How to fix this embarassing offense.

[DaveW]

Call up Polanco.

Send Vargas back down to AAA

Call up Sano to DH.

[notoriousgod71]

Get Mauer out of the three spot until he shows that he can hit again.

 

Get some speed up and when they are on base do some base stealing and hitting and running.

[Captain Hindsight]

Vargas has only been up a week and we are already clamouring to send him down? What shall we do if he has a couple good games in AAA?

 

Instead of yo-yoing Vargas, I say we let him continue at the major league level and give Sano at least a couple weeks, perhaps even until all-star break, to force the issue. The offense has struggled because a number of key players have severely slumped at the same time Hunter, Plouffe, Mauer, Suzuki, pretty much anyone not named Dozier. If I were to do anything, it is give Mauer a short mental break and see if it can help him snap out of his current funk. Other than that, most of these players will turn it around in time.

[drivlikejehu]

The offense can't be fixed for 2015.

[diehardtwinsfan]

yeah, not sure how those moves are going to fix anything.  Buxton is as close to a sure thing prospect as there is and he hasn't exactly improved the offense in his short CF stint. 

[TheLeviathan]

DFA Duensing.  

Call up Sano

 

Buxton

Dozier

Hunter

Plouffe

Sano

Vargas

Rosario

Suzuki

Escobar

 

Let Mauer sit for a week and get his head right.

[Rosterman]

Yes, we need to swamp a pitcher for a position player. Sano or Polanco? If both, then yes, send out Vargas again.Really make him hungry!

 

What to do when we have to activate Schafer and Hicks (we all know what to do, of course).

 

The catcher needs to be improved in more ways than just one. But we really don't have anyone in the system, do we....jeez.

 

What to do with Joe. He's hurting us.

 

EVERYONE is just in a Big Funk except Nunez and Dozier.

 

We have all these guys in the minors: Arcia, Pinto, Santana.

 

Is there a place for Kepler in this mix?

 

The pitching, overall, has been a-ok, even the bullpen. The games a close. No one is doing anything really bad except in terms of strikeouts.

 

But, again, back to the funk of years past where you get a guy on third with one out (or less) and can't get him home.

[jorgenswest]

I don't think a week can fix the damage from the concussion. He has no power. He can't make quick decisions in the field. He is a replacement level 1B. Sano would be better.

[JustinCB]

I agree... might be finally time to sit Mauer.  I also think he'll figure out some way to resurrect his career.  So much talent there.  Arcia also should be given every possible chance.

[Thrylos]

Realize that Buxton cannot hit breaking stuff and call it a day

 

Teams have slumps.  This is one of them for the Twins.  If one said a couple months ago that they will be 4 games over .500 on 6/16, I don't think that he/she would be taken seriously.

 

Well...  they are.  Enjoy the ride.  Teams have their ups and downs.

[Boom Boom]

One easy switch is to let Herrmann run with the starting catcher gig for a while. It couldn't hurt. I think it makes some sense to give Nunez some more starts at short.

 

Definitely move Mauer out of the third spot.

[jokin]

Vargas has only been up a week and we are already clamouring to send him down? What shall we do if he has a couple good games in AAA?

I'm not seeing the clamoring you speak of, it's pretty clear that the braintrust has no confidence in sticking him out there for 20 straight games to see if he can hack it or not. Based strictly on his numbers in May, he never should have been sent down in the first place, since his return, he appears quite tentative, that's an approach at the plate that's guaranteed to fail.

[jokin]

yeah, not sure how those moves are going to fix anything.  Buxton is as close to a sure thing prospect as there is and he hasn't exactly improved the offense in his short CF stint.

Pretty harsh dismissal after only 3 games, can't we give him at least 30 games before we put the weight of the whole world on his shoulders?- or should they just pull the plug and put Robinson out there instead?

[drivlikejehu]

 

DFA Duensing.  

