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stringer bell

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Everything posted by stringer bell

  1. stringer bell
    One could argue for several of the relievers at St. Paul being better than Pagan. But the real problem with the Twins bullpen is that they need two relievers who are better than Jax and they are not to be found. The club needs to go outside the organization to acquire not one, but two quality relievers.
  2. stringer bell
    I really disagree with this. The Twins rotation isn’t top tier because it is both fragile and brittle. Sure, if they have have a big lead, give them a third or even fourth turn through the order, but if the game is close, the only two I trust to be facing the top of the order are Gray and (most of the time) Ryan. The rotation has substantial injury histories plus small margins for error. This necessitates a lot of use for the bullpen. In reality, no one in the ‘pen has been overworked. In avoiding using their top relievers too much, a lot of innings have been given to guys who aren’t great options. I’ve said since May that the Twins need to add probably two high-leverage arms. What I’ve seen since May only makes me more sure that this is the course they should take.
  3. stringer bell
    Agreed, I think there might be something not right with Kopech. I think his highest velocity was 95 and many were in the 92-94 range, now just average fastballs. Actually, the bottom six hit five homers that accounted for all eight runs. Almost 2000 feet in the five long balls, none of them were cheap. At the beginning of the season, I said I thought Kirilloff's floor was Will Clark defense and Mark Grace offense while his ceiling was Will Clark offense and Mark Grace defense. I still believe that to be the case. Adding AK and Miranda to the lineup makes a pretty good lineup much better and deeper.
  4. stringer bell
    Nick Gordon probably has proven himself to be a major league player in his time with the Twins. That is, if he were DFAed, he would definitely be picked up by someone. He's a good player to have on the team because he has some speed and can play multiple positions. HIs hitting has progressed to league average at this point. I don't know if he played every day or even in a strict platoon if he would sustain his offense, but he has done well in the role he has with the 2022 Twins. The problem, or perhaps more accurately the limiting factor, is that Gordon isn't a major league quality shortstop. He'd have the chance to be a regular somewhere if he could be trusted to line up at short for 130-150 games, but the evidence is there that he can't. When Correa first went down (fingers), the Twins brought up Royce Lewis and plugged him in at shortstop. When Correa went down again (COVID), the Twins brought up Jermaine Palacios and plugged him in at short. That says volumes about Gordon's ability to man shortstop on more than an occasional basis. It is a closer call in center field, but Gilberto Celestino is the preferred backup when Buxton isn't in the lineup. To summarize, Gordon's improved hitting and ability to be a serviceable defender in the outfield has cemented himself a a major leaguer, his inability to defend well enough at two key defensive positions will most likely preclude him for ever being a regular in the majors. He's certainly not a failure, but he most likely won't ever hold a regular position.
  5. stringer bell
    Too many walks and home runs. He has to have command of two pitches and I don't think he does at this point. I do agree that we've seen the extreme in the past couple of weeks, but he seemed to get extraordinarily lucky in some earlier outings. He wouldn't be bad pitching in the 6th-7th, but I want no part of him being the primary closer.
  6. stringer bell
    I had thought that Cruz might fall off a cliff in his hitting, but it seems he is slowly diminishing. He is putting up near league average numbers, but the slumps seem a bit more frequent and a bit deeper and the hot streaks are a bit less caliente. In terms of production, the Twins can get that out of Miranda, Kirilloff and Arraez.
  7. stringer bell
    I think it is a stretch to believe that any and every starter can be converted to the bullpen. Some guys are wired to pitch every 5-6 days, some are not. Some have their stuff “play up”, others don’t. Some relish the challenge of coming into close games late. I think the best course for the remainder of the season is a) get as many healthy as possible and b) trade for two proven bullpen arms.
  8. stringer bell
    There’s an epidemic of not running hard out of the box and it’s not just the Twins. In fact there are very few like Kirby who busted it out of the box every time.
  9. stringer bell
    I'm sure the injury bug will hit and one or more of the current starters will be sidelined at some point. That said, with a few notable exceptions, the starters have really done a good job keeping the team in games. There is enough big league talent that I don't see Sands or another Chi Chi type getting any starts. I'm certain I've just jinxed the rotation and somebody on the St. Paul roster (other than Winder) will start a key game against the Guardians or White Sox.
  10. stringer bell
    I confess to being a Jeffers fan, so take this with that bias. I want to cut him some slack on that play. I don't think he actually was sure where the ball went when he hit it and then probably thought it would go foul. I haven't seen Jeffers doing much half-hearted in his time with the Twins. As far as him getting thrown out at second, the ball bounced into two gloves perfectly for him to be out on a bang-bang play.
