Let's Give 'Em Credit

[TheLeviathan]

From Ryan, to Molitor, to the boys on the field: This was a fun season and a better effort than most any of us could have hoped for.

 

Let's hope it's the start of many more seasons like it.

[Brock Beauchamp]

Agreed. The last two days were disappointing but the season was a success. Well done to all involved.

[USNMCPO]

For the first time in a while, I feel like this could be a fun off season. I think Ryan's legacy will be determined this winter.

[davidc3915]

A part of me is disappointed as a trip to the wild card game would have been a lot of fun. But this whole season was so much more exciting and promising than any of us could have anticipated. Im looking forward to the next season, both with the Twins on the field and all of us here on the Twins Daily forums. Thanks to all of the moderators for running this invaluable resource!

[Blake]

This season absolutely wore me out.

 

I'm ready to do it again!

[D. Hocking]

They seemed to have a good knack of getting up after being knocked down.  Even today when behind 5 to 1 going into the 9th they were doing their best to defy the odds.

[gunnarthor]

This really was a fun team to watch.  The best news is that this should also be the worst Twins team for a number of years.

[DocBauer]

How many days until pitchers and catchers report?????

 

[Thrylos]

The Twins field staff deserve lots of credit for getting pretty much a team identical to 2014 and turning it around.

Had Ryan addressed the bullpen and the lack of LH power at the deadline to give them a fighting chance, the Twins would have been in the post-season right now.   He gets no credit for robbing his team from that by sitting on his rear end while everyone around him got better.  Time to re-retire.

[TheLeviathan]

It's fair to say that this offseason is important for Ryan to demonstrate he can take the team to the next level.

 

But several moves he has made helped them get as far as they did this year. The next step is a bit harder though.

[Thegrin]

I'm happy. and I am happy to be happy. 

[Foghorn Leghorn]

Great season! Very proud of the twins this year, and for the future, the sky is the limit.

[Kwak]

 

The Twins field staff deserve lots of credit for getting pretty much a team identical to 2014 and turning it around.

Had Ryan addressed the bullpen and the lack of LH power at the deadline to give them a fighting chance, the Twins would have been in the post-season right now.   He gets no credit for robbing his team from that by sitting on his rear end while everyone around him got better.  Time to re-retire.

Amen!  Given the standings at June 1, I classify this season as :  coulda, woulda, SHOULDA!  There was money and people available to improve this team to a WC.  

[DocBauer]

I echo kudos for the field staff. I think by and large they did an excellent job. And while I didn't agree with the amount of rope Molitor gave Santana, and a few other decisions here and there, I have to say I thought he did a really nice job overall. But I also didn't expect him to do a HOF job in his first season.

 

I can't blast Ryan for the job he did. I still didn't like the shape of CF at the beginning of the season. Banking on Hicks and Buxton was short-sighted. (Shafer being healthy might have made this less of an issue-but still and issue)

 

I didn't think they addressed the bullpen in the off season as they should have, banking I suppose, on a couple prospects making their way up by mid-season. And mid-year, I would have prefered they make the moves they did a couple weeks earlier. And would have liked 1 more veteran arm. 

 

But the Jepsen move was a good one. Cotts was a solid move. I think not getting too wrapped up and making the big deal for Shields or Tulo was good short and long term.

 

 

[USAFChief]

Realistic chance at the post season into the last week. Mathematical chance into game 161.

 

That's a pretty big step forward. I'm disappointed, but can't deny progress.

 

I look forward to a productive offseason, Mr Ryan. Make this team better.

[TKGuy]

Meaningful baseball in October wa quite a pleasant surprise. We got to see Rosario, Buxton, Sano and Duffey be contributors this year. We still have Berrios ready to compete for a starting spot and hopefully May back in the rotation. The future is bright.

[jun]

Good season indeed.

Unfortunately I would like to see only May, Pressly, Perkins and Jepsen in the bullpen next season.

The rotation should be set: Duffey, Milone, Gibson, Santana, Hughes.

[Poli_Crandall]

In regards to Terry Ryan and his apprehensiveness to do anything meaningful at the deadline, you must realize the immensely difficult position he was in.  The team was by all accounts overachieving and every statistic out there signaled regression fast.  In hindsight, ya maybe he could have done more to ensure the team had a better chance to compete but at that moment he thought it better tweak from within rather then overhaul and to let the team play out with what they had, unfortunately it wasn't enough to get to the postseason.

 I strongly believe that the Twins organization should and is mirroring that of the Pirates organization 3-4 years ago.  The Pirates stuck to their plan, didn't touch their young core of players, tweaked here and there and are now a perennial postseason team because of it.  The Twins are very much on that same path now which will come to fruition as soon as next year.  It was a difficult decision TR had to make and it was the right one.  I applaud him for sticking to the plan.

[twinsnorth49]

Definitely encouraging that TR and co seem to have the team turning the corner this season, now he needs to fine tune the engine in the off season to get them competing for the division and into the playoffs.

 

This off season is crucial to find the right pieces to compliment the emerging young talent.

[spinowner]

 

In regards to Terry Ryan and his apprehensiveness to do anything meaningful at the deadline, you must realize the immensely difficult position he was in.  The team was by all accounts overachieving and every statistic out there signaled regression fast.  In hindsight, ya maybe he could have done more to ensure the team had a better chance to compete but at that moment he thought it better tweak from within rather then overhaul and to let the team play out with what they had, unfortunately it wasn't enough to get to the postseason.

