Notes, quotes and comment

Jorge Polanco won the runoff election and is the starting shortstop for the American League in the All Star game. He becomes the first Twin elected to the starting lineup since Joe Mauer in 2013.

And good for him. I wouldn't go so far as to claim he's the best shortstop in the league -- put him on the same team as Francisco Lindor or Carlos Correa, and Polanco is playing a different position -- but he's obviously having a great season, without the injuries of the other two. If you think the All-Star Game is for the guys having the best first half, he belongs.

I expect to expound on this subject for the Monday print column, but in my mind Polanco has established himself as the best homegrown shortstop in Minnesota Twins history. That's a low bar to clear, and there may be better shortstops coming through the system, but Polanco is certainly no slouch.

 ---

Rough loss on Thursday: 18 innings, the entire bullpen deployed, and probably a roster move or two ahead. 

Luis Arraez was in left field with Eddie Rosario sidelined by his ankle sprain, and I suspect that Rosario would have caught the second-inning double that brought in the first Tampa Bay run. Catch that ball, and who knows what the final outcome is.

---

Outfielder LaMonte Wade Jr. was indeed called up in the wake of Rosario's injury. But it wasn't Rosario who went on the injured list.

It was La Tortuga, Willians Astudillo, with a strained oblique. It's his second stint on the IL.

 ---

Some news about an #OldFriend and one of the most beloved Twins in recent years, Eduardo Escobar:

On Wednesday, Escobar went 2-for-4 with a homer and three RBI in the Diamondbacks’ win over the Dodgers in Phoenix. After the game he got on a private plane provided by the Dbacks team owners and flew 1,972 miles to Miami. The reason: his two sons, 11-year-old Eduardo Escobar Jr., and 8-year-old Raul Escobar had an immigration hearing in Miami yesterday morning in which each of them were granted their green cards.

One successful hearing and, presumably, a lot of family hugs later, Escobar got back on the plane and flew 2,585 miles to San Francisco. He made it back by game time, entered the game as a replacement at third base in the sixth inning and went 1-for-2, singling in a run in the ninth inning.

Escobar has 18 homers so far this year for the D'backs with a .284 batting average. It's not like the Twins are in need of his power, but he's having a good season, and he's Eduardo Escobar, and I miss rooting for him. I'm glad he's got his kids in the States.

#OldFriends (Infielders)

The Twins traded Eduardo Nunez to the Giants soon after he made the All-Star team in 2016. He was traded in midseason by the Giants to the Red Sox last year and is likely to be a free agent after the World Series. There is a team option, but I suspect the Red Sox will figure they can find a bench alternative they like more.

It's been a weird year for Nunez. He hasn't played all that well. His OPS+, a rough measurement of how productive his season was at the plate, was a career low, and his fielding has always been deemed subpar. But he still got more than 500 plate appearances for a 108-win team, so he couldn't have been holding the Red Sox back that much.

Alex Cora didn't fit the right-handed Nunez into the starting lineup against the left-handed Clayton Kershaw. He played the left-handed hitting Rafael Devers at third and right-handed Ian Kinsler at second. Kershaw was pulled in the fifth, and the Dodgers didn't use a lefty again until the seventh, when Alex Wood entered to face Devers with two on.

Except, as you probably know, Nunez pinch-hit and clubbed a three-run homer to break the game open.

Had Nunez started at third, it might have been Devers pinch-hitting for him in the seventh, but against a righty. Or, possibly, Devers might have replaced Nunez sooner, and the pinch-hit matchup might have disappeared.

Not a bad way to make his World Series debut.

---

Brian Dozier, seldom seen in the postseason for the Dodgers, was not only in the starting lineup for L.A. in Game One, he was the leadoff man. He drew a walk, he scored a run and he was unable to turn a critical double play pivot in the fifth inning.

The Dodgers obviously sought to load their lineup with righties against Chris Sale. They could have had someone like Chris Taylor, who led off for them throughout last year's postseason run, in the leadoff spot. I wonder if the fact that Dozier has three career homers off Sale entered into the decision to put him in the maximum at-bat spot.

I would think that the Dodgers analytics department is sharp enough to know that batter-pitcher matchup numbers aren't a reliable indicator. Dozier isn't the same hitter in October 2018 that he was when he hit those homers. And Sale probably isn't the same pticher right now, either.

---

Finally, a former Twins infielder who isn't involved in this year's Fall Classic. Eduardo Escobar reupped Monday with the Arizona Diamondbacks -- three years, $21 million.

That feels a bit light to me, but Escobar probably didn't want to get frozen out in the marketplace, as happened to a number of veteran free agents last winter.

