Rule 5 Continues To Be Good For Twins

The Rule 5 Draft took place at the conclusion of the Major League Baseball Winter Meetings. As teams selected players from other organizations that must stay on their 25 man roster throughout the duration of the upcoming season, Minnesota continues to reap the rewards of solid Rule 5 Draft success.

In the 2016 version, Minnesota had the first overall pick and selected a pitcher from the Brewers organization, Miguel Diaz. He was sent to the Padres in exchange for Justin Haley, a pitcher from the Red Sox organization that the Los Angeles Angels had selected with their Rule 5 pick. Haley is a tall kid with average stuff that projects as a capable back-end big league starter. He'll join the Twins organization and likely compete for a rotation spot during spring training.

When looking at previous Rule 5 success, Twins fans can easily point to Johan Santana. The club weathered two seasons (when Santana was 21 and 22 years old) in which he posted a 5.9 ERA and just a 6.4 K/9 with a 4.9 BB/9. He then went on to win two Cy Young awards while compiling a 2.92 ERA across the next six seasons. By all measures, Santana is the Gold Standard when it comes to Minnesota Twins Rule 5 Draft Picks.

There's one that's still paying dividends however.

Ryan Pressly was selected in the Rule 5 Draft out of the Red Sox organization prior to the 2013 Major League Baseball season. He's worked exclusively as a reliever, and posted a 3.55 ERA across 208 MLB innings for the Twins the past four seasons. Last year however was easily Pressly's best in Minnesota.

Healthy and contributing over 75 innings for Paul Molitor's club, Pressly turned in a 3.70 ERA that was backed by a nice 8.0 K/9 and a 2.7 BB/9. He picked up his first career save, and flashed some really strong offerings on the mound. Also in 2016, Pressly turned in his highest average fastball velocity of his career sitting at 95.2 mph. His slider and curveball also saw velocity spikes while he all but abandoned his changeup.

Going into the 2017 season, I'd hope that the Twins give significant run to internal bullpen options. Players like Jake Reed, Trevor Hildenberger, D.J. Baxendale, Aaron Slegers, and Nick Burdi should all be close to big league debuts. With that much youth in contention for relief opportunities, it will be on veterans such as Pressly to provide a steadying feeling late in games. If the returns of late are any indication, the native Texan should have no problem being up to the task.

As teams around the big leagues have placed an increased importance on relief pitching as a whole, the Twins bullpen has lagged behind. With starters failing to go deep in games, the relievers have generally been asked to do too much. Of the group, and around the big leagues, Pressly doesn't get the praise he deserves and isn't the household name he may soon turn into.

Right now, the jury is out on how good of a Rule 5 selection Justin Haley will be for the Twins. What isn't up for debate is that Ryan Pressly is one of the best Minnesota has ever taken in the draft.

On The Hall And A Twins Potential Outfielder

With plenty of different happenings going on in baseball during this time of the year, it's hard to stick simply to one topic. The Winter Meetings are now in full swing, and the Minnesota Twins should be plenty busy fielding calls on trade asset Brian Dozier. For the purpose of this post though, there's two notes I wanted to expand upon.

The first is in the way in which Official Baseball Writers Association of America members handle their Hall of Fame votes. Recently former Commissioner Bud Selig was inducted into the Hall of Fame. Susan Slusser, beat reporter for the Oakland Athletics, made this comment following the news, "Senseless to keep steroid guys out when the enablers are in Hall of Fame. I now will hold my nose and vote for players I believe cheated."

I have been beating this drum for years, and am happy to hear more prominent voices start to get on board. The largest detractor for PED guys has always been the character clause. BBWAA voters hide behind voting for deserving players because the use of PEDs suggests flawed character, and inducting a cheater isn't something any of them seem to want on their hands. In putting Selig in The Hall however, they've just allowed the most egregious offender.

Here's the thing, Bud Selig is the reason PEDs ran rampant in baseball. He allowed it for good reason, and players like Sammy Sosa and Mark McGwire saved his sport post lockout. In the midst of it all happening, those players (and the commissioner) were celebrated. The era is what it was, and should be treated as such. It's nice to see Susan getting on board, and would be great to see more of her fellow voters do the same. This is the same contingent of people that reject change at every turn however, so let's not start to hold our breath.

