Twins thoughts

I have been doing some thinking the last couple days about the Twins and thought it was a good time to write about it to see what all of my readers think about this.

This morning I was going through my prospect list and when I think they will be ready to help the Twins. I admit I was being shortsighted when it came to Casey Blake. To sign him to a 3 year deal with an option is really stupid and I was the one who was all for it. The reason is Danny Valencia everything I have read and heard from him that have seen him live tells me that by signing Casey Blake we would be blocking the top infield prospect in the whole organization from taking his rightful spot at 3rd base for the Twins. I really believe Valencia is going to be ready to take over 3rd base for the Twins on opening day 2010 when the Twins move into Target Field. I really think it is a blessing that the Dodgers overpaid for Blake because with Valencia's talent he would of found a way to get onto the field and we would be stuck with a 6 million a year utility guy. Teams like the Yankees and Red Sox can afford that but not the Twins we will always be somewhat limited in payroll so we cant afford it. I really believe that Valencia is the future for the Twins and they should not block him. However, if the Twins can find a 1 year option at 3rd base by all means i would do it. I would go back to Seattle to see if they are any more serious about trading Adrian Beltre because he would be perfect because he is a very good player and after the season they can let Beltre go and get the 2 draft picks. I would only look at 3rd basemen that are free agents after 09 because after that the future will be now for Danny Valencia.

Am I the only one who thinks that now is the time to start locking up some of these players long term before they can even sniff free agency. I have heard the names of Baker, Kubel, Liriano, Slowey and such but the guy that I really believe that we need to get signed before he can even think about free agency and that player is Joe Mauer. He is the most indispensible player on the team. I know he has 2 years left on his contract, but if you wait until next year at this team he may decide he will want to wait and become a free agent. I think you can argue that Joe Mauer is the best player in the game with 2 batting titles already in the bank and teams like the Yankees and Boston starving for a phenom at catcher. So if im the Twins I dont let him even think about leaving Minnesota I would lock him up for 6 more years. By doing that you have one less thing to worry about and you guarantee the 1-2 punch of mauer and mourneau for atleast the next 5 seasons and that totally makes sense. Don't get me wrong I would also try to lock up Scott Baker and Jason Kubel also. I would wait on Liriano for another year to see if we are looking at the Franchise or just a good Francisco Liriano. I would also like to see another year of Kevin Slowey to prove last year was not a fluke.

Lastly, looking at the farm system and who we have at the major league level we need to start thinking about the future of our outfield. We have quite a few outfielders taht I think are going to be ready by then and there are only 3 positions so we need to decide what to do with them. Look at the names that are projected as starters in the big leagues.

Denard Span
Delmon Young
Carlos Gomez
Michael Cuddyer
Aaron Hicks
Ben Revere
Angel Morales
Jason Kubel

That is 8 outfielders for 4 spots and yeah i know some of those guys will not be ready for a few years so you dont have to worry about it quite yet. However, eventually the Twins are going to have to deal with the situation. My view is probably trade Delmon Young because for whatever reason Gardy is not a fan of Delmon Young and it will just cause problems in the clubhouse. When Michael Cuddyer's contract expires after the 2010 season i would let him leave. I may be in the minority here but i view Carlos Gomez as a future star for the Twins who will learn better plate discipline. I think Aaron Hicks will be the crown jewel of the organization in a couple years I look for him to supplant Gomez in Center in 2011 and move Gomez to left field. I see Angel Morales as a star also that will be running right field beginning in 2011. I really believe with his bat and speed and being that he has played there before i see sooner or later Ben Revere to return to 2nd base for the Twins and Alexi Casilla moving to short. When it comes to Denard Span if he has another good year this year I would keep him until Hicks and Morales are ready to join the Twins then trade him. In retrospect I see our starting lineup in 2011 as

C Joe Mauer
1st Justin Mourneau
2nd Ben Revere
SS Alexi Casilla
3b Danny Valencia
LF Carlos Gomez
CF Aaron Hicks
RF Angel Morales
DH Jason Kubel

Everyone let me know what you think on this

projected twins roster for 2009

I thought it would be fun to project who I think is going to be on the Twins team next year and see if I am anywhere close to being right with the roster.

1. Joe Mauer
2. Mike Redmond
3. Justin Mourneau
4. Alexi Casilla
5. Nick Punto
6. Casey Blake
7. Denard Span
8. Carlos Gomez
9. Michael Cuddyer
10. Jason Kubel
11. Delmon Young
12. Brenden Harris
13. Matt Tolbert
14. Scott Baker
15. Francisco Liriano
16. Kevin Slowey
17. Nick Blackburn
18. Glen Perkins
19. Joe Nathan
20. Jose Mijares
21. Matt Guerrier
22. Jesse Crain
23. Craig Breslow
24. Boof Bonser
25. Philip Humber

I think there is a chance Delmon Young gets traded before Spring training but i dont think it would be a good idea. Otherwise the only changes I would make is if Casey Blake goes elsewhere that opens a spot for Brian Buscher. If they sign a reliever then likely Boof Bonser or Phil Humber would have to go so they have some tough decisions to make.

Top 50 free agents and landing spots

Im going to do my own version of a topic i saw on mlbtraderumors.com and project where i see all the players ending up next year. I am not going to do the reasoning just the projection. There are not alot of Twins news right now so i am trying to find things to write about and this is something i want to try out and welcome feedback either on the comment section or you can always email me at travis_aune@yahoo.com. UPDATE: as free agents sign i will be updating where they ended up and how much they got.

