AAA league is not the Major League.

I don't think Lee is going to LF. Prato would go there before Lee would.

Is this just for right now? I ask because Kirilloff isn't getting replaced by Williams, and Buxton will be in there somewhere. And if it is right now, Kepler isn't getting replaced by anyone right now.

5 hours ago, Bigfork Twins Guy said:

Where does Buxton fit in?  He's not going anywhere.

I made this out for what would have most upside and current value. Buxton has been a big drag on the offense and he can’t plY in the field and majority of time injured. Will that change? I hope so.

23 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

I don't think Lee is going to LF. Prato would go there before Lee would.

Is this just for right now? I ask because Kirilloff isn't getting replaced by Williams, and Buxton will be in there somewhere. And if it is right now, Kepler isn't getting replaced by anyone right now.

Good point on Kirilloff if he can get his wrist/shoulder healthy for an extended period of time. I just wanted to get two talented hitters in with a shortage of positions. Yes, for right now, thus Buxton and Kirilloff displaced and I’m still not an overall believer in Kepler and surely not Gallo. I do like high average guys and high on-base guys (moneyball) mixed with a few power hitters and a Tony O type guy would count toward that.

4 hours ago, RpR said:

AAA league is not the Major League.

Tell that to Julien, Lewis and Wallner. And Kirby Puckett who was hitting upper .230s to low .240s before his Gallup from Toledo to Twins when I lived in Toledo.

My point is Joey Gallo is not the Major League either.

Look up Rich Coggins and Al Bumbry who were called up by the Orioles when they were going nowhere and they both hit around .330, at least for awhile and the Orioles rallied big time.

Yeah just like Cave, Hicks, Rooker ; came shone bright, then quickly were burnt  out.

Not what the Twins need now.

Exchange Kiriloff for Williams and Buxton (obligatorily) for Prato and I for one would take that lineup right now coming out of camp in ‘24. Except I actually would have Lee in the infield and Lewis in LF. Why? Because all nine of those players should be in the starting lineup and Lewis can be more of an outfielder than Lee. 

I do think one of Kepler or Polanco will be with the club next year.  Add in Vasquez and two of Castro, Larnach, Gordon and maybe one or two others (Prato?) and you have your 13 position players.

It won’t work that way - no chance they break camp next year with Lee and Martin on the big club.

Fans have so much more information today on minor league players. I routinely watch various parts of minor league games via milb.com. Fifty years ago, The Sporting News would publish dated milb numbers and then Baseball America began in 1981. BA featured fairly complete coverage of prospects and every minor league team, even if it was a bit dated by the time of being published. The progression of coverage has been outstanding for baseball fans.

The Twins have some exciting players worth following in their system. It is also important to remember that experience often defeats youth. There will be roster changes next season, but folks should expect the team to include a number of veterans. I also think the Twins may look to repeat themselves with a trade similar to the Arraez-Lopez deal. There may be a couple of players replaced by less expensive contracts in the utility roles as well. The roster expenditures should be more likely to fall to the $125-140 million range due to a drop in media revenue. I have enjoyed watching the Saints but remember there is a distinct difference between AAA and MLB.

I would be surprised if both Kepler and Polanco are dropped. Buxton has a no trade contract, Correa too. Any discussion/suggestions of trading either are useless. We just don't know what is happening with Byron. We hope he returns fully healthy but perhaps he is reaching a point where he is done physically too. We don't know or at least I don't know. Players that could push for full time infield positions are: Kirilloff, Julien, Lewis, Lee, and Martin with Polanco in the picture and Correa fixed at shortstop. Miranda, Castro, Prato, and Farmer could find utility roles. Castro and Martin fit in the outfield too. I don't expect Lewis on the grass. Thus a trade happens.

I’m not a big fan of players playing out of position, such as Lee in left field. Lewis lost an entire year doing that. However I am encouraged about the young position talent they have in AA and above. Having too many good young infielders is a problem any manager would like. Rocco can figure out the lineup. If the starting pitching holds up and they develop a number one starter or another number two like Lopez, this could be team built for a playoff run in the near future. 

On 8/18/2023 at 12:33 PM, RpR said:

AAA league is not the Major League.

Brilliant Mr. Grinch.

Reminds me of a Traffic song, Dear Mr. Fantasy……….

4 guys averages in the minor leagues do not a successful MLB team make.

Some optimism is great ……..I think Martin has a shot in ‘24. Lee is nearly a certainty by the middle of ‘24!!

We need, any MLB team needs experience. Why hire Dallas Kuechel on a flyer v. just sticking with Varland.

Why sign Taylor & Solano & Vazquez?

They get it - the grind - the mental side - how to get confident when things aren’t going great. Gotta have a blend and it needs to be more than CC & Buxton….,,two # 1 picks in the draft.

