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Dantes929

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Everything posted by Dantes929

  1. Dantes929
    I'll stay away from the race issue but every time I see or hear that someone is a great ball player but an even better person I cringe a little and in probably at least three different ways. 1. Probably just not true if you do the math. Lewis as a top pick among tens of thousands or more of guys that want to be a top pick means that to be a better person than a player means he is a better person than those tens of thousands. or more. Maybe he actually is that one in a billion guy but both he and Kirilloff? Probably not. I mean I might be a better person than a baseball player but I think I am a decent person and a not very good baseball player so making that kind of statement for the run of the mill guy or player might actually be true but probably not true of the less than1 percenters of great athletes. 2. You mostly here about it regarding athletes. I rarely hear anyone say "So and so is a great (doctor, lawyer, accountant, teacher, mechanic, sports writer) but an even better person. 3. Aside from the points above the ideas really just don't mesh. Its like saying "That strawberry is a great fruit but its an even better strawberry" Ok, its not quite like that but maybe a thread for analogies to the great athlete but even better person would be kind of fun.
  2. Dantes929
    Small sample size and all that but we scored over 4 runs a game with Mauer and barely over 3 a game since he went on the DL. Really looking forward to having him back. Mauer and Buxton were my two favorite Twins to watch bat last year even when Buxton was slumping. There was a point where the light just turned on with him and I have faith it will happen again this year and it will be fun to watch. Part of what kept him afloat during the slump last year was his bunting for hits. I have only seen one attempt this year and that was the one that was almost a fly ball to first a couple days ago. He does have one bunt base hit but it was when he was trying for a sacrifice. Does he have any others? A soft bunt down third will get him a hit almost every time.
  3. Dantes929
    Reminded me of this one. A man and a woman were discussing the worst pain that anyone could possibly experience. The woman said: “Without doubt, there is nothing more painful in life than childbirth.” “Nonsense,” said the man, “a kick in the bollocks is much more painful. Ask any guy.” “You’re so wrong,” maintained the woman. “Childbirth is far more painful.” The man was not about to yield to her argument and announced: “I have proof that I am right.” “What proof?” she asked scornfully. “Because,” he continued, “a few years after giving birth a woman will say to her partner, ‘Do you want to try for another baby?’ But I have never, ever, ever heard a man say – even years later – ‘You know what I’d really like? Another kick in the bollocks!’”
  4. Dantes929
    I agree Buxton is the guy. Dozier's days of up and in FB's are not over if he shows once again that he can punish the balls on the outer half. Again, its not that he shouldn't pull the ball, its that he shouldn't try to pull every ball.. I think Buxton needs to think opposite field a little also for a different reason. His swing is too quick and he seems to be in front of the ball a lot. Nice to finally see him try a bunt again.
  5. Dantes929
    Nice job Lynn. Also, nice job Pressley. Just from a building confidence level, having 6 plus innings of shutout ball is a lot different than getting credit for two earned runs if Pressley had given up a few hits or a homer. It was out of Lynn's hands either way but something uplifting about a shutout. I hope this is a sign of good things to come rather than an aberration.
  6. Dantes929
    Earl Battey, Ray knight, Caesar Tovar? Kansas City Monarchs
  7. Dantes929
    I think it was before I came to TD regularly but I remember reading the Trib posts and a lot of other fan sites back in 09 demanding Mauer be signed to a long term extension at whatever price it takes. I am talking well over 95% in favor of extension. Flash forward a couple years and it was over 90% complaining about the deal and how they were against it all along. As far as Hughes I remember thinking it was too soon at too high a price for too little history with too long remaining on his original contract to make sense but I don't remember complaining at the time or since and I don't remember a whole lot of fans saying they hated the deal. It was a gamble. Didn't turn out. Such is life. The part I mostly don't like is the obligation to play guys that you have given extensions to and the whole system where you can't send veterans down to the minors when performance dictates.. Your paying him a ton of money. It is obvious he is not the same guy he was when the contract was signed and yet you can't send him to the minors to prove himself back in form.
  8. Dantes929
    "Everything checked out fine. They even said I had a heart."
  9. Dantes929
    Yes, I for one have not reached that point. They said the same about Hicks at age 26 and I never thought he had near the talent Buxton does. Of course I am not so sure the good Hicks is the rule right now either. Why isn't Buxton bunting?
