40 Man Shuffle Comes With Conflicting Thoughts

Today kicks off the final week of spring training for the Minnesota Twins. They will play the Boston Red Sox in a night game tonight as they kick off their last six games (five of which come against these Red Sox). With the team continuing to whittle down the roster towards the 25 man inclusions for Opening Day, the 40 man roster has been tweaked as well. Over the weekend, the Twins outrighted Stephen Pryor, and also removed Lester Oliveros from the 40 man roster. There's no two open spots, and they both will carry a different train of thought.

Of the players left in camp for the Twins, the two that appear poised to claim the 39th and 40th spots on the roster are Shane Robinson and Blaine Boyer. Both players were brought in over the offseason as non-roster invites with spring training shots to prove they belonged. For one, it would appear that proving it is exactly what he did. The other, it looks to be an inclusion by happenstance.

As noted over the weekend, Aaron Hicks was sent down to Triple-A Rochester. With the move, both Shane Robinson and Jordan Schafer will start the season as the Twins centerfielders. Rather than getting into the confusing decision again, it's best summed up by saying Robinson's inclusion appears to be a by-product of Hicks failing to meet expectations. A mediocre level major league talent at best, Robinson provides nothing at the plate, and a minimal defensive upgrade at best. Although jettisoning Pryor and Oliveros shouldn't move the needle much, Robinson didn't exactly lay claim to the role this spring.

On the other hand, Blaine Boyer appears to have earned himself a spot with the Twins, and Minnesota should be proud of that conclusion. After a strong year with the Padres a season ago, Boyer has been nothing short of lights out this spring. While not being a lefty could have worked against him, it appears the Twins will bring him north over the likes of Caleb Thielbar. Paul Molitor noted earlier in spring that he would like to have two southpaws in the pen, but it now would seem only Brian Duensing will make the roster. Minnesota decided to go to arbitration with Duensing, a move that probably could have been avoided, and thus leaves the younger Thielbar the odd man out.

For everything odd about including Robinson on the 40 man and active roster, the Twins have made the right move with Boyer. I'd argue they could have allowed Duensing to walk, and the decision would have been even better, but things should be just fine in their current construction. The Twins bullpen isn't going to be great in 2015, and the better choice would likely be to go with lower salaries and higher upsides; something Duensing checks off neither category. Although one move makes more sense than the other, the roster shuffle is finally starting to wrap up.

Considering we aren't talking about the Twins bringing Jason Kubel or Jason Bartlett along for the ride this season, we can already consider 2015 off to a better start. Boyer probably sticks with the Twins longer than Robinson does in 2015, but here's to hoping the Twins continue to make roster moves that help them compete in the upcoming season.

Twins Reduce Clarity With Roster Cuts

This morning, first year manager Paul Molitor announced the next handful of roster cuts for the Minnesota Twins. As the team whittles down its roster to 25 players prior to Opening Day a week from Monday, the group of Fort Myers is going to get smaller. With 31 players now left in camp, Molitor has six more players he must send packing. The latest round however may have caused more confusion than clarity.

Amongst the roster moves this morning, the Minnesota Twins elected to send out position players Eddie Rosario and Aaron Hicks. Both outfielders will head to Triple-A Rochester to begin the 2015 season. Relief pitcher Mark Hamburger was also optioned as well as starter Trevor May. Both pitchers will head to the Red Wings as well. With the moves, it was also announced that Tommy Milone would open as the Twins fifth and final starter, with Mike Pelfrey transitioning to the bullpen.

No matter how you break it down, Saturday was by far the most integral day of roster shuffling the Twins have seen thus far. With the plethora of decisions made, the roster is taking shape. That being said, there's no doubt that a few of the moves made cause reason for confusion.

Starting with the outfield, namely centerfield, both Hicks and Rosario were sent packing. Thus far during the spring, we have heard that neither Hicks nor Rosario would stick with the club in a rotational capacity. They would either be named the starter, or would be sent packing. The curious part of the equation is that those sentiments seemed to be in unison with one another. Either Rosario or Hicks would start, as it never appeared likely that Jordan Schafer or Shane Robinson were viable candidates.

