tony&rodney

Sure. Why not? Don't mess with whatever works.

The Twins have been very disappointed with the production from second base this season. It makes sense to try anyone. The Twins realize that Santana is decent at first base and shows up every day. They know that Miranda is a total butcher at first base and only slightly below average at third base. They also know that Royce Lewis is a potential hitter in the lineup which makes it doable to move him to a new position when he does not DH. So the Twins have been getting Royce some grounders at second base and are still hoping for something else to happen where a better option is possible. Julien hits a home run so we should expect that he gets another shot at the bag. If Julien runs with the opportunity, the Lewis at 2B is over and he is ensconced as a DH. The Twins plan this season was to bludgeon other teams with their bats, not to win with rookie pitchers. Anyone who can hit is appreciated, greatly. I don't expect any long term effect going into next season. The Twins just need to limp forward enough to get into the playoffs where anything can happen, especially if a miracle descends in the form of two healthy and effective veterans: Correa and Buxton.

Get back to us when Lewis is the starting shortstop in the All Star Game.

I think you can see what happened. Royce has become a big dude. More power with big muscles and hopefully a great career as a hitter. I can see Lewis becoming average with hard work and repetitions at the corner infield positions. I'm not too certain about the outfield anymore, although I did think that was a good option several years ago. He will never be as good as Julien at second base because his lateral movement is less than optimal for the spot.

The Twins are sitting pretty good for making the playoffs. Their chances for winning the division are considerably lower. We don't know what Falvey and the brain trust are planning for daily lineups and player usage but the specter of making the playoffs provides some security. In the current situation the lineup depends to some degree on the handedness of the pitcher. Most pitchers are right handed and so something like Vazquez, Santana, Julien, Miranda, Castro, Larnach, Keirsey Jr., Wallner and then Lewis as DH makes some sense. Perhaps Lee should be at shortstop. Versus left handed pitchers we know there will be changes. The guess is Jeffers, Santana, (? at 2B), Miranda, Lee, Martin, Castro, Wallner, and Lewis at DH. The Twins mostly rotate catchers and like to get Jeffers a day or two at DH if he is hitting decently. Jeffers or others at DH complicates things because Lewis is injured and hurts the team when he is in the field more than his multitude of admirers wish to accept. Royce fits as a DH right now. The arrangements without Correa at SS and Buxton in CF will always compromise the defense, which make the lineups tricky. This in turn provides a ton of fodder for those who live for criticizing the lineups and/or management. Right now, the Twins are in a lose/lose situation as far as placating their critics but in a win/win situation as far as making the playoffs. I believe the Twins will choose to get into the playoffs above salving the injuries of the online voices. We are just along for the ride.

Yes, Royce has ongoing leg issues and clearly is expected to coast while running the bases to avoid a situation where he needs to be shut down. Miranda has a somewhat similar deal. The coaches/front office want these guys in the lineup for their bats but this means jogging on fly balls and infield grounders. The Twins would like to have two or more DH spots to save these guys from further injury. Miranda is pretty slow at third base but Lewis is a virtual statue. However, both could bring the team some wins with their bats so we (and the poor pitchers) will have to accept one of them in the field and hope the +/- is a positive towards the outcomes of each game. I'm sure the coach's cringe but the best available players need to be used. Max Kepler reached a point with his injury where he was no longer playing well in the field, couldn't run the bases very decently, and was compromised at the plate and thus couldn't be much of a threat with his bat. Finally, the Twins put him on the IL.

Kepler had a good run for the Twins. One would think it was emotional for him to miss Jorge Polanco in Spring Training and then he hits a foul ball off his knee early in the year. Max tried to grind it out but physical limitations for athletes are difficult to overcome. The inability to be anywhere close to healthy was pretty obvious on the bases and in the field. Hitting with damaged legs removes the base, which will ultimately result in diminished performance. Kepler has had a tough year. I can't see him returning without his legs being 100%. The Twins have a somewhat similar situation with Royce Lewis, although it seems Royce is still able to swing a bat. Lewis needs to be plopped in the DH hole and kept away from a glove until he is fully healthy. Perhaps he will find a groove as a hitter and feel better if he can focus solely on his bat. His legs are not healthy and sudden movements mean reduced effectiveness in the field and on the bases. We see this routinely, especially when he runs the bases, but running the bases slowly is not exactly hurting the team much while the poor fielding is a negative. Sorry to see Max Kepler end his Twins career on a down note, because I had pretty high hopes for him this year.

This is gospel. There are arguments whether a manager can affect between 2-6 games a year. but mostly less. Of course, if you are a person focused on some specific disgust with a manager then that manager is responsible for potentially every loss. The White Sox need a new manager .... every week.

The Twins do not have anyone who is even close to doing anything as well as everything that Witt Jr. does every day. Judge? Ohtani? I'm a fan of set lineups where it is feasible though.

Couldn't find that.

Whether it was the hip or being blown away by the Omaha Cubs pitcher in two at bats, Buxton looked like a gummy was in order. Hope he feels better today.

Santana and Vazquez are the two Twins who can play average to average plus defense. I don't think of either as elite. The Twins need Correa at shortstop and Buxton in centerfield. This allows Castro to be a second baseman or better yet a utility player and Lewis can DH more often until such time as he can learn a position. It is somewhat fair to say that the Twins have not done Royce any favors in his preparation for a defensive position.

