Riverbrian

Before the year is out. Well... I guess I called that one.

From this list. Only Jansen was a true free agent signing. Kim doesn't make your list because he hasn't played yet but you can add Kim to Jansen to make the entire true free agent member total of two for the 2025 Tampa Rays. Apart from Jansen - The Following players from your list cost more than 1.5M this year. I choose 1.5 million because that is where a reasonably line of affordability can be drawn. Yandy Diaz - Acquired from Cleveland in a 3 team trade. Yandy was 27 at the time. He had a total of 299 MLB AB's at the time of the trade. It cost Tampa Pre-Arb player Jake Bauers. Jake was 22 at the time and he was acquired from the Padres as part of the Wil Myers deal. Wil Myers at the time was a pre-arb player who was one of the top prospects in baseball. Drew Rasmussen - Was acquired from the Brewers... there were other pieces involved but WIlly Adames was the main piece in the trade going to Milwaukee. At the time of the Deal Rasmussen was 25 years old, pre-arb with 27 appearences out of the bullpen over two years. Tampa immediately converted him to a starter and he did quite well right away. Willy Adames was in his last year pre-arb... his pay was going up the next year. 4 million paid by the Brewers. Pete Fairbanks - Acquired from the Rangers. At the time of the trade... Pete had a total of 8 innings of major league work with the Rangers. He was trade for Nick Solak who was a minor league prospect. Zach Littell was a waiver claim at age 27 after he was released by Boston. Boston had him briefly after acquiring from the Giants for Cash. (not Kevin Cash). Zach pitched will enough to be offered arbitration the following year for 1.8 million and they avoided Arbitration this year signing at 5.7 million Continuing on: Uceta was waived by the Dodgers, D-Backs, Tigers, Mets and Cubs before the Rays signed him to a minor league free agent deal at age 23. Morel was acquired from the Cubs... Cost the Rays Isaac Paredes. Morel was pre-arb, Paredes was making 3.4 million in his first year of Arb. Paredes was pre-arb when originally acquired from the Tigers for Austin Meadows. Austin Meadows was making 4 million in his first year of Arb at the time. Misner was a prospect acquired from the Marlins. Cost the Rays Joey Wendle at the time. Wendle was going into his first year of arbitration. Mangum should be on your list. He was also acquired from the Marlins. It was a multi player deal. Brujan and Faucher were the players that the Marlins received in the deal. All players involved in this deal make the minimum or are in the minor leagues. Cabellero was acquired from the Mariners. Cost the Rays Luke Raley. Both Players were pre-arb. Luke Raley was acquired from the Dodgers for a minor leaguer named Tanner Dobson. Deluca and Pepiot were acquired from the Dodgers. Cost the Rays Tyler Glasnow. Both Deluca and Pepiot were pre-arb players. Glasnow was making 15 million a year through arbitration and was about to hit free agency. The Dodgers agreed to absorb Manual Margot's contract in the deal and the Rays agreed to send 4 million in cash to play for another team and help the Dodgers absorb Margot's contract. Of Course... the Dodgers then traded Margot to the Twins were they were willing to send 4 million in cash to play for someone else and after two teams were paying 4 million to play for someone else... it was the Twins paying 4 million to actually play for them. Now it was the Rays who offered Margot a two year 19m deal which was a mistake so all teams make them. I can keep going but the point of all of this is too point out that the Rays have been much more resourceful with their young talent, developing and acquiring young talent that the Twins have. Yes they have acquired a lot of talent via trade but they moved players when they got expensive and kept the young pre-arb train rolling and they have won a lot of games in the process. I'm not saying that the Twins should be exactly like the Rays but when you dive deep into it. The Rays have been much better than the Twins have in terms of development and more resourceful with it.

