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tony&rodney

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Everything posted by tony&rodney

  1. tony&rodney
    This is a valid point. The umpire made the call and according to rule it should not be reviewed.
  2. tony&rodney
    Molitor is so good on the TV (or radio). He sees everything. Outman and Martin is a start.
  3. tony&rodney
    Defense is a real weakness for the Twins. It isn't as bad as at the beginning of the year so some progress is being made. The team needs a few of their players to vastly improve their offensive output to cover for their gloves or hope one of the "waiting for an opportunity" guys arrives filling both sides of a position player's job.
  4. tony&rodney
    Milwaukee will be a really good test of his pitching ability. The Brewers are a well coached team.
  5. tony&rodney
    Stuff happens. We may see Matt Wallner back with the Twins in June. The front office has a number of players to sift through and put into positions where they can succeed and be useful to the club, whether that is developing in AAA or helping the MLB club win games. We have read a number of thoughts on Wallner from many people here on TD. My opinion is that Matt Wallner only has a future as a DH. That would have consequences for current DH types. Falvey's dream of playing an all DH team has outlived itself. There is enough potential within the organization to begin the shift towards players who have the ability to hit and defend. I'm not closing any doors on Wallner succeeding in MLB, but I want his role to be a Nelson Cruz DH. If that isn't possible, the team needs to let him go elsewhere, where he may find success.
  6. tony&rodney
    That will be a challenge, especially when two players come off the IL. By my memory there is Jenkins, Rodriguez, Mendez, Fedko, Roden, Gonzalez, Ross, and Wallner when everyone is healthy. Maybe Ross plays more infield and Fedko, Roden, and Mendez get some first base time. Gonzalez may get moved down to AA Wichita if he doesn't hit for a better average. Even with 5 batting spots (3 OF, DH, 1B), there is a crunch.
  7. tony&rodney
    I guess based on what Wallner did in the past for the Twins and disregarding anything Outman ever did in his rookie year with the Dodgers that might make some sense. As much as it pains me to say, Outman is a better choice for a roster spot between the two players. Why? Outman can run and field. Currently, Outman and Wallner have a similar BB rate and (hard to believe) Wallner strikes out at a greater pace. Wallner is the worst outfielder in baseball, so there is that too. While I am not a big fan of James Outman and wanted Matt Wallner to hit .230 with 40 HR this year as a pure DH, the reality has played out differently. Hopefully Big Matt gets a reset, but it seems like he is a candidate for a new scene. I'm not sure what the Twins can get for him. Think of the guys who were good DH hitters and how much their value declined when they were put into the field. All of Wallner, Larnach, Bell, Caratini, and perhaps even adding Lewis and Keaschall are less than stellar defenders. Larnach has made some improvement this year, which must be noted. That is quite a pile of DH fellows. It also points to Falvey's skills in building a roster. Let us all hope that either of Emmanuel Rodriguez or Walker Jenkins successfully fit in the lineup by July. Better yet, both.
  8. tony&rodney
    A little premature perhaps but the Twins are starting to get some of these young pitchers on their game. Matthews and Rojas looked tough today.
  9. tony&rodney
    Woods Richardson does not have an option. The Twins can trade him or lose him for nothing or keep him. It's an easy call. We don't know if any team has shown any interest in Simeon.
  10. tony&rodney
    He was a good young hitter. The Twins moved on. Once the players move on i follow them but don't second guess often. Ortiz was a DH as well (turned out to be a great one), which isn't my favorite position.
  11. tony&rodney
    Emmanuel Rodriguez and Walker Jenkins are both on the IL.
  12. tony&rodney
    Exactly. I will never have any angst about a player who the Twins move on from after getting their chances and failing with Minnesota. Julien is one. I may be the only one but I never had any craze about the Twins moving on from David Ortiz. Sitting in the seat right above Dusty Baker when the Twins fell to the Astros in 2023, I felt the Twins were in a great position to leverage several (not all) deficient players for talent. Lewis, Miranda, Julien, Wallner, and Larnach stood out as players that other teams might have coveted. That is now in the past and not to be worried over. By mid June I would expect to see a few player moves. The biggest hole right now is at third base. Lewis is a mess and Tristan Gray has regressed. Culpepper needs another month in my opinion but is playing well at AAA. Tough to see these players struggle and get sent down. Baseball is such a difficult game. They earn their money.
