stringer bell

Someone is going to take a chance on Manuel Margot! Minor league deal, after making eight figures last year. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/02/brewers-sign-manuel-margot.html

I don't know if defensive metrics measure all of these things, but here are four areas where first base defense should be evaluated. 1) Making the right fundamental play. Throwing to the proper base. Positioning properly to field the ball and also to make cutoffs. 2) Receiving the ball on throws to first. Knowing when to come off the bag and perhaps make a swipe tag and when to hold it. Stretching and scooping. The Twins have put a lot of short first baseman over there in the Rocco era--Arráez, Solano, Santana and now France--and those few inches on good stretches could get back some outs that are being given up for range. 3) Fielding grounders including ranging and throwing to the pitcher. 4) Pop-ups, particularly foul territory. Santana did all these things quite well. In general, making the expected plays is good enough for a first baseman, particularly if they make a majority of the scoops of low throws. Former catchers (like Santana, Morneau and Mauer) are usually pretty good at scooping the ball. I don't expect France to be bad at routine plays and fundamentals, but he won't have much range and he's relatively short. He needs to hit well to be an asset. Depending on what happens at second base, I think the infield will be somewhere between pretty weak and average. Range is going to be a factor at all positions--the Twins just can't seem to get fast, rangy infielders--but by and large they'll turn outs into outs. Also, I think it would be helpful for Correa to have a steady double play partner. Continuity in the middle infield is a nice extra to have.

Add Dylan Floro to the list of ex-Twins relievers who signed a minor league deal. Floro has been a particularly bad trade deadline pickup each of the last two years. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/02/athletics-sign-dylan-floro.html

I thought there was a recent projection of who would be on the Opening Day roster of 26 players (13 pitchers) but I can't find it if there really was one done recently. I guess i'll put forward my Opening Day roster for the position player side and see what others think. IMHO, eleven spots are now spoken for with the late acquisitions of Bader and May, leaving a battle for second base/utility infield and another player. Starters: DH--José Miranda C--Ryan Jeffers 1B--Ty France 2B--Willi Castro 3B--Royce Lewis SS--Carlos Correa LF--Trevor Larnach CF--Byron Buxton RF--Matt Wallner Bench: Christian Vázquez (C), Harrison Bader (OF). These are locks IMHO. What remains? Well, Willi Castro backs up everyone, but since I listed him as a second baseman, someone to play second when Castro is playing elsewhere is essential. There are three possible candidates on the 40-man roster--1) Edouard Julien, who has the most experience including real hitting success in 2023. Julien is a second baseman who might get reps at first, but with Miranda and France manning first, there won't be much of a chance for him to move there for substantial playing time. Julien had a lost 2024, at least from May 1st on and I think he needs to prove something at St. Paul. 2) Austin Martin--Martin can play outfield, but it would appear that second base is his best chance to become a regular at this point. His defense in the outfield was very much subpar. Martin profiles as a guy who can get on base, steal some bags and also play multiple positions. He came up short of his profile in all areas as a rookie. 3) Brooks Lee--A #1 draft choice Lee has the advantage of being a switch hitter. He also has versatility, playing third, short and second for the Twins last year. His bat wasn't close to expectations and he suffered injuries that seemed to rob him of foot and bat speed. One of these two could cease the final spot on the roster, or it could go in a totally different direction. I have thought Mickey Gasper might fit in here, particularly with his catching experience, but the signing of France seems to cut his chances to almost nothing. Actually, the same might be true for Mike Ford, a lefty hitter who can play some first base. Keirsey Jr. could be added as a fifth outfielder, but Bader would be Buxton's backup, really limiting the value that Keirsey could provide. The Twins are overbalanced towards left handed hitters, so I think it ends up being Lee and Julien. What are the thoughts of the TD Community.

Baldelli used the same term for both France and Bader--"he will play a lot". For France this is interpreted that he will be the starting first baseman, while for Bader it is interpreted here to mean one of the Twins' two left handed bats will play against lefties. Maybe so, maybe not. Rocco has shown he is much less inclined to strictly platoon right handed hitters, meaning the so-called short side of platoons get plenty of PAs against right handers. At $6.5M and without significant platoon splits, I wouldn't be surprised to see Bader get quite a few starts against right handed pitching. Finding a third outfielder to go with Buxton and Bader against lefties is the tougher fit. I don't think Austin Martin makes the Twins out of Spring Training this year, but I do think Willi Castro will get lots of starts against left handed pitching. The primary reason Castro didn't play right last year was that Kepler, Larnach and Wallner were all preferred to Willi as right fielders and with Kepler out of the way, I can see Baldelli using Castro in right against left handed pitching, or else Bader in right and Willi in left. I really don't mind that much if both Larnach and Wallner are platooned as long as they get more swings when a lefty reliever enters the game.

