Baseball America's Top Ten Minnesota Twins Prospects

Baseball America released their top 10 Minnesota Twins prospect list today:

1. Aaron Hicks, of
2. Ben Revere, of
3. Wilson Ramos, c
4. Jose Mijares, lhp
5. Danny Valencia, 3b
6. Anthony Swarzak, rhp
7. Shooter Hunt, rhp
8. Kevin Mulvey, rhp
9. Carlos Gutierrez, rhp
10. Angel Morales, of

I can't say I disagree with it much. I'm not as high on Gutierrez as they are. I like that they rated Mijares that high, he will be a huge help to the bullpen next year. My view on the Twins farm system is that it is very deep, much deeper than in years past, but that it isn't very top heavy, in other words they don't have a top prospect like a Mauer, or a Liriano or Garza or a Young or Morneau sitting there. These guys are probably more like a Kubel, a Slowey, a Casilla, a Bartlett, potential to be good, but maybe not all-stars. But then again, I do have high hopes, especially Hicks should be an all-star, maybe Revere, Ramos, or Morales. I don't know. Nobody does. Nobody knew Span would all of a sudden break out. I guess most these guys won't be helping the team within the next 2 years so we will be able to better judge them as time goes on. But it sure is fun, even though every fan overvalues their team prospects.

Here is Baseball America's former top 10 picks for Twins top prospect:

1999	Michael Cuddyer, 3b	Twins
2000	Michael Cuddyer, 3b	Twins
2001	Adam Johnson, rhp	So. Maryland (Atlantic)
2002	Joe Mauer, c	Twins
2003	Joe Mauer, c	Twins
2004	Joe Mauer, c	Twins
2005	Joe Mauer, c	Twins
2006	Francisco Liriano, lhp	Twins
2007	Matt Garza, rhp	Rays
2008	Nick Blackburn, rhp	Twins

Blackburn was a weird choice, but he was solid last year. Ouch, Adam Johnson was a big bust.

And here is what they think our lineup will look like in 2012:

Catcher	Joe Mauer
First Base	Justin Morneau
Second Base	Alexi Casilla
Third Base	Danny Valencia
Shortstop	Trevor Plouffe
Left Field	Ben Revere
Center Field	Aaron Hicks
Right Field	Delmon Young
Designated Hitter	Jason Kubel
No. 1 Starter	Francisco Liriano
No. 2 Starter	Scott Baker
No. 3 Starter	Kevin Slowey
No. 4 Starter	Nick Blackburn
No. 5 Starter	Glen Perkins
Closer	Joe Nathan

I like it. Plouffe is the worst guy on that list. I'd sure like the Twins to trade for a shortstop like Yunel Escobar or JJ Hardy this winter. But the Twins immediate and long-term future looks very bright.

Tim’s Minnesota Twins Top Prospects

1. Carlos Gomez, CF ETA: 2008

A prospect the Twins received in the Johan Santana trade. He is the best all-around athlete in the Twins system now. He is the fastest runner in the Twins organization if not the major leagues. He has power to hit a lot of double and a good number of home runs. He has a cannon arm and is an excellent defender. He is still very raw but will likely be the Twins opening day starting center fielder and leadoff hitter if he has a solid spring training.


2. Deolis Guerra, RHP ETA: 2010-2011

He is somewhat similar to Gomez, a player received from the Mets who has tons of potential but is still somewhat raw. He is from Venezuela and is only 18 years old. He has a huge body frame and has the potential to be an ace and be the Twins #2 starter behind Francisco Liriano.


3. Tyler Robertson, LHP ETA: 2010

6-5, 225 pound, 19 year old lefty. He has three solid different pitches. Last year he struck out 123 batters in 102 innings in A ball. Hitters hit just .227 off of him. He had an ERA of 2.29 and looks to be a top of the rotation starter. Should start the year in AA ball.


4. Anthony Swarzak, RHP ETA: 2009
Anthony Swarzak is a young right-hander in AA. He has hit 95 mph on the radar gun and his curveball is his out pitch and his changeup gives him plenty of strikeouts as well. .Swarzak was the fifth of six pitchers the Twins selected in the first three rounds of the 2004 draft, but he has emerged as one of their top prospects. He has the potential to be a #2 starting pitcher.


5. Ben Revere, CF ETA: 2011
The Twins first round draft choice in 2007. Baseball America said he was the fastest player in the draft. He had a great first year in the minor leagues, with 10 triples and 21 steals in 50 games, to go along with a .388 on-base percentage and a .461 slugging percentage. One problem is that he is unlikely to develop home run power.


6. Jeff Manship, RHP ETA: 2010
The Twins took him in the 14th round of the draft, in 2006. Manship posted a 1.26 ERA in his 14-inning pro debut. Last year he dominated low Single-A with a 1.51 ERA and 77-to-9 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 77.2 innings. He was then promoted to high Single-A and had a 3.15 ERA there. So Manship had a hugely successful first full season. He doesn’t have overpowering stuff but he should be at least a mid-rotation starter.


7. Kevin Mulvey, RHP ETA: 2008
Acquired from the Mets in the Santana trade. Was the Mets Minor League Pitcher of the Year. He has modest strikeout numbers, but is very good at keeping the ball in the park. He’s just given up 5 home runs in 173 innings. Should develop into a solid #3 or #4 starting pitcher.


8. Trevor Plouffe, SS ETA: 2009

The Twins first round draft pick in 2004. He struggled at low Single-A and high Single-A over the first two seasons. Despite this, the Twins put him in AA as a 20 year old. He had the best year of his career with 9 home runs and 48 extra-base hits. His 37 doubles ranked third in the league. Plouffe has been pushed through the minors quickly, but he is just 21 and he is headed in the right direction.


9. Chris Parmalee RF ETA: 2011-2012

Drafted by the Twins with the 20th overall pick in the 2006 draft. He had a great first pro season with a .369 on-base percentage and a .532 slugging percentage. He had a disappointing last season, and he struck out in 27 percent of his plate appearances. He did rank in the league’s top 10 in homers. He looks like he will develop into a major power threat, since he has 23 homers, 63 extra-base hits in just 184 games as a teenager. But he needs to improve his .249 batting average and 193 strikeouts to be a potential impact bat.


10. Wilson Ramos C ETA: 2011-2012

The Twins signed Ramos of Venezuela as a 16-year-old in 2004. Wilson Ramos made his pro debut at rookie-ball in 2006 and hit .286 with three homers and 16 total extra-base hits, in 46 games. Last year he had a great season and adjusting for his age, level of competition, defensive position, and offensive environment, Ramos' performance was the best of any position player in the Twins' minor-league system. It is tough to say how well Ramos will do in the future because he is a teenage catcher. But Ramos has hit .290 through his first 119 games and has thrown out 41% of basestealers. It looks like he could develop some power as well. If he does reach the majors, he possesses the greatest threat to consider moving Joe Mauer from catcher to 3B.