Rosterman

Right now, he is a good, solid 26thg player. SImilar to what Willians Astudillo brought to the team. He can play a lot of positions in a pinch. Only Gordon has some speed. The problem is that teams have been carrying that extra pitcher as the 26th player. So you have a three person bench, which is largely a catcher, and outfielder and a bat or infielder. It is nice to have a bat, and a speedster. That is THE luxury the 26th roster spot gives you. Is he a longterm solution for the Twins anywhere? Chances are - no. He is being bypassed as a regular But until the Twins farm system produces just another bench guy, or if the Twins decide to go the free agent route and search out another, say, Ehire...he is still young and offers a variety of skills. Gordon may still feel he is better than being a bench role player. But the benefit is that he has to show this on the field.

I can understand the need in baseball to have a bit of tension on outfield walls so the ball bounces, rather than dies at the track. Pretty gutsy to throw a guy into a position he hasn't played in the big leagues (and not all that much period) and not really walk thru the outfield, test the wall for "sponginess" and all. The Twins can't afford to carry bench bats and pitching arms that can't play in the field, period. 8 games in the next week. They need every able body to do their rotate to positions you wouldn't believe these guys are playing. Like who backs up Arraez now, at first...even though the guy is looking good at the bag! There isn't a lot down on the farm. Kirilloff should be back, since Miranda is gone. Celestino is in the wings. Contreras and Godoy, bless their hearts, should NOT be options) oh, no - that leaves...Cave!). So looks like Minaya is the COVID replacement and stays until Ryan comes back, and hopefully he does pitch that final game in Detroit.

Going all the way back. TWINS DRAFTEES WHO DIDN'T SIGN BUT PLAYED IN THE MAJORS: 1960s: Eddie Leon, Del Unser, Frank Brosseau, Steve Garvey, Charles Scrivener, Tommy Moore, Roger Freed, Al Hrabosky, Jake Brown, Craig Skok, Ken Szotkiewicz. 1970s: Rick Burleson, Ron Cash, Dick Ruthven, Dave Stegman, Pete Falcone, Warren Cromartie, Rick Peters, Jerry Maddox, Eric Show, Paul Mirabella, Marty Castillo, Steve Christmas, Vance McHenry, Jamie Allen, Joe Charboneau, Rick Bordi, Edwin Rodriguez, Bradley Lesley, Dave Leeper, Tony Fossas, Steve Bradley, Ralph Citarella, Mike Couchee, Randy O'Neal. 1980s: Mike Fuentes, Steve Ellsworth, John Marzano, Steve Davis, Ralph Bryant, Greg Mathews, Tim Belcher, Bill Swift, Oddbie McDowell, Clay Parker, Joe Bitker, Mark Grace, Mike Benjamin, Mike Schwabe, Dan Smith, Craig Paquette, Aaron Sele, Derrick White, Tony Urbani. 1990s: James Moulton, Tim Davis, TJ Mathews, Gary Matthews, Craig Dingman, Kelly Dransfeldt, Travis Lee, Danny Kolb, Emil Brown, Jason Varitek, Lance Carter, Brian Lawrence, AJ Hinch, Robert Ramsay, Matt Kata, Mike Lamb, Josh Bard, Mike Gosling, Kevin Thompson, Brian Slocum. 2000s: Aaron Heilman, Paul Maholm, Daniel Davidson, Jason Vargas, Adam Lind, Jeff Clement, John Gaub, Garrett Mock, Travis Metcalf, Steve Pearce, Yonder Alonso, David Herndon, Charles Leesman, Andy Oliver, Chase Anderson, Mickey Storey, Seth Rosin, Aaron Barrett, Adam Cnley, Mario Hollands. Recently: Cody Martin, Mark Payton (White Sox prospect), Andrew McCreery, James Marvel, Taylor Hearn, Sam Hilliard, Mike Baumann, Kyle Cody, Blake Cederlind, Greg Deischman..... I also like how the Twins go after unsigned draftees and trade or sign them late. Some notables: CHuck Baker, Pat Light, Chris Heston, Clete Thomas, Matt Macri, Jesse Orosco and recently Kyle Barraclough. Plus they have Elliot Soto currently in St. Paul. How would the Twins success have been over the years if they ahd signed Steve Garvey, Mark Grace, Tim Belcher, Jason Vargas, Adam Lind amongst others?

