tony&rodney

AI tell you?

Why? Is it because you are a Brewers and Cubs fan?

I'm ready for Walker Jenkins right now.

Lackey, Flora, or Lombard - two syllables each.

Walker Jenkins played last night for Ft. Myers and hit a home run. The line drive swing looked really good. Unless he is stiff or something, we should hope he is back playing with the Saints on Tuesday. If Abel feels great after his throwing session following his last start the Twins should bring him back because Mick has nothing to learn from pitching at the AAA level unless the club feels strongly that he needs another start to prove himself.

There will be a pile of expectations and hope upon the #3 pick next month from Twins fans. How soon can Lackey, Flora, or Cholowsky arrive? For that matter, can either of Emerson or Lombard shoot through the minor leagues. The club needs an everyday superstar or front line starting pitcher to emerge.

Byron still has elite speed and generally takes good routes in the outfield. I suspect the stats like him. Buck does not get good jumps though and is (thankfully .... at least to an extent) more careful these days in an attempt to stay on the field.

Matthews might be a ticket in a trade. I'm still hopeful of prying away a top prospect from a team and am still hopeful that a guy like Jordan Lawler can be acquired. I'm also pretty sure neither will happen. In the meantime, the Twins should continue to let Zebby develop against MLB bats unless he just completely craters. There are going to be some options soon with Abel and Rojas nearing a return and Paredes looking like he can get outs. Zebby Matthews needs to step forward.

Don't look at the standings until August 1. I'm hoping Connor Prielipp can harness his pitches and throw more strikes today. When he is efficient he is tough.

Seems like you are correct from everything I read. Still, I'm feeling the sides come to an agreement before next April. I cannot envision the owners killing their golden goose. I don't think the players will agree to a cap. They can hold out for two or three years based on the money they have set aside if the owners choose a lockout. The players will not strike. They would be willing to continue with the current system despite wanting many improvements to the CBA in their favor. It's a mess and the fans get the short end no matter what occurs. The rise of other professional sports leagues since the last major strike (was it 1994?) means the competition for a dollar is more intense than 30 years ago. The growth of hockey (men's and women's), soccer (men's and women's), basketball (men's and women's), and other entertainment all compete for the dollar. If baseball decides to sit on the sidelines it may be far more difficult to get back in the game once again than it was three decades ago. Baseball could easily fall to #5 or worse among spending options. I guess we shall see how the geniuses who run things forge their plans.

Haven't seen any thoughts on why Cholowsky disappeared in the NCAA playoffs. There were likely a few articles I missed. It does raise questions. The one truism is that the MLB draft is rarely a sure thing. Dylan Crews was supposed to waltz into MLB and hit right away. The challenge at the start of his career has been real for him. Sure hope the Twins get lucky and that their pick is successful in a rapid fashion.

The comments are interesting and present numerous options. Posters also display some frustration, which is understandable. My take is that the organization hit a pothole after trading (was it 11 guys?) a pile of players last July. I don't lament those moves but the quantity of trades seemed to portend a further sell-off in November. That didn't happen and the club added a couple of veterans to DH. So the path forward veered away from what seemed like a strategy. The decision to stand pat was more curious after signing Bell and Caratini plus the expected minor league additions such as Kreidler, Gray, and Arcia. The prospects didn't surge forward (especially Emmanuel Rodriguez) and then came injuries. The Twins team was fielding numerous DH players that didn't exactly hit and their gloves hurt the pitchers. Luke Keaschall has struggled to adjust to the pitches he sees and his defense devolved. Patience has its limits. The start and stop, herky-jerky, spasms of the team are ongoing which is pretty frustrating for fans. At some point the Twins could see a decent swing in their position player alignment. Players like Walker Jenkins and Rodriguez could arrive this season (August?). It would seem that Kaelen Culpepper is pushing to be called up soon. His play at AAA has him as the guy who stands out. Last night alone, Culpepper showed off his legs, arm, defense, power, and patience as a hitter. Can he make a smooth transition to being an MLB shortstop? It is what the White Sox and other teams have already done. A team that puts defenders at seven positions behind the pitcher and young talent can provide hope. I see the Twins as a team on the upswing. That may be because as I watched the Astros defeat our Twins in 2023, my feelings were that that roster had zero chance to win anything until major changes were made to the roster. Help is on the way.

Perkins might have read the article because he stated that Morris has the best stuff in the bullpen but he needs better command of his breaking stuff. He also made a specific note that the defensive replacements were important because Morris has been hurt by poor defense. FWIW, Shelton just mentioned that Morris has been hurt by weak contact and missed plays this year. I don't believe for one second that anyone connected with the Twins reads this stuff. They are tuned in and busy working.