The MLB.com story on the signing says the D'backs don't have a specific position for Escobar right now, but his versatility gives them a variety of alternatives as they remake their roster.

Here's the thing: He's not quite as versatile as they apparently think. Age -- he turns 30 this winter -- has made him less playable at shortstop. His outfield experiences were rough enough that the Twins quit trying that pretty quickly. And supposedly he's not comfortable playing second base, although that might be his second-best fit (behind third base).

I had hoped to see Escobar return to the Twins, but he never actually reached the free agent market. 

Allow me to introduce myself ...

A bunch of the guys the Twins cast off leading up to the trade deadline have started showing up in box scores. How they made their first impressions:

Brian Dozier homered, doubled and singled Wednesday in his Dodger debut. Three-for-4 with seven total bases is a pretty good way to boot up.

Zach Duke didn't allow a homer in 37.1 innings with the Twins. He made his first appearance with Seattle on Tuesday and gave up a homer to Josh Reddick. A LOOGY throwing a gopher ball to a left-handed hitter ... ouch.

Lance Lynn was almost unrecognizable in his Yankees debut; the Yankees don't allow beards, and Lynn has had one throughout his major league career. New look, good results: 4.1 scoreless innings of relief on Thursday against Baltimore. Sonny Gray had already put the Yankees well behind, and Lynn did allow an inherited runner to score, but the overall impression was strong enough that there is speculation in Yankeeland that Lynn will move into the starting rotation.

Ryan Pressly, like Duke, gave up a homer in his first outing with his new team -- in this case, Houston. I had the glimmer of a notion that the Astros might try him as closer, but the controversial trade for Roberto Osuna, who faces domestic violence charges in Toronto, probably closes that door.

Eduardo Escobar is doing Eduardo Escobar stuff for the Diamondbacks. He doubled (of course) in his debut against the Padres and had two hits in each of his first two games with Arizona. It sounds, by the way, like Jake Lamb, nominally Arizona's regular third baseman, might be done for the season with the injury that helped prompt the Snakes to deal for Escobar.

Pic of the Week

Eduardo Escobar tweeted out this image Friday after he was traded by the Twins to Arizona.

I can't decide whether to laugh or cry.

Waving the white flag

The only position
Eduardo Escobar didn't
play for the Twins
was first base.

Eduardo Escobar is gone, to the Arizona Diamondbacks for three players in A ball.

Ryan Pressly is gone, to the Houston Astros for two guys who have at least reached Double A.

Also gone is any pretense that the Twins still harbor playoff ambitions.

Escobar was on his way to his new team before the Twins took the field in Boston Friday evening. His departure saddens me, as I suspect it does every other Twins fan. Escobar is a fun player, eminently likable, and far better than any of us imagined he would be when the Twins got him from the Chicago White Sox in 2011.

Escobar filled the gap at third base and in the middle of the lineup opened by Miguel Sano's failures earlier this season. Now Sano, his minor league reboot apparently complete, gets a fresh shot at the job. It seems odd to say this about a guy who has long been seen as the future of the franchise, but I am not enthused about that. I have come to regard Escobar as a more reliable and productive player than Sano.

Ryan Pressly
was the Twins' best
Rule 5 selection
since Johan Santana.

But ... Escobar is a free agent to be, the Twins picked up three lottery tickets for him, and it's wise to  to get a handle on what Sano 2.0 is like. I want to hope that the Twins re-sign Escobar this winter, but that probably would require them to pull the plug on Sano, and I believe they still have too much invested in Sano.

As for Pressly: There are sabermetric analyses that regard him as one of the better relievers in the game. That's not been backed up by the results.

I'm eager to see how Houston uses Pressly. Their late-inning relief situation has been pretty ugly all year; closer Ken Giles's postseason woes carried over to this year, and the Astros sent him to the minors a bit more than two weeks ago. The Astros have had no shortage of pitching imports revise their approach and step up their game -- Charlie Morton, Justin Verlander, Garret Cole -- after arriving in Houston. Maybe the Astros see something they can tweak with Pressly.

As for the return for the two ... well, I'll grapple with that in another post on another day. Right now, the fan in me is grieving too much for the amateur GM to emerge. On the face of it, the Twins appear to have gotten better prospects for Pressly than they did for Escobar, because Pressly is still under team control in 2019.

Notes from the weekend

We learned Sunday that Jose Berrios made the All-Star team; "Dos Eddies" -- Rosario and Escobar -- did not, although Rosario is among the "final five" candidates of online voting.

