"Free _____", Draft predictions

• There has been another "Free ____ " campaign already this season, and it looks like there is another player deserving of the campaign as well. Well, actually there are a few. And to be completely honest, none of them are even on the Major League roster. Yes, I'm talking about prospects that should be promoted, but are being forced to stay on their current teams at least for the time being. Here is my list of a few players that I feel have made a good enough case for themselves to be promoted:

Luke Hughes, 3rd Base/2nd Base/Outfield, New Britain Rock Cats
Jeff Manship, Starting Pitcher, Ft. Myers Miracle
Danny Valencia, 3rd Base, Ft. Myers Miracle
Rob Delaney, Relief Pitcher, Ft. Myers Miracle
Anthony Slama, Relief Pitcher, Ft. Myers Miracle

Those 5 players, all deserve promotions and given their ages (all are 23 years old, except Slama is 24) they should not be handled with such care especially when they've all been on there respected teams for almost a year (some more, again besides Slama). Everyone besides Hughes also played college ball, which is the reason for my disliking to how the Twins are handling quite a few of their prospects lately. The reason to draft a college player is that they are easier to handle and and can go through the system quicker since they have much more experience at a higher level than High School players do. However in this case, the team is treating these guys like High School players instead of a college players.

I don't mind the organizations patient approach to such prospects like Joe Benson and Chris Parmelee who I did not see be ready for the next level at the beginning of the season, but I do disagree with the way they handle college players.

Take a look at Manship for instance. On Tuesday night, he pitched a complete game 4-hit shutout to lower his season ERA to 2.72 and is now tied with Jordan Smith of the Reds with 7 victories. He's shown that he has great control and has yet to give up a home run this season, despite throwing 72 2/3 innings now. Those are great numbers, and yet he still hasn't been promoted despite having solid numbers in the same league through 13 starts there in '07.

Take a look at a comparison of Manship with another college pitcher who went through the organization a few years ago. These comparisons are of the two pitchers through the same levels:

Jeff Manship: 44 G/40 GS, 22-8, 2.45 ERA, 218/57 K/BB ratio (3.82)
Matt Garza: 22 G/GS, 9-5, 2.77 ERA, 142/32 K/BB ratio (4.43)

How could a team be so fast to promote Garza while Manship's posted similar numbers, but in twice as many starts? Manship pitched well at Notre Dame and has pitched well since he's been drafted. I just see a little difference between the two. Manship uses all of his pitches to get hitters out and has been known to have a great fastball, curveball and changeup while he's also been said to have a good slider. Garza used primarily just his fastball throughout the system. Garza also clashed with multiple coaches throughout his tenure in the system, when to my knowledge Manship is a class act and is very mature despite the way the organization has handled him.

I know that my rant is a little ridiculous when most of these guys will likely get promotions within the next few weeks, but I bring this up because I don't think this trend is going to change. After a few weeks, these guys will likely play on their new teams for the remainder of the season. That's fine, but if they continue to be overly cautious with these players, Manship and the others will be lucky to reach the majors before they turn 25.

I don't have a problem with players not making the majors until they turn 25, but it's because they turn it "on" later in their careers. Well, these guys are performing well right now and they should be awarded for doing so. With the holes this team has at the major league level such as relief pitchers, infield depth and also good bats, you'd think that they would not hesitate to promote any of these players as they all basically fill needs.

I know, I know, that people are going to tell me "be patient", but I really think that this organization is handling these college players right. Hughes' story is a little different. He's had mediocre (at best) numbers throughout the minor leagues, but he has really turned it on this season which is a fine cause for the team waiting on him. However, the team continues to have guys like Tommy Watkins, Garrett Jones, Sergio Santos, and Chris Basak who provide veteran presence, but no future to this organization. The primary objective of the minor league system is to develop players and then win.

I am appalled at how a guy like Chris Basak is continuing to start everyday in Rochester, when he offers really nothing to that team or the organization. However, there are guys in New Britain who are tearing the cover off the ball, but they won't be considered yet.

There will be moves in the next few weeks after the draft (which is today), as many teams (not just the Twins) wait until then to move a lot of their players around. However, many teams do not career minor leaguers block their up and coming prospects either. I'm not a fan at how quickly some teams like the Mets promote their players, however if the player has the hot bat/arm, you need to keep the bus moving. Especially when the player was selected out of college and really does not have a lot to benefit from staying on that team much longer. I don't want to say that Danny Valencia has nothing to learn from being in the pitching tough FSL, but I think he's proven to everyone that he has the talent to be promoted and keeping him there really is hurting him just as much as it is helping him.

These players are human too, and every human wants to be rewarded for doing something good. However, the Twins are treating these guys like they are children and they won't give the kid a lollipop until he brings home 100 A+'s opposed to 50. I know many disagree with me on being more aggressive with some prospects opposed to others, but I guess I'm just impatient and would like to see these make an impact in the majors sooner rather than later.

Sorry for the rant, it's just something I've felt strongly about for a while and I think the way this team has handled college players is ludicrous.

• As I mentioned, the MLB draft is today and last week I mentioned a few players that really intrigued me in the draft. I got a few emails and responses from people telling me basically that I'm "high" if I think that guys like Smoak, Beckham or Crow would be available for the Twins. And so I want to clear something up I guess. I know the Twins are very unlikely to end up with those players, I am just intrigued by a few players (which just so happens to be those three) so much that I thought I'd give my thoughts on them despite knowing that the Twins likely won't end up with any of them.

Right now, this is how I predict the first 5 rounds of the Twins draft:

First Round
14. Brett Lawrie, INF, High School (Canada)
27. Jemile Weeks, 2B, College (Miami)

Compensatory Round A Picks
31. Destin Hood, SS/OF, High School (St. Paul's Academy, Alabama)

Second Round
60. Brad Hand, LHP, High School (Chaska High School, Minnesota)

Third Round
92. Harold Martinez, 3B/SS, High School (Braddock High School, Florida)

Fourth Round
126. Jake Thompson, RHP, College (Virginia)

Fifth Round
156. Trey Haley, RHP, High School (Central Heights High School, Texas)

I mentioned Hood, Martinez and Hand as players that intrigue me, and I think they intrigue the Twins as well.

We'll start out with Lawrie... He's a Canadian catcher who many feel will switch to third base as a pro. He's athletic and has a great bat. He has a lot of raw power, which last years draftee (and also a catcher) Danny Rams has as well. He's a High School hitter, which this team has gone after early in many of their past drafts.

Weeks is a college hitter who is the brother of Rickie Weeks of the Brewers. This weeks has power, but likely is more so of a gap hitter than a home run hitter as he's just 5'9'' and a buck 80. He's good defensively and scouts think he'll move quickly through any system.

This is what I had to say about Hood, Hand, and Martinez last week:

Hood is not a guy that has been projected to go high in the draft, but that's mainly because of his signability. He's currently committed to going to Alabama to play wide receiver, which may bring the Twins deja vu all over again, which is something that was the same with a former draftee Jared Mitchel who now is a wide receiver for the LSU Tigers. Hood has fantastic power potential and is a very "toolsy" player, but the team that drafts him will need to make sure they can sign him if they want to take him high. With the amount of money the Twins recently freed up with shedding Torii Hunter, Carlos Silva and Johan Santana's salaries, Hood is the kind of player the team should not be afraid to draft. I think picking him in the 2nd round would be perfect.

Hand is a Minnesota native from Chaska, throws in the mid-90's and is a left-handed pitcher. There's plenty of reasons why the Twins would be interested in Hand. Not only does he have a mid 90's fastball, he also possesses one of the best curve balls in the high school ranks and could be a very good pitcher with some work on his mechanics. I think he's worthy of being chosen in the first 5 rounds of the draft, but if the Twins want him, I think they'll take him early.

Martinez has quite possibly the most potential in this draft, but he has not been living up to expectations his senior year in High School. He also projects as a tough player to sign as he's set to go to the University of Miami, and is from Miami himself. He has a great athletic body, and certainly looks as if he has major league baseball all over him, but he does have some risk as he is raw and needs to work on every aspect of his game.

Thompson is a 6'6'' right-hander from the University of Virginia who posses three quality pitches in a fastball, curveball, and changeup repertoire. He is a ground ball pitcher who's sinking fastball reaches into the low 90's.

Haley is a 6'4'' High School right-hander from Texas. He's committed to play at Rice, which is why he will slip in the draft, but his fastball reaches in the mid-90's and he has great movement on his pitches. Haley could be a gem in this draft.

