Roster Crunch? Who stays, who goes?

[Major League Ready]

1 hour ago, Jocko87 said:

Taylor isn’t going anywhere. 

Perhaps not and I would not be disappointed if he sticks around.  He does a lot of things right.  That said, Lewis COULD be the ideal complement to Buxton.  He could be close to Taylor defensively and he has a much higher offensive ceiling.  Taylors wRC+ for the last five years is 71/74/76/76/90.  If he stays at 90 that's one thing.  If Lewis comes up and produces 25% above league average like he did in his short stint last year and Taylor goes back to a wRC+ of 75-80 that would warrant moving Taylor and playing Lewis IMO.

A couple other considerations are Taylor is a rental and Lewis is hopefully a huge part of the future.  Then there is the logjam in the infield of other top prospects.  They are going to have to find a spot to play Lewis.

[Mike Sixel]

12 minutes ago, Major League Ready said:

Perhaps not and I would not be disappointed if he sticks around.  He does a lot of things right.  That said, Lewis COULD be the ideal complement to Buxton.  He could be close to Taylor defensively and he has a much higher offensive ceiling.  Taylors wRC+ for the last five years is 71/74/76/76/90.  If he stays at 90 that's one thing.  If Lewis comes up and produces 25% above league average like he did in his short stint last year and Taylor goes back to a wRC+ of 75-80 that would warrant moving Taylor and playing Lewis IMO.

A couple other considerations are Taylor is a rental and Lewis is hopefully a huge part of the future.  Then there is the logjam in the infield of other top prospects.  They are going to have to find a spot to play Lewis.

Center field! I have spoken.

[Hosken Bombo Disco]

Re Buxton playing CF:

At this point, my impression is that Rocco is waiting on the front office for the go ahead, the front office is listening to the training staff, the training staff is waiting to hear from Buxton, Buxton is waiting for Rocco to talk to him, Rocco is waiting for the front office,… 

Who has the courage to untie this Gordian Knot before it turns into a Tarantino film scene? 🙂

[Hosken Bombo Disco]

6 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

Center field! I have spoken.

In my opinion, it was a freak injury. I’m on board. 

[JHelley4]

I don't understand why Willi Castro is still in the MLB, we have Alex KIriloff in AAA who is no doubt ready to rejoin them team whereas Castro is having a terrible season batting .176. Im tired of seeing Castro in the lineup, BRING UP KIRILOFF.

[In My La Z boy]

24 minutes ago, JHelley4 said:

I don't understand why Willi Castro is still in the MLB, we have Alex KIriloff in AAA who is no doubt ready to rejoin them team whereas Castro is having a terrible season batting .176. Im tired of seeing Castro in the lineup, BRING UP KIRILOFF.

Agreed but where does he play? Castro is a bench player. Kirilloff is not. As of today Larnach is leading the team in RBI's and has leftfield. Gallo looks like a comeback player of the year candidate and has 1B. Can't bring Alex back until you have a starting spot for him. 

[JHelley4]

We can platoon him in at 1B and have Taylor not be an everyday starter. Taylor has been good this year but we can all agree Kiriloffs hitting is better. An Outfield of Larnach/Gallo/Kepler also is still a great defensive outfield.

[In My La Z boy]

14 minutes ago, JHelley4 said:

We can platoon him in at 1B and have Taylor not be an everyday starter. Taylor has been good this year but we can all agree Kiriloffs hitting is better. An Outfield of Larnach/Gallo/Kepler also is still a great defensive outfield.

They aren't going to platoon Kirilloff. They want him playing everyday. This front office isn't going to give anyone else CF but Taylor, until Buxton, or until Lewis. Best chance for Alex is displacing Larnach, or if Kepler or Gallo get put back on the IL. No room in the starting 9. Good problem to have I think. Wallner is also coming fast. Obviously this is why all the trade Kepler rumors over the winter. Now here we are.

