Travis Talks prospect list: Prospects 15-11

Today I will be continuing my Twins prospect list with players numbers 15-11. Tommorrow I will be bringing players 10-6 and then on Friday I will have the top 5 prospects in the organization. Hope you all enjoy and come back often.



15. Chris Parmalee 1b/Of 21 (2/24/1988)

2oo8 teams: Beloit Snappers

• Chris Parmalee was drafted by the Twins in the 1st round of the 2006 draft out of high school in Chino Hills, California. After signing with the Twins Parmalee split the season between the GCL and Beloit. At GCL Parmalee hit .279 with 8hr and 32 rbi's along with 7 doubles in 45 games. This led to a promotion to Class A Beloit where in 22 games he hit .227 with 2 rbi's. Chris Parmalee spent the entire 2007 season in Beloit with the Snappers. In 128 games Parmalee hit .239 with 15hr and 70 rbi's along with 23 doubles. The average was not good, but the 43 extra base hits were impressive. With that I was surprised that Parmalee returned to Beloit for the 2008 season. Chris' 2008 season was ruined because of a wrist injury that lost him the whole second half of the season. In 69 games Chris hit .239 with 14 hr and 49 rbi's in only 226 at bats. Chris also hit 10 doubles and 3 triples for 27 xtra base hits and he missed the second half. This year Chris was promoted to Fort Myers and he has been very solid hitting .247 with 8 hr and 32 rbi's along with 10 doubles and a triple. Chris Parmalee has alot of power as his 44 homeruns in less than 3 seasons as a professional. He reminds many people of Adam Dunn as he will hit plenty of homeruns and has 126 career walks so his career obp is .346 which is great for a power hitter. His achilles heel is he will never hit for a high average as his .246 career average and he strikes out way to often as he has struck out 276 times. He reminds me alot of Dunn and also Jack Cust who hits alot of homeruns, but strikes out alot. I really believe he has a big league future as a DH who can play 1b and Rf. He will definately not be in for his defense, but his bat will keep him in the lineup most nights. I project Parmalee to be a 30 hr guy who will also strike out 100 times a year so that is what he is and that is not a bad thing because every team can use a guy who hits 30 hr.


• 2009: Spend season playing 1b/of for Fort Myers


• Projection: I project him to be a 30 hr guy for the Twins by 2013.

14. Jeff Manship RHP 24 (1/16/1985)

2008 teams: Fort Myers and New Britain

• Jeff Manship was a 14th round draft pick by the Twins in the 2006 draft out of Notre Dame University. Manship split the 2006 season between GCL and Fort Myers were he only pitched in 6 games including 3 starts where he went o-0 with a 1.28 era in limited duty. In 2007 Manship split the season between Beloit and Fort Myers. In 13 starts with the Snappers Jeff went 7-1 with a very good 1.51 era. In 77.2 innings Jeff walked only 9 and struck out 77 with a very good 0.77 whip. That led to a promotion to Fort Myers where he went 8-5 with a 3.15 era in 13 starts. In 71.1 innings he walked 25 and struck out 59 with a whip of 1.43. Many felt after the 2007 season that Manship would go on to AA New Britain, but the Twins had other ideas. Manship started the 2008 season at Fort Myers where he went 7-3 with a 2.86 in 13 starts with the Miracle. In 78.2 innings he walked 2o and struck out 63 with a whip of 1.12. That led to a promotion after the all-star break to AA New Britain where he went 3-6 with a 4.47 era in 14 starts. In 76.2 innings Jeff walked 24 and struck out 62. This season back at New Britain Jeff has had another solid year going 5-4 with a 4.70 era in 12 starts. In 69 innings he has walked 18 and struck out 42. Jeff Manship has steadily moved through the system to become one of the top pitching prospects in the whole organization. Jeff has 3 quality pitches with a good fastball in the low 90's fastball with a very good curveball, and a improving changeup. He is struggling a bit at AA, but he is improving quite a bit after a rough start to the season. I really have high hopes for Manship and believe he can be a solid number 3 starter in the big leagues. I look for him to continue to improve and possibly be with the Twins sometime next season.
• 2009: Spend season Pitching at New Britain and possible promotion to Rochester.
• Projection: I project him to be in the Twins starting Rotation by 2011.

