Front Office thoughts, in light of the Gordon trade

[nicksaviking]

3 minutes ago, Jeff K said:

It certainly appears that the Twins are in a good position to re-sign Taylor as he is a very good fit.  I've read that he was looking for $9 Million +/-.  With spring training gearing up, I would think the Twins could sign him for $7 million and that seems like a good spend.  They can address starting pitching (if needed) by the trade deadline.

There's only one nebulous spot for a bat on the 26-man roster, and if they give it to a guy with a MLB contract, that means the Twins are going to have to demote Lewis, Julien, Wallner, Jeffers or Kirilloff should they get into a bind.

And Taylor had a dreadful OBP of .278 and struck out in 33% of his plate appearances last year, I don't see how that's a fit for this strikeout challenged team.

[DJL44]

11 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

There's only one nebulous spot for a bat on the 26-man roster, and if they give it to a guy with a MLB contract, that means the Twins are going to have to demote Lewis, Julien, Wallner, Jeffers or Kirilloff should they get into a bind.

And Taylor had a dreadful OBP of .278 and struck out in 33% of his plate appearances last year, I don't see how that's a fit for this strikeout challenged team.

If they get into a bind that probably means someone is going on the injured list, which opens up the roster spot. Also, Willi Castro still has an option.

Taylor is a better fit than Austin Martin. The projection systems have their expected contribution at the plate as basically even but Taylor is a much better fielder. That said, Taylor is probably worth less than $5M to the Twins.

[nicksaviking]

9 minutes ago, DJL44 said:

If they get into a bind that probably means someone is going on the injured list, which opens up the roster spot. Also, Willi Castro still has an option.

Taylor is a better fit than Austin Martin. The projection systems have their expected contribution at the plate as basically even but Taylor is a much better fielder. That said, Taylor is probably worth less than $5M to the Twins.

The projection systems rate a player with their overall numbers. The Twins need to be concerned with specific numbers based on how the rest of the roster shapes up, most importantly strikeouts and OBP; Taylor will hurt the team there.

[bird]

40 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

There's only one nebulous spot for a bat on the 26-man roster, and if they give it to a guy with a MLB contract, that means the Twins are going to have to demote Lewis, Julien, Wallner, Jeffers or Kirilloff should they get into a bind.

And Taylor had a dreadful OBP of .278 and struck out in 33% of his plate appearances last year, I don't see how that's a fit for this strikeout challenged team.

Austin Martin, please. Please!

[nicksaviking]

4 minutes ago, bird said:

Austin Martin, please. Please!

I mean it really doesn't matter to me. The 3rd CF can be treated like the emergency starters for all I care. Use Buxton and Castro as needed in CF, and if one goes down, call up Martin or perhaps even more likely Keirsey. They'll probably still get another defensive guy like Taylor to stick in St. Paul too.

This team needs offense, I don't think they should be wasting more roster space on glove only players until they need to.

[stringer bell]

26 minutes ago, bird said:

Austin Martin, please. Please!

There's certainly a path for Martin to make the Opening Day roster. What I would think is important and, at this point, undetermined is how good a defender Martin is in center field. If he is better in center than Willi Castro, I think it enhances his case to make the team, particularly because it then frees Castro to be a true super utility guy, with no assigned position, but who can get playing time at five different spots. 

Martin has to show something in camp, both with his glove and his bat. I think the closest thing to a certainty is that he will be a good base runner. 

[stringer bell]

23 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

I mean it really doesn't matter to me. The 3rd CF can be treated like the emergency starters for all I care. Use Buxton and Castro as needed in CF, and if one goes down, call up Martin or perhaps even more likely Keirsey. They'll probably still get another defensive guy like Taylor to stick in St. Paul too.

This team needs offense, I don't think they should be wasting more roster space on glove only players until they need to.

First of all, as a fan of Willi Castro, I don't want to see him tied to center field. It's not his best defensive position and his biggest defensive asset is his versatility, so I would hope that Willi is the 3rd CF. While every club needs to score runs, I don't think the Twins have a glaring need to add an offensive asset in center. They have one is Byron Buxton is healthy and in center. I think it is important that his backup be more than passable as a defender. I think Willi Castro just gets there, so I would hope for something better, be it from re-signing MAT or employing Martin (or Keirsey) as the backup.

Whoever wins the 26th spot on the team will need to show they can hit and field well enough to belong in the majors. I'd prefer it is someone already in the organization and the only non-organization guy I see filling that role is Michael A Taylor.

[Rosterman]

It was a curious transaction. 

Was there a spot for Gordon?

What was his worth?

Did the Twins seek out another left-handed arm for the bullpen?

Who made overtures to each other first...Miami looking for a low-cost infielder/bench bat.? Or the Twins seeing too many lefties on the Marlins roster?

I still think Gordon was being made available for a modest return sa the Twins elt there were others to replace him. Assuming, of course, that Kyle Farmer stays with the team, and that is ALMOST a lock with the two-year extension.