 I strongly believe that the Twins organization should and is mirroring that of the Pirates organization 3-4 years ago.  The Pirates stuck to their plan, didn't touch their young core of players, tweaked here and there and are now a perennial postseason team because of it.  The Twins are very much on that same path now which will come to fruition as soon as next year.  It was a difficult decision TR had to make and it was the right one.  I applaud him for sticking to the plan.

Terry Ryan has been in charge for less than 4 years. During that time he has taken an organization that was essentially in shambles and made substantial improvement from top to bottom. I think he has done a very commendable job up to this point.

That said, I can understand the point of view that he may not be the best person to take this team further. He's rarely made a big splash in a trade or a FA signing. One difference between now and his first tenure as GM is that he will have a larger budget to work with. I think he's earned the chance to continue in his position and I'm interested to see what he can do.

[jokin]

 

Realistic chance at the post season into the last week. Mathematical chance into game 161.

That's a pretty big step forward. I'm disappointed, but can't deny progress.

I look forward to a productive offseason, Mr Ryan. Make this team better.

 

Let's start by TR being very open to a commitment to setting the payroll at or above the MLB median level- the Twins payroll rank is currently 23rd .  Which means adding at least another $30M to the payroll, and through Free Agency addressing the holes we're all well aware of and have identified, ad infinitum.

[COtwin]

Thanks to the players, coaches , and Twins for a fun season. Hard to get up for a chance at the playoffs and then miss out, but it sure beats watching games only to see the young guys. I also have high hopes for this offseason, but not necessarily for a season of adding through free agency. I think we gain by subtraction. Or at least subtraction from the starting lineup and rotation. Kurt needs to be a backup, Hunter as well. Pelfrey needs to be removed from the starting rotation and maybe Nolasco and Milone. Seems like the only outside adds will be catcher and maybe another bullpen arm.

[TwinsCD]

If you had told me on April 1 that I'd have meaningful baseball to watch in October, I'd have summoned the whitecoats to haul you away.  From the emergence of Sano and Rosario to the continued consistency of Dozier and the hopeful promise of Buxton and Escobar and Hicks, there's a lot to look forward to for the 2016 season as far as the offensive side.  The field staff took a lot of questionable puzzle pieces and was able to put together a winning season, something that a large minority of people even dreamed they'd do.  And I know that he became an occasional whipping boy this year but Torii Hunter was a key cog in what these guys were able to do.  They were 1-6 and barely able to score and he brought them together, told them to go out there and have some fun and play loose, and then things began to get better.  For his reduced ability in right field, you still can't argue with a 22 HR season from a 40-year-old.  Great signing by TR to bring that type of leadership back for this season.  I think he's a part-time player next year if he stays on the team but he brought the kind of voice these guys needed that Mauer doesn't have in his personality to provide.

[Squirrel]

Moderator note: This is not a thread on whether or not TR is a good GM. This is a thread on giving accolades to a winning season and those who got us there. I realize there are a diversity of opinions on TR, and I have mine as well, but don't drag this thread into that peripheral. If you don't want to acknowledge a good season, because you don't think it was, then don't, but don't drag this down a path of your own agenda.

[savvyspy]

I think the most promising part of the season is their young talent are their best players. Sano, Rosario, Duffy, and Hicks all had good to great seasons. I think Buxton and Gibson showed they are part of the future as well.

 

The biggest disappointment are most of the veterans were completely useless for the last two months of the season. Mauer, Perkins, Dozier, Hunter, and Suzuki should have been the guys to lead the team down the stretch but for the most part the team stuck around despite them.

 

This offseason should be interesting. They need at least 2 bullpen arms, a starting catcher, and a closer. I'd keep Perkins in a 7th/8th inning role and give Jepsen the 8th. Hopefully they are smart enough to let Hunter and go with Kepler/Arcia along with Buxton, Rosario, and Hicks. Dozier should be fine and there isn't anything viable to do with Mauer although I wish they would move him down in the order.

 

They are becoming fun to watch which is a huge step forward.

[Vanimal46]

From April through the end of July, SS was a black hole in the lineup and the field. Kudos to Escobar for exceeding expectations and giving us what appears to be a solution for the position in 2016.

[Mike Sixel]

It was a very good journey, and that's a huge step forward for this team. It was a much more fun sports summer for sure.

[Reider]

First of all, lets give the Twins credit for taking a step forward as an organization. In the off season they made some big changes as they made Paul Molitor the new manager, brought in some new coaches, and signed a few players in the off season. The Twins won more games than many of us thought they would win and were in playoff contention until the last couple / few games of the season.

 

It's easy to sit back at the end of the season and point fingers and say the Twins did this or that wrong. There's always things that people and teams can work on. I thought there were a lot of positives. For example, a lot of the younger players stepped up in a big way this year. Terry Ryan bringing in Cotts and Jepsen mid year turned out to be good decisions even though the Twins couldn't quite make the playoffs. Also, I think the new coaches have done a good job with our pitchers and hitters. I thought Dozier and Perkins were outstanding the first half of the season. I'm not sure what happened after the all-star break. Sometimes players go through injuries or other things that fans really don't understand or know about. Torii Hunter had a solid season for his age and I have no doubt that his precense in the locker room was a huge positive.

 

As a fan it was a very exciting year. I believed in the team right to the very end. I know they were playing their hardest to get a playoff spot even though it didn't work out for them. Hopefully Terry Ryan can bring in a few more pieces to the puzzle this off season and the Twins can take another step forward next year (e.g. making the playoffs). In the forseeable future, I can only see things getting better for this organization. It's going to be a lot of fun.