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jokin

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Everything posted by jokin

  1. jokin
    Yep. That was a do or die catch, Montgomery had a man on 3rd, and the hitter likely would have made it to 3rd had he missed the catch. As I said previously, I don't see Torii making that catch. The Twins might have their 2016, doubles-hitting RF in one Max Kepler. He's definitely earned a promotion to AAA- will the FO wait until after the IL All Star break to move him up?
  2. jokin
    Who are all these people you accuse of being "absolutely sure", about any of the above prospects? More imaginary strawmen, no doubt. Prospects have 3 options for good reasons. To find out if/when they're ready to help the big club, and if necessary, to return them to the minors to work on their areas of deficiency. Using an option on deserving prospects, particularly when there are obviously lesser talents/major roster holes at the major league level, can certainly be part of the process in both winning now, as well as in better-setting-up 2016. And.... What is so bad about finding out sooner rather than later if Sano, et al, might have debuts like Rosario is having, or that Santana and Vargas had in 2014?
  3. jokin
    Humbled, maybe. Daunted, perhaps. But embarrassed, no.
  4. jokin
    Because at least one of the propspecitve call-ups is possibly going to come out of the gates swinging a hot bat, like Santana or Vargas last year (you left that 2014 part out of your analysis), or at least demonstrate a competent bat like Rosario this year? And that no matter how it shakes out, it can't be much worse than what the Twins are currently producing with their veterans?
  5. jokin
    There's no doubt that Sano has the arm for RF, I would hope that he doesn't end up being wasted at 1B until he's 30. But it definitely wouldn't be the Twins style, in the case of Plouffe, to dump a guy they stuck with for years, eventually finding a place for him to play. Besides, there is still too much instability at SS to put another rookie on that side of the infield during a pennant race. In addition, they still have two years of team control left with Plouffe. Perhaps they are thinking to ease the transition to the position over the next year and a half, with Plouffe sharing some of the duties at both 3rd and 1st to give Sano reps at 3rd and RF.
  6. jokin
    And that wouldn't be just because the Red Wings are playing in Allentown, PA later this week, right?
  7. jokin
    They've always brought Kepler along slowly, and for good reasons- he's been a slow mover up the Twins system, with a history of annual injuries that have retarded his development. Unless there's another OF injury, I don't think the Twins are going to push him all the way up, but a move to AAA sure seems right around the corner. FWIW, I doubt that Torii Hunter makes that 9th inning catch of Kepler's in RF, but Kepler isn't going to take his spot this year. The Twins seem to trust Rosario for now in CF, with Robinson as a capable back-up, and Hicks rehabbing in the wings... which leaves only LF, it seems to be where Molitor likes to rotate his veterans, plus possibly Arcia is going to get another shot there if he gets his swing back. A trade or an injury seems the only way to break this logjam on Kepler's behalf.
  8. jokin
    Righto, twinssouth. One look at the River Walk OF fence, and it was obvious that if that was the Lookouts home field they'd probably already have 50 home runs between them. We've both said it before, but it bears repeating- AT&T Park/Chattanooga is a tough place to hit one out- the wall looks to be close to 20' high over most of the OF- with standard major league-type dimensions. In just the one game I saw, there were 4 balls hit high off the wall by Sano, Polanco and Walker, and another half dozen, cumulatively, knocked down by the wind.
  9. jokin
    Sano's impressive opposite-field blast on Sunday, that completely left the park. Note the shift employed against him and the announcers' frustrated reactions to Sano once again wreaking havoc on the Montgomery pitchers' strategy, by going the opposite way, with power. "That guy's impressive." "... At this point, if you're Doug Mientkiewicz... you tell Sano... hey, by the way, I don't want you to... completely... stop... pulling everything..." http://www.milb.com/r/video?content_id=208094283&topic_id=&sid=milb&tcid=vpp_copy_208094283&v=3 Adam Brett Walker's postgame comment on what Sano is doing:
  10. jokin
    Trevor Plouffe could have his annual trip to the DL at any time now. If Sano doesn't get called up for the upcoming series in Kansas City to replace Vargas or the 13th pitcher, something like your scenario might be just how it happens- with Sano getting his shot like Buxton did when Hicks went down, only flying in from Rochester, not Chattanooga..
  11. jokin
    Plouffe's missed time on the DL at least once, in each of his major league seasons- and missed time in the minors, as well. Based on his actual career track record, he's bound to hit the DL in 2015 at some point. Buxton's series of injuries in 2014 was disconcerting, to say the least. But Buxton seems to have made a concerted effort this season to be much less reckless in the outfield than in the past. We need to remember that this kid not only has the pressures that accompanies being ranked as the #1 prospect, but he is also internally driven to be the best and do things the right way. I'm guessing that he will quickly show that he's in the process of learning yet another valuable lesson in the matter of how to properly slide into bases upon his return. The injury bug only hit for the first time last season. It's way too soon to brand the still-just-21-year old Buxton as seemingly destined to be forever labelled as "fragile" or "injury-prone".