What's insane is to think that anybody thinks that the entire 40 man can be homegrown. May I add insulting to insane? I hope everyone understands that I UNDERSTAND that there are multiple ways to build a roster. It's crazy that I have to type that but I truly honestly do understand that rosters can be built via draft/develop, trade, free agency and waivers and all 30 teams use a combination of these sources to build their roster. Each team will have varying percentages of each of the primary 3 sources (Development, Trade and Free Agency). Now if you want to use the Rays as an example. Yep... 24 on the 40 man roster were acquired via trade. 12 Twins on the 40 man roster were acquired via trade. Two to one in comparison with the Twins. The Rays are twice as active on the trade front. Truly homegrown players drafted and developed: 20 Twins on the 40 man were homegrown. 10 on the Rays. Two to one in comparison with the Rays. The Twins have directly utilized their farm twice as much as the Rays. The Twins currently have 9 pre-arb players on the 26 man roster with 2 on the IL. The Rays currently have 17 Pre-Arb players on the 26 man with 6 on the IL. The Twins have to pay at least 17 players more than the minimum. The Rays have to pay 9. The Twins are paying $142 million this season. The Rays are paying $79 million. I assume that neither team is happy with their start to 2025. I see a development problem with the Twins.

He's back in St. Paul and sending the ball out of the park. I agree that he looked awful in his limited Twins opportunities. Sending him down made perfect sense. We will probably see him again before the year is out.

i wouldn't platoon... that's for sure but Rocco is going to throw him on the short side. Since they signed him and since we have multiple players hitting well below average. I would let him compete for playing time but that's not going to happen either. Based on his utilization. The correct answer is not sign him in the first place.

If you continue to believe that I'm saying develop all 40 players on the roster... you will always be someone nobody wants to converse with. And... I really don't.

The median tenure is about 5.5 years so 9 Years would be sufficient in his line of work. Yes... we are quickly approaching the point.

Your second sentence is something that I've never said. Your third sentence... You are literally using MY POINT to argue MY POINT. Your 2nd paragraph isn't worth responding to. You are just spouting unnecessary elementary garbage as a continuation of your 2nd sentence which is already off base. Your 3rd Paragraph. Teams hire veterans (some more than others) to fill out rosters because they fail to develop. This is coming from a guy who isn't asking for a mass firing.

Bingo I've said this multiple times over the years and I will say it again. I will judge this front office on development and development alone. I think we have made good strides on the mound but on the offensive side... I am quite concerned and this front office has had more than enough time to not be where we are. The Twins are taking the same approach to filling out the offensive side of the roster as the big boys are. Free Agents and Vets are filling out the roster. However, the talent difference is striking. The big boys are signing Soto, Santander and Bellinger... we are signing Bader and France. If we try to play like the Yankees in here... we will lose to the Yankees out there is the line that sums it up from the movie Moneyball. Meanwhile, the Twins are quite simply behind the pace being set by the majority of the other 29 teams in terms of young controllable pre-arb players. Every time the Twins sign a Bader or a France to a one year deal (Even if Bader or France end up being average or even above average in the ONE YEAR that they are with us)... every time they do this... it should be a neon sign flashing to everyone watching that we have a development problem. If anyone doesn't believe this statement from me... just go to fangraphs/roster resource and look at all 29 teams and count the number of pre-arb players on the 26 man roster of each team. Take note of the development happening with Milwaukee and Cleveland and compare it with the Twins. The Twins are ranked in the bottom third of pre-arb players on the 26 man roster. Even the Red Sox with money flowing out of their pockets have nearly twice the number of pre-arb players than the Twins do. Here's the bottom line: If the front office chooses to live and die with lower priced one year contract vets that still cost 4 to 5 to 10 times what a pre-arb player makes. If they choose the path of the one year contract because they didn't develop pre-arb players that make the minimum because they think they have better odds of winning the game today. If they choose this path and fail. They deserve to lose their jobs because they have left themselves with no path out of this mess. The only path is to do it again because they purposely put development for tomorrow in the backseat for today. You are correct when you say: "If this organization had even a 50% hit rate on any number of young hitters, nothing else matters". Being ranked as the 7th best farm in baseball means absolutely nothing to me right now. Absolutely nothing. We can't afford to purchase players developed by other teams... we must develop our own. I'm tired of watching Jacob Wilson, Kristan Campbell, Jasson Dominquez, Eric Wageman, Jacob Mangum, Griffin Conine, Kameron Misner, Drake Baldwin, Javier Sonoja, Masyn Winn, Jackson Merrill, Jackson Chourio, Nolan Schnauel, Colton Cowser, Michael Busch, Joey Ortiz, Andy Pages, Wilyer Abreu, Spencer Horwitz, Pete-Crow Armstrong, Tyler Fitzgerald, James Wood, Spencer Steer, Corbin Carroll, Ezequial Tover, Gunnar Henderson, Anthony Volpe, James Outman, Josh Jung, Maikel Garcia, Triston Cases, Jordan Walker, Brice Turang, Brenton Doyle. Elly De la Cruz, Francisco Alvarez, Matt McLain, Kyren Paris, Yanier Diaz among MANY others playing for other clubs while we choose ONE YEAR GUYS who will be off to greener pastures if they succeed and searching for a minor league deal with another team if they don't.

