Minnesota Twins: Grading the 2012 Potential Opening Day Roster

The Minnesota Twins are less than three weeks away from their season opener with the Orioles in Baltimore, and there are still a few questions that need to be answered.

When Terry Ryan was appointed the Twins general manager again, there was hope that he would be able to turn around the team in short order, especially since he would have more payroll to work with than his previous stint as GM.

When Ryan stepped down at the end of the 2007 season, the Twins had the 18th-highest payroll in baseball at $71.4 million. Last season, they were ninth with $112.7 million. The problem is, his replacement and predecessor, Bill Smith, was unable to replicate Ryan's success, and a 99-loss season has the Twins organization reassessing their payroll situation.

That has meant no big free agents joining the team this spring. Instead, the Twins are going with the typical value signings they are known for.

After trading away Jim Thome and Delmon Young last season, the Twins lost outfielders Michael Cuddyer and Jason Kubel to free agency. In their place, they have added outfielder Josh Willingham and catcher/first baseman Ryan Doumit. 

From their pitching staff, they lost Joe Nathan, leaving a huge gap at the end of the bullpen. With a starting rotation in desperate need of an upgrade, they didn't pursue any of the big name starting pitchers,such as C.J. Wilson, Mark Buehrle, or Freddy Garcia—although for some reason, Roy Oswalt is still available, and Ryan still has a chance to make a run at him.

Instead, they signed the Jason Marquis, a career National Leaguer and a 12-year veteran with a 104-98 record and a 4.55 career ERA.

To this point, Ryan and the Twins have not done nearly enough to generate a whole lot of hope and excitement that the upcoming season will be any better than last year. 

Here's a look at how the Twins projected 2012 roster has been performing this spring and what surprises may be in store when the Twins open the season April 6.

Catcher: Joe Mauer

Joe Mauer had a nightmare of a season in 2011.

It could not have come at a worse time after signing the richest contract in the history of the Minnesota Twins franchise.

After finishing 2011 with his lowest batting average in his career at .287, the 2009 MVP is healthy and hitting .304 this spring, with seven hits in 23 at-bats through Saturday.

So far, he has played in nine games, an improvement over last spring, when he was limited to eight games and only 20 at-bats.

The problem is, he doesn't have any extra base hits this spring.

Grade: B+—Of course, when we're talking about a three-time American League batting champion, the expectations are a little higher.

1st Base: Justin Morneau

Neither Justin Morneau nor the Minnesota Twins have come out and said that Morneau is completely recovered from the concussions suffered over the past two seasons.

It's still a wait-and-see approach to his return to the Twins lineup.

Look for manager Ron Gardenhire to protect the 2006 AL MVP as much as possible until Morneau proves he is ready for the full grind of a 162-game season. 

While Morneau has not experienced any concussion symptoms, he has recovered to being the feared slugger he was in the first half of 2010 when he was leading the Twins with a .345 average with 18 home runs and 56 RBIs.

He has been struggling mightily this spring, with only three hits in 26 at-bats in eight games. His .115 average is even lower than last spring, when he finished with five hits in 33 at-bats.

Grade: F—If Morneau cannot find his swing, and fast, his career could be in jeopardy.

2nd Base: Alexi Casilla

Alexi Casilla has been given the opportunity to be an everyday player a couple of times by manager Ron Gardenhire—he has not yet taken advantage of the situation, having never played more than 98 games in a season. 

Yet again, Casilla finds himself penciled in as the starter at second base. While perhaps more due to the fact that Tsuyoshi Nishioka played himself out of a position, than Casilla earning the job, he seems poised to step up this year. 

This spring he is averaging a hit per game, hitting .360, with nine hits in 25 at-bats. 

He is also three for three in stolen bases.

Grade: A—With lower expectations, any improvement will be welcome. But, it needs to carry over to April and beyond.

3rd Base: Danny Valencia

Last season, third baseman Danny Valencia led the Twins in RBIs with 72. However, he also led the Twins in errors with 18.

