One of Rocco Baldelli’s Apparent Strengths Can Also Be a Major Weakness

[TopTwinsFan]

The only surprising thing about Baldelli is that he is still the manager of the team. What a shame that he has destroyed another baseball season. Its stunning to believe that his bosses and many on this site love him so much. Do they love Baldelli more than Twins success.

I pointed out about 2 weeks ago that he had harmed the Twins beyond belief this season. Watching it play out before my eyes is disgusting.

What to do when you love your team and baseball but your team has no interest in winning?

Baldiball is a daily pain.

I know, a lot of you love it. But for those of us who want the Twins to win, its extremely hard to swallow.

[TopTwinsFan]

6 hours ago, CRF said:

Strengths? His weakness...is his biggest weakness. 

You just need to dumb yourself down a bit more and you will grow to love Baldelli.

[TopTwinsFan]

Baldiball:

When management gives its fans the middle finger.

Come on down and watch how the worst manager in Twins history breaks your heart and your team.

[Doctor Gast]

IMO it's more in Margot's case it's more obeying marching orders of putting Margot in certain situations than trust.

[old nurse]

2 hours ago, nicksaviking said:

They fired Gardenhire after things got stale, and then did the same with Molitor even just one year removed from a playoff appearance. In both cases I was in favor of the moves, not necessarily because the managers did anything wrong, but because firing the manager tends to be one of the most effective moves when it comes to motivating under-performing players. The situation is similar now and it's easier and cheaper to replace the manager than a dozen players.

However I agree, Baldelli likely isn't going anywhere for the simple reason that he's still under contract and with ownership crying poor, I don't see them paying two managers next year.

But what if the players are pretty much playing up to their capabilities?

[TopTwinsFan]

I will be rooting for them tonight but I love the Twins to much to watch unless they are winning big. Rocco has abused me enough for one season.

I have devoted hundreds of hours in 2024 to this season. This should be the most fun part of the year. 

Instead its an intelligent Twins fans worst nightmare: Baldiball.

Crushing your team and fans with gut wrenchingly bad decisions until watching the Twins feels like watching a car crash in slow motion.

He is every bit as bad a game day coach as PJ Fleck. Maybe worse

One day, probably many years from now, all we can hope for is a manager who helps us win. Rocco has become an expert at the opposite.

[old nurse]

2 hours ago, USAFChief said:

Including the WS.

So you thought at the start of the season the had a World Series team?

[TopTwinsFan]

2 minutes ago, Doctor Gast said:

IMO it's more in Margot's case it's more obeying marching orders of putting Margot in certain situations than trust.

Being shrouded in a cloud of mystery is how accountability can be avoided in Twins management. Even Baldellis contract is a mystery. 

Business keeps things secret when they dont want you to know.

Especially convenient when you get no sense that anyone in the Twins ownership/upper management really cares about winning.

[old nurse]

2 hours ago, nicksaviking said:

They fired Gardenhire after things got stale, and then did the same with Molitor even just one year removed from a playoff appearance. In both cases I was in favor of the moves, not necessarily because the managers did anything wrong, but because firing the manager tends to be one of the most effective moves when it comes to motivating under-performing players. The situation is similar now and it's easier and cheaper to replace the manager than a dozen players.

However I agree, Baldelli likely isn't going anywhere for the simple reason that he's still under contract and with ownership crying poor, I don't see them paying two managers next year.

This FO never wanted Molitor as the manager. They did nothing to improve the team so he couldn;t replicate his first season. Baldeli may well be gone after this year with all of the DFAs they gave him for a bullpen. 

[TopTwinsFan]

2 minutes ago, old nurse said:

So you thought at the start of the season the had a World Series team?

Could the Twins win a WS with a good manager. Of course, any playoff can. But not with a historically bad manager. The worst game day manager I have ever seen in baseball. Not even close.

To be clear, it would GREATLY increase their probabilty. 

Putting guys in situations to succeed is incredily important. Baldelli has no concept of this. 

AND I MEAN HE HAS NO CONCEPT. Its stunning how little he understands human emotions.

His management is so bad he has sucked the life out of the team. They walk out on the field now and expect to lose.

BALDIBALL. Sucks to be us.

[Rosterman]

I just can't figure out his lineup construction, or his situational need to use the bullpen the way he does.

When your bench players have as many at bats as the regulars, well, that means a lot of inuries... maybe.

