3. Miguel Sano, Third Base, 17 years old
(courtesy twinsdigest.com)
2010 stats: .291/.338/.473 with the GCL Twins (Rookie)Last year’s rank: 10Acquired: Signed out of the Dominican Republic for $3.15 million in September of 2009.
Is there ever an instance where a team’s #3 ranked prospect is considered under-rated? Besides the Brewers system of course, which may not have 3 quality prospects. I submit the case of Miguel Sano. Just ask a Twins fan …

3. Miguel Sano, Third Base, 17 years old
(courtesy twinsdigest.com)
2010 stats: .291/.338/.473 with the GCL Twins (Rookie)Last year’s rank: 10Acquired: Signed out of the Dominican Republic for $3.15 million in September of 2009.
Is there ever an instance where a team’s #3 ranked prospect is considered under-rated? Besides the Brewers system of course, which may not have 3 quality prospects. I submit the case of Miguel Sano. Just ask a Twins fan …

4. Joe Benson, OF, 22 years old
 (courtesy bleacherreport.com) 
2010 stats: .259/.343/.538 with 47/136 BB/K and 27 home runs in 123 games between Fort Myers (A+) and New Britain (AA)Last year’s rank: 9Acquired: Drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 3rd round in the 2006 June Major League Draft.
Benson was given the Sherry Robertson Award by the Twins this year, which recognizes the top hitter in the minor leagues. Even though …

6. Liam Hendriks, RHP, 21 years old
courtesy: (baseballinstinct.com)2010 stats: 8-4 with a 1.74 ERA, 105/12 K/BB in 108.2 innings between Beloit and Fort Myers.Last year’s rank: N/AAcquired: Signed out of Perth, Australia in February 2007. 
So, what makes someone a top prospect? Some prospects are more tools than numbers. The guys that scouts just look at and drool over the possibilities. They say, this guy will be the next…. Other guys …

6. Alex Wimmers, RHP, 22 years old
courtesy: (baseballrumormill.com)
2010 stats: 2-0 with a .57 ERA 23/5 K/BB in 15.2 innings for Fort Myers.Last year’s rank: N/AAcquired: Drafted by the Minnesota Twins 21st overall in the 2010 June Major League Draft.
Alex Wimmers was the Twins top pick in last years draft. Wimmers is the name fans will see on his back, but his uni could just as easily have “stereotypical twins starting …

7. Oswaldo Arcia, outfielder, 19 years old
(courtesy tricitiessports.com)
2010 stats: .375/.424/.672 with 67/19 K/BB in 64 games for Elizabethton Twins (Rookie)Last year’s rank: NAAcquired: Signed out of Venezuela in July 2007
Before going absolutely berserk on opposing pitchers this season, young Arcia enjoyed two previous years of success at lower levels in the Twins’ system. A mechanical mistake was nagging the outfielder’s performance in the batting box, though, and was holding Arcia …

It took some crossed fingers and a small amount of luck, but the Twins managed to bring back Carl Pavano without breaking the bank.
For $16.5 million over the next two years, the Twins signed one of the best starting pitchers on this years’ free agent market. As a fan, I’m very pleased with this deal. It’s far less than what I was expecting Pavano to receive, and I believe the …

8. Adrian Salcedo, RHP, 20  years old
 (courtesy of minorleaguebaseball.com) 
2010 stats: 5-6 4.15 ERA 81/18 K/BB in 93.1 innings for Elizabethtown (Rookie) & Fort Myers (High-A)Last year’s rank: #7Acquired: Signed out of the Dominican Republic in December 2007
What is one of the main things the Twins are known for when it comes to their prospects? If you said patience, you are on my wavelength. So, why did the Twins start Adrian …

Life as a Twins’ fan may be a roller-coaster, but its ups and downs are very predictable.
Most seasons, Minnesota fans live the summer months on the edge of their seats, waiting either for the Twins to surge ahead of their division rivals or fade out of competition. In the end, Minnesota’s chronic competitiveness surprises even the most pessimistic of followers. A late-season let down almost always follows, but the Twins …

9. Ben Revere, outfielder, 22 years old
 (courtesy bleacherreport.com) 
2010 stats: .305/.371/.363 with 41/32 K/BB in 94 games for New Britain (Double-A), .179/.233/.179 with 5/2 K/BB in 13 games with TwinsLast year’s rank: #3Acquired: Drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 1st round of the 2007 June Major League Draft.
Revere takes a significant fall on this list not because of a poor performance last year, but because so many others have made …

(courtesy mlb.com)
10. David Bromberg, Starting Pitcher 23 years old 

2010 stats: 6-9 with a 3.75 ERA 112/48 K/BB in 151.1 innings for New Britain and Rochester.Last year’s rank: #11Acquired: Drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 32nd round of the 2005 June Major League Draft.