13. Dustin Martin OF 25 (4/4/1984)

2008 teams: New Britain

• Dustin Martin was a 26th round pick by the Mets in the 2006 draft out of Sam Houston State. The Twins acquired Martin from the Mets along with Drew Butera for 2nd baseman Luis Castillo in 2007. After Martin signed with the Mets he was assigned to Class A Brooklyn where in 72 games he hit .312 with 2 hr and 35 rbi's along with 15 doubles and 7 triples with a ops of .843. For the 2007 season Dustin moved on to high A St. Lucie where in 93 games he hit .287 with 5 hr and 52 rbi's along with 22 doubles and 6 triples for a ops of .779. He was then traded to the Twins in midseason and was assigned to high A Fort Myers where in 32 games he hit .294 with 3hr and 19rbi's along with 8 doubles. Dustin was promoted to AA New Britain for the 2008 season where he hit .290 with 10hr and 72 rbi's along with a very good 34 doubles and 8 triples along with 22 stolen bases for a OPS of .802. This year Dustin moved up to AAA Rochester where he is doing very good hitting .254 with 1hr and 18 rbi's along with 8 doubles and a triple in 61 games. Dustin Martin has really floored me with how much better he has gotten in the last year and a half to become a legitimite prospect for the Twins. Martin has good speed, good defense, can play all three outfield positions. He is a very good line drive hitter and a doubles machine as his 34 doubles last year at New Britain last year would show. I see Dustin Martin as a possible starter for the Twins if some players don't pick it up or leave as free agents. If nothing else I see him as a good utility outfield who if there is an injury can help out seemlessly. The only thing that worries me is he is a little streaky. He is known to go through tough slumps and then get hot so consistancy is the biggest thing he needs to work on. Overall, I think Dustin is a very good prospect who next spring Dustin Martin will be the utility outfielder for the Twins.
• 2009: Play Left Field for Rochester all season
• Projection: I view him as a utility outfielder who could also become a solid starter at the big league level.

12. Rene Tosoni OF 22 (7/2/1986)

2008 teams: Fort Myers Miracle

• Rene Tosoni was a 36th round pick by the Twins in the 2005 draft out of Chipola College. After signing with the Twins as a sign and follow pick and did not join the organization until just before the 2007 season. Tosoni spent the 2007 season at E-town where he hit .301 with 3hr and 31 rbi's in 63 games along with 13 doubles and 4 triples and a obp of .407. In 2008 Tosoni surprised many people by bypassing Beloit and moving on to Fort Myers for the 2008 season. That is something that many people were shocked by because not many people skip a level and Tosoni has proven to be the right guy for the job. If not for an injury Tosoni's 2008 with the Miracle would of been alot better. Tosoni was only able to play in 42 games and hit .300 with 1 hr and 19 rbi's along with 7 doubles. This year Tosoni moved up to AA New Britain where he got off to a horrible start, but has really rebounded and is hitting very well right now. Tosoni is hitting .254 with 8hr and 33 rbi's along with 9 doubles and 3 triples and an OPS of .821. Rene Tosoni is one of the best up and coming outfielders in the whole organization. He can do it all he can hit for power, hit for average, with good defense and a decent arm. He is only 22 years old and at AA so he is so young and is going to keep getting better. I view him as a future corner outfielder for the Twins. The only problem is staying healthy as he missed most of last year, but that was a freak injury. If he stays healthy I believe he will be a 20-25 hr guy with good obp and a strong ops. It will be interesting to see how good he can be.
• 2009: Spend season in Rf for New Britain
• Projection: I project Rene Tosoni to be a starter quality outfielder by 2013.