???? Safe or you just don't want to go to games? Where are you safe? I'm in my 70s and walk around The Loop area after a game. Good restaurants too. It is as safe as anywhere else in Minneapolis. If you were safe in 2019, you are safer in 2024.

All of these guys portend to be decent hitters. This is what the Twins look for in the draft - hitters. What is missing within the Twins organization is players who can play above average defense. I think an athletic player might learn the craft at a position but this requires the Twins to identify a specific spot on the field for their prospects. We see the results from Austin Martin and Royce Lewis of where players are who spend their time in the minors at a position that they can never play at the major league level.

Keirsey Jr. has continued to play well and deserves an opportunity to crack an MLB roster. Carson McCusker keeps hitting the ball hard. He hit a rocket to right field for his only out. While there are long levers and a huge strike zone to cover, McCusker has made continual improvement all season on staying away from flailing at sliders. He is a must watch right now. The Iowa Cubs starter, Birdsell, was really good last night and was spotting his pitches well. He ate up Byron and Emmanuel with precise pitches and good velocity. The incident with Buxton may have been in part due to how overmatched Buxton was against Birdsell in his two at bats. While the home plate umpire should have walked up the third base line after Byron struck out, Buck over reacted. There was fault both ways. It was a good game to watch.

Can't get my head around a team that is built solely to hit the ball with very little attention paid to defensive acumen or experience and zero interest in either running or stopping the running game. Falvey put together the roster to mash opposing pitchers. Yet, the Twins have continually played the infield in to cut down runners at home, even early in games, and had less than stellar results with that strategy. Extra outs, particularly combined with the below average defense that allows balls to creep through the infield and fly balls to drop, will inevitably result in big innings. Meanwhile the Twins are struggling to hit with runners in scoring position. Perhaps Falvey and company might consider where to focus strategy during their November meetings.

Might be a good time to remember that the Twins were expected to win somewhere near 85 games this season. It is a long season. The number of days missed by key players has been pretty substantial and the disappointment of a few that the Twins were counting on for production should be notable. If the missed days and poor performances were known most would agree that a .500 record could be seen as fair. Yet, the Twins are going to meet their projection and if (if,if) Correa and Buxton could actually play for just two weeks .... the division is still possible. Look around baseball and there are difficult stories for many teams.

Send Buxton to Kansas City tomorrow and let him watch a little blues at one of their fine music venues tomorrow night. I watched the game and Buck didn't look too hot.

Varland was part of the problem with his poor defense and then made some good pitches that turned into sloppy fielder's choices before he just let the Rays get crazy. The Twins need Carlos Correa at shortstop and Byron Buxton in centerfield. It shows almost every game. The game is designed for three outs and major league players are really good. When a team gets more than three outs, expect ugly. Keep Varland on the roster. He threw 59 pitches tonight and should be ready for a short stint (1-2 innings) by Sunday. Agree that Louie is well suited for the bullpen.

In other news, Byron blew a fuse and was ejected by the home plate umpire. Apparently, minor league baseball is tough for Byron. Time to bring him back before he winds up suspended. It takes a long time to learn every single position. The basic movements are pretty automatic though at a young age, younger than Lewis.

In the first inning Royce went to cover second base on a base hit to right field. Um, that has zero to do with playing a new position. Right now, Lewis is strictly a DH. I want Lewis to be a superstar or even a good player, but i can't help but remember all of the grief Julien has received playing a much better glove. And no I'm not calling for Julien.

Perhaps you are missing the fact that Varland is pitching with a very substandard defense. Maybe if the plays are made, the offense could continue it's problematic display. Don't blame the pitching , no matter the outcome.

So Julien sits, Lewis plays 2B, and Jeffers is DH versus a RHSP. The Twins are asking plenty from their pitchers with their defense. Hopefully it all works out and everyone hits the ball to open spaces landing in the grass or in the seats beyond the outfield walls.

McCusker and Winokur are two big athletic guys who hit the ball really hard. Both are an at bat worth watching.

Last season I opined early on that Wallner had good speed and a pretty good eye at the plate while improving as a fielder. Those comments only returned piles of down votes, scorn, and sarcasm. Now that Wallner has been resurrected in the minds of Twins fans it is worth a reminder that he is still learning. He is not an excellent outfielder, but rather one who is still learning and close to average. He has become much better at reads and catching the ball on the run. A big weakness, which I traitorously shared with a NL base coach friend last season, was Wallner's slow transfer of ball to throwing hand; you could run on Matt last year. This has been effectively cleaned up and now his arm is actually very useful. I think the Twins should consider one of two options this offseason, one of them could begin now: 1) let Wallner play a full season (150+ games as a starter) to see once and for all what the guy can do on both sides of the ball against all pitchers .... or 2) find a team acutely in need of a power left-handed bat who has a really good right-handed bat/glove/wheels to exchange in a trade. I don't think #2 happens and I can't think of a guy right now. If Kepler is less than 100%, the time has come to just slide Matt Wallner into RF and into the middle of the lineup to see what ensues. There are 24 games left. I'm hoping he gets 100 more plate appearances by October.