  10. Dantes929
    If you can contend for a division title then you can win a division title or we have different definitions of contend. To me contend doesn't mean you will come close and then lose. It means you will be close and may win or lose. I'm not concerned with the probability. Last year they were under 4% at one point. If you make the playoffs you have a chance regardless of past results. KC made the WS twice. They had no legitimate ace starter and were last in the league in HRs. Twins have three guys right now that I would be comfortable starting in a playoff game and Santana may be another depending how it goes. May can help the bullpen and Rosario, Escobar, Sano, Dozier and Kepler are all legitimate home run threats. They are not a playoff team right now. You don't judge teams by their low points or their high points. They have the pieces to be successful. Its up to them to put it together. I know they haven't done so yet. I am still excited about the possibility that they will.
  11. Dantes929
    Ok, I get that he doesn't have to accept demotion to the minors to work on his stuff even though that is kind of crazy when you think about it. Being demoted to the bullpen because you are 0-5 against major league teams and 1-0 against the White Sox should not contemplate whether you would be accepting of it. I hope he turns it around with the Twins but I don't want it to cost more games while he is trying to do so. I am really looking forward to May helping the Twins in whichever role. I think he needs more time in the minors though to make sure he has his command and stuff back.
  12. Dantes929
    I think its in Lynn's best interests to figure things out. All he's doing now is padding stats in the wrong direction. They might give him a longer leash in the minors. If he struggles another month and then gets better it would be like a rest button for him. Fresh start after some time away can do wonders.
  13. Dantes929
    If what ails him can't be fixed on the fly mid-season then I don't want him in the pen either. We've already got a guy that we don't trust with any kind of high level innings and I don't care to add another. His career says 3.5 ERA and it is not SSS. I like comparing things to my golf game. When I am bad, just doing the same thing over and over just makes me worse. Every once in a while someone might say something or I might try something different and it just clicks. After it clicks a couple range sessions and I am back to decent. My point is it is possible to correct things in mid season. Maybe its a grip ro a shoulder turn or foot work. I just want him to work on it somewhere else other than a Twins game for the time being.
  14. Dantes929
    Great question. I think they can do it with his consent. Without his consent he may have to clear waivers in which case if a team claims him then Mike's wish comes true anyway. Pretending injury could work. I just remember Crain and Liriano both telling Gardy they had no idea where there fastball was going and they both got "fixed" at the lower level, whether it was because of a lower stress environment or because of instruction they got there, I don't know. I just don't want to keep trotting him out there to walk a guy per inning and I don't see how bullpen work can help him either. Mike and I are on the same page there. If its possible to have him in the minors I would do it rather than just release him.
  15. Dantes929
    The reason to not give up on him is that he has a career track record of being better and he is striking out over 9/9 innings. I would give him quite a few more starts but if you read my post closely you would see that I would want those starts to be in the minors. I would love for him and Gonsalves to switch places. What are you losing by having him try to right himself in the minors? The guy had very nice career numbers, had good numbers last year and still has strikeout stuff. Don't you think there is a possible upside if he just stops walking guys? Twins didn't give up on Crain or Liriano back in the day when they had control issues and were sent to the minors and were rewarded for it. If he can't earn his way back to the Twins so be it but what will we have lost by giving him the chance? Its in his best interest also. If he does well in the minors and then comes up and does well for us it will be a big plus for him on the free agent market next year. Continuing to do what he is doing at the big league level now is doing neither him nor the Twins any favors.
  16. Dantes929
    But for running or anything else you don't build up and then shut down. To train for a marathon you don't build up to run 5 miles by July and then shut down until the end of the year and then next year build up to 10 miles by June and then shut down until the following year and then to 15 the following year and so on. Ok, I don't run so maybe you actually do it that way but I am guessing not. If you say a pitcher needs to condition his arm or body over a long period of time with regards to throwing a 100 pitches or more I would think that is reasonable. Maybe the problem is the incremental increases in pitches or innings thrown in Spring Training from start to start is too high. Maybe optimally Romero is only throwing 70 pitches per start by this point and only builds to 100 by mid June. I don't know what is optimal but that is the part I agree with you in terms of the need to condition the body. " For example, if you're not feeling 100%, and may not get the explosion off the mound you normally would, you may try and horse you're way through the delivery with your back/shoulder/arm a little more." I agree with this completely and alluded to it in an earlier post. This is the part that should be monitored and has little to do with innings accumulated in a given year. It might happen after building up to 20 pitches or 80 pitches. It might happen after 50 innings or 150 innings. If a pitcher is doing this that is the time to skip a start and work on mechanics or just give the arm a rest for a few days. Not the time to shut them down completely.
