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Dodecahedron

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Everything posted by Dodecahedron

  1. Dodecahedron
    Hard to say how I feel about this -- I'm "surprised not surprised" I suppose, which is an odd thing to say. I would not count Cleveland out just yet. The Twins had a lot of turnover in the 00s, but kept things rolling due to a good culture. Cleveland could continue to be good. We also don't yet know what the Twins will do before 2021. They may make similar moves.
  2. Dodecahedron
    I have not looked closely at Archer lately, but whenever I took a deep dive look at his numbers in the past, I always came out with the impression that he's not particularly great. His high K totals skew contemporary metrics too far to the positive given his actuals. The Rays got good production out of him because that's what the Rays do. And let's face it, the only reason Twins fans spend so much time looking at Archer is because he's closer to the middle -- and is thus a reasonable target for the frugal Twins. Archer could be an good player to nab to fill out the middle-to-back of the rotation, but so could a lot of other players. I'm not sure if a team wanting a deep playoff run spends a whole lot of effort targeting Archer.
  3. Dodecahedron
    We are all sick of it. But this is usually the right take.
  4. Dodecahedron
    We are already seeing pieces from last year move on. I doubt the team is looking at trading Sano, but we should also look at who will be gone next year. Like it or not, this feels more and more like a retooling year.
  5. Dodecahedron
    I understand you are responding to a thread, but the Twins don't lose money. The team can afford to pay players. We know the team doesn't want to spend money, sure. We have recent history of a GM who opened up the coffers who was then demoted and replaced by his old boss.
  6. Dodecahedron
    The largest high school in the area calls themselves the Blue Aces. The alternative school in Wichita is the Panthers. There are two options right there!
  7. Dodecahedron
    The team relocated last year from New Orleans. Considering this, the name change was probably in play before they made the move, when they were called the Baby Cakes. I think we all agree that Baby Cakes is not a good name ... and heck the name may even be over the line of good taste and the name change may have been forced on them.
  8. Dodecahedron
    Of course owners "took a loss" -- meaning they made less money than they expected. Sure, crocodile tears on that, but you have to understand that making less money -- probably a lot less money -- is a big deal to these guys and is seen as a "loss." When it comes to the Twins, who always pretend they are so poor they only managed to get running water after Target Field was built, and even since then they still only have intermittent hot water, you can bet they are keenly aware of every dollar they did not make last year. When it comes to the pandemic, sure we are told we will all be vaccinated by May. If you believe this to be true (I expect it will be more like June-August), the baseball season would normally already be in full swing by then, which includes a couple of months of preseason activities. Delaying the season makes sense. You can bet the players and owners want to play as many games as possible and be as "back to normal" as possible. Thankfully, they are being realists about the situation and planning properly.
  9. Dodecahedron
    We are still in the era of playoff failures. I agree that it is difficult to imagine this front office signing someone like Batista or sticking with players like Brendan Harris or even Nick Punto for as many years as the last group stuck with them. Instead, we are debating whether getting rid of someone like Rosario is a good idea. This is a completely different league of thought. As for being analytically-driven, even the traditional stats were not big on those guys in the Ryan era. Ryan was believing his own press -- that he could grab an old, past-his-prime player, turn him back into a swan, and save cash along the way. This worked often enough in the 00s, no doubt because there was a good core in place and the front office was just working the margins. When he took over the team a second time, this approach was embarrassing.
  10. Dodecahedron
    It's always something with the Vikings, eh?
  11. Dodecahedron
    The Twins have never signed a top tier player of this stature (or at this price point, if you want to be more honest). I don't know why we waste our time thinking about this sort of thing.
  12. Dodecahedron
    This isn't too far off -- this article describes how Woodbury was not too long ago.
