Astudillo

[Mr. Brooks]

I think the Twins will keep him on the 40-man because he'll be gone on the first pick in rule 5 (assuming he's eligible). I doubt he'd be the 25th player if Castro and Garver are healthy next spring but he's too valuable to jettison.

He wouldn't go to Rule V. We would have to send him through waivers in order for him to theoretically be eligible for Rule V, and waiver claims are less restrictive than Rule V pickups, so anyone who wants him would just claim him rather than select him in Rule V.

[TheLeviathan]

He seems like a nice bench option next year.  Versatility is a very nice aspect to his game.

[RatherBeGolfing]

The clip of him running last night is probably a top 5 moment from this season in my book

[ashbury]

The clip of him running last night is probably a top 5 moment from this season in my book

Astudillo scoring from first on a double. "The most exciting two minutes in sports," as they say.

 

As a catcher, I do NOT block the plate against that runner, if the ball comes to me. "The tally is yours, good sir!"

[Rosterman]

Nice bench option. Can also catch. Play lots of positions. Could be the Face of the Franchise?

 

[nicksaviking]

 

He seems like a nice bench option next year.  Versatility is a very nice aspect to his game.

 

So, with a runner on 3rd and less than 2 outs, if he comes to the plate should a free pass be a given for the opposing team? You know he's not going to strike out and he's not going to unintentionally take a walk so there's next to no point in trying to pitch around him.

 

On the other hand, he's not at all an intimidating hitter. 

[ashbury]

So, with a runner on 3rd and less than 2 outs, if he comes to the plate should a free pass be a given for the opposing team? You know he's not going to strike out and he's not going to unintentionally take a walk so there's next to no point in trying to pitch around him.

 

On the other hand, he's not at all an intimidating hitter. 

Steady diet of low pitches that can't reasonably be lofted to the outfield, in that scenario, and dare him to walk.

[mlhouse]

 

I absolutely could see Astudillo as a 25th man type. I don’t think anyone thinks he is some sort of superstar in the making or even an “everyday” utility type. But his versatility is definitely an asset that can’t be ignored.

If the choice is between a 27 year old that can play 4-6 positions and a 36 year old that plays 1 I think the decision is pretty easy.

But that’s me.

 

I would think that the fact that the 36 year old back up catcher is a .170 hitter should also have something to do with it.

 

Think about it, they could have called up Astidullio a long time ago, even before his first call up, in place of Bobby Wilson. With WIlson we knew EXACTLY what we were getting, and if the FO did not know then they should be fired.

 

Instead of giving Wilson 47 games and 151 plate appearances (all to hit with an OPS of .523) why not give Willians those games and see what you got?   Add the 17 games he has appeared in, and maybe give him some time at other positions, he could have had 65-85 games to demonstrate what he could do.

 

Why not?  I get the "defense", but frankly I think the thinking about "pitch framing" and "game calling" are very overrated.  Have the pitching coach call the game if you need to.  Instead, this Front Office seems fixated on adding 35+ year old weak hitting catchers to the roster.  They might as well let the pitchers bat.  ANd even if Astudillo is worse, who cares.  Losing a handful of games because we have him catching instead of Bobby WIlson or Chris GIminez would be worth finding out if the guy could be that catching Cesar Tovar who can adequately play several positions in a pinch and isn't a complete pushover at the plate. In the end, losing 87 games (the pace we are on now) or 90 games, or even 95 games really is meaningless.

 

Further, I think on a losing team having a character like Willians might at least make the team worth watching a bit.  

 

I'll say another thing,  It would be different plugging in a "defensive" catcher in a lineup that had lots of good hitters in the lineup.  But the 2018 Twins did not have that luxury. Our lineup was weak, and adding such a poor hitter, even in the place of Mitch Garver, just took it to another level weaker.

 

 

[SF Twins Fan]

La Tortuga

 

[ashbury]

I'm afraid Trevor May has earned a moderator's warning point for disrespectful tweeting.

[LaBombo]

 

Astudillo scoring from first on a double. "The most exciting two minutes in sports," as they say.

 

As a catcher, I do NOT block the plate against that runner, if the ball comes to me. "The tally is yours, good sir!"

 

Catcher? Pfft. If I'm the home plate umpire when Stu chugs around third and heads for home, then he reports the outcome of the play at the plate to me afterwards at my safe vantage point in the fifth row. 

 

Honor system, like when farmers used to sell sweet corn by the sack and put out a coffee can to leave a dollar.

[LaBombo]

 

I'm afraid Trevor May has earned a moderator's warning point for disrespectful tweeting.

