bean5302

Speaking of Miranda... .400/.455/.750 OPS 1.205 in 22 PA this Spring 9.1% BB, 18.2% K Seems like he's seeing the ball pretty well. Glad to see it, and hope it continues.

Honestly, only matters to me if he's throwing fastballs at 88-90 or if he's throwing them at 91-92.

Rojas is one of those "he should be better" types. It'll take a little time in our system before we can identify whether he has the stuff but just needs a bit of mechanical polish or if his stuff just doesn't play. I think it's clear something major changed for him between Toronto and Minnesota. Prior to joining the Twins, Rojas wasn't really known for problems with walks. Well... we sure fixed that, but changing something mechanically could certainly have that kind of impact.

@Cody Schoenmann I'm pretty critical on articles here and I found your piece to be solid. If even I'm not complaining, I wouldn't worry about it, lol.

I'd be very unhappy if Gio Urshela was on the 40 man this year, let alone considered a primary backup for Royce Lewis 🤢 Fangraphs lists Clemens as the next on the depth chart at 3B, but I wouldn't be surprised to see Austin Martin there. Next on the list would mayyyyybe be Tanner Schobel, but he's got to show something in ST...

Camden is great. Been there for a Twins at Orioles game in 2011-ish, I think. Aside from that, I feel like you're being unreasonable in your expectations based on the cost of everything I've seen. $1 in 1965 = $10.33 today. So going to a game today in left field bleachers is the same as paying $4 for a lower level seat, a beer and a hot dog in 1965. Not sure if that's a lot?

I can't see the Braves pursuing Larnach. Not sure who the Twins sign at $4.5MM right now who will help the team.

If Keaschall had an elite glove, that's be +1-2 WAR. Could get him to All Star production, but not close to MVP right now. 5 WAR as an elite 2B. If Keaschall develops a lot of power, he could get there.

Putting aside the Kirilloff stuff. Soto is going into his 4th pro season. 1. 2023 - Drafted by Twins, did not pitch in MiLB competitive games. He got a $2.5MM contract. He's a pro. 2. 2024 - Pitched full MiLB season 3. 2025 - Injured almost entire season. 4. 2026 - 4th pro season. I suppose you can make some sort of active service time argument, but he's over 3 years EoY this year no matter how you slice it.

Wrong time of year to be looking up prices if you're talking about the resale market? Best deal in the stadium is left field bleachers. 20 game package is $600 / seat ($30/game) for 20 games all-in. Lower level, GOOD view of the game, close to bathrooms, and some good concession options, sun coverage, weather coverage. I think 15% discount on all concessions/merch. Season ticket holder perks like a couple free caps, special events, etc. As a 74yr old, the bleachers might not be a good option for comfort. They're very cold in cold weather and not too nice on the backside. For lower prices with more comfort, you'd be limited to upper deck, and I'd strongly recommend 300s. I think 200s are the worst deal in the game. Field Box might be your best bet for a better game view starting at $720/seat ($36/game)

Arm strength is fairly irrelevant for 2B becuase the throws are short, on average. Where a SS is expected to regularly make 100+ foot throws, the 2B is often making 30-50 foot throws. Center Field and Right Field require strong arms. Right field to prevent frequent advance attempts to 3B. Center fielders have long throws to make from the deepest part of the outfield. Keaschall is "fast" but not for a center fielder. Keaschall is a little tick below average for a center fielder. Could he cover CF? Sure. He'd likely be a slower version of Ben Revere out there. Range is typically critical for 2B. Think about the number of infield hits fielded by the 2B (virtually 0%) vs. infield hits which were fielded by SS/3B. If the 2B can get to the ball, it's an out. If the SS/3B can get to the ball, there's still a chance a speedy runner can beat the throw. "MVP" I get wanting to be excited about a prospect who looked good in his first work in MLB. Keaschall was not nearly good as Edouard Julien was in his first 204 PA, and as pitchers started getting scouting reports, Keaschall's expected output tanked. So probably temper some expectations. .297/.387/.543 OPS .930 wRC+ 154 in his first 205 PA Julien .302/.382/.445 OPS .827 wRC+ 134 in his first season (204 PA) Keaschall MVPs are almost required to have an elite bat. We're not talking about a "good" bat. We're talking elite bat. That means high OBP and high SLG. Keaschall may develop power in the future, but he's a non-starter when it comes to MVP ceiling. Projection models, even the aggressive ones show Keaschall as a 3.0 WAR caliber player right now. That's still very good. That's a big asset, especially as a cheap, team controlled asset. If we wouldn't consider Jorge Polanco a potential MVP, Luke Keaschall wouldn't be a potential MVP, either. It does a disservice to truly elite players and sets totally unreasonable expectations for Keaschall talking about MVP potential. I see nothing in Keaschall's profile which suggests he's a potential MVP.

Pablo Lopez has an existing contract for $80MM. He's got piece of mind. Your contract proposal is an absolute insult. There is utterly no world where that contract offer isn't looked at as absolutely ridiculous. If Lopez pitches 2027 to the tune of a 3.75 ERA/FIP, he's going to get $25MM+ AAV for 3 years, with maybe a little less for 4 years. My guess is somebody will happily pony up 4yrs and $90MM for Lopez at that point, even with the qualifying offer he'll get from the Twins (if it still exists). Even if Lopez has a mediocre 2027, he'll get more than your offer. Even if he absolutely sucked he'd get more than you're offering. Bieber got 2yrs and $26MM after having missed almost all of the last 2 years and having missed a big chunk of 2023 as well. I'm not nearly as much of a Lopez guy as other people on the site, but give him at least a little credit for not being trash.

