The Twins fell to the Philadelphia Phillies today by a final score of 3-2 and are now 12-10 overall on the spring. Livan Hernandez pitched five innings, and did a nice job overall. The offense really never got going, and never lead in the game.

** Livan Hernandez has looked shaky at times this spring, but today put together a nice outing. In his five innings of work, Hernandez allowed three hits, one walk and two runs. Hernandez also collected six total strikeouts in the outing.

** After Hernandez, Brian Bass, Dennys Reyes and Pat Neshek each pitched solid innings of work. None of the three allowed a run, and just one of the three, Reyes, allowed a base hit.

** The ninth inning and the loss went to Casey Daigle. In his one inning of work, Daigle allowed two hits, a walk and the game-winning run. It’s a surprise to me that he wasn't cut this morning along with Keisler and Barrett.

** The offense collected just eight hits on the day, and nearly half of those hits went to Cuddyer. On the game, Cuddyer was 3-3 with both of the team’s RBI.

** Centerfield watch: A night after Carlos Gomez received the start in center, it was Span’s turn. Span went 1-3 on the game and was caught stealing. On the spring, Span is hitting .294.

** The other hits in the game went to: Eli Whiteside, Jason Kubel, Adam Everett and Trevor Plouffe.

After a rare day off, the Twins sent out a potential opening day lineup, and took a strong start from Kevin Slowey to earn the 4-0 victory over the Cincinnati Reds. With the victory, the Twins are now three games above .500 with a record of 12-9 on the spring.

** Kevin Slowey took the mound, and with his outing, may have locked up the final rotation spot. Slowey’s final line was five innings, three hits, no walks, no runs and five strikeouts. It was a very impressive outing to say the least, and it’ll be a shock if he isn’t the number five starter on opening day.

** After Slowey, the pitching was just as impressive. Juan Rincon, Joe Nathan and Jesse Crain all received work out of the ‘pen, and all three looked great. Rincon was up for the sixth and allowed no runs or hits. Nathan then pitched a rare two innings, and in his outing, allowed just a single. He also struck out three batters. The ninth inning went to Jesse Crain, and he gave up a hit and walked a batter, but struck out two and allowed no runs overall.

** Centerfield watch: Carlos Gomez received the start in center, and played the full nine innings. Gomez went 2-4 with a single, a double, a run scored and another stolen base (nine overall). The outing should help Gomez’s chances of making the team as he has now looked great over the past week.

** Adam Everett also had a solid game going 2-2 with a run scored before being taken out of the game. Everett has solid defense, but this season will look to upgrade his offense. So far this spring, Everett is hitting a nice .290.

** The rest of the players to collect hits were: Drew Butera, Michael Cuddyer, Jon Knott, Delmon Young, Mike Lamb and Brendan Harris.

Here are some other notes from the day:

** The Twins met with Joe Nathan’s agent, Dave Pepe today, and according to reports, were engaged in talks for most of the day. Nathan said that progress was made and that the two sides will continue to meet for the next few days. He also added that the chances of getting a deal done before the end of camp are very good.

** Scott Baker pitched a pain-free bullpen session yesterday, and is now scheduled to pitch in a minor league game on Saturday. If all goes well, Baker will be put on a four-day pitching schedule and will then be ready to start the season with the major league club.

The Twins are back in Fort Myers today enjoying their only day off of the spring. They’ll resume play tomorrow night when they take on the Reds at 6:05 central.

Up to this point, no race has really been decided. With just over a week until the Twins head north for their opener, the competitions are heating up.

Here are some off day Twins notes:

• The second base job looked to be Brendan Harris’ after Alexi Casilla was cut from camp last week. But comments made by manager Ron Gardenhire in the past few days may tell us otherwise. Gardenhire has said that Punto is still playing for the starting job and knowing the Twins, he‘s telling the truth. If it isn’t Harris on March 31, something is really going wrong. Their defense isn’t that much different, and Harris obviously provides more pop with his bat.

 

• Gardenhire said early in camp that Liriano would be going north with the club. There is still a very good chance that happens, but Gardenhire’s recent comments haven’t sounded as ‘for sure’ as they once did. Liriano will have a few more starts to prove his arm is ready. If it isn’t, extended spring training is a likely option. Liriano staying in Fort Myers would also give Humber, Blackburn or Perkins another shot at the rotation (assuming Slowey leads the race).

