bean5302

No. Everybody cannot agree on that as there are other teams who needed to make moves as much or more than the Twins, plus many teams had the budget to make the moves. Instead those teams just wound up being mostly tire-kickers and also rans in competitions for talent so far. Teams like the Orioles and Tigers. I have to wonder what players you'd consider non-questions...

How to create a narrative history to demonize a public figure and perform modern internet based character assassination on a guy who died 16yrs ago, by @Peter Labuza

I saw all the 58lb weight loss quotes to begin last year (2024), but no actual listed weight. Still looked like when he was playing at 260ish to me so he was probably north of 3 bills when he started his "weight loss" https://halohangout.com/posts/la-angels-nri-miguel-sano-revealed-he-lost-absurd-amount-of-weight-2024-comeback-01hqjyng7zff You're right about Sano playing 220ish. If he'd stayed under 230lbs, he'd have probably been a plus fielder at 3B, he'd have been on the field more, and he'd likely have no gaps in his playing years.

I understand. That argument is that Pohlad couldn't have possibly invested his money anywhere else, only the bus company could have benefitted Pohlad. It's unfortunate you potentially can't open a link. If you were able to read the financial statements, the profits being reported in the article were from the other investments MEI made. Actual profits from the bussing business in 1964 were only $600k. The total revenue that year was $14MM. $14MM in revenue is not driving $160MM in profits to Pohlad, either.

Not sure what the point of this article was. Apologists lining up for their hero, Derek Falvey already, I guess? The Twins are currently projected as sitting right about 16th or 17th in MLB payroll, and it's unlikely they're going to be much lower than that. It's time to quit whining about it as if Falvey's been building a house with scraps left over from another job site. It'd be nice if the Pohlads were on board with the concept of spend money to make money, but they're not. There are plenty of paths to a passing grade. Even an "A" available to Falvey, but he usually waits until there is A) a great deal or B) absolutely no deals on the market.

Beating the players down has led to relationship problems between players and teams in the past. Manipulating service time, arbitration hearings, etc have all contributed to player/team relationship stress. It doesn't matter if every team does it. It matters what team does it to what player.

I think his departure reads a lot more like a guy who wants better life balance and good comp.

Padding resume's while they get the chance.

The link saying $160MM was the amount Pohlad somehow profited earned from a transit system that sold for $7.5MM is on shaky ground. Pohlad saved mass transit in the metro and took it back from being a mobster racket. Articles talking about how bus "garages" were shot? Also, while apparently the bussing line/routes were only worth $5.5MM, but profits were $2MM/yr between direct profit? Sorry, but if the company was making $2MM in PROFIT per year, it's worth a hell of a lot more than $5.5MM LOL. I'm sure the proposed buyers of the service wouldn't have any reason to make suggestions which benefit them, right? Reading the actual financial reports on page "14" (15/27), revenue was $14MM, net income was $600k. https://www.grandforksherald.com/sports/pohlad-working-poor-son-of-great-depression-to-one-of-u-s-s-wealthiest-dealmakers Pohlad operated in the gray for sure, pushing the boundaries of legal activity, and probably even exceeding them. I'm not sure how many of the readers of this site would be willing to take on the mafia and expose them publicly at a time where organized crime was in its heyday. Pohlad probably didn't have a death wish.

Based on last year alone, yeah, Jax should be in that top 5 for sure. That said, Jax's track record doesn't look like last year, haha. I don't think it's surprising the Twins decided to keep Jax in the 'pen. Things shifted pretty dramatically for him last year so I'm sure there's uncertainty about his ability to do what he did last year for 6 innings.

I'm much more concerned about the new owners being able to repair relationships with the players after a few core team members got much less than expected. Wonder if the front office will once again win the coveted "We beat our players down in arbitration belt!"

Sano's legs literally broke because he had gained so much weight so quickly and he was so sedentary. Sano developed stress reactions while the Twins wanted him to play RF in 2016. Stress reactions are not acute injuries, yet plenty of his fans tried to play it off as a result of being hit by a pitch on the shin which is impossible. Stress reactions happen from ramping up too quickly when the body hasn't adapted. It's a common injury for new runners. Sano was lazy. He shirked his responsibilities, hired his unqualified sister to be his "nutritionist," and he was often thoughtless about his behavior. Every single offseason there was another problem. I remember every year as a prospect as Sano ballooned in size, he'd make quotes about how the Twins want him bigger for power so it was good that he was gaining weight. Both Molitor and Baldelli became disgusted with Sano's conditioning and shipped him off to Ft. Myers to lose weight after Sano reached pro-ball. Sano showed up every year to Spring Training rocking like a 300lb frame because he didn't work out or eat right in the offseason. From a guy with quick reflexes and a cannon arm who was expected to excel at 3B to a player who couldn't make even routine plays reliably at 1B due to weight and lack of effort, it was the whole nine yards with that guy.

It's wild to see the Twins Daily hype machine turn MiLB roster filler guys like age 29 season Michael Helman into expected major contributors. Nobody is going to claim Helman if he gets DFA'd. The guy was in A+ ball at age 25 after flopping hard in his initial exposure, and has 1,000 PA in AAA where he's been pretty pedestrian overall at ages 26-28. He's MiLB roster filler and emergency utility depth. Teams already have a Helman or they could have one on a MiLB contract any time they want one. Some takes in here are way, way out there.

