Jump to content
Twins Daily
  • Create Account

stringer bell

Verified Member
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    21,523

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    95

 Content Type 

Profiles

News

Minnesota Twins Videos

2026 Minnesota Twins Top Prospects Ranking

2022 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

Minnesota Twins Free Agent & Trade Rumors, Notes, & Tidbits

Guides & Resources

2023 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

The Minnesota Twins Players Project

2024 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

2025 Minnesota Twins Draft Pick Tracker

2026 Minnesota Twins Draft Tracker: Picks & Bonuses

Forums

Blogs

Events

Store

Downloads

Gallery

Everything posted by stringer bell

  1. stringer bell
    As I mentioned earlier, I went on to other things after Stanton's first homer, so talk about a ripped fingernail is news to me. Looking at Dobnak's numbers, he is no better than Shoemaker or Happ and has never had the sustained success that those guys have had. I fear Randy is a one-pitch pitcher (moving sinker) and that doesn't cut it either in the rotation or the bullpen. I really want to know what happened to the slider that was one of the big topics in spring training.
  2. stringer bell
    I highlighted the sentence that I disagree with. I am not a huge fan of the Pohlad family, but I think the criticism is unwarranted. The Twins went from respected old-school baseball guy (Ryan) to forward-looking new generation guys (Falvey and Levine) and produced an improved product. Management and ownership spent money and in most people's estimation made an all-in gambit by signing Josh Donaldson and trading for Kenta Maeda. It certainly appears that all the Twins will have to show is a couple of division titles and a home run record that might stand for a while. However, it seems to be reaching to blame ownership. As mentioned, they spent the money and stayed out of the front office's way. Falvey and Levine might not be as brilliant as they were thought to be, but I would wager neither would be unemployed long if Twins ownership decided to try someone else. IMHO, the same is true for Baldelli. I couldn't watch any more after Stanton hit his first homer, but that doesn't mean I want to light a torch and demand that the Pohlads sell the Twins. This season has been brutal and it doesn't look like things will change quickly. It's hard to be patient during these times, but sometimes it is the right course to take.
  3. stringer bell
    Two things that impacted the bullpen were not getting solid options to replace the guys who left (looking for more Matt Wislers) and getting a failure for a late-inning high-leverage guy (Columé). There aren't many relievers who are anywhere near 100% consistent and Columé looked like he would at least be acceptable in the late innings, but he has failed so far. This changes the load and the expectations for almost everyone in the bullpen and no one has stepped forward (Rogers and Robles already were in place as late-inning guys). There's a lot of season left and I would expect the bullpen to improve, but in most respects the damage has been done.
  4. stringer bell
    It appears Big Mike might have an arm issue--the dreaded "forearm tightness". Before any extension is considered, it is paramount that the arm issue be cleared up.
  5. stringer bell
    It occurs to me that we could add an additional five disappointing players without much problem. Sanó, Happ, Shoemaker, Duffey, Stashak and Maeda could qualify. The Twins finished 13-16 for the month and the holes in the lineup and pitching staff are pretty deep. Barring the near-miracle of rising to contention, the club is in for at least a major retooling next year.
  6. stringer bell
    Not that I don't agree with most of your comment, but the Twins are right in the middle of MLB as far as strikeouts go and that includes Sanó, who, if he get 600 plate appearances, might break the all-time strikeout record by quite a bit. The same is true for run scoring. The Twins sit a 11th in MLB in scoring runs, not elite, but better than average. Strikeouts are up everywhere and run scoring is down everywhere. Baseball is trying to remedy these trends, but so far they are bailing out the boat with a teacup. I would guess just about every fan site in every big league city would have the same complaints.
  7. stringer bell
    The Orioles are a major league team. They have many players with major league talent. Obviously, they don't have enough major league talent. The pitchers the Twins faced had pretty good stuff, so I won't totally blame the Twins for their lack of offense. Berríos looked great against a questionable offense. The Twins won the type of game they've lost many times this year.
  8. stringer bell
    The game turned on the failed relay to get Hunter Dozier in the fifth inning. Refsnyder to Simmons to Garver got the ball to the plate in plenty of time to end the inning, but Garver couldn't hold the one-hop throw. Two more singles, including one where Kirilloff overthrew the cutoff man, yielded two more runs and that was that. Baldelli has always seemed to give Dobnak a short leash for going deep into games, but yesterday with a low pitch count, he let him start the seventh. The results seem to justify a short leash--three straight singles--and when the inning was over, so was much chance of coming back in the game. Dobnak's crazy-movement fastball was present during his good innings, but the improved slider was not. He's got to have a second reliable pitch to be effective, and having yet another pitch to mix in would be optimal. It's not there yet.
  9. stringer bell

