Riverbrian

It's always fun to try and predict but what I've learned over the years is that a lot of things have to go the way it is supposed to go and too much stuff doesn't go the way it's supposed to. It wasn't long ago that all of us at Twindaily were trying to lay out the future for Miranda because of the presence of Lewis and Kirilloff.

Whenever I accidentally trip and fall into one of those greatest of all time questions. I always say... I don't know but whoever he is. He's playing right now. Babe Ruth would have never seen a 90 MPH Slider. The game has indeed dialed up.

Brooks Lee is doing just fine. Right now he's helping us win ball games. Or helping us try to win ball games. We are a little over a year in his service time. Who knows what his future is. Is he a 2B, 3B SS or 1B in the future? I don't know but he is top of the depth chart at the SS position with this 2026 squad. The eggs are in his basket. I'm pulling for him.

Last Game Right Handed Starter May 9 - Tanner Bibee - Win - 2 Runs Scored (Yeah I know... 11 innings only Two Hits) Lineup Composition: 3 RH - 3 Switch - 3 LH Record vs Right Handed Starters - 12 - 12 Season Average Run Scored vs RH Starters - 4.92 ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Season Accumulated Stats vs Left Handed Starters Season Record vs Left Handed Starters - 5-11 Season Average runs scored vs Left Handed Starters - 4.44

Last Game Left Handed Starter May 8 - Parker Messick - Loss - 4 Runs Scored Lineup Composition 5 RH - 3 Switch - 1 LH Season Record vs LH Starter 5 - 11 Season Average Runs Scored vs Left Handed Starters 4.44 ----------------------------------------------------------------------------- Season Accumulated Stats vs Right Handed Starters Season Record vs Right Handed Starter 11-12 Season Average Runs Scored vs Right Handed Starters 5.04 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Note: The 26 man roster composition has comprised of 5 right handed hitters, 5 left handed hitters and 3 switch hitters all season. This composition has remained the same through the entire season... When Lewis went on the IL he was replaced by right handed hitting Kriedler. I point this out to point the obvious. With that roster the most we can cram into the right handed batters box is 8. Starting all 5 right handed hitters and 3 switch hitters. 8 is the maximum. Last night was our 16th game against a lefty starter. Shelton has crammed all 8 into the Right Handed Batters box 12 times out of the 16. It's the closest thing we have to a set lineup. We crammed the maximum we can cram into the right handed batters box. That number is 8

I think you are correct as usual. I would have done things different and have said so multiple times... That doesn't matter anymore. They took the path they took. I would have less faith in the front office if they abandoned the path they chose 38 games into the season to all of sudden say... You know that Riverbrian WAS right. We should have traded Joe Ryan in the off-season at his peak value and then immediately changed course. I wouldn't want my front office that wishy washy. Nobody should want their front office that wishy washy. No matter what our opinions are of the current competitive state of our Twins. Technically... We are only 3.5 games out of the AL Central lead and even more importantly... we are only 38 games in with 124 games to go. Injuries are going to change the context many many times throughout the year. Sometimes injuries will improve the team. Multiple Hot Streaks, Cold Streaks and medium streaks are yet to happen for the Twins and the other 29 teams.

Last Game Right Handed Starter May 7 - Jake Irvin - Loss - 5 Runs Scored Lineup Composition 4 RH - 1 Switch - LH Season Record vs RH Starter 11-12 Season Average Runs Scored vs RH Starters 5.04 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Season Accumulated Stats vs LH Starters Season Record vs LH Starters 5-10 Season Average Runs Scored vs Left Handed Starters 4.47

I understand that many of the folks on Twinsdaily are not excited about Tristan Gray on the roster and I understand that many consider him to be bench and would rather not see him in the lineup. I understand that there is pretty much no expectation for Tristan today or in the future especially in consideration of his advanced age of 30. I frequently talk about the need for 26 players who can play. I frequently talk about competition... I frequently talk about pre-determination. Royce Lewis is why. Forget about future expectations. Tristan Gray has been a better baseball player than Royce Lewis. Over 89 PA's for Royce and 64 for Tristan. Will he remain a better baseball player as the season progresses... We will find out. As for right now... Royce sitting for two days... I have no problem with that.

Last Game Right Handed Starter May 6th - Miles Mikolas - Loss - 2 Runs Scored Lineup Composition 2 RH - 3 Switch - 4 LH Season Records vs Right Handed Starter 11-11 Season Average Runs Scored vs Right Handed Starters 5.05 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Season Accumulated Stats vs LH Starters Season Record vs LH Starters 5-10 Season Average Runs Scored vs Left Handed Starters 4.47 Note: Right Handed Starter both Tuesday Night and Last Night. Tuesday: 4 Batters in the Left Handed Batters Box - 5 in the Right Handed Batters Box - 11 Runs Wednesday: 7 Batters in the left handed batters box - 2 in the right handed batters box - 2 Runs This is a small sample from a two day moment out of 162 games. It means nothing. I am noting for the sole purpose of pointing out that these things happen and they happen frequently. Platooning should increase your odds, However, the increase of odds are slight and easily erased by performance.

