Michael Pineda update?

[Cast of Thousands]

Haven't seen a single update on Pineda since early June, when he was apparently starting to do longer bullpen sessions.  I know the hopes for him contributing this year weren't high, like lucky to get some bullpen innings in late August or September, but I wonder what his status is?  Ahead of schedule, behind schedule?

 

Anyone heard the latest?

[h2oface]

An update would be nice. But I fear it won't matter. Pineda was an odd and wasted signing, I think, and time will tell, but I don't expect much... just like Odorizzi.

[Ben Noble]

 

Haven't seen a single update on Pineda since early June, when he was apparently starting to do longer bullpen sessions.  I know the hopes for him contributing this year weren't high, like lucky to get some bullpen innings in late August or September, but I wonder what his status is?  Ahead of schedule, behind schedule?

 

Anyone heard the latest?

 

Per Berardino, July 9: "RHP Michael Pineda said he threw 50 pitches off the regular mound with Ehire Adrianza standing in today. Plan is to throw another such session on Friday, then head back to Fort Myers for a couple of live BPs. Rehab assignment could start around Aug. 1."

 

Other brief reports I came across suggest that he's on track to return to the majors in a limited role in September, which was the original forecast. We'll probably start to get more clarity on how realistic that timetable is once he starts the rehab assignment.

[Vanimal46]

An update would be nice. But I fear it won't matter. Pineda was an odd and wasted signing, I think, and time will tell, but I don't expect much... just like Odorizzi.

He signed a 2 year contract with the expectation this was a lost season. The optimistic reports said he may pitch in September...

[laloesch]

I had a dream last night that he was starting games at the end of the season striking out 8, 9, 10 batters a game but also saving games as well.  Wouldn't that be nice.  

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

Pineda was an odd and wasted signing, I think, and time will tell, but I don't expect much... just like Odorizzi.

 

At the time, it seemed like an interesting move, but now it does seem odd.

 

For 2019, we've got Berrios, Gibson, and Odorizzi right now. Possibly Erv's option. Plus probably Romero, and possibly Mejia, in addition to Gonsalves, Littell, Slegers, and Thorpe all on the 40-man roster too.

 

I know, you can never have too many SP, but it does seem like maybe we were a bit over-eager to commit to a average-ish TJ recovery guy for 2019. There's probably a few upcoming FA that might be better fits?

[diehardtwinsfan]

 

At the time, it seemed like an interesting move, but now it does seem odd.

 

For 2019, we've got Berrios, Gibson, and Odorizzi right now. Possibly Erv's option. Plus probably Romero, and possibly Mejia, in addition to Gonsalves, Littell, Slegers, and Thorpe all on the 40-man roster too.

 

I know, you can never have too many SP, but it does seem like maybe we were a bit over-eager to commit to a average-ish TJ recovery guy for 2019. There's probably a few upcoming FA that might be better fits?

 

That maybe why Gibson and Odorizzi are on the block right now. That said, I'm not sure we can judge that move in hindsight that easily. We knew we needed SPs for a while. I don't think anyone figured that in 2018, starting pitching would be the strength of the team. I'm guessing Erv's option isn't picked up, so this team (baring trades) will see Berrios, Gibson, Odorizzi, Pineda, and probably May coming north since May is out of options. Romero will likely be the first guy called up.

 

Looking at the 40 man guys, I almost wonder if one of them gets shipped away as a part of a package deal or a swap for an averagish major leaguer at a position of need. That's a lot of SPs on the 40 man. 

[East Coast Twin]

 

I had a dream last night that he was starting games at the end of the season striking out 8, 9, 10 batters a game but also saving games as well.  Wouldn't that be nice.  

Hopefully it wasn't a wet dream.

[Brock Beauchamp]

An update would be nice. But I fear it won't matter. Pineda was an odd and wasted signing, I think, and time will tell, but I don't expect much... just like Odorizzi.

Picking up a league average starter with mild upside on what is essentially a one year contract is rarely a waste, nor is it odd.

[Hosken Bombo Disco]

An update would be nice. But I fear it won't matter. Pineda was an odd and wasted signing, I think, and time will tell, but I don't expect much... just like Odorizzi.

Agreed. The "broken arm" aspect was hard for some of us to look past, but bless the FO, they did. Maybe Pineda is on track and will pitch superbly from the get-go next season. Seemed like an unnecessary gamble at the time and still does.

 

Maybe it would be a better signing at 3/12 instead of 2/12?

[alarp33]

 

At the time, it seemed like an interesting move, but now it does seem odd.

