Rosterman

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.

Interesting piece on Major League Trade Rumors. Seems the Mets were wary on the health status of Paddack. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2022/05/mets-notes-paddack-hosmer-smith-bassitt.html

Ernie Yake was dropped to Wichita. Seems to be the Jimmy Kerrigan of this season. A low-level minor league guy with frequent flyer miles.

I'm sorry, getting send down after a second decent start? Maybe Smeltzer is a starter for the future. But right now, he could serve as a decent mid-iunning long guy. A lefty who can pitch thru a batting order. Winder, Ober, Ryan, Maeda, Gray can be locks for 2023. And who knows who else is coming up, what the Twins do with Bundy and Archer. Whatever. Winder and Smeltzer both need innings, but not full start innings, to build up for future jobs with the Twins. 3-4 innings a game (or even just two) can see them thru the season.

For some reason, I felt the Twins didn't feel Rogers was worth going to arbitration with. I was almost surprised that they did. But that doesn't explain them sending money to San Diego, which means we are basically paying more for Pagan and Paddack. The plus, of course, is we have another season of Pagan and that he CAN close. The lights out guy we want? Naw. Man, I worry about him almost as much as I do Duffey. Brent Rooker ended up being a nothing. The Twins would've been hard-pressed to keep him, and we see he is on the verge of not being kept by San Diego. I so wanted Brent to succeed, but... We still got a prospect out of the deal. I truly wanted the Twins to get Blake Snell (because he was a lefty). But that would've turned out probably worse. As well as get Eric Hosmer in the deal, and one of the rookie catchers. But in the end, I just felt the Front Office wasn't happy with Rogers. And that field staff felt he wasn't a closer and that the team could live with other options (one of which was Lewis Thorpe).

Twins biggest weakness? Designated Hitter. It should actually be the strength, with guys playing anywhere and everywhere. First, the Twins need to get back a full line-up, which may happen shortly. Larnach returns and plays left. So we can argue who should play the most: Kepler or Celestino? But the odd guy can DH. The Twins need a first baseman. Curtis Terry is available in St. Paul. Give the guy a call. You need a roster spot - Terry or Garlick, what is you flavor? Rotate him with Arraez. Then rotate Arraex with Gio. The loser comes offg the bech or DHs. When pitching rosters go down to 13 come June 1, the Twins will also be able to add another bat. We know it won't be Lewis. I say we should switch out Godoy's 40-man and bring up the next Willians Astudillo - Roy Morales. He can catch, play first base, DH and also hit. Catcher is a weakness. Teams are going to run on our pitchers and catchers. Not much we can do about it except keep certain guys off the bases, or just continue to dominate against most batters.

As much as I would rather see Winder as a starter, the Twins are forced into the Bundy and Archer situation (reminds me of Happ and Shoemaker) because of their investment. Sadly, the team ahs to go down to 13 pitchers come June 1. I poicture, sadly, Smeltzer and Jax and Stashak staying and working multiple innings. Winder will go to St. Paul to be a rotation arm every sixth day (seems they are doing more of that in the minors). He can still be called up for that spot start or maybe even be ready for some innings come season's end. We have to remember that Ryan, Ober, Bundy and Archer are all in "innings" mode. Will any or all of them just reach/crack 150 innings? They aren't set for 200, that's fer sure.

Almost thought Larnach was in Wichita so he could more easily gran a flight out with the Twins at the end of their Kansas City run. But Wichita ain't home. Will Larnach come to St. Paul for a few games?

Being lefthanded is his plus. And that he can face a line-up, potentially more than once. Like so many of the rotation arms, he will be questionable for 25-30 starts, so it might be best to use him in the pen as much as possible, or that arm that comes out for a double-header. Heck, I would make him an opener if we are only getting 3-4 innings out of Archer or Bundy right now. But I think he had the mentality to be able to work out of then pen. Something that we shouldn't be mlooking for in, say, Winder, who is a starter - and I fully expect him to be back in St. Paul (Winder) come June 1 and making regular six-day starts for most of the rest of the season. Any team could've grabbed Smeltzer, and surprised they didn't. Now the Twins can't afford to lose him.

QUIT TRYING TO MAKE PLAYERS VERSATILE. Lewis needs to prove himself as a starting shortstop and is doing a very good job doing just that. Don't mess with him at other positions. Yes, he needs to play everyday, get the at bats, do the fielding, and NOT get hurt. More likely to do that in St. Paul than on the bench at Target, assuming Correa is healthy and will be in the line-up at short every single day from hereon out.

It is too soon to speculate. He would have to get at least a multi-year offer bigger than the remaining two years of his Twins offer. Will he get a 7 year deal for that aveage amount (with, of course, opt outs). Will he be ignored? The joy of the Twins making this possible one-time over-pay run on a quality player is that Correa HAS to produce if he wants to make money. Which is good for the team that is currently playing him. Like players in their free agency walk year, they need to be better than best IN THE BIG MONEY HUNT. The kicker is that Corea could tank (or be injured) and the Twins would be on the bubble for at least another year.