 

If it's any consolation, this one may fall under the category of 'no harm, no foul, as a veterinarian friend of mine has reassured me that tortoises are generally not Twitter users.

[ashbury]

Catcher? Pfft. If I'm the home plate umpire when Stu chugs around third and heads for home, then he reports the outcome of the play at the plate to me afterwards at my safe vantage point in the fifth row.

No need to rush, though, if that's your preferred destination. Stand your ground, and you'll be in the fifth row soon enough.

[Riverbrian]

That ends up being 5.1 innings of no-hit baseball caught by Astundillo. From a veteran pitcher and not the AAA guys that Molitor usually lets Astundillo catch. 

 

Still haven't seen anything that justifies Wilson being necessary because of defensive considerations. 

 

I continue to wonder why Astundillo did not catch during his first visit. 

 

With all due respect to Paul Molitor:

 

Could this be a case of Astundillo being called up for the utility role and Molitor being so insistent on clearly defined roles that he would not deviate and let Astundillo catch? Some sort of obsessive compulsive manager style? 

 

How did Wilson become our #1 Catcher?

 

How was Wilson able to block Astundillo from playing time at Catcher on a team starving for offense? 

[David HK]

 

That ends up being 5.1 innings of no-hit baseball caught by Astundillo. From a veteran pitcher and not the AAA guys that Molitor usually lets Astundillo catch. 

 

Still haven't seen anything that justifies Wilson being necessary because of defensive considerations. 

 

I continue to wonder why Astundillo did not catch during his first visit. 

 

With all due respect to Paul Molitor:

 

Could this be a case of Astundillo being called up for the utility role and Molitor being so insistent on clearly defined roles that he would not deviate and let Astundillo catch? Some sort of obsessive compulsive manager style? 

 

How did Wilson become our #1 Catcher?

 

How was Wilson able to block Astundillo from playing time at Catcher on a team starving for offense? 

M. O. Y.

[yarnivek1972]

Catcher? Pfft. If I'm the home plate umpire when Stu chugs around third and heads for home, then he reports the outcome of the play at the plate to me afterwards at my safe vantage point in the fifth row.

 

Honor system, like when farmers used to sell sweet corn by the sack and put out a coffee can to leave a dollar.

Meh, force equals mass times acceleration. Astudilllo was probably slowing down by the time he reached home.

[Vanimal46]

Molitor was the brains and finances behind 9/11.

 

Conspiracy theories are fun.

[Platoon]

Catcher? Pfft. If I'm the home plate umpire when Stu chugs around third and heads for home, then he reports the outcome of the play at the plate to me afterwards at my safe vantage point in the fifth row. 

 

Honor system, like when farmers used to sell sweet corn by the sack and put out a coffee can to leave a dollar.

Used to? They still do here, and potatoes, gourds, squash, popcorn, and if your lucky enough to get into WI near the cranberry bogs, fresh cranberrys!

[Riverbrian]

 

Molitor was the brains and finances behind 9/11.

Conspiracy theories are fun.

 

I did not know that. 

 

How was he able to disguise his involvement? 

[Platoon]

A baseball blogger who I respect, and at times even agree with recently posted that Astudillo has no business near any teams 25 man roster next year? I totally disagree. He isn't the greatest thing going, but due to his versatility, the dire lack of MLB capable catchers, and the short bench he certainly can play somewhere for someone. I appreciate defensive chops, but I really don't see any catchers the Twins employ who's glove mandates their starting position.

[Vanimal46]

I did not know that.

 

How was he able to disguise his involvement?

Distracting you by keeping Astudillo on the bench. And sabotaging young players on the Twins. Keeping starters in the game too long or not long enough. There's something else I'm missing that's directly his fault.

[LaBombo]

 

Meh, force equals mass times acceleration. Astudilllo was probably slowing down by the time he reached home.

 

Agreed; he almost certainly was beginning to fire the retro rockets before he crossed the plate, as indicated by the backstop not sporting an Astudillo-shaped hole after the play.

 

But be it force or momentum, the a or the v is only half of the product, and Stu is bringing a whole lotta m to the party.

 

And beyond the science of Stu pulling into the pier, there's the issue of man's innate primal fear of being crushed by a heavy, rolling object, which is what caused you to inadvertently flinch the first time you saw this scene:

 

 

 

On a less off topic-y note, Astudillo is a little bit of a good news-bad news guy for me. The better he plays in September, the more likely it is that we've found a ball player at a thin position, which is great, and also extremely entertaining.

 

But the better he looks, the more evidence there is that the Twins have a serious flaw in their process for determining which players to put on the roster and on the field.

