Arizona Fall League Update

Rosters have been announced for the AFL, and there are some interesting surprises for the Twins. First, the Twins are affiliated with the Mesa Solar Sox in the AFL, so all of their players are assigned to that team. Interestingly, the Twins have seven players listed on the Mesa roster, rather than the six that is the norm. I'm not sure why that is, but if I find an answer I'll be sure to provide it. Here are the names of the Twins who made the cut:

Adam Harben - SP - New Britain Rock Cats
Jay Sawatski - RP - New Britain Rock Cats
Errol Simonitsch - SP - New Britain Rock Cats
Kevin Slowey - SP - New Britain Rock Cats
Matt Moses - 3B - New Britain Rock Cats
Matt Tolbert - IF - New Britain Rock Cats
David Winfree - 1B/3B - Ft. Myers Miracle

My first thought is that Slowey's presence is interesting because he's been designated as a member of Team USA. I assume his responsibilities will have been fulfilled by the time the AFL season begins. Next, it's a clear sign of where the Twins minor league system is right now that not a single AAA player was selected to participate in the AFL. The strength of this system really is at the AA level for now, but that of course should change soon as these guys get called up. The Twins used their sub-AA roster exception on David Winfree, rather than Brock Peterson or Erik Lis. Winfree is a guy that the Twins have a lot of faith in, even after he missed time for personal reasons earlier this season. The fact that he missed time earlier probably makes him an ideal candidate for the AFL, because it will allow him essentially to get a full season of baseball in. The other guys, especially the Pitchers, will probably be awfully tired when their post-season finally rolls around in late November.