Crackedfungo

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?!?

Let's see.....who brought up Mauer? Oh, the guy whose comparative is getting destroyed with every Rosario at-bat. Not me. Mauer was NO playoff hero, he was not even average. He was poor across the board. ONE RUN and ONE RBI in his career, and his BA was nothing to crow about either. Mauer is NOT Top Ten at his position. How long have you watched baseball? The Top 12 are: Johnny Bench, Yogi Berra, Josh Gibson, Ray Campanella, Bill Dickey, Mickey Cochrane, Carlton Fisk, Pudge Rodriguez, Mike Piazza, Carlton Fisk, Buster Posey, Yadier Molina. It is a Twins delusion to think otherwise, as he had some exceptional years (particularly 2009), but was NOT in the class of the 12 above, and is a HOF squeaker at best. PERIOD.

With Cave, Refs and Garlick as your 'fall back plan', and redeployment of these assets to the tune of over a -6.0 WAR means NOT CORRECT by any measure but yours.....You must have loved Terry Ryan.

It isn't the columns. It is the MATH the system calculated. The numbers you cited are correct, and distances Mauer from Rosario even further. Didn't think I has to math check the data totals, but I guess I did.

This argument about playoff performances between Rosario and Mauer in the playoffs (the initial argument) should now be over FOR GOOD. That is eight straight games with a hit, 11 out of 15 games with hits in playoffs, 4HRs, 11 RBI, 8 Runs (when Maurer had only 1 RBI and 1 Run TOTAL in Playoffs), Rosario BA is now up to .358, and his SLG is .679 and OPS 1.080. He will also likely win NLCS MVP, which Mauer never did (and possibly go to the World Series). No matter what happens for the balance of his career, he wins. Case Closed.....

The above information is FALSE. See below. If you have a good case, you also don't bring up 'if you award him the double he obviously hit' - it was NOT rewarded, doesn't count, and would NOT have jumped his average up from .275 to .293. See below: JOE MAUER Postseason-Batting: SEASON TEAM 2006 MIN 2009 MIN 2010 MIN 2017 MIN Career GP AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB HBP K SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS 3 11 0 2 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 .182 .250 .182 .432 3 12 1 5 1 0 0 1 2 0 4 0 0 .417 .500 .500 1.000 3 12 0 3 0 0 0 0 1 0 3 0 0 .250 .308 .250 .558 1 5 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .200 .200 .200 .400 10 40 1 11 1 0 0 1 4 0 7 0 0 .262 .314 .283 .597 EDDIE ROSARIO Postseason-Batting (Before Tonight) SEASON TEAM 2017 MIN 2019 MIN 2020 MIN 2021 ATL Career GP AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB HBP K SB CS AVG OBP SLG OPS 1 3 1 1 0 0 1 2 1 0 1 0 0 .333 .500 1.333 1.833 3 13 1 4 1 0 1 1 0 0 4 0 0 .308 .308 .615 .923 2 7 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 .000 .000 .000 .000 6 22 2 9 0 0 0 3 1 0 2 1 0 .409 .435 .409 .844 12 45 4 14 1 0 2 6 2 0 8 1 0 .263 .311 .589 .900 My point was in regards to playoff performance (above), and effective use of assets like Rosario was. You brought up the Mauer [edted by glunn] comparison, and he does NOT compete in post-season with Rosario (look at Mauer's putrid SLG%, and below replacement OPS) and cost much more on a relative basis (and as a % of Twins yearly salary commitment). Just accept the facts as they are, and also realize that Rosario is on a run Mauer NEVER had in the post-season (and it ain't over yet). Someone in the chat called him clutch, and someone else 'poo poo'd' it. My point was to prove it. Mauer was NOT one of the Top 7 Cs of all time either. Take a look at the Hall, and the Negro leagues. He isn't in Top Ten. 'Might have been's' don't count here either, as we are talking about PERFORMANCE, and Mauer fell shorter in playoffs and cost a much higher % of assets. Lastly, don't use the weak 'but he was more important and called games as a C' - I played catcher through college. Calling a game isn't hard; you mix pitch command with batter tendencies to keep them off balance, and you get LUCKY. Moreover, his pitcher's performances generally SUCKED, so it cuts both ways when you are a C. I should know, among a ton of clunkers and OK games, I 'called 4 no-hitters and 2 were perfect games and take little credit for it - when a pitcher is 'on,' a little league C can call it.