[Riverbrian]

Distracting you by keeping Astudillo on the bench. And sabotaging young players on the Twins. Keeping starters in the game too long or not long enough. There's something else I'm missing that's directly his fault.

Nothing was his fault?

 

Or have you just reached the point where you are dismissing anything I mention directly out of hand.

[nicksaviking]

 

With all due respect to Paul Molitor:

 

Could this be a case of Astundillo being called up for the utility role and Molitor being so insistent on clearly defined roles that he would not deviate and let Astundillo catch? Some sort of obsessive compulsive manager style? 

 

 

I'm so far down the replace Molitor road that there's no going back for me, but Astundillo is doing some catching now, so either Molitor wasn't against it at the time or someone gave him a talking to about the situation prior to the recall.

 

It would be a fantastic question for La Velle to ask him directly.

[twinssporto]

I just enjoy watching Astudillo play.  Miss seeing the hustle from others.

[Riverbrian]

 

I'm so far down the replace Molitor road that there's no going back for me, but Astundillo is doing some catching now, so either Molitor wasn't against it at the time or someone gave him a talking to about the situation prior to the recall.

 

It would be a fantastic question for La Velle to ask him directly.

 

It's impossible to know and it kinda drives me crazy.

 

Does Molitor have complete control of these decisions?

 

Are the pitchers hand picking their catchers?

 

Are these decisions being strongly suggested by superiors? 

 

Are they by conference?

 

For the record... I have no problem with Bobby Wilson getting a chance but after getting that chance... at some point... someone in the organization has to look at what he did with that chance and consider it in context of what was happening on the field. 

 

We were dead in the water from the right side of the plate. Buxton was missing pitches by two feet, Sano was going to set the strikeout record. Dozier was in the .600 OPS Range and Wilson was our primary catcher. 

 

Look at his current .523 OPS and then consider his career .577 OPS... and then notice that he is 35 years old and move on. 

 

We could all see that Garver had some noticable defensive issues so I can kind of understand Garver being the secondary catcher, even if he had the best right handed offensive stats on the team when all our right handers were belly up.

 

I assumed that Astundillo wasn't able to catch because he wasn't competent. Turns out that he is looking competent so far. Astundillo should have caught during his first time up instead  of sitting for 14 days. 

[Bill Brown69]

He didn't catch the first time up because he hadn't caught in AAA for nearly 40 days. 

 

I am not going to shed a singe tear when Molitor is fired but this one is on either the AAA club or the FO.

[nicksaviking]

 

He didn't catch the first time up because he hadn't caught in AAA for nearly 40 days. 

 

I am not going to shed a singe tear when Molitor is fired but this one is on either the AAA club or the FO.

 

Looking at his game logs it looks like at Rochester he caught near exclusively in May, then only had a spot inning or two after June 2nd followed by his MLB promotion on June 30th.

 

Yeah, I guess in June someone looked at the Twins organizational catcher depth and said, "Nah, we're good here".

[Riverbrian]

 

He didn't catch the first time up because he hadn't caught in AAA for nearly 40 days. 

 

I am not going to shed a singe tear when Molitor is fired but this one is on either the AAA club or the FO.

 

 

Looking at his game logs it looks like at Rochester he caught near exclusively in May, then only had a spot inning or two after June 2nd followed by his MLB promotion on June 30th.

 

Yeah, I guess in June someone looked at the Twins organizational catcher depth and said, "Nah, we're good here".

 

The 40 day thing is quite possible because I really don't have another reason that makes sense. 

 

However... the 40 day thing leads to more questions. 

 

1. As Nick says... How do they move him off the plate for 40 days in consideration of our organizational depth chart?

 

2. When you consider that he has over 2000 innings behind the plate does the 40 days really matter. 

 

3. When you consider that the other teams move players around on the fly in the midst of playoff races. Shaw to 2B and Schoop to SS with the Brewers and Indians acquired Josh Donaldson and then moved Jose Ramirez to 2B  and Jason Kipnis to CF to accommodate. Yes it's not catcher but what are they afraid of. 

 

All in all... I don't care about Astundillo... I hope he makes a career for himself but I'm not counting on it. But... I do care about the decisions that Wilson is the primary catcher and Astundillo can't catch as we suffer through a .523 OPS unnecessarily. 

 

So if those 40 days were the reason. It only brings up more concerns and as I watch the Brewers, Indians, Dodgers, Cubs slide players around on a dime while in contention... I'm wondering why we can't when we are out of contention. 

[Oldgoat_MN]

Astudillo currently has an OPS of .802, tied with Rosario.

I'm not sure that will last, but there is no good reason to not be playing him. He puts the ball in play, sometimes for extra bases.

I'm a fan.