LaBombo

That's one of my positives I mentioned at the interview, but they told me to take my beer and get the he11 out, even though I brought enough for everyone...

That you can afford 90 Shilling instead of Keystone?

Is it packaged in anything less than a gross? If so, time to dust off the Costco card...

Onion story, or Star Tribune? "Local man sentenced to rehab after 2 straight weeks of 'Mauer grounds to second' drinking game.

Both are interesting sets. Would be thrilled if either turned out to be the 2014 reality. Both lists tend to reflect predictions that players will mostly either perform basically to zips/steamer/etc. projections, or else significantly better. Liked that Steve commented his, and it would be a nice addition if Seth could add a brief comment to just the predictions that fall well outside the range of fangraphs/BP projections. My Debbie Downer guess is that if you took the lower prediction for each player from between your two lists, you'd come up with a set that would be a little closer to the final totals.

Since WWII, Tom Kelly is the only non-expansion team manager to have 4 consecutive 90+ loss seasons and retain his job, and he had two rings. Only a couple of non-exp. franchises brought back the manager after 3 such seasons, and they lost more than 90 again. So nearly 70 years of history tells us Gardy would already be out in any other organization in MLB. If he loses 90 again and keeps his job again, the conversation should probably be narrowed to whether the Twins are loyal to a fault, terrified of change, or some of both. RE: Mauer, totally on board with 80 XBH being a possibility, but would be interested to know when you project the trade to take place, and what the Red Sox would have to give up to get him.

It could be argued that almost every blog or post about what to expect from the 2014 Twins has been inherently optimistic by omission of any concern or debate about Mauer, other than how much more he contributes at the plate with the switch to first. In a vacuum, extra Mauer offense just from increased PA's alone does seem like almost a foregone conclusion. But he's coming off an injury so devastating that the organization felt compelled to lower him from the top to the bottom of the defensive spectrum. That's not only a serious blow to his value, it's also a reminder what a terrible toll concussions have taken on the careers of Koskie and Morneau. In a discussion about how many wins Nolasco and Hughes add to the rotation or what Hicks, Arcia, and Pinto contribute, or what the bleep Kubel and Bartlett are doing here again, or whether Josh Willingham is actually, really alive or not, it's tempting to see those as some of the larger factors that will determine how the next season or two unfold. But compared to the health and effectiveness of Mauer and the massive financial commitment he represents, each of those things is secondary to Mauer's ability to contribute at least as much offensively at first as he did at catcher, and for the next several years. Bearing that in mind, it could be argued that there is generally an inherent, unspoken optimism here at TD, however we may differ on what happens with the team and all its non-Mauer players. He'll probably be fine, but even speculation that he may not makes even the most dire of other scenarios regarding other players seem mildly pessimistic at worst.

Pressed the like button the second I recognized the Sara McLilithFest soundtrack. The Red Wings mugshot is priceless; he looks like he's been demoted to lunch special sandwich board guy in front of a greasy spoon.

Bold enough? This is a guy who hangs from the dugout rail with a big wad of eschewing tobacco in his mouth, anxiously waiting for his next chance to give Jack Goin's advice a wedgey at recess. But yeah, turn Plouffie loose at the top of the order. If there's a chance we've been holding back a Rickie Henderson minus the average, walks, steals and insufferable arrogance, let's roll the dice. And idea fail = higher draft pick, so win/win...

Answer: Yes, the Twins will score runs. Dozens of them. Perhaps even several hundred! Sorry. Seriously, they'll be bad, just not in 2010 Mariners territory. Unless the wheels come off the wagon they won't be noticeably worse than last year.

There has been ongoing concern about Sano not being able to stick at third since well before the injury, some of it going back to when he joined the organization. Though I'm not terribly excited about Gibson yet, agree with the second point. Deduno is fun to watch, but Gibson should still have more upside. At any rate, what are the odds of a Twins rotation not needing plenty of starts from Deduno and/or others when the 1-5 guys are injured or (yes, even with Hughlasco improving the rotation) ineffective?

