Amateur Baseball Angle

I am starting a new facet of my blog im going to have an amateur baseball angle. As some of you know and for people that don't i have a long history with amateur baseball. Growing up going to games when i wasn't old enough to walk got the love of baseball in me long before i got into the Twins. So i have decided to involve Amateur Baseball in my blog and i have chosen the Countryside,Hi-ten,Lakes and Pine, and Resorters leagues to focus on because thats what i am most familiar with. I sent out questionaires to every manager in those leagues and i will do a preview of every team in those leagues. If i missed any of the teams in those leagues it was probably because i couldnt find a contact email or number so email me back and ill get you a questionaire. What this aspect of my blog will entail is teams sending in their scores and ill keep a standings up atleast once a week. It is a good way for people that love baseball to talk about real small town baseball that most of us have experienced one time or another. I hope everyone enjoys it and i hope all the teams take part because i think it can be fun if the teams become actively involved in this angle.

DH

I will be continuing my series on the Twins position by position look into the Twins organization. Today i will be moving onto the Right Field position hope everyone enjoys it and let the comments continue. Im excited about this position because we have some exciting players at this position

Twins

• Jason Kubel- I am going to be honest going into the second half of last year i was not too impressed with Jason his average was languising in the .230's and he didn't look impressive at all. But i admit i was wrong about him he has been outstanding since then. Jason was a 12th round pick by the Twins in the 2000 draft. His minor league stats were phenomenal he was a .319 hitter in 4 years in the minor leagues. He came up in 2004 and looked to be on his way to stardom starting in the playoffs for the Twins. Then disaster struck in an Arizona Fall League game he collided with another player and destroyed his knee which caused him to miss the entire 2005 season. It took him a while to get back and the second half of last year was when i saw the Jason Kubel that i remember in 04 with good plate discipline and power for a guy his size. I'm really happy for him and expect a breakout year for Jason and it couldn't happen to a nicer guy. I see Jason as a cornerstone for the Francise and someone the Twins need to get signed long term for the Twins to go back on their Throne as Central Division Champions.

Rochester

• Jon Knott- Jon is an interesting player who has good power and a good professional player. Jon came over to the Twins this offseason and brought with him a very professional attitude and a plan at the plate. Jon is a career .280 hitter who had his best seaon in 2006 at Portland where he hit 32 hr and 113 RBI's. I am kind of high on Jon who i think if there is injury's could help the Twins out as a bat off the bench, but i think he will spend the season in Rochester trying to help them make the playoffs.

New Britain

• Erik Lis- I am really high on Erik he knows how to hit and has good power and his future is pretty good. Erik was a 9th round pick by the Twins in the 2005 draft and has put up good numbers. Last season for Fort Myers he hit .274 with 18Hrs and 97 rbi's. Defensively he has struggled in the outfield but you need to find a way to get his bat in the lineup. He struck out 109 times so he needs to cut down on that but i am high on him and if he continues to develop i could forsee a major league career for him as long as he keeps working on it and keeps getting stronger.

Fort Myers

• Whitney Robbins- Whitney has some potential as a hitter its just way to early to tell how good he can be. Whitney was a 4th round draft pick in 2006 so this is only his 2nd full season as a professional. Last year he struggled at Fort Myers hitting only .210 with no homeruns in 64 games. He has a lot to improve on this year and i really dont think there is a lot of future for him, but like i said its too early to tell how he will take the coaching and if he is willing to put in the work to get better so the jury is still out on him.

Beloit

• Ben Petsch- Ben is an interesting player who has immense talent who is starting to come into his own. Ben was a 19th round pick in the 2007 draft so this is his first full season as a professional. In a shortened season last year he hit .310 in only 27 games. It is way to early to tell how good he is going to be and being a 19th round pick he has to beat out people taken ahead of him but he definatly is someone to keep an eye on this year for the Snappers.

Monday, April 14th

Rochester Wrap
Syracuse 3 Rochester 2

• POG: Mariano Gomez- He pitched 3 solid innings in relief of Heath Totten only giving up 1 hit and 0 runs to lower his era to 1.80. He walked 1 and struck out 3.
• The Red Wings continue with the struggles at the plate only getting 4 hits on the day.
• Heath Totten made a decent spot start going 3 innings and giving up 2 runs with only 1 earned.
• The Red Wings continue to struggle defensively committing 2 more errors to bring their season total to 20 errors in only 10 games. They need t0 tighten that up or its going to be a long season.
• Today the Red Wings conclude their series with Syracuse with a 5:35 game in Rochester. Brian Duensing gets the start for the Red Wings

New Britain Business

Portland 5 New Britain 1

• POG:Trevor Plouffe- Trevor continued his good weekend for the Rock Cats going 1-3 with a triple and an rbi. He also reached on a walk to raise his average to .308 on the young season.
• The Rock Cats struggled with the bats only able to scratch together 2 hits against Portland starter Dustin Richardson.
• Jay Sawatski had a good outing in relief of Oswaldo Sosa going 2 and 2/3 shutout innings giving up 3 hits while striking out 2.
• Oswaldo Sosa had a tough outing for the Rock Cats going 3 and a third innings giving up 5 runs and walking 6. It wont happen very often with Sosa he is too good of a pitcher.
• Tonight the Rock Cats begin a series with the New Hampshire Fisher Cats in New Hampshire. Game time is 5:35 with Yohan Pino getting the start for the Rock Cats.

Fort Myers Musings

Dunedin 9 Fort Myers 3

• POG: Danny Valencia- In not a very good game for the Miracle Danny hit his 2nd hr of the season for the Miracle and drove in 2 runs.
• Yancarlos Ortiz had a good game at the plate going 2-3 for the Miracle. He is known for his glove so anything he brings offensively is a plus.
• Cole Devries got the start for the Miracle and struggled giving up 5runs and 8 hits in 5 and 2/3 innings. Walking 3 and striking out 6 for the Miracle. He is too good of a pitcher to pitch like that I look for him to bounce back next time out.
• The Miracle were shut down offensively only scratching out 6 hits against the First place Blue Jays.
• The Miracle take today off before beginning a series with Clearwater on Tuesday.

