stringer bell

I have been a Twins fan since I was six years old, when they moved to the Twin Cities from Washington. After nearly sixty years, I doubt that that will ever be a fan of another baseball team or lose interest in "my team". In the course of the 59 years that the Twins have been the Twins, I have always had a favorite player or two every year. Sometimes that guy is a star, often he's not the star of the team. My favorites have included some obscure guys like Gary Wayne, Geoff Zahn, and Ron Washington, some good players like Gary Ward, Gary Gaetti, Brian Dozier and Michael Cuddyer and some All-Stars. I've always checked the box scores when I missed a game, to see how my favorite did. I've always advocated for my favorite player and enjoyed breakouts from such players as Greg Gagne and Brian Dozier. All of this is a preface for my current favorite player--Marwin Gonzalez. I like the way Gonzalez goes about his business, the way that he has fit in the clubhouse and how he is willing to play anywhere without complaint or preference for one position or another. Gonzalez looks like he will be affected by the signing of Josh Donaldson. He figured to have regular duty at one of the corners of the infield and now there will be a regular at both corners and probably in all the outfield positions. I hope Marwin gets consistent playing time when all are healthy and know that he will do well if there is an injury or ineffectiveness at one of the infield corners or in the outfield. I'd like to see my current favorite get his customary 500 plate appearances. I think with that number of at-bats he will perform quite well.

Huge move for this franchise. On paper, it makes the Twins with the best lineup in MLB (based on 2019 stats anyway). I think this makes Minnesota the overwhelming favorite in the AL Central, but I don't know if it puts them on a par with NYY. Signing Donaldson has some risks and concerns. He has been known to be not that well-liked in the clubhouse. He has an injury history and is 34 years old. Signing Donaldson moves Sanó to the relatively unfamiliar position of first base. None of these supposed drawbacks is significant compared to what he will do for an already power-packed lineup. As far as making a move to get pitching, I guess I'm OK with waiting until the trade deadline. Most starting pitchers are unpredictable and the organization will know better what they need by then, compared to mid-January. The team should be able to get by with who they have until then.

The 11-2 record was nice and it is really nice to finish in the Top Ten. I'd certainly like to see Floyd, the Axe and the Jug in the university's trophy case. If they finish 8-4 next year, but have two or all three of the trophies, I'll be satisfied.

Specifically about the Yankees, I'd like to believe it is all about sign stealing, but New York has compiled such a huge advantage over Minnesota as compared to other teams that I doubt it is all sign stealing.

Best season for the Gophers since at least the early 60s. This team was better than Mason's or Kill's best. Winning 11 college football games plus winning a New Year's Day bowl game is terrific. Now, let's see some more trophies in Minneapolis (Floyd, the Axe and the Jug). Regarding Johnson, there are a lot of good receivers in the current draft. He could be a real value pick for the purple and gold, who really don't have a good option for their third wide receiver.

Baseball Reference lists Castro as #3 in similarity to Avila. Saltalamacchia was #1.

I think two more proven starters should be the goal. The Twins' starting rotation was extraordinarily healthy last year--Pineda had two respites and Odorizzi and Gibson each had a couple weeks off--it shouldn't be expected that whoever is in the rotation in April will get 30 starts. Certainly, Pineda will be out until mid-May so having four other proven guys should be the floor. i expect some of the guys who had limited opportunities last year to get quite a bit of work as starters. It may be that whoever we view as the starting rotation won't all be healthy at once. I consider Keuchel an undervalued asset. I think there is a chance that Bumgarner could become dominant again. Gausman intrigues me. Go get two more guys for the rotation and make a sneaky good addition to the position players (I have been beating the drum for Travis Shaw) and get a good backup catcher and I'll be happy.

Can we be greedy and get Bumgarner and Keuchel? I'd take a rotation of Berríos, MadBum, Odorizzi, Keuchel and Pineda.

After the Twins I follow Gopher football and basketball. I am old enough to remember the Sports Peach in the Minneapolis paper when the Gophers game was more important than the Vikings game was on the following day. IMHO, this team was the best since the Rose Bowl teams of the very early sixties. The best Mason team and the best Kill team were pretty close to this outfit. The schedule broke right in a lot of ways--Maryland, Nebraska, and Purdue were played at the right time and all had pretty bad years. Minnesota played Illinois when they were flailing and beat a very good Penn State team. That they could not secure either the Pig or the Axe leaves me unfulfilled, for sure. The point here is will the program continue to improve? I believe they should be able to compete with Iowa and Wisconsin on a yearly basis and that they should be able to win the West B1G on a fairly regular basis. The program appears to me to be one step from that reality.

Unfortunately Bumgarner hits right handed.

All of the left handed relievers who were non-tendered should get a look. With the three batter minimum, they need to be able to have some success against right handed hitters, though. Given the Twins roster construction, they already have three utility types (Gonzalez, Adrianza & Astudillo) and a regular for every position except first base (or third if Sanó is moved). A right handed hitting outfielder who can play center field well (as well or better than Kepler) would be a good add. There were also a number of catchers non-tendered, although none of them hit left handed. If the Twins are interested in Garver getting reps at first, they should be interested in adding major league catching.

My vote is to move Sanó. Sign Shaw and have Marwin available at third, particularly against left handers.