11. David Bromberg RHP 21 (9/14/1987)

2008 teams: Beloit Snappers

• David Bromberg was a 32nd round draft pick by the Twins in the 2005 draft out of Santa Ana College. David started the 2006 season with GCL and went 3-3 with a 2.66 era in 10 starts along with 2 complete games. In 50 innings Bromberg walked 18 and struck out 31 batters for a whip of 1.18. For the 2007 David moved up to E-town where he went 9-0 with a very good 2.78 era in 11 starts. In 58 innings Bromberg walked 32 and struck out a very impressive 81 batters for a whip of 1.32. After the good 07 season Bromberg moved on to 2008 season with Beloit. Last year at Beloit Bromberg went 9-10 with a 4.44 era in 27 starts. In 150 innings Bromberg walked 54 and struck out an organization high 177 batters for a whip of 1.35. With that good season it earned him a promotion to high A Fort Myers. At Fort Myers Bromberg has been awesome with the Miracle. He is 5-0 with a very impressive 2.22 era. In 69 innings David has walked 33 and struck out 66. David Bromberg is another good Twins pitching prospect who is a strikeout pitcher as his 355 strikeouts in 324 innings would attest to. When he throws strikes he is unhittable, but sometimes he struggles throwing strikes and really that is the only thing holding him back from being the top pitching prospect in the organization. He has walked 137 batters in the 324 innings which is way too much. If can limit the walks than really the sky is the limit for Bromberg and would be in the top 2 or 3 in prospects for the organization. I really believe he is going to keep getting better with his low to mid 90's fastball and great offspeed pitches he will be hard to beat. I really believe the sky is the limit and we will see many good things from Bromberg in his career.
• 2009: Spend season in rotation with Fort Myers
• Projection: I project him as a number 2 or 3 guy in the Twins rotation by 2013.

Wednesday, June, 17th

Twins Talk
Twins 8 Pirates 2

• The Twins won their 3rd game out of their last 4 with a very convincing 8-2 victory last night over the Pirates at the Metrodome. Glen Perkins made his return to the Twins after missing a few weeks due to an elbow injury. Perkins went 6 innings and gave up 2 runs on a Nyjer Morgan 2 run homerun on 7 hits along with 1 walk and 4 strikeouts. Perkins picked up his 2nd win on the year along with 3 losses and dropped his era to 5.09 on the year. Perkins was a little shaky early on in the game, but that could be attributed to either nerves or the extra rest as he hadn't pitched in a week. After he calmed down after the Morgan hr he was the Glen Perkins we got used to seeing at the beginning of the season before elbow pain took its toll on him. If Glen Perkins can come back and give the Twins solid innings they will be all the better for it. The Twins rotation is really starting to come on now as they have recorded 7 quality starts in a row. That is really something to behold because even the 8th game Anthony Swarzak only gave up 3 runs, but didn't make it 6 innings. The starters really have given us a chance to win in all of those games and in the 7 game streak the Twins have gone 5-2 in those games which says when the starters pitch good we win so hopefully they can keep it going. RA Dickey came in and pitched 2 solid innings of relief. In his 2 scoreless innings Dickey gave up 2 hits along with 3 strikeouts to lower his era to a very good 2.70 on the year. RA Dickey has been just a godsend for the Twins as he has been better than we could of dreamed and with the Twins going down to 11 pitchers yesterday they are going to need him to provide big innings 3 or 4 times a week. Jose Mijeras came on in the 9th and pitched a bumpy, but clean inning giving up 2 hits and no run along with a strikeout.

• The Twins really hit the ball well last night as they pounded out 16 hits along with their 8 runs. It would of been even more if the Twins had not hit into an unbelievable 5 double plays. It is not hard to guess who probably was the hitting hero last night cause he is just about every night. For those of you who guessed Nick Punto you were wrong, actually it was Joe Mauer. Mauer went 4-4 in the game along with his 10th double and 41st rbi of the year to bring his average up to a crazy .429. Joe Mauer can do it all hit for average, hit for power, move runners along, play gold glove defense, rescue grandmas from burning buildings, rescue cats from trees, and keep the Twins afloat when it was needed. Joe Crede, Michael Cuddyer, Delmon Young, and Carlos Gomez also contributed 2 hits apiece to the big Twins victory. Michael Cuddyer hit his 13th double and Joe Crede added his 8th double of the year along with his 28th rbi. Carlos Gomez and Delmon Young are really picking it up as of late as they combined to go 4-8 in the game with 2 rbi's and 2 runs scored. If the Twins can get those guys going they are going to be tough to beat. Brendan Harris, Justin Morneau,Jason Kubel, and Nick Punto also contributed hits as all 9 starters had atleast 1 hit in the victory.
• Transactions: Before the game yesterday the Twins made 2 roster moves and they were to activate Glen Perkins off the DL to make the start and sent struggling reliever Jesse Crain to Rochester. It was not a surprise as Crain had a 8.38 era this year. After the game the Twins put Denard Span on the disabled list with an inner ear infection and recalled Of Jason Pridie from Rochester to take his spot. Being that he has already missed a week Span is expected to be back early next week so its a short term thing.
• Tonight, the Twins take on the Pirates in game 2 of the 3 game series as the Twins send Francisco Liriano to the mound to try to take the series.