  12. jokin
    So isn't the question of merging of threads up to the discretion of the moderators? I don't see how it's any of my, or of yours, concern, on this forum anyway? I'm here to discuss Twins baseball issues that are currently of the most interest to myself. You've previously discussed the matter of overlapping topics in the area of TD where it belongs, why bring it here? I'd much rather hear what you have to say about what to do with Sano than to non-topically grafitti-ize a baseball thread.
  13. jokin
    Or..... it's like a continually evolving story about one of the potential future cornerstones, perhaps even a generational, Twins superstar, and the story is ever-quickening, as other Top 25 prospects have been promoted around the League in June, and as Sano continues to tear up the Southern League at an even more intense pace than since this thread was begun on June 8th.... and along the way, made all the more interesting when Molitor came out one week after this thread was started and mentioned that Sano was actively being considered for promotion.
  14. jokin
    Exactly how much hotter does Sano have to get to be "totally en fuego"? (Here's a hint, through today, he's hitting well over .300 and OPSing around 1.050 since April 30- in some 209 PAs).
  15. jokin
    Still head-scratching that you wouldn't want the best power bat option on the World squad- and a big-time name already familiar with many fans. Just the pre-game home run hitting exhibition alone would be sure to draw in more fans.
  16. jokin
    #2.... That's my guess on Sano, too. Molitor declining to use Vargas today in multiple PH situations indicates he doesn't have much faith in Kennys, Arcia still seems a ways away, Sano is the obvious alternative. Nothing has changed on the Twins glaring need for another big bat in the middle of the order. And there's no reason for holding back Sano from the Futures Game with options #1 or #3.
  17. jokin
    While Sano continues an incredible, but somehow, under-the-radar stretch of hitting over nearly the last 2 months in AA, CBS Sports Mike Axisa has taken notice via Sano's latest "snub": So, one of the main takes here is the possibility that the Twins want to maintain the option of an early call-up. It's almost impossible to believe that the Futures Game committee wouldn't include Sano without pretty big extenuating circumstances. Sooo, 3 potential scenarios are in place: 1) Axisa (and many TD members) think a bump to AAA will come soon, 2) Many others see him making the full jump to the Twins, as in the case of Buxton, 3) I suppose there is one more group that urge continued patience in AA, especially without an obvious position to play, while he works some more on his defense and gets his BA above his current .266. As the calendar turns again this Wednesday, and an upcoming critical series in Kansas City is looming, which camp do you reside in? And why?
  18. jokin
    Or before...
  19. jokin
    Hicks was much better in CF than previously, but I disagree that he was just as good defensively as Buxton. I never had a doubt on any catchable ball with Buxton, whereas Hicks, muffed a few. Buxton seems on the verge of being major league elite defensively, already, and definitely so probably after one time around the AL.
  20. jokin
    I know they care about getting some kind of return on their most expensive FA ever.
  21. jokin
    Not too impressive starting out. 7 IP, 2 HR, 7 hits, 2 BB, 1 HBP, 3 K . But he's finishing out strong, 97 pitches, 65 strikes. And Pawtucket has Castillo and Victorino batting 1-2, with 6 major leaguer-experienced guys batting 1 through 6. The Twins will start him on July 5, whether we approve or not.
  22. jokin
    That was then- and the Mariners said "No". I do think Nats will have to lower the price, if motivated enough. Desmond's value has come crashing down since last December. But it's all going to come down to if the Nats decide they need the money more now to upgrade their roster or the comp pick for much later down the road. The Nats have 4 potential FAs on expiring contracts, all of whom will generate 1st round comp picks on decllined QOs. They may want to get rid of the least productive one now instead of making a QO, in order to upgrade at areas of need.
  23. jokin
    Something they already knew? That Meyer is the superior talent?
  24. jokin
    The Nats are reported to have been trying to dump Desmond since at least last December and January: http://www.foxsports.com/mlb/story/washington-nationals-new-york-mets-tampa-bay-rays-ian-desmond-ben-zobrist-trade-011115 Ken Rosenthal thinks the Nats are still looking at trade possbilities.
  25. jokin
    Meyer's slider was devastating when I saw him pitch last season. It's important to note, that Meyer's velocity didn't hit top end until after about 40 pitches thrown, wherein he frequently and consistently was hitting 98 and 99, all the way to 90 pitches. Hopefully, he can find a way to crank it up sooner than that. This is where he should have been much sooner than now, hopefully he really benefits from the coaching/training/video upgrades. I think the Twins have positioned him well to respond to the new challenge- in his last appearance in Rochester yesterday, he threw 9 pitches, 7 strikes, 1 K, 2 batters faced, in .2 IP, that's probably a good way to start out.
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