TNtwins85

Also, the improvement may be real but the fact he has bad knees and is slow doesn’t help his case for more improvement or simply staying league average if the metrics are true. I’m all for moving Clemens to 1B but you had better be replacing his spot at 2B with a better overall player who can stick. Can we stop with Arraez already. He doesn’t fit this team defensively or offensively. If you’re gonna upgrade 2B or 1B the guy better have the ability to hit 20 bombs a year or it’s a moot point in my opinion.

They’ll have to overpay so 4/80 is probably the start and the Twins are not doing that with Lackey let alone Tait/Jimenez in the mix. My prediction is he signs with the Yankees for 4/75. No way he comes back on an extension and a 40/60 chance he comes back on the QO.

Pitchers coming back from TJ are a mixed bag. Especially with command. Full seasons of 3 rookies are a mixed bag. Especially Rodriguez who flashed his flaws after a week. Jenkins will be 22 and although he immediately upgrades the defense is still 22 and struggled for a bit in 84 AB’s. Expect a very up and down season at best “if” he makes the team out of ST over 500 some AB’s. Culpepper showed promise but the injury bug hit home several times this season. Ok but not solid at SS. Will have plenty of growing pains with those 3. Nance is a 5th/6th inning guy at best and is solid as a 5th/6th inning guy. Maybe, at 35 years old. May not even make the team out of ST. The bullpen and rotation could be good but too many question marks for a 70 something win team. Chances of Jeffers coming back on the QO are probably 20/80 according to Gleeman and John and I agree with that. 1B improvement is hard to do as there isn’t an obvious FA upgrade and a bold trade move would have to be made as I think Lewis’ track record shows he’s cooked. At least with the Twins. He’s also a non tender candidate possibly if his trade value is too low. Larnach is also a non tender candidate as he’s been ok but can’t stay healthy and can’t stay productive for a whole season. They’ve been trying to move him for 2 offseasons and almost dealt him this trade deadline.They may just cut bait. As I said the team is ok. There’s plus areas but they are definitely not capable of 87-92 wins unless everything, and I mean everything breaks right. Reminder the AL was down this year and the Twins still didn’t have a sniff of the playoffs after September 1st. Don’t count on that 2 years in a row. They need some bold moves that make a difference. Edge moves simply leaves this team at 80-84 wins. That doesn’t win the division and probably doesn’t get the WC either. 1 big BP arm. 1 medium grade BP arm and a legit bat at 2B to move Clemons over or a bold move to get a 1B are the minimum to compete for the division. Minimum

Other than Hoffman they didn’t improve for ‘27. The only other move for ‘27 was Kremer which is a depth move. Slots in as a 5 and that’s if they move someone. Unless they make a bold move they’re not improving at catcher. A bold move is contrary to what you’re suggesting. Also, they’re not improving at 1B without a bold move. So you’re left with the same team and simply hoping everyone improves. To turn this team into a 87-92 win team which would be a 10-15 game improvement based on everyone simply getting better is a slim chance. Especially when they haven’t shown that level of talent in the last 2 years. That’s why I suggest bold moves and Morejon would be one of them. In a weak FA class it’s the only way without trades to push everyone down. 2 Minters and magical catcher A and magical first baseman B are not gonna improve this team 10-15 games. That’s hoping that Buxton is healthy and MVP level all year and 2 of Culpepper, Jenkins and Rodriguez are competing for rookie of the year. No major injuries in the rotation and everyone in the bullpen improves. Wishful thinking. I would love that to happen but I think they need to make major moves. Not just moves on the edges.

He would be the most obvious choice as far as what they have now. With only one more season of Lopez and Ryan though and not much else emerging in the system I believe they’d want to keep him as a starter even though his future home is in the bullpen.

I didn’t even read the article so I’ll keep it short. NO! if the Twins are shopping in this bin be prepared for another season of mediocrity. As Mike Ehrmantraut once said, “No more half measures.” If Pohlad wants to deliver championship baseball back then he’s gotta push to make this team championship caliber.