 

• The centerfield race has not cleared up in the past few days, but instead has gotten closer. Carlos Gomez has been swinging a hot bat recently, and even when he hasn’t been on base, he’s looked good. Yesterday for example, Gomez went 0-3 but managed to steal two more bases (eight overall) and score a run. Manufacturing his own runs is something the Twins will like.

 

• As we mentioned last week, Joe Nathan’s agent and the Minnesota Twins have planned a meeting to get going on the contract talks. Nathan’s agent, Dave Pepe, reportedly arrived in camp today. The two sides will have just over a week to get the deal done, and if they don’t, this may be another Torii Hunter situation.

 

• Finally, Scott Baker has battled the flu and back soreness so far this spring, but today pitched a pain-free bullpen session and should be ready to pitch in a game this weekend or shortly after. We’re hoping that he’ll be able to go when the season starts in eleven days.

I didn’t have time for a game recap yesterday, but tomorrow we’ll resume our game posting with a write-up after the conclusion of the Twins-Reds match up.

The list of position players has taken another hit this week with the Twins cutting more players from camp. Three of the cuts were considered contenders on the list, and they include Alexi Casilla, Matt Macri and Howie Clark.

With the cuts, the players vying for spots now stands at just eleven players. Plus, Brendan Harris really doesn’t need to be included any longer. With the cut of Casilla, it looks like Harris has locked up the second base job. Punto will now resort to the bench and there is a small chance that he doesn’t make the team.

Here is this week’s list for the position players:

Name	Chance	Note
Carlos Gomez		Gomez went on a hitless streak this past week, and finally ended it late in the week with a nice string of games. The race is tight between Gomez and Span as things head down the stretch.
Jason Pridie		Pridie’s chance has moved to down simply because Gardenhire has said that the race is likely between Span and Gomez. He has an outsider’s chance at making the team on the bench.
Denard Span		Span has hit well at times, but has less speed and a worse glove than Gomez. The CF race is very close and could come down to the end of camp.
Brendan Harris		Harris will likely be removed from this list next week after Casilla was cut recently. It looks like Harris has won the second base job after hitting well recently.
Nick Punto		It looks like Harris has won the second base job, so Punto will have to settle for the bench. Him being on the team isn’t totally guaranteed, but it’s probable.
Garrett Jones		Jones has hit decently and has no options remaining. He’ll at least get a good look.
Matt Tolbert		Matt Tolbert is the lone middle infielder remaining in camp after the cuts of Casilla and Macri. He has a chance for the final bench spot and will almost certainly be with the team at some point in 2008.
Brian Buscher		Buscher has hit well and can play first, third and coming soon second. With his versatility and bat, Buscher has a very good chance to be the 25th man.
Tommy Watkins		Watkins is still in camp because it’s his only option. Don’t look for him to be on the roster when March 31 rolls around.
Randy Ruiz		Ruiz continued to hit pretty well this past week. He has a chance to make the roster, but its hard to tell how impressed the coaches are.
Jon Knott		Knott didn’t receive a lot of at-bats this past week, and Pridie would be ahead of him if the Twins take six outfielders. His chances are shrinking everyday.

The Twins and Francisco Liriano hosted the Florida Marlins today and fell by a final score of 5-3. With the loss, the Twins are now 10-9 overall on the spring. Liriano started for the third time this spring and went strong through three innings. He ran into trouble in the fourth however and received the loss. Neither Gomez or Span started so the centerfield competition didn’t really go anywhere.

** Liriano pitched three solid innings and allowed just two hits, two walks and one run. However, Gardenhire ran him out for the fourth inning as well and he ran into trouble. Liriano allowed hits to the first three batters before being taken out for Brian Bass. His final line was three innings, two walks, five hits and three runs.

** Brian Bass finished up the fourth inning and then proceeded to pitched the fifth as well. In his two innings of work, Bass allowed one hit and an unearned run. After Bass pitched, Reyes, Guerrier and Neshek each received an inning of work. None of the three allowed a run with just Reyes and Guerrier allowing a hit apiece.

** The ninth inning went to Rickey Barrett and he struggled yet again. In just one inning, Barrett allowed two hits and a run. Not terrible, but you have to wonder why he isn’t in minor league camp yet.

** Centerfielder watch: Denard Span relieved Craig Monroe late in the game as a pinch hitter, but went 0-1. Otherwise, the centerfield battle didn’t go anywhere.

** Adam Everett had the best offensive game, and was the only Twin to collect multiple hits. Everett went 2-3 on the day with an RBI.

