Jump to content
Bailey Ober takes the bump as the Twins try to halt the losing streak. Come join the discussion! ×
Twins Daily
  • Create Account

Dantes929

Verified Member
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    3,166

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    4

 Content Type 

Profiles

News

Minnesota Twins Videos

2026 Minnesota Twins Top Prospects Ranking

2022 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

Minnesota Twins Free Agent & Trade Rumors, Notes, & Tidbits

Guides & Resources

2023 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

The Minnesota Twins Players Project

2024 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

2025 Minnesota Twins Draft Pick Tracker

Forums

Blogs

Events

Store

Downloads

Gallery

Everything posted by Dantes929

  1. Dantes929
    I just can't wrap my mind around it. While Nolasco was in the NL I believe there was a gap between the AL and NL in ERA likely influenced by the pitcher batting in the NL. Even without that Milone has given up more than half a run less than Nolasco. This gap would widen given that Milone has done it in the AL and Nolasco has done it in the NL and the maybe narrowed back to account for the park differences but still its a pretty large gap. After over 100 starts by each I think you have to start considering that it is more than bad luck that Nolasco's run prevention lags behind his advanced metrics and consider that it is more than good luck that Milone has done better at run prevention than his numbers would suggest. Does Milone hold runners on better? Does he induce more ground balls for double plays? Maybe its more than just luck. Nothing scientific here but I also believe Milone got squeezed by the umps on the zone more than any other pitcher last year but overcame that as well. I would rather have Milone than Nolasco. I am ok if Nolasco proves me wrong but if he puts up another 5 ERA while Milone goes sub 4.00 I am not going to buy that Nolasco is better but just unlucky.
  2. Dantes929
    So you have total disdain for ERA as a stat but think FIP and K/9 are proper measures of pitching? How about ERA+ or WHIP which are decidedly in favor of Milone while with the Twins? After a 100 starts I will accept run prevention as the deciding stat and Milone has done that better than Nolasco in his career, in his career in the AL, and in his career with the Twins. Do you really think the AL is the same as the NL when comparing stats when on average Noalsco faced the pitcher more than twice a game? There have been studies that show they are not the same. IMO, Milone has earned a spot in the rotation. Not only has Ricky not earned anything, he should feel indebted to the Twins and willing to do anything he can to make up for it. That is what Perkins did and why he went from goat to favored player.
  3. Dantes929
    Perkins had a very good 1st half whether or not you measure it by saves or any of your other stats. He had a very bad second half and I for one did not let him off the hook for it, injuries or no. I think his poor pitching in the 2nd half was the number one reason we didn't make the playoffs and the number one reason our bullpen is so poorly regarded this year. I do agree with the idea that Nolasco shouldn't be held responsible for comments his agents make but disagree with the comparison to Perkins. Perkins was lit up pretty severely when he tried to get more money back in the day ironically at the same time everyone was defending Mauer's right to make as much as the market allowed. . What makes them different now it that Perkins has had a fair amount of success for the Twins for long stretches and Nolasco has been very bad his entire time here. I have never advocated giving up on guys like this but the idea that he has somehow earned a spot in the rotation is absurd..
  4. Dantes929
    No problem putting guys where you did but Polanco or Gordon could have gone to 2nd and third and there are probably other prospects on other teams that could be put in those spots as well. That comment was just to underscore your point about the difference between quantity and quality. Wow, does catcher look uninspiring.
  5. Dantes929
    I think the swing looks timid and unsure because of pitch recognition and adjusting to the new level so confidence weighs in there a little as well. The no load swing reminds me a lot of Paul Molitor and I think it will eventually pay off. He just needs a few hundred more at bats. I think if he goes to triple A and does well there is still a decent chance of struggles at the major league level. I would prefer he gets his struggling over with now. If he is still striking out half the time at the end of the month then the demotion will be obvious. No on should read too much into the first couple weeks of ST.
  6. Dantes929
    Best case scenario is that he pitches well and is called up in June. I say best case because that would mean the 5 guys in the rotation are throwing too well to be moved out and Berrios goes to the pen to go with May, Jepsen and Perkins. I am excited to see Berrios and am not concerned about his height. From the videos I have seen I wonder if his release point isn't similar to Alex Meyer. With a career minor league ERA around 3.00 I don't know that I expect front line numbers from him. At least not elite front line numbers. In fact, given 25 starts I am guessing his stats will end up comparable to Duffey. I am high on Duffey because I have seen him pitch and think his fast ball is decent and his curve ball is elite so that is not a knock on Berrios. I temper my enthusiasm on Berrios until I actually see him.pitch a few games in the majors. He is the 4th ranked RHP minor league prospect. He ain't Klayton Kershaw. At least not yet.
  7. Dantes929
