Nashvilletwin

What’s the saying - don’t keep p#&@ing on my leg and telling me it’s raining? Sorry, that’s a bit crude and unfair Ted, but I totally have got the under on a Gallo turnaround this year. Again, he’s a dart throw to try to save the CC plus Mahle, Gray and Maeda strategy that blew up in their face. The absolute worst thing that can happen to this franchise is that there is some hope of winning the division come late June and our clueless, delusion FO decides to stay the course with Gallo, Kepler, Polanco, Maeda, Gray, and Mahle and losing all of them for nothing come ‘24. Oh, it could be worse, they could make another trade at the deadline giving up solid prospects for less than a handful of starts from a “fatigued” pitcher. Anything that postpones the investment and evaluation of our new young core is a mistake at this point in time. Gallo is simply one piece of that postponement - almost regardless of his level of play.

Lee should see the bigs sometime this year. But your comment is correct - that is why Farmer stays this year.

Missing Julien and Martin. Both make their debuts this year. Gallo was waste for the strategy that will ultimately be embraced come mid-late June. August Lineup (some IL overlap) IF (6) Lee, Lewis, Julien, Arraez, Miranda, Farmer (need one adult) OF (6) Buxton, Gordon, Wallner, Larnach, Kiriloff, Martin C (2) Vasquez, Jeffers SP (5) Ryan, Ober, Winder, SWR, one of Mahle, Gray, Maeda (Varland and Balazovic will get plenty of starts too) RP (8) Duran, Lopez, Jax, Thielbar, Alcala, Moran, Henriquez, FA to be signed still this off-season (others will see innings too) The last two months of ‘23 may be a dumpster fire, but a necessary one. We make the investment to see who are keepers and who is not. For ‘24-25 only three players off this list are making somewhat serious money (Buxton, one SP, and Arraez). Retool next off-season with 3-4 FAs. Fire Falvey, Levine, and Rocco. BTW, any one but me wish we had signed Bassitt and Anderson to three year deals to bolster our rotation for ‘23-25 instead of goofing off with CC and Gallo? We’d have at least two solid inning eating vets to go with Ryan plus the two winners of the Winder, Ober, Varland, SWR battle. We could even extended our choice of Gray, Mahle and Maeda.

If the FO had recognized their pursuit of CC as the pipe dream it was, they basically could have had Anderson and Bassitt (or close equivalents) on minimum three year deals for the price of CC and Gallo. With ‘23 looking grim, this is how you build for the future. Instead of trying to kick save the Maeda, Mahle, and Gray ‘23 strategy, it would have been smarter to invest in the Bassitt, Anderson plus one (or two) extension(s) of the three ‘24-25 strategy. You start Maeda in the pen in ‘23 and wait for Mahle and Gray to break down to give Ober, Winder, SWR starter innings. At the deadline you move any or all of the three (Gray, Maeda, Mahle) who will not be extended. This not only positioned the rotation for a more open window in ‘24-25, but also would actually have significantly increased the probability of contending in ‘23. This FO is like the woman who backed into the airplane propellor: a disaster.

Ok, we can stop putting the blame for Correa squarely on the shoulders of the FO. But what about an off season that has produced Vasquez (an A in my book), Farmer as the starting SS, and Gallo? Who shoulders the blame for that?

There is absolutely no way I would trade anyone in our organization that has a reasonable chance to contribute to this team over the 2024-2027 time frame for any player who would a) impede the development of any of our top prospects; b) is not demonstrably a step up from what our future can provide; c) is nothing more than a temporary kick save attempt by the FO to resurrect their Mahle, Maeda and Gray strategy, or d) won’t be here for the next window. Guillorme may be a perfectly reasonable utility infielder for a couple years. But a platoon with Farmer will not save this season, and Guillorme is not going to be part of the long-term solution. As such, any acquisition of Guillorme should not compromise our future in any way, even if it is for a “couple of lottery tickets” - lottery tickets that may actually be more valuable to us.

