tony&rodney

Will Shelton use DH's in the DH position?

Ober does need to be in that 91-92mph range but he was injured and it is a part of full health that returns his prior velocity. Ober is a big dude and he is coming into his own. Guys who are injured do return, as we saw with Pablo Lopez. I'm not comparing the two because their slots and stuff is different but simply saying that pitchers do come back from injury. Ober isn't old.

It is almost inevitable that Joe Ryan is traded this offseason. It isn't what fans necessarily want but the Twins need to add talented position players to their organization. This seems like a decision that makes or breaks the guy in the front office. Get it wrong and he should be gone. If teams are not willing to give up talent for Joe Ryan, then those teams can go home empty-handed. Ryan has two years of control at low salaries. I would surprised if there wasn't a great deal of effort expended after the World Series laying groundwork by many teams to entice the Twins into picking their offer. The chatter across the internet is already heavy concerning Ryan and as expected the offers all favor the home team at the expense of the Twins.

That is a legitimate question. It mostly comes down to stuff. A major determination of whether to add someone to the 40 person roster is whether it seems likely that another team might poach them in the Rule 5 draft. Those chosen are almost always big arms. We can't know how other teams view Klein. He doesn't seem to fit the profile of arms taken in the recent past. The Twins took a guy last year and gave him quite a bit of run before returning him to the Phillies. It comes down to choices. How many open spots will there be for players on the edge of protecting or leaving off the list? I see your reasoning about his talent relative to the others expected to be protected but I also see the argument that PatfFund (did I get that correct) put forth. I watch a ton of minor league games and only saw Klein a couple of times, which wasn't enough to make a decision either way.

This is about where I reside, always hopeful but very discouraged by the total lack of vision the last three years. I have no idea what the POBO is up to and believe all people can change. A verdict on his rain (pun intended) can be withheld until April. The concern is that our POBO has skated on the players from the previous front office and he has limited ability to perceive the nuances of baseball or adequately judge talent. We should have some sort of an answer in six months. I'm going to be hopeful.

Yes. The franchise is in a dark place. Those were just my guesses ($90-115M). I will not be surprised by any number below $90M, even $60M although that seems unlikely. I guess $60-70M might be as likely as $135-145M. Pablo Lopez is really good but it is hard to see a team out there giving up what is required to acquire him. I believe he stays.

This seems like a reasonable position. The Twins best players are probably only Buxton, Ryan, and Lopez. A reasonable response though is to ask .... Where did Jhoan Duran fit among the Twins best players? In sum, a clear direction for the team isn't exactly clear at this point but there have been signals. We wait.

When Ober is right he is a very effective starting pitcher. My expectation is that he returns to his form prior to the hip injury. There is definitely much that is uncertain: velocity, command, and his ability to throw all of his pitches. There are bound to be a few teams wondering if Ober can be acquired. I don't have that knowledge but starting pitching is always in demand. There must also be some good athletes who, similarly, have not performed to expectations for their clubs that may be available. I have no information or guesses on the legitimacy of any guesses, but can throw out one such thought. Jordan Lawler was a highly rated prospect who has been injured frequently and fared very poorly in a couple of attempts for the Arizona Diamondbacks. Arizona is flush with infield prospects and in need of pitching. Again, I have no idea how Arizona evaluates either Lawler or Ober, but a change of scenery might be good for both players. A key question would be how each team views Lawler. Because Lawler has more years of control it might be necessary to include a guy like Jose Olivares, an exciting pitching prospect, along with Ober to acquire Lawler. This is just an example. If Bailey Ober can be the Twins #3 starting pitcher I'm fine with him in that role. The idea of trading him is merely my thoughts that all avenues must be explored for improving the roster. An obvious question in return would be why ask about Lawler? He is a gamble. His value might be low and Diamondback fans (perhaps their front office too) may stress at the idea of selling low. My sense is that the Twins need a few gambles this offseason. I would attempt to widen a transaction by asking about the injured Justin Martinez. It is possible these ideas are laughable but the conversations seeking potential acquisitions needs to take place. I don't think the Twins need to trade Bailey Ober. I believe he can return to form. All considerations need to be on the table though.

The July moves signified a rebuild in my view. Maybe I'm wrong. We all seem desperately guessing and hoping our team can escape a year long replay of the August-September win, loss record but without the running game; a return to station to station baseball with poor defenders.

The development years started right after the July trades. It will continue in the next two years. The CBA will be a big item a year from now but no way there are more than April games lost. Owners love money and the vast majority of teams make money. The Twins need position players. They might be able to acquire a couple of arms but they won't be top twenty prospects. Ryan could certainly return a very good position prospect. We have seen the importance of great pitching in the current playoffs. It would be irresponsible to not make every player available this offseason. A few trades (3-5) are needed to change the makeup of the roster, specifically on the position player side.

$90-115M for the 26 person roster, with room for a couple of free agent pitchers and perhaps one higher paid bat.