Beloit Beat

Beloit 8 Fort Wayne 3 game 1

Beloit 6 Fort Wayne 1 game 2

• POG: Mark Dolenc- Mark had a good couple of games going 5-6 in the 2 games with 2 doubles , 2 runs scored and a RBI in the 2 games as the Snappers swept the doubleheader.
• Chris Parmalee had a good couple of games going 3-6 with 3 rbi's in the 2 games.
• Daniel Berlind struggled a bit in the first game going 3 innings for the snappers and gave up 2 runs on 3 hits but walked 5 batters which is way to much.
• Brian Kirwan pitched his 2nd consecutive strong performance for the snappers going 5 innings and giving up only 1 run on 2 hits. To lower his team leading ERA to 0.84.
• Today the Snappers try to continue their winning streak to 3 games as they play host to Dayton in the first game of a 3 game series. Game time is 6:30 with David Bromberg getting the start for the Snappers

Right Field

I will be continuing my series on the Twins position by position look into the Twins organization. Today i will be moving onto the Right Field position hope everyone enjoys it and let the comments continue. Im excited about this position because we have some exciting players at this position

Twins

• Michael Cuddyer: Michael has finally found a home in right field for the Twins. This past offseason he signed a 3 year contract extension with a option. Michael has developed into a very strong offensive player and defensively he is outstanding making 15 outfield assists last season. Mike is a career .270 hitter who has become very consistant the last 3 or 4 years. You get what you see with Cuddyer and he is a very good major leaguer and a cornerstone player when the Twins move into their new stadium in a couple years. I would like to see him be a little more aggressive at the plate he looks at a lot of good pitches. He is a very good leader and will lead the Twins for the next 4 or 5 years.

Rochester

• Garrett Jones- Garrett is a very interesting player who does a lot of things very well. Garrett signed as a free agent from the Braves in 2002. He is a good hitter with power he just has not been consistent enough to be a major leaguer. The Twins have gave him every chance to be successful so they had to take him off the 40 man roster. He puts the Twins in a tough spot becuase he excells at AAA but when you bring him up to the Majors and struggles. I just look at him is a career minor leaguer who i dont see alot of upside for him.

New Britain

• David Winfree- David is a guy who has a lot of talent who could be really good, but really hasn't lived up to his expectations. David was a 13th round pick in the 2003 draft. Many people have expected a lot of him and he really hasn't lived up to expectations. David is a career .267 who has some power, but his defense sent him to the outfield, but i dont much future for him i see him as a career minor leaguer.

Fort Myers-

• Rene Tosoni- I am very high on Rene Tosoni as an outfielder. He is a very good hitter who has a good arm. Rene was drafted in the 36th round in the 2005 draft. He has outperfomed his draft pick. He hit .301 last season for Elizabethton and i think he will continue to get better every year. Its pretty early to tell but i think if he continues to develop who knows in a couple years. I am really big on him so he is one player to keep your eye on.

Beloit

• Chris Parmalee- I think Chris has tremendous upside who is the class of the minor league right fielders. He has tremendous Power who i have heard compared to Adam Dunn power wise. The thing he needs to do is cut down on his strikeouts to make it. He struck out 137 times last year and thats way to many. Chris was a 1st round pick in the 2006 draft. I really like him and i think he will be the right fielder for the Twins in 4 years and will be a 30hr guy if given the proper time and the chance to develop so keep an eye on him.

Sunday, April 13th

Rochester Wrap
Syracuse 2 Rochester 0

• POG: Kevin Mulvey-Kevin was one of the only bright spots for the Wings. He was the tough luck loser going 5 innings and only giving up 4 hits and 1 run. That is 2 good starts in a row to start the season for Mulvey to lower his ERA to 0.84.
• The Red Wings continue to struggle with the bat only able to scratch out 2 hits on the day.
• The Red Wings have a big decision to make with Liriano going up to the Twins they need to find a permanent replacement.
• Today in Rochester the Red Wings finish up their 3 game series with Syracuse hoping to take the series and get back on track. Heath Totten gets the spot start today with the Red Wings game time is 12:35Pm in Rochester.

New Britain Beat

New Britain 14 Portland 5

• POG: Trevor Plouffe- There were many people I could of chosen as player of the game as the Rock Cats broke out of their opening hitting slump. I chose Trevor cause he went 4-6 with his first HR of the year and 4rbi's and 3 runs scored.
• Jay Rainville had a much better 2nd start then he did in his first one. He went 5 innings and gave up 5 hits and 2 runs with only 1 earned.
• Dustin Martin continued his crazy start going 4-5 to bring his average to a crazy .619.
• Today the Rock Cats finish their 3 game series with the Sea Dogs in Portland. Oswaldo Sosa gets the start today for New Britain with the first pitch at Noon.

Fort Myers Musings

Dunedin 5 Fort Myers 4

• POG: Johnny Woodard continued his upswing with the Miracle going 2-4 with his 2nd Hr of the year.
• Robert Delaney blew the save for the Miracle blowing at 2 run 8th inning lead. That won't happen very often, Delaney is one of the most consistant closers in the Florida State League so more times then not it will be a win for the Miracle.
• Brian Dinkelman continued his early season success going 2-5 to bring his average up to .351.
• Today the Miracle conclude their series with the Blue Jays with a 12:05 tilt in Fort Myers. Cole Devries gets the start today for the Miracle.

Beloit Beat

• Game was postponed becuase of rain/snow doubleheader today in Beloit
• Game 1 will be started by Daniel Berlind
• Game 2 will be started by Brian Kirwan

Center Field

I will be continuing my series on the Twins position by position look into the Twins organization. Today i will be moving onto the Center Field position hope everyone enjoys it and let the comments continue. Im excited about this position because we have some exciting players at this position



Twins

• Carlos Gomez- If you want to talk about exciting you need to go no further than the man they call Go-Go. I know this word goes around a lot but Carlos is a 5 tool player with unlimitless potential. Offensively, he is a work in progress while he learns how to hit on the major league level. The reason you can let him do that up here is his blazing speed. Jose Reyes who many thought was the fastest man in the major leagues says that Carlos Gomez is faster than he is. That should tell you a lot about Carlos' speed. He uses his speed well too bunting for base hits and stealing bases. The thing people dont talk about is his defense i dont think we are losing any Defense with him instead of Torii Hunter and i never thought i would say that. He has a very strong arm that is a little inaccurate but given time will have one of the best arms in the game. Going forward I see things a little different he is only 22 years old and i see his game changing as he gets older cause i see him picking up power. I actually in 2 or 3 years see him being a 30-30 guy. I really believe we have found a winner in Carlos Gomez and because of him and Deolis Guerra I think 5 years from now people are going to say the Twins got the best of the Santana deal.

Rochester

• Denard Span- Being i dont see him being with the Twins after Michael Cuddyer comes back I look for him to man center field for the Red Wings again. Denard is a very interesting player he was a 1st round pick by the Twins in the 2002 draft. Many believed he was going to be the Center Fielder of the future, but he has had his up and downs. He is a career .287 hitter who can do a lot of things very well. He is fast who puts together good patient at bats and plays a good center field with a good arm. I was ready to give up on him after he had a tough 2007 for the Red Wings. This spring however, he bounced back and gave Carlos Gomez all he could handle in the battle for Center Field for the Twins. I really believe now Denard Span is going to be a solid major league player and i look for him to be back in a Twins uniform as early as September. I also look for him to be a Twin next year and never get sent down again.