  13. tony&rodney
    Konnor Griffin was drafted at #9 by Pittsburgh in 2024. Seven of the eight players drafted above him have made the major leagues as well. The MLB draft is really difficult to nail down. We can be pretty certain that there are more than three players who will have good careers in the 2026 draft. We can only hope that the Twins are lucky (skillful) enough to get a guy who becomes either the TOR arm every team covets or an All Star regular position player.
  14. tony&rodney
    There were a lot more players playing professional baseball then and we didn't hear much about the minor leagues. Top prospects were mostly anonymous and they disappeared often due to injuries. At the major league level there were plenty of players who couldn't maintain health too but again the focus was different. Jimmie Hall, Jim Merritt, and Tommy Hall come to mind. Change comes to everything and baseball has changed too. The money alone makes decisions for how often a pitcher throws. When a team has invested millions they are bound to be more careful than with an arm earning $5K. Finally, I believe there are differences in conditioning. While it may be impossible to quantify, pitchers ran much more in the past than they do today. The players today are visibly more buff. Mickey Lolich could probably run a better 10K than most pitchers today and he looked a little over weight. The game has changed and teams are heavily invested financially in their players which drives much of the decisions in the game today.
  15. tony&rodney
    What stands out? He is fast and seems like he has solid yet aggressive base running skills. He gets a good jump on fly balls and has a rocket arm. The bat speed unleashes some wicked line drives and he looks like he has an idea of the strike zone. Mercedes is a tooled up player, pretty exciting guy to watch. Can he sustain his play and avoid injuries? Baseball is such a finely tuned game - mechanics and careful attention to maintaining the best habits are crucial to success. Repetitions, success, and health are needed before the Twins know what Mercedes offers. Cedar Rapids has a good team in a solid league. Two months from now we may know more about Yasser Mercedes. He was so inconsistent and often injured up until this season that it was really difficult to see where he was headed in his career. Wouldn't it be something if he put it all together and just kept it going?
  16. tony&rodney
    Can anyone think of another player who has been given so much time and opportunity to figure things out? Perhaps a trip to AAA isn't the best idea. Maybe Royce needs a month in Ft. Myers to completely work on his feet and legs at the plate and he can work on ground balls too to keep him limber. I'm afraid a reset at AAA doesn't address the collapsing from leg or the dancing back foot. Whatever, I will wish him luck.
  17. tony&rodney
    Bobby Witt Jr. would be fine with me. You are correct that Lombard has some questions though. He seems to have created concerns with a less than stellar summer in 2025, but has been putting that away this Spring. It is going to really interesting to follow these top players and others the next few years. I don't remember that any national scouts had Cavaco as high as the Twins and it was (supposedly) a real down year. The draft in baseball is always a gamble.
  18. tony&rodney
    Well I did say I was speculating. Once upon a time, years and years ago I remember having trouble with my hand early in a game. I had very small muscle spasms and aches similar to cramps. The strike zone was a problem and I couldn't execute anything. I had to be removed early in the game because of the problem. My manager was irritated. So I was reaching way back in the memory bank, which is slowing becoming bankrupt, to think about how the conversation was going with Quick, the manager, and the trainer. On most occasions a blister is a quicker decision. There is also such a thing as problems with callouses and thick skin. Pitchers are always fussing with their hands to keep everything smooth and feeling healthy. Pitching and throwing is such an incredible fine motor operation physically ..... and then there is the mental aspect. Steve Sax?
  19. tony&rodney
    The Athletic is a link on The New York Times website. One can negotiate how much to pay each month. You can add on word games for more money. We have paid as little as $4 per month in the past. The original The Athletic subscription was expensive. I signed up when The Athletic debuted. I canceled when it was bought out and have been continually been able to access the content from my Times subscription. I think we pay $12 a month for that now. Agree that the model is losing its appeal of local writers. I still enjoy Keith Law. Since I only watch baseball and just minimally follow other sports it is interesting to read the coverage of other Minnesota teams.
