Finlander

Full disclosure, I haven't read all 260+ posts, but I'll jump in anyway. I don't believe Bader is a wasted roster spot at all. He fits a current need just fine. He has a gold glove as a legitimate center fielder. He's had around 18-20 steals in each of the last 3 years. He has a little pop. And he swings right handed - thank goodness. I'm not worried about his nosedive last year. Many of the Twins also struggled to maintain Mendoza-line output in their own second halves. Now hopefully all the howling about needing a rightie bat in the OF will quiet down and other needs can be pursued. If he plays well, and one of the minor league studs becomes ready to be called up, Bader can always be moved for a prospect mid-season. I like the idea of having his steady glove available on the bench come playoff time though. I like that he can play a solid CF if Bux is given some DH duties on occasion. Other teams will value him too if we choose to move him. Solid unspectacular move in my opinion. He'll be useful.

I don't get games on internet/streaming. I'll either listen to a game on radio, or I'll watch the occasional game if I drive into town and hit a local establishment that carries the broadcast. Over the decades, much of the loyal Twins fan base has resided in outlying rural areas. These are the same areas that support the town baseball teams who would barnstorm the area in fun summer leagues. It's real baseball. No gimmicks or clown uniforms. The constant rule changes are puzzling. Extra inning runner on second is blasphemous to the game in my opinion. I guess they're changing the game to sling more product on commercials or to appeal to the video age fans that need constant sensory overload. Recently, I had the opportunity to watch PBA bowling for the first time in years. Wait, what?!? It's not even bowling. They quickly haul the ball to the line and fling it with two hands like throwing a bag of feed into the back of a truck. And the outfits, and the WWE "in your face" attitudes. If baseball is headed in this direction in order to be more entertaining, heaven help us. Draft and develop talent. Teach and utilize fundamentals. And win. That should be all it takes. And enjoy some of the unique personalities along the way too (Mark Fidrych, Bill Lee, Al Hraboski, Billy Martin, etc). One suggestion about trying to level the talent field a little. I know there is a tiered tax system in place for certain team payroll thresholds. Maybe some draft pick losses could be added too. I'm not advocating for taking money from the players - but merely to see the first 3 rounds (if 3 thresholds) or so of draft talent spread out more amongst the teams that can't afford a $300M payroll. My two cents on a Monday before the coffee kicks in.

No. Sorry - useless acquisition for what the team seems to need, for all the reasons in previous posts. Maybe the plan is to run with what we have for now, while a sale is worked out. Maybe Falvey has some trade templates in place with other teams for discussion at a later date, after the team sale is locked and there is more clarity on any potential payroll adjustments. I hope. But I'm flashing back to Jim Carrey in Dumb & Dumber: "So you're saying there's still a chance?!?"

Why? An argument could be made that adding an underpriced Cy Young caliber SP to the 2025 rotation could enhance the sale, not jeopardize it. A new owner would be licking their chops at the potential of that rotation in the playoffs in their first year of ownership.

I'm not fond of any of the 3 choices. Brandon's post describes exactly what I've proposed in other TD posts. SD will want a MLB SP back, and they really need a LF. They've already shown interest in Vasquez. I also had included a variation of Vasquez/Larnach/SWR to add a lottery ticket to obtain a backup catcher (Maldonado?) to protect Jeffers. Rosario comp for Keashall seems off. My comp is closer to Brian Dozier. Solid pop and speed, maybe a better eye, and adequate enough to man 2B. I'd hope he impresses in spring training to push Julien, Miranda and Lee. I don't like dealing him. And he doesn't seem to be a fit for SD anyway, unless Preller flips him. They really need OF help, and we have a few on the way. Cease has earned some CY votes in recent years. Numbers are consistent. And he hasn't missed a start in 4 years. It's a rare opportunity to have a SP like this available (I think at a salary lower than Luis Arraez'), and we'll have to compete with offers from other suitors. Makes sense to put an offer together that has affordable talent (i.e., SD says no to Paddack), meets positional needs of SD, with Twins departures able to be backfilled. In the case of Larnach and SWR, I believe MN is okay. Vasquez replacement will need some careful consideration. MLB shredder calls Cease the 9th best SP in baseball. His 2025 salary is 10-15M less than his AAV will be going forward. Twins have the most talent in the division, and absolutely should be expecting some playoff games. Make a run at Cease for one year, extend the QO and take the comp pick for 2026.

