2017 Top 5 Twins Prospects

[bleedspeed]

http://www.usatoday.com/story/sports/fantasy/2016/12/12/top-5-minnesota-twins-prospects/95020694/

1. Tyler Jay, RHP: An athletic, aggressive hurler, he dominates with a plus slider that is tough to hit and a sneaky-quick fastball that he can spot to both sides of the plate. He had a 3.33 ERA and 77 strikeouts in 83 2/3 innings in 2016. Jay, 22, needs to improve his changeup and pitch sequencing, but he has a fast arm and a feel for strikes. He'll return to Class AA.

2. Nick Gordon, SS: Gordon, 21, runs very well (19 stolen bases) and has the quickness and hands to stick at short. He focuses on line drives with a simple swing and has superior bat control. He can impact the game on both sides, and he will report to AA.

3. Alex Kirilloff, OF: Kirilloff, 19, is a natural hitter who had an impressive rookie league debut: .306, seven homers, 33 RBI. He covers the plate with a textbook stroke and shows the ability to hang in against lefty pitching. He's far away, but the ceiling is high. He'll start in Class A in 2017.

4. Stephen Gonsalves, LHP: The tall, lanky starter uses an effortless delivery and fastball command to retire hitters. Gonsalves, 22, throws four pitches effectively, including a plus changeup featuring late, sinking action. His fastball velocity is average, but he mixes in two breaking balls that yield weak contact. He is ready for Class AAA and could hit the majors in 2017.

5. Fernando Romero, RHP: He was dominant on two levels and uses his velocity and hard slider effectively. He had Tommy John elbow surgery in 2015 but showed no rust. The 21-year-old likely will report to Class AA.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

Nice list, Bleed...I don't know much about Kiriloff, but I have no disagreement with the other 4. I've posted here a lot about Gonsalves, and he has done nothing but exceed expectations since we drafted him. I look for him to dominate AAA and be up in the bigs midsummer.

[bleedspeed]

I wouldn't mind seeing Gordon make the team this spring as starting SS. I hope Gonsalves does what you say. I hope we see some of these young pitchers that seem good in the minors do the same in the majors soon.

[Monster]

I wouldn't mind seeing Gordon make the team this spring as starting SS. I hope Gonsalves does what you say. I hope we see some of these young pitchers that seem good in the minors do the same in the majors soon.

It sounds like Polonco has the inside track on SS right now from what I have read. That makes sense to me. If he could be solid defensively this year and hit that would put Escobar as a utility guy and that would be a good thing.

[bleedspeed]

I am not sure about Sano at 3rd. I hope he gets a lot better and seems commited this offseason.

[Monster]

I am not sure about Sano at 3rd. I hope he gets a lot better and seems commited this offseason.

I hope he can figure it out. The Teins have like 30,000 options at 1b and DH it would be a shame to have to find a spot for Sano there. He has te athletic ability no doubt but there definitely has been some questions about him working hard or something like that. I watched him live last year in a game and wasn't too far away. He looked like a 3rd baseman to me. A lot of the ones that can hit espcially for power aren't terrific fielders anyway.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

I so much want to be excited about this club, but Sano and Polanco is not the defensive left side of the infield of a championship team...and Gordon is at least a year away, I think. But there is a path to challenging for a championship:

1) Trade Dozier at his peak this winter for a true #1 starter or world class closer, and give the everyday second base job to Polanco

2) Install Escobar as a placeholder at SS until Gordon is ready...Escobar can be our utility guy after that

3) Play Sano everyday he is healthy at 3b, and don't worry about the errors he makes as he continues to get comfortable...remember, this guy came up originally as a SS

4) Let Berrios pitch every 5th day regardless of performance...we need to give him time to figure it out. Start Gonsalves at AAA, and bring him up after 2-3 months of dominating there.

5) Give Park another chance at DH/1B to see if his hurting hand was the reason he was so ineffective last year. He's still going to strike out a lot, but this guy has even more power than Sano, and we have to see what he can do.

5) Play Buxton everyday in CF regardless of performance. His speed and defense are game changers, and the kid has more power than I thought coming up. As he learns to recognize major league pitches better, he still has all star potential.

6) Trust that the analytics the new nerds in the front office are going to bring will change how Mollie manages, and how this team performs...make it clear that Mollie reports to them, and he needs to listen to them. Defensive shifts will be more sophisticated, Mauer will never again bat third, etc.

There it is...pathway to the World Series. A pitching rotation of (starter we get for Dozier), Santana, Berrios, Gonsalves and Gibson (I think the new "framing" catcher instantly makes him better) has the potential to be among the best in baseball. So, a little ray of hope...

[Monster]

LST this team may not be challenging for a championship this year. Torii said the other day talking with Wolfson they aren't trading Dozier unless they get a lot for him but you have to listen. If they don't get that top of the rotation guy like you suggest you keep him and if that means seeing what a Polonco can do at SS fine he HAS to play somewhere. The metrics that I looked at last year for Escobar defensively at SS were not favorable and I am a big Escobar fan. A big issue for the Twins the past few years is the SS position. The one year they actually didn't suck 2015 Escobar was solid defensively and hit quite well overall. That didn't happen last year. The bar is pretty low for whoever is playing that position overall I just want to see Polonco at the plate everyday to see if that bat is legit. If that means having him at SS that's ok with me.

Also from what i have read it seems like Mollie seems to be plenty on board with the numbers stuff.