I expect Emmanuel Rodriguez will be late career Joey Gallo with Byron Buxton's durability. If Rodriguez strikes out less than 40% of the time at the MLB level, I'd be quite surprised. I think Schwarber is Emma's ceiling with later Joey Gallo being the likely outcome. The floor is probably more in line with Will Benson last year.

I'd expect Teel to be the starter out of the gate for Chicago. It's not like that team has anything to lose. Not sure why the 2nd best catcher WAR last year gets the lowest score, but sure. Honestly, it's way too hard to judge what the Twins are bringing to the table. It's possible Willi Castro is the starting 3B next year. Just don't know.

Headrick would be near the top of my list as well. I'd say Jair Camargo is probably more likely a DFA candidate than Gasper or Cartaya.

Did I not state that? Yes. Yes I did.

Where's your data, bud? Oh... don't have any. Nevermind.

Kepler will finish his career in the top 5% of MLB players all time at somewhere in that 25-30 career WAR range. He's in the top 20 of position players to ever wear a Twins jersey. Asking where it went wrong seems pretty crazy.

Anything after #20 is PTBNL area. Technically worth keeping an eye on, but no expectations. Camargo doesn't appear as a top 30 org for MLB in recent years, but he did squeak in at #22 for Fangraphs. He wasn't even worth a TLDR. He wasn't on TD's recent top 30s, either from my memory. He's scouted as weak defensively, and even at age 24, he couldn't hold his own at AAA in 317 plate appearances. .212/.290/.403 was good for a wRC+ of 84. Plenty of pop, but nothing else. On the plus side for Camargo, he had a nice Dominican Winter League performance .323/.359/.495 OPS .853 in a SSS of 109 PA.

If a player makes MLB, that's how soon they make it. Not sure why you want to bring the guys who don't make it at all into this conversation? Internet searches will return various studies on the subject https://community.fangraphs.com/time-from-draft-until-majors/ or you can just look at the current Twins' roster, etc. Jeffers 2yrs Miranda 6yrs Lee 2yrs Correa 3yrs Lewis 5yrs Larnach 3yrs Buxton 3yrs Wallner 3yrs Vazquez 6yrs Julien 4yrs Castro 6yrs signed at age 16 (like Emma) This will be Emma's 5th year in the minors, and he was signed in 2019. International signings are more difficult to predict. Regardless, Emma has certainly not moved quickly through the Twins system. Maybe you think it's common for players to burn multiple options before making their debut? When it comes to international prospect signings, let's just look at last year's All Star Roster. 40% of them debuted faster than Emma, but if Emma doesn't have any hiccups (or the Twins are absolutely desperate), and he makes it this year, he'll be in that 40-70% range so I'm probably just being too harsh. It's not fair to call it slow, but it's certainly not fast, either. Juan Soto a19, Yordan Alvarez a22, Jose Ramirez a20, Salvador Perez a21, Isaac Paredes a21, Willi Castro a22, Anthony Santander a22, Wilson Contrares a24, Teoscar Hernandez a23, Jurickson Profar a19, Luis Arraez a22, Elly De La Cruz a21, Heliot Ramos a22, Marcell Ozuna a22.

Camargo is MiLB roster filler. He was only tendered because of the extreme risk of caused by the Twins' desperate catching situation. Cartaya is regarded as a solid defensive catcher, and he's is still 23 so a full write off is a bit aggressive. Since he plays catcher, he doesn't need to hit well to hold a backup spot down, and at age 22 last year, he was solid in AA. .236/.354/.379 OPS .733 wRC+ 111, though it came with a .327 BABIP. Once promoted to AAA, Cartaya's numbers dropped off badly, but the BABIP being at .262 suggests there may have been some bad luck involved, especially considering the high line drive rate. Then again, way too many pop ups. It's worth noting his K rate actually tightened slightly going from AA (29%) to AAA (27%). His mixed AA/AAA stats wind up at .221/.323/.363 OPS .686 wRC+ 85. Not sure if the Twins will be able to improve something. The O-Swing and Z-Swing rates are good, but the contact rate on the O-Swing is poor so it's possible Cartaya needs a swing adjustment to keep his bat flatter through the strike zone. I don't agree with labeling Gasper as a Kyle Farmer level catching asset since he was originally a catcher in college and has continued to play there primarily. I remember when Mitch Garver was written off only to put in some effort to turn himself into an average backstop. Gasper's biggest issue is going to be whether or not he can learn to swing the bat occasionally, which are issues Larnach and Julien have both struggled with. Gasper isn't going to get a lot of opportunity given his age and spurious status as a prospect. Gasper is comparable to DaShawn Keirsey, Jr. here in prospect status land. Christian Vazquez is not an MLB caliber catcher. Not sure how much worse people think the Twins' depth options could really be here...

Then there will be another 3,650 articles (10 per day) hating on billionaires on this site to wade through, haha.

Typically, high school draft picks make MLB between 3-4 years after drafting. Typically, college draft picks make MLB between 2-3 years after drafting. Top draft picks and elite prospects generally knock a year off that. I'm not going to agree with you.

How I read this: Jeremy Zoll is better at PR than Joe Pohlad. We've all seen Falvey can't define or follow a budget. This just reads like more incompetence to me. I do not care about the budget. I care whether or not the front office finds a "creative" way to make the team better.