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“It excites me a lot. Look at that line. Those guys have all been mentored by the guy in front of them. Me being mentored by Denard Span means I'm the next one in line. I've still got to get to the big leagues, still have to earn my place as a big league center fielder.”

Those were the words of Aaron Hicks at Twins Fest when asked what it meant to follow in the Minnesota Twins centerfield lineage of Kirby Puckett to Torii Hunter to Denard Span.

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Aaron Hicks is the most talked about Twins prospect these days as he is making the strong case that he should be the Minnesota Twins Opening Day leadoff hitter and centerfielder. Hicks was the Twins first 1^st round draft pick that year. Some of the other the other top picks didn’t pan out, but there are still ten in the organization.

Let’s take a look:

THE FIRST-ROUNDERS

Aaron Hicks was taken with the 14^th overall pick. He slowly ...

On Sunday morning, seven players from Minnesota Twins spring training were told that they would not be on the Twins Opening Day roster. The most intriguing name of the bunch was infielder Chris Colabello. This leaves the Twins with 42 players on their spring roster.

Here are the players sent to minor league camp:

Chris Colabello was last year's feel-good minor league story. He has had a great past 12 months. At this time last year, ...

On Saturday morning, the Minnesota Twins announced that they had optioned outfielder Oswaldo Arcia to Triple-A Rochester where he is likely to begin his 2013 season.

Arcia was the Twins minor league hitter of the year in 2012 when he combined to hit a combined .320/.388/.539 (.928) with 36 doubles, 8 triples, 17 home runs and 98 RBI between Ft. Myers and New Britain. He played very well in the Venezuelan Winter League.

Unfortunately, ...

In two weeks, the Minnesota Twins will start their trek north for the start of the regular season. In the last few days, the Twins have sent several players down to minor league camp. There are still 50 players in camp and half of them will not be on the active roster on Opening Day. Here is this week’s look at my Twins Roster Projection.

Let us know what you think. There are still a few roster spots up for grabs. Do you think any of the other players are givens? Which question marks ...

The Minnesota Twins just announced that they have optioned Kyle Gibson and Caleb Thielbar and also reassigned Anthony Slama, James Beresford and Kyle Knudson to minor league camp.

Gibson has really struggled in big league games this spring after a flashy start. Of course, this is no surprise in his return from Tommy John surgery although many thought that he would have a chance at making the Twins starting rotation. More important than where he starts the season, Gibson's arm is feeling ...

After looking at the Outfielders, Infielders, Catchers and Starting Pitchers, our final Spring Training Organizational Depth Chart will take a look at the relief pitchers in the Twins farm system. The bullpen was one of the better areas for the Twins in 2012, and could be again in 2013 although there are questions. The Twins have added some power arms in recent drafts, several are starting to move up the system.

As we have done in the previous depth charts, we’ll try to project where ...

Last week, we began to look at the Minnesota Twins organizational depth by looking at all of the outfielders and then all of the infielders in the in the system. Yesterday, we reviewed all of the catchers. Today, we will be taking a look at the starting pitchers throughout the Twins system. Consider there are five starters on the big league team plus four full-season affiliates and several remaining in Extended Spring Training. There are lots of pitchers to get through.

As pitchers ...

On Monday, the Minnesota Twins announced more roster cuts. After five non-roster players were assigned to minor league camp on Sunday, the Twins optioned six players from their 40 man roster. This leaves the Twins with 56 players in their MLB camp.

Likely the biggest surprise is that catcher Chris Herrmann has been optioned to Triple-A Rochester (1st option). This is his third big league camp with the Twins, but it is the earliest that he has been sent to the minor league side of the ...

Last week, we began to look at the Minnesota Twins organizational depth by looking at all of the outfielders and then all of the infielders in the in the system. Today, we return and take a look at all of the catchers. As with all spring trainings, a lot of catchers are needed just to catch bullpens and to allow players to gradually work up to squatting for nine innings.

As we have done in the previous articles, we will consider which players may fill the rosters of the Twins minor ...

Three weeks ago, as spring training was starting, I posted my first roster projections. In it, I gave percentages for what I felt was likelihood of each player, 40 man roster players and non-roster invitees, making the Opening Day roster. The Minnesota Twins have now played more than a dozen spring games. There have been some injuries. Some players have done well while others have struggled. Of course, the final rosters won’t likely be known for another three weeks, but it is fun to try to project ...

On Tuesday, I began my look at the Twins organizational depth chart by looking at all of the outfielders in the system. Today, we jump back into the Twins system by looking at the infielders. Compared to the outfielders, I’d say it’s more than fair to say that the Twins have not had as much success grooming infielders. Could that trend be changing? Read below and decide for yourself.

In the following, we will consider which players may fill the rosters of the Twins minor league affiliates. ...

On Tuesday, the Minnesota Twins minor leaguers all need to report to the Twins minor league complex in Ft. Myers. Soon after, the players will have their first full-squad workouts. In between, the players will have to run a mile, and the pitchers will also need to do a shuttle run. After a few days of workouts, the players will start playing some intra-squad games. Eventually they’ll start getting into some games against other teams, and then in early April, most of the players will be put on a ...

The Minnesota Twins have been aware of Ryan Doumit for more than fifteen years, but it was only in the last 15 months that he was in the organization. In 1999, the Twins drafted outfielder BJ Garbe with the 5^th overall pick in the draft. In the second round that year, the Pittsburgh Pirates drafted Doumit from the same high school as Garbe, Moses Lake High School in Washington.

Ryan Doumit debuted as a 24-year-old with the Pittsburgh Pirates in June of 2005. For the next three seasons, ...