stringer bell

We got him!

Given the way Gordon and, to a lesser extent, Martin have been handled, it seems that the only internal candidate to be a regular shortstop for the Twins is Lewis. Royce has a long ways to go to prove he can a)hit major league pitching and b)handle regular shortstop duties. He certainly can't be counted on to start the season as the Twins' shortstop and I think it would be foolish to bet the farm that Lewis will contribute at all this year as a shortstop. The Twins need someone to step in next year and, in my estimation that guy will not come from the system. If the Twins want to spend big bucks on a Trevor Story, I think it is nearly certain they will not bring in any more than one starting pitcher after the lockout is over, and the most likely is Michael Pineda. I think an acquisition of a Freddy Galvis or Jonathan Villar might be prudent, offering a decent player who can be signed for a year or two and able to move into a utility role if an internal option steps up. IMHO, the Twins chances of contending next year are a long shot, but not impossible. They would need to hit on just about every choice they make and have some surprises. They need to at least patch the shortstop hole and add starting pitchers to even have hope and it might be true that hope is what the team is selling this winter.

Ryne Harper non-tendered by the Nats. John Curtiss shown the door by the Brewers. Andrew Vasquez was non-tendered by the Dodgers, as well. Rob Refsnyder was signed to a minor league contract with Boston.

It is not just the salaries. It is also about 40-man flexibility and upside. Minaya and Coulombe either would be on the roster or DFAed. They couldn’t be shuttled back and forth to St. Paul. Good luck to both finding a job.

???? Magill? They claimed him and immediately non-tendered him? Is there something I’m missing?

I just don't know how Arraez and top prospect Miranda get consistent at-bats as long as Polanco and Donaldson are on this team. I like Arraez's at-bats and I don't think he is that bad in the field, but I get that feeling that he'll not be durable and he has some flaws--lack of speed and power--that limit his value and his ceiling. Kiner-Falefa has four full years of service and is 27 for the 2022 season. While his hitting hasn't been great, I think there is room for it to be better and he is gifted in the field and a plus base runner, areas where the Twins need to improve.

Third base, unless they moved Seager to third and Semien to short.

Since the Rangers signed two shortstops to long-term deals, maybe the Twins could get Kiner-Falefa from them. I suggest Arraez as the player to be traded. I like Arraez, but trading him for a legit and good defensive shortstop makes sense and also opens a spot for Miranda to make the Opening Day roster.

Too many 30+ out of options guys on the 40-man. Coulombe is a “no” for me and probably Cotton, as well.

As each day passes without a serious mention of the Twins being in on anyone, I get more frustrated and angry. Ryan and Ober and three "whodats" for the rotation is the recipe for last place next year. Gausman will likely agree to terms in the next three days, knocking off yet another top line starter. Also, there has been no news that the Twins are in on any shortstop. With a lockout looming and confusing times for transactions after the lockout a near certainty, I think the situation looks pretty bleak for Twins fans that want to see them in the playoffs before the next presidential election.

Of the pitchers that the Twins picked up off the scrap heap, Minaya was the most effective IMHO, especially in the second half of the season. Yes, he's 31 and never really made a mark in the bigs up until the past season. However, I think he has the tools to be a good bullpen piece--mid 90s fastball, improved command and much improved changeup--for next year and perhaps beyond. I would advocate keeping him on the staff with a tender. The two other pitchers who are close calls would be Cotton and Coulombe and I would think they both should be nontendered, but perhaps offered a minor league contract and spring training invitation.

From the outside, I don't extend Coulombe and probably Cotton, precisely because it would put too many meh relievers on the 40-man roster. I really like what I saw of Minaya in the second half of the season last year, so I would advocate for the Twins to extend him. Non-tendering either or both of Cotton and Coulombe and then signing them to minor league contracts might make sense and they likely would be added at some point in 2022. With the Rule V draft coming up and several free agents on the board available to fill holes for the Twins, I think reducing the number on the 40-man roster is necessary and getting a couple of marginal relievers off the list makes sense.

Only one or two teams that the Twins played moved their 3B (Milwaukee is one), but it kind of makes sense given the skill sets of certain third basemen. The Twins moved Sanó to the right side of the diamond in 2018 or 2019, but haven’t done so with anyone else since.

I think second base has become more difficult as well. The throw from short right, the pivot (with a throw from short or third) and a longer throw from behind and to the left of second are all more difficult plays to make than traditional second base plays. The number of chances may have diminished, but the difficulty would be greater.

I think that almost every manager succeeds or fails on the basis of things not seen by the fans (example Jace Tingler in SD). In those areas, I believe Baldelli is solid. He has the respect of the players and as someone not far removed from playing, he probably has more understanding and empathy for the modern player. Rocco seems to wear well over the course of a long season. Obviously, he's not perfect and some players aren't going to respond well to his laid-back (public) approach. Further, he's made some glaring tactical mistakes. IMHO, two areas where Rocco has not been aggressive enough is pinch-runners and defensive replacements. Part of that may be the roster he had, but I saw Nick Gordon sitting on the bench too many times with a tying or winning run on base and one of the Twins' slow runners on base. Having a double bonus of running for Sano and having a better first baseman in the game never happened that I recall and there were opportunities for that to happen. With the gift runner rule, taking out a slow runner for the tying or lead run makes more sense because said slugger seldom got another chance to hit. Management of the pitching staff, I think, was pretty good. He didn't overwork his bullpen despite many, many short starts from the rotation and by and large, he put pitchers in positions they could succeed. As I mentioned earlier, the baseball season is a long grind. We, as fans and particularly on game threads, want to see our guys win every game and go to the nth degree to do some on each and every contest. Players and managers know that it really doesn't work that way for six months. I think Rocco did a good job managing for the whole season, not trying to win one game and lose two more by eliminating players for future games. I think his seat will be warmer if and when the 2022 season gets going if the Twins disappoint again. Let's hope the front office gives him an improved roster and that the team is competitive this season and beyond.