[JHelley4]

Just now, In My La Z boy said:

They aren't going to platoon Kirilloff. They want him playing everyday. This front office isn't going to give anyone else CF but Taylor, until Buxton, or until Lewis. Best chance for Alex is displacing Larnach, or if Kepler or Gallo get put back on the IL. No room in the starting 9. Good problem to have I think. Wallner is also coming fast. Obviously this is why all the trade Kepler rumors over the winter. Now here we are.

It is a great problem to have, I would rather have more depth pieces than not enough, and you might be right CF is probably reserved for Taylor and Buck, but with how things have been going, I dont see Buck playing CF for a long time. Id say a trade could be coming in the near future.

[tony&rodney]

I suspect this entire discussion revolves around both of Royce Lewis and Alex Kirilloff forcing their way into the lineup. That is, more or less, how the fortunes of baseball players and teams go. Lewis is very athletic and displayed, in a very small sample, that he can hit MLB pitching. The hangup may be finding him a position. Centerfield would be a prime choice, yet Lewis has largely been an infielder and favors the dirt over grass. Potentially, Lewis provides offense and defense. Kirilloff is also pretty athletic, though not at the same level as Lewis. AK plays a decent right field, does fine in left field, and is a smooth first baseman. Kirilloff's real value is a bat that sprays line drives to all fields with power and he projects to hit for average. He is, for sure, unproven at the MLB level. 

First, AK has to continue to demolish minor league pitching and force the Twins to call him up. Then in June we should see Lewis. There will be changes to the roster in the next two weeks. Farmer should return (he is batting second for St. Paul today - first inning fly out to right field) by May 15. Castro is then likely to get sent down. I believe he has an option. Kirilloff's call depends on his bat, injuries, and the play of some Twins. He can force the issue by May 15. If Kirilloff is brought up, I expect that Solano, who has played well, is released or traded. Gordon will escape until either Lewis returns or a trade. Trades are common for players in his situation, but significant trades early in the season are uncommon.

The beauty of it all is that the options are all pretty good if you are a Twins fan. I'm hopeful that the position players can avoid the IL this year, especially long stints.

[In My La Z boy]

3 minutes ago, tony&rodney said:

I suspect this entire discussion revolves around both of Royce Lewis and Alex Kirilloff forcing their way into the lineup. That is, more or less, how the fortunes of baseball players and teams go. Lewis is very athletic and displayed, in a very small sample, that he can hit MLB pitching. The hangup may be finding him a position. Centerfield would be a prime choice, yet Lewis has largely been an infielder and favors the dirt over grass. Potentially, Lewis provides offense and defense. Kirilloff is also pretty athletic, though not at the same level as Lewis. AK plays a decent right field, does fine in left field, and is a smooth first baseman. Kirilloff's real value is a bat that sprays line drives to all fields with power and he projects to hit for average. He is, for sure, unproven at the MLB level. 

First, AK has to continue to demolish minor league pitching and force the Twins to call him up. Then in June we should see Lewis. There will be changes to the roster in the next two weeks. Farmer should return (he is batting second for St. Paul today - first inning fly out to right field) by May 15. Castro is then likely to get sent down. I believe he has an option. Kirilloff's cal depends on his bat, injuries, and the play of some Twins. He can force the issue by May 15. If Kirilloff is brought up, I expect that Solano, who has played well, is released or traded. Gordon will escape until either Lewis returns or a trade. Trades are common for players in his situation, but significant trades early in the season are uncommon.

The beauty of it all is that the options are all pretty good if you are a Twins fan. I'm hopeful that the position players can avoid the IL this year, especially long stints.

Exactly on point! AK will force it, and Falvey won't want to wait too long. Been waiting on AK long enough. Lewis will have much more time, but if he is killing it in his first 3 weeks back playing for St Paul, he'll force it as well. I would expect Buxton back in CF by July, opening up a rotating DH, with Lewis possibly a better defender at 3B than Miranda. Miranda is a great candidate for mostly DH the 2nd half of the year, with Taylor on the bench in my opinion. AK displaces Kepler at some point?

