Riverbrian

I agree with you. In that situation the lead runner is priority and the SS in that spot on the field for a cut 4 was either something they do in an effort for Correa to handle as many cuts as possible or a communication with Julien on the fly. I'm not 100% sure but most major league teams lineup a double cut with the 2b and 1b lined up in the shallow OF for a cut to direct and handle any type of throw. The only video I've seen to review it doesn't show Julien's position at the time of the throw. It does show Julien drift toward first base when the ball has hit. There was certainly enough time for Correa and Julien to switch roles. The one thing that you can see is that there wasn't a double cut lined up because the video showed that Santana was just kinda hanging around the 1B area in no man's land and was certainly not lined up to be a part of what was about to happen. It was Kirilloff to Correa and Correa to the plate. If either of those two blow the throw it's a tie game. IMO... I think it's smart for Correa to handle as many cuts as he can because he is fantastic at it so if they are off script on this. Kudo's.

6 Hits from 3 players total. This means that 6 players in the starting lineup yesterday have 151 games left to play.. 😉

Those moments between Grandpa and Grandson are special and shouldn't be taken for granted. Don't waste a moment, take every opportunity to tell him you were a major leaguer.

At some point this year. I will come to target field... buy that ticket, sit in that section, wear that yellow. If Pablo has a group of supporters... I want in.

Correa came a long way to be the cut on that throw to the plate. The cut system may have changed a bit since I was younger. However, normally on a ball into the RF corner like that. Correa would man the 2nd base bag and the 1st baseman would be the cut to the plate. I'm not arguing Correa taking the cut because I've always designed my cut system a little bit different than what was standard or used to be standard. I always wanted my strongest arm guy to handle as many cuts as he can. My strongest arm guy was typically the SS so he would get to whatever he could within reason. Anyway... Correa came a long way to be the cut on that wonderful throw to the plate. Kudos.

You were coming off an airplane during a Twins game before this year. I'm not sure if you are aware but in order to save you a few dollars. There are less expensive ways to watch the Twins.

Regardless of the result in today's game (Different Game Thread I know) I was happy to see Julien and Kirilloff stay in to face Vesia today. Miranda could have easily pinch hit for Julien in that AB. Unless the Dodgers were going to break out their long man Yarbrough it was going to be right handers the rest of the game. I like Gray area instead of Black and White decisions. It feels more managerial. Julien OPS against left handers is currently 1.750 which I'm sure is sustainable.

I did... I put together a contract stating acceptance of your bet. I quickly had it notarized to make it legally binding before the fact. Since the amount was never declared. You owe me 3 REALLY LARGE Dollar signs! If I don't get them... I know some guys who are all named Guido who will pay you a visit.

No doubt that Roberts plays the left right game and I'm sure Roberts has pinch hit early in the game before. In this situation. Despite 2024 small sample stats saying differently. Gavin Lux is the better offensive option over Rojas... although I do question what can be expected from Lux entering the game with two outs and the bottom of the order needing to string stuff together. The Twins and Dodgers never call me for advice.

1. I hope you right and I'd like to see if he could be. However... he watched others be the guy from the bench for 4 out of the first 5 games. 2, I was also not a fan. 3. After it is all said and done. I believe we are a better team in 2024 with Polanco and Martin for example on the roster over Santana and Margot... And... And... we'd still have your guy Noah Miller in the organization. 4. Young Left handed hitters should get the same opportunity to be an every day guy as others not cursed with such a disease... for many reasons with development being at the top of the list of reasons why.

@stringer bell "Well, Kirilloff has been good and with Buxton at DH, he has to bring a glove. Rocco could sit Santana and play AK at first or else put AK in an outfield corner. He’s chosen Santana over Wallner twice when BB has DHed". Rocco believes that Santana is one of our top 5 guys.

@USAFChief "All reverse splits are a mirage. All of em" Well Yeah... Who wants less shares at a higher price for the mirage of a more stable investment. Well Yeah... If the 7 pin slides over to the 10 pin spot while the 10 pin slides over to the seven pin spot. You still got to throw the ball the same way to get one of those slash thingies indicating a spare on that monitor above the lane. Well Yeah... If someone puts the right side of the banana on the left side and the left side of the banana on the right side... How would anybody know? And don't get me started about putting the banana in the middle and the ice cream split on the outsides!

Paxton had a pretty large reverse split and Rocco loaded up with Right Handers 1 through 9.

