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Kirby_waved_at_me

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Everything posted by Kirby_waved_at_me

  1. Kirby_waved_at_me
    There's also danger of breaking one of those pesky "unwritten rules" if a player or team is too excited about a good play in the field.
  2. Kirby_waved_at_me
    Yes. exactly, it's not just the fact that he was extended, it's that it was a very good deal for the Twins
  3. Kirby_waved_at_me
    Before Gardy was let go, I was concerned about what would happen at the Catcher position if Suzuki was traded or allowed to leave via Free Agency - in the thread talking about extending his contract, my big worry was that Pinto would still be stuck riding the pine with Suzuki gone and the Twins would trot out Eric Fryer and or Chris Herrmann instead of Pinto. Instead, I think Pinto will get a closer look in 2015 than he would have under Gardy, and Suzuki will have the pressure of a younger, more powerful bat waiting in the wings. I think it was among the best possible outcomes for the Twins to retain Suzuki, because even if he's his 2012-2013 version of himself, that's a better than average back-up for Pinto.
  4. Kirby_waved_at_me
    If Rasmus wants that Granderson money, I think he'd need to sign a 1-year deal somewhere and have a really good season. Then he'd still only be 29 and a good season could make someone overpay for his services. The Twins could really use Rasmus in 2015, but I agree $12MM/year is a bit steep considering what the Twins typically spend.
  5. Kirby_waved_at_me
    MLB Trade Rumors guessed it would be about $12MM on a one year deal (assuming he'd take just one year).
  6. Kirby_waved_at_me
    It's possible (not likely, just possible) that the Twins could get production from Eddie Rosario in LF - There's not much data to say his bat would be that great in the majors yet, but even putting Rosario there would feel like an upgrade to me over Parmelee/Colabello/Willingham/Kubel/Bartlett etc.
  7. Kirby_waved_at_me
    There are players that seem to lay it all out on the line on every play - Dozier, Suzuki, Sam Fuld, Young Torii Hunter all had that reputation. They stand out when there are others on the field that seem to be playing the long game.
  8. Kirby_waved_at_me
    Wow - a walkoff E-1 in the bottom of the 28th. Giants lead this strange one game NLCS 2-1 heading into the 29th inning.
  9. Kirby_waved_at_me
    Surprising that there's not already a thread about this news - the guy behind the small market success story in Tampa has taken a new gig in Los Angeles. Now he'll have a much bigger budget to apply his own version of Moneyball. The Rays had some terrible teams that lead to some very high draft standing. They developed a lot of homegrown players and used an analytic approach to evaluating their team and free agents. The were able to rejuvenate many seemingly washed up players by hiding their weaknesses and emphasizing their strengths. Lately the Rays have struggled, and the lack of budget has remained an issue throughout Friedman's tenure in TB. His more recent drafts have failed to produce the same level of talent, will it be different in LA?
  10. Kirby_waved_at_me
    I think Nuñez will be playing for a different team in 2015, just a hunch. I hope Parmelee is not in Left field, he's an adequate first baseman, but I cringed whenever he or Colabello were in the lineup playing the outfield. Schafer is perfectly capable to play in Left, with Hicks being at least average. I could see the Twins rolling with a rotation of those two and Danny Santana covering Center and Left. That said, I really really hope that the Twins add an outfielder that capable defensively and is a better hitter than Hicks/Schafer in Left, and/or a better CF defender. Santana didn't embarass himself in CF the way that Escobar did (or Bartlett in Left) , but it's nowhere close to an ideal situation. Colby Rasmus, Peter Bourjos, doesn't matter to me ultimately who the Twins find, but I feel that have to add somebody to the current rotation of outfielders that pushes those three down a space on the depth chart.
  11. Kirby_waved_at_me
    It's a long season - I expect there wouldn't be anybody left healthy enough to play those playoff games if they allowed that level of stress and pressure to occupy every pitch of the season. I think the playoffs (and meaningful games leading towards making the playoffs) are the reward for playing the long game.
  12. Kirby_waved_at_me
    New manager and new pitching coach means that the pen will definitely be different next season. If it is an external candidate, they will talk up the guys they liked from their org. The Twins might add one or two of those guys, as well as promote younger arms from within. If Burton comes back, I have to believe it would be on a smaller deal after the Twins buy out his option. The Twins can't afford to pay Jared Burton 3.6MM next season, though I bet they would be willing to go as high as 1.5 to 2 MM on a similar "veteran" arm, whatever that means to the Twins. Burton could in theory come back on a new deal, but if the Twins actually pick up that option, I don't - I can't even - Pressley is most likely to stick, I think, from the later season call ups. I wonder what will happen with Pryor - I think the Twins will have a decision to make on him, and I'm not sure that there was a big enough sample of his work for them to go on. I think he might return (either at AAA or the back end of the pen) for awhile just so the Twins can see him pitch a little more. I think all those arms the Twins drafted the last two years gives them lots of (for now) cheap options to choose from.
