Bark's Lounge

While traversing the threads, blogs, and articles posted on Twins Daily, I really like that this site has sabremetric analysts, purists, extremists, and the alternative of thought. That is super great, but I am starting to feel that the whole trade scenario talk, speculation, and haphazard desire to execute could hamstring this franchise even more. When I was growing up, there seemed to be an imbedded loyalty to our favorite and best Twins players and they stuck around and we were happy for that even though the team for most of the years was a losing team. It seems that the present time more or less exudes players being looked at as commodities and when a franchise is in a bit of a rut the calls go out to pulling the trigger and getting rid of our heroes, or mainstays for what I can only deem question mark types of players. Maybe the “Commodities” idealism is modern day baseball, with unrealistic expectations and cynicism. I want the Twins to keep Denard Span, Justin Morneau, and Joe Mauer. I do not think that a Span or Morneau trade will bring back anything that is a guarantee and my thought is we will be the losers yet again if that is to happen. During these tough times I want to be able to watch a Twins game and know that even though the team is lackluster, I might be able to enjoy the game because one of my favorite players had a good or great game… not to forget there will also be some wins here and there. In the next few years the Twins need to do well with their drafts and maybe think about making a more impactful FA signing instead of coating the cake with a frosting of **** bird retreads. I do not think that trading our most valuable and beloved players is the key to our future success. I really hope the next time the Twins have a contender type of team that Mauer, Morneau and Span are a big part of it… on the field of course!

While traversing the threads, blogs, and articles posted on Twins Daily, I really like that this site has sabremetric analysts, purists, extremists, and the alternative of thought. That is super great, but I am starting to feel that the whole trade scenario talk, speculation, and haphazard desire to execute could hamstring this franchise even more. When I was growing up, there seemed to be an imbedded loyalty to our favorite and best Twins players and they stuck around and we were happy for that even though the team for most of the years was a losing team. It seems that the present time more or less exudes players being looked at as commodities and when a franchise is in a bit of a rut the calls go out to pulling the trigger and getting rid of our heroes, or mainstays for what I can only deem question mark types of players. Maybe the “Commodities” idealism is modern day baseball, with unrealistic expectations and cynicism. I want the Twins to keep Denard Span, Justin Morneau, and Joe Mauer. I do not think that a Span or Morneau trade will bring back anything that is a guarantee and my thought is we will be the losers yet again if that is to happen. During these tough times I want to be able to watch a Twins game and know that even though the team is lackluster, I might be able to enjoy the game because one of my favorite players had a good or great game… not to forget there will also be some wins here and there. In the next few years the Twins need to do well with their drafts and maybe think about making a more impactful FA signing instead of coating the cake with a frosting of **** bird retreads. I do not think that trading our most valuable and beloved players is the key to our future success. I really hope the next time the Twins have a contender type of team that Mauer, Morneau and Span are a big part of it… on the field of course!

Cheers and bottoms up

I'm on board... agreed!

I have to admit that I am closed minded in regards to having a weak armed RFer. If Revere has a chance to stick as a starter he will have to play LF (maybe occasionally CF). I agree with you Shane Wahl that this is a a bizarre move. I am not sure if I would prefer Revere over Plouffe in RF in any situation or ballpark. I am not saying I couldn't be persuaded on that, but I'd need to here or read the argument.

It would be nice to have a data sheet available to read from Gardenhire's mind when he made that decision. Plouffe in LF and Revere in RF is disappointing to say the least.

I really hated that trade when it went down, but it is sitting a lot better with me at present time. Diamond actually looks like he might be able to stick in the Bigs whether it be as a SP or RP.

Hindsight is 20/20

Even though it makes sense to deal Morneau. It would be somewhat of a bumber. If it is to happen, you have to get a very strong return for him. PR wise, I do believe it would piss off most of the Twins fanbase. Me personally, I'd like to see Morneau rebound and return to his 30HR, .280+ BA and give some excitement to the fanbase. The pitching part of the equation is going to take awhile to get back on track, but in the 3-4 years that will probably take - it is nice to have some some home town heroes to root for, follow and make watching a losing baseball team worth watching. I hope Morneau rebounds, remains a Twin and is part of our next winning ball club.

