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GKuehl

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Everything posted by GKuehl

  1. GKuehl
    How is this realistic considering it would add approximately $30 million to our existing payroll? I'm sure the Front Office would have loved to have another $30 million to play with, but I don't see how picking 2 deals you think the Twins should have matched but couldn't because of ownership's self-imposed payroll presents a realistic alternative to the status quo.
  2. GKuehl
    When Brooks Lee is called up, he'll need to be added to the 40-man and the no-brainer list, likely pushing Paddack or Jax out of a protected spot (I'd rather protect Varland than Jax because Varland is younger with more team control, might be able to remain a mid-rotation starter, and his worst-case scenario is a Griffin Jax-level reliever).
  3. GKuehl
    We knew he was going to be a high-risk, high-reward draft choice. We probably didn't foresee him being this high-risk. I still have some hope that he can get healthy, but I'm not confident in him remaining a starting pitcher after all of these injury concerns. Similar to Duran, we might simply prefer to unleash him as a weapon out of the bullpen to be able to keep him healthy. Imagine how great the back of the bullpen could look in a few years if Duran, Canterino, and Prielipp could all remain healthy with contributions from Jax, Brock Stewart, and Funderburk.
  4. GKuehl
    Really good move, especially considering Okert has 3 years of team control remaining and there was no fit or role for Nick Gordon to fill on the Twins. Okert can complement Thielbar this season and, potentially, take over for him over the next few years if Thielbar struggles to perform or stay healthy.
  5. GKuehl
    I'm not particularly fazed by the Royals spending money, especially because the owner is incentivized to spend to drum up community support to build a new stadium. But if the Twins end up signing a TV deal in the range of $40 million for 2024, it's unfathomable that we didn't at least pursue someone like Jordan Montgomery or Blake Snell to be our #2 SP. Even with a roughly $15 million drop in payroll, there should have been room to sign either of those pitchers to a 1-year, $30 million or a 3-year, $75 million contract.
  6. GKuehl
    I would be surprised if we couldn't get back a mid-level prospect in a Nick Gordon trade, especially from a team like the A's or Royals who could use an everyday utility player (with 4 years of team control). Gordon is still young and talented enough to figure things out, but I don't think that's likely to be as a member of the Minnesota Twins. Trade Gordon for a Darren Bowen-level, C+/B- prospect and reallocate Gordon's roster spot to a RH-OFer who fits the roster better than Gordon as a LHH.
  7. GKuehl
    I hadn't really though much about Kepler potentially getting the Qualifying Offer after this season, but it's an interesting idea. The question comes down to whether the Twins would be content with Kepler accepting a 1-year, $20 million contract after next season. Even if Kepler plays as well next season as he did this season, I can't see the front office wanting Kepler back for $20 million, especially if the self-imposed payroll limitations are likely to continue beyond next season because of the collapse of traditional sports broadcasting. Over the last 3 seasons, Kepler has averaged 2.3 WAR. Based on the standard estimation that each WAR is worth approximately $9 million, that equates to $20.7 million in value, on average, over the last 3 seasons. That number falls right in line with what the Qualifying Offer salary projects to be next year. With the team's budgetary limitations, would the Twins be happy bringing Kepler back for roughly 1/6 of their overall team salary? I don't think so, and there isn't much excess value that would make Kepler a particularly tradeable asset were he to accept the QO. Considering Emmanuel Rodriguez should, hopefully, be on the cusp of the majors by the beginning of 2025, I don't think the Twins would be willing to risk making Kepler the QO in the event he would accept it and tie up a large amount of the team's 2025 budget.
  8. GKuehl
    We often see Sonny falter a bit in the 5th or 6th inning, usually the third time through the order. If he doesn't have his best stuff, I would love to see Varland get the call in the 5th or 6th inning at the first sign of trouble.
  9. GKuehl
    Depending on how their starts go, it's entirely possible either Sonny or Pablo have short starts, especially if they're trying to avoid making mistakes and nibbling at the edges of the zone (which increases pitch counts). There are quite a few starts where Sonny has pitched 4 innings, given up 0 or 1 run, and has a pitch count around 85. It could make sense to turn to Maeda in these circumstances to avoid the 3rd time through the order implosion that can happen with Sonny. If these circumstances were to come up, it could make sense to turn to Maeda in the 5th inning and have him pitch through the 7th, depending on the circumstances. Then we can turn the game over to some combination of Thielbar, Pagan, Jax, Stewart, and Duran for the 8th and beyond.
  10. GKuehl
    If only some of us were hollering for the Twins to keep Coulombe. Oh wait ... *checks own comments from Spring Training* ... some of us were.
  11. GKuehl
    If we can trade Gallo for anything (including a bucket of baseballs) we should. He’s clogging up the roster and impeding our ability to determine whether Larnach and Wallner should be core players to build around. Gallo’s OPS is propped up by a red-hot May, and he’s playing like the same player who got boo’ed out of New York last year. Time to cut our losses and either trade him to a team looking for a power-hitting pinch hitter or DFA him so Larnach or Wallner can get an extended look, especially since they can’t play any worse than Gallo has this season.
  12. GKuehl
    Brooks LeeWalker JenkinsEmmanuel RodriguezMatt WallnerAustin MartinDavid FestaMarco RayaConnor PrielippCharlee SotoYasser MercedesTanner SchobelSimeon Woods RichardsonLuke KeaschallBrent HeadrickYunior SeverinoBrandon WinokurJordan BalazovicCory LewisJose SalasCJ Culpepper
  13. GKuehl
    I would have it ranked 1. Lewis — We desperately need him back at 3B, especially with how well he was playing. 2. Polanco — Would allow us to rotate Julien and Polanco at 2B and DH. 3. Stewart — One of our go-to guys in the bullpen. 4. Thielbar — Key piece, especially since Moran isn’t your typical lefty due to his Changeup being his best pitch. 5. Paddack — Could be a nice middle reliever in September, a definite upgrade over Sands, Winder, Headrick, etc.