Of course, as one of the few players to remain healthy, he also led the Twins by playing in 154 games.

Because of his defense, he seems to be in manager Ron Gardenhire's doghouse. 

He needs to improve his .949 fielding percentage from last season to be considered a complete ballplayer. 

This spring, he continues to demonstrate his power and leads the Twins with three Grapefruit League home runs.

His average is back up as well, hitting .310 with nine hits in 29 at-bats.

Grade: B+—As Minnesota's iron man from 2011, Valencia has the opportunity to really help the Twins. 

Shortstop: Jamey Carroll

The inconsistency of the Twins middle infielders from last season prompted general manager Terry Ryan to look to free agency for an upgrade.

In typical value-saving fashion, the Twins signed 38-year-old Jamey Carroll to play shortstop. Minnesota will be his fifth team in his 11th season in the majors.

This spring has been a struggle for Carroll, who only has one hit in 23 at-bats—a lowly .043 batting average for the the career .278 hitter. 

A quick check to last spring indicates that Carroll may be a slow starter. He was 8-for-35 last spring with the Dodgers in the Cactus League.

Grade: D+—This might be a little rough, but when this is one of the team's"big" acquisitions this offseason, the expectations are a little higher.

Left Field: Ben Revere

Ben Revere should not be playing left field.

After filling in for Denard Span in center field, he demonstrated that he is a spectacular defensive outfielder. His over-the-shoulder catch off the bat of Baltimore's Vladimir Guerrero earned him the Play of the Year in 2011.

What he lacks in power and average he makes up for with his speed on the bases. In 117 games last season, he led the Twins with 34 stolen bases, more than double Alexi Casilla's 15 stolen bases.

So far this spring, he is hitting .320 with eight hits in 25 at-bats—only one hit less than Casilla. 

And like Casilla, he is perfect with three stolen bases this spring.

Grade: A—If the Twins are going to turn things around, they are going to need Revere to keep his average around the .300 mark. The more he can get on base, the more be can be a disruptive force to help the Twins.

Center Fielder: Denard Span

Like a lot of Twins last season, Denard Span had a nightmare of a season. Due to a concussion, he was limited to 70 games.

So far this spring, Span appears to be 100 percent. He leads all Twins regulars with a .417 batting average, with 10 hits in 24 at-bats.

He is also tied for the team lead in stolen bases, with three in five attempts.

His best season so far has have been while battling for a position. In 2009, he hit .311 with 23 stolen bases as the Twins' fourth outfielder, platooning with Carlos Gomez. 

With the success of Ben Revere in center last season, perhaps Span will be more focused in 2012.

Grade: A—A healthy Span at the top of the batting order will be key for the Twins.

Rigth Field: Josh Willingham

It's not real clear to me why the Twins would shift newly-acquired Josh Willingham from left field to right field in the same year he moves to a new home ballpark.

The eight-year veteran has played 647 games in left field, compared to only 35 in right.

The most obvious lineup is to keep Willingham in left, play Ben Revere in center, where he starred last season in 89 games, and move Denard Span to right, where he played 85 games in 2008.

I concede that the people who make these decisions make a lot more money than I do, and their job is on the line. So they must know what they are doing.

A quick look at Willingham's career numbers show that he should be an adequate replacement for the departed Michael Cuddyer.

While Willingham is not nearly as flexible defensively as Cuddyer, his power numbers compare favorably.

Since becoming a regular in the starting lineup for the Marlins in 2006, Willingham has averaged 22 home runs and 72 RBIs per season.

Over that same time frame, Cuddyer has averaged 18 home runs and 78 RBIs for the Twins.

So far this spring, he is 5-for-20, batting .250 with a home run. Coincidentally, Cuddyer is also 5-for-20 with the Rockies, but has yet to hit a home run.

Grade C+—It is going to take a lot for Willingham to replace Cuddyer.

