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jokin

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Everything posted by jokin

  1. jokin
    Spot on. Credit goes to the Yankee FO and coaching staff to have faith in sticking with their trading decision for Hicks in the pressure-cooker NY environment- and to Hick's himself- to trust the Yankee staff to help him get his career closer to tracking his full potential- and overcoming his previous seeming indifference and lack of self-confidence. This trade had disaster written all over it for the Twins at the time of the transaction. It likely was one of the final nails in the coffin for Ryan's exit. The Twins organization can ill-afford to continue to seemingly mishandle huge talent-laden prospects and hope to stay competitive. If the "Win Now" Yankees can turn on the talent switches with BOTH their top prospects as well as buy-low trade acquisitions, there's no reason that a team with one of the longest developmental timeline schedules, as well as the seemingly-forever team-rebuild phases, better draft slots, etc. can't do at least as well. To be at their current state, 4-5 years into Buxton's and Sano's MLB careers, given their unlimited potential, is exemplary of an organization that is in serious need of re-evaluation of every aspect of their player analysis and development.
  2. jokin
    You mean for Red Wings bullpen depth? At first glance, this one doesn't move the needle. I honestly thought he was washed up when I saw the name. In the last twp seasons, he's thrown 93 AAA innings and 24 ML innings. Has he had arm trouble? Career FIP/xFIP 2.89/3.44 vs RHB shows possible hidden retread value ala Magill. Could be on the Rochester shuttle if he has an option left.
  3. jokin
    Where was it again, that I said "immediately not have them"? It is more than reasonable to think that Buck and the training/medical staff can be/have been super-proactive on a comprehensive wellness program and have sought the multiple second-opinion options for treatment that are available.
  4. jokin
    I have a sneaking suspicion. I'm guessing Rocco and Buck have been in frequent contact in the last 2 months. And that dividends will result from their interactions. And I'll go further out on a limb and predict Buxton is in the final group for 2019 Comeback Player of the Year.
  5. jokin
    Are you factoring in "Reality Check Wake Up Call" as possibly a better strategic alternative in order to kick-start Buxton's career in becoming the best player possible? If Buck isn't spending a lot of off-season time on self-reflection and actualizing a plan on improving his plate approach and mitigating his tendency towards injury/migraines, he's destined to be added to the long line of incredibly talented 1st round busts. I think he can still turn this thing around, The wake-up call was the first time in his career he wasn't given the benefit of the doubt and just thrown into the lineup because he was available to play.
  6. jokin
    As I said above, Reason #2.
  7. jokin
    I am confident in saying that the conceptualization of the draft-RP-to-SP fiasco was on the list handed to the previous GM on his reasons-to-be-fired-list. (Probably Reason # 2. Hicks for JR Murphy was Reason # 1).
  8. jokin
    A bit of apples and oranges in regards to Iglesias/Schoop comp. Defense is my biggest concern, Schoop has little range, even at 2B. Meanwhile, Iglesias is a near-premier defensive SS that would have represented a huge bolstering impact over an IF that is completely in a state of flux and unknowns. With this pitching staff ever a question mark, and with 1B and 3B equally questionable (Cron/Sano will definitely be a downgrade @ 1B, who's @ 3B?), solidifying the IF defense should be a top priority. Signing another utility player + Schoop, to go along with Polanco and Adrianza, who both grade out at the bottom of SS defense rankings didn't address this priority.
  9. jokin
    Nope. It's apparently much more about the ridiculous committee compostion that voted for him. How can it be possible that Baines' first paycheck-writer- Reinsdorf- Sox owner... AND his manager- LaRussa- twice- (for the White Sox and A's) were allowed to BOTH vote (and presumably) coerce the rest of the committee into voting for him? "Pretty good" one-dimensional players, by definition, don't qualify for the HOF.
  10. jokin
    Yep. Jose Iglesias. (On 2 year or less deal). I'm not sure what the Twins FO is thinking. I thought for sure it was obvious to everyone who watched the Twins in 2018, that they can't compete with Polanco at SS, (he's strictly a decent 2B with his + bat in the calculation) ... and that an upgrade @ SS should/would be an offseason priority.
  11. jokin
    Concur. But there has been a lot of competition....
  12. jokin
    LoMo ≠ Cruz LoMo had a career year in 2017 amidst a very mediocre career. By comparison, some might be surprised to know: Nelson Cruz is the leader in HRs over he last 10 years with 338 dingers. Only Cabrera and Cano have more XBH over the last 10 years. Nelson Cruz has the highest wRC+ for all DH's over the last 10 years. Cruz is winding down in his career, as his numbers reflect, but he'd be light years better than a LoMo or Cron-type as the primary DH.
  13. jokin
    I'm not convinced... and I still don't care if the players cared... Truth is... They almost all flat punked-out this year (apparently), evidently as their "caring" tribute and in honor of Escobar's career year.
  14. jokin
    old nurse... I like the new you...
