When it comes to scouting, drafting, and developing minor-league talent, most teams are envious of the Minnesota Twins.

Consistently competing on a reduced payroll and in a small market, the Twins owe a great deal of their success to their scouting department. Minnesota's young core of players -- Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, Jason Kubel, among others -- are all home-grown and a product of Minnesota's usually-excellent minor-league system.

This year, the Twins will look to bolster that system by adding some organizational depth.

Predicting what Minnesota will do in the Rule 4 Draft is as futile an exercise as making contact with a Steve Carlton slider; unless you got lucky, there's no way you are going to make solid contact.

The Twins have no discernable tendencies in the June First-Year Player's Draft. They are just as willing to draft a prep outfielder as they are a college-groomed relief pitcher. Minnesota will draft the player they feel will help the organization the most.

This year, the Twins have been awarded the 21st overall selection in the draft. Here are five players that they could wind up in Minnesota's minor-league system.

Bryce Brentz, OF, Middle Tennessee State - (Click here to read more!)

This post comes courtesy of Bill Parker, from "The Daily Something." Providing excellent write-ups on baseball topics on a daily basis, The Daily Something is a site that needs to be in your bookmarks. Because this post relates to the Twins, Bill asked me to double-post it here, as well as his blog. To reach the author, you can contact him via Twitter.

(Originally posted on TwinsMVB.com) Another rematch against a team that we just can't seem to beat.

After being swept in the season series against the Yankees last year, and losing two of three to them in our first meeting this year, the Twins will be considered the underdog in this series, despite what the above numbers say. Should the Twins fail to win this series against the Bronx Bombers, there will undoubtedly be people throwing in the towel on the season, citing the Twins' inability to beat the "good teams" that they will be paired up against in the postseason.

That's certainly an overreaction, but winning two of three in the Yankee's first visit to Target Field sure would be nice.

Game One - Burnett (4-2, 3.86 ERA) vs. Baker (4-4, 4.88 ERA)

AJ Burnett has certainly been having a great season, and was among the early favorites for Cy Young before he got rocked for six runs in just under seven innings a few days ago. Ignoring that last start, Burnett has been an above-average starter. He isn't striking out his usual total, though, and he is giving up plenty of hits. If an offensively potent team can string some hits together -- like the Rays did last week -- Burnett's ERA may rise a few dozen points. On the face of things, it appears as if Baker is his "start the season slow" mode.

With a relatively high 4.88 ERA, Baker is hardly pitching well enough to be considered the staff's "ace." As evidenced by his abnormally-high .343 BABIP and improved groundball rate, Baker may be on the cusp of a few lucky breaks. Baker is striking out the most in his career and walking opposing batters at a very low clip, and has the 25th-lowest xFIP in baseball: 3.70.

Game Two - Pettitte (5-1, 2.68 ERA) vs. Liriano (4-3, 3.25 ERA)

Andy Pettitte has been the anti-Baker so far this year. Although his ERA and win/loss record is appealing, his xFIP is a much-higher 4.34, which testaments to his high walk rate, low strikeout rate, and low BABIP, all of which indicate a regression to the mean in the very near future. Pettitte also has a very impressive 82.2 strand-rate, which simply isn't sustainable over the course of a whole season.

After posting a 7.02 ERA over his last three starts, Liriano seems to have finally convinced people that he will never return to his pre-surgery form. Even with three less-than-desirable starts so far this year, Liriano's intangibles have been right in line of what we expect: a solid strikeout rate and an average walk rate. His almost complete aversion of the long-ball this year (he's given up just two home runs all season) is also good to see.

Game Three - Vazquez (3-4, 6.69 ERA) vs. Blackburn (5-1, 4.50 ERA)

After dealing away a package centering around Melky Cabrera for Javy Vazquez, the Yankees are undoubtedly upset with their return. Vazquez, who finished fourth in Cy Young voting last season, is off to a terrible start with New York. His sky-high ERA is only slightly worse than the advanced stats claim, and hope can't even be gleaned from his BABIP, which is maddeningly (at least for Yankees fans) normal.

