Twins in position for opener

Carlos Quentin will
not be on the Opening
Day roster.

Shortly after I published Saturday's post, the Twins announced the rest of their position player cuts.

The result is a 13-man group that offers few if any surprises. The two bench jobs that were arguably in dispute went to the two younger, out-of-options guys, Oswaldo Arcia and Danny Santana.

The Twins granted Carlos Quentin a few days to examine his options.  The veteran non-roster invitee had an impressive spring, but four-man benches are tough to crack if all one has to offer is a bat. Quentin was never a good defensive outfielder when he was young; now he's 33 and has had repeated leg injuries. Arcia is said to be a better defensive outfielder now than in previous years (he's taken some weight off), he's left-handed and he is almost a decade younger. Plus, as noted, he's out of options.

So we can assume Quentin's agent is calling a few clubs that might be in need of a pinch hit specialist or even a designated hitter, but my guess is that those few jobs are already filled. If somehow there is a major-league job out there for Quentin, I presume the Twins will release Q (why else would they let him look?). But I doubt that will be necessary.

The pitching staff won't be set until the fifth starter job is settled in the next couple of days. I devoted the Monday print column to the Tyler Duffey vs Ricky Nolasco competition for that job. I go back and forth on this one, really. I can defend going with either pitcher in the rotation.

What I can't defend, and hope the Twins don't try to use as a rationale, is basing the decision on spring training stats. Neither will have much more than a dozen Grapefruit League innings; that wouldn't be enough to draw a statistical conclusion on in regular season play, much less March.

Anyway: If Nolasco makes the rotation, Duffey goes to Rochester and there's a extra bullpen job available. If Duffey is the fifth piece of the rotation, either Nolasco goes to the 'pen (probable) or gets traded (less likely). If traded, there is, again, a bullpen spot available; if not, somebody else gets squeezed out.

A flier on Carlos Quentin

The Twins announced Tuesday that they have signed Carlos Quentin to a minor league contract.

Quentin at one point could hit -- he made two All-Star teams while playing for the White Sox, in 2008 and 2011 -- but he's been limited by knee injuries and officially retired last May. He's 32 now, hasn't played in the majors since 2014 and hasn't been anything approaching a regular since 2011.

There's no serious investment in him, to be sure. Quentin's major league salary would be $750,000, which is sizable coin in my world but a pittance for somebody with nine years in the majors.

But I really don't see the fit. The Twins signed a bunch of outfielders to minor league deals this offseason -- Joe Benson, Darrin Mastroianni, Ryan Sweeney -- and those three can all play center field. Even before the knee injuries eroded Quentin's career, he was never a good corner outfielder.

I expect the Twins to open with a regular outfield of Eddie Rosario in left, Bryon Buxton in center and Miguel Sano in right. That trio would leave an opening for a fourth outfielder, but there's Danny Santana and Oswaldo Arcia on hand, and each is out of options. And there's Max Kepler rising from Double A, and there are the other three non-roster invitees.

Even as a DH option, why? Byung Ho Park figures to get a long leash as he acclimates to the American game, but even if the Twins decide to shift to someone else, there's Arcia and Kennys Vargas on hand. (Or Sano if the outfield really doesn't work for him.)

There's so little opportunity for Quentin with the Twins that one has to figure that there was literally nobody else willing to sign him. I seriously doubt that he can even make the Rochester roster.