  11. stringer bell
    Ah, the wonders of recency bias and small sample size. I certainly like Duran in the bullpen. This season would look very different without him. The demons (walks and home runs) have again beset Pagan. Someone with those demons shouldn't be pitching in the highest leverage situations. The Twins currently have an eight-man bullpen. They also have three relievers on the IL (Smith, Megill and Coulombe) and one (Cano) on option at St. Paul. On top of that, they have three, maybe four pitchers on the 60-day IL who could be activated within the season. Injuries will happen, but that is a lot of players to fit into a bullpen and if more are added by trade, many will be jettisoned. Of all the options within the organization, I'm hard pressed to see anyone who could be trusted to get crucial outs at the end of a game in October.
  12. stringer bell
    The bottom of the eighth was the inning to go to your second best high leverage reliever. Unfortunately that is Pagán. The bullpen needs reinforcements
  13. stringer bell
    What is the story with Beckham? Is there any noise that he might be added to the Twins roster? Goodness, he has hit well, but he's also made a lot of errors. Does he have an opt-out?
  14. stringer bell
    I think the list says a lot about what the Twins need at the trade deadline. One or two relief pitchers, including a lefty, please,
  15. stringer bell
    Nice comfortable win for the Twins. Now, I'm wondering about the lineups for the rest of the series, but particularly for the day/night doubleheader today. Sanchez and Jeffers will each catch a game--I presume Sanchez catches the day game. Buxton certainly won't play center for both games--DH in one and CF in the other? Correa might get a game off or DH in one, I would expect every position player to start one of the games. Sounds like a lot of lineup hash to me.
  16. stringer bell
    Ryan's been good, but missed time on the IL. A lot of starters have similar or better numbers. Duran has been much more of a standout IMHO. He doesn't have gaudy save or hold numbers, but a 103 mph fastball and 99 mph splinker are something out of the ordinary. Again, there are a lot of pitchers who have been outstanding, so I really think it will be an upset if either Ryan or Duran make the All-Star game.
  17. stringer bell
    Not to rain on Contreras' parade, but he made the catch look more difficult than it really was. He had a full step to the wall. That said, it was a key play that went the Twins way. I have been commenting that we've been seeing a limited Buxton. However, today he didn't hit a homer and was the dominant player for the team. A lot of players don't score from first after Kepler's double and very few get a triple to left-center in the second inning.
  18. stringer bell
    The best thing is watching Buxton run--home to third, home to second and finally first to home--and then watching the joy on his face. It doesn't appear that he has lost much speed, if any, when he actually opens it up and runs full speed.
  19. stringer bell
    I like Gibson as a person and he’s done well since moving on. The Phillies might fall fast without Harper. I wouldn’t rule it out, but the price would have to be reasonable.
  20. stringer bell
    Another question about these numbers. How many runs are the Twins in the negative? I suspect except for the very best and very worst the differences are negligible. If the whole team is say -10 for the season, that’s less than one run per week.
  21. stringer bell
    Miranda isn’t brand new to first base like Gordon was new to the outfield last year.
  22. stringer bell
    The one tool where Correa is not above average is speed. Positioning is crucial and he turns balls he gets to into outs. But if the range is lacking, balls that other shortstops get to aren’t touched. I don’t know that I trust he’s below average, but I think he’s merely good because he doesn’t have the wheels to have plus range.
  23. stringer bell
    With the limited play Buxton has received in the outfield, he hasn't had as much chance to shine in the field. In addition, with Buxton not anchoring the outfield defense, the two corners suffer as well. In the infield, if you believe Correa's rating, a lot centers on him. There is not a lot of speed on this club, particularly if Buxton is limited. That translates to a lack of range. IMHO, the defense hasn't been that bad. They are mostly fundamentally sound--throwing to the proper base, taking the safe out when called for--but not catching balls that can't be reached will be a problem for this team.
  24. stringer bell
    I'd rather have Miranda in the lineup than Sanchez. I also agree that Gio is just an okay ballplayer. Maybe a smidgen above average on both sides of the ball, but certainly not a cornerstone. Honestly, I think Miranda will outhit him, but I don't trust Miranda's defense anywhere. Starting him at least once a week at DH and third would be fine along with platoon duty at first base.
  25. stringer bell
    Is there enough belief in Kirilloff and Larnach that the Twins would trade Max Kepler?
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