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JB_Iowa

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Everything posted by JB_Iowa

  1. JB_Iowa
    http://www.twincities.com/twins/ci_25243055/twins-phil-hughes-reconnecting-long-lost-curveball Per Berardino, he talked with Anderson about it in the off-season. It goes back to his more successful 2010 and 2012. Sounds like he lost his feel for it when he had back troubles last spring and then may have rushed his return without getting all his pitches back so leaned more on the slider.
  2. JB_Iowa
    I don't think we know exactly how big a role Ryan did or didn't play OR could/couldn't play. I believe that Terry Ryan is an honorable person so I suspect that he really did try to step away and limit his role but sometimes that is easier said than done. All of Ryan's underlings basically stayed with the team. Smith didn't fire anybody or bring in a new team loyal to him. It was basically the same "old boys club" that was in place when Ryan was there. In fact, many of them were as long-tenured as Smith. The more I think about it, the more it seems like a recipe for disaster right from the start. Smith had a few years as assistant director of minor leagues and scouting (86-94 apparently) and then became assistant GM from 1994-2007. While all of the "team" worked together, Smith never had reason/opportunity to develop his own team. Nor did the transition from Ryan to Smith seem particularly well-planned. I remember distinct surprise when it happened. I hope the Twins learn something from the 1st TR retirement when it comes to the 2nd time he leaves the club. If you look at the top personnel in the Twins baseball operations, many are still very long-tenured and are "Ryan hires". While continuity can be good, that doesn't seem like an optimal formula for a new GM's success. (Of course many of those same people are also getting close to retirement age). Something to think about.
  3. JB_Iowa
    So much bad to decide among. But it does seem like they did something to improve the pitching .... and not much (if anything) to improve the hitting. I think this may well be decided by the option situation, etc. but if all of those things are disregarded, I'd say 12 pitchers only.
  4. JB_Iowa
    I could hardly stand to watch the Red Sox last year. Those scraggly beards are NOT a good look. Phil's looks good, though. I'm just hoping that some of the humor and "looseness" we are reading in the various spring personality pieces translate into an atmosphere where the guys want to "go to work" and have fun playing the game -- and that it eventually translates into wins. (Okay, additional talent will help that but I'll take anything that might alleviate some of the day to day grimness of the last few years).
  5. JB_Iowa
    Thanks. Saturday's game is on FSN. I'll have to go visit each opponent's page to see about the possibility of seeing away games. And this is an official shout out to RB for at least a few game threads!!!!!!
  6. JB_Iowa
    To go even more off-topic, will there be game threads for the Spring Training games? Does somebody have the schedule for televised "away" games? I looked at the calendar on twinsbaseball.com but it looks like they only note the coverage on home games. I remember somebody posting somewhere about some televised away games. Thanks for any info!
  7. JB_Iowa
    Interesting column, ashbury and one I don't recall reading previously. The pivotal issue seems to be the question of "turning it all around". After enduring 2 more horrendous seasons, one has to wonder what happens if there isn't a significant improvement this year. But those teams weren't handcuffed by massive guaranteed contracts owed to giant question marks. Nor were they plagued with massive flaws in all three phases of the game. Is it even realistic to fix it all this offseason? "I'm going to try," Ryan said. "I'm going to try." The farm system is greatly improved and hope seems to be on the horizon. But how long is everyone willing to hope? Is 72-90 good enough to keep everyone in their jobs after 2014? Does the improvement have to be more than that? From reading that column, I'm betting not many in the organization expected two additional seasons of 96 losses. I'm sure that Terry Ryan enjoys great confidence not only from his bosses but his underlings. But how long will anyone wait for improvement on the field? P.S. Money may not have been the issue in that Smith was willing to work with less money but I'm betting that Smith's "pushing the payroll" in 2011 did impact how he was viewed.
  8. JB_Iowa
    To follow up, Gleeman stated that we'd see what those "philosophical differences" would be but he also noted that Ryan immediately revealed that the payroll would drop from about $115 m to $100 m. http://aarongleeman.com/2011/11/08/twins-fire-general-manager-bill-smith-name-terry-ryan-interim-gm/ Given the immediate juxtaposition of the payroll drop, it is kind of hard to ignore that as, perhaps, one of the philosophical differences.
  9. JB_Iowa
    I don't believe that they have ever stated the exact reasons: http://espn.go.com/mlb/story/_/id/7204414/minnesota-twins-dismiss-general-manager-bill-smith-return-terry-ryan-interim In order to discern what "philosophical differences" might mean, you have to look at what Smith was doing -- that would then imply that they wanted a different direction.
