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jokin

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Everything posted by jokin

  1. jokin
    I get that players want to swing away in ST. I specifically mentioned that it would serve Santana well long-term, to work the count better and deeper. I don't have all the data, but he does have 7 Ks, and with my only evidence being my own two eyes, he has been vulnerable to swinging and missing badly at low/outside balls out of the zone, especially with two strikes. As far as I know, no one from the organization has addressed how they are planning on dealing with Santana's primary challenge to his future offensive success, especially for a guy who appears to be tapped by the Twins as their 2015 primary lead-off man. The Laws of BABIP regression are pretty cut and dried, I have no doubt that Jack Goin and Paul Molitor are well aware of this. I've enjoyed the rise of Santana- his compact and quick swing, ability to hit the ball hard + with some power, as well as his burner speed- no doubt that his was the best Twins individual story from 2014. But I fear the fall might be epic, which might be compounded with the further high expectations piled onto Santana's plate as the Designee-Apparent @ SS.
  2. jokin
    Yep. If anything, this spring Santana has been even more BABIP-tastic than last year. It would be nice to see him work deep a few counts, only one BB so far. In the meantime, we can all enjoy the space-ride before it comes crashing back down to earth.
  3. jokin
    Besides Boyer, who is the other non-rostered pitcher? Both Salcedo and Ledezma pitched today along with Boyer. Which brings up the topic.... Did Boyer impress enough today to gain the inside track on one of those last two spots in the Pen?
  4. jokin
    I too hope this is not the case, but fear the worst.
  5. jokin
    Thanks for the professional opinion. Please, don't be a stranger around these parts, particularly as the inevitable medical issues arise.
  6. jokin
    The fact is, it's a Hobson's Choice, no matter which direction the Twins choose to take. I can see the logic of going with the two veterans for 30-60 days (and the likely below league-average offensive performance) to see if a stint in AAA helps Hicks improve from both sides of the plate. At this point, however, we have two years worth of major league data, that Hicks, at best, projects as a platoon OFer. And based on the latest quotes, the Twins don't want to go the platoon route if they don't have to do so. Which leaves... what?
  7. jokin
    I dunno, Hicks continues to do some pretty stupid things himself.
  8. jokin
    I guess I missed something..... Do "Baseball's Unwritten Rules" for retaliatory violence extend to Spring Training, too?
  9. jokin
    Ditto on OF reps for Plouffe,with Esco in need of playing time, plus the offensive drop-off if Arcia or Hunter are out of the lineup, it is indeed a head-scratcher why Plouffe wouldn't be getting some reps in both RF and LF. Regarding Mauer, he has missed extended amounts of time in 3 of the last 4 years, the Twins have to plan accordingly on the assumption that that trend is likely to continue as he ages. DHing at least once a week to keep him from breaking down physically seems like one strategy they might pursue. Arcia is another guy they might forsee having to give extra DH PAs to, if his glove proves problematic.
  10. jokin
    Plouffe has always been "Mr Inevitable" as a Super-Utility guy. But getting Plouffe some 1stB time is interesting. The Twins already have some "versatility" at the position with Mauer, Vargas and Hermann as depth possibilities. Plouffe at 1st does make it plausible for Escobar to then get 35-45 starts at 3rd (and maybe Sano later on?). And given Mauer's injury history, there's a good chance his DH starts will rise by necessity. We all know that as Hunter turns 40, coupled with question marks about his defense, he might require at least 40 DH starts just to keep his legs fresh as well as try to earn back some of the $10.5M contract with some offensive production from him.
  11. jokin
    This is a plausible possibility, except that it's just as easy to surmise a roster where Mauer, Hunter and Arcia get the bulk of the DH starts.
  12. jokin
    I don't know about Pinto, but that's something that the coaching staff should have addressed with him both before and during the game. Each incident looked about the same, Pinto was prone and appeared to have no clue what was coming- as a viewer, all one could say is "Ouch!"
  13. jokin
    Gibson did well last spring, but it wasn't like any of the veterans he was pitted against showed anything suggesting that they deserved the spot over him. It's a lot closer call this year.
  14. jokin
    Damning with faint praise... ?
  15. jokin
    Well-played, sir.
  16. jokin
    By committee? May as well raise the average age of a "rebuilding" team- with another space made available for a veteran, yet again.
  17. jokin
    It would be 16 if you want to iinclude J R Richard to your list.
  18. jokin
    Incidentally, you left off a potentially very interesting case study, J R Richard, 6'8", who had 221 career starts by the age of 30, when his career was tragically cut short.
  19. jokin
    Rick Sutcliffe
  20. jokin
    In the same 2014 draft as Burdi, the Yankees drafted Jacob Lindgren in the 2nd round out of Mississippi State, and he's already reached AA in 2014. Also unlike Burdi, he's already gotten the Spring Training invite and has performed well this spring in ST. Many sources predict he will debut with the Yanks in 2015. Lindgren's pedigree, at only 5'11" and mid-to-low-90s FB isn't anywhere close to what Burdi brings to the mound. So what makes Lindgren a likely bullpen call-up in 2015 and Burdi not so much? The Yankees tied for 1st place in RP team WAR from Fangraphs in 2014, they finished in 1st place in K/9, K% and SIERA... and 3rd place in xFIP. (The Twins, of course, were at or near the bottom in most RP categories. Again, what's wrong with this picture?)
  21. jokin
    A more precise question is: "What is the success rate for college relievers with triple digit speed, other-world K-rates, plus decent control?" Throwing out his first game, his combined K/9 was 16.13 and BB/9 was 2.45, with an incredible 47% K-rate. How many college pitchers have ever done that while reaching A+ ball in their first half season out of college? If he continues at even a decent fraction of his K-rate in AA with similar control, how can he be held back?
  22. jokin
    There's a strong argument to be made that Burdi should have started 2014, his short season, in AA. If he toils all the 2015 season in AA and AAA, it's definitely not fast enough. There is little more that a college RP with triple digit speed can, or needs to, learn in the minors. Get him up ASAP while there're still plenty of bullets left in his ammo pouch.
  23. jokin
    MItch Garver, Michael Cederoth, Lewin Diaz not in the Callis Twins Top 30 list?
  24. jokin
    You summed things up nicely. I didn't think this was really going to be a possible scenario back in December. I was fairly certain at the time they were inked, that Robinson and Boyer were actually good insurance Plan B/C options who would either opt out or slip through waivers to Rochester. I should have known better when they brought back practically everybody eligible for arbitration.
  25. jokin
    Just to add to your list and since he's been discussed today, Randy Johnson was 4.9 BB/9 in AAA, 8.1 BB/9 in AA.
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