Photo by Ryan Siverson Photography – rysiphoto.com

It was an honor again for my band, The 4onthefloor, to play Target Field during a Twins game, this year as the inaugural band of the brand new Midwest Music Showcase series. We had a fantastic time again – the Twins treat us great and it’s an amazing experience especially for a lifelong die hard Twins fan like myself. Unfortunately we’re now 0 for 2 on rocking the Twins on to victory so they might not ever ask us back again. Click the photo above for more photos taken by my good friend, Ryan Siverson (rysiphoto.com).

As for the actual game, The Twins took an early lead but left four runners on in the first two innings. After that The White Sox’s bats got hot and they pounded Twins pitching for 9 runs and 3 home runs over the final seven innings. As is increasingly becoming the case, and as most of us expected coming into the season, the starting pitching was poor. Mike Pelphrey just isn’t fooling anyone and the Sox were hitting rockets all over the field off him. More concerning is that the bullpen, which had been stellar until the past week or so, again struggled. The White Sox are not a good team and have been terrible offensively, but right now, Twins pitching is even worse. Offensively the Twins left too many guys on base early or this game could have had a different complexion. Mauer and Morneau continue to be hot and Eduardo Escobar homered but mostly the bottom third of the order didn’t do much.

Some notes:

Joe Mauer had three more hits including another double. He’s climbed back up to 4th in the AL in batting average and is now third in the AL with 16 doubles, 11 of which have come during his current 14 game hitting streak. He also struck out again, stretching his streak to 14 consecutive games with a strikeout. A thought popped into my head that maybe the reason he’s hitting more doubles and striking out more often is that he’s swinging harder this year. I have no idea if this might be the case. I wonder if anyone has asked him. His strikeouts don’t bother me at all – he’s still putting up monster number other than home runs.

The Twins rotation is as bad as we expected. Correia thus far has greatly exceeded my expectations. But Worley has been much worse than expected and Pelphrey has been almost as bad. I don’t expect Correia to continue to pitch as well as he has, and I want to think Worley should be better though he hasn’t shown anything so far. Pelphrey probably should be dropped from the rotation but right now there’s nobody demanding his spot. Kyle Gibson has been inconsistent, Cole Devries is coming back from injury and struggling in the minors, Liam Hendriks has struggled at AAA and is now hurt, Sam Deduno, PJ Walters, and Andrew Albers have pitched pretty well at AAA but are not on the 40 man roster, and Alex Meyer and Trevor May aren’t ready for the big leagues yet. It’s hard to imagine anyone besides Scott Diamond on this staff posting league average stats or 180+ innings. We’ll probably end up seeing as many as ten different guys get five or more starts this year.

Josh Willingham isn’t doing much for his trade value right now. His overall numbers aside from his batting average aren’t bad, but he just doesn’t look very good lately. The Twins have too many RF/1B/DH types and eventually they will need to clear some space. Willingham seems like the most likely guy to bring something of quality back in return but he needs to hit.

Oswaldo Arcia looks like a guy going through a little bit of a rookie readjustment period. It’s just a few games but he hasn’t looked as in control at the plate lately. I’m not worried. I still think he’ll win AL Rookie of the Year.

I didn’t get to really focus a great deal on the game today so those are my few thoughts for now.

Aug 17, 2012; Seattle, WA, USA; MLB: Minnesota Twins left fielder Josh Willingham (16) hits a solo-home run against the Seattle Mariners during the eighth inning at Safeco Field. Mandatory Credit: Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports

More than half of the Twins positional starters are basically set in stone, but we’ll take a look at the contenders where there is competition; many of the more interesting battles in camp will play out for backup spots as the spring progresses. And while even a strong camp will still mean relegation to the minors for a lot of these guys, they’ll be just an injury away from seeing time with the Twins at some point over the course of the season.

So far, we’ve run down the catchers, first, second and third base, as well as shortstop. Today, we’ll look at the competition at left field as we move our way around the diamond over the course of Spring Training.