  10. JB_Iowa
    Your point is well stated. But the jury is still out on whether the team will actually follow through on the Ryan plan in the long run. For that, we can only wait and watch.
  11. JB_Iowa
    Bill Smith deserves a share of the blame .... but there is plenty of "blame" to go around (including the somewhat cyclical nature of the game). Smith is back to an administrative position where he doesn't have much impact on the product on the field. I have a lot more questions/concerns about the people who are still in (or back to) positions that directly impact the won-loss record.
  12. JB_Iowa
    http://sports.yahoo.com/news/the-retirement-tour-that-isn-t-getting-all-the-pub-022310129.html?utm_source=twitterfeed&utm_medium=twitter Even though he is almost a Whitie Lifer, still one of my favorites.
  13. JB_Iowa
    Love this set of media day photos from Ben Garvin at the Pioneer Press. If you find links to other sets of photos, please post them! http://photos.twincities.com/2014/02/25/minnesota-twins-spring-training-portraits/#1 I'm starting to think that Ron Gardenhire may be Wilford Brimley's long-lost nephew (3rd photo).
  14. JB_Iowa
    Does that mean they have toothpick legs?
  15. JB_Iowa
    So refreshing to read something blunt instead of "media speak". Bravo, Mr. Perkins.
  16. JB_Iowa
    It is a great -- and under reported -- story. Given the sheer amount of money in mlb, their failure to pay minor leaguers a living wage is a travesty.
  17. JB_Iowa
    I hope that there are so many candidates pitching well that this becomes a real problem.
  18. JB_Iowa
    Who am I? I'm the person who hates giving out personal information in surveys -- especially zip codes (for some of us, just giving out our zip code takes away a lot of the anonymity.) I did answer about 1/2 the questions though. I appreciate that you offer this site for free and that advertising allows you to do that. But since I'm not much of a beer drinker, not a gambler, don't like video games and am too old to be desirable to advertisers anyway, I don't think it made much difference.
  19. JB_Iowa
    Good insight from Bartlett on Garza's interest in YEARS and money. I didn't realize the Milwaukee deal had a 5th year vesting option: http://www.twincities.com/twins/ci_25213360/twins-jason-bartlett-tried-recruit-matt-garza
  20. JB_Iowa
    Somehow I think your phantom questions are a little more amusing than most of the ones people would ask.
  21. JB_Iowa
    Welcome! I've seen you posting elsewhere but don't think I've ever said "Hi!". Just want you to know that when I picked JB_Iowa, I didn't realize that there was an Original_JB (those are really fine initials) -- I'm just not creative enough to come up with a better screen name. This JB agrees with many of your sentiments about the emphasis on the Target Field "experience" rather than "baseball at Target Field". Hope you'll post more now that you've registered.
  22. JB_Iowa
    It seems like about the only sure thing is that there will be those not on your "Minnesota" list who will get an opportunity at some point in the season. It also seems like the Twins can usually develop an average to above-average bullpen even when everything else is a disaster. Note that says "usually" not "always".
  23. JB_Iowa
    I always like these as well. Don't always comment but always read them and get a smile! Thanks.
  24. JB_Iowa
    I am so glad he was hired by the PP last year. He seems pretty accessible to fans on Twitter, has quite a few blog posts and seemed pretty balanced last season. Face it, beat writers are not going to bite the hand (or the team) that feeds them but he did seem to bring in stats, etc. that would paint the true picture as well as the "softer" stories. The last post I read by him was his story on the Venezuelan players on the team. He has also been posting TONS of video on Twitter ... lots of BP. And here's a link to his most recent post about Alex Meyer (just what we all want to read & see!!!): http://blogs.twincities.com/twins/2014/02/23/twinsights-alex-meyer-leaves-em-flailing-on-day-2-of-live-batting-practice/
  25. JB_Iowa
    I honestly believe that it is difficult to project Mauer this year. I don't think any of us really understands the impact that catching was having on him. Even if someone separated out his catching stats for a year from his non-catching stats, it wouldn't really account for the impact of catching over the entire season. I'm not as optimistic as the original poster but I do think that Mauer will enjoy a bit of a renaissance. I also think that his productivity will be relative to what the team as a whole is doing. If we can see some younger hitters start to come into their own and if Willingham and/or Kubel can have a return to health and productivity, it may bode well for what happens with Joe. I'm content to wait and see.
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