I can't bring myself to be riled up about the so-called snub. There will be enough guys dropping off the roster to get one or both of the Eddies on the roster, and the Twins really don't deserve two All-Stars anyway.

---

The Twins swept the Baltimore Orioles over the weekend, four games, and the O's are 24-65, an incredible 41 games under .500. I say that's incredible because the Birds, while flawed, have some significant talent (Manny Machado, Jonathan Schoop).

And they have Buck Showalter as the manager, and I think he's really good at running a baseball team. The Orioles have been in contention in a difficult division more years than not since the (apparently uneasy) pairing of Dan Duquette and Showalter took over the operation. It's startling to see this team plummet so sharply to the bottom of the standings, especially since they are not among the tankers.

One problem for the Orioles going forward -- they have for some time made no real effort in the international market. It's not that they've tried and failed to make an impact in the Dominican, Venezuela and other hotbeds; they simply don't make any investment in that talent market and generally wind up trading away their international bonus allotment.

Two two-base hits, two hit-by-pitch

Important update: Season pace of 75.#pace https://t.co/xzdSJlolEO

— Dave Campbell (@DaveCampbellAP) June 20, 2018

Every double helps, I guess. 

Really, that scoring ruling changed nothing except Escobar's doubles count. It went from a single and error on Jackie Bradley Jr to a double and error on JBJ, since Escobar wound up at third. It doesn't affect anybody's ERA, batting average or even fielding percentage. 

Escobar has played in 66 games so far this season and has had at least one double in 25 of them. His longest doubles streak is four (June 3-6, a span that includes an off day and, natch, a doubleheader). 

I'm about ready to embrace his chances of getting this record. 

---

Joe Mauer was hit twice with pitches on Tuesday. They were his first two HBPs of the season. His career high is three, which is higher than I expected. 

So I guess Mauer is now on pace for a career high in a statistical category.

Mauer is at 25 career HBP. This does not put him in the top 100 of active players. In comparison, Mike Trout (tied for 37th among active players) has been hit 58 times, Miguel Cabrera 60 and Carlos Gomez -- who does get under some people's skin -- 96. 

The current career leader in HBP is Chase Utley with an even 200.  That's a few bruises.

Contemplating Eduardo Escobar

The Twins announced Thursday an agreement with infielder Eduardo Escobar that avoids salary arbitration: One year, $4.85 million for "Eddie the Stick."

They also announced that Miguel Sano would skip TwinsFest this year because of the sexual misconduct allegation and MLB investigation.

How the Sano situation will play out is uncertain, but I will be quite surprised if the slugger avoids a suspension. Beyond that, the status of his shin, which had a rod implant this offseason, isn't clear either.

Between those two factors, Escobar may be more than a prime bench piece for the Twins again this year.

Escobar turned out to be a different player than expected, although that may have been more about expectations and stereotypes than anything else. The idea when he came to the Twins from the White Sox when the Twins traded Francisco Liriano away in 2012 was that he was a light-hitting, good fielding utility man.

The utility man part has been accurate so far. But he's been more noteworthy for his power than his glove. Last season he hit 21 homers in a little less than 500 plate appearances, which is far more pop than was anticipated five and a half years ago. But his defense is a tick below average at best, and worse than that when pressed into outfield duties.

His on-base percentages aren't good, and the total package is not going to get him on any All-Star teams. But as a Plan B, he's pretty darn useful -- and every team needs a Plan B.

From the Handbook: Defensive Statistics

This section of the Bill James Handbook has changed considerably over the years as defensive metrics have been devised, tested and improved.

The Twins player I was most interested in checking out here is Jorge Polanco, the regular shortstop who I believe is stretched at the position.

What these stats say is: He's not great, but he gets the job done.

He's at zero in "bases saved" and -1 in "runs saved," which adds up, essentially, to: He's an average shortstop. Which, if he's capable of being a productive middle-of-the-order bat -- and he hit third regularly down the stretch -- is quite acceptable.

It's worth noting, however, that 14 of the 24 shortstops listed as "regulars" at the position were better in the metrics. He's average compared to the entire set of shortstop innings, but less adept than most the guys who play most of the innings. As one might imagine for a key defensive position, the scrubs bring the average down -- and Polanco is good enough to be better than them.

Eduardo Escobar, in about an eighth of Polancos innings at short, is -2 in runs saved, and Ehrie Adrianza is +1 in about a quarter of Polanco's innings at short. That Adrianza is the best of the trio with the glove sounds right. I'm not convinced that Polanco's better than Escobar, but I'm not sure the difference matters much in either direction.

