Riverbrian

Hammer and Plouffe... If they find offense... The Twins will find offense. i've looked at this roster from every direction... Upside down... Sideways... Every way possible. Everything points to Hammer and Plouffe... In my opinion.

I am so completely jealous of you. Spring Training in Floria... I wish I was there. I'm so jealous that if I didn't like you as much as I do. I probably wouldn't like you.

I don't know what is happening in the clubhouse. I've read enough reports about a quiet clubhouse to assume it is. I don't know if that's good or bad in the context of the Twins but I'm loosely tying quiet to the routine baseball that I witnessed from the Twins in 2013... And I have lack of fire on the brain. I firmly believe that fire... In all business (Baseball and any other) is what turns things around for the better. If we don't have it... I assume we should get some guys who do!

If Pinto starts in AAA or the majors and plays like the player that we all hope he is... And some are confident he is. He will steamroll right into the starting catching position. Suzuki will not block him unless Suzuki plays like the player we hope that Pinto is. Its all in Pinto's hands. This issue will sort itself out.

I think that is a good observation. Worley needs another MLB pitch. He ain't mixing things up.

I'm usually pretty optimistic but the offense is starting to freak me out in a half empty kind a way. I never really considered Colabello as a serious option to start with the big club. I'm considering it strongly now. If Hammer and Plouffe don't provide big power we are in trouble. Colabello would be some insurance. Right now Colabello is replacing Kubel on my dance card.

Arcia must have lost that in the sun. Otherwise that's a catch that needs to be made.

I stand corrected... You are right!

Make the move right now... If he's gonna slip through... I'd imagine now is the best time to slip him through.

Will you catch it?

Obi Wan: rest easy son... You've had a busy day... You're fortunate to be all in one place. Worley: Yeah I got knocked out again.

A couple of breaking pitches this inning. Suzuki just came out and asked if they were accidental.

Fastball percentage about 112%

Down the line groundball and into the corner.

I've been thinking about Russia and Crimea. Since it's a free for all.. I think we should just take Kiev... I like what they do with Chicken.

Worley... The Vanimal!!! They used to to call him the Vanimal!!! They don't call him that anymore. He's become the Damnable!!!

If Pinto is coming North... And If Pinto hits like he did September and Suzuki hits like he has for the past few years. This concern won't last long. Suzuki is insurance in case Pinto struggles... He a locker room guy... He's an experienced game caller. If Pinto plays ball like we hope. The situation will reverse in fairly quick fashion. Not signing Suzuki puts Fryer behind Pinto and if Pinto struggles... (Gulp).

I think the complete package discussion of the value of Florimon is a completely legit discussion. I to... am hoping that the complete package is somewhere in the pipeline. I want my SS to hit more and I'm not trying to say Florimon should be the SS until 2020 because I love his glove. His offense leaves him hanging by a thread. I'm just being pig-headed about the defensive side of the ball and any attempt to paint him as average in that department. I think that Baseball organizations value the defensive side of the ball a lot higher than most of us mere mortals. They absolutely consider the total package but I think the defensive side is weighted more than most of us realize. As for Florimon being a complete liability at the plate. You gotta be careful here... He's not a complete liability at the plate. He just hasn't been very good and he doesn't compare well to others. However he is above the Mendoza line and he found the seats 9 times. It's not like he hasn't gotten a hit or two when needed or not needed. If you put Ashbury at the plate... He might be a complete liability. On the defensive side... It's hard to quantify what one amazing play does for you. If Florimon makes one of his plays ranging into the hole into the LF and jumps and guns out a runner from mid-air like he has done with my jaw on the floor. You don't know how many runs that prevents because once you get to three outs they don't get to try anymore. Baseball guys like Gardy will tell you that giving teams extra outs kill you. It's another chance for someone to do some damage at the plate. Another chance to roll those statistical probabilities and have it come out against you. And the same is true on the reverse... Taking away an out kills the other team. It takes away a runner on base... another chance to park one or Texas League one. The Pitchers who are getting bonuses and larger contracts based on ERA and other measurables. Love IT!!! You can bet that the Twins pitching staff wants Florimon out there.

