Riverbrian

The Twins have nothing immediately behind Jeffers and I mean nothing. The front office needs to sleep in this bed that they made instead of spending limited resources to fix it which will cause a problem spending elsewhere. A lot of people don't agree when I say that we should punt the position. I understand the thought is scary but the Twins are going to pay for this development mistake one way or another. If they spend on C... they won't be able to spend on X. We will have a C or an X problem to choose between even if they trade for that 1B middle of the order player. And yes... I agree with you. We desperately need a 1B middle of the order bat.

Jeffers having a good year would be in his best interest. Will a Jeffers good year bring us a playoff spot? I'm not sure... I can be pretty optimistic but everyone should know that the Twins have a ways to go... even if they hang on to Ryan, Lopez, and Buxton along with Jeffers. If we are talking about 3 years at 60 million. His trade value will be gone at that contract. They won't be able to trade him for anything without eating some money. The Twins will be fine committing to Jeffers for the next three years at the position... It should solidify the spot. However... that will become a serious payroll allocation issue for me because I'm pretty sure our budget has limitations going forward.

I pray that they will. Maybe trade Jeffers for a decent 1B. In the end... the Twins have multiple holes to fill and the question is really... Do you Cash Jeffers in now, later or let him walk for nothing. In consideration of the current team context. I vote to cash in now.

Agreed but the draft compensation would depend on a QO and at 22 million... that's a high price to pay for a team that has limited funds available to spend in the first place. If you spend 22 million on Jeffers. He probably takes it and now you don't have 22 million to spend elsewhere and we will need funds after this season for elsewhere. Also if he takes it... his trade value is gone immediately afterwards as well. In regards to the Twins catching position. I'd rather the Twins punt the catcher position this year... maybe even next year. Too many holes to fill and limited funds available to fill them all... You'll have to choose where you allocate those limited dollars and the limited trade chips. I don't think we should burn limited resources on a position that requires the rest that catchers require. Now... if a 3 year 30 million dollar deal will get it done. If he would extend at that price. I'd extend him.

Extension is going to come down to the money. The Twins would probably have to offer at least what Jeffers will make as a free agent or what Boras his agent thinks he will make as a free agent. That would make the extension no different than signing Realmuto this year. Can the Twins afford to spend a significantly portion of their payroll on a Catcher position that might play 110-120 games a year. I don't think they can afford to do that at that position. It would be a mis-allocation of limited funds. If you are going to spend money and the money you can spend is limited... spend it on players who play positions that play more games. A 1B will play more than a C will.

Lots of people freaking out over this and they probably have a strong reason to be freaked out... especially if you are Fighting Irish fan. Myself... I don't care if Notre Dame is out and as long as the G5 conferences don't have their own playoff... I'm Ok with James Madison and Tulane both getting in even if they are going to lose by 70 points in the first round. However... It's not a good look for the current format. Here are some suggestions. 1. Create another level for the G5 conferences. Let Boise State, Western Michigan, Tulane, James Madison and their own group of teams have their own playoff. College Football is the have's and have nots. The G5's are the have nots. The FCS has a wonderful tournament every year for their own level. Give them their own title to play for. The current reward for Western Michigan is a MAC title and a bowl game against Kennesaw State. FCS and G5 are just feeder programs for the P4 schools anyway. In the absence of a G5 title game. I have no problem with the current format for the highest 5 rated conferences getting a playoff spot. Just remove the problem with a G5 tournament. 2. Notre Dame needs to join a conference. I understand that Notre Dame probably has financial reasons for not joining a conference but... quit your bitching... The Notre Dame strength of schedule isn't going to match up with the Big Ten or SEC strength of schedule. Their strength of schedule probably matched up with the ACC strength of schedule and the ACC just came inches from not having a representative in the field. If you want to be an independent with that schedule so you can keep the extra income... well you didn't get an invite this year and your schedule was probably a factor. 3. Speaking of the ACC and I will throw the Big 12 in to this group as well. I don't think the Big Ten or SEC has to worry about this but... Fix your tiebreaker system. If the committee is looking at rankings to determine who gets in and who doesn't. Duke simply can't win the tie-breaker. The highest ranked team needs to be the first tie-breaker. Duke winning the title is the reason that both Tulane and James Madison are in. It's a 10 team playoff most likely but I sure hope Tulane or James Madison pulls off an upset or two. Giving the current rules that are in place. I have no problem with Notre Dame on the sidelines. In the end... I think Notre Dame, Alabama and Miami all have legitimate reasons to be out.