As an aside, here's more thoughts on PED users being voted into the Hall of Fame if you're interested.

The second note I wanted to touch on is the decision by the Washington Nationals to non-tender Ben Revere. The former Minnesota Twins outfielder made $6.25 million in 2016 with the Nationals and was scheduled to get a small bump; having played just 103 games this year though, they saw him as an expendable asset. Now a free agent, this is where things get interesting.

Revere hasn't played for the Twins since 2012 after which he was dealt to the Philadelphia Phillies for Vance Worley and Trevor May. Since then, he's played for three teams and compiled a .289/.320/.353 slash line. His speed remains his biggest asset, and he plays all three outfield spots. He makes a lot of sense for the Twins as there should be plenty of need for an extra outfielder among a young group.

A season ago, Robbie Grossman was the Twins mid-season flier. In 99 games, he posted a .386 OBP and getting on base kept him in Minnesota's lineup. What was troubling however, was that Grossman posted a ridiculous -21 DRS as well as a -15.2 UZR. The defensive runs saved number was the third worst mark posted in the big leagues (and both Andrew McCutchen and J.D. Martinez played nearly twice as many innings), and dwarfed the likes of previous ugly defensive showings for the Twins such as Delmon Young.

To be fair, Revere's defense isn't world-breaking either. He posted a 2 DRS in just over 700 outfield innings last season, but he's two years removed from a -16 effort with the Phillies. Likely best suited for left field at this point, he'd fit in nicely alongside Byron Buxton and Max Kepler. There isn't really a platoon play for Revere at all, but he could be interchanged with the likes of Eddie Rosario pretty seamlessly.

I'd guess Revere will have no trouble finding a big league job, but if I was the Twins, I think I'd prefer him over Robbie Grossman. Even before Revere's availability, I wondered whether Minnesota had room for Grossman going forward.

With the Winter Meetings ready to take the bulk of the news this week, we should have plenty of excitement to look forward to.

All Star Changes Are Only Half The Battle

As Major League Baseball and the Major League Baseball Players Association came to agreement on a new Collective Bargaining Agreement, the Mid-Summer Classic hardly went ignored. Sure there was decisions made on an International Draft, Qualifying Offers, and the new Luxury Tax thresholds, but it was the All Star Game decision that caught the attention of the Associated Press late Wednesday night.

With the new CBA, Major League Baseball decided intelligently that the exhibition game should no longer count. In the 14 seasons since making it matter, nine times the World Series winning team had home field advantage. Thankful to their opposition for the All Star victory, it was a meaningless game in July that determined, at least in part, over half of the last 14 World Series winners.

Here's the thing with the All Star game though, it never should have counted. It shouldn't have counted in the results column, but it absolutely should count when it comes to representation. This summer, Twins fans were given their representative in the form of Eduardo Nunez. Sure, he had a very nice year in comparison to his career norms, but he hardly competed at an All Star level.

With every team getting a representative, this is the kind of situations the league finds itself in at times. While it's not the fault of the player at all, it's a massive miss by the league. Surely, Twins fans didn't need Nunez to be included in the game to decide upon watching it; that was more than likely a separate decision made entirely on its own merit.

As players convene for the All Star game in the middle of the summer, Major League Baseball's focus should be on one thing, marketability. The sport itself needs that stage to highlight the best young players the game has. Sure, you'll have your years where an Alex Rodriguez or Ichiro Suzuki type makes sense, but the bulk of the roster should be up and coming stars. Mike Trout, Kris Bryant, Carlos Correa, Francisco Lindor, those are names that should be represented at every All Star Game for the next ten years.

It's understandable why leagues incorporate fan voting into their All Star Game processes. At it's core, that's a level of marketability in giving the people who they want to see. In scenarios though where the entire Royals or Cubs roster is starting in an All Star Game, the league may be best served to step in. What do jersey sales look like? Are all of those top players represented? Is the brand a saturated result of baseball players as a whole, or is the game showcasing the best the sport has to offer?

Recently Sony announced that MLB The Show 17 will feature Ken Griffey Jr. on the cover. I am a fan of the move and think it makes sense to do a historic cover as it coincides with his Hall of Fame induction, and Griffey has long been synonymous with baseball video games. However, I can definitely understand the miss that is the league failing to provide uber marketable players that just present no-brainer options in scenarios such as these.

