Another Bad Break: Alex Kirilloff Set for Shoulder Surgery

Oh crap they are going too resign Gallo, aren't they?

Julien at 1B has to be the plan next year.

They couldn't possibly be thinking Gallo...could they? Maybe the Hiroshima Toyo Carp will swim right in and sign Joey-Boy before Falvine gets any crazy ideas. 

3 minutes ago, Mike Sixel said:

Julien, Severino, and Prato should all be practicing at first base full time right now. 

Larnach and Wallner also?

How sad.  Guess this tells us why AK didn't seem like his normal self late this season and in the playoffs.  Let's pray that his injury is on the less severe scale and he is back by either spring training or early summer.

Get well young man, you are due for some good news.

I think Miranda might be healed and potentially good again by next year. No idea how much HIS shoulder issue impacted his performance this year.

1 hour ago, jorgenswest said:

Julien at 1B has to be the plan next year.

😂 Dear Lord, NO.🤢

1 hour ago, Unwinder said:

I think Miranda might be healed and potentially good again by next year. No idea how much HIS shoulder issue impacted his performance this year.

Yeah...I think everybody kind of forgot about Miranda. This could open the door a bit for him...if he's even healthy. 

Wondering why they waited until late October when it was pretty obvious in August that surgery was going to be the necessary course of action. We will know more later, but it sounds as if those two months might be quite valuable if the goal is to be ready by or near opening day. 

Really, really rough break here for the young man.  Who was our minor league TD hitter of the year?  What position does he play?

3 hours ago, Mike Sixel said:

Wallner isn't a bad OF, but sure. I don't know what to do with Larnach and his health issues. 

Which health issues are those?

Tough break for Kirilloff. Every time it looks like he's taking a step forward something else gets him. I was so happy that it looked like they had finally solved his wrist issue, so it's a bummer to have a shoulder problem take him down again. I still believe in his bat and was really hoping to see him as the starting 1B from Day 1 next year.

The good thing for the Twins is they should have options. Seems increasingly likely that Polanco is back next year and Julien gets the shift over to 1B (give Julien a whole offseason to prepare for 1B duty and I expect he'll do fine). Miranda could be an option if he's healthy and his RH bat could protect Julien from too many tough matchups against LHP.

Depth was hugely important to the 2023 Twins and I think they will be looking to match that again next season. It will be interesting to see how much of that comes from within or if they look for reinforcements in free agency.

(I have zero fear that Gallo will be back.)

16 hours ago, jorgenswest said:

Julien at 1B has to be the plan next year.

And removes any question about picking up Polanco's option. Maybe Larnach needs to grab a 1B glove 

Buxton?  Who's he?  If he's as beat up as he has been for 8 years.  Yes 8 years all we hear is how great Buxton is.  Or wait until next year when he is healthy.  When will that be?  He's always hurt and Is just a mirage compared to his hype.  I'm sorry but it's time to move on from Buxton.  I know he has a no trade clause but we are better off without him.  He actually is hampering the team.

12 hours ago, DocBauer said:

Hate bouncing between similar threads, but Unwinder is correct that a healthy and rebounding Miranda might be an option at 1B. Now, there's a big IF there, but I don't want to dismiss a kid who has talent, exploded in 2021, and was damn good for a chunk of his rookie season. He was still rough at 1B, but seemed to get better as he gained time there. 

And I do think Julien will be part of that discussion, and I'm OK with that. The kid went from very questionable at 2B to looking pretty solid there as the season went on.

I also, repeating myself from another thread, think Polanco is an option there, at least part of the time. It would keep his bat in play and let him rest his knees a little bit more than the other INF spots I see him playing in 2024. (I think he plays all over). 

But I still wonder if it might provide an opportunity to add a 1B who can provide power and at least decent defense who might HIT a bit better than some guys in the lineup, and K around 20-25% instead of 30 plus. WAY too early to speculate who or how, I'm just saying that next to Gray, or replacing Gray, the next best opportunity might be to add a 1B, even on a 1yr deal, to add to the lineup in case AK doesn't come back, or takes a long time to come back, or until another young player like Julien, or perhaps Severino, or a rebounding Miranda, steps forward to claim the spot.

The good news is that the Twins should have a good idea about the timetable for AK's return soon after surgery  which is scheduled for the week after next.  By the time the Series is over and they start talking to potential free agents they should have a good idea whether AK will return by spring training?  Or by the start of the season?  Or when?

How did he hurt his right shoulder? Wouldn't it be a bigger issue if it was his left shoulder since he hits and throws left?

1st base and center are to 2 positions that the Twins need to worry about this winter.  

Tony Oliva, Kirby Pucket, Corey Koskie, Justin Morneau, Joe Mauer, Francisco Liriano, Byron Buxton, Alex Kiriloff,  Royce Lewis and I'm probably forgetting some others. 

Name another franchise in professional  sports to have so many very good to elite level players have their careers ended or completely altered due to catastrophic injury.   It is beyond disheartening.   

To paraphrase Jay McInerney, AK is the party guest that is always on his way but never arrives. 

If the FO were to ask my opinion (I am planning my day assuming they won't), I would do the following in the off-season (assuming the budget at best is not going down):

--Exercise the Kepler and Polanco options and trade them both. Let Maeda walk. Retain Castro; 

--Plan that Lewis, Martin or Lee is my CF. One of these three plays third;

--Sign a prototypical big-bobbing RH first baseman. Kirilloff is a pedestrian fielder and an uninspiring power source; 

--Populate the corner OF spots with  Wallner, Larnach, Rodriguez or AK;

--Assuming Gray is not re-signed, the 1B signing is payroll neutral. 

--This gives you $20 million to sign a SP (coming from the Kepler, Polanco savings). 

 I would attempt to re-up Sonny but with that money and this team, lots of people would suddenly care.

That looks pretty solid to me. Lets play ball. 

When Kiriloff was healthy this summer, he was a great player, a favorite to watch.   So sorry to see this news -- it was evident for quite  a while now that he was injured - he looked like a different player, lost that beautiful swing.   Maybe he should have had surgery weeks ago?  Regardless, such a shame.  I wish him all the best.

With Kiriloff's ability to play the outfield, 1B was always a position the Twins could go after for offensive improvement.  This just justifies it even more...

A lot of names are being mentioned by I'm surprised no one mentioned Gordon. He should get some consideration since he is an inflieder. And there's also Farmer who could use more PT. I guess what happens to Polanco will also affect who is selected to play 1B. Gordon & Farmer would be my 1st 2 candidates before Julian, Mranda & any OF's.