Well after a long hard winter at least in terms of recent history, must be global warming, it appears spring is finally here. Most of this years snow pack is gone, temps will be in the 50's all weekend and all the talk is either about flooding or baseball. We'll stick to baseball since it is less stressful and more fun to follow.
Spring training has been under way for several weeks now and the Twins made their first cuts of camp already last Monday from 59 to 45 players. Another 4 players were optioned or reassigned to minor league camp today including OF Ben Revere who is likely to see action with the big league club this season. Revere had a very positive attitude about the situation tweeting he had to go down and work his a** off to get back up and play with the guys.
All the snow is long gone from Target Field thanks to heating coils underneath, the tarp is off and the field was mowed yesterday for the first time. Ahh the smell of fresh cut grass in the spring, doesnt get any better than that.
Today also marked the availability of single game tickets for the first time this year as they went on sale within an hour of this posting. Tickets are available at Target Field, by phone or www.twinsbaseball.com.
Time for those words which are music to my ears....Play ball!!
VOYAGEUR COUNTRY-BOTTOM OF THE NINTH: Fans perspective and analysis of the Minnesota Twins as well as other favorites on occasion the Oakland A's, Tampa Bay Rays, Houston Astros, and Colorado Rockies. Occasional opinions on traditional rival Chicago White Sox, Detroit Tigers, Cleveland Indians as well as other hated teams such as the New York Yankees, Boston Red Sox, California Angels (or whatever they are named this week).
Saturday, March 19, 2011
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
Twins Spring Training Decision Time
The Twins on Monday whittled their roster from 59 down to 45 players. Most of which never had a realistic chance of making the team, at least for this year. One exception to that in the first round of cuts is pitcher Kyle Gibson who is ready to make the jump to the major leagues. The starting rotation at this time is very crowded however and the Twins have decisions to make regarding the future of those players. The 2 starters on the bubble right now are Scott Baker, who at one point was at the top of the rotation, and Kevin Slowey who has battled inconsistency throughout his career.
Baker has had some injury concerns of late and he has yet to regain his form, when healthy he is consistent and dependable but not overpowering. Slowey on the other hand has good stuff but has never been able to harness it and pitch within himself, and it is believed he has been a dissapointment to manager Ron Gardenhire. Slowey at the beginning of spring training was believed to be the odd man out with his best hope being a move to the bullpen. In fact in recent weeks he has been the subject of trade rumors, with Toronto believed to be an interested suitor.
This spring however Slowey has had good command and has impressed, making the final starting position a difficult decision or helping his trade value depending on the Twins outlook for his future. Once these final decisions are made, it doesn't get any easier for the survivor and the rest of the staff because Kyle Gibson will be pushing them and is all but guaranteed a call up in 2011.
The tough decisions do not stop there either as the competition for the bullpen is very crowded and likely to go down to the wire. One of the odd men out in that battle appears to be veteran LHP Glenn Perkins who is out of options. With recent trades and fellow LHP Dusty Hughes being acquired on waivers from KC his days appear to be numbered. He has been in the Twins doghouse the last couple seasons and really has done nothing to redeem himself or make their decision difficult.
One final area on the team where a battle appears to be heating up is the middle infield. Luke Hughes has been knocking the stuffing out of the ball and has been very serviceable in the field. While it appears that the starting SS will be Tsuyoshi Nishioka and 2nd Alexi Casilla, both are relatively unproven commodities with Casilla yet to show he can be consistent. That leads to the need for depth and with Matt Tolbert the penciled in utility infielder, confidence is not high. Tolbert has had his moments but he is not exactly running out of tape on his highlight reel. Additionally his strength with a bat leaves a lot to be desired which reduces bench options for late inning situations. This brings us back to Hughes maybe having played himself onto the opening day 25 man roster. Tolbert does have an option year left making that decision even easier as there is no risk of losing him this season if his services are needed later.
Many roster cuts remain and there could end up being even more surprises including the potential for trades. With players down to their last option year, out of options, potential contract issues on the horizon, and younger guys ready to step up and claim jobs, 2011 could prove to be an active year for the Twins.
Baker has had some injury concerns of late and he has yet to regain his form, when healthy he is consistent and dependable but not overpowering. Slowey on the other hand has good stuff but has never been able to harness it and pitch within himself, and it is believed he has been a dissapointment to manager Ron Gardenhire. Slowey at the beginning of spring training was believed to be the odd man out with his best hope being a move to the bullpen. In fact in recent weeks he has been the subject of trade rumors, with Toronto believed to be an interested suitor.
This spring however Slowey has had good command and has impressed, making the final starting position a difficult decision or helping his trade value depending on the Twins outlook for his future. Once these final decisions are made, it doesn't get any easier for the survivor and the rest of the staff because Kyle Gibson will be pushing them and is all but guaranteed a call up in 2011.
The tough decisions do not stop there either as the competition for the bullpen is very crowded and likely to go down to the wire. One of the odd men out in that battle appears to be veteran LHP Glenn Perkins who is out of options. With recent trades and fellow LHP Dusty Hughes being acquired on waivers from KC his days appear to be numbered. He has been in the Twins doghouse the last couple seasons and really has done nothing to redeem himself or make their decision difficult.
One final area on the team where a battle appears to be heating up is the middle infield. Luke Hughes has been knocking the stuffing out of the ball and has been very serviceable in the field. While it appears that the starting SS will be Tsuyoshi Nishioka and 2nd Alexi Casilla, both are relatively unproven commodities with Casilla yet to show he can be consistent. That leads to the need for depth and with Matt Tolbert the penciled in utility infielder, confidence is not high. Tolbert has had his moments but he is not exactly running out of tape on his highlight reel. Additionally his strength with a bat leaves a lot to be desired which reduces bench options for late inning situations. This brings us back to Hughes maybe having played himself onto the opening day 25 man roster. Tolbert does have an option year left making that decision even easier as there is no risk of losing him this season if his services are needed later.
Many roster cuts remain and there could end up being even more surprises including the potential for trades. With players down to their last option year, out of options, potential contract issues on the horizon, and younger guys ready to step up and claim jobs, 2011 could prove to be an active year for the Twins.
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