0.0% chance. Spring training is about working on pitches and getting into game shape. Lots of players are working on new stuff or just getting a feel for stuff. It's an opportunity to keep throwing a pitch which isn't working for example. It's part of the reason Spring Training stats rarely mean anything.

EXACTLY. The scenario proposed reads to me like a... Twins are competitive this year or look like they have the core to be competitive for 2027 and then 2028. The scenario also assumes it's a lock the CBA is agreed to and is status-quo or beneficial to the players which I think is also risky for the Twins. The scenario assumes it's a virtual guarantee Pablo Lopez is widely expected to come back as the same pitcher after having missed 1-2 years to the point where a team with ownership committed to a below median payroll will be able to avoid bad large contracts consider there to be no added risk to extending Lopez. The reality is Pablo Lopez today is not Pablo Lopez in 2023 where the Twins ALREADY bought out 3 years of his free agency through an extension. Lopez has a guaranteed generational wealth contract at $80MM from the Twins. He's not desperate or starving for a new contract. Lopez has almost zero reason to take a discount, and plenty of reasons not to take a short term contract at age 32...

Lopez's xERA and xFIP have climbed for the last 2 straight years and this was going to be his age 30 season. He's not good enough to lead a playoff rotation based on his seasonal stats. His K rates have declined massively. His exit velocities against are climbing, both average and max. Hitters are swinging at Lopez's stuff outside the zone less so his deception is in decline. Contact rates in and out of the zone are up... This obsession with extending every decent player who suits up for the Twins for more than a year or two is crazy to me. Lopez is not the guy you extend. An extension makes little sense for either side, yet the TD writers will continue to push this issue over and over again, won't they? If Lopez is needed at the price he'll take, the Twins are already non-competitive.

It "used" to be not abusive at all. The Randy Dobnaks of the world operating on $2MM / year contracts weren't going to get another MLB contract, that's why they didn't refuse the assignment. The Dodgers are using it different. They're signing guys, hanging on to them until the market dries up, then outrighting them or DFA'ing them which puts the player into a really tough spot. It forces players who WOULD get an MLB contract someplace else under normal competitive scenarios into the minors because the market has dried up. That's abusive. Jackson is different. He wasn't going to get $1.35MM anywhere so he's honestly in good shape. Falzoll doesn't understand the "budget" concept thing so they don't understand how to employ the strategy.

Soto needs a healthy season pretty badly at this point. The Twins didn't have him throw a single inning in 2023, then he missed pretty much all of 2025 with various issues. Soto has as much upside as anybody in the system, but if he doesn't pitch, it won't matter.

I heard Leeroy Hoard will getcha 3.

All I need is a reminder of how expensive it is to go to a Wild game to change my perspective on Twins games, lol. Wild are +27 which is tied for 3rd best in the West right now. Avs are the clear juggernauts in the West. Crazy how many close games the Lightning must have lost this year. +60 with the same point total as the Wild.

Byron Buxton Matt Wallner Ryan Jeffers Royce Lewis Byron Buxton in a mustache Matt Wallner in a mustache Ryan Jeffers in a mustache Royce Lewis in a mustache Byron Buxton with glasses and a mustache Something like that...

It's probably a pitch count thing. Skubal at 80 pitches can get through 5 no problem. In fact, he averaged 14.5 pitches per inning last year. 84 pitches gets him through 6. 5 innings 41 starts a year in a full season gets him to 205. It's just not viable to have a 4 man because the bullpen is too short.

Baseball Trade Values has Larnach at +2 last I checked. That's enough for a 10-15 prospect somewhere. Larnach is an MLB average or better hitter and that doesn't honestly grow on trees. He's a better player than Josh Bell who we paid $7MM for (another bone-headed contract). I would so much rather trade Bell and $2MM for a PTBNL than Larnach for a 10-15 org prospect. The real problem is finding a suitor. Right now, there aren't any. Larnach isn't a black hole so he'll appeal to a team with a strong need in the outfield and a little (not a lot) of spending power. Maybe the Rays... but the absurdly cheap-skate (heh, pun) Rays won't eat $5MM so the Twins would have to aim a bit higher in a middle prospect and probably toss $2MM in or something.

Jackson wasn't acquired because he was one of the worst hitters in MLB history across his limited 440 plate appearances in 6 seasons at the MLB level. Falzoll decided the SSS approach change for Jackson at the plate was the sustainable cause for a jump from a career wRC+ 29 bat to a wRC+ 111 bat. Of course, further metrics suggest it was mostly luck and Jackson is still a poor hitter at the MLB level, but possibly... playable? At this point in the season, I think Jackson would likely sneak through waivers. While his contract his fully guaranteed, it's only fully guaranteed so long as he does what the team says. Jackson doesn't have 5+ years of service time so a refusal to accept an assignment means he would forefit an enormous amount of money for a guy like him. He would go from $1.35MM guaranteed to likely a non-guaranteed $50k if signed to a MiLB contract. It's a very abusive system to which the Dodgers organization has brought public scrutiny to this year. I don't expect this system to remain in place in 2027+, but we're not there yet. I should also note, I wouldn't care if the Twins lost Jackson to another team claiming him. In fact, I think it would be a good thing because it was a bad trade and contract to begin with IMHO.

I think that's a distinct possibility, actually. The return of the 4 man rotation with 80 pitch counts and 3-4 solid long relievers good enough to go 3 innings might well come out of that TBH.

I think the big money players are totally on board with a burn it down mentality. They really don't have much to lose. If the MLBPA is able to get the younger players to favor some compromise, I think the season will work. If the hard-liner veterans on the generational wealth contracts are able to get the younger players in line, 2027 will be lost.