Just some opinions. I claim no particular expertise, so feel free to disagree with them.
--It was nice to see the Red Wings in the playoffs. It was the first time they'd been there since 2006. As I'm sure you know, however, it does not mean they have a bunch of hot prospects ready to help the big club. For one thing, anybody worth anything has already been promoted to Minnesota. For another, they had a good year by using a lot of minor league veterans. Chris Colabello will be thirty in a month. Doug Bernier is thirty-three. Antoan Richardson will be thirty next month. Ray Olmedo is thirty-two. Andrew Albers will be twenty-eight next month. And so on. Some guys had nice years, and I'm happy for them, but the actual prospects are mostly still in the lower levels.
--I spent much of last year telling you that Chris Parmelee had no business still being in Rochester. I still think the Twins would've been better served giving him the right field and DH at-bats that went to First Half MVP Ryan Doumit. Having said that, Parmelee hasn't exactly done anything to show he deserved more playing time. He's hit .220/.310/.370 in Minnesota and .231/.318/.370 in Rochester. Even if you think he's a AAAA player, there's clearly something about him that's messed up, because he wasn't even a AAA player this year. I don't know if it's a mechanical problem, or if he's lost his confidence, or if he's hiding an injury, or what, but I don't see how you go from what he was in Rochester last year to what he did this year unless there's something wrong.
--When the Twins sent Liam Hendriks out after only two starts, I said the Twins should trade him. At that point, it seems likely that someone would've looked at his AAA numbers from 2012 and given you something worth having for him. That's probably not the case now. He was trying to pitch through an injury the first part of the season, which makes his numbers look worse than they would've been otherwise, but he was not the dominant pitcher in AAA that he was last year, and has yet to have much success in the majors, either. He's twenty-four, so he still has time to improve, but he's not showing much sign of it yet.
--Another reason I said the Twins should trade Hendriks is that they seem to have no confidence in him. I can't prove that, of course, but it's my opinion. Last year, they left him in AAA long after he'd shown he could dominate there and despite the fact that the big-league rotation was struggling. This year, they shipped him out after only two starts, one of which wasn't very good but the other of which was okay. And when I hear Gardy or Rick Anderson talk about him, they seem to constantly harp on his weakness, and even when they try to be nice they seem to praise him with faint damns. I constantly hear them say things like, "He needs to figure some things out." He probably does, but a) they never seem to say what it is he needs to figure out, and b) it seems like it's the job of Anderson and Bobby Cuellar to help him figure things out. It's possible that they're doing things we don't know about, and that Hendriks simply can't or won't learn, but we never hear anything about that. I'm not saying they should pretend Hendriks is a great pitcher, but it seems like it wouldn't hurt to express a little confidence in him once in a while.
--While they're not really prospects, I am pleased that people like Colabello, Albers, and Samuel Deduno (who's thirty) got a chance this year, because they did everything they could possibly do to earn that chance. I've said before that I believe in keeping it simple, and that when a player succeeds at one level he deserves a chance at the next level. I don't know that any of these guys will be good major league players in the long run, but each of them had a few moments this year, and it's been fun to see.
--Doug Bernier, on the other hand, did nothing to earn a chance. My assumption is that he's on the roster because somebody has to be the backup infielder and they didn't want Eduardo Escobar rotting on the bench. And in that respect, it seems to have been a good move. Escobar did very well in Rochester, hitting .307/.380/.500. At twenty-four, it's possible that this is going to be a lasting improvement. I'd pretty much consigned him to the "good field, no hit" category, but that may have been unfair. If he can keep this going, he's going to force his way onto a big league roster eventually.
--James Beresford had a nice year, hitting a combined .306 between New Britain and Rochester. It's a fairly empty .306, as he has no power, but .306 is still .306, and it'll get you noticed. I'm not really very high on him, but if he can do it again next year, he, too, may see some big league time eventually.
--Aaron Hicks had pretty much a lost year. It's clear in retrospect that he wasn't ready for the big leagues yet, although it's easy to say that now, and he only got 72 at-bats in Rochester due to injuries. It may very well be that not playing winter ball is the best thing for him, that it will be better for him to rest and heal and come back strong next year. One suspects he'll probably start the season in Rochester, and that's probably a good thing.
--I wouldn't give up on Kyle Gibson just yet. It's true that he struggled in Minnesota, but he pitched well in Rochester, and he's still not that far removed from major surgery. I hate to say "next year is a critical year for him", because you could say that about almost everybody, but it does seem to apply a little more in his case. He'll be twenty-six next month. If he's going to make a move, he needs to do it soon.
--Vance Worley, as you know, was a disappointment. He'd been at least a competent major league pitcher for Philadelphia, but he was awful in Minnesota and not particularly good in Rochester before being shut down due to injury. He'll turn twenty-six at the end of this month. Again, if he's going to make a move, he needs to do it soon.
--It looks like we can say good-bye to Brian Dinkelman. He hit .215/.312/.350. He really never has had a good offensive year in AAA, and this was his fourth season there. He turns thirty in a couple of months. It always makes me a little sad to see someone go, but it's clear that he has little to no major league future.
So, that's your 2013 Rochester Red Wings. If things go according to plan, we'll look at the New Britain Rock Cats tomorrow.
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