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The last stab I took at this was on January 20th. There haven’t been many moves since then, but the ones that have been made are absolutely monumental. While I felt good about where that version of the Twins was, it’s undeniable they are much better off now. Putting out one final projection prior to Spring Training getting underway, here’s where I see things as of today. Projection 1.0 Catchers (2) – Mitch Garver, Alex Avila No change here. These two are locked in and ready to go. Garver w
In the end, Derek Falvey and Thad Levine stood strong. After originally agreeing to a one-for-one swap of Brusdar Graterol for Kenta Maeda, things needed to be tweaks after the Red Sox decided against the Minnesota prospects medicals. Two days before pitchers and catchers report to Spring Training, we got resolution. The Twins wound up not dealing with Boston at all, instead sending Graterol to the Dodgers (who had no problem with his medicals). They got Maeda, $10 million, and a yet-to-be ann
How much would you pay for a team that may not be around next year? If you’re Quint Studer, apparently $9 million is a good market value. In September, that’s what Studer reportedly paid for the Beloit Snappers of the low-A Midwest League. According to Ballpark Digest, much of that sale price will be put back into efforts to build a new stadium, which the Beloit Snappers may need to survive. The stadium situation could be of actual urgency and not just a ploy to create leverage because of th
My wife and I have had to cancel our annual trip to Ft. Myers this year due to health problems. We have 2 tickets to each of the first 4 home games: Home opener with the Blue Jays, The Red Sox, the Phillies and a second game with the Red Sox. The seats are all on the 3rd base side in the lowest level, most near an aisle and most near the top of the lower level, so not much stairs to walk up and down. I'll be glad to sell them. for half the face value. I have printed them out and can email and sn
It was all worked out. The Twins, Dodgers and Red Sox were all satisfied. The Twins receiving the solid 3rd pitcher they needed in Kenta Maeda. The Red Sox were dumping heavy salary for rising prospects. The Dodgers were going all in on the win now season. Than the Red Sox got either embarrassed, cold feet or greedy. The excuse that they didn't know Twins prospect Brusdar Graterol wasn't projected as a starter is a very poor one. It was common knowledge. The Red Sox counter saying they needed an
For all intents and purposes, it appears as if the mega-deal involving the Minnesota Twins, Boston Red Sox, and Los Angeles Dodgers is dead. At least as it was initially constructed. To quickly recap: Los Angeles would have received outfielder Mookie Betts and pitcher David Price from the Red Sox, Boston would have received outfielder Alex Verdugo from the Dodgers and pitcher Brusdar Graterol from the Twins, and Minnesota would have received pitcher Kenta Maeda from the Dodgers. But, again,
In a bizarre and frustrating twist, the Red Sox are staunchly refusing to get anything less than Graterol (and more) from the Twins. It just ain’t gonna work with Boston, Falvine. Kenta Maeda, with his underrated toolbox, would look great in Minnesota. Since his rookie season in 2016, Maeda ranks second to Max Scherzer among all pitchers with at least 1,000 at-bats against right-handed hitters (.199). In a right-handed heavy league and division, his prowess is welcomed with open arms. A larg
I just read the ESPN article about possible super teams or teams that will win 100 games. The locks listed were the Yankees, Astros and Dodgers. In the American League the Rays were the teams listed as the Prime Contender and the wild cards were the Twins and the Angels. The fact that we were listed with the Angels, a team that won 72 games last year, is a story for anther post. The question on the Twins was"if their pitching works out". Last time I checked we won 101 games last year and I
Late last night we heard rumblings of a deal held up due to a questionable physical between the players exchanged with the Dodgers, Red Sox and Twins. This morning we found this to be true, as Ken Rosenthal confirmed. The deal is currently in limbo, as we wait to find out the next step between the teams exchanging Mookie Betts, David Price, Kenta Maeda and Brusdar Graterol. Rosenthal reports today that the physical in question is that of Brusdar Graterol's. What is truly ridiculous is the word
The trade of Brusdar Graterol has brought a lot of emotions and grand presumptions from fans and commentators. Unfortunately, most of the reactions, assumptions and presumptions of this trade are wrong. Stick with me here, but the Twins HAD to trade Graterol and in doing so this organization has FINALLY sold high on a prospect. All we have to do is look at the past to see what happened here. When Falvey and Levine were hired, they talked about research and development and opined that perhaps kee
When you're grown up, there's no reason to hide from the truth. You're not as funny as you think you are. Everyone dies. The universe is cold and hostile. More true than all of these, though, is the following Truth: the Minnesota Twins will lose to the New York Yankees in the first round of the playoffs. This series of columns begins with the ending, which is the Minnesota Twins losing to the New York Yankees in the first round of the playoffs. Other bloggers, vloggers, pundits, podcasters, colu
Its been a long time since I've sat down to cook up some morale. To make a long story as short as possible, I plan to write a lot throughout this 2020 season. This is something that I love to do, and that's an understatement. When I started doing this last year, I tried to not overdue it. Unfortunately that ended up with me shying away too much. The feedback I got last year was amazing even though it was such a small circle of people who showed it. That's okay. I loved that. I know this is somet