    Can the Twins build a winning streak? The schedule is favorable, but they need to be better on the field. 

    1. Brock Beauchamp

      Brock Beauchamp

      It's really hard to envision this team going on a prolonged winning streak given their weaknesses. Even the games where the Twins look good for seven innings, the bullpen gives back some runs and the game ends up closer than it should be.

  10. stringer bell
    The Twins started the season 5-2 and are 5-2 in their last seven games. In between, they were 9-25. Ouch. They say you can't win a pennant in April, but you can lose one.... With the exception of Jake Cave, none of the Twins' injuries would seem to be long term. Buxton is said to be ready to go on a rehab assignment, Pineda will be activated today, and Maeda shouldn't be on the shelf more than two weeks. One of Kepler, Arraez or Garlick might need enough time to go on the Injured List, but the current spate of injuries seems to be closer to the end than the beginning (I'll probably regret this remark in about three days). Kirilloff is here to stay. I'm hoping for winning baseball for a month and then see if there is a chance to make the playoffs. I'm not optimistic, but not quite ready to write off the season just yet.
  11. stringer bell
    Yes, he'll always be streaky. What will make him a better offensive player is the ability to reach base when he's struggling. Sano needs to go no further for an example than Nelson Cruz. When Nelson is not going great (like now), he's able to sneak a few through the right side and hit a few mistakes. Sano, OTOH, misses those opportunities. Miggy has drawn his share of walks, which is commendable, but he hasn't really become a more complete hitter. Until he does, there is too little boom and too much bust.
  12. stringer bell
    I suspect that someone with a lingering injury would go on the Injured List. Kepler and Arraez are candidates, along with Garlick. If that is not the course the Twins take, I guess Larnach would be a candidate to go back to St. Paul. He seems very vulnerable to pitches away. Currently, because there are only four starting pitchers on the active roster, the Twins have an extra position player. When Pineda is activated (tomorrow). they'll have to subtract a player and that could be Gordon depending on the health of Arraez and Polanco.
  13. stringer bell
    The 3-G (Garlick-Gordon-Garver) was well done for sure.
  14. stringer bell
    Pitching has continued to evolve in the last decade. Velocity is up everywhere. Once upon a time, a team might have one guy who threw fastballs at over 95 mph and now most teams have three or more such guys. It has become understood and expected that being assigned to the bullpen will add significantly to the fastball. On the downside, injuries seem to be increasing, most likely because of the maximum effort required to throw so hard. In addition to figuring out which pitchers have the stuff to thrive in the majors, the front office also has to figure which pitchers are most likely destined for the bullpen, whether that is because their stuff will then "play up" or because their chances of staying healthy will increase. I would like to see what the "arm farm" has to offer. The long-term success of the Twins' franchise depends on homegrown talent and right now most of their pitching staff is either major league or minor league free-agent signings.
  15. stringer bell
    Good article Seth. I think the key here is patience and many in the TD community are fresh out of that commodity. The homegrown guys should make an impact soon and hopefully some of them are high ceiling types.
  16. stringer bell
    Does anyone think Gordon is a shortstop? We weren’t satisfied with Polanco who has an offensive resumé, Gordon profiles as a light-hitting stretched middle infielder.
  17. stringer bell
