Twins sign Drew Stubbs

[Doomtints]

 

No evidence of that. It's just that Stubb's has s played awful, save for one year when he was 24 years old when he showed real promise.

 

He was waived a 2nd time by the Rangers while putting up very good numbers.

 

 

[Squirrel]

 

He was waived a 2nd time by the Rangers while putting up very good numbers.

 

While it's fine to question why, be careful about the accusations. Accusing someone of drug abuse or bad character with no other eveidence to back up your opinions, is a bit egregious, imo. Were there reports of not getting along in the clubhouse, for instance? Does he have a history of that? Is there other behavior that points to drug abuse? Before just throwing that out there, please go a step futher.

[Mike Sixel]

Meh, I know people say minor league deals don't matter, but there are limits to how many people come to spring training, and as pointed out above, you can/do miss out on other players. I doubt he makes the roster, and if he makes the AAA roster, I hope it is not at the expense of a young player being up there.

[alarp33]

 

Each of the last two years he has hit RH pitchers better than LH pitchers.

That's when you want Rosario & Kepler in the lineup.

 

You can't actually be basing this off of his 2015 + 2016 major league plate appearances and think that proves a reverse split... 

[alarp33]

 

who would you sit against LHP?   The guy who is hitting .202/.271/.319 or the guy who is hitting .279/.308/.416 (Rosario) against them?   

 

Not sure that I get the bias against Rosario; the Mendoza line guy against LHP is Kepler...

 

Not sure I get why people think a sample size of 100-200 bats are meaningful in any way... 

[Mike Sixel]

How about the fact he's only had that many at bats in the last few years, what does that tell people about how good he is. People have a really, really, hard time letting go of their memories of how good a player used to be, vs how they are now with age.....really hard time.

[jud6312]

Having gone back and looked at Stubbs' career stats, I'd almost rather they'd signed Franklin Stubbs.

 

We're talking about a guy that had one decent season in 2010 and then followed it up with poor showings 2011-2014 and absolute trainwrecks in 2015 and 2016.

 

I never thought I'd say this, but I'd actually prefer DanSan over this guy.

[lukeduke1980]

Probably here to lighten the CF load on Buxton to prevent him from playing too much and getting hurt, and probably here in case Buxton gets injured in Spring Training

[jud6312]

 

Probably here to lighten the CF load on Buxton to prevent him from playing too much and getting hurt, and probably here in case Buxton gets injured in Spring Training

My hope would be that if something were to happen to Buck in ST that was more than a 1-2 week thing, they'd turn the reins over to Granite. I'm not sure what kind of MLB upside the kid has, but we know that Drew's best days were about 7 years ago. Even if it was only for 1-2 weeks, I'd hope they'd shift the current guys around and make it work.

 

If Stubbs is added to the 40-man roster at any point during the season, this season will have been an abstract failure.

[nicksaviking]

 

Probably here to lighten the CF load on Buxton to prevent him from playing too much and getting hurt, and probably here in case Buxton gets injured in Spring Training

 

I'd rather have Rosario in CF and a more competent hitter in LF should Buxton go down. Are we even sure at this stage of his career that Stubbs is even a better defensive CF than Rosario? And if he is, is it so significant that it's worth sacrificing any chance of offensive aid?

[Mike Sixel]

 

I'd rather have Rosario in CF and a more competent hitter in LF should Buxton go down. Are we even sure at this stage of his career that Stubbs is even a better defensive CF than Rosario? And if he is, is it so significant that it's worth sacrificing any chance of offensive aid?

 

i'd rather have Rosario or Kepler in CF than Stubbs.

[Seth Stohs]

 

who would you sit against LHP?   The guy who is hitting .202/.271/.319 or the guy who is hitting .279/.308/.416 (Rosario) against them?   

 

Not sure that I get the bias against Rosario; the Mendoza line guy against LHP is Kepler...

 

Because in his minor league career Kepler always hit lefties as well as righties, and at 23 (he turns 24 on Friday), it's too early to platoon him. But yeah, Stubbs can play all three outfield spots well.

[nicksaviking]

 

Because in his minor league career Kepler always hit lefties as well as righties, and at 23 (he turns 24 on Friday), it's too early to platoon him. But yeah, Stubbs can play all three outfield spots well.

 

Most numbers I've seen show Stubbs has been average to below average since about 2012.

 

I don't mind minor league signings, it's just that this spot seems like it could have warranted an actual MLB contract to a better player. 

[Mike Sixel]

 

Because in his minor league career Kepler always hit lefties as well as righties, and at 23 (he turns 24 on Friday), it's too early to platoon him. But yeah, Stubbs can play all three outfield spots well.

 

I would never platoon Kepler at this point. He needs to develop and grow right now. This isn't a 28 year old, nor is it a playoff team.

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

He was waived a 2nd time by the Rangers while putting up very good numbers.

"Very good numbers"?  Stubbs had 6 MLB PA in the 3 months before being waived.

 

And it's worth noting that the Rangers didn't simply release Stubbs, rather he rejected an assignment to AAA.  (Likewise the first time the Rangers released him, in March, it was because Stubbs exercised an opt-out in his contract.)

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

A guy who is signed and cut 8 times in two years probably has some character or substance abuse issues.

Also, this isn't true.  He was cut once by the Rockies in 2015, and once by the Braves in 2016.  He elected to be released by the Rangers twice rather than accept a minor league assignment, in March 2016 and again in August of 2016.  And those were smart moves on his part, as he returned to MLB quickly thereafter both times.

 

Absolutely nothing to see here except a marginal player hanging on at the fringes of 25-man rosters.