I see Polanco moving on after ‘23 due to lack of health.

Out of Soring Training:

Lewis-CC-Julien-Kirilloff ……Kepler-Buxton-Wallner…..2 catchers.

Farmer-Solano-Castro…….,,room for 1 new guy in ‘24.

I think this is reality.

I think this team could defiantly win the international league west division.

Can we put hold the breaks on Wallner being a starter for a bit? He has a lower OPS in August than Gallo (And he should be cut)

For all of its faults,  I do think one thing the FO has done well this year is transition the roster to the next generation while keeping the team competitive. Yes, the crummy division helps, injuries have forced some of the decisions, and none of us can explain why Joey Gallo is still on the roster or even worse why he plays, but there has been a major transition these last two years. They say the prime years for pitchers are ages 26-32, and the prime for position players 25-31. Look at the roster members in the age 28 or under seasons:

Lopez (27), Ryan (27), and Ober (28) in the rotation, with Varland (25) having gotten 10 starts so far in 2023, Padack is 27 and may be in the rotation next year. 

Duran (25), Jax (28) - the 2 highest leverage guys - in the bullpen, with Blazovic (24), Sands (26), and Winder (26) getting a look,

Julien (24), Lewis (24), Wallner (25), Jeffers (26), and Kirilloff (25) are all regulars, with Castro (26), a super utility. Correa turns 29 in September, Buxton 30 in January, Kepler 31 in February, Polanco 31 next July. 

That's 60% of the rotation and more than half of the regular lineup 28 or under, meaning they should all have at least 2-4 years of their prime in front of them.  The bullpen needs a refresh and there isn't much in the system that we've seen so far, so there is a real area of need. Having said that, many bullpens are made up of guys in their early 30s moving from team to team and that's one area where you can pick up guys on the fly. 

The point is that this team has really embraced a youth movement and ITS WORKING.  This group should be able to stay together for at least 2-3 years maybe more like 4-5, and be competitive through that window. Injuries could of course change that as could some regression. On the other hand, add in Lee (22), Miranda (25), Martin (24), Prato (25) at the AAA or MLB level already, with guys like Raya, Festa, Severino, and Rodriguez not far behind, and Jenkins, Winokur, and even Soto interesting pieces from this year's draft, and we could be some solid or better reinforcements on the way. And we shouldn't forget about Larnach (27 in February). I think he could be a solid or better regular if he got 5 days a week playing time, or at least a solid trade chip for a youngish pitcher that we could repurpose as a late inning reliever.

I would love to see a lineup by mid-2024 that started Lewis, Julien, Kiriloff, Wallner, Jeffers, Martin, Miranda, and maybe even Lee. That's probably a bridge too far - 8 of the 9 spots when you have to think Correa and Buxton have 2 of them - but that doesn't stop my optimism. This team is doing the right thing this year in embracing youth at the expense of older average(ish) regulars. Let's keep doing that and this team will be fun to watch for the next few years. 

The difference between this team today and Twins teams 5-10 years ago is the what they have on the farm.  Every year fans spend the whole spring wondering what the opening day 26 is gonna look like.  We've over a month to go in the season and already nineteen guys not on the opening day roster have played on the big league club.  Now look at the names.  Guys like Julien, Wallner, Lewis, Varland and Balazovic.  Now go back and look at the guys getting big league action 5-10 years ago.  Names that would scare the s#@! of you:  Bobby Wilson, Nik Turley, James Beresford, Tim Stauffer.  We once got excited about Chris Collabelo.  Night and day.  We now bring up guys we look forward to seeing.  And best of all, we have to go to Philly to see Jake Cave.

The youth movement has begun and will continue...and it's exciting!  I don't see Lee moving out of the IF and I don't see Martin remaining IN the IF.  Look for a permanent move to CF/LF by Martin.  Julien should start learning 1B and get an OF glove and get familiar with LF.  I see the IF next year having Correa at SS and Kirilloff at 1B,  Lewis will be at 3B/2B with Brooks Lee pushing for whatever position Lewis doesn't play.  Polanco could possibly be at 2B but might well be dealt even if his final year option is picked up.  Kepler has certainly earned his final year option being picked up so he's in RF to begin 2024.  

Buxton will either be in CF or it will be Martin.  Wallner will be a corner OF with Larnach traded and Gallo gone to wherever.  A lot of this depends on how Brooks Lee develops.  He's either going to be a September callup this season or he will finish the year and playoffs with the Saints.  But next season he comes to spring training with a big opportunity to make some noise.

The pitching staff has some youth but there will be holes to fill with the departures of Sonny Gray and Maeda.  I could see either a Blake Snell type FA signing or another "Arraez like" trade for a young SP.  Varland and Paddock are Wild Cards and possible lottery tickets and depth.  At least ONE quality BP arm needs to be added in FA that has 8th inning lockdown talent and closing capability to give Duran an occasional break.  

