Riverbrian

That's what I appreciated about BBTV. Trades are going to be eye of the beholder but it was never maligned by me. Ultimately... Years of Control along with performance will determine value. Out of curiosity. I've been cheap... actually too lazy to find my credit card and pay for access to BBTV since they decided to try and make money. Who is the most valuable player in baseball right now according to BBTV on September 19, 2025? Skenes? Anthony? I don't know if you are a subscriber. Maybe someone else is.

Love this post. It's additional food for thought. True Free Agency... One Year Deals max. The roster turnover would be jaw dropping and the AAV would go through the roof.

I didn't know that about Royce and the mystery extra 5 grand. Interesting. You can always agree to more money between the club and player. Roman Anthony being a recent prime example. Roman will average 16 million for the next 8 years. Starting at 2 million this year and increasing upward year over year. Roman gets the security in his early days against injuries... doesn't have to go through arbitration. In return the Red Sox will have bought up potentially 3 years of Free Agency. Assuming he never sees the minors again. Typically clubs will just pay these players the minimum and don't entertain the thought of an agreement unless they feel the player will be worth buying out a year of two of free agency.

Exactly... those deals are just not done anymore. This is a big part of why I'm asking this almost rhetorical question. If the Twins wanted to trade Joe Ryan. Pretty well established top of the line starter. Could he bring Eldridge or McGonigle to the Twin Cities in return? I don't think he would. I started thinking about why wouldn't he. Ryan has two years of control at what will be increasing salary through arbitration. He's pretty established now as one of the top pitchers in baseball. Teams would love to have him on their roster. So why wouldn't he? It occurred to me. If all contracts were null and void and everyone was free to sign with anyone. Roman Anthony at age 21... or Nick Kurtz at age 22 or Jackson Chourio at age 21... these 3 players could get the largest contracts offered. Bigger contracts than Soto, Ohtani or Judge. Maybe not in terms of AAV but after length of contract is factored in. Therefore... could they actually be... the most valuable players in the game right now. If so... take those players and now mix in the CBA rules that they make the minimum. (I know that Anthony and Chourio have signed extensions buying up those years). If that's the case... Is trading Joe Ryan worth it?

I'm just starting a thread to ask a question. The CBA states that until a player reaches 3 years of service time... they are paid the minimum. Let's Imagine that this clause doesn't exist. Let's imagine for the purposes of my upcoming question that players are eligible for free agency whenever contracts expire regardless of age. Let's Say Roman Anthony or Nick Kurtz could sign with any team and hit the free market as a 20, 21, 22 or 23 year old player. Doesn't it stand to reason... that Nick Kurtz or Roman Anthony would most likely get the largest contracts offered? Possibly instantly larger contract than a 27 year old like Juan Soto. Certainly length of contract could exceed what Soto was offered. Yet due to the terms of the CBA. The talented 23 year old must make the minimum until 3 years of service time is reached. Doesn't this CBA limitation on young talent... create a synergistic increase in value for someone like Kurtz or Anthony. Just food for thought as the Twins go through this current rebuild process and try to acquire young talented players. Value exists in youth yet the CBA pays vets.

Yep There are times when injuries help.

Agreed... I doubt that Naylor is going to require a one year prove it deal. We will see what he gets. It's hard to predict. On the other hand 1B is one of those positions that most teams have covered so his options may be limited but it's quite possible that Yankees and Red Sox come a calling.