Blackburn, on the other hand, has pitched worse than his ERA indicates. Striking out an extremely low 2.50 batters per nine innings (the lowest mark in baseball among qualified pitchers) and giving up far more than his fair share of home runs, Blackburn has been "off" this season. His BABIP isn't too far off line, and he is inducing more groundballs than he usually does, which is what he needs to do to be successful in 2010. Against the mighty Yankee's offense, I'm guessing a full return to his usually-reliable self isn't going to happen.

This series will be the last time the Twins play the Yankees this season. While too much shouldn't be read into a mid-May series, any matchup of two of the best teams in baseball is important. Another series lose would leave an awful taste in Twins' fans mouths, but a good showing could help spring-board a successful June for Minnesota.

Lately, things haven't been looking too bright for the Minnesota Twins.

The East coast road trip that many saw as an opportunity for the Twins to assert themselves as a force in the American League didn't go too well. Dropping two of three to the Yankees, splitting with the Blue Jays, and being swept by the ailing Red Sox is hardly something a contending team does on a regular basis. In fact, outside from a three-game sweep of the Tigers, the entire month of May hasn't given the Twins much in terms of wins.

Through the last 13 games, the Twins have won just five games. A few members of the bullpen are well on their way to being demoted or released, and the fan-base appears on the verge of a (mental) breakdown. News flash: There are plenty of reasons to be optimistic heading into this upcoming nine-game home stand. Here are a few:

1. The starting rotation is still producing.

Despite some awful starts, the starting staff has generally been solid this year. In fact, Twins' starting pitchers have garnered eight quality starts in the last 13 games. While a quality start (at least six innings and under three earned runs) isn't the best means of evaluating a pitcher  -- a 4.50 ERA is hardly something to aspire to, anyway -- the 62 quality-start percentage (the MLB average has hung around 48 percent for the past five years) over a rough patch shows that the rotation is hardly the Achille's heel it was made out to be at the start of the season.

2. Offense is showing good plate discipline.

The Twins have drawn a total of 171 walks in 2010, the 3rd-highest mark in the league. In fact, the Twins' team walk percentage -- 10.95 -- is the highest mark since the 1956 Senators. (Yeah, the team that went 59-95. So what?) Minnesota batters have struck out 225 times in 2010, also the 3rd-best in the league. Although the '56 squad is a hearty point to the contrary, when an offense's intangibles are in line, the wins will usually follow.

3. Three games against Milwaukee . . . Then an off-day!

On many levels, the Brewers are a struggling team in one of the worst divisions in baseball. They can't draw a walk, and they are striking out over 21 percent of the time. The Brewers just ended a nine-game losing streak, and their pitchers are getting walloped with a .338 BABIP that will eventually regress. But who's to say this stretch of bad luck won't continue through the next series? Minnesota's starting pitchers have been consistent, but the offense needs a couple of 10-run games to get back on track.

Also: The AL Central is still entirely winnable.

Remember when we thought that Glen Perkins could be a large part of a trade for San Diego closer Heath Bell?

Now, not so much.

Thanks to the emergence of Francisco Liriano, Perkins was forced to begin the season in Triple-A Rochester where the 27-year old would hopefully build up his trade value. Through his first seven starts in the Twins’ minor league system, Perkins is 0-5 with a 10.08 ERA and a 1.988 WHIP.

With a career major-league ERA of 4.73 in 281.2 innings, Perkins is either still hurt or simply forgot how to pitch. Perkins made his last start on Saturday, where he gave up four earned runs in five innings. His ERA actually dropped .64 points.

Perkins hit the shelf late last season with tendonitis in his left shoulder. He missed 23 days on the disabled list, and the Twins’ failure to give Perkins service time during his rehab stint procured a Berlin Wall of ill feelings between the two parties.

Throwing a total of 12 innings in 2009 between Rookie-League and High-A, Perkins amassed an ERA of 2.25. He faced 45 batters, and struck out nine while walking just one. Even if there were still concerns over Perkin’s shoulder, the Twins didn’t seem to be worried.

During Spring Training this year Perkins complained of lower back stiffness, which some dismissed as simply another cry for attention from a whiny pitcher who wasn’t very good in the first place. Could either his left shoulder or lower back be acting up again?

Some cite Perkin’s very high opinion of himself as problematic. Could the sharp drop in production due to injury have impacted Perkin’s confidence, resulting in horrid starts this year in Triple-A? Or is he as cocky as ever, but still hurt?

