Doctor Gast

I've been a Julien fan but I never agreed with the Twins' determination of trying to hide Julien at 2B. He was best suited for 1B but they have kept him away from 1B. Last offseason I said if they aren't playing him at 1B they should trade him while his value was high. They should have but they were bound & determined to swap out Polanco. The league has the book out on him & took away his HR advantage. He tried to be more aggressive only to strike out more. He doesn't have to adapt, he has to reinvent himself much like what Larnach did with less power. I doubt that Julien can do that but if he can he'll never profile at 1B which he's best suited for. Julien is way down on the 2B pecking order. Ranking Lewis if they gave him a chance there, Lee, Martin & Castro ahead of him, not including Keaschal. They should have traded him this offseason while he still has some hype. But like any player they hand-picked, they'll give Julien every opportunity to show how bad he is. He won't have GG Santana to cover him which makes it that much easier. But to the detriment of the Twins.

You can expect to have soft-tissue injuries & run out of gas after coming off 2 ALC surgeries. As he becomes more conditioned through time we should see the real Royce Lewis. I imagine he knows his own body & what's best for it (along with professional help). IMO Correa, Buxton & Lewis are trending the right way & I expect to see better results on the field & look forward to cheering for them this season.

"The first point is largely unfounded, as analytics are here to stay, and lead to teams like the Rays and Guardians outperforming expectations year after year." Analytics is essential but weird philosophy they plug into it is garbage. Almost all teams have some form of analytics but what separates TB & CLE from the others is better player evaluation, development & having faith in work they put into their players to play them & let them develop on the MLB level. Last offseason, the focus was hit HRs no matter what, heck with SOs & fundamentals. They quickly changed their tune early in the season & Popovich did a good job of turning the ship around. The problem was with the philosophy the FO instilled not the hitting coaches. Another problem was confusion on the base paths. Instead of firing the hitting coaches, they should have fired the 3B coach (Watkins) & 1B coach (Conger). The change of focus to fundamentals over solely hitting HRs is super important & is drastic. Baldelli is right in having a heavy hand to right the mistakes of the past. It'll take time like learning anything new & we need to be patient. Like Baldelli needs to be finally patient with Miranda & some of the other players getting their feet wet. We are finally heading in the right direction, our success will be determined by how well we can execute.

We look good on paper, IMO Fangraph has figured in the injuries. Hopefully, injuries will have less of an impact, which should even help our chances. If we eliminate our biggest defensive problem (Julien) that should help our cause even more. If Miranda is left at 1B/ DH & kept away from 3B that will help us offensively along with if France finds himself. Last season SP depth was lacking which paid an early toll on Paddack then later Ryan on the IL. Simmy along with Festa & Matthews were over-stretched & put forth less than desired innings at the end but did not break. This season I expect a very strong Lopez, Ober & Ryan along with more seasoned rookies. Expect SWR & Paddack to start the season in the rotation but hope Festa & Matthews used a lot to spell them. The BP is ranked the best so we'll have to see. But reality normally doesn't agree with what's on paper. There are too many intangibles, like management, like keep on playing acquired veterans over & over again when they stink, leadership, chemistry etc. But I'm hopeful that young players like Miranda, Martin & Keirsey will take that extra step when called upon. With that I'm hopeful that management will end up making the right decisions & put forth the best team w/o bias to win the division & advance into the postseason.

"On Friday, Paddock went so far as to say he wants to make at least 35 starts and reach the 200-inning plateau." As I said it's ridiculous. It was ridiculous when the Twins stated last season that Paddack was the Gray replacement & would pitch 140+ innings. If Paddack had been dialed back last season, as I advocated from that 140+-inning goal, he'd have pitched much more than the 88.1 innings he had pitched. That is the point that I made & you're distracting from. Now, I doubt that the Twins have set the 200-inning goal that Paddack has set, But looking at past Paddack's history I assume it's too lofty & should be dialed back. That is the point I'm making that many disagree with but nevertheless makes the most sense. Now Fangraph has projected SWR pitching more innings (130) than Paddack (85). This is based on past history, IF the Twins continue their overextending of Paddack around 85 is what we can look forward to. But if the Twins dial him back, I hope for closer to SWR's numbers.