New Britain

• Brandon Roberts: Brandon is a very interesting player that brings alot to the table for the Rock Cats. He is a career .299 hitter who brings good defense and speed to the table. Brandon came over to the Twins from the Cincinnatti Reds organization and has hit everywhere he has been. I think he is a good professional player, but I see better players in the organization and its going to be hard for him to get much further than he is now. I think he is solid, but with the Twins centerfielders Solid is not going to get it done.

Fort Myers

• Juan Portes- The Miracle have 4 outfielders who share playing time so it was hard who to pick but i am intrigued by Juan Portes. Juan was a 15th round pick by the Twins in the 2004 draft. He is a .272 career hitter in 4 professional seasons. He is a solid outfielder that doesn't do a lot of things great but doesnt have major weaknesses. I don't see much of a future for him but he is a solid professional player who can play a good center field.

Beloit

• Joe Benson- Some people are not as high on Joe as i am but i think he can be a Major League player if he keeps growing. Joe was the Twins 2nd round pick in the 2006 draft. He is a career .257 hitter that needs to show some improvement at the plate, but i think he can do it. He is very good defensively and a good arm who plays a good center field. If he can improve on the offense side i think he could be a 4th outfielder some day.

Elizabethton

• Ben Revere- Reason im going that far down is i have heard good things about Ben and he will have something to say about the future for center field for the Twins. Ben was the Twins first round draft pick in 2007. Right now he is in extended spring with the Twins and last year in only 50 games he hit .325 for Elizabethton. Its way early to judge him but he definatly is worth keeping your eye on him.

Saturday, April 12th

Red Wing Wrap

Rochester 7 Syracuse 5

• POG: Chris Basak- Chris had an outstanding game at the plate showing the discipline that had been lacking for the Red Wings in drawing 4 walks and also driving in a run.
• Big come from behind win for the Red Wings
• When a team is struggling with the bats like the Red Wings are you need to find any way to get it done and it was huge drawing 10 walks
• Today Rochester takes on Syracuse again in game 2 of their 3 game series. Gametime is 12:35 in Rochester. Kevin Mulvey is on the hill for Red Wings making his 2nd start of the season.

New Britain Beat

New Britain 3 Portland 1

• POG: Anthony Swarzak- Anthony continued his strong start with 5 shutout innings to lower his ERA to a lights out 0.90 ERA and getting his first win of the season. He pitched 5 innings and gave up only 3 hits while striking out 4 without walking a batter.
• Dustin Martin continued his torrid start going 2-3 to bring his average to a crazy .563 in the young season. He has 9 hits in only 16 ats so far. I know he will cool down but man what a start.
• Today the Rock Cats continue their series with Portland in Portland. Jay Rainville gets the start for the Rock Cats. First pitch is at Noon.

Fort Myers Musings

Fort Myers 3 Dunedin 2

• POG: Brian Dinkelman- Brian went 2-4 on the night with his first HR of the year to raise his average to .344.
• The Miracle were able to get after Big League Closer B.J. Ryan a bit tagging him with the loss getting the winning run off of him in his lone inning of work.
• Tyler Robertson was ok he threw too many pitches so he was only able to work 4 innings. He gave up 6 hits and 2 runs. He walked 2 while striking out an impressive 7 batters.
• Tonight the Miracle take on the Blue Jays in game 2 of their 3 game series. Alex Burnett gets his 2nd start of the young year for the Miracle. Game time is 5:05 in Fort Myers.

Beloit Beat

Fort Wayne 11 Beloit 1

• POG:- It was not a good night for the Snappers, but a pleasant surprise was Chris Parmalee who continued his strong start to the 08 season. Chris went 2-3 with the only Snapper RBI to raise his average to .304. If he keeps this up he wont be in Beloit all season.
• Like i said not a very good night for the Snappers they committed a season high 6 errors and pitcher Micheal Tarsi gave up 9 runs in only 2 innings of work this is a game the Snappers would just soon forget.
• The Snappers try to get back on the winning side today when they face the Wizards in game 2 of the 3 game series in Beloit. Daniel Berlind is scheduled to get the ball today first pitch is at 1PM. UPDATE: Beloit's game today with Fort Wayne is rained out.

twins prospects stats

im going to do something similiar to what Seth has up today with a little bit of a twist. I am going to list my Twins prospects where they are playing but i am also going to give their stats so far and i plan to update it every week so you can see how our prospects are doing.

1. Deolis Guerra- P Fort Myers 0-0 0.90 ERA 2 starts 6walks and 8 strikeouts
2. Carlos Gomez-cf Twins .313 2rbi 5 stolen bases
3. Tyler Robertson- P Fort Myers 0-1 3.60ERA 1 start 2 walks 6 strikeouts
4. Kevin Mulvey- P Rochester 1-0 0.00ERA 1 start bb, 5 strikeouts
5. Anthony Swarzak- P New Britain 0-0 1.80ERA 1 start 1walk 4 strikeouts
6. Ben Revere- Extended Spring Training
7. Alexi Casilla- SS Rochester .167 1 rbi 3 sb 3errors
8. Jeff Manship- P Fort Myers 2-0 4.50ERA 2starts 4 walks 8 strikeouts
9. Trevor Plouffe-SS New Britain .154, .214obp
10.Phillip Humber-P Rochester 0-2 5.00ERA 2 starts BB, 5 strikeouts
11.Joe Benson-CF Beloit .192, .318obp 3rbi's and 2 steals
12.Wilson Ramos-C Fort Myers .238,.360obp HR, 2rbi
13.Brian Duensing-P Rochester 0-2 2.31ERA 2starts bb,5strikeouts
14.Chris Parmalee-1b/RF Beloit .250 3HR 3RBI .750 slugging percentage
15.Danny Valencia-3b Fort Myers .333 HR,7RBI .452obp
16.Oswaldo Sosa-P New Britain 0-0 0.00ERA 1 start 2bb, 5 strikeouts
17.Nick Blackburn-P Twins 0-1 2.25ERA 2 starts 3 walks 11 strikeouts
18.Jason Pridie- CF Rochester .160.222obp, sb
19.Jay Rainville-P New Britain 0-1 10.80ERA 1start 5 walks
20.Alex Burnett-P Fort Myers 0-1 7.20ERA 1start 2 walks 3 strike outs

that is the first 20 ill have the next 30 tommorrow and keep in mind its early and a lot of these guys only have played a half a dozen games and they will get alot better so take this first update with a grain of salt, but wanted to keep everyone informed.