Either way, there is little chance Perkins sees major-league action with the Twins this season. He is quite a ways down the totem pole in Rochester. If the Twins’ starting rotation suffers a devastating series of injuries, Perkins may not even be the third player called up.

Perkins may be a home-town kid who grew up dreaming of a chance to play for the Twins, but any future major-league success will come with another franchise. For the sake of both the Rochester rotation and Perkin’s career, the Twins need to part ways with the 6’0’’ lefty.

If they don’t, this Perkins Problem may develop into something even more distracting.

It's May 12, and you know what that means! Delmon Young Day!

To read my entry, either scroll below or click here. Directly below this text you will find a widget that will grab all of the tweets mentioning #DelmonYoungDay, which will allow you to keep track of all your Delmon Young reading today. So sit back, savor Delmon Young Day, and enjoy a few stories on the house. You'll find the links below.

Delmon Young is an interesting case-study in elite prospects that take a turn for the worse. In 2003, Delmon Young was considered the best amateur baseball talent in the country. After a successful career at Adolfo Camarillo High School in California, the Tampa Bay Rays decided he was worthy of a $3.7 million signing bonus and the first overall selection in the draft.

Young signed a major-league contract after three months of negotiations with the Devil Rays, whom he described as "just another club, nothing special." He was clearly self-confident, and had one of the most powerful bats in the draft. Scouts projected him to fit comfortably in Tampa Bay's right-field as soon as 2005, when he would be 20 years old.

The hype surrounding Young was palpable, but the track-record of previous No.1 overall picks wasn't necessarily high. Just look at Bryan Bullington and Matt Bush (but ignore Adrian Gonzalez, Josh Hamilton, and Joe Mauer as they don't further the point I'm trying to make).

Prior to the 2004 season, Young was ranked by Baseball America as the 3rd-best prospect in baseball. He hit .322/.388/.538 against clearly over-matched Single-A pitchers in 2004. Young jumped up to Double-A in 2005 and Triple-A in 2006 (where he was ranked as baseball's top prospect by BA). When Jonny Gomes underwent surgery in 2006, Young was called upon to play in the remaining 31 games.

Young was hitting home runs and stealing bases like no one's business during his stint in the minor leagues, and he looked like a legitimate 30/30 (HR/SB) threat. The fact that he was striking out an obscene 20 percent of the time was mostly over-looked, after all, Young was hitting the ball 400 feet over the outfield fence!

Playing every single game of the 2007 season with the Rays, Young hit .288/.316/.408 with just 13 home runs and 10 stolen bases. His 127/26 strikeout-to-walk ratio was incredibly problematic, but mostly over-looked. The kid was still young, after all, and he would certainly gain a better understanding of strike zones as he grew older.

Even a trade to Minnesota couldn't bust Young from his ineptitude. In 2009, Young struck out 23.3 percent of the time. He was renowned for whiffing at first pitches, and couldn't draw a walk to save his life. The home runs weren't there anymore, and the stolen bases were sagging, as well. To put the icing on the cake, Young's mother died of pancreatic and liver cancer in the middle of the 2009 season. Young seemed to have lost all motivation, and was playing miserably, as well.

It appeared that the Delmon Young experiment was about as successful as England's invasion of New Orleans in 1814, which is to say it was a complete failure. Shortly following Bonnie Young's death, though, something clicked for Delmon Young.

From July through October of 2009, Young hit .306/.329/.511 with a strikeout percentage of just 16.9. Still horribly high, but a marked improvement, nonetheless. During the offseason prior to the 2010 campaign, Young lost 35 pounds and showed up to start the season a "new player."

His defensive range in the outfield had improved with the lost weight, and through May 10 is hitting .267/.323/.442 with a strikeout percentage of just 11.6. He has just three home runs (though his Isolated Power is way up), but his batting on average on balls in play is just .267, far below the major-league average and even further below his career average.

Are things looking up for the 24-year old Delmon Young? Could he finally be on the verge of becoming a capable outfielder? Dare Twins' fans dream of his potential to be a 30/30 player and regular All-Star over the next few years?

What do you think? Is the resurgence Young has experienced lately been a fluke, or can more be expected of Delmon Young?

