Twins Trade for Eric Wagaman, Designate Ryan Fitzgerald for Assignment

[bunsen82]

1 minute ago, Mike Sixel said:

Three of their best prospects are OF. Why any team moves keaschell there is beyond me. He's had arm issues. He should be at first. 

There isn't even room for this guy in AAA with the prospects they have. You still have the big three, plus Roden and Outman. And Mendez. 

In MLB they have Roden/Larnach/Buxton/Wallner/Martin.  I had edited stating its not giving any opportunities for rookies.  You have to trade at least Larnach - maybe 1 more.  Roster construction is still a mess in my opinion.  

[KirbyDome89]

"It's not hard to see what the Twins see in him."

Eh, it kinda is. Doesn't get on base, doesn't hit for power, and doesn't play defense. Oh, and they gave up a lotto ticket for him when they could've just claimed him (or some other version of him) off waivers. Wagaman hits from the right side so they can deploy another awful platoon; can't wait to watch that....

I think subtracting Larnach to guarantee Kreidler a roster spot and moving Clemens to 2B for a Bell/Wagaman platoon (if that's the sequence of events that plays out) actually makes this team worse. Kind of impressive when you consider how bad the roster was to begin with. 

[DJL44]

15 minutes ago, Permanent Twins Fan said:

The Twins infield defense this season is going to be atrocious. Bell/Wagaman/Clemens are all below average defenders, and the rest of the infield is not good defensively either.

Clemens is one of the best defenders on the team. I'm not thrilled with this move. I would have preferred Miguel Andujar for this role. He's still available, maybe they can still add him and option Wagaman later.

The fail with this move is cutting Fitzgerald and not Eddie Julien. Wagaman eliminates any role for Julien and he's out of options. I don't see how they can co-exist on the same 26-man roster.

[dberthia]

You just know anybody who was DFA'd by the Marlins has a bright future ahead of them. He'll fit right into this organization.

[bean5302]

This is kind of gross as I'm not normally in the conspiracy thing, but it almost feels like a move to save $50,000 in an outright waiver claim fee because I can't see any other team taking the claim.

I do like the 114.5mph Max exit velo, but Wagaman's been a worm burner generation machine. It makes no sense to me unless Falvey thinks some coaching can get Wagaman to start generating fly balls. Very high contact rates for pitches in the zone, doesn't swing a lot at pitches outside the zone, but never takes a walk.

[Dman]

23 hours ago, Seth Stohs said:

I am not a fan of this trade, unless the plan is for Wagaman to be the platoon 1B with Clemens and Bell the full-time DH.

I think Bragg is a future big leaguer for sure... but ultimately, he was an 18th round pick lottery ticket... But why give up a promising AA pitcher for a guy who was DFAd to make room for Esteury Ruiz? And, I get that Fitzgerald isn't a prospect as a 31-year-old, but he can play great defense. I'd rather have him as the backup IF than Kreidler. I just don't think this move does anything...  It's like a move just to make a move.

My feelings exactly.  It is totally for the splits.  They don't like Clemens against lefties I guess.  I'm not a huge Fitzgerald backer but at least he was serviceable at the plate and had the versatility to play multiple Positions.  Kreidler appears to be a black hole at the plate, and he doesn't have really good speed from what I understand.  

Bragg had good K9 numbers until AA, but it always takes a little time to refine things as you move up levels.  The Twins just can't stop trading relievers even at the minor league level.

It's not an end of the world move or anything as we are talking guys on the low end of the 40 man, but if I'm the Marlins I am pretty happy with getting something for nothing.  Hopefully Wagaman lives up to the lefty hype.

[bunsen82]

2 minutes ago, KirbyDome89 said:

"It's not hard to see what the Twins see in him."

Eh, it kinda is. Doesn't get on base, doesn't hit for power, and doesn't play defense. Oh, and they gave up a lotto ticket for him when they could've just claimed him (or some other version of him) off waivers. Wagaman hits from the right side so they can deploy another awful platoon; can't wait to watch that....

I think subtracting Larnach to guarantee Kreidler a roster spot and moving Clemens to 2B for a Bell/Wagaman platoon (if that's the sequence of events that plays out) actually makes this team worse. Kind of impressive when you consider how bad the roster was to begin with. 

Bragg is below a lotto ticket.  At best he is a fungible reliever at the MLB level.  You can find those.   Outman and Gasper continuing to survive on the 40 man.  Those 2 are not MLB level players.   

Keaschall's defense wasn't great at 2nd and there is the possibility you can more utilize his athleticism even with a weaker arm in the outfield.  You get less than a handful of putouts.  How does he do fielding the ball.  Clemens bat is then a plus at 2nd even if still a tad of a liability on range.   Its not a terrible set up - but we have a below average defense infield currently.  Lewis, Lee, Clemens, Bell/Wagaman.  You need Lee to improve and Clemens and Bell to be average,  thats a lot to ask for even with defensive alinement adjustments.  You can play Bell closer to the line but then that seems to open up a bigger hole that Clemens won't be able to cover.   

Larnach gets moved for something the question is what,  and at this point it looks like at best an average to below average reliever - either in a trade or we get a prospect and open up some money to get a free agent reliever of that ilk.   