Tuesday's Game Ball
Joe Mauer - Catcher
Line: 2-3, RBI double, BB
Box Score

Wednesday's Game Ball
Joe Mauer - Catcher
Line: 2-3, home run, 3 RBI
Box Score

Twins split Yankee Series

• The Twins split the series with the New York Yankees. After loosing the first two, the Twins took the last two games to build momentum for their next series which is against the Orioles. The Twins had great performances throughout the series from two of their struggling outfielders, Michael Cuddyer and Delmon Young. Young had two three-hit games, and raised his average from .258 to .273. He didn't hit a home run, but he had 4 doubles, including three 1-run doubles on Monday. Young looks to be getting more comfortable at the plate, but he still has to prove that he can maintain a solid bat for more than just one series.

I don't think that Young needs to necessarily pull the ball, because his approach is and has been to hit the ball to right field, even though he has pull power in batting practice. As much as it'd be nice to see him start hitting it more to left field, it's not the way he's played the game, and I don't think it'd be a wise move to change a 22-year-olds approach at the plate. He will turn it around at some point, the Twins just need to be patient, which they have been.

Another player they are needing to be patient with is Michael Cuddyer, who also had a great series. Dick Bremer and Bert Blyleven have continued to mention that Cuddyer just needs a "big series" for him to get going, well this may be that series. Cuddyer went 9-18 with 5 runs, a double, triple, home run and 6 RBI. Now along with the K.C. series, Cuddyer is 13/34 (.382) with 9 RBI. Cuddyer's bat is crucial for this offense and if he can start heating up and the rest of the team performs the way they have been, I have high hopes for this team.

Friday's Game Ball
Justin Morneau - First Base
Note: Morneau went 2-4 with his team-leading 41st RBI which came off of his 10th home run of the season. He has had a great first two months for the 3rd season in a row. When he won MVP in 2006, he was hitting .240/.302/.469 but had 11 home runs with 38 RBI's through June 2nd. In 2007, Morneau got off to a much better start hitting .288/.366/.582 with 14 home runs with 43 RBI's before falling off after the All-Star break. And now this season, Morneau is hitting much like he did last season, so far he's .303/.373/.500 with 10 home runs and 41 RBI's. The key for Morneau will be to see if he can maintain this throughout the course of an entire season. It's something he's yet to do, and at 27-years-old he's getting into the "prime years" of his baseball career. Box Score.

Saturday's Game Ball
Alexi Casilla - Second Base
Note: Casilla has been the offensive (and defensive) catalyst this team is looking for all season. He just seems to be doing everything right. He's playing very good defense, he's running the bases well, and he's having fantastic at bats. Casilla went 1-3 with an RBI, a stolen base, two runs and 3 walks. Casilla is working into 3-ball counts often and is not giving into the pitcher at all. I don't expect him to keep this up, but he certainly deserves to be playing everyday right now and it looks like he'll be in the starting lineup for the foreseeable future. Box Score.

Sunday's Game Ball
Michael Cuddyer - Right Field
Note: Cuddyer turned in his second multi-hit game in a row and his third 3-hit game within the week. Cuddyer got the Twins on the board in the first inning with a two-run single, and then later he drove in Mike Redmond for the second time in the game with an RBI triple. The 3-RBI's now give him 25 on the season. Box Score.

Monday's Game Ball
Delmon Young - Left Field
Note: Delmon Young has had problems with power so far this season, and before yesterday's game he ranked in as 6th on the team with just 7 doubles, but after a 3-4 performance with 3 doubles, he now has 10 which is good enough for 2nd on the team. In just yesterday's performance, his OPS jumped .29 points and over the past 3 games it jumped .41 points. Although all of his hits were to right field, he is definitely making better contact on the ball and it's very encouraging to see him hitting well as of late. Box Score.

• Although the Twins split the series, this was definitely an encouraging four-games for the Twins. The reason is that the two loses came on just one-run differentials, one of which was settled in 12 innings. The Twins played strong from start to finish, and it was definitely a good series for the offense.

However the pitching, which has been strong as of late, was not great and they really struggled. Glen Perkins, Boof Bonser and Livan Hernandez were all terrible and Nick Blackburn's start was cut short due to an injury. The four combined to go 0-2 with a 5.58 ERA. If it weren't for Blackburn giving up just one run over 4 1/3 innings, the three would have had an ERA of 6.60.

I should not say that all the pitching was "not great" as the offense allowed just 3 runs over 19 2/3 innings. 19 2/3 innings in a 4-game stretch is a lot of work, especially against the Yankees, and so the relievers were the unsung hero's of this series. The Twins used all 7 of their relievers throughout the series, including Brian Bass three games, Matt Guerrier three games, Dennys Reyes three games, and Joe Nathan three games. So I think it's safe to say that the Twins' bullpen is definitely beat up right now.

• This is the reason for the Twins to carry 13 pitchers when Scott Baker returns from the D.L. on Thursday, the Twins made the announcement that Boof Bonser will be moved to the bullpen to make room for Baker in the rotation. And with that move, the Twins seem inclined to carry 13 pitchers for at least the next few weeks as the team plays 20 games in 20 days and 45 with just three off days before the All-Star game (we are 7 games into 20 consecutive games).

After starting out 2-4 with a 3.75 ERA in his first 6 starts (all in April), Bonser went 0-2 with an 8.60 ERA over his next 6 starts (all in May). Bonser's move to the bullpen does not appear to be permanent, but he needs to prove that he is not prone to giving up a big inning and needs to work on his control.

Baker has been on the D.L. since May 4th with strained right groin that he re-aggravated on May 3rd in Detroit. Before his injury, Baker was pitching well going 2-0 with a 4.09 ERA in 6 starts. Right now, the long-term goal for Baker is to just stay healthy as he's had a career chalked-full of injuries. Baker is set to face the Orioles at the dome on Thursday afternoon.

• Nick Punto returned from the D.L. on Saturday and went 1-4 with an RBI, but he "tweaked" his injured hamstring after playing all 12 innings of the game. He was scratched from Sunday's lineup, made a pinch hit appearance yesterday, and the team is hoping he'll be ready to go tonight for the first game of the Twins-Orioles series.

Punto does not have a great bat, and he never will, but his defense is much better than that of Brendan Harris and right now Harris' bat isn't much better than Punto's. The Twins look set on starting Nick Punto at shortstop and making Harris their utility infielder for the time being. With the Twins likely sending Matt Macri down to make room for Scott Baker, Harris will be the teams backup third baseman as well as shortstop and second baseman. This move was going to be made a couple weeks ago, and at that time Matt Tolbert was going to play everyday (instead of Casilla), but with Tolbert injured and Punto going down with an injury, the team had to put the move off until now.

Harris has been a big disappointment this season, as many had high hopes for him after he hit .286/.343/.434 with 12 home runs 59 RBI's through 521 at bats last season. It was his first season as an everyday player, and many thought he'd build off of that and become a great offensive player for the Twins. He has never had great defense, but many thought the move to second base would make him at least serviceable, but with him not hitting the ball well and playing bad defense, he probably needs to be moved to the bench for a little while.

• Nick Blackburn was hit in the face off of a line drive by Bobby Abreu on Sunday. The 26-year-old rookie had a bloody nose, but after x-rays turned out negative, it looks like he'll be fine with just a fat lip, bruised nose and probably shaky confidence. Blackburn got a very small tip of his glove on the ball which slowed it down quite a bit, which possibly saved him from making a trip to the D.L.



The biggest problem for Blackburn is going to be how he's effected on the mound next time up. After getting hit, especially in the face, many pitcher's have a big hit to their confidence and hopefully Blackburn is not effected by it. However even at 26-years-old, he is a rookie and he has had problems with his confidence already this season, so I won't be surprised to see him flinch quite a bit after facing a live hitter. He's not expected to miss any time and is scheduled to start on Friday when the Twins face the division-leading White Sox in Chicago.

• The Twins Minor League Affiliates combined to go 66-53 in the month of May, but that is because the Beloit Snappers and Ft. Myers Miracle combined to go 41-17 while the Rochester Red Wings and New Britain Rock Cats went 25-36. Here are the top performers for the month of May:

Rochester Red Wings
Darnell McDonald - 29 - Outfielder

May: .322/.388/.621, 7 2B, 2 3B, 5 HR, 20 RBI

McDonald has been one of the only bright spots in the Red Wings offense this season. McDonald did not have a great 2007 season in Rochester, but he is having a fantastic season so far in '08 and he looks like he may be an option for the Twins if they ever need an outfielder this season. McDonald, along with Denard Span, Brian Buscher and Jose Morales are carrying the Red Wings this season, but with Span out, McDonald has risen to the opportunity to make a case for himself as a possible promotion. Honorable Mention: Jose Morales.