BTW... Not trying to flame anything... My points are being made with a smile on my face. My points are these: I think the Twins value defense at the SS and C positions. I think they should. I think the majority of the other 29 teams do as well. I don't think the people who run the Twins are baseball clueless. I think there are defensive baseball metrics that say that Florimon is elite and others are producing defensive metrics that say he isn't. Defensive Metrics are half baked and inconsistent and dangerous in the hands of those who are biblical about them. I watch him play and there is no doubt he's elite. He was stunning at times. If any defensive metric says otherwise... His play as shown me enough. I don't belong to the D metric Church. You can drag Punto and Castro into the discussion as an MO. Fine... It shows me that they value defense then and Florimon shows that they still value it. There is nothing to justify offensively in Florimon's MLB Offense numbers or... Past farm numbers. If he's a suspect hitter and we can all agree that he is because its obvious that he isn't good with the bat. If he's a suspect... Below average hitter... Below average for light hitting SS's even... If all this is true and it is... Why would the Twins hand him the job for the 2nd year in a row if he was also an average non elite defensive SS... They wouldn't and this can't be argued. If anyone believes that the Twins would field a bad bat at SS who is also just a simple decent defensive SS and at a somewhat advanced age. It would explain why some think we have a clueless front office. You can argue how our front office ranks in comparison to the other front offices in baseball... But... Can we not assume that they are not that clueless. There are a bunch of lifelong baseball men employed by the organization. If Florimon wasn't considered elite Defensively. The Twins would have given Escobar or Bartlett the job already. They would have signed Drew or Peralta or Anyone because his bat isn't up to snuff. Andrealton Simmons... Is a decent hitter but he doesn't blow the doors off the place... He is stunning defensively. The Braves will not part with him. The D-Backs wanted to give them Juston Upton for him. The Braves wouldn't do it and they obviously wanted Upton because they got him with another package. The Tigers gave up Avisail Garcia to get Iglasias from Boston. They were set with him at SS and only now that he is hurt... Are they looking at Drew. No interest in Drew with an elite defensive SS in place and they let Peralta go. If it was money entirely they wouldn't be looking at Drew at all... Even after the injury to Iglasias! Andrus isn't exactly killing it at the plate. The Rangers locked him up because he rocks defensively. There are weak hitting SS's all over the place. It's because teams want defense at the position. If you are not up to snuff... They move you to 2B, 3B or the OF. Not only is Florimon Elite... He is Jaw Droppingly good at a time where SS's are doing more defensively than any other decade. With all of that... Happy St. Patricks Day to all!!! :th_alc::th_alc:

One more thing on Florimon's elite-ness. Florimon has a lifetime MLB OPS of .601 after 548 at bats at the age of 27. With a hitting track record like that... Here's the question. Do the Twins hold the SS position for him if he wasn't defensively elite? No they wouldn't... The reason Florimon is around for TD members to complain about is because he is defensively elite. If he wasn't... He'd be gone at age 27. I know that some believe that the Twins front office is run by door stops. But... C'mon. On topic... I like Escobar... He's a fine defensive player. He looks like the primary backup at 2B,3B and SS.

I've heard his name mentioned in National conversation. I don't worry bout that much though. He's elite in my opinion and I'm hard on Defense. Florimon and Dozier were a great combo up the middle. Simmons is the best Iglasias is probably next(in my opinion) I think Florimon is #3 and in the conversation. I also believe that the level of defense being played right now is uncharted territory. The stuff that Simmons is doing consistently hasn't been done before. Iglasias, Florimon, Segura are taking SS defense to a whole new level. I like Escobar and I don't want this to sound like I'm dissing his defense... But... He isn't near Florimon defensively.

It does look like Hicks is gonna be the opening day CF. Somehow... I feel better and worse about the CF position at the same time. I hope he can be a lot more composed at the plate starting March 31. If so... He will be fun.

Blaming Florimon for the teams offensive production is like blaming your Grandmother because your barbells are still in the basement.

Twins: SP Ricky Nolasco CF Presley 2B Dozier 1B Mauer LF Willingham DH Kubel 3B Plouffe RF Arcia C Suzuki SS Escobar Marlins: SP Kevin Slowey SS Solano C Brantly 3B Baker LF Ozuna 1B Wigginton CF Bogusevic RF Johnson DH Rosa 2B Bohn Things to Think About: 1. Think About Kevin Slowey... OK that's enough thinking about him. He used to be a Twin... He's not now. 2. Think about Stretching Out... It's gotta be closer to the time when starters start going a little longer to get ready for those 100 pitch outings in the regular season. I noticed Corbin for the D-Backs threw quite a few innings yesterday. The D-Backs and Dodgers timeline is probably a little more advanced because they are starting in Australia early this year. 3. Think about Stanton... Not in the Lineup... He's fun to watch. We won't be watching him. 4. Think about Power... The Twins are not exactly hitting the ball out of the park this spring. Willingham... Plouffe... Kubel... Arcia are all in the lineup today batting 4 through 7 in the lineup. While it's only spring training... Those 4 have combined for 88 Spring Training At Bats and have produced a total of 2 dingers. Are these 4 going to provide exceptional defense or speed? I don't think so... I think they need to hit the ball out of the park at least 20 times a piece this year. I'll keep telling myself it's only Spring Training. 5. Think about my friends son... I was talking on the phone with a friend of mine. It had been awhile since we talked and in the process of catching up. He told me that his 22 year old son had gotten divorced two years ago after two years of marriage with one small child. Looking for a fresh start from a bad breakup... His son moved to California and was struggling to make ends meet with his financial support payments. He had taken a side job working on a parsley farm and was getting by until the ex-wife heard about the extra income. He was just recently informed that wages from that side job would be garnished. I started laughing and my friend didn't understand why I started laughing. Garnish is a real possibility... If you work with parsley.

I agree with you all the way around. Add to the list... Lack of Power so far in spring as a continuation of the lack of power in 2013 and I'm offensively nervous. Hopefully things turn around. Lack of power and Lack of speed is not a good combo. As for Deduno... I'm a big believer. I think he should grab the 5th spot and if he gets it... He will be our top starter.