I know one poster has claimed that Lewis is a poorer defender than Miranda. I don't think so and I believe Lewis has more potential to improve as a defender than Miranda. France has been pretty lousy at first and his upside there is pretty limited. Miranda has less experience at first and also wasn't very good there in limited time. I think with more reps Miranda could be as good as France. Now that I have talked Miranda up at first and down at third, here is why--Miranda has primarily played third in the minors and so far in the big leagues and he's probably close to as good as he's going to get and it isn't very good. Meanwhile, he hasn't played a lot of first base at any level so there is room for him to grow. He's 6'2", tall enough to provide a few crucial inches when stretching for throws and his arm isn't strong which is less of a problem at first than third. Lewis made a bunch of throwing errors in 2024. His arm strength is fine and he is a more nimble and athletic player than Miranda will ever be. He isn't an athletic marvel anymore (reduced speed and more bulk), but his hands are better than Miranda's and his arm strength is better. Hopefully, we'll see a better version of Lewis in 2025 with a complete recovery from his injuries of 2024 and another year removed from his knee surgeries. Lewis needs to clean up his throwing and I speculate it was a combination of not being 100% physically plus a bit of a mental issue after making a few bad throws. Lewis has played exactly 100 games at third base and played third very little in the minors. With more experience, he should get measurably better.

Darwin's made the majors as a pitcher and converted to outfield after that. That first plate appearance was while he still was considered a pitcher. He wisely switched to the outfield, but it took a long time for him to get back to MLB.

I don't think putting Miranda at first base would have guaranteed health or productivity and more than it would have for Alex Kirilloff. Some guys get injured a lot and others are durable. This is where France is more similar to Carlos Santana than he is to José Miranda. Prior to the heel injury, France had been quite the iron man for the Mariners, as Santana has been wherever he's played. Miranda has faded in two seasons and and had another lost at least in part due to injury, so although he's four years older, France would project to be much more likely to play a complete season.

The Twins DFA'd Brent Headrick before the France deal was announced, but presumably because they were going to be adding France to the 40-man. They lost Headrick to the Yankees.

The Twins have Larnach, Lee and Wallner as bat-first first round draft choices on their roster. Add in Lewis who right now seems like much more of a hitter than defender or exciting base runner and it is kind of strange that no one has developed into a slugging first baseman. In my comment here is the recent production of the farm system. I suppose you could add Miranda too. It's substandard IMHO because none of these guys has developed into an elite player as of yet. As a fan, it seems guys are always on the verge of becoming really good players (All-Stars who maybe get MVP votes) but they don't make it. Another high draft choice, Alex Kirilloff, had his career ended by injury before it really go going. I thought he was going to be the best of all I've listed.

If you recall, Miranda got hit in the head right after he had the insane 12 consecutive hits streak. He never was the same after that. I don't believe he hit a single homer after getting hit in the head and the back injury came up as well. How much was regression to the mean and how much was being dogged by injuries is a good and open question. With France presumably the Opening Day first baseman, there would seem to be a ripple effect on Twins position players. Miranda moves to DH at least part-time, keeping Larnach in left field and moving Willi Castro more to second base, and lengthening the odds that Brooks Lee, Edouard Julien and Austin Martin start the season in the minors. All of this is barring injury, of course. If one of Lee, Julien or Martin makes the Opening Day squad, I would handicap it as this: Martin can play OF and second base and would be a likely pinch runner late in a game. Lee switch hits and can play second, third and shortstop and Julien bats left and is a below average second baseman who also might play a little first base where he is unproven. Julien has had success hitting in the majors (2023) while Lee and Martin fell short of expectation in their 2024 rookie year.

People on the team will get plenty of at-bats. With Rocco, everybody plays, so it's not like Miranda won't get a chance. When Miranda was hitting he was in the lineup almost every day. If he is as hot as he was last year, he'll play. On the flip side, I do fear the slack allowed to France will be substantial and I'm not convinced he will miraculously revert to 2022. I'm not much of a fan of a one-tool player and he's slow and not a skillful fielder.

I agree, not so much about talent, but about tools. In the Falvey era, the Twins haven't produced many players that were above average hitters, runners and defenders. The term I use is that they can win a game with their bat, their legs and their glove. Max Kepler never used his good speed on the bases and never became a consistent offensive threat. Buxton could be all of that except for the injuries. Brian Dozier was pretty good at all three for a while. To me that is the extent of "all-around players".

