tony&rodney

Varland is a very solid #5 starter; so competitive and hard working.

I like it. A few small tweeks: Julien, Buxton, Kirilloff, Polanco, Correa, Larnach, Lewis, Kepler, Vasquez with Farmer, Taylor, Castro, and Jeffers as the reserves. If Buck cannot play centerfield, things change.

Gio Urshela is a fun player and someone who seems to always engage positively with the fan base wherever he plays. That said, if my budget is less than $220 million for the 26 person roster, I'm not keeping Urshela. Miranda had more promise and Lewis should be able to step in next week and be a fair player on both sides of the ball; better and less expensive than Gio. If money means nothing, maybe Urshela stays, but not if there actually is a budget. Valancia, Arraez, etc. .... a fair amount of good to excellent players cycle through every team and the trick is to find a balance to the roster where defense, offense, pitching, and athleticism make for a winning or quite competitive team. It is always tricky. I'm thinking the Twins are on the cusp of a decent team.

Enlow has a ways to go before getting an opportunity with the Twins. He has shown enough thus far that 2-5 more good outings could see him promoted to the Saints roster to show himself at AAA. Success for St. Paul points to an improved chance for MLB consideration down the line, likely in 2024. He has looked (milb.com viewings) like an improved pitcher this season.

There is no way the Twins would consider trading Miranda in place of Steer. Steer is not better than Kirilloff, Polanco, Julien, Lewis, Correa, Lee, Castro, Farmer, or Miranda. He didn't fit in the Twins system and will need a major boost or lose his spot with the Reds. CES was a loss as a potential DH/3B, but he also was going to have a hard time finding at bats. I never liked Mahle but it was a reasonable trade at the time and we all know what Satchel Page said about looking back.

Yes, the Twins have not put it all together for a month yet, but they are still right on a schedule to have the record nearly everyone predicted. The games from here to the All Star Game were always going to be better at telling what we can expect. The starting pitching has been excellent. I sat behind home plate the last three games. Ober, Gray, and Ryan all battled with their command and control and still kept the Twins in every game. The Giants have been better lately and just the last two weeks have been making more consistent contact, which forced our pitchers to work hard. Headrick has looked decent at AAA and Maeda will return (hopefully to the bullpen). The starting staff looks solid. The relief pitchers need Caleb Thielbar back. I believe more specific roles could help but overall I'm less concerned about the pen than some folks. The lineup should be ok pretty soon. The biggest change should include more contact in situations which demand moving a runner over or hitting a sacrifice fly. Strike out must be diminished. Count me as a guy who prefers a double play ground ball to two straight strike outs, which we have been seeing too often. Polanco is important as are Larnach and Kepler. Correa may be spending some time on the IL, but hopefully Lewis can fill his spot or third base. Correa has been outstanding at shortstop, his at bats are better, and we need him playing. I guess Buxton is merely a DH at this point, which really hurts because Julien as DH with Buck in CF is preferable. I'm thinking Kirilloff should settle in and hope it is at first base. Farmer and Castro are good reserves. The team has very slowly incorporated more running into their game. Finally, the defense has been quite decent, if not a tad less than optimal. The hope for more consistent offense and exciting rallies remains but the Twins are still in a pretty good spot.

I'm thinking the Twins cannot mess around - take one of the guys who have been consensus top five. Anyways, all is good.

Situational hitting is important and how a player approaches a pitch can and should change within an at bat. Ahead in the count it makes sense to be looking to drive the ball, while a two strike strategy must strive for contact. Miguel Sano became useless when he just swung for the fences on every pitch. Gallo has had some luck but sure takes a big cut on every pitch and looks very vulnerable to any pitch up in the strike zone. The flatter swing path has a better chance and baseball players can adapt. Both Correa and Buxton seem to change their swings with two strikes but are also both struggling with low batting averages. Batting average, slugging, and OPS are useful for evaluation only to some extent. We heard Dick Bremer state that Justin Morneau had 74 sacrifice fly balls in his career. Joey Gallo has 3. I believe that the Twins batters are working hard to be successful in their at bats, but a shift to conceding power for contact with two strikes is needed as difficult as that may be.