Invest in established, talented, hopefully healthy pitching, especially when the window is still open. We've seen what bargain bin/rehab cases do. And we saw what happened for the last month or two of last season. New ownership will not be frightened off by having a short term ace added to the roster - bodes well for making any kind of playoff run. Recall, Twins were a playoff shoo-in up until mid to late August, when the wheels came off. Losing SP Ryan to injury contributed to that. Pitching can be flipped for the right position bat as needed. We have a strong farm, perhaps positionally lopsided a little bit, but plenty of talent. They won't all make it. We also have a competitive balance pick this year. If we get Cease, and he walks after 2025, we'll get another pick in 2026. What's not to like? Give SD Vasquez, Larnach, SWR and a lottery ticket, grab Cease plus a decent prospect, and ride the train.

I believe SD needs a left fielder, and we have Emma almost ready to come up - that's why I suggested Larnach. Castro/Martin/FA Canha could keep LF spot warm until Emma arrives.

Cease is a legit ace - they don't become available often. Check his last 4 years. The fact that SD would actually be interested in Vasquez should get the Twins' attention too. We could always get old recently signed Maldonado back from SD if we're concerned about catching depth. Wouldn't hesitate to do some sort of deal around maybe a Vasquez/Larnach/high lottery ticket/competitive balance draft pick type package for Cease/Maldonado/low prospect. Count on Emma to replace Larnach's role soon, and try hard to sign Cease using the deferred money trick that the Dodgers seem to have perfected. That competitive balance draft slot should be a nice chip to sweeten a deal and help protect our best prospects.

If he looks good in the spring, I'd run him out there as a 5th SP/pen/swing type for a couple months. This provides a little more development time for Festa, Zebby et al, and hopefully increases his value for a trade at or before the deadline, when the kid pitchers are ready.

Hmm. Kaat won 7 consecutive starts in September of '67. I think he threw around 63 innings at a 1.57 ERA clip. He also logged a strikeout an inning, notable in that Kaat wasn't a classic strikeout artist. I'm not sure which pitchers, Joe Horlen included, matched the full month of work that Kaat produced. Horlen had three shutouts in September, including a no-hitter, but he lost some too if I recall. Granted, he had a superior year overall. But for September alone, it was Kaat by some distance.

Kaat was the best pitcher on the planet in September 1967. That string of starts was unreal. Just a few too many innings. That team was championship bound. I still get a little riled up when I see Mike Yastrzemski's name in a box score. Twins had a slugging CF named Jimmie Hall. He'd set an AL record for homeruns by a rookie with 33 in 1963. In late May of the following year he got hit in the face by a pitch. He was subsequently skittish at facing LH pitchers. His numbers tailed a bit - he still had 20 HRs or so and had a reasonable BA for a couple years, but his struggles against lefties saw him become a platoon player bouncing to various teams, and he was out of baseball after an 8 year career. The team was still pretty darn strong in the mid-60s, but I always wondered if the Twins could have won another pennant back then if Hall hadn't been beaned. Killebrew, Hall, and Allison were an impressive hitting set of outfielders.

It won't top Morneau's misfortune, but I remember pitcher Jim Kaat being injured (ALSO sliding into second base!) after having a nice couple of months to start the 1972 season. I think he pitched another couple of innings afterwards and got the win, before the pain kicked in and it was found that he had a broken arm. He was 10-2 with around a 2.00 ERA or so, his best start to a season in his career. But the injury ended his season and likely contributed to what became his most ineffective season the following year, 1973. Calvin Griffith then dumped him, thinking he was done, after which he had two consecutive 20 win seasons with the White Sox in 1974 and 1975. Without the injury on July 2, Kaat was a good bet for 20+ wins in 1972 and probably doesn't have the 1973 struggles that prompted his release.

Maybe these 1B candidates are meant to push Miranda. I'd wager that Miranda wins the position. He has the bat and the build for it. He needs reps with footwork and with scooping the one-hop throws. And I'm not sure what the platooning discussions are about, given that he hits righties just fine. Health is key - just as it is with all of the other players. Ford is motivation for Miranda, but ultimately depth/DFA candidate in my opinion.

Ebenezer strikes again. A Luke Voit MiLB signing instead may have gotten my attention. Only a little bit more. At least he was the AL homerun champ in 2020. Last I heard, he was playing in Mexico, not sure if he's healthy after foot and back injuries, plus being hit in the face by a pitch.

Reading the line "..parting ways with the hurler and his $1.8 million dollar price tag..." transported me back to about 1979. How depressing! It doesn't seem that long ago that we signed FA Correa, extended Buxton, and traded for and extended would-be ace Lopez. And now we're sweating bullets about $1.8M. Calvin is laughing.