Yep... Value at his highest... Risk of getting nothing or less in return. I don't like the trade proposal in the article... but the concept of trading Jeffers is still functional when you open the door to other offers that make more sense. This team needs a young talented SS or 1B. If Jeffers can get that done. I'll drive him to the airport myself. The Twins can punt the position for 2026.

All possibilities. 1. If they could... they probably should. Comes down to what it would take? The Twins don't have extra money to toss around so they need to spend it strategically. If you pay Jeffers... you won't be able to pay others. It may be best to just let Jeffers play the market and let his water find the correct level. 2. If they keep him and he plays the entire year. The QO will be at least 22 million... it typically goes up each year. Yes... you get draft pick compensation that has value but like point #1 but... can the Twins afford to drop 22 million for a catcher if Jeffers takes it? I don't know what Jeffers would get in free agency as perhaps the top free agent catcher but can the Twins afford to drop 22 million. 22 Million is a really good player at other positions. Positions that play more than catchers do. They really need to be strategic with the budget. 3. Who knows and I don't know what a labor disagreement does to the free agency process but my guess is that the doors will eventually open eventually and teams will fill holes. Does it have to happen right now? No and It's hard to predict what his trade value will be at the deadline. It will certainly go down in regards to only being a 2 month rental but it could go back up due to a low number of teams being sellers and the teams in contention hanging on to what they have. And then there is the consideration that the Twins may not be sellers? I know... I laughed when I typed that last sentence. All things considered... I think the time is now.

Once Realmuto signs. Jeffers probably becomes the top legitimate acquisition possibility for any contending team. Jeffers is probably the top catching free agent in next years class. Whoever is talking with Realmuto and doesn't get Realmuto should be interested in Jeffers. The front office seriously needs to consider getting something instead of losing him for nothing. Will Jeffers have the same value at the trade deadline? Maybe... I don't know.

The Twins could consider this sort of thing. I wouldn't want to waste the roster space on the position players side. However... they could absorb it in the bullpen. And they certainly could absorb it financially. Hopefully... Nothing long term. There has to be teams up against the Payroll wall looking to cut 5 million here or 10 million there. The Twins could buy a prospect in theory.

Strictly guessing of course. Scarcity. It tells me that the Mariners wanted a power left handed reliever to go with Munoz and Brash. They must have locked in on Ferrer and the Nationals most likely didn't want to give him up so they had to be enticed. The Nats are building... Ferrer has years of control so the Nats wouldn't want to move him. Unless someone was willing to come along and be locked in on a specific player. Congrats to Paul Toboni. He's new to the job and that's a pretty good deal.

This is the key point. Milwaukee and Cleveland don't do it all at once. This is absolutely uncharted territory. And it's why the Twins can't mess around here. Milwaukee and Cleveland have a head start. They've already been running players through. The Twins need to take 2026 and step on the gas because they have catching up to do. Whatever happens in 2026 happens. Just spend 2026 putting every effort into catching up. Don't waste time. They can turn this thing around faster than most of us imagine. You don't copy Milwaukee and Cleveland because you can't. You need to be an exaggerated version of them in order to stand on the brakes... leaving tire skid marks as they stop completely on the recent history of trying to be a poor version of Philadelphia and the Yankees. Just hit the brakes leaving skid marks and start driving in the correct lane and catch up and leave skid marks as you accelerate in the correct lane. You spend 2026 trying to solely catch up... gain ground and you need to do this unencumbered of any need to acquire a Grichuk type cheaply on a one year deal.

That's a Great idea!!! If I could only figure out how to auto-generate. I wouldn't even need to keep up with the topics.

I'm not sure that letting Jeffers walk and getting nothing in return is a good idea. I'm not sure you send a QO his way.

I'll wait and see. It's a long way to March 26th. Lots of phone calls to decline over the months to come. I'll wait and see... but if they hold to this and they augment with IKF and Josh Bell... If i hear them saying they are looking for right handed bats... I will feel rather hopeless.