You'll see quite a few in the first post in this link started on April 8. Always amazed at "The Twins That Could've Been."

We forget that he needs to play everday. Just to build up the strength and endurance. Will he make it thru an entire season after absically sitting out two years? I am comfortable with him just getting glimpses of life in the major leagues in 2022. And hope the Twins bring him up to play everday if a regular goes down. I just wish rosters could be expanded bigtime in September like in the past. Even a player riding the bench in that month is a learning experience. I was surprised when the player's union didn't fight this...more salary for minor league players.

Thge next big move is switching out Kirilloff for Miranda. Even though Miranda is hitting a tad better, I would rather see him work it out in St. Paul and play first base regular, if that is a position you'd like him to play. Although I still do see Miranda as the third baseman of the future. St. Paul seems to be playing Steer at second, and Palacios is holding down third. Right field at Target field is a tough spot, but the Twins are on the road come Monday. You want the strongest bench you can possibly have, especially with a doube-header in play. Give Kepler the rest if you need to do so. Yes, Celestino will be back in the next week. I would rather have 4-5 games of Lewis in the line-up right now and then make a decision on who to send back (that extra pitcher). Jeffers and Sanchez will tandem catching duties on the double header and one will play the day before, and one the day after. I'm more curious as to whom the Twins will recall to pitch the double-header. I doubt Ryan will be back until at least the day after (I hope Ryan is throwing as looks like he will be a part of the series against the Yankees). I hope he gets his warmup game against the Tigers.

The CHicago White Sox go into the long Memorial Day Weekend with NO GAMES on Friday or Memorial Day Monday? What gives?

You have to hope Canterino can push towards 100 innings period this year. Yes, he needs to expand and show that he can possibly get thru an order, say, a third time. Unless you want him to be a bullpen opener. But if the Twins need a bullpen arm to advance from AA, they only need to look at Schulfer, Scherff, Sisk or Sammons...who need to advance to St. Paul pronto and decisions made about keeping them on the 40-man come of the off-season. Canterino, the team never rushes to add players before they have to...it seems. He doesn't need a 40-man add this year.

Can the Twins use an opener for Archer? Or maybe combine him with Bundy for one game? Starting games doesn't do much good if you can't pitch a quality start.

Jake Cave is on fire and due to come back to Minnesota soon, right?

Well, it seemed that Duff was the go-to guy and that, in all liklihood, Rocco was hoping he would close out the game with two innings of work. Otherwise, if you were going to close with Duran, he would be up prepping for the ninth. Joe Smith only threw three pitches the day before, too. But you should be able to see that Duff was struggling. The game was close. And then, the 8th. Even when Sanchez reached first base I would've put Gordon in to run. You need one run to keep the game going. (Although, refresh my mind, how does the DH rule work these days? The current DH can move to a position, but then you MUST use a new bat each time that position comes up in the order for the rest of the game?)

Alex Colome 1-0 3.79 in Coors Field, with a couple of saves.

Maybe bat Buxton 9th for now? One less at bat?

So many of the minor league free agents on the Saints staff have imploded. Ian Hamilton is still the only non-roster guy that should be under considerataion. Derek Rodriguez is pitching well as a starter. His one Twins appearance was marred by Rocco keeping him in one inning too long when it wasn't necessary. Balazovic and Henriquez should both be switched out with starters prospering at AA Wichita, for the moment. Or we jsut let them take their lumps? Cole Sands is also overmatched. WIll he be this season's Charlie Barnes? Strotman has been a disaster in relief and probably will be the next arm to go from the 40-man roster. Will the Twins make a roster move (Godoy and COntreras are both 40-man expendables at this point) and bring up Chi Chi Gonzalez to start in the double header? They did sign Hunter Wood, who is working out at FCL camp. Not sure why he didn't sign anywhere in the off-season. His stats show some promise. He is coming off of an IL-stint last season for "elbow discomfort." https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/w/woodhu01.shtml Coulombe is coming back this weekend, I imagine. Maybe WInder will be back next week.