I'm not trying to be difficult as I do appreciate your response but a fairly set lineup would require definition. And regardless of the definition... I'll contend that a fairly set lineup is pretty much impossible so if players require getting comfortable hitting in the same spot in the lineup. Injuries and Poor Play are going to make it almost impossible. So... the better approach would be making the players comfortable being uncomfortable in order to get your best hitters at the top of the lineup in the anticipation of consistency being impossible. Even with Buxton consistent in the leadoff spot not every AB is going to be the same. He may leadoff with the bases empty and nobody out and the next AB... there's runner on third with one out. The game situation is never consistent, the injuries are never consistent... nothing about baseball is consistent. I fail to see how Buxton needs Vazquez in the 9 hole in front of him. Or why Bader should remain in the 9 hole even if he is hitting better than Brooks Lee. If they are creatures of routine... OK... I was sleeping in Psychology Class but here's the routine they can lock into... Watch the game: Notice what the pitcher is doing. Listen to what teammates are saying when they walk back to the dug out... asking questions if you have any. Share intel with everyone including the guys on the bench. Your In The Hole: Get your batting gloves on... Get your mind right. Your On-Deck: Grab the bat go to the on deck circle. Do your routine... Try time the pitcher. Put the donut on if you like, Get loose... let the ball boy pick up foul balls that trickle past you. Your Up: Compete The team with the best record in Baseball at this point of the season is the Milwaukee Brewers. Here are the top three in terms of AB's at each batting order for the Brewers. Batting Leadoff/AB's: Turang 274 Frelick 223 Chourio 129 Batting 2nd Chourio 311 Contreras 155 Collins 71 Batting 3rd Yelich 291 Conteras 213 Chourio 46 Batting 4th Yelich 215 Contreras 181 Hoskins 70 Batting 5th Frelick 164 Vaughn 115 Hoskins 87 Batting 6th Hoskins 111 Collins 109 Durbin 69 Batting 7th Turang 93 Collins 88 Durbin 87 Batting 8th Durbin 155 Ortiz 103 Perkins 55 Batting 9th Ortiz 289 Monasterio 56 Durbin 53 It's debatable who is the best hitter on the Brewers is but I'd say that Yelich and Turang are strong candidates for that designation. Turang 1st 274 AB's 2nd 19 3rd 13 4th 4 5th 73 6th 27 7th 93 8th 9 9th 42 Turang is one of their best hitters... He should hit leadoff because he one of their best hitters and he earned the leadoff spot due to performance. However... in the end... it adds up to 274 AB's hitting leadoff and 280 AB's at every other spot in the order. Turang has started the last 12 games and in those 12 games... Here is where he hit in the order: 1,3,1,1,1,1,3,3,5,5,5,2 Since Bichette got hurt... I can see that Blue Jays go Springer, Lukes, Vlad, Barger, Kirk, Varsho on most nights Before Bichette got hurt, Bichette was typically in the 4th spot. Barger was in the 2 spot. Lukes slid into the 2 and Barger moved to the 4 with the Bichette injury. Before the Bichette injury and Vlad was out for a few games. Bichette moved to the three to cover for Vlad. This is a consistent lineup with inconsistency cause by injury. There is player movement. At the end of the day... though... when you look at the lineup. The top 6 hitters are pretty much their top 6 hitters. It's Chicken or Egg. Do the best teams remain consistent because it's working or is it working because they are consistent. I'd say lineup consistency is a result of something working.

I get it. Monday likes following Sunday and he likes Tuesday following him. Doesn't mean Sunday isn't a problem, Doesn't mean we won't need to completely remove Sunday or swap Sunday with Wednesday.

A set lineup isn't even possible. There are literally two charts in the original post showing that a set lineup isn't possible. 502 PA's are necessary to qualify for a batting title. An average of 3.1 PA's per game is necessary to reach 502 PA's. Only 144 players in the majors qualify. 30 teams divided by 144 is an average of 4.8 per team. A constant lineup can't be achieved.

Injuries are never an excuse. Everyone look at that Fangraph chart. Go to the bottom... the 4 most healthy teams are not in the playoffs. Only 2 of the 10 most healthy teams are in a playoff spot. 3 if Cleveland makes the playoffs. Go back to the top... 3 of the 4 most injury inflicted teams are playoff teams. 7 of the 10 most injury inflicted teams are playoff teams. Injuries are never an excuse. Injuries are a constant. If you are not prepped for a constant. It's your fault.

I want to argue this point of yours... but... I... Well... I can't. I've stated a couple of times that I'm torn on the direction that I would take from here. In my heart... deep in my soul... I think the rotation could be pretty good and it could be built around... I just don't want to tear the rotation down... I want them to build around it and maybe get back quicker than most of us think. But my mind using all the logic that I can muster... keeps saying they just haven't finished. It can't be finished... The deadline couldn't have concluded this adjustment. Whose left to deal? We don't have a lot of high value trade candidates that return value back other than Ryan, Pablo and maybe Ober.

