Thread: Article: Finding Relief

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Maybe the twins could trade Blackburn to the Red sox to keep Pressly around??? Seems like a win even if Pressly doesnt pan out.

Originally Posted by tjsyam921

Maybe the twins could trade Blackburn to the Red sox to keep Pressly around??? Seems like a win even if Pressly doesnt pan out.

Great idea. I am hoping Pressly makes the team straight up. He is a better upside option than Swarzak or Burnett. Wood and Roenicke are flyers, who would probably clear waviers if they do not make the club. Just do not like either Swarzak or Burnett. Maybe Peridomo could make this role also. Clear out the pitch to contact pitchers that have trouble hitting their spots.

It is a pattern, though, ignoring long term results, either positive or negative in favor of something......I'd rather they keep the 24 year old, and cut any reliever that isn't Burton or Perkins or Duensing that is over 29.....if you are going to build, build.

I'm pretty sure the Red Sox wouldn't take Blackburn if he was free.

The Twins still and will control all those guys you mentioned, Robertson, Slama, Guerra, Burnett. Except for adding to the arbitration clock ... I would gamble minor leaguing them as long as you can with an idea for 201 or 2015. The Twins can still add both uerra and Slama back onto the 40-man roster AFTER the season if they expect them to contribute in 2014. I would gamble mroe on the vets and Pressly, unless you desparately need the roster spot. As I mentioned in another post, one could become another Burton, and then the Twins are tasked with keeping longterm, or maybe using as tradebait (would the Twins have been better served for the now flipping Burton last July for some future part, or keeping him to back up Perkins). Hell, if you look at the bigger picture, the Twins could've possibly signed back Capps, Rauch and Hawkins ALL for under $4 million, if they just needed bullpen arms. Secondary middle relief and extra arms in the bullpen are not hard to find, if you need it. And if Twins starters pitch like hey did last year, does it matter if the bullpen really adds to the score if you are losing the game already anyways.

Pressly is interesting to me; I'd rather he get a chance on the roster than a retread arm with little upside or future.

But this article is dead on regarding bullpen construction. It can and should be done on the cheap, especially with teams still overvaluing and overpaying the closer role.

A good and deep bullpen can really help a young starting rotation see some success, but doing it cheaply with young pitchers lets a team better spend its resources on other things.

I dunno. Jared Burton was Ryan's first pick-up off the scrap heap that has worked out well for the Twins. I think there's a good chance that one of the pitchers that have been signed, from Rafael Perez to Rich Harden to Josh Roenicke, wins a job out of Spring Training for doing a great job. I guess we will see who it is.

Originally Posted by J-Dog Dungan

I dunno. Jared Burton was Ryan's first pick-up off the scrap heap that has worked out well for the Twins. I think there's a good chance that one of the pitchers that have been signed, from Rafael Perez to Rich Harden to Josh Roenicke, wins a job out of Spring Training for doing a great job. I guess we will see who it is.

To me, Perez and Harden are in a different class from Roenicke and the other guys I mentioned. They are injury flyers with histories of dominating. To me, that's a better form of gamble. You get them into spring training and see if they're healthy. If so, maybe you get Jared Burton. If not, maybe you get Joel Zumaya -- nothing's really hurt. What's frustrating is watching the Twins run out the string with a bunch of aging minor-league journeymen carrying hittable stuff and no real upside. I don't see what purpose it serves.

Originally Posted by Nick Nelson

To me, Perez and Harden are in a different class from Roenicke and the other guys I mentioned. They are injury flyers with histories of dominating. To me, that's a better form of gamble. You get them into spring training and see if they're healthy. If so, maybe you get Jared Burton. If not, maybe you get Joel Zumaya -- nothing's really hurt. What's frustrating is watching the Twins run out the string with a bunch of aging minor-league journeymen carrying hittable stuff and no real upside. I don't see what purpose it serves.

Amen brother.