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Linus

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Everything posted by Linus

  1. Well the most important factor here is.........that Tonkin needs to pitch better than he has in his prior MLB opportunities. One of problems has been young players not seizing opportunities and he has been one.
  2. Everybody needs another month then a whole bunch of decisions can be made. I can easily see Pinto and Vargas trading places soon if things don't change. At this point, they can let him catch some but he seems to be headed for career where his bat better allow him to be a DH.
  3. Again, I think it depends on the situation. For the Twins, I think it was probably going to take 5 years minimum because the farm system essentially had to be rebuilt and that is about as fast is reasonable to expect prospects to be drafted and work their way through the pipeline. I'm not absolving the Twins of anything here BTW. Had they not drafted relatively poorly for a period and not made several bone head trades during the same period, the road to success would have been considerably shorter (especially the bone head trades). You can't turn Johan Santana, Bartlett, Garza, Wilson Ramos, etc. into nothing and not have it set you back a bunch. Not to mention to double down on the blunder by getting nothing for GoGo and then JJ Hardy. Add it all up, you have a lengthy process even done if optimally.
  4. The problem with trading your way out of the abyss is that you have to have something of value to trade. The Twins really haven't. Same thing for trading somebody when you have no heir apparent to take their place - all you've done is open another hole that you have to fill. I know this isn't what people want to hear but its the truth. When your farm system is depleted, you're screwed. When you start to build a supply of good players, your team gets better and you have options to fill holes faster via trade. The Twins had the perfect storm occur at the start of the "dark period". Poor drafting / poor drafting position, serious injuries to established players and a few bad trades. Pretty soon you are losing and your farm system isn't there for you which pretty much means you take your beatings.
  5. Just like all the other scenarios, I give him two months (maybe a little less). If he continues to hit like this, then you bring him up, put him in center every day for the rest of the season. I would use the same timeframe for evaluating all of these types of decisions. My hope is that there will be several decisions made at this time that could open a 40 man spot for Lester Olivaros. While many of our minor leaguers just haven't made a case for a call up, he's really making it hard for the Twins to ignore him.
  6. I think we are closer to being competitive than many people do. Primarily because I think their rotation, when Santana gets back, will be much improved and I think they will start scoring runs. I expect them to flirt with .500 by the end of the year. As far as "the rebuild" I really think this is a non-starter. You can't blow it up and go young when you had no credible prospects to bring up. The cupboard was not only bare, it was barren. They probably still couldn't blow it up and go completely young without throwing prospects out there that have little chance to succeed in the big leagues. There are no easy ways out when your farm system dries up. Plus, they've brought up position prospects about as soon as they could over the last several years. I understand the Hunter frustration but the Twins were forced to go and find a corner outfielder because they had nobody internally. Hunter was about as good as they were going to do in that poor free agent class and still keep the contract short. I really don't care what they've done compared to the Cubs and Astros. Each situation is different.
  7. Hilarious. Thanks for posting.
  8. Actually, pretty much. At least not players who you have a likely replacement for and are not the cornerstone of your team. I believe you have been a vocal proponent of not signing decline phase players, which is where he will be at that point.
  9. I wouldn't extend him. We have him up to his age 31 season. There is a high likelihood that we won't even want him beyond that point. I also think he still has plenty left to prove, and I also think the assumption that he can transition to another position is flawed. He was a bad shortstop and, initially, a bad 3rd baseman. To his credit, he worked hard and got better but it took time - something we won't be able to invest when he is 31 and trying to learn left field.
  10. I assume that would be Joe Mauer. This whole leadership thing is so overblown. TR went out of his way to downplay that when they signed him. Its been repeated so often on these boards that people assume it to be fact.
  11. Well if they want to cut him I have one question: which outfielder from our minor league system do you propose takes his place?
  12. Suzuki and his $6 million this year and next is looking pretty good right about now. Everyone that clamored for the Twins to sign Salty, please raise your hands.
  13. I was expecting a steal there too. I would have done that and then bunted him to third. totally agree that Schafer's speed is one of the few things he brings to the table - that is how he has to contribute.
  14. They had a loogy warming in the pen. If Arcia is announced, they bring in the lefty and then he has to pinch hit for Arcia and burn another position player. I don't disagree with the decision at all. They needed to keep the inning alive and he was clearly the best choice to do that.
  15. There was something about Herrmann's work behind the plate that I liked. He looked "athletic" or something like that. I wonder if his versatility has caused people to dismiss his catching skills. He looked every bit as smooth as Suzuki and far more comfortable than Pinto. Mauer hit the ball on the nose five times - hopefully a sign of things to come. We have enough starting pitching candidates that anybody that doesn't pitch well is going to be replaced. Milone has an option so if he does decline he can go to AAA just as easily as May. If Pelfrey keeps on pitching well, he can get flipped just in time for E Santana to take his spot. I also would like to Robinson get some starts against right handed pitching. He knows what he is doing in the field and could probably help pick up the slack.
  16. I do think it is time to see what Robinson can do against right handed pitching. His defense would be an upgrade and might help an otherwise poor outfield.
  17. The Twins defense? Twins two best pitchers so far: Pelfrey and Milone. Go figure.
  18. The Twins have incorporated young players over the last couple of years, when there has been some reason to think they are ready. Just because a team "goes young" doesn't mean it is the best for the development of the individual player nor does it guarantee success. The Twins had a big youth movement with Rich Becker, Scott Stahoviak, et al and it went nowhere.
  19. How many re-treads in the starting 9? I count 2.
  20. You are aware that they sent Hicks to AAA?
  21. Perhaps we should wait until the first pitch is thrown before we assess the ability of our new manager.
  22. I generally agree, Stringer. The key to baseball is good starting pitching and the Twins have their best rotation in years. They scored plenty of runs last year and certainly can be a 500 ballclub. The Twins will incorporate younger players when they are ready, sometimes earlier as they have done with several players. I believe they are coming north with a group they believe gives them the best chance to win some games early and change the losing culture. Its a long season with plenty of time to change out parts as things develop.
  23. Why trade him? You would get nothing in return - better off letting him try it in the pen. Who knows, he might thrive there as he could throw harder and his lack of secondary pitches won't be as big a concern.
  24. I would rather roll with May in the 5th spot but otherwise I like all of these moves. This is the only way I see Hicks resurrecting his career. Both May and Meyer will get their chances, probably soon.
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