 

For 2019, we've got Berrios, Gibson, and Odorizzi right now. Possibly Erv's option. Plus probably Romero, and possibly Mejia, in addition to Gonsalves, Littell, Slegers, and Thorpe all on the 40-man roster too.

 

I know, you can never have too many SP, but it does seem like maybe we were a bit over-eager to commit to a average-ish TJ recovery guy for 2019. There's probably a few upcoming FA that might be better fits?

 

It's easy to throw Gibson on that list now, but I don't know how they could have expected Gibson to be a real factor in the 2019 rotation last fall.  Yes he finished 2017 nicely, but before August he would've been a non-tender candidate. 

 

 

[Mike Sixel]

Does Mejia have options left after this year? I assume so,  but just curious.

 

As for Pineda? I flip flop on how I feel about it......1 year deals are great for filling the last hole, or to get someone you can trade, or to protect a minor league player from being promoted too soon....but otherwise? Not a huge fan of them. On the plus side, I do think he's quite good.....

[laloesch]

 

Hopefully it wasn't a wet dream.

 

 

No.

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

I'm not sure we can judge that move in hindsight that easily. We knew we needed SPs for a while. I don't think anyone figured that in 2018, starting pitching would be the strength of the team. I'm guessing Erv's option isn't picked up, so this team (baring trades) will see Berrios, Gibson, Odorizzi, Pineda, and probably May coming north since May is out of options. Romero will likely be the first guy called up.

May (the pitcher) hasn't started a game since May (the month). Not sure he's a starter anymore, and probably not of the gate in 2019 anyway. Although Mejia will be out of options too.

 

I guess technically we signed Pineda before we acquired Odorizzi, but we knew we were going to acquire someone, and at that point we also didn't know Erv was going to miss so much time in 2018 either. Plus all the AAA SP, we knew we had a lot of options, it was always kind of questionable whether Pineda had the upside to prematurely commit a 2019 spot to him.

 

Of course, I'm not writing off Pineda or anything. But I could see this team wanting to use that spot/money for a bit different SP mix in 2019, and that's not really unanticipated either. But who knows, maybe they've got some kind of a tweak in mind to improve Pineda, or maybe they could leverage him out of the pen in 2019 too.

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

It's easy to throw Gibson on that list now, but I don't know how they could have expected Gibson to be a real factor in the 2019 rotation last fall.  Yes he finished 2017 nicely, but before August he would've been a non-tender candidate. 

Sure, but at the same time, we couldn't say Gibson's nice finish wasn't for real either. We needed more data on him in 2018 to make the call for 2019, same for a few other guys too (Mejia?). Which the Pineda signing kind of side-stepped, and I do wonder if Pineda coming off surgery is actually good enough to warrant that treatment. (Also, as I noted in another post, we didn't know Erv was going to be less of a factor for 2019 yet either.)

 

Obviously, in modern MLB terms, Pineda's contract isn't really a big deal -- but we also know how our Twins operate. I could see how having him locked in would cause us to pass up other opportunities.

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

Does Mejia have options left after this year? I assume so,  but just curious.

No, this is Mejia's last option year. He is out of options next spring.

[big dog]

 

I had a dream last night that he was starting games at the end of the season striking out 8, 9, 10 batters a game but also saving games as well.  Wouldn't that be nice.  

Starts the sixth, faces 9 batters, strikes them all out, gets the save.  Yeah, that would be nice to have.  Cool dream!

 

 

[Mike Sixel]

 

No, this is Mejia's last option year. He is out of options next spring.

 

Hmmm.....then I really want Lynn and Odorizzi traded......and to see him here all year.

[Otto von Ballpark]

Then again, Pineda on this contract is probably more intriguing than most FA/trade options this winter. 3.4 fWAR per 30 starts for his career, although only 2.2 bWAR per 30 starts and that was trending down with the Yankees. Turns 30 in January, coming off surgery -- not perfect, but plenty of potential at $8 mil for 2019.

 

So I'm cool with him again.

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

Hmmm.....then I really want Lynn and Odorizzi traded......and to see him here all year.

I think I am with you on Lynn. Would be nice to see Mejia again this year, and maybe even Gonsalves too. Mildly frustrated they went with Slegers the last few turns (and Romero as a short-notice sub for Slegers).

 

But I'm not sure on Odorizzi yet. He's not doing that great but he's still in the 1-2 WAR per 30 starts range which is a nice fallback option at his salary, and he's only 28 still with some 3 WAR potential. I think you could do Berrios-Gibson-Odorizzi-Pineda next spring, and leave 1 spot for Mejia or Romero. Injuries happen too. We could always deal Odorizzi much like we acquired him, if we really wanted to clear a spot later.
 

