stringer bell

The problem with Solano (and Arraez) as first basemen is height and reach, which I think is hard to measure, but definitely a factor. Solano had some (negative) moments at first, but to me the biggest thing working against him is he’s 5’8” and right handed.

Nelson Cruz was/is "Boomstick". In looking at ex-Twins, I remember Danny Walton being called "Bam-bam", but Baseball Reference doesn't list it. I don't see Cesar Tovar (Pepé) or Tony Oliva ("Tony-O") listed.

To judge Martin’s “hotheadedness” by the number of ejections is just wrong. He fought with his players and his general managers and owners and never lasted anywhere over a season or two. He might draw performance out of potential for some players (he was widely credited for Zoilo’s MVP year), but he would inevitably “lose” players. Too flawed to ever last.

Since the Twins won the World Series in 1991, the major men's sports in Minnesota have won zero championships. The Vikings have had some good teams, but they've lost in the playoffs each time, not reaching the Super Bowl in the last thirty-plus years. The North Stars moved and the expansion Wild replaced them. The Wild has made the playoffs with some regularity, but seem to be slipping from playoff relevance. The Timberwolves have been mostly a mess, although this year they are among the best regular season teams. The Twins last year broke a record post-season losing streak, but haven't reached the ALCS since winning in '91, and they have announced they will cut payroll this year. I'm a Twins fan first and an indifferent follower of the other pro teams. I think there's hope for my favorite team, but have a hard time seeing them beat teams with more than twice the payroll. I truly don't know who will break through, but it seems long past time for another world champion Minnesota franchise.

Mods--please feel free to move this to another forum (Other Sports) if you see fit. I feel like the Twins forum gets more views and it is Twins-related, but it also refers to the other Minnesota sports teams.

After a thorough drubbing by Green Bay, it appears the Vikings will miss the postseason again in 2023-24. Minnesota hasn't had a champion in a major men's professional sport since the Twins won the World Series in 1991. Which team will break through?

Not a very high ceiling for Donnie Barrels at this point and while he was versatile, he really wasn't good as a defender. He's a decent fallback option at a very reasonable price, but I'd rather roll the dice with Miranda and/or Martin than count on 36-year-old Donovan Solano to contribute in '24 (hey, that's this year!).

It would take a lot of GB mistakes for the Vikings to get back in this game.

Now comes the comeback!

I find it crazy how deep the fan base is for the Vikings. Any glimmer of hope is a big story. Maybe it is football fans in general.

Barely breathing.

Hall-of-Famers Blyleven, Kaat, Carew, Killebrew and Oliva were all part of the ‘70 team, with Bert a teenage rookie and Carew missing more than half the season. Baltimore was better, unfortunately.

I think there were multiple approaches to Buxton. Yes, at first the plan was to save him a bit in the colder weather by using him exclusively as a DH, then it morphed into hoping that he'd be healthy enough to play in the field if he continued only as a DH. Then, he stayed on the IL for extra time after getting bruised ribs and a pulled hammy in the hope that the extended rest and rehab would get him ready to play, either as a more effective DH or perhaps in the field. He suffered from long slumps with so many strikeouts. I don't know if it was because he was only a DH or if it was because he never was fully healthy.

Yes. The ref announced that #70 was eligible, which was wrong. After the game, the ref said that #70 had reported as eligible and it appears to me that he was wrong. Detroit head coach Campbell said that he had told the refs before the game about this exact play. I don't know if the Lions could have corrected the error with the play clock running and it might take away the surprise element of the gadget play. It's sad that the ref can't/won't admit his error in this.

Desperate attempt.

Pretty clear that the ref got the players wrong—#70 had come into the game as an eligible receiver a couple of times previous, but this time #68 (Decker) was the eligible guy. Lions got robbed IMHO.

If he reported as eligible, he wouldn’t have to be covered and would be allowed to go downfield. The replay shows both #68 and #70 going up to the ref. Did he report as eligible? The ref didn’t think so.

The refs said the tackle didn’t report as eligible, but both he and an additional lineman who came into the game spoke to the ref before the play. Not sure who was at fault for the penalty.

Typo on the number of recorded votes for Helton?

Born in 1954 so most of my growing-up memories are from the 60s and I discovered baseball and the Twins in 1961. My home town was less than a thousand and we would get players together, some would be older and some younger. We'd choose up teams, usually less than nine to a side and play until dark--when the street lights came on, we went home. We played in a softball park (60 foot bases) and occasionally would rob homers with a four foot high fence. We might have one or two baseballs which we'd use until the stitching in the seams would give way. They'd get pretty waterlogged if we were playing when it was wet, but we had rubber coated balls that were great for wet conditions. When the park wasn't available we played in a nearby vacant lot, but foul territory was occupied a dog had to be dealt with. I had a Nellie Fox bat and when it broke, repaired it once. The second time it broke, I got a Johnny Callison model. We played Little League and enjoyed ice cream after "road games". I can remember competing against people from adjacent towns and playing against them in all sports all the way through high school. My brother and I collected baseball cards. We had so many doubles and triples that we used in our bicycle spokes. I remember specifically having so many Henry Aarons that I didn't know what to do with them. I remember having "Bob Clemente" and "Zorro Versalles" cards, not exactly culturally sensitive. Classic story--we had boxes of cards and my mom threw them out after my brother and I moved out.

I think with Toronto signing Kiermeier and IKF, the Twins officially are the least active in player acquisitions. Reports now peg the Twins payroll (with no more additions) at about $120M,, which might be the number they want to be at when the season starts. With starting pitching costs seemingly through the roof, it would seem that the Twins would have to trade both Kepler and Polanco to take on the salary of a top tier starter. The prospect haul for a trade would be substantial if the Twins try to trade prospects for pitching.

I don’t like all of the Ks, but it is part of today’s game. Even the best players strike out more than players of 20 years ago. The Twins need to be better with two strikes and more experience from the young players should trim the strikeouts. Also, having players with better bat-to-ball skills like Martin and Miranda to replace guys like Gallo and Taylor will decrease the K numbers a bit.

There are still three spots on the major league roster and the Twins thus far haven't signed many major league players to minor league contracts, so there is plenty of room for Staumont to get a major league contract. As noted, having the ability to option him seals the deal.

Excellent post Ash! It seems to me that the lefty hitters are still becoming who they will be as major leaguers. None of them have much more than a full season of plate appearances and it would figure that hitting same-handed pitchers would improve as they got more experience. They do have to produce to get extended chances, but I'm pretty confident that all can improve on their performance of 2023.

The Twins have traded prospects for established major leaguers several times in the last few years and IMHO they have fewer trade chips to put on the table for another one or two established major leaguers. They traded CES, Speer Hajjar, Petty (more of a lottery ticket, but with a first round pedigree) and Povich and acquired no prospects in return. Compared to an organization that received as many or more prospects than they traded, the Twins would figure to have less depth in the minors. I do think in Lee, Emmy Rodriguez and Walker Jenkins, they have three premium prospects. That would be on a par or better than many or most organizations. Also, I think it would be optimal if one or more of their premium prospects was a pitcher.