Edouard Julien Has a Blueprint to Work On

He might have been able to handle 2B before they changed the shifting rules. Now I think he's a 1B/DH. The Twins have too many DH on their roster.

5 minutes ago, DJL44 said:

He might have been able to handle 2B before they changed the shifting rules. Now I think he's a 1B/DH. The Twins have too many DH on their roster.

Twins current issue is a ton of young hitters who either haven’t hit consistently or haven’t been healthy consistently. Most of that crop would fit best at first base or DH as wel. Since nobody has been consistent they can’t trade anyone so they have to ride it out and hope some of these guys come through. 
The other problem lies with the all world defender and platinum glove winner at DH exclusively 

I don't think Julien has been undisciplined in the majors.  He's had a pretty good eye with two strikes.

It seems they've been trying to have him swing at strikes more aggressively early in the count, and he had some success with the approach at first, though lately it seems that either he's just a bit off or he's gotten more quality strikes that just haven't been as hittable.  He hasn't really gotten himself into hitters counts too often, which speaks to how he's been pitched and the reason they've wanted him to be more aggressive.  It'll have to be a balance of attacking early so pitchers aren't able to go right after him as much but making sure that the pitches he attacks are ones he can actually do something with.

Julien may be a prime candidate for the Twins to flip in a trade.   The bat and walks will entice someone for a young prospect and I think he is more expendable then the others at this time.   Miranda may turn into a 1B/3B option but needs work as well, or trade.   One of the two may end up being a centerpiece to a deadline deal.

6 minutes ago, mickster said:

Julien may be a prime candidate for the Twins to flip in a trade.   The bat and walks will entice someone for a young prospect and I think he is more expendable then the others at this time.   Miranda may turn into a 1B/3B option but needs work as well, or trade.   One of the two may end up being a centerpiece to a deadline deal.

A deadline deal for what though? The only easy place to upgrade is in CF and the bullpen. I hope they don't send Julien out for a reliever.

19 minutes ago, DJL44 said:

A deadline deal for what though? The only easy place to upgrade is in CF and the bullpen. I hope they don't send Julien out for a reliever.

I don't want him to go for a rental - however we don't know the state of the SP at that time and if they could get someone under contract to help the rotation that would be good.   Gray is a FA and will test the market.  Mahle is as well, but TJ will take away most of his year.    Rotation for 2024 is Ryan, Lopez, Ober, Varland, Paddock w/Winder, SWR and others in the wings so not bad.   I am hoping a 3 year extension for Sony is offered and thus we can be stingy with a trade.    A CF under contract would be the best fit though.    With Miranda, Lewis, Lee, Martin, Julien looking to come up that makes a logjam.   Polanco becomes the other chip, and has been injured a bit, but he provides such a spark and makes a difference in our lineup I would like him signed.   Unless Lewis or Martin can be an everyday CF, and I am doubting Lewis is going there.   Something will have to give at some point.

Wow, some fellow TDers giving up on Julien already. 

For those he say he’s limited to 1B or DH, should we exit Julien or Gallo?  Honestly, for the Twins future, who is move valuable and deserves investment?  Also, with 300-500 more ML ABs and the ability to play in the field every day if needed (and btw way cheaper), could he be more valuable than our current DH? 

I wonder if Julien wouldn’t actually love a change of scenery. Get a chance where he will get the innings and ABs and the commitment needed to get his confidence back.  Ala Steer and Rooker and others. Miranda and Larnach are probably thinking the same thing. Maybe Wallner too.

Waaaaay to early to judge Julian MLB potential.

He needs more time to adjust... like almost all young players. (But I do agree with the defense concern)

7 minutes ago, Nashvilletwin said:

Wow, some fellow TDers giving up on Julien already. 

For those he say he’s limited to 1B or DH, should we exit Julien or Gallo?  Honestly, for the Twins future, who is move valuable and deserves investment?  Also, with 300-500 more ML ABs and the ability to play in the field every day if needed (and btw way cheaper), could he be more valuable than our current DH? 

I wonder if Julien wouldn’t actually love a change of scenery. Get a chance where he will get the innings and ABs and the commitment needed to get his confidence back.  Ala Steer and Rooker and others. Miranda and Larnach are probably thinking the same thing. Maybe Wallner too.

Not giving up on Julien, just looking at options.   I would take him over Gallo, based on age.   I was not a fan of the Gallo signing, but he does play top tier defense and gives pop.  Rooker will fade after the hot start most likley, hope not but water eventually finds it's level.   Miranda and Larnach are disappointments yes, and new scenery may help.    Wallner will be here soon as I think Keplers leash is out to run out.   