You are absolutely correct. A small/mid-market team can compete if they are well run and do certain things very well. These things include: 1. Developing players through the system and continuing that development once the players make the majors. 2. Play sound fundamental baseball in all aspects - which “steals” a handful of net wins per year. 3. Have a manager and coaching staff that is both tactically above average (again, resulting in a handful of net wins per season) and works well with younger players. 4. When a key trade or FA is required, have a front office that is savvy enough to “win” more often than “loses”. The FO must additionally be able to put together and stick to a cogent long-term strategic plan, while avoiding the dogmatism to make necessary occasional pivots. 5. Have an ownership willing to step up when the opportunity presents itself and has the courage to make the tough, difficult decisions when needed. This is essentially how smaller market teams can create some sort of competitive advantage in a no salary cap environment. Some teams do this better and more consistently than others. How would you rate the Twins organization, particularly recently?

Assuming they even show up, of course. Lol

Rec this. Don’t worry - this strategy will in all likelihood be implemented come early June. The FO will do the best they can to see what the team with Mahle, Gray and Maeda can produce. Fair enough. If, or when, it becomes clear that won’t be successful - along with a healed Lewis and more seasoning for Lee, Julien, Martin, SWR, Varland, etc. - the rebuild toward a new multi year window will begin.

Whom would you move - someone in whom the Mets might realistically have an interest - to effect this trade for this budding utility infielder?

Baseball is broken. This is a horrible signing for the future of the league - particularly if the Mets, or any other of the dwindling number of franchises that can compete in this “arms race”, wins the Pennant or WS. This portends even greater loss of interest in professional baseball outside of a few major franchises. For the current and future fans of most of the MLB’s teams, there is very little reason to commit the time and money over years and years to a futile dream. Better just wait to jump on the bandwagon for that one season, if it ever comes, when lightning strikes and the team truly competes. As I have said in many of my posts, I am a “super fan” watching over 150 Twins games each year. Not this year. I have really no interest in prioritising my summer days and nights to watch our current team in this current MLB environment. My love of the game only goes so far. Assuming I reup for the MLB package this season, maybe I’ll tune in more often later in the season when our prospects show up. This is how this super fan feels. It’s not just the CC signing. It’s the direction of MLB and the direction of the Twins within that dynamic. Imagine how the less committed fans will feel over time. For many franchises, the Twins most certainly included, baseball fandom will become primarily a bandwagon phenomenon.

Didn’t even think about that. Wow, I guess it could be, but I hope not, Baseball does not need that. On the other hand, once a cheater….. Maybe the drs. had a hard time identifying the buzzer implanted below his shoulder. Enough silliness - let’s just hope he’s ok and can continue his career.

Let’s pray he is ok and this not some serious medical issue. He’s got a beautiful young family.

Dumpster diving. Zzzzzzzzz…

What did the old lady say at the restaurant in When Harry Met Sally? “I’ll have what she’s having”. Lol. Rec this!

To be honest, the miracle for which I’m praying is that the Nephew wakes up and sacks Falvey and Levine before they completely decimate the future of the franchise with their wild-eyed commitment to not wasting the one season of having (through their - in the own mind - ingenious FO machinations) Gray, Mahle, and Maeda together. Yep, I’m just waiting for this brain trust who has generated zero playoff wins in their tenure and are still living off a magical season based on the juiced ball to trade our last fan favorite (and All Star) and several more top prospects to try to kick save a season based on three pitchers, none of whom will likely exceed 100-120 innings and all of whom will not be back next year, let alone be here after the trade deadline. For some reason this past week I can’t get the theme song from the original Poseidon Adventure, There’s Got to be a Morning After out of my head. As a “Super Fan” I’m having nightmares that I’m going to wake up on Opening Day to the Twins facing a left handed starter and our batting order includes Gallo, Farmer, Garlick, Celestino, Kepler and Polanco. I then spend hours on the phone with a customer service rep from DirectTv trying to get my money back for the MLB package. The nightmare ends when my wife and I take our dog on a two hour walk on a beautiful evening instead of watching the Twins throw it around the diamond and Rocco make another bonehead decision based on the “analytics”. I wonder why I would ever have thought to waste so much time and money on these Twins and I thank God that I was able to wake up to realise that.