** The other hits went to Jason Pridie, Justin Morneau, Jason Kubel, Jon Knott, Mike Redmond, Mike Lamb and Steven Tolleson (up from MiLB camp).

False Prophet posted a link to an NCAA Basketball Bracket Challenge made for Twins-Territory.com over in the forum. I've decided to post it here on the main page and have a small "award" for winning.

You don’t need to be a member of ArmchairGM to join, just go over with the link below, enter your name and then do your bracket.

I can’t offer any type of prize, but the winner will get to post a column on the front page here at Twins Territory.

Twins-Territory.com Bracket Challenge

The Twins had two different rounds of cuts since the last edition of the pitchers Making the Team and players have been removed from the list. The players that you’ll no longer see include Kevin Mulvey, Jason Miller, Bobby Korecky, Julio DePaula and Carmen Cali.

With less pitchers in camp, the players going after the open rotation and bullpen spots will now get more innings to show what they’re made of. Slowey is the current leader for the rotation spot after a nice outing on Saturday, and Perkins is the leader for the bullpen spot with Daigle and Keisler not pitching all that well.

Here is this week’s list:

Name	Chance	Note
Scott Baker		As long as Baker can return healthy this week, he looks set to be the second starter behind Livan Hernandez.
Kevin Slowey		Slowey had a very nice outing this past weekend, and controls his own destiny from here on out. He’ll be going for the spot along with Humber, Blackburn and Perkins.
Boof Bonser		Bonser had another good week, and will likely be the fourth starter when the season rolls around. That is unless the Twins decide the put Liriano further back in the rotation.
Glen Perkins		Perkins had a pretty good week, and is currently the leader for the bullpen spot. Don’t count him out for the rotation spot though.
Nick Blackburn		Blackburn is gaining ground in the rotation race with a few good outings. If he doesn’t make the team, he’ll be one of the first options if someone falters.
Brian Bass		Bass’ chances are down because of the lack of innings that he has received. He hasn’t overly impressed either.
Philip Humber		Humber had a very good three-inning outing at the end of this past week, and has still not allowed a run this spring. He is definitely alive in both the bullpen and rotation races.
Ricky Barrett		It’s a surprise to me that Barrett remains in camp, and he’ll almost certainly start the season at AAA.
Randy Keisler		Keisler does still have a chance to be in the bullpen, but he’ll have to pitch very well. So far, his outings have been less than stellar.
Casey Daigle		Daigle hasn’t pitched too bad, and has a better chance than Keisler to make the team. That chance is still not very high.

The Twins lost to the Blue Jays today in Fort Myers 8-3 and are now 10-8 overall on the spring. Livan Hernandez apparently has the flu bug coming on, and he didn’t pitch well today. Carlos Gomez made the start in center, and had another eventful day.

** Livan Hernandez told the Pioneer Press after his outing that he feels the flu coming on. Hopefully it is, because that’d explain the poor outing. Hernandez lasted four innings, and allowed nine hits, a walk and six total runs.

** After Hernandez, the pitching didn’t get much better. Randy Keisler entered the game and in two innings of work somehow managed to give up no runs. Keisler had poor control and walked two hitters. The numbers don’t look bad, but he didn’t look very good. After Keisler, Juan Rincon entered the game. For the first time this spring, Rincon pitched poorly. In his outing, Rincon walked three hitters, allowed two hits and two runs. He can thank the double play for the low run count.

** Joe Nathan was on for the eighth, and had another solid outing. In one inning of work, Nathan struck out two hitters and allowed no runs or hits. Nathan has a 1.50 ERA thus far. Jesse Crain pitched the ninth inning, and in his first outing since being hit in the knee, Crain pitched a quick 1-2-3 inning of work.

** The Twins scored three runs today and collected eight hits overall. For the most part, a handful of players accounted for most of the offense.

** Centerfield watch: Carlos Gomez received the start in center and had another nice and eventual game. Gomez went 1-2 on the day with another steal (6) and a run scored. He was taken out in the fifth inning after he made a very nice catch and crashed into the wall. He is alright. Jason Pridie entered for the remainder of the inning and went 0-1. Then, Pridie moved to left and Span entered the game. He went 1-1 with a single.

** Joe Mauer and Justin Morneau were the lone two players to collected multiple hits. Mauer went 2-3 on the day with an RBI and two runs scored. Morneau also went 2-3 with one run.

** Other players to collect hits were Craig Monroe and Nick Punto.