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stringer bell

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Everything posted by stringer bell

  1. stringer bell
    Yes, to only get one of three vs. the wounded Yankees is disappointing. Friday was a lousy game and Sunday was disjointed. Pineda got swings and misses, but couldn’t put away the #9 hitter when he was ahead 0-2. It was the fifth and he was around 80 pitches. His pitches and command weren’t as sharp. Conditioning? He’s become a five-inning pitcher? I think he has to have a short leash.
  2. stringer bell
    There certainly is room for more pitching. Not factoring in injuries, the bottom half (less leverage) of the bully has been poor, the top half is OK, but besides Rogers, there isn't a guy I feel comfortable with pitching in high leverage situations. A right handed complement to Rogers would leave lower leverage situations for Parker, May and Hildy. As far as the rotation, Perez has been outstanding, Pineda pretty poor and Gibson's numbers are not good. There is room for better in the rotation and there isn't a season without pitchers missing significant time with injuries, so the club should have a plan when a guy or two go down. From what I've seen of reports from Rochester, there isn't much help there.
  3. stringer bell
    My thought is that when (and if) Sano returns next month that Cave goes back to Rochester. The extra outfielder is Gonzalez/Astudillo/Adrianza (probably in that order). That is assuming that everyone is healthy when Miggy is ready for the majors. 12 pitchers should be enough. Getting length out of the starters is the key factor.
  4. stringer bell
    I confess to not watching as much as usual so far this season. In another thread, I said Schoop's contributions had been "inconsequential", mostly because he hit his homers in one-sided games. I think he is fine defensively, but I haven't seen anything that sets him apart. I think he'll be OK this year and yes, probably better than Dozier (I really liked him while he was here), but I'd like to see him change a few games before I call his addition a masterstroke.
  5. stringer bell
    Castro is OK. Yes, I agree it is unlikely the Twins will want him back next year, but for right now he belongs on the team. With three viable catchers, all of them will be underworked, but they probably can stay fresh into the heat of the season. I like that he has a lefty bat in the bottom of the order.
  6. stringer bell
    Thanks. Very informative. It does show that having options remaining is very important. Probably why the Yankees were willing to part with Tyler Austin, for example. Not having options remaining forces the issue for players such as Magill and Adrianza. Meanwhile, Cave will probably be up and down several times on this year's option.
  7. stringer bell
    Media attention doesn't matter much to me. The thought that it matters to prospective Free Agents is also a bit far-fetched as far as I'm concerned. I think it matters what club houses and agents think and are talking about a lot more than what leads ESPN or mlb.com. As far as this year's additions, I think they are doing well as a group. Schoop hasn't been consequential and Gonzalez hasn't hit much, but I expect all will be OK offensively. This season will hinge on run prevention IMHO. Berrios looks ready to take a step forward, but no one else in the rotation has really stepped up. I'm disappointed with May and Meija in the bullpen, perhaps I was expecting too much.
  8. stringer bell
    The guys that competed for the last spots mostly did well--Harper of the relievers, plus Austudillo, Austin and Cave. I'm glad they're all going north. I wonder if Adrianza is 100%. Can he hit right handed? We'll probably forget about these decisions by June, but rewarding those who've played well with their jobs on the line is a good thing.
  9. stringer bell
    What does Romero need? Confidence? Relief experience? Or just more innings? I suspect it is confidence and a month or less of success in Triple A will be just the ticket.
  10. stringer bell
    I expect Rosario to spend quite a bit of time in right field. I believe Marwin is more comfortable in left, so if he’s in the OF for Kepler or Buxton, Eddie will move to right.
  11. stringer bell
    The Gonzalez acquisition knocked both Reed and Granite back a peg. I would hope the Twins could get Granite to Rochester. They really need more guys 23-40 with options.
  12. stringer bell
    Absolutely Ash. All players are not equal when it comes to making the 25-man roster.Adding a player not on the 40-man would necessarily cost the team the services of the player they take off the 40-man roster. Players out of options like Austin, Adrianza, and Meija get the longest looks because they are likely lost if they don't make the 25-man squad going north.
  13. stringer bell
    When I worked for the Postal Service, they had positions known as "unassigned regular". I believe that is what Marwin Gonzalez will be for the Twins. While I'm being arbitrary in going back two seasons and using WAR, a stat I have some trouble with, Marwin does have a higher WAR in the past two years than any player on the Twins' roster. I presume he will get as many plate appearances as anyone, just not at one specific position. Gonzalez has gotten full-time work (more than 500 PAs) on a team that won over 100 games each of the last two years. Will the 2019 Twins be better than that? With the addition of Gonzalez, they have a buffer if a player they are counting on this year doesn't pan out. They don't have a player in the minors who is ready to be a major league regular, so it will be good to have a proven major league regular available when the need arises. It's a bonus that wherever Gonzalez lands, he would figure to be at least league-average defensively. It is also really good to add a switch-hitter who has pretty even splits. When all the Astros were healthy the past two years, Gonzalez didn't play much at second, short and third. Then again, the 'Stos have All-Stars (and potential MVPs) at all three of those positions. I actually think Gonzalez would be fine defensively in the middle infield or third base. I can't find the quote, but his manager said he was as good defensively at every position for the Astros as the nominal regular.