Resting guys the next day after a good game. Playing the pitch count rule, then NOT doing it next time out. 

But also must deal with the hand dealt. You have to trust ALL the players you have, in the end. It is what you have. No reason to have them in the dugout or the pen if they are not ready to be put on the field, I guess. 

[mikelink45]

2 hours ago, Greggory Masterson said:

I'll always take an opportunity to try to apply psychological principles to real-life teams when it presents itself. Working through them in writing, even if it's seen as filler, is a good exercise.

I am fine with it. It just seems like trying to hard to explain that some things just aren't working.  

[USAFChief]

53 minutes ago, old nurse said:

So you thought at the start of the season the had a World Series team?

I did not. Did anyone?

That seems like more of a prosecution argument than any kind of defense. 

 

[S Bart]

Can somebody at least ask Baldelli to trim his beard? 

[HarmonK03]

1 hour ago, Rosterman said:

I just can't figure out his lineup construction, or his situational need to use the bullpen the way he does.

When your bench players have as many at bats as the regulars, well, that means a lot of inuries... maybe.

Resting guys the next day after a good game. Playing the pitch count rule, then NOT doing it next time out. 

But also must deal with the hand dealt. You have to trust ALL the players you have, in the end. It is what you have. No reason to have them in the dugout or the pen if they are not ready to be put on the field, I guess. 

They have no regular players other than Correa and Buxton when healthy.  And Santana because he is a switch hitter.  Every other player on the roster is a role player and they think that they can just put them in a matchup or position and they will be successful because it looks good on paper.

[IndyTwinsFan]

5 hours ago, nicksaviking said:

Sorry, but I can't get behind the unconditional trust angle, because for every instance he trusts a player, he also distrusts another.

His trust in Margot to pinch hit is offset by his distrust in Wallner to stay in the lineup. His trust in Cole Irvin or Caleb Theilbar or Ronny Hernandez is offset by his distrust of the starting pitcher.

I think another factor to consider is that the overall "quality" of most of so-called fringe players on the roster generally leaves a lot to be desired.  I doubt that Rocco has a large say on the composition of the roster he has to work with from game to game and that means that the replacement for that situation is oftentimes less than optimal. 

I view it more as he's throwing things up against the wall, in the hopes that something will stick, because he doesn't have very good options available to him most of the time.  To me, that's primarily a fault of the ownership and front office and not directly him.

You can only play with what you have and Rocco oftentimes doesn't have much quality to play with.  I think that has a lot to do with the continued Margot pinch hitting opportunities, among other things. 

While a valid concern, the lack of trust he appears to sometimes have with his younger players is a different story line to be debated separately. 

[Gagnerules]

5 hours ago, Peter said:

Rocco/FO aren’t going anywhere 

Peter if they miss the playoffs they are all done.

[IndyTwinsFan]

2 hours ago, TopTwinsFan said:

Being shrouded in a cloud of mystery is how accountability can be avoided in Twins management. Even Baldellis contract is a mystery. 

Business keeps things secret when they dont want you to know.

Especially convenient when you get no sense that anyone in the Twins ownership/upper management really cares about winning.

That last statement is a mindset I've had regarding this team since long before this season began.  It appears to me that the profit margin largely overrules seemingly everything else.

[nicksaviking]

9 minutes ago, IndyTwinsFan said:

I think another factor to consider is that the overall "quality" of most of so-called fringe players on the roster generally leaves a lot to be desired.  I doubt that Rocco has a large say on the composition of the roster he has to work with from game to game and that means that the replacement for that situation is oftentimes less than optimal. 

I view it more as he's throwing things up against the wall, in the hopes that something will stick, because he doesn't have very good options available to him most of the time.  To me, that's primarily a fault of the ownership and front office and not directly him.

You can only play with what you have and Rocco oftentimes doesn't have much quality to play with.  I think that has a lot to do with the continued Margot pinch hitting opportunities, among other things. 

While a valid concern, the lack of trust he appears to sometimes have with his younger players is a different story line to be debated separately. 

I don't disagree. I put most of the blame on ownership. Pulling the plug on spending on good MLB players is the biggest factor here. They took their foot off of the gas when it looked like this team had a shot at winning the race if they only floored it instead.