  14. GKuehl
    Great to see Ortega pitch a nice 8th, but hopefully Brock Stewart comes back soon.
  15. GKuehl
    So just Joey Gallo?
  16. GKuehl
    I can’t help but agree. The plan seemed great when Buxton had a .900 OPS — but it doesn’t make sense if he’s going to be a solid but not great hitter. I wonder if his deep slumps this year are in part a product of DHing. When things aren’t going well, all he can do is sit in the dugout and think about his previous at bat, whereas in CF he can still contribute even after a bad AB or game.
  17. GKuehl
    Option 3. Call up Brooks Lee and install him as the everyday 3rd baseman. He’ll provide good defense and potentially bring a bit of a spark to our listless offense. Even if he shows he’s not quite ready, he’ll learn a lot. Royce Lewis is only than a month or so away, so let’s see what Lee can do for a few weeks — if Lee struggles, we can insert Lewis in at 3B.
  18. GKuehl
    Plus, Kirilloff would be a much more valuable pinch hitter than Nick Gordon or Willi Castro.
  19. GKuehl
    Who cares if AK can't play everyday yet? Get this guy up to the big league club -- why waste bullets when he only might have a limited number of bullets left in the chamber? There isn't even a place for Kirilloff to play everyday with the Twins -- Gallo and Kirlloff can rotate at 1B with Gallo, Kepler, and Larnach rotating through the corner OF and DH spots when Buxton needs the day off.
  20. GKuehl
    Continuing to play Julien at 2B seems odd with the way the Twins' system currently looks. We can have Polanco return at a reasonable $10.5 million salary next year, a no-brainer if he plays like the borderline all-star he's been before when healthy. Royce Lewis' long-term home also seems to be 2B, though he can also play 3B, all 3 OF spots, and serve as our backup SS. Brooks Lee looks like he'll either play 2B or 3B. Austin Martin could contribute at 2B as well. All 4 of those players seem likelier to stick at 2B than Julien because of their defensive chops. There's also a bit of a logjam at 1B, with Kirilloff and Miranda likely platooning at 1B when Lewis or Lee take over at 3B for Miranda. That leaves the corner OF spots, where hopefully Larnach, Wallner, and Martin develop into long-term starters. It seems like Julien's path to playing time lies in his versatility, mixing and matching at 1B, 2B, LF, and DH. This post might be wishful thinking in believing that our young players will be long-term contributors. But 2B seems like the MOST clogged position in the Twins system, and I would love to see Julien show some versatility.
  21. GKuehl
    In full agreement on Balazovic converting to middle relief. It seems the team might already have that in mind, since he's only pitched 7.2 innings in 5 appearances so far this year. I'd give him a look and send Moran down to AAA for a mental reset and to work on his command.
  22. GKuehl
    I don't think any of us want to lose Gordon for nothing, especially after he showed last year that he can be a useful bench piece. However, with the current makeup of the roster, I just don't see how he stays on the roster all year without an abundance of injuries. With Kirilloff raking at AAA, Royce Lewis due to come back in less than 2 months, and Farmer likely returning in a month or so, I can't imagine Gordon remaining on the team for the entire season. Gordon's play has been atrocious and every swing Kirilloff takes for the Saints is a waste, especially with how listless our offense has been. I would cut bait with Gordon right now, knowing that he doesn't have a long-term roster spot anyway. Lewis can replace 110% of his versatility (especially since we actually trust Lewis to play SS) when he's healthy, and Julien or Wallner can come up and replace Gordon's lefty bat if injury strikes. Kirilloff should be our everyday starting 1B against RHP, sliding Gallo to LF, and Larnach and Kepler rotating in RF. When Kirilloff needs a day off (which could be fairly frequent with his wrist injury), Gallo can slide back to 1B, with Larnach and Kepler in the corner OF spots. Additionally, the Twins have avoided deplying Kepler in CF because he prefers to play RF, but why should we care where Kepler prefers to play? At this point, he should be our 4th OFer, and should be treated as such -- Jake Cave didn't get to choose to exclusively play RF. Kepler should start some games in CF when a RHP is on the mound to stack the lineup with lefty bats.
  23. GKuehl
    It often seems like he's not particularly focused on the mound. This would explain his control issues. During his outing on Tuesday, Vazquez at one point made a very demonstrative gesture indicating that Moran needed to lock in and focus on throwing strikes.
  24. GKuehl
    Infuriating game all the way around. How German was allowed to remain in the game is just baffling (except for the fact that he plays for the Yankees so of course he was given a free pass). If a player on any other team is caught pitching with a foreign substance that is suspicious enough to merit a 5 minute discussion, they’d be tossed and MLB would investigate further. Not the best day at the yard for Twins pitchers — none of the 3 (Mahle, Morán, and Alcalá) looked sharp. Hopefully we can win the series tomorrow! P.S. Kepler feels like a bench player if everyone is healthy. I can’t see him starting over Larnach, Gallo, or Kirilloff in the corners on an everyday basis.
  25. GKuehl
    One of the most memorable wins in recent Twins history — this one was fun! Our bullpen has so many stud arms. If our starter can keep going 6 innings, we’re going to win a ton of ballgames.
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