New Britain Rock Cats
Steven Tolleson - 23 - Second Base/Shortstop

May: .375/.460/.563, 10 2B, 1 3B, 2 HR, 21 RBI

Tolleson looks to be solidifying himself into one of the top middle infield prospects in the system, possibly making himself a top 15 prospect with a great start to the season. He is playing solid defense and is getting on base at a very high average. Since he's a college hitter, he may find his way up to Rochester before the end of the season. Honorable Mention: Erik Lis.

Ft. Myers Miracle
Danny Valencia - 23 - Third Base

May: .402/.431/.663, 12 2B, 3 3B, 2 HR, 25 RBI

Valencia is making his case of being the Twins top offensive prospect in the system, after hitting for both average and power this season. In his second go-around in Ft. Myers, Valencia is having a tremendous season and looks to be a lock for a promotion within the next couple of weeks. Honorable Mention: Jeff Manship.

Beloit Snappers

Ben Revere - 20 - Center Field

May: .433/.469/.633, 11 2B, 5 3B, 1 HR, 18 RBI

Revere has emerged as one of the best young players in the Twins system, and looks to be making a case as being the team's top prospect overall. At just 20-years-old, Revere looks to have a few more years before he's ready to make an impact on the Twins, but as a first-round draft pick should, he's raising eyebrows early. Revere looks to have past both 2006 top draft picks, Joe Benson and Chris Parmelee in terms of being ready to be promoted to Ft. Myers. But as much as I'd like to see him promoted to Ft. Myers, I know that it's unlikely for the Twins to move a young player like Revere even though he's now hitting .420 on the season. One month is not enough for the Twins to make a move with Revere, but I think that we could very well see him with the Miracle before the end of the season. Honorable Mention: David Bromberg.

Young Pitchers Stepping Up

• Kevin Slowey was the second Twins starter in the series to go for the complete game shutout bid. Only this one did not end up nearly as bad as Nick Blackburn's ended on Tuesday. Slowey did not finish with a shutout, like Blackburn, but Slowey did finish to get the complete game. Alex Gordon's double with two-outs in the bottom of the ninth put the Royals on the board and the game finished with a 5-1 score.

Slowey, Blackburn and Glen Perkins are all in their mid-20's, and all are the anchors of the Minnesota Twins rotation. The three have a combined 8-8 record and a 3.26 ERA in 21 starts this season. The rest of the starters are a combined 10-11 with a 5.41 ERA in 32 starts this season. That list includes Scott Baker, Boof Bonser, Livan Hernandez and Francisco Liriano.

In their last 9 combined starts (since May 15th), the three young starters are 5-2 with a 2.03 ERA. They have all stepped it up and at the perfect time. With the Detroit Tigers and Cleveland Indians still struggling, the Minnesota Twins now sit just 2 games behind the division leading Chicgao White Sox and 4 games ahead of the 3rd place Indians. The offense hasn't been horrible this season, averaging just over 4.6 runs per game, but the Twins rotation has been absolutely stellar thus far and thanks to these young three Twins fans have a lot to look forward to the rest of the season. And in reference, the Twins averaged 4.3 runs per game last season.

(From left to right: Perkins, Blackburn, Slowey)

The reason for their success has been simple, they've all showcased superb control. The three have a 3.71 K/BB ratio and all have been throwing a very high percantage of their pitches for strikes. They all are having great success of getting in front of the hitters early with an 0-1 or 0-2 count and because of that they've been able to keep their pitch counts fairly low. The Twins biggest problem coming into the season was to find a replacement for Johan Santana, but the Twins so far have found 3 pitchers that look like they could take the mound under any circumstance and pitch a good game.

It's very early in the season, and I'm not saying that they are All-Stars, but they definitely have all succeeded and they have not given us any suggestions that this is just a fluke. Perkins has had limited success in the majors as a reliever, Slowey was the Twins Minor League Pitcher of the Year in 2007, and Nick Blackburn was named the Twins #1 prospect heading into the season by BaseballAmerica.com. Obviously it is not a surprise that these guys are having success, but I don't think anyone thought they'd contribute this much this early. If these three can keep this up for a while, the Twins have a good shot of contending this season.

• Game Ball
Kevin Slowey - Starting Pitcher
Line: CG, 6 hits, 1 run, 6 K's, win

• Carlos Gomez went 3-4 last night and raised his season average up to .293. Ron Gardenhire feels the Twins are a better team when he is in the lineup with him on that. He's not a prototypical lead-off hitter as he does not have great on-base skills, but his bat is better suited in the top of the order right now than at the bottom. When Torii Hunter stepped into the majors as an everyday player at 23-year-old, he hit .255/.309/.380 with 9 home runs and 35 RBI's while hitting at the bottom of the order. Through 198 at bats, Gomez is hitting .293/.327/.429 and has 4 home runs with 22 RBI's. He's on pace to hit 29 doubles, 10 triple,s 13 home runs, drive in 72 runs and steal 56 bases. At just 22-years-old, anything near that would be excellent and he's definitely showing that he may have been a great return for Johan Santana alone.

I'm not going to compare a 22-year-old center fielder with 318 career at bats to a 2-time A.L. Cy Young winner, but if his skills continue to develop into the player he could potentially be, and if any of the pitchers we received turn out, the Twins may walk away as winners in this trade after all. It would be great to still see Santana in a Twins uniform, but at just under $23 Million annually it would have cost the Twins to retain Santana, I don't think anyone can argue that this trade is - for the time being - in favor of the Twins. Of course, nobody will know how this trade ultimately pans out for a good 5 years or so as the players received are still so young.

• Delmon Young sat the game, which ended his "iron man" streak of consecutive games played. Now, Ryan Howard takes over the lead. Young sitting came as no surprise, he definitely has not been great at the plate and has made multiple costly mistakes in the outfield. However Jim Maddon, Young's former manager with the Rays who he clashed with on multiple occasion, gave him the bode of confidence:

"Stay with him," Tampa Bay Rays manager Joe Maddon said. "He started out slowly last year; then he catches fire. He'll catch his stride, and he'll be fine by the end of the season."

"A lot of times, Delmon is willing to take an RBI by hitting a single the other way," Maddon said of the 22-year-old. "If you watch Delmon in batting practice, he's got incredible power. Incredible. As a young hitter like him gets more acclimated to the big leagues, as he learns to work counts better, I think he's going to drive his pitch more often. I think it's as simple as that.

"He's a guy you just have to be patient with. All the bells and whistles are there, and it's going to show up."

It's great to hear this from a guy who Young played under and who he clashed heads with on multiple occasions. Young does need to start turning it on, but I don't think anyone in the organization is worried about him at all. He is such a great player that I don't see him hitting like this all year long. I don't see him as the power hitter Twins fans were hoping he'd be, but then again he's just 22-years-old and still has loads of potential.

• The MLB Amateur Baseball Draft is set for next Thursday, and so I've been catching up on a few projected picks that may be there when the Twins choose at #14 and later as well. Some are just guys that I know the Twins won't end up with but intrigue me. In no particular order:

• Harold Martinez, 3B: He has quite possibly the most potential in this draft, but he has not been living up to expectations his senior year in High School. He also projects as a tough player to sign as he's set to go to the University of Miami, and is from Miami himself. He has a great athletic body, and certainly looks as if he has major league baseball all over him, but he does have some risk as he is raw and needs to work on every aspect of his game.

• Justin Smoak, 1B: Smoak is a college player, who projects to make it to the majors quickly as he plays first base and has one of the best bats in the draft. Smoak reminds me of Chipper Jones at the plate as he has a big, smooth swing from both sides of the plate and can spray the ball to all areas of the field. He would probably be a top 5 pick in the draft if it weren't for him being constrained to playing first base. He is not a very athletic player, despite having a great baseball body, but without injuries his bat will definitely carry him to the majors. Smoak is projected to go anywhere from 5-15, but I'd be surprised if he were there for the Twins to choose. But if he's there, and unless a different player drops, I hope the Twins choose him.

• Gordon Beckham, SS: Beckham also won't likely be there, but he's another player the Twins probably have high on their board. Beckham has great instincts on both offense and defense and plays the game the 'right way' by playing aggressive and giving it his all on every play. He's another college hitter, and although the Twins have a history of going after high school hitters, he'd be a great choice for the Twins. But again, he likely won't be there, but there is a chance he drops.

• Aaron Hicks, OF: Hicks' name has been linked to the Twins the most recently, but I'm not sure he's the best pick. I like getting a 5-tool hitter as much as the next guy, but the Twins have been drafting outfielders high in the draft on multiple occasions over the past three years. In fact, the Twins selected an outfielder with their first two choices in the '06 draft, and 2 of their first 3 choices in the '07 draft. That, with the fact that the Twins already have a young set of outfielders at the major league level makes Hicks not an attractive pick to me. However, he does have a lot of potential and may end up being the most talented of the outfielders selected in recent years. He has great speed which would give the team the option of playing him in center field as well as at the corner. He has the potential to hit for both a good average while having good power and also has one of the strongest outfield arms in the draft. He's a high schooler, which means that he will likely take a good 5+ years to reach the majors, but his upside could be worth it. But still, I hope the Twins go after an infielder instead of another outfielder. But outfield depth is a big thing in the majors and there's a reasonable chance that one of the high selected draftees doesn't even make an impact in the majors, which would probably be the Twins reason for drafting him (besides him being the best available player in their minds).