Miguel Sano, Eduardo Escobar, Robbie Grossman and the postseason roster

One thing we learned from Torii Hunter's occasional forays into the broadcast booth is that he calls Eduardo Escobar "Mighty Mouse."

Escobar helped save the day Friday night with a home run. He helped save the season with 21 homers, which is power output nobody expected when the Twins got him from the White Sox in exchange for Francisco Liriano in 2012.

Fifteen of those 21 homers have come while playing third base, which is supposed to be the property of Miguel Sano. (Three have come when at short, and three as the designated hitter.) Sano has had two lengthy stints on the disabled list, and Escobar has gotten the heavy majority of his playing time at third as a result.

Sano has hit 28 homers, 23 of them at third. So the Twins have gotten 38 homers from their third basemen, which basically sounds like Sano got a full season in there.

But only in terms of the power. Sano draws walks and Escobar does not. While their batting averages are similar, the Dominican has a far superior OBP to the Venezulean. Give credit to Escobar for producing in Sano's absence, but know that Sano is the more productive hitter.

Sano returned to the active roster Friday and got an at-bat late in the game, grounding out meekly to the pitcher. He's expected to get at least one start as the designated hitter in these final two games as he tries to wrangle his way onto the playoff roster.

If he does, he's not going to step back in at third base; there's no indication that his leg is ready to play the field. If Sano is in the lineup, it will be as the designated hitter.

So Escobar's status as the third baseman seems secure as the wild card game approaches. The guy who might lose out is Robbie Grossman, who has himself been strictly a DH since returning from his thumb injury.

Grossman has nine homers on the season with a slash line of .248/.364/.383. He's sort of the reverse image of Escobar -- big on walks, light on the power. (His September slugging percentage, .484, has been sharply higher.) Fourteen Twin have more than 100 plate appearances; only Joe Mauer has a better on-base percentage than Grossman.

Don't underestimate the importance of the ability to reach base. Escobar's big flies are valuable and startling. Grossman's walks are mundane -- but just as valuable.

But the choice really isn't between Grossman and Escobar. It's between Grossman and Sano, and the real question is, is Sano ready to hit against playoff caliber pitching?

A secondary question might be: Is Grossman able to play outfield? He hasn't in weeks. And if he can't, is there room on the playoff roster for two bat-only "position players"?

The Twins have a few days to draw their conclusions and make their decisions. At thp point, I'm skeptical of Sano's return.

Contemplating Eduardo Escobar

I haven't noticed Dick Bremer yakking about "superutility" players nearly as often since the Twins cut Danny Santana loose earlier this year. It was a reflexive reaction from the TV play-by-play guy whenever Santana got on the field, which was way too often.

Bremer doesn't have the same reaction to Eduardo Escobar, which is

• a blessing, because as far as I'm concerned, Bremer uses the term far too loosely; and
• too bad, because Escobar is a better fit for the term than Santana ever was.

What is the difference between a utility player and a superutility player? Well, what is the difference between Ehire Adrianza and Ben Zobrist? Playing time. Zobrist can hit (or at least he has a well-established track record of hitting; he's not been nearly as productive this season); his managers -- largely Joe Maddon -- make a point of getting him in the lineup on a regular basis even if not at the same position every day.

Zobrist this year has started at three different positions (second base, left field, right field) nd picked up a few innings at two others (first base and shortstop). Adrianaza has started games at five different positions (short, third, second, left and first). But Zobrist has more than 400 plate appearances, Adrianza just cracked 150 on Wednesday.

Utility players are versatile. Superutility guys are regulars without a set position. Superutility guys hit well enough to get lots of at-bats in the top half of the lineup, and they field well enough to get some of their playing time at an up-the-middle position. But they don't field so well that the manager is going to just make him the every day centerfielder or shortstop.

Which brings us to Escobar. "Eddie the Stick," as the Star Tribune's LaVelle Neal often calls him on Twitter, hit cleanup Wednesday (and drove in three runs). He has compiled 400-plus plate appearances so far, getting starts at third base, shortstop, second base and even designated hitter, has set career high for homers and RBIs and is nearing a career high in runs scored.

Escobar is playing third a lot right now because Miguel Sano is sidelined, but Paul Molitor was finding ways to get him into the lineup frequently before that, often against lefties (the switch-hitter is hitting much better from the right side.) The only lineup slot he hasn't started in at least once is leadoff.

This is Escobar's third season of 400-plus plate appearances for the Twins; he has another with 377. That's not really superutility usage. But it's close.

Notes, quotes and comment

Kyle Glaser of Baseball America says Eddie Rosario is using the World Baseball Classic to emerge as a full-fledged regular.