PROJECTED STARTER: Josh Willingham

If you don’t follow the Twins, or baseball in general, Willingham had a statistical monster of a season in 2012. Here’s the Crib Notes: he’s a right-handed slugger who strikes out too much and plays poor defense, but his bat plays well in Target Field, and he’s signed to a team-friendly contract through 2014. He won a Silver Slugger last year with 35 HR and 110 RBI last season.

Willingham would seem a top trade target for a number of teams but, at 33, and considering his pull power doesn’t play as well in many parks across the league as it does at Target Field, he seems to have more value to the Twins than perhaps any other team in baseball. As much as the trade scenarios make sense on paper, Willingham probably isn’t going anywhere before the 2014 trade deadline.

PROJECTED BACKUPS: Darin Mastroianni, Ryan Doumit, Brandon Boggs

Apr 25, 2011; Milwaukee, WI, USA; Milwaukee Brewers pinch hitter Brandon Boggs (12) bats during the game against the Cincinnati Reds at Miller Park. The Reds defeated the Brewers 9-5. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

This is where projections get a little dicey because so much of what happens with the fourth outfielder spot will depend on how the Twins handle the competition at center field this spring. If Twins brass opt to have Aaron Hicks start the season in AAA in order to ensure an extra year of team control, which I think is likely, Mastroianni or Benson could keep the spot warm for Hicks for a month or so. If it’s the former who gets the job, Boggs probably has the best shot at the fourth outfielder spot at this point, but if Benson takes the job out of camp and runs with it, Mastroianni resumes his role as an ideal defensive outfielder and pinch runner off the bench.

Regardless of how the center field competition plays out this spring, there are a number of scenarios that could lead to Benson finishing 2013 starting in left field for the Twins: if Willingham is injured or traded, we could see Benson in left and Hicks in center; if Doumit is injured or traded, Willingham could move to DH and allow for the same outfield alignment; and a trade of Justin Morneau would mean a move to first base for Chris Parmelee and a potential outfield of Benson, Hicks and Oswaldo Arcia by season’s end.

All of these scenarios are just conjecture on my part, but the fact remains that Benson will get reps in left field this spring and, with Hicks and Arcia knocking on the door, Benson’s best shot at a long-term starting spot with the Twins is probably in left field. His performance will dictate his future with the club and again, if Mastroianni starts the season as the starting center fielder, Boggs is the most likely option in camp as a fourth outfielder because I think the Twins will want Benson playing every day.

Doumit can play left field, which is about the best that can be said about his defensive prowess in the outfield, but he started 16 games there last season and will most likely get a few starts there again in 2013. If you want to read more about Boggs, I wrote up an article on him here; we’ll look at Benson and Mastroianni early next week in my center field preview; and Doumit and Chris Herrmann are discussed in more depth in my preview of the catchers.

LONG SHOTS

While Herrmann holds great value for the team moving forward as a backup catcher and outfielder, I think future player-coach Drew Butera gets the third catcher spot out of camp. An injury to Joe Mauer or Doumit in 2013 would most likely mean starts for Herrmann behind the dish, and the team will want to see him in left field this spring, too, in order to gauge his potential beyond 2013.

Clete Thomas is a left-handed hitter who was claimed off waivers by Minnesota a couple of weeks into 2012, hit a home run in his first game, and was designated for assignment less than a month later. The 29 year old played more center field last season in Rochester than at any previous time in his career, suggesting that the Twins may have been prepping the former Tiger in the minors for competition at the fourth outfielder spot. Thomas has played well against the Twins in the past and passes the smell test as the type of player Ron Gardenhire would like to have on his bench so, while Boggs would seem to project as the better fourth outfielder, I would be far from shocked to see Thomas come north with the club.

Wilkin Ramirez will be in camp, but he’s primarily a corner outfielder and will have to prove he can hold down center if he has any hope of making the club as the team’s fourth outfielder. Ramirez was at one time a top prospect for the Tigers and has been hampered by injuries so, at 27, he’s one of those players you don’t want to completely write off. Brian Dinkelman is a strong organizational guy who has seen time with the Twins in the past and could see time again with the club as a stop-gap backup outfielder and second baseman, if injuries strike.