• Destin Hood, SS/OF: Hood is not a guy that has been projected to go high in the draft, but that's mainly because of his signability. He's currently committed to going to Alabama to play wide receiver, which may bring the Twins deja vu all over again, which is something that was the same with a former draftee Jared Mitchel who now is a wide receiver for the LSU Tigers.


Hood has fantastic power potential and is a very "toolsy" player, but the team that drafts him will need to make sure they can sign him if they want to take him high. With the amount of money the Twins recently freed up with shedding Torii Hunter, Carlos Silva and Johan Santana's salaries, Hood is the kind of player the team should not be afraid to draft. I think picking him in the 2nd round would be perfect.

• Zach Collier, OF: Collier is another high school outfielder who's name has been linked to the Twins recently. He attended the same high school as 2006 first-round pick Chris Parmelee, but may turn out to be the better all-around player. Collier has a very athletic body and won't turn 18 until September. He has 5-tool potential and will likely be available at pick #14.

• Brandon Crawford, SS: Crawford was one of this season's draft top prospects after last season, but he's struggled at UCLA and his stock has been falling. But still, he has great potential both offensively and defensively and really just needs to gain confidence to get back to where he was. Crawford may be a "reach" at #14, but if the Twins picked him with their compensatory pick from the Angels (which the Twins received after the Angels signed Torii Hunter), he would be a solid pick.

• Aaron Crow, P: The Twins don't necessarily need a pitcher, but a team can never have too much pitching... right? Crow is the drafts top college arm, but with any college pitcher, the fear of wear and tear on their young shoulder is the cause of concern. He has great velocity on his fastball which has been clocked in the upper 90's and has drawn comparison to former Mizzou star and current Arizona Diamondbacks rookie Max Scherzer. In mock drafts, I've seen him go anywhere in the top 15.

• Justin Hand, P: Hand is a Minnesota native from Chaska, throws in the mid-90's and is a left-handed pitcher. There's plenty of reasons why the Twins would be interested in Hand. Not only does he have a mid 90's fastball, he also possesses one of the best curve balls in the high school ranks and could be a very good pitcher with some work on his mechanics. I think he's worthy of being chosen in the first 5 rounds of the draft, but if the Twins want him, I think they'll take him early.

Now, the Twins don't necessarily need to draft for need in the draft, which makes pitching a possibility. However, with the teams ability to produce strong starting pitchers even after they have been drafted after the first few rounds, the Twins most likely will continue to draft offensive talent to help bolster their fairly weak system.

• To make room on the roster for newly acquired southpaw Craig Breslow, the Twins have optioned Bobby Korecky back to Rochester where he will resume the closer role. Korecky had several strong performances including the unforgettable game against the Texas Rangers when he went 1 2/3 innings to pick up the win, and even contributed by going 1-1 at the plate when he was forced to hit. Korecky will likely be back in Minnesota at some point in the near future.

• Michael Cuddyer and Joe Mauer are not going to shave their faces until they hit a home run. Cuddyer has been stuck at one while Mauer has not hit one yet. The Twins are counting on both to hit for more power, although fans know that Mauer likely will never be the power threat his body suggests he should be and Cuddyer is probably only good for 15-20. But with the way both have swung the bat this season, they may look like Gandolf from Lord of the Rings before they hit home runs.


This is Mauer in 2007 sporting a beard.

• Congrats to Danny Valencia, Brian Dinkelman, Anthony Slama, Rob Delaney and Jeff Manship for all being named to the Florida State League All-Star Game. All five are likely to be in New Britain by season's end. Rene Tosoni was elected, but due to a broken foot he won't be able to play. The game will be played on June 14th.

Twins claim reliever

According to Joe Christensen, the Minnesota Twins made a move today that will help bolster their bullpen. Craig Breslow was claimed off of waivers from the Cleveland Indians organization 6 days after they designated him for assignment. Since being drafted in the 26th round of the 2002 draft, Breslow has spent time with the Brewers, Padres, Red Sox, Indians and now the Twins. The 27-year-old will couple with Dennys Reyes as a left-handed reliever in the bullpen and will give the Twins another option against tough left-handed hitters.

Breslow's numbers aren't great, but he does have limited success in the Majors. He made it to the majors with the Padres as a 24-year-old back in 2005, then in 2006 with the Red Sox and after spending all of 2007 in the minors, the Indians picked him up last off-season and he only made 7 appearances before being released.

Breslow has had problems with his control in the majors, but he averaged 3.63 BB/9 innings in the minors. His fastball sits in the upper 80's and adds an slow curveball, a changeup and a slider. Despite not having great velocity, Breslow had a 9.84 K/9 ratio in the minors.


To make room on the 40-man roster, the Twins transferred Pat Neshek to the 60-day D.L. and to make room on the 25-man roster, the Twins will likely be shedding a reliever. Bobby Korecky has pitched alright since his promotion, but he may be the best bet. I say this because the two other likely options are Boof Bonser and Brian Bass, and Bonser is set to start against the Yankees this weekend and Brian Bass (as well as Bonser) will have to clear waivers if the Twins hope to hold onto him in the organization.

This raises an eyebrow as to what the Twins are going to do when Scott Baker returns from the D.L. It could mean either Bonser or Bass are DFA'd which would place them on waivers, they may send either Kevin Slowey, Nick Blackurn or Glen Perkins down to Rochester (however I'm sure neither Blackburn or Perkins are even considered for that right now), or they could just be acquiring Breslow for this weekend's series against the Yankees and may release him when Baker comes back. The reason I don't feel it's the latter option is because that's not how the Twins generally operate. The club may also be setting up for an unexpected move such as releasing Juan Rincon, which may please many Twins fans. Livan Hernandez's name has come up recently in trade rumors, but I'd be very surprised to see the Twins trade him right now.

We'll find out sooner or later.

Twins make big comeback

• Like Joe Christensen said, it certainly was 'A tale of two games.' One night after the team just absolutely collapsed (despite getting the win), the Twins made a big comeback for quite possibly the teams best effort of the season.

The game needed to be settled in extra-innings for the second night in a row, but this time it was for a good reason. Down by 5 runs with two outs in the top of the ninth, the Twins scored two runs on RBI singles by Mike Lamb and Carlos Gomez before Craig Monroe came on to pinch hit and delivered with a 3-run home run to left field to tie the game up. Justin Morneau then went deep in the top of the 10th inning to put the Twins up 9-8 and that's how it finished.

It certainly was a great game for the team after the intense ninth inning of Tuesday's game in which Delmon Young's decision to dive instead of play the hop nearly cost the twins the victory after Nick Blackburn's incredible performance.

• Last Nights Game Ball
Mike Lamb - Third Base
Line: 3-4, 2 runs, 2 RBI

• Delmon Young has been terrible since the Colorado series in which he went 7-12 with 3 doubles and a triple. Since then, he's gone 4-33 with 2 triples and 2 RBI's. It's really frustrating watching him both on offense and on defense right now. Last night he misplayed a fly ball which ended up costing the Twins a run. He was charged with his first two errors of the season, but one of which I blame both Mike Lamb and Livan Hernandez for more than I do Young. In fact, I don't think Young did a single thing wrong while he threw the ball in and both Lamb and Hernandez just did not cut it off. Hernandez, and the other pitchers look like they'll be getting fielding practice once they return to the Cities. One positive for Young during his last 9 games though have been his ability to draw walks. He has 8 walks opposed to just 5 strikeouts and appears to be more disciplined at the plate more than ever. However, he continues to still slap the ball the other way and he needs to start pulling them. He also needs to stop swinging for a home run every first pitch as it's obviously not working. I'm still confident that he will turn it around, but it may be time for MLB's current "Iron Man" to take a day's rest and gather himself. It's sad that he's played in 52 games and has just 14 RBI's when the light-hitting Alexi Casilla has played in just 12 and now has 12 RBI's on the season. He has already surpassed last seasons RBI total despite playing in 44 fewer games. Young needs to turn it around, and he needs to do it soon. The Twins have shown plenty of confidence in him so far, and he needs to start producing.

• After going 3-4 last night, Mike Lamb is now hitting .407 (11/27) over his last 7 games and has a double, triple, home run along with 5 RBI's. He's increased his average from .218-.252 and has been just absolutely tremendous. It's finally starting to look like he's turned the corner and is ready to start showing that he's worth the money the Twins spent on him this off-season.