[Major League Ready]

2 hours ago, Mike Sixel said:

Center field! I have spoken.

Are you in favor of Buxton and Lewis sharing the CF position?  Lewis plays a corner OF spot part-time and backs up Correa.  Maybe even plays 3B when needed.

[Nine of twelve]

2 hours ago, JHelley4 said:

We can platoon him in at 1B 

A platoon is starting a RHB against LHP and starting a LHB against a RHP. Kirilloff and Gallo both bat L. There's no platoon there.

[Mike Sixel]

1 hour ago, Major League Ready said:

Are you in favor of Buxton and Lewis sharing the CF position?  Lewis plays a corner OF spot part-time and backs up Correa.  Maybe even plays 3B when needed.

I don't know their plan for Buxton.... But I'm assuming he plays center one third the time, with Lewis the rest. Lewis also backs up CC and Miranda, though Farmer also does that. Perhaps Lewis in a corner vs LHP. I just want him healthy and playing. 

[LA Vikes Fan]

I'm not sure the Twins will put Lewis back in CF given that he got hurt last time he played there on what didn't look like that unusual of an athletic move for an OF.  I think he is more likely to play LF or even 2B with Polanco moving to 1B. We'll know more when we esee what he plays during a rehab stint.  

[chpettit19]

16 minutes ago, LA VIkes Fan said:

I'm not sure the Twins will put Lewis back in CF given that he got hurt last time he played there on what didn't look like that unusual of an athletic move for an OF.  I think he is more likely to play LF or even 2B with Polanco moving to 1B. We'll know more when we esee what he plays during a rehab stint.  

He's currently playing SS and 3B every other day, for 3 innings at a time, in extended spring training. Expected to start a more true rehab assignment in the coming days/week. Last report I saw a couple days ago said Lewis will play infield only for now, but there's a possibility he moves to the outfield later in his rehab. No solid plans beyond starting him at SS and 3B from the sounds of it.

Will definitely be interesting to see what they do with him as he progresses towards the end of the month. I'd bet it depends on what Miranda is looking like for the Twins, and how they think the pieces can all fit together once Lewis is back. Him supplanting Miranda, to me, would not be an ideal situation. They cleared a spot for Miranda, so if he loses it 3 or 4 months into his stint that's not a good sign for him, or the team.

[Thegrin]

How to make room for Kiriloff = Sit Gallo 1 day a week. Sit Larnach 1 day a week. Sit Kepler 1 day a week. Sit Taylor 2 days a week. That gives Kiriloff 5 days a week. Let Rocco figure out who plays where, but play Kiriloff at 1b whenever he plays. :)

 

[Mike Sixel]

5 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

He's currently playing SS and 3B every other day, for 3 innings at a time, in extended spring training. Expected to start a more true rehab assignment in the coming days/week. Last report I saw a couple days ago said Lewis will play infield only for now, but there's a possibility he moves to the outfield later in his rehab. No solid plans beyond starting him at SS and 3B from the sounds of it.

Will definitely be interesting to see what they do with him as he progresses towards the end of the month. I'd bet it depends on what Miranda is looking like for the Twins, and how they think the pieces can all fit together once Lewis is back. Him supplanting Miranda, to me, would not be an ideal situation. They cleared a spot for Miranda, so if he loses it 3 or 4 months into his stint that's not a good sign for him, or the team.

It sure would be disappointing if they feel the need to put him at third.....or SS. I'm baffled by this, frankly. 

[chpettit19]

19 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

It sure would be disappointing if they feel the need to put him at third.....or SS. I'm baffled by this, frankly. 

I'm hoping they're just putting him on the left side of the infield to start because that's what he's used to and they just want him to be comfortable to start and get his groove back before expanding where he plays.

[Riverbrian]

5 hours ago, chpettit19 said:

1. I'm not talking about the offseason, I'm talking about the second half of the year after they'd traded away their best pitcher, and clearly given up on the year. If they had any thought of him being capable of playing SS at the major league level they would've given him more than 8 starts at SS instead of starting Simmons who had no future on the team. But they'd already decided he wasn't good enough to play the left side of the infield in the majors by then.