[DJL44]

7 minutes ago, KirbyDome89 said:

guarantee Kreidler a roster spot

Kreidler is the only player on the 40-man roster who can play shortstop. That said, I am 99% sure that giving that 26-man roster spot to Kaelen Culpepper is a better idea.

[KirbyDome89]

9 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

Three of their best prospects are OF. Why any team moves keaschell there is beyond me. He's had arm issues. He should be at first. 

There isn't even room for this guy in AAA with the prospects they have. You still have the big three, plus Roden and Outman. And Mendez. 

Zero chance Wagaman is a AAA "depth," signing. Zero. 

Concur on Keaschall. I keep hearing about how he looked so much better in LF (Idk I didn't watch him play in the minors) but he struggled making throws from 2B so who knows what that looks like in the OF, plus the grouping of prospects you mentioned. 

My guess is Keaschall stays at 2B, Clemens/Wagaman platoon at 1B, and Bell is locked in at DH. I hate that. $7M of your limited budget for a DH who isn't a good hitter on a roster full of DH candidates is terrible resource allocation/roster building. Another platoon where both sides struggle, even in "favorable," matchups is a disaster waiting to happen without even accounting for the poor defense. Keaschall looked awkward at 2B. You could've given him 1B and used the money/roster spots to actually improve the team, maybe even beyond this year. 

[KirbyDome89]

3 minutes ago, DJL44 said:

Kreidler is the only player on the 40-man roster who can play shortstop. That said, I am 99% sure that giving that 26-man roster spot to Kaelen Culpepper is a better idea.

I don't think there's any amount of defense that can justify his bat. Culpepper on the 26 man to start probably isn't best for his development but yeah, he almost literally couldn't be worse than Kreidler. 

[sweetmusicviola16]

4 minutes ago, KirbyDome89 said:

I don't think there's any amount of defense that can justify his bat. Culpepper on the 26 man to start probably isn't best for his development but yeah, he almost literally couldn't be worse than Kreidler. 

Unless Kreidler is at along the lines of Taylor Walls defensively. Very poor bat but does field. I'm a skeptic on Kreidler being in Wall's territory.

[bunsen82]

6 minutes ago, bean5302 said:

This is kind of gross as I'm not normally in the conspiracy thing, but it almost feels like a move to save $50,000 in an outright waiver claim fee because I can't see any other team taking the claim.

I do like the 114.5mph Max exit velo, but Wagaman's been a worm burner generation machine. It makes no sense to me unless Falvey thinks some coaching can get Wagaman to start generating fly balls. Very high contact rates for pitches in the zone, doesn't swing a lot at pitches outside the zone, but never takes a walk.

Unless they were claiming someone else wanted him willing to trade,  or one of the other 3 teams above might make a claim.  They wanted him and didn't want to risk not getting him.  So he slightly upgrades the bottom of the roster.  To be fair if the goal is to move to more contact oriented players he does seem like a move in the right direction.  

August  .258/.338/.530 split - Sept .328/.344/.410       

The sept split seems a bit Luis Arraez like.   I think there is something there,  especially more than a Bragg would ever provide you.   

[KirbyDome89]

5 minutes ago, bunsen82 said:

Bragg is below a lotto ticket.  At best he is a fungible reliever at the MLB level.  You can find those.   Outman and Gasper continuing to survive on the 40 man.  Those 2 are not MLB level players.   

Keaschall's defense wasn't great at 2nd and there is the possibility you can more utilize his athleticism even with a weaker arm in the outfield.  You get less than a handful of putouts.  How does he do fielding the ball.  Clemens bat is then a plus at 2nd even if still a tad of a liability on range.   Its not a terrible set up - but we have a below average defense infield currently.  Lewis, Lee, Clemens, Bell/Wagaman.  You need Lee to improve and Clemens and Bell to be average,  thats a lot to ask for even with defensive alinement adjustments.  You can play Bell closer to the line but then that seems to open up a bigger hole that Clemens won't be able to cover.   

Larnach gets moved for something the question is what,  and at this point it looks like at best an average to below average reliever - either in a trade or we get a prospect and open up some money to get a free agent reliever of that ilk.   

Fungible reliever > lotto ticket by definition, but I'd stop far short of proclaiming Bragg to be the former. Yes, you can find back end fodder anytime you want, the same way you can find a 1B who can't get on base, hit for power, or play defense anytime you want. That was the point. 

Yep, Keaschall looked choppy at 2B at times. I can see the athleticism playing well in a corner OF spot, and yeah, I think the opportunity for OF assists happen less frequently than fans realize. That said, guys are going to take extra bases on him. If Keaschall is an absolute stud as far as range goes, he can get away with a noodle arm. I mean Toronto started Varsho in CF during the WS, but Keaschall would have to be elite. I'm willing to buy into the "injuries create opportunities," theory and I wouldn't be shaping my 2026 opening day roster specifically for Jenkins/Gonzalez/Rodriguez, but that trio is pretty damn close, and they'll need PAs just like Keaschall. Keeping Keaschall in play on the IF, whether it's 2B or 1B is almost necessary with the way this roster is currently constructed. 