• Jesse Crain lowered his ERA to 2.53 in May and picked up his third win of the season and second in consecutive games. Crain still has been hurting the team as much as helping them as he's on several occasions put the next reliever in a tough situation after putting multiple players on base, but that has to do with his lack of control and I think that he's been a great surprise this season after coming back from rotator cuff & labrum surgery on his right shoulder. And really, I know he's been hard to watch on several occasions, but being that I expected next to nothing from him, it's been great to see him have good numbers this season.

• It looks like Nick Punto is ready to return from the D.L. and unfortunately, it looks like Matt Macri is the likeliest of options to be sent back down. I say it's unfortunate because with the strong play of Lamb, Brendan Harris and Casilla, he has not been able to crack the lineup besides a game in Detroit. Howie Clark is another option to be sent down, but he will need to clear waivers before being able to rejoin the Red Wings, which is why I believe the team will be sending Macri down. It's bitter sweet because obviously I love the way our infielders have been playing, but I really wanted to get a better look at Macri, and his opportunity looks to be diminishing.

• Last night, Livan Hernandez looked very poor out on the mound at times and great at others. Unfortunately, he turned in his second poor performance in a row which has now raised his ERA .72 points and he may start settling into the pitcher the Twins expected to see. He is still a good source of innings, but I don't believe anyone expected to see him with a sub 4.00 ERA this season and I think the Twins will start seeing more and more sluggish performances by Hernandez as the season goes on. Charley Walters believes the Twins should explore trading him sometime soon as his trade value looks to be the highest it's going to get right now, but I don't think the Twins would get much if anything for him right now, and if they really wanted to explore a trade for him, they should wait until closer to the deadline. The reason for that is because contending teams may overpay for an inning-eating veteran and the Twins may end up with a solid young player in return. Of course, if the Twins are in contention, I don't see them even considering trading him. But then again, it's a new 'regime' in the front office and Bill Smith has already shown that he's not afraid of pulling the trigger if he feels it's the right deal.

• With Hernandez now seemingly struggling on the mound, I believe he has moved down the Twins "power rankings" for starting pitchers. Mine go as followed:

1. Nick Blackburn
2. Livan Hernandez
3. Glen Perkins
4. Kevin Slowey
5. Boof Bonser

Scott Baker would be 5th, but he's been on the DL since May 3rd. Everyone believes that unless Bonser turns in an absolutely stellar game against the Yankees (which would be a very tough task without this kind of pressure), then he'll be heading to the bullpen. Of course, nothing is set in stone, but with the way Perkins has pitched, I'd be very upset if he were demoted to either Rochester or the pen for the sake of keeping Bonser in the rotation. Slowey is another option, but really sending him to Rochester would be pointless as he's proven time and time again with dominating performance against I.L. league hitters. Unless Bonser really shows up against the Yankees he's done, of course it may not matter one way or another if Ron Gardenhire already has his mind made up.

• Last night, the Twins Minor League Affiliates all got great outings by their starting pitchers. Danny Graves (Rochester), Ryan Mullins (New Britain) and Jeff Manship (Ft. Myers) were all credited with wins while Arias Santos was not part of the decision. The 4 starters combined to go 26 2/3 innings and had a 1.01 ERA. Mullins, Manship and Santos did not give up an earned run (although Mullins gave up two unearned runs), but Graves was hit for 3 runs and was just one out away from picking up a quality start.

• Randy Ruiz had two hits again last night to bring his average up to .273 on the season. He is now hitting .366 his last 10 games and hit .615 (8-13) in the series against the Charlotte Knights. The Red Wings swept the series and won three games in a row for the first time this season. This is just the 3rd time this season the Red Wings have won 2 or more games in a row. The team has lost 2 or more games in a row 9 times including losing streaks of 7 and 5 games.

• Erik Lis went 2-3 last night and raised his season average up to .292. Despite hitting just .265 over his last 10 games, Lis is now hitting .379 in the month of May and looks to be adjusting to the Eastern League just fine. Lis will continue to climb prospect lists this season and may get a few at bats in Rochester by seasons end. Lis has great gap power and has legitimate home run power. If the team is in need of a left-handed DH in the next couple years, Lis may fill that role nicely.

• Danny Valencia's triple in the 5th inning of last nights game was his 3rd of the season. Valencia is definitely in line for a call up after spending nearly an entire year in the unfriendly Florida State League. Valencia is hitting .444 over his last 10 games and .418 in May. His average is up to .347 and despite missing a few games with a hand injury, he is just 1 RBI behind the league leader who has 21 more at bats. Ed Ovalle is another Miracle batter who may be in line for a call up after hitting .302 with 4 doubles, 6 triples, and 4 home runs in 159 at bats this season. Ovalle has really turned it on recently and now has a 10 game hitting streak and has raised his average .37 points in that time frame.

• Before going 0-3 last night, Joe Benson was hitting .306 over his previous 10 games and had 5 runs, 4 doubles, a home runs, 8 RBI's and 4 stolen bases in that span. Benson still has terrible plate discipline, but he looks to be making slight adjustments at the plate. Neither Benson or Parmelee have been great this season, but both may be called up if there is room in Ft. Myers. I just don't see them staying in Beloit all season. Either way, despite their averages (which is correlated with their terrible K/BB ratio), both have been alright this season with OPS' of .759 for Benson and .859 for Parmelee. Both need to cut down on their strikeout totals if they want to really be great prospects. But both still have plenty of potential and will be figured into the systems plans for a long time.

• Make sure to check out "Diana's Mailbag" over at Rookie Whites, it has great updates on several intriguing Twins prospects in Extended Spring Training and she gives us a look at who's expected to be in Elizabethton when the defending Appalachian League Champions open their season on June 17th.

• Seth Stohs celebrates his 5th Anniversary of "Seth Speaks" today, and it's definitely deserving of high praise. Seth has been one of the most well-known Twins bloggers on the internet since he started and it's been all for great reasons. He offers non-biased views of not only the Twins, but also their minor league affiliates. I know many have been to his sight as the majority of my sites traffic is from his site, and I'd just personally like to thank Seth for all that he gives to Twins fans like myself and others. Without him (and in all honesty), you probably would not be reading this from me and I'm sure many would not have such great knowledge of the Twins system without his site. Thank you, Seth! (I figured I can try to repay you by making this entire section linked to you since I receive so much of my traffic through your site, although I'm aware it will never be enough).

Is Kubel our "Mr. Clutch?"

• Sorry I've been MIA over the last few days, it was a busy Memorial Day Weekend. The Twins went 2-1 against the Tigers, and they did it despite being outscored 18-24. The reason for the large score by the Tigers is because of a 19-3 shalacking on Saturday. But on Sunday, the Twins came back and the third game just like they did in the first game, on great pitching.

Jason Kubel continues to be a very "clutch" hitter for the Twins. On Sunday, the "Birthday Boy" broke a 1-1 tie in the 8th by hitting his 4th grand slam of his career. Probably his most memorable ame in 2006 against the Boston Red Sox which was a walk-off Grand Slam to give the Twins the victory (I was at the game, which is why I remember it), although this one was every bit as important.

Kubel's career numbers have not been spectacular. He's a career .263/.316/.428 with 29 home runs in 843 career at bats at the major league level. It's definitely a different line from what the Twins expected after he hit .320/.385/.499 with 108 doubles, 20 triples, and 49 home runs in 1,654 at bats. He also had much better plate discipline than he's so far shown in the majors. He without a doubt was one of the best young hitters to come through the Twins system in recent memory, but due to a devastating knee injury in the Fall of 2004, Kubel has struggled to get back on track after missing all of the 2005 season.

Kubel may not have shown that he has what it takes to be an every day player, but he is definitely making himself known as a good hitter when the pressure is on. He's a career .288 hitter with runners on base, a career .296 hitter with runners in scoring position, a career .319 hitter with RISP and two outs, and he's a career .471 hitter with the bases loaded. Sure, those numbers are not astonishing, but he definitely looks to be a lot better when there is pressure on him then when there isn't. He and Michael Cuddyer are now tied with the team lead with 4 grand slam in their careers.

Kubel's numbers this season look a lot worse than they are. Many predicted him to break out this season, and a .255/.295/.428 line definitely would not warrant any optimism at this point. However, he has really made solid contact on quite a few of his hits and seems to be driving the ball well. Sure it means nothing when they're being caught, but I for one am not ready to push the panic button on Kubel receiving most of the at bats as the DH.

(All of Kubel's stats were prior to yesterday's game.)

