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Otaknam

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Everything posted by Otaknam

  1. Otaknam
    I like Sonny Gray. He’s a bulldog competitor and can win a big game. But he’s no Verlander, Kershaw, Halliday, or Viola, all legit number one starters. Sonny is in the next group.
  2. Otaknam
    They will start the experienced Farmer at SS, regardless if Lee is called up. You don’t want a rookie w no ML experience to start in the playoffs at such a premium position when there is another solid option. That said I don’t think they will call up Lee this fall.
  3. Otaknam
    Sadly Buxton can’t be counted on for the playoffs, for next year, and maybe not after that. The team has played well without him lately. Buxton always takes two weeks to get his timing back, meanwhile piling up strikeouts and leaving runners on base. The team should strongly consider signing Michael A. Taylor to an extension given that it’s unlikely Buxton will ever be able to play more than 100 games.
  4. Otaknam
    Silly discussion. Even in the age of stats, imagine a Cy Young winner having 9 wins. Gray has been pretty good and has some bulldog in him. But he’s no Cy Young candidate. I would like the team to give him a two year extension, however.
  5. Otaknam
    Good for Dobnak getting the life changing contract a couple of years ago, despite the injury last year and showing no ability this year to be a big league pitcher. Bad for the FO for giving him that contract, which was always a head scratcher to me.
  6. Otaknam
    This isn’t exactly a shutdown bullpen. Too many holes. As forLopez, he has at times pitched like a frontline starter, but he is really a number 2 in my opinion. Sherzer, Verlander, and Kershaw spent long stretches of their careers as number ones. Lopez hasn’t approached that level yet. Hopefully he does.
  7. Otaknam
    I understand the frustration w Rocco as manager. My biggest complaint is his over reliance on stats, especially with starting pitchers. We all understand that the more times batters face a pitcher the more comfortable they are. But sometimes a manager has to show confidence and trust in his players and let them keep going. I remember a game two years ago when Ryan has something like 80 pitches through six or seven innings, with only 1 run and very few hits, and was pulled by Baldelli. Heaven forbid Ryan faces a lineup a fourth time! And of course the Twins lost. Imagine if Rocco had managed Bob Gibson, Sandy Koufax, or Blyleven? No HOF for those guys!
  8. Otaknam
    It’s good that SWR has seemingly bounced back from a slow start. I do wonder why he averages 4-5 innings per start during this stretch. If it is pitch count that’s not a good sign that he has a hard time getting through five innings. That’s not the pattern of a starter. He is still young though so there is time.
  9. Otaknam
    The team has depth in corner outfielder and Larnach has enough potential to bring something if value in a trade. He has a lot of power with his swing and miss. But a team that needs power should take a chance. I think he is a decent outfielder and has a good arm.
  10. Otaknam
    The Mets would require high level prospects for Alonso, some combination of Schobel, Lee, Raya, Kiriloff and maybe Larnach. Lee should be untouchable, and maybe Raya too since the Twins top prospects are thin in pitching after last year’s trades. If Larnach and Schobel could get the trade done I would do it, since both are behind other players. It would make for an interesting 2024. That said, I am feeling pretty optimistic on the Twins’ future, with a young core that will only get better with more experience. Hopefully the starting rotation holds up and Paddock is healthy and rebounds.
  11. Otaknam
    It’s great so see Jenkins have so much easy success right away, and that the FO is being aggressive with his development. High batting average, power, speed, and lots of contact w few strikeouts. But I’m not sure what the point of this column is. 1. Be really excited because Jenkins’ stats are other worldly for an 18 year old? Or 2. But he doesn’t have very many at bats so don’t put him into the HOF just yet? I’ll just wait to see how next year goes as he hopefully works his way to AA. If the team thinks he is that advanced would they be REALLY aggressive and assign him the Arizona Fall League in 2023? I don’t think so but …….
  12. Otaknam
    Gallo or Luplow? They seem to stick w Gallo for some reason. Maybe to save face over that $11 million contract that was overpaying him by $8 million. Is that worth Gallo as defensive replacement, because all those strikeouts sure isn’t. It could be argued that they would have been better off w Sano even though Sano can’t play defense.