There’s many things that go into my thinking. He’s prime for 1B. You’ve got several catchers that should be ahead of him. He’s got the profile. You can fast track him. He’s just your prototypical 1B slugger. The Twins punting 1B every year is not how you build a winning team. If Tinney is your catcher of the future that means you’ve already screwed up on at least 3 other guys and you’ve probably got bigger problems. The biggest one is you set it and forget it. No more of this versatility BS. It leads to terrible defense. Unless you’ve got a handful of guys who are super athletic and can handle that stop with this stupid experiment. Having a team of guys playing multiple positions simply means you don’t have guys who are good enough to hold down one. Tinney at 1B at least gives you a chance at not having to play the first baseman roulette game every year hopefully.

Yeah that’s a hard $18M pill to swallow. He looked great but will he be worth $1M if he reverts back to what he was? I’ve advocated telling Carson Tunney to trade his catchers mitt into a 1B mitt. The guy is a prime 1B candidate and it might speed up his bat development to not have to worry about catching. I just don’t see him being a catcher long term. As far as Lewis I think you just cut him loose or trade him for parts. He needs a change of scenery and Clemons can hold 1B until a better option arrives.

Buxtons health is key every year and he’s not getting any younger. I don’t think it’s coincidence that the offense faltered after he went down. You’ve also gotta replace Bell and Jeffers. The whole 2nd in scoring was driven by a lot of smoke and mirrors and being extremely lucky with RISP. That luck ran out end of July. The FA class is pretty weak except bullpen arms. Why not strengthen the bullpen with a shutdown arm like Morejon instead of dumpster diving and hoping for everyone to improve? Unless Jeffers takes the QO I don’t see them improving at catcher. There’s no impact bats at 1B and I think they should sign Minter but that’s in addition to another big arm as well. I just think that with Pohlads words about meaningfully improving the team and a tough central division( because if every team plays close to it’s potential it’s gonna be tough) if the Twins don’t try to meaningfully improve with a couple big moves they’re gonna be left behind. Depth moves and moves on the edges aren’t gonna make a difference. You can’t count on the AL to be down 2 years in a row and the Twins didn’t have the talent to compete this last year. Without a few bold moves you can count on another July fire sale and the Twins drafting in the top 5 again in 2028.

Dang, 1 or 2 relievers in the of the quality of Minter, a Catcher better than…. Caratini? And either a guy who is 39 and can’t hit RHP or a guy who is 35 and can’t hit LHP as a RHH. Both of which can’t play defense. If that was my option for the offseason why not just roll the dice with what’s in the system now? Can’t be much worse. Also, that would be a terrible offseason and would clearly lead me to believe Pohlad lied as usual. Nothing there moves the needle at all

Exactly. For a team that needs to create a strength the bullpen can be the one had. As an advocate for making a splash with Morejon in roughly the same number of years Morejon has pitched roughly 200 less games and 150 less innings. Even after San Diego rode him hard this year to the tune of 80 something innings he’s innings. There’s never a guarantee for any free agent unless you’re getting a Soto or Ohtani. The bullpen is a way to meaningfully improve for less years and less money with a guy that’s your closer for 3 years. Risk=reward. Mediocrity =Mediocrity

I like this idea as a way to get him but if you offer a starter job does he then want semi starter money? I say just sign him to an above market value contract and see what you’ve got in the spring.

Well, I agree with you for most of this but I don’t think you’re trading a guy 6 months after you signed him to a $40-$50M deal. He’s young enough that regardless he’s just your closer for 3 years. You build the bullpen around him. Like you said though he improves your team to another degree than a Minter or other bargain bin relievers.

Minter doesn’t move the needle. The Twins need to improve in a meaningful way. Not just status quo. They need both. If you’re operating on a regular Twins mindset then you feel good with Minter being the floor they set. If you’re prepared to hold Pohlad accountable then meaningful spending on talent that improves the team considerably is the goal. A young reliever with stuff for years to come that pushes everyone down a peg that improves the bullpen beyond what is there is the move regardless of payroll. With the weak hitter class this is an area to improve considerably. It’s what they need to do. They need a splash some where at the very least and this is the easiest avenue. Anything less is another Pohlad saying things that don’t add up.