Here are a few notes from the series:

• Kevin Slowey pitched a great game on Friday. He went 6 innings and gave up 0 runs on 4 hits. However, his control was not his strong part in the game and ended up walking 4 batters, very uncharacteristically of Slowey. It was his best outing of the season, and he lowered his ERA from 5.49 to 4.21 in the outing and picked up his first win of the season.

• Both Boof Bonser and Brian Bass were knocked for a combined 16 runs in just 4 1/3 innings on Saturday. Although Bass was horrible, the real concern centers around Boof Bonser who is now 0-2 with a 9.59 ERA over his last 5. It's so surprising because he was great in April as he was 2-4 with a 3.75 ERA, but in May he's just been horrible. It now sounds like Bonser may be a candidate for the bullpen as the other starters are definitely pitching better than him.

• Glen Perkins continues to pitch well since his promotion. On Sunday, Perkins went 7 1/3 innings of 1 run ball and continued to get ahead of nearly every hitter he faced. In just his fourth major league start, Perkins improved to 2-1 with a 2.66 ERA. It's hard to believe that possibly our two best pitchers right now are guys that weren't figuring to even start in the rotation before the season. Now both Perkins and Nick Blackburn look like they could very well be important pieces to our rotation.

• Mike Lamb looks like he may be ready to break out of his season-long slump. He had a great series against the Tigers as he went 5-7 with 4 runs scored, a double, triple, and his first home run. Lamb signed a 2-year $6.6 million deal before the season to hopefully be a consistent hitter in the Twins lineup before a prospect was ready to take over at that position hopefully within the next year or two. And up until now, he looks to have been a major disappointment. Hopefully he keeps this up and proves to be a wise investment for the low-spending Twins.

• Alexi Casilla has been a great spark plug for this team so far since his promotion. If it weren't for Adam Everett's injury, we might have missed out on seeing Casilla shining for us over the last week or so. He won't continue to hit for power, which he's showcased now with two home runs, but he should get better on defense while getting more comfortable at the plate. Although Gardenhire has had mixed feelings on whether to play him at shortstop or second, and it may be the best move to move him to shortstop because of his strong arm and range, it looks like he may be at second for a while as Brendan Harris has really looked much more comfortable at shortstop opposed to second base. Hopefully Casilla can keep it up, but it's definitely encouraging to see him hit well after he struggled mightily in Rochester before his call-up.

• Matt Macri made his first Major League appearance on Saturday, starting for Mike Lamb at third base and had quite a debut. He went 2-3 with two singles. He also drove in a run, scored a run, walked, struck out, and stole a base. He got a little taste of everything and I was really impressed with him. He (like Casilla) was also struggling at Rochester hitting just .263/.324/.434 with 13 extra base hits in 99 at bats. He was injured for a few weeks, but came back and had two multi-hit games in his last 3 before his called up.

Here's how the rest of the lineup did:

• Alexi Casilla: 3-12, 1 run, home run, 4 RBI, 2 walks
• Howie Clark: 0-1, K
• Michael Cuddyer: 2-10, 1 run, 1 RBI, 3 walks
• Carlos Gomez: 3-15, 2 runs, 1 RBI, stolen base, walk
• Brendan Harris: 2-13, 1 run, 2 RBI
• Jason Kubel: 3-8, 2 runs, 4 RBI, walk
• Joe Mauer: 4-10, 2 runs, 1 RBI, 4 walks
• Craig Monroe: 0-4
• Justin Morneau: 4-12, 2 runs, 2 doubles, 2 RBI, walk
• Mike Redmond: 1-1
• Delmon Young: 1-9, 2 runs, 4 walks

Game Balls

Friday
Mike Lamb - Third Base
Line: 2-3, 4 runs, triple, home run, 1 RBI, 2 walks

Saturday
Matt Macri - Third Base
Line: 2-3, run, RBI, walk

Sunday
Glen Perkins - Starting Pitcher
Line: 7 1/3 innings pitched, 7 hits, 1 run, 2 walks, 4 K's, win

Notes

• Former Twins farmhand Luis Maza was recalled by the Dodgers on May 12th after hitting .402/.468/.528 in 127 at bats in the Pacific Coast League. On Saturday, the Dodgers recalled another former Twins farmhand when they placed Andruw Jones on the D.L. They recalled Terry Tiffee who spent 7 seasons in the Twins organization after being drafted in the 26th round of the 1999 draft. He was hitting .422/.464/.609 with 24 doubles and 4 home runs in 192 at bats in the PCL. The Dodgers plan on using him not only at first and third base, but also in left and right field if needed.

• Speaking of former farmhands being promoted, Alex Romero was recalled by the Diamondbacks yesterday after they placed Eric Byrnes on the D.L. Romero was waived by the Twins prior to the 2007 season so the team could keep Chris Heintz on the 40-man roster. Obviously he was claimed off of waivers and has been a great player for the Diamondback organization ever since. Many had a problem when the Twins made that move, and this will obviously make some fans upset to see. He was hitting .331/.374/.438 in 130 at bats in the PCL. Although his minor league numbers have been strong, he does not figure to be much more than a #4 outfielder, especially in the Diamondback organization which has many young outfielders on the depth chart.

• Here's a humorous story about a young 22-year-old center fielder and his Milk Duds.

• It looks like Nick Punto won't return to the Twins roster until Saturday at the earliest. Punto has been out since May 8th when he strained his hamstring against the White Sox. In that game, Punto went 2-5 with a double, triple, 2 runs and 5 RBI. He probably could be back with the Twins earlier than Saturday, but his wife is scheduled to give birth on Friday so the Twins will decide to hold off on reinstating him. It's not known who he will replace on the roster, but my guess is Matt Macri despite playing well in his only game thus far.

• Although it's early, Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau are the only position players who look to have a shot at going to the All-Star Game.

Twins-Royals Thoughts

This game turned from excellent to horrifying in the span of about 3 minutes. Nick Blackburn was cruising through the entire game and with a 3-0 lead was given the opportunity to pitch the ninth for the complete game shutout. But after hitting Alex Gordon in the foot and then a single by Miguel Olivo, Joe Nathan came into the game to try and relieve Blackburn and pick up his 13th save in as many opportunities this season. The next batter, Mark Teahen hit a ball down the left field line and just out of the reach of the diving Delmon Young. The ball hit the wall in foul territory and bounced to the fence in left field. Young came up firing but Teahen was safe by a mile and tied the game up with a 3-run inside-the-park home run.

After the inning, it looked as if Young was trying to console Nathan and looked to try and basically say "it's my fault", but Nathan ignored the 22-year-old and instead decided to pout on the bench. Of course I don't know the whole story, but Nathan is 33 going on 34 and Young is 22 going on 23. If Nathan can't understand that it was a tough play and a well hit ball then I think that's pretty childish of him to ignore Young who is trying to turn his reputation around. I admire Young trying to make the play, and he knows he should have just played it safe, but I think there's no reason for a clubhouse leader like Nathan to give Young the cold shoulder when he tried to take the blame. It was really disappointing to see that happen, but he's a 22-year-old who let his instincts take over, I'm sure that has happened to Nathan. I'm not going to get too much into this because (like I mentioned, I don't know the whole story), but in my interpretation, that is what I saw and I think Nathan should have shown more maturity.

Blackburn tried to return what K.C.'s starter Brian Bannister did to the Twins in April, which was pitch a complete game, but unfortunately it didn't happen and despite pitching a great game, Blackburn was not part of the decision. Blackburn's line was 8 1/3 innings, 8 hits, 2 runs, 4 K's, 92 pitches (75 strikes). It was without a doubt his best start of the season, and he now has a 3.39 ERA on the season (through 11 starts).

Michael Cuddyer was the Twins best player on offense last night. Cuddy went 3-6 to make his average jump .12 points. He also drove in two runs including the game-winning run in the 12th inning. Alexi Casilla and Justin Morneau also had 3-hit nights while the rest of the team combined for 3 hits.

The bullpen really pitched well last night for the Twins. Dennys Reyes, Matt Guerrier and Jesse Crain combined for 3 innings of shutout ball. Crain picked up the win, his second of the season and his 22nd of his career. Guerrier was credited with the save which was his first of the season and third of his career.

Tonight, the Twins will send Livan Hernandez to the mound to make his 12th start of the season, and his 3rd against the Royals. He is 2-0 with a 2.57 ERA in two starts against K.C. Zach Greinke will take the mound for the Royals. The 24-year-old right-hander is 5-2 with a 2.82 ERA this season and is 2-3 with a 3.75 ERA in 11 appearances (7 starts) against Minnesota.