Who is the Twins best pitching prospect? Most fans say it’s Kyle Gibson, Alex Wimmers, or Liam Hendriks. Who do Twins fans think is next man in …

11. Kane Holbrooks, RH-RP/SP, 23 years old
2010 stats: 8-6, 2.10 ERA, 110/29 K/BB in 102.2 innings for Beloit Snappers (Low-A), Fort Myers Miracle (High-A), and New Britain Rock Cats (Double-A)Last year’s rank: N/AAcquired: Drafted by the Minnesota Twins in the 21st round of the 2009 MLB June Amateur Draft.
Kane Holbrooks was a late-round selection of the Minnesota Twins two years ago. Coming out of Texas State College, Holbrooks had …

12. Angel Morales, Outfielder, 21 years old
2010 stats: .280/.362/.405 with 29 steals in 41 attempts between Beloit Snappers & Fort MyersLast year’s rank: #2Acquired: Signed out of Carguas, Puerto Rico in June 2007.
I’m just going to start with this: I’m more excited to see Angel Morales play than any other prospect in the Minnesota Twins’ system. Why? Angel Morales has everything needed to be a 5 tool player, a potential …

13. Manuel Soliman, RH-SP, 21 years old
2010 stats: 5-2, 3.48 ERA 74/21 K/BB in 64.2 innings for Elizabethton Twins (Rookie)Last year’s rank: N/AAcquired: Signed out of the Dominican Republic in 2007
When the Twins signed Manuel Soliman out of the Dominican Republic back in 2007, I’m sure they weren’t expecting much from the 17-year old. Soliman was simply one of dozens of young players to come out of the country …

(courtesy mlb.com)
14. Tom Stuifbergen, RH-SP, 22 years old
2010 stats: 6-4 2.98 ERA 88/23 K/BB in 93.2 innings for Beloit Snappers (Low-A)Last year’s rank: N/AAcquired: Signed out of the Netherlands in August 2006
Recently, TwinsTarget profiled its #15 prospect Max Kepler. The piece detailed how the Twins have recently stepped up their pursuit of international free agents. In the last couple years the Twins have spent $3.25 million on Miguel Sano, won …

(courtesy spox.com)
15. Max Kepler, OF, 17 years old
2010 stats: .286/.346/.343, 153 PA, 0 HR, 27/13 K/BB at GCL Twins (Rookie)Last year’s rank: N/AAcquired: Signed out of Germany in July 2009 for $800,000

After the publishing of ‘Moneyball,’ the advantage small-market teams gained by placing emphasis on on-base average has slowly decreased. Though the Twins are no longer surviving on small-market resources, they are joining the hunt for the next comparative advantage. …

By noon on Wednesday, December 1, several of my favorite baseball bloggers will be posting their answer to this question: “What is baseball’s most important position?“ The question is purposely vague and open to interpretation. How do you define “importance?”
Alex Gallardo | Associated Press (via LA Times)
Here’s my take on the question:
Green Valley News: Ranking baseball’s most important positions
What is baseball’s most important position?
The answer to this seemingly straightforward question depends …

Should the Twins bring back JJ Hardy for the 2011 season? On the surface, it seems a no-brainer. Why should a guy who hit .268/.320/.394 and spent much of the year on the disabled list be counted on for another season?
When healthy during the second half of last season, though, Hardy was one of the best shortstops in baseball. Over the last three months of the season, Hardy hit a …

“Give me your tired, your poor / Your huddled masses yearning to breathe free / The wretched refuse of your teeming shore / Send these, the homeless, tempest-tossed to me /  I lift my lamp beside the golden door!”
- The New Colossus, Emma Lazarus, 1883
This quote from Emma Lazarus’ famous sonnet, etched in bronze in the Statue of Liberty, is the philosophy the Twins will apply to the 2011 offseason. …

By Matt McCabe
Allow myself to introduce…myself.
Ah, Halloween: the unique Holiday celebration with a very convoluted and bastardized history (http://www.loc.gov/folklife/halloween.html). Halloween is a wary time for me. Ever since I got busted ten years ago (my junior year in high school) for having a few cans of beer in the trunk my old Grand Am, I’ve kept it low-key on All Hallows Eve. That smudge on my previously untainted record-and the …