[Doomtints]

 

Also, this isn't true.  He was cut once by the Rockies in 2015, and once by the Braves in 2016.  He elected to be released by the Rangers twice rather than accept a minor league assignment, in March 2016 and again in August of 2016.  And those were smart moves on his part, as he returned to MLB quickly thereafter both times.

 

Absolutely nothing to see here except a marginal player hanging on at the fringes of 25-man rosters.

 

RIF. I said "signed and cut 8 times." You can divide that number by two to get the number of times he was cut.

 

Electing to be released rather than being sent to the minors is the same as being cut. You can use the term "released" if that sounds better.

[lukeduke1980]

 

I'd rather have Rosario in CF and a more competent hitter in LF should Buxton go down. Are we even sure at this stage of his career that Stubbs is even a better defensive CF than Rosario? And if he is, is it so significant that it's worth sacrificing any chance of offensive aid?

A more competent hitter like Carlos Quentin?

[gil4]

 

It used to be that trading Duensing was the answer to all our problems, not its DFA'ing DanSan. I just knew the new FO would make a difference! .

Did you ever get the feeling the new FO reads this site, and they are keeping DanSan as long as they possibly can just to spite us?

[LimestoneBaggy]

I don't really see the problem here? We know what he likely is (fringy AAAA, below average hitter/outfielder with positional flexibility). I don't see who he's blocking by being in Spring Training, and maybe someone sees something in his character or leadership the locker room could use about hard work, grinding, etc. 

 

Who else should have received this spot that would want to either 1.) Sign with a likely-below average team; 2.) Isn't going to AA this season?

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

RIF. I said "signed and cut 8 times." You can divide that number by two to get the number of times he was cut.

So Twins minor league signing Chris Gimenez has been "signed and cut" 2 times this offseason?  No, he was cut once, and signed once.  There's absolutely no benefit to presenting a combined total of those two transactions except for exaggeration.

 

 

Electing to be released rather than being sent to the minors is the same as being cut. You can use the term "released" if that sounds better.

Sure, refusing a minor league assignment is a form of being "cut", but it is super-common in baseball. The presence of such transactions on the record of a marginal player is not at all indicative of "character or substance abuse issues".  Stubbs is basically a slightly better version of Darin Mastroianni right now, and his record of transactions reflects that.

[Doomtints]

 

 he was cut once, and signed once.

 

And 1+1=2!

[Vanimal46]

 

A more competent hitter like Carlos Quentin?

Speaking of, he just signed an MiLB deal with the Red Sox! According to MLBTradeRumors he has also lost 40 pounds since we last saw him. 

[Seth Stohs]

 

Most numbers I've seen show Stubbs has been average to below average since about 2012.

 

I don't mind minor league signings, it's just that this spot seems like it could have warranted an actual MLB contract to a better player. 

 

He's terrific defensively... ideal for a 5th OF spot, or a platoon righty that isn't an every-lefty platoon guy. 

[TheLeviathan]

On what are you basing your assessment of his defense being "teriffic"?

[nicksaviking]

 

A more competent hitter like Carlos Quentin?

 

No, like Ryan Raburn, Angel Pagan or Franklin Gutierrez. I might even prefer a Marlon Byrd.

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

And 1+1=2!

No one disputes the math behind it.  It's just an impractical application of it. "Chris Gimenez was cut and signed 2 times this offseason" is about as meaningful as saying "Trevor Plouffe went on and off the DL 6 times in 2016."

[nicksaviking]

 

He's terrific defensively... ideal for a 5th OF spot, or a platoon righty that isn't an every-lefty platoon guy. 

 

He used to be good, but he's hardly been seen in the last couple of years and UZR, DRS and dWAR all say he's at best average recently and that's putting it very kindly considering how many -'s are listed in front of those stats. The starting OF are good-to-excellent, the backup OF should be able to pinch hit or platoon considering the rest of the bench is lining up to quite possibly consist of Adrianza, Escobar and a backup catcher, there are much better options than Stubbs.

 

Hey, I'm giving the front office a pass this offseason and I've said so in just about every "sky is falling" thread; they inherited a mess. But I listed my preferred choices for OF options above, Ryan Raburn, Angel Pagan, Franklin Gutierrez or Marlon Byrd. I just have a hard time believing that either the gameplan or payroll for 2017 has room for just two MLB contracts. These signings are just bizarre, Stubbs in particular.

[Doomtints]

 

No one disputes the math behind it.  It's just an impractical application of it. "Chris Gimenez was cut and signed 2 times this offseason" is about as meaningful as saying "Trevor Plouffe went on and off the DL 6 times in 2016."

 

Sure. I freely admit my application was unconventional with the intent to blow up the number.

 

Nevertheless, what I said is still correct.  

[Gheggs08]

 

Kubel and Bartlett were more promising signings. Stubbs no longer hits or fields well. He hasn't had a positive UZR in CF since 2012. He has one season with an RC+ over 100 since 2010 that was fueled by a BABIP over .400. Santana is a much more useful bench piece given his ability to run and play more positions.

I argued at the time Kubel and Bartlett were signed that it does matter. The Twins are only going to bring so many guys to camp. They will have a finite number of at bats to give in spring training. While Kubel and Bartlett were in camp the Twins missed an opportunity at JD Martinez. The likelihood that Stubbs will turn into the 2010 version of himself is so remote that it can't possibly be worth an invite to spring training. Maybe he won't get that invite.

Hard to say that JD Martinez would have turned out like he did with the Twins.... I'd say being protected in the lineup, and being able to learn from Miggy and V-Mart, were pretty huge reasons for his break out.