Month: June 2015

Twins minor league player of the week

Engelb Vielma 2015 springFt. Myers (High A) infielder Engelb Vielma is the Twins Minor League Player of the Week. Vielma played four games for the Miracle, hitting .467 (7-for-15) with one double, two RBI, two walks and two runs scored. Vielma who just turned 21 was signed by the Twins as an undrafted free agent from Venezuela on September 8, 2011. The 5’11” 150 pound Vielma was named the 22nd best prospect and best defensive infielder in the Twins system by Baseball America entering 2015.

In his fourth season of pro ball Vielma has appeared in a total  of 270 games and has hit .253  with 2 home runs and has stolen 51 bases in 1,086 PA’s. Vielma has a slick glove but it will be his bat that determines if he gets to put on a big league uniform but keep in mind he just turned 21.

Previous winners of Twins POW this season are right-handed pitcher Tyler Duffey, left-handed pitcher Stephen Gonsalves, outfielder Byron Buxton, infielder Trey Vavra, infielder Miguel Sano, first baseman/outfielder Max Kepler, right-handed pitcher Aaron Slegers, left-handed pitcher David Hurlbut and right-handed pitcher Alex Wimmers.

Twins Minor League Report June 28, 2015

Kepler and Berrios to play for Futures World Team

Rosters were recently announced for the SiriusXM Futures Game to be played on Sunday, July 12 at Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati during the All-Star break and the Twins will be sending two players, who will both play for the World Team, outfielder/1B Max Kepler and right-handed pitcher Jose Berrios.

Max Kepler
Max Kepler

The 22-year-old Kepler was born in Berlin, Germany has played 55 games for Double-A Chattanooga this season, hitting .342 (69-for-202) with 18 doubles, eight triples, three home runs, 29 RBI and 11 stolen bases. He was originally signed by the Twins on July 11, 2009.

Jose Berrios
Jose Berrios

The 21-year-old Jose Berrios, was born in Baymon, Puerto Rico, has made 14 starts for Double-A Chattanooga, posting a record of 7-3, 3.23 ERA (83.2 IP, 30 ER) with 23 walks and 86 strikeouts.Berrios, who was drafted in the first round (32nd overall) of the 2012 First-Year Player Draft, started for the World Team in 2014 at Target Field, tossing a perfect inning.

Barring injury I think there is at least a 50/50 chance both of these young players will make their big league debut with the Twins this season. Congratulations to both Max and Jose. Source Twins Notes

2015 Futures Game Rosters

Will the Axe Bat replace the round handled bat?

I have chopped a lot of wood of the years and played a little baseball but I have never considered the two related in any way. Matter of fact I thought that chopping wood often kept me from playing baseball. Come to find out now that someone has tied an axe handle and a bat together and it might just be catching on.

“In 2006, a New Yorker named Steve Leinert obtained a patent on the axe handle for a baseball bat, a concept Ted Williams hit on decades earlier in his book “The Science of Hitting,” in which he compared a baseball swing to that of an axe. “Try it for yourself,” Williams wrote. “Get a bat and swing it against a telephone pole. I do this with doubting young Washington players. Where is the wrist position at point of impact? Square and unbroken, that’s where, just as when you hit a tree with an ax.””

The Axe Bat made its debut in MLB two years ago when former Philly and now Dodger shortstop Jimmy Rollins occasionally used an Axe Bat in major league games. Now Red Sox second baseman Dustin Pedroia has spent a month using it as his lone bat, and the results are promising.

Axe handled batOne of the benefits of the axe bat handle is that it is supposed to limit hamate bone injuries, it will be interesting to see if the axe handled bat catches on and if it really does help prevent hand injuries. I suppose like anything else, if someone has some success with it, the bat will find its way into clubhouses all across baseball.

Here is a story that Jeff Passon did on the bat for Yahoo Sports.

According to ELIAS

Vargas gets his first four-hit game

Kennys Vargas 2015Twins designated hitter Kennys Vargas was 4 for 4, including a three-run homer, in Minnesota’s 13-2 rout of the White Sox. It was the first four-hit game for Vargas in his two seasons in the major leagues, and only the third four-hit game by a Twins DH over the last five seasons. The others were both in 2014, by Danny Santana (June 7 vs. Houston) and Trevor Plouffe (Septmber 23 vs. Arizona). Source: ELIAS

This Day in Twins History – June 22

Carew, Rod 166/22/1970 – In the fourth inning of the Twins game against the Milwaukee Brewers in County Stadium Rod Carew suffers a serious knee injury with torn cartilage and torn ligaments when Brewers 1B Mike Hegan rolls in to Carew at 2B trying to break up a double play. According to Rod Carew in his book “Carew”, my leg snapped back and went crack! He goes on to say that 2B umpire Jake O’Donnell had heard the crack and vomited. Carew was hitting .376 at the time underwent surgery and ended up in essence missing the rest of the season. Rod did return for 5 at bats late in September but did not get a hit. Carew had only 2 plate appearances against the Orioles in the ALCS with no hits.

6/22/1984 – In a teary home plate ceremony before the Twins-White Sox game at the Metrodome, Calvin Griffith and his sister, Thelma Haynes, sign a letter of intent to sell their 52 percent ownership of the Twins to Minneapolis banker Carl Pohlad for $32 million (some reports state it was $36 million) ending the longest family ownership of a team in baseball history. Griffith and his sister had been involved with the franchise since 1922, when they were adopted by owner Clark Griffith when the team was the Washington Senators.

