MIN 6, BAL 2: Jake Cave Is the Hero We Deserve

I am thinking,

new slogan

"Nothing falls but raindrops, and not even mucha them.

Jake is not gonna cave. He's here to play

Another great catch by Cave. Good to see him getting some love from the fans. And how about that "laser throw" by Rosario to nail a runner trying to score? Good stuff! At least we seem to be able to catch and throw the ball well lately.

This game would appear to be a prime example of the shortcomings of wpa. What kind of credit does Cave get for that catch? The difference between 0-0, 1 out top of the first and 0-0, 0 outs? Or 0-0, 0 outs, and 0-1, 0 outs?

I know lots of us have been down on Garver much of this year.  But he played very little last fall, so this is his rookie season.  The improvements I am seeing tell me he can be a serviceable member of a good MLB team.  Probably can hit relatively well with a bit of power.  Hopefully, a year or two down the road he will also give us average defense.  Perhaps he splits time with Castro next year, then plays two-thirds of the games in 2020 when Rortvedt is breaking into the league.

Also like what I am seeing from Cave.  Another good pick up by the front office this spring. 

This year has been more than disappointing, yet, it appears they are doing a lot to strengthen the organization.  Long term moves like improving scouting, minor league coaching, off the field issues like diet and training, and most of all organizational depth.  What's the saying, "Rome wasn't built in a day."  Maybe it is the same with a major league organization.  

Defense doesn't factor into WPA at all. All the "credit" for outs goes to the pitcher. 

often a shortcoming of a stat comes from someone not reading up on and/or understanding the stat :-)

I've had enough of the Vet's.  Move Polaco and Kepler to 3-5 and move Dozier and Morrison down.  Why Morrison is still in the Lineup is enough reason to fire Molitor!!!!  He's had his shot (Molitor and Morrison) The F.O. added Lots of Vets, was it just for this year or is it something they are planning on doing in the off season too.  This team has a solid core, even with Buxton and Sano failing.  We have some young starting pitchers at AAA, I've got to believe we can use 2 or 3 of them full time next year.  That leaves us needing a closer and a DH.  Plus, I'm OK with Garver, I'm not OK with Castro.

They've obviously learned how to pitch to Morrison. Overpower him with high fastballs for two strikes then get him on a breaking ball in the dirt when he tries to cheat. Over and over and over.

This may be stupidly optimistic, but what if we manage to sweep our way to the all star break with a 46-48 record? Would trading Gordon and Gonsalves for a legit game changer like Manny Machado be worth it? Playing him at SS (while moving Polanco to 2nd, Dozier to DH, and cutting Morrison) would only increase our chances of catching Cleveland and convincing him to stay.

While I don’t see this happening, I do expect Falvine to pursue Machado over the winter.

Will there soon be a Cave vs Kepler discussion? Both are 25, athletic, can play corner and some center and seem to hit similarly.

Lot of posts here suggesting that Mauer in 2019 is a foregone conclusion. I think it is far more likely that he retires. He’s well aware that he isn’t an everyday player anymore. In this era of 13 man pitching staffs, you can’t roster a guy at a power position that you know will be unavailable for at least 1/4 of the games.

Lot of posts here suggesting that Mauer in 2019 is a foregone conclusion. I think it is far more likely that he retires. He’s well aware that he isn’t an everyday player anymore. In this era of 13 man pitching staffs, you can’t roster a guy at a power position that you know will be unavailable for at least 1/4 of the games.

Not to mention OPS in the neighborhood of 700 for the other 3/4 of games.

Now, if he could catch....never mind.

Cave K's a lot more than Kepler. Kepler should have the productivity advantage, if he can ever manage a league average BABIP.

But why would we expect Kepler to turn into a league average BABIP guy? For some profiles (e.g. Dozier) it never normalizes to average, and Kepler shows every sign of being one of those guys. Never been even in shouting distance of league average...an easy target for aggressive shifts, rarely hits a ball hard to the left of center, etc. I don’t think it’s that much of a stretch to think Cave couldn’t be in the same neighborhood OBP-wise as Kepler, with the difference being who consistently shows more SLG.

Cave K's a lot more than Kepler. Kepler should have the productivity advantage, if he can ever manage a league average BABIP.

Yes. In addition, he doesn’t need a league average BABIP with his peripherals. He just needs to get back towards his norm which is much better than .239. He would have an OPS around .800 when he gets back to his norm.