Back to the original topic, if shortstops are getting less chances as a result of shifts, are second basemen and third basemen getting a higher percentage of chances? I know that fewer balls are put in play and that fewer of the balls in play are put on the ground, but if the percentage skews toward the other infielders, it would put more importance on their range and arm, correct? My thought is that third basemen are now stationed at the traditional SS position at least 25% of the time. Having a Sanó or (going back further) Cubbage or Killebrew lined up there would be a train wreck IMHO, making the presence of having a fielder with arm strength and range at third more important. Similarly, second basemen playing on the left side become more important and a bigger arm adds value with the longer throw when shifted for right handed pull hitters and being located in short right for left handed pull hitters. In summary, shifts and less balls in play should change the relative importance of all fielders. The changes in value wouldn’t be equivalent at every position and the wise front office would be the one that improves the team’s defense at a position that relatively becomes more important.

The Twins have needs and available free agents can fill those needs. I don’t see the point in trying to wait.

If that is the reason they signed Cave to a contract they should be fired, but I can’t imagine that is the case. The FO thinks Jake Cave has some value (so do I), how he was acquired and who he displaced shouldn’t have anything to do with his standing and I don’t think it does. I will say one more time that I don’t think a 29 year old LH corner outfielder coming off two bad seasons is a fit for the Twins.

Goodrum is 2.5 years younger and Simmons hasn’t put up an OPS+ over 94 since 2018 and the 94 was in 30 games in 2020. I don’t think it is a lock that he’ll rebound to major league average.

I don’t think the Twins will or should sign an outfield free agent like Castellanos and/or Canha. They aren’t on the same tier with Jake Cave or more accurately Jake Cave isn’t on the same plane with them. 800K is spare change out of the sofa for MLB owners. The contracts that Canha and Castellanos will be (most likely) long term and expensive. I don’t think signing Cave is a good move on a full 40-man roster. I still don’t think a left handed hitter is a fit on the Twins roster. OTOH, Cave had over 500 PAs of good performance followed by 300 well below average PAs. I think he has a good chance to rebound, but I don’t like him staying with the Twins.

To expand further, if Buxton is traded in the next eight months, the Twins are rebuilding. Martin is a top 5 Twins prospect who played CF more than SS at Wichita. If the Twins wouldn’t get a replacement center fielder in a Buxton trade, I expect the rebuilding Twins to give Martin the opportunity.

Buxton isn’t walking in 2022. I think the most likely internal replacement for Buxton is Martin.

Shortstops become utility players for one of two reasons: a) they can’t hit enough to be a regular or b) they are good enough in the field. I thought b was more likely in Goodrum’s case but his defense numbers from B-Ref say he’s average at the toughest defensive position. Goodrum hasn’t hit much the last two years (except against the Twins), so I guess that is why the Kitties let him go.

Yes, I like the idea too. He would have to be brought in as the starter at shortstop until Lewis is ready, I would think. The Twins already have three guys who should be major leaguers (Gordon, Miranda, Arraez) who are multi-position infielders with perhaps some ability to also play in the outfield. Two of their best hitters (and most durable last year) play 2b and 3b, making it hard to find at bats for the multi-position guys to get on the field. I have (admittedly distant) personal connection with Goodrum. During spring training 2015, my brother engaged Niko's dad in a long conversation during a minor league scrimmage and I mostly listened. The crux of the conversation is that Niko needed to play, it didn't matter at what level and it didn't matter what position. From that point I kept track of Niko and he got plenty of playing time, I believe at High A and AA. In 2016, Goodrum broke out a bit in Rochester and got a cup of coffee with the Twins in 2017, when the team got a wild card.

Let's be fair on what Jake Cave is and is not. He had two good partial seasons for the Twins in 2018-19. He was well below average in the 2020 shortened season and dreadful for 165 plate appearances last year. He is a decent corner outfielder defensively, but stretched to play center. He will be 29 for the duration of the 2022 season. Cave has no business being in the lineup versus left handed pitching, but as recently as 2019, he was above average facing right handed pitchers. I don't think he's a fit on a Twins team where the other corner outfielders figure to be left handed hitters. I do think he is a small step up from what the Twins can sign as a minor league free agent. The Twins viewed him as a better player, going into 2021, than LaMonte Wade Jr. It is not Cave's fault that Wade broke out in 2021. Cave had roughly 550 plate appearances in '18-'19 and roughly 300 in '20-'21 and did have a disabling injury in 2021. I think he's a fairly good candidate to bounce back in 2022.