    Santana did just fine there in 2014. Cuddyer had very few games in the outfield in the minors and he did ok. I am guessing there are hundreds of players that have done it. Many have failed and I would put Escobar in that group. Many have succeeded. Bartlett was just a dumb idea because even if he could play the position at replacement level he was also only replacement level offense. If Sano can play near replacement level defense (low bar here since :Arcia is probably replacement) then it is worth it due to his bat. If Sano can't do it he won't be out there long.
  8. Dantes929
    His 2014 year was his career year where he out performed anything he did prior. Last year was almost a mirror image where he hit for a little less with a little less OBP but a little more pop. Both seasons he was pretty mediocre as a utility player and then thrived as an every day guy. Regression was more likely last year. I don't really enjoy watching him play for some reason but that is aesthetics. I understand about regression but I am more worried about Dozier for some reason.
  9. Dantes929
    People thought Escobar would be an excellent utility player. He hasn't been. They thought he would be a lousy everyday player. He's been great. They thought Santana would be a lousy center fielder. He was actually pretty good. They then thought he would be even better as an every day shortstop. He was not. They thought Sano would be horrible in right field. He ......... Who knows. Maybe Santana just should have stayed in center and things would have been fine for him. Maybe Sano loves right field and thrives. Maybe not.
  10. Dantes929
    I would love if Hughes regained velocity but I really thought his last couple months last year will serve him well. He became more of a pitcher in changing speeds and changing pitches rather than just the cutter all the time. If he can regain velocity on that pitch as well as incorporate the knowledge gained in 2015 it will all be worthwhile.
  11. Dantes929
    Yes, do what is best for the player but who knows what that is. Maybe Gomez isn't the player he is if he hadn't started for the Twins and honestly, I thought he was an asset for the Twins even though his stats weren't great and its not like he went to the Brewers and was an all star the next year. I don't think he has anything to complain about. Same with Hicks. His OBP two years ago was better than Revere's so its not like he was worthless and all along he has shown an inability to hit from the left side. I don't know that playing more minor league seasons was going to change that. IMO, HIcks wasn't mismanaged. Gomez wasn't mismanaged and Buxton isn't either one of those. If the think Buxton needs time in the minors then by all means send him down. Whenever he is going to come up he will need adjustment time. I am fine with him spending time in the minors and I am fine with Santana in center though I would then be a little less fine with Sano in right.
  12. Dantes929
    "Running down balls in center field and going from first to third on a single is a skill that can't be taught." My understanding is that speed is a talent more than a skill. His talent is unique. The skill is what IS taught. For example, most people have the talent to nitpick, but I have developed my talent so I have the skill.
  13. Dantes929
    I think of Sano comparisons and I just come up with NFL linebackers who are big, athletic and fast. I am guessing he is faster and maybe even much faster than Willingham, Delmon, Young, Mauer, Hunter and Arcia and probably just as fast as Escobar and Nunez. Can he get good jumps and catch the ball once there? I don't know. Young, Willingham, Arcia, Nunez and Escobar didn't do such a good job of it but Santana did and I don't think Cuddyer's transition was all that bad. Anyone that says he should have played there in the minors probably has a point but his bat was ready before his glove so its not like there was a ton of time for evaluation It will be interesting. I don't think he will be there in 3 years. Maybe because of weight but likely because of opening at 1st.
  14. Dantes929
    I thought Danny Santana played quite competently in the outfield but Nunez and Escobar did not. We won't find out if Sano can unless it is tried. and he gives us some evidence one way or another. Arcia is a likely candidate to be the outfielder if Sano fails but Arcia, imo takes bad routes, is not that sure handed and plays every ball hit to the corner into a triple. Should the bar be average or should the bar be Arcia? Personally, I am hoping Kepler makes his move sooner than later. Offensively though Park, Sano and Arcia have a lot of potential and some pieces have to move if Kepler, Buxton, and Rosario shine. Season is right around the corner and I while I don't love the log jams and possible mismatched pieces I do like the apparent depth.
  15. Dantes929
    I would guess Sano can be adequate in the outfield because I think he is faster and more athletic than people give him credit for but it is just a guess. Even if he is adequate, average or maybe even a little above average I still foresee him being at 1st base or DHing for most of his career. I dream of a Rosario, Buxton, Kepler outfield though I would have liked Hicks in there as a 4th outfielder to play against left handers and give Buxton the occasional break. I think Hicks would have been a big asset as a platoon player and defensive replacement. Hopefully Murphy will make that trade look good.
  16. Dantes929
    Dozier contract is probably friendly and I don't think he will replicate his power numbers. If we can sell high we should. Or Plouffe. If Dozier happens to have a great first half again then we sell high at that point. I don't care if Polanco hits for power if he can get on base a little better. I can easily imagine Buxton and Polanco doing well in the first two spots.
  17. Dantes929
