Beloit Snappers Roster

I will be beginning to post Down on the Farm minor league updates on the site next week, but minor league rosters will be officially coming out over the next couple of days, and so I'm going to have a separate post for each of the four full-season teams whose seasons will be starting this week as soon as the rosters come out. The Snappers roster was the first to officially be released (the Rock Cats roster is close to complete, and the Red Wings have something that looks awfully close to accurate up as well, but I don't trust them quite yet). Here's a quick look at the 2007 Beloit Snappers:

Name / Position / Age / Organizational Rank

Starting Pitchers
Adam Hawes - RHP - 23 years old - #30 SP
Alex Burnett - RHP - 19 years old - #29 SP
Cole DeVries - RHP - 22 years old - #40 SP
Sean Land - LHP - 22 years old - #34 SP
Jeff Manship - RHP - 22 years old - #21 SP

There are two relative surprises in this mix, but neither of them is that shocking. The first is Cole DeVries, who was picked up by the Twins out of the University of Minnesota. Because he's 22 and had a very solid 2006 season for the Gophers, however, it isn't exactly a "whoa, nelly" kind of surprise -- it was just possible that DeVries could have been asked to start in Elizabethton if the Twins didn't quite think he was ready. The other surprise is Adam Hawes, who had a 4.02 ERA in 87.1 innings for the Snappers last season. I expected him to get a promotion to Ft. Myers to start this season. DeVries and Manship are the two to watch from this bunch -- DeVries is only ranked 40th because he was a late addition to the list and I didn't have enough information on him to rank him higher.

Relief Pitchers
Jose Lugo - LHP - 22 - #33 RP
Danny Vais - RHP - 22 - #19 RP
Armando Gabino - RHP - 23 -#30 RP
Dan Leatherman - RHP - 21 - #14 RP
Danny Hernandez - RHP - 21 - #39 RP
Robert Delaney - RHP - 22 - #44 RP
Adam Revelette - LHP - 22 - #47 RP

Obviously, the two most interesting members of the Beloit bullpen are Dan Leatherman and Danny Vais. Leatherman pitched with the GCL Twins, Elizabethton, and Beloit last year, and was successful at every level. There's no reason to think that he won't continue to pitch well this season. I'm a little surprised that Vais is starting the season in Beloit -- he had a 2.12 ERA in 80.2 innings last season, and seemed like a natural candidate to move up to Ft. Myers. If he has a solid first 6 weeks, I expect him to be moved up quickly.

Catchers
Allan de San Miguel - C - 19 - #16 C
Jose Leger - C - 24 - #14 C
Gregory Yerisch - C - 20 - #7 C

The Twins catching depth is weak organizationally, and that's particularly evident in Beloit. None of these guys are going to do much offensively, but if they continue to work on defense and game-calling skills, the Twins will be pleased. I had both de San Miguel and Yersich starting in Beloit, but I had Leger in either Ft. Myers or New Britain. He's on the old side for a low A player, and I suspect that if he doesn't have a good start to his season, he may not last particularly long.

Infielders
Johnny Woodard - 1B - 22 - #10 1B
Brian Dinkelman - 2B - 23 - #4 2B
Andrew Thompson - SS - 20 - #3 2B
Paul Kelly - SS - 20 - #4 SS
Yancarlos Ortiz - SS - 22 - #7 SS
William Luque - SS - 22 - #12 3B
Daniel Berg - 3B - 22 - #8 1B
Garrett Olson - 3B - 22 - #7 3B
Daniel Valencia - 3B - 22 - #6 3B

There are some fairly talented players scattered throughout the Snapper infield. Andrew Thompson should be fully recovered from the numerous injuries he suffered from last year, and the battle between him and Kelly for playing time at short should be interesting. Thompson may also get some playing time at 2B when Brian Dinkelman isn't in action there. Without question, those three players are the ones to watch in the infield this season for Beloit.

Outfielders
Mark Robinson - OF - 20 - #26 OF
Joe Benson - OF - 19 - #15 OF
Chris Parmelee - 19 - #9 OF
Danny Santiesteban - 22 - #14 OF

Far and away the biggest star on the team this season will be last year's first round draft pick Chris Parmelee. He can play in the outfield or at 1B, and should get playing time at both this year. Joe Benson followed Parmelee by being drafted in the 2nd round last year, and also bears watching. Santiesteban should be the Snappers starting center fielder this year, and it will be interesting to see how the 22-year-old fares in his first full season action.