Doctor Gast

BP should turn around 100%. Alcala should be a tremendous help hopefully after his year absence. Our biggest short term hole is SS, hopefully that gets resolved. 2nd biggest short term & long term hole is catching, hopefully that gets resolved adequately. I see the rotation, offense, defense and especially the BP are more than adequate if they are managed properly. But additions can't hurt. I project Buxton as playing in more games. IMO SS can be simply addressed even if we don't sign CC. Hopefully catching at least short term can be adequately addressed. At this point I'm still optimistic but I'm waiting to see what happens with SS & catching.

There was a lot of negative hype over Buxton not wanting to return. That was the farthest from the truth. The problem wasn't because of base pay or incentives it was that Buxton wanted a no-trade clause, where FO didn't. I'm very thankful that Pohlad stepped in & said get it done. Buxton is an absolute bargain as a player & as a person. Thanks Ted for bringing this out in a very practical way.

IDT any of these trade offers wouldn't get it done although they're close. And at the same time, I'd hate to lose Lewis, SWR, Festa or Miller because they have a ton of accumulative upside. IMO none of these teams wouldn't be willing let their star SP or RP go w/o them getting exactly what they want in a trade. We need to pay a premium to wrist Hendricks away from CWS. All these team are teams that are looking to compete, so they aren't looking for prospects. They are looking for MLB ready ball players that can actively help their team right now. My choice is Marquez. Marquez has always been a work horse rarely missing a start (a quality that MN desperately need). Marquez has been looked at as a premiere SP that has been handicapped with pitching at Coors field & against very tough division. This year has especially been a very trying one for Marquez. Marquez admits his problem this year had been lack of concentration. I'd dare to speculate that his lack of concentration could be from his handicap & lack of recognition is finally getting to him. I suggest that a change of scenery would be good for both Marquez & Kepler. I believe Coors field would be ideal for Kepler both offensively (especially with the shift ban) & defensively. He could jump start his career much like Morneau & Cuddyer had done there. Marquez getting away from Coors field & that division together with the Twins facilities & coaching. he could extremely thrive & break out. CO is infamously known of paying premium for their players. Yes Marquez isn't cheap but he'd get much more on the open market. He's well worth it and is part of the reason why his trade value is so low. With a Kepler/ Marquez trade FO could ask for a slight kick back. We could afford him even if we do sign Correa. There's many reasons why I like this trade. #1 it benefits all parties involved. #2 We can upgrade our rotation (Maeda & Ober has yet proved they can pitch the desired innings demanded). #3 We don't need to use Arraez. I could go on but I'll stop here

I believe that meeting with Swanson could be more than just a negotiating maneuver. I also believe there is much more than the 4 teams that you mentioned. I also believe that MN isn't on his list of places he wants to go. MN is hot to sign Correa because what he brings to the table and his rapport with Twins. Swanson doesn't have this. Should MN enter the bidding war for Swanson if Correa doesn't sign with us & sign him to a big contract? My vote is no. Personally I believe Swanson will sign before Correa anyway.

I understand where you are coming from, I suppose you are stating that Roger wasn't a true proven closer because he couldn't close back to back games. I agree that because of this fault he wasn't elite. But in his games that he close within his profile IMO he was very proven. And always believed he was and would have been very useful when used in that role with us. Yes it'll be very interesting to see what happens. To see where pieces fall.

Here again I'll state that NYY rumor is just wishful thinking on Correa part because he more than likely wants to be on a contending team (and big bucks). And the 3 teams that are bidding on him didn't make the play-offs last season & haven't done anything this off season. Everything being equal, MN has a slight edge because their history. If SF loses the Rodon bid & Cubs loses out on Swanson, which there is good chance they will. Then MN doesn't have much of a chance.

FO last year promised Correa that they were making the team competitive & then they turn around & traded away our only proven closer. now I believe CC wants to make sure they are actually something to make the team competitive. This is where I believe Arraez/ SPing rumors originated from (I wish he had planted a need for present & beyond catching bug) .

I'd sooner use Arraez differently, but I can see the reasoning behind trading Arraez + someone else for Lopez.

I agree with Tom, that NYY rumor is a bunch of Boras smoke. All this delay is trying to milk the teams, just like Swanson is a counter move. It's getting tiring, a day of recognings I hope will soon come.

I'll say injuries won't play as much of a negative factor this year in Larnach, Kiriloff & Lewis (if they manage him right) performance and they all have great seasons. I'm expecting good improvement with Mirand's defense. My optimism on this season's health statis goes beyond hopefully better health management because of a new medical trainer. I just think we're not going have as much bad luck. Jax was pretty good last season and I think he could be better. But break out? I'm not willing to bet on it.

