Crackedfungo

Astudillo is a glorified pinch hitter. I would rather have BR in that spot - he IS 26. Astudillo is BAD at all positions. He is becoming this Mgmt Teams version of Punto - e.g. no business being on the roster and the ultimate low-talent 'dirty jersey' player. Name me 20 other teams that would waste time on these type of guys with the logjam or prospects we have behind them?!? I didn't think so.....

So....We were SO ready to move up AK, BR, and TL that we went with Kyle Garlick in LF versus Rosario for another year!?! This will bite us in the a$$ at some point - either by wasting time on Garlick, having Rosario beat us in games, or in having even more Rule 5 challenges upcoming without knowing what we have (and behind AK, BR, and TL - see Badoo now gone). Logjams at Triple AAA and MLB have a trickle-down impact. I am not surprised that AK, BR and TL did not TAKE the job this Spring. They basically had ALL of last year off in terms of games. Garlick and Astudillo are wasted roster spots and just create logjams. If you are moving on from Rosario; go with the rookies that you moved him out for. SMH

The Twins will regret this for at least 1-2 years. I almost guarantee that he will be tuned up for a game with the Twins and will be a bit like Big Papi. I get the business case, but Rosario will end up having a better total career than Buxton or Kepler. Sorry, that is just the case. Buxton cannot stay healthy and has been inconsistent, and Kepler just cannot translate a great swing into a consistent average or consistent power. Rosario will prove this to be true. Unfortunately, we couldn't get him to agree to the longer/cheaper deal that Kepler has, which I think (in conjunction with the young options) created the situation at present. This was the result of Rosario breaking in earlier, and having more arbitration leverage than the other two earlier. I still stand by my prediction that he will be a more reliable threat than Buxton or Kepler, and that the 2-3 rookies will not approach his production in HRs and RBIs for at least 3 years. Lastly, I don't get why the Twins are so ready to move in youngsters to everyday positions, but less so for SPs? They keep bringing in older retreads, and clearly drag out young SPs too long (starting with Romero - whom they screwed up, and it remains to be seen whether Duran and Balazo will be brought up before some warts show).

I think this is just idiocy. Bauer is NOT going to come here without another debilitating contract like Donaldson. He is also a major HEAD CASE. Rosario and Sano have their faults, but to get rid of them both for a prospect or two (that has also missed a year of development) and expect that the add of Bauer will improve our regular season and playoff record over what it is (while starting every 5th day) is just daft. Also, why would you go all 'youth movement' at core everyday positions and WISH for the best, but not bring up a talented 5th started like Duran, and save the later years Bauer money to keep some of the now/future core, when Duran can only impact you negatively every 5th day (versus the rookie regulars almost every day). This, to me, is simple. You have 3 solid starters. You sign a lower priced 'prove it' pitcher like a Teheran, and allow Duran and Dobnak to compete for the last two rotation spots. You also have a very impressive line-up that struggles with injury (Donaldson), or playoff performance - take your pick from: Kepler, Polanco, Rosario, Sano, Buxton, Garver, etal. Which one or two of these players performed the past two years in the playoffs? I would argue that Kepler has performed the worst. Yet, he seems untouchable in all these discussions, and I am not convinced you wouldn't get more back for him (than Sano or Rosario - and I would not give up Rosario for nothing like a DFA, as he is an asset). I would still give the core one more year, or consider trading Kepler and using some of the $ for a tender to Rosario, keeping this asset until it pans out or we can unload it later when it has value (once the 2021 prospective impact is known or experienced). I would also lose Gonzalez, Adrianza, Cave,Avila, Bailey, Hill, Romo, Clippard, and May (he wants out), and go in-house to replace them. I would re-up the rest, and sit/trade from among Rosario, Sano, and Polanco the minute their performance is off in 2021 before trade deadline (with Lewis, Kiri, Rooker, and Larnach filling Adrianza/Gonzalez, Donaldson's, Cave, and Lamont's spots and ready to take over full-time the minute one is not meeting expectations). ......FIRE AWAY at my suggestions, but at least they are realistic. We also NEED to bring along a young starter or two next year that will be relied upon in 2022 (and I don't believe this will be from among Smeltzer, Thorpe, or even Dobnak).

Most (not all) teams from high school on up are fundamentally sound. When you have a generational player like Puckett and a whole bunch of 'gamers' that play the game with their own sound fundamentals, you hardly need a manager. Just because Kelly doesn't f*&K it up with shifts and stupid bullpen usage, doesn't mean that you need to reincarnate him. You just need an average manager that makes decent 'in game' decisions and stays out of the players way. These characteristics are not that hard to find. It is MORE important for the organization to find the players with the internal drive to win, than it is to find a manager to do so. Look at all the winning WS managers that have failed elsewhere - they are abundant. Baseball managing (like hockey coaching) has very little to do with winning. It might have more to do with losing. Molitor was also known for gaffe decisions, and he knew the game cold - we were told. What the Twins need to focus upon is finding players that refuse to lose, and putting together a group that may not pass all the analytics tests, but know how to win, Then, you add a manager that just tries not to dick it up for them with his own decisions. Thus, this is more of an indictment of a manager that meddles, than it is support for a manager that doesn't. Pitching and hitting coaches also may be more important than the manager, as they help refine strengths/weaknesses. A bad third base coach can also be a HUGE problem, as we have found out.....To sum it up, Kelly was average. His players PLAYED above average, and Puckett was exceptional - when it counted. I was at the home games for both WS Championships. It was evident that Puckett simply refused to lose, and they had some pitching that was similarly inclined (coupled with winning role players) and they gelled as a team when it mattered in the playoffs (perhaps because of, or in spite of Kelly - who was known to be kind of an ass).

