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Dantes929

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Everything posted by Dantes929

  1. Dantes929
    Un Untrained eyes might not pick up small but important nuances. The extra steps are like an elephant in the room but I assume that will be coached out of him pretty quickly. The video really didn't show a whole lot except his build and a glimpse of his athleticism.
  2. Dantes929
    You say unfortunately, but unless he has a huge drop off I would say any rotation where Santana is a member but not considered the obvious #1 or #2 of that rotation is a very fortunate thing.
  3. Dantes929
    I am hoping that by the middle of the summer we are as high on Thorpe as we currently are on Gonsalves or even more so. Seemed like the old reports on Throrpe showed he had a bit better arsenal.
  4. Dantes929
    I read the descriptions and can't help but think he should be with the Twins right now or at least in high A ball for just a few starts and promoted if he dominates there. I get that he only threw about 100 innings last year but that is just officially. I assume he threw innings the first two months of the year also. Best stuff in organization and great command. I am with others that say if he has durability issues then the smartest thing to do is use what innings he has now rather than waste them in the minors. I sometimes wonder if a Blyleven were drafted today he would be put on a fast track to reach the majors at age 22 rather than the age 19 when he actually did reach the majors back in the day.
  5. Dantes929
    Too hard to predict but a year ago Dozier was a one dimensional hitter that pitchers had appeared to figure out. He worked on being a more complete hitter with early dismal results but then it clicked. IMO, he is now in a better position to be MVP caliber than he was last year at this time to be a 40 or even 25 home runs guy.
  6. Dantes929
    Scott Diamond's career season was middle of rotation on most playoff teams and if you told me that is what Gonsalves would give us every season I would run to the bank with it.
  7. Dantes929
    I don't see it that way at all and the rankings reflect how much "love" each get. Gonsalves appears to be more polished so Gibson has more room for improvement. I wonder where Thorpe would have been ranked if not for his surgery. What is his prognosis?
  8. Dantes929
    If he just faces righties that is part time but also most of the time. Mauer, Against lefties Vargas switches over to 1st and Grossman comes in. Not that Mauer can't hit lefties at least as well as Rosario and Kepler but just seems like a good ratio for resting him.
  9. Dantes929
    I am a bit surprised that intentional walks only happen once every 5 games. Thought Joe got walked intentionally every other game or so. I have never personally seen a blown intentional walk except on highlights and promise you I would not miss the throwing of the the 4 pitches if it were to be taken out. High school and amateur already have that rule and I am fine with it and prefer it. As said previously it is cumulative with other annoyances. For me the 4 pitch walk is right up there with jump balls as most boring and tedious plays in sports. I was thrilled when high school and college got rid of it except to start games and overtimes. I wish the pros would do the same.
  10. Dantes929
    Ok, it was only 5 seasons but I don't know if it can be considered small sample size. Shane Mack possibly the most underrated player in Twins history had better OBP and OPS than Puckett. He had better BA, OBP, and OPS than Oliva, Hunter, Allison and Tovar and in some cases way, way better. Oliva was the only one with a better OPS+ with 131 to Mack's 130. Tovar's was 100.
  11. Dantes929
    As pointed out above, .345 in AA does not necessarily translate to .345 in the majors. Is Vielma as good as Ozzie Smith defensively? I am with you about questioning switch hitting. Usually, they have a better split from one side and the best case scenario is that the splits would be the same as if they just stayed with their stronger side anyway. There really aren't that many Eddie Murrays and Mickey Mantles walking around. I questioned Hicks pursuing switch hitting almost from the get go.
  12. Dantes929
    League average is underrated. Last year, first half we had one player above average (Nunez, our utility infielder) and everyone else played to below league average. 87 team had two elite players (Puckett Viola) a couple above average, a couple average and several below league average. Kind of self evident that if you have a roster full of league average guys and just two guys that are either elite or even just above average your team will be above average. I look forward to a long term league average shortstop. If he is better than that it would be awesome.
  13. Dantes929
    If they were or are teaching going the other way just for the sake of going the other way then I agree with you. As far as I can tell Dozier worked on going with the pitch at the start of last year and struggled but it paid off in the 2nd half and I think he is a better hitter for doing it. Ortiz may have been a much better hitter with the Red Sox because of the work that he did with the Twins that simply didn't pay off right away. We will never know. What I have seen at various times with Cuddyer, Young, Valencia, Morneau, Dozier and Willingham is trying to pull the ball by opening up too soon and stepping more toward the line. Our problem lately hasn't been a lack of power but a surplus of strikeouts. I doubt if the strikeouts are a result of teaching to go with the pitch so maybe they should teach that a little bit better or get some one that does. Just like pitching to contact or any other theory, it works if it is executed properly. Twins haven't done any of it properly.