Fantastic news for both Joe Ryan and the Twins. Point still stands. Injury to Joe Ryan is the nightmare scenario.

Last Game Right Handed Starter May 5 - Cade Cavalli - Won 11 Runs Scored Lineup Composition 5 RH - 2 Switch - 2 LH Season Record vs Right Handed Starters 11-10 Season Average Runs Scored vs Right Handed Starters 5.19 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Season Accumulated Stats vs LH Starters Season Record vs LH Starters 5-10 Season Average Runs Scored vs Left Handed Starters 4.47 Note: This was the 2nd time that Shelton placed all 5 right handed hitters in the starting lineup with a right handed pitcher on the mound. The other time was against Gausman. We scored 11 last night and 8 against Gausman. Like Gausman... Cavilli has significant career reverse splits.

Eating some money certainly could have increased trade value. That could have helped us get younger on the infield and that is what I was hoping for. In order to be fair. My ideas don't always work either. When it comes to the allocation of funds... I stated that I would have invested in the bullpen. Needing more than one decent arm. I fully admit that I would have went after a couple of rebound candidates hoping to land one of them. Devin Williams was my first choice but I never imagined that it would take 3 years at 51 Million to land him. That would have taken me out on Williams because it would have killed the majority of our budget. Based on what he did for the Yankees last year. I couldn't imagine 3 years and 51 million that the Mets paid. Based on what he did for the Yankees last year and what he is doing for the Mets so far this year. A minor league deal may be too much to have spent on Williams. I was just plain wrong on Devin. The other reliever I liked was Helsley. Based on his collapse with the Mets (Maybe there is an issue with the Mets). I didn't see him getting two years and 28 million. That might have taken me out on Helsley as well. On the Varland trade. I had a soft spot for him being a Minnesota kid and wish he was still here but I have a hard time faulting Falvey for dealing him if they believe in Rojas. Picking up a young starter (left handed to boot) for a reliever is a win in my eyes because the starter is in theory going to work triple the innings. Rojas just has to work out in the future. Bradley and Abel are looking good right now. In hindsight... the bullpen was going to be a problem no matter how much money we spent. If the bullpen was going to be a problem and we all thought it might be a problem. As you once said... What a perfect time to find some young infield talent to finish what they started in August.

Trading Pablo wouldn't have been wrong. My personal dial didn't twist that far but there are degrees to going for it and degrees to tearing it down. All I wanted was to acquire a young SS and a young 1B that are close to major league ready and whatever money they had to spend should have been invested in the bullpen. Ryan and Jeffers may have secured those two young pieces. And they blew their limited funds on the C/DH position... they chose to acquire old SS's and 1B's. This club took the tiniest degree of going for it. The Tiniest degree. I thought they should flood with youth and they flooded with old. Banda, Orze, Wagaman, Jackson and Gray are what we acquired via trade. That pretty much sums up the effort. I will continue to not be afraid of youth. I do not believe rebuilds have to take a long time. Just move a damn direction and do it full speed. I believe the fans would be more excited watching Erod play than watching Josh Bell play so they won't sell tickets. This was the hardest to justify off-season for many years including all teams. Hey its early in the season... who knows... maybe they shock us all.

I won't argue any of your thoughts. I'm just working under the theory based on decades of being a Twins fan. We have a budget and it's less than we'd like and the franchise needs to operate accordingly. We got payroll up to 160 million and it wasn't enough. Even if a new owner comes in and brings it up to 200 million ( I don't believe that will happen) it won't be enough and it will only be temporary. In regards to what is in the heart of Byron Buxton. I don't know and I'm not sure I trust interpretations of what is out there. I can only speak from what is in my heart. If I was Byron... This far along. I'd like to stay with one club if possible and this is possible. If Byron wants to cash that history with one team in for a chance to win. Our return for him despite his incredible talent most likely won't be what we think it will be. If I was Byron.... I'm not giving up that full no trade clause without a renegotiation. That full no trade clause is future money in his pocket and you don't cough that up. The Mets or Phillies would have to renegotiate and that will take his current team friendly contract to not so friendly and the value of what we get back will go down accordingly. I think it's best that we keep Byron and build as quickly as possible around him. I'm not afraid of youth around him... I'm afraid of lack of talent around him.

Regardless of the state of the franchise and I am for youth as the direction they need to go. I would still keep Buxton. Buxton should be a Twin for life. Number retired at the conclusion of his career whenever that might be and a statue in the plaza with arm and hand in the air doing the Buck Truck.

