Luke Keaschall is a Chance for Twins to Make Reds Trade Right

OK, Ted, what does Keaschall doing well have to do with the Reds/Mahle trade? 

Granted, not having ECS and Steer around makes it easier for him to reach the Twins.  But they could have been dealt in another deal with a better lasting return to the Twins.  For disclosure sake, I wasn't opposed to the trade when they made it other than I don't like trading a lot of our prospects.  Just wish like heck they would do a better job of kicking the tires when acquiring pitchers to make bloody sure their arms aren't falling off.

15 minutes ago, roger said:

OK, Ted, what does Keaschall doing well have to do with the Reds/Mahle trade? 

Absolutely nothing, but an article about Keaschall gets few comments whereas dredging up old trades usually spawns dozens of "told you so" comments.

I’m surprised to read Keaschall is not being played primarily at 2nd base. If he’s good with the glove at that position, don’t try to “hide him” in the outfield. Julien is still brutal defensively, so if/when Keaschall is ready for the big leagues, Julien should be the one they try to hide somewhere. I’d be ok trading Julien if they feel Keaschall or Lee can replace him. 

I was surprised early in the box score why Keaschal was at DH. You don't need much of an arm to play 2B. Like Spencer & CES, Keaschal will be sought after at the deadline and could be good trade bait. But I'd trade Gonzales before him. We haven't had very good luck at the dead line. Hopefully the next time they find a healthy pitcher body & emotions.

1 hour ago, Jocko87 said:

WTH does Luke Keaschall have to do with a trade with the Reds? 

For what it's worth, Steer and Encarnocion-Strand aren't exactly playing great this year:

Steer - .221 avg, .724 OPS, 6 homers

Strand - .190, .513, and 2 HR's for the no glove player who makes Miranda look like a gold-glover.

15 minutes ago, Cory Engelhardt said:

I just want it to help make the Tommy Herr trade right. Can Keaschall do that too?

I'm hoping he can make up for the Herschel Walker trade too.

Lol, not the best framing. Keaschall is an interesting prospect who is off to an excellent start to his career, moving up quickly through the minors and playing well at every stop. Getting to AA in his 2nd season of pro ball, when he only had the opportunity to play in 31 games after being drafted last year, at age 21 is impressive.

but he doesn't have anything to do with the Reds, Steer, or CES. 

And it's not like the 2nd base pipeline ran out of prospects after we dealt Steer and before acquiring Keaschall. Still had Martin and Lee.

Bad trade, because Mahle got injured and that sucked. Having a good draft and getting a player like Keaschall, who seems to be a legit prospect doesn't fix it. nothing fixes being wrong about a pitcher's health.

1 hour ago, FlyingFinn said:

For what it's worth, Steer and Encarnocion-Strand aren't exactly playing great this year:

Steer - .221 avg, .724 OPS, 6 homers

Strand - .190, .513, and 2 HR's for the no glove player who makes Miranda look like a gold-glover.

Much as I bear them no ill-will...it has been nice to no longer be getting texts from my friend the Reds fan about how Steer was the Second Coming, which were non-stop for the first 3 week or so of the season. May has been much...quieter.

3 hours ago, Jocko87 said:

What is with this framing?  WTH does Luke Keaschall have to do with a trade with the Reds? 

I'm not sure I agree with what you said after, but this was my very first thought.  Keaschall couldn't be less connected to the Reds trade.  I mean, there are going to be some Twins pop-up players every year, and are we going to associated them with our horrible trades for purposes of ???

Twins:  horrible trade.

Keaschall: guy who might have a chance two years later who's still playing A+/AA.  If the Twins didn't have a guy who looked like this (they didn't last year), it would have been further proof the system is in the sewer.  Nearly all teams have a Luke Keaschall, you just haven't heard of them.  Heck, the Twins just signed one and are likely going to replace Keaschall at A+ with him.  That's how easy and common it is to have a Luke Keaschall-like player in your system.

I mean, he seems like a decent pick but more of a hustle, great teammate sort than a power guy.  K-rate fine.  Age for AA promising.  I expect some issues, but I wouldn't be remotely surprised if he's ultimately a better hitter (not fielder) than Lee.  His age vs production vs level is on the good side and does make him a real prospect until he shows otherwise.  OPS at AA of .800+ will keep things promising.

btw, I don't know that Keaschall is any better fielder than Steer.  He might be, but the bar is much higher in MLB.

and fwiw, I did believe the Twins had one of the very worst systems in MLB last year for prospects, saved by Jenkins, really.  It seems greatly improved due to many players making a leap, especially those starting the year in A+.

