Minnesota Twins: Midseason Report Card—Starting Lineup

Baseball's Midseason Classic no longer actually breaks the season into halves, as it once did, but it still makes for a nice reflection period.

The Twins enter the break just 1.5 games out of first place in the AL Central and 2.5 out of the Wild Card.

If you had told Twins fans at the end of last season that they would lose Torii Hunter, Carlos Silva, Johan Santana, and Matt Garza, that Francisco Liriano would make just three starts for the team in the first half, and that, through it all, they would find the club in striking position headed into the break, you would have seen a lot of weak smiles and shaking heads.

You may also have seen the inside of a mental health ward, as they tried to have you committed.

No one expected this team to do much of anything this year. This season was preparation for next year and the new stadium, not much more. This team was supposed to be almost painful to watch, as the young players learned their trade, one mistake at a time. 

It's almost hard to grade this team, given how low expectations were, but progress is nothing without checkpoints, so here we go. Players listed are those who have the most starts at the position.

Catcher: Joe Mauer

Mauer is an All-Star starter, third in the AL in batting average, and starting to show some power. While his five home runs aren't much to write home about, many have come at timely points, and Mauer's 23 doubles lead the team. He's the best catcher in the league, according to VORP (value over replacement player) rankings, and it's hard to argue with that.

Grade: A

First Base: Justin Morneau

Another All-Star, and, as of last night, the home-run king of baseball. While no one expects Morneau to hit even 40 bombs this season, he has proven to be the perfect cleanup hitter for the Twins. He is the No. 2 hitter in the AL, sporting a .323 average, and moves runners exceptionally well, as evidenced by his 68 RBI.

Morneau extends rallies well and does have enough power to force opposing pitchers to pitch around him. He is also having a Gold-Glove caliber season at first base.

Grade: A

Second Base: Alexi Casilla

Casilla didn't deserve his call-up when it came in mid-May, but he has certainly made the most of it. His defense has improved drastically from where it was last year, and he has improved his discipline at the plate. He has been a catalyst for this team and has taken control of second base for the foreseeable future.

If his eye continues to improve at the plate, the trade that brought him to the Twins for J.C. Romero could become another of Terry Ryan's famous steals.

Grade: A-

Shortstop: Brendan Harris

Harris was a small piece of the Delmon Young trade, and has been very inconsistent this year. When he's doing well, he is a great asset to the team, especially with all the injuries that have claimed Nick Punto, Matt Tolbert, and Adam Everett.

Harris hit just .217 in May and looked to be in a prolonged slump, but has looked great in so far July. He is hitting .364 with 10 RBI this month.

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