Agreed. However personally my opinion... which is just that. I wasn't as concerned about Pablo. His contract 21.75 per year for the next two years would have lowered his value and therefore the return... and I assume fairly significantly. Compared to Ryan and who I assume would make 19 Million combined for the next two years. I have no way of knowing but I have assumed that Joe Ryan would have fetched a Top 25 prospect. Losing that trade value... in my mind is like losing Walker Jenkins because I think Joe Ryan could have returned a Walker Jenkins level ball player. If this is Tommy John... the cost isn't a winning season. A winning season was a question mark even with Joe Ryan fronting the rotation. The cost is a player of Walker Jenkins type future. Joe Ryan and Ryan Jeffers were the two players that they should have been cashed in because the value of those two was as high as it would get. Ryan Jeffers returns less as a two month rental. Joe Ryan returns less at a year and half. The Pablo Lopez value if he remained healthy had a chance to go up with 21 million taken off the books. Anyway... I thought that they should have continued what they started at the trade deadline. They didn't... and Joe Ryan TJ is the nightmare scenerio.

I'll wait for word. Actually I won't wait for word. If its good news or bad news... it doesn't matter. The concern expressed in the off-season remains true regardless of the results of whatever they are checking out. Keeping Joe Ryan to go for it... was very risky and the risk was significant trade value wasted. The nightmare scenario was an injury that erases his trade value. I'll wait for word.

Last Game Right Handed Starter May 3 - Trey Yesavage - Won - 4 Runs Scored Lineup Composition 4 RH - 3 Switch - 2 LH Season Record vs Right Handed Starters 10-10 Season Average vs Right Handed Starters 4.90 ---------------------------------------------------------------- Season Accumulated Stats vs LH Starters Season Record vs LH Starters 5-10 Season Average Runs Scored vs Left Handed Starters 4.47

Last Game Right Handed Starter May 2 - Dylan Cease - Loss - 4 Runs Scored Lineup Composition 3 RH - 2 Switch - 4 LH Season Record vs Right Handed Starters 9-10 Season Average Runs Scored vs Right Handers 4.95 ----------------------------------------------------------------------- Season Accumulated Stats vs LH Starters Season Record vs LH Starters 5-10 Season Average Runs Scored vs Left Handed Starters 4.47

Taking this one step further... Shelton typical lineup composition vs RH Starters thus far is: 6 in the left handed batters box using a combination of lefties and switchers. The game vs Gausman is the low with 4 and it has gotten as high as 8 vs Max Scherzer. Against Left Handers... Shelton typical lineup composition is: 8 in the right handed batters box using a combination of righties and switches. They have 3 games with 7 in the right handers box and 1 game with 6 vs Cole Ragans. They won that game BTW. They also won last nights game with only 4 hitters in the left handed box vs a right hander. Small Sample... lots of factors that influence games to consider... but what I'm tracking is Wins and Losses. The platoon advantage isn't providing a W advantage so far.

Last Game Left Handed Starter May 1 - Patrick Corbin - Loss - 3 Runs Scored Lineup Composition 5 RH - 3 Switch - 1 LH Season Record vs Left Handed Starter 5-10 Season Average Runs Scored vs Left Handed Starters 4.47 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Season Accumulated Stats vs RH Starters Record vs RH Starters 9-9 Season Average Runs Scored vs RH Starters 5.00

Not with the average MLB starter averaging less than 6 IP per start. It's Martha and the Vandellas in the bullpen. Nowhere to run... Nowhere to hide.

As I just watched Byron go deep again. It reminds me that Buxton started the season 4 for 30. Including today's lead off homer... He's now 30 for 98 since so lost timing can be found. Wallner is certainly taking much longer. I suspect that is why Shelton has stuck with him for as long as he has and will probably continue to... just to give him opportunities to find it and be the Wallner they think he can be. At some point... you have to think to yourself... Man... we just a absorbed a long stretch of struggling trying to get a hot streak that may not make up for the long stretch of struggling you absorbed... along with missing out on upside as Martin watches from the dugout instead of being in the lineup. The price just gets to high.

I have strong opinions and I'm certainly not afraid to voice them but... there is still that part of me that thinks... OK... lets see if Tom Pohlad was right. And then I watch the bullpen and all it's craftiness and it keeps those moments fleeting.

Caratini is signed to a two year contract. That should have sealed Jeffers future fate with the Minnesota Twins. We have limited financial resources. If we allocate a large chunk of those limited financial resources to the catcher position in both Jeffers and Caratini. You'll have limited money to address other positions and we will need to address other positions and that's hard to do with resources blown on the C position. My guess... is that Jeffers will be traded at the deadline because we will not be in contention. I will also guess that Jeffers will have a good year that will bring interest but that interest will be severely diminished due to his being a two month rental. I predict that Jeffers will be the top free agent catcher available. His family will enjoy his future pay check. In other words. Jeffers probably should have been dealt this past off-season. Especially if you were going to sign Caratini. I could be wrong. Maybe Jeffers leads us to the playoffs. It's a long way to July.