Can Brian Dinkelman win a Roster Spot?

One player that I haven't really included in any of the competition updates is Brian Dinkelman. Dinkelman, taken in the 2006 draft,  is a long time Twin prospect who was on the major league roster for a while a couple years ago. He's a player with limited skills that seem to condemn him to AAAA status. But he has some things going for him that fit this year's team.

One of his problems is that he lacks a clear defensive position. He played second base or the corner outfield spots when he was with the Twins in 2011. He has played both shortstop and third base in the minor leagues, although he is not really suited to either.   In other words, he is a flexible defensive player who can play a lot of places as a fill in, but lacks a real position.

At AAA, his upside has been a .265 hitter without much power with a .380 SLG, although he knows how to take a walk and has a .336 OBP as a result. In other words, he takes good at bats as they like to say.

There is a discussion of the Twins adding a bench bat over at  Baseball Outsider. Its mostly focused on the rumors connecting the Twins to Jim Thome and pointing out why he is a bad fit for the Twins. Dinkelman shares one of those problems, he is a left handed hitter. But he is someone who can play a lot of positions and provide a bat off the bench. He would need to show some continued improvement and open eyes in spring training. Even at that he is an extreme longshot as the 25th player. But we may see him this summer if he picks things up at AAA.