tony&rodney

The Pohlads are not opposed to spending money if they are going to make even more money. The Twins team as currently constructed is on the cusp; they are competitive to a point but need a boost. Signing a player or players to supplement the core will necessitate a payroll in the $140-150M territory. This works for 2020. A big contract cannot be mulled over as reasonable, especially because it fits into a budget of less than $150M. Of course these numbers are ridiculous. That is totally irrelevant. Cole or Bumgarner plus others are very doable this winter. A big contract can be signed now, and no it will not have future deleterious effects on the team's ability to compete. The time is now.

To add to Mike - It doesn't matter that the money is crazy. The money is almost irrelevant. The Twins can easily spend $140M and still (will) turn a profit. The core team is ready. I can agree that a failure to score runs in the playoffs last year was problematic but that is over. The Twins need pitching. Thorpe or Wood or Teheran and possibly someone else might be as good as Bumgarner. So what! sign all three (W,T, for $36M. Better yet, sign Cole. The money will not hamstring the Twins in future years. That much money and more comes off the books next year and the kids are coming and they are inexpensive. The time has come.

Cole for $245/7 Strasburg for $180/6 Bumgarner for $90/4 Ryu for $66/3 Next up: Teheran and Wood ... after trades. Hopefully it all stops with Cole.

Great article. The Twins need to offer Cole $245/7yrs. Done. If that doesn't work, sign Bumgarner for $90/4yrs and Teheran for $16/2 yrs and Wood for $16/2yrs. The paradigm of rational thought takes a break this winter because starting pitching is dear right now. A Cole (or the other scenario) signing finishes the front office' job for now. The Twins can rotate Garver, Gonzalez, and others through 1B. This is their one shot - the core gets supplemented and the young pups get a year to develop.

Baseball organizations have identified top pitchers as a need and difficult to obtain. Therefore, the money has gotten crazy. Meanwhile players like Cron and others are non-tendered. This is the reality. The Twins can go $140+ for next season and their core plus young guns need a little time which necessitates a crazy signing. Garver, Gonzalez, Kepler, and Sano can fill 1B as players move around to accommodate days off. Right now, it is all about the crazy attempt to sign Bumgarner .... or Cole or Strasburg. If the Twins are not successful and those pitchers sign elsewhere, then they turn to the trade front and others. Sign MB or GC.

True, without a Cole or Strasburg the Twins do not match up in a Game 1 and I am still hopeful of a C/S signing, but Bumgarner plus a few other additions would really strengthen the team in a 5 or 7 game series. Win the division first while going all out to sign whomever is interested in pitching in Target Field from the home dugout in 2020. A Bumgarner, Berrios, Odorizzi, Pineda, and Wood/Teheran plus young guns would play. Go hard at the big three: Cole, Strasburg, Bumgarner - they can only say No. The budget should around $140+ for 2020.

The Twins are sitting pretty with their Odorizzi, Pineda, Avila signings and sit around $100M. There should be about $40M left. Sign Cole. If they cannot sign Cole, sign someone like Wood & Teheran. But this is about trades so ... Pittsburgh is willing to trade Marte and Archer. What is a reasonable return. Larnach, Cave, Thorpe, Gordon, Javier, and Rijo? We have no idea but if the Twins cannot sign a Big Boy then they will need to trade. What about Boston - Rosario and Gonzalez plus Gordon, Baddoo, Duran, and Enlow for Betts and Price plus $15M a year relief on Price? My choice is Cole for 7/245 and include an opt out after two years. What other trade ideas are out there?

The Twins still have options if they are committed to adding free agents to their core. Both Ryu and Bumgarner are available and the money is too. For that matter, so too is Cole - he is available. Re: trades - Wow, does anyone really think the Reds would trade Castillo? I love watching Rosario and am hoping Kirilloff is a masher, but I do the trade noted above (with Sands) if I am the Twins.