Sam Tastad is back with another guest post. Read more of Sam's work here.

The Twins have always had trouble finding a consistent third baseman, and here I will look at the present and future status of who is playing third base  for the Twins:

This year, Nick Punto started the year off at third base. He is currently on the disabled list, but while he played he did fairly well. He hit .269, had seven hits, four runs, three extra base hits, two stolen bases, one walk, and five strikeouts in nine games. That is average, and better than other years. He has started the year off fairly well. Punto is known as Ron Gardenhire's favorite player, and contributes more than just offense. He is an excellent defender, and hustles every game. I say let's give Punto some more starts this year, but if starts to not contribute, sit him or put him in the minors. The Twins do already have a loaded lineup, and don't always need production from him, but it would be nice once in awhile to get a steady player at third base who can hit, play defense, and hustle.

Brendan Harris has been our other option at third base, and has played alright. He has hit .200 with seven hits and runs, one home run, two doubles, four RBIs,  five strikeouts, and seven walks in fifteen games. Harris is also a good defender, decent hustler, and an alright hitter. Harris has played decent for the Twins since being acquired in the Delmon Young trade. He will continue to get time, but if he wants to stay on this team, he'll have to step up and play better.

In the minors, Danny Valencia, Matt Macri, Matt Tolbert, and Luke Hughes. Hughes was just called up for Nick Punto. Everyone of these guys have had some major league experience but Valencia. Valencia, however has some special talent, and it's just a matter of time when the Twins think he's ready to use that in the major leagues.

Valencia is currently in AAA Rochester. He is currently hitting .243, with zero home runs, seven RBIs, and one stolen base. He's played in nineteen games, and gotten 18 hits, and seven runs. He's gotten off to a slow start but he does have potential to be a 15 home run guy. Look for Valencia to warm up, and maybe be called up soon.

Matt Macri and Matt Tolbert are also having slow starts to the 2010 season. They are hitting .231, and .244, respectively. Both are good fill in guys, and have times where they have big games. I wouldn't be surprised to see one of their names called up this year.

Luke Hughes is currently in the majors, and has played in seven games, batting .286 with one home run. He doing a good job, but hasn't played much. Harris has gotten much of the playing time in Punto's absence. Hughes will look though to be in the future conversation at third base.

There you have it, a look at the present and future third base situation for your Minnesota Twins!

Originally published at TwinsMVB.com.

The season may still be young, but several players in the Twins’ minor league organization are certainly off to a great start. Here is a quick look at five of these players:

Bobby Lanigan, RH-SP, Ft. Myers Miracle

Lanigan, a third-round selection of the Twins in the 2008 draft, is off to a great start in his first full year of High-A ball. Through 22.1 innings this season, Lanigan has compiled a 0.81 ERA along with a 0.896 WHIP. He is striking out 8.1 batters per nine innings, and has walked just four.

Opponents are hitting just .198 off Lanigan, and the 22-year-old righty has a 1.30 groundout/flyout ratio. Lanigan is known for his outstanding slider, and could move up to Double-A as soon as one of the New Britain starts promoted to Rochester.

Liam Hendriks, RH-SP, Beloit Snappers

Hendriks, while just 20 years of age, has been off to a very impressive start through 22 innings in Beloit. With a 0.41 ERA, Hendriks has given up just one earned run while striking out 26 and walking just two. His WHIP is 0.409, and he has been incredibly dominant through his first four starts.

Hendriks has had excellent control throughout his three minor-league seasons, and has a 1.50 groundout/flyout ratio this season. He could fight for a job in Fort Myers when the first round of promotions begins.

Rene Tosoni, OF, New Britain Rock Cats

Tosoni has done a great job in his attempts to convince the Twins’ brass that he can hit left-handed pitching. With a combined line of .351/.413/.526 through his first 64 plate appearances, Tosoni is hitting .375/.474/.438 against south-paws. He has a total of six extra-base hits so far this year, and could potentially be a September call-up to the major-leagues.

Tosoni probably doesn’t have the range to play center field, but he has a cannon of an arm and will fit nicely in a corner outfield position. If he keeps raking opposing pitchers at his current clip, there is no reason why he can’t be playing in Rochester in a few months.