Ben Revere vs Aaron Hicks

1. Today's question is who is the top prospect in the Twins Organization. Ben Revere or Aaron Hicks.

• Argument for Ben Revere: Ben Revere is a hitting machine who can do it all. He is a gap hitter who has hit everywhere he has been. He was the Twins first round pick in 2007. He tore up the Gulf Coast League after quickly signing. In 50 games there he hit .325 along with 21 stolen bases in 27 attempts. He had a very respectable .388 obp. He followed that up in 2008 with an even better season. He started in Extended Spring Training, but because of an injury he arrived in Beloit at the end of April and tore it up. He hit .379 and his average was above .400 for most of the season. Along with that he also had 44 stolen bases in only 83 games. He improved his obp to .433 and was named Midwest League Player of the Year. He has it all he has speed discipline with only 51 strikeouts in 531 at bats. He is doing awesome again this year in Fort Myers as he has a .325 batting average and 17 stolen bases in only 38 games. Really his only weakness is his arm he has a very weak arm. In high school he played some 2nd base but the general feeling is the good outweighs the bad and you will get by with it with his great hitting and unbelievable speed. He will be the leadoff hitter for the Twins in about 3-4 years. He is only 21 years old so he is still quite young and only should improve.

• Argument for Aaron Hicks: It is really hard to argue with the stats that Ben Revere has put up since he has been there. What Aaron Hicks brings is potential. All Star potential, a player that reminds me of a young Carlos Beltran. Hicks was the Twins first round pick last year out of high school in southern California. He was sent to the Gulf Coast League for the rest of the season. While there he showed the 5 tools that he will be showing off at Target Field in about 5-6 years. In 45 games at GCL Hicks hit .318 with 4 homeruns and 27 rbi's and 12 stolen bases in 14 attempts. He has awesome plate discipline with 28 walks to only 32 strikeouts in 173 at bats. He also had a .409 obp so he has it all. The Speed, Power, Plate Discipline, Strong Arm, Leadership. This is how talented a player he is he throws 97 and many teams wanted him as a pitcher, but he wanted to play outfield and thats exactly what the Twins were looking for. He will more than likely start the season in E-town unless there is an injury at Beloit.

• My Take: You really can not go wrong with either of these guys and I truly believe that 5 years from now both of them will be patrolling the outfield for the Twins. The difference is the potential for Hicks who I believe has the potential to be very special. I think he could be a 30-30 guy with a cannon in Centerfield. Revere is probably a better hitter, but Hicks will be better defensively and that tips the scales in my opinion. I think Revere is going to be awesome, but I think Hicks has a chance to be very very special. The kind of player that you can build your whole team around. I view Aaron Hicks as another Joe Mauer with the way he can change the game and his teammates.

Let me know your view either email me at travis_aune@yahoo.com or leave a comment below. Results will be revealed on Tuesday at 5pm.

Saturday, May, 23rd

Twins Talk

• The Twins picked up their 2nd straight lopsided win after dropping 6 in a row with a 11-3 win last night against the Brewers. Michael Cuddyer was the hitting star hitting for the Cycle for the Twins. In the first he hit his 7th homerun a 3 run shot that put us up for good. In the 3rd he hit a ground rule double. In the 5th he hit a single and in the 7th he hit a triple down the right field line. By going 4-5 Cuddyer brought his average up to .291 on the season. Justin Mourneau went 3-5 with 2 rbi's and Joe Mauer had his hitting streak end at 14 games, but he had 2 walks and 2 rbi's so he definatly contributed. The thing that impressed me was he came up in the bottom of the 8th in a 11-3 game and needing a hit. There were some close pitches that most hitters would of expanded their zone to get a hit, but Joe let those pitches go because they were out of his zone and took a walk. That is the reason why he wins batting titles and why the Twins offense is up about 2 runs a game since he came back
• Kevin Slowey pitched his second consecutive solid outing by going 7.2 innings and only giving up 2 earned runs for his 2nd quality start in a row. Slowey again did not walk a batter and only has 4 walks all season. He struck out 4 and was in control all evening.
• Anthony Swarzak will make his major league debut tonight against the Brewers. I am sure he will be plenty nervous, but the key is for him to be able to harness it. Folks he is a good prospect who brings a lot to the table and even if he struggles tonight his future is very bright with him only being 23 years old. I look for him to be a member of the Twins for many years to come.