    To piggyback onto the previous post, I wonder what the most runs the Twins have scored in an inning where they didn't hit a home run. Two, maybe three? I do want to note that their offense is in the middle of the pack, although without Buxton they are pretty pathetic. There are some good trends. Outside of Duffey, the back end of the bullpen seems to be coming around. Robles and Rogers look pretty good and Colume seems to be over the worst of whatever was plaguing him. I want to see more of Larnach and Kirilloff and if Sano can manage to hit an occasional bomb, well that's better than 4 Ks.
  18. stringer bell
    I like the idea of trading assets that will bring back substantial return. The caveat I would add is that there has to be a reasonable chance that the asset can be replaced. I'm not sure that a top of the line pitcher can ever really be replaced, but I honestly don't think Berrios is that guy. He's a good, durable pitcher. Other assets to consider moving IMHO are Polanco and Kepler. Polanco, Kepler and Berrios are all in their twenties but seem to have plateaued if not regressed. The Twins have other second basemen and left handed hitting corner outfielders.
  19. stringer bell
    Eddie has provided -.2 WAR to Cleveland. I'm sure he'll hit better going forward, but his presence wouldn't have saved this season. Under current MLB rules, the Twins get six more seasons out of both Kirilloff and Larnach and I expect much more from both of them than what Eddie is providing for whomever he is playing for in the future.
  20. stringer bell
    Gordon is the third best second baseman and I don't think Rooker is anything more than a marginal player or an AAAA guy. The future with position players has already arrived (Kirilloff and Larnach). The three players in St. Paul I want to see are Jeffers, Dobnak and Thorpe. The Wichita guys provide some intrigue and I would hope that they move up and see how well they do at AAA, with a chance to be promoted later this year.
  21. stringer bell
    Two very different components to team defense. 1) Be fundamentally sound and make the plays you’re supposed to make. 2) Take hits, bases and runs away. Buxton made a couple of plays per week that belonged on highlight reels and other players have made very good plays on occasion. As far as turning outs into outs, the Twins are decent. Like other parts of this (so far) snake bitten season, the Twins seem to have saved their most glaring mistakes for the worst possible time. Late inning errors and fundamental mistakes are directly attributable to at least four close losses. Finally, one key defensive position was not broken down much in this discussion—catcher. Primary catcher Mitch Garver is at best adequate IMHO. He seems to have let an inordinate number of balls get by him and doesn’t throw very well. When healthy, Simmons, Buxton and Donaldson are pluses, Mitch Garver is not.
  22. stringer bell

    I wouldn’t want to be a color commentator for the Twins right now. It’s tough to put lipstick on a pig day after day. 

    1. Brock Beauchamp

      Brock Beauchamp

      Yeah, watching the Twins find new and depressing ways to lose games has to really strain a person's ability to talk about them 3.5 hours every day.

  23. stringer bell
    Unless Sami’s confidence is rebuilt by a 345 foot homer, I don’t think he’s out of the woods. However, something like this could really help the team. Is it possible that Columé has found something that can make him an effective reliever? I’m not convinced, but they don’t have many choices.
  24. stringer bell

    The late inning struggles by the offense in the late innings have been unfathomable. It’s not like this is a bunch of rookies and role players. 

  25. stringer bell
    Yeah, I hope the pillars produce, but if the struggle goes on much longer it may be only so that their trade value can increase. Kepler, Polanco and Garver all have someone with high upside or proven value (Larnach/Kirilloff, Arraez and Jeffers respectively) who could replace them if they were traded. All three guys are under team control for multiple years and Garver is the oldest (30), so I think rather than just trading expiring contracts, the Twins could look at moving any one (or all three) of these guys.
×
×
  • Create New...