Members of the Twins organization have begun shaking the rust off of the winter, having convened in Florida for the annual ritual of spring training.
St. Paul Saints getting ready to play ball as MLB sits idle
General Manager Derek Sharrer joined the Daily Delivery podcast to talk about the strange opportunity the Twins' Class AAA affiliate might have this year.
March 4, 2022 at 6:00PM
The thing is, it's far less crowded than usual down at the complex. And the baseball market might be even less crowded this spring in the Twin Cities once games are slated to begin.
While any member of the Twins' 40-man roster — which includes Twins players and a lot of top prospects — is locked out while the players and owners continue to negotiate a new labor agreement, all other Twins minor league players have started training.
Their minor league seasons will begin on time regardless of what is happening with the top club. That puts the St. Paul Saints — fresh off their first season in 2021 as the Twins' Class AAA affiliate — in an interesting position.
I chatted with Saints General Manager Derek Sharrer about that on Friday's Daily Delivery podcast.
The Saints are slated to open their season on the road April 5, with the home opener a week later on April 12. That's a much earlier start to the year than they have ever had. When they were an unaffiliated team, their season typically started in mid-May, and last year their season was delayed at the start due to COVID concerns.
Though only the first two series of the MLB season have been canceled so far, the longer things go without a deal in place will jeopardize more of the season.
"It's a really unique and odd situation for us. As a member of the greater baseball family, we're not happy about what's happening with Major League Baseball. It's just not good for the sport," Sharrer said. "But we're in that unique spot with a minor league team in a major league market where we may be the only show in town for a period of time. We're not hoping for it, but certainly we'll do our best to take care of baseball fans while we have an opportunity."
Sharrer noted that some of the players who could be big draws this year for the Saints like Jose Miranda or Royce Lewis are on the 40-man roster and won't be able to compete.
"There are plenty of minor leaguers in the system that we will be able to field a Triple-A team separate from those involved in the lockout," Sharrer said.
When he was hired after the disastrous 2016 season to reshape the Twins, Derek Falvey brought a reputation for identifying and developing pitching talent. It took a while, but the pipeline we were promised is now materializing.