First base is a far less demanding position. There are many, many examples of players being moved to first from more demanding positions. I can't think of a single player who was moved to first and then moved back because he couldn't handle it. The one "skill" that a first baseman really needs is scooping low throws out of the dirt. With the manicured infields and the level of skill needed to make the majors, just about every major league player is adept at this. I would expect Sanó to likewise be able to scoop his fair share.

The 10 duplicate entries are deleted. Sometimes it does take a while for a posting to happen, particularly when on a phone.

A one-year deal for Shaw makes sense. According to BBRef, he's a plus defender at third. Good power and a little bit more L/R balance.

Other than Grandal, I don't think there were many (if any) catchers that move the needle for teams. I like Castro and Avila to provide a LH bat in the lineup on occasion, but mostly I'd like to see solid run-prevention in all aspects of the backup catcher's defensive game--handling pitchers, framing, throwing and preventing wild pitches.

At the end of May, I said that Schoop had been inconsequential, since his offensive production was almost completely done when the Twins were comfortably ahead or hopelessly behind in games. He provided some key hits and defensive plays, but mostly remained inconsequential as mostly a spare part after Arraez was promoted. He was, by all reports, a good teammate and a positive presence. Good luck to him in 2020 and beyond.

I think that would make sense except that the Twins already have Gonzalez and Adrianza to be alternates at multiple positions. Granted Gonzalez is an option in the outfield, but adding Arraez to the alternate list would make it really tough for anyone to get sufficient at-bats. I was a proponent of Polanco to second base last year, supplanted by Iglesias. Seems even less likely this year.

The way I see it is that Kirlloff is projected as being the best hitter of the host of prospects (Larnach, Raley, Rooker) all in the upper minors. He would have to demonstrate his "eliteness" over the others and show that he is too good a hitter for the IL or maybe the AA Southern League. IIRC, he was outstanding in the playoffs for Pensacola, which was another reason why the rumors of a recall were being heard. With that number of bat-first prospects, at least three of whom have played first base, I can see why bringing back Cron might not happen. Further, that is a lot of material for a trade. My guess on trade value would be 1) Kirilloff 2) Larnach 3) Rooker and 4) Raley.

I do think that there could be internal improvement from the existing players. I would dispute that either Cron or Schoop are good defenders. While the number of errors committed is one small part of overall defense, they both made a lot of errors compared to others at their position. Neither Cron nor Schoop would be described as having superior range so I can't see that they are good fielders.

I think Sanó will continue to improve, but that he also will continue to frustrate. He'll have periods of time, where he's a huge force and then strike out 50-75% for a couple series.

Garver's 2019 was so good and comparitively out of the blue. He would be an obvious choice. At 40 for most of next season, Cruz can't be expected to continue to put up the numbers he had in 2019. I've always expected Kepler to hit for a higher average, although I doubt he can slug as many homers consistently. Regression also has a lot to do with health. Cruz missed about 25-30 games with his wrist problem (and sat out essentially the entire road portion of interleague play). That might have been just enough rest for the rest of his body. Garver wasn't overrused and did miss about three weeks with his ankle injury, again perhaps conditions kept him fresh until late September. On the other hand, I believe Kepler's injury late in the season kept him from serious consideration for a Silver Slugger and doomed the Twins' playoff chances.

Mmmm, that would mean changing every infielder from a team that won 101 games the previous year. That, on it's face, seems to be a bit over overreaction. Here's my take on all of the infielders--Sano is range-limited, has a superior arm, and does not have soft hands. First base or DH are his future. In a larger sample, I would guess Sano's defense at first will be below average, but less so than his work at third. Polanco has been stretched at shortstop, but that is where he has been for the bulk of his major league career. While he was the starting shortstop in the All-Star game, there are a half-dozen other shortstops that are at least as good, if not better overall. Despite a number of fine defensive plays, I would rate him in the bottom half of shortstops defensively.Moving him to a less-crucial position makes sense, but I'd like to see what he can do for part of another year with his new throwing motion, since arm strength and accuracy are his biggest defensive problems. Arraez is young, gives great effort, but isn't particularly adept as a defender. His arm would appear to be a problem if moved to the left side of the diamond. Each of the players I listed are better hitters than fielders. All three of those guys would be helped by an outstanding defender beside them. Last year I advocated picking up Iglesias and moving Polanco to second. I wouldn't be opposed to the same move, but now we have to deal with Arraez/Sanó. Another factor to consider is shifting. A third baseman spends probably 30% of his time as the only defender on the left side and playing in the traditional shortstop position most of that 30%. I would think an adequate arm would be a must for whoever plays third. Finally, the Twins figure to return both Adrianza and Marwin Gonzalez who have and would enhance the infield defense. If Gonzalez is freed from spending the majority of his time in the outfield, he is the best internal answer at third base defensively. Adrianza is the existing team's best shortstop and probably second best third baseman. Neither of these guys hit like the starting trio, but they stayed around league average and both will be over 30 next year. To me there aren't any easy answers, but that there are a lot of possible ways to go forward. The Twins gave away far too many outs with their infield defense last year. Something needs to be done to improve that. If one move is made, I would say non-tender Cron and move Sanó across the diamond.

The Badgers are “vincible” away from Camp Randall, I think that game will be interesting, but the next two Saturdays will provide tests on the road that will determine how big the Axe Game will be.

BTW, the oldest person in American is 114, so there isn’t a person in the country that was alive the last time the Gophers were 9-0.