This Will Not Go On Much Longer

[jaimedude]

So what is the magic date for delaying service clock time for any potential St Paul Saints call-ups,, is it May 1st or May 10th? We all know the Twins will wait until that magic date for Culpepper and E Rodriguez or Gonzalez even a Walker Jenkins. Wonder how many more putrid losses from the failed line-ups or bullpen we can afford? 

[tony&rodney]

3 hours ago, PatPfund said:

let him work on his swing and how to play 1B.

This gets mentioned from time to time with Wallner and Larnach. The Twins are using Fedko and Gonzalez at 1B for the Saints and Mendez at 1B for the Wind Surge. Teams try players everywhere pretty much to create usefulness. Both Larnach and Wallner have stood at first base in practices and there are real life reasons they cannot be used at the position. For those who want to move Wallner or Larnach to a new position they would both be safer at shortstop. I'm guessing we can all agree that nobody wants to see that, so let us all retire all thoughts of seeing them injured badly at first base. 

[tony&rodney]

18 minutes ago, jaimedude said:

So what is the magic date for delaying service clock time for any potential St Paul Saints call-ups,, is it May 1st or May 10th? We all know the Twins will wait until that magic date for Culpepper and E Rodriguez or Gonzalez even a Walker Jenkins. Wonder how many more putrid losses from the failed line-ups or bullpen we can afford? 

Give the guys fifty games? Can you hold on?

[bean5302]

1 hour ago, DJL44 said:

If the outfield is Martin, Buxton and Rodriguez then you don’t need Outman. It makes more sense to add Kreidler for the pinch runner and defense replacement role. 

Which is why I wanted to get both Outman and Wallner off the roster. If we want a pinch runner, we should at least call up somebody fast.

[karcherd]

1 hour ago, DJL44 said:

If the outfield is Martin, Buxton and Rodriguez then you don’t need Outman. It makes more sense to add Kreidler for the pinch runner and defense replacement role. 

For where the Twins are there is not a need for a specialist role which is why Outman should be an easy DFA.  If they want to keep Wallner, there would be plenty of AB's for Martin, Larnach, Wallner and ERod.  It just means that Bell needs to play 1B.  Clemens should not be taking AB's away from any of those four players.

[karcherd]

22 minutes ago, tony&rodney said:

Give the guys fifty games? Can you hold on?

I get the waiting even though I am not sure Wallner can turn it around with the Twins.  But this does not mean there is not a place on the roster for ERod.  Outman and his role is not needed.   There are plenty of AB's to go around if they stop worrying about their fascination with platooning everyone.

[USAFChief]

Worrying about a pinch runner role is like worrying about your house paint color when your roof leaks badly and the foundation is rotted out.

 

[DJL44]

2 hours ago, tony&rodney said:

Give the guys fifty games? Can you hold on?

They’ll be 10 games under by then 

[FlyingFinn]

2 hours ago, tony&rodney said:

This gets mentioned from time to time with Wallner and Larnach. The Twins are using Fedko and Gonzalez at 1B for the Saints and Mendez at 1B for the Wind Surge.

I disagree on labeling Mendez a first baseman. He has started a grand total of 1 game and played 11 innings this year at 1B. His 17 games played at LF is odd to me. He's behind Rodriguez, Jenkins and Roden in the minors. He's has almost zero chance of playing LF for the Twins.

[Nshore]

I have previously read  references to E-Rod's high strike out levels, and the possibility that ML pitchers are going to eat him alive.  If that's the case, I wonder why he has been so highly rated.  Another case of false hype and hope?

[mikelink45]

I really hoped Wallner would proper - he hasn't.  This team is not going anywhere with the current roster so it is okay to turn over positions - to drop players and try prospects.  At this point if they want power see if Fedko can provide it. Seven home runs so far and a line of 

240

.301

.573

 

Experiment.  Make the season interesting and see who will count for the future. 

[PatPfund]

3 hours ago, tony&rodney said:

This gets mentioned from time to time with Wallner and Larnach. The Twins are using Fedko and Gonzalez at 1B for the Saints and Mendez at 1B for the Wind Surge. Teams try players everywhere pretty much to create usefulness. Both Larnach and Wallner have stood at first base in practices and there are real life reasons they cannot be used at the position. For those who want to move Wallner or Larnach to a new position they would both be safer at shortstop. I'm guessing we can all agree that nobody wants to see that, so let us all retire all thoughts of seeing them injured badly at first base. 

It gets mentioned a lot because Larnach and Wallner (especially Wallner now that he seems to run with backhoe-like speed) are marginal-to-poor OFs, and 1B exists at the bottom of the defensive spectrum just above DH. It's great to say there are "real life reasons" they can't do it, but what are they? Lack of interest? Look, if Wallner can't hit he's out of baseball, but if he is gets back just a little bit (but not all the way to Nelson Cruz territory), he's going to need to play in the field, and he's not an OF any more. 1B isn't rocket science, but if he doesn't want to make the effort, maybe he can get a job selling Lady Kenmores at Sears.

[Vanimal46]

3 hours ago, tony&rodney said:

Give the guys fifty games? Can you hold on?