Left Field

I will be continuing my series on the Twins position by position look into the Twins organization. Today i will be moving onto the Left Field position hope everyone enjoys it and let the comments continue.

Twins

• Delmon Young- I am really high on Delmon Young I know some people are going to disagree with me on this but i think we got a steal with him and Harris. Delmon was the 1st pick in the draft in the 2003 draft. Delmon has had his problems but has gotten past them to be one of the top prospects in the game. In 2007 in his first full season in the majors Delmon hit .288 with 13 HR's and 93 RBI's and finish 2nd in the Rookie of the Year voting. The sky is the limit for this guy and if he continues to improve i look for him to be a superstar and a cornerstone player for the Twins. The older he gets and the more experience he has he will continue to improve i look for him to be a 40 hr guy eventually for the Twins. The sky is the limit for this guy and we have a left fielder for the next 10-15 years.

Rochester

• Jason Pridie- I know right now he is playing Center field but Denard Span will be playing there when he comes down and Jason will move over to Left. The Twins acquired Jason in the Delmon Young trade and he will help the team immesely. He is very talented he has speed,good defense and puts together good at bats. I dont look for him to ever be a starter at the major league level but i see him more as a forth outfielder in the Big Leagues, but i do see him making it to the Majors possibly as soon as this season. Jason is a career .264 hitter, but the last 2 years he has stepped it up and hit .290 and .313 and if he can keep it up this year i think he will make it into a Twins uniform sometime this summer.

New Britain

• Matt Moses- Matt was a first round pick in the 2003 draft. Much was expected of him when he was drafted him. He had success early in his career and many thought he would be the 3rd baseman of the future for the Twins. He hit well in Fort Myers but has struggled the last 2 years in New Britain with not only his bat, but also his glove. That was the reason he was moved to the outfield to see if that will help. Matt can hit and the hope is with less pressure on him defensively he will find his hitting stroke again. The bottom line is Matt has a lot of talent and can hit he just hasnt done it consistantly. Honestly, he is running out of time and this could be his last chance with the Twins to prove what he can do and if he can't this will probably be the last season in the Twins organization.

Fort Myers

• Edward Lovalle- Edward signed with the Twins as an undrafted free agent in 2002. He is a career .261 hitter who plays good defense and has the capabilities to be a good hitter. However, I really don't see much of a ceiling for Edward he hit only .222 last season with Fort Myers with over a 100 k's. He really needs to improve this season just to stay in the organization and im pulling for the guy but i dont see alot of future for him in the Twins organization.

Beloit

• Ozzie Lewis- Ozzie was a 21st round draft pick in 2007 by the Twins out of Fresno St University. He hit .323 last season for Elizabethton which got him the promotion to Beloit. I really like his potential to be a good ballplayer. Its a little early to project how he is going to do as he moves forward but he is one of the best players on the Snappers this year. Keep an eye on this kid I think your going to keep hearing good things about him.

Friday, April 11th

Red Wings Wrap

Norfolk 3 Red Wings 0

• POG:Philip Humber- Even though he took a loss he pitched very well and a lot better than his first start. He went 5 innings and gave up 2 runs on 4 hits and gave the team a chance to win.
• The Red Wings continue to struggle defensively with another error which brings their total to 7 in the last 3 games.
• The Red Wings continue to struggle witht the bats only getting 6 hits.
• The Wings had a tough road trip going 2-5
• Today the Wings open up their home schedule with a game vs Syracuse. Glen Perkins gets the start tonight for the Red Wings. First pitch is at 6:05
• The Red Wings sent OF/1b Doug Deeds to the Cubs to complete the Craig Monroe trade.

New Britain Business

off day

• Today the Rock Cats open up a series versus the Portland Sea Dogs in Portland. Anthony Swarzak gets the start for the Rock Cats today as they take on the first place Sea Dogs. First pitch is scheduled for 5:00

Fort Myers Musings

Fort Myers 2 Clearwater 0

• POG: Deolis Guerra was impressive again throwing 5 shutout innings for the Miracle. Only negative was he had 5 walks, but im not too worried about him in his first start he only walked 1. In 10 innings so far this year he has only given up 1 run. Wow!
• Whitney Robbins was the hitting hero for the Miracle hitting a 2 run HR to make the difference in the game.
• Today the Miracle start a series with first place Dunedin in Fort Myers. Tyler Robertson gets the start for the Miracle. First pitch is scheduled for 6:05

Beloit Beat

Peoria 6 Beloit 5

• POG: Micheal McCardell pitched a solid game for the Snappers going 5 and a third only giving up 1 unearned run. That is 2 good starts in a row for Michael.
• The Snappers got the bats going a bit with 8 hits and drew 3 walks
• Closer Blair Erickson had a day he would like to forget giving up 2 hr's and blowing a 3 run lead to blow the save.
• The Snappers start a 3 game series tonight with Fort Wayne in Beloit. I believe Micheal Tarsi gets the start tonight for the Snappers. First pitch scheduled for 6:30

3rd Base

I will be continuing my series on the Twins position by position look into the Twins organization. Today i will be moving onto the 3rd base position hope everyone enjoys it and let the comments continue. I am very excited about this position because we have some of the best talent in the whole system at this position so enjoy.

Twins

• Mike Lamb- Mike signed with the Twins as a free agent over the winter to solidify the 3rd base position while some of our younger prospects work their way up. This is the 3rd organization for Mike after previously playing for Texas and Houston before joining the Twins. The Twins signed him to a 2 year contract with a team option that could keep him here till after the 2010 season. Mike is a career .281 hitter in 852 games so he is a very solid hitter. His problem is he has not gotten the chance to get regular at bats and thats why he was attracted to the Twins. After going through the nightmare season last year with Nick Punto the Twins jumped at signing a professional hitter. I look for Mike to have a good year this year for the Twins i look for somewhere betwee .270-280 with about 20 hr and 80-85 rbis. I really think Mike has found a home in Minnesota and will be a pleasure to watch for the next 3 years.

Rochester

• Brian Buscher- Brian has been up and down with the Twins the last couple seasons and does a lot of things well. Last season he showed flashes of being a good quality 3rd baseman. But, like a lot of young players he has lacked consistancy to be at the major league level. Another thing he really needs to work on is his defense because honestly its not very good. The good thing about him is he can hit and because of that i expect to see Brian up with the Twins at some point this season. If he can continue to hit and work on his defense i think he can be a quality backup for the Twins in the years to come.