Things have now become quite complicated. Is there ANYONE who could go on the 60-man list? Of course, things like this occur in spring training. If the Twins added a bench bat, who would be dropped from the 18, or would it come from the pen. If the Twins also added a starter, who else would be removed from the roster.

Right now, with Weiss sitting on the 40-man, the Twins basically have ONE roster spot that can be a swing thru if they decide to rotate anyone thru for the bullpen. Not much left to tinker with, without making hardline decisions on Sands, Winder, Headrick.

[bird]

21 hours ago, nicksaviking said:

I mean it really doesn't matter to me. The 3rd CF can be treated like the emergency starters for all I care. Use Buxton and Castro as needed in CF, and if one goes down, call up Martin or perhaps even more likely Keirsey. They'll probably still get another defensive guy like Taylor to stick in St. Paul too.

This team needs offense, I don't think they should be wasting more roster space on glove only players until they need to.

This is simply a gut instinct based on reading a few descriptions of Martin’s skill set (as opposed to potentially misleading stats): I can imagine the field evaluators projecting Martin’s offense as superior to both Gordon and Castro even. And seeing his CF defense as superior to both.

Additionally, it’s my view that the Twins need a bump in OBP more than they need a bump in SLG or even OPS.

so Austin Martin, please. Please!

[nicksaviking]

10 minutes ago, bird said:

This is simply a gut instinct based on reading a few descriptions of Martin’s skill set (as opposed to potentially misleading stats): I can imagine the field evaluators projecting Martin’s offense as superior to both Gordon and Castro even. And seeing his CF defense as superior to both.

Additionally, it’s my view that the Twins need a bump in OBP more than they need a bump in SLG or even OPS.

so Austin Martin, please. Please!

I agree with this part. I'm all on board the HR train, but they have to cut down on the strikeouts; guys who regularly put the ball in play are needed.

[Linus]

6 hours ago, bird said:

This is simply a gut instinct based on reading a few descriptions of Martin’s skill set (as opposed to potentially misleading stats): I can imagine the field evaluators projecting Martin’s offense as superior to both Gordon and Castro even. And seeing his CF defense as superior to both.

Additionally, it’s my view that the Twins need a bump in OBP more than they need a bump in SLG or even OPS.

so Austin Martin, please. Please!

I think going with Martin is viable. I still view him as a valuable prospect so wherever he lands he needs to play a lot 

[stringer bell]

1 hour ago, Linus said:

I think going with Martin is viable. I still view him as a valuable prospect so wherever he lands he needs to play a lot 

I would consider platoon work in left field plus being the first sub for Buxton no matter which hand the pitcher uses to throw would be enough playing time to keep Martin with the Twins. Right handed hitters usually aren't as prone to large platoon splits, especially guys like Martin who make a lot of contact. 

[DocBauer]

On 2/15/2024 at 12:18 PM, stringer bell said:

First of all, as a fan of Willi Castro, I don't want to see him tied to center field. It's not his best defensive position and his biggest defensive asset is his versatility, so I would hope that Willi is the 3rd CF. While every club needs to score runs, I don't think the Twins have a glaring need to add an offensive asset in center. They have one is Byron Buxton is healthy and in center. I think it is important that his backup be more than passable as a defender. I think Willi Castro just gets there, so I would hope for something better, be it from re-signing MAT or employing Martin (or Keirsey) as the backup.

Whoever wins the 26th spot on the team will need to show they can hit and field well enough to belong in the majors. I'd prefer it is someone already in the organization and the only non-organization guy I see filling that role is Michael A Taylor.

I agree on Castro. But I'm also OK with him as the daily backup. That mean, Buck needs a day off, Castro plays there. I don't want Castro for more than a day or two. It decreases his overall value to the club, and hurts the defense, at least a little. The good news is you can make a roster move the next day if you needed to bring someone up if there's something more long term that happens.

I've been really torn on the whole RH-OF to promote or bring on board. On the one hand, Taylor is about as good as it gets in CF, and that's important. He offers additional speed to go along with a little bit of pop/power. Had his back been healthier in 2023 I think you would have seen more SB. He's not a great hitter and he sort of sold out for HR power, but that defense and speed are hard to dispute. On the other hand, with Castro as a back up and Martin in St Paul ready to be promoted whenever needed, maybe what they really need is Duvall. He's not a great hitter, but he's a solid hitter. I actually like his mostly neutral splits as that means if he's needed for an extended time, you don't have to worry about his offense going in to the garbage. 

I used to lean strong toward Taylor...now I think I'm leaning more toward the power bat, whoever it might be, but Duvall might be the best choice.

I'm excited about Martin after what he did in the AFL and his third of a season last year for the Saints. But I wasn't overly thrilled with his .263 AVG even with the great OB%. And only a third of the year in his first season at AAA gives me some pause. I'd rather spend a few $M for a solid veteran and let Martin get in a little more work and experience with St Paul to begin the season. I'm just not sure if that guy should be a speed-defense guy, or a power guy.