That brings us to where we are now. The Twins are heading into 2015 with some opportunity to outperform expectations. No one is banking on them being a playoff team, but if all things break right, they could squeak in. That being said, the upcoming season is about figuring out who you have to pair with the arrival of the talented youth on the way. Rosario still very much remains of that grouping, but the problem is Aaron Hicks.

Hicks, a former first round pick for the Twins, has struggled mightily at the major league level. After an impressive 2013 spring training, he was promoted to the starting role from Double-A, despite being more of a tools prospect than the refined category of a Byron Buxton. Last year, for the first time in his career, a demotion allowed him to successively progress through both the Double-A and Triple-A levels. He did so while hitting for average, getting on base, and playing solid centerfield defense. Today's move suggest the Twins aren't looking to substantiate that at the major league level and the big question is why? Figuring out what Hicks has to give you prior to turning Buxton and Rosario loose seems to be an integral thing to unlock. Doing so out of the gate with a strong end to the 2014 season made the most sense. Now it would appear the Twins have created more questions than answers.

In moving on from Hicks to start the season, Molitor is giving the centerfield job to Jordan Schafer and Shane Robinson. He has said he will "play matchups" but that it won't be a straight platoon situation. While that's great in theory, by and large, that is what's going to take place. The problem there is that a platoon is designed to allow a batter to exploit his talents against a certain type of pitcher.

Neither Robinson nor Schafer possess any real ability at the plate. Schafer owns a .229 career average, and was under the Mendoza line last season before coming over from the Braves. Sure he hit .285 for the Twins, but there's no way the production is sustainable. As an outfielder owning a UZR (Ultimate Zone Rating) of -8.4, he's not someone you ideally want starting in center either.

On the other side of the equation, Robinson fooled no one with a breakout season at the plate. He spent much of 2014 in Triple-A for the Cardinals. His career UZR of 7.8 is indicative of his billing as a defensive outfielder, but his career average suggests he's virtually a guaranteed out as well. At the end of the day, Molitor and the Twins appear to have looked past Aaron Hicks at the juncture that may result in them getting another opportunity to do so.

Looking at the mound, normalcy has likely been achieved. As Mike Palfrey heads to the pen with Milone rounding out the rotation, the Twins know how things will start. Palfrey voiced displeasure suggesting he was told he'd be given a chance to start, and that he didn't believe he'd be destined for the pen. This morning, he went as far as saying if there are clubs who believe in him as a starter, he would be open to moving on.

To be fair, the competition likely never included Palfrey from the get go. While he posted a sub 2.00 ERA this spring, 13.2 innings were never going to be enough to extrapolate any information that multiple years of bad starting pitching wouldn't overshadow. Trevor May pitched well, and despite his rough outing on Friday, he was always going to be in an uphill battle. Malone is a proven commodity and pitched well on a solid Oakland team. Minnesota should expect him to return to that form this season.

Despite being upset about his new role, Pelfrey actually could extend his career this way. With the ability to push the radar gun to around 97 in a less stamina related role, he could overpower hitters to a much larger extent. While Wade Davis is the golden example, if Palfrey can follow that path and become even close to that level, the Twins stand to gain a lot with this decision. Should Palfrey be focused on starting, the Twins could look to the Mets, Blue Jays, and maybe even the Red Sox as options. The problem is that a bad starting pitcher is probably going to net them less in a trade, even if that team needs an arm, than what they would find out by having him relieve first.

At the end of Saturday, we know a lot more about how the Twins will look when they head north. Some of it is easy to agree with (sorry Pelf, the pen is home now), and some doesn't make sense (Hicks now becomes a bigger question mark than he was before). As the Twins embark on their last week in Florida, look for the backup catcher role to be determined, and Eduardo Nunez to continue to be evaluated.

Let's hope we aren't having another frustrating discussion involving Kennys Vargas later this week. The Twins are at the mercy of injury when it comes to Josmil Pinto, and if they have to bring Chris Herrmann north because of it, so be it. That being said, lets shoot for a bit higher ceiling with the rest of the decisions alright brain trust?