Game Ball
Nick Blackburn - Starting Pitcher
Note: Blackburn really pitched a great game last night. Unfortunately, Baseball is a very unpredictable game and we saw that last night. Blackburn was cruising through the game and came into the 9th inning with only throwing 85 pitches. He threw 92 total and he showed his great control again while throwing 75 of the pitches for strikes. Blackburn's ERA this season should be at 3.11 instead of 3.39, but he couldn't get through the inning and it's not how the cards always fall. I'm definitely very impressed by Blackburn after this start and I think he's definitely showing that he is in fact the Twins #1 prospect.

Down on the Farm

• Hitter of the Day
Randy Ruiz - Designated Hitter - Rochester Red Wings
Note: Ruiz has not had the type of season many envisioned he'd have after a great Spring Training. However, over the past 10 games, he has 5 multi-hit games, including yesterday's 4-5 performance. Two of Ruiz's hits were doubles bringing his season total up to 13. Ruiz also drove in one and scored 3 times while helping the Red Wings beat the Knights, 12-0.

• Pitcher of the Day
Cole Devries - Starting Pitcher - Ft. Myers Miracle
Note: After having a rocky April, Devries has really pitched well in May. Despite having 13 fewer strikeouts in 2 more innings, the Eden Prairie native has lowered his ERA from 5.o8 to 2.40 this month and now sits with a 4-4 record and a 3.70 ERA. And in his last 3 starts, Devries is 2-0 with a 0.50 ERA in 18 innings.

Touch 'Em All!
• Rochester Red Wings: None
• New Britain Rock Cats: None
• Ft. Myers Miracle: None
• Beloit Snappers: None (Off-Day)

Box Scores
• Red Wings beat the Knights, 12-0.
• Rock Cats lost to the Defenders 6-4.
• Miracle beat the Reds, 5-0.
• Snappers had an off-day.

Twins recall Macri

The Twins lost their second game in a row, this time losing a heart breaker in extra innings off of a Josh Hamilton home run. The Twins played well yesterday, but it just wasn't enough. For a more in depth look at the game, here's Over The Baggy's recap.

• Last Nights Game Ball
Carlos Gomez - Center Fielder
Note: Gomez had himself a very good game yesterday. He played stellar defense again for the Twins, robbing Milton Bradley of a potential extra base hit by diving head first for a ball onto the turf (it was the second straight game he's made such a play). Gomez also was stellar at the plate, going 4-5 with a home run and 3 RBI's. Gomez is now hitting .318 with 3 home runs, 10 RBI's and has a .920 OPS in the month of May.

• Adam Everett has been placed on the 15-day D.L. for the second time this season, both of them for the same injury. Yesterday, the Twins decided to shelve the 8-year vet after he was experiencing pain in his right shoulder for the second time this season. The injury has made Everett's defense less than desirable by not being able to make routine throws around the infield as well as he's capable of. Everett has a solid glove, but his throws have hurt the Twins this season. It looked even recently that the injury was behind him, but of course things aren't always the way they appear.

By placing Everett on the D.L., the Twins recalled Rochester infielder Matt Macri. Macri was hitting .263 with a .758 OPS this season for the Red Wings. He missed almost 3 weeks with a strained left calf and has played 4 games with the Red Wings since returning. The Twins pondered on bringing up either Trevor Plouffe or Luke Hughes straight from Double-A, but with their reluctance of promoting them even to Triple-A, I'm not sure if this was ever actually a strong consideration.


The injury further depletes the Red Wings roster. With Denard Span already out because of injury and players like Bobby Korecky, Macri, Howie Clark and Alexi Casilla in the majors because of other injuries, the Red Wings needed some help. The Twins chose not to promote either Plouffe or Hughes despite them having good seasons thus far (and them being in the same level for a year already), but instead they chose to promote the struggling Felix Molina. Molina has been horrible at the plate this season, but there's still a spot for him in the lineup nearly everyday. Molina has been in New Britain since midway through the 2005 season, so this promotion is definitely long overdue, but I have to wonder why the Twins are being so reluctant to promote a player who can help the Red Wings offensively as they've been abysmal this season. I'm happy to see Molina finally get to Rochester, but I still believe that either Trevor Plouffe or Luke Hughes would have been a better option.

I expect the Twins to be making many roster changes within the next month or so, but it has been sad watching the Twins deplete the Red Wings team without giving them really any help from Double-A. Either way, I'm happy to see Macri get the call as he's a new face, and as unfortunate as an injury is, it's nice to see Everett not in the lineup for a little while. And it's also nice to see Molina get the promotion, although I think the Twins should promote another player or two to Rochester such as a guy who can play multiple positions like Luke Hughes?

Is Atkins the answer?

The Minnesota Twins lost to Sidney Ponson and the Texas Rangers last night, 10-1. Ponson went the entire way and gave up just 1 run on 6 hits. Ponson is now 3-0 with a 2.95 ERA this season. This happened just one night after the Twins scored 11 runs. The problem with the Twins has been their inconsistent play both at the plate and on defense.

Prior to yesterday's blowout, the Twins ranked 8th in the AL in runs scored and 2nd to last in home runs. Obviously, home runs don't mean everything in baseball, but the Twins inability to hit the long ball has definitely hurt them this season. Hitting home runs is not the only problem for the Twins, they also ranked 3rd to worst in the league with a .316 OBP. With a team with little power, they need to be getting on base much more than what they are.

I think the Twins could find a quick fix, but it would come at a price. Yes, I'm talking about making a trade. It's unlikely for teams to make big trades this early into the season, but I think that if the Twins don't make a change soon, they will get lost in the division quickly.

My trading partner is the Colorado Rockies. The Rockies have two players that they may consider shopping right now, Matt Holiday and Garrett Atkins. The reason for the teams desire to trade is that they're really struggling right now, they won't put that kind of money into the team, and they have a top prospect in the wings that is waiting for a chance to play at the major league level. Ian Stewart is the prospect I'm referring to and he's a third baseman, but the team seems unwilling to just move him to second base where they'd be able to keep both Atkins and Holiday while Stewart would man the right-middle of the infield. Now, before I go any further, I know that the Rockies could very easily trade a guy like Todd Helton, making room for Stewart that way, but there have been more hints of the Rockies potentially one of Atkins or Holliday, which is why I bring up their names.

Holiday is the more desirable player, however the Twins don't really have room for him on the roster, unless of course if they ended up moving Michael Cuddyer to the infield or to designated hitter. Also, acquiring Holiday would require a king's ransom, which I don't see the Twins giving up anytime soon. Thus, Garrett Atkins makes the more logical sense for both clubs for multiple reasons; (A) the Twins have a big hole at third base, (B) the Rockies would be able to keep Stewart in his natural position, (C) the Twins should have enough money to re-sign him to a long-term deal where the Rockies seem to be unwilling.

Atkins is currently hitting .332/.355/.511 with 11 doubles, 7 home runs and 28 RBI's this season. That's obviously a lot better than .223/.254/.269 with 6 doubles, 0 home runs and 19 RBI's this season. Atkins has been solid defensively this season, but he has struggled as of late.

Although Atkins has preformed well over his career, his name has been linked to trade rumors for a few seasons now, and with Stewart now ready to make the jump to the majors it now looks like this might be the right time for them to finally pull the trigger on a trade. Sure it may sound crazy that the defending N.L. Champions would consider trading one (possibly two) of their best players from a year ago, but it happens fairly often with small market teams (ala Florida Marlins) and the Rockies owner does not seem willing to sign both Atkins and Holiday to long-term deals.

So, this is what I believe the Twins should do: trade Brian Dinkelman, Anthony Swarzak and Oswaldo Sosa to the Rockies for Garrett Atkins. The Rockies may be looking for more major league ready pitchers, so if they wanted a guy like Brian Duensing, Philip Humber or even Boof Bonser (obviously in place of one of the other players), I would not mind.

This would hardly put a dent into the Twins depth at starting pitching in the minors, so I don't see why the Twins would be totally objected to doing this. Of course, no team wants to give up a potential All-Star pitcher, but the Twins have been so afraid of pulling the trigger in the past that it definitely hurt them offensively as the team has had no problem with producing pitchers where they've had many problems producing hitters. And as of right now, it looks as if there's nobody in the organization worth talking about that can really do anything great on offense (with respect to Luke Hughes and Erik Lis), at least anytime in the next year or two.

With the loss of Swarzak and Sosa, the Twins still have guys like Glen Perkins, Duensing, Humber, Deolis Guerra, Tyler Robertson, Alex Burnett, Michael McCardell, Jeff Manship and others that would make up a lot of depth in the pitching department. And that's not including guys like Nick Blackburn, Kevin Slowey, Francisco Liriano or Scott Baker who figure to be apart of our rotation at the major league level for at least the next few years.