Thanks for the link; hadn't seen that one yet. Interesting that they went that way, and it makes the idea (which I like) seem less outside the mainstream. For me they kind of diminished that warm fuzzy by also being the only two to pick Buxton for center. Buxton is a better prospect than Hicks, but having him skip two levels when his predecessor faceplanted skipping only one seems... outside the mainstream. As for the concussion risk, just off the top my head (no pun intended), it seems to me that the concussion risk of 650 plate appearances is greater than the risk of a full season at third base, or even the risk of a season at third plus another at first.

"Oh, and there's only one spot open right now, so we're gonna have... http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-8RLAiD-_tTc/UoHQ_ZC30LI/AAAAAAAAC0w/xsG2F1Iq0bU/s1600/joker-batman-pool-cue-tryouts.gif ...tryouts." ST battles make sense for competitive teams needing to fill a bench spot or two, all other factors being relatively even. But if the rebuilding Twins are using ST performances as a significant factor in settling position battles, then it calls into question their commitment to greater emphasis on even basic metric evaluative principles, let alone advanced metrics. Still hoping they'll come around in that regard. With respect to Antony's remarks about nobody stepping up in position battles including CF, my hope is that in the case of Hicks the organization decided to start him in center before ST but Antony included him as being a guy battling for a starting spot anyway, just to use him as another example that furthered the 'new (acting) sheriff in town' message.

Or maybe just hire a junior analyst who's been mentored by a respected department head of a successful organization, instead of promoting someone from within who had no experience in the field? Having Mr. Goin answer questions here was wonderful, and if they want him to run an analytics department that's fine, but he should have been allowed to hire a BProp or other such alum who has couple of years working for a major league front office.

Good article. It's difficult not to be a little cautious with the optimism after what happened last year, but there are definitely some encouraging things in there, without it being a Twins puff piece.

And 'team chemist', ehh? Hope it doesn't come to this: http://cdn.uproxx.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/0_ce2d3_d63d25e7_XL-650x365.jpg

Spent less time here this offseason than others, so missed that one, but I would hazard a guess that some people against that signing might want to reconsider in light of who is just a sore anything/no DL stint away from a week in center field.

1998 and 1999. Moved back to Minnesota after 10 years away, my first chance to see more than a few games a year. Had followed them even when they were bad in the mid-90's and knew not to expect much, but... man. At the same time, the internet was expanding at a geometric rate and I got my first high speed connection in '99, making exotic new metrics and fan blogs instantly available to dissect and chronicle just how awful they were. The only redeeming feature of the '99 team was the first glimmer of hope for the future, but that '98 team made me feel stupid for missing the ability to go to games all those years.

Even the most optimistic projections of Hicks' 2014 make no mention of him developing an invulnerability to injury. And we already know Mastro didn't get that option installed at the factory. When I commented in a game thread that Bartlett's running catch in center would land him the backup CF role, I was totally joking, but then thought 'Would it be the craziest thing Gardenhire has done?'. The answer was no, of course, but there's a whole season for me to be wrong yet again. Of course, Bartlett won't have much time to monkey around with center if he displaces Florimon as the everyday shortstop. Boy was that depressing to type. And I don't even really like Florimon much.

My impression as well. And after seeing that Gardenhire can say "I don't need a backup center fielder" with a straight face after what happened last year... PST nominee? A manager who ended up riding Clete Thomas for half a season, used Wilkin Ramirez as a center fielder for 50 innings, got only 21 innings in center from this year's AAA insurance policy, and even had a career first baseman shag flies in warmups to boost his emergency CF skills isn't worried about a backup for center. That sounds... what's the most polite way to put it... very optimistic.

It's not so much the certainty that they would be but rather the unlikeliness of Kubel and Bartlett still contributing anything when the games start to matter again.