2. It's not about "role demands." Fine, Kepler should have no say in where he plays. No player should. Forget they're human and that their comfortability in the field leads to better results. Max Kepler is not a good CFer. He's a bad CFer. He always has been. His ability to stand there and catch balls that come right to him doesn't make him a CFer. Same with Gallo. I can go stand in CF and catch routine fly balls if that's all you want. But defense up the middle matters, and those 2 are not good enough CFers to play CF on a regular basis in the majors.

3. ☺️

4. 10 of 11 is not 13, but sure, you could platoon your way to 13 guys who perform well when their matchups are optimized. It's the entire basis of the Rays organization. The Rays are an interesting team to look at. I'll concede they have few platoon splits when they face 11 straight righties, and only have 3 lefties on their roster who can play multiple positions, and a rotating DH spot. But they also start the weak hitting Jose Siri in CF nearly everyday (10 of 13 games he's been healthy for), and only play Josh Lowe out there as a lefty, because they care about defense. They'd never even consider Gallo or Kepler in CF.

Josh Lowe has played 82% of their games against righties. Luke Railey 77%. Brandon Lowe has played 95% (sat 1 out of 22 games) against righties. They're currently in an 11 game stretch (they're likely to have 13 straight games before facing Rich Hill Thursday) of facing only righty starters. Before that those guys had played 91% (10 out of 11 games), 91%, and 100% of games against righties. So when there's any balance to their pitching opponents they platoon hard.

They also have a rotating DH spot with Ramirez being the primary. The Twins have an everyday DH which makes it harder to cycle guys through. That's how we get down to the Twins cycling 4 guys through 3 spots instead of 3 guys through 6 spots (the Rays 3 lefties have played 2B, CF, LF, RF, 1B, and DH). That's how they keep them all over 75% playing time against righties. But the Twins guys can only play LF, RF, 1B, and DH. But, as we just established, DH is off the table right now. So the Twins can't do what the Rays do. Because the Twins don't have lefties who can play up the middle (unless we're fighting to add Gordon to the equation), and Buxton has the DH spot locked down.

1. To me that's a different subject. Once they were out of contention and selling... Simmons remaining to play SS for those two months served no purpose whatsoever. We were out and he wasn't coming back. Those two months with Simmons could have been spent on getting Gordon playing time or Riddle or Lin... or whoever. I don't care who... Simmons was just taking up valuable space at that point. Anybody who might be with the organization next year would have been fine with me. Simmons equaled no future benefit to the club. That's a different subject and I will go on record that I didn't like it. 

Anyway... I think the Twins have moved off of Gordon as a FULL TIME SS, I won't argue that. But, right now... Gordon isn't a FULL TIME anything. We are talking about occasional work at 3B. Which I am willing to bet... He could do without the walls caving in. Since his appearance on the 26 man roster in 2021. He has played SS in 33 games (including two games this year) starting 15 of them. The Walls didn't cave in and they wouldn't at 3B either. Maybe the Twins have transitioned him to other positions but he has still found his way back to the left side of the diamond.   

2. I'm scared to go here. I'm hoping and praying that you are not going to quote Zone Metrics because I don't trust UZR because of the flooding of the routine play, which requires an incredibly large sample size in order to stabilize the effect of a non-routine play. He wasn't terrible as a CF in my opinion. He just wasn't as Good as Buxton. The Twins do play Gordon out in CF... Is Gordon better then Kepler in CF? Is the sample size big enough to make that determination? 

3. 🤧 (Just choosing random emoji's that I never get a chance to use). 

4. I wouldn't use the absolute "Never" on the Rays. They've had Kiermeier for quite some time to play the majority of CF and he is pretty good at it... But over the years you will find Avisail Garcia, Austin Meadows, Tommy Pham, Johnny Field, Randy Arozarena and Vidal Brujan listed as having played CF. Let's just compromise and put Buxton back in CF so we don't have to worry about utilizing CF in my devious plan to give playing time to Kirilloff and others simoultaneously. We could use the DH instead... like normal folks.

On the rest... we are getting deep into the weeds. I'm not talking about name recoginition... I'm talking about actual performance. I believe it is possible to have 11 guys and 2 catchers who deserve every day playing time because they are performing. You will never get there if average play or below average can't yield playing time to others who might be better.       

[chpettit19]

17 minutes ago, Riverbrian said:

1. To me that's a different subject. Once they were out of contention and selling... Simmons remaining to play SS for those two months served no purpose whatsoever. We were out and he wasn't coming back. Those two months with Simmons could have been spent on getting Gordon playing time or Riddle or Lin... or whoever. I don't care who... Simmons was just taking up valuable space at that point. Anybody who might be with the organization next year would have been fine with me. Simmons equaled no future benefit to the club. That's a different subject and I will go on record that I didn't like it. 

Anyway... I think the Twins have moved off of Gordon as a FULL TIME SS, I won't argue that. But, right now... Gordon isn't a FULL TIME anything. We are talking about occasional work at 3B. Which I am willing to bet... He could do without the walls caving in. Since his appearance on the 26 man roster in 2021. He has played SS in 33 games (including two games this year) starting 15 of them. The Walls didn't cave in and they wouldn't at 3B either. Maybe the Twins have transitioned him to other positions but he has still found his way back there.  

2. I'm scared to go here. I'm hoping and praying that you are not going to quote Zone Metrics because I don't trust UZR because of the flooding of the routine play, which requires an incredibly large sample size in order to stabilize the effect of a non-routine play. He wasn't terrible as a CF in my opinion. He just wasn't as Good as Buxton. The Twins do play Gordon out in CF... Is Gordon better then Kepler in CF? Is the sample size big enough to make that determination? 

3. 🤧 (Just choosing random emoji's that I never get a chance to use). 

4. I wouldn't use the absolute "Never" on the Rays. They've had Kiermeier for quite some time to play the majority of CF and he is pretty good at it... But over the years you will find Avisail Garcia, Austin Meadows, Tommy Pham, Johnny Field, Randy Arozarena and Vidal Brujan listed as having played CF. Let's just compromise and put Buxton back in CF so we don't have to worry about utilizing CF in my devious plan to give playing time to Kirilloff and others simoultaneously. We could use the DH instead... like normal folks.

On the rest... we are getting deep into the weeds. I'm not talking about name recoginition... I'm talking about actual performance. I believe it is possible to have 11 guys and 2 catchers who deserve every day playing time because they are performing. You will never get there if average play or below average can't yield playing time to others who might be better.       

1. My point is that the Twins not putting Gordon at SS in 2021 was a sign they'd already determined that's not what he was. I'm all for utility, but putting someone at a position doesn't mean they can play it satisfactorily. Even if the walls don't cave in. Would the team collapse if they put Gordon at 3B 4 times a year? Of course not. But why do it when you have better options?

2. Yes, Gordon is a better CFer than Kepler. I won't quote zone metrics, I'll just say after having watched, and scored, game after game of major league fielding data Max Kepler, and Joey Gallo, are well, well, well below league average CFers. Gordon is slightly below average. I wouldn't put Max or Joey in CF unless it was literally my only option that day. They are truly bad defenders there. Max rarely sprints (it's really weird), and isn't even that fast anymore. The guys truly capable of playing CF have sprint speeds of 28 ft/s. Max is at 27, but isn't the type of athlete who uses it to max efficiency. Nick Gordon is only slightly below average partially because he's a slightly below 28 ft/s runner, and a better athlete who can maximize his speed better. Kepler is very stiff in almost everything he does. Gordon is very loose. Gordon is better.

