Source: Twins have 1 yr offer to Saunders; never made offer to Marcum

[lightfoot789]

Mets state they have Marcum penciled in as thier 5th starter.

MLB.com Hot Stove | Mets address rotation with addition of Marcum - Video | MLB.com: Multimedia

 

and

 

MLB.com Hot Stove | Saunders looks forward to playing with Ibanez, Morse - Video | MLB.com: Multimedia

[FrodaddyG]

This article explains Ryans plan (satisfactory or not to your thought process) - But explains his philosophy. Let's see how season pans out and if the Twins are a better product. Plus let's see if we get more useable products (AAA prospects) via mid season trades to build upon. Let the man work his plan. Terry Ryan: Minnesota Twins Will Not be Fixed Via Free Agency

The problem with his logic is, you also can't "fix" a team solely through your farm system. The good teams tend to have strong returns on both fronts. They draft well for a solid core of a team, and spend some smart money on the market to supplement their roster holes. Ryan seems content on punting the entire FA aspect of the equation, despite having numerous gaping holes, primarily in the rotation and middle infield. With little help on the near horizon for either of those situations, a little aggression on the free agent front may be the only near-to-mid term way to address them, even if it's with mediocre players that serve as upgrades to the dreck that's been manning the spots in recent years. Build exclusively one-dimensionally, and you get the Royals of the past decade, with always a bunch of prospects "on the verge of breaking out" but never enough to field a competitive team. And then, as soon as another group comes up, the older ones have established themselves and priced their way out of town.

 

Ryan, or anyone trying to defend his inactivity, can claim this was a "weak crop" of FA this year, but does anyone have faith in Ryan making a splash in a "better crop" next year or any year going forward? Good players command more money in the first place, and with revenues going up across the board next year it will likely only add to the prices players will be seeking on the open market. When a GM is notoriously against "overpaying" for free agents, then he's probably not going to be interested in delving into a market which will be rapidly accelerating itself beyond what he considers "fair pricing".

 

We're not in the "Holy cow, Kirby Puckett is making a million dollars a year!" days anymore, much to Ryan's chagrin. Values go up every year, and the contracts he considered "too high" this year will be laughable offers for comparable players going forward. He's still got his "Dome in the late 90's budget" mentality when it comes to spending money, and while trying to find bargains is fine, when you need players to improve significant portions of your roster to, whaddayacallit, "not terrible" standards, you aren't going to find enough of those players by rolling the dice 5 times on guys like Harden whose arm was manufactured in the same factory as Shannon Stewart's hamstrings. Sometimes, you have to pay to bring in some mid-tier guys (unlike Kevin Correia, who still inexplicably got paid more, and for more years, than superior options) to supplement your existing players. On a good team, they're ideally chewing up innings on the back end of the rotation, but on the Twins, they would be key components of the team being less terrible than the past two years. They shouldn't be expected to be world beaters, but they won't be Blackburn, either. (Except Correia, because he very well may be Blackburn 2.0.)

[Highabove]

Ryan is running the Twins as a small market franchise. He cannot do it any other way.

Unfortunately, the small market aspect ends when you step up to the ticket window.

[TheLeviathan]

Don't play ****ty players. Quite the master plan you guys are agreeing on here.

 

Terry Ryan is the GM Fro.....That means he is the general manager.

 

That means Terry Ryan is in charge of general managing the Twins. Who play in Minnesota......that's who he general manages.

 

He has a plan. It's to have players play baseball that he general manages. I believe in him.....afterall....he's generally managing them.

[TheLeviathan]

I truly do agree. Now give me your selling point to that FA as a GM. How do you get a matched offer FA to come here?

 

Let's start with getting our GM to do that much before we worry about the rest.

[old nurse]

In May when Zach Wheeler is pitching lights out in AAA and Wilpon is still needing money Marcum will be available.

[Riverbrian]

Terry Ryan is the GM Fro.....That means he is the general manager.

 

That means Terry Ryan is in charge of general managing the Twins. Who play in Minnesota......that's who he general manages.

 

He has a plan. It's to have players play baseball that he general manages. I believe in him.....afterall....he's generally managing them.

 

You are gonna keep coming... Directly or indirectly... You really want to start something... It's obvious to all what you are doing... Ill just take the punches... And keep asking you to ignore me... My 4th request.

[Brock Beauchamp]

Terry Ryan is the GM Fro.....That means he is the general manager.

 

That means Terry Ryan is in charge of general managing the Twins. Who play in Minnesota......that's who he general manages.

 

He has a plan. It's to have players play baseball that he general manages. I believe in him.....afterall....he's generally managing them.

 

I LOLed.

[Alex]

I truly do agree. Now give me your selling point to that FA as a GM. How do you get a matched offer FA to come here? Everyone is getting on TR about what he is not doing. Tell me your conversation as GM (besides money) to getr FA here. Because players do care about family and other things when it comes to FA signing..