Keaschall is already at AA, it's odd that wasn't updated in the article since it's already been a few days and the article was just posted. Also the OF position he's trying is CF, which is a premium position and not like being hidden in LF. He had some injury before the season which impacted his usage as well. 

Anyway I like him a lot as a prospect, he has good athleticism and has produced consistently in his career. 

4 hours ago, roger said:

OK, Ted, what does Keaschall doing well have to do with the Reds/Mahle trade? 

Granted, not having ECS and Steer around makes it easier for him to reach the Twins.  But they could have been dealt in another deal with a better lasting return to the Twins.  For disclosure sake, I wasn't opposed to the trade when they made it other than I don't like trading a lot of our prospects.  Just wish like heck they would do a better job of kicking the tires when acquiring pitchers to make bloody sure their arms aren't falling off.

Simple idea...

Ask to shake hands with the pitcher before the trade.  Find an old farmer with a hook (for a right hand) to do it for southpaws. 

I can think of a couple of trades that probably would have fallen apart right about then...

4 hours ago, Doctor Gast said:

I was surprised early in the box score why Keaschal was at DH. You don't need much of an arm to play 2B. Like Spencer & CES, Keaschal will be sought after at the deadline and could be good trade bait. But I'd trade Gonzales before him. We haven't had very good luck at the dead line. Hopefully the next time they find a healthy pitcher body & emotions.

Twins are loath to trade good prospects after the Reds fiasco.  I'd suggest somebody in the 10-15 range, which Keaschall no longer is in.  Sure, trade Gonzalez, but the return is iffy.  If you want something big, I'm guessing EmRod is the necessary way to go.  If you want something small, Gonzalez is too big a fish.  Gonzalez is the right price for someone like...I don't know, the Mets'  Lugo from 2-3 years ago.  I'm struggling to think of a similar profile so far in 2024 on a losing team.  But Lugo was just starting to show he could possibly be a nice starter, he was a vet, and he was cheap.

If the Twins trade anybody in a relatively small deal, I'd suggest they've given up on him to some degree.  I'd trade EmRod for a year and a half of a top starter similar to Pablo Lopez, but the Twins won't be adding big money.

FWIW, Keaschall has fir seamlessly into the lineup at AA with Wichita. Luke has a good eye at the plate, swings whenever the ball looks like it needs a hurt, and runs the bases well; he is a fun player to watch. I'm hoping he is leading off tonight with EmRod hitting behind him. 

Go to milb.com and watch this guy hit. 

7 minutes ago, twinstalker said:

Twins are loath to trade good prospects after the Reds fiasco.  I'd suggest somebody in the 10-15 range, which Keaschall no longer is in.  Sure, trade Gonzalez, but the return is iffy.  If you want something big, I'm guessing EmRod is the necessary way to go.  If you want something small, Gonzalez is too big a fish.  Gonzalez is the right price for someone like...I don't know, the Mets'  Lugo from 2-3 years ago.  I'm struggling to think of a similar profile so far in 2024 on a losing team.  But Lugo was just starting to show he could possibly be a nice starter, he was a vet, and he was cheap.

If the Twins trade anybody in a relatively small deal, I'd suggest they've given up on him to some degree.  I'd trade EmRod for a year and a half of a top starter similar to Pablo Lopez, but the Twins won't be adding big money.

It's very usual to have more than one prospect involved in a big trade, so Gonzales could be used in a big trade. Depending the target I'd not trade anyone #1-3, #4 or greater is open season depending our need. Gonzales is overrated & not needed in our future. So he'd be my primary trade bait.

16 hours ago, East Coast Twin said:

I'm hoping he can make up for the Herschel Walker trade too.

Doesn't Brian Dozier figure into this equation somehow too?

I don't want to pile on, but there is this from the Cedar Rapids Gazette; 

"CEDAR RAPIDS - And he played in the field, too. That might have been the best news for Luke Keaschall.

The Cedar Rapids Kernels player has been limited to a designated hitter role the first week-plus of the Midwest League season with a balky elbow. He was second baseman for his club Sunday in its 4-2 win over Dayton at Veterans Memorial Stadium.

Things went just fine. He was flawless fielding the baseball and proved his arm is good to go, including making a long and accurate throw from behind the second-base bag for the final out."

I'm guessing the arm is fine. This is a guy I've been hyped on since last year. Good size and the guy is ripped. He looks like an athlete with a high ceiling to me, not a utility infielder. He plays with a lot of intensity. I think we have a fast mover that might get a taste as early as next season.