My concern for Paddack is the lofty goal that Paddack & Twins put on him in '24 & now for '25. He was overextended too soon in '24. The '25 goal of 200 innings is too high if they gauge him for that he'll miserably fail again. Dial him back, especially in the beginning, he'll be fine.

Castellano has potential, both MN & PHI know that. PHI won't make it easy for MN they want him back so I doubt there'll be a trade. Castellano's development won't be ideal but hopefully, he'll come through. I imagine he'll at least be assigned to long-relief mop-up. Hope Castellano's attitude is enough to be successful & he'd be worth the trouble.

Correa is the X factor that's able to take us to the World Series. But I'm afraid that our window with Correa is closing because of not seeing our real needs & initiating & closing the necessary trades to meet those needs. We are too dependent on other teams to come to us with those trades. Next year could be different but would it be too late?

When it comes to defense, I like to mainly focus up the middle. CF? Buxton, Bader & Keirsey- Fantastic; SS? Correa, Lee & Castro- pretty darn good; C? If we want to focus on defense, Vazquez has the highest defense rating of any player on the team & should have the most games & Jeffers is great at the other tandem if not extended beyond that. If both continue to be healthy we are fine. 2B is the sticker. Back when the shift was still legal Twins made Julien their future 2Bman even though his glove left much to be desired & with the shift they could hide him & still have his bat. The shift was banned yet the Twins were bound & determined to make Julien their 2Bman. They were able to spin the defensive stats to make him look passable & got Correa & Santana to cover for him. Santana had plenty of opportunities to showcase his glove although his bat was well below what it should be. Playing out of position, the few times I watched the Twins, I saw too many GBs go through between Santana & 1B. When Correa went down we didn't have anyone to cover for Julien so all his warts were seen. If we want to be a better defensive team, which I certainly do, Julien has to be removed from 2B. IMO Martin is the best option, he has the best range. Lee is good but is better suited at 3B, Castro is good but he'll be busy elsewhere. We don't need a GG 1Bman we need a much better 2Bman. Less defensive importance. 3B- Lewis, is good but he's there to keep him happy, I'd prefer Lee & sub Lewis at 1B (which I think he could excel) & then Castro; LF- Bader, Larnach, Castro & Martin. pretty well covered. We have gained a lot w/o having to fit Margot in the lineup. Least defensive importance. RF- Wallner, good enough with a great arm & bat & Larnach. 1B- Miranda, needs the time to improve his defense there. His bat will mash as long as he's healthy which hopefully for the whole season. France hopefully his bat will come alive to where he can stay to sub Miranda & DH. IMO Julien's bat will no longer profile at 1B even if he adjusts offensive & defensively. Gasper is a break glass option. When we take the proper perspective we aren't that bad if we take the proper actions at 2B & catcher then we don't have to worry about 1B so much.

I admire sluggers taking the time to learn how to bunt. I don't think we have to worry about Baldelli ever sending a sign to Jenkins to bunt. But it's nice to know that Jenkins on his own weighing the conditions being able to bunt if that situation when it arises.

When it comes to Prielipp many fans lose all sense of reality. All we have to do is get him ramped up enough to become a SP & next season he'll head the Twins rotation. IMO the priority is to keep him healthy & on the field, that could mean putting him in the BP & limit his innings. I hope that'll keep him healthy & the Twins could use him in the BP in the 2nd half. I think that'll make more sense than waiting around another 4 yrs. for him to become a top of the rotation SP if go by Ragan's example.

Jax lacked the stuff to be a SP & we needed SPs. They made a decision for Jax to go to the BP. He wasn't that great in '23 but they stuck with him. In '24 he was great In '23 they tried Varland in the BP & he was great. Everybody wanted Varland in the BP in '24, Twins got all these fringe RPs, FO figured we didn't need Varland in the pen. Varland should not have been returned to SP & kept him at RP. Last year they needed to focus him in the BP & leave him alone & give him the opportunity to excel w/o vacillating. IMO he shouldn't be a make-or-break player. I don't like the idea of finally giving a guy an opportunity & say "Here you go, be great or you're out". While giving others opportunity after opportunity, who weren't good enough in the 1st place but that doesn't matter because they are their favorites.

