From AJ Achter to Alex Wimmers and Bo Altobelli to JD Williams, the Minnesota Twins Prospect Handbooks gives you a ton of information on the entire Twins farm system.

If you are even remotely interested in the Twins farm system this book is a must own, Seth and fellow authors have gone to great lengths to provide prospect analysis for each and every prospect in the Twins organization. If you’re headed down to Spring Training this is a must have for your trip, or if you’re just looking to learn a little bit about the guys you’ll be seeing this season and beyond pick up a copy as well. Without a doubt this is the go-to handbook for anyone interested in the Twins farm system, get your copy today!

To get your copy, just follow the link. Once again, I cannot stress again what a great handbook this is, whether you’re headed to Twins Fest, Spring Training, minor league games or just want to know more, this book is for you. You can follow Seth Stohs on twitter, @SethTweets or read his writing at Twins Daily.
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A quick recap from last week, prospects 16-20

20. Levi Michael.
19. Daniel Santana.
18. Mason Melotakis.
17. B.J. Hermsen.
16. Jorge Polanco.

Onto the new stuff!
15. Alex Wimmers. Last season I had Wimmers pegged as the Twins #9 prospect, but the injury bug stuck again limiting him to 5 innings before he underwent season ending Tommy John surgery on August 2nd. Wimmers is already 23 and will most likely most, if not all, of the 2013 season. I still believe in his stuff and while he missed development time will hurt his long-term value, I still think he has value. Maybe Wimmers will find his way back by being a relief arm, only time will tell. Kyle Gibson, who spent 2012 recovering from Tommy John surgery may be able to provide Wimmers with some words of advice and comfort as Wimmers fights his way back to the mound.

14. Niko Goodrum. I am drunk on Nike Goodrum, drunk on hope! Niko didn’t have a bad season in 2012, but he didn’t hit as well as he did in 2011, but looking at numbers alone in rookie league ball doesn’t tell the whole story. Goodrum took more walks and hit for more power in his second season in Elizabethon and should start 2013 with the Twins new low-A affiliate Cedar Rapids Kernels. Niko has a strong arm and I like him to stick at the short-stop position as he moves up through the system. At only 20 years old, he still has a long way to go before he makes it to the big leagues, but I’ve got big league dreams on him already.

13. Chris Herrmann. Herrmann has a plus arm behind the plate, and although he played mostly OF at the university of Miami, the Twins moved him behind the plate and the move has been a resounding success, culminating with a late season call up to the Twins this past season. While with AA New Britain Herrmann produced a slash line of .276/.350/.392 (AVG/OBP/SLG) in 127 games and displayed his arm behind the plate throwing out 44% of would be base stealers (out of 51 attempts, the gunned down 27). I expect Herrmann to be getting reps at AAA to start the season but I would not be surprised to see him back with the big league club before the season is over. He provides the same stellar defense as Drew Butera, but his bat has some upside (despite his .054 average during last year’s call up).

12. Travis Harrison. Drafted in the sandwich round of the 2011 draft (50th overall) Harrison and spent 2012 with the Elizabethan Twins. In 60 games (59 at 3B and 1 DH) he hit .301/.383/.461, which is impressive for a guy just a year removed from high school, but he showed his rawness in the field, committing 24 errors in 143 chances. He struck out 51 times to go with only 24 walks, so despite good offensive numbers, there is still work to be done, but at only 20 years old that is to be expected. Much like fellow prospect Miguel Sano, Harrison may not stick at the hot corner; Harrison and his bat may be destined for first base, but given his potential upside and youth, the Twins will leave him at third as long as possible.

11. Adrian Salcedo. Salcedo pitched only 30.2 innings in 2012 after getting hit in the face during a game in late April that broke his nose. There was a lot of buzz surrounding Salcedo going into 2012, but the injury bug took its toll on the lanky right-hander, and after returning from the broken nose he was limited with elbow issues and then shoulder issues before ending the season on the DL. Salcedo has the ability to miss bats and has above average command, will he become the fenom scouts and fans saw in 2010 or was his diminished K-rate in 2011 (Beloit) closer to the real deal? With 2012 lost in injury and questions surrounding the health of his elbow, it’s a bit dangerous for me to have Salcedo this high, but I’m an optomisitc guy and I think he will bounce back in 2013. Fingers crossed.

