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Nashvilletwin

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Everything posted by Nashvilletwin

  1. Nashvilletwin
    It’s debatable if BB as a full-time DH has worked for the Twins on the field - my own humble opinion is that having him in the lineup at DH, while not ideal, is better than not having him in the lineup at all. Where it decidedly has hurt is with the identity of the team with the fans. During the off-season, the Twins’ marketing gurus fed us Buxton, Arraez, Polanco, and then Correa as the position player “faces” of the franchise. Now BB DH’s only with marginal relative success, Arraez is gone, Polanco is pretty much meh Polanco, and Correa’s claim to fame is he’s our highest paid FA who also happens not to be performing as a dud at the plate. My point is that BB in CF 2/3rds of the time would really help with the engagement of the broader fan base. But if it can’t be done, well then, it can’t be done and we soldier on. But a marginally successful DH who doesn’t show his incredible (league best?) speed or glove is difficult to put forth as the face of the franchise with the degree of success that might be desired.
  2. Nashvilletwin
    Good win tonight. A pretty clean game in the field. Makes a difference. Farmer is a real pro. Padres manufactured a great run in the 10th - impressive execution. Let’s take this series tomorrow.
  3. Nashvilletwin
    Great, valid question worth asking. One could argue Polanco; and Garver had one good season (but, hell, everyone was good that year). But Kepler and Sano - supposedly two of the fixtures of a long-term core - both stalled out too (one right out of the majors). The track record is not good. It’s hard to claim that the Nephew should trust Rocco to be in charge of our young, fast approaching talent.
  4. Nashvilletwin
    He’s a square peg in a round hole at the moment. Miranda is not playing the position for which he is best suited - not only given his particular talents, but also given his future fit with the Twins. Lee or Lewis are our future at 3B and that future is rapidly approaching. Although right-handed, Miranda has the glove skills to be an above average fielding first baseman. That is where he should be getting 2/3s to 3/4s of his ABs (with Kiriloff getting essentially the rest while being primarily one of our starting corner outfielders). I must admit though that I’m getting worried that Miranda, Kiriloff, Larnach and, yes, both Gordon and Jeffers, are stalling out on their development, particularly as hitters. That’s a huge blow to this organization for which something quickly needs to be done and someone needs to be held accountable. Let’s hope we put the right people and systems in place to make sure it doesn’t happen to Lee, Lewis, Julien, Rodriguez, Wallner, Martin and Miller.
  5. Nashvilletwin
    If he’s the best in the majors at doing it, they absolutely will to some degree. Even more so if the hitter has personality and pizzazz and is a huge part of the identity of the club. Particularly we Minnesotans - who so love to have the ability to claim we are the best at something and be so proud of it. But yes, you are correct - winning trumps all (as I’ve said) and it certainly would be better if it were homers and not singles. But then again, in the current MLB, we don’t get the Judges and Trouts on our team.
  6. Nashvilletwin
    Trading away Arraez, for better or worse record wise - TBD (and I’m not here to debate that) was absolutely a blow to the excitement, identity and fan engagement of this team. He brought a spark, a pizazz, an energy, an identity. He was the best player in the majors at a particular thing (you all can argue about the importance of that particular thing) and Twins fans/Minnesotans (being who we are) valued that a lot. My comments/observations on this matter, and as it relates to the team’s performance in tonight’s game, are more from a business/commercial standpoint: MLB is entertainment - so you’d better damn sure provide it if you want to succeed. What is currently on display by this team is simply not compelling in this regard. Let’s hope that changes.
  7. Nashvilletwin
    1. Boring, bad baseball is not fun to watch. They’d better put a better product out on the field or it’s going to be a relatively sparsely attended summer. 2, Boos very evident tonight - until the broadcast cut them (lol). 3. Re Correa, Minnesotans clamor for the high-priced FAs, but when we finally get one we expect them to perform. Correa basically has had one good month at the plate with the Twins - when we were out of it late last year and he needed a good month so he could opt out and hit free agency. Twins fans will turn on him; but, don’t worry Carlos, they will jump back on the bandwagon if you turn it around. 4. Re Arraez comments above, he at least was an absolute fan favorite who essentially played every day. Fans showed up or tuned in to watch him. Lopez has been very good, but he shows up every fifth day. Among our position players, who are the fan favorites now whom people are coming to see in person or on the tube? Buxton, perhaps, but as a DH only? Not so much. Correa? Nope, he’s not performing, he’s overpaid, he didn’t really want to be here, and he was a cheater. Let’s face it, at the moment there really isn’t an exciting “face” of the team and the team itself doesn’t have an identity (Piranhas or Bomba Squad, for example) to really engender much excitement among the more casual (but incredibly important for revenue purposes) fans. Bottom line - they’d better start winning.