Certainly the Twins outfielder -- playing right field for Puerto Rico rather than his accustomed left field -- is hitting a ton so far (6-for-11 with two doubles and a triple). It's worth noting, however, that most of Puerto Rico's games have been played at altitude.

Rosario is 25, and maybe he's ready to take the next step.

---

I am truly enjoying a series of videos the Twins have been posting this week, "the Escobar Name Game," in which Eduardo Escobar attempts to identify his teammates. This is Wednesday's, the position players segment, which isn't quite as funny as the pitchers (posted Tuesday):

"Ah, my bad man. Sorry."

The @escobarmaracay Name Game, Position Players Edition pic.twitter.com/c9sccIFBO2

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) March 15, 2017

Speaking of which:

"Gonzal-idontknow."

The @escobarmaracay Name Game, Pitchers Edition pic.twitter.com/CRk79DcHJr

— Minnesota Twins (@Twins) March 14, 2017

---

Brian Murphy of the Pioneer Press wrote about Glen Perkins.

The good news: He is throwing without pain.

The less good news: He is nowhere near major league velocity. Not yet, at least, and perhaps not ever.

Bottom line: He's destined to open 2017 on the disabled list.

Pic of the Week

Eduardo Escobar is having a good day at spring training.

The reporting date for Twins position players was Saturday, but almost everybody was there by Friday.

And why not? We're weeks away from any losses that matter.

Whither Jorge Polanco

I am trying to reconcile myself to the likelihood that the Twins will at least open the 2017 season with Jorge Polanco at shortstop. It's not easy.

Only part of this is their inability to find a reasonable trade for Brian Dozier. Trading Dozier would have opened up second base for Polanco, and second base is a better fit for Polanco's skill set than shortstop (just as it was and remains for Dozier).

But the fact remains that, unless a Dozier trade included a major league-ready shortstop -- and that was always unlikely -- somebody currently on the roster figured to wind up with the shortstop job. If either of Dozier or Polanco were (or are) traded, the front-runner would be Eduardo Escobar by default.

I'm pretty sure I like that option more than Paul Molitor does, and I say that fully aware that Escobar is at best a fringe average fielder at the position. Polanco is worse afield, which is no small matter given the looming and lumbering presence of Miguel Sano at third and the need to support the pitching staff.

But Polanco promises to be a superior hitter to the man LaVelle Neal dubbed "Eddie the Stick" a few years ago, and we return to the metaphorical balancing act: Will Escobar's glove save more runs (compared to Polanco) than his bat will give up (compared to Polanco)? My guess is yes, but I can't prove it, and neither is ever likely to be the shortstop of a playoff caliber team.

This is not to equate Polanco and Derek Jeter, but the fact remains: Jeter was never, by the defensive metrics, a truly outstanding defensive shortstop. He got by at the position, and his bat made him a great player, and there is no shortstop of my lifetime I'd rather have for the length of his career than Jeter  -- not Cal Ripken, not Ozzie Smith, not Barry Larkin, not Robin Yount or even Alex Rodriguez.

It's possible for Polanco to be a good enough hitter to make up for his problems afield. But for that to happen, he's not only got to hit; he's got to get closer to fringe average as a fielder. If he were as good with the glove as Escobar (which, again, is not to say that Escobar is good), I'd have no problem with Polanco as the Twins shortstop.

He's not, or at least he hasn't shown that he is. Molitor appears to believe that he can be.

Tender is the night

Eduardo Escobar,
signed

Yorman Landa, gone.

A plethora of news items concerning the Twins to sort through as we reach the weekend before the winter meetings being:

Tendering deadline

Friday was the deadline to tender contracts to arbitration-eligible players. The Twins had five such: infielder Eduardo Escobar, left-handed starter Hector Santiago, right-handed starter Kyle Gibson and relievers Brandon Kinzler and Ryan Pressly. The Twins reached an agreement with Escobar ($2.6 million) and tendered contracts to the other four, so they let none of them go.

No surprises there. I saw some speculation about non-tendering Escobar, but that really didn't seem likely. He is almost certainly not the Twins idea of a long-term shortstop, but he's more likely in my mind to hold the position on opening day than anybody else on the 40-man roster.

Opening a roster slot

The Twins were expected to vacate at least one spot on the 40-man roster before the Rule 5 draft next week, and they did so Friday by dumping Yorman Landa, a relief prospect

Landa was added to the 40 last winter despite not having pitched above low-A ball. He spent a good chuck of 2016 on the disabled list at High A Fort Myers with shoulder woes, and the Twins didn't merely outright him off the 40-man roster, they non-tendered him. So he's a free agent.