The short answer. Games that matter in September is my minimum expectation every year. I don't know if that answers the question as it was phrased but I want to be in the playoffs. The question though... seemed to be phrased: Should the Twins just go to crap this season so Falvey and Baldelli are sent packing and the organization can begin new. In that regard. To be honest and this will probably cause some sharp disagreement with others but so be it. Ultimately... I don't want the GM and Manager lacking job security. I don't want their future dependent on Wins and losses. That may sound crazy to some but here is why. In order for a GM and Manager to do what is best for the organization long term... they can't be worried about the short term costing them their jobs. In other words... if Falvey and Zoll decide that a rebuild is in the best interest of the organization long term. I want them to be able to do it without worrying about the axe falling on them over the short term struggles that MIGHT come with that. I want the front office to feel secure enough to give a 26 man roster spot to a young controllable player with a future over a vet like Margot on a one year deal because it's best for the organization long term. I don't want Baldelli sacrificing long term because he feels like he must win or get tossed on the ex-manager scrap heap. I don't want Baldelli strip mining our young left handed hitters for parts because he needs to win now or lose his job. I want the front office and manager to have the job security to do what is best for the long term. If they do what is best for the organization long term... the short term will take care of itself. They can build an organization that will be bring me games that matter in September every year. Maybe just maybe... job security will provide them with the comfort to choose a controllable player with years to come in a Twins uniform over a vet on a cheaper one year contract that will not be back next year.

Some Thoughts: 1. That catch by Buxton was a great way to end a game. 2. Keaschall scoring from 2nd on that Larnach dribbler was almost as exciting as the Buxton catch. Luke is showing me how much I've been missing the running part of the game. I have no idea if Luke will continue to hit, I have no idea if Luke is here to stay or if he will be sent back down at some point. However, right now he is showing me something that the Twins haven't had in years. The extra base, the stolen base, havoc on the base paths. Keaschall will become my favorite Twin if he keeps playing this way. 3. It was nice to see Larnach drill one deep. I'm counting on Trevor this year. We tend to look at the big three (Correa, Buxton and Lewis) and lose sight of Trevor. Trevor and Wallner need to make it a big 5.

Here is some positive math. In 2024 the Chicago White Sox had the lowest team OPS with .617. So far in 2025... the Twins are currently sitting with a team OPS of .617 While I'm concerned about the offense. This team isn't going to finish with a .617 OPS. The numbers are going to go up and maybe... just maybe... that will produce a winning streak or two.