  13. Otaknam
    Miranda wouldn’t bring much in a trade this off season. So the best decision is to bring him to spring training, work to improve his defense, and show that he can still hit. An injury away from the bigs, or if he plays well a decent trade piece for another prospect. Still, he is behind players like Lee and maybe even some others.
  14. Otaknam
    I have just moved on from Buxton as an integral part of this team going forward. They had a whole offseason to get him right and still he could only DH. I no longer have any hope that he can be consistently productive both offensively and defensively, given his inability to stay healthy. When he did play I cringed every time he had to run fast or slide. His body is made out of glass and it appears he will never be able to have a season without a significant injury.
  15. Otaknam
    Francona made his decisions based on trying to stay within striking distance of the Twins. His team was already behind by double digits, so an epic comeback was not likely given his team’s offensive struggles. Saving the bullpen for today and tomorrow was more important, even though it became batting practice.
  16. Otaknam
    It’s been a season of just when I think the Twins are getting over the hump they lose 3-4 straight to bad teams like KC or Detroit. So now they have a chance for a knockout blow against the Guardians. Will they get it done or fall back into the season long pattern of lack of offense? We’ll have an answer by Wednesday evening.
  17. Otaknam
    You totally lost me with minutiae of the newly minted baseball stats that have emerged over the past several years. Some of them make sense, some make me think that people are trying too hard to make us think they are a baseball savant. Baldelli’s over reliance on analytics was a disaster last year, especially for starting pitchers. Sometimes the manager has to rely on instincts and show trust and confidence in the players, rather than over analyzing. To write that “Joey Gallo (owner of a 103 wRC+) is 80.5% of the hitter that Luis Arraez is (in terms of weighted runs created)” is a head scratcher. Arraez’ getting on base, maybe with only a single, changes the approach of the pitcher and the defense. He moves runners along and gets RBIs. Gallo strike out 50% of the time. One in awhile he hits a home run. Offensively Gallo isn’t half the player that Arraez is.
  18. Otaknam
    Never will happen. Despite the Correa contract, the Twins don’t think this big. And I think Ohtani will stay on the West Coast where there will be a Japanese population to make him feel more comfortable. Or maybe even an East Coast city.
  19. Otaknam
    Obviously success in AAA isn’t a guarantee of being successful at the major leagues level. But it can’t be held against them, with the assumption that it doesn’t translate into more success. Using Wallner and Jeffers 0-5 to prove your point doesn’t prove anything. HOF players had plenty of 0-5 games. And there is only one way to find out about minor leaguers. I’m all for the continued youth movement, and Luplow isn’t part of it. I’m intrigued by Martin’s speed, versatility, and right handed batting skills that put the ball into play. Hopefully we get to see what he can do in September.
  20. Otaknam
    This disappointing Twins team is not to be trusted to win this weak division. Too many underperforming stars and a porous bullpen is not a prescription for success. They could lose 6 games in a row and let Cleveland back into the race. Fortunately the starting pitchers give them a chance. But I’m not thinking about a potential playoff opponent yet.
  21. Otaknam
    Angel Hernandez should be a strong advocate for robo umps. He is so weak behind the plate that robo umpires might help him keep his job.
  22. Otaknam
    I am not sure why they are so careful with Raya. Potential arm trouble?
  23. Otaknam
    An argument can be made for Funderburk, Williams and Martin. Another lefty in the BP would make sense. And of course the FO needs the Berrios trade to start producing dividends, so bringing up Martin, with his speed and versatility, helps the team and the FO too. And Martin’s last month shows he is starting to live up to the hype. Williams big right handed bat and ability to catch and play first also makes some sense, and he deserves a call up. But I think they’ll opt for Martin as a position player for the above reasons.
  24. Otaknam
    The FO gave Dobnak an undeserved multi year contract. Good for Dobnak but that was always a head scratcher to me.
  25. Otaknam
    It’s hard to get too excited about this team. They are not an underdog, but rather are under achievers. They win three then lose three. Win two and get swept by the dregs of the league. They have underperformed offensive expectations because of Correa’s and Buxton’s dismal seasons. And of course Buxton will end up missing at least a third of the season again. So despite his large contract he really cannot be counted on in the future. The pitching has been good enough to keep them in first in the lowly Central Division. I keep hoping they will get on a roll but it hasn’t happened yet.
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