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jokin

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Everything posted by jokin

  1. jokin
    Another question should have been- "Why hadn't the Brewers, Blue Jays and Twins offered you the manager's job 10-15 years ago?
  2. jokin
    Well said. And with Molitor at the helm, I believe he will be a stickler for the defensive fundamentals that Gardy always claimed he was a stickler for, but repeatedly failed at in the execution. Add in Molitor's belief in strategic shifting and I have a strong suspicion that the defense will improve markedly. And then it's up to Molly to identify and insist on the right set of coaches for the pitchers and catchers to together as a group, establish strict training and in-game goals and accountability, similar to the measures taken in KC that led to the Royals success.
  3. jokin
    Taken from the thread http://twinsdaily.com/topic/15828-whats-paul-molitor-like-as-a-coach/ these are some pretty dramatic improvements, with and without Molitor, and that seem to be statistically significant:
  4. jokin
  5. jokin
    From this point forward, I'm going to use a slash and some sort of tongue in cheek smiley... such as /
  6. jokin
    That is awesome!
  7. jokin
    And we both now are on the same page is acknowledging that they're not the same thing, right?
  8. jokin
    Again, the comment I made was tongue in cheek in response to a poster that suggested it might already be time to move Vargas, when IMO, it clearly is not. I appreciate and can understand your pet peeves in comparing HOFers to prospects. But is comparing a HOF to a prospect now completely disallowed as another "unwritten rule" of baseball, even when it's tongue in cheek?
  9. jokin
    Again, please re-read what I said carefully.... I said absolutely nothing about "four full MLB years", what I did say was the number of years playing full-time professionally at the same age was "Four", and that his professional PAs was some 1100 more than Vargas at the same age.
  10. jokin
    This happens every time, and every time comps are made, the person doing the comparing is NOT saying the prospect is going to the Hall, just exploring potential career arcs. No one said Vargas is destined for the HoF, no one. What was said was it would be extremely premature to look to move Vargas out already, based on his current perceived value- reminiscent to what happened with Ortiz- the HoF reference in relation to Vargas, was of course, tongue in cheek, and related to their physical and statistically similar profiles- and just as he's getting his career established and shown glimpses of what's possible.
  11. jokin
    Yeah, Mike... better go back to bed... you're overthinking this one by a wide degree, and still missing the point. Perhaps you've reached the life stage where "cantankerous old coot " fights for control with "reasoned and seasoned middle-ager" ? You're still my guy, though.
  12. jokin
    Very true, all you would get in return would be another guy not quite good enough to be a starter, or another Tommy Milone-type SP.
  13. jokin
    I think you are missing a key point, in that it's difficult to compare their numbers due to Vargas being held back in his development in the minors for many years running. But to compare them more fairly suggests that Vargas has both the hit tool and the power tool to possibly outperform his minor league ratings and the long-term predictions about him. First off, 2013 was Vargas' first year of playing full-time pro ball, while at the same age, Ortiz had already played 4 years of full-time pro ball. Comparing oranges to oranges, Ortiz his 18 HRs in his first full-time year, while Kennys hit 19. Secondly, going on to 2014, Vargas hit 26 HRs- with 9 of those at the major league level. By contrast, Ortiz hit 31 HRs in his second year across three minor league levels, including 4 in the homer-friendly PCL. Perhaps I'm more optimistic than some, but this kid seems eager to learn, appears unflappable after striking out, has no built-in biases against RF in TF, has a great attitude about the game, perhaps a little chip on his shoulder, and he looks like a late bloomer, as well. I'm certainly not predicting a HoF career, but I think he easily could have a breakout year this year, if given the opportunity, and perhaps gets some decent plate protection behind him in the order in the form of Arcia/Plouffe/Sano.
  14. jokin
    Great post. Esco is exactly the type of guy you want on a team looking to turn the corner. By all accounts, he's been one of the most popular players on this team, as well as in Chicago, and his outstanding play this season will thrust him into more of a role as a leader. He's still very young, the Twins have four more years of cost control, and he still won't have hit the age of 30. I looked it up the numbers this year and was pleasantly surprised how well Esco did with respect to his peers, in comps combining offense and defense, Esco's numbers actually compared favorably to Starlin Castro (@$8M AAV) and Jose Reyes ($16M). Until things shake out more definitively with the prospects, Esco is the perfect guy in the UTIL role.