I might rather see Erv dealt in August, if we have fallen out of the race.

[alarp33]

 

Sure, but at the same time, we couldn't say Gibson's nice finish wasn't for real either. We needed more data on him in 2018 to make the call for 2019, same for a few other guys too (Mejia?). Which the Pineda signing kind of side-stepped, and I do wonder if Pineda coming off surgery is actually good enough to warrant that treatment. (Also, as I noted in another post, we didn't know Erv was going to be less of a factor for 2019 yet either.)

 

Obviously, in modern MLB terms, Pineda's contract isn't really a big deal -- but we also know how our Twins operate. I could see how having him locked in would cause us to pass up other opportunities.

 

I don't know, I guess I saw it last year the same as I see it now. A pretty minor deal all things considered, that has potentially a pretty good payoff, either through trade value of Pineda a year from now, or a nice piece for your staff. 

 

I think it's way too early to count on many of the options you listed in your previous post (Little, Slegers and Gonsalves especially) to be real factors in the 2019 April rotation. And if everything breaks to plan, and the Twins have too many starting pitching options in 2019. Pineda would probably be a pretty good candidate to join the back end of the bullpen. 

[SF Twins Fan]

I have absolutely zero issue with the Twins signing Pineda. At that time the Twins realistically had Berrios and Santana are their main starters. Gibson had a handful of good starts toward the end of the season but that's it. Both Lynn and Odorizzi were signed well after him, so it was no guarantee the Twins were going to sign a starter or two. The pitchers still down in AAA are down there for a reason to continue working on their game.

 

Hopefully he can start to ramp up his workouts and pitch a few games in September for either AAA or the Twins. The more options the Twins have the better.

[Otto von Ballpark]

 

I think it's way too early to count on many of the options you listed in your previous post (Little, Slegers and Gonsalves especially) to be real factors in the 2019 April rotation.

I have since changed my mind and posted that I love the Pineda deal. All hail Pineda!

 

But I do want to clarify, I listed those other guys in a "spots 5 to 8 on the depth chart" kind of way. If they're not capable of that by April 2019, then they probably have no business being on the 40-man roster.

 

An aside: I could see Slegers dropped this winter. Possibly even Littell, if we need the spot.

[ashbury]

I don't think anyone figured that in 2018, starting pitching would be the strength of the team.

I'm hesitant to call it a strength. Let's say, a glut of so-so candidates.

[Richie the Rally Goat]

That maybe why Gibson and Odorizzi are on the block right now. That said, I'm not sure we can judge that move in hindsight that easily. We knew we needed SPs for a while. I don't think anyone figured that in 2018, starting pitching would be the strength of the team. I'm guessing Erv's option isn't picked up, so this team (baring trades) will see Berrios, Gibson, Odorizzi, Pineda, and probably May coming north since May is out of options. Romero will likely be the first guy called up.

 

Looking at the 40 man guys, I almost wonder if one of them gets shipped away as a part of a package deal or a swap for an averagish major leaguer at a position of need. That's a lot of SPs on the 40 man.

I agree, doubt Santana’s option gets picked up.

 

I’m assuming in ST ‘19 May and Pineda are “competing” for the same spot in the rotation. If both are healthy, one goes to the bullpen.

 

I think Romero will lock up one of the rotation spots.

[diehardtwinsfan]

 

Then again, Pineda on this contract is probably more intriguing than most FA/trade options this winter. 3.4 fWAR per 30 starts for his career, although only 2.2 bWAR per 30 starts and that was trending down with the Yankees. Turns 30 in January, coming off surgery -- not perfect, but plenty of potential at $8 mil for 2019.

 

So I'm cool with him again.

 

It seems like his biggest flaw has been the long ball. Not sure if TF helps in that capacity. 

[yarnivek1972]

It seems like his biggest flaw has been the long ball. Not sure if TF helps in that capacity.

 

Compared to Yankee Stadium. Seriously?

 

That’s the mother of all band boxes.

[Nine of twelve]

 

Compared to Yankee Stadium. Seriously?

That’s the mother of all band boxes.

Yankee Stadium and Wrigley Field are abominations by 2018 major league standards, and you can also include the postage stamp that the Reds play on. Fenway is a bit less bad than those three.

[jimmer]

http://www.espn.com/mlb/stats/parkfactor/_/sort/HRFactor

 

 

[ChrisKnutson]

“If” we trade Pressly (Rodney too I guess), maybe Pineda could be our closer in 2019.

 

He’s definitely got the stuff.