I don't care if I agree or disagree. I love this post! I look forward to your 4th post.

The optimism is the willingness to tear up the Twenty Dollars.

The Honda... That's fine but honestly... I was thinking. Winning Record in 2026. I'd do 20 Bucks at 100 to 1 odds. Yeah... that's right... I'll put my money where my mouth is. I like that you've joined the team. You and I will have to put the Carhardts on... heavy coat to face the cold stiff winds here at TD but it's nice to have someone with ya. We have slight disagreement as you noted but the concept is the same. Just make 2026 about finding talent and whatever happens happens but we should be at least a step or two or three closer when the season concludes as we roll into the storm clouds of the labor disagreement. The picture should be clearer... the decisions to make less numerous. Just flood it and assess the result and then flood it again. Pitching: I agree... we can start with what we have right now. Good depth and good potential. Our possible difference: I think they have to trade Joe Ryan. Have to... unless they are just lowballed. His value brings back to much to let that value diminish with his service time ticking or the possibility of injury. Use Joe Ryan to bring back the biggest baddest young player they can get. Someone a step above the guys that we will be flooding into the system hoping for hits on. Someone that Keith Law sings songs about... a guy that other teams don't want to part with. Sweeten the pot if you have to. I'm keeping Lopez... his return may not be worth his value to the club. Outfield: You are exactly right... there is enough on the 40 man already to more than flood the system. Two or three of the current group could come out of those shadows. Some will remain in the shadows. Just don't know who but only Buxton deserves everyday playing time. The rest can fight for it but you give them all the chance to fight for it. Evan Outman... give him until June but you got to give him a chance. We will probably have to trade one or two of them for better 40 man balance. 2B/3B/SS: They need some help here. The depth isn't sufficient to flood. One of the top priorities this off-season needs to be getting Fitzgerald or Kreidler off the 26 man roster. As of right now... one of those two is on the 40 man. We need a young SS that will push Lee so Lee can push Lewis and even Keaschall. We will have Culpepper behind that hopefully and that's when you can say that they are flooding the position group. As of right now... Lee and Lewis are just going to either sink or swim and two years later if any of them sunk... they will just try again. Nope... We shouldn't wait. Get that SS and utilize those 4 players for those 3 spots. 1B: Yeah... we will disagree on this one but I understand what you are saying. Your suggestion is probably the only direction that they can go. The Twins have literally no one for this position. It's beyond words how dry this well is! Especially when you consider that hitters naturally fall down the defensive spectrum to this position. It's a dry well that should be collecting groundwater but bone dry and it's led a yearly one year rental thing that has gone on too long as has no end in sight. I refuse to tolerate the continuation of this. I'd rather they sleep in the bed that they made. Starve if they have to. If you have to trade Joe Ryan to get an young potential aircraft carrier at this position. You do it. Otherwise... Clemens and Julien it is with hope that they can get Sabato, Fedko or Mendez going quickly. In regards to Clemens and Julien... they are both out of options. If you do trade for a 1B. One will have to go to make room. C: Just punt it for the time being - Jeffers needs to be cashed in for more chips. Concentrate on finding offense at the other 8 positions. Bullpen: Good Gravy - Uff Da - It's a project just attack it from all angles. Save the ones who work out and start building. It doesn't have to be the best bullpen baseball but you have to get it to functional.

Now you are closer to the overall problem and the mountain that needs to be climbed. Who are this front office or maybe the manager himself betting on? Duran and Jax are easy calls... they have nasty stuff... However... what about the not so easy calls of the big pile of players in the middle... can they find potential. I'm still pissed about Belisle over Anderson and I haven't forgiven them yet. Did Henriquez click in Miami at age 25 because the Marlins unlocked him or was he potentially already here in Minnesota at age 23 and 24? I don't know the answer to that but Henriquez wasn't a nightmare in his limited appearances with the Twins. They couldn't unlock it? Did they just feel safer with the Okert specialist type player or the Staumont and Jay Jackson's of the world thinking experience was the thing to bet on instead of potential? It's a bad look for a team scraping for talent to watch one come up big just one mere off-season after being let go. Was Ronny the better option all along? I don't know the answer to that but if you want to drag me off the last bit of optimism that I can supply and am trying to supply... that's how you can accomplish it. Can this front office/Manager identify players beyond the obvious Duran Jax type options and let them figure it out. I don't know the answer to that but other teams can and do. This is where my doubt lies. There will be success and failures... maybe even more failures than successes.... probably more failures than success. But, as the season rolls along... players will step up... we can make some deals at the deadline... add to the pile... go through the same... address again in the off-season. We can make progress right now. I have a reason to get up tomorrow morning knowing that. There are a lot of big arm guys out there. Let's find them and run them up the flagpole.