  20. tony&rodney
    There was a long conversation on the mound before the umpire basically said a decision needed to be made on whether Quick was staying in the game or being lifted. Quick was arguing that he was ok. There was something about his hand (blister?) that was affecting his grip or something. Out of an abundance of caution and against Quick's wishes, the manager had the trainer take him to the dugout. Can you imagine the manager's position. He tells Quick, "Listen if something is wrong with your arm and you stay in the game I lose my job." All of the above is just my speculation.
  21. tony&rodney
    It is a tough decision, for sure. Teams never make a draft decision based on their current roster. Tait is in A+ ball and learning. He still has two years of minor league games before he makes it to Target Field. Best case scenario, if the Twins pick Vahn, is that the Twins have two All Star catchers who rotate between DH and catcher. There is no such thing as too many good players. The Dodgers are not complaining about having Will Smith and Rushing. Totally agree that this draft is important for the Twins because they need talent. We do not know who specifically makes the final decision. Do we? Perhaps Falvey overruled his scouts when he took Royce Lewis over Hunter Greene. All we can do is hope for the best. I can still remember my elation when the Twins took Mauer ahead of Prior. I had seen Mauer play several sports and felt his athleticism put him above all others. Prior was the consensus choice to go first but the Twins got it right. The team needs another get it right.
  22. tony&rodney
    I'm going to trust that the scouts watching the players in games right now have a much better idea of who to draft than the writers and fans. I have not personally seen any of these guys play, only the videos and reports. Roch Cholowsky has had a great season to follow up on his past performances. Still, I have at least a small concern about Cholowsky's foot speed translating smoothly to MLB. I have heard from people in Miami that Lombard has changed quite a bit, in a positive way, since last summer. Playing in South Florida, Lombard repeatedly faces top level competition. He is in the conversation for the Twins. Grady Emerson, by contrast, is a little bit of a mystery this season despite his outstanding reports from last summer. He has all the tools reportedly and has a bright future but currently does not play against top level arms/teams on a consistent basis. The idea of a Paul Skenes type fronting the Twins rotation sounds great, but I'm not seeing the front office going for Flora or Flukey. Every pick is a gamble in the MLB draft. Vahn is athletic and is a good choice as are several others players. Best player available remains my choice.
  23. tony&rodney
    Yasser Mercedes had a pretty good debut with Cedar Rapids. After a great jump on a drive into the right centerfield gap he couldn't hold the ball but his speed and athleticism were on display. He hit two balls hard and was patient enough to walk twice. The speed and instincts on the bases was tremendous. The bombs by Winokur and Tait were impressive. Winokur has been playing shortstop for the last week and he has looked really good there. He made a lightning fast relay throw to nab a runner at third base. The arm is top shelf. Cedar Rapids has some players worth watching. Mercedes has looked good this season after various difficulties in the last few years. Whatever clicked his promotion from Ft. Myers to Cedar Rapids should be interesting to follow in the next several months. The guy is a veritable toolbox of athleticism.
  24. tony&rodney
    RpR has openly admitted on more than one occasion that he has never seen Rodriguez or any other prospect play. He looks over stats and feels justified to make judgments based on that practice. He also is not a fan of rookies or inexperienced players. He is not alone in that thought. I'm a big fan of baseball and watch a ton of games, almost exclusively via milb.com, but occasionally I go to a minor league game. I'm also happy that clubs actually scout players instead of scouring high school data stats for who to sign. While I do not agree with the views posted by RpR, he certainly has every right to voice his beliefs and uses charts and stats from various sites to support his points as many other people also do. TD is a site where many people from vastly different points of view and experiences engage in conversations. It is important to keep the comments civil and respect the comments to an extent. I do wish the owners of the site would get rid of the laughing emoji and the thumbs down, which are almost exclusively used for negative reasons. On the couple of occasions that I used a thumb down because I disagreed with a statement, I immediately regretted it. i prefer to reply as opposed to using derogatory emojis. So, RpR has his views on young players which don't need to cause any angst. It's his thing.
  25. tony&rodney
    Bailey Ober looking good right now. Meanwhile Riley Quick walks off the field with the medical staff in the 2nd inning. Nothing obvious and he looked like he tried to talk his way into staying in the game.
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