1. CC Sabathia- New York Yankees 7years 160 million Signed
2. Manny Ramirez- Los Angeles Dodgers 3 years 80 million
3. Mark Texiera- New York Yankees 8 years 180 million Signed
4. A.J. Burnett- New York Yankees 5 years 83 million Signed
5. Francisco Rodriguez- New York Mets 3 years 37 million Signed
6. Derek Lowe- New York Yankees 3 years 39 million
7. Ben Sheets- Boston Red Sox 1year 12 million
8. Orlando Hudson- Chicago White Sox 4 years 40 million
9. Adam Dunn- Washington Nationals 5 years 65 million
10. Raul Ibanez- Philadelphia Phillies 3 years 30 million Signed
11. Bobby Abreu Chicago Cubs 2 years 30 million
12. Pat Burrell- Tampa Bay Rays 2 years 16 million Signed
13. Brian Fuentes- Anaheim Angels 2 years 15 million Signed
14. Andy Pettitte- Los Angeles Dodgers 1 year 15 million
15. Casey Blake- Los Angeles Dodgers 4 years 24 million Signed
16. Rafael Furcal- Los Angeles Dodgers 3 years 30 million Signed
17. Jason Giambi- Oakland A's 1 year 10 million
18. Milton Bradley- Chicago Cubs 3 years 30 million Signed
19. Orlando Cabrera- Detroit Tigers 3 years 24 million
20. Jamie Moyer- Philadelphia Phillies 2 year 10 million Signed
21. Kerry Wood- Cleveland Indians 2 years 20 million Signed
22. Randy Johnson- San Francisco Giants 1 year 5 million Signed
23. Oliver Perez- San Francisco Giants 4 years 32 million
24. Randy Wolf- New York Mets 1 year 8 million
25. Mark Grudzilenak- Kansas City Royals 1 year 4 million
26. Ray Durham- Arizona Diamondbacks 1 year 5 million
27. John Smoltz- Atlanta Braves 1 year 10 million
28. Ivan Rodriguez- Florida Marlins 1 year 7 million
29. Trevor Hoffman- Cleveland Indians- 1 year 11 million
30. Brad Penny- Boston Red Sox 1 year 8 million Signed
31. Jon Garland- Milwaukee Brewers 3 years 27 million
32. Paul Byrd- Boston Red Sox 1 year 4 million
33. Edgar Renteria- San Francisco Giants 2 years 19 million Signed
34. Braden Looper- Pittsburgh Pirates 1 year 5 million
35. Joe Crede- Texas Rangers 1 year 7 million
36. Nick Punto- Minnesota Twins 2 year 8.5 million Signed
37. Damaso Marte- New York Yankees 3 year 12 million Signed
38. Juan Cruz- Atlanta Braves 3 years 18 million
39. Mark Kotsay- Oakland A's 1 year 4 million
40. Jason Varitek- Boston Red Sox 1 year 8 million
41. Garrett Anderson- Los Angeles Angels 1 year 10 million
42. Odalis Perez- Washington Nationals- 4 years 5 million
43. Felipe Lopez- Washington Nationals- 3 years 10 million
44. Jim Edmonds- Seattle Mariners 1 year 8 million
45. Dennys Reyes- Kansas City Royals 3 years 12 million
46. Nomar Garciaparra- Los Angeles Dodgers 1 year 6 million
47. Juan Uribe- Chicago White Sox 1 year 5 million
48. Rocco Baldelli- Chicago White Sox 3 years 12 million
49. Ken Griffey Jr.- Tampa Bay Rays 1 year 10 million
50. Eddie Guardado- Texas Rangers 1 year 3 million

2009 Mock Draft 1.0

I know its early but i really enjoy looking at different situations that could make a team look at this positiion or that position. I will continue to do 1 a week until the draft and the closer it comes to the draft the closer i will get to getting the teams right. Let me know what you think

1. Detroit Lions- Sam Bradford QB Oklahoma

2. Cincinnatti- Andre Smith OT Alabama

3. Kansas City- Michael Oher OT Ole Miss

4. St. Louis- Eugene Monroe OT Virginia

5. Seattle- Michael Crabtree WR Texas Tech

6. Oakland- Tyson Jackson DE LSU

7. Jacksonville- Vontae Davis CB Illinois

8. San Francisco- Matt Stafford QB Georgia

9. San Diego- Malcolm Jenkins CB Ohio St

10. Cleveland- Rey Maualuga LB USC

11. Houston- James Laurinitus LB Ohio St

12. Green Bay- Fili Moala DT USC

13. New Orleans- Joe Burnett CB Central Florida

14. Philadelphia- Michael Johnson DE Georgia Tech

15. Buffalo- Brian Cushing LB USC

16. Chicago- Jeremy Maclin WR Missouri

17. Miami- Aaron Curry LB Wake Forest

18. New England- Shonn Green RB Iowa

19. Washington- Percy Harvin WR Florida

20. Atlanta- Terrance Cody DT Alabama

21. Minnesota- Xavier Fulton OT Illinois

22. Arizona- Chris Wells RB OHio St

23. Denver- Knowshown Moreno RB Georgia

24. Indianapolis- Ricky Jean- Francois DT LSU

25. Detroit- Taylor Mays S USC

26. Carolina- Myron Rolle S Florida St

27. Baltimore- William Moore S Missouri

28. New York Jets- Tim Tebow QB Florida

29. Pittsburgh- Lesean Mccoy RB Pittsburgh

30. Tampa Bay- Colt Mccoy QB Texas

31. Tennessee- Darrius Heyward-Bey WR Maryland

32. New York Giants- DJ Moore CB Vanderbilt