If it is deemed that a batter was intentionally hit by a pitch (the crew chief gets to make this judgement call). The pitcher will not be ejected, but as punishment the team who had their batter get hit gets to use aluminum bats the rest of the game. This is of course a joke.

A follow up example:

This might get lost on one or most of you Twins Daily Cats, but I thinks Roger Clemens is turning into a fat Larry Hagman (circa 1980), who played J.R. Ewing on the nighttime drama called "Dallas". You decide!

It seems that people always find something to put under the microscope and scrutinize it and scrutinize it again. I don't know MLB's Rule Book on how players are to treat the field of play, but Walters' actions do not seem inappropriate. They seem like a man who is expressing his grief and regret for a loved one lost forever. Sometimes it is important to make some kind expression that is noticed to reassure yourself that the loved one lost had once existed. I am sure there are some people who are reading this thread who have lost lost someone tragically, way ahead of their time. I fall into this category and in turn I have a lot of sympathy for PJ Walters.

Like some have said, AJ looks to be in decline, but his decline seems to be slow one. I'd expect a few more years of 400 PA's, a .270 BA, and 7 -11 HR's. He's not a catch and throw guy, but seems to handle a pitching staff more than competently. Would I want Pierzynski to rejoin the Twins as a player - No. Would I want T-Hunt to rejoin the team as a player - also no. Let's deal with the crisis that is now and look positively to rebuilding for the future. Nostalgia for players of the past is all and good, but is of no benefit to the task at hand. Cudos to AJ for still having a impactful career.

Plouffe there it is!

Nice to see Plouffe at 3B. I hope they keep running him out there... see if he can cut it.

Seth, in your estimation - when can you see Gibson making his MLB debut? My thought is opening day at the very, very earliest next season.

You are making a comparison between two different kinds of animal. Strasburg had a dazzling and overpowering debut in MLB the 2 months prior to tearing his UCL. Gibson was very up and down at AAA leading up to his UCL tear. Who knows if Gibson will ever be able to pitch at the MLB level after the his TJ surgery? Gibson unlike Strasburg hasn't proven anything at the Big League level. I am hoping for the best, but he certainly won't pitch up here this year and I am not counting on him being an answer to our pitching questions next year. I am not knockin Gibson's talent, but Strasburg is easily Gibson's superior. This being said, I hope Gibson makes a full recovery and helps the Twins a little in 2013 and a lot in 2014.

