Front office fires 4 scouts

[DaveW]

Good.

 

Keep it coming boys!

[Kwak]

Questions:  How many did the Twins have?

          

                    Is this a normal occurrence for a team?

 

                    Did they name replacements?

 

                    Are there more shoes to drop?

 

                    Why the first week of August?

[S.]

I gotta say I approve of clearing house before the season ends as opposed to doing it all after (if that is the direction they go in). Gives the FO plenty of time to find their candidates, fill the positions, and have people in place and up to speed prior to winter meetings and any other offseason moves.

[Squirrel]

 

Good.

Keep it coming boys!

Names? Link? Please provide more for us.

[Squirrel]

nm ... here's the article in the STrib:

 

http://www.startribune.com/twins-fire-four-scouts/438777823/

 

"Marty Esposito, a longtime scout who covered Texas.

 

Alan Sandberg, who covered Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and upstate New York.

 

Ted Williams, who covered Arizona, New Mexico, Colorado, Wyoming, Utah and parts of Nevada.

 

And Mark Wilson, who covered North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Iowa, Wisconsin and Minnesota. Wilson signed local products like Joe Mauer and Glen Perkins."

[DaveW]

Names? Link? Please provide more for us.

Sorry I should have included, saw/read the post on FB.

 

I see you fixed it though.

[DaveW]

One interesting thing as well: I didn't realize that they couldn't hire ANYONE from Cleveland until after this season.

 

Makes the "lame duck" situation make a lot more sense....still frustrating though as it's sort of a wasted year in some aspects, no?

 

In general I think the non compete thing is crappy. Lateral moves I sorta get, but if Falvey was gonna give these guys promotions etc from their old jobs in Cleveland? I don't see the problem.

[DaveW]

Questions: How many did the Twins have?

 

Is this a normal occurrence for a team?

 

Did they name replacements?

 

Are there more shoes to drop?

 

Why the first week of August?

A lot

 

Not in August

 

Most certainly so

 

Twins have for all intents and purposes "fallen out of it" also lets these guys get new jobs sooner.

[Otto von Ballpark]

I read the title as "Front office fires 4 Scots" and I thought, oh no, just what we need, some kind of Braveheart-style discrimination lawsuit...

[Seth Stohs]

I hate hearing about people losing their jobs, ,especially people who have given so much to an organization. 

 

I'm very glad, however, that Falvey and Levine gave everyone (pretty much  everyone) was given this 8-9 months to be evaluated. Hopefully these decisions are based on something, some tool. 

 

From all I'm hearing, this is just the start. Scouts, everyone. It can't be a good situation for them right now, and yet, this is what Falvey was brought in for. To evaluate and make change. 

[Squirrel]

I hate hearing about people losing their jobs, ,especially people who have given so much to an organization.

 

I'm very glad, however, that Falvey and Levine gave everyone (pretty much everyone) was given this 8-9 months to be evaluated. Hopefully these decisions are based on something, some tool.

 

From all I'm hearing, this is just the start. Scouts, everyone. It can't be a good situation for them right now, and yet, this is what Falvey was brought in for. To evaluate and make change.

 

Yeah, I agree. But I also think it's a 'necessary evil.' Things just have not been working so maintaining the status quo just isn't an option. But for the cries over this season, I do think there is a larger plan and hopefully one that ends with where we all want to be ... the WS. And you are right ... this is just the beginning. I just hope the team can keep fighting through the turmoil.

 

Best wishes to whomever is let go in the coming days and good luck to all the new hires.

[mikelink45]

I know this makes many of you happy, but I do not know these scouts and what they have done.  I see one signed and scouted Mauer -that i a good addition to the resume no matter what has happened since the concussion.  

 

Marty Esposito - best signing was Chuck Knoblauch - http://www.thebaseballcube.com/players/profile.asp?P=marty-esposito&Page=Jobs

 

Nick Burdi was signed by Alan Sandberg http://02e260d.netsolhost.com/DFS_WhoWeAre_bio_ASandberg.html

 

Ted Williams was the one I could not find anything on.  http://www.thebaseballcube.com/players/profile.asp?P=ted-williams-2

 

Mark Wilson signed LaMonte Wade but I can find very little about him.  But he signed Joe Mauer so he has a big name on his resume. 

 

 

[DaveW]

Yeah Joe Mauer is a good name, but it's not like he was a diamond in the rough. Nationally everyone had Mauer as one of the top 3 players that year he was drafted. Dude was also a 3 sport stud.... I'm not trying to disparage the scout...but yeah, hard to give a lot of credit there.

[DaveW]

I hate hearing about people losing their jobs, ,especially people who have given so much to an organization.

 

I'm very glad, however, that Falvey and Levine gave everyone (pretty much everyone) was given this 8-9 months to be evaluated. Hopefully these decisions are based on something, some tool.

 

From all I'm hearing, this is just the start. Scouts, everyone. It can't be a good situation for them right now, and yet, this is what Falvey was brought in for. To evaluate and make change.

Yeah, not ideal when people lose jobs. But that is the way of the world (and sports industry)

 

On the flip slide, most of these guys held jobs longer and had more job security then most of their peers in other orgs

 

I'm confident nearly all will land on their feet in some capacity.