But I am tired of Baldelli continually throwing the same things against the wall that he has already seen don't stick, instead of seeing if something new will. I mean, Wallner only has seven hits against left handers this year, but that is still incalculably a higher percentage than Margot has hits as a pinch hitter. 

[IndyTwinsFan]

1 minute ago, nicksaviking said:

I don't disagree. I put most of the blame on ownership. Pulling the plug on spending on good MLB players is the biggest factor here. They took their foot off of the gas when it looked like this team had a shot at winning the race if they only floored it instead.

But I am tired of Baldelli continually throwing the same things against the wall that he has already seen don't stick, instead of seeing if something new will. I mean, Wallner only has seven hits against left handers this year, but that is still incalculably a higher percentage than Margot has hits as a pinch hitter. 

I don't disagree with your second point.

[HarmonK03]

9 minutes ago, nicksaviking said:

I don't disagree. I put most of the blame on ownership. Pulling the plug on spending on good MLB players is the biggest factor here. They took their foot off of the gas when it looked like this team had a shot at winning the race if they only floored it instead

Are you talking about the spending from last year where they spent $11m on Gallo.  While ownership deserves their share of blame, this front office has shown a spotty track record on utilizing their resources in an efficient manner.  Should the payroll be at $200 just for the sake of it, I would prefer we get a front office that knows how to run a major league franchise and give them the resources needed.

[mrcharlie]

Rocco.  It's all been said.  However, he will only  be let go if FO is shaken up.  Our best hope is the coaching staff is shaken up.  Maki needs to go for sure.  If pitchers aren't prepared to do their job then poor leadership is a cause.  Same of who ever coaches base running and defense...poor preparation leads to what we have seen Way Too Often this season.

[killertwinfan]

Thank you for pointing out one of Rocco’s strengths. I didn’t know he had any! Unfortunately, I am not convinced this is a strength. Boo Twins! Especially the ownership and front office.

[nicksaviking]

3 minutes ago, karcherd said:

Are you talking about the spending from last year where they spent $11m on Gallo.  While ownership deserves their share of blame, this front office has shown a spotty track record on utilizing their resources in an efficient manner.  Should the payroll be at $200 just for the sake of it, I would prefer we get a front office that knows how to run a major league franchise and give them the resources needed.

They also signed Correa and extended Lopez. Gallo and those other mid level and lower free agents are the problem. They could have kept Sonny Gray or acquired a similar pitcher and basically kept the same payroll as last year; far less than 200M.

I agree that the front office is being inefficient though, specifically with platooning. Two players to do one job? That's a bad use of roster space. One player to do one job and then you can build your bench to be more flexible and more productive.

[Pat]

The idea that everybody, except for one or two guys, is a role player can lead to inconsistent play.  If you want a player to be regular player who gets 500 at bats, he has to play. If everyone is platoon player, they really will never get enough at bats to be effective in all situations.  "He can't hit lefty's so he doesn't hit against them .  He doesn't hit against lefty's so he can't hit lefty's," It becomes a self fulfilling prophecy.  A regular lineup with regular players has a greater chance of being consistent over the long run.

The Margot thing is beyond malpractice.  Idiocy.

[h2oface]

Rocco Baldelli = bench coach.

[Mark G]

"If you trust everyone, do you really trust anyone?"

That said it all for me.  

I have to go with Bigfork Twins Guy; the trust isn't in the players, it is in the system.  The players are interchangeable; the system isn't.  A player gets hurt, you call someone up.  A player leaves in free agency, you sign a different free agent.  But the system doesn't change.  And it won't until the people behind the system are changed.  As always, stay tuned to this site for further updates.  

[Mark G]

11 hours ago, karcherd said:

They have no regular players other than Correa and Buxton when healthy.  And Santana because he is a switch hitter.  Every other player on the roster is a role player and they think that they can just put them in a matchup or position and they will be successful because it looks good on paper.

BINGO!

[Twins_Fan_in_NJ]

'Trust' is just a euphemism for 'no feel for the game'. 

Rocco's married to his spreadsheets and it feels as if he goes into the game with a script and he sticks to that script regardless of what's happening on the field.

[TwinsChupacabra]

Simply, Rocco is the worst manager in Twins history.  Ray Miller used to be that guy.  But when he sucked, they fired him right away.  If Rocco stays, you'll continue to see articles like this one.  I was hoping the attendance issue would lead to change (including the front office).  It won't as they are content as a mediocre franchise.