While I agree that it's unlikely Florimon turns into a plus player who eventually helps the Twins contend, the chances of that happening are staggeringly higher than that Bartlet does. Also, it's worth remembering that just two seasons ago, the Twins left camp with a 38 year old utility infielder and Smeagol lookalike http://www.twinsdaily.com/image/jpeg;base64,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%20kvhNvG1uNZ3wx50jgcY2gbnObyndZpwQfTl63/ZrMKz2iKL13tB6hWpPBa3J4RoXxmSzMMkWfPzOFngr60tHHqaV8tEukdmS5zjrccyeLiti0ivV/NtIaMDA2NrRzcTBsYDreTmXHPVwUTOuO2uPFNom08Vj3P%207dmtHhCtBYZmT2BkAf4vF4i3TUkArhxNLS4UzxBtOKn2LwklkRltETJYm%20VaLC8SRji%20F5EkZ4GtN65NabU8aPxODnYnW01NTXLGdfuhYC5r9czG6lXFpY%20rasljcM2Sga%20nYQComZhamOl9xWdT1v1P8AU/w%20mbg06sFsIEFpjc85YHVZJXgx4BPSKhbGviJppQjWMwdoOyhW96M%20Fm8LIAwyC0RjzZ6ucBuElcXbVX0wfUSLUfB/p9BekbsAMczAPGROIJAPnMd5za7aDoW3KAREQEREBERAREQEREBERAREQEREBERAREQEREBERB87/wCIm83Pt0MFeRDCH0H%20pI51a%2061nbxXKFtvhWtfjb3trq1AkDBTVSNjWfpWpKUClMtzgMJwuA1B4rToOtRw0qrxXFJiJ9r0van0y22e12P/AC5gbKP2oOxujLJzFQ15DQeSHioOLgd61iW3PcKVoNzQGj4KyIeKeL4qvjVac%20TWtqF6vS0heK7Jt3gnvIwXrZHB1A95iduLZARQ9eE9IC%20r18XXPaBHaIJDqjmjeehrwT3L7Qa6oB3qJS9REUAiIgIiICIiAiIgIiICIiAiIgIiICIiAiIgLxxoF6sVpTe7LJZJ55DRscbjxLqUa1o2kkgIPkS%20JfGWid/pzSu7XuP1UYZatf8AepeF2zWe8rY9H7rA5bhnvOzoUWtqFq0m0ol3aPyy5k4Bxzd2bFs9j0MiAq4Of6xPcKLIWRoGrNZNhfuXLbJaXXXFWGMboxBT90zs%206hWvROA6mYfVJH1W1NicQo80L9gVfOfuvOOPs5zeWjT482OqNztfasG9lDRwwniun2uBxrVaxfl1hzajWPgtqZZ7YZMMdNTeF9maPWjxlls0npwRO/Mxp%20q%20NCacly%20rfBZfkdqu2zYHAuhijhkG1r42BuY4gAjpW7mbciIgIiICIiAiIgIiICIiAiIgIiICIiAiIgIiIC514brgtVrscYswxiKQySRggFzQw0IqQHYc8uOWa6KsLpbpBDYrO%20WbERhcGtYKueaHID6nIImI2%20T7gsXjHlxGQFQt%20u/R98gBxYQdnDitZ0DjxPdXVyQt8ttuexzQzIHIupUNG9c2SfmdWKseKNaNHp7Py4qSDa0ZEfdbHcM7Zm0cwsdx/vJarJedoFoDBPWMkipa7YWgHEDShDieGGiy93Xq7G4VBwnWNqraNe168%20m2fsjdWSg3gGxg0GIqiO8cqqBfN5uDKtoK7TTLtWbSYljXWWa0uIDQ1u1xyH9VCtuicjScL2n69KsXra5mPjDJRRwq40c/wA1ztfSA2mWZB1LIttkjZQ3FjbQEO3HaDxG8ZFXncRtnGpnTnGlF2FlHEUINCutf4f9HLVB460StwQWiKMx1c0mTMua/CDkACddDylqPhCYHQucBrLe0LovgW0rfPZobLJFhMMNGSBwo9rCABhpkQCM1vjtw58tJ8uHTkRFqxEREBERAREQEREBERAREQEREBERAREQEREBaL4UqBsDiKjnW03lzW068lvS1rwh2THYpCBV0VJG9Iyy6iVS8brLTDOrw4No7AW2qZpbhodW4dS3UMAoaVPctQuIPFpkkcDzjaiu8aweP3W9XdDVq5b%203ZSNcI8z8QzAbxIFexQpsLNVevKvQFlLTZw3pKxskLOU55xEZAVFeqpCq0mERluPV/e1T4XCRvfRS4bRF4r91mARhoKk79dCorGMcMQbgcD5NWmo31aU0bXbOWt2B3UK9iuOo7UwgcMlfhszTltUl9mwtJqo2nUNL02j5h22lD2Gq3vwWWDDK8htGxwgCmrnDiGfQ1aVpLEZIixvlOc0fxD6EroPgknY2KWBzh49pa8jb4ojCw56xVruivFbYuZhz5J1W34dAREXU4hERAREQEREBERAREQEREBERAREQEREBERAWq%20EmxTyWJxs%20Ivie2UsaSDJG084yg8oltaA7QFtSImJ1y4TO6N7Y5Ixk/Oo1OBbrCy12yUNFC05u%20ey3lQ52S0l0sdAKNmoC9ldh8t3EO4FSongOY7qK4r18eHbS/lygXha3vcS3VUgdAyJ61Es1iJdV7wOBKu6Qsd4t0cbiwluTgr92aSxRRRsNncXtxB%20o6xrBOvPeohpzKQMsgW031CiWmxHItkb0VWxDSeI4CLO/kjc3cFAt%20kzTUfsriCHgYqa3HXqT8p1P6UGzSStNDnuKy0trxwh2quv%20%20mq1a5mvY97nPcQ91RHWrWA6gNq2J48lnST1kn6qs/sjmPbGmI%20MYKVJcKDearpui%20jcMeG0mHDaXsDXOf5bW%20iBUho6M960u4oMdugAcW0diqNdGtLiM99Kda6yunDXty5rdCIi3c4iIgIiICIiAiIgIiICIiAiIgIiICIiAiIgIiIMTpTdn7RZpI6VdTEzeHtzbTu6CVymJ/JLSCCN%20sH7rti5Hpc6ltnH4gestasM0dt8M%204a7eE2IiteKk3eWjOo61GmiqelUixuLgBt7ljp0RZlX2lo/5gSaVrm%20VVWm3dwCpmu4g7klfcIsVMQ4Gqy1nlqS7qChOs%20HLaVfEga2gUaUm25bV4P7AXTvmPksaWji927oHzLoS1/QOn7FEaAVMhNNpxuGfUAtgXXjjVYceSd2kREV1BERAREQEREBERAREQEREBERAREQEREBERARFbtFoaxpc9wa0bSguLkmlpBt83S35Asppp4UmWZ4gs8TpJ3tqHP5MTW1IxHzneS7IU1a1p8FsfM8yyuxPfm46s%20AGoLDPPGnT/AM1eZlJlgp0L2J1P6qY1lWqxEaE1Cwiza1V1s2WXeqHPPDvWRs0DCK0CtWig1BT5KaQBDXWqZ2ABSomVqVHtwyVJlrSunR/B%20f8AgYumX%20Y9bEvnd%20l1qu94kgkJjxAOhfnE/FlWnmu1Gopqzqur6D6dx26BskjRA4ktoXVaXNNDRxAp0HeuzFO6Q481dXluKLwFerRkIiICIiAiIgIiICIiAiIgIiICIiAiLxzgMzl0oPV4TRYO8b8IdgiY4kioeQcJprDRtIy1/HOmuWmzTSnG%20R7TXIvJDBU0pgOR6KV3KRsd4aSsY7BGDI7hk0de3qWv279onePHUaPKZsZSvonMOFR07NoGRuyPDSgaDqc8Vq71a%20SOHxVFhFY2e987k0hzTwp3eIprFaKgtOOF5pTPym/AuKou4ZLoV/3ZFaW/s0vkyRyE72kGPC5vEE16lymCZ93zmy2wUpmyQVwvZscPw92orDNjm3MOnBlivyy3KyuqFVNArdgmY8Asc1wO0EFZHxdVyenXPK1YwW1FFaljJOdAp0bF5MypUzKsQsMjoFirYMysvNqWA0gvGOBmJ5z2N2k8AqxEyvuIjlpGmsubGe8egVHeV0rQu6HRXfACBUs8c5teXWTlgUOQNCBmtB0NuZ1420STN5hrucPmkhrnshG%20oaSeANdYXdBOxowtAqvQpXxrEPOyX87TLH3a60wcrFiafMBrGB%20E668fgtju%20/Y5OS7kP3O1H1XbViLliIZQmha57ctwecOXq4VRelgie9olbixVw6sLS0VqWanE79lMldm29FqMNuls2Q5yJoqamtB%20HaOiizl233HNkMTHehIMLuoH/wCqEskiIgIiICIiAiIgIiICIiAijXhbWxMc91TQE0Gs0FaAdS1a0XtJLr5DfRB7ztU6Gftt%20RMdgrifQmjc6AEDM6hmVjH3pI4eaOqvwKwNmgraH8Iov4ny1%20ULL4aDoU6QjXfbHOja6RznVLng11Audhp7pAVm2SF0kQqaYic8ycLDl2uaepe3RDSzwbxFFXpwCqrpWZo9Fjz2ujH6Sgy9mYKCihXMKwxHexp7c/qshHHhYSTqFeoKNccBbDE1woWxRtPrBgr8UEfCDP6sY%20Lj/wCPwUHSy5YbXZ3smbXA1zmPHlxuDSasPVmNRWUgj5%20X1Ih8ZFXb4eZm9nJ8hQcB0k0atd2ODsTjE40ZNHUNJOYbI3zHcDkaZEq7d2ntoYKPDZB%20U/DJd/tVgZLGY5Gtc1zcLg4Va4biDrC4bptoCLJNzbnCJ%20ba8oNzPJJ19FcyqzWtvqhat7V9SkxeEZu2J4/KfqrknhHZsjefyj6rTHXFJsfH1lw%20io/yV%20XKZU5ANxEk7AABmqfBxr/Guzl6adzSZRtEY7SvdDtErReshkc8tgaaPmdmT%20CEai7jqHHUtr0I8EJeWzW5xDAaiEZF/tTraPwjPoXTgGse%20KNoaxrI8LWijWjlCgA1Dkq9a1r9MK2va3uWEmuqOCBkUDcEcDmOaAc/Ko9zj5zi1zwSd6zdlhYzZ1ry1w81JvwO7cJoq2NDmg7wD2hSo9s7xWSn%20o7uaO4DtVq1u5UJ/G4dsT6fEBWY7OGySCusMf1kFmXVG1WLdaeSDqDZIne6JG4vhiQV2uyZ1rmod2sc4Pa5xdhkeOVyqAnE2hOYycNSyzs1BsIpJaPXYeowxjvYVIqnvG0WehaWvYS1uF%20J3Kc4NaAdYGfHqWwXVfbJuTmyTax2v3TtC1W%20JqhvtrP/AD41fLAdY1ZjgeG5Robsi1K6dIHiSRkhxNa5oB84Asa7XtzJW1xyBwqDUFQlUiIgIiICIiAqXuABJyAzKqWPvSSowDLV/RBg7TbTI8uBq0%20Tupw6aVVZs4oDSitWey0xR%20hymnexxNOw1b1DesnFHVgVlWOsMI8dL7OD5plet8dGSHcxx/hKvQM56T2cPzTKm/TSCWn%20m/5SnaVmGLCxo3NA7BRWLHHWdx3Rt%20L3/ZZKVmSj2FvOv9SP5pEFd6PpFJT0HdxV2yvy6lHvd3Id0U7SB9VIdkFAt2RnOy9Ef61dvAczL7N/ylW7E/nZQfRiPb4z7KVbm1ik9R/ylOxdaMh0BY687ujtGOKRuJr4qEe%20KEbiDmDwWQhPIb6o7lEklwyj2f6gg4BbmS2a1vsj2lz2vDWUBJka48gtG2o7DXcuraJ6JNsUTrVJR8/iy4NNHMjyJGDjvPUOOeluWA2kWxzKzCMxsO1oObiBqrx2VO9Sr0NbPKWmvNv6uSVHYlSS0AaNQFFjom8%206vnRNP5XvB%20cLJNs%20easvYBOz2MvwfD9ypF1kFSK6lBu5nMQ%20yj%20QLJl1Fh7rcTE2vm4m/ke5v6UFtzx48g%20dED%20V5r84XlusuJjgNoI%20CotjaTQu3%20Mj7WiQfyT2qcxBDsU2JjXek0HtFVS0c9IN8cR/ilH0Cou2PC0jdJMOoTPp8KK%20Wc9XfF3P/8AZSLd62MeLZvM1n/nxqpzclKt2bG8JIj2SsVu0NQYq64edtDj6bfhDH91l7FeRbK1g8nDWThU0YAN%20Tj0NG9RLvZnaD/1QP8AZhV%206421lfWtXOp7lGGnAOB7UG0goo1hlq2h1jL7KSqpEREBF5iCYgg8e8AEnUFgZHE4nbTmslej%20SG7zU9X9adixWKry30W1PvEhvyP7AphEvHRUIlqSc99Aw62gcaAk7wNgAGUgbksUJ2iCWp/dVxa