I don't see Clemens as anywhere close to a plus with the bat no matter where he's playing. 

[h2oface]

Sweet. The fans will be racing back, now!

[thelanges5]

This move doesn’t move me. How about that bullpen?

Larnach + Bragg for Vodnik would’ve been a better move. 

[Parfigliano]

It's a nothing burger look at me we did something trade.

[Parfigliano]

1 hour ago, Mike Sixel said:

Truth. 

How does he fit on the roster? He's a bad defender. He didn't hit well last year. I really don't understand what's going on here at all. 

Bad D and no hit and I bet really slow footed.  This is the roster for him.

[CRF]

Getting rid of a guy we don't need...for another guy we don't need. How is this making us better in any way? Just more nothing burger moves. 

[Parfigliano]

1 hour ago, sweetmusicviola16 said:

Only on a bad team does a Wagaman have a chance to break camp. Miami, MN....

Falvey must have a secret fetish for bad men. First Outman and now Wagaman.

Definitely a fetish for names ending in "man".

[Richie the Rally Goat]

1 hour ago, nicksaviking said:

Looking at his stats, I don't see where the 'thump' is. 

I hope there's a clear off-ramp for this player come April. Outside of a half dozen injuries, I don't see how he'd make sense to put on the 40-man roster let alone the 26-man. I wish they'd stop swapping out fringe player for fringe player and just start sloughing off all of the fringe players.

So… fire sale 40% of the roster? Again? Just this time keep the good ones

[Blyleven2011]

1 hour ago, sweetmusicviola16 said:

Only on a bad team does a Wagaman have a chance to break camp. Miami, MN....

Falvey must have a secret fetish for bad men. First Outman and now Wagaman.

It's confusing to say the least , how they continue to carry other DFA candidates and end up DFAing Fritzgerald who we know is a good defensive player , we add a bat but not above average in fielding , another DH type  ...

Just another trade that doesn't point the needle in the right direction other than a bench player  ...

Why can't we find a player that can hit and play defense ,                         oh that's right , we dont pay enough ...

I didnt read or I missed it , does he have options available yet ???

[Danchat]

Can't say I get this one... seems like they have enough mediocre 1B/corner OF hitters in the majors, but why not add another. If he sticks it would seem like Bell is going to be DH'ing more often than not, which as already mentioned dampens the value he brings. A Clemens/Wagaman platoon at 1B is incredibly underwhelming but I guess that's the Twins for you. 

Feels like Julien might not be long for the 40 man roster. 

[DannySD]

Statistically, Wagaman has less thump than Ryan Fitzgerald. 

[Danchat]

1 minute ago, Blyleven2011 said:

I didnt read or I missed it , does he have options available yet ???

Fangraphs says he has 3 options.

[Blyleven2011]

1 hour ago, bean5302 said:

This is kind of gross as I'm not normally in the conspiracy thing, but it almost feels like a move to save $50,000 in an outright waiver claim fee because I can't see any other team taking the claim.

I do like the 114.5mph Max exit velo, but Wagaman's been a worm burner generation machine. It makes no sense to me unless Falvey thinks some coaching can get Wagaman to start generating fly balls. Very high contact rates for pitches in the zone, doesn't swing a lot at pitches outside the zone, but never takes a walk.

Maybe they see something in him and hope he becomes the next  Rooker ...

[DJL44]

29 minutes ago, Blyleven2011 said:

Why can't we find a player that can hit and play defense ,                         oh that's right , we dont pay enough ...

They have $12M tied up in Josh Bell and Trevor Larnach.

[Jose Herrera]

@karcherd Consider Miami gave him over 500 plate appearances with the turnaround they had. I'm sure he will help us out.

[Mike Sixel]

2 minutes ago, Bigfork Twins Guy said:

Why do I feel like the team will attempt to break their season errors record this year?  We sign Bell, who can't field, then pick up this guy who can't field, and to top it off we take our best fielding SS off the 40-man to make room.  I am totally confused what this FO is attempting to do this year regarding roster building.

Can't wait to watch this guy sub for an injured Lewis....

[TNtwins85]

2 hours ago, Mike Sixel said:

Truth. 

How does he fit on the roster? He's a bad defender. He didn't hit well last year. I really don't understand what's going on here at all. 

He will serve as a platoon partner for Clemons and Bell at 1B/DH. This move may signify that they’re not gonna go after another bat. If that’s the case I anticipate a few low wattage RP moves and this is the team they’ll go in with. By August 1st the Twins will have sold everyone worth a decent prospect again and they’ll be in full rebuild mode. I hope I’m wrong but the picture becomes more clear day by day with low wattage moves or no rumors at all on trades or FA’s. 

[Patzky]

7 minutes ago, Bigfork Twins Guy said:

Why do I feel like the team will attempt to break their season errors record this year?  We sign Bell, who can't field, then pick up this guy who can't field, and to top it off we take our best fielding SS off the 40-man to make room.  I am totally confused what this FO is attempting to do this year regarding roster building.

Ryan will have to get 16 K a game (strikeouts not dollars) to have a chance..