No team will take him unless he produces bigtime in the minors. He will be free for the asking come 2023.

The LOCKOUT didn't help. Coming off a losing season, which was coming off a no-fan 2020, doesn't help. As a lifelong Twin Citian, I don't feel safe taking the lightrail right now, leaving my car pacrked in a light rail lot or on a Minneapolis city street. I also don't want to walk from what was once my favorite inexpensive parking lots off Washington, or by the Orpheum. I did park in the ramp when went to the Dodger series. The weather has not been delightful. There are bargains to be had, but when you add up tickets, parking, food...it ain't cheap. But you can get a cheap ticket season ticket plan and then sit pretty much anyplace where there are empty seats. How have the Twins been marketing baseball, above and beyond the Bally coverage? COVID is, sadly, keeping them from getting players out into the community. There doesn't seem to be the coverage we expected in the past on WCCO. Where is the ads? Still trying to sell Target Field rather than the team (who is the face of the team sans Buxton, and he still needs to build into that position). People are still trying to figure out how to spend their spare change. And with summer upon us, everyone will be asking for it...and gas will keep you local (which could be good for the Twins) or people just don't care about baseball as much as they did in 2019. 2020 hurt the game with the worthless short season. 2021 was a disaster for selling the Twins. The Lockout almsot killed baseball for many - greed is still in the minds of many who love the game or just view it in passing.

Not sure what to make of Balazovic. Maybe they needed to start him in AA ball after he started the season on the injured list. Henriquez is another guy who should probably be pitching at AA ball. Still young. Alex Schreff is putting up some decent numbers at AA Wichita. Along with Austin Schulfer, he should make the jump to AAA soon. I also hope the Twins take an AAA look at Bryan Sammons before losing him as a minors free agent. Twins signed Hunter Wood. Pitched well for Cleveland, Texas and Tampa Bay. Sad to see Vallimont grabbed by the Orioles. You win some, you lose some. And you can't keep everyone.

The Twins signed Hunter Wood to a minor league contract and will work him out of the FCL complex. He has pitched 71 games, mainly out of the bullpen, for the Rays, Guardians and Rangers. https://www.baseball-reference.com/players/w/woodhu01.shtml

Two Questions: Can the Twins stretch nout ALL their rotation arms to get them thru the season and into the playoffs, if necessary. And, what to do with Sano if and when he comes back.

There seems to be a pecking order for prospect advancement in the Twins system. Part of the problem is that there are a lot of prospects, there are some in the majors (Kirilloff, Larnach, Miranda) getting their chance. You oughta get to the 40-man. And most teams in baseball won't add a player to the 40-man unless they really need to be protected (Enlow, Balazovic) or are on the cusp of playing. Because if they can't play in the majors, they take up space for a time (Vallimont as an example). Even advancing a player too soon to AAA ball, especially if they are entering the 1st year of Rule 5 eligibility, is a gamble...because if a player excels, a low-end team will grab. Twins were lucky Miranda went thru 2020 without being grabbed. But decisions also have to be made before a minor league player becomes eligible for free agency. I would be looking at Caleb Hamilton more as the call-up catcher at the moment than, say, Godoy. Of course, if the guy doesn't work out and needs to taken off the 40-man, you can lose them on the waiver wire...so you want to be pretty sure of their longer-term standing in the organization, which is why prospects are often oevrlooked as the team goes with minor league free agents as fill-in when duty calls in the majors due to injury. That being said, my under-the-radar ghuys are Travis Adams and Steven Hajjar at Ft. Myers. Kyler Fedko already advanced to Cedar Rapids. The pitching staff at Cedar Rapids reminds one of the Twins. What would the Twins record be if their staff wasn't doing what it is doing, considering the hitters (and baseball) is light on offense. SO many standout arms, but I like Bradley Hanner, Sean Mooney and Bobby Milacki as sleepers. And don't forget Jair Camargo, still a horribly young catcher who will have to be Rule 5 protected. Look for him to get some advancement this season. I still like Bryan Sammons as a fringe lefty. He should've been in St. Paul. This is his last chance to shine and maybe be a backend part of the bullpen. Or he may disappear, like Ryan Mason did earlier this month. Austin Schulfer is lights out. Is he the real thing? I hope is is the real thing and NOT J.D. Durbin! Keep monitoring Chris Williams and Alex Isola s they become comfortable with positions. Both can catch and play elsewhere. A valuable skill when you have that extra bench spot. And the Twins got Alex Schreff from the Red Sox and he continues to put up solid numbers in relief. ANotehr guy getting buried by the 25 minor league free agents the Twins signed this year.

