Instead, the Twins were turning heads because they traded not just one, but two high quality center fielders in Denard Span (Washington) and Ben Revere (Philadelphia). The Twins traded away Span first, which led Twins fans, as well as baseball analysts to believe that Minnesota felt as if it were time to give Ben Revere the full-time job in the middle of their outfield. But then Minnesota traded Revere to Philadelphia in exchange for starting pitcher Vance Worley. The head scratching began almost immediately on talk radio, and wondering who in Minneapolis had lost their mind.
But apparently the Twins brass knew exactly who their man was in center field, and they deserve credit for pulling the trigger on two moves before their leverage was gone. Aaron Hicks has exploded on to the scene this spring, including a monster day on Thursday in which Hicks went 4-5 at the plate with three home runs and six total RBI.
Hicks began his professional career in rookie ball back in 2008, and this is his third spring training with the Twins major league camp. Hicks saw five plate appearances during the 2011 and 2012 Grapefruit League, but has become the leading candidate for Minnesota's center field job and possibly their lead-off spot in the lineup. Hicks has 11 hits in just 27 at-bats this spring, good for a .407 average.
During the 2012 season, Hicks played in 129 games at the Double-A level, hitting a career high 13 home runs and 11 triples, while batting .286 for the season, his highest average since he hit .318 in rookie ball in 2008. Hicks was also 32 of 43 on stolen base attempts. With a team full of aging stars, Twins fans can get excited about another young prospect on the horizon that could end up as the face of the franchise.
Scores from Thursday:
Boston 12, Minnesota (SS) 5
Minnesota (SS) 10, Philadelphia 6
St. Louis 7, N.Y. Yankees 6
Tampa Bay 4, Pittsburgh 2
Baltimore 11, Toronto 10
Houston 4, Washington 2
N.Y. Mets 4, Miami 1
Detroit 9, Atlanta 2
Notes from Thursday:
Boston got a big day from the right side of their infield, as second baseman Dustin Pedroia went 2-4 with two RBI and Mike Napoli went 2-3 at the plate with a three run home run. The Red Sox got three scoreless innings from Clay Buchholz, as he recorded four strikeouts. The new closer for Boston, Joel Hanrahan, struggled again on Thursday, allowing four hits and four runs in just 1/3 of an inning. Ray Olmedo went 1-3 with two RBI in the loss for a split squad Minnesota team in the 12-5 loss to Boston. The rest of the Twins were taking on the Phillies, and they got to see quite the show from Aaron Hicks. Hicks launched three long balls and had six RBI in a 4-5 performance at the plate. Michael Young was 2-3 for the Phillies in the loss. The Cardinals got a solo home run from Pete Kozma and two run homers from Daniel Descalso and Kolten Wong as the Cardinals edged out the Yankees, 7-6. Jason Motte pitched one inning for the Cardinals, allowing one run on one hit and a walk. Motte has a spring ERA of 11.25. Ivan Nova, who is competing for a spot in the Yankees rotation, gave up three hits and one run while striking out two hitters in three innings of work. Tim Beckham had an RBI double for the Rays in their 4-2 win over Pittsburgh, and Alex Cobb pitched four shutout innings while striking out five Pirates hitters. Pittsburgh got an RBI double from Russell Martin in the loss. Ryan Flaherty gave the Orioles a three run home run to go along with a solo shot from Nolan Reimold to help Baltimore to an 11-10 win over Toronto. Toronto got a pair of RBI from Melky Cabrera and Jim Negrych in the loss. Mark Buehrle went two innings for the Blue Jays, giving up one run on two hits and walking three Orioles hitters. Houston got a pair of RBI from backup catcher Jason Castro and an RBI from Rick Ankiel, who is looking to break camp with the team in their 4-2 win over the Nationals. Philip Humber started for the Astros, pitching four shutout innings. Michael Taylor knocked in the only two runs for Washington in the loss, and the Nationals got three shutout innings from Gio Gonzalez. Matthew den Dekker, one of a multitude of options in the Mets outfield, launched a solo home run as part of a 2-3 performance in the Mets 4-1 win over Miami. Matt Harvey started for New York, going 4 1/3 innings without allowing a hit and striking out five. J.T. Realmuto hit a solo home run as the only score for the Marlins in the loss. And finally, Detroit got a two-RBI double from their top prospect Nick Castellanos in their 9-2 win against Atlanta. The Tigers also got a pair of RBI from Danny Worth, who was 3-3, and Bryan Holaday, who was 2-2. Drew Smyly pitched four scoreless innings for the Tigers, as he continues to force himself into the Tigers Opening Day rotation. Juan Francisco hit a solo home run for Atlanta in the loss.
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