  14. Dantes929
    Back to this? Nothing wrong with pulling the ball and nothing wrong with hitting to the other field but trying to pull an unpullable ball is as bad as trying to trying to hit a pullable ball the other way (unless you are Mauer at his best). Ortiz spray charts in his Boston days are very similar to his spray charts in Minnesota. Ortz had great balance and plate coverage but he still stepped toward the pitcher when swinging and he didn't open up too soon. Dozier was figured out until he figured out how to handle pitches other than up and in. He is still a pull hitter but learning to go with the pitch more has revitialized his performance. For those that think Oriz pulled everything here are his spray charts for the last 5 years. His power is pulling but he got plenty of hits the other way. http://www.fangraphs.com/spraycharts.aspx?playerid=745&position=DH&type=battedball&pid2=745&ss1=2012&se1=2012&ss2=2012&se2=2016&cht1=battedball&cht2=battedball&vs1=ALL&vs2=ALL
  15. Dantes929
    First two months of the season the Twins averaged 3.75 runs a game. It was definitely both sides of the ball that contributed to 103 losses and sequencing as it applies to runs also since their run differential says they should have won 7 more games. Runs given up more to blame of course but the offense under performed badly in the first 75 games which resulted in under performed for the whole season.
  16. Dantes929
    To me writing in Hughes as a lock for the rotation is like writing in Perkins as a lock for reliever. Ok, not exactly like that but pretty close. If everyone is throwing well in ST then the locks should be the guys with the upside. To me that is Santana, Berrios, May, Gibson, in that order and then probably Santiago since many like to have a lefty in the rotation. Out of all the pitchers in our history how many have had season ending surgery of any kind and come back right away at their best. I like Hughes but make him average at least 92 for a while before even considering him for a spot. I am willing to accept that the problem was the rib thing but then it should be easy to prove he has his velocity back and after losing this much time expecting Hughes to have the same pinpoint control and movement he had three years ago is like saying if Tiger suddenly didn't have back spasms he should be a favorite for the Masters. Ok, not exactly like that but pretty close.
  17. Dantes929
    Interesting comment. Care to elaborate?
  18. Dantes929
    Silva?
  19. Dantes929
    Your 2016 stats don't jive with the article and after a quick look don't jive with baseball reference either which shows 143 innings pitched and a 2.88 ERA in 2016. I am still a believer in the concept of pitching to contact if done well. The home runs given up by Stewart in 1600 batters is that same number given up by Berrios in the majors in 58 innings. Weak contact by design by putting quality pitches in or very near the edge zone is going to have different outcomes than a lot of swing and misses combined with a lot of mistakes down the middle.
  20. Dantes929
    Would pitching great for Puerto Rico sway your opinion at all? I assume he has the blessing of the Twins. Personally, I don't think ST is for fighting for a spot. If he comes in with great mechanics and command, he is in. If not, out.
  21. Dantes929
    Please no 9 game losing streaks, especially to start the season.
  22. Dantes929
    I think Dozier is just a flat out better hitter than he was a year ago. If he continues to focus on plate coverage rather than just trying to pull the ball I really don't know what his ceiling is. I don't expect him to keep the pace he had in the 2nd half of 2016 but for a full season I would not be surprised if there was no regression. Key to success this season is May, Berrios and Gibson in the rotation having good years. Last year I said it was Perkins, Jepsen and May in the pen which I guess was true in a bad way. I am hoping the OBP as a team will improve. Unlikely to lose a 100 or win a 100 so my prediction is below that on each.
  23. Dantes929
    I used to argue against the value so many put on power hitting but now that it seems the pendulum has swung the other way. What's not to like about Dozier hitting 42 homers or anyone hitting 30? Is this the guy that's going to replace Mauer in 2 years? What is his defense like?
  24. Dantes929
    2015 pennant run was fueled by Santana, Duffey, Sano and Mauer. Basically it was Mauer got on and Sano drove him home. He has never been a big RBI guy mostly because he takes too many walks which doesn't provide the drama and excitement crave but is very valuable because it has allowed Morneau, Thome and Cuddyer to provide that drama. Runs produced is an underrated stat. One week a couple years ago I kept track of what Mauer did to contribute to runs and what he got credit for. I definitely picked the right week because his walks and hits moved guys over that then scored on hits, sac flies and fielders choices. In a week he contributed to 8 runs and what showed up on his stat sheet was 0 RBI and 1 run scored. If a guy walks and Mauer gets a hit that gets him to 3rd with one out and the next guy hits a sac fly there is an RBI and a run scored and Mauer gets credit for neither but it has happened with him as much or more than any guy in the majors over the years.
  25. Dantes929
    Vargas OPS against lefties last year was 1.262. Small sample size but I think he is generally considered better from the right side. That would make him a good platoon partner for Joe. Now Justin can come back.
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