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tony&rodney

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Everything posted by tony&rodney

  1. tony&rodney
    Kirilloff had a nice line drive base hit today and a hard out to left field but looked unwilling to take a walk in the 9th inning and waved at a pitch way outside. He wants to hit but needs to make the pitchers stay in the strike zone. AK has a sweet swing. I hope the Twins identify when he is ready. I think he will hit.
  2. tony&rodney
    This article correctly points out what Julien needs to accomplish in order to compete at the highest level: defense, hitting off speed pitches, and the K/W rate. Watching Julien play for St. Paul, via milb.com (it would be obviously better to evaluate his play in person), we can see his value. Julien is still a work in progress but his positives are noteworthy. First off, while it is correct that his arm is not very strong, it is close enough to adequate or similar to what we see from Miranda. Julien is not slick in the field but he gets to balls better than often given credit for, which we saw when he flagged down several grounders while playing for the Twins. He is improving but we should not ever expect him to be Roberto Alomar. I trust Julien's glove ahead of either Solano or Gordon. A guy who can carry an on base percentage above .400 with power, stolen base ability, and a high average is a valuable player in any lineup. Julien just needs to keep hitting and improving in small increments. I believe he would be a real valuable leadoff hitter versus right handers and DH for the Twins. Whether Buxton is now a full time DH beyond May is another story. Lastly (I noted this previously in other threads), I cannot recall a player having more strikes called on them when the pitch is so far out of the strike zone. I saw this last season when following Julien and we saw this a number of times this year when he was with the Twins. It happens to all players just as they benefit from some calls but Julien is seemingly a magnet for the 3-2 pitch (4 inches off the plate) being called a strike. This may be a standard for players who test an umpires patience with how often they are deep in counts such as a guy like Carlos Santana, first with Cleveland and now with Pittsburgh. The path for Julien to have consistent playing time with the Twins will be tough given the barriers at 2B, 1B, or DH but wouldn't it be nice to have a guy lead off who gets on base at such a high rate or crushes a home run to begin games?
  3. tony&rodney
    No real worries. The bullpen is still in a good place. The Twins have Mahle, Lopez, Gray, and Ryan all scheduled to pitch versus Kansas City and a day off on Monday before Ober/Varland pitch. The Royals have only scored 82 runs thus far this season and we should hope that our starters fare well in this upcoming series. A greater concern is that the Twins have only scored 109 runs, but they look ready to break out. The Twins are in good shape. Perhaps the biggest challenge at this moment of the year concerns who is where defensively.
  4. tony&rodney
    Maeda was not good (understatement), but the defense was pretty pathetic. Solano is merely a DH/ pinch hitter at this point. Gordon is totally stretched in centerfield. On a positive note we saw Joey Gallo glide across the grass in CF in the 9th inning to make a decent play look very routine. There is our centerfielder versus right handers when/ if Kirilloff manages to earn his way on to the team.
  5. tony&rodney
    Looks like Headrick did a pretty good job today. I'm not too worried about the relief pitching right now. All of Sands, Stewart, Winder, and Headrick along with a couple of others maybe can handle reduced roles as a 7th or 8th pitcher in the bullpen. More concerned with the bats and inconsistent defense. Still, things are going fairly well thus far.
  6. tony&rodney
    Yes, I agree that Gallo has done a good job at first base. Kirilloff is better all around though at the position, likely because he has more repetitions. Gallo is a good athlete. He played a little third base as well as being an outfielder. I also agree with anyone who has suggested that AK has yet to deserve a position on the team based on his past mlb time, but believe that Alex is a superior bat who will hit his way into the top of the lineup. This pushes Gallo to either DH or the outfield and improves the team in several ways. Time will tell.
  7. tony&rodney
    Well, they are in first place in the AL Central right now. Does that qualify. You cannot win a playoff series unless you are in it. The starting pitching staff is strong which is a big key to success in the post season.
  8. tony&rodney
    Lee is a ways off. Watch his games at AA. He is fielding really well but his bat is still in the transition stage. Yes, the stats are there but he is not controlling his at bats enough to get to St. Paul yet. Hopefully Brooks Lee gets promoted to AAA by July, maybe even June. At that point the Twins will be much more focused on what he can contribute in the future. Lee is highly thought of in the organization at this time.
  9. tony&rodney
    Moran may benefit from AAA innings but you hit on the real issue .... Pagan is all over the place and he gets hit hard .... often. Maybe Moran would be served to fit as the #7/8 reliever if he is kept on the roster and Pagan can go fishing or golfing. The starters going 6 and 7 innings is a real plus for the bullpen.
  10. tony&rodney
    Maybe in softball, but when you see a guy like Kent Hrbek pick every bad throw, come off the base when needed, field his position, run down balls in foul territory, take cutoffs properly, and generally leave the infielders unworried about their throws ..... it makes a bigger difference than imagined. A first baseman is involved in more plays. Gallo is ok and actually makes the 3 - 6 - 3 play smoothly. We have seen him struggle with throws in the dirt though and off the bag. Solano is weak there and Miranda had a whole bunch of glitches at first base. Joey Gallo should play until AK is fully ready. Alex Kirilloff is very smooth with the glove and if he can wave his magic wand starting in May the team will reap the benefits of a strong glove at first.