New Britain

• Luke Hughes- Luke is a very solid 3rd baseman he does a lot of this right and doesnt make a lot of mistakes. Defensively he is very strong and offensively he is getting better ever year. He signed with the Twins as an undrafted free agent in 2002 and slowly and surely has worked his way up to New Britain. Honestly, I think he is a solid player but not a great player and with the guys that are behind him he could get passed up, but that should not take away from the fact he is a good player that possibly if he keeps working could make the majors as a utility man.

Fort Myers

• Daniel Valencia- I am super excited about Daniel like i said I believe he is the future 3rd baseman for the Twins. He was drafted in the 19th round in the 2006 draft and since then he has dominated everywhere he has been. He has a nice glove at 3rd and man can he hit he is a career .297 hitter who is fast and can hit for average and hit for power. I really believe the sky is the limit for this kid if he continues to do what he has already done and keep developing as a hitter. I am really excited about him and i think we have found the 3rd baseman of the future.

Beloit

• Deibinson Romero- He is another guy i am really high on he has an excellent glove and a really good bat. Deibinson is a career .315 hitter that knows how to hit and if he can continue to develop like he is he will be outstanding and challenge Valencia for the starting 3rd basemen job with the Twins in a few years. Deibinson was an undrafted free agent in '04 and has gotten better and better every year and if that continues look out. The only thing i would like to see out of him is a little more power he has only hit 9 career home runs but i also think that will come. Deibinson Romero is definately someone to keep your eye on and dont be surprised to see him in a Twins uniform in a few years.

Thursday, April 10th

I am going to start a new daily update piece. It is very similiar to what Seth does with his tidbits from every level. I am really getting into following the minor leagues and i thought it would be cool to write about things going down in the minors. It will be a little different than Seth's so hopefully you all enjoy it.

Red Wing Wrap
Norfolk 7 Redwings 2

• POG for the Red Wings
• Brian Buscher-Brian had a good game going 2-4 with a HR and 2 rbi's to be the Red Wing player of the game.
• Brian Duensing had a tough luck outing giving up 6 runs with only 1 of them earned. He should be ok not worried about him.
• Hope its not a trend but the Red Wings have 6 errors in the last 2 games they need to pic it up.
• Today: Rochester at Norfolk 11:15am Phillip Humber tries to get off the schnide after a tough first start.

New Britain Business

New Britain 4 New Hampshire 3

• POG: Ryan Mullins- Ryan put together 6 solid innings to get his first win of the season. He went 6 innings and gave up only 2 runs.
• The Rock Cats continue to struggle with the bats
• Ben Julianel struggled in the 9th but found a way to get the job done and pick up the save.
• Brock Peterson hit his first HR of the season hopefully one of many
• Today the Rock Cats have the day off before they head to Portland to take on the Sea Dogs

Fort Myers Musings

Fort Myers 9 Clearwater 3

• POG: Johnny Woodard- Johnny got his first hits of the season to go 3-6 with 2 rbi's.
• Jeff Manship had another outstanding start giving up 3 runs in 5 innings while getting his body into shape.
• Daniel Valencia is showing he is a man among boys at this level scoring 2 more runs and walking 2 times. Won't be long before he will be promoted to New Britain.
• Today the Miracle finish up their series with Clearwater with Phenom Deolis Guerra getting the start. Game time is 6 PM in Clearwater.

Beloit Beat

Beloit 1 Peoria 0 game 1

Peoria 4 Beloit1 game 2

• POG: Steven Hirschfeld- Steven went 5 shutout innings in his first start of the season to get his first win. He only gave up 3 hits and walked 2 while striking out 3.
• The Snappers bats continue to struggle
• Chris Parmalee had a hit in 3 at bats he is someone to keep a watch on

Wednesday, April 9th

I will be continuing my series on the Twins position by position look into the Twins organization. Today i will be moving onto the Shortstop position hope everyone enjoys it and let the comments continue.

Twins

• Matt Tolbert- I know Adam Everett is starting right now, but i think he is a stopgap and i look for Tolbert to take over the job by midseason so i am going to write about Matt. In all honesty, Matt Tolbert is an overacheiver who at every level has proven people wrong and thats no different than with the Twins. He went into Spring Training being told he had no shot to make the team, but he proved people wrong again. Don't get the wrong idea Matt Tolbert is very talented, but people didn't think he was talented enough to make it to the majors. I love watching Matt play because he personifies everything that i think being a Minnesota Twin should be. He hustles on every play, he is a team first player, and most important he will give up his own stats to make the team better. Matt was a 16th round pick by the Twins in '04 and last season at Rochester he hit .293 with 6 hr and 53 rbi's. I really like Matt and i think he will be starting at short next season as long as he can keep imporving on defense.

Rochester

• Alexi Casilla- I'm not as high on Casilla as some other people are. What we need out of him is speed and defense and his defense has really stunk thats part of the reason he didnt make the team out of spring training. However, he is very fast and has a good swing at the plate. If he can improve on his defense there is no reason to think he wont be up next year and possibly starting becuase he is the most talented SS we have in the system.

New Britain

• Trevor Plouffe- I am very high on this kid i believe the sky is the limit for Trevor. The Twins drafted Trevor with a first round pick in '04 draft and appeared like he was going to be the next in a long line of quality Twins shortstops. However, he struggled last year for the Rock Cats on defense and offense. He struck out 89 times in 121 games so he needs to work on his plate discipline and his defense. I think '08 is a pivotal year for Trevor's development. If he can put last year behind him, which i think he will he will be outstanding. My gut feeling tells me Trevor Plouffe will be the starting shortstop for the Twins when they open their new ballpark in '10.

Fort Myers

• Yancarlos Ortiz- He is another Twins shortstop that is great with the glove, but terrible with the bat. He only hit .212 with Beloit last year and got the promotion to Fort Myers. Defensively he is very solid, but the key for him to keep advancing is learing how to hit as a professional. But with his glove he is worth having around and someone you should keep your eye on.

Beloit

• Ramon Santana- So far this year the Snappers have been splitting up the SS duties so i thought i would write about Santana because he is an interesting player. Ramon signed with the Twins as an undrafted free agent in 2004. So far in his career he has really struggled with the bat, but has been outstanding with the glove. If he is going to move up though he needs to hit better because you have to hit a little to keep moving up. However, lets not take anything away from him he is excellent defensively and if he can improve the bat he will be worth keeping an eye on.

The Twins SS position depth has a lot to do with how Alexi Casilla and Trevor Plouffe continue to develop if they are able to keep developing we should be fine there, but if not we might have to look outside the organization. But in my opinion we are sitting ok at SS and is not a position we need to worry about.