Which is interesting in itself because Buxton as the DH is one less OF to work with. Wallner sitting during those games is two OF down.

Good post and very Reasonable Responses. But... I will counter for discussion purposes. 1. Defense is something that I'm not really factoring in. I'm looking at it primarily via the offense. I get your point however, replacing Kepler's everyday plate appearances doesn't have to be direct. It can be indirect because Kirilloff and Castro can play OF. Clearing Infield space along with the DH spot to allow Farmer to replace Kepler's AB's. I only really named the Right Handers as candidates because the Right Handers are not platooned as hard. It's the left handed hitters that Rocco is consistently keep away from the same hand. 2. You and I both on Kepler... We were wrong but also right at the same time because we had to absorb 2.5 years of not so good play to get to that amazing half season. And we can still be right if Kepler reverts back to the Kepler that struggles for 2.5 years and we are now looking at 2024 concerns. But, Yeah he was amazing in the 2nd half and we need that Kepler again to fill the role of every day guy. On Santana... This is always my fear with these mid-level vets. Especially those with one year deals. Will they be allowed to struggle, keep playing and take us down with them? If you are struggling and not coming back next year. I would have a quick trigger. 3. On Polanco... We did not have to trade him because of our depth now or in the future. Santana sliding into an every day role illustrates that as loudly as possible. Lewis out for two months... illustrates that as loudly as possible. Injuries that are going to occur in the future illustrates that as loudly as possible. Julien not facing left handers illustrates that as loudly as possible. We didn't have to trade him because of depth. If we had to trade him because of budgets... OK... I understand however, we spend his money on Santana and Margot. So it's a wash. I would have kept Polanco. 4. I don't mind the occasional day off for Kirilloff against left handers. I also don't mind maintenance days for him or anyone. However, until he starts against a left hander like Kepler has, until he isn't replaced mid-game when a left hander enters the game like Kepler isn't replaced. He can't be considered every day or a candidate for Bucket #1. To my knowledge... Kirilloff is still a platoon guy.

Wallner has been struggling pretty hard so it's understandable but yet still big news that he is out of the lineup against a Right Handed Pitcher especially with a left hander scheduled to start for the Tigers tomorrow. So... This means Wallner is going to get two days in a row out of the starting lineup. Castro has also been struggling at the plate and he is also out today. So, Martin starts for a 2nd straight day against a right hander while Margot and Farmer break out of the short side platoon. Temporary or permanent for Margot, Farmer and Martin? We shall see. Rocco is trying to move some things around to try and get a jump start from someone. It'll be interesting to find out which player ends up with the lions share of Kepler AB's and interesting to see if Castro is going to be replaced for the lions share of Lewis AB's.

How I feel today... is exactly how I felt last year and this off-season. Nothing has changed because my concerns haven't been addressed. Only offensive performance will alleviate my concerns. You can put Rocco's utilization into two buckets. Don't let talent or performance confuse you on who goes into what bucket. Playing time is what determines what bucket you belong in. With two catchers taken out of the mix. With 6 players locked into a platoon. That leaves 5 players who will play nearly every day and therefore get the most plate appearances. Bucket 1. Those who play against both left and right handed pitchers and therefore get the most trips to the plate. Bucket 2. Those who are part of a left/right platoon and therefore those who get less trips to the plate. On opening day coming out of the off-season this is how the roster was allocated into those buckets. Group 1: Correa, Buxton, Lewis, Kepler and Santana. Group 2: Kirilloff, Julien, Wallner, Farmer, Margot and Castro. Anyone can argue that they think Kirilloff, Julien or Wallner belongs in group 1 from a talent standpoint and I actually may agree with you. Talent doesn't matter because it takes playing time and plate appearances to get into Group 1. As long as Kirilloff, Julien and Wallner are on the bench against left handed starters and taken out of the game in the middle innings when a left hander comes into the game. Kirilloff, Julien and Wallner can never be group 1. 5 players will need to be designated most every day guys in order to support 6 players being platooned. Here lies the problem in my eyes. The problem is Group 1. It was last year, it was a problem in the off-season and it's a problem today. Look at the opening day group 1: Player 1. Lewis is a superstar and absolutely belongs. Players 2 and 3: Buxton and Correa also absolutely belong although everyone should be aware that how they performed last year does not qualify them for what a team needs out of every day guys. Player 4: Kepler had an incredible 2nd half that belongs in the group 1 for any team in the majors. However for 2.5 years prior to that incredible 2nd half last year. Kepler was not that good and a group two guy at best. Player 5: Santana is a big problem in my opinion. He has not had a Group 1 type offensive season since 2019. There is no way that Carlos Santana belongs in group 1 playing nearly every day yet that is what we are asking of him once he basically replaced Jorge Polanco on the roster. As for group two... We got lots of those guys. Real nice depth here. The type of depth that winning teams can be built upon and we got capable guys behind those guys. Once Lewis went down... Castro moved up into group 1. Does Castro belong in Group 1? He's there... he needs to play like he belongs there. So now with Kepler out... Who moves into group 1. We are going to find out regardless of who it is... We are going to be playing that guy along with Santana and Castro like they Mookie Betts. So... to address the article. Can Santana replace Kepler? He isn't being asked to. He has his own major role in the lineup to worry about. The real questions are 1. Can Martin, Miranda, Margot or Farmer replace Kepler as a deserving every day guy. 2. Can Santana have a resurgence at age 38 to deserve nearly every day playing time and if he doesn't... how long will he be allowed to stay in group 1, play nearly every day and not deserve it. 3. Did we really need to trade a group 1 guy like Polanco for two bucket #2 pieces? We had a lot of those group two guys. 4. Will they ever get to the point where Rocco says... "I've got nobody else and we are going to have to slam Kirilloff or Julien or Wallner into an every day role.