The week ahead finds the Twins facing left-handed starting pitching. Time to let Julien lead off with Kirilloff in the third hole and Larnach batting fifth. Maybe Castro can continue his decent play too. The offense needs to help out the pitching staff and find their groove. Both the Giants and Blue Jays are good teams and the weather looks agreeable for some winning baseball. No real word on Buxton yet but Correa had some decent swings and fought through most of his at bats in Los Angeles. The Twins could use an exciting homestand going into the summer months.

Moniak made quite an effort but it wasn't ever clear if he had any control of the ball. He dove into the stands and the replays show that the ball bounced up, out of his glove. It would have been a miraculous catch. Kirillof is looking to make a difference. I sure hope Buxton is back tomorrow and that Julien is at second base. The Twins need some runs.

1. I am a huge Luis Arraez fan. 2. I make the trade every single time, 100%.

The Twins are mostly consistently competitive and seem to be working hard. The original guess of a 82-85 win total is looking accurate, good for an AL Central crown right now.

Sometimes people suggest the Twins do not have the players to run. Urshela is one of the slowest non catchers in baseball.

Should be an unearned run.

For those who keep suggesting that Jeffers should be a primary catcher, a Urshela stolen base followed by a throwing error (again) should help with an understanding of why he is strictly a bc.

Anyone else notice how shallow opponents outfielders play versus the Twins outfielders?

I watched a couple of games where Dollander pitched. He looked pretty hittable. He may indeed have a fair MLB career but he does not project anywhere close to the top five prospects. If you get a chance to find a Ken Griffey Jr., you take him. It doesn't matter if you have Byron Buxton or others. Talent will rise and make a difference in multiple ways for a team. The Twins don't need to get cute. They need to take the best player available. There are plenty of pitchers who will be available to draft. Think of Bailey Ober and guys in the system now like David Festa and Brent Headrick. BPA is the way to go.

One recent mock has the Twins taking Langford. Most people seem to agree that Clark has the highest ceiling, but Langford could be starting for the Twins to start 2025. Langford is really good and has right handed power. Any of the top five are win, win.

True. I get the frustration and there are others thinking of October too. I just hope people don't let their team ruin a beautiful day. I watch the games and have my opinions but like to turn the page after the final out. The attendance this season will be a sort of comment by the general public.

Try a different type of coffee and your morning will unfold more smoothly.

David Festa had pinpoint control of his fastball early in the year and pitched very aggressively. The guy I watched last night looked unsure of what to throw and struggled with location. The minor leagues are a tough learning curve and both Festa and Brooks Lee exemplify the need for experience. They are both talented and should be solid contributors in MLB down the road a year or two from now.

My concern with Jax is that most of his pitches are in the same relative area. The old maxim of pitching in and out, up and down are not in use when Jax pitches. Ryan gets a ton of strike outs high in the zone because he moves the batters' eyes on every at bat. Additionally, Jax seems to throw his fastball only for a waste pitch, again in the general zone where he wants his slider to go. The hitters dismiss all of his pitches and are able to tune into one area. Jax and Pagan are positive points for opponents batting averages. I'm not sure what the options are at this time. Pitch selection and location?

The kid, Kiefer Lord, that went to Carleton is a smart flyer, 3rd round pick maybe. Take the big Texan, Travis Sykora, with #34 pick if he is still there. Thank you for these write ups.

All around bummer: some weak defense, almost half of the at bats end in strike outs, and another pitching meltdown. The one oddity was how the Angels ran for home expecting the Twins to make a mistake, on three occasions. Varland tomorrow versus another (better) lefty. I hope Garlick can make something happen because he looked like an automatic out for St. Paul. This is his last shot.

Jax is a concern. He doesn't use his fastball up or in enough.