Relief pitchers have the fun task of deveopping new pitches and using them effectively. Nothing really changes, except their speeds and locations. They often have the luxury of facing one batter or maybe 7-10 at most. For all the film batters can review on a pitcher, it can mroe often than not backfire on the bullpen arm, as you don't really know when or where you might face the guy. But many do follow routines. They can be tracked, especially as they throw against right-handed or left-handed batters. If they challenge the hitter, go inside or outsie early. But if a bullpen arm can have three pitches, maybe even four, and throw them at different speeds, there is a chance for success, mixed in with a bit of attitude and raw skill.

Polanco is our cleanup hitter and rbi leader. Who had that on their bingo card. The bullpen is a mess. The Twins have survived because of so many arms coming and going. It's nice most can pitch multiple innings, and I almost fell out of the couch when Rocco removed Joe Smith last nite after three straight hits insteda of having him work out of the inning. With the addition of hitting to contact and possible small ball, maybe we are going to see more stolen bases in the next quarter. Am most happy that the Twins have a decent bench to cycle thru the DH spot. We will still be wondering "where to play" Arraez if and when Kirilloff comes back. The joy after 40 games is that Ober and Ryan (and in many cases WInder and Smeltzer) have gas left in their arms going into the next part of the season. And we really haven't used Bundy, Archer and Gray to their full potential. Now the question is the status of Sands and Balazovic as immediate roster helpers if the time comes, are Henriquez and Strotman the next to be expendable if a 40-man roster spot is needed (bye-bye Vallimont). We know a few minor league free agents will soon get walking papers once the draft happens. A lot of fine potential arms that need to move up to AA and AAA come July. Curious to see where Jordan Gore and Ian Hamilton work into the Twins picture. Seems Juan Minaya is on the outside looking in. And Yennier Cano might be one of those hot throwers from AAA ball that will journey about in the majors and minors for years to come (Curtiss, Charhgois, Hildenberger, Slama, Oliveros amongst others).

Regarding Steer...I guess it means we will see more of Miranda as he works things out in TwinsLand, unless they send him down when Kirilloff is ready to be activated. Steer has been playing more third. Palacios, who has been the super-sub and current third baseman, jasn't been producing. Kevin Merrill is an interesting pikc-up, who also was being groomed for m ultiple positions. Perhaps just a numbers game here. Picture Miranda going back when Kirilloff gets the call again. Now, though, what to do about Larnach?

He was the surprise of the 2021 spring training, beating out Broxton and Rooker and, in many ways, Cave. I'm glad he is finding space in major league ball and making the msot of his opportunities. But he is, sadly, the 26th man on the Twins roster. Considering the Twins have no REAL designated hitter, he is better than, say, just Cruz who could only bat. You can put Garlick in the field after pinch hitting. Now if he could transition into some first baseman skills perhaps?

Yes, a true over-analysis. I would really like to see a corresponding look at how Royce has fared in AAA ball to have a better idea of how he is doing, and the differences between AAA ball and major league pitching.