  11. tony&rodney
    I'm wondering about Lewis as well as a potential third baseman too, but Miranda is really poor at first base as opposed to being actually playable at third base. I won't dispute whether Lewis might be a far better defensive player than Miranda but using Miranda at first base will have unintended consequences that hurt the team. If Miranda can refine his approach at the plate with more patience and become the gap hitter needed he should be able to hold down his current spot. That would leave the team with options as to how they incorporate Kirilloff and Lewis.
  12. tony&rodney
    They certainly may ... it is an option.
  13. tony&rodney
    Michael A. Taylor has been terrific for the Twins this year. Byron Buxton appears healthy and has been in the lineup most days. The Twins are above even in April. The Twins will need Buxton in centerfield at some point, however, because as much as we may like MAT for his current contributions there are better lineup combinations possible going into the summer. I'm not too worried about Correa but think he is more suited to hit in the 5/6 hole. The Twins will absolutely need one of their less experienced players to take a big step forward this year, hopefully two or three. The Twins are not going to be led by just four players if they hope to contend. I'm real hopeful for Buxton and keep saying 130 productive games, but both his health and production are always a question.
  14. tony&rodney
    Jose has had some decent plays this year. I'm not sure why he was unable to make the throw in the 8th inning last night. It wasn't going to be that close of a play. In the 9th inning, Miranda did get the out, but ironically the far easier play was at home for a quick force out. Those two plays and a very weak throw off balance recently obscure what has been mostly fair defense thus far this season from Miranda. However, one does wonder if his hitting affects his defense and whether the shadow of Royce Lewis is a thing. Miranda should be playing with a ton of confidence after the team cleared the position for him.
  15. tony&rodney
    Moran has not been good thus far but he is not totally getting lit up and often misses by inches. It is easy to see where people get frustrated with Jovani Moran but I'm still thinking he has the pitches to make a difference in the Twins pen. That said, his next two outings need to be in line with expectations; control the strike zone and limit hard contact.
  16. tony&rodney
    Salas just looks inexperienced and in need of repetitions based on watching him play thus far this season via milb.com. Confidence is a big thing in baseball due to the preponderance of times that one will fail at the plate. He has the physical skills but gets caught in between quite a bit. Like a previous response indicated, Salas needs to be more judicious in his swing decisions. Patience is a key if you are following Salas.
  17. tony&rodney
    I'm not ready to give up on Moran.
  18. tony&rodney
    Sonny Gray has been fantastic thus far. Let's hope he is in the discussion for a Cy Young at the end of the year. Gray deserves to test the free agent market though and he is likely to do so.
  19. tony&rodney
    Jorge Polanco is the Twins best position player until someone else proves them selves more valuable.
  20. tony&rodney
    I have been watching quite a few games on milb.com. Kirilloff and Wallner look really good at AAA. Brooks Lee (AA) is playing everything smoothly in the field. He has a little hitch pre pitch and his swing is inconsistent. He has had a few beautiful cuts that were textbook though. Rosario has had a number of good at bats at Hi A. Noah Miller is a true shortstop and has been steadily getting stronger with the stick at Cedar Rapids. He has had a number of weak base hits this season already, but his swing is certainly looking like his confidence has taken a step recently with a number of balls barreled. Jeremy, you do an excellent job of putting these reviews together, which is a quite a bit of work and a lengthy process. Thank you.
  21. tony&rodney
    Maybe it is time to play Gallo in centerfield against right handed pitchers when Kirilloff comes up. Taylor has done a good job out there.
  22. tony&rodney
    Alex Kirilloff should be called up soon, if not today. There haven't been any reports on his wrist, but the line drives and at bats should mean something. Kyle Farmer may need another week or three before he returns. And then there is Royce Lewis, who should be ready by June. Yes Nick, the Twins will need to prioritize some players above others. Activate AK now.
  23. tony&rodney
    Yes, I know "obstruction" ... I believe Baldelli was asking if the infielder was in the way as Castro first seemed like he was going to third (one step) and then had to step around the infielder. Impediment is always a judgment call. The It wasn't worth the argument. Not exactly good baseball this weekend by the Twins and Nationals.
  24. tony&rodney
    Time to assess whether AK is ready to play 1B for the Twins. He is swinging the bat well and being selective at the plate. Additionally, he is a good first baseman. Maybe the Twins feel that Kirilloff needs another week of swings for the Saints. I have no knowledge of how his wrist feels. That is a key. If he has zero limitations, he is ready now. He would be a big addition to the lineup.
  25. tony&rodney
    Good job by Ober. He looked like he could have pitched all day. Ober and Varland have shown they are ready for MLB starts. Still, both Maeda and Mahle deserve their spots. Good problems. What a difference Polanco can make. Like the first response indicated, Kirilloff is hitting the ball hard. He looks good on milb.com. The only issue he has shown thus far, both with Ft. Myers and St. Paul, is an occasional lapse going after the high hard stuff. He looks very smooth in the field. i believe the fielder tagged Castro, which would be interference, part of why he may have been so faked out.
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