Rochester Wrap

Columbus 10 Rochester 3

• The Red Wings lost their 4th game out of 5 with a blowout loss last night to Columbus by a score of 10-3. Kevin Mulvey got the start for the Red Wings and had been doing very good, but in this one he got shelled. Mulvey lasted only 3.2 innings and gave up 8 runs although only 4 were earned on 10 hits along with 2 walks and 3 strikeouts to drop his record to 3-4 and raise his era to 3.91. Mulvey has been so good this year that we should not make a big deal out of a bad start. If he has 2 or 3 more just like this then we can worry, but until then I am not worried about him at all. Anthony Swarzak has proven that he is probably the 6th starter for the Twins right now, but I think Mulvey has shown that he is definately the 7th if things get bad for the Twins this summer. Reid Santos then came in and did what the team needed and that was to give some innings. Santos went 2.1 innings and gave up 1 run on 4 hits along with a walk and a homerun to bring his era down to 5.79. Ben Hendrickson then came on and saw his struggles continue as he gave up 1 run on 2 hits along with 2 walks in 1 inning of work. Hendrickson's era has ballooned to 7.84 on the year and if he doesn't pick it up soon I think he will be a candidate to be released when Jason Pridie returns to the Wings. Tim Lahey came in and pitched an effective inning of relief as he put them down 1-2-3 on 1 strikeout to lower his era to 9.87. If I had to choose right now between the 2 I would keep Lahey as he seems to be improving and Hendrickson is going the opposite direction, however I would not mind letting both go to see Anthony Slama in a Wings uniform.

• The Wings were only able to push 3 runs across in this one even though they had 9 hits as they left an incredible 11 guys on base in this one. Justin Huber was the hitting star in this one as he went 2-5 with his 6th homerun and his 29th, 30th, and 31st rbi's of the year. With the 2 hits Huber is now hitting .282 and has been very solid with the Wings this year. Jason Pridie also contributed 2 hits before his promotion to the Twins. David Winfree added his 17th double of the year. Alexi Casilla, Steve Tolleson, Matt Macri and Brock Peterson added base hits in the losing cause.
• Tonight, the Red Wings continue their series with Columbus as they are scheduled to send Philip Humber to the mound for Rochester.

New Britain Business

Altoona 6 New Britain 4

• The Rockcats suffered a tough loss to swallow as they went down to a not very good Altoona team to drop a game further behind Connecticut. The Rockcats now trail first place Connecticut by 2.5 games. Jay Rainville got the start for the Rockcats in this one and struggled. Rainville lasted 4 innings and gave up 6 runs on 11 hits along with 1 walk and 2 strikeouts to lower his record to 4-4 on the year and raise his era to 5.43. As you could tell with my rankings that I am pretty high on Jay Rainville, but at the same time he can be very frustrating with his inconsistancy. One time he will look like he is turning the corner and then the next time out he will get shelled. This is going to sound really bad, but I would rather he either get it together or not do so good so they could give the chance to someone else. The problem is when he pitches good you see all the talent on display and it makes you think he is going to fufill the promise he has shown, but then he has starts like this where you wonder if he can get anybody out. Hopefully, he can get more consistant because the talent is obviously there. Frank Mata then came on and pitched 1.2 scoreless innings of relief and only giving up 1 hit along with 3 walks and a strikeout to lower his era to 5.30. Yohan Pino then finished the game with 2.1 innings of awesome baseball as he only gave up 1 hit to lower his era to 4.34 on the year and has been one of the more consistant pitchers in the Rockcats bullpen.

