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tony&rodney

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Everything posted by tony&rodney

  1. tony&rodney
    .... and Pablo Lopez too?
  2. tony&rodney
    Oops. Kind of a frustrating season and was trying to think positive - my mistake. Good catch.
  3. tony&rodney
    4-3 on the road works. Now the Twins have 12 of the next 14 at Target Field with 8 games versus teams below .500. Is it too much to hope that the Twins can go at least 9-5 in the next two week? They could also bury the Clevelanders as well.
  4. tony&rodney
    Buxton has a no trade clause and a contract that runs through the 2028 season. He is not going anywhere.
  5. tony&rodney
    There seems to be a general trend on Twins Daily that Julien should be playing first base or used as a DH. This naturally begs the question of what to do with Kirilloff and/or Buxton. Maybe one of Kirilloff or Julien should be used in a trade if either Kirilloff or Julien are not going to have a slot in the lineup. August is likely not a good time to put a player at a new position. As has been discussed in many previous posts, the Twins have a number of decisions to make going forward about who slots where defensively (Kirilloff, Julien, Polanco, Lewis, Lee, Miranda). Three infield positions are open with six players looking to play full time. I am not including those who may be seen as best used in a utility role (Farmer, Solano, Castro, Gordon, Prato, Martin). Expect a trade or two this offseason. For now, the Twins will play out the schedule in the manner we have seen thus far.
  6. tony&rodney
    Gray gets a QO in order to nab a draft pick. Mahle - no way. Maeda presents an interesting choice, 2/$20M. The Twins will trade for a starter this winter. The cost may be steep but worth it.
  7. tony&rodney
    Varland pitched well against a team (Louisville Bats) that hits. The timing is good too. Varland is ready for a call. He could be used as a starter or in relief.
  8. tony&rodney
    Brooks Lee is a quick learner. From my observations (milb.com), Lee has become more comfortable as the season has gone along. He is aggressive in certain counts and on specific pitches. Lee also knows how to put the bat on the ball when needed. His first full year of professional baseball is looking excellent. Each month it seems Lee looks better as he adjusts to the pitchers rather quickly.
  9. tony&rodney
    I agree that Austin Martin could be an effective player for the Twins in September. Willi Castro is best used as a utility player, being stretched as a regular. The issue for Martin is going to be at bats. He needs to be in the lineup on a consistent basis. Who gets sent down or dropped? The Twins have Kirilloff (when he returns), Gallo, Polanco, Solano, Julien, Correa, Lewis (when he returns), and Farmer currently available for the infield. Meanwhile, guys like Martin, Brooks Lee, and Anthony Prato are waiting for their chance. All of Kirilloff, Gallo, Lewis, Prato, and Martin can also be considered for the outfield as well. Kepler, Wallner, Taylor are the guys already up with Larnach, Celestino, and pile of others waiting for at bats. Oh, Miranda? Where do the at bats come from, either now or in the future? I find it impossible to see a pattern that indicates a preferred style of player, unless one sees a general preference for experienced players. Still, yes it would be refreshing to see Austin Martin get on base and steal some bases sometime soon at Target Field.
  10. tony&rodney
    Reverse order.
  11. tony&rodney
    There are options which have not been used. The stolen base is one. So are hit and run and laying down a sacrifice bunt. Correa should be batting sixth as well.
  12. tony&rodney
    We all like these players, just like we liked Luis Arraez. I would think that Jeffers is the least likely of this group to go if there was a trade. Seattle matches up well with the Twins this winter, just as Miami did last winter. This doesn't mean anything will happen but it is always a good idea to improve the roster in the offseason. Listening is important.
  13. tony&rodney
    Seems like the Twins will enter the coming offseason needing pitchers, thus no one should get too attached to any Twin position players besides the guys with no trade contracts (Correa, Buxton). If I had to bet, only Walker Jenkins would not be under consideration as a player the Twins would trade this winter.
  14. tony&rodney
    Befuddling why Balazovic wasn't lifted after giving up the home run. He did not look sharp and the bullpen was rested. Oh well.
  15. tony&rodney
    Those sicko baseball fans (like myself) who actually know and follow many of the top twenty-five or so players were pretty distraught when the Twins chose Cavaco when Carroll was just sitting there waiting for his name to be called. It was so disappointing and remains an enigma. Still, one cannot just suggest that the Twins should have drafted this guy or that guy who was rated much lower but became a successful MLB player. Even the Angels chose another guy ahead of Mike Trout. The draft is a crap shoot many times. We can be relieved that the Twins stuck to the consensus by drafting Walker Jenkins at #5 this year and did not succumb to a college player.
  16. tony&rodney
    The big offense at AAA may be a combination of factors. Perhaps there are a pile of pitchers who do not hit their spots, are in decline in regards to their careers, or simply still raw and learning on the way up. The batters are a combination of guys fighting for jobs on the 26 and 40 person rosters as well as some experienced players with talent who have begun to figure out how to hit. I have had the thought that using the ABS and challenge system at AAA gives hitters a great deal of confidence in what pitches to attack. No longer does a batter get that poor call which bails out a pitcher and puts the batter on the defensive side of a count. A bad call on a 1-1 pitch to make the count 1-2 suddenly shifts the at bat for both the pitcher and batter. Last night there was a particularly brutal strike call on Wallner, who is already prone to strike outs. Now Wallner needs to either take that pitch or try to hit it which is almost assuredly a swing and a miss.