1. No chance they trade one of Maeda, Gray or Mahle before the season starts. If that is the FO’s thinking, why the earth shattering Gallo signing? In all seriousness, two of the three have injury concerns so better to bet on proving those concerns wrong and increasing value anyway. 2. The FO will attempt to extend one or two of them no later than the trade deadline based on first half performance and mutual interest from the pitcher (don’t take that for granted - all three may want a change in scenery and/or want to bet on themselves). 3. Unless we are competing (which includes deluding ourselves into think we are) and assuming no extensions, at least two and maybe all three are moved at the deadline. So yes, in all likelihood it will make sense to trade some or all of them at some time, but not now.

I said the “exchange” of Urshela for Farmer. It was not a trade, rather replacing one infielder with a similar one who could provide a more direct hedge at SS if we were unsuccessful in the SS sweepstakes. At the moment Farmer is our everyday SS and in that role he’s a marginal upgrade over Urshela. Having said that, I personally would much rather have Urshela still on the team than Gallo. To me, maybe not for others, that’s a no brainer.

You are correct - there should be no expectation that any player can really single handedly lead a team to the playoffs. Having said that, is there truly any realistic expectation that Gallo with move the dial in that direction in any meaningful way? The FO is nibbling at the edges - Vasquez is strong move, Farmer is a good exchange for Urshela, and Gallo may or may not be an upgrade from Kepler/Larnach/Wallner. Maybe more is to come, but in total do these three moves make the Twins look like a pennant contender in ‘23? Re Gallo, what are the opportunity costs of $11MM and the ABs for someone who almost certainly won’t be here in ‘24, let alone by the trade deadline.

Perfectly stated ??

100% - he is our most reliably producing outfielder at the moment and very fun to watch. After I posted my comment, I thought to myself that Gordon is specifically one of the young guys I’ll tune in for. Sorry Nick - I left you off my list.

Exactly - well said. To add to this, if this is the style of baseball the Twins continue to play, then they will never be competitive. As a small/mid-market team, they need to be exceptional in those areas - not mediocre to below average. Usually I’m a “watch every game” type of guy regardless of if they are contending. 150 games last season. There are specific reasons I tune in besides just loving baseball and the Twins: Ryan pitching, Buxton, Arraez, and Correa ABs, and/or a young player getting innings. Could be basically down to Ryan and fewer prospects on that list soon. I most certainly will not be tuning in to specifically watch Joey Gallo. I would much prefer to watch Julien, Martin, Lee and now likely Larnach and/or Wallner at St. Paul this year.

This is a desperate attempt by the FO to kick save their Gray, Maeda, and Mahle trades before they all are gone next year - thinking of the long-run be damned. Don’t worry though - either we are contending or we start truly thinking of the long-term at the deadline (and ideally with a new FO and manager who has proven the ability to develop young players to their potential).

The goal is to build a roster that can compete for a Pennant year in and year out. This FO is desperate to take one more crack at making their Gray, Maeda and Mahle trades work before they all leave next season. Sorry, we just disagree. IMHO, there is absolutely no reason to mortgage our future - whether it’s moving more young talent or taking away badly needed innings - to try to save Falvey, Levine and Rocco’s jobs. The good news is that we will run this strategy up the flagpole. If (or when) it doesn’t work, the firesale before the deadline will commence and the true rebuild will begin. Boy, I can just imagine the analytics team all sitting around the room talking themselves into how Gallo is this or that (TF ave, no shift, good years before, etc.).

Please let this be the case…but I don’t think Nephew Joey has the intestinal fortitude for that.