Q & A column

Today i was able to have a Q & A with Seth over at Seth Speaks and it was very informative and shed some light on some things i was wondering about because i am so new at this. I hope you all like it and i am going to try to get a Q & A column every week so i hope you all enjoy.


Seth-
Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions i really appreciate it.
TT: Lets start with how you got involved in your blog and how it has come to be as big as it is.
SS: About five years ago, I was at home trying to find baseball stuff to read, so I did a google (or probably Yahoo back then) search for "Twins Dork." Well, the Twins Geek site popped up, and through there I learned of Aaron Gleeman's blog and the Dickie Thon Twins Fan Forum. I figured I'm not too dumb, have opinions on the Twins, why not start my own blog. It started slowly, but over time, it really picked up. I went from 15-25 hits a day, to a mention by the Twins Geek that got me up to 100 for a day. then Aaron would mention my site. Gradually over time, it went to a couple hundred hits a day. Now, there are generally four to six thousand hits a day which makes it a lot of fun.

TT: What is your view on the Johan Santana trade when it comes to the prospects the Twins brought in?
SS: Like all Twins fans, I followed all of the rumors throughout the offseason. I wondered frequently if we were about the hear about the deal. It took forever and like many, I finally got to the point where I didn't want to discuss it until it was over. So many names were thrown out in the media. that is great for the Twins because it raises the level. I admit mixed feelings with the deal. I believe that the Twins not only needed top prospects in return, but I thought that quantity of prospects were important for the organization as well. Carlos Gomez or Fernando Martinez? I could go either way, but the Twins need was a CF, not a corner guy where the Twins are set for the next 3-5 years. Carlos Gomez or Jacoby Ellsbury. Sure, Ellsbury looks like a sure thing, but he doesn't have nearly the upside as Gomez. He's also a couple years older. Philip Humber fell down on lists as well after Tommy John surgery, but he's now in Year 2 back after a very solid return from the surgery. He's close and could help the Twins right away if needed. Kevin Mulvey could be a #3 and he appears to be the type that will make it and have some success, even if not an ace. He will be solid! And finally, Deolis Guerra's upside is tremendous and I'm glad he was part of the deal. He has an amazing ceiling, but I'm glad that the Twins have decided to go slow with him. I really believe that all four will come up and help the Twins over the next several years. I think the deal had to be made and will prove to be a great deal for the Twins. What other deals were truly on the table? We'll never know, but I don't think we can assume that any were better, and with prospects, that can't really be judged for several years anyway.

TT: Do you view Daniel Valencia as a future starter at the Big League Level?
SS: I certainly do. In a way, I'm glad that they are starting him back at Ft. Myers. I'd like to see him succeed for six to eight weeks and then take over the hot corner for New Britain. With Mike Lamb signed for two years, the Twins should feel no need to rush him. Brian Buscher and Matt Macri would be adequate replacement level types for the next year or until Valencia is ready. So, I would think that Valencia could be the Twins starting 3B by 2010.

TT:How high of a ceiling do you see for Valencia?
SS:He'll need to cut down on the strikeouts and probably find a way to walk a little bit more. But I can see him as a future .280/.350/.480 type of ceiling. Very solid, borderline all star.

TT: Who do you view as the Shortstop of the future?
SS: As of today, I still believe that Trevor Plouffe is the Twins SS of the future. In part, I believe that because I still see Alexi Casilla as the 2B of the future. I can see Casilla being the Twins SS in 2009, with Plouffe likely playing in Rochester, but by 2010, I can see the two teaming for double plays up the middle.

TT:Do you view Anthony Swarzak being as a future Twin if so how effective do you see him being.
SS: Certainly I think that Swarzak is a guy that the Twins will bring up at some point. I had him ranked 2nd in the organization (behind only Tyler Robertson) in my Top 50 Twins prospects at the end of last season. Reports are that he still has just two pitches, so that is limiting, but I think those two pitches are good and he has experienced a lot of success. That said, the Twins have a lot of pitching prospects, Swarzak right there among the top, and he is very close. The Twins will have to add him to the 40 man roster after the season, so they can also be patient with him. Let's not forget that there is always the option of trading some of the pitching prospects.

TT: What is your view on Jeff Manship?
SS: Manship is one of my favorite Twins prospects. He's easily a top 10. He is several years after his Tommy John surgery now and has been healthy. He's got a good fastball, but his big pitch is his curveball. I was also happy that he began the season at Ft. Myers, but like Valencia, I think 6-8 weeks of success there should have him moving up to New Britain. That is the level in which college pitchers tend to first struggle. It will be interesting to see how he performs with the Rockcats before we really know how good he can be. I expect him to succeed because he doesn't walk a lot of hitters and he just seems to understand how to pitch. Plus, he's a nice guy who has done a couple of Q&As on my site and participated in the NFL "Expert" Picks panel this offseason.

TT: Do you see Brock Peterson ever making it to the major leagues?
SS: I do, and yet 2008 is a very important year for him. As a 49th round draft pick, the odds certainly are not in his favor. However, the odds of him making it to AA weren't good either, and he has done well. Last year, something happened at the midway point of the season. He stopped striking out and started walking more, without losing his power. I think that he can be a solid backup to Justin Morneau as well as a DH option and right-hander off the bench. However, he will have to show again in 2008 that his 2007 success was no fluke. He has to have a solid year. Because of the depth at Rochester, the Twins can afford to not push him more than they neeed to which allows him to further develop. But don't forget that Danny Matienzo had a monster year at AA about three years ago. He was sent back to AA the following year and struggled the whole year. The next year, he was out of the organization. That's why 2008 is very important for Brock Peterson.

TT: What kind of ceiling do you see for Deolis Guerra?
SS: The 18 year old is already 6-4 and strong. He's got a fastball that touches 95 and people say his changeup is already advanced. He will need that curveball to become truly a top level prospect. But again, he's young, and unlike the Mets, the Twins are going to be willing to let him advance fairly slowly. I think that is smart. Let him develop that third pitch. But I think that ceiling for Guerra means a couple of Cy Young awards. But it's impossible to know what an 18 year old phenom in Hi-A ball will do in 3-4 years. Health is the biggest key.

TT: What letter grade would you give the Twins Minor League System and why?
SS: B-... Outside of Carlos Gomez and Deolis Guerra, there aren't a lot of blue-chip prospects. But there are a LOT of 2nd tier pitching prospects, guys that could be #3 and #4 types of pitchers. I think that is very important and a strength for the organization. As we know, there are not a lot of high level bats in the organization and the hitting prospects, for the most part, are in the lower levels, so they can improve or drop in status. But there are a lot of minor leaguers who could provide depth to the Twins even now. So, that is why I will still say that the minor leauge system is above average overall.

thanks for your time i really appreciate it

Tuesday, April 8th

I will be continuing my series on the Twins position by position look into the Twins organization. Today i will be moving onto 2nd base position hope everyone enjoys it and let the comments continue.



