Doctor Gast

Mike was a great man & had great knowledge to evaluate. He'll be missed

Not a big fan of Law, IMO his Balazovik ranking is way too high & Raya way too low. I like Raya composure but I wouldn't have ranked him as high as TD. This year I could be a big believer.

With SBs that Julien is able accumulate and that he's not fast, I'm assuming that he's quick & has a good read. He's played 2B practically the entire '22 season & still they wonder if he can stick there. Although I'm not against him playing more 2B at AAA, I believe his MLB position is 1B/ DH. I love his bat, the fact that he stays healthy and years of control. So I'd like to keep this one.

"a certain reliever melting down several times in close games against a division rival lingers in memory more starkly than, say, the offense that couldn't build a sufficient lead, or the starter who couldn't go deep enough to prevent that scenario." We started the season with a weak rotation of 2 rookies, an unconditioned vet, a weak arm vet, still rehabilitating vet & a broken arm with a horrific BP of unproven arms. And Baldelli's TB formula of heavy dependence on short relief. That's a recipe for disaster. Of course the BP blew up and of course the SP couldn't take up the slack. From the beginning, a person should have seen that we needed regular long relief to take up the slack. That wasn't done & that contributed to the inefficiency, injuries and loses. This season our rotation is much stronger especially with a normal ST & our BP is much deeper, which is conductive to Baldelli type of coaching But as Nick mentioned that there are questions. I have my doubts like how efficient & how long Maeda will be able to pitch, how Alcala will come back and there is the unexpected injuries. Even though it's imperative that we have long relief to cover any extra innings so not to overtask our short RPs & SP.

Or from Jack Morris in game 7 of the '91 WS. Not going to happen.

It's easy to be excited about this OF depth. With such abundance of OFers, you can't help but think some where during the season someone will be moved. After Celestino get his adequate time in AAA, he should be a very capable OFer.

There's no mention of Farmer's defensive #s, if Miranda doesn't improve enough at 3B, Farmer will take over there. Polanco played out of position at SS and his ankles suffered it for it. '21 was his 1st year away from SS & stress on his ankles. '22 Polanco played hurt for most of the season. 1st his back, he was rested & recovered later his knee, they played him hurt until he could no longer take the field. It was obvious that Polanco was playing well below 100%. '23 if not allowed to play hurt, IMO will continue to progress at his short time of doing so at 2B. Season Team Level Pos Inn rSZ rCERA rSB rGDP rARM rGFP rPM DRS ARM DPR RngR ErrR UZR UZR/150 FRM OAA RAA 2016 MIN MLB 2B 43.0 0 0 -1 -1 0.1 0.3 -0.5 -0.1 -4.7 0 0 2021 MIN MLB 2B 971.1 1 -1 3 3 0.2 0.4 -4.0 -3.4 -10.5 -1 -1 IMO Correa was bored with the Twins massive shift. The shift ban we'll see a different Correa (for the better). With addition of Lewis our INF depth vastly improve. So I have a better perspective of our INF.

Indeed very encouraging after all the negative hype that was out there that there was no hope for him more than likely his career was over after the surgery. His trade value crashed. Like all negative hype it wasn't base on facts. This fact about Gibson's same surgery gives us more certainty about Kiriloff future.

Farmer is better in the INF than OF, right now we don't have enough RH bats to cover both INF & OF when facing LHPs. If you're desperate to fill the OF with RH bats you can always call up Garlic & or Celestino. It'd be nice if we had a LH bat to platoon at SS & 3B, Gordon isn't the answer & Lee isn't ready. After Lewis is called up then I can see putting Farmer in the OF.

We were able to better NYY & everyone else so right there it's hard to minimize that even with the juiced ball. In my eyes we had the best rotation in MLB the 1st couple of months of the '19 season, maybe we did. It was great to see each SP getting psyched by each other's performance. Parker & Hildenberger were unbelievable until they were over used & the BP blew up. More were required from their rotation especially RP turned SP Perez & colitis ridden Gibson. They were overburdened, although they stayed off the IL they never recovered. Berrios pitched 200.1 innings, Perez pitched 165.1 & Gibson pitched 160.0. Coming into the play-offs our rotation was totally shot where we had to depend on Dobnak. IMO our BP blow ups has been the key to our failure in the PS or even to get there for many years. Also one bad thing that came out of the '19 Bomba Squad is that we adapted post "juice ball" era the game plan of only "hit HRs" that's it. And focus on hitting was to hit HRs & forget about the fundamentals.

Indeed both will be very valuable. But with a logjam of corner OFers, Farmer should be limited to the INF where we are hurting at the moment. And Gordon should be limited in the OF.

It'd be nice to have Kirloff back & at 1B. But if he delays to make it back it's not the end of the world either. We have a lot of players with experience there where their bats will play in the line-up (many you mentioned). Arraez came up from AA, Julien completed AA, a good ST he could be ready to jump into the 1B position if need be.

Great article Lou. Love the fact that'll we have a normal ST. And agree with you that farther away from '20 covid better these SPs will pitch. Ace has been a pretty high standard for me. Being able pitch 6+ high quality of innings, game after game year after year. A pitcher when he pitches you believe he'd win the game for you. We are at the point of need maybe to change the definition of "ace". Teams are more concerned about the quality of innings pitched instead of quantity. SPs aren't able or not allowed to pitch complete games. The game is no longer so dependent on the SP to solely win the game. SP is decreasingly in importance & the BP increasing. Ace could mean a SP when he pitches he gives us a chance to win on a regular basis against any team (here again a win is also dependent on how well the BP pitches) for years. Gray could be that guy but so could Lopez, Ryan or Mahle.