Lewis & Julien are completely different hitters. Lewis is more of a pure hitter & Julien embraced the "all or nothing" approach. Though he had a lot of success with it until last season, the league has his number so he'll have to reinvent himself.

Lee will figure it out. He can field anywhere in the INF. IMO his bat will come around. What concerns me about Lee is his back. It appears to be a chronic thing where he's managing the pain. He was very nonchalant when he mentioned it so maybe he does have it under control. I hope so.

FO loves to hoard prospects & protect their favorite players which makes no sense to keep. 3 players I was vehemently wanting the Twins to trade high last offseason. 1st Gabriel Gonzalez at 13.1 surplus trade value, I wanted to use him for a high-leverage LHRP because he'll never make it to the Twins club, he's now at 1.6; 2nd Julien if they weren't going to use him at 1B then trade him high at 34.5, now 17.6; 3rd Jeffers, he would be too expense to extend better to have sold high at 33.3, now 19.5. They could have been traded for a top of the rotation SP & a promising young MLB-ready catcher. Gonzalez has bottomed out but Julien & Jeffers still have some hype to trade for a promising young catcher or two. But I'm not holding my breath. They hang unto them until they are worthless.

You make some very good points Brady. I was against them putting Varland in AAA & waste his bullets there & at this point he's a better RP than SP. I agree with Ashbury that RPing is a great springboard for prospects to get their feet wet & that's what I'm all in favor of, giving our players every opportunity to prove themselves. And there's Raya that could be used as an opener if need be. Duran & Jax are excellent examples of SPs converted to the BP. Duran because of his arm issues, where Canterino & Prielipp should have been put on this path a while ago. Jax, because he didn't quite had the stuff to stick at SP, Varland is in the same boat but could be a great RP. Who knows they could transition back into the rotation like Santana did. Santana didn't have any problem doing so. We have a great BP but could be even better.

Baldelli says a lot of things during ST & sometimes he'll make a weak attempt. Normally, if it makes sense, he'll return to his original philosophy if it doesn't make sense, he'll stick to his statement & try to make it work but fails.

Good point LambchoP, with the new rules & the league taking away the HR advantage by adjusting to the "all or nothing" approach, reducing the number of HRs, Which forces teams to focus more on fundamentals to score those runs needed, those who don't will be left behind. IMO it makes the game more interesting.

I think Alvarez would have had a shot if they hadn't signed Gasper & France. Since they were signed with a MLB contract they'll have every opportunity to make the team ahead of him. I have high hopes for Canterino but I think I saw him listed as a SP. Unless they dial back his innings maybe put him in the pen his trip to the IL would be unfortunately inevitable

No one will break with the club after camp. Keaschal won't be ready for a while. We are really deep in the pen so it'd take something catastrophic for Blewett to make the roster although he's a good pitcher. He'll make the team sometime during the season.

They can string Eeles along for a long time so that's what they'll do even though he could help the club. But yeah they'll keep an eye on him in AAA for a bit longer.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_OsvfG5Qie0 I enjoyed this video & I thought I'd share it with my TD bros.. Now I agree with most that a sacrifice bunt is not beneficial in most cases and some players shouldn't be bunting but I agree with the author that there are many cases when bunting makes a lot of sense. Therefore bunting should not be shunned but should be taught & encouraged, especially those who have the talent to do so. Many INFers cheat by playing back because they don't expect a bunt. Having the ability to bunt will make the INFers honest & increase your chances of getting a hit. Another reason for not bunting is because it does practically nothing to increase your SLG or OPS & that's what teams go by. Many lauded the batter with high SLG & OPS who hits a lot of HRs when they're not needed & getting out when getting on base is needed. Yet shun the player with lower SLG & OPS who gets on base by bunting or otherwise, making those bunts into doubles & triples, Shaking pitchers up to make mistakes for following batters & sparking rallies & winning games (Isn't that the most important stat?). IMO that's where analytics veers off when too much importance is put on SLG & OPS where they try to squeeze out every HR from every player & overlook their other talents that can make the difference between a contender & a 4th place finish in the AL Central.

