Fantasy baseball draft season is coming, so you best be prepared by delving through every major player on each team. Fantasy FanHouse is here to help with a quick once-over. Meet the...
Absolute best team in baseball that you've never heard of. The Twins don't spend a lot of money nor do they make a lot of headlines. What they are good at, however, is winning. The Twins won the American League Central Division every year from 2002 to 2004 and again in 2006. In 2007 they finished third in the division and in 2008 they lost a one-game playoff to just miss the post season. This team wins with a small-ball, almost National League feel or approach.
They finished third in the American League in batting average last year, but finished last in home runs. Good young pitching will anchor this staff and the team will more than welcome back Francisco Liriano to the rotation. Joe Nathan is one of the best closers in baseball, but the bullpen is a sign of weakness for the Twins.
The Breakout
The problem up to this point in the career of Alexi Casilla hasn't been skill, it's been durability. He posted less than 200 at-bats in 2007 and only 385 in 2008, all due to injuries. He's healthy going into 2009 and there are a few reasons why this speedster batting near the top of the Twins lineup could breakout. Casilla raised his walk rate by more than 50% from 4.5% in 2007 to 7.5% in 2008. He also lowered his strikeout rate from 15.3% to 11.7%. Both of those statistics will lead to Casilla getting on base much more in 2009. That means his wheels can be put in motion more often. Casilla also raised his flyball rate from 21.6% to 33.5%. This could be a sign of a little bit of pop from his bat this season. Casilla batted .281 last year. He's got a good contact rate of 88% which could lead to an improved batting average. All this being said, Casilla could hit .290 and steal 25-35 bases. He might also hit 10 home runs in 2009. I'd call that a breakout, wouldn't you?
The Bust
Nick Blackburn stepped up in a big way last season for the Twins. The team needed lots of starting pitching help with all of the injuries and departures and Blackburn was a crucial stop-gap resolution. He won 11 games in 2008 and sported a 4.05 ERA. There is a problem though. Blackburn gave up 224 hits last season in only 193.1 innings. He wasn't terribly overpowering either with only 96 strikeouts and 39 walks. To make matters worse, batters hit .292 against him and he gave up more than a home run per nine innings. Blackburn is not a second year pitcher that you want to take a gamble on. He has probably topped out with 11 wins and his ERA is sure to spike in '09.
The Lineup
1. Denard Span, LF
2. Alexi Casilla, 2B
3. Joe Mauer, C
4. Justin Morneau, 1B
5. Michael Cuddyer, RF
6. Jason Kubel, DH
7. Joe Crede / Brian Buscher / Brendan Harris, 3B
8. Nick Punto, SS
9. Carlos Gomez / Delmon Young, CF
The Rotation
1. Francisco Liriano
2. Scott Baker
3. Kevin Slowey
4. Glen Perkins
5. Nick Blackburn
The Bullpen
CL - Joe Nathan
SU - Jesse Crain
SU - Matt Guerrier / Luis Ayala
The Skinny
• Joe Mauer is, once again, dealing with an injury. This time it's inflammation of one of the Sacroiliac joints (lower back pain). Nobody is sure how badly he's hurt, but he hasn't played in a spring game yet and his being in the starting lineup on Opening Day is in jeopardy.
• The signing of Joe Crede turns the third base battle into a three-way race. While many think Crede is the instant favorite he's sure not doing anything special this spring to earn the job. He's batting .100 in 20 at-bats while Brian Buscher is nine for twenty with two doubles and a home run.
• Not only does Carlos Gomez not know if he has an every-day job in the Twins outfield, he has no idea where he'll bat in the lineup. He's being used all over the batting order in an effort to try and find a spot where he helps the most. Gomez has loads of speed. If he can figure out how to get on base, therefore earning him every-day playing time, he could easily steal 40 bases. But, it's all about getting on base; something he hasn't been able to do with any regularity so far.
• Francisco Liriano went 6-1 with a 2.74 ERA in his final 11 starts after his promotion from the minor leagues. If he can recover from Tommy John surgery, Liriano has all the tools to be a front of the rotation starter. If he starts 30 or more games in 2009, Liriano could easily win 15 games and strike out 200. So far this spring he's struck out 12 and only walked two in 12.1 innings.