I'm talking about fixing NYYs problem players that come here specifically Sanchez type. Sanchez was supposed to really turn it around here but he hit worse. Players you mentioned weren't that bad in NY. Sonny Gray was fixed in CIN before he got here. Gallo has been working very closely with Popkin. This will be a good test for Popkin.

I really like SWR demeaner, On paper he doesn't look that great but he gets the job done. Have high hopes for him.

Pretty right on, that'll reflect the strength of the teams. The division championship could go go either way between MN & CLE. But my money is on MN.

It's weird that Lopez's home/ away splits were as bad as they were in MIA. Wish he feels very comfortable at Target Field, where he kills it at home.

I get the hype & the Twins desperate need for a in house, front-line SP. But until he actually takes the pro mound & produce, I wouldn't rank him this high.

Polanco is by far our best available 2B. Farmer is a good short term sub at 2B but he our insurance, could be needed more at the other positions. If managed correctly Polanco will stay healthy & produce well for the Twins. Yet independently what Polanco does, his future (because of the addition of Correa) is now dependent on how soon Lewis is able to take over 2B. IMO they don't want to rush Martin or Lee & put them on the 40 man. Gordon & Julien are a poor substitutes. So Lewis could be ready by deadline if not '24. I agree with Cody Christie's article that Polanco is underrated & under appreciated especially now with Arraez remorse.

I don't think that your "bad" will be that bad at all. And your "ugly" isn't going to be that bad. I feel pretty good about this team. Most of the time a game is lost in the mind before the game is even played. IMO we are a better team than NYY, I want our team come out of ST with a winning attitude, believing what they are capable of doing. HOU will be a challenge hope they'll be mentally ready as well as physically. Go Twins!

You could be right but I wouldn't limit Cruz, I believe he could still hit 30 HR if given a chance. But at SD or even here he'll only be a part time DH. One day injuries may come, Cruz will be the 1st to know his limitations & when to quit.

Gotta love his speed & hitting. I really don't think he'll stick at SS. But as you said "Jose Salas, is a switch-hitting infielder with a lot of speed and a quality throwing arm that works well at any position he plays." 2B & 3B we're pretty deep, His speed works pretty well in the OF, I guess you can't have enough CF depth. We have right now Buxton, Celestino & Gordon. I won't bet that E Rod will stick there. But here's a thought, we are pretty set at INF & OF but we are hurting a lot catching. He comes from long line of MLB catchers & his brother is projected to be an elite MLB catcher. You hate to lose that speed aspect of his game but catching has to be in his blood. He should easily transition to catching, not to keep playing him there but just enough for him to have a feel there. If he does fill out, slow down & gain some power, where he no longer is profiled at CF, he can transition right into catching & excel. P.S. there's a reason why he chose INF over catching so management has to be sensitive to that. IMO Martin, Salas & Wallner are very equal, they have a lot of potential to be very good MLB players. I'd place Martin 1st of this trio because he's more advanced, (I believe he'd be even more advanced if he had played more OF, etc). And even though Wallner has a lot of raw talent in speed, arm & power & could have the greatest ceiling. Yet I'd place him behind these two because he needs a lot more time to gain instinct & develop those raw talents to realize that ceiling. Otherwise he'll be a so so RF/ DH. I'd think that those skills should have been imputed in him by now, but some take longer that others. Hopefully those development will eventually come.

I like Ryan very much, pretty much coming to MN as MiLB player. That came & showed us that he's a true MLB SP. He has that great FB and he's working on his slider. He'll continue to work on his secondary pitches & maybe Lopez can show him how to throw his CU. Then we'll have another Johan Santana on our hands, we can only dream. It's really great trading with teams like TB, MIA, LAD & CLE for SPs because they can afford to lose a trade & still come out ahead with so many great SPs coming up. This FO is great at selling at the deadline. I only wished they were more aggressive in their dealings with PIT, Reds & OAK when they were motivated to sell off their top of the rotation pieces. Although I've always loved the Ryan/ Cruz trade yet I really don't believe Cruz is washed up. The time Cruz left MN he was having eye problems. Also many players have floundered with the Twins, left & went onto to greatness. Yet there are other that had prospered here, left & floundered. I believe part of that is finding a key in different team that unlocks the untapped potential and also it's chemistry. A player that flounders after leaving MN isn't always because MN was lucky & got rid of a player at the right time. Sometimes it's because the chemistry isn't the same or a player had given their heart to MN & never recovered. I felt the chemistry with Cruz, the day I heard he was coming here. His time here was magical to the time he left. I wouldn't look at the stats and then his age & come to the conclusion he's done. I'd look at the underlying conditions & see that his eye problem is solved and that he takes good care of himself, if he'd return to MN the magic would return. Although I know that it'd be great to see him break many of his records in a Twins uniform. I also know we have a plethora of candidates that'd benefit from having time at DH. I wish Cruz well at SD. Even if Cruz won't make it back as a player, I wish he'd make it back as a coach & bring back that magic.

On paper Polanco always looks good in the line up. That's all they look at.

Moving Miranda to his MiLB position just opens up more opportunity to keep Miranda's bat in the line-up. I hope Miranda will work out at 3B but if not we have a very capable Farmer to take over & we try to fit him in at 1B or DH, which limits him as far his ABs.