Designated Hitter: Ryan Doumit

The signing of Ryan Doumit provides the Twins with some of the flexibility they lost with the departure Michael Cuddyer. Doumit can provide some relief for Joe Mauer at catcher, take a turn at first base or play one of the corner outfield positions if necessary.

Pegged to be the Twins' primary designated hitter, he also gives manager Ron Gardenhire some flexibility, being a switch-hitter.

So far this spring, the career .271 hitter is only batting .227 with five hits in 22 at-bats. However, he is leading the Twins with six walks this spring, raising his on-base percentage to .393. 

Grade: B

Utility Infielder: Tsuyoshi Nishioka

After an extremely disappointing rookie season in 2011, Japanese import Tsuyoshi Nishioka is in the middle of his three-year contract with the Twins.

Perhaps the move to the bench will help with his transition to the North American game.

Due to a broken leg suffered in the first week of the season, he was limited to only 68 games. For the 2010 Japanese batting champion, his .226 average last season was a huge disappointment.

So far this spring, he is only hitting .240 with six hits in 25 at-bats.

Grade: C minus—If Nishioka cannot make the adjustment to the major leagues quickly this season, he could find himself playing elsewhere before July. 

Utility Infielder: Luke Hughe and Trevor Plouffe

For one of the last spots on the Twins roster in 2012, it could come down to who has the most potential.

For Australian import Luke Hughes, this is his last chance. Out of options, he needs to make the club at the close of spring training or find himself looking for another employer. 

Last spring, he led the Twins in home runs with six, but it was not enough to open the season with the Twins.

He started spring training with a sore shoulder he suffered in a home-plate collision while playing for his hometown team this winter.

This spring, he is batting .240 with six hits in 25 at-bats. His one home runs makes him one of only seven players to go deep for the Twins this spring.

For Trevor Plouffe, the Twins keep trying to find a position for him. Last season, after committing 11 errors at shortstop in only 45 games, they tried him in the outfield. 

This spring, like Hughes, he is hitting .240 with six hits in 25 at-bats. The problem is, his seven strikeouts ranks second this spring.

Grade: C—Doesn't matter which one the Twins select at this point; at best, only one of them makes the team to open the season.

The Wild Card: Chris Parmelee

For a kid that has not spent anytime at Triple-A, Chris Parmelee is making a strong push to make the Twins in 2012.

In only 21 games last season, he batted .355 with four home runs for the Twins.

So far this spring, he is hitting .318 with two home runs and five RBIs in eight games.

The problem is, his main position is first base. He has played some right field during his minor league assignments, so there is the potential he could make the team as a bench player.

The ideal situation might be to move Justin Morneau to designated hitter and see what Parmelee can do as the Twins everyday first baseman.

Grade: A—The expectations are very high for a player with only 21 games at the major league level.

Back-Up Catcher: Drew Butera

If the Minnesota Twins get any offensive out of back-up catcher Drew Butera, it's a bonus.

The Twins like his defensive skills and his ability to call a game behind the plate. In his two seasons in the majors, he is only hitting .178.

In limited action this spring, Butera is hitting .300, with three hits in 10 at-bats in five games.

If he can hit anywhere close to .250 for the Twins catching every fifth game, it will be a huge boost from his last two seasons.

Grade B+—However, I fear the small sample size of only 10 at-bats hides his offensive deficiencies, and once the season starts, he will be back to below .200.

Overall Grade for the Twins This Spring

The Twins are counting on a lot of players returning from an injury-plagued season to return to form in 2012.

Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, Denard Span and Tsuyoshi Nishioka all missed significant time last season. 

Gone are the likes of Delmon Young, Micheal Cuddyer, Jason Kubel, Joe Nathan and Jim Thome.

The results this spring hold a lot of hope, and some concerns.

The danger is always reading too much into the results of the Grapefruit League and projecting what the regular season holds.

Even so, it's done every spring.

Grade: B-—They almost cannot help but be better than last season. Unfortunately, they will not be competing for a division title or the playoffs in 2012.

Look for the breakdown of the Twins pitchers during spring training later this week.