[Platoon]

Falvine seems intent on developing a long term plan for a competitive orginisation. That does not happen overnight. This is somewhat reminiscent of Bud Grant taking over the Vikings. Not flashy and the pace was seemingly excruciating. But it also was enduring. Yielding to a desire to make a flashy short term signing would have led to buyers remorse by mid September. It will be an uphill slog to rebuild an orginisation with mediocrity as its core operating principle. They seem to be steadfastly headed on the correct direction.

[Brock Beauchamp]

This is how professional operations transition. Not everyone in the old system was bad. Not all of the good people in the old system will gracefully transition to the new.

 

I don't like seeing people lose their jobs but it's necessary. The organization needs to move forward and that means some people won't make the cut.

 

This is happening earlier than I expected but once you think about it, firing people in August makes a lot of sense. It gives you two months to recruit new people and enter the offseason running.

[darin617]

At last the purge has begun!

[Hrbowski]

 

I'm confident nearly all will land on their feet in some capacity.

Probably not. A lot of older area scouts have tough times finding jobs with new teams.

[Monkeypaws]

I like the way Falvey and Levine didn't come in guns blazing and blow it all to hell before getting to know the organization. Only now are they starting to clean out those that don't fit their vision.

 

Not aggressively pursuing pitching in the off-season also makes sense, in that the Twins don't and didn't have the offense to compete right now.. when 2/3 of your daily lineup struggles to hit .250....

 

This, coupled with what I considered a logical deadline, gives me optimism. These guys have a vision that goes deeper than the (mis)treatment of a prospect, or the trade value of a veteran player.

[DocBauer]

In the radio broadcast today Falvey spoke about "measuring 4 or 5 times and cutting once" In regard to taking time to make moves such as this. Also mentioned making the moves at this time to give the guys let go plenty of time and opportunity to look for new jobs that may become available elsewhere.

 

Also an interesting comment referring to the trades and such that you can't please everyone, and if you try, you aren't doing your job andnwont please anyone.

[spinowner]

 

One interesting thing as well: I didn't realize that they couldn't hire ANYONE from Cleveland until after this season.

Makes the "lame duck" situation make a lot more sense....still frustrating though as it's sort of a wasted year in some aspects, no?

In general I think the non compete thing is crappy. Lateral moves I sorta get, but if Falvey was gonna give these guys promotions etc from their old jobs in Cleveland? I don't see the problem.

You'd see the problem if you were the Cleveland organization.

[spinowner]

 

Falvine seems intent on developing a long term plan for a competitive orginisation. That does not happen overnight. They seem to be steadfastly headed on the correct direction.

This is exactly how I feel. I want the Twins to be an organization that has quality from top to bottom. That's the only way to field a major league team that has a chance to contend *every* year. And it all starts with scouting. That's how the best players are drafted, the best free agents are signed, and the best trades are made.

[Thrylos]

 

Amateur area Scouts.  Not pro scouts.  Bit of a difference.  Those guys were working the draft.

 

"Alan Sandberg, who covered Ohio, Pennsylvania, West Virginia and upstate New York."

 

Sandberg is from around here and has been with the Twins since 2010.   Here are his picks, from most recent to least recent. 

 

Alex Kirilloff, Andre Jernigan, Travis Blankenhorn, Rich Condeelis, Tyler Mautner, Ethan Mildren,  Brandon Easton, Seth Wagner, Jake Proctor, and Alex Wimmers.

 

Other than the two recent high picks for whom the jury is still out, but both have problems, everyone else (other than Jernigan who is about to go and Wimmers) are out of baseball.  And the list includes several picks in the teens.    And Wimmers (and Kirilloff ) were his two big ones...

[yarnivek1972]

If Esposito hasn't found anyone in Texas in the last 30 years, it was long past time for him to go. Knoblauch was a 1988 pick. Put that in perspective, Ronald Reagan was POTUS.

[rdehring]

If Esposito hasn't found anyone in Texas in the last 30 years, it was long past time for him to go. Knoblauch was a 1988 pick. Put that in perspective, Ronald Reagan was POTUS.

If he was the Texas scout, wouldn't he have been responsible for Stewart? Not certain if that is a plus on his resume.

[Rosterman]

Sometimes, you just have to change things up a bit. Maybe the days of everlasting jobs in a baseball organization are done in Minnesota. It's been a good ride for the people working there. Family...so to speak. But times change and so does the business plan.

 

Be interesting to see what happens with the minor league coaching...as well as a relook at the major league field staff. i just hope we just don't see people move here from Cleveland.

[yarnivek1972]

Sometimes, you just have to change things up a bit. Maybe the days of everlasting jobs in a baseball organization are done in Minnesota. It's been a good ride for the people working there. Family...so to speak. But times change and so does the business plan.

 

Be interesting to see what happens with the minor league coaching...as well as a relook at the major league field staff. i just hope we just don't see people move here from Cleveland.

Why? They have a culture of success there.

[clutterheart]

Good luck to the guys who were fired. I would like to see roles like Eric Rasmussen and Brad Steil be refreshed too.

 

Time to make the org in the new guys image.

[Blake]

I've long thought Falvey and Levine were waiting to see what they had, both on the field and off the field before making moves.

[Roaddog]

I like that took time to evaluate before firing. Not the last move I'm sure