  14. stringer bell
    Escobar and Gonzales are similar players, but Gonzales is more versatile. He played more 1B and LF than anything else last year. The lack of depth at second, short, and third in the high minors would mean trouble if Sano, Polanco or Schoop is injured or ineffective, it could be a season-killer. Marwin covers all of those spots and more and can be a platoon partner with anyone who struggles against same-side pitching.
  15. stringer bell
    I went four consecutive years with my older brother. Always enjoyable. Everyone is friendly and accommodating. You’ll never get closer to the players. We especially enjoyed watching minor league games on the back fields. My brother had a long conversation one year with Niko Goodrum’s dad. I met Jared Burton’s grandparents at a game and another time had a long conversation with a writer for Minor League baseball. My favorite experience was doing an impromptu Q & A with Terry Ryan. He was watching two minor league games and about a half-dozen of us fans peppered him with questions. I remember he was honest and didn’t dodge any questions. I don’t think fans could ever ask for better access than that. I had planned to come this year, but I’ve put it off ‘til 2020. Any baseball fan should go if they have the chance.
  16. stringer bell
    Sanó is much more replaceable than Garver unless he becomes the elite slugger we envisioned in his rookie year. How long does the team give him a spot on the field and in the lineup based on potential? At some point, it has to be basis of performance, and Miguel’s hasn’t been good since the first half of ‘17.
  17. stringer bell
    Such an eneven season! Shellacked by the likes of Illinois, Nebraska, and Maryland (and Iowa), but then good wins against Purdue, Fresno and Wisconsin. A really young team who lost too many of their proven veterans, but still competed at the end. With so many young guys returning, they could/should take a step forward.
  18. stringer bell
    For about 40 playing minutes, the Gophers looked like a competent college football team. The other 20 minutes were really, really bad. There is talent there. I think the coach is more than a motivational speaker/salesman, but there is a long way to go.
  19. stringer bell
    Buxton and Sano have some similarities, but real differences too. They are similar ages and have both shown All-Star performance, but never for a full year. Sano looked like a certain star his rookie year and then in the first half of 2017, while Buxton looked like he was emerging in the last half of last year. With the position he plays and the defense he brings, Buxton is an asset as an average hitter, especially since his speed makes him such an asset on the bases. Sano has to be well above average at the plate, because he plays a corner (not especially well) and he isn't a game-changer on the bases. I do agree that Sano needs to alter both his attitude and approach. It is not okay to strike out 40% of the time. The .199 batting average and .679 OPS aren't pretty. Buxton's numbers were pathetic as well. He needs to find an approach at the plate that works and stick with it. If the Twins are to contend in 2019, one or both of these guys needs to realize much more of their potential than we saw in 2018.
  20. stringer bell
    from RB: The Indians could have been better prepared for the addition of Josh Donaldon, if Ramirez played some 2B during the year and Kipnis played some CF instead of coming in cold in September. Of course Kepler can and should play 1B on occasion in 2019. I believe Rosario could play some IF if needed. Doing so will provide our new manager more options to work in the 2019 World Series. Prepare for Success and Prepare for Failure. Depth and Flexibility is how it's done. Ramirez played a lot of second prior to last year, plus some outfield and Kipnis spent time in the outfield this year earlier, at least that is my recollection. Regarding Kepler at first--I think it's a good idea to have him in the mix. Given the injury history of Sano and the questions about Austin, the Twins might be in a situation for a lot of games that they need to get Cave, Rosario, Buxton, and Kepler into the game, with none of them being the DH. That would be predicated on Kepler being a better offensive player than he has been the last two years, but I think that might happen. Regardless, positional flexibility is a plus.
  21. stringer bell
    I’ve beaten the drum for Iglesias since September. I’ll add Martin Gonzales as another target. He was All-Star level in ‘17 and still above average 102 OPS+ this year. Historically he’s at least a league-average defensive shortstop and he’s truly versatile. He will be 30 in the spring and want starter money.
  22. stringer bell
    I am with Chief on this discussion. Shortstop remains very important and even though less balls are put in play, it is crucial to turn outs into outs. Polanco is a very nice offensive player for a middle infielder, but he cost too many outs with his defense last year.
  23. stringer bell
    Odorizzi has to average more than 5 innings a start. His overall numbers are fine, but it weighs on the bullpen too much to go short as often as he did. If you have three or four guys that average six or more, then you can get away with an Odorizzi at #4 or #5. I would like to see the Twins stick with 12 pitchers all year and maybe juggle a little and have 11 for some period of time. That would require having guys that more often than not work into the seventh inning. I'm hopeful Pineda and Meija (or Stewart or Gonsalves) are able to go deep pretty often.
  24. stringer bell
    I don’t think Berrios is an obvious choice. Gibson pitched more innings, had a better ERA, and was far more consistent. Anecdotally, it seems to me that Gibson had more starts against the elite teams in the AL and fared well against the best. Yes, Berrios has a brighter future, but for today it was a very close call and I’d pick Gibson because of less poor starts and the ability to adjust when he came out with something short of his best stuff. Edit: Honest I didn’t see the post above when I made my post! Nice post jkcarew.
  25. stringer bell
    I would imagine he didn’t get more double plays than previous seasons, but that he still got more than average. This is what I liked about 2018 Kyle Gibson—he pitched well in some starts when he didn’t get a lot of swings and misses. Some games, it was a lot of grounders, other games, fanned more than one per inning. Regardless of what might be working for him in a specific outing, he usually found a way to be effective, as evidenced by 18 Quality Starts.
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