Skeptical as a Twins fan yes. But as far as what needs to be done this guy immediately improves the bullpen in a way that goes above and beyond. If Pohlads words are true and you want to improve the team in a meaningful way this is what needs to happen. Young for a reliever, overpowering stuff, can anchor the bullpen for years. A bold move for a team that needs a bold move.

The Brewers are what the Twins should be. Middle of the league spending. Draft and develop very well. They don’t develop stars out of every player but take a players strengths and make the most of them. When a star comes along they lock him up. If a star player isn’t signed to a long term deal you trade him for future talent then make that talent count by developing their strengths. Perform the basics to the tenth degree. Rinse and repeat year in year out. Spending and spending smart are two different things. The Twins are caught in the middle right now but they’ve brought in a solid position player core. They need to lock some of those guys up now so you can draft and develop other areas. They need a slugger type at 1B and bring in more pitching talent. If some of your current talent isn’t part of your future core you need to flip those guys. I don’t think it’s a lock you get a cap/floor but even if you do the same things will always ring true in every sport in that young talent will always be the path to winning. Not buying old talent. Regardless of some magic bean of a cap/floor system.

I was told in little league the most important pitch was strike one. Maybe all my coaches from little league to college should have been major league pitching coaches. Somehow the entire Twins staff forgot this or never learned that in their baseball upbringing? I think having better pitchers like you said is a better avenue through scouting, drafting and development than relying on the major league pitching coach to magically change the staff into something it is not. Can he change things? Sure, but more around the edges rather than a full scale organizational change.

Also, another thing the Brewers and Rays do that the Twins don’t do is all the fundamental things that don’t cost money and don’t require big analytics staffs. Playing the game right and doing the little things not just well but superb. They don’t give away runs, they take bases, they put pressure on the pitcher and defense. They move the runner over. They take advantage of their athleticism. Things the Twins say they’re gonna do every year but fail to do. They play as a team. In the real sense and not some buzz word corporate speak.

The decision making is key. Like punting a roster spot to keep Alex Jackson. Magically realizing after a month that Brooks Lee is not a shortstop after watching him for 2 years. Waiting 2 months to come to the conclusion that Royce Lewis’ approach was garbage. Fielding Matt Wallner in right field because he has a good arm when the rest of his defensive game is terrible. Decision making.

Well, I suggested earlier in the offseason perhaps Contreras would be a good fit. A team that likes to flip expiring contract guys before hitting free agency. Puts a lot of money behind the dish in him and Caratini but damn does Caratini look cooked. Probably costs a pretty penny to get him in the form of a couple higher level prospects. “IF” the Twins hold true and look to improve and be competitive in ‘27 I don’t know how you do that with a black hole of Caratini/ Jackson behind the plate. The Twins are developing a log jamb of position players that might interest a Brewers club that always looks forward.

You said the rotation has been a strength. Based on stats the last 2 years it has not. Ranked in the 20’s. If you are talking about 2023 then yes. That was the last time they ranked in the top half of baseball. So on paper yeah, sure it’s been a strength in recent years. In reality the last 2 years it has not been. They’ve ranked as a bottom 5-8 as a starting staff. As a reliever staff, and as a whole the last 2 years. Hence, they fired Maki. I wasn’t commenting on the article I was commenting on you thinking the pitching has been a strength when it has not been.

Ok, so you write an article about what you think they should be focused on. What’s the crisis you see?

Correct, they did this in the early Falvine days when the system was still pitch to contact and draft college relievers and turn them into starters from the Terry Ryan era. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it flops. That’s why you stock the system with pitchers and see what comes out in the wash through development. If you draft 12 pitchers and in 2-4 years you get 2 average or better guys out of that that’s probably replacement level competency. They need to ramp that up to not be forced to go the FA route.

I’d love for him to come back and be a legit late inning guy. Until he’s on a mound though I simply don’t know.

Then stop reading and listening to it.