Batting Just as I reported last time. Eddie Rosario is still in a little bit of a hitting slump. Over the last 10 days he has hit .237 in 38 AB's, 2 Doubles, 1 HR, 2 RBI's, 3 BB, 3 SO, 2 for 4 in the SB department and an overall OPS of .661 - not the greatest, but he is very definitely keeping the K's to bare minimum and on a plus note he hit a game winning HR on May 14. For the season: against Lefties he is batting .229 in 48 AB's with 4XBH and against righties he is batting an even .300 in 110 AB's with 13 XBH. But since Rosario is a left handed batter this is no surprise at this stage of his development. His overall season stats are the following: [TABLE=class: sortable stats_table] [TH=class: tooltip sort_default_asc show_partial_when_sorting, align: left]Year[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip sort_default_asc show_partial_when_sorting, align: center]Age[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip sort_default_asc show_partial_when_sorting, align: center]Tm[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip sort_default_asc, align: center]Lg[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip sort_default_asc, align: center]Lev[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip sort_default_asc, align: center]Aff[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]G[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]PA[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]AB[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]R[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]H[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]2B[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]3B[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]HR[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]RBI[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]SB[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]CS[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]BB[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]SO[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip hide_non_quals, align: center]BA[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip hide_non_quals, align: center]OBP[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip hide_non_quals, align: center]SLG[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip hide_non_quals, align: center]OPS[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]TB[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]GDP[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]HBP[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]SH[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]SF[/TH] [TH=class: tooltip, align: center]IBB [/TH] [TR=class: full] [/TD][TD=align: right] [/TD] [TD=align: right] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [/TR] [TR=class: full] [TD=align: right][/TD] [/TD] [TD=align: right] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [TD=align: right][/TD] [/TR] [TR=class: full] 2012[TD=align: right]20[/TD] Beloit MIDW A MIN[TD=align: right]43[/TD] [TD=align: right]180[/TD] [TD=align: right]158[/TD] [TD=align: right]22[/TD] [TD=align: right]44[/TD] [TD=align: right]13[/TD] [TD=align: right]1[/TD] [TD=align: right]3[/TD] [TD=align: right]22[/TD] [TD=align: right]9[/TD] [TD=align: right]7[/TD] [TD=align: right]22[/TD] [TD=align: right]20[/TD] [TD=align: right].278[/TD] [TD=align: right].367[/TD] [TD=align: right].430[/TD] [TD=align: right].797[/TD] [TD=align: right]68[/TD] [TD=align: right]5[/TD] [TD=align: right]0[/TD] [TD=align: right]0[/TD] [TD=align: right]0[/TD] [TD=align: right]0 [/TD] [/TR] [/TABLE] Defense Statistically there has been some improvement. His fielding % at 2B is up to .947. It was .938 the last I reported. He has played 34 games at 2B with 169 chances, 69 putouts, 91 assists, 9 Errors and he has helped turn 21 double plays. In CF, Rosarion has 0 error in 15 chances. Til next time...

Agreed. Maybe Gerald Laird would fit that bill.

I agree with you that Bowden's an idiot. He is also a low handed snake in the grass, opportunist, and egomaniac.

Maybe he is Phillip Jr. Your guess is as good as mine.

No, I am not hear to sell you jewelry. What a shock! The Twin's Salvage crew this year is a couple of guys who no one would have expected to make any kind of impact. Scott Diamond and PJ Walters. I'll give Diamond a little credit as we traded an interesting prospect for him to retain his rights (Billy Bullock) because of the rule 5 draft. Walters is a little more drifty. Circa the movie "Men at Work", Diamond and Walters are our modern day Emilio Estevez and Charlie Sheen - which in turn, they get job done, but in a shabby kind of way. Scott Diamond: He has put up fair numbers in the minors and his K/9 has been decent, but his WHIP is pretty high and only growing higher as he has ascended through the minors (1.403). That is not very good. P.J. Walters: also has a growing WHIP in his ascension in the upper levels of MiLB and his K/9 has fallen off a bit after a new level is obtained. These guys are essentially identical statistically and stuff wise. I hope the best for them. In the my minds view, I hope they continue their current pace, but in all reality they are probably filler. Come on Scott, come on Phillip Dewayne... prove me wrong!

No, I am not hear to sell you jewelry. What a shock! The Twin's Salvage crew this year is a couple of guys who no one would have expected to make any kind of impact. Scott Diamond and PJ Walters. I'll give Diamond a little credit as we traded an interesting prospect for him to retain his rights (Billy Bullock) because of the rule 5 draft. Walters is a little more drifty. Circa the movie "Men at Work", Diamond and Walters are our modern day Emilio Estevez and Charlie Sheen - which in turn, they get job done, but in a shabby kind of way. Scott Diamond: He has put up fair numbers in the minors and his K/9 has been decent, but his WHIP is pretty high and only growing higher as he has ascended through the minors (1.403). That is not very good. P.J. Walters: also has a growing WHIP in his ascension in the upper levels of MiLB and his K/9 has fallen off a bit after a new level is obtained. These guys are essentially identical statistically and stuff wise. I hope the best for them. In the my minds view, I hope they continue their current pace, but in all reality they are probably filler. Come on Scott, come on Phillip Dewayne... prove me wrong!