Exactly... We all saw it. The station to station thing that the team didn't have the offensive chops to pull off and from that I saw... there was job security in that approach and that was frustrating. Players laid up instead of laying out. Get some players hungry for a major league career. Have them come out with their hair on fire and let's see exactly who looks good with flames on their head and keep feeding it until you find it.

Not many teams do. But, do we have to have a Jhoan Duran caliber arm? His arm is pretty special. How about a good arm? We can't find that? Ronny Henriquez tossed 79 innings last year struck out 98. 1.10 WHIP. Griffin Jax had a rough first year as a starter and almost immediate success in the bullpen the following year. Is it going to be easy or perfect? I would think not because they completely tore the thing apart at the deadline and have a subsequent long way to go especially once the injuries start happening but bullpens are built in surprising ways and they contain names that nobody has ever talked about.

I'll try but I strongly recommend not betting the house, car, wife and kids on it because they got distance to travel. If you really want to believe this or at least get to where I am. The first thing that you need to do is be comfortable with being uncomfortable with name recognition. Pete Alonso is not coming to save us. The second thing that you need to do is take a hard look at the performance of players on the other 29 teams and take note of the performance of young players. Take note of how they compare to the veterens on the roster. You will find a lot of failure or small sample failure but you will see the success stories and more importantly... You will find a lot of young players who were at least average with room to grow. Players that performed on par with vets that other teams are spending 10 million on. If you look at the Rockies... Hunter Goodman will be noticeable. Even Jordan Beck while not amazing in total didn't kill the club and performed better than McMahon. If you look at the Marlins... you'll see Agustin Ramirez, Jakob Marsee and other with potential. The A's... have tons of young talent. The Red Sox... relied on youth last year and they are not all Keith Law darlings. If the Twins front office and manager commit to just stop attempting to temporarily plug holes with players that won't be back the following year and fully commit to filling the holes longer term by flooding youth through the filter. It's not out of the realm of possibility that we find players with offense and defense that fill some of the holes and this could start to show by the trade deadline. If you find enough talent... you can reassess at the deadline and reassess at the end of the year and maybe the holes have concentrated down to a couple of key spots and then you can fish for bigger free agents strategically and the money will be there because you are doing this with players making the minimum. Whatever happens... happens in 2026. But, Yeah... it can be done. I believe it.

Wow I understand it's limitations. But this is a bit extreme.

Once again... you knock it out of the park. A closer is created by giving someone the closer role. Yes they need to get the job done but Duran was created by giving him the closer role. We didn't need to spend 16 million for a year of Kenley Jansen.

My opinion of course... but I don't think the owners should make a necessary financial investment this off-season. Make the necessary financial investment when they have found some players so they know exactly where to spend that investment. The most hopeless feeling I had the past two years since the death of the RSN money was knowing that the team was out of money. I don't have to look at the books to know they were out of money and they have not been producing offensive farm talent... actually not even trying in my opinion. They signed Ty France to play 1B everyday because they didn't develop even Ty France level talent. Teams don't do that unless they are out of financial wiggle room and they don't believe in their farm. That isn't the case right now. This team can add... payroll is as low as it's been since Falvey arrived... they just shouldn't do it this off-season... other than spend on bullpen because the bullpen was... well you know. They don't need to completely tear this thing down and make this longer. Let 2026 happen... and let's see what the team looks like at the end of the year and then strategically invest in one or two bigger free agents not a pile of little one year guys. They can do this... Will they? That's the million dollar question or the projected 90 million dollar question.