Ask Jack: Minnesota Twins' Jack Goin Answers Your Questions

[twinsnorth49]

Long day or have you been in a bottle of vodka like your username suggests?

 

Rhetorical question.

[jokin]

Rhetorical question.

 

Members have been banned for less....

[Seth Stohs]

Jack, I think I recall you talking earlier in the season (maybe spring training?) about hoping to see some advances in the analytics available in the minor leagues. I'm wondering if you've seen more analytics used in the minor leagues? Are those teams/affiliates getting the technology they need to provide your group and Brad's people with any information that may not have been available even a year or two ago?

[twinsnorth49]

Members have been banned for less....

 

Some things are worth the risk...

[Trevor0333]

Hello Jack,

 

Thanks for doing this, fans really appreciate it!

 

We often hear how the team intends to be active/aggressive on players but then is shocked at what teams throw at these players. I find it suprising that the FO would have such a continual issue with guaging the upcoming markets. With Jim Pohlad remarking how they need to be more aggressive this year & payroll definitely available. Do you feel there is a better understanding of what the value of cotnracts the FA market will be garnering this off season considering the new TV money being available to all teams as well?

When there is a scenario like this last season where there was payroll available but went unused. Why isnt there an effort to restructure contracts or sign players to front loaded contracts so as to not tie up as much money in future payroll that would hamstring the team from resigning the players they want to keep around?

[ashbury]

Some things are worth the risk...

 

Moderator's note: Let's keep the signal-to-noise ratio at a record high level, folks. Parker didn't mention, but it's probably obvious, that this is a thread the moderation team is watching closely. Review the Comments Policy if you need a refresher on where the "risks" lie; most members have nothing to worry about.

[Trevor0333]

Moderator's note: Let's keep the signal-to-noise ratio at a record high level, folks. Parker didn't mention, but it's probably obvious, that this is a thread the moderation team is watching closely. Review the Comments Policy if you need a refresher on where the "risks" lie; most members have nothing to worry about.

 

This sounds like an advanced baseball stat

[launchingthrees]

We regularly refer to OPSBI.

 

Is this a serious response? I'm bad at detecting sarcasm over the internet.

[shs_59]

Hey Mr. Goin....

 

Which College had the privlage to call Jack one of their students?

 

Also Does , in you're estimation or best honesty, Terry Ryan OR Rob Antony know what BABIP truley is?

 

IF so Great!

 

How about WRC+ ?

 

On the pitching side which do you prefer as a great way to assess a pitcher.?

Is You're method/ formula differ greatly or actually is similar to the above mentioned Mr. Ryan and Antony.?

 

I Apologize for long question, and realize it may go un-read anyways.

[Celebrity Weddings!]

I have a lot of fun watching teams play extreme defensive shifts.

 

Do you take into account how much fun I'm having when you determine the value of these shifts?

[Jack Goin]

Is this a serious response? I'm bad at detecting sarcasm over the internet.

Do you know the background on OPSBI?

[Jack Goin]

Hey Mr. Goin....

 

Which College had the privlage to call Jack one of their students?

 

Also Does , in you're estimation or best honesty, Terry Ryan OR Rob Antony know what BABIP truley is?

 

IF so Great!

 

How about WRC+ ?

 

On the pitching side which do you prefer as a great way to assess a pitcher.?

Is You're method/ formula differ greatly or actually is similar to the above mentioned Mr. Ryan and Antony.?

 

I Apologize for long question, and realize it may go un-read anyways.

I went to the University of St. Thomas for my first two years and then transferred to Lake Forest College about 45 minutes north of Chicago for my last two years. I returned to UST to get my MBA.

Terry and Rob both know and understand how BABIP works.

What about wRC+?

Our job on the analytics side is to dig deeper into the information and Terry and Rob trust us to do that. They both use stats to help them form their opinion and the analytics team attempts to cut out as much uncertainty from the decision making process as we can. But we use more than just stats on the analytics side. We use scouting reports, health, etc.

[Jack Goin]

I have a lot of fun watching teams play extreme defensive shifts.

 

Do you take into account how much fun I'm having when you determine the value of these shifts?

