What To Do With Logan Forsythe?

Good point above.....they might be moving Polanco to 2B, and promoting Lewis in 2020.....

 

OTOH, if Buxton can't hit, they might be moving Lewis to CF at some point.....

If you can get Buxton to be a .240 or .250 hitter, I’m fine with him out there every day. He brings so much to the table defensively.

My plan would be to sign Forsythe to a cheap deal to bridge you to 2020. Also, if he’s cheap and goes down the tubes, you can release him without much of a hit to the pocketbook, and hope that he’s gotten you far enough that Gordon is stepping up or Arraez can come up and give it a shot for a couple months.

2019 infield is Sano, Polanco, Forsythe, Mauer/Austin. OF is Rosario, Buxton, Kepler.

2020 infield is Sano, Lewis, Polanco, Rooker. OF is Rosario, Buxton, Kiriloff.

I assume he is suggesting trading Kepler for something of value, and then signing Gonzalez to replace him.

 

Bingo. Never been a huge Kepler fan. He should be better than he is. I know he's still young and could put it together, but as you indicate, he's about to start getting expensive and I'm just not convinced he is worth it. 

Not married to CarGo as the replacement, just a guy I like. I totally get the Coors effect, just nobody outside of Harper on that list that blows me away. 

BTW... very important point for those who think we should be able to woo a Machado or Harper type...  We can offer a player more than the Yankees, Dodgers, etc, but once that player's agents starts figuring out the marketing and merchandising deals they can land in those big cities, relative to what they can get here, we may still fall short. There's nothing ownership can do for that other than overpay so much that they offset those deals too, but then they just move the bar for the next guy and we're stuck in the same rut.  I've seen so many anti-Pohlad posts on here and I don't necessarily disagree with some of them, but I think it's overly simplistic to blame the owners for not landing stars who have free will to make their own decisions and will consider factors beyond just the team's offer.  By all accounts, the Twins were active last offseason. I'm hopeful they will be active this offseason.  Just don't assume that the ones we miss on are because ownership was cheap.  Let's just hope they land a few good ones...

I would be fine bringing him back on a 1-2 year deal as a spot starter/utility guy, assuming they can't get Escobar back. Seems like a good guy who won't lose you games when he has to play, and when they replace him in the lineup he should have trade value at that time. Let him hold down the fort at 2B if you can't get anyone else to take the job this offseason.

• Old School - this is more personal preference, but I love that Forsythe is looking like your old school middle infielder.  Like a Greg Gagne type. Not special, but solid player you can count on most days.  

Agree.

If the Twins had more of these, they might not be so dynamic but most of us here would be happier.

How anyone at this time can count on Gordon or Buxton for anything is beyond me.

 

 

I know it's a pipe dream, but Machado will be worth whatever money is necessary to get him since it probably allows us to solidify the entire infield for nearly a decade.  He shouldn't cost too much more than Mauer did with a much better chance of providing value through the entire contract.

 

Can anyone tell me why Machado would want to play here? It could be only for money--far more than the Polads would ever consider to pay--and unlike Mauer, he ain't yer favorite son. It may be unkind, but I wonder if he even knows where Minnesota is.

And who's to say anyone ever knew that Mauer, principally due to injuries it appears, would not provide full value through the entire contract?

He was, before that, a three-time batting champ, MVP, has a career BA of .306, and holds a career WAR of 54.7, which still ranks him 10th among all MLB players. Who else among Twins has stats that even come close? And yet most people here seem overly anxious to push him out the door.

he should run for governor.

How about Attorney General instead? 

Well, yes, but the cost will be higher, since he's now cheaper for the trading team.

That there is some serious voodoo economics you are preaching there.

If he has value to the bench or lineup of a contending team, they should be able to find a trade partner.

If he doesn’t have that value, they shouldn’t be interested in fostering him next year.

A three man bench has a spot for an OF, middle infield and catcher. He can’t fill any of those roles as a 2B/3B. The fourth guy needs options to give them roster flexibility.

Why the Twins would want a 32 year old journeyman 2Bman next year is beyond me.  I guess some of you are truly committed to mediocrity at best.

Here is the deal for all of those waiting for 2020 for Lewis-Gordon-Rooker-Kirrilloff:  why wait until 2020 to have them go through their adjustment phase.  Start the season with them in 2019, stick through their ups and downs, and if they are true prospects by the end of the season they will be playing well.  Waiting just makes 2019 another losing season with mediocirites like Forsythe.  Makes 2020 another losing season as the young players go through their adjustments.

Look at what the Braves have done with Ronald Acuna, Ozzie Albies, and Dansby Swanson.  And now their fortunes are turning around.   If the Braves Front Office operated like the Twins, those guys would still be in the minors or maybe in Dansby's case just breaking in(at 24 he has 3 years of MLB experience).

5 years, $ 200 mil.

He’s gunna hit .800 for the rest of the year and forever.

Really.

Second base market (along with SS) is not great this winter.  You are going to pay more for Escobar than you expect.  I have seen articles that the Twins approached his representitives about an extension and where turned down.  That does not bode well for his signing here, 

Forsythe is not the greatest, but would be a one year reasonably priced bridge to the Twins system, which should have several options close to ready by 2020.  If he does well and the Twins do not flip him, if he does not do well you can cut him lose mid season without a big loss.

Would rather spend the frontline money on pitching and signing the core (Rosario, Sano, Berrios) to long term deals and not let them get too close to FA where the grass could well be greener on the other side of the fence.  

I'm very surprised at what he's done so far here, and I like how he uses the whole field, which might teach his younger teammates something useful if they're paying attention. I wouldn't really think about extending his contract, though, after just a couple weeks, especially if in September the FO wants to see if Gordon can hold his own. We had a lot of one-year options this year. How did that work out, for the Twins, anyway? (I note that Lynn is now an ace with the Yanks, 1 run in 22 innings; maybe he needed a pennant race for an adrenaline rush.) These short-term rentals aren't the answer. Sano's improved. Bring Buxton back, bring Gordon up, and let's get it on with the new era. I would like to see them keep Mauer around for another year or two, maybe via a transition during that time to player-coach or player-consultant or  some such thing. 

Forsythe is going to take the first reasonable contract he sees this offseason and not wait and see what developes.  Not moving now or at the end of the season if you choose to wait, could mean either you overpay or have to take a lessor option than you currently have.  I like defense at second to offense.  

If you think Dozier is coming back, he was not even offered an extension here. That is very telling.

The only reason to dangle him in waivers is salary releif. If they are going to eat all but the major league pro-rated minimum anyways, I guess you keep him. Let him be a free agent and revisit in the off-season. You would choose him, say, over a return of Dozier or add back Escobar? 

But I still think it is imperative that the Twins do promote Nick Gordon for September and let him playa s many games as they can swallow at the major league level just to see what he MIGHT give them either at the beginning of the season, or after x-months of service at Triple-A in 2019. If he is truly overmatched and the Twins wish to move on, they can. But right now, he is the future.

The Twins, as they stand, aren't looking for a couple of pieces to be a contender in 2019. They can sign a few guys for limited contracts to supplement the delayed arival of some prospects, but rest assured that if the Twins opened the season with  starting rotation made up of 5 of the 10 guys currently on the 40-man, and maybe add a vet arm to the bullpen and think abouta a possible vet bat not named Mauer to the regular roster, could they at least play ball comparable t their team this year and out-compete KC, Chicago and Detroit. Probably. If the pitching prospects (Goncalves, Romero, teamed with Berrios and Gibson and one of Odorizzi, Pineda, Littell, Mejia...you might have a decent chance at becoming another Cleveland, in 2020.