Crackedfungo

Yep. Overshot for savings. Boras client and the two high schoolers may have necessitated it. I think Johnson was clearly an option forestalled by co$t to keep him from LSU - but I REALLY wanted him too.

BPA. No to Wilson and Gonzalez, and He77 NO to Teel. You don't force a pick of need with a talent pool of 5 deep studs. IF they go with any of Wilson, Gonzalez, or Teel, I would pink slip Falvine that afternoon.

what about Prielipp? Have not heard anything since his first start!??

I hope that was sarcasm, as Montas is out the whole year with injury, and was never 'right' from the jump. Risks abound with these arms.....On the other hand (given unexpected injury to high stress pitching), perhaps we just shouldn't 'chase' pitchers at all with high mileage and just develop our own (if we were good at it)...

The 'sign or trade for an Ace' narrative is REALLY tired. Robbie Ray was proposed (fail), the Ryu/Toronto was another (fail), Bumgarner (fail), DeGrom (fail 2022 and TBD). In the past, it was Darvish (fail for several years), and there have been others. In short, you need to grow your own (draft) or be very lucky in terms of foresight in a simple trade. Your odds are better in drafting your own Ace if you take chance with more high draft picks to try (which they Twins rarely do at present). I would try this year with the #5 - they have many young hitting prospects, and there should be 1 of the 3 best college pitchers, or the best HS pitcher available at that spot; rinse and repeat until you have one. Otherwise, spend whatever it takes on scouting and pitcher development. Any other route generally fails (barring 1-2 years of success), and is VERY expensive - assuming a premier Ace will even sign in MN.

What this means (if serious injuries are avoided) is some trades and a NEED to focus on one of the Top 2 pitchers in the Draft this year, and going forward. This wish for signing an ACE is NOT going to happen. We are not a destination, and the best WILL NOT come here. We need to grow our own by any means necessary.

I S H.....No thanks to any and all. We aren't a rest home for the washed up and "never were's"

That's why you don't wait until they have burned many bullets in the minors and growing gray whiskers before bringing them up (as was the case in the past)?

Duran looks like he is playing 'catch' because he is. He barely grunts when dealing; straight at 102, or filthy at 96. He is a STAR in the making.

DURAN looks like he is THE Closer we have looked for over the last several years. Home Grown, and virtually unhittable (when he is ON). Just filthy stuff. His health is my only concern., He is an ALPHA on the mound, with the stuff to match

I know Jr Babe Ruth players that wouldn't butcher two plays like Araez and Garlick (just DFA him already) did. Trashed what would have been a solid inning for Duran, whose stuff is just FILTHY in every inning, and is worth a ticket just to watch.

Liriano rookie year type STUFF (and throws harder). Can he put together a year like Liriano and avoid injury......This will be the KEY

IMHO; it is NOT time to add a bunch of additional pitchers. Too many P are pushing the 40 man. Either sign/trade for someone who can be a marginal #1, or go young with what you have. I would also trade Donaldson, Garver, and Kepler (you won't get much for Arraez). These 3 are not going to be a meaningful part of the next wave (Donaldson), are blocking someone (Donaldson, and Kepler), and you don't have enough room for 3 catchers (Garver, Jeffers, Rortvedt - who won't hit in the majors) that need to play more than the current split allows (and it crowds the DH and 1B opportunities for other players). Baldelli also needs to quit running a 'rest home' every week, as well - we have had just as many injuries as everyone else - it ain't working, and those Sunday lineups with players playing out of position and Tortuga across the diamond are just embarrassing and a give-up of too many games.

The Experience lives on. About as hot as you can get. 11th straight game with a hit. 2-3 now with 3 run HR. Twins made a mistake here.

Rosario now 2-3 tonight with a 3 run HR. How hot is hot?!?

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

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).

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 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.

Great analysis. I do not want to pat myself on the back, and I certainly didn't announce it publicly, but I did expect this would happen (his fielding). Why, you might ask? Because I played 3b and C and was moved to 1b for a few weeks. The wicked hops you get at 3b and the short hops you have to dig as a C gives you the requisite tools and reaction time to scoop a great deal of errant throws at 1b. The stretch - not a net result of time at either 3b or C. So, because Sano had pretty solid reaction time in taking 'hot shots' at 3b, I expected him to do well with scoops. For the same reason, I did also believe that Mauer would adapt very well from C to 1b. I cannot explain the stretches, but he is a very good athlete for his size. He does get lackadaisical at pop-ups, as he was at 3b. His arm was always crazy strong, so it is nice to have on the rare plays that a 1b needs it. His improved work ethic I attribute to Nelson Cruz, who is just an AMAZING influence on any young ballplayer willing to listen to his thoughtful and prepared approach to the game. Cruz is one of my favorite Twins in only 1.5 years. A revelation at 40. I was also surprised and happy to see Sano re-sign without a whole bunch of arrogance or drama. I also attribute that to wanting to play with Cruz and the team he matriculated with. Great for the Twins long-term.

IT is time. At least one of AK and BR. Also, add JD as a SP and EC as a reliever. Time to energize this team along with the returning players. Also, time to clean out the chafe - they aren't cutting it on a team that has aspirations

I would consider trading Kepler this winter. It would free up the OF for prospects. I would rather keep Rosario. He has his warts, but has proven to be able to carry the team (and inspire them). Max just seems to have plateaued for me.

I think I would discuss 'retiring' Rich Hill. He is toast. Too much effort just to throw a grooved (and slow) strike. Its time.

When I say Bailey lacking - I mean not performing on IL. Pineda is not enough to account for Odo out, Bailey out, Hill and Berrios not performing, and the bullpen games - being a joke. Throw in Smeltzer, Thorpe, and Romo being bad or spotty, and I don't understand how you don't bring up some high level prospects.