I noticed you had mentioned defensive shifts before on here so we are really working on those right now. Anything else you have fun watching that we should add into our analysis?

[Celebrity Weddings!]

I noticed you had mentioned defensive shifts before on here so we are really working on those right now. Anything else you have fun watching that we should add into our analysis?

 

I'm not sure how much of this falls under your purview (but thanks to your gracious responses here, I will probably have a better idea by the end - seriously, thanks for this) but here is a non-exhaustive list:

 

1)Infielders becoming catchers

2)Catchers becoming pitchers (I realize both 1 & 2 are more scouting issues, but if Tyler Grimes is a pitcher in 2015, then I'm probably going to credit this conversation)

3)Double steals

4)Senior couples on the kiss cam

5)A reliever coming in to face a batter, moving to rightfield for the subsequent batter, and then returning to the mound. Unless this isn't allowed for some reason. This one, I'm pretty much just guessing would be a lot of fun.

[minn55441]

Jack, thanks for taking the time to answer our questions. How much baseball do you watch in a season? Do you see every game in some form or another?

 

I could see a real addiction to waiting for the data to roll in from the previous days games and then by the time 7:10pm rolls around, you have already spent a full day pouring over the analysis. How does you typical day unfold during the season?

[Badsmerf]

How much has your opinions on relevant statistics changed since you started? Have you been apart if the recent progression of drafting higher ceiling pitchers? Without giving away too much information, can you give us a peak at what the twins feel are important stats on both offensive and pitching?

 

Side note, how good do the advanced stats say Buxton is going to be?

[Jack Goin]

I'm not sure how much of this falls under your purview (but thanks to your gracious responses here, I will probably have a better idea by the end - seriously, thanks for this) but here is a non-exhaustive list:

 

1)Infielders becoming catchers

2)Catchers becoming pitchers (I realize both 1 & 2 are more scouting issues, but if Tyler Grimes is a pitcher in 2015, then I'm probably going to credit this conversation)

3)Double steals

4)Senior couples on the kiss cam

5)A reliever coming in to face a batter, moving to rightfield for the subsequent batter, and then returning to the mound. Unless this isn't allowed for some reason. This one, I'm pretty much just guessing would be a lot of fun.

1. Grimes was an infielder who became a catcher. He had a pretty solid year in his first year as a catcher. Let's let him settle in there before we move him to the mound. Sound good? We have had a few guys work as a third catcher if they were a UT infielder.

2. I can't remember the kid's name but we recently had a catcher move to the mound. This type of decision is usually our Minor League staff and the FO.

3. What about double steals?

4. Personally I'm a sucker for seniors on kiss cam. I hope my wife and I last that long.

5. I think they used to do this stuff in the 80's. Davey Johnson I think was known for it. Putting a pitcher in the outfield and then bringing him into pitch and just flip-flopping a pitcher/outfielder for a pitcher/outfielder. You would have to fact check me on that one.

[Jack Goin]

Jack, thanks for taking the time to answer our questions. How much baseball do you watch in a season? Do you see every game in some form or another?

 

I could see a real addiction to waiting for the data to roll in from the previous days games and then by the time 7:10pm rolls around, you have already spent a full day pouring over the analysis. How does you typical day unfold during the season?

I am at every home game plus Spring Training, maybe go on a road trip each season, and the try to watch as many of our games and other games as possible. I try to balance that with some type of home life with my family.

I don't have a typical day during the season. It changes all the time. Major League administrative stuff or roster decisions, pro scouting, working on our scout system, meeting with Gardy and the coaching staff, meeting with our advance scout, talking with our pro scouting director, etc.

[roger]

Mr. Goin, There are many here and on other sites that continually bash Mr. Ryan and the Twins organization for being old fashioned and behind some teams as far as advanced analysis is concerned.

 

Do you believe that the Twins are at a disadvantage insofar as the newer advanced stats are concerned? And if not, is it a recent change or have the Twins been using these type of stats for some time? Thanks!

[roger]

1. Grimes was an infielder who became a catcher. He had a pretty solid year in his first year as a catcher. Let's let him settle in there before we move him to the mound. Sound good? We have had a few guys work as a third catcher if they were a UT infielder.