I hardly pay attention to the manager and don't watch their pressers. I wonder when was the last time a manager went all direct in a press briefing? I watch the players. Falvey puts the roster together. I'm hoping the changes bring players I want to watch and that the players currently in the organization who are on the 26 person roster perform, playing exciting baseball. I won't be watching the manager.

This. The roster will be responsible for 98% of wins and losses. I remain hopeful for positive changes to the roster.

Never met Shelton, no reason to dislike him. Easy to understand the frustration of those who want someone from outside the organization. the Twins have Falvey handling all business and baseball actions. While I wasn't really enamored with his hire in 2016, it seemed reasonable to remain neutral because we don't know what goes on behind the curtain. The last 2 years the curtain was pulled back though. If Falvey doesn't figure out a couple of things this winter, he MUST go. However, there is no evidence that any Pohlad pays attention to baseball. I do think they look at the financial information but lacking business acumen the family seems lost owning a baseball team. They like Falvey and he is probably likable. Friends and family are not always good business partners.

The manager won't make any difference if Falvey has decided that the current roster now has the leadership to win. The last two years the Twins rolled it back with nearly the same roster. Will it happen again? Dave Roberts, Tom Kelly in his prime, and Shelton all have the same odds if Falvey says the roster is good .... let's go. The hope is for change on the field. I wish Shelton good luck.

Without collusion the only player added would have been Pags. Whether we like it or not, owners and their front office tools control the rosters. Money. The next CBA may disappoint many people. There are not 16 teams losing money. Quite the contrary, most teams are making moola. Convincing owners to give up their cash cows and simultaneously watch their franchise values dip while lose money also sounds much more difficult than the Twins winning the World Series in 2026. I doubt a lockout extends into May. It would be far easier to coerce the wealthy clubs to share the revenues not being shared at this time. That might be difficult too.

Not to be a downer, but has everyone forgotten that MLB front offices were deep in collusion during both Twins runs in 1987 and 1991. Players like Andre Dawson, Jack Morris, and many others weren't even offered contracts until late in the offseason when numerous players agreed to sign well below market contracts. The owners admitted guilt and paid billions in fines. Are we waiting for help again? Aggressive moves, success from several prospects, and lucky drafts could make the Twins back to relevance in as soon as 2-4 years.

Beat all of the odds. That is the hope. How? Tough to answer. The odds of the current roster somehow all reaching their peaks in the next few years or collectively rising seems like very long odds considering their past performances. Almost as difficult, some would say more impossible, would be the rise of the current prospects. This is the dilemma for the front office. They put together the roster, proclaimed its excellence, and watched it crash. Now the finances are tight and their prospect hauls are pushing for an opportunity. Will Falvey just roll it back again? The July trades seemed like Part ! of a process. Part II would seem to be supplementing the current prospect pool with additional players through trades in hopes of returning to a competitive squad by 2027-2028. It kind of depends on how one views the talent. However, we cannot know how or what Falvey thinks and if we use his past behaviors as predictable the Twins roster is set right now more or less. Either way, it is going to be a few years before the Twins are able to return to relevance. This off season, like all past ones, will provide opportunities.

If Jeffers is not traded, which I am not predicting, 2026 will be his last year with the Twins. In addition to $10M the Twins also pay Correa's $1.33M signing bonus each of the next 3 years according to Fangraphs and numerous other sites. It is a small number but one to account for when adding numbers to remain as low as possible.

We have to hope that the Twins aren't going to just dump any player making above minimum MLB salary without a no trade clause. The concept of low or high value may have some run but the job of the front office is to find out which clubs have an interest in any Twins player and discuss scenarios where a mutually beneficial deal is completed. From my perspective many discussions and explorations should take place. These would seem to be in the form of asking teams what needs they have or ideas are possible. We just don't know how another team looks at a specific Twin. Perhaps there are multiple teams that actually see Ober, Jeffer, Lewis, Wallner, or others as desired assets to improve their team and are willing to discuss trades. We will have to wait and hope for the best. It sure seemed like there was a ton of interest in Duran, Jax, and Varland as well as others during the late July time period. The sheer number of trades was surprising to me. I wondered about how the Twins front office targeted players as much as I wondered about the supposed offers which were not chosen. In the end we are guessing while being either hopeful or disappointed at whatever takes place.

Team building through trades is the topic and that is exactly what I think needs to occur in order to balance a roster that lacks sufficient athleticism and talent.

It would be very weird to see the Twins stand still this winter after the trades in late July. I'm expecting a minimum of 3 trades. It is possible to add Thielbar and/or Coulombe on $3M deals each but I doubt the relievers are up for it. Does anyone expect the Twins to fork over more than $10M for a relief pitcher?

The Twins could have a dozen open spots on the 40 person, but no. Read PatPfund above for exact reason.

Well, that is the level we saw the last two months; it's the floor.

If the moves are over the Twins are looking at 55-75 wins next season. 75 wins if everything goes really well. The current talent was pretty much on display in August and September.