Let sleeping lions lie. as far as our competition goes. Watching our camp is kind of boring

IDK if Arraez has peaked or not. I think he could have done much better if he was rested regularly the 2nd half. The reason for trading Arraez isn't wether he has peaked or not, it's because of #1 his trade value. Arraez trade value peaked 2 yrs ago and has steadily fallen since. His trade value has jumped some due to positive hype, his trade value right now will never be this high again. #2 Arraez is a one dimensional player which can be easily replaced by a multi-tool player. #3 We have deeper needs that need to be filled, He could be better utilized as trade bait to help fill those needs. Arraez has many good years a head of him, if managed correctly I see him winning a few more batting titles. And I wouldn't trade him for just anyone but if there's a good deal, then yeah.

Thanks Otto. Great memory!

"It’s not always wise to judge fan morale from social media" My impression is people can be very influenced with positive & negative hype through social media. I agree that there a lot of people are down on the Twins but the reasons why? are wide ranged & very different. My take right now is that Correa never really wanted to go to LAD because of the constant slack he'd (and his family) get from the fans. If he went to SD or SF he'd get the slack at least when he plays LAD. I believe he really wants to play in MN and he's using these team to milk MN as much as possible for as long as possible. If it's close he'd go to MN. I'd still say if we offer a heavy incentive based high end contract close what Judge signed. IMO the players don't really need the $100MMs , it's more of a the pride of recognition of worth. They said that no elite MLB player would ever take a heavy incentive based salary. They said the same thing about Buxton and that he didn't want to stay in MN. If Correa really wants to stay, he may take it. If not, we can't afford him and then go to our other options. SF is still a threat, if the Cubs really wants Correa they could be our greater threat.

If there is a good deal like Kepler/ Marquez, then I'd do it. But if not I'd hold onto him.

It's good have data to comfirm what your gut is telling you so you can better understand what's going on. Cold dry stats aren't enough and players aren't robots. They are human beings that respond to interaction. And the study of personalites traits are important in forming a better team. Although Sonny Gray is a verbal encourager he seems to me as more of an introvert. Totally agree with you that what Correa brings to the table is much more than his stats show. This philosophy needs not only be restricted to the club house but also in the coaching. To add to what everybody is saying, I think mutual respect needs to be incorporated along with everything. Mutual respect can transends the race, age, origin barrier.

Nimmo has signed, so I expect trade talks for Reynolds will start to heat up soon. Toronto desperately needs a switch (LH) hitter in CF, Reynolds fit that bill very nicely. So why am I interested in TOR's well being? I have an alternative motive. The best TOR trading chip is catching but PIT has 2 elite catching prospects. Davis their former top prospect and Rodriguez a fast rising star that leap frogged Davis for top prospect. That's where MN comes in. Twins should coordinate a 3 way trade. MN desperately need depth & a near future catcher, Endy Rodriguez (PIT) fits our need perfectly. This leaves an opportunity for PIT to upgrade at catcher with many years of availibility for Moreno (TOR) who is ready to take on full-time MLB duties, which PIT really needs. This trade could cost us Arraez + a comp balance pick. Reynolds is clear he doesn't want to stay in PIT, his slight slump last season might be a result of that. PIT fans will balk at 1st about losing both Rodriguez & Reynolds but hopefully they'll see this could be their best solution. Flavey please check this out.

Sorry, since I got it from MLB Trade Rumors, I thought it'd belonged in the same category here. I'll make a note of that.

I wouldn't want our team to imitate SD. Spending money isn't the solution to all our problem. It's how we evaluate players, which effects our drafting, trading, promoting & signing FAs. It's ability to reconize our problems & resolve them. Also the ability to see our needs & the ability to evaluate players who fit those needs. Ability to pull of good trades to fill those needs. The ability to develop & coach those players. To be more efficient. I rather model teams like CLE & TB who are effecient, they are never far from competing. Once you are efficient then you can spend a little more if need be. To spend a little more on a player you'd like to keep, a FA that fits your needs, bring in a needed coach. You may say that's CLE & TB are low level but big shot LAD are doing the same thing but they are able to spend more. That's where I want to be, but maybe do it a little better.

I personally like to draft the most athletic prospect. With Dollander's profile he'll be ranked #1 & many teams like to draft pitchers. But if Dollander falls in our lap, I'd be ecstatic. He has a very good shot at being an ace. I'd probably keep an eye on Wes Johnson's Skenes but I'm not considering him our #1 yet.

I think you mean righties, because Jeffers has trouble with righties.

https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/ Unfortunately Bogaert is gone. That means we have to fight deep pockets SF & Cubs for Correa & many teams for Swanson. Let's see what happens? View full rumor

Narvaez's #s last season are an exception not the rule. His '21 #s are more inline to his avg, Split G GS PA AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB CS BB SO BA OBP SLG OPS TB GDP HBP SH SF IBB ROE BAbip tOPS+ sOPS+ vs RHP 120 373 325 48 94 19 0 10 42 0 0 37 68 .289 .365 .440 .805 143 11 5 0 6 3 1 .332 116 123

One of the biggest problem with Jeffers is that he can't hit RHPs, How does signing Vasquez help that? The only viable LH hitting catcher is Narvaez. Vasquez wants to be the main man, he doesn't want to share time with Jeffers. It only makes sense if you want to upgrade with Vasquez & trade Jeffers,