Julien getting called up!

[bighat]

Park: "Julien will be called up for the first time on Wednesday to take the roster spot of the injured Joey Gallo, per an industry source." 

https://www.mlb.com/news/edouard-julien-promotion-to-twins

[bighat]

More details here from LENIII: https://www.startribune.com/edouard-julien-joey-gallo-running-game-in-al-central-minnesota-twins-guardians-white-sox-yankees/600266317/

[Nine of twelve]

32 minutes ago, bighat said:

More details here from LENIII: https://www.startribune.com/edouard-julien-joey-gallo-running-game-in-al-central-minnesota-twins-guardians-white-sox-yankees/600266317/

Yep. I posted this last night on two other threads. As is the case for everyone here, I'll be interested to see how he does. I expect his stay to be short and that he'll be the first one to be removed from the 26-man when someone is activated. This reminds me a little of when the Twins called Polanco up from A-ball for a short stint in 2014, one difference being Polanco was only 20 years old at the time.

[Craig Arko]

1 minute ago, Nine of twelve said:

Yep. I posted this last night on two other threads. As is the case for everyone here, I'll be interested to see how he does. I expect his stay to be short and that he'll be the first one to be removed from the 26-man when someone is activated. This reminds me a little of when the Twins called Polanco up from A-ball for a short stint in 2014, one difference being Polanco was only 20 years old at the time.

He may get a little more time; Kepler is likely the first one back from the IL, so Wallner could be the one sent back.

[nicksaviking]

1 hour ago, Craig Arko said:

He may get a little more time; Kepler is likely the first one back from the IL, so Wallner could be the one sent back.

If he hits, there's no reason to send him down and keep Castro up.

[Althebum82]

It is certainly exciting to see this move, although it kinda sucks for the guy who went through all workouts and declared himself ready to get back into action.  Guess they must have thought he was lying.

[wsnydes]

17 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

If he hits, there's no reason to send him down and keep Castro up.

He needs to start hitting then.  He didn't look good last night, in my opinion.

Not that Castro is lighting it up either, but Wallner needs to hit to stay.

[Riverbrian]

18 minutes ago, wsnydes said:

He needs to start hitting then.  He didn't look good last night, in my opinion.

Not that Castro is lighting it up either, but Wallner needs to hit to stay.

You made me look up the Saint's box score from last night. 😄

1 for 2 with a Double and RBI. 😉

 

 

[TopGunn#22]

Well, this solves the search for a leadoff guy, at least in the short term.  But Rocco has to realize this as well.  I'm not a big believer in the philosophy that Julien needs to hit 8th or 9th to take the pressure of batting at the op of the order off him.  He's comfortable there and has the desired approach.  Put him there right away today against the White Sox.   It's interesting that the Sox and Cleveland are off to the races with SB's and Rocco's guys are still handcuffed.  I'll be both the White Sox and Cleveland have more SB's than we've even attempted!

[wsnydes]

19 minutes ago, Riverbrian said:

You made me look up the Saint's box score from last night. 😄

1 for 2 with a Double and RBI. 😉

 

 

I think @nicksavikingwas referring to Wallner in the post that I replied to.  I can read it either way though, so my point could have been wrong based solely off of misinterpreting what Nick said!

I haven't finished my coffee yet.  Cut me some slack! 🤣

[Squirrel]

2 hours ago, Nine of twelve said:

Yep. I posted this last night on two other threads. As is the case for everyone here, I'll be interested to see how he does. I expect his stay to be short and that he'll be the first one to be removed from the 26-man when someone is activated. This reminds me a little of when the Twins called Polanco up from A-ball for a short stint in 2014, one difference being Polanco was only 20 years old at the time.

Depends on who comes back first and how Julien is doing and what flexibility they need. But I would guess Wallner goes down first, for either Gallo or Kepler. When Polanco comes up, it could be either Julien or Castro.

[Craig Arko]

1 hour ago, nicksaviking said:

If he hits, there's no reason to send him down and keep Castro up.