Call up Sano

 

Buxton

Dozier

Hunter

Plouffe

Sano

Vargas

Rosario

Suzuki

Escobar

 

Let Mauer sit for a week and get his head right.

 

Sitting Mauer is not a viable long-term option and it won't get his head right. The concussion damage is permanent. Even so, that's not a very good lineup, for 2015 anyway.

[nicksaviking]

The offense can't be fixed for 2015.

Agreed. There's too many replacement level and young players to put consistant runs on the board. Best to just bench, trade or DFA anyone over 26 not named Dozier and stick to what should have been the original plan. Rebuild. Plug youngsters into wherever they can fit to see if their bats can play and re-evaluate defensive positions in the offseason.

[lukeduke1980]

I think go with

 

Mauer

Buxton

Dozier

Plouffe

Rosario

Hunter

Vargas

Suzuki

Escobar

 

Leave Santana, Arcia in AAA until they figure something out; keep Kepler and Polanco in the minors so we have some unexposed prospects.

 

 

 

[lightfoot789]

Tale of Two Tapes

43 RUNS;

38 RBI;

12 2B;

1 3B;

12 HR;

25 XBH

102 TB

.257 BA;

.358 OBP;

.863 OPS; 

32 BB;

59 SO;

5 GDP;

 

OR

 

43 RUNS;
54 RBI;
17 2B;
2 3B;

17 HR;
36 XBH

134 TB
.270 BA;
.320 OBP;
.902 OPS;
16 BB;
91 SO;

3 GDP;

 

The OBP & BB have benefited how in this example?  I truly know how it should benefit overall, but just saying.............

 

Take away the BB & SO and which would you want as your DH without knowing names?  

[mikecgrimes]

 

Get Mauer out of the three spot until he shows that he can hit again.

 

Get some speed up and when they are on base do some base stealing and hitting and running.

 

We're up to a year and a half where Mauer hasn't produced enough to be an everyday 1st baseman, I still have some hope for him to have a good stretch at some point but he will never again be good enough to care what happens with him.  I hope they encourage him to retire in the offseason unless there is a reasonable and correctable explenation.

[Platoon]

The natives are getting restless! Has it occurred to anyone that this is where this team should be, as it relates to the talent on the field. Mauer excepted. And I say that because there is obviously something amiss with him. I don't think anyone foresaw him losing this much production. Now that does not absolve the field staff for continuing to run him out in the 3 hole every day. That's on Molitor. As for the rest. Hunter much better than anticipated, and Dozier continuing a slightly unlikely upward curve. As for the rest of the rest? Where is there going to be any offense from? Buxton, Rosario, Santana, Vargas, and Arcia are young players who just need to play. And struggle. But Shafer, Robinson, Escobar, Suzuki, Hicks, Hermann, et al, are what they are. Teams are no longer making key errors to fuel rallies, and thinking you can continue bunching hits at that level is not a reality. There is athletic talent here, and in the minors. But it ain't gonna happen overnight. Look to Gibson and May as examples. It's taken them awhile to become respectable. Keep filtering in the yang talent, let them acclimate, and enjoy the effort. This is and should be a transition year. To view it, or heaven forbid to oversee it as anything else than that is shortsighted.

[TheLeviathan]

 

Sitting Mauer is not a viable long-term option and it won't get his head right. The concussion damage is permanent. Even so, that's not a very good lineup, for 2015 anyway.

 

It was partially tongue in cheek.  Frankly, Mauer deserves to be on the bench.

[curt1965]

The worse thing that happened to our Twins this year is the May winning streak and record. Now everyone, including me, has the quick answer to right the ship. The fact remains that this season was supposed to be a work in progress, not necessarily a rebuilding season, but one in which we expected the news guys to hit some bumps in the road.

And that's what has happened.

How can anyone believe we have a better team than the Royals and Tigers? As a matter of fact, IMHO the Twins, Whiteys, and Indians are basically on the same level.

