Who can we expect to see this on this year's 25 man squad out of the gate? A lot of familiar faces. 23 of the 25 players that will suit up tonight played in 2010 for the Twins. The two that didn't, Japanese product Tsuyoshi Nishioka, and new bullpen arm Dusty Hughes.
Everyone should know about Nishioka by now, the Twins spent $5 million just for the right to negotiate a contract with him. He has high expectations, although with the Twins line-up, he's really expected to get on base and dangerous from there.
But who is this guy really? Can we expect an Ichiro or more like a Fukudome? Or neither. First off, no one should expect getting a player with the caliber of Ichiro Suzuki, already a first ballot hall of famer, despite having played half of his career in Japan. Suzuki will end his career with 3,000 hits and if he had played in the US his entire career, that number would have blown away Pete Rose's mark. Kosuku Fukudome came into the league with a lot of hype, gaining an all-star nod his first year, but has since leveled off and become more average than exceptional. The Twins would settle for something in-between.
Nishioka, a 26 year old switch hitter, played with the Chiba Lotte Marines out of the Nippon Professional Baseball league from 2003-2010. He carries a lot of accolades with him including a 2 time Japan Series Champion, 5 time all star, 3 time gold glove winner, a 2 time stolen base champion and in 2010 NPB batting champion. Nishioka is an Olympian, having played in the 2008 games in Beijing and also won Gold in 2006 with the Japanese team in the World Baseball Classic. Nishioka's style will be very similar to what we see in Ichiro, a slap style hitter with some pop in his bat and a very slick fielder. Don't be surprised if Nishioka goes long a few times too, in high school, he was a slugger as well as a lead-off hitter belting 42 home runs. Nishioka hit .345 with 20 hits and only 2 strikeouts this spring.
Hughes is a relative unknown, but I'm one of the few people who have known this kid for years. In 2004, I was an intern with the Burlington Bees, the low Class A affiliate of the Kansas City Royals. I remember Hughes, a Mississippian with a distinct southern drawl, who threw a lot of heat and was promoted to high A later in the summer. I'm not a huge Royals fan, but I'm a fan of anyone who played with the Bees that summer and to date there's been at least 5 players to make the majors from that team. I'll have to write about my experience there and check up on where the players are. If you haven't experienced Minor League Baseball, I really implore you to try, you may not know the names, but the baseball is still really really good.
Anyways, on to Hughes performance on the diamond. After earning his licks in the minors, Hughes got his first cup of coffee in the majors with a September 2009 call up.
An 0-2 with a 5.14 ERA was not what he and the Royals had in mind for the 8 games he played. But the experience proved enough as he made the Royals bullpen for 2010 and in 57 games he put up a 3.83 ERA with 34 strikeouts, in 56 and a third innings pitched. Hughes impressed everybody this spring by not allowing a single run in 12 innings pitched, going 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA, 7 strikeouts, and 5 walks. As a lefty, he'll be a welcome addition to the bullpen looking to fulfill that specialty role in late inning pressure situations.
I've got a whole rundown of the the re-tooled Twins bullpen, but I'll keep that for another post. For now, sit back and enjoy Opening Day. It's April 1st and no, it's not a prank, baseball is here finally!
until next time, remember to keep your foot on the rubber.
brock
TCW
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