Twins

• Brenden Harris- Brenden is a interesting player that just came into the Twins organization in the Delmon Young trade. I really like how flexible he is in that he can play 2nd,ss,and 3rd which is a must for infielders in the Twins organization. I know he hasnt shown it yet this year, but i think he will bring an improvement over Jason Bartlett. He is a good hitter with decent power and a good glove. Last year was his first full season in the Majors and put up good numbers he hit .286 with 12 HR's and 59 rbi's in 137 games. He was a journeyman early in his career going to 5 different organizations before his breakthrough season last season. With not alot of depth at 2nd base i think Brenden has a chance to start at 2nd for the next few years. What he needs to do is show last year was not a fluke and if he can do that he will be fine.

Rochester

• Matt Macri- Matt is a very flexible infielder who plays 2nd,ss,and 3rd also. He was drafted by the Colorado Rockies in the 4th round of the '04 draft and joined the Twins in a late season trade for Ramon Ortiz. His best position is 3rd base but i wanted break him down because we really dont have a 2nd basemen at Rochester. Howie Clark gets alot of playing time but i dont see much future for him so i thought i would write about Macri because i see a brighter future for him. He is a career .282 hitter who plays good defense and has a little pop in his bat. I dont look for him to have huge upside but its possible for him to make it to the majors as a utility man as early as next season.

New Britain

• Steven Tolleson- He is a solid second baseman that has worked his way up to the Rock cats. He hit .285 last season with 79 BB's and 27 stolen bases to earn the promotion to the Rock Cats. For him to improve he needs to work on cutting down his strikeout total he had 97 strikeouts in 487 at bats. It was a real credit for him to rebound when he got demoted from Ft Myers back down to Beloit. I dont see much of a outlook for him but every organization needs solid players to show how to play the game the right way and should be commended for it.

Fort Myers

• Brian Dinkelman- He was selected by the Twins in the 6th round of the '06 draft and has been pretty solid so far in his Twins career. He is a career .277 hitter who plays good defense and is finding his swing. He is slowly working his way up going from elizabethton to beloit and now to fort myers. He has a very good eye at plate which helps the team and he is off to a good start this season so hopefully he can keep it up. Its a little early to judge how he is going to be but he is off to a good start and worth keeping an eye on.

Beloit

• Steven Singleton- The Snappers don't really have a natural 2nd base so Steve has been playing there this season. Steve was a 11th round selection in the '06 draft. He put up a decent '07 season with the Snappers and is back for another season. He hit .271 in 102 games so he has shown that he can hit, but for him to take the next step he needs to get better discipline at the plate. Look at last year he only had 8 walks compared to 47 strikeouts you would like to see that ratio close to 50-50 in a middle infielder. Its too early to tell but its worth keeping an eye on him.

To be all honest our 2nd base position is weak by any standards and was hurt worse when the decision to move Alexi Casilla to shortstop was made. The Twins have to hope Brenden Harris turns out and they need improvement at 2nd out of every level in the system.

Twins 2 games Royals 1 game

The Twins just finished a series with the first place Royals and there was some good things that happened from it and a few concerns.

• Matt Tolbert has really impressed hitting .444 for the young season and has proven that he can play at the major league level.


• The starting pitching continues to impress with 3 good starts again


• Joe Nathan is worth every penny the Twins paid him getting 2 more saves this weekend.


• The Biggest thing was the revitalization of Justin Mourneau who hit 2 HR's and 7 RBI's in the 3 games and made a defensive play that was a web gem.


• Carlos Gomez once again showed what happens when he gets on base.

The Negatives

• Mike Lamb continues to struggle on the year hitting only .100 on 2-20 hitting. I believe he will come out of it he's too good of a hitter but for this lineup to succeed we need Mike to be a force.
• Craig Monroe continues to struggle and if this keeps up makes you wonder if last year was a trend and not a anomaly like we were hoping it would be.

All in all it was a good series and the important thing is winning series. So far they are 1-1 in series this year and they need to win every series. Now they head on first road trip to Chicago, Kansas City and Detroit and it will be a good test for this ballteam to see where they really are as a team so far.

Monday, April 7th

Today i am going to continue my series on the Depth of Twins minor league system one position at a time. Yesterday i started with the Catcher position and i hope everyone enjoyed it. Today i will move on to 1st base hope everyone enjoys.

Twins

• Justin Mourneau- I really like Justin as a player and a leader for this organization. His power numbers are great he is the first person to hit 30 Hr's in back to back season's since Gary Gaetti did it in 1986-87 so thats quite the accomplishment. The thing people dont give him credit for though is his defense. It will never be confused with Doug Mientkiewicz's defense but there are not many people in history that are in that league,but he has improved it every year until now he is solid and doesnt hurt the Twins. I look for Justin to keep getting better and better. I see a 40 HR season in his future and he is one of the Cornerstone's of the Twins, so it was nice that they locked him up long term because in a few years what they paid him will be a discount. If he is able to stay healthy the sky is the limit for Justin Mourneau and i look for him to put up Killebrew type numbers and will be remembered as one of Minnesota Twins great icons.

Rochester

• Randy Ruiz- Randy has been a career minor leaguer who has jumped around quite a bit. The Twins are his 9th organization that he has been a part of and he is only 30 years old so that should tell you alot about him. The guy can hit a ton at the minor league level, but not enough to make it to the show. He was really impressive this spring with the Twins that if they need a hitter dont be surprised to see him up this year. However, I dont see alot of future for the guy he is a career minor league player and that is all he is going to be in my opinion.

New Britain

• Brock Peterson- Brock has been an interesting player for quite a while. He was drafted in the 49th round in '02 so you can tell the Twins did not expect a whole lot out of him, but he has outshined a lot of guys that the Twins were expecting more out of. He is a career .272 hitter with 64 HR's in 5 seasons so those are some decent stats. He is solid with the glove too so a promotion to AAA this season is not out of the question. The problem is i dont see him ever making it to the majors with Twins with Justin Mourneau standing in his way. Even without Mourneau, he is just a solid player not outstanding, but not terrible. If things go right for him i see him as a backup in the majors i just dont see that happening with the Twins.