An asset for an asset is better than ZERO. Simple math. Stupid decision. Everyone knew they were going to let him go (since they telegraphed it), which was also imbecilic and decreased his trade value. Also, selling low when the Indians did, was also not bright (but good for the Braves). Do you think anyone will trade prospects ranked as high as possible if the Twins telegraph they will decline Buxton a contract? They won't. I DO REALIZE Rosario was on the Twins during their playoff runs, and he performed better than most of the other players we retained (as I proved above). He also performed better than Mauer across his numerous playoffs. I AM IMPLYING that Rosario was a better player FOR THE MONEY EXPENDED (an asset) than Mauer in the regular season and the playoffs. Mauer had one exceptional offensive year in the regular season among many 'slap hitting' years where he lived on reputation and deference as a catcher. With all being assets; Mauer, Rosario, and respective salaries, your point has NO MEANS of validation when taken into account (which the Twins always do - they are NOT the Dodgers or Yankees that do not give a rats a$$ about assets since they are free flowing and bottomless). BTW: Hits in 10 out of 13 games after tonight ( 1 for 3 with 2 walks). Batting .500 with over a 1.000 OPS and a 7 game playoffs hitting streak - numbers Mauer [edited by glunn] never touched and he isn't done yet (this year or for his career). How bout them apples?

BTW: I explained the Twins foreknowledge of the AK balky wrist prior to this year above, so Twins Mgmt. planning for him to replace Rosario with a 'Rosario baseline' was ridiculous. That being said (dollars aside, which were wasted for pitiful FA performance), AK performed (with injury, but known) in 2021: .251 BA .722 OPS .6 OPS. This does not equate to Rosario in his rookie year: .262 BA .747 OPS 2.2 WAR, his average year: .275 BA .782 OPS 1.7 WAR, his last Twins year: .257 BA .792 OPS .9 WAR, or in his best year: .288 BA .803 OPS 3.6 WAR. So, in a nutshell, this was a 'bad assumption,' given the AK injury history, his presence as a rookie, and the unappreciated production Rosario could/would produce (notwithstanding his bench presence and clutch potential in the playoffs - which he had proven, and AK has yet to do).

In a 6 year career since HS, he has had significant wrist injuries, causing him to miss 2/3 of a full season (over two seasons), and also missed an entire season with a URL injury. I will eliminate the COVID year, since essentially everyone outside of the majors and 'taxi squad' was not able to play. If you miss almost two full years, and have one injury (wrist) that has been a multi-year problem, coupled with a URL (no guarantee that it will not recur), I think that qualifies. Particularly when he has really only completed 2 mostly full years of 5 (eliminating the 6 year due to COVID); with 3 years being out for a significant portion (or all) of a season. Outside of Buxton like injuries (e.g. 'always injured') I would say that it is fair to say that he has been 'perpetually injured'. Yes, the results of the redistribution of salary that could have been used to retain Rosario performed materially worse than retaining Rosario as I proved above (and was exacerbated by almost two-fold the cost and four-fold the lack of performance by WAR). That does NOT mean that I do not believe that retaining Rosario wasn't just a better allocation of resources than the path they chose. I DID think it was the right allocation of resources and worth doing. To me, he was the best solution in LF (and for the clubhouse for $9MM) for 2020 at least until the trade deadline, at which time, you move him if needed for SOMETHING. I like AK. I just did not believe he was ready to perform AND LAST for the entire year in LF. He has had a wrist problem for two years. The Twins knew this too, as evidenced by the quote below from Baldelli after the wrist issue he had in a previous year inflamed again: "AK had a successful stint in the big leagues, but we knew that his wrist was an issue and it was something that he was playing through," Baldelli said. "We knew there could be a point in the year where he just could not continue playing through this, and the right and smart thing to do would be to go ahead and have the procedure that we knew was probably coming." Just look at that ****show behind AK if he did not last!?!? It was a carousel of ineptitude. I also know how the Twins .take $5 and make it perform at $1 in FA with the 'dumpster fire' of recent reclamation projects (Hill, Bailey, Happ, Shoemaker, Colomb). I have also witnessed the Spring Training hero (Garlick this year) turn into a pumpkin when the regular season begins (Ryan LaMarre a few years ago) - there is a reason these players do not become the saviors the Twins hope they will stumble upon, as they cannot sustain the SSS in the regular season without being exposed. I did make the points pertaining to Rosario from last September through April 2021 BTW; feel free to look them up.

Hits in 9 out of 12 career playoff (or qualifying) games with a .900 OPS. What more do you need to see cheering for a team that has not seen that type of performance in the playoffs since the Puckett years.

