And Duran... two of Falvey's biggest pitching successes have been acquired via trading players with expiring deals. No reason not to deal them as this team isn't going on a deep playoff run, and if the Twins really like these guys they can sign them back this winter when they hit the market.
Which is funny because I was just thinking despite how much we ripped him for being a crappy hitter, the guy we wanted to replace him in Kiersey is historically horrific at the plate so much so that Margot would be a major improvement.
Varland has given up 1 run in 10.2 innings when throwing in the 8th inning and and 1 run in 2.1 innings in the 9th. Nothing we've seen from him suggests he couldn't do it.
I can't remember the last time we used a reliever in three straight games... can't blame him if he has a bad outing. The dude has been phenomenal this year.
Gonzalez is "still" in AA raking with 220 PAs under his belt... pretty good for a 21 year old. And those are his first PAs there, this isn't like Austin Martin floundering there at age 23 or Sabato needing 930 PAs there to move on.
The other prospect is Darren Bowen, who's currently a starter at AA and not doing particularly well. His only path to the majors is going to be as a reliever