Two Twins Nearing A Crossroads

The Minnesota Twins have a week and a half of spring training action before they head north to face of with the Detroit Tigers to open the 2015 Major League Baseball season. For two players participating as non-roster invites, a decision time is certainly looming. Whether it's the Twins or each player choosing, the next steps in the careers of both Blaine Boyer and Shane Robinson are soon going to be figured out.

Both players were signed to minor league deals with spring training invites over the offseason. Robinson came to the Twins by way of the St. Louis Cardinals organization while Boyer moved on from the San Diego Padres. In the contracts of both players remains an opt-out date, which is set for March 30. As it stands, both are still in big league camp, but with Monday quickly approaching something has to give.

For Boyer, spring has been nothing short of impressive. Pitching in 9.2 innings for the Twins, he has accumulated just a 1.86 ERA giving up just five hits and two earned runs. More impressively, he has struck out five, while walking only one, and doing so allowing hitter to bat just .152 off of him. Boyer carries a salary under the seven-figure mark, and would be a high ceiling option. Pitching to the tune of a 3.57 ERA in 32 games with the Padres last season, Boyer could give the Twins an immediate boost in the bullpen.

At this point, the Twins likely have two undecided spots left in the bullpen. It would stand to reason that J.R. Graham appears poised to make the cut, leaving just one opening. If the Twins decide to send Trevor May back to Triple-A and keep Mike Pelfrey on the 25 man roster, it will undoubtedly be in the bullpen. The Twins would likely need to choose Boyer over Duensing (hint: they should), but that doesn't appear to be something that will take place. After going to arbitration with Duensing again this year, the Twins will likely ride out the connection they currently have with the lefty.

To say I have any idea what Boyer ends up doing couldn't be further from the truth. There is the potential that both the club and the former Padres pitcher will agree to push out the opt-out date a bit further. Right now though, I think Boyer should bank on his foundation of work, and that would be unfortunate for the Twins. He's proven his stuff is more than capable of getting major league hitters out, and he's coming off of a good year. He should be able to help someone out in the bullpen at the major league level this season.

Update: On Saturday morning, the Twins sent Aaron Hicks and Eddie Rosario to Triple-A Rochester. This puts both Jordan Schafer and Shane Robinson in motion for the centerfield job. As seen here, I'm not sure who missed more on the decision. Me for projecting wrong or the Twins for going through with it.

When the Twins went after Robinson, the train of though was outfield depth first and foremost. Knowing that Aaron Hicks remained a wildcard in centerfield, and Jordan Schafer isn't an enticing backup option, the Twins needed to bring in some competition. Hitting .276/.364/.379 across 29 at bats this spring, Robinson has been markedly better than his career numbers (.231/.303/.308). Last season for the Cardinals, Robinson played in just 47 games and failed to break the .150 mark at the plate. Needing to break the roster defensively, Robinson was always facing an uphill battle.

Looking at the way things stand now, there's no doubt that Robinson is the odd man out. I feel confident in saying there is next to zero shot he makes the Opening Day roster. The Twins aren't going to give up on Hicks without making him prove his 2014 minor league season wasn't a fluke. Behind him, Schafer makes more sense due to the speed he brings to the game. Ideally, the Twins would hope that Hicks could show enough ability to be the fourth outfielder, while stepping aside for Eddie Rosario to take over. No matter what way you cut it however, Robinson would be the fourth best option in centerfield, and that doesn't bode well for him.

Because the Twins have some outfield uncertainty, there's probably something to gain for Robinson if he sticks in the organization. Like Boyer, he could renegotiate his opt-out date and even decide to head to Triple-A Rochester. The Twins could use him as depth, even though there may not be much of a ceiling for him to expose here. Unlike Boyer, Robinson would likely struggle somewhat to find a new home, and may be needing to settle for time on the farm no matter where he goes. My guess is that he spends another week with the big league club before being sent to Triple-A and accepting the role.

When Monday roles around, things will become a lot more clear for both players as well as the Twins. Of the two, it's Boyer that belongs on the roster, but Minnesota may not be ready to find a place for him. At any rate, things should be sorted out soon.