The Twins have big holes in their minor-league system, no doubt. One thing really hurting them is their lack of major league ready position prospects. This has been well-documented.

Now, for some good news: They might have another star catcher on the horizon in 20-year-old Wilson Ramos.

I started paying attention to Ramos, when La Velle listed him at No. 8 on the season ending list of the Twins’ Top 10 prospects. The reviews keep getting better. The other day, a prominent agent compared Ramos to a young Pudge Rodriguez defensively.

Then, I found some eye-popping numbers from Ramos in the recently completed Parallel League in Venezuela. In 29 games, Ramos batted .410/.442/.886 with 13 home runs and 38 RBI. The Parallel League is the feeder league for the Venezuelan winter league, and the caliber is about that of rookie ball here in the States.

Anyway, after handling himself very well as a 19-year-old for Class A Beloit last summer, Ramos tore ligaments in his right thumb on Aug. 28, so he wasn’t available for the team’s playoff run. But it sounds like he’s got a good chance of starting this year at Class A Fort Myers.

For loyal readers who can remember my fixation with Jeff Manship last year, I think we’ve found the early favorite for my frequent in-season updates on a prominent prospect.

You’ll get a good feel for Jeff Manship’s background and intelligence by reading this Q&A over at SethSpeaks.net. Manship emerged as one of the Twins’ top pitching prospects this year, and he’s spending his offseason finishing his degree at Notre Dame.

For those following Francisco Liriano’s progress, Manship is more proof that pitchers can recover from Tommy John surgery and get back on the fast track:

Q: How good do you think your curveball is now compared to before you had Tommy John’s? — Marc Downie

Jeff Manship: I feel like it had a little bit of a sharper break before I had surgery. I relied on it too much, though, which led to my surgery.

Q: Does you still feel any effects from the TJ surgery? Any irritation? Pain? Swelling? etc. – -  Josh Johnson

Jeff Manship: Not really. This is the best my arm has felt. I rarely get sore or tight. The day after I pitch is usually the only discomfort that I experience and it is never bad. My arm showed that it can handle the load of a full season which is good to know. I did not know what to expect going into this year. The most innings that I had ever thrown in a season was 90 or so last year at Notre Dame. I am just happy that the surgery was a success and that I can still compete.

Been a while since I checked the progress of the Jeff Manship Express. It slowed down a bit after he was promoted to Fort Myers, but now it’s rolling along smoothly again.

Tonight, he won his third straight start, holding Vero Beach to two runs over eight innings.

Combining his numbers from Beloit and Fort Myers, Manship is now 11-2 with a 1.90 ERA in 18 starts this year. His strikeouts-to-walks were 77-to-9 at Beloit, and now they’re 29-to-11 at Fort Myers.

You received word of Kevin Slowey’s three-hit shutout last night for Class AAA Rochester. He is 8-2 with a 1.59 ERA and a 70/6 K/BB ratio. So there you have it. Your first Slow-Man Report in quite some time.

The Twins recalled Matt Garza from Class AAA Rochester after today’s game, and he will join the team tomorrow in Detroit. Garza will pitch out of the bullpen and then start one of the two games in the Twins’ doubleheader in Chicago on July 6.

Manager Ron Gardenhire had been saying the team needed to go to 12 pitchers for the road trip, and Garza got the surprise call. Backup catcher Chris Heintz was sent back to Rochester, clearing room on the 25-man roster.

“Terry [Ryan] and the boys decided that it’s time [for Garza],” Gardenhire said. “He’s been getting passed up by a lot of people, and it’s time for this young man to come up here, and let’s see where he’s at throwing the baseball. We’re going to use his arm strength out of the bullpen, maybe to blow some people away.

“The feeling is, they want to see him in the big leagues. He’s starting to get a little frustrated, so we bring him up here, give him a chance to pitch for us right here.” 

Big leaguers get their pictures in newspapers all the time. They have commercials, they do TV interviews, they’re on magazine covers. But if you want to see them excited, put them on the cover of a video game. 

Justin Morneau is on the cover of the recently released PlayStation2 game called “The Bigs.” Morneau answered all the media’s questions about his bruised right lung today (He hopes to be back on the field ASAP), and then someone asked how it feels to be on the cover of a video game. His face lit up with a big smile.

“I like it,” he said. “It’s one of those things where I grew up playing video games, and you never thought you could ever see something like that. And then all of a sudden, it’s kind of surreal.”

Morneau also received a 52-inch plasma TV on Tuesday for being named SHARP AL Player of the Month for May. What a life, right? But, you know, it’s cool seeing the genuine appreciation Morneau and other Twins have at moments like this. The Metrodome crowd was going crazy just watching Morneau accept his award. It can’t be the same for Yankees fans whenever A-Rod gets a new plasma.

Great game tonight. Scott Baker, Pat Neshek and Joe Nathan were outstanding, combining to record 15 Ks. Juan Rincon pitched a scoreless 12th. In the press box, we wondered if the Twins might send Morneau to the plate for a Kirk Gibson-esque moment. Instead of Morneau, it was Jeff Cirillo walking up to pinch hit for Jason Tyner in the 12th. Two outs, bases loaded. It wasn’t a walk-off blast; it was a walk-off bloop. But when Vernon Wells couldn’t catch it, the Twins celebrated as if Cirillo had just crushed one into the football seats.

“It was a fluky hit,” Cirillo said. “But I’ll take it.”

FYI, Matt Garza gave up four runs on 10 hits in five innings tonight against Class AAA Durham. Detroit lost a wild one to Texas. Cleveland rallied for five in the ninth in an 8-5 victory over Oakland.