  13. Kirby_waved_at_me
    So, there's spots for Sano and Meyer to be added to the 40 Man - I imagine some more moves will come soon to make room for a few more young guys, possibly in the bullpen?
  14. Kirby_waved_at_me
    Definitely looking for bouncebacks from Sano and Buxton, though I'm guessing that will be mostly in AA or AAA, with potential call ups at mid season or later. Nolasco can't get much worse, can he? I unfortunately also am dreading a "reverse bounceback" by Kurt Suzuki. I think he was great this year, but I don't see him repeating a career year again. Hope I'm wrong about that and he and Pinto have a spirited battle for the starting job. And I won't call it a comeback / bounceback, but I have hope for Arcia to put it all together in 2015 and have a monster season.
  15. Kirby_waved_at_me
    The Cubs definitely positioned themselves to add some starting pitching when they shipped out Samardzjia and Hammel - They could be looking to add arms via free agency, but they probably have as good a shot as any at adding some via trade. They still have Edwin Jackson on the books - I think at this point the Cubs would consider it a success if another team takes his contract off their hands. Not so much because they need the money, but it could be better allocated elsewhere.
  16. Kirby_waved_at_me
    That's a good distinction to make - it wasn't a direct line from one to the other. I think the point remains valid though, in the sense that Hunter did have Puckett around spring training and throughout the season, and Span was around Hunter in Spring training and had him as a resource as he made his way up the minor league ranks, Revere and Span actually played on the same team for awhile. By the time Hicks was promoted to starting CF, he was the best CF left in the organization (player or coach), and we can all see how that worked out for him.
  17. Kirby_waved_at_me
    The Decision to replace him is made worse by the fact that if they do, he is ineligible to play in the World Series. They have to play with a roster of 24 until Yadier returns or is replaced...
  18. Kirby_waved_at_me
    another series of examples of how the Cardinals have had a long streak of success: http://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2014/10/cardinals-notes-taveras-pujols-aldrete-trades.html even though they missed signing Pujols, the team spent the money offer to him on a combo of more free agents (Beltran, Peralta) Saved some $$ on young guys reaching arb and re-stocked for the near future by trading Freese to the Angels.
  19. Kirby_waved_at_me
    Hale was the one to cancel the scheduled interview with Minnesota. His first coaching gig after retirement was with the D'backs and he went to college in AZ, so presumably the AZ job was the one he wanted the most.
  20. Kirby_waved_at_me
    I think this is the most important offseason of Hicks' career - if he can find a way to improve in some key areas by next Spring, he has a good chance of keeping his job. If he is no better next year, he'll probably find his way out of the organization once Buxton is promoted (or earlier if the Twins find a trade partner to acquire someone to replace him). He showed a little improvement this year compared to 2013, but it hasn't looked good for Hicks in the majors to date.
  21. Kirby_waved_at_me
    Looks like there may be an AJ Pierzynski sighting in the NLCS: http://proxy.espn.go.com/mlb/playoffs/2014/story/_/id/11692043/2014-nlcs-yadier-molina-st-louis-cardinals-leaves-game-strained-oblique
  22. Kirby_waved_at_me
    According to new outlets, this particular contest was won by the Giants. I have a feeling the Cardinals may turn the tide in game 2.
  23. Kirby_waved_at_me
    I don't Molitor has interviewed anywhere else, has he? /snark
  24. Kirby_waved_at_me
    I agree with all of that.
  25. Kirby_waved_at_me
    I think all of the outfielders lack a mentor in the Twins organization right now - Even when Willingham was still on the roster, he was an outfielder in name mostly. Certainly he had some leadership qualities, but he was in the outfield because that was the least damaging place to play him in the field. Most of the coaches that worked on Gardy's staff were infielders. Bruno is another exception, but I don't think his fielding was ever a big plus on his resume. CF is a hard position to play, and having a veteran on the roster that can relate some of the finer points of the position would be extremely valuable. I am not in favor of a Torii Hunter Reunion Tour signing, but if it did happen this would be the biggest plus - having him in the org again would allow Hicks and Buxton both to have a mentor that was the very best CF'er for years.
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