CONCLUSION

May 24, 2011; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Twins outfielder Joe Benson (63) against the Seattle Mariners at Target Field. The Twins defeated the Mariners 3-2. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

After Willingham’s 2012, there’s absolutely no competition in left field this spring. The fourth outfield spot is definitely up for grabs, though, and regardless of how the center-field competition plays out, Joe Benson could go a long ways towards reclaiming his career by playing well in left field this spring. If the injury-prone Doumit misses time at any point this season–precipitating a move to DH for Willingham–or if any number of trade scenarios go down, this spring could well dictate whether or not Benson’s number gets called.

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The leaves are changing to their beautiful fall foliage, coffee shops are increasingly busier while brisk breezes chill the air, and football dominates the sports world.  But for a few hard-working and lucky teams in baseball, their season has just begun.

Baseball managers who’s teams have locked a spot in the 2012 postseason are setting up their pitching rotations and making tough decisions on who has worked hard and proven their self-worth enough to make the team for the World Series push. Some of the usual suspects are poised to make their annual postseason appearance again this year; New York Yankees, Texas Rangers, San Francisco Giants, St. Louis Cardinals and Atlanta Braves. Yet, the most intriguing stories belong to the “Cinderella” teams, such as the Washington Nationals, Oakland Athletics, and the Baltimore Orioles. Nevertheless, once the playoffs begin, every team has the same chance to win the World Series. We throw regular season statistics out the window, standings do not matter anymore, it is all about who is playing the best baseball right now. Ten teams played 162 games better than twenty others in what is considered to be the most exhausting and rigorous regular season in all of sports.

As for the other 20 teams who did not have what it took to play deep into October and parts of November, Fall is a time to start the recovering process. Recovering from all of the scrapes and dings, the surgeries, and more importantly, a recovery of the mental toll a 162 game season can have on the human mind and spirit. Fall is also a time players not participating in the postseason can relax at home with their families, enjoy the playoffs as a fan while cheering on their friends, and hit the golf course. Apparently it is a rule that all athletes play golf as soon as their season has ended.

When the players and coaches left the Grapefruit League behind them and headed to Minnesota, their goal was to win a World Series. The Twins added Josh Willingham to provide much needed power from the right side of the plate. They brought in a revived Jason Marquis to fill in as a poor(er) man’s version of Carl Pavano to eat up some innings and help the bullpen stay fresh throughout the year. Brian Dozier emerged as the hopeful mainstay at short stop after an impressive Spring. Ryan Doumit was acquired via free agency to provide an offensive answer at catcher while Joe Mauer takes a day off behind the plate. Danny Valencia was expected to establish himself as a reliable, line-drive gap hitter at third. Jamey Carroll was brought in during the offseason to protect the middle of the field, platooning at second base and short stop. Chris Parmelee was slotted in at first base, allowing Justin Morneau to begin the season as the Twins designated hitter while still recovering from his concussion symptoms. All the moves made in the offseason seemed to make sense. There were not any major blockbuster deals, but the reasoning behind the acquisitions justified these players breaking camp with the team.

However, after an abysmal 2012 campaign and four of the a fore mentioned players not ending the season on the 25 man roster, the Minnesota Twins’ employees will be watching the postseason from the confines of their own homes. The Twins organization has not only let the fans down again, more importantly they have let themselves down. Winning a World Series is every player’s and owner’s ultimate goal. Being a part of a history making team must be one of the most rewarding and bonding experiences an athlete can achieve in their lives. Unfortunately, the Twins players will have to postpone their goals for at least one more season and try to take advantage of their extended leave to recuperate and recover in preparation for next year. Like the leaves floating to the ground during the Fall season, the dreams are broken of all ball players who do not get that enchanting opportunity to play with their teammates and compete for the one goal they all have in common, winning a World Series.

The Twins now have to take advantage of an early offseason and make the right moves to build a championship caliber team. The players need to properly train and prepare for the upcoming season more than ever. Hopefully, front office members already have a short list of players they plan on acquiring this offseason to glue the loose ends and bring a World Series to the much deserving Twins faithful.

September 25, 2012; Minneapolis, MN, USA; Minnesota Twins outfielder Denard Span (2) celebrates his 2-RBI double during the seventh inning against the New York Yankees at Target Field. The Twins deafeated the Yankees 5-4. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-US PRESSWIRE