tony&rodney

There were a fair number of people who predicted the Twins to win the AL Central. Some on Twins Daily had the team over 90 wins, which is always possible until it isn't. I'm suggesting the Twins are an 85 win Wild Card possibility.

Vazquez was looking for a pitch to hit in the air. He took a pretty severe upper cut at a low pitch and took a pitch he wasn't going to do anything with and hoped would be off off the plate. From where Vazquez stands in the box he isn't going to find success swinging at that pitch too often.

Really like how Vazquez took the perfect pitch for strike three because if he swings it is a DP. Buck followed with a very good plate appearance. Little things add up.

Raya has had some good games. He has struggled with consistency. Have you been watching the games because Morris has been fairly decent all season with only a few glitches along the way. I have caught most of his games on milb.com. He just needs experience with sequencing. Prielipp and Hill have looked dominant at times but they will also need to prove themselves at a higher level before we get too crazy with projections. I'm hoping Prielipp moves to St. Paul by July.

The Twins are a below average team at the plate. They don't hit many home runs, doubles, or triples and do not run the bases much at all. The sacrifice bunt is not a thing for them. Patience/ drawing walks is below average and they do strike out. The Twins will need an infusion of talent via prospects or totally unexpected trades to change the dynamic of the roster. The lineup can best be seen as functional. The overall team defense is better than expected but still near or below average. Correa is exceptionally solid and Buxton makes all of the routine plays. France has been surprisingly competent at first base and Bader plays a good outfield. The gloves have been adequate on the whole. The Twins have benefitted from pretty consistently good pitching. Both starters and relievers are doing their jobs. The pitching staff is among the best in baseball. Teams rarely add catchers during the season unless the team is doing poorly and the pitchers are struggling. The ability to add a significant position player piece would almost certainly come at the cost of a major arm or two from the current staff, which would be counterproductive. If the Twins want to change the level of the play from their position players this will need to be done after the season. Is there anyone in management interested in changing? I'm not betting on that. The best chance for the Twins is to qualify for the playoffs as a wild card team and have their pitching staff carry them while hoping that simultaneously a couple of bats get smoking hot.

A significant trade would be a surprise under the current management and ownership group.

Twins are actually outperforming their talent more or less. Line up the Twins versus Detroit, Cleveland, and Kansas City position by position. Which players do you pick? The Twins are getting good pitching but if management pulls the starters at 80 pitches on a routine basis the bullpen is bound to hit the wall. Starter usually say they have good stuff 40% of the time, are just ok a little more than 40% of the time, and have to fight every inning on about 20% of the time. One should prbably expect the relievers to also face similar odds. In any event the Twins are capable of reaching the playoffs but will need some guys to step forward.

The bullpen has been asked to fill more and more innings. I guess conventional knowledge tells us that starting pitchers poop their beds after 100 pitches, but couldn't guys like Paddack, Ober, Ryan, and Matthews be allowed to throw 99 pitches? It might help long term. Or is that crazy? Once upon a time the manager would look to pull the starting pitcher after 120 pitches unless they were sailing free and clear. Then the number went to 110 more or less. Then 100 pitches became the load for starters. The Twins are getting ahead of the crowd by lifting their arms somewhere around 80 pitches. Does this have a residual effect long term on the fellows in the bullpen?

Players make mistakes and so do umpires. This is not new. The umpires did not have much of a role in the game. The Twins struggle with offense and have all year. They also do not use the speed or small ball game. It is what it is and Toronto was better tonight.

Wallner is still not going to hit against most decent LH pitching and will get pulled when a LH relief pitcher is on the mound. This alone restricts his star tool. Hope he does well though. He was a guy I wanted to move to Pittsburgh with Alcala and Tanner Schobel for Bubba Chandler.

The Athletics have some really good bats. It wasn't surprising to see them break out today. It happens and as we know 3 runs is not usually enough to win. Still not too worried about the pitching. Still worried about the team defense, speed, and the bats.

