Does Trevor Plouffe Fit Into The Twins' Plans?

[Chris Schad]

You've heard Morneau, Perkins and others mentioned in trade talks, but the writing on the wall is that it may be Plouffe who gets moved.

 

Y! SPORTS

 

You'll see the link in the article above, but Jeremy Nygaard mentioned on Twitter that the Angels could be a possible destination...I see it this way.

 

- Trade Plouffe for a prospect and let Carroll man third until September. If Sano's current .195 average at Double-A rises in the next month-and-change, call him up in September like they did with Parmelee and Benson a couple years ago.

 

Only issue I see with that is his arbitration clock, but if that's the case then Plouffe will be gone next July.

[gunnarthor]

I think Plouffe, like Perkins, can be traded but only if the offer is pretty high. Even with Sano, Plouffe might be used at 1B, a corner OF spot or DH. I wouldn't want to give him away. And a few teams could certainly use him - Yankees, Angels, maybe Cleveland.

[Craig Arko]

Sano isn't ready yet. I do think this discussion will be taking place seriously within a year from now, though.

[ThePuck]

I think Plouffe ends up at 1B when Morny is gone and Sano comes up. When both of those are a reality, he should move. He's a bad defensive 3B, but could pull a Garvey and end up a pretty good defensive 1B after moving from 3B.

[jorgenswest]

If Sano can't handle 3B, where will the Twins turn without Plouffe?

 

Romero? He is 26. He is not tearing up AAA. I don't think there is a good option.

 

Anyone can be traded for the right offer but like Perkins, Plouffe is part of the solution. I don't think the Twins should be actively trying to move him.

[TheLeviathan]

Frankly, I think Plouffe's future is as a valuable reserve. That said, you don't deal him now - too cheap, potential to put things together and be more than that, and not particularly valuable right now.

 

Not a good recipe.

[jun]

No doubt Plouffe is a good hitter, he could be a good DH, 1B or utility guy when Morneau is gone. He is just not as young as Arcia and Hicks. I would not trade Plouffe and Perkins this season.

[diehardtwinsfan]

Plouffe should absolutely be in the Twins plans. He can play all infield positions as well as corner outfiled and has a bat that at worst will be league average at the offensive positions. He's also under team control for several more years. He should not be moved unless they are blown away.

 

As it is now, the premise that there are better options all across the diamond is true. But Plouffe has done one thing that none of these other prospects have yet to do... he's succeeded at the ML level. I don't think he gets traded until our prospects force the issue and he has nowhere to go, as he can be plugged into whatever open spot occupied by a failed prospect.

[ThePuck]

Plouffe should absolutely be in the Twins plans. He can play all infield positions as well as corner outfiled and has a bat that at worst will be league average at the offensive positions. He's also under team control for several more years. He should not be moved unless they are blown away.

 

As it is now, the premise that there are better options all across the diamond is true. But Plouffe has done one thing that none of these other prospects have yet to do... he's succeeded at the ML level. I don't think he gets traded until our prospects force the issue and he has nowhere to go, as he can be plugged into whatever open spot occupied by a failed prospect.

 

And by play any IF position or corner OF position you mean Gardy can put him in the lineup at any of those spots and he grabs a glove and goes out there and mans it. He doesn't play any position at even an average level. He might be able to do that at 1B if we lose Morny. I think we should keep him, and start him, but I think he should play one spot.

 

Doumit isn't an OF either. Gardy putting him out there doesn't mean he's good enough to be out there.

[Smcginnity]

I think Plouffe is extremely valuable. He can play all over the field with solid offense. He can play 3B, 1B and in a pinch he is athletic enough to play 2B or the OF with practice. He is our future utility man in my opinion.

 

Now, if you can get two solid starting pitchers for him such as an Alex Meyer and Jose Berrios type return, you need to do it. But, I doubt anyone would offer it.

[70charger]

A couple problems with this line of thought. Sano clearly isn't ready for the big leagues; he just jumped to AA as a 20 year old, and his old strikeout problems are coming back. We can't count on him in September, and we may not be able to count on him for much or all of next year.

 

Similarly, Sano isn't even on the 40 man, and he doesn't have to be until 2014! Why push him up when he isn't ready when we're not in any hurry to trade Plouffe (not a walk year)?

 

Plouffe is also young, cheap, and a valuable righthanded slugger. I think he's a good 3B option with the potential to become better. I'm not comfortable giving up something like that for speculative minor league assets when there's no one to plug that hole in the lineup.

 

And speaking of plugging that hole in the lineup, Carroll isn't very effective this year. Last year wasn't great for him either, but I think it's becoming clear that his skills are declining. And don't forget that he holds a vesting option. If he plays enough, we are forced to pay him for next year too, and by next year, I think we'll probably want to move on. We could plug in Escobar into Carroll's utility role and do just as well for cheaper.