  17. tony&rodney
    My empathy is with Byron. His body just has not been fully healed, affecting his swing completely and keeping him off the grass. We have seen how much fun he has playing centerfield in the past. The restrictions are a total bummer for him. The Twins should do whatever they can to make him whole. Hopefully both management and Buck find a solution for him.
  18. tony&rodney
    Kepler has a $10 M option for next season and Polanco has a $10.5 M option for 2024. Both are club options with $1 M buyouts. Kepler is a free agent in 2025 and Polanco still has another option (club) for $12 M in 2025. I would guess 95-5% that Kepler is in a Twins uniform next season. The outfield situation is pretty fluid this year and may be similar in 2024. A healthy Polanco has great value for the Twins or any other team for that matter. I expect him to return as well unless his health deteriorates from today going forward. Buxton and Correa are not going anywhere. Seattle still needs a good bat and pitching is always good to acquire. I see benefits for both the Twins and the Mariners in an exchange of players this offseason. A trade of an infielder (1B or 2B) could mean that Polanco is a definite option to pick up. I do not know what Seattle thinks about Wallner, Larnach, Kirilloff, Julien, Lee, or Lewis. Any one of those guys might headline a deal for Logan Gilbert that winds up helping both teams. In that scenario, both Kepler and Polanco (unless disabled) are locks to be back next season. Until the offseason, we can only hope that good health allows both Kepler and Polanco to get steady at bats to lead the Twins through the remainder of the year. Neither is old and we have ample evidence of how important their skills are to a winning season.
  19. tony&rodney
    The path to a Hall of Fame, Minnesota Twins or MLB, is incredibly difficult. The road is strewn with the talents of countless players whose futures were bright but whose careers were sidelined by various obstacles. We are all still in awe of the potential of Byron Buxton, and hope against all odds that he can actually play out his contract as a serviceable player. Most of us Twins fans are not expecting Buck to win any more Platinum Glove Awards or string together MVP awards. Baseball is tough and often cruel. Mauer also faced a flood of challenges, but his talent allowed him a brief window of excellence unseen in Twins history from the catcher position. Despite the concussions, Mauer should be making another speech next summer in Cooperstown. Jay Jaffe has argued that Joe Mauer ranks among the top ten catchers in MLB history (7th in his view), and if the writers cannot vote a top ten all time player from the singularly most difficult position in the game into the Hall on the first ballot one might rightfully question the knowledge of those who do not vote for Mauer. I'm hoping the Twins have a player step forward with a career worthy of wide national acclaim across a decade plus, but we should all just be grateful to have had Joe Mauer as a Twins player in our lifetime. Mauer belongs with Harmon, Tony, Rod, and Kirby as the greatest players in franchise history since 1961.
  20. tony&rodney
    Minnesota was really lucky to have Joe Mauer.
  21. tony&rodney
    Unless attendance and viewership is up quite a bit from now until the end of the year or the Twins manage an extended run in the playoffs, there are going to be financial consequences to follow like a reduced payroll in 2024. Money is still important in business. The Twins committed to a record (for them) payroll in 2023 and it is reasonable to expect a return on that investment. I do not think the 2024 expenditures will be anywhere near the costs of 2023.
  22. tony&rodney
    One thing that stands out way above anything else since Falvey and Levine were hired is the amount of money that the Pohlads have invested in the franchise. This has been a change from the first 33 years. The contracts for Donaldson, Buxton, and Correa were all pretty large. I wonder how the Pohlads view the manner in which the front office has proceeded. I would guess they are supportive, which means these guys will be around a little longer. Either way, there are some players worth watching every year.
  23. tony&rodney
    The Twins should think about how to manage a trade with Seattle in the offseason. I'm willing to trade one of Lewis/Kirilloff plus Raya and a low A player throw in (not a highly rated young prospect) for Logan Gilbert.
  24. tony&rodney
    Emmanuel just hit a rocket home run off of a left-handed pitcher. His bat is special, so quick and the power is effortless. E-Rod has farmer strength in those forearms. I'm excited to see how he progresses in the next year. Defense. Arm. Speed. Power, Eye.
  25. tony&rodney
    Not a fan of the current front office and simply do not understand whatever philosophy of baseball they are attempting to drive forward with the Twins. I admired the honesty and direct humanity of Terry Ryan. I believe Ryan was superior in almost all ways to Falvine but understand those who have railed about the failure of Ryan to adapt quickly to analytics. That said, the judgment in my eyes is related to attendance and viewership that displays interest in the Twins product. I'm simply a Twins fan and will, in the end, pay little attention to the front office because I'm more focused on the pitcher-batter chess match and want the Twins to play to their potential which hopefully includes a few wins.
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