Easy gripe to make yet incredibly misleading. It's been my experience that the people who so easily quote DMA rankings to prove this particular point, have no idea how the market area was DESIGNATED or why the market area was DESIGNATED in the first place. They tend to not understand what DESIGNATED means and they don't care. When you explain it to them, they tend to not understand or care how much power they are giving to the Nielsen company as long as it makes their argument. They also don't understand or care why Bemidji is included in a TMA and Rochester, Duluth and Sioux Falls are not. They just quote the rankings and say look... see... let's all get pissed. They also can't explain why Tampa is ranked #11 and Miami is ranked #18. They don't seem to care if Forbes estimates these two franchises to be 29th and 30th ranked in value. They don't care why or how San Francisco, Oakland and San Joes combined is 10th. They don't seem to care that Oakland is leaving the #10 market for the 40th because the 59 COUNTIES that have been designated to make up the Minneapolis/St. Paul/Bemidji market is ranked 15th or 16th and payroll is 20th. Case Closed. All hail the influence the Nielsen Company has on the sport of baseball.

Agreed. The word “tanking” became popular to describe it. Marketing works.

I have no idea what Gasper could or will be. He hasn't looked that good thus far but it's awfully early yet. I will say this. Tampa right now has a 29 year old rookie in Mangum and a 27 year old rookie in Misner playing pretty well right now. Neither of them were highly ranked prospects in the Rays system. Who knows if Misner or Mangum will continue to be success stories as the year goes on. Who knows what there future will be. In the end... Gasper's age of 29 doesn't concern me. It's really going to come down to hitting the ball when he is sent to the plate. The key will be... how often will be sent to the plate going forward.

Castro's health is going to be a huge wild card. SS health is a wild card but Castro has that ability to move around. If Correa and Castro both need rest. Lee is locked in at SS and can't move. I imagine the club is waiting for the injuries to calm down or flare up before making assessments on the severity of them. We will have to take a look at the 26 man on Friday to see just how interesting it's going to be.

I took some time off of this thread to see how things adjusted to the Lee promotion. Your guess above would have been exactly my guess. I think they would have primarily went with 9 players to fill 8 spots and I would have bet on a rotation of all 9 until the next 26 man roster adjustment. I also think that Gasper and Keirsay would have been utilized exactly how you explain above. Of course we really didn't get a chance to find out. The roster has moved into sudden injury flux and it's going to take some time to sort all of this out. We have an off day today and we don't know the health status of Correa and Castro. All we know so far is that OF Matt Wallner has hit the DL and he has been so far possibly replaced by a corner IF from outside the organization. Over the next week or so. I think we will learn more about the organization's thoughts on Keirsay while Wallner spends his time on the IL. If Keirsay still gets limited playing time over the next week. If Rocco immediately favors a 29 year old Jonah Bride with 600 major league AB's and a career .640 OPS over a 27 year old Kiersay... when the injury was in the OF. The Twins organization will make a pretty loud statement on their thoughts on Kiersay. In other words.... this should be Kiersay's moment. This should be his opportunity to get some playing time and show that he has major league value. If Keirsay is not given that opportunity under these conditions... If the Twins chose not to give him opportunity under these conditions... when could he ever get opportunity? One way or another... we are about to find out if Keirsay belongs. We will find out either by actual performance or we will find out by lack of faith in him demonstrated by his supervisors.

I get why a bunt was attempted. The offense is scuffling and you gotta produce a run while you can when the offense has struggled to produce them. I assume Rocco made the call to bunt in that situation. I guess it's possible that Kiersay made the decision to give it a shot. Either way... I do wish that Keirsay would have taken a shot at swinging away. Oh Well

Interesting. It's April and it's possible that we have run low on players worthy of getting called up to sit on the bench and watch the 25th ranked offense perform.