Thanks to the new CBA, the All Star Game will no longer count in terms of determining home field advantage. For a game that's gaining traction again across the country though, it counts at the highest level when it comes to providing a platform to market the most meaningful players in the sport.

Getting Familiar With Jason Castro

The Minnesota Twins officially announced Jason Castro as their newest free agent acquisition. He has been added to the 40 man roster, and the organization now has a full boat there. He'll wear number 21 for the home nine, and he started off his new adventure by allowing Twins fans to get to know him today.

I've already covered what the Castro signing means for this new era of the Twins, and why he makes sense as an ideal catcher for the organization here and here respectively. Minnesota gave Castro an opportunity to address the fan base on Twitter recently by answering questions with the hashtag #AskJason.

Here are some of the highlights:

the community and passion for developing a winning atmosphere with the talent that is already here is what drew me to the Twins. https://t.co/VAGtYMQakD

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) November 30, 2016

Twins Territory is among the most passionate fanbases in the game of baseball. It will be fun to see Jason's contribution both on and off the field.

We are excited for the new adventure and spend quite a bit of time in the mountains in CA so we're getting used to the cold. https://t.co/3BDklpE3xK

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) November 30, 2016

I'm guessing the California mountains don't have much on Minnesota winters, but you have to appreciate a willing mind.

plays a factor in developing game plan between the pitcher that day and trying to align his strengths while attacking the hitters weaknesses https://t.co/832D7gCWte

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) November 30, 2016

As a pitch framer, Castro no doubt incorporates advanced analytics into his game.

Probably a tie between making the 2013 AL All Star team and making the playoffs with Houston in 2015. https://t.co/rtMAQIfVRj

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) November 30, 2016

A personal and team achievement each, Castro has a history of experience across multiple different levels of achievements.

Big fan of dining out, so what are some of the go-to restaurants in Minneapolis? https://t.co/i8ChbAS6az

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) November 30, 2016

C'mon Twins Territorians, send him some suggestions.

Lance McCullers is one that comes to mind as some of the best stuff I've caught...don't tell him I said that though https://t.co/vlSP3ci6K3

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) November 30, 2016

McCullers has one of the filthiest curveballs in the game, so it's not at all surprising that the former Astros teammate gets the nod here.

Only one so far. https://t.co/U6Qe6Ipcpu

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) November 30, 2016

It sure didn't take long for Jason to meet Sid...

What's Hotdish??? https://t.co/zRUokqTRUr

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) November 30, 2016

And this is where Jason's Midwest education starts!

Castro will look to help the Twins pitching staff improve upon some league worst numbers next season, and he should be expected to be quite the upgrade from veteran Kurt Suzuki. Inked for the next three years, here's to hoping Castro is a part of the next Minnesota turnaround. Give him a follow on Twitter at @J_Castro15

A Twins Reunion That Makes Sense

Of recent, the Minnesota Twins have made a history of reuniting with players on the field that don't make a ton of sense. Whether it was Jason Bartlett, Matt Guerrier, or Jason Kubel, veterans on the tail end of their careers aren't a great move for a bad team. In hiring Torii Hunter, LaTroy Hawkins, and Michael Cuddyer as Special Assistants, Derek Falvey and Thad Levine seem to have picked a meaningful reunion.

While the trio will no doubt be asked to provide value, they are not in significant positions of power. Instead, as Special Assistants, they'll be called upon to provide their insight from both a player perspective as well as having significant ties to the organization and its inner workings as a whole. Sure, they could have been brought in as Spring Training figureheads, but there's no downside to this move either.

Then there's the bit of information I gleaned in reading over Mike Berardino's piece for the Pioneer Press. He noted that other Twins Special Assistants include Bert Blyleven, Rod Carew, Jack Morris, Kent Hrbek, and Tony Oliva. Of that group, there's a few thoughts that come to mind. I'd imagine both Carew and Oliva are more present in spirit than practice at this point given their age. The duo of Blyleven and Morris though are what jumped out at me in reading their names in Mike's piece.

