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tony&rodney

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Everything posted by tony&rodney

  1. tony&rodney
    The reality is that Max Kepler leaving after 2024 has nothing to do with out wishes or thoughts. His contract ends and he will be a free agent, making him free to go wherever he chooses. My guess is West Coast for 3/$36M. My hope is that he tears apart MLB pitching for the next two plus months and gets 3/$60M from whatever team he wants to play for in the next few years. Good luck, Max.
  2. tony&rodney
    Varland pitched on Saturday. It is possible he is slated for a Twins starting role on Friday on regular rest. I agree that Varland would look good in the bullpen, but I think it will be September before this move takes place. Neither Matthews nor Dobnak are answers for an MLB start at this time. We hope David Festa can throw 4-6 innings in his starts with less than 4 runs allowed. That makes Varland a safety valve until late in the season or unless both Woods Richardson and Festa are reliable. I am pretty bullish on both SWR and DF but there are bound to be nerves concerning the young guns.
  3. tony&rodney
    Max will get a good contract. He won't be back with the Twins. I would like to see him back, but he will move on.
  4. tony&rodney
    Tuned in to watch Connor Prielipp last night after watching his dominant two innings last week. In the first two innings Prielipp totally overmatched the batters. He looked, similar to last week, like he was misplaced in Hi-A ball as Connor dominated in those two innings. Then, he looked completely different right away in inning three. The fastball did not have the same movement (flat) and his breaking pitches just seemed to spin without the crispness. It was surprising to see the difference and unsurprising that those pitches found the bats. Prielipp is a big strong guy but he looked like he was gassed. Patience will be needed with him, apparently.
  5. tony&rodney
    Actually, no.
  6. tony&rodney
    Love it.
  7. tony&rodney
    You mean soccer?
  8. tony&rodney
    Curious if Staumont chose free agency or what? No options left? I would think Staumont could still rebound/find some success. No word or comments from anyone so it is hard to know.
  9. tony&rodney
    Just a guess, but one of the areas where Matthews needed some work was on occasionally pitching inside. While Matthews throws hard and has good control, batters have been leaning out over the plate. AAA hitters are better than AA bats and those sliders on the corner were getting hit more often. Unfortunately, last night Mathews beaned Gilberto Celestino in the first inning. Celestino had to be brought off the field on a cart and Matthews was visible upset as were others. Remember that Celestino had been a part of the organization and many of these guys know him. In any event, Matthews just more or less grooved his pitches for a few batters. It almost seemed inevitable that he would give up a hard hit in that inning. Matthews did recover to pitch another four innings though and finished with 8 strikeouts. He will be fine. FWIW, Matthews is progressing really well as a pitcher, but I doubt the Twins have any ideas of promoting him this year before all of Varland, Boushley, and Plutko with Festa and Dobnak already on the MLB roster. Next year Matthews could get a run.
  10. tony&rodney
    This is the key to making the playoffs. The Twins cannot afford to worry about winning this or that specific series. If they play well and hold their place they are in the playoffs. While an ALC division title is important, gaining the playoffs is the goal. Once part of the party, it's time to party.
  11. tony&rodney
    As someone who watches way too much minor league baseball (via milb.com), I love the minor league articles. I follow the teams pretty closely. The raw play of the minors is quite different from the finished excellence of the major leagues, which makes me appreciate how accomplished the best players are at the highest level. McCusker is always worth watching. He has improved quite a bit this year. It was good to see Ben Ross have a good month because he was totally struggling. If people have not seen Luke Keaschall play, he is worth a look. Thanks for this article.
  12. tony&rodney
    Well, attendance is a real thing and if the Twins mange to average last night's numbers for the entire season, the dynamics change.
  13. tony&rodney
    Decent crowd too.
  14. tony&rodney
    Perhaps they tried.
  15. tony&rodney
    Yes, I only referenced those three who were Minnesotans. Less was known about a few groups that were interested in moving the team. The groups from NC and FL that people often reference were much later, after a decade plus of Pohlad's ownership.