3.🤝

4. Back to sprint speeds for CFers...everyone you listed there was a 28 ft/s, or better, runner when they played CF for the Rays. And the point of pointing out Kiermeier is that he wasn't a good hitter (ala MAT), but they still put him out there because they were willing to sacrifice bottom of the order offense (like with Siri now) for premium defense at a premium defensive position. The difference in athleticism between the Twins and Rays is startling. But 100% agreed that having Buxton back in CF would solve all of this. I'm ok with their slow rolling of him out there because I think his bat in the order 140 games is better than his glove in CF for 50. But I do expect to see him in CF as the season progresses or it's a gigantic waste of his talents.

I wasn't talking about name recognition either. I'm pointing out that the Rays only have 3 "everyday guys," and the rest are primarily matchup dependent players. A lot of that comes down to our definitions of "everyday guy." To me it's a guy who you don't look at the starting pitcher for the opponent, you just write their name down. Correa, Buxton, Polanco types. The Rays have Diaz, Franco, and Arozarena they do that with. The rest are mix and match players who's performance they're able to maximize by playing matchups. But the Rays are also able to mix and match better than the Twins because of their superior athleticism and ability to move people between more positions without losing defensive abilities. The Twins are corner heavy while the Rays built through the middle. I'm also willing to be the Rays don't maintain their historic rate much longer, either. I agree that a team can have 13 guys all performing well at once. Many teams do at any given time. But maintaining it for an entire season is different. And the ability to mix and match those pieces adds to the complexity of the situation as well. Not to mention the number of comments that would flood gamethreads around here if Rocco started mixing and matching the lineup more than he already does!

[Riverbrian]

9 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

1. My point is that the Twins not putting Gordon at SS in 2021 was a sign they'd already determined that's not what he was. I'm all for utility, but putting someone at a position doesn't mean they can play it satisfactorily. Even if the walls don't cave in. Would the team collapse if they put Gordon at 3B 4 times a year? Of course not. But why do it when you have better options?

2. Yes, Gordon is a better CFer than Kepler. I won't quote zone metrics, I'll just say after having watched, and scored, game after game of major league fielding data Max Kepler, and Joey Gallo, are well, well, well below league average CFers. Gordon is slightly below average. I wouldn't put Max or Joey in CF unless it was literally my only option that day. They are truly bad defenders there. Max rarely sprints (it's really weird), and isn't even that fast anymore. The guys truly capable of playing CF have sprint speeds of 28 ft/s. Max is at 27, but isn't the type of athlete who uses it to max efficiency. Nick Gordon is only slightly below average partially because he's a slightly below 28 ft/s runner, and a better athlete who can maximize his speed better. Kepler is very stiff in almost everything he does. Gordon is very loose. Gordon is better.

3.🤝

4. Back to sprint speeds for CFers...everyone you listed there was a 28 ft/s, or better, runner when they played CF for the Rays. And the point of pointing out Kiermeier is that he wasn't a good hitter (ala MAT), but they still put him out there because they were willing to sacrifice bottom of the order offense (like with Siri now) for premium defense at a premium defensive position. The difference in athleticism between the Twins and Rays is startling. But 100% agreed that having Buxton back in CF would solve all of this. I'm ok with their slow rolling of him out there because I think his bat in the order 140 games is better than his glove in CF for 50. But I do expect to see him in CF as the season progresses or it's a gigantic waste of his talents.

I wasn't talking about name recognition either. I'm pointing out that the Rays only have 3 "everyday guys," and the rest are primarily matchup dependent players. A lot of that comes down to our definitions of "everyday guy." To me it's a guy who you don't look at the starting pitcher for the opponent, you just write their name down. Correa, Buxton, Polanco types. The Rays have Diaz, Franco, and Arozarena they do that with. The rest are mix and match players who's performance they're able to maximize by playing matchups. But the Rays are also able to mix and match better than the Twins because of their superior athleticism and ability to move people between more positions without losing defensive abilities. The Twins are corner heavy while the Rays built through the middle. I'm also willing to be the Rays don't maintain their historic rate much longer, either. I agree that a team can have 13 guys all performing well at once. Many teams do at any given time. But maintaining it for an entire season is different. And the ability to mix and match those pieces adds to the complexity of the situation as well. Not to mention the number of comments that would flood gamethreads around here if Rocco started mixing and matching the lineup more than he already does!