When thinking about former players involved with current Twins happenings, there's few that come across as more aloof than Bert Blyleven. On the air, Bert rambles nonsensically about his Hall of Fame career while providing little to no game value. The Twins broadcast routinely grades out among the worst in all of baseball, and an astute listener can only put up with Blyleven for so long. While he's likely forgotten more about the game than I'll ever know, he's hardly someone I'd entrust with teaching today's game to up and coming stars.

Getting to Morris turns a different page entirely. While I think he brings significantly more to the air than most former players analyzing Twins action, he too represents a dated way of thinking. He's a big proponent of the pitcher win stat, and his chauvinistic comments from his playing days have really never left him. At the end of the day though, it's pretty clear that this new trio was necessary.

In looking at LaTroy, Michael, and Torii, the group combines a wide array of personalities. There's outspoken individuals as well as more reserved players. All have had the designation of clubhouse leader, and each has gone on to win elsewhere in recent memory and with adjusted perspective. While Torii is admittedly not a fan of saber metrics, and LaTroy doesn't mind mixing it up on Twitter, there's little reason to believe that a fresh and younger perspective to the game won't help the current club.

Admittedly I have no idea what the job of a Special Assistant entails, I'd be willing to guess the new grouping won't be simply telling stories of yesteryear to the young pups. This is far from a scholarship program that has played out on the field in the past, and it's a breath of fresh air to a group of Special Assistants that very clearly needed it.

While Minnesota needs to organizationally shift from a way of thinking that has allowed them to tread water for years, Falvey and Levine accomplish little by alienating those that could be in their corner. Hunter, Hawkins, and Cuddyer can now champion for the new regime while understanding the old, and there's some real benefit to that. We may rarely see what the actual results are from the dollars spent, but I'd bet that the net is a positive one.

2017 IBWAA Hall Of Fame Ballot

As is the case around this time of the year, Hall of Fame ballots are sent out. To Official Baseball Writers Association of America members, they are mailed and returned as such. Through the forward thinking Internet Baseball Writers Association of America, email is utilized to streamline the process. Once again, I have the privilege of completing a ballot.

Before getting into the selections themselves, I wanted to lay a few guidelines out. First and foremost, the IBWAA has already voted in the likes of Tim Raines, Edgar Martinez, and Jeff Bagwell. Voters also have the opportunity to vote for anywhere between one and 15 players, but may not turn in a blank ballot. My stance on performance enhancing drugs has been discussed previously, and you can find it here.

For players I have voted previously, I will denote them as such with an asterisk. I will also be using the same explanation as the previous vote. Without further ado, let's get into it:

*Barry Bonds: 164.4 fWAR

It's a no brainer. The all-time home run king (762) is arguably the best player to ever step on the field. A seven-time MVP, eight-time Gold Glove winner, and 14-time All Star, Bonds did it all.

*Roger Clemens: 133.7 fWAR

The Rocket is one of the greatest pitchers to ever grace the mound. He's won seven Cy Young awards, claimed an MVP as a pitcher, and was invited to 11 All Star Games. His 4,672 strikeouts were buoyed by leading the big leagues five separate times.

*Trevor Hoffman: 26.1 fWAR

At one point the All-Time saves leader, Hoffman's 601 career saves still rank second, trailing only Mariano Rivera. His career 2.87 ERA was is dazzling, and the seven-time All Star has a place in the Hall.

*Fred McGriff: 56.9 fWAR

The Crime Dog spent many of his early season among MVP discussions. Despite never winning won, he finished fourth in 1993. He was elected to five All Star games and won three Silver Slugger awards. It's his 493 career home runs that get him over the top and into the Hall however.

*Mike Mussina: 82.2 fWAR

Pitching his entire career in the AL East, Mussina was a household name for Yankees and Orioles fans. Making five All Star games, and winning seven Gold Gloves, Mussina has his fair share of awards. Totaling 270 wins, and just over 2,800 strikeouts, Mussina comes up just short of the guaranteed numbers.

*Curt Schilling: 79.7 fWAR

Bloody sock nonsense aside, Schilling is a three time Cy Young runner-up, and six-time All Star. He struck out 3,116 batters in his career and owns a 3.46 ERA while totaling more than 200 wins. Three World Series rings, an MVP, and a 2.23 postseason ERA do him favors as well. Since voting for him last year, Schilling has made plenty of splashes in the media. He's not well liked off the field, but the character clause is among the most dated pieces of inclusion into the Hall of Fame. On baseball merit alone, he's worthy of the nod.

