glennhl

I couldn't agree more. Someone in this thread said he never excelled at lower levels, but that is not true. He was an all star twice in the lower level minors. He also started the championship game in the Arizona Fall League and even though he didn't get the win, his team did win the championship. He made some good starts for the Twins back in 2009 & 2010 including winning that critical game at the end of the season. Then came the decision to make him a reliever and I'm convinced that was a mistake. I don't know why, could be mental (needing to know when you are starting) or physical (not warming up enough), but he never took to relieving even at the AAA level. 2011 was a waste due to injuries, but he still pitched 4 no-hit innings in that weird "four pitcher" no-hitter at the AAA level that year. Yes, Jeff is a fine young man, extremely fan friendly and outgoing. But he is also one heck of a starting pitcher. People bad mouth him on this forum because he stunk as a reliever, but the Twins blew it not giving him a bunch of starts in September, now they will never know. I'm hoping he does well with the Rockies and the added benefit is that he will start some Spring Training games for them and since I live in Arizona, I will be there! I doubt that he will make the team out of spring training, but I'm hoping that he gets pulled up during the year as a starter. Now the hardest part for me is finding a forum like this for the Rockies! Even though all forums are full of the "quick to criticize" fan who has never been in the "arena", there were also very informative, smart people like Seth Soths and John Bonnes. I will miss their insightful input. See you.

He has actually gotten six, not zero, but let's not let facts stand in the way of this plee for Manship. http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/m/manshje01.shtml You are correct. I should have qualified my statement, I meant starts this year. He hasn't had a start since 2010.

http://www.milb.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=p_pbp&pid=453249 Yeah, I much prefer Tucson to Phoenix. Thank you very much for that website. So Manship's ERA's in AAA this year were 2.45 as a starter and 3.91 as a reliever. I think the 2.45 as a starter shows that he deserved at least a couple of starts in the Bigs, but instead he got zero.

That. Manship was with the big league team several times. He got a chance to prove himself and he never did. Compare that with Slama, for example and compare their numbers in the minors and figure out why Manship even got all those chances over Slama... Complaining that Manship did not get a chance as a starter is like complaining that Matt Tolbert did not get a chance as a first baseman (similar performance level btw; and actually Tolbert was more productive than Manship in the majors) I think it comes down to that starters and relievers are different animals. Some pitchers can do both, some can't. Just would like to have seen more of Manship as a starter. I'm betting some other team figures this out and he ends up starting somewhere. Of course, I could be wrong!

Here's a thought...why don't you look them up? I looked on the Rochester website and they don't break out starter versus reliever stats. Do you know of a site that does? P.S. I noticed your location, I graduated from U of A in 1975. Great school! And Tucson is 100 times better than Phoenix (where I live).

I have always thought that Jeff Manship has great potential. He made some excellent starts back in late 2009. But then something happened. The Twins decided he was going to be their new Matt Guerrier. For some reason Jeff never took to being a reliever. Might have something to do with not being able to warm up properly, or maybe it's mental that he wants to know when he pitches, or maybe he needs to pitch 5 plus innings every 5 days to stay proficient. Whatever it is, Jeff seems to have very good numbers as a starter, not so much as a reliever. I'd be interested to see what his AAA numbers were in 2012 as a reliever versus as a starter. I'd also like to see his numbers as a starter versus a reliever with the Twins even though he hasn't made very many starts in the Bigs. However, I'm betting that his starter numbers are very good, especially in AAA. I was really looking forward to him making some starts in September this year, but he did not get the call-up. I think the Twins have really missed an opportunity to develop Jeff as a very good starting pitcher at the major league level. However, his relief numbers are so bad they most likely have lost faith in him. But truthfully, he has NEVER gotten a fighting chance to prove himself as a starter at the big league level and I think that is a crying shame.