I have no idea. AI answered my inquiry with a pay range of $40 to $100K which is in line with stuff I've read before. But again... I have no idea and therefore the question mark afterwards. I may have missed on the interpretation of your comment. I took your "Save on Salt" as in line of what I was thinking. It's a drop in the bucket and therefore not an example of Pohlad cheapness. You now seem to be saying... it is Pohlad cheapness but with basically no significant savings.

4 Scouts at what? 60K? Travel Expenses? It really doesn't seem like it fits into the on going ever lasting cheap Pohlad discussion. Yet it will get dragged into that.

Hope for a similar deal? A. Free agency - When a player has leverage due to multiple teams being interested and competing against each other for a signature on a contract. B. Arbitration - When a player with very limited leverage reaches an agreement to avoid arbitration or actually goes through the arbitration process with the only team that he can play for.

I have no reference point that is necessary to produce applause or anger toward this move. I don't know how big the scouting department is in total. I don't know how big it should be. I don't know the responsibilities of each scout and what they cover. I don't know what is done with the information gathered and how it is filtered down to the dugout for utilization. Advance scouting at the major league level? All the ballparks are fully equipped with camera's from multiple angles. Data is pouring out of every game. Launch angle, spin rates, pop times, you name it. Parker Hageman could do it from his living room.

I used to eat like that when I was younger. I could eat a hot dog in one bite. I got married and my wife put a stop to that. Now I actually use utensils on most meals. One bite at a time.

And we do have a big problem. My mantra is cull from the bottom until the bottom is less bottomly. It doesn't impede growth toward the top but a 26 man roster will be utilized throughout the year and you have to be able to count on your entire roster. I'm not advocating an exact order. I'm not saying replace 26 and then replace 25 and then 24. That would be awfully obsessive compulsive. Right now.. I'm saying we got to replace at least 4 or 5 guys before we even get to Clemens. That's a lot. I think the possible disagreement that I'm having with most is this: I'm saying Kody wasn't that bad. Others feel much differently. But... I got to be clear. Clemens is not the key to the return to glory.

Yeah... I'm really not disagreeing with you. But, if we have 13 players on the roster next year who OPS over .749 (Yeah I know there are other stats). That would be a pretty formidable lineup. It's a good bar to clear and if done... we won't need Clemens. The need for Clemens is the problem. Clemens isn't the problem... It's the need for Clemens. I believe the Twins put themselves in this position and now they got to get themselves out of it because they have failed in terms of development. So how is that done? I don't have the answer for that. At bare minimum (in my opinion of course)... at bare minimum we probably need a good young 1B and a good young infielder who can play a decent SS at bare minimum and then we will need the replacement for Clemens... Infield... Utility type guy. The only player that we can trade to get that type of return is probably Joe Ryan and your starting pitching staff has weakened significantly. Sabato or Julien at 1B in 2026? Can Eeles play SS? We are most likely looking outside the organization.

That's my same bar. I've probably typed the words "I want 13 players who can play" about a thousand times on this website. Got some significant pushback over it as well. In regards to Clemens... again... I'm not overly passionate about him. Just saying... right now... he's not the place to start and if we find 13 players who are better than what he provided this year... we would be in pretty decent shape going forward. This discussion branched off a couple of different directions. When it got into the Max Muncy, Justin Turner... I'm agreeing with old nurse. Ultimately... I'm saying... there are success stories. I don't know what Clemens will become if he continues to play into 2026. We got three years of control... He's not a one year rental like many of the players I actually complain about specifically. If it works out... whatever he learns, figures out will be to the Twins benefit in 2027 and not his future team. If it doesn't work out. Player X from AAA should be able to push him out the door. The problem is... We don't have a Player X. We got at least 4 guys that we have to dispose of and replace first.