Stones tune has to be "Sad Sad Sad" off the Steel Wheels album! : ) It does seem a strange trade, given the lack of lefty pitchers in the system. My optimistic view is that maybe Prielipp is not far from being in the picture. And at least the Mickey bat looks more useful than the launch angle strikeout kings the Twins have been obsessed with in recent years. Happy holidays!

Sorry, I meant Duran + Vasquez with an prospect or two for the Boston deal. There have been catchers signed recently - they're out there. I just saw Sam Huff let go by Texas as an example. I think he's a bat first guy, and I'm not sure of his health. But I know he's young with some power.

I don't think Casas is necessarily an upgrade at 1b. I certainly wouldn't give up Lopez in a deal. Boston has just signed Walker Buehler, so they may be set for starting pitching anyway. I'd target Marcelo Mayer instead to cover Correa's eventual move to 3b. But he'd cost quite a bit. Wonder what they'd say to a Duran + Vasquez offer. Alcantara - yes. That's a nice target. Three years of control is rare for a talent like that and probably spendy in prospect capital, even coming off TJS. I don't think Miami would accept a prospect package unless it included at least one quality young pitcher coming back along with 2-3 hitters, But I'd be all for that. Maybe they'd have a good catcher in the low minors to throw in. And yes, unfortunately Verlander and Schertzer would have no interest in coming here. My wild take: I'd keep Paddack and use him, at least until around the summer trade deadline. I see nothing written advocating that, and I wonder why. Everyone wants to dump his salary. But guess what - if he's effective, it's not a bad deal, and he could fetch a bit in a mid-season trade.

"With Minnesota looking to trim payroll after a disappointing 2024 season..." Hmm. Cutting payroll was a prime contributor to the disappointing 2024.

His OPS was around .850 or so in 2023 (slugged .469). He was clearly affected by the bad thumb last year but still managed to win another batting title. I wouldn't dismiss him as a singles hitter. Now that his thumb is fixed, I look for him to at least split the difference between his last two seasons. That plays fine in many lineups. He can hold his own on the right side of the infield, and his contact magic can intimidate a pitcher as much as a 3-outcome brute. He fits in San Diego, but I'd love to see him in Anaheim with guys like Trout and Soler behind him in the lineup.

Horrible idea. How many asterisks do we need added to career stats and record books? Maybe what baseball needs is Billy Martin. He'd have his pitcher drill a "golden batter". Now that would be entertaining.

It's strange how so many "bat first" players need to be platooned. I remember looking up and down the box score stats last year and seeing many of the players' BA hugging .200-.220 and OBA below .300 or so. Ouch. Agreed, plus having two marginal defenders in the corner OF positions puts much pressure on the CF to cover even more. Our guy in center is elite but can't stay on the field. I'd argue we need some defensive improvement at one of the corners to relieve some of the pressure at CF. Kepler's defense served that role last year. I think Wallner has more defensive development available - he can run a bit, has a great arm, and stays healthy. With Larnach, I think what you see is what you get at this point, and he's often an injury guy. He seems to be a candidate to eventually transition to 1B or DH.

I think one is moved - but which one? Depends on the offers. There are more lefty swinging OFs on the way, some with potentially higher ceilings. If I had to pick one to keep, I'd probably go with Wallner, hoping to see his arm used off the mound in mop up duty!

Ok, please reward me with a thumbs-down for my earlier post. I wasn't aware that Boston's 40 man was full! And I do agree with another poster commenting on the relative dearth of talent on this year's protection list. I just hope that many other teams cut more talented players than we do.

I'd expect some 2-for-1 or 3-for-1 type deal have been discussed in order to open up more protection slots. Hopefully the 40 man looks a little different soon (maybe trading Vasquez with an arm and a middle IF for Teel for instance). Boston has some money to spend and they're one team that could absorb Vasquez. I wasn't familiar before with MacLeod. I like what I saw in the short clip. His delivery might be part of what makes him an effective strikeout pitcher, and we all know about the shortage of lefties in the system. But I wondered if he enjoys similar results out of the stretch. He'd be my "maybe" addition to the protection list. Talented Holland is a tough call with the leg and his age. Good trade candidate to me. Cardenas is a reminder of how thin we are at catching prospects in the system. Guess we need to keep him - he can field the position, but he is Jerry Zimmerman with the bat. I'm good with the rest of the proposed list. It'll be fun to see the departures and additions.