  17. Dantes929
    Lynn's strikeouts/9 says he has stuff as does his career history. His walks/9 says he has had command issues all year. No reason to give up on him but it is dong the team and his career no good to continue on like this. I've never like the Twins going after NL starters but his track record was better than the others and these struggles just make no sense. Let him go to the minors and figure it out. It is in his best interest also.
  18. Dantes929
    Thank you for that. I have been preaching for quite a while and felt like a voice in the wilderness that no one pays attention to. I believe the Twin have been at the forefront of trying to "protect" their pitchers arms through the theory of innings limits and pitch counts for well over a decade and if the result has been that they have fewer arm problems than other teams it would be tough to argue against the theory. Is that what has happened? Does any one think the Twins' pitchers have had fewer arm problems than the average? I believe, without doing any research that Romero is just as likely to hurt his arm in the first inning of spring training as he would be on his 180th inning. Common sense approach would be to skip starts if fatigue shows up and to watch for signs of overthrowing or tiredness during a game regardless of inning or pitch count. Catchers and pitching coaches should be aware of when a pitcher is not following through, losing command or losing smoothness in mechanics. Now on to the actual issue. How about meritocracy? Crain and Liriano both voluntarily went to the minors in their day because of ineffectiveness. To their credit they figured things out and earned their way back. How about Lynn doing the same thing? His walks per 9 stands at 6.6 and just got worse today. Having a guy with 7 walks/9 makes no more sense in the bullpen than it does in the roation. As it stands, Gonsalves or Slegers should be coming up to replace Lynn. Santana and May should have a period of time in the minors proving they are ready before they are considered for promotion. No use pondering what to do them on the Twins until they show maybe two weeks of being effective in the minors. If at some point every one is pitching fantastic then you have to consider bull pen assignments and trades. Not holding my breath.
  19. Dantes929
    I've been saying forever that Buxton should be bunting for hits twice a game but after tonight I am wondering if I should reconsider. They were expecting bunt, he showed very early that he was going to bunt, it was a pretty bad bunt right back to the pitcher and he still beat the throw and caused the throw to be hurried and off mark. I am now thinking he should be bunting every time up. I am only partly kidding. Even when he is red hot he should be bunting more than he has been now when he is slumping but he should especially be bunting more now. Its just a great slump buster and he is not using it. Besides, I'm not saying bunting for base hits is the most exciting play in baseball. I'm saying BUXTON bunting for hits is the most exciting play in baseball. As far as swinging goes he looks too quick to me much like last year. What happened to the opposite field drill and other drills that helped him last year. Buxton getting on base ignites this offense. Fix him and there is a good chance the rest fall in line.
  20. Dantes929
    Does your friend have the initials USAFC? Just order two deserts. That way you get one and a half deserts and she feels better because she is only eating the other half in order for food not to go to waste and by cleaning the plate somehow keeping a kid in China from starving. Win, win, win. Besides which, if I know Riverbrian as well as I think I do (which is not at all) then taking his wife out to eat is just a semiannual (or is it biannual?) event anyway.
  21. Dantes929
    You can see in the replay above that it sure looks like Adrianza sees the ball and is shuffling along to make sure it isn't caught. He is facing the outfielders. I think he could have had a little more momentum going and made the decision sooner. If a diving catch was made he still had time to get back. Great play by the Angels and by no means am I laying blame for the loss at his feet. Just not a great read. No where near my pet peeve of when a hitter is running but not all out and then decide to try for another base. You can actually see them turn on another gear and then get thrown out by inches. Running more aggressively from the start gets them the base easily.
  22. Dantes929
    The throw by Calhoun was awesome. The relay was nice but didn't look like Adrianza had a great read on the play.
  23. Dantes929
    Quite a few of the losses in the losing streak felt like bad fortune. Doesn't necessarily even out and the fortunes of a team like the Twins often depend on more of those things going our way rather than against. Really excited about today's matchup. Hopefully it lives up to billing.
  24. Dantes929
    I'm just impressed. Apparently he did it twice.
  25. Dantes929
    Rehab probably wouldn't have hurt but I still expect #9 batter production out of him. IMO, he should legitimately try to bunt for base hits twice a game until the rest comes around I thought it helped him get on track last year and it can help him this year. Its such a great weapon for him and I haven't even seen him try it this year.
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