Minnesota Twins

The Detroit Tigers will look to jump back into first place with a win tonight against the Minnesota Twins. Reports on Twitter state the game is likely going to be delayed. Brayan Pena will be getting his second straight start behind the dish with left-hander Scott Diamond pitching. With the way he has been hitting lately, its possible he would be getting the start even if the Twins were running a righty out there. Avisail Garcia will be starting in center-field for the Tigers tonight in the quest for his first MLB base-on-balls of 2013 Read more Avisail Garcia news

Daniel Shirey-USA TODAY Sports One time may be a fluke. Two times may be a coincidence. However, 10 times is a trend. On Wednesday, Atlanta Braves C/OF Evan Gattis crushed a grand slam against the Minnesota Twins and it was the 26-year-old’s 10th long ball of the season. He is currently leading all rookies in home runs, despite getting very limited at-bats this season, making the muti-positional slugger a hero for fantasy baseball owners. The slugger has pretty much been relegated to a pinch-hitter as of late, but that has not stopped him from making a fantasy impact. In his last four games, Gattis has had just six at-bats, but he has still bashed three home runs and driven in seven runs. Gattis has brought his RBI total up to 27 on the year and his average has quietly crept up to .256. His average will likely remain low without a steady dose of at-bats, but his power numbers will keep him active in deeper fantasy leagues all season, regardless of his role. However, Atlanta manager, Fredi Gonzalez, is trying to find ways to get El Oso Blanco’s bat into the lineup, because Gattis is hitting too well to be chewing sunflower seeds on the bench. His most recent hot-streak will almost guarantee him the extra at-bats, so fantasy owners should stay tuned. During his last home run at Turner Field, they played the theme music from The Natural as Gattis rounded the bases. It seems only fitting as he made the team this off-season after quitting ball in college and previously working as a janitor. Gattis is a true hitter and any fantasy owner can appreciate that. Adam McGill is the Senior Fantasy Sports Writer at Rant Sports. Follow him on Twitter @adammcgill83, like him on Facebook, or add him to you networks on Google here or here.

A 6:08 start time? Seriously? What’s up with that? Is there a prize for starting two minutes before every other game in the Eastern Time Zone? Weird starting time aside, it’s pretty hard to look at these line ups side by side and see a lot of reason to hope the Twins will win a game in this series. On the other hand, neither Diamond nor Porcello tend to walk many guys, so maybe the game will at least be relatively fast-paced. Speaking of the Twins’ line up, where the heck is Oswaldo Arcia? Has he started a game at all since last week? I guess I just don’t get the logic of having a kid on the roster if he’s just going to sit. Anyway, here are the line ups: TWINS @ TIGERS Carroll, 3B Infante, 2B Mauer, C Hunter, To, RF Willingham, LF Cabrera, M, 3B Morneau, DH Fielder, 1B Doumit, RF Martinez, V, DH Parmelee, 1B Peralta, Jh, SS Dozier, 2B Tuiasosopo, LF Hicks, CF Pena, B, C Florimon, SS Garcia, A, CF   _Diamond, P   _Porcello, P

RT @JoeCStrib: #Gophers turn to DJ Snelten; Indiana counters with the Big Ten Pitcher of the Year (Tonight on BTN):

Reach back to the Twins and Tigers, Game 163 of the 2009 season. Standing on the hill for the Twins was Scott Baker, while on the other side was rookie Rick Porcello. Broadcasting that game was TBS, and one of the announcers was the one and only Chip Carey. His father he was not, and Carey made a couple of mistakes throughout the game. Most notably, to Twins fans, was this call: "Line drive. Base hit. Caught out there. The runner tags. Throw to the plate. On target! And on time! Double play!" In addition to Carey's broadcasting gaffs, which I don't want to get too down on him for because they happen to everybody, was the inexhaustible number of ways in which he could bring up that Rick Porcello was "just 20 years old." Little things? Absolutely. But our Minnesota Twins had been written off for dead. They were seven games behind the first place Tigers at the start of September, and still three games back with four games remaining. So naturally, after watching the effort of our Twins day in and day out for more than a month and seeing them scratch and claw their way to forcing a tie at the top of the American League Central Division and forcing the Tigers into Game 163, naturally we all wanted some accuracy and a little bit of respect. And on that day, Caray was lacking in accuracy and, as Twins fans, maybe we felt we were being glossed over for the team that had been in first place all season and in favor of what the broadcasters perhaps thought was the better storyline: not the team that miraculously forced Game 163, but that a rookie was starting such a pivotal contest. So we took it over the top. You can look through the game thread that night - comments like "Rick Porcello is the best rookie ever" and "Stop talking about how the Tigers deserve this more. They don't." really hammer home what the experience was like when watching Caray's broadcast on TBS. There's also a lot of complaining about home plate umpire Randy Marsh, which was eventually backed up by the "biased" broadcasting crew who called the strike zone "inconsistent". This comment may have been the actual birth of the meme, in Overflow Thread #1. By Overflow Thread #3, it's all sunk in pretty well. Based on the importance of that game, and the (at least perceived) bias towards the Tigers, it's just become one of those things. Most likely because the Twins actually won the game. So the next time somebody asks you about the RICK-PORCELLO-IS-JUST-20-YEARS-OLD meme, you can answer with some confidence that it's just Twinkie Town fans holding onto a joke that's more than three and a half years old at the time of this writing. At least to me, this meme is really about finding a narrative and blowing it up to gargantuan status. Clearly, we've chosen to take it to a completely different level. Anyway - below are highlights from Game 163, which has been hailed as the 16th best baseball game of all time. It truly was incredible. Your browser does not support iframes.