8hTF15FZC6JHPjDnAAnOnojYCdp%206mRZjHPSepD3yq1fLawy%20o7uUjDz0vqxf9z7qm9WVgm9m/5So7FVpdl0qzZWUkk9SP8AX91de2rgNy8jHLl9wfA/dBCvRvId0s%20dqnyNUa8G827q%20YKbIM0EOFtJpOMcXwMn3V%202ZMf6ru4qlo50%20zb8zlVbRyHeq7uKC7Z3VjYfwtr2BQbSysop6H6wpdj8hnqt7gqIBz/RGT/Eg9hhrJI3UG4SOOIVcT1gpeEFIZWjbHIOstKv2f8AeyeziPa6YfRX5W1BG8EdoQWYg5wB3gHtFVFtjqSQ0OsyNrwwYsutgVywS1hiO%20OM9rAolt/eWf2jh2wyIJjzkoN3jkO9rP8Aznn6qY5RLv1ScJZPicX1ToWrxZnCd0zT2sez9alBqs3l5AO6SL%20Y1S36kGMsuuXhK74tY7vcr8Y51vs3/MxV2CDlTcXg/wC20fRIRzzRuY/5mIPLxyYeGE9j2lVysql6N5NN5YO17QrzG1KDF2iUsZKR5RecPF5wxt%20IaFenhAiDGOoYy1rTWtHNFKO3imRG47DmqrTG10kbaZNLpT7uTf4nNPuhV21oGDLNzhU76VOfagruy2ETNDgQJRhp6ErBm2u0ECo6DvC2BYO0UDo/W7s/os3iChL1F5iCIP/Z who ended up being Gardenhire's precious, amassing 537 PA's, more than all but exactly one player on the roster under the age of 28... who the Twins promptly traded away.

Gardenhire's Punto obsession alone rightly earns him skepticism about how all utility infielders will be handled. Nobody is suggesting that Bartlett will end up being overused as much as Punto the backup, let alone Punto the utterly miscast starter, but we still could end up seeing way too much Bartlett if Florimon/Escobar struggle or get hurt. And it could be argued that any Bartlett at all is too much for a rebuilding team that should be looking to get younger and more athletic.

Ouch.

History tells us that as long as Gardenhire is the manager, there will be plenty of chances for Bartlett and, to a lesser extent Kubel, to be misused. And for an organization that found itself without even a replacement-level major league center fielder just 9 months ago, counting on only the same two guys who failed last year is a move that doesn't inspire a great deal of confidence. Also, after the 2013 Hicks rush job and fiasco, no matter how often the Twins might say the right things, there has to be concern that if CF is another debacle, they succumb to temptation to make the same mistake twice. Or three times for that matter, depending on what happens to Hicks on his second trip to the deep end of the pool.