And what does that do for next year? All of the prospects we hope are a part of the future won’t have a large enough sample size to prove anything. This year we need answers on several players. Otherwise next year will be more of the same missing the playoffs yet again. 

[rv78]

Is there really any reason why players like Wallner, Outman, Larnach, Bell, Clemens, are important to the future of this club? We can argue, speculate, dream all day long, and NONE of them matter. They are all playing the role of roster filler until someone better comes along that MIGHT be a difference maker. No one knows if E-Rod will be a difference maker until he gets a chance. Replacing a .200 hitter or less, that can't play defense shouldn't be that difficult, but the Twins have to save their precious service time and call-up options. Why? If you are seriously playing to contend, why stick with the players that aren't helping you do that, but in fact are making the opposite happen? If that isn't stupidity, it's insanity. Take your pick, it has to be one or the other.

[RpR]

6 minutes ago, rv78 said:

Is there really any reason why players like Wallner, Outman, Larnach, Bell, Clemens, are important to the future of this club? We can argue, speculate, dream all day long, and NONE of them matter. They are all playing the role of roster filler until someone better comes along that MIGHT be a difference maker. No one knows if E-Rod will be a difference maker until he gets a chance.

Unlike TD moaning their youth is not playing, Front Office does not care.

If they shine in AAA with bat and glove, they will get their chance.  30 percent K rate, unless they have an All Star glove, means they are where they have earned their place to be.

[tony&rodney]

1 hour ago, Vanimal46 said:

And what does that do for next year?

Time gives players games for experience before a plunge into MLB.

[tony&rodney]

2 hours ago, FlyingFinn said:

I disagree on labeling Mendez a first baseman.

They are trying him there, which means he is taking ground balls and throws in practice. Same with Gonzalez. I was not labeling but merely suggesting that the Twins are trying to see where players can play. They have almost certainly hit ground balls to Wallner and Larnach as well at some point. It didn't work so those practice  experiments ended.

[tony&rodney]

5 hours ago, tony&rodney said:

Give the guys fifty games? Can you hold on?

Apparently the answer is no for many. I was merely wondering since I cannot make the exchanges myself.

[tarheeltwinsfan]

10 hours ago, LA Vikes Fan said:

I agree, although I really wonder if there is a market for Wallner. He's a guy that would only to a bottom feeder team looking ahead to better times in a couple of years (think Rooker going to the As) and he's already 28 so his prime is almost gone.  I think the better move is to use the rib issue as a reason to IL him for 10 days and then send him to AAA for a 20 day rehab assignment and see if we can get him going. That gives us a month to see if Emma (or GG) is MLB ready. Maybe even teach him 1B during the rehab assignment.

This is sad and unfortunate but needs to be done. This team is regressing to its mean, about a .450 winning %. It's time to turn over the roster. Wallner goes first so Emma can play. Next move is Outman gone for GG, then Clemens or Gray for Culpepper unless a Lewis injury opens up a spot for him earlier. I'd do the same thing in the bullpen but we don't have a lot in AAA and you can trade relievers at the deadline, even mediocre ones. Hell, I'd like to see Lewis on a rehab assignment in AAA playing 1B every day and a second half of Lewis/GG at 1B, Keaschall at 2B, Culpepper SS, Lee 3B, with Emma, Buxton, and Martin the starting OF, Larnach/GG at DH, Bell traded for young relievers, and a bench of GG (OF/1B), Gray (IF UTL), Caratini (C), and Wallner/Clemens (OF/1B). 

I agree with all of this LA, except I would keep Bell.

[tarheeltwinsfan]

4 hours ago, USAFChief said:

Worrying about a pinch runner role is like worrying about your house paint color when your roof leaks badly and the foundation is rotted out.

 

Beautiful analogies Chief.

[jaimedude]

10 hours ago, amjgt said:

You stole my post. I was planning on saying basically exactly this.

Send Wallner to the IL with Rib/ Oblique issue already. 

[Wizard11]

Shades of Jose Miranda.  He couldn’t or wouldn’t make the adjustments and it is unlikely Wallner will either.  DH was the best position for both of them and no one needs a DH who can’t hit.

[TL]

12 hours ago, Road trip said:

I'll disagree with the crowd.  The clock is ticking, but it isn't midnight yet..

Two weeks ago some seemed to think Bell and Caratini were going to hit all year.  That didn't last.

Five weeks ago many would have sold Larnach for a random minor leaguer, and Martin was a utility man who shouldn't play more than twice a week.  That didn't last.  Unfortunately their current hot streaks won't last either.  Regression to the mean will happen for nearly all ballplayers, unless they are injured or age has stolen their skills.

Wallner looks terrible this month, no doubt.  He didn't look great at many points last year either.  And yet his career numbers with the bat... are significantly better than any of the players I listed above.  And none of those guys are good defenders, with the possible exception of Caratini when he plays catcher rather than 1B. 