Scott Diamond #58 / Pitcher / Minnesota Twins Height: 6-3 Weight: 220 Bats: L Throws: L Born: Jul 30, 1986 W-L G GS CG SHO SV BS IP H R ER HR BB K ERA WHIP 2013 - Scott Diamond 3-4 7 7 0 0 0 0 39.2 48 23 22 6 9 16 4.99 1.44 That first start was rough. And then Diamond turned into the guy we all wanted him to be: the solid number three who wasn't blowing anybody away but knew how to pitch. For four consecutive starts we were falling in love all over again. And then he went and reminded us why people hate the phrase "pitch to contact" so damned much. There are no secrets to Diamond's success. It's all about location. He knows it, the fans know it, and the batters definitely know it. In his last two starts you could almost see him forcing the issue - either trying to be too fine or maybe just not having the feel for what he had that night. The Tigers are stacked with good hitters. Hopefully he's on his game tonight and, for a start, could maybe hang a big fat "0" in the bottom of the first. Rick Porcello #21 / Pitcher / Detroit Tigers Height: 6-5 Weight: 200 Bats: R Throws: R Born: Dec 27, 1988 W-L G GS CG SHO SV BS IP H R ER HR BB K ERA WHIP 2013 - Rick Porcello 2-2 8 7 0 0 0 0 38.0 42 25 25 6 8 27 5.92 1.32 He's been on a hot streak recently, after holding an 11.08 ERA four appearances into the season. The way I see it, he hasn't been beat up in his home ballpark yet this year. Tonight seems like a good time, and the Twins are certainly due to end their skid. Right?

Your one-stop shop for all things Twins on this beautiful Thursday night!

The best part of this most recent off-season, for me as a Twins fan, was taking part in SB Nation's Mock Winter Meetings. It was three days of mayhem and endless emails, but it was brilliant. Here's what I had to say in my wrap up, which I recommend in order to see the scope of the process: "Ultimately this was a fun exercise. It was definitely a learning experience. I don't want anyone to think that this is, in any way, a blueprint for what I would prefer to do or what I think the Twins should do - it's more or less what happened in spite of the guidelines I'd set out for myself. I think I did fairly well with the trades, and I think I did okay in free agency although there's the potential for mistakes (particularly with Baker and Youkilis)." Yeah. I signed Scott Baker. To a really bad contract, too, considering his current state. All I'll say is that I paid market rate based on what everyone else was offering. Anyway, now that you have had a chance to see the moves I made, here is how my additions have performed with their own teams this season. Trades Jeurys Familia W-L G GS CG SHO SV BS IP H R ER HR BB K ERA WHIP 2013 - Jeurys Familia 0-0 8 0 0 0 1 0 10.1 10 4 4 2 7 7 3.48 1.65 The Mets #2 prospect in 2012 came to Minnesota as one of the two players in return for Denard Span. In spite of some command issues, Familia was showing some promise as a 23-year old relief option. He was a starter in the minor leagues, and when I acquired him I did so with an eye to giving him a shot at the rotation. Rafael Montero Year Age Classification of LeagueClassifications have changed over time but have generally ranged fromAAA to AA to A and then Short-Season or Rookie and B, C, D, etc." style="background-color: #ddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;">Lev AffiliationMajor league franchise(s) that either owns this affiliate or has an agreement with this team." style="background-color: #ddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;">Aff W L 9 * ER / IPFor recent years, leaders need 1 IPper team game played.Bold indicates lowest ERA using current statsGold means awarded ERA title at end of year." style="background-color: #ddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;">ERA G GS IP (BB + H)/IPFor recent years, leaders need 1 IPper team game played" style="background-color: #ddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;">WHIP 9 x H / IPFor recent years, leaders need 1 IPper team game played" style="background-color: #ddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;">H/9 9 x HR / IPFor recent years, leaders need 1 IPper team game played" style="background-color: #ddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;">HR/9 9 x BB / IPFor recent years, leaders need 1 IPper team game played" style="background-color: #ddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;">BB/9 9 x SO / IPFor recent years, leaders need 1 IPper team game played" style="background-color: #ddd; border: 1px solid #aaa; padding: 2px;">SO/9 2013 22 AA NYM 4 3 3.47 8 8 46.2 0.986 7.7 0.4 1.2 10.4 2013 22 AAA NYM 0 1 2.70 1 1 6.2 0.750 5.4 1.4 1.4 6.8 3 Seasons 20 13 2.52 46 41 246.1 0.950 7.1 0.5 1.4 8.6 Provided by Baseball-Reference.com: View Original TableGenerated 5/23/2013. Montero is a 22-year old right-hander signed by the Mets out of the Dominican Republic (and #9 prospect coming out of 2012), and is the second half of the return for Span. Now in his third year with the Mets organization, he finished 2012 in Advanced-A and started 2013 in Double-A. He made eight starts with Double-A Binghamton before a recent promotion, and made his first Triple-A start of his career on Tuesday. Montero struck out five, walked one, allowed four hits and two runs in 6.1 innings of work. There's a good chance he'll have a shot at New York's rotation later this year. Jonathan Pettibone W