Which, presumably, tells us what the Twins think of his chances of  recovering fully.

New hitting coach hired

James Rowson was named Friday to follow Tom Brunansky as the major league hitting coach. He held the job with the Chicago Cubs in 2012-13 and more recently was working in the Yankees organization.

Mike Bernardino of the Pioneer Press has this on Rowson. I said when Bruno (and Butch Davis) got the ax that the key factors were Byron Buxton and Miguel Sano. Sano regressed in 2016 from 2015, and Buxton struggled much of the season. They are Jobs 1 and 1A for Rowson.

Davis's job -- first base coach, base running instruction, outfield instruction -- remains open.

Bill Smith leaving

Terry Ryan, it was announced earlier in the week, has joined the Phillies as a special assignment scout. On Thursday came word that the Twins are not renewing the contract of Bill Smith, who was the general manager for a few years between Ryan's two terms in the job and more recently has been heavily involved in the multi-year upgrade of the spring training complex in Fort Myers.

Smith was atop the food chain when the Twins imploded on the field, so he got the blame for the collapse, probably more of it than he really deserved. It comes with the territory. He's also the GM who OK'd the signings of Miguel Sano, Max Kepler and Jorge Polanco, and the Hammond Stadium upgrades are impressive.

Smith told the Fort Myers newspaper that his departure wasn't his choice. I suppose that the new baseball ops guys decided that with the complex project done, they had no need for that skill set in the organization, and with the additions of a flock of ex-players as special assistants, somebody had to go.

Catching up on the roster shuffle

I took a rather skeptical view in the Monday print column of the effectiveness of the Twins roster shuffle. To catch up on what's happened:

• LHP Tommy Milone, waived, went unclaimed and was assigned to Rochester. 
• RHP Casey Fien, waived, was claimed by the Los Angeles Dodgers and remains in the majors.
• C John Ryan Murphy was optioned to Rochester.
• SS Eduardo Escobar went on the disabled list.
• LHP Ryan O'Rourke was designated for assignment and remains in limbo.
• RHP J.R. Graham was designated for assignment and remains in limbo.
• RHP Ervin Santana was activated from the disabled list.
• OF Darin Mastroianni was added to the 40-man roster and to the 25-man roster.
• C Juan Centeno was added to the 40-man roster and to the 25-man roster.
• LHP Pat Dean was called up.
• RHP Brandon Kintzler was added to the 40-man roster and to the 25-man roster.

That adds up to six of the 25 roster spots, or 24 percent of the roster turned over between the end of Wednesday's game and the beginning of Saturday's. But it only involves one lineup regular (the freshly injured Escobar) and one rotation slot (Santana).

I am, obviously surprised that Milone passed through waivers and Fien did not. I was pretty certain that somebody would think Milone can help their rotation. As I said in the linked column, I'm not pleased with the selection of Kintzler over a higher-profile bullpen arm. (In Thursday's post I mentioned Nick Burdi as a possibility, but he went on the disabled list at Chattanooga with what is being described as a bone bruise on his upper arm.) And while I probably shouldn't make another prediction after getting Milone and Fien wrong, I expect both Graham and O'Rourke to clear waivers and remain in the organization.

And as for the catcher swap-out,  I can only note sourly that the third White Sox run on Sunday was set up when Tyler Duffey struck out a White Sox hitter with a curve in the dirt and it got away from Centeno. That makes 21 wild pitches for the team already. Tim Laudner, on the FSN postgame, made the same point about wild pitches that I have -- they're often partly the catcher's fault, and he clearly was not impressed with Centeno's inability to corral that pitch.

Roster revamp, part 1 (and HBPs)

The only action Brian Dozier (hamstring) saw Friday
was during the bench-clearing late in the game after Chicago's
Jose Abreu (79) was hit by a pitch.

Friday's roster shuffle wasn't exactly what I was anticipating. Tommy Milone and Casey Fien may have been waived, but the waiver period had not expired as of Friday (that will be this afternoon), so they were still on the roster.

Not on the roster because they were "designated for assignment," a move that does immediately take them off the 40-  and 25-man rosters, were J.R. Graham and Ryan O'Rourke, a pair of marginal relievers. Catcher John Ryan Murphy, as expected, was optioned out.

Ervin Santana was activated from the disabled list -- he starts today -- and the Twins selected the contracts of outfielder Darin Mastroianni and catcher Juan Centeno,

So three out and three in on Friday, and presumably three out and three in today, as shortstop Eduardo Escobar got hurt in Friday's game and is apparently headed to the disabled list. Jorge Polanco was pulled from the Rochester game and presumably will take Escobar's roster spot. He might even play a bit this time up.