Rochester Wrap

• For 7 innings last night the Red Wings were anemic to put it lightly. In the first 7 innings they were only able to scratch together 1 hit and struck out 14 times. In the 8th inning they were able to stratch 3 runs across to tie the game. The Red Wings ended up losing 4-3 to Norfolk, but they showed the kind of guts that teams in the Twins organization always show because those are the type of guys the Twins covet. Guys that will keep fighting no matter how bad it looks. The Red Wings were only able to scratch 3 hits across for the game. Luke Hughes had 1 hit and his 28th rbi of the year.
• Reid Santos got the start for Rochester and went the first 4 giving up 2 earned runs while walking 3 and striking out 2. Juan Morillo got the loss for the Red Wings working 2 innings and giving up a run and a hit, but the important thing is no walks and 2 strikeouts.
• Rochester continues its series with Norfolk tonight with Philip Humber scheduled to pitch tonight for the Red Wings.

New Britain Beat

• The Rockcats continued their torrid play as of late by defeating Binghamton last night 3-1. Brandon Roberts was the hitting star with 2 hits and his 2nd homerun of the year along with 2 rbis. Danny Valencia went 1-4 with a triple to pace the Rockcats.
• Cole Devries was the story of the game continuing to defy experts saying he would struggle in AA. Devries pitched 7 great innings only giving up a run on 7 hits to pick up his 3rd win of the year. With the 1 run allowed it lowered his era to 2.86 on the season. Rob Delaney and Anthony Slama did what they do so well to nail down the win for the Rockcats. They went 2 innings and had 1 walk and 4 strikeouts. Slama picked up his 9th save in as many chances.
• Today New Britian continue their series with Binghamton with Matt Fox scheduled to pitch.

Miracle Minutes

• Fort Myers pulled another late inning comeback against St. Lucie to continue their hot streak as of late. Chris Parmalee went 2-3 with a walk to bring his average up to .268 on the season. Ben Revere went 1-3 with a walk and 2 stolen bases on the night. Jair Fernandez also had 2 hits to bring his average up to .171 on the season. Deibinson Romero continued his slump as of late going 0-4 to bring his average down to .217 on the season. In his last 10 games Romero is 3-36 a .084 batting average. Hopefully he can pull out of it soon because he just makes the lineup that much better when he is going good.
• Carlos Gutierrez had another awesome start not giving up a earned run again. He went 5 innings and only giving up a unearned run along with 4 walks and 4 strikeouts. With the no runs it lowers his team low era to 0.98 on the season. Spencer Steedley came in relief and was awesome as usual going 2.2 shutout innings. Fort Myers fans should appreciate both those guys because I would not expect them to be there that much longer. Probably right after the all start break in fsl. Blair Erickson came on and picked up his 5th save of the year.
• Tonight, the Miracle begin a series with Port Charlotte with Deolis Guerra getting the start for the Miracle.

Beloit Bits

• It was not a pretty game again for the Snappers who are really struggling right now. They committed 3 errors that led to 7 unearned runs in a 13-7 loss to Fort Wayne. Nathan Hansen was the hitting hero for the Snappers going 3-5 with his 2nd homerun of the year along with 4 rbi's. Ozzie Lewis went 2-3 to bring his average back over .300 along with that he also picked up an rbi.
• Dan Osterbrock was the victim of 3 Snapper errors and 7 unearned runs. Osterbrock went 2.1 innings and gave up 8 runs, but only 1 of them was earned. Right now the Snappers are not playing good baseball and they need to come out of it soon. Steve Blevins pitched 2 solid innings of relief to bring his era down to 4.68 on the season. Blake Martin got into his 2nd game of the season and was not much better than his first game giving up 3 runs in 2 innings of work.
• Tonight, the Snappers begin a series with Wisconsin with Bobby Lanigan scheduled to pitch for the Snappers.