Still spinning off of mk's plan. The idea is to keep the core together and salvage prospects like Lewis, Kiriloff, Graterol, and Balazovic. A significant amount of money (@$50+/-M) comes off the books after the 2020 season. The team should be able to reduce payroll by somewhere near $20M next year with an insertion of a few graduates (bc, utility fielder, SP, and 1B) from the minor leagues. Thus, the budget is a two year plan. There are different paths to improvement but blowing up the core this winter seems too complicated and difficult. The Twins have held their money close forever and if there isn't money for the 2020 season, there never will be. The sale of the Kansas City Royals for $1 billion ought to convince everyone there is money for the owners in baseball. The current core of players must be supplemented with a couple of key free agents while keeping the young talent developing. The only reason to punt on Lewis, Kiriloff, Graterol, or Balazovic is if the Twins internal evaluations on these players does not match the hype. If this is true, then by all means the trades should flow freely and the 2020 budget can be significantly reduced to the $120+ range. I have no idea how the Twins or other teams value the prospects. My additions are four free agents: bc - Alex Avila for $4M, 1B - Mitch Moreland for $5M and two significant gambles on Madison Bumgarner for $20M/4 years and Gerrit Cole for $40/6 years. The trade: Jhoan Duran, Blayne Enlow, Jack Cave, and Nick Gordon to Pittsburgh for Starling Marte (per mk). I could easily substitute Ryu ($20M/3 years) for Cole if the numbers violate the guidelines. This would reduce costs to $138.0 M. Hitters: C - Garver = .6 1B - Moreland = 5.0 2B - Arraez = .6 3B - Sano = 6.0 SS - Polanco = 4.0 LF - Marte = 11.5 CF - Buxton = 3.25 RF - Kepler = 6.25 DH - Cruz = 12.0 BC - Avila = 4.0 OF - Wade = .6 IF - Adrianza = 1.6 UT - Gonzalez = 9.0 Hitter Total = 63.40M Pitchers: SP - Cole = 40.0 SP - Bumgarner = 20.0 SP - Odorizzi = 17.8 SP - Berrios = 5.2 SP - Thorpe/Dobnak = .6 CL - Rogers = 4.0 RP - Duffey = 1.50 RP - May = 2.50 RP - Littell = .6 RP - Stashak = .6 RP - Smeltzer = .6 RP - Dobnak/Thorpe = .6 RP - Graterol = .6 Pitcher Total = 94.60 Team Total = 158.0M

Never lost the love. Baseball is a drug. I bought a subscription to BA (a guy named Simpson, not Homer was editor I think) in 1983 and remember finding Twins' fans writing about 15 years ago (was either SethSpeaks or Gleeman - was click #11 on their counter) on the internet and have loved the coverage ever since. I never missed a pitch selling beer in the Dome for 3 years and have always found something positive to hold onto, even in really depressing seasons. Last season was pretty exciting and like everyone else I am hopeful for more.

I do not think there is a "next" scenario right now. Jow Mauer was an exceptional talent. Jaffe (@Fangraphs) has him at # 7 all time among catchers. Catchy and supportable; he was an amazing player. Who can envision a crazy trade? The cold weather catches us dreaming up nonsense ideas. Would a Buxton, Berrios, plus lower mler for Paddock, Gore, and Patina be crazy enough? How valuable is Garver or Sano to other teams? I can remember Liriano reducing Oakland's best hitters to dust in an April 2006 outing and Nathan's snorting like a horse was the prelude to exciting Twins' victories. Trades are difficult to pull off and I'm not sure there have been as many players in the 21st century as predictable for success as Joe Mauer.

Re: mk's plan A reasonable plan perhaps, but just keep Rosario and move Kepler to 1B. There seems to be several plans afloat as we all play around with the roster; keep the core or blow it up. Neither first time posters or those who write for the top blogs/sites really know what the Gm's plans involve at this point but it passes the time. Marte would likely require an additional piece though. Most of us are attempting to keep around $130 million as a nod to past Twins' budgets. I would personally like to see a $140 venture. Hitters: C - Garver = .6 1B - Kepler = 6.25 2B - Arraez = .6 3B - Sano = 5.75 SS - Polanco = 4.0 LF - Marte = 11.5 CF - Buxton = 3.5 RF - Rosario = 8.5 DH - Cruz = 12.0 BC - Avila = 4.0 OF - Cave = .6 IF - Adrianza = 2.5 UT - Gonzalez = 9.0 Hitter Total = 68.20M Pitchers: SP - Berrios = 5.2 SP - Odorizzi = 17.8 SP - Wheeler = 20.0 SP - Archer = 9.0 SP - Thorpe/Dobnak = .6 CL - Rogers = 4.0 RP - Duffey = 1.50 RP - May = 2.50 RP - Littell = .6 RP - Stashak = .6 RP - Smeltzer = .6 RP - Dobnak/Thorpe = .6 RP - Graterol = .6 Pitcher Total = 62.60 Team Total = 130.8M This is a twist on mk's plan, not my own.

Polanco is not a championship SS? Hmmm? Derek Jeter, he is not. However, Jorge Polanco is a player. He takes great at bats and makes most of the plays. Sure he misses Mauer at 1B, but he is young and improving in all facets of his game. Polanco is probably the least concern of Twin's management. I would prefer Greg Gagne at shortstop but he is retired. I'll take Polanco for my team any time.

Pineda should not be a priority until Spring Training, so agree with the above post. Even though the cost and potential risk may be high, the Twins need to work hard to sign two pitchers worth signing. Wheeler for 5/100 and Bumgarner for 4/80 are my choices. This gives the Twins some time to develop pitchers like Duran and Balazovic or others. The cost might be high but with their need for starting pitching the team needs to buy time for the future while settling the present.

Yes, as a candidate for the 5th spot in the rotation or similar to the plan for Perez last season. No, to giving up a prospect as good as Rooker but ok with someone lower. The Orioles are looking to unload those who were part of their losing season, especially those who cost money, i.e. Villar.