  8. Nashvilletwin
    We should not hit the panic button and start moving prospects for pitching this season at this point. If we are patient, we should be in a very favourable budget situation heading into next season. If we can move veteran position players for a solid #4-5, then maybe (but I think that’s doubtful unless Polanco can bring someone of value). Kepler, Gallo, Polanco, Gray, Mahle, and Maeda are gone next year. They are essentially replaced by Lewis, Julien, Lee, Ober, Varland, and SWR (or others). That is a lot of cash that has opened up and should be enough to pick up at least one, if not two, solid #2-4 types. Patience is the key at the moment. We are building for a multiple year open window - no reason to jeopardise that to save bad bets on Mahle and Maeda with this current lineup.
  9. Nashvilletwin
    Although it’s early, we had a chance to make a real statement and create the type of early separation that can demoralise chasers. We flat out blew it. We should still win the division, but this team as it’s currently playing is more of a pretender than contender. Let’s hope we can improve.
  10. Nashvilletwin
    I’m sorry if I offended you in some way. I certainly did not mean to do so. But yes, you are correct, even passionate fans who watch every game (like myself - I’m a 150+ game guy per year) can be disgusted with the hitting. I was only trying to make the point that some of us thought that the team would be especially light hitting this year - so we aren’t surprised by this. After all, did we really think Gallo, Solano, Martin, Kepler, etc. were going to be the answer at the plate? Are we that excited to tune in to watch that crew day in and day out? We traded the one player whom I and I’m sure others made sure we watched every AB last season (and I still tune in to admire his ABs as a Marlin). Correa and, sadly, Buxton don’t produce as compensated. But, it’s been my experience as a long time Minnesotan, that less passionate fans certainly will not invest themselves heavily in a such a team - unless maybe if the team is winning and they jump on the bandwagon - and even passionate fans like you and I will become frustrated and tune out. Your comments are perfectly spot on re getting more out of our players. I’ve written several times on these TD threads that Rocco’s number one job is to develop the young talent entrusted to him. It is terribly frustrating to see these talented kids fail to reach their potential as ballplayers. We have a great crew on the way and I fear that the likes of Lewis, Lee, Julien, Rodriguez, Wallner, Martin, Miller, etc., (not to mention the pitchers) will not end up where they belong given their talent and promise.
  11. Nashvilletwin
    I believe your comment about lack of interest may not be that uncommon - particularly among those Twins fans who do not frequent the TD. Several of us on this site predicted an overall light hitting team consisting of several somewhat transient players that would find it difficult to generate true enthusiasm. This lack of interest excludes the more passionate, but much fewer in number, of us fans who might appreciate this year’s strategy of winning through outstanding pitching, mostly via our starting staff. This strategy, however, relies on having a winning ball club to keep our renowned front running fan base with myriad other outdoor summer activities to pursue interested (and attending/watching!). So far, that has been more or less the case. Let’s hope we can keep that strategy working and more fans will become more invested as the summer progresses. This seems like a likely scenario still. Otherwise, a shift to Plan B (trade the transients and call up the prospects in August) might need to be implemented.
  12. Nashvilletwin
    Miranda needs the ABs - he’s still part of the future of this team. The issue is that he is playing the wrong position for his future role. In the future - late ‘23 or certainly by the beginning next season - 3B will be manned likely by Lee. In ‘24, Lewis or Julien will play 2B with the other playing OF or DH (when Buxton is in CF or having a rest day). Farmer first, followed by Gordon, will be the Utility IFs thru the end of ‘24 (with Farmer to be replaced by Noah Miller). That leaves Miranda’s best bet for playing time to be 1B, where he should get 2/3rds to 3/4ers of the starts with Kiriloff getting the the rest when he’s not playing RF. Likely Lewis (assuming Julien is at 2B), Kiriloff and Larnach will be our primary OFs with Buxton, Gordon and Wallner also playing. So those point is that Miranda should be getting more starts (and the associated ABs) at 1B and Solano should never start at 1B over Miranda (or Kiriloff, or even Gallo on this ‘23 team, for that matter). Solano needs to go sooner rather than later if the FO is truly interested in developing their young talent like Miranda.
  13. Nashvilletwin
    Couldn’t agree more. Why is he getting precious AB’s vs. others who need them (other than being right handed)? Lewis can’t get here fast enough.
  14. Nashvilletwin
    Miller needs to move up the list.
  15. Nashvilletwin
    Nice HR by Gordon and a great catch in CF. There is no chance he gets DFA’d - regardless of how many TDers are calling for it. A batter really only has one job to do leading off in the 10th - at a minimum move the runner to 3rd. Vasquez couldn’t get that done. We need to lay off the high cheese. Was Ryan gassed after 87 pitches? Perhaps, but Gray just threw 107 and Ryan was still dealing. Who knows. What is up with our late inning relievers walking the lead-off man in the 8th and/or 9th innings? Happened twice against KC and last night in the 9th as well. That is the cardinal sin. Lucky we didn’t lose in regulation last night. But if we continue to do that, we deserve to lose. Period.
  16. Nashvilletwin
    Yeah, let’s DFA Gordon…..geez
  17. Nashvilletwin
    Did you read my post? We are like the umps - calling balls and strikes. This trade was a ball - from the start. Obviously, others have been strikes (I referenced the Lopez trade). Is that not a fair assessment? The FO makes good and bad decisions. The Mahle trade was a bad one. It’s ok to call that out. And by no means did I imply they haven’t made good decisions. And btw judging them as whole includes more than trades. Right now, the FO is in the plus column - or, out another way, is ahead of the hitter in the count.