44 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

The story to watch is whether the Twins will pick up the option on Jorge Polanco’s contract. Polanco is and continues to be a good player, but he seems to be an old 29 year old, with injuries clouding the future. I don’t think his defense is good, even at second and he seems more and more pull-happy and strikeout-prone. If Julien can provide the team with as much offense and something approximating sufficient defense, the Twins might want to part company, perhaps a year early, rather than a year too late. 

For a healthy Polanco it's a no brainer.  If he's stays relatively healthy and productive the rest of the season they could still easily pick up the option and flip him for something of value if they decide to go a different direction at 2B.  He has another similar option for 2025 so it's still essentially two years of team control at a reasonable price.  For the time being Polanco is still the better option on both sides of the ball though.

Probably the hardest decision is if he's only mostly healthy and that limits his productivity, which is certainly a possibility the way the last few years have gone for him.

I don't see Julien getting a whole lot better on defense that quickly, so if he is the starting 2B next year they will probably need a high defensive floor platoon partner for him, and maybe they already have it with Willi Castro fitting that role and playing better defense than he ever has prior to this year.  It's hard to see Julien as a building block 2B long term though.  He'll probably be a good bat 2B/1B/DH with someone else covering the defense at 2B more often than not.

24 minutes ago, mickster said:

Rooker will fade after the hot start most likley, hope not but water eventually finds it's level. 

Oh that already happened btw.  1.245 OPS in March/April, .616 OPS in May.

27 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

2 homeruns, .198/.290/.327/.616 quad-slash

He’d fit right in on the Twins.

Seriously, my only point is that these touted prospects of ours need the ABs, innings and investment/commitment. They seem to  be on the way, then moved back and forth, and lose their momentum. Vet signings with high priced commitments don’t help either.  Some of them would likely be very happy if another team gave them a committed shot and were willing to make the investment.  

It’s only my opinion, of course, but I do not believe developing young talent, particularly position players, to their full potential is a strong point of our current regime. And for a small/mid -market team, it really should be a priority.  Here’s hoping that Kiriloff and Lewis (plus Lee and Rodriguez) can reach their true potential and can get beyond what our last “young core” of Kepler, Sano, and even Buxton reached. At the moment, it appears Miranda, Larnach, and Julien (and Martin too), are struggling to reach their ultimate potential within this organization.
 

His defense isn’t deficient it’s borderline horrible. No arm no hands and no range. He will hit but probably not enough to be a full time dh. 

30 minutes ago, chpettit19 said:

I don't think the Twins are great by any means, but they're not terrible. They're just average

As always, you make excellent points. Your positions are always well constructed and reasonable. Also much appreciated.

But this point above is where we clearly have a difference. “Average” player development is not an acceptable outcome for a small/mid-market team that expects to win and be competitive year-in and year-out.  A big market team can “buy” their way out of poor player development. The Twins cannot. Our only saving grace is the division in which we play. 

If the Twins truly want to create any sort of defensible competitive advantage as a Major League Baseball franchise and truly field a consistently winning team capable of vying for a World Series, they must be well above average, if not clearly superior, in prospect development. The current organization, as you rightly point out, is  most definitely not.  

I don’t think you can teach hands. And he’s not marginal defensively. He MAY hit at a 1B/DH level though. That’s the only path I see to a long-ish Twins career, even if Polanco leaves.

There is a lot to like with Julien in his first taste of the bigs. It appears many of his issues could be helped by getting more comfortable. The talent and drive are there, just settle down a little.

It was obviuos that Martin wouldn't stick at SS, yet the Twins were determined to keep him there although Martin had a better avenue to the majors via OF & some 2B. They need keep Lewis in the INF so they should have gave him some time at 2B. Julien won't stick at 2B yet they keep him there, Kiriloff can play some OF so Julien best shot is 1B, so that's where they should play him.

I think Julien is MLB ready, He can take 2 aggressive swings and move an 0-2 count to 3-2. That is a valuable skill and the blueprint to his success. He actually made a great catch the other night robbing the Astros of a double. AAA may help him improve but he looks to be MLB ready now.

It is unlikely he stays at 2nd base if he sticks with the team.  I expect Lewis, Lee, and Correa to make up some combo of 3rd ss and 2nd primary positions for hopefully years to come.  Unless one of them get moved to OF.  If not, they should hopefully get the majority of the time in those spots.  This is also why you cannot always count on guys coming up and being MLB level guys. 

5 hours ago, Mike Sixel said:

Miranda at third or first..... Julien at first or DH. 

The best position young position player the Twins have in their system is a first baseman, Alex Kirilloff. He is good defensively and is a guy who can hit now and should improve. I'm afraid first base is the most certain positive the team has and that leaves those who want to play first base on the outside.

Julien can still hit his way to a regular spot but the Twins better hope Polanco holds the position because he is really good and it would be a shame if Jorge fails.