I'm not sure who will replace Milone and Fien on the roster when their waiver period closes, although J.T. Chargois is a pretty good guess for one slot. Considering the suddenly dilapidated state of the Angels rotation in particular, I can't imagine Milone clearing waivers (two of the Angels starters went on the DL Friday with elbow miseries; one will have Tommy John and the other might). Fien is another matter. I suspect the Twins will retain him in Rochester. (For that matter, I wouldn't be surprised if O'Rourke got claimed by another team; I don't Graham will be leaving the organization.) We'll see soon how all this shakes out.

But other than Chargois and the return of their opening day starter, this (likely) shuffle of six roster slots probably doesn't help the now 8-21 team much. Losing the starting shortstop certainly won't improve things.

You compare the records of Murphy and Centeno, and there's no reason to think Centeno is going to be an upgrade. Even with Murphy's 3-for-40 2016 added in, he's a .242 hitter in 302 career at-bats and turns 25 next week. Centeno is 26 and a .164 hitter in 66 career at-bats. It's an understandable move in the short-term, but Murphy is still the better bet to be an impact catcher.

.---

Speaking of impacts, the Twins and White Sox engaged in a bit of hit-me, hit-you foolishness Friday. The White Sox plunked Byung Ho Park, and Trevor May responded by putting his fastball in Jose Abreu's ribs. That cleared the dugouts, but the only ejection was of the Chicago manager. Then the Sox hit Kurt Suzuki, who simply went to first base without the Abreu histrionics.

I don't know that the Sox were throwing at Park, although it's possible that somebody took offense to the big guy's swings. But certainly May was retaliating, and just as certainly Sukuki got hit in retaliation for that. Foolishness, as I said, but ... the Twins were getting blown out again, they were headed for 8-21, there were two dead men walking in the bullpen. This is a frustrated and embarrassed team right now, and frustrated and embarrassed people will do foolish things. The Sox don't have that excuse for their foolishness.

Eduardo Escobar, shortstop

Eduardo Escobar hits his second homer of Wednesday's game.
He hit three in the Tampa Bay series.

Question: How many games did the Twins cost themselves this year by insisting for months that Danny Santana was their best shortstop option?

For the second year in a row, Eduardo Escobar began the season as Plan B at shortstop and emerged as the regular. And for the second year in a row, he has provided some thump from a position commonly occupied by slap hitters. LaVelle Neal of the Star Tribune refers to him on Twitter as "Eddie The Stick."

This intrigues me, even though they involve too few at-bats to mean much: When playing shortstop this year, Escobar's slash line is .308/.361/.519 (entering Thursday's play, which means those numbers are even better this morning); as a left fielder, .224/.261/.388.

The defensive metrics I've seen have Escobar as an average shortstop, maybe a touch below average, and I'll buy that. That's acceptable, especially with the extra bases he's provided the past two years from the position.

I assume that Escobar will be the Twins' regular shortstop down the stretch. I also expect that he won't be a lock to be the regular at the start of 2016. I doubt the Twins have given up on Santana's athleticism, and Jorge Polanco has been a very productive hitting middle infielder in the high minors. Even now, Paul Molitor hasn't truly embraced Escobar as the starter, so he's probably inclined to look for alternatives.

And given Escobar's limitations, that's sensible. But I doubt the Twins have a better alternative on hand until 2018 or so, when one of the shortstops in the low minors might be ready. Certainly for now, Escobar should be Plan A at shortstop. 

Contemplating the shortstop situation

Danny Santana turns a double play in Kansas City.
Despite the Twins' issues at shortstop, they are among
the American League leaders at turning two.

Here be uncertainty and doubt.

Paul Molitor has started four different shortstops so far, which by itself doesn't signify much. He's started five different third basemen (Trevor Plouffe, Eduardo Escobar, Eduardo Nunez, Doug Bernier and Miguel Sano), but there's no question that Plouffe is the regular. (The other four have a total of eight starts.)

Short is another matter. Danny Santana made his 56th start there on Friday, but he's also had a brief demotion to Triple A. Escobar, the more-or-less regular last season, got a brief run there (17 starts); of late Nunez has been Molitor's choice if Santana isn't in the lineup. (The fourth shortstop, Jorge Polanco, was a one-day callup.)

Molitor and his bosses seem determined to find a regular shortstop in Santana, and Santana's not really cooperating with the effort. His slash line (.213/.235/.287 entering Friday's game) was second-worst in the AL among players with at least 100 plate appearances, and his 13 errors are the third most in the league at the position.