Jeez. Polanco batting cleanup? At least Kepler has only led off once this season, I believe. Of course, with this "new" baseball, still trying to figure out the roles of the pitching staff. Looks like bullpen arms will be asked to go a minimum of two innings in msot cases since starters can't do five innings, and even the 100 pitch count is not being pushed (okay, short spring training et al, but.....) When Ober returns, will we be without WInder in the rotation? Can we run with an opener, at least, for Archer, so maybe he can start facing the bottom of the order and do that three times? I wait for Larnach to return and see what happens in the outfield. The good news is that if Buxton needs to DH, we have Celestino in centerfield. The bad news is where to play Lewis and Arraez. I wish we could send Miranda down to St. Paul for a few weeks just to work things out there, play first base there. Can we designate for assignment Garlick and bring up Curtis Terry, by chance, just for the first base heck of it. (And heaven forbid, what happens IF and WHEN Sano returns). I will always shake my head at Rocco's batting order. But right now sit patiently until we get Larnach and Correa back. Happ-maker! Ha! I'm hoping we aren't seeing the Bund-Arch as a rerun of last season! When the rookies (Smeltzer, WInder) can pitch longer and better than the vets...ugh!

Correa would have to be hitting huge for another team to even think about his deal...plus that he COULD walk or stay. At any point, if he walks, you can just try and get him yourself the next season. But, yes, if the Twins are contending, you don't want to make other teams better!

YOU CAN MAYBE STRETCH A LITTLE BIT MORE. BUT IF YOU HAVE TO STRETCH, THE PROBLEM IS ON THE THROW.

Soon the team should have 20,000+ fans on a regular basis at Target Field. More if they run some great deals. Can Royce Lewis play first base? Yes, Miranda should work out kinks in St. Paul, and would probably be one of the casualities if and when Larnach and Correa come back. Does Lewis need to play shortstop evryday if he is the future guy? Better yet, Correa NEEDS to play shortstop everyday if he expects to get some offers in the off-season, or he ahs to allow himself to be traded if and when the time comes. I hate the thought of Lewis in one of the corner outfield spots. Suddenly, we have an embarrassment of riches if Larnach and Celestino continue to dominate so Kepler becomes the spare (can Max play first base?). Of course, the Twins have no TRUE DH!

It's a big jump to the majors, not to mention playing first. You have to learn and get used to the different ways people throw you the ball. Be nice if he could rotate at third/DH with Gio, let's say. Get his swing back.

So, we can continue to beat up on the Front Office for the Yankees and Padres trades, not to mention the signing of Bundy and Archer. Or we can sit back and enjoy that the Twins actually have a winning record with 5-6 guys on the 60-day IL and a host of other nursing injuries. Not to mention that Winder, Lewis, Miranda, Duran and Sands have all had debvuts with the team...did I say they have a winning record going into Mid-May!?! Batting averages are down across baseball for some unexplianed reason beyond that guys seem to be standing exactly where balls are hit in the field. Not to mention that starters don't last and fresh arms can be had daily by any team as long as the rosters are set like they are (back to 13 pitchers come June 1 - WHO IS GONE FROM THE TWINS PEN?).

Why push Cano for a third inning? Well, with sttarters seldom going more than five, I guess ALL relief pitchers have to be able to now pitch at least two innings, if not more. Maybe the Twins NEED to use the opener logic for some of their pitchers! Have guys like Archer come in and face the bottom of the order to start their day.

I wanted to say that the strikes vs. balls ration seemed so different in these games. But it was about even in the double-day game, and Verlander gave a lesson in pitching in the first game by going for contact vs. working the corners.The walks hurt with Ryan & Co. Probably didn't help Winder either. Pitchers throw stikes. Set their pace. Try to control the game. The minute first-class hitters see "the nibble" they can wait it out. First pitch strikes put the pitchers in front. If you can get a secon pitch strike, then you can start the nuibbling. The six pitch inning by Verlander is one ALL pitchers should study. That being said, were the Twins hitters just overmatched? Again, getting a runner on base SHOULD also change the pitcher work ethic. It should make them worry (as every Twins pitcher seemed to when a Astros was on base) that the runner was going to advance. So you throw strikes, which the Astros seemed prepared to attack, too...especially in that over-sealous inning for Cano/Stashak. The Dodgers and the Astros have showed the weaknesses of the Twins. Hey, even the Orioles and A's, in their own way (as well as The Royals) did hold their own. Don't start buying a season ticket package to get preferential treatment for the post season yet.

Out of the three young outfielders, he needs to spend the most time back with the Saints getting regular work at first base. Or maybe Miranda needs to go back. If the Twins are to contend, they can't have too many guys working thru injuries or learning on the job.