It might seem a bit silly to talk about Oswaldo Arcia and his future with the Twins right now. He turned on an inside fastball in the top of the ninth yesterday, pointless as it was, for his fourth home run of the season. It means that, behind Josh Willingham and his six homers, Arcia is tied for second on the team with Trevor Plouffe and co-rookie Aaron Hicks - who also hit a pointless home run in the top of the ninth yesterday afternoon. I also, quite recently, wrote about how Arcia deserves to keep his job. (It was convenient that he went 2-for-4 with a triple and a home run that night.) I still believe that. But over the last week or so, and until yesterday afternoon's home run, Arcia was falling into a slump. After going 0-for-12 in four games between the 15th and the 19th, with five strikeouts and four walks (three in one game), Gardy clearly thought the rookie needed a break. He sat in each of the three games in Atlanta this week, in favor of the struggling Chris Parmelee (now hitting .167/.245/.313 in May). It wasn't a punishment. It was management of a young player that needed a couple of days off. That kind of management and protection can only go so far, obviously. The home run was encouraging, but the message is clear: Arcia needs to find a way to adjust. Everyone now knows he can handle a fastball with ease (and yes, the home run yesterday was off of a fastball). He needs to be less aggressive on pitches that will come too far inside, he needs to figure out how to handle pitchers when they attack his weak zones, and hopefully he can also find a way to hit lefties a little better. It's a small sample size, but right now those splits aren't great. Well, the "versus RHP" half of the splits are great. Even with his slump and a few days without starting, Arcia is one of the three or four most talented hitters on the active roster. As long as he continues to show that he can adapt to having full scouting reports on his preferences and weaknesses, the Twins won't send him down. I still fully expect him to be this team's everyday starting right fielder before the season ends. Unless Josh Willingham gets traded. But that's another story.

Vance Worley leaves the field Wednesday — and headsto Triple A Rochester.I've spent the last few days writing about the talent on the Cedar Rapids Kernels, and it's certainly been more fun thinking about that team (hey, Byron Buxton hit a triple Wednesday!) than about the Twins.Monday's post, written in a Cedar Rapids hotel room after an afternoon spent driving and listening to the Sunday game/rain delay, anticipated a coming roster shuffle.Changes have come, and more will, because the active roster is a starting pitcher short.Follow the bouncing changeup:Pedro Hernandez demoted, Caleb Thielbar promoted. Fifth starter out, eighth reliever in. I've always expected the Twins to shuffle through fifth starters in search of somebody who might emerge; I didn't expect Hernandez to get his opportunity as early as he did. Theiebar quickly joined the ranks of overused mop-up men in the bullpen.Trevor Plouffe took Dan Uggla's shin in the templeTueday night while breaking up a double play.Trevor Plouffe put on concussion list; Darin Mastroianni put on 60-day disabled list; Chris Colabello put on 40-man roster and on the 25-man roster. The Twins' recent history with concussions — Justin Morneau and Denard Span — has not been a happy one, and the sight of Plouffe taking a shin to the temple raised too many bad memories for Twins fans. Nobody really knows what to expect from concussions, so there's no point in me speculating about how long Plouffe may be out.Colabello gives the Twins right-handed power, but he's a first baseman-DH, and as such an ill fit on the major league roster as constituted. If he remains, Chris Parmelee or Oswaldo Arcia are likely to get shipped back to Triple A. Third base figures to be handled by a combination of Jamey Carroll and Eduardo Escobar, neither of whom offers Plouffe's pop. I wrote about Mastroianni's status in the Monday post.Vance Worley demoted, Sam Deduno to be promoted. Worley has gone from Opening Day starter to Triple A in less than two months, which is what a 7.21 ERA can do to a fellow. "The Vanimal" has been the biggest disappointment in a rotation that has been almost completely disappointing. Deduno has been slated all week to fill Hernandez' rotation slot but hasn't been officially added to the roster yet. One aspect here is that the Twins need another spot on the 40-man roster as well. This may well be found by moving Tim Wood to the 60-day disabled list.All this still leaves the Twins a starter short. Somebody has to take the ball in four days, when Worley's turn comes around again. My guess: Kyle Gibson. It might have been Gibson for Friday's game except that they don't want to debut him against Detroit.