While I'm not ready to declare the season dead after 17 games. What you are saying is spot on in my opinion. There is always a future bill to pay. You and I have been saying this for a couple of years now. While I'm very happy that they are letting them get their hacks in against left handers this year. Two years of Wallner, Larnach, Julien and Kirilloff being shielded from left handed pitchers is two years of compromised development for all 4 of those players. It should surprise no one that we are now talking about 26, 27 and 28 year old players still trying to find their way in the big leagues. Attached to that decision is also two years of providing roster spots for players with one year contracts that won't be back the following year. Players who they have made necessary for the functionality of the two year organizational strategy of shielding/compromising our young developing left handed hitters. Those one year contracts require roster spots that will not be used for a developing pre-arb player. So now, we have compromised at least 6 roster spots in terms of development. Tack on two catcher spots and Camargo sitting on the bench not utilized while he watches Vazquez hit as poorly as a catcher can hit... and now we have compromised 8 of the available roster spots in terms of development. and finally add in the superstars Buxton, Correa, Lewis and lets' throw Castro into that mix and we have compromised 12 roster spots in terms of development. Leaving one spot at most to throw a youngster like Brooks Lee to the Wolves. If you utilize almost all of your roster spots this way... you will bottle neck your development and pretty soon our young talent is 26, 27, 28 years old and haven't proven a thing. No one should be shocked by the age of youngsters since we've been letting Margot stay employed at their expense. Can Wallner hit left handers? Can Larnach? We are just starting to find out now. Can Keirsay hit as well as Margot did? I don't know and they don't know either. This type of strategy/philosophy. There is a future bill to pay for it. A big future bill. Are we paying that bill in full right now. Maybe... however, it's just too soon to tell because the season is still young but then again... this offense has been extended down since August of last year. No matter if we are paying that bill in full right now. that bill will come due. We can't keep signing one year deals with low level vets to fill the spaces only available through the consistent compromising of our development. For anyone who is afraid of youth, pre-arb players and I will include Rocco and the front office for this possible fear. I'll repeat this over and over again. Look at how many pre-arb players are on the rosters of the other 29 teams.... compare that to the Twins. Look at how many pre-arb players out performed Margot last year. What you'll see is that other teams are winning baseball games with nearly half the roster comprised of pre-arb players. Do we have a development problem? Have we just plain failed to produce the number of pre-arb players that other organizations can produce? Have we just plain failed to produce a left handed hitting prospect who can hit left handed pitching? Other organizations are not having that problem? Or has this been just a horrible unnecessary bottle necking of our system for attempted short term gain that may or may not be a gain. If the Twins don't have a lever to pull right now. It's because they have built a farm system with 26, 27 and 28 year old levers dying on the vine.

3 Hits There is no doubt that Clay Holmes has a fantastic sinker but... right now with this collective team slump that has lasted one tenth of the season (And multiple tenths of the season at the end of last year). I can't help but think to myself... Man... it sure seems like every pitcher we face this year are top of the rotation quality. It's quite possible that we are making pitchers look better than they are. I keep telling myself... there is a lot of season left to go but... this has gone on way too long. It's station to station baseball with nobody getting to a station.

Gasper and Keirsey are levers. Good ones? Bad Ones? I don't know but they are levers. If the manager does not believe that they are legitimate levers. If the manager believes that they would be worse. They need to be replaced by players that the manager will allow to pressure the under performing chosen ones. It's a bad combination A. A team hitting a collective .601 OPS and B. Two players on the roster that the manager would rather suffer through bad play with others then allow to step in.

Especially when Blewett didn't blow it. I think the Twins are just sticking to their plan to rotate through that 8 spot in the bullpen.

Well... then yeah... It would be really questionable to call up a guy only to put him immediately on the IL.

Rankings are fun but... in the end... they don't mean much. Whoever gets the first call will be dependent on who provides the opening. It won't matter if Keaschall is out performing Emma at the moment. If an OF goes down. Emma or Martin gets the phone call. Emma needs to be better than Martin when the call comes. Keaschall needs to be better than Miranda when an IF goes down and it still important to keep in mind that Keaschall is not on the 40 man yet.