 

Please cite at least one story or report where the Twins matched someone's offer and they went somewhere else simply because it's "Minnesota." Then, find a story where they actually exceeded someone's offer. We have seen people reference stories where the Twins offered less than everyone else or didn't make an offer at all, so where has this idea of competitive offers and then FA turning them down come from simply because its MN?

 

This has become a popular narrative for people defending their lack of spending money with no proof.

[Willihammer]

Sell me (I'm Kyle Loshe and you offered 1 million more than next competitor)..........................Why should I pick MN?

 

yeah, Boras clients. They're so fickle about non-monetary incentives.

 

Give it a rest

[Fanatic Jack]

Darren,

 

Is the best and most honest reporter in the State of Minnesota. KFAN was out of their minds to let him go and KSTP and ESPN 1500 were smart enough to hire him. We the fans are lucky to have him. Most reporters won't report anything negative regarding team moves, but many times he has disagreed with the front office. You just don't see that very often these days. If he said the Twins did not offer Marcum contract, it's a fact, they didn't.

[raindog]

Hey, I happen to enjoy Riverbrian's writing style. It's somehow...magical. And original.

[twinsnorth49]

You are gonna keep coming... Directly or indirectly... You really want to start something... It's obvious to all what you are doing... Ill just take the punches... And keep asking you to ignore me... My 4th request.

 

RB, don't feed the trolls, it's what you're doing just by responding to the snark. It's the childish garbage directed at you that will deter others from coming here, too bad some of the administrators decide to just pile on instead of taking the high road they lecture others to stay on.

[FrodaddyG]

RB, don't feed the trolls, it's what you're doing just by responding to the snark. It's the childish garbage directed at you that will deter others from coming here, too bad some of the administrators decide to just pile on instead of taking the high road they lecture others to stay on.

The number of thin-skinned, easily offended folks on the board are definitely a huge draw to newcomers though. Quite a selling point.

[edavis0308]

The number of thin-skinned, easily offended folks on the board are definitely a huge draw to newcomers though. Quite a selling point.

 

While being condescending towards others.

[twinsnorth49]

The number of thin-skinned, easily offended folks on the board are definitely a huge draw to newcomers though. Quite a selling point.

 

If you're referring to me, you're delusional. Personally I could care less but others that claim they do shouldn't be talking out of both sides of their mouths.

[FrodaddyG]

If you're referring to me, you're delusional. Personally I could care less but others that claim they do shouldn't be talking out of both sides of their mouths.

No, just the folks you're claiming are being "trolled" by having the inanity of their statements called out. God forbid anyone feel the need to speak against mindless drivel in what could be perceived as a "not nice" way. Sometimes the truth is just blunt and unfortunate.

[TheLeviathan]

RB, don't feed the trolls, it's what you're doing just by responding to the snark. It's the childish garbage directed at you that will deter others from coming here, too bad some of the administrators decide to just pile on instead of taking the high road they lecture others to stay on.

 

Um, I'm not trolling, I'm being snarky to a series of posts stuffed with inane nonsense. However, I'm sure posters will flock to this site when they see all kinds of unchallenged 6 paragraph posts that are boiled down to this epic point: "Terry Ryan is GM of the Twins."

 

At some point you have to think about what you're trying to say and if your argument for it makes any sense. Just like any other place where there is a free exchange of ideas, if you can't formulate a meaningful point and then compound it with vapid nonsense - your not going to be taken seriously and you'll face ridicule. We've seen a rash of dumb posts lately ranging from conspiracies to nonsense. That's not going to bring in folks either.

[lightfoot789]

I will share my GM thoughts (not that anyone cares):

If I am going to depend on my Farm system moving forward and like all prospects, you never know who is going to pan out until they do - I am going to purchase high end FAs as they fit in around my Top prospects. I'm not going to spend money on high end FA on a position that could be a position of strength in a year or two. I am going to offer 1 year deals to low risk FAs and see what I have from my young guys in a year. Hicks might end up sucking as might Sano, Arcia and Meyer. Then that opens a whole new market of FAs we might need to sign. Just saying. If we work this approach and have a majority of the team personnel on rookie contracts in a year or two - We can change our 20 year track record and purchase high end need FAs moving forward. Lets work from prospects to FAs instead of purchasing FAs and hoping prospects fit in where needed. This way you have a win win situation. Not this year, but from 2014 until..............

 

My philosophy. I don't want band aid fixes for the next 3 years, because we have too many declining vets with higher than deserved contracts that we are tied to. Everyone is asking for a FO change of philosophy. We got that in last years draft. Let's be patient and see if we overpay for quality Top FA help when truly needed (playoff contenders). Getting excited over 7-10 extra wins right now does nothing for me as a fan. I want to get excited over hard play on the field and player progress from my called up prospects. That's what gets me excited, because then I know good things are coming.