Absolutely; but then there’s Gallo, Polanco, and perhaps Kiriloff not too far behind. Could turn into a nice problem.

[Rik19753]

10 minutes ago, TopGunn#22 said:

Well, this solves the search for a leadoff guy, at least in the short term.  But Rocco has to realize this as well.  I'm not a big believer in the philosophy that Julien needs to hit 8th or 9th to take the pressure of batting at the op of the order off him.  He's comfortable there and has the desired approach.  Put him there right away today against the White Sox.   It's interesting that the Sox and Cleveland are off to the races with SB's and Rocco's guys are still handcuffed.  I'll be both the White Sox and Cleveland have more SB's than we've even attempted!

I love Julien as much as the next guy, but putting him at the top of the lineup right away seems like a little too much. And that's not because of the mental aspect, just that we don't know how quickly he is going to adapt to the majors. I hope he is hitting leadoff in a couple of months, but he needs to prove he belongs there before he can claim the spot.

 

Also, I just realized that while the idea of Julien hitting leadoff is enticing, it is not that different from having Gallo leading off. Both draw a ton of walks, but those come with the downside of a lot of Ks. It's interesting that Julien in my mind seems like a perfect leadoff hitter, but I can't embrace the idea of Gallo hitting leadoff.

[Squirrel]

1 hour ago, nicksaviking said:

If he hits, there's no reason to send him down and keep Castro up.

Wallner will go down for Kepler or Gallo, imo. Wallner needs to play every day, not ride the bench. But I would send Castro down next. But again … it’s going to depend on how well individuals are doing and what role they have and how much playing time they need, etc.

[wsnydes]

And he's in the lineup today!

[LA Vikes Fan]

1 hour ago, wsnydes said:

He needs to start hitting then.  He didn't look good last night, in my opinion.

Not that Castro is lighting it up either, but Wallner needs to hit to stay.

I suspect the next week or so will be the battle to the death to see who stays and who goes when Kepler comes back, followed by the sane when Gallo comes back. Wallner, Julien and Castro have to show something to stay.  So far, Wallner and Castro have not. We'll see what Julien does. my bet is Wallner goes when Kepler is ready unless he gets hot, Castro stays until Polanco is ready, and Julien can only stay if he hits right out of the box and forces a decision. By the way, I'd start hitting if I was Gordon. He's next in line.   

[wsnydes]

12 minutes ago, LA VIkes Fan said:

I suspect the next week or so will be the battle to the death to see who stays and who goes when Kepler comes back, followed by the sane when Gallo comes back. Wallner, Julien and Castro have to show something to stay.  So far, Wallner and Castro have not. We'll see what Julien does. my bet is Wallner goes when Kepler is ready unless he gets hot, Castro stays until Polanco is ready, and Julien can only stay if he hits right out of the box and forces a decision. By the way, I'd start hitting if I was Gordon. He's next in line.   

Battle to the death seems a bit extreme and a waste of a good prospect, but beyond that you're probably not far off.

Unless we're going with Hamilton references like last night's game thread?🙂

[James]

43 minutes ago, LA VIkes Fan said:

I suspect the next week or so will be the battle to the death to see who stays and who goes when Kepler comes back, followed by the sane when Gallo comes back. Wallner, Julien and Castro have to show something to stay.  So far, Wallner and Castro have not. We'll see what Julien does. my bet is Wallner goes when Kepler is ready unless he gets hot, Castro stays until Polanco is ready, and Julien can only stay if he hits right out of the box and forces a decision. By the way, I'd start hitting if I was Gordon. He's next in line.   

Gordon is going to have a really long leash.  I'm betting that they like Castro's versatility so much that he's got a medium length leash.  

Wallner will be sent back to St. Paul when Kepler is ready to come back.

Regardless, way to go Julien.  I'm excited to see him play. 

