Game Thread: Cleveland v Twins, 4/18 @ 6:10 pm CT

[ashbury]

I'd sell my soul for a long ball hitter right about now.

That's quite the anti-jinx you're offering up, there. Good luck with it, my friend - if I say I'm pulling for you, which way am I rooting?

[Blake]

 

We can have a serious conversation in a game thread. There is no rule against it.

 

But seriously, Mike, the team won 25+ games year over year. And we're all of 12 games into this season... Don't you think it's a bit early to declare decisively that a decision was good or bad?

Yes..oh wait, insufficiently ambiguous..maybe.

[Cap'n Piranha]

We may have to stage kidnappings on occasion to prevent Molitor from giving Reed the Hildenberger treatment.

[Mike Sixel]

We can have a serious conversation in a game thread. There is no rule against it.

 

But seriously, Mike, the team won 25+ games year over year. And we're all of 12 games into this season... Don't you think it's a bit early to declare decisively that a decision was good or bad?

I said I'd give them three, so sure, too early. But so far, I am not overly impressed. Of course Reed is good, how about last year's pen? But like I said, I'd rather discuss the game....

[Blake]

Wow, ESPN found somebody else to talk to or about.

 

Too bad I turned the sound off almost immediately after turning on the game.

[Cap'n Piranha]

Commence Anti-jinx:

 

The Twins are going to lose this game 1-0 when Molitor brings Zach Duke in for the tenth.

[Brock Beauchamp]

I can't believe that Molitor pulled Berrios - one of the fiercest competitors in the game - from a game he's rocking in front of his home crowd for bullpen reasons.

 

But... I honesty hope I'm horribly wrong because the alternative means something is wrong with Jose.

 

Remember that Molitor was a fierce competitor himself. He's not going to make that decision lightly or without reason (and I'm saying this as a person who isn't terribly fond of Molitor the manager).

[ashbury]

Pulling Berrios with only 84 pitches, but Morrison and Grossman can play forever without ever helping the team. That's how you get to be MOY.

Berrios was displaying very unusual facial expressions during that last inning. His manager and pitching coach know him better than I do, obviously, but I considered that he was laboring and maybe this was about it for him, before it became official. In particular, he stuck out his tongue in a way that could be interpreted, "I'm gassed".

[yarnivek1972]

So, when the Twins lose the game in 18 innings and they ask Molitor why he pulled Berrios so early , he’ll say “the pen needed work”.

 

That’s such a crap reason. It’s game 13 of the season. No one NEEDS work yet.

[Mike Sixel]

Last year was Lewis, Rooker, Enlow, and Littell. They didn't add big leaguers because prior to the season, no one thought the Twins would even win 75 games.

Lewis? Is there any GM that could have made a bad pick there, really? You can't add MLB players that help in more than one year?

[sampleSizeOfOne]

I was hoping for a little more love for the mental image of a walk-off DP. Runners on first and third, no outs, and the defense decides to go for two while the winning run scores^{_{... *crickets*}}

That would be cool.

 

Perhaps anticlimactic, but cool none the less.

 

Crickets are also pleasant insects to listen to of a summer eve...

[AZTwin]

Good job molly

[notoriousgod71]

 

Berrios was displaying very unusual facial expressions during that last inning. His manager and pitching coach know him better than I do, obviously, but I considered that he was laboring and maybe this was about it for him, before it became official. In particular, he stuck out his tongue in a way that could be interpreted, "I'm gassed".

 

I must have missed the unusual facial expressions during the six pitches it took him to complete that inning.

[Hosken Bombo Disco]

Mound visit now with... Lindor up

 

Berrios had like 23 mound visits he was struggling so bad

[ashbury]

I must have missed the unusual facial expressions during the six pitches it took him to complete that inning.

I ran it on slo-mo to make sure.

[Mill1634]

Well, I guess the move to Reed looks fine now. 

[Huddy]

 

Well, I guess the move to Reed looks fine now. 

I feel like Reed would've been better suited for the 9th after we don't score.

[Brock Beauchamp]

 

You can't add MLB players that help in more than one year?

I don't know why you keep beating the drum of "more years = better" when, from a team perspective, the opposite is true 90%+ of the time.

 

The fewer years you can get a free agent, the better.

 

Unless you're absolutely stealing a guy, you don't give him a single year more than he absolutely demands. You know risk analysis, Mike.

[Hosken Bombo Disco]

SCORE

 

RUNS

[BoofBonser]

 

Well, I guess the move to Reed looks fine now. 

The Twins fan in me wanted Reed to end the inning, but the baseball fan in me wanted Lindor to get the hit so that Molitor had to answer questions after the game about pulling Berrios

Don't kill me please

[sampleSizeOfOne]

Managing...

 

Now let us plate someone!

[yarnivek1972]

Well, I guess the move to Reed looks fine now.

 

If Reed is the only guy that can get the other team’s 7-8-9 hitters out, the Twins will be out of the race by July.

[Cap'n Piranha]

 

Lewis? Is there any GM that could have made a bad pick there, really? You can't add MLB players that help in more than one year?

 

Lewis was definitely not a consensus top pick, and not only does he look better than expected so far, the savings on signing him netted us Rooker and Enlow.  They turned Ynoa into Littell.

 

As for MLB players, it didn't make sense to add MLB players prior to last year, as the realistic window for the Twins was 65-75 wins--much better to evaluate what you already have in your system.  This year when it made sense to add players, they added Reed, Rodney, Duke, Odorizzi, Lynn, and LoMo.

 

Granted, Duke and LoMo are looking pretty bad so far, but the rest have been decent to great.  There is absolutely no reason at this point to question whether Falvine are good at their jobs.  I'm willing to agree that Falvine shouldn't be considered elite yet, but they clearly know what they're doing.

[h2oface]

 

Berrios was displaying very unusual facial expressions during that last inning. His manager and pitching coach know him better than I do, obviously, but I considered that he was laboring and maybe this was about it for him, before it became official. In particular, he stuck out his tongue in a way that could be interpreted, "I'm gassed".

 I think it was the down up down scratch of the crotch, instead of the up down up.

[Huddy]

 

The Twins fan in me wanted Reed to end the inning, but the baseball fan in me wanted Lindor to get the hit so that Molitor had to answer questions after the game about pulling Berrios

Don't kill me please

I briefly had the same thought.

[Blake]

Okay, Buxton is on the DL.

 

Grossman is in the outfield, yet, arguably, LaMarre is the better fielder and he's been hitting, unlike Mr. Grossman.

 

So, Grossman gets the playing time.

 

On what planet?

 

Or, am I missing something? 

 

yeah, yeah, I'm leaving myself wide open with this one.

[sampleSizeOfOne]

I ran it on slo-mo to make sure.

Find any cool facial expressions?

[Huddy]

OH YAY ANDREW MILLER

[Brock Beauchamp]

 

Okay, Buxton is on the DL.

 

Grossman is in the outfield, yet, arguably, LaMarre is the better fielder and he's been hitting, unlike Mr. Grossman.

 

So, Grossman gets the playing time.

 

On what planet?

 

Or, am I missing something? 

 

yeah, yeah, I'm leaving myself wide open with this one.

Lamarre has literally eight plate appearances.

 

Grossman has hundreds, and they're mostly pretty good.

[Mike Sixel]

I don't know why you keep beating the drum of "more years = better" when, from a team perspective, the opposite is true 90%+ of the time.

 

The fewer years you can get a free agent, the better.

Fair. So they should have added no free agents last year, beyond one year deals? And, it simply isn't true that no player should be signed long term. I mean, if Mauer had been a free agent, would signing him have been bad?