[LewFordLives]

Why wouldn't Plouffe be in their plans? This team is in desperate need of power from the right side. Plouffe has continued to get better over the last couple years. Don't get rid of him just when he's figuring things out and turning into a productive big league hitter. The Twins have had a lot of trouble finding an everyday 3rd baseman since Koskie. Don't give up on Plouffe!

[Anorthagen]

I wrote about this not to long ago, Is Plouffe worth keeping? - Blogs - Minnesota Twins News & Rumors Forum

[Badsmerf]

This is ridiculous. Plouffe is what he is. He is an average player that can play anywhere you ask. Actually, I think he is an above average 3b, just because of the depth at the position in the MLB right now. A team will always find a spot for a guy that has a proven .800 OPS track record (not quite .800 now, but will be around there at the end of the year I think). Especially since he is cheap. Guys like Plouffe don't just come up all the time. He will never be an All-Star, but he will be solid contributor to any team. I hope the Twins see as much value in him as I do. I believe they do, which is why they gave him a shot last year and got rid of Valencia.

 

Plouffe wont get enough in a trade to make it worthwhile. I've said it before and I'll keep saying it. No GM is going to give up a top 100 prospect for Plouffe, which is exactly what I'd be asking for. A guy in the 75-100 range would be fine for me, but nobody is going to do it. So you keep him. You sign him to a moderate contract like 3 years 5 million and have a guy that has power and position flexibility. Plouffe should be a Twins until he is 32 IMO.

[Jeremy Nygaard]

Well, obviously no one clicked the link where I said I'd take back Albert Callaspo's crappy ability and contract along with good prospects for Trevor Plouffe. Sano wouldn't have to come up.

 

Plouffe is one of the few "trending up" assets the Twins have and long-term, he's replaceable. Now I'm not sure what the Twins could get for Plouffe. Obviously, there would have to be some value to take a bad contract back, which the Twins could do. (I also think there'd be value in having a mentor for some of the young Spanish-speaking guys like Sano, Florimon, Rosario, Arcia, Escobar, etc -- Ramirez was... but who knows where he/his head is at today.)

 

Plouffe is heading into a winter where he'll face the 1st of 4 years of arbitration. At some point during those years, he'll be a luxury and much more expensive than the guy replacing him.

 

Could the Twins get two of Yency Almonte, Victor Alcantara and Arjenis Fernandez (all high-ceiling low-A ball-type guys)? I'd think they could... and that would be enough for me to at least get the big-wig scouts together and have a conversation. I'm not giving him away, but...

[Smcginnity]

Well, obviously no one clicked the link where I said I'd take back Albert Callaspo's crappy ability and contract along with good prospects for Trevor Plouffe. Sano wouldn't have to come up.

 

Plouffe is one of the few "trending up" assets the Twins have and long-term, he's replaceable. Now I'm not sure what the Twins could get for Plouffe. Obviously, there would have to be some value to take a bad contract back, which the Twins could do. (I also think there'd be value in having a mentor for some of the young Spanish-speaking guys like Sano, Florimon, Rosario, Arcia, Escobar, etc -- Ramirez was... but who knows where he/his head is at today.)

 

Plouffe is heading into a winter where he'll face the 1st of 4 years of arbitration. At some point during those years, he'll be a luxury and much more expensive than the guy replacing him.

 

Could the Twins get two of Yency Almonte, Victor Alcantara and Arjenis Fernandez (all high-ceiling low-A ball-type guys)? I'd think they could... and that would be enough for me to at least get the big-wig scouts together and have a conversation. I'm not giving him away, but...

 

 

Jeremy, I completely agree with you. If you can get two A prospects, you do it. I just don't see a team biting that hard on a trade. But, to me, that is what you must do if the trade is offered by a team. Same goes for Perkins in my opinion. A team offers an A and B level prospect, you gotta do it. If they offer an A prospect only, then you need to strongly consider it for Perkins. I wouldn't take anything less though.

[jorgenswest]

Well, obviously no one clicked the link where I said I'd take back Albert Callaspo's crappy ability and contract along with good prospects for Trevor Plouffe. Sano wouldn't have to come up.

 

It would be OK if we didn't have to take Callaspo's contract next year. He has become a 3B only. He was an awful 2B when he played it. Do you trust the Twins to dump him and his contract? There is no roster space to carry two 3Bs. He isn't a utility player.

 

If the Twins were willing to dump him and not delay Sano's debut because they have nowhere else to play him, a deal is a consideration. The last thing I want to watch next year is another decline phase player with poor defensive ability.

[Red Holstein]

I say let morneau walk and put plouffe at 1st base.

[Red Holstein]

By some miracle Morneau has over 50 rbi's, because it seems like he never can get a clutch hit in a meaningful situation. That tells me he's getting alot of rbi's in meaningless late game situations when the game's out of hand against the other teams 12th best pitcher.