First off 19 homers in 307 AB's is 31 Home Runs over 502 AB's. The number of AB's is important in a counting stat like that. I understand what you are saying and forgive me but I believe I've covered everything you are saying during the course of this thread and I'm not entirely disagreeing with you, Chief or anyone. I stated in my first post that I was against the Clemens acquisition back in April and with hindsight in my pocket... If I could go back in time... I would still be against it. I'm serious when I say that... no matter how conflicted I may sound as I defend a player that I'm not sure about at all. What I mean by that is this: The fact that we had more faith in trying Clemens than faith in what they were developing in their own backyard is why I was against it and would still be against it. Both you and Chief are using the phrase "Massive Failure". I agree that is a massive failure. No argument from me. Now that he is here and from I've seen this year and how he compares with what I've seen from his teammates this year... as we are looking at a lot of lottery balls with the Twins logo on it. When I say Clemens is a good bar to clear... That's all about raising the bar not lowering it. 13 players better than Clemens means Clemens is no longer necessary and if we have 13 players clearing that 2025 bar. Things will be decent... maybe not earth shaking but better than it is right now. Right now... we are not there. If you look at the 26 man roster... before we target Clemens for disposal. Before we talk about trading Larnach because this left handed corner outfield below average defense log jam that has everyone concerned. Gasper, Julien, Fitzgerald and McCusker need to be replaced first. Is it Pereda replacing Gasper... Maybe we can add him to the list and make it 5 players. Lewis and Lee I'm sure will be back next year as well they should... they will get plenty of opportunity as well they should... but both Lewis and Lee didn't clear the Clemens bar in 2025. So...take those 5 off the roster for 2026 (one of them is September call up)... Now lets stab Clemens in the head and toss him aside. Let's trade Larnach... Some want Wallner gone. That's 6 gone... 7 with Wallner gone. Outman... add Outman... Many people want him out. Buxton, Martin, Lewis, Lee, Keaschall and Jeffers is all we have left to work with. That's it... We are starting 2026 with Buxton, Martin, Lewis, Lee, Keaschall and Jeffers. All I'm saying is this: Larnach is not the problem... Larnach is not where you start when the cleanup begins. Clemens is not the big problem. Getting yourself in a situation where needing Clemens has always been the problem. If we can get 13 players better than Clemens and no longer need him... things will be better. Maybe even competitive. Then we can work on Ash's plan... Let's find 7 or 8 player clearing the Buxton bar. Like Milwaukee has.

I've been meaning to get to this. It's a great post. I agree... that's the metric... The Buxton bar is where we want to be. Hopefully the Twins can get there some day in the future and hope it doesn't take too long. Forgive me a moment as I bring up another sport. In Hockey... we all want to score goals but before you do... You gotta clear the puck out of your defensive zone. Right now with the Twins. The puck is deep in the defensive zone and they got to figure out how to clear the zone. It's hard to score from 195 feet out. So... the Clemens bar is fine with me for now. For now. The Brewers are tough to beat because they are tough to beat up and down the lineup. They have been working toward this for a long time. The Twins just wiped the slate clean.

We all realize this is such a subjective discussion. These results are based upon those inclined to answer from those who have nothing to compare their local option to. Very few people have listened to all 30 broadcasts. It's Yes or No question basically with a tally. I've read some negative comments on Atteberry on Twinsdaily. Don't entirely understand the reasons for negative comments but to each their own. My honest opinion is this. I think he does a great job. He's smooth with decent inflection to keep it interesting and he is able to fill 3 hours of air time with knowledge that pertains to not only baseball but basically wherever the conversation goes... From pop culture and beyond. At the basic level... he just needs to be able to tell me that it was a single up the middle... Kris is able to do this and more. Thumbs up from me. In a social media world where negative comments are more likely to be expressed. I hope Kris reads my comment here on Twinsdaily so he knows that there is at least one person who thinks he does a great job.

Could be. I don't have the clairvoyance to take a strong position either way. My whole conversation in this thread started with... "if we can find 13 players better". Meaning what Clemens has provided us in 2025 in 2026. It's a good bar to clear. My main position is this on Clemens. Right now... We have a lot worse. His 19 Dingers is nothing to sneeze at.