  15. jokin
    Heh. And this HoF discussion, I thought was rather obvious, has never, and could never, involve Arcia.
  16. jokin
    Let's be totally accurate here, the differences aren't that stark at all, and look pretty encouraging given that Ortiz had more than 1000 more PAs at all levels by the same age: Through age 24, here are the MLB numbers: Ortiz: 397 PAs 10 HR Slash .271/.360/.426/.786 OPS+ 109 ISO 155 wRC+ 102 Vargas: 234 PAs 9 HR Slash .274/.316/.452/.772 OPS+ 115 ISO 181 wRC+ 114 Ortiz had a slightly higher BABIP and a slightly lower K%.
  17. jokin
    That's just it, a trade shouldn't be made with trepidation, but with conviction that the trade-offs of a trade will end up as a net positive... trading one future HOFer doesn't look good on your resume, especially with the now-documented history in how that star's abilities were mishandled or unrecognized. It would be a shame to go down that road, yet again.
  18. jokin
    Spycake dished out some of the pertinent stats to counter your conclusion. The bottom line is that Ortiz's career began with multiple fits and starts. And that every player develops on a different learning curve. And that Vargas' first 4 years in the minors were extremely abbreviated- he hadn't come anywhere near getting the requisite reps to refine his approach at the plate, especially considering that he is a switch-hitter. (Through age 23, Ortiz had over 1000 more MiL PAs.... ~2200 MiL PAs vs. 1187 for Vargas) I think one should be very wary in going on record in diminishing Vargas' power potential going forward.
  19. jokin
    Nitpicking details... even Terry Ryan has acknowledged what a huge mistake was made in the case of the real Ortiz.
  20. jokin
    Great... take the chance of trading a "David Ortiz" twice in the same century?
  21. jokin
    Yep- very true, but how could the Twins move the guy back to AAA that led them in fWAR over the 2nd half of the season? I think Santana should get the chance to start the season at SS and prove that he's either ready or not ready to handle the position, you always have Escobar to jump back into the position if Santana needs remedial reps in Rochester.
  22. jokin
    I don't think they've forgotten Rosario, or he wouldn't be playing in the AFL (and leading the League in BA). I do think he has to wipe away the doubt about his maturity, besides the off-field misadventures, he's also been disciplined in the clubhouse numerous times over the past few years, that the Twins have stuck with him throughout his travails tells me they still see him in their long-term plans. Assuming he starts strong in AA, I think he will be the first position player called up for a need in the OF.
  23. jokin
    Hard to see Rosario moved up to Rochester based on the club's usual history of promoting only after mastery of a level- plus his off-field issues have to still be a consideration. And to be perfectly honest, the move to Chattanooga gives the guys more accustomed to playing in warm weather a great chance to get it going at the plate a lot sooner. For example, on this date, last April, the high temperature in Chattanooga was 79 and the low was 63, by contrast, in New Britain, the high temp was below the low temp in Chattanooga, at only 59 degrees, with a frigid low temp of 30. Sooo... more warm-weather games in the Southern League, a lot less postponed games, Chattanooga is the way to go to get the best prospects cranked up sooner for a possible major league call-up.
  24. jokin
    Good stuff, JC. Sounds like more of TKs passionate and cerebral approach to training for the finer points of the game- and perhaps Molitor has impressed himself positively upon the prospect. And as far as Rosario working on his base-stealing? I'd say, Mission Accomplished!. He's currently on a pace for at least 80 SBs in a full season- and at a 79% clip- he's obviously a good study! As I stated, starting him out next April in Chattanooga- in that park- with that lineup- there are strong reasons to think he could have a break-out early season and quickly insinuate himself in the OF somewhere with the Twins.
  25. jokin
    Thanks for the eyeball update, JC. I asked these questions earilier, I'll now repeat them. Did you see him in person in Class A ball? With the measured and precipitous drop-off in ISO, is he working with a different coach or consciously employing a vastly different approach at the plate? And what about this new found speed on the basepaths? Nothing in his prior minor league career to indicate that this interesting development was going to take place.
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