ERod should get his chance in a few weeks if he is deemed ready.  It may be at Wallner's expense, or it may be someone else.  But this is a developmental year regardless.  I care little if the Twins win 65 games or 75 games, because they aren't built to contend this year.  Thus we may as well be patient.  There is still a diminishing chance Wallner will make adjustments, return to the player he was in 2023-24, and be part of the future as a DH.  Let's find out..  

 

I think this is exactly right. Time is ticking for Wallner but I’m not quite ready to give up. It would have been smart in hindsight to IL him for the rib and let him rehab in AAA. 

Best case scenario is he finds the bat and becomes a cost-controlled DH for a few years (and hopefully Bell gets hot and can command something decent in a trade this summer) because his OF days are certainly numbered. If he can’t find it in 2-3 weeks then that option will need to be used unfortunately. Hard to believe he is already 29.

[TL]

13 hours ago, Road trip said:

 

[David HK]

20 hours ago, Fire Dan Gladden said:

Matt Wallner is quickly becoming a "change of scenery" guy. He has enough skill and talent to get the job done, he just can't seem to put it all together in Minnesota. I am positive there are teams out there looking at him saying "we can fix that". They should seriously look at moving him now.

The sad part of this is- there probably are teams that can fix him.  Shades of Brent Rooker, or Eddie Julien with his .800+ OPS, or dare I even say David O...  For some reason, the Twins are where promising young hitters go to die.  Royce, Miranda, Sano, and on and on.  Watch us ditch him for some middling reliever, and see him light it up for the Giants or the Braves.  Or the Yanks, God forbid.

[David HK]

13 hours ago, DJL44 said:

They’ll be 10 games under by then 

10 is a generous estimate, methinks.

[JD-TWINS]

19 hours ago, LA Vikes Fan said:

I agree, although I really wonder if there is a market for Wallner. He's a guy that would only to a bottom feeder team looking ahead to better times in a couple of years (think Rooker going to the As) and he's already 28 so his prime is almost gone.  I think the better move is to use the rib issue as a reason to IL him for 10 days and then send him to AAA for a 20 day rehab assignment and see if we can get him going. That gives us a month to see if Emma (or GG) is MLB ready. Maybe even teach him 1B during the rehab assignment.

This is sad and unfortunate but needs to be done. This team is regressing to its mean, about a .450 winning %. It's time to turn over the roster. Wallner goes first so Emma can play. Next move is Outman gone for GG, then Clemens or Gray for Culpepper unless a Lewis injury opens up a spot for him earlier. I'd do the same thing in the bullpen but we don't have a lot in AAA and you can trade relievers at the deadline, even mediocre ones. Hell, I'd like to see Lewis on a rehab assignment in AAA playing 1B every day and a second half of Lewis/GG at 1B, Keaschall at 2B, Culpepper SS, Lee 3B, with Emma, Buxton, and Martin the starting OF, Larnach/GG at DH, Bell traded for young relievers, and a bench of GG (OF/1B), Gray (IF UTL), Caratini (C), and Wallner/Clemens (OF/1B). 

Nobody is “trading” for a very slow, 38% K rate guy that isn’t barreling up the ball - ever. He’s hitting .168 and I can’t remember how long it’s been since he got an XBH? He’s “limited on defense” (being nice) and he’s 28. 

Splits in ‘26:

LH pitcher .139 BA with .225 OBP & .475 OPS

RH pitcher .186 BA with .305 OBP & .609 OPS

Does a strict platoon help Matt? Not much!

He went to AAA a couple times in ‘23 after being up and fixed himself. He went to AAA in ‘24 in April & came back in July, very nice finish. Hurt a couple time in ‘25 - I’ll give him that, for an off year. He has an OPTION - why are the decision makers waiting? Trying to protect Matt’s ego? His perceived value? ……… those ships have sailed.

Splits in ‘26 for Player 2:

LH pitcher: .255 BA with .308 OBP & .627 OPS

RH pitcher: .192 BA with .241 OBP & .487 OPS

Eventually, Team will see 70-75% RH pitching, so these numbers above for Luke Keaschall will be more & more glaring as weeks go by. A .241 OBP (v. righties) for a guy that gets 1 or 2 infield hits a week (speed) is alarming!

To me, Luke Keaschall looks like a Jr. College athletic freak with good bat to ball skills, yet that doesn’t have enough power to hit the ball further than 310 feet to left or right field and maybe 350 feet to center field. Gotta face it, it’s ugly! ………..plenty of Options for Luke to go work some things out.

[DJL44]

11 minutes ago, David HK said:

10 is a generous estimate, methinks.

They're on pace for 22-28 by game 50. 10 games under is a little pessimistic.

[Vanimal46]

10 hours ago, tony&rodney said:

Time gives players games for experience before a plunge into MLB.

There's always a justification to delay and do nothing. That's what we've been doing the last 3 seasons. And we still have 2 27 year olds, a 28 year old, and 2 30 year olds with less than 1,000 MLB at bats. That's the real price of delaying and doing nothing. 

[David Maro]

At this point you can't bat Wallner in any spot in the lineup. Just watching him in the box you see he is lost. He walks back to the dugout totally frustrated after striking out again. Put him on the IL for 10 days and then to the Saints to see if he figure it out. The more you run him out there the worse it gets.