I share your wishes. I'd like to share the differences between Miranda & France. Miranda was coming off a shoulder surgery, while serviceable Miranda racked, Miranda should have been fixed at 1B/ DH to accommodate his recovery, he was moved off. at the end of the season, Miranda was unserviceable. France had a bruised heel. France was fixed at 1B/ DH & given a chance to recover, yet he never raked. If Miranda was fixed at 1B/ DH, like he should have been, we wouldn't be having this discussion. There is a difference between playing hurt & recovering 100% from a surgery.

"We do have to wonder, too, whether this amounts to an important schism between Baldelli and the front office. There's no way for an executive to more clearly send the message that a player is fungible than by signing them to a rare, uniquely low-ceiling and team-friendly contract. For Baldelli to signal an expectation of plugging in such a player every day creates some unavoidable cognitive dissonance. How much of this problem, over the years, has been about the front office—and how much has been Baldelli cleaving too tightly to veterans, perhaps using his own influence to fight off Falvey's efforts to move out non-producers? Is this a source of real or potential friction between the skipper and his bosses?" I don't think there is any schism. For years Falvey makes these deals & Baldelli showcases them. From Happ to Gallo to Margot. These have been a few failures that Baldelli tries to showcase. I've been against all of them from the beginning. I could be wrong about Falvey but my gut feeling tells me otherwise. In France's case, I hope he does work out & help at DH & secondary 1Bman. But making him sole 1Bman is going way too far. France had his time at 1Bman & he's been bad. It's time for Baldelli to do the best for the team & let Miranda finally get the chance to get better at 1B & stay healthy. It's time to put our own players ahead these outhouse veterans instead of these other guys chance after chance after chance & not our own guys. If you want to produce good chemistry among our capable guys you give them every opportunity. Competition is fine but naming France as the sole 1Bman doesn't sound like competition to me. It sounds like the same old, same old.

All our acquisitions were fringe bench players, Castellano & Cartaya have future potential, Cartaya won't contribute this season but hopefully, Castellano will somewhat. Hopefully, Coloumbe will stay healthy & be of some use. Gasper like Camargo are AAAA players & shouldn't see much time. Buxton is our RH CFer, Bader was a waste of money. Bader would ideally be used to replace Buxton when he'd be down against LHPs, which would be minimal. If France can prove that he can hit (which I hope he will), he should be used as DH & secondary 1Bman. But rest assured that all these new acquisitions will have every opportunity to play, playing too much, especially even if they are bad & take away playing time from more deserving inhouse young players, who in turn would improve our team. Bader will take away precious playing time from Keirsey, as a LH CFer he could be more advantageous to sub Buck while improving himself & the team. Same with France, Twins have shown preference of him being the sole 1Bman. Taking away precious playing time from Miranda again. Leaving to Miranda to fight over playing time over DH with Larnach (how sad). It'll be the same old scenario, Miranda will mash like crazy, to fit his bat in the lineup they'd prioritize him at 3B again & he'll hurt himself again trying to compensate for his shoulder, decreasing his production & shortening his season on the IL. When the intelligent solution is prioritizing Miranda at 1B, Julien was never an option at 2B, he should be sent down to AAA to reinvent himself as a hitter & finally learn 1B while he's there. Unless Lee really shows he can hit he should be sent to AAA to play every day. The best way to start the 26-man roster is to do the following: Buxton- CF, Wallner RF, Larnach LF/ DH, Keirsey- 4th OF, Bader- UTIL OF, Castro- UTIL, Lewis- 3B, Correa- SS, Martin- 2B, Miranda- 1B, France- DH/ 1B. (1st man up is Lee, hopeful he has his hitting figured out). Rotation- Lopez, Ryan, Ober, SWR, Paddack (Festa & Matthews can rotate in & out as 4th & 5th SP). BP- Duran, Jax, Steward?, Sands, Alcala, Coloumbe, Tonkin, Castellano?, If either Stewart or Castellano is out then the next better option is Varland because he can be used as LRP & spot starter. But more than likely sadly, Keirsey, Varland & Martin are sent down, Julien is the primary 2Bman & France the primary 1Bman. Poor-hitting Bader has about 1/3 of CF PAs & given every opportunity to break Margot PHing record. IMO making us an inferior team.