With Atkins in the mix, here's how I would arrange the lineup:

CF - Carlos Gomez
C - Joe Mauer
3B - Garrett Atkins
1B - Justin Morneau
RF - Michael Cuddyer
DH - Jason Kubel
LF - Delmon Young
2B - Brendan Harris
SS - Adam Everett

I know Ron Gardenhire likes Mauer in the third spot of the lineup, but he is not a prototypical #3 hitter, whereas Atkins fits that role better as he has much more power. If Gardenhire insisted on hitting Mauer third, I would consider putting Atkins 4th (although I know hitting Morneau 5th is ludicrous) and putting Kubel in the #2 hole where he hit .328/.409/.586 with 4 doubles, a triple and 3 home runs in 58 AB's last season. Hitting Kubel in front of Mauer obviously seemed to work out very well last season, so I think it would be worth a try.

And now I want to go to my next point. And that is that I'm not placing on the blame for this team's lackluster offense play on Mike Lamb, because I could very easily place it on Michael Cuddyer, Adam Everett and even Delmon Young. Those guys have all underperformed equally if not on offense, then definitely on defense. And if it weren't for Matt Tolbert's injury, Mike Lamb being benched would not be the only move that I'd want to see this team make. Inserting Matt Tolbert into the lineup in place of Adam Everett would be a great idea, unfortunately Tolbert figures to miss about 2 months with his thumb injury, shooting down any thought of this.

This entire team needs a big wakeup call, and I think that adding an All-Star caliber player to this offense could do quite a bit for our offense. Coming into the season, many thought (especially myself) that this teams offensive woes were going to be something of the past, and the arrival of Young, Lamb, Harris and Gomez was going going to make our weak offense strong. However, the offense has really not changed. The team still struggles to hit for extra-bases and the teams OBP is down from a year ago. This team looks great one day, and awful the next. The inconsistent offensive play has been something many Twins fans are used to, but it is time for a change.

I'm not calling Garrett Atkins the answer to all of our problems, but he would definitely be a big help to our struggling offense. Heck, if the Twins really wanted to make a splash, trade for both Atkins and Holliday, moving Cuddyer to second base... but I know that's really asking for too much.

Last Nights Game Ball
Nick Blackburn - Starting Pitcher
Note: Really, I just can't give the game ball to any of our hitters. Sure Adam Everett had a triple, Carlos Gomez had a double, and Joe Mauer had two singles, but if it weren't for a botched defensive play by Alexi Casilla, Blackburn would have only given up just 1 run in the 6th inning, instead of 7. Blackburn was pitching very well before his defense failed him, and then after he really was shaky and lost all confidence in his pitches and left a few of them up. But again, he should not have been in that spot anyways, so I can't really blame him all for it. Blackburn finished the game going 6 innings and gave up 7 runs (only one earned) on 10 hits. Blackburn showed great control again and walked just one batter while striking out 4. Blackburn now sits at 4-3 with a 3.55 ERA.

Twins play small ball in win

• Just one night after one Red Wing picks up his first Major League win, another picks his up last night when the Twins beat the Texas Rangers 11-4.

Glen Perkins made his third major league start and picked up his first win of his career. The former Minnesota Gopher and first round pick went 6 1/3 innings and gave up 3 runs (2 earned) on 6 hits. He cruised threw the first 6 innings untouched before hitting a snag in the 7th inning. Perkins was very effective throughout the game and got ahead of hitters early. He showcased fantastic control again and threw just 27 balls out of 96 pitches. Perkins' future isn't necessarily clear as to where he fits in longterm, but he definitely has shown that he can start at the major league level as well as pitch in relief. So, at least he has given the Twins a couple of options.

Brian Bass came into the game with the bases loaded in the 7th inning and came out untouched after setting down two of the Rangers best hitters in Michael Young and Josh Hamilton. Bass pitched 2 2/3 innings and gave up 3 straight singles in the 9th to allow the Rangers score their 4th run of the game. Bass was the only reliever not used in Monday's game, so a great job by him and Perkins by helping relieve the relievers (yes, that was a pun) for an evening.

The batters teed off on Rangers starter Doug Mathis. Mathis was hit for 9 runs (6 earned) in just 2 1/3 innings pitched. The Twins got on the board early with an Alexi Casilla RBI single after Carlos Gomez lead off the game with a first-pitch triple. Gomez returned to the starting lineup after sitting 3 games (coming in later in two of them as a pinch runner) and went 1-5 with a triple, but looked to have possibly tweaking his injured wrist late in the game, but hopefully that's all it was. It could have been 2 runs in the first inning, but Casilla got a late jump on Joe Mauer's double and was forced to hold up at 3rd. The offense then errupted in the 3rd inning for 7 runs on 5 hits and an error. Everyone in the lineup contributed in some way or another. Sure some more than others, but it was really a good team effort.

Mauer and Casilla were last nights top performers at the plate. The two combined to go 5-8 with 3 RBI's and 3 runs scored. Justin Morneau and Mike Lamb also had multi-hit games. Morneau went 2-4 with an RBI single and Lamb went 2-3 with an RBI single and a sac fly. Delmon Young hit his 3rd double in his last 3 games. Coming into the game with a 25/5 K/BB ratio and a .275 OBP went 1-2 with his 5th double of the season and walked twice to raise his OBP to .284.

• Game Ball
Glen Perkins - Staring Pitcher
Note: Perkins had another fantastic start last night. He went 6 1/3 innings and gave up 3 runs (2 earned) on 96 pitches. Perkins cruised through the first 6 innings before hitting a snag in the 7th in which the Rangers scored 3 runs. Perkins got a head of the Rangers hitters often and had superb control throughout the game. It was Perkins' 3rd start of his career and he now sits at 1-1 with a 3.44 ERA. He also has a 12/2 K/BB ratio in 18 1/3 innings pitched.

• Tonight, the Rangers will send Sidney Ponson to the hill to face off against Nick Blackburn of the Twins. After going 2-5 with a 6.93 ERA in 7 starts for the Twins last season, Ponson is off to a great start for the Rangers with a 2-0 record and a 3.52 ERA in 5 starts. However, he faces off against Nick Blackburn who's also off to a great start. Blackburn is 4-2 with a 3.77 ERA, but he was hit hard last time against the Rangers for 5 runs on 11 hits in 6 innings.

• After a poor start in April, the Red Wings have just completely shut down and are now 5-15 in May. The offense isn't scoring runs, the starters aren't going deep into the games, the bullpen isn't helping them out, players are being promoted, players are getting hurt. Basically everything that could go wrong for the Wings, has gone wrong. It's a shame since there was such high hopes for the club heading into the season, as many thought they had a good shot at taking the International League Title.

• And the news just keeps getting worse for the Red Wings. Denard Span will be out for 3-4 weeks with a broken finger.

• One positive for the Red Wings however is the progression of Francisco Liriano. Liriano turned in his 4th solid performance in a row yesterday for the Red Wings. Yesterday, Liriano went 7 innings giving up just 8 hits, all singles, while allowing 2 runs to score and walking just 1 batter and striking out 3. Liriano threw 91 pitches, 62 of them for strikes and he now has a 2.76 ERA in his last 4 starts and has 8 walks opposed to 16 K's. He still has a little ways to go before I'd like to see him in the majors again, but he's definitely getting closer.

• Ben Revere failed to get on base with either a hit or a walk (unless if I'm mistaken) for the first time since being promoted to Beloit from Extended Spring Training. He's off to a fantastic start.

• Danny Valencia returned to action after missing 4 games with a hand injury. He went 2-4 and had an RBI double in his first at bat.

• Minor League Hitter of the Day
Tommy Watkins - Left Field - Rochester Red Wings
Note: Watkins was zoned in at the plate yesterday reaching base all 5 times he came to the plate. He had 2 walks, and 3 hits one of which was his first extra-base hit of the season. Unfortunately for Watkins, Denard Span went 0-5 in the game, failing to get on a single time which hurt Watkins' RBI opportunities. Watkins now has 10 walks on the season, and 5 in the last 2 games.

• Minor League Pitcher of the Day
Tyler Robertson - Starting Pitcher - Ft. Myers Miracle
Note: Robertson had his best start this season last night. The 6'5'' 20-year-old left-hander went 7 innings of shutout ball and gave up just 3 hits and 3 walks while striking out 4. Robertson kept the ball low in the zone and induced 13 ground ball outs opposed to 4 fly ball outs. Roberston won his 2nd game in his last 3 starts and is now 2-2 with a 3.04 ERA and has struck out 49 batters in 50 1/3 innings.

• Touch 'Em All!

Rochester Red Wings: None
New Britain Rock Cats: None (Game postponed)
Ft. Myers Miracle: None
Beloit Snappers: None

• Box Scores

Red Wings lost to the Chiefs, 3-2 in 10 innings.
Rock Cats - Senators game was postponed due to rain.
Miracle beat the Hammerheads, 5-0.
Snappers lost to the LumberKings, 4-2.