  18. Nashvilletwin
    Yes, you are correct - we don’t know if these assets could have been used to in some sort of package to get Lopez. Don’t get me wrong (and I have had the under on 125 IPs for both Mahle and Maeda for a long time now), getting Pablo was an insightful deal. But it was made necessary (it still was probably a good idea though) by a prior error. It’s nothing more than a trade that didn’t work. I’m just not giving a pass to the FO given that the trade was a disaster a less than a couple of weeks or so after it happened. So we gave up two good assets for essentially nothing. Hey, as they say, “you pays your money and you takes your chances”. Get ‘em next time.
  19. Nashvilletwin
    The point is that “assets” are assets. The “assets” given up in the Mahle trade could have been deployed elsewhere. And no mistake, they were valuable assets. For example, could they have been used to package with another player, say a Kepler, for a different pitching asset, say even a Pablo Lopez? It has been a bad trade - right from the start - in every respect thus far. It is unlikely ever to be a good trade. Sorry, I do not give a pass to our FO on this one for the “who could’ve known” argument. It’s their job to know - especially when it’s so evident right out of the gate. The FO has other wins though, so we need to be a good ump and call balls and strikes as we see them. This was a ball. Give the FO credit though in seeing the risk in their mistake (and with Maeda’s return) and going out to get Lopez - it’s just too bad it cost us so much to mitigate it.
  20. Nashvilletwin
    Well done Rooker. The point being overlooked a bit in this discussion is that someone knew how to get the most out of Rooker. Our coaching staff did not. Forget Correa and Buxton. The Twins have an exceptional opportunity to marry a roster of emerging young position players with some veteran talent and rotation with a solid base. By far the most important key to a true multi year window is to develop these young players to their potential. It’s a legitimate question to ask if Rocco is the right leader to get this done. It’s also legitimate to hold him, as the captain of the coaching staff, accountable for success or failure in this make or break responsibility.
  21. Nashvilletwin
    Another hitter? Arraez.
  22. Nashvilletwin
    First, if I’m Gordon, I’d welcome a new start somewhere else to get a chance to play regularly and exit this environment. However, second, there is no chance I’d give up on Gordon at this point. Castro goes first. Solano second (the guy cannot field to save his soul), and Kepler third. Those three will not be here next season. Gordon has more upside at the plate than those three, and except for Kepler in the OF, is a better fielder with more positional flexibility. Third, the Twins may want to have him next year when Buxton still is not playing CF and Martin, Gallo, and there three players mentioned above are all gone. The conundrum is how to get him more ABs to get on track. It’s hard to see that happening. So, going back to the first point, if I were Gordon, I’d be looking for a new home where I could jumpstart the rest of my career. Get out of here - find a place where I will get a chance to show last summer/fall was the hitting, versatile spark plug of a player he really is. Maybe get some appreciation too.
  23. Nashvilletwin
    Noah Miller is making his case. Stud fielder now with an emerging bat. This kid is putting it all together. If he keeps this up, he’s a lock for the ‘25 big club roster if he’s not traded for potential top line pitching.
  24. Nashvilletwin
    ‘24 will still be a transition year (i.e. Farmer will still be a utility infielder, Polanco may still be around, and Lee will probably get to the bigs early in the season and Rodriguez later in the season). So let’s start in ‘25 with our starting 9 hitters: DH: Buxton (he’s no longer a CFer - he just isn’t) 1B: Miranda (can’t play OF, better alternative at 3B) 2B: Julien (no way we can keep his bat out of the lineup) SS: Correa (we paid big time for this) 3B: Lee (a superstar right in our midst) RF: Rodriguez (also a superstar coming right down the pike) CF: Lewis (has to play somewhere and has more positional flexibility) LF: Kiriloff (if healthy, otherwise Larnach) C: Vasquez Bench: Larnach, Miller (stud fielder and emerging bat), Jeffers, plus one super utility player ala Gordon That’s a very strong lineup of 13 players with 2-3 (Correa, Buxton and Vasquez) getting paid and the other 10 cheap and controllable (i.e. plenty of money left over for pitching). There is a lot of positional flexibility as well. D is a little iffy on the right side of the infield, but otherwise pretty solid (if Lewis adapts well to CF). Of course, if Buxton could still play CF, the D would be much stronger with Julien at DH and Lewis/Lee at 2B/3B. That would be the ideal lineup, but Buxton in CF is not likely.
  25. Nashvilletwin
    Great article, Melissa - I enjoy reading your posts. A couple of other takeaways: 1. The Twins legitimately have at least three, and possibly five, All-Star pitchers at the moment in Ryan, Lopez, Duran, Gray and Lopez. 2. Solano has me worried - his play in the field is atrocious. His hitting has been a huge spark plug, but if that falls off, he will be a liability.
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