  13. Dodecahedron
    I understand Knoblauch's frustration at the time. Many players since have shared the same sentiments, including Johan Santana. When Knoblauch came to the Twins, he was among a group of players playing at the top of their games. Himself included. When he left, he was the last elite player left, with not much hope for change. In fact, the owner was in private negotiations to fold the club and, in retrospect, it looked like the GM was privy to this information and was doing the bare minimum to field a team. As good as this tree looks, it was not until 4 years after this trade where the players started to make a collective positive impact to the club. On the other hand, the Yankees went to the World Series every year Knoblauch was in a Yankees uniform, winning three of them in decisive fashion. The 98 team is considered one of the best teams in MLB history. We know now how Knoblauch is broken as a human being, even ending his career with a severe case of the yips, but I'm not sure that's something to use as a feather in our caps. Nevermind that the way this trade worked out for the Twins was probably accidental!
  14. Dodecahedron
    Such is the way of things with trades. There is risk involved. But he was traded, nonetheless. This trade also happened mid-season. Brunansky was not cut from the team in December. Plus, look at what Herr was paid and what Brunansky was paid. If the Twins made that trade to save money, they failed.
  15. Dodecahedron
    Brunansky was traded.
  16. Dodecahedron
    The problem with the "Since the middle of 2018" theory is it includes 2019, which was Kepler's one outstanding year coupled with a down year for Rosario. Those small sample sizes will get ya every time. For comparison, Rosario's 2018 performance, by WAR, was equal to Kepler's 2019 performance. So... Rosario sucks? Rosario and Kepler had a nearly identical WAR in 2020, with Rosario having a slight lead. If we want to look at the data objectively, either both of these guys suck or neither of them suck, depending on how you define "suck." Any other conclusion is just cherry picking. I think if anyone believes that a healthy Rosario, at age 29, will never have another outstanding year, and never be as good as or better than Kepler again, is fooling themselves.
  17. Dodecahedron
    The Rosario naysayers today are the same people who did not like him 3-5 years ago. For whatever reason, Rosario has always been divisive in the community. Ask yourself this: If you are old enough to remember, could you see the late 80s championship Twins teams getting rid of a player like a 29-year old Rosario to avoid paying him a mediocre wage? Nevermind that the 90s -10s teams would not keep him.
  18. Dodecahedron
    I agree, the Twins will move forward with contending this year. But the Twins should also be honest in this. They will need to spend a bit more money than just on Cruz. I don't think the status quo will be enough, especially considering some pieces are likely to leave this offseason. If the Twins are honest with themselves about competing this year, yes get Cruz and spend the other necessary money. If not, don't just sign Cruz and think it will be enough. We know the Twins enough to know that the latter scenario is the most likely one.
  19. Dodecahedron
    Must signing -- hm. Hard to answer. Will the Twins go all-in next year? Then yes. If not, then this is wasted money. Cruz is a short-term member of the team. If the Twins plan on being thrifty this year, the Twins could sign him, but it would just be to keep up the appearance of being competitive. If the Twins don't care about appearing like they want to win, though I suspect they do care, they should cut the cord and start planning for the future without him.
  20. Dodecahedron
    In the half seasons that Buxton plays, he is able to get the Twins over the hump for the division crown. His defensive ability is insane. Could the Twins get a guy who can play a full season, with slightly less ability, who would still provide enough value over the course of a full season to help win the division? Yes -- but -- that person would be incredibly expensive. Will Buxton ever have a career-ending injury or a career-changing injury? I doubt it. Buxton's spirit is not going to change, he will always put it all out there. The Twins are probably best off keeping Buxton and having a backup who doesn't embarrass himself, at least until it's time for Buxton to get a big contract.
  21. Dodecahedron
    Watch Novocure, they are close to releasing their cornerstone product.
  22. Dodecahedron
    If any team, much less the Twins, had a comparable backup for someone like Buxton, they would probably start him instead of Buxton. The Twins backup options are about what I would expect, and when Buxton is on the IL, another player is called up from the minors.
  23. Dodecahedron
    Cordarelle lit up special teams as a Viking too. The Vikings forced a fumble on a punt return, so it wasn't all bad.
  24. Dodecahedron
    Justin Jefferson is a great pickup and as his production increased, the Vikings started winning.
  25. Dodecahedron
    With Torii's stats, he needs a couple of WS rings to be considered a hall of famer. He won't get in. Looking back at his stats now, I am even more underwhelmed by his numbers than I remember. His personality had a bigger impact than his production. For his personality to matter/be considered, he needed to win some championships.
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