This is just BS. I am so over the 'hero worship' of a mediocre manager like 'TK.; It was the players that won the titles, and Kelly just stayed out of the way. Jack Morris refused to come out. TK did NOT send him out in the 10th. I am so done with deifying a very average manager that had two teams that found ways to win with a very unique player in Puckett (and a few others) that were able to rise to the occasion when presented the opportunity. After all the years of having TK involved with the Twins since, why hasn't his 'postseason Zen' rubbed off on the team? Because he was NOT the reason.

Surprised Polanco didn't airmail the routine throw to second.....Can we get some GD hits now? This Astros team should be a walk-over.

Between Jeffers, Kiriloff, Lewis, Duran, Balazovic and a few others, I think the next 12-18 months are going to bring new enthusiasm to the team, and hopefully, ambivalence towards the playoff history. That said, the remaining vets and Baldelli need to figure out a new approach in the playoffs, and find a new hitting coach, whatever they did last year and this year in advance of the playoffs specifically also needs to be flushed (along with Gonzalez, Romo, Avila, Tortuga, etc).

The KID looks pretty damn good on the field and at bat.

This is idiocy. You don't just cut loose your best hitter for a slight power drought month in this strange year. I love the prospects in the pipeline, but other than Rooker, neither AK or TL has 'earned their way' out of AA (and even AAA). I would bring them up for an injury. I might event bring them up to replace a Kepler or Rosario (if one were traded). What I would NOT do, is not re-sign Nelson, thinking we need to find room from all three of these players next year.

The past hoped for nucleus brought it tonight. Buck, Rosario, and Sano. Anyone who doesn't think Rosario is a CORE piece of the team is 'fishing with no bait.' His .310+ BA with RISP is EXACTLY what you have to have to win. Is it a surprise that he is leading the team in RBIs? I love Buck's potential - he just HAS to stay healthy. Lastly, the BEAST known as Sano is just one of those guys - feast or famine. He can certainly launch a ball like few I have ever seen and completely change a game after some feeble at-bats. OTOH: Kepler and Donaldson need to step up, and it may be time that our rookie catcher is the permanent starter. He is just TOO GOOD offensively, defensively, and calling a game to be on the bench anymore other than needed rest. He will push Garver to be primary C as soon as he comes back (and next year).

I agree. Alcala was one I wanted to see before this year - elite stuff. Same is true with Duran. If you have elite stuff and some command/control, you can succeed as a rookie in MLB. We trot out guys like Smeltzer and Thorpe in relief, and guys like Dobnak, Hill and Bailey that simply don't have elite stuff. MLB hitters will adjust and tee-off. I would rather throw someone with elite stuff out there. Graterol last year is an example. They can be a weapon in playoffs if eased in and handled correctly.

Anyone Smell Zer. The guy just doesn't have the right stuff or pitch savvy to get away with his subpar stuff. The opponents figured him out after last year. Why not Colina, Chalmers, or even Duran? We have seen enough of DS. He has 'undrafted' velocity

The one I am very intrigued by not mentioned much here is Alcala. He has the stuff, and is developing the control and confidence. That trade looks much better as he develops. I like his focus and fire too - necessary as a closer. Could he produce in a big game against the Yankees? Time will tell, but he has the stuff. I think we lose May after this year. I think Rogers rebounds, and Alcala becomes a RH force if he maintains command/control. I do want to see Colina and Chalmers (if he improves control soon). Colina has high-end gas, and Chalmers has an almost unhittable couple of pitches IF he has control. His BBs are well-known, but his BAA is just sick at times. Future is not dim if we lose a few of our mainstays.

I do agree with you on Garver, and did not mean to knock him for what was an all-timer year at C to try to follow. What I meant was that he is the type of player that will be challenged to come close to repeating an absolutely exceptional year. Given his age, and wear/tear at C, I feel that he has to sustain really good versus last years exceptional performance before the wear/tear catches up to him. I do think he will do it, but he was due for a material regression to the mean. I don't have a problem with the Avilla signing at all. It was shrewd (and cheap as you referenced). But, like with Astudillo, I do feel that we need to avoid blocking our really talented young players with stop-gaps. For a few reasons; we will have some roster spots to make up our mind on in the next few years, and I do feel like we need to move up the obvious ones in a hurry to reserve space for the ones that may take a few extra years like Garver to maximize value. All the Avilla's and Astudillo's clog the system for doing so. While I know Astudillo can play many positions and has an active bat, I would rather the Twins clear the space for others. To that end, I want to see Rooker, Kiriloff, Larnach and Lewis early - even in utility roles this year - as there are no games in the minors. I have the same feeling about the Cave's, Vargas', Wade - and perhaps even the Adrianza's and Gonzalez's. I think that getting the young players some experience like Jeffers will pay great dividends down the road with these assets (either to keep or trade). I just don't feel that we need too many role players in this unique year. Just my opinion.