Twins minor league player of the week

Alex Wimmers - (Credit: Roger Hoover/Tennessee Smokies)
Alex Wimmers – (Credit: Roger Hoover/Tennessee Smokies)

Chattanooga (AA) right-handed pitcher Alex Wimmers is the Twins Minor League Player of the Week. Wimmers made two starts for the Lookouts, going 2-0, 0.00 ERA (14.2 IP) with five hits allowed, four walks and 20 strikeouts. Wimmers, 26,  struck out nine in 7.2 innings June 13 vs. Birmingham and 11 in 7.0 innings June 19 vs. Jacksonville. The Twins first round pick (21st overall) in the 2010 First-Year Player Draft has made 12 starts for the Lookouts, going 5-1, 4.31 ERA (64.2 IP, 31 ER), with 24 walks and 62 strikeouts.

Lookouts’ Wimmers silences Suns

Previous winners of Twins POW this season are right-handed pitcher Tyler Duffey, left-handed pitcher Stephen Gonsalves, outfielder Byron Buxton, infielder Trey Vavra, infielder Miguel Sano, first baseman/outfielder Max Kepler, right-handed pitcher Aaron Slegers and left-handed pitcher David Hurlbut.

Max Kepler
Max Kepler

Another player that probably was a finalist for POW honors again this week is Chattanooga 1B/OF Max Kepler. Kepler, 22, who was the Twins minor league player of the week a few weeks ago has been on an absolute tear lately and in his last 10 games he is 19 for 34 with 9 walks and is hitting at a .559 clip with 8 runs scored, 6 RBI, 1 home run, one double and 4 triples.  In 52 games for Chattanooga Max is hitting .346 with a .977 OPS.

 

Twins Minor League Report June 21, 2015

It has taken awhile but this is Twins Trivia post number 1,000.

According to ELIAS

Vargas wins it in walk-off style

Kennys Vargas 2015Kennys Vargas connected for a two-out, walk-off home run to give the Twins a 2-1 victory over the Cardinals yesterday. Vargas is the fifth player this season with a two-out, walk-off homer, joining the Nationals’ Yunel Escobar and Ryan Zimmerman, San Diego’s Derek Norris, and the Reds’ Todd Frazier.

The Cardinals, who led, 1-0, in the eighth inning, had won their previous 50 games when leading in the eighth inning or later, dating back to September 2014. Entering Thursday’s games, that was the third-longest current streak in the majors, behind the Royals (111) and Orioles (75).

Can Mauer get 100 RBI?

Joe MauerManager Paul Molitor has Joe Mauer hitting in a run producing slot in his batting order and publicly has stated many times that he is happy with Joe’s production. The numbers however; seem to show a different story. Mauer’s best season from an RBI perspective was his MVP season in 2009 when he had 96 RBI. That season Mauer had an RBI every 6.31 plate appearances but don’t forget he hit .365 that year and clubbed 28 home runs.

Through yesterday Mauer has 35 RBI and is getting a RBI every 7.54 plate appearances and at this rate he would need over 750 plate appearances to get 100 RBI and Mauer has had over 600 plate appearances in his 12 year career just four times peaking at 641 in 2012. Even if Mauer gets 600 plate appearances he is on pace to get 80 RBI. The best bet that the Twins have in their line-up right now to knock in runs is Torii Hunter who gets an RBI every 6.5 plate appearances. Hunter will be 40 very soon but you have to ride the horse that is pulling the load right now no matter how old he is.

Looking back over Twins history the best ratio for RBI per plate appearance was Kirby Puckett‘s 1994 season when he had 112 RBI in 484 plate appearances for a RBI every 4.32 plate appearances. No one in American League history since the Twins started play in 1961 has ever had a better RBI ratio per plate appearance. Had that season not been cut short Puckett was on pace for an amazing 151 RBI.

I had zero RBI in a Twins uniform but yet I had a 24 year MLB career as a player.
I had zero RBI in a Twins uniform but yet I had a 24 year MLB career as a player.

Do you know who the only Twins hitter is that had 100 or more RBI in a season and yet have 9 or fewer home runs?

What Twins player was with the Twins for parts of four seasons and had 76 plate appearances and had zero RBI? After being traded by the Twins he actually had 99 career plate appearances to start his big league career without an RBI before getting his first RBI on his first career home run.

Did you know?

Rod Carew Only six players in MLB history have more than 3,000 hits, 100 triples, walked over 1,000 times and stole over 300 bases. Not surprisingly, they are all in the HOF: Ty Cobb, Tris Speaker, Paul Molitor, Eddie Collins, Willie Mays, and from Panama, the great Rod Carew, who had 3,053 hits (the most of any Latino player), 112 triples, 1,018 walks, and 353 steals. Carew achieved all this in 10,550 plate appearances, more than a thousand fewer than any of the other five. Source: Summer 2015 “Memories and Dreams” magazine.

Twins minor league player of the week

David HurlbutChattanooga (AA) left-handed pitcher David Hurlbut is the Twins Minor League Player of the Week. Hurlbut who goes about 6’3″ and 220 made two starts for the Lookouts going 2-0 with a 0.64 ERA (14.0 IP, 1 ER) while striking out nine and walking three. The Twins first drafted Hurlbut in round 35 in 2009 but he chose not to sign, The Twins then drafted Hurlbut again in the 28th round of the 2011 out of California State – Fullerton and this time he signed.

Previous winners of Twins POW this season are right-handed pitcher Tyler Duffey, left-handed pitcher Stephen Gonsalves, outfielder Byron Buxton, infielder Trey Vavra, infielder Miguel Sano, first baseman/outfielder Max Kepler and right-handed pitcher Aaron Slegers.

Twins Minor League Report June 14, 2015