1. Your final question leads us back. "Why would you do it if you have better options". To find better options... Like potentially Kirilloff. 

2. So Anthony Richardson over Dan Marino is what you are saying.

BTW... You are making it really hard to like Kepler. A me first glider is what you are describing.   

3. 🤡

4. I think it comes down to our definitions of every day guy. Logan Morrison played every day... he was an every day guy. In my context... he is not an every day guy. Max Kepler was an every day guy last year... In my context... he was not an every day guy.     

[chpettit19]

12 minutes ago, Riverbrian said:

1. Your final question leads us back. "Why would you do it if you have better options". To find better options... Like potentially Kirilloff. 

2. So Anthony Richardson over Dan Marino is what you are saying.

BTW... You are making it really hard to like Kepler. A me first glider is what you are describing.   

3. 🤡

4. I think it comes down to our definitions of every day guy. Logan Morrison played every day... he was an every day guy. In my context... he is not an every day guy. Max Kepler was an every day guy last year... In my context... he was not an every day guy.     

1. I don't think forcing Gordon into 3B innings is a path to finding better options. The 3B rotation isn't stopping Kirilloff from playing in the majors.

2. Don't like that analogy. The QB position is far more than athleticism, especially when Marino played. But Rodgers over Marino because Rodgers' added athleticism allows him to do things Marino couldn't.

I'm not sure where "me first" comes from outside of him not being comfortable in CF, and thus not wanting to play there. The team also doesn't like to play him there. So they're on the same page. It's fans who want him to play there because he's done it in the past and they assume he's good there because he's good in RF. And they're wrong. The fact that he has done it shows that he's willing to do it if that's what's asked of him. But speaking up and saying he's not comfortable doing it is just being a good communicator, and I don't see it as me first.

3. 🧞‍♂️

4. Neither of those guys are everyday guys to me either. That's my point. Brandon Lowe isn't an everyday guy because he can't/shouldn't hit against lefties. Him being successful because he avoids hitting against lefties doesn't make his overall numbers worthy of everyday play. I can concede that Kepler is an "everyday a righty pitches" guy right now. I think Gallo and Larnach are on the border of being everyday guys, even though Larnach is probably a step down right now. Kyle Garlick having 102 and 103 OPS+ the last 2 years doesn't mean he's an everyday guy because he only did damage against lefties. So I'll say I've probably used "everyday guy" incorrectly when speaking of the current lefties and Kirilloff. Right now they're all "everyday vs righties guys." And they just don't have room for that many guys because of Buxton at DH.

PS. thanks for this fun, civil, respectful back and forth.

[Riverbrian]

23 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

1. I don't think forcing Gordon into 3B innings is a path to finding better options. The 3B rotation isn't stopping Kirilloff from playing in the majors.

2. Don't like that analogy. The QB position is far more than athleticism, especially when Marino played. But Rodgers over Marino because Rodgers' added athleticism allows him to do things Marino couldn't.

I'm not sure where "me first" comes from outside of him not being comfortable in CF, and thus not wanting to play there. The team also doesn't like to play him there. So they're on the same page. It's fans who want him to play there because he's done it in the past and they assume he's good there because he's good in RF. And they're wrong. The fact that he has done it shows that he's willing to do it if that's what's asked of him. But speaking up and saying he's not comfortable doing it is just being a good communicator, and I don't see it as me first.

3. 🧞‍♂️

4. Neither of those guys are everyday guys to me either. That's my point. Brandon Lowe isn't an everyday guy because he can't/shouldn't hit against lefties. Him being successful because he avoids hitting against lefties doesn't make his overall numbers worthy of everyday play. I can concede that Kepler is an "everyday a righty pitches" guy right now. I think Gallo and Larnach are on the border of being everyday guys, even though Larnach is probably a step down right now. Kyle Garlick having 102 and 103 OPS+ the last 2 years doesn't mean he's an everyday guy because he only did damage against lefties. So I'll say I've probably used "everyday guy" incorrectly when speaking of the current lefties and Kirilloff. Right now they're all "everyday vs righties guys." And they just don't have room for that many guys because of Buxton at DH.