Fort Myers

• Johnny Woodward- Johnny was a 3rd round pick of the Twins in the '04 draft and struggled a little early on, but he had an outstanding '07 season. He started out with Beloit where he hit 10hr's and 31 rbi's in only 66 games which earned him a promotion to Fort Myers where he did good there too. Right now he is splitting time with Whitney Robbins but i see Johnny getting most of the playing time as the season moves on. He does alot of things well, but the thing that really impressed me and jumped out at me when i looked at his stats is his eye. He had 58 BB's in only a 117 games which shows me that he has a good eye at a plate which is huge watching a player develop. It's still too early to see how he is going to develop, but you would hope he would develop a little more power as he goes along because thats what the Twins need is power off the bench. The bottom line is the future is bright for this kid so keep an eye on him.

Beloit

• Garrett Olson- The Snappers really dont have a true firstbasemen on their roster especially when Chris Parmalee got sent to the outfield so Garrett has been playing first base this season. To be all honest Garrett has really struggled with the snappers with a .219 average there last year. He is still really young though and could figure it out. I think its way to early to give up on the kid its just he needs to figure things out and the sooner the better.

As was the case with catcher the 1st base position starts and ends with Justin Mourneau thats why it was so important that they signed him long term. Brock Peterson and Johnny Woodward have some talent and are guys worth keeping your eyes on to see how they develop and if they can help the big club in a few years.

Sunday, April 6th

i am starting a new topic today that i think will be interesting i hope everybody thinks so too. Every day i am going to write about a player at every level at one position. and what i think of them and what i think of their future based on their past and future outlook. Today i will start at catcher

Twins

• Joe Mauer- My view on Joe is i think he is the best defensive and offensive catcher in the game and the sky is the limit. The only question is can he stay healthy for a whole season. It started in '04 when he only played in 35 games because of injury and then last year when he played in 109 games. If he can stay healthy the sky is the limit for him based on his career .313 average. I really believe he will be fine and when its all said and done he will be a hall of famer and i just hope we can keep him in a Twin's uniform his whole career.

Rochester

• Jose Morales- My view on Jose is I think he has a lot of talent and has put up some solid numbers in AAA the problem is his path to the majors is blocked by Joe Mauer and Mike Redmond. That said he is pretty good defensively not in the league of Mauer or Redmond, but not bad at all and offensively he is very good. I view him as an ok prospect at catcher but i dont see him anything more than a third catcher for the Twins and there are better catching prospects in the Twins organization. I view him as a career AAA player who would probably be better served in another organization where he would get a better chance to play.

New Britain

• Drew Butera- My view on Drew is I think he is excellent defensively, however he struggles a bit with the bat. I base that on the fact that he is a career .213 hitter in 3 seasons in the minors. When it comes to Defense though you are not going to find many other catchers with the Defensive capabilities that Drew brings. His Arm is very strong and he has good flexibility to block pitches and he calls a good game. He is a very smart catcher who if he can improve his hitting could become a solid 2 catcher. I look for Drew to make it to the majors whether its with the Twins or another team i think Drew will be a major league player in 2 or 3 years.

Fort Myers

• Wilson Ramos- Now this is the top catching prospect in the entire Twin's organization. I have a lot of hope for this kid he is very good defensivly, but what i really like about him is his potential Offensivly. He has dominated in every level the Twins have put him at and he is only 20 years old. I view him as the long term answer if the Twin's ever decide to move Joe Mauer to another position. He has everything a team is looking for in a catching prospect and i am really high on him. I look for him to reach the majors around the '10 season when the Twin's move into their new stadium.

Beloit

• Daniel Lehmann- To be honest i dont know alot about this guy he played in rookie ball last year and struggled. He got promoted to Beloit this year and the hope is that he can find his game offensively and improve catching with the Twin's taking him in the 8th round out of Rice. I really dont see alot of future for the guy but he needs to develop an offensive game and develop a better work ethic or he wont be in this organization very long.

GCL

• Danny Rams- There is a lot of pressure on this guy considering that the Twin's drafted him in the 2nd round of the '07 draft. Its a very small sampling so i dont know how much he can base what he did last year on the fact that he only played 27 games. He hit .258 with 22 strikeouts in 97 at bats. His plate discipline is something that he is going to have to work on, but he is someone to keep an eye on for the future based on how highly the Twins Brass viewed him coming into the draft.

The Twins catching position starts and ends with Joe Mauer that is why its so important for the Twins to sign Mauer long term again because other than possibly Wilson Ramos they really dont have anyone to take his place. I would really welcome comments on this let me know if you liked it or not and if you want me to continue with this theme at other positions.

Liriano is he ready?

A big thing that i have found a lot of discussion about in other websites is whether Francisco Liriano is ready to be in the majors or if the Twins should take their time with him. I am going to give you my opinion and i want some feedback to see if you agree with me or you think the Twins should do something different. My website from now on is going to be more user friendly and not so much just my opinions. I will still state my opinion but i welcome everybody else's opinion too so we can have a good conversation about topics.
Francisco Liriano as pretty much any Twin fan knows had Tommy John surgery about 18 months ago and is trying to get back into pitching shape. He had a visa problem so he was 9 days late for camp. He got himself in pitching shape and started throwing harder and harder. To be honest, his first few starts were not very good but i think he was just getting used to pitching again. However, his last couple starts were Liriano of old and put himself back into the talking to go North with the team. Gardy decided he wasn't ready and sent him to Fort Myers for a start and Rochester for a start. The real question should be why what did he do in those starts in Spring Training to deserve a demotion to the minor leagues. Seems like everytime i hear Gardy say anything about Liriano it is negative and that gets underneath my skin a little because the guy is working his butt off to get back and your manager calls you fat and says your not ready when he had a better spring than half the pitchers that made it. Thats fine if he is not ready to hand him a spot in the rotation. The thing that irritated me was yesterday when Kevin Slowey strained his bicep that will make him miss atleast 1 start and the thought of bringing Liriano now was brought up and he went off. Saying he is not part of any plans when it comes to Slowey and that he is not ready and that he will have to make 2 starts atleast. It just seems to me like the logical thing to do was bring him up and put Slowey on the DL and if Blackburn keeps it up send Slowey to Rochester and if Blackburn is faltering send Blackburn to Rochester. But instead Gardy dismissed that thought almost like he has it out for Liriano. Granted it Looks like Liriano was not in the best shape he could be when he reported for spring training, but come on he is the future of this organization and he should be treated with the respect he deserves.
Everyone im really curious what you think about that whole deal any feedback would be appreciated.

Revamping the Website

i want to know what you guys want on the website so im asking you in the comments box to give me some ideas that you would like to see on this website and see how that goes. Thanks for the people that look at my website and tell your friends because its going to be a much better website from now on.