It's always interesting to read these thoughts to predict/arrange the Twins 2020 roster. This post, like others, makes some suggestions that seem possible and concentrates on keeping the team largely intact from last year. Everyone agrees that pitching is needed. This post suggests a Pomeranz signing and poof, that's gone. I appreciate the writer's post. I hope the Twins act on their needs soon. There is room to sign two good free agent pitchers and hold onto Rosario and Duran. I would not have Cron back for more than $5.0 million. I'm afraid that Castro will get more money but Alex Avila might be available. Thanks for sharing your ideas.

"Don't want his bad habits ..." Wow! Harsh. To the post ... spring training will sort out Raley, Rooker, Cave, and Wade. This does depend on trades, although each of the above are filler (albeit useful) at this point. My guess is Rooker based on time spent at AAA and readiness, despite the Ks. Whatever, the Twins need pitching.

Wheeler is available for a draft choice as are a few other decent pitchers this winter. The Twins are likely to see some regression from a couple players ( ? Garver, Cruz), but I think we can see a repeat for others ( ? Rosario, Kepler, Polanco) and improvements from Buxton and Gonzalez ( ? Cron ? ). This is a winter of decision. Trades sound good but it is hard to see why a team would give up on a controlled good starting pitcher. San Diego needs a CF. Would either team trade key combinations of players, such as Buxton-Paddock? Atlanta needs a 3B and C. Would Garver or Sano - Fried plus more work? Cincinnati needs a C and something for the farm. Would they part with Castillo for Garver? Do the Twins want to be moving so many chairs around? This is where it gets really complicated and why Wheeler (and others) are particularly attractive this winter. The Twins have the money this year.

re: "Nelson Cruz says hi. Jorge Polanco says hi. Mitch Garver says hi." Oh, I wholeheartedly agree about how good Cruz, Polanco, and Garver were last summer. I would even add Kepler, Arraez, and the apparently increasingly unpopular Rosario to the list. I try to never miss an at bat by Buxton because he could do just about anything. Agree that a healthy lineup would yield different results. I especially felt bad for how banged up Kepler appeared. I only meant to advance the idea that Sano could conceivably put together a spectacular year in 2020 if he keeps working on his flexibility and improves in his concentration. He is a big dude in the mold of Frank Howard, Frank Thomas, or Aaron Judge to mention a few non-Twins.

The post season was humbling for the Twins, including Sano. Baseball is about moving beyond failure and striving to improve. Sano got a taste again, the taste he had when he first arrived before the troubles. He is the only Twin I would not want to pitch to when he is focused and I have to believe that sentiment is felt across MLB. Sconnie brings up a critical point. A year removed from the stress of pushing himself just to get fully healed is past. This winter Sano will be taking care of himself and increasing his strength and mobility while looking to improve on his focus from one at bat to another. I want to see him stay at 3B and get a little quicker with his feet and his glove, but he doesn't need to be above average to be a huge asset. It's easy to catch yourself leaning forward when Sano comes to bat and that says plenty.

Arraez was an exciting player for the Twins last summer. Can he get better? There are institutes, trainers and coaches who assess and advise the players on strategies for improvement: running, fielding, strength, swing and so on. I have no real idea what Arraez is like intellectually or otherwise, but he is on a minimum salary and we can believe that his motivation to succeed received a major boost of confidence with his results in 2019. Confidence and motivation with specific attention to details intended towards future improvement and further success are certainly a daily focus of Arraez in this off season as he looks to 2020. He strikes me as determined.

Thing is, Syndergaard is not available per Mets GM. As far as i am concerned Wheeler can be a #4. Bumgarner, Berrios, Odorizzi, Wheeler, and Graterol/Dobnak. As far as trades go, I cannot see teams trading Luis Castillo, Chris Paddock, Max Fried or other top controllable pitchers. Does anyone think San Diego gives up Paddock for Buxton? Do we want to trade Buxton? Sign a couple of pitchers, the money is there.

If the Twins can sign Wheeler today for 5/89, they should definitely do it. Yes he could only be a number three, but with Bumgarner available at 4/80, that's fine. In three years someone like Graterol or Duran or Balazovic or someone else could rise up or better yet all three. If the Twins don't act this winter they will be looking back regretfully.

The consensus seems to be to trade money for pitching. There should be around $40-45 million available - so some combination of Cole plus a cheap alternative (J. Teheran) or two of Wheeler/Bumgarner/Ryu. There's your trade.

Perhaps a major thought in deciding how high to go for Wheeler, Bumgarner, or another pitcher is to focus on the current core of the Twins and what is a reasonable budget. If the Twins want to keep the core together and just add a few pieces then there needs to be room in the Budget for $130-$140. If we are restricted to less, then the Twins need to complete some very creative trades. For simplicity, adding Wheeler for 5/100 and Bumgarner for 4/80 works. This expenditure would bring the team to the mid 130s. Personally, I wonder if $140 is in play.