The Twins have played 14 spring training games, dispersing at-bats and innings among a wide array of players — some who are locks to make the opening day roster and others who are long shots at best. As such, there are zero long-term conclusions to make from what has transpired through a handful of Florida games that don't even count. But this is a decent time to check in on a few key areas to see who is trending up and down so far this spring with the Twins:

PITCHING IMPROVEMENTS

Trending up: Overall ERA. Again, it's hard to read too much into early spring training stats, but Twins pitchers have posted a 3.92 ERA so far. That's No. 7 in Major League Baseball, and a good sign for a staff that finished 19th in team ERA in the 2015 regular season.

Trending down: Strikeouts. Then again, the Twins still aren't striking anyone out. They've finished with the fewest strikeouts in the majors each of the past five season. So far this spring? They rank 28th with 81 through 14 games.

DESIGNATED HITTER

Trending up: Byung Ho Park. In 25 at-bats, the Korean import hasn't disappointed. He already has a team-leading three home runs and is batting .360 — a promising start even after striking out three times in his debut.

Trending down: Kennys Vargas. The Twins aren't exactly counting on Vargas to produce, which is good because so far he hasn't. He's started the spring just 2-for-23 (.087), and both of the hits have been singles. He has, at least, walked five times.

POWER-HITTING OUTFIELDER

Trending up: Miguel Sano. Last year's rookie sensation has picked up right where he left off: hitting for power (three doubles and a home run) while also racking up plenty of walks (six) and strikeouts (eight) on the way to a 1.248 spring OPS.

Star Tribune, Star Tribune
Kennys Vargas is hitting just .087 (2-for-23) in his bid to win a roster spot.

Trending down: Oswaldo Arcia. Much like Vargas, Arcia is trying to salvage a once-bright future in camp. He rededicated himself in the offseason, but the results at the plate (2-for-18) haven't followed yet.

BULLPEN BATTLES

Trending up: Several young arms. Nick Burdi, J.T. Chargois and J.R. Graham are among the hard throwers who could help the Twins bullpen this season. None of them has allowed an earned run yet — nor have veteran back-end guys Kevin Jepsen and Glen Perkins.

Trending down: Michael Tonkin and Aaron Thompson. Both guys have been hit hard so far, giving up a combined 17 hits and 12 earned runs in 8⅔ innings.

STARTING STAFF

Trending up: Phil Hughes and Tommy Milone. Hughes, noticeably slimmer in camp than he was last season, has breezed through five innings in two starts without allowing a run, while Milone has been sharp in three starts.

Trending down: Tyler Duffey. As with all these players, there's no cause for great joy or alarm with these early results, but Duffey — a stalwart down the stretch as a rookie last season — has given up five hits, three walks and five earned runs in 4⅓ innings over two spring starts.