A 'Bad Allocation of resources' is depending on a Rookie that has been perpetually injured since HS (and is deemed to be a 1B masquerading in OF) and/or a collection of stiffs at a combined -.9 WAR (Cave, Refs, and Garlick) to replace a career 1.7 WAR player, then reallocating any salary (plus $8MM more) for 3 pitchers (Happ, Shoemaker, and Colomb), who produced a combined -4.3 WAR (nevermind that we did not 'get' anything in a direct exchange for Rosario. There is no logical way to argue this point. That is a variance of -6.1 WAR (factoring Rosario's 2020 WAR), or -6.9 WAR (factoring his career WAR; omitting the COVID year). These 'salary redistribution below replacement' hacks lost more than a dozen games for the Twins (almost single-handedly). This is one of the MAJOR reasons why the Twins tanked this year: e.g. what the Twins did with the Rosario money? They 'leveraged it' into -6.1 to -6.9 WAR at double the cost; an offense that should get a GM fired.

Bad Take. We are arguing losing a .9 WAR 2020 player (Twins average WAR 1.7) for ZERO return for redistributed salary to players that produced -.9 in the OF (Cave, Garlick, Refs), and three pitchers that produced -4.3 WAR (Happ, Shoemaker, and Colomb), which also cost almost twice as much as we could have signed Rosario for and added any replacement level players to consume these innings at much less cost than an additional $8MM. These are the types of decisions that get a GM fired - except on the Twins (see Terry Ryan).

With all 'due respect' to Admin, this is a 'tree vs. forest' response. There is a negative side. You never waste assets when you have a chance to make something out of them. We ARE happy for Eddie. There is also the negative Twins Mgmt. side mentioned above (lost asset for ZERO), in addition to freeing up funds to sign some incredibly crappy pitchers; Happ ($8MM), and Shoemaker ($2MM) - both FAR below replacement level. When you add Cave at $1MM, Colomb at $5.6MM, and Refs/Garlick at a combined $1.3MM - just a poor use of salary/performance ($17.9MM) - a idiotic 'wing and a prayer' approach, versus rewarding a previously performing player in his prime vs. 'not anymore's' and 'never were's.' If you are in a business, which the Twins are certainly run as, you do NOT piss away assets for nothing, and then redeploy this capital in some incredibly LOW PERFORMING assets. Your comment is 'Terry Ryan-esque' - dump a known performer for multiple dumpster fires that lost games for you (which total twice as much investment). These dregs caused the extreme ineptitude in the first two months of the season that sealed the Twins fate for the balance of the year - prove me wrong. We will see if Gant for Happ returns enough to validate any of this idiocy. Additionally, do NOT underestimate the bench value of Rosario. He and Cruz seemed to bring a great vibe into the clubhouse. As for the NLDS OPS, the playoffs are still going on. Rosario had a hit in every game in the NLDS - which Twin has had a hit in every game of ANY series lately? Rosario also batted .300 in one of our playoff series, and in one qualifying game. He did go 0-7 in the last playoff run, which meant he was hit-less in a total of TWO games, whereas he has hit in SIX straight playoff games this year, and has AT LEAST one hit in THREE OUT OF FOUR of the Twins playoff (or qualifying) games in 2017 and 2019. In short, he has hits in NINE out of TWELVE of the last playoff (or qualifying) games. By any measure, that is CLUTCH (particularly compared to the Twins woeful hitting performance). Mauer (your comparison) did not fare as well - career .262 BA and .597 OPS vs, Rosario at .263 BA and .900 OPS. Again, your summary post analysis (using stats you referenced) is WAY OFF. Lastly, Mauer also had several more hit-less games than Rosario (and was never paid 1/2 the salary). The truth hurts, stats bear this out, and so does 'on field performance.'

IF you were to sum up the WASTE that was Refs, Garlick, the FA pitchers that were a total joke, you have enough to pay him $9MM. They chose to allocate the dollars on reaches (or naive 'comeback' players), and then put too much pressure on the young OFs that were not ready (Larnach, Rooker), and let Eddie walk. At least sign him and trade him at the deadline for a high ceiling low A player, as there would likely be teams looking for his career average numbers and 'gamer' attitude. Not a great result for the Twins to get ZERO for an OF starter and replace him with below average production.

Which is exactly what we have lacked in the playoffs......Go figure. On a team that doesn't gag once the postseason begins, he seems to be flourishing (sans the power we have seen in the past). I also loved seeing Graterol. He can REALLY bring it. Regret may set in for our 'braintrust' as some point in the next year or so....

And, Rosario wins a huge game for ATL. Four hits. GW RBI, and rally starting run with one of the best slides I have ever seen. Yes, we could have used him (or got something for him). He is what he is......a spark plug, and a WINNER.

Why would you waste ANY innings on washed up Albers!?! SMFH

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.