I don't really understand the reluctance to give Escobar a sustained run there again. He led the league's regular shortstops in OPS last season, and was by all measurements at least a league-average glove at the position. He may not have the athletic gifts of Santana, but he isn't an embarrassment at the position. (I will note, however, that in his limited playing time this year the double plays have been less frequently turned.)

Molitor seems more interested in using Escobar as a multi-position semi-regular, the sort of superutility guy that Ron Gardenhire talked a lot about but never really embraced in practice. As I've said before, that kind of player has to have a decent bat. While Escobar isn't hitting as well this season as last, he does have a better slugging percentage than six of the Twins' nine "regulars" as listed by Baseball Reference.

Nunez has hit impressively this year -- Molitor has picked his spots well, with a focus on pitting Nunez against pitchers with velocity -- but his defensive reputation is exceedingly poor. I can't see him getting everyday duty, particularly at a defense-first position.

As for Polanco: The prospect has moved up to Triple A, and was charged with six errors in his first six games at that level. I think second base is his destination; even if he does have a major league future at short, that does nothing for the Twins present.

Polanco's presence in Rochester may signal a determination to keep Santana in the majors. Putting both of them at Triple A would mean playing one of them at second base, and the Twins probably want to see both of them playing shortstop, partly for developmental reasons and partly because they aren't in need of a second baseman.

Ranking the Twins outfield priorities

Byron Buxton was 0-for-4 in his debut Sunday with a
pair of strikeouts and a failed sac bunt attempt.

Other than his highly anticipated and greatly heralded presence, Byron Buxton didn't have a great impact on Sunday's game in Arlington, Texas. Yes, he scored the winning run, but scoring from first on a two-out gapper would be routine for most baserunners. He ran down a potential gapper in the field, but I suspect Aaron Hicks would have made that play also, if not as easily.

Hicks, of course, wasn't available Sunday; the Twins put him on the disabled list as the move to get Buxton on the active roster. With Torii Hunter serving Game Two of his suspension, Paul Molitor deployed an outfield of Shane Robinson in left, Buxton in center and Eddie Rosario in right, and that is a pretty close to optimal defensive alignment.

The Twins have a bunch of outfielders now -- on the active roster, on the disabled list, and in the minors but still seen as significant pieces. Let's sort through the priorities.

1) Buxton. Yes, he has all of one game in the majors. He's still the single most important piece of this team's puzzle, the cornerstone player for the anticipated success ahead. He's here; he's playing.

2) Hunter. He's 39, but the team didn't commit $12 million to him to sit on the bench. I'd prefer to see him DHing than playing right.

3) Rosario. Debuted May 6 and has played in all but a handful of games since. Has so far lived up to his minor league billing, with arguably more power (three homers in his first 100 at-bats) than should be expected. Between his youth/developmental needs, his bat and his defensive skills, he should be in the outfield on a near-daily basis. Despite being in the running in training camp for the center field job, he has been strictly in the corners since his call-up, which is proper.

4) Oswaldo Arcia. Spluttering with a .167/.189/.229 slash line in Triple A, he appears to have been eclipsed by Rosario in the corner outfield plans. He's a better hitter than that .418 Rochester OPS suggests, but so what? His fielding woes negate the hitting, and between Hunter and Kennys Vargas, there's not much room available at DH. He's still only 24, but he's out of options after this season. A trade seems inevitable, and right now his value is probably as low as it's ever been.

5) Hicks. Buxton pushes him out of the center field job. His bat pushes him out of a regular corner outfield role. That makes him a fourth outfielder, which is not what he was drafted in the first round to be. Is the organization willing to accept that, or will they dump him? He's also out of options after this season.

6) Shane Robinson. Too flawed to be an outfield regular, but he does enough things well to use him. A prototype reserve outfielder.

7) Jordan Schafer. Rosario has already garnered 40 more plate appearances than the Opening Day center fielder. Schafer wasn't anywhere near the player this year that he was in August-September last year, and I don't see a role for him after he comes off the disabled list. Hicks and Robinson rank ahead of him as reserve outfielders, and nobody needs four center fielders on the roster.

8) Eduardo Escobar. I'll list him here because Baseball Reference has him as the regular left fielder so far. If he's still so listed after the All-Star break, Molitor is doing it wrong. Even if the Twins decide to turn to Jorge Polanco or Danny Santana at short, Escobar shouldn't get outfield time ahead of the first five on this list. He's an infielder. Use him as such.