• The Rockcats suffered from the same problem as Rochester did and that is they had plenty of hits, but could not turn them into runs. The Rockcats mashed 12 hits in this one, but only able to score 4 runs. The reason was they left an unbelievable 13 guys on base in this one. Erik Lis was the hitting star for the Rockcats in this one going 3-3 with 2 walks to bring his average up to .305. Danny Lehman made his return to New Britain with the Wilson Ramos hamstring injury and went 1-3 with 2 rbi's to bring his total with the Rockcats to 5. Toby Gardenhire and Juan Portes each contributed 2 hits in the losing cause. Danny Valencia went 1-5 and saw his terrible June continue. For the month of June Valencia is hitting 7-57 a terrible .123 average which has saw his average drop from .341 down to .266. Valencia will come out of it as he is too good of a hitter, but this is the worst slump in his professional career and it will give him the perspective how hard you have to work to hit .300.
• Tonight, the Rockcats continue their series with Altoona as Cole Devries gets the start for New Britain.

Fort Myers Minutes

Fort Myers 5 Dunedin 3

• The Miracle saw their season high 3 game losing streak end with a big 5-3 victory over Dunedin. With the victory the Miracle clinched a tie for the First half title and can clinch the First Half Title outright with a win this morning. Tyler Robertson got the start for the Miracle last night and showed why is the stopper for the Miracle. Robertson picked up his 4th win of the year with an excellent start last night. Robertson went 6 innings and gave up 1 run on only 4 hits along with 2 walks and 5 strikeouts to lower his era down to 3.66 on the year. Tyler has showed just how good of a pitcher he is and why I feel he is ready to join former teammate Carlos Gutierrez in New Britain. He has shown more consistancy throwing strikes and has stayed healthy which is half the battle with Tyler and really is ready for a new challenge. Henry Arias came in relief and continued to struggle in that he gave up 2 runs on 3 hits in 1 inning of work to raise his era up to 5.79. Kyle Waldrop pitched the last 2 innings to pick up his 3rd save of the year. In 2 innings Waldrop gave up 1 hit along with 1 walk and 2 strikeouts.

• The Miracle finally broke out of a month long hitting slump as they mashed 13 hits on their 5 runs. It could of been worse, but the Miracle left 7 guys on base in this one. Ben Revere was the hitting star as he broke out of a slump to go 3-5 to raise his average up to .318. Revere had only been 9 for his last 49 which was a .184 average that saw his average drop 40 points. Revere is too good of a hitter and you knew it was a matter of time before he broke out. Mark Dolenc also had a big game going 3-4 with his 10th double of the year. Steve Singelton also added 2 hits in the game to improve his average to .249. Singelton has had a really good June hitting .298 with 2 homeruns and 5 rbi's. Chris Cates, Deibinson Romero, Evan Bigley, Danny Berg, and Allan De San Miguel all added a hit in the winning cause for the Miracle.
• This morning the Miracle try to clinch the First Half title as they send Deolis Guerra to the mound for Fort Myers.

Beloit Beat

Beloit 2 Clinton 1

• The Snappers continued their recent string of better play with a hard fought and tight all the way 2-1 victory over Clinton last night. Michael Tarsi got the start for the Snappers and had his 2nd consecutive great start. Tarsi went 7 innings and gave 0 runs on only 2 hits along with 5 strikeouts to pick up his 2nd victory of the year. Tarsi has really been a breath fresh air after having the starting rotation struggle all year. With Brad Tippett, Tarsi and Tippett appear ready to lead a much improved Snappers starting rotation in the second half of the season as they try to snag a playoff spot in the second half. Mike Allen then came on and gave up a run in only 1/3 of an inning to raise his era to 5.75 on the season. Joe Testa then came on and pitched 1.2 great innings to pick up his 7th save of the year. He did not give up a hit and walked 2 while striking out 3 in the big Snappers win.

• The Snappers continued their recent hitting slump in this one as they were only able to muster 2 runs on 6 hits in this one, but it was enough to get the win. Dominic De La Osa led the charge going 2-4 to raise his average up to .216 on the year. Drew Thompson went 1-3 with his 6th double of the year and his 11th rbi. James Beresford, Ozzie Lewis, Juan Richardson all added hits in the winning cause for the Snappers. If the Snappers are going to make a run in the second half they are going to need more hitting out of these guys because besides Ramon Santana and James Beresford noone has brought consistantly good at bats for the Snappers and if they are going to contend in the second half that is what needs to happen.
• Tonight, the Snappers continue their series with Clinton as Dan Berlind is scheduled to pitch for Beloit