Manship is out of options for next year and I would have thought the Twins would want to give him a good chance as a starter. Manship has done a lot better as a starter than a reliever. Why? I'm thinking that he needs to pitch more often to be effective. And when he was a reliever with the Twins they hardly ever put him in on a regular basis. I think the Twins really messed up when they decided that Manship was going to be their next Matt Gurrier. If you look at Jeff just as a starter with the Twins, he did very well in 2009 getting a very important win near the end of the season. He was pulled up and down in 2010 mainly as a reliever and never got much of a chance. He was hurt most of 2011, but when he was healthy was part of the no-hitter at Rochester that included 2 other pitchers. Then 2012, he again has gone up and down only as a reliever. His AAA numbers as a starter has been excellent this year. If he had started out the year as a starter in Rochester I'm betting he would be starting with the Twins right now. To say I'm disappointed is an understatement. I just don't think the Twins ever gave Manship a fair shake as a starter with the big club. I think the Twins missed out on this one.

So far Manship has not been called up to the Twins with the September Call-ups. If he doesn't get called up, I will be so darn disappointed. Manship is out of options for next year and I would have thought the Twins would want to give him a good chance as a starter. Manship has done a lot better as a starter than a reliever as greengoblinrulz stated. Why? I'm thinking that he needs to pitch more often to be effective. And when he was a reliever with the Twins they hardly ever put him in on a regular basis. I think the Twins really messed up when they decided that Manship was going to be their next Matt Gurrier. If you look at Jeff just as a starter with the Twins, he did very well in 2009 getting a very important win near the end of the season. He was pulled up and down in 2010 mainly as a reliever and never got much of a chance. He was hurt most of 2011, but when he was healthy was part of the no-hitter at Rochester that included 2 other pitchers. Then 2012, he again has gone up and down only as a reliever. His AAA numbers as a starter has been excellent this year. If he had started out the year as a starter in Rochester I'm betting he would be starting with the Twins right now. To say I'm disappointed is an understatement. I just don't think the Twins ever gave Manship a fair shake as a starter with the big club. I think the Twins missed out on this one.

Manship looked pretty darn good. The three hits were not hit hard. The first hit was a blooper into shallow right field. The next two were just bad luck. Both batters barely caught the ball that resulted in a perfect "bunt" between the pitcher and the third baseman. With these 2 infield hits and then a walk, he loaded the bases in the 8th, then got the next three out.

I agree that they should give Manship a chance to start. He's been excellent as a starter, not very good as a reliever. Give him 5 or 6 starts in September and let's see what he can do.

Manship looked very good today. 3 innings pitched, 2 strike outs, 1 hit, no walks, no runs. Hope he stays up. I really think the Twins should give him a chance to start.

Seth, you are right, Manship is throwing it very well right now in AAA. It's not very often you see a pitcher get 4 strikeouts in one inning!

Pitched well in some spot starts a few years ago. Got a critical win at the end of the season to keep the Twins in the playoffs. Was hurt most of the year last year but still was part of the no-hitter at Rochester. Good numbers in Spring Training, good numbers in AAA, and good numbers when he was first pulled up. I think he just needs a little more work to get back the way he was a couple of years ago.

I think this will be good for Manship. I think he's going back to Rochester to be a starter. He'll be better as a starter and I fully expect him to be back with the big club in the future. He is a very talented young man.

Manship looked great! I noticed his velocity is up to 94 mph and his curve is still awesome. One bloop hit off of him, no runs.

I've been watching the Red Wings games on MiLB TV. Most of the parks do not have radar guns up on the screen, so you have to rely on the announcers. However, they mentioned yesterday that his fastball was in the low 90's. So it sounds like his velocity is back.

John, thanks for posting this. If you go earlier in his career Manship pitched one perfect game and four no-hitters in High School in San Antonio. I personally think Jeff will find a home with the Twins, but I'm still a believer that he's really a starter since he has 4 very good pitches. He is known for his curve ball which the Twins listed as a "plus-plus" curve. But he has a 91 to 94 mph 4 seamer and a low 90's 2 seamer that moves away from a lefty. He also has a slider and a very good change-up. And he's a great team player, one of the nicest young men you will ever meet.

Manship looked very sharp. 3 1/3 innings, zero hits, zero walks, 4 strike outs. His control was outstanding and that slider is amazing.

Manship relieved Baker with 2 outs in the third inning and looked good for 1 and 1/3 innings.

Good point about having options left, however, I'm betting that Gardy is going to put the best possible players on the field, with or without options. I think Manship is throwing exceptionally well this spring and I'm really hoping he is in the bullpen come opening day.

It was a slider. I think Manship is really throwing the ball great!