ones). The Twins projected Opening Day rotation doesn’t stack up against the other top teams in the league, but here are a few things to consider … -They could still sign Lynn or one of the other free agents. -You never know, Berrios could ascend into true ace status this season. -The Twins could make a massive trade at the deadline to add a significant piece. They certainly have the prospects to do so. -There are reinforcements coming. Santana is expected back maybe as early as late April, and Trevor May could return in June. One of the guys on the farm like Stephen Gonsalves or Fernando Romero could be ready to make an impact, as well. If the Royals, White Sox and Tigers are going to be as bad as everyone projects, the Twins have a huge advantage in the wild card race. Cleveland is still clearly the team to beat in the AL Central, but a lot can change over the course of a season. To me, the Twins are an interesting World Series dark horse pick. Not because of who they are today, but because of who they could become by the time October rolls around. RELATED Do You Need An Ace To Win The World Series? Twins Pitching For More Pitching Click here to view the article

Ryan LaMarre blasted a two-run homer this afternoon. He's now hitting .500 with a 1.470 OPS!

You're just saying that's more than likely going to be the case, right? There's not a rule against using guys on the minor league side in the major league games, correct? Or is there a difference between when a guy is optioned and when a guy is reassigned?

Since he's already made is MLB debut, Moya is ineligible. But, you're right, he is having a nice spring. He's given up one run over five innings with five strikeouts and no walks. Mike Berardino reported this morning that Littell and Sawyer have been sent to minor league camp, along with Thorpe, Enns, Jorge and Navaretto. That doesn't necessarily mean we won't see them in any more major league spring games, but it will certainly be less frequent.

Correct on Aybar. He is eligible, but he hasn't done enough yet in my book to crack the current top five for hitters. And this is simply about performance, not taking into account their chances of making the roster. Your 25-man roster projections already do a great job of forecasting that stuff. Let me just stop you right there. You're way overthinking this. Maybe Gordon and Romero should switch diets the rest of camp? I agree on Fernando's role, as tantalizing an idea it is just to plug him into the Twins bullpen, I hope they stay the course and keep him on a starter's path in the minors. For now.

The gang over at 1500 ESPN, along with other members of the Vikings media, made it a tradition to name a “Mr. Mankato” each year at training camp. The honor was designed to recognize the player who entered camp under the radar but emerged with an eye-opening performance. Well, I figured it would be fun to steal that bit and crown a “Sire of Fort Myers." Who are the top contenders?It’s great to see the Twins back on the field, but let’s face it, these games are meaningless. Well, at least for the guys who are already established major leaguers. There are very few spots up for grabs on the 25-man roster, but there are still guys who have a lot to gain from having strong showings down in Fort Myers. This is their chance to be seen by top members of the Twins coaching staff and front office. For the non-roster invitees who are in their mid to late 20s, this also represents an opportunity to showcase their skills to the other 29 MLB teams, not to mention overseas and independent leagues. So who is eligible to be named Sire of Fort Myers? Anybody who’s not on the 40-man roster, even guys with several years of MLB service time, and anyone on the 40-man roster who hasn’t made their MLB debut also qualifies. If you don’t think that crop of players is worth monitoring, I’d beg to differ. But, just to be clear, these guys' chances of breaking camp with the Twins are anywhere from remote to downright unthinkable. This isn't about identifying the player most likely to make the team, it's simply honoring the player who had the most impressive spring training performance. Without further adieu, here are five pitchers and five hitters who have emerged as the early favorites for the title of Sire of Fort Myers: Fernando Romero Romero has gotta be the early frontrunner for the title. He’s pitched five no-hit innings, walked just one batter and has six strikeouts. In his first appearance of the spring, “El Toro” retired Caleb Joseph, Tim Beckham, Jonathan Schoop, Manny Machado, Adam Jones and Trey Mancini in order, all of whom figure to be regulars in the Orioles lineup. Zack Littell Littell is giving Romero a good run for his money so far. In five innings, Littell has given up a run on a pair of hits, but he’s also struck out eight batters and hasn’t issued a walk. He’s gotten the majority of his work late in games, once the MLB regulars have been replaced, but he’s been impressive nonetheless. Stephen Gonsalves Gonsalves started against the Astros in his first official appearance of spring training (the exhibition against the Gophers doesn’t count), and faced a very recognizable lineup from the defending World Series champs. He gave up one run on four hits over 2.2 innings of work. In his other game, Gonsalves managed to pitch around a leadoff double to record a scoreless inning. Jake Reed Reed went unprotected and then unselected in the Rule 5 Draft, but he’s off to a strong start down in Fort Myers. He’s racked up four strikeouts over three scoreless innings. Reed has primarily been working the later innings, so he hasn’t faced many hitters projected to be in the big leagues. Tyler Kinley Being a Rule 5 pick, Kinley is easily the most likely guy on this list to break camp with the Twins. His overall numbers aren’t great, but he’s had to put in some extra work thanks to his defense misplaying a few balls. He’s struck out four batters in four innings while flirting with triple digits on the radar gun, but he’s also surrendered five hits and three walks. LaMonte Wade Wade had his Arizona Fall League experience end with a scary outfield collision that resulted in him suffering a concussion. Just seeing him in camp and healthy is a great thing, but he’s also having no trouble tracking pitches so far this spring. Wade is 6-for-16 with four walks, a .500 on-base percentage. Ryan LaMarre This 29-year-old former outfielder for the Reds, Red Sox and A’s has made quite an early impression. LaMarre is 7-for-15 with a triple and a home run. There’s virtually zero chance he breaks camp with the Twins, even if he maintains his 1.342 OPS through the rest of spring, but it’s guys like him that make the late innings fun to watch. He’ll be playing his guts out. Taylor Featherston Featherston, 28, has also played in the majors for three different clubs: the Angels, Phillies and Rays. He’s 6-for-17 with a pair of doubles and a homer. He fits into the same category as LaMarre, except he’s an infielder. Wyston Sawyer One interesting battle to watch this spring is the one for third catcher. Bobby Wilson is the favorite, as he has more than 300 major league games under his belt, but Sawyer is an interesting name in the mix. At the plate, the 26-year-old is 2-for-5 with a walk and he also threw out the only base runner who attempted to steal on him. Other contenders for the third catcher spot include Jordan Pacheco, Willians Astudillo and Brian Navarreto. Nick Gordon Gordon has had a few miscues in the field, but he’s flashed his extra-base power at the plate. Most of the remarks I’ve seen on Twitter from people seeing “G Cinco” play for the first time are about how skinny he is or how high he wears his socks, but in just nine plate appearances, he already has a double and a triple. There are another dozen or so guys who are contenders for the title of Sire of Fort Myers, but this group of 10 has hit the ground running. If you’ve been following along with the early action, or better yet have already visited Fort Myers, please share your thoughts on anyone who has caught your eye. Click here to view the article