I am looking at the hitting a little differently. Using last night's box score, which players are ascending, leveling off, or declining. Here's my take:

Ascending: Dozier, Buxton(?), Rosario(?)

Leveling off: Plouffe, Hunter, Escobar(?)

Declining: Mauer, Suzuki

If we included the bench players, I would have included Nunez, Robinson, and Herrmann in the declining category, and probably Vargas too.

I, personally, would like the Twins lineup to include Danny Santana and Ozzie Arcia. But what do I know?

Those 2 are struggling now, but could be raking by July 15.

I think I need to take my own advise and be patient while these things work their way out!

[drivlikejehu]

 

It was partially tongue in cheek.  Frankly, Mauer deserves to be on the bench.

 

He probably does. But it's not going to happen, period. The magnitude of that problem is really substantial... on the order of multiple wins per year. Plus, they have a black hole at catcher and a dubious SS situation, while they are locked into long-term deals with several mediocre starting pitchers.

 

One lucky month has temporarily papered over the reality that the Twins rebuild is disintegrating before it can take hold.

[curt1965]

One more opinion. It looks to me that Buxton is not quite ready. His hit tool maybe needs some refining.

I'd like to see him play until Hicks returns, then go back down to work on the areas where he struggled.

Then bring him back up and let him play the last 6 weeks with the big club.

He is such an amazing talent, but I worry that he might start pressing if things don't go as planned.

[TheLeviathan]

 

He probably does. But it's not going to happen, period. The magnitude of that problem is really substantial... on the order of multiple wins per year. Plus, they have a black hole at catcher and a dubious SS situation, while they are locked into long-term deals with several mediocre starting pitchers.

 

One lucky month has temporarily papered over the reality that the Twins rebuild is disintegrating before it can take hold.

 

That's really overstating things.  The rebuild is not "disintegrating", we're just debuting some of our best prospects, so drop the drama.

 

But yes - Mauer is a gigantic problem.  One the Twins are going to have to face off with and make the right decision.  (Reduce his playing time)

[drjim]

 

The offense can't be fixed for 2015.

 

I disagree that it can't. Sano could be a boost and much too early to dismiss Arcia or Vargas from giving the team anything the rest of the year.

 

Marginal moves won't make much of a difference, but those three listed have talent.

[Danchat]

Let's stop overreacting. This offense can be potentially a top 10 or a bottom 10 offense. These guys are going to be on fire and slumping at times. Give Buxton, Vargas, and Arcia more time. The only two spots on offense that I am concerned about are 1B and C. Mauer and Suzuki are not good enough starters anymore.

[Richie the Rally Goat]

Call up Polanco.

DFA Mauer

Call up Sano to Play First Base

FTFY

[Pius Jefferson]

Until someone with the Twins or Mauer himself says he's bothered by post concussions symptoms I'm  call it a convenient excuse. 

[drivlikejehu]

 

That's really overstating things.  The rebuild is not "disintegrating", we're just debuting some of our best prospects, so drop the drama.

 

But yes - Mauer is a gigantic problem.  One the Twins are going to have to face off with and make the right decision.  (Reduce his playing time)

 

The success of those prospects is already assumed from a rebuilding standpoint - without them the Twins would obviously be going nowhere.

 

My comments were not for dramatic purposes. If you realistically project 2016 - based on how the Twins actually behave (e.g., Mauer will start at 1B regularly), the results are not good. There is almost no way to come up with a good club unless everything breaks right.

 

To me, if the Twins are bad in 2016, that qualifies as a rebuilding failure. Obviously that's my opinion. The further out you go, the harder it is to know who will even be on the team. But this team is producing much less than last year's. That is scary. One lucky month does nothing to alleviate the core issues at hand.

 

[TheLeviathan]

 

One lucky month does nothing to alleviate the core issues at hand.

 

Nor does coming back to earth means the rebuild failed.  That's just a preposterous assertion.