Stop back next Thursday and we’ll take a look at the next 5 prospects in my top-20 list.

And if you really want to dive into the world of Twins prospects, make sure to check out Seth Stohs 2013 Twins Prospect Handbook when it comes out later this off-season. It is, without a doubt, the best guide for Twins prospects throughout the system, and has been an essential part of my off-season reading for the last couple years.
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Twins related news and notes from the minor leagues

Chris Herrmann played only 3 games before he was taken off the roster after suffering a minor injury. In his 3 games Herrmann was 5-for-10 with 2 walks, a double and only 1 strikeout.

Dan Rohlfing replaced Herrmann on the roster and saw action in 5 games in Arizona and went 6-for-18, knocking in 5 RBI during his limited playing time.

Kyle Gibson made 6 starts in Arizona and finished the short season with a 5.40 ERA, 28 strikeouts, and only 8 walks in 23.1 innings. Gibson started the AFL with very impressive numbers through his first 3 starts, giving up only 1 run in 13 innings, but struggled as the season wore on giving up 6, 4, and 3, runs in his last three starts. For Kyle Gibson the main objective of going down to Arizona was to log some innings on his surgically repaired arm and by that measure it was a huge success. Gibson will likely compete for a starting spot in the Twins rotation in spring training and could be up with the Twins very early in the season, especially if Terry Ryan and the front office do not bring in any starting pitching talent this off-season.

Evan Bigley played 16 games for the Javolinas and scraped out 15 hits (including 4 doubles and 2 triples) and 7 walks, but he also struckout 16 times. Bigley hit only .242/.319/.371 while in Arizona, but the AFL is an offense heavy league. Bigley hit .268 in AA last season before getting a promotion to AAA where he struggled, hitting .207/.235/.321 in 39 games. It will be interesting to see what happens to Bigley going forward; the Twins organization is staked with OF depth and it will be difficult to find playing time for Bigley if he can’t make things happen with the bat.

Michael Tonkin posted a 2.45 ERA to match Bigley, making 10 appearances out of the Javolinas bullpen and 14.2 total innings. Tonkin gave up 4 runs, all of them earned. Tonkin had not given up a single run until his last 2 appearances of the year, giving up 1 and then 3 runs to finish his time in the AFL. His line for Arizona includes 7 K’s and 3 walks and only 8 hits surrendered (including 1 HR). Tonkin started the season in low-A Beloit before moving up to Ft Myers in 2012. He posted a 1.38 ERA in Beloit and a 2.97 ERA in Ft Myers and struck out more than a batter an inning at both levels, ending the season with 97 strikeouts and only 20 walks in 69.1 innings of work.

Logan Darnell made 9 appearances, including 2 starts in 18.1 innings. He gave up only 5 runs and finished the short season with a 2.45 ERA, 5 walks and 17 K’s. Darnell pitched for AA New Britain in 2012 where he struggled a bit, giving up 22 HR in 28 games; he finished the 2012 season with a 5.08 ERA.

Caleb Thielbar was the only real blemish amongst the Twins players sent to Arizona. He pitched 13 innings and surrendered 21 hits (3 HR), walked 8, gave up, struck out 12 and gave up 16 runs (all earned), earning himself an 11.08 ERA. Woof.

Nate Roberts’ performance in the AFL was quite surprising, in 19 games he hit .446/.565/.662, and lead lead the league in all three of the slash categories (AVG/OBP/SLG)! He knocked in 15 RBI and hit 3 homeruns and 5 doubles; he struck out just 7 times and took 12 walks. And best of all, Nate grew a fantastic mustache, much better even than the caterpillar Delmon Young was sporting up in Detroit. Nate Roberts played for low-A Beloit last season where he hit .299/.433/.427 and had likely already earned himself a 2013 promotion to high-A. Roberts was old for the league and will be 24 when the 2013 season begins so he will need to continue to impress and move up through the system quickly.

Once again congratulations to the Peoria Javolinas and especially to members of the Twins organization lucky enough to spend a few weeks down in Arizona this winter.

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