[FrodaddyG]

we have too many declining vets with higher than deserved contracts that we are tied to.

No. The Twins have one. It's Mauer. And he isn't necessarily in the "decline" phase of his career just yet, but he's the only one with a significant contract that carries him beyond 2014. That is nowhere near "too many" long term deals. Jesus Christ.

[twinsnorth49]

C'mon Fro, I appreciate the snark as much as you but there is a difference between speaking out against what you deem to be "mindless drivel" and just gratuitously ridiculing someone. I think Lev made his point earlier, the last one was just being a d**k. I'll take back my troll reference.

[TheLeviathan]

C'mon Fro, I appreciate the snark as much as you but there is a difference between speaking out against what you deem to be "mindless drivel" and just gratuitously ridiculing someone. I think Lev made his point earlier, the last one was just being a d**k. I'll take back my troll reference.

 

I won't make excuses for good snark, especially when someone seems unable to improve their ability to make a meaningful point without a sea of irrelevance surrounding it.

[twinsnorth49]

Um, I'm not trolling, I'm being snarky to a series of posts stuffed with inane nonsense. However, I'm sure posters will flock to this site when they see all kinds of unchallenged 6 paragraph posts that are boiled down to this epic point: "Terry Ryan is GM of the Twins."

 

At some point you have to think about what you're trying to say and if your argument for it makes any sense. Just like any other place where there is a free exchange of ideas, if you can't formulate a meaningful point and then compound it with vapid nonsense - your not going to be taken seriously and you'll face ridicule. We've seen a rash of dumb posts lately ranging from conspiracies to nonsense. That's not going to bring in folks either.

 

You keep referencing what was said in post 64, which you first responded to in post 65 and then again a few posts later and then again almost 30 posts later. I have no problem with you taking issue with what was said and calling someone out, nicely or not, if someone is going to post they have to know how to take a shot, but at what point are you just kicking someone once they're down?

[TheLeviathan]

but at what point are you just kicking someone once they're down?

 

When they improve their content and I keep mocking them. If the points don't get any more meaningful, insightful, interesting, or (god forbid!) well stated, then what do you expect as a poster? I appreciate that you feel the need to police good form in debate, but my snark wouldn't exist if there wasn't a continued lack of intelligent content.

[FrodaddyG]

C'mon Fro, I appreciate the snark as much as you but there is a difference between speaking out against what you deem to be "mindless drivel" and just gratuitously ridiculing someone. I think Lev made his point earlier, the last one was just being a d**k. I'll take back my troll reference.

I'm not one to feel bad for someone who may have their feelings hurt because they state something completely stupid and then have that stupidity pointed out. If they continue to post similarly, then the responses will remain similar. If they bring something more substantial to the table, the response will change in kind. I've seen it happen before, and would imagine it's not impossible that it would happen again.

 

I've known many of these posters for many years, some upwards of a decade, and snarky responses (good natured, playful, or otherwise) is part of their/our makeup. The ones I've known come from a board that had a relatively high level of discourse on most topics, and yes, we can be snippy when some responses fall into the Dickbert-esque soundbite level. There will always be a variety of opinions, but when one side tries to throw out facts, and the other counters with things like "give me a team of Nick Puntos any day of the week, he just knows how to play ball!" (just a hypothetical example) it can be frustrating. Snark is a large portion of this group's natural response to something incredibly vague and mindless being used as a counterpoint to specifics in a discussion. If one half of the discussion doesn't seem to want to make an effort to give a response worth being taken seriously, then the other half probably won't respond with any kind of seriousness.

[The Wise One]

Definitions on Twins Daily

 

"What I said is snarky" meaning: Excuse to be rude

"Troll" Why do you post what I disagree with

"Thin skinned" How dare you call me on my bad behavior.

[raindog]

The poster you guys seem to be rallying against is as good-natured as anyone on this board. It's pretty easy to just skip over his posts if they bother you. There is a difference between being snarky and just being an *******.

[FrodaddyG]

Definitions on Twins Daily

 

"What I said is snarky" meaning: Excuse to be rude

"Troll" Why do you post what I disagree with

"Thin skinned" How dare you call me on my bad behavior.

Go ahead and add "Why are you being mean?" to "why did you call out my stupidity?"

[TheLeviathan]

Go ahead and add "Why are you being mean?" to "why did you call out my stupidity?"

 

Don't forget "Why is it bad to have a different opinion" meaning "Hey, don't call out why my ideas are factually wrong to borderline insane"

[PseudoSABR]

I appreciate that you feel the need to police good form in debate.

Quoted for irony and posterity.