PS. thanks for this fun, civil, respectful back and forth.

1. Going back full circle to the original post that started the Gordon at 3B discussion.

The 3B rotation is stopping Kirilloff IFGordon can't fill in for Farmer when Farmer fills in for Correa or Miranda when either of them are placed on the DL. LOL... You gotta go back about 5 pages to find the original post that started this. 

2. I love the analogy because Dan Marino is like 80 years old now. 

It's too late... I've already branded Kepler as a me first glider... this can't be repaired. This is what happens on social media.

3. 🥶

4. I'm a simple guy. If you are going to prevent playing time for others. You better be killing it. It's also clear that I am much more defensively adventurous. I want to find some .900 OPS guys.  

[Nine of twelve]

2 hours ago, LA VIkes Fan said:

Polanco moving to 1B.

Really? We're trying to fit Gallo and Kirilloff both in the lineup, they both play 1B, and you are suggesting making it more difficult to do that by putting Polanco there, even though he has essentially no experience there? I'm afraid I don't understand.

[chpettit19]

1 minute ago, Riverbrian said:

1. Going back full circle to the original post that started the Gordon at 3B discussion.

The 3B rotation is stopping Kirilloff is Gordon can't fill in for Farmer when Farmer fills in for Correa or Miranda when either of them are placed on the DL. LOL... You gotta go back about 5 pages to find the original post that started this. 

2. I love the analogy because Dan Marino is like 80 years old now. 

It's too late... I've already branded Kepler as a me first glider... this can't be repaired. This is what happens on social media.

3. 🥶

4. I'm a simple guy. If you are going to prevent playing time for others. You better be killing it. It's also clear that I am much more defensively adventurous. I want to find some .900 OPS guys.  

I'm all for finding some .900 OPS guys. You're talking a top 10-20 hitter in baseball. I, unfortunately, don't think the Twins are sitting on any surprise top 10 bats, though. Buxton is their best bet, but his body doesn't seem to want to let him be a full season top 10 guy if he also plays in the field.

If Wallner is sufficient depth I'd be good with moving Kepler now for a lottery ticket (maybe Yanks want him with all their injuries?) to get Kirilloff up. But I'm not willing to destroy their defense by running Kepler or Gallo in CF. We'll see what the FO is willing to do to get him up here.

[Squirrel]

How soon before Farmer is ready and activated?

[Craig Arko]

19 minutes ago, Squirrel said:

How soon before Farmer is ready and activated?

He played his first rehab game for the Saints today, going 0-3. Maybe a week or so?

[Jocko87]

32 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

I'm all for finding some .900 OPS guys. You're talking a top 10-20 hitter in baseball. I, unfortunately, don't think the Twins are sitting on any surprise top 10 bats, though. Buxton is their best bet, but his body doesn't seem to want to let him be a full season top 10 guy if he also plays in the field.

If Wallner is sufficient depth I'd be good with moving Kepler now for a lottery ticket (maybe Yanks want him with all their injuries?) to get Kirilloff up. But I'm not willing to destroy their defense by running Kepler or Gallo in CF. We'll see what the FO is willing to do to get him up here.

Kiriloff is the .900 OPS guy, don't hate me for optimism.  I'm more of a WAR guy if I have pick one number.  Give me a couple more 4 WARs and we can go to war.

[Jocko87]

24 minutes ago, Squirrel said:

How soon before Farmer is ready and activated?

I fell like hes a sooner than later guy for this injury.  Once the molars stop throbbing its mostly mental and I haven't heard a whiff of hesitation from him.  He probably needs to see a few pitches come up and in to be comfortable and he'll be ready.  They may use some of the 20 day rehab for roster flexibility as well.