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TheLeviathan

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Everything posted by TheLeviathan

  1. TheLeviathan
    I do. I think this has potential to be a major issue for Buxton. It's when you try to project that to FA or other players that I think the criticism is reaching.
  2. TheLeviathan
    Adams out? That would be huge. 24-20 Vikes
  3. TheLeviathan
    MLB does not operate like your company. Players resign with teams all the time that openly go into rooms, disparage the player, and talk an arbiter into saving them a few thousand bucks at the expense of a young player who could use it. If that doesn't move the needle....why would this? The reality is that players and agents understand the way the contract game is played - they find ways to use/game the system to their advantage and players make them pony up when it comes to free agency. Getting lost in the weeds on the little stuff isn't on anyone's radar. I get that some here WANT this to be true, because it serves as a point to attack the FO on, but practically speaking it's irrelevant. As irrelevant as how cold the winters in Minnesota are. Our climate doesn't stop people from signing here, our checkbook does.
  4. TheLeviathan
    I'm on the record as not loving their handling of it, so we agree there. I think they are making the decision to extend his service time on the same basis they handed him CF to start the year: they still believe he'll be a star. whether their basis is in his 2015-2017 performance, his athletic profile, his July/Aug run last year, or some combo of all of the above.....I think their decisions were consistent. The outcome just looks strange because of the weird timing of injuries, rehab, and performance.
  5. TheLeviathan
    Buxton should always look out for himself, regardless. That's why players sign agents isn't it? You and others act like some sacred bond of togetherness was broken here. Player/team dynamics are almost always adversarial when it comes to contracts. This is nothing new in that regard. There are specifics to this case that are somewhat unique, but not as unique as some of are trying to portray. At the end of the day it's a money squabble and that happens all the freaking time. Also, you don't know if he was pressured to play. He might have masked the injury or kept quiet about it also. Or it might have been a joint effort.
  6. TheLeviathan
    I don't think anything they've done has indicated they have a lack of belief in Buxton's future. In fact, saving his service time implies they still highly value his future. I'm not sure there is any real contradiction there. As you say, there are other decision in this that do mystify me a bit. I'm of the opinion that if a player can't play two days in a row due to injury, he probably shouldn't be playing at all. That's the real issue to me, they seemed to be half-assing their way through handling him.
  7. TheLeviathan
    If they're cheap what they did to Buxton is irrelevant. It'll never get past the stage of "Well, that offer sucked" So your point is moot. Which is kind of the point. There is zero evidence that players and agents use adversarial tactics against clubs in negotiations. Zero. And the plainest evidence is right in front of you - EVERY club is adversarial in almost all contract talks, issues of service time, and negotiations. If players and agents gave that any weight they'd have to stop playing major league baseball. You could find all sorts of jerk moves to use against a club if you wanted to. As an example - every arbitration hearing where a billionaire nickel and dimed me would piss me off WAY more than this. And that happens every year to all sorts of players! Buxton's will matter squat to anyone not named Buxton. The front office correctly dismissed that concern and, as I stated earlier, is really playing the long-game for upside here.
  8. TheLeviathan
    You know what isn't a sample? His 1,000 at-bats. Do you know what his career OPS is? What is K-BB ratios are? Let's be real - the only way his offense looks anything other than "bad" is if you play the small sample game. As a whole - it isn't good.
  9. TheLeviathan
    A like didn't seem sufficient for this post. Spot on.
  10. TheLeviathan
    I think zeros on paychecks matter about a gazillion times more. The dynamic between teams and players/agents is already adversarial. It happens in every arbitration meeting. Every contract discussion. And if what you said was true...no player would've ever agreed to be part of the Miami Marlins organization since about 1997. No team has jerked people around more than them and they still sign FAs, agree with draft picks, etc. There is zero evidence for teams acting selfishly has any impact on player acquisition and reams of evidence to the contrary. No, I don't think what the Twins did to Buxton means squat to any other player, agent, or anyone not named Byron Buxton. And even he won't care if enough zeros appear in an offer.
  11. TheLeviathan
    Do they? Until this the Cubs were the most notorious abusers of this....have you seen any meaningful impact?
  12. TheLeviathan
    Guys get jerked around a lot and still answer the bell when the money is right. Hopefully he turns this into a motivating factor and the Twins can eventually make it up to him. If not, they reap the benefit of three awesome years of Buxton and the opportunity to trade him when he has actual value. But let's look at this as objectively as we can - the Buxton that feels so slighted is also the one that can't hit his way out of a paper bag and would be worth diddly in a trade right now. The FO gambled that he'll be worth more than that at some point over the next three years and they know they at least have a chance to extend that longer if bygones are bygones. The flipside is that the cost is on the front end in pissing him off. But really...what's the downside from the organizational level? He becomes less valuable? Hard to imagine. He becomes a permanent non-contributor? Well, he's basically that now. You can't put him in the field every day when he can't hit. The upside? He becomes what you want him to be and you get an extra year of him on the team. I think the calculus on this is pretty easy, even factoring in the human toll.
  13. TheLeviathan
    I won't disagree it might have human consequences. It might seriously upset Buxton and wreck any chance of him going back to July/August 2017 version. The human toll here is hard to know from the outside, but I absolutely accept the possibility and acknowledge it. But they did it for long-term benefits to the organization. Your characterization of it was wholly inaccurate.
  14. TheLeviathan
    I'd place a call about Zach Grienke. The D-backs are going to need to free room to retain guys like Goldschmidt and you might get him at a relative bargain for taking on his salary. The Twins can afford to do that financially.
  15. TheLeviathan
    We are past "early season slumps". He's had over 1,000 at bats, it's time to stop these ridiculous characterizations. His offense has been bad. His defense is amazing. His offense has been largely putrid. Can we please stick to reality and not forget what doesn't fit our narrative? And, as far as I know, they offered him an extension. He refused. To construe their decision as "short-term" is seriously mistaken. Doesn't mean you have to agree with it, but you have completely missed the boat for why they did it if you still believe that.
  16. TheLeviathan
    Buxton was not about a short term benefit. There is room to criticize the FO, but their reasoning was the exact opposite of that. Buxton has largely been bad at his job, you should keep that in mind in your analogy too.
  17. TheLeviathan
    He seems like a nice bench option next year. Versatility is a very nice aspect to his game.
  18. TheLeviathan
    In fairness, that article about Pressley doesn't suggest the Astros fixed Pressly. Alston is specifically credited for getting him to use it and pushing him to keep using it. Frankly, I think most of these issues still stem from the state the franchise was in when these guys took over. Two years is not a lot of time. Luhnow didn't rebuild in two years either.
  19. TheLeviathan
    I never remember this many impassioned pleas for Pedro Florimon. He put up an 11 WAR defensive effort for us at one point. But most of us folks saw his awful hitting and said "nope". If Buxton can't hit, we'll have to say "nope" to him too.
  20. TheLeviathan
    Never trust Canadiens.
  21. TheLeviathan
    Great post. I see the Niners as a fringe playoff team. That's why I think this win will age well.
  22. TheLeviathan
    Rodgers is the most dangerous player in the NFL. The Packers deserve to be 0-1 and he single handedly bailed them out.
  23. TheLeviathan
    The coverage breakdowns seemed to be mostly linebacker related FWIW. Richardson was a beast yesterday and Jimmy G looked uncomfortable all day. Had Cook not fumbled I think the game would’ve gotten really lopsided early.
  24. TheLeviathan
    I think this is a win that ages well. Nice to see the defense force 4 turnovers.
  25. TheLeviathan
    Those are both TD passes that are unlikely to be completed by Keenum. This offense looks really solid.
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