The hard work is only beginning for the Minnesota Twins.
One of the biggest surprises in all of baseball in 2015, the Twins will try to build on a season that saw them in the American League wild-card race all the way into the campaign’s final weekend.
The Twins are armed with one of the best farm systems in the game the last couple of seasons, and many of the club’s top prospects have moved to the upper levels of the minor leagues. They are knocking on the major-league door, ready to make an impact.
Others, like outfielders Miguel Sano and Eddie Rosario, kicked the door in last year and will try and establish themselves as regulars in 2016.
There aren’t many questions about Sano at the plate. A shortstop when he was signed out of the Dominican Republic six years ago, Sano moved to third base as he has grown into a 270-pound man.
Mostly a designated hitter last season, Sano will shift to right field in 2016 to open up the DH spot for import Byung-Ho Park, who, like Sano, has the ability to hit for power.
“He’s bought in,” Ryan told MLB.com regarding Sano’s move. “But we’ve certainly asked that question. You have to be on board with it and he’s on board.”
It’s said the jump from 70 wins, which Minnesota had in 2014, to the 83 last season will be far easier than trying to replicate a similar jump this year.
The good news: 96 victories probably isn’t needed to win an American League Central Division that doesn’t possess a truly dominant team, at least on paper.
Whether the Twins have the horses to challenge the defending World Champion Kansas City Royals in 2016 is another question altogether.
There’s no question that Minnesota is a team on the rise. How quickly the Twins are able make that rise and how high that ascension goes will be something to keep an eye on in the American League this season.
“From what I’m getting from everybody, it’s different,” Twins second baseman Brian Dozier said, according to MLB.com. “Last year, coming off four straight 90-loss seasons, we had to make a change. So realistically, it was a good year and a lot better. But coming into this year, we expect to be good. The last couple years, we thought we would be good, but this year we expect it.”
NOTES, QUOTES
POSITION BATTLE TO WATCH: C Kurt Suzuki was an All-Star two seasons ago and was so good the Twins signed him to a two-year contract extension worth $12 million dollars at midseason. But Suzuki struggled mightily at the plate in 2015, hitting .240 and reaching base at a .296 clip. He wasn’t much better defensively, and at 32 years of age, Suzuki’s best years are probably behind him. Without a sure thing in the minors, Minnesota decided to trade outfield Aaron Hicks to the New York Yankees to acquire their potential catcher of the future in John Ryan Murphy. It’s expected that he will challenge Suzuki for the starting job right out of the gate, and it’s likely he could win it. Murphy isn’t great at any one thing, but he’s generally solid across the board and the Twins are hoping his best days are ahead of him.
ROOKIE WATCH: CF Byron Buxton debuted in the majors in 2015 and retained his rookie status by just two at-bats. Once the top prospect in the game and still a consensus top-three prospect, Buxton will try to be better the second time around. Over his first 46 games in the big leagues, Buxton hit just .209, had an on-base percentage of .250 and slugged only .326. Perhaps most disappointing, Buxton stole just two bases and struck out 44 times compared to drawing six walks. Buxton has electric speed and is already a Gold-Glove-caliber defender in center field. But he must find a way to get on base more often, and cause more havoc once he gets there, to make an impact in 2016. The rest of his game will come; there’s simply too much talent there for it not to.
COMEBACK TRAIL: LHP Fernando Abad was far from poor with the Oakland A’s in 2015. But he wasn’t good enough to earn a spot on a major-league roster heading into this season. After posting a 1.57 ERA in 69 games with Oakland in 2014, Abad came back to Earth last year, going 2-2 with a 4.15 ERA in 62 appearances. Part of the reason for the increase? Opponents hit nearly 50 points higher on balls in play last season (BABIP) and 17.2 percent of his fly balls resulted in home runs, the highest rate of his career. With a FIP of 5.50, Abad may have been lucky to have an ERA as low as it was, but he is not far removed from being an effective major league reliever. Because the Twins were unable to sign any of the high-priced veteran lefties available on the free-agent market, Abad will have a legitimate chance to earn a spot on the 25-man roster.
PLAYER NOTES:
–OF Miguel Sano will have a chance to earn a spot in the field every day, playing a spot he has never played in his life: right field. A designated hitter for virtually all of last season, Sano will be moved to the outfield after the club signed Korean slugger Byung-ho Park, who will begin spring training as the Twins’ new DH. Park can also mix in at first base occasionally, as can Sano, who could also see an occasional start at third in place of Trevor Plouffe.
–C John Ryan Murphy will have every opportunity to beat out incumbent Kurt Suzuki for the starting job behind the plate in spring training. Murphy, acquired from the New York Yankees in exchange for OF Aaron Hicks in November hit .277 with three homers as the Yankees’ backup to Brian McCann last season.
–RHP Ervin Santana is expected to be available for the entire season in 2016 after being suspended for the first half of last year because of PED usage. Santana struggled early after returning in July but was one of the best pitchers in the American League down the stretch, finishing 5-1 with a 1.62 ERA and 47 strikeouts over his final seven starts (50 innings).
–OF Carlos Quentin came out of retirement and signed with the Twins in early February as a non-roster invitee to spring training. Quentin is a two-time All-Star, but injuries have wreaked havoc on him in recent years. He hit .177 with four homers and 18 RBIs with the San Diego Padres in 2014, his last stop in the majors. He will compete for the Twins’ fourth outfield spot.
QUOTE TO NOTE: “The second one is different than the first but there won’t be any major changes. There aren’t going to be major overhauls.” — Twins manager Paul Molitor, to MLB.com on his approach entering his second season as the club’s skipper