Derek Falvey and Thad Levine just put an absolute bow on the 2020 Minnesota Twins offseason. After acquiring Josh Donaldson in January, the refrain was whether or not he could pitch. Now nabbing Kenta Maeda from the Los Angeles Dodgers, the answer is yes he can. Across Twins Territory there should be some absolute shock with this one. Not only was the impact-pitching arm acquired, but it absolutely cost an impact prospect. Brusdar Graterol showed up on the Major League scene last summer and br
While we’re still a few days away from pitchers and catchers reporting to their respective Spring Training homes, baseball season gets underway with the release of 2020 Topps Series 1 on Wednesday. The first offering of the hobby for the 2020 season means baseball is around the corner. Kicking things off in a big way this year, Topps is hosting the Million Card Rip Party today at Jerry World. As group breaks have become more prominent within the hobby, the card company sought out a handful of
Over the weekend the Minnesota Twins inked Jhoulys Chacin to a minor league deal that’s worth roughly $1.5 million if he makes the big-league club. With the non-roster invitees yet to be unveiled, and some chatter going around, he’s probably not the last arm to be brought in. Although the rotation didn’t experience a big jolt, Rocco Baldelli’s club is going to have some interesting options. A week ago, the assumed Opening Day rotation would have been Jose Berrios, Jake Odorizzi, Homer Bailey,
Jhoulys Chacín has signed to a minor league deal with the Minnesota Twins, according to Robert Murray. This move raises the floor of the starting rotation with no risk, and Chacín has a history of being a dependable mid-rotation starter. However, that history was clouded by a terrible 2019, which is why the Twins were able to sign Chacín to a minor league deal. Chacín’s major league career to this point can be summarized in four acts: ACT I: Colorado High (2009 - 2013) 608 IP, 37 W, 41 L, 3.
A couple of weeks ago, in the aftermath of the Minnesota Twins signing free agent third baseman Josh Donaldson, I checked in with sportsbooks at William Hill and Elite to see what effect the addition of the Bringer of Rain was having on the oddsmakers' views of the Twins' chances of winning their Division, the American League Pennant and the World Series in 2020. As it turned out, the bookies weren't exactly joining in Twins' fans euphoria. The odds had shifted very little or not at all. As
Okay, time to take a look at Lewis Thorpe. This is, afterall, the reason we all woke up this morning, right? Thankfully for all involved, we can skip the lengthy preamble and just get into the analysis. Like Dobnak, whom I covered in this space last week, Thorpe made his MLB debut for the Twins last season (though he started the year off in AAA, whereas Dobnak basically covered every level in the organization in 2019). Let’s take a look at Thorpe’s results from his MLB stint: • 27.2 IP (essent
Ted Schwerzler wrote a great article that the Twins need to target the Pirates as a great trade possibility now. I totally agree! But I`d like to present possibly another in the near future & that`s the Colorado Rockies. The Rockies had a losing record last year, well out of contention of any play off possibility. This off season they didn`t do anything but yet they believe they still have a chance to make it this year, so they said they don`t want to trade. Now w/ the Arenado situation, I
According to Twitter user Tony Adams, Marwin Gonzalez may have cheated more than any other player in 2017. He watched every Astros game he could find video on, then compiled the number of times he heard the ol' garbage can bang per player. Gonzalez heard the bang 147 times in 776 pitches (18.9%). The data is here. What a massive undertaking by Adams. http://signstealingscandal.com/
Heroes get remembered but legends never die. That’s what we were told in that 1993 classic right? I have long been of the belief that idolizing celebrities or athletes almost certainly isn’t a good practice, but we can absolutely learn from them. At its core, I think that’s why the tragic passing of Kobe Bryant hit me so differently. The Black Mamba was an 18-year-old rookie that went on to play over 1,300 games, score over 33,000 points, and will go down among the inner-circle of greatest hoo
Today the Pittsburgh Pirates swapped Sterling Marte to the Arizona Diamondbacks for a pair of prospects. In completing that deal, it’s another reminder that the trade market has yet to truly take off, and it makes a good amount of sense that the Minnesota Twins be involved. We still have yet to see any organizations move a big pitcher. Nolan Arenado looks to be on his way out of Colorado, and Mookie Betts could certainly be headed somewhere else if Boston is ready to deal. Going into the offse
Byron Buxton has proven that he will provide multiple wins above replacement, if he stays healthy and hits at an acceptably average level. The bad news is that Buxton failed to stay healthy for the latter half of 2019, limiting what could have been. The great news is that he appeared to be making major swing and philosophy adjustments that may lead to above-average offensive production going forward. The first step was reducing his strikeout rate (K%), that allowed him to have a chance to put
I am not a follower of Donald Trump. I have participated in several no kings rallies and am disgusted with what he and his followers have done to our country and the world. I would like to know what most Brazilians feel about the United States now and about the folks our citizens have elected to represent us.
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hello Seth......you'll wanna correct the date in headline of today's minor league report. :-) Brad· 0 replies
I am not a follower of Donald Trump. I have participated in several no kings rallies and am disgusted with what he and his followers have done to our country and the world. I would like to know what most Brazilians feel about the United States now and about the folks our citizens have elected to represent us.· 1 reply