On 8/19/2023 at 10:09 AM, Otaknam said:

I’m not a big fan of players playing out of position, such as Lee in left field. Lewis lost an entire year doing that. However I am encouraged about the young position talent they have in AA and above. Having too many good young infielders is a problem any manager would like. Rocco can figure out the lineup. If the starting pitching holds up and they develop a number one starter or another number two like Lopez, this could be team built for a playoff run in the near future. 

I had to laugh when you said Rocco can figure out the lineup.  He can not figure out who to pitch, when to bunt player over or many other things a manager should be able to figure out. He has almost NO clue on how to handle pitchers. It was a sad day for Twins fans when he was hired and will this sadness will continue for many years to come.

Agreed. I'm actually pretty excited about the way the team has embraced a youth movement this year. This is the year to turn over the roster and still win the division with all of the other Central teams being so pathetic. 

The one place the youth movement hasn't worked is the bullpen. Sands, Winder, Balazovic, and Headrick all haven't really worked out. I'd really like to see them try to finish the evaluation/prepare for 2024 job with 2 guys - Funderburk and Varland. Put both in the bullpen now instead of Winder and Sands. I think Funderburk could be a decent 6th inning type guy and Varland has the stuff to be a lights out late inning guy. Varland can go back to starting next season, this doesn't have to be permanent. He could really help us this year in the stretch and playoffs if given a chance in the bullpen. We have little to lose given Winder and Sands' performance so far. I would call up Varland, send down Winder, either start Varland Sunday against the Rangers or start Ryan if he's ready (drop Sands), and then keep him up to work out of the bullpen for the rest of the year unless he bombs in that role. Keuchel goes to the BP as the "long man"/second leftie or goes for Funderburk. Ortega could also be dropped for Funderburk. Could help us now and definitely will help us make decisions over the winter and get set for 2024.

I think if this year's team could win the division and win a playoff series it would count as a great season/a big win. The real contention window opens in 2024. Let's get ready now by playing the guys we expect to be the big contributors next season.  We're doing that everywhere else, time to include the bullpen. 

I think for those who expect that Buxton to be the starting center fielder next year, you will be sorely disappointed. Buxton may be healthy enough to start the season in center, but nothing in his career says he'll make it to May without being hurt. Best case scenarios he plays 50-65 games in the field. Probably much less.

In that high probability case, The Twins will need someone to play minimum 110-120 games in center. Taylor has been good, but he is not the future either. I think Martin could play center next year, possibly Kiersey some. Maybe in 2025 ERod is fighting for playing time.

I don't think Gordon will be back. Probably not Kepler, Taylor or Gallo either. Maybe not Solano with possibly Polanco taking that role.

Gman is right on Buxton. I think our highest and best hope should be that Buxton Plays 80ish games in the Of next year and another 50 at DH. That means we will need another player to be a half to 2/3 time starting CF. I frankly think we have that guy in Max Kepler which would really open things up for OFs because it's easier to find corner OFs that a decent CF. Unfortunately, Kepler apparently doesn't want to play CF at least not on a regular basis. Maybe we can find  way to tie playing CF to exercising his option and that can be the short term solution. 

IF that doesn't work, and frankly thinking more long term, we will need a CF. Taylor has actually been a decent short term guy but he's 32 and really is a 4th or 5th OF on a good team. I don't see Lewis going back out there after getting hurt last year. We can rail about that all we want but it ain't happening so let's looks at something closer to a possible reality. There's really 3 choices for 2024 other than a free agent, Taylor again, Castro or Gordon as a full/part time CF, or go to Martin or Keirsey now at AAA.

The last prospect excites me IF we could get Martin or Keirsey some ABs this year to see where they're at versus MLB pitching.  The problem is that we can't. We can only add 2 guys on 9/1 and we need space for at least 3 guys coming back from injury - Castro, Buxton, and Kirilloff. It will take dropping a current MLB player to get them on the roster (Gallo? Luplow?) and that's without adding a pitcher.   There just isn't any easy way to add another AAA player unless there's an injury or we are willing to drop two of Gallo, Luplow, Farmer, or Solano.

My solution? Bring up Martin before 9/1 to replace Gallo or Luplow. Don't care which although I would see if Luplow is willing to stay with the team if/when he clears waivers. If he is, he's the one.  Whichever one goes now, the other goes when the 3 Il guys are ready. Play Martin now in CF against LH pitching and, if we can play the back half of September without pressure, he's plays every day to rest guys. Sets us up for 2024 and beyond without hurting us much now.  