That's a great point. It's the Ice. What do you do when you get hurt... you put ice on it to decrease inflammation. Hockey players are indestructible because of all that ice.

To compare the Twins position players with the forward lines on a NHL hockey roster. Hockey has a designation of "Top 6 forward". Those are the guys who get the most ice time on line 1 or 2 and they work the power plays. The Twins top 6 equivalent is a top 5. Those are the players who will play most days against RH and LH. The Bottom 6 equivalent would be the guys paired for platoon duty. The Twins top 6 (5) forwards are: Correa, Buxton, Santana, Castro and used to be Kepler. The Bottom 6 forwards running the 3rd and 4th lines for the Twins are: Kirilloff, Julien, Wallner, Margot, Farmer, Martin or Miranda. One of those bottom 6 dudes is going to have to slide into a top 6 5 everyday role. Who will it be? I'm guessing it will be Margot or Farmer but both Martin and Miranda are in the lineup tonight so... I don't know. I'm pretty sure it won't be Kirilloff, Julien or Wallner. They are not eligible due to left handedness. Polanco would be nice to have around right about now for a Top 6 role. Both Santana and Castro are questionable for top 6 spots as is. Meanwhile... more injuries to come. Bank on it. Let's... Play... Hockey!!!

Yep... The past is the past. The future is yet to be determined and of course the now is resulting in Wins and Losses in real time.

"He's small Potatoes".

The roster was all pretty out of spring training. A right hander in place for each young left handerd hitter. It didn't take long for the prettiness to go away. We had no room for Polanco. Or did we? Julien, Kirilloff and Wallner still not allowed to face left handers in year #2 and now Austin Martin is a short side platoon, pinch runner. The Twins can't survive in the future without talent coming from the farm. What we are doing to Julien, Kirilloff, Wallner and now Austin Martin is not development. Santana is playing every day. Kirilloff is not. This isn't right.

Ober pulled after 68 pitches. Of course he was. I'm willing to bet this move at that time was planned before the game started. The only question was if Ober made it that far... which he did by pitching very well. Ohtani and Freeman hit back to back in the order and it was the third time through the order. That was when the left hander was coming in... Ober could have been throwing a no-hitter and he was coming out. Rocco is left right fixated. BTW... Dave Roberts is also left right fixated. Roberts and the Dodgers have always been a platoon heavy team. However... did anyone notice the difference. The Dodgers started 6 left handed hitters against Ober. The Twins threw two left handed pitchers in relief and Dave Roberts only pinch hit once and it happened IN THE NINTH when Taylor hit for Trammell. (Taylor hitting for Taylor). The game was close all along yet Gavin Lux was allowed to face a left hander in the 6th inning. Yes... he struck out but he wasn't yanked early in the game like Rocco will do to our young left handed hitters. Rojas entered the game for Lux as a defensive replacement in the 8th. I am not anti-platoon but I am saying that Rocco and the Twins have taken it to a new level. So... locked into the left right that there are no surprises. The moves are predictable. So Yeah... of course Ober was coming out in that spot.

No Kepler for Jeffers. This mean Kepler was getting a hell or high water night off.