  16. tony&rodney
    No. The frustration is real. As a Twins fan I feel it as a near constant for the last 30+ years. The outpouring of venom and hatred is not healthy though. It's baseball we follow and the management is a distraction which is beyond our control or the players. I will be more exact, but just about the recent trade deadline because it is too futile to go back to the last many winters of discontent. I thought the Twins had a chance to trade for A. J. Puk. I would have given Gonzalez, Severino, and Kiersey Jr. Naturally, others will disagree, suggest that AZ gave up better players, not have been interested in Puk, or something else. I don't know what Falvey had in mind, much less how other teams view the Twins organizational players. So I'm frustrated and just move on because these things are well beyond my control. While I may not be a fan of ownership or the front office, I see little future in striking out at people i don't even know. Yet certainly, the frustration is real.
  17. tony&rodney
    Watching Wichita play and Luke Keaschall looks pretty good, much better than Spencer Steer did at the same level, if a comparison works.
  18. tony&rodney
    North Dakota doesn't have borders, just wind. Does it?
  19. tony&rodney
    As noted by national writers, not even one top 100 prospect, from any list, was traded. Two players who made the All Star teams were traded, Tanner Scott and Paredes. I do wonder if the 2022 trade deadline scarred Falvey (unlikely) but I also wonder how so many teams managed to exchange mediocre or worse players. One would think that in some cases there would be players wondering, "Wait, we traded for that guy?"
  20. tony&rodney
    FWIW, there were other groups willing to buy the Twins. MLB has final and complete control of who can buy a franchise. The other groups were not approved. A third group, in addition to the two rejected, was headed by Calvin's son. Believe it or not, the terms of sale were actually doable - $5M down with 5 years of payments of $5M each and then a balloon for the remainder. The sale did not include the minority portion owned by a Gabe Murphy (off the top of my head), which was 42-48% but had zero vote or control in the team. Carl later paid about $12M for those shares. Carl Pohlad did not save the Twins, but the ownership has been stable. This is more than some clubs and one should always be careful when making wishes. Someone mentioned Mark Cuban in a comment recently. I forgot the context. Cuban tried to buy an MLB team but was turned down. MLB is an exclusive club. You cannot get in just because you have billions.
  21. tony&rodney
    True, but what does one do with their hate in that case?
  22. tony&rodney
    No. I understand the interest but I'm just not a believer in Cortes. I agree a case could be made.
  23. tony&rodney
    Exactly. Ted, you wrote an article bashing the Pohlads but have no specific (and I mean exact with names) ideas or suggestions of players that would have made the Twins a better team. None .... or did I miss something? The Twins might have been able to add Tarik Skubel for Royce Lewis and Louis Varland plus someone like Rayne Doncon. I don't know what Miami would have asked for A. J. Puk or Tampa Bay for Randy Arozarena. I do know that numerous (not just a few) people were uninterested in either of those players. What exactly do you (or others who are equally upset) want the Pohlads to do? I read sell. How does a new owner saddled with a bill of $1.46 billion make it on the current revenue? Seems like things could be much, much worse. Who evaluates the players and names involved in trades? Do the Pohlads make these choices? It is time to leave ownership and management aside and see what the players in the organization can do. If the Twins now repeat 2022, it may be time to blow it up. I'm thinking the Twins play excellent and very entertaining baseball for the next two plus months. Yesterday, in NYC, was just the start. I'm focused on the players on the team.
  24. tony&rodney
    The reality is that Max Kepler will be looking for a change in scenery, offers will be out there (guess = 2/$25M with an option), and the Twins have some expenses pushing the payroll higher for 2025. As much as I like Max Kepler, I believe he is ready to move on more so than the Twins are unwilling to discuss contracts with him. Yes, I would like Kepler back, but I just think the time has come for Max to enter a new experience. Then, the Twins need to pivot. Buxton will be here and so will Larnach and Wallner too unless some unforeseen blockbuster deal unfolds over the winter. Rosters change.
  25. tony&rodney
    You are not alone with that thought, but I still believe that Max is a big part of this 2024 team. Perhaps Falvey (and many others) make that trade. I would never do that deal because I'm looking for the Twins to win this year.
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