Twins play hard. Nice win tonight. Morris made it look easy. He threw a nice cutter and good changeup. Command of those pitches will make his FB play up. Perkins stated that Morris has the best stuff in the bullpen but he needs refinement.

Here we are again with no outs and two ducks on the pond. Lewis has an easy swing last time up. Let's see if he can stay simple and grounded. He is looking better. Need runs here.

Trevor Larnach has worked hard to improve. There will be a place on a team for him if he can add a little power. The problem is that his foot speed, although improved, does not meet a standard needed for a corner outfielder if that guy does not crush the ball consistently. Wallner could be a fair DH. It is malpractice to play Wallner in the field. Tonight, Matt was called out by the Toledo announcer for just watching a routine fly ball drop. I think Wallner works hard but he cannot learn a fielding position. Make him a DH only, even at AAA. Sweet double by Bell.

Oof. Misiorowski with a complete game shutout on 95 pitches, faced 27 batters giving up one hit and striking out 15. 104 mph several times.

I think the Twins wanted Kaelen Culpepper to play 75-80 games at AAA but it looks like he is ready. The defense is solid, he is a good base runner, and the patience has improved month to month. The bat has pop, both gap and over the fence.

Might be two weeks or so. KC made a phenomenal slide to beat the tag at home. He scored from second base on a ball that went off the first baseman's glove and only rolled to the edge of the infield grass. The young man is savvy. Atta fella Buck.

James Outman hits a home run in his first appearance with Detroit.

I have not been upset with the catching very often. The middle infield specifically and corner outfielders most of the time are a problem. Glad I don't have to pitch with those guys behind me.

I'm old. Haven't coached or scouted for a decade and haven't played for two decades. Still the eye test has a minimal piece of value, although I'm always willing to be taught/corrected and shown evidence that my old eyes are too weak. The defense needs help. It cannot roll in all at once and we fans must be at least a wee bit patient. Where are the weaknesses? P, C, 2B, SS, LF, and RF. CF and 3B are not that good. We should acknowledge that moving Brooks Lee to third base was a fair move and I do think he is about average and may improve. When Kody Clemens plays first base it is helpful for the pitchers. Trevor Larnach is massively improved from previous seasons but still not an outfielder unless he mashes on a consistent basis. Austin Martin has been ok but the bat has worms lately. Buxton is decent but not anywhere near his former self in centerfield. The mental errors have been reduced this season which is a start. I believe the players are working hard. A few are just short on talent. In time, with some good health and luck, Twins fans could see some new faces who will have a chance to raise the bar on batted balls. Hopefully this occurs by July and August to begin the transition to a better team.

I do think athletes want a favorable pay timeline. Top baseball players make bank, both the top free agents and the top draft choices. I'm not too sure if many multi sport athletes could make it in baseball though. The skills are so different and the greatest difference is the amount of failure encountered in baseball. The percentage of baseball players who run into tough times for lengthy resets is very high. Thus, I'm not sure baseball loses athletes to other sports. Another huge difference is size. Lineman and basketball players face daunting challenges when playing baseball. I saw Michael Jordan play minor league baseball and he wasn't good at all. He was an athlete but had very little idea in the field or at the plate. MLB and the PA need to work things out in private and come to some agreement before December. I expect an agreement. A lockout would be a real setback for baseball. There are many alternative sources of entertainment for people.

It really is quite difficult to project players from the draft. As I have said repeatedly I will leave it to the scouts who have watched these guys a ton. Don't rule out Jacob Lombard.

Andrew Morris is a work in progress with his breaking balls. He could really use a good changeup. He was working on his pitches at St. Paul to the detriment of his line score, not much different than veteran pitchers working on stuff in Spring Training. The biggest problem for Morris is the defense behind him. We don't even need to look at FIP if we have watched the games. When a pitcher needs to strike everyone out because the defense is deficient, there is bound to be some improved contact when the pitcher goes for the K. Put some defenders behind Morris and everyone will wonder how he improved so dramatically. His last outing was nearly a blueprint of how things have gone for Morris. He could use refinement at AAA but he has the stuff. The broken bats and weak contact are real. Most of the hard contact comes after the 3rd or 4th out, which is partly youth and partly extended pitches in an inning. I'm not down on Morris. There are not any pitchers in MLB that would put up fantastic numbers with the Twins current defensive alignment. I do think that some steps have been made that are making a difference. When Clemens plays 1B, Lee at 3B, and Martin in RF more plays are made in the field. Lewis might pick up 1B quickly. Second base, shortstop, left field, and catcher are lean. Buxton is not the centerfielder he once was due to injuries. It is what it is but change needs to happen before Twins fans can expect their team to move to .500 baseball or higher.