2. I can't remember the kid's name but we recently had a catcher move to the mound. This type of decision is usually our Minor League staff and the FO.

3. What about double steals?

4. Personally I'm a sucker for seniors on kiss cam. I hope my wife and I last that long.

5. I think they used to do this stuff in the 80's. Davey Johnson I think was known for it. Putting a pitcher in the outfield and then bringing him into pitch and just flip-flopping a pitcher/outfielder for a pitcher/outfielder. You would have to fact check me on that one.

 

Are you referring to Lahey (forgot his first name)? Was a catcher drafted out of Princeton and made it all the way to being the closer at Rochester.

[Willihammer]

Evidently OPSBI was created by Jim Bowden. Its OPS*1000 + RBI. I'm not sure why you'd use it instead of other stats but there it is. Basically the half breed bastard of an already half bread bastard.

[Jack Goin]

Evidently OPSBI was created by Jim Bowden. Its OPS*1000 + RBI. I'm not sure why you'd use it instead of other stats but there it is. Basically the half breed bastard of an already half bread bastard.

We don't use OPSBI.

[Mike Sixel]

Thanks for also injecting humor Jack.

[Seth Stohs]

Are you referring to Lahey (forgot his first name)? Was a catcher drafted out of Princeton and made it all the way to being the closer at Rochester.

 

Tim Lahey did that and became the #1 pick in the Rule 5 draft one year.

 

A couple of years ago at Instructs, the Twins tried Jhonatan Arias and Tobias Streich at pitcher, though neither lasted, and both are now out of the organization.

 

I saw Grimes opening weekend in Cedar Rapids, and then again in July for a weekend. The improvement was tremendous. His comfort level was much higher. He looked more like a catcher. He also has a tremendous arm and did a great job throwing out would-be base stealers. When I talked to him in July, he talked about how much he just loved the position and how involved in every pitch the catcher is.

[Wookiee of the Year]

Mr. Goin, thanks so much for doing this.

 

How much is medical data (unknown to the general public) used in evaluating players? I've always wondered about this. Do the Twins have advanced analytics that they use that are based on medical evaluations, and if so, how big a role do they play in evaluating players? (e.g. is it more of an "avoiding red flags" kind of thing or does it go beyond that?)

 

Separate question: Does your work involve much projecting of young players' development trajectories? I tend to see stats as more about parsing out a player's current "true talent," rather than projecting future development. Is that accurate?

 

Final question: How is your last name pronounced? I've heard both "go in" and "goyn."

 

Thanks so much!

[Willihammer]

We don't use OPSBI.

 

OK well, back to the original question then

 

Hi Jack, if forced to choose just one, what is your single favorite publically-available stat to measure offensive performance and why? (ie - BA, OBP, SLG, OPS, RC, RAA, OBA, VORP, TAv, any of their weighted brethren, etc)

[Willihammer]

What is your opinion of publicly available defensive statistics, such as UZR and similar measurements? Do the Twins use any/all? Do the Twins use any proprietary defensive evaluation system (s)?

 

Bump........

[rickyriolo]

Jack: What year did you graduate from Lake Forest College?? I played basketball there from 1976-1980. Go Fighting Foresters

[Jack Goin]

Jack: What year did you graduate from Lake Forest College?? I played basketball there from 1976-1980. Go Fighting Foresters

I played basketball there from 1997 to 1999. I played for current coach Chris Conger. Go Foresters!

[Jack Goin]

Tim Lahey did that and became the #1 pick in the Rule 5 draft one year.

 

A couple of years ago at Instructs, the Twins tried Jairo Rodriguez and Tobias Streich at pitcher, though neither lasted, and both are now out of the organization.

 

I saw Grimes opening weekend in Cedar Rapids, and then again in July for a weekend. The improvement was tremendous. His comfort level was much higher. He looked more like a catcher. He also has a tremendous arm and did a great job throwing out would-be base stealers. When I talked to him in July, he talked about how much he just loved the position and how involved in every pitch the catcher is.

Thanks for picking me up Seth. I think we also moved a kid name, Omar Burgos, from 3B to pitcher in about 2003 or so.