I remember Power as a good fielding first baseman who didn't hit with enough power to play that position in those days. He was called flamboyant and showy, but what was flamboyant and showy in the 60s became the norm in another decade or two. The story of why Vic was traded by the Yankees usually included the one-handed catches. I don't know if it was a cover for his dating preferences. Bob Allison played first the year that Power was traded, although Harmon became the primary first baseman after that.

Personal bias--I'm sick of <6' first baseman (Arraez, Solano, Santana, France), especially those who are right handed. Miranda is listed at 6'2". France may come back this year and be decent. He gives the Twins a much more plausible Plan B if Miranda doesn't pan out. It also points out the small window that Miranda and France have to be solid major league regulars. Both are not gifted with speed or good power and need their hit tool to be substantially better than average to be major league regulars. France is older and has had two very good seasons. Miranda has had two seasons with stretches of more than a month where he was well above average and justified his lack of speed, power and defense by clubbing the baseball. Bader was mentioned above. I do think the key here is whether he moves ahead of Castro or Emma as an option in a corner against right handed pitching. He's not hit consistently well for quite a while and while he is a good outfielder, putting a below-average hitter on an outfield corner consistently is a sign that there's not enough talent on the roster.

I don't think "unsettled" is a totally bad thing, if the options are good ones. A year ago we had Julien penciled in for 120 games per year at second, Lewis as a possible MVP candidate and Lee as a top prospect who had to play somewhere. The star has dimmed for all three, but they are all pretty young and each could restore his luster. That is why I chuckle or perhaps sneer at projections for two or five years from now. My take is that Lewis is still going to be an All-Star because of his hitting, Lee is going to be a regular (150 games per year) someplace and Julien draws the short straw with the Twins organization, although he will hit well for someone down the road. I'd like Keaschall to thrive for at least half a year in the minors before I anoint him a future star or even a regular. If Keaschall and Lee are the real deal, I think Royce Lewis becomes a first baseman relatively early in his career. If you agree with me, I have stock market tips I'd like to share and they both have as much certainty of being right.

Eddie Rosario signed a minor league contract with the Dodgers. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/02/dodgers-sign-eddie-rosario-to-minors-contract.html

It looks like he has five-plus seasons of service time, so after 2025 he would be a free agent.

Second base will be interesting, for sure, but I am also interested in the establishment of a pecking order at some positions. For example, after Buxton and then Bader, who is seen as a third CF option? (Castro, Keirsey Jr. or Martin). Does Martin even compete at second base? If all are healthy, where will Castro play? (You know he'll be in the lineup most of the time). Who is the #3 catcher (Camargo or Cartaya)? Does Gasper even compete for a roster spot vs. Ford, France and Miranda? There will be a battle for the final couple of bullpen spots too. Would the Twins dare option guys with major league success (Topa or Alcalá) to keep Castellano?

If I was predicting, I would go with the same guys as starters for the rest of the decade, however it is all projection. A year from now it might look totally different. Keaschall hasn't played above AA, and the rest of the players haven't (except Correa) completed a single season. I'd love to see more durability from all these guys.

Don’t agree. Farmer had utility. France really doesn’t—first base and DH—and Farmer had a couple seasons where he really did damage to LH pitching. France’s splits are pretty neutral.

It would appear that he (his agent) insisted on it. The Twins lost a guy because of the contract, but really there isn’t much benefit for France. He’s still on a “prove it” deal for comparatively low dollars, unless there are clauses we don’t know about.

Santana won a Gold Glove not because he was only charged with four errors. He won by converting tough plays into outs while handling the routine ones as well. I remember a slugging outfielder (Juan Gonzalez?) was asked how he would make up for a couple misplays in the outfield and he said "swing the bat". I think he was correct. I'd like to see a defense like the Twins had in the early 2000s, with plus defenders everywhere, but I'm okay with competence at the three lower spectrum positions and average is acceptable at second and third if they hit well enough. Up until the All-Star break, the Twins graded out in the middle of the pack in Defensive Runs Saved. It was only with the losses of Correa and Buxton and higher use of inferior defenders that the overall rating slipped. The Twins defense lost two good defensive players, so it will be a challenge to get to middle-of-the-pack, but good health would be a great start for improvement in run prevention by the defense.

He's only played a couple innings at second in the last two years. He has Vázquez like speed, so I can't imagine he would be an option except for an emergency.

Yet another ex-Twin reliever signed to a minor league contract. Shaun Anderson made four appearances for the Twins in 2021. Of note, he was traded for LaMonte Wade Jr., who has had a nice run with the Giants. https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2025/02/angels-sign-shaun-anderson-to-minor-league-deal.html