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tony&rodney

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Everything posted by tony&rodney

  1. tony&rodney
    Because Maeda is really the only guy likely to be healthy next year, does tomorrow's article get titled "From the beginning the 2023 Twins never stand a chance?" Now I don't mean that in any negative manner (it does sound bad) because I like your articles. It just seems like the Twins are more reactive than proactive. In 2019 Manfred and a very weak AL Central gifted a flawed yet exciting team a path. The Twins had multiple options to address their weaknesses and chose to reboot. I liked that the team won but the manner was flawed from strategy to player personnel. I'm not going to quit on the Twins but having been a fan since the beginning (1961), the poor fundamentals are a sour point for me as it has been with other teams through the years. Perhaps Varland, SWR, Lewis, Lee, and Wallner (DH) can bring something to the team in 2023, but it does seem like there is a pile of players who are going to find themselves too often on the IL again instead of in the lineup. I hope I'm wrong, I really do. From last November it seemed like this was the year but so much went wrong. I agree the injuries were horrendous but the planning and player acquisition along with the continued failure to care about fundamental baseball hurt the team even more.
  2. tony&rodney
    We shall see what the Twins think of 2022 when we see the active roster for the Cleveland series. The roster moves will speak.
  3. tony&rodney
    Totally agree. Nobody hits behind the runner, few players hit the cutoff man, and players are weak at taking a base on balls that roll away from the catcher among a host of other small skills. These are all true and I agree with you that nobody bunts. All skills need to be practiced and when a philosophy just ignores an aspect of the game, teams cannot effectively use the practice. That is the way it goes.
  4. tony&rodney
    .... injured? I like Lee, Raya, and Rodriguez. The low minors are a time of quick maturation and learning. When I lived in Florida years ago I was at a rookie league game where a pitcher struck out 7 guys and ripped through the first nine guys hitless on 27 pitches. Inning four comes and poof - four home runs and three walks.
  5. tony&rodney
    Agree, but I guess it is desperate measures for desperate times. I like Palacios for no good reason, but it is time to give another guy a shot because there is nothing to lose. Time to roll the dice and wish for good luck.
  6. tony&rodney
    Given the state of the Twins batting order and bench players, Wallner likely represents something of a blind hope for a change in the outcome of the futile at bats we are seeing right now from some of the overmatched Twins players. In other words, Wallner can't be any worse at the plate. He should be seen as strictly a DH though until he has a chance to work more at being an outfielder. It should be noted that Wallner has improved some this season in the field.
  7. tony&rodney
    Man I so agree with the haphazard roster construction. It was put together with a plan that no player would miss time during the year. The sweep at Target Field was such an expression of the separation of the two team's philosophies. The Guardians are the youngest team in baseball, had more than half their roster debut this year at the MLB level, and have a top farm system with many skilled athletic players near ready to make the next step if they can only get an opportunity. Oh, and the way the contract with Jose Ramirez was constructed, Cleveland pays him less each of the next four years than he makes this year. Cleveland is flush with players and cash. Hentges could be the next dynamite starting pitcher for Cleveland. Will the Twins sweep the Guardians in Cleveland next weekend? Will they sweep the Royals at home before that?
  8. tony&rodney
    Sorry for not including that Correa has the opt out and will almost certainly be a free agent, which means the Twins will have the option to negotiate with him as can any other team. Correct, Correa makes the call.
  9. tony&rodney
    The injured roster isn't going to win any games because they cannot make it on to the field. The team has performed admirably at times. I think I predicted 79-85 wins just before the season began. When a team fails to plan thoroughly in the offseason there are consequences. My main concern in the last 3-4 years with the Twins (including when they win) is the number of mental errors. The number of mistakes due to a lack of fundamentals is actually pretty glaring: throwing to the wrong base; not backing up every play; missing the cutoff or failing to have a cutoff; not reading wild pitches to advance; failing to advance a runner; getting doubled off on clear line drive outs; failing to score from second base with two outs on a single to the outfield; and more. Physical errors will happen as will the occasional mental mishap, but the shear number of fundamental problems are something that can and should be reduced through an emphasis on playing basic baseball.
  10. tony&rodney
    Correa has been terrific at shortstop and mostly takes great at bats. The Twins need to make a decision - pay Correa or live with Jermaine Palacios for a year or two while waiting for Lewis, Lee, or another to step forward or hope Palacios finds a MLB bat. The money spent on Correa is really irrelevant. For those concerned about money, look to those salaries that deliver much less: Sano, Kepler, Sanchez, Pagan, etc. Folks need to get over the contracts of key players and see the value. I am much more concerned about the expenditures on Buxton than on Correa. There is always a budget and superstars fit into every budget. Cleveland finds money for Jose Ramirez. The mistakes in drafting and developing combined with identifying value players are much more key than spending $35+ million to Correa.
  11. tony&rodney
    Gotta give Wallner some shots at DH in Minneapolis. Nothing to lose.
  12. tony&rodney
    Winder goes tomorrow and Varland versus KC with Polanco coming back. It's getting late.
  13. tony&rodney
    It is September and every option and strategy needs an opportunity. Last night Sandy Leon took off for 2nd base but a foul ball ensued. This was refreshing no matter who initiated his running. Injuries have Celestino in the lineup every night and he looks mentally fatigued and makes so many odd mistakes, yet he is the guy who can catch a ball in CF. Did anyone else notice Leon score on a single from second base when Celestino cannot. The Twins should play for a run whenever they get a chance. Cave was at the plate with two on, no outs in the 2nd inning. He should bunt those guys over, but the team likes home runs so he attempts to lift and launch with the expected result. Cave really works hard but it has been difficult to see him struggle. The Twins need to use every option available now because the season is slipping away. November will be the time for reflection and sorting through what is needed next year.