The success of the challenge system will totally depend on the individual personalities of the umpires. In the minor leagues when there a number of very close calls overturned by challenges and the team eventually loses their two challenges I have seen several times when the umpire goes south and there are multiple poor calls against the team out of challenges. I would suggest to just use the system or stay with things as they currently exist. If the goal is to get the balls and strikes called correctly, just use ABS on every pitch.

You may be correct but it is worth remembering that many people did not think Matthews was ready and that Lopez was merely a mid or back end rotation arm. Patience. That and a favorable strike zone.

September 14 - Pablo takes the ball at Target Field versus the Arizona Diamondbacks.

The authors need to be specific for who gets returned in any such trades ..... at least a speculation or two. To answer the question though - absolutely NO. Look at the better teams with San Diego as an example. Four or more shut down relief pitchers is a goal and needed to win in the MLB game today. Last night was an example of what the Twins can do with this current bullpen. Also, I'm not giving up on Alcala as a good bottom four guy in the pen.

While Falvey is a mystery to me, I'm actually believing him when he says the Twins have the team they need to play in 2025. I don't expect changes. France? 1B? Ty looks pretty good thus far. Where is the upgrade? Lewis at 3B? What are the odds the Twins give up on Royce? The number of suggestions to bring in a DH is surprising to me. currently the Twins are rostering quite a few fellows whose best position is DH.

Bats are awake .... .... and we can end all discussion about trading pitchers until the offseason returns.

Sure seemed like Ryan let his brain go for a walk to me too. I have watched the Athletics a couple of times and they have some really good bats. So Ryan looked like he toyed with the A's the first time through the order and then he started getting off of his plan. The result was too many pitches and good hitters can cause chaos. Ryan was a little lucky there wasn't more damage. The bullpen was fabulous picking up the last four innings.

The Twins should nab Tate Southisene with their #54 pick if he is still available. The physical tools and competitive mind is present from my view when I watched him play. He is more likely to be gone by the Twins 2nd Round pick though. For the first three picks I would hope that athleticism and bat to ball skills are paramount. Please no more Aaron Sabato types.

The Twins would likely have better luck trading one of Lopez, Ryan, or Ober for something significant and I'm not too sure how people feel about that idea. Perhaps Jarren Duran (LF) or Tyler Soderstrom (1B) can be pried away from their teams for one of the "core" pitchers. I'm not sure what value Paddack has to other teams. Would Arizona panic enough to give up Jordan Lawler (SS, 3B, 2B), who has not done well in brief MLB trials, or Adrian Del Castillo (C) for Paddack and and Alcala or a minor league pitcher? The Twins could use a bat but the odds of acquiring one are really slim. Perhaps the Twins current wood collection begins to perform in a steady fashion.

Lewis? Who knows. The ship has sailed on McCusker. He sat when all of Buxton, Wallner, Bader, and Castro were out or too injured to play. The Twins don't have any use for him based on how he was treated in his time on the MLB roster.

Denver is a good sports town. People love going to Rockies games.

I totally agree the Twins missed out last offseason but should hold for now. I have wondered if Boston would swap Duran for Ober. Duran is down a bit this season and has suffered with his mental health in the past do this is unlikely.

Diaz remains a viable offensive player and available so this suggestion is worth a look. What would TB want in return? Once again the Rays look like a formidable team with a pile of options in most positions along with good pitching. When Tampa Bay talks trade in their current situation they will look to hook a really strong prospect for their guy. I could see TB asking for K. Culpepper and Raya for Diaz. Falvey should shake his head side to side in that case.

The window for gamble trades was last November/December. There may not be any players available who carry healthy wood, Would the Twins play a prospect like Colby Mayo or be more likely to use him to pinch hit 3 times a week? Unless Boston or Arizona have some ideas that are mutually beneficial, I'm thinking the Twins are rolling with what they have. Falvey made more than a few statements that this team was what he envisioned and I don't see him making a change.