*Lee Smith: 26.6 fWAR

When it comes to closers, before there was Trevor Hoffman or Mariano Rivera, there was Lee Smith. His 478 saves still rank third among major league career numbers, and likely will stand there for quite some time. Smith was also a seven time All Star.

*Larry Walker: 68.7 fWAR

Although he played the field plenty, Walker also turned in a nice run spending time in both the infield and outfield. He was the 1997 NL MVP and made five All Star games. His glove netted him seven Gold Gloves and his bat produced three Silver Slugger awards. Walker finished his 17 seasons with 383 homers and drove in over 1,300 runs.

Vladimir Guerrero 54.3 fWAR

Guerrero was a nine-time All-Star and picked up an MVP award in 2004. Even with all of his accolades, it's two defining instances on the field highlight his memory most for me. Few players have ever been better bad ball hitters, and his arm from right field remains one of the best the game has ever seen. In his first year on the ballot, Vlad is a no brainer.

Ivan Rodriguez 68.9 fWAR

Another first timer on the ballot, Pudge gets the nod immediately as well. With 14 All-Star appearances, 13 Gold Gloves, seven Silver Sluggers, and an MVP to his credit, Rodriguez is among the top three or four catchers to ever play the game. He did it on both sides of the plate and his 21 year career was a testament to his durability as well.

Twins Establish New Era In Free Agency

Recently, the Minnesota Twins made among the first big splashes in free agency this winter by signing catcher Jason Castro. He's not a bank-breaking starting pitcher, and he won't light the world on fire at the plate, but the acquisition sends all the right messages throughout Twins Territory.

First and foremost you must understand who Jason Castro is. Sure, a three-year, $24.5 million deal for a player with a .684 OPS might seem egregious in today's offensive era of baseball. Looking at the former Astros backstop through that lens would be shortsighted though. As it stands, Castro is an elite pitch framer, and has average caught stealing numbers, which makes him one of the best commodities in the game of baseball as it stands today.

In a previous piece about Castro, I said this in comparing him to the backstops Minnesota employed a season ago:

Per StatCorner, Jason Castro was the 5th best catcher in all of baseball in 2016 when it came to generating extra strikes for his pitchers. Conversely, only 19 catchers were worse than Suzuki, and the second worst catcher in all of baseball when it came to pitch framing, was his backup Juan Centeno.

Not only is this move indicative of the Twins helping out their pitching staff, and addressing pitching concerns in a more economical way, but the optics surrounding the move are promising as well. Derek Falvey and Thad Levine are nearly combined what former Twins General Manager Terry Ryan was in age. They were supposed to embrace the new age of baseball, and welcome in an advanced way of thinking. Around the game, it was Castro behind the plate who embodied that, Minnesota who was often linked as making sense, and the duo comprising the new front office that got on board.

Far too often, Terry Ryan made his mark in free agency by throwing money at need positions. When Minnesota needed starting arms, he gave ill-advised millions to the likes of Kevin Correia and Ricky Nolasco. When he did make a solid move, Phil Hughes for example, he doubled down and processed an early extension to turn what was a positive into a negative. While it's just their first order of business, Falvey and Levine addressed a need in both catching and pitching, did so economically, and upgraded themselves from what Suzuki and Ceteno provided them a year prior.

In a vacuum, the Jason Castro deal makes a ton of sense for the Twins. He's a superior player to Kurt Suzuki even at his worst, and he checks off boxes across so many other facets of the organization as well. It's probably a bad bet to presume that Castro once again finds his former All Star self for Minnesota. Even if he doesn't though, a career .699 OPS with potential to enter back above the .700 plateau this season, combined with his defensive prowess, makes his presence a welcomed one.

I'd hope that the Twins aren't too terribly involved in free agency the rest of the way with so many similarly capable prospects that appear on the cusp of production in house. That being said, Falvey and Levine's first move should provide plenty of faith that the new men in charge have a firm grasp on what they are trying to accomplish, and a strong understanding of exactly how to get there.

Jason Castro is a great signing for the Twins. The thought process behind the execution of bringing him in is even better.