Virtually the entire lineup was filled with hopefuls; guys who could find themselves playing with the Twins or with St. Paul’s Saints for most of the season. It included eight players that are essentially batting for three roster spots.
Leading off was Edouard Julien at first base, where he was playing for the first time this spring. He’s only played there five times in his MLB career, and only twenty-eight times in his minor league career. But manager Rocco Baldelli said before the game that Julien is likely to find himself playing first base nearly as much as he plays second base this spring. Ultimately, Julien’s bat is going to make or break his spot on the roster, but having some positional flexibility would provide a left-handed hitting option to pair with Ty France and Jose Miranda at first base.
Batting second was Mickey Gasper, playing second base. Gasper has only played second base fourteen times: six times last year with the Red Sox, and eight times this winter with Criollos de Cagua in the Puerto Rican Winter League. He’s never played it in the minors, playing mostly first base. During the regular season, Baldelli would probably have Gasper and Julien switching spots. But this spring, the Twins need to see if Gasper can handle second base, since that flexibility might be needed for a bench role.
Batting third was catcher Jair Camargo. The only thing that has kept Camargo off the Twins’ roster the last two years is that Ryan Jeffers and Christian Vazquez have been unnaturally healthy for catchers, starting all 322 games over the last two seasons. He’s an IL-stint (or a cost-cutting trade) away from making the roster and seeing significant playing time.
The cleanup hitter was Miranda, who is most likely to find himself playing for the Twins. “But Jose is going to be in a position where he’s going to go out there, earn his at-bats, earn his opportunities like many other guys on our roster.” Those aren’t my words, they’re Baldelli’s when asked about Miranda’s role last week. Miranda played third base in this game, a position the Twins would like to have Royce Lewis get 600 at-bats, if he can stay healthy.
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