    I see no harm in it. If he can develop an off speed pitch with sink it will just make his heat more effective. If it messes with his control then I am with you but no need to make that assumption.
  18. Dantes929
    Ok, my post was rather bland but I didn't say what you think I said. Star starter or star reliever is fine though I think it more likely to be the former. While there is a place and maybe even a value to mediocre relievers i don't want that from him because then every time he comes in they will talk about what he is or isn't compared to his potential and I think it will be tiresome. Mediocre is fine if it is Duensing. Less so from Meyer. I don't think lack of command plays better out of the bullpen and I think inconsistency plays better as a starter. In the minors he would have great starts and then clunkers. Kind of either he has it or not. I would rather see 4 great starts a month and two clunkers than the same kind of ratio out of the bullpen. If in fact, he is great in the bullpen that would make me happy also.
  19. Dantes929
    Anyone listening to Bert would be aware of how much he values the downward plane and intuition and logic would tell people that losing a foot in the height of the release point would make a big difference. in a lot of things. If he lowered his release point in 2015 due to injuries and was working on raising his release point and that is the reason his control and movement left him then maybe it will all pay off this year. I am generally a cup half full guy but that doesn't apply here. I want him to be an all star starter or a vague memory. I can put up with the hyperbole for another couple of years hoping for the former rather than the latter. Mediocre relief pitching career would just be annoying.
  20. Dantes929
    If we kept Revere until Buxton was ready we wouldn't have Trevor May and I would not trade May back for Revere. Never should have let Hardy go but I doubt he would have made a world of difference. Because of the ridiculous amount of injuries in 2011 we needed 2012 to figure out who could be counted on.and the minors were a mess so as far as I am concerned the rebuilding process was 2013 and 2014. I like having Santana for a fulll year but if we had him for a full year last year he might have taken Pelfrey's place who had a very good first half. Another reliever might have had some impact but you count on your all stars to be all stars and Perkins in all star form probably would have gotten us there. I am not worried about spending money at the moment. If Buxton, Berrios and Sano become who we hope they will the Twins will be spending a lot of money soon enough. What reliever should they have brought in this year? There probably was one or two but as suggested in the article, name some names. How much for how long and how that would have fit into current and future.
  21. Dantes929
    I will take the under on Park and Dozier for sure and maybe Buxton and Escobar and the over on Arcia whatever that number is. Maybe $50 on each. I will take the over on whatever people are predicting for the starting rotation. (over in a good way)
  22. Dantes929
    "he 2009, 2004 and 2002 teams were all division-winners, and in the case of '09 they did it without a particularly strong pitching staff, so you can certainly make the argument that this is a sensible approach for a team with question marks at the front of the rotation and in the bullpen." Twins scoring in the last 15 years has been tied more to OBP than home runs. Those three years you mentioned the Twins had OBP of over .332. By contrast last year's team was at .305. My fear is that if we get 200 home runs it will result in 200 runs. I am not saying power and OBP are mutually exclusive but we need to strike out less and walk more or it won't matter how many we hit. 2009 has only 16 more homers than last year but they scored 121 more runs. This was fueled by a .345 OBP. Last year Sano was the only guy to beat that number.
  23. Dantes929
    Twins owned Sale last year. You would have expected Sale to go 4-1 rather than 1-4. If he had done so the two teams would have been tied. This probably won't happen again but other stuff will. This is what makes baseball interesting. I don't mind projections that say the Twins will fail as long as I see some underlying talent that can turn the projections upside down without too much imagination and the Twins have that. I can see any team putting it together this year. Last year I was Detroit 30% odds, the Twins at 10% and the rest at 20. This year I think it is pretty much 20 across the board with maybe just a couple ticks in favor of Cleveland and KC. I would enjoy an 81-81 season with a 5 way tie for 1st place.
  24. Dantes929
    " You see a team who has done nothing to build on its surprising run in 2015 and, in turn, has slipped to the bottom of a competitive AL Central division." If you consider adding Murphy and Park as doing nothing I am ok with that but developing players is my favorite way to build and free agency is my least favorite. Sano, Santana, Buxton, Duffey and Jepsen for a full season should make this a better team with Berrios added along the way. I get the pessimism but I have been reading for 15 years about how every other team has added fantastic players every off season while the Twins have sat still and how the Twins will finish at the bottom every year save for 2010 and yet the Twins have finished first 6 times and 2nd 3 times in that period. If the only thing these projections get right is that the Twins finish above KC I will be OK with that. Oddly, Mauer and Perkins weren't mentioned and are two of my biggest question marks. Good years from those two would go a long way.
  25. Dantes929
    Yes. If you include injury then the floor of anyone, minor leaguer or major league all star, is never play another inning in the majors. Ask Kirby Puckett.
×
×
  • Create New...