  15. jokin
    I think the manager add almost nothing mantra is debatable. Not as true as in the 20th Century. Proper implementation of baseball analytics, both via successful roster deployment and in-game strategies has helped many a shrewd manager gain an edge on the talent-laden "favorites". Quantifiably, the teams with the biggest payrolls presumably have the best talent, particularly starting pitching- but hot mid-market teams with good managers have regularly rained on their parades in terms of World Series titles. The Yankees have been to one, and won another one, WS in 15 years. The Dodgers have had the highest league payroll for at least a decade, yet only finally made a WS appearance last year, their first since what, the 80s? Because of how baseball is played, managers don't add a huge difference, like in football, but the difference is likely much more than "almost nothing."
  16. jokin
    While I like your post, ownership essentially signed the duo with one hand tied behind their backs by indefinitely forcing Molitor upon them. Admittedly, Falvine agreed to the arrangement, but it still remains true that they have been delayed by 3 years in putting their own personal imprimatur on this team by way of not having "their" guy in the dugout from day one. Regardless, if 2019's results are similar to 2018's, I don't know if these guys are slick enough to convince Pohlad to retain them going forward.
  17. jokin
    Mostly a great post, with the exception of my "edit." Sure, Molitor was dealt an impossible hand, but unfortuantely, he- demonstrably- had a hand in his own demise- mishandling of the pen, incredibly reckless base-running was never addressed, Garver ,and others, not sooner injected into more feature roles, etc. (FWIW- I didn't like losing Pressly either, but because of Molitor's mishandling of him, FalVine saved Pressly's career in shipping him out).
  18. jokin
    1) Molitor "blindsided"? That's Len3Speak- if WE all knew how precarious Molitor's position was, is it at all possible that Len3 hadn't heard the same thing and figured out the facts for himself? 2) Twins' "corporate speak" is spot on by Len3- the Twins embracing of "MN Nice" is in their corporate DNA. 3) If Mark DeRosa is brought back, does that mean Spirit of Vodka Dave will be brought back, too ? 4) Len3's random comments of Molitor's blind acceptance of instituting anything the FO wanted should have told Len3 that Molitor probably knew he was not: the man in the job; and that he had little support from FalVine long-term going all the way back to 2016. Had the Twins not made the playoffs in 2017, Molitor HAD to know he probably would have been replaced a year ago.
  19. jokin
    You should think that your insight was spot on. Molitor was always a dead man(ager) walking.
  20. jokin
    The "Twins Way" lives on. Despite major changes in top management, many corporate cultures' eccentric habits often have unlimited inertia.
  21. jokin
    I most clearly did NOT say pitching was not a major issue for the Twins in 2019. But the IF situation is entirely up in the air, I can't remember going into the offseason with a Twins club with more question marks across the IF from 1st-2nd-SS-to-3rd. To even hope to be competitive next year, both the IF and the Pitching Staff need equal major attention. It's also arguable that the two issues are inextricably intertwined, as it would appear to be almost impossible for this, or any revamped pitching staff, to be effective enough for post-season in 2019 with Polanco at SS. As I stated, the only saving grace in all this, is that the Twins have a huge stash of dollars available- I hope they are big players come open FA and the GM Winter Meetings. The FO appeared to do a pretty good job last offseason, picking and choosing their spots- the plan had a justifiable rationale- but they will need to up their game this winter, or they could be out of their jobs by this time next year.
  22. jokin
    And not their only "stretch". Whomever it was that sold the Twins on going after gaggles of college RPs set the Twins back on internally developing a competitive pitching staff by half a decade. One middle round RP flyer, maybe, but coming up with the concept of "converting" college RPs to SPs defied all common sense, logic, reason and historical reality. Hopefully, he/they are no longer employed by the new FO.
  23. jokin
    Nice try. Where was it stated that Escobar = Zobrist? "No reason" to think Escobar "should" or "would"? Really? Consider: Escobar fWAR for 2017-18- 5.1 Zobrist fWAR for 2017-18- 4.1 Escobar age 29 Zobrist age 37 Zobrist's deal signed in winter of 2015-16 @ age 34 Escobar's deal will be signed in winter of 2018-19 @ age 29. Escobar plays primarily at 3B and SS. Zobrist plays primarily at 2B and corner OF. Believe it or not, there is also salary inflation in MLB. 3 years after Zobrist's deal and teams' growing appreciation of positional flexibility, it's quite likely a Zobrist-like Super Utility player has the potential to command something close to Zobrist's deal. And to re-remind you, the topic title of the article was, in part, "Escobar Premium?" re- how much can/should the Twins OVERPAY to get Escobar back in order to shore up a completely fractured IF situation in order to be competitive in 2019.
  24. jokin
    I hope they don't go after Dozier, either. But the stats and marketing departments (and agents) sometimes successfully sell their agendas and arguments to management.
  25. jokin
    Great post. And I really agree that the Twins will be most benefited by moving Polanco off SS, the sooner the better. How to get there? Evidence suggests that Escobar isn't up to playing there full-time over a full season- but excels in spot duty at the spot, especially when factoring in the platoon split advantage. But that means necessarily acquiring another proven player to fill the SS breach. I think (hope) they've moved on from Dozier, but I don't know for sure if they still might consider him a short-term discount option fix in lieu of signing Escobar and/or another expensive IF option. I don't know how you can go into next season with the current state of affairs thinking pitching is a greater priority than an IF "fix". They both need equal attention.
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