  14. tony&rodney
    The Twins front office needs to make some attempts at finding players within their system that may find more success than those currently on the roster. Yes, I know this is a dire situation but I'm thinking that rolling out these same lineups are causing regular and casual fans to lose all interest. The Hamiltons, Palacios, Cave, and Kepler if he cannot walk or swing a bat are five spots to consider. Megill and Pagan and possibly Archer are three pitching spots to replace. When attendance falls below 20,000 like last night, with your team is still ostensibly in a pennant race, there are dark clouds gathering around the franchise. The malaise is real right now. Old diehard fans will still be there even when the Twins lose 100 games and are hopeless but when the team drops to low levels of viewers and attendance there are expected consequences in player acquisition that follow. While I'm not suggesting that any players called up from Wichita or St. Paul will be an improvement, there has to be some attempt to fix the massive decline in play. Doing nothing is a white flag.
  15. tony&rodney
    Well, i appreciate the positive thoughts. However, the Twins made the bed for 2022 last offseason and forgot the sheets.
  16. tony&rodney
    Ryan has done much better than I expected. Rookie pitchers mostly have moments of difficulty when they pitch through their first year. He is a 26 year old rookie who has to rely on command and control, which he has done reasonably. The better hitters across MLB often don't bite as much on that high fastball from Ryan which reduces his effectiveness against the best lineups. IMHO this makes him a mid rotation (#3/#4) pitcher if he can stay consistent and throw more innings. Ryan has been a pleasant find for the Twins.
  17. tony&rodney
    .... except the starting pitchers are not facing 18 batters. They get pulled after facing the top 3-5 batters third time through the order.
  18. tony&rodney
    Agree with the flaw in front office thinking. A way to mitigate the damage or reduce exposure with a third time through the order was to use an opener. This would result in facing batters 5-9, weaker hitters. The Twins don't do that. The only guys our starters see three times is the first four in a lineup. The glaring error for me is that there seems to be very little attention to the actual effectiveness of a pitcher on any given day, except for Bundy. This has resulted in short starts and our starters are totally conditioned to go 4-5 innings and 70-85 pitches. I know we don't have a Gerrit Cole or his contract but look at the number of pitches he threw yesterday (more than normal) and you can see that situation plays a role in managing a pitcher. It all comes down to a failure to develop or manage pitching which is greatly exasperated by failing to sign guys other than Happ, Shoemaker, etc. The Twins are in a pennant race despite their issues and we should look to attendance as the arbiter of whether change is needed. I'm interested to see how the paying fans react with their dollars in the next few home series. One would think that Target Field should be packed this weekend.
  19. tony&rodney
    Varland was the only bright spot in a poorly played game. It was fine to lift him with Judge coming up. Next outing (the Twins would be incompetent to not have him take his next turn in MLB) Varland should be allowed to throw 100 pitches. Just going on his pace today, he has the strength to pitch innings.
  20. tony&rodney
    There were plenty of pitchers that threw hard but the game didn't reward max effort and players had swings that created contact which negated strikeouts. In short it was a different game. Personally, I don't believe that there is much sense in comparing eras because so much has changed and the money in the game leads the list.
  21. tony&rodney
    Best of luck to Louie Varland.
  22. tony&rodney
    Is there anyone who can explain why pitchers are throwing the ball down the middle to Aaron Judge in that lineup? He only has about 80 walks. He had four at bats with 12 strikes thrown to him (using the MLB box), of which 4-5 were in the whooping zone with the HR exactly on a tee. Judge must be beloved across the game to see that many strikes in one game. If he is universally the guy who a team (the pitcher) cannot let beat you, this cannot happen. I'm willing to bet that Barry Bonds never saw that many strikes in a game the last 10 years of his career. I admire how disciplined Aaron Judge is with swinging through the location of pitches, but it is inexplicable to me why the Twins or any other team feels the need to assist Judge in his race towards the records that will easily fall if he continues to get so many batting practice opportunities in games. The only acceptable plate appearance (from my viewpoint) was in his first at bat. All three pitches were strikes (according to the box) with two on the edge and the one slammed for a double wholly within the box. At least each of these were down and away, which would be acceptable. The remainder of the at bats were lessons in how not to pitch, including the walk and the strikeout. On a different note, the Yankees look as weak as I can remember their teams. Of their positions players only Judge and the defensive replacement Florian looked good.
  23. tony&rodney
    Sad to read Minaya was released. He was pretty decent for the Twins but they did not trust him. There are so many variables to sticking in the major leagues. Pagan is assured of a job but Minaya is not worthy. This was a conversation with guys who were released and joined our mens' team in Florida about 20+ years ago. One minute a guy is pitching in AAA, getting a cup of coffee and sleeping in sweet sheets at the MLB level, and then a few weeks later they are playing with a crew of guys in Town Ball. Caleb Thielbar never needed to dip to pitching for the Dundas Dukes ( a fine tradition and squad) but he did find himself on the independent team roster for the St. Paul Saints and now he is among the top three guys in the Twins MLB bullpen. Baseball is a tough job.
  24. tony&rodney
    Bundy is clearly the best SP the Twins have right now. He has been fun to watch lately, even with the short 5 inning outings. We can worry about next year in November. Four games in NYC ... hope for the best.
  25. tony&rodney
    I don't see any Twins winning a Gold Glove. Kepler is our best defender and Correa is really good, but that's it and they are looking to be behind others.
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