On 8/21/2023 at 11:04 PM, dxpavelka said:

The difference between this team today and Twins teams 5-10 years ago is the what they have on the farm.  Every year fans spend the whole spring wondering what the opening day 26 is gonna look like.  We've over a month to go in the season and already nineteen guys not on the opening day roster have played on the big league club.  Now look at the names.  Guys like Julien, Wallner, Lewis, Varland and Balazovic.  Now go back and look at the guys getting big league action 5-10 years ago.  Names that would scare the s#@! of you:  Bobby Wilson, Nik Turley, James Beresford, Tim Stauffer.  We once got excited about Chris Collabelo.  Night and day.  We now bring up guys we look forward to seeing.  And best of all, we have to go to Philly to see Jake Cave.

Just a reminder the top prospects in 2013 were Sano, Hicks, Arcia, Buxton, Gibson, Meyer, Rosario, Kepler, and May, with Polanco, Tonkin, Goodrum, Chargois in the top 20 with guys like Duffey, Jorge, Pinto, Pressly, Rogers, Santana, Thielbar, and Vargas in the wings.

(that isn't to shabby)

9 hours ago, TwinsDr2021 said:

Just a reminder the top prospects in 2013 were Sano, Hicks, Arcia, Buxton, Gibson, Meyer, Rosario, Kepler, and May, with Polanco, Tonkin, Goodrum, Chargois in the top 20 with guys like Duffey, Jorge, Pinto, Pressly, Rogers, Santana, Thielbar, and Vargas in the wings.

(that isn't to shabby)

and yet we still ended up calling up guys like bernier, albers, mastroianni, burton, fryer, achter, schafer, light, granite & busenitz over the next half decade.  Just feels like we're at a point where calling guys up seems like positive rather than scary thing.

8 hours ago, dxpavelka said:

and yet we still ended up calling up guys like bernier, albers, mastroianni, burton, fryer, achter, schafer, light, granite & busenitz over the next half decade.  Just feels like we're at a point where calling guys up seems like positive rather than scary thing.

and someday we might look back and say the same about Luplow, Garlick, Moran, Winder, Headrick, De Leon, Sands, Ortega, Keuchel, Balazovic, Rodriguez.  Or possibly, Stevenson, Helman or Williams, heck even Martin.

It is always easy to say the next best things are better than the previous next best things. Because the current ones haven't had failed yet.

For example two weeks ago people were saying Balazovic needs to be pitching in higher pressure situations, now not so much.

7 minutes ago, TwinsDr2021 said:

and somebody day we might look back and say the same about Luplow, Garlick, Moran, Winder, Headrick, De Leon, Sands, Ortega, Keuchel, Balazovic, Rodriguez.  Or possibly, Stevenson, Helman or Williams, heck even Martin.

It is always easy to say the next best things are better than the previous next best things. Because the current ones haven't had failed yet.

For example two weeks ago people were saying Balazovic needs to be pitching in higher pressure situations, now not so much.

But at least now we can be excited when we are bringing them.  Some of those guys 8-9 years ago were terrifying at just the thought of them coming up.  And I'm not saying we don't have a way to go yet.  The mere fact that you used the word Garlick cements that.

On 8/20/2023 at 5:13 PM, JD-TWINS said:

Reminds me of a Traffic song, Dear Mr. Fantasy……….

4 guys averages in the minor leagues do not a successful MLB team make.

Some optimism is great ……..I think Martin has a shot in ‘24. Lee is nearly a certainty by the middle of ‘24!!

We need, any MLB team needs experience. Why hire Dallas Kuechel on a flyer v. just sticking with Varland.

Why sign Taylor & Solano & Vazquez?

They get it - the grind - the mental side - how to get confident when things aren’t going great. Gotta have a blend and it needs to be more than CC & Buxton….,,two # 1 picks in the draft.

I see Polanco moving on after ‘23 due to lack of health.

Out of Soring Training:

Lewis-CC-Julien-Kirilloff ……Kepler-Buxton-Wallner…..2 catchers.

Farmer-Solano-Castro…….,,room for 1 new guy in ‘24.

I think this is reality.

Yes! I remember Dear Mr. Fantasy although my first thorough and deeply satisfying immersion into Traffic was 'Low Spark of High Heel Boys'. What a great album, especially the title track was pure genius!

I think I’ve definitely gravitated toward some of what I think is a really good AAA batch of hitters because the Twins hitting has been so bad this year, on balance. 

I remember listening to Herb Carneal through much of the 70’s and they would usually have a team batting average in the low .270s with guys like Carew, Braun, Holt, Oliva, Darwin then the incredible 1977 Twins who I want to say had a team batting average of .282. Compared to .239 this year.

I saw some significant footage of DaShawn Keirsey, Jr. and he looks like he has a real nice swing like a Randy Bush, Jim Eisenreich or Edouard Julien. If I was them, I’d at least call him up in September. I still remember the episode of Coggins and Bumbry in Baltimore!