[LA Vikes Fan]

You're probably right about Gordon and I think that's the right strategy. His hitting last year earned him a longer leash.  I wonder about Castro, though. Yes, he's versatile but with Farmer, Solano and Gordon all on the roster that versatility is less important. He's had over 1000 MLB ABs and has never hit. Plus I beleive he has an option left. think if a Julien or Wallner type hit, Castr's roster spot could be in jeopardy.   

Ahh, at the end of the day injuries will probably make all of this fun roster guessing moot...

[ashbury]

1 hour ago, wsnydes said:

Battle to the death seems a bit extreme and a waste of a good prospect, but beyond that you're probably not far off.

Unless we're going with Hamilton references like last night's game thread?🙂

Burr, that's cold.

[Rod Carews Birthday]

Bringing up Julien sounds like a great thing, but remember, this is his first time up for real games at the MLB level.  I think he will ultimately be fine, but this first time will just be to get his feet wet while there are some injuries to other players.  Let's hope he makes the decision to send him back down more difficult, but there are never guarantees with prospects. 

[ashbury]

11 minutes ago, Rod Carews Birthday said:

but this first time will just be to get his feet wet

That's fine if he comes up and doesn't produce immediately - his career won't be over - but I doubt the FO considers this to be Plan A (for him or for essentially any other callup). Show you belong, and you stay; hit like Wallner and back down you go.

[Craig Arko]

I suppose if Julien lights it up and Miranda does not, there are still options remaining there as well.

[chpettit19]

2 hours ago, TopGunn#22 said:

Well, this solves the search for a leadoff guy, at least in the short term.  But Rocco has to realize this as well.  I'm not a big believer in the philosophy that Julien needs to hit 8th or 9th to take the pressure of batting at the op of the order off him.  He's comfortable there and has the desired approach.  Put him there right away today against the White Sox.   It's interesting that the Sox and Cleveland are off to the races with SB's and Rocco's guys are still handcuffed.  I'll be both the White Sox and Cleveland have more SB's than we've even attempted!

I think we should let him establish that he can actually hit/get on base in the majors before we anoint him the leadoff guy. Being at the bottom of the order still puts him in front of the big bats at the top so can get on base in front of them while he gets his feet wet.

As for stealing bases, it's not just about guys being "handcuffed." It's about this being an incredibly slow roster. Buxton isn't running anymore whether we like it or not. Castro has been terrible at actually getting on base when he actually plays. Gordon has been terrible at getting on base. Not a lot of stolen base threats in the lineup. Getting some of the young guys up over the next year or 2 is what is going to lead to more SBs.

[FlyingFinn]

2 hours ago, Rik19753 said:

I love Julien as much as the next guy, but putting him at the top of the lineup right away seems like a little too much.

Agreed. Especially when he couldn't catch the last flight out of Indianapolis yesterday and had to fly in very early this morning.

[RickOShea]

Let's let Julien breathe.  All this hype and high expectations only crank up the pressure.  He doesn't done jack, yet.  There's enough other guys who need to get going.  But if he does get off to a fast start, best of luck to him.

[ashbury]

2 minutes ago, FlyingFinn said:

Agreed. Especially when he couldn't catch the last flight out of Indianapolis yesterday and had to fly in very early this morning.

Whatever caffeine he took in on the plane should tide him over through today's early game.

[nicksaviking]

3 hours ago, wsnydes said:

I think @nicksavikingwas referring to Wallner in the post that I replied to.  I can read it either way though, so my point could have been wrong based solely off of misinterpreting what Nick said!

I haven't finished my coffee yet.  Cut me some slack! 🤣

I was actually referring to Julien, but I'd take either over Castrol

[Fatbat]

3 hours ago, wsnydes said:

He needs to start hitting then.  He didn't look good last night, in my opinion.

Not that Castro is lighting it up either, but Wallner needs to hit to stay.

Isnt julien 9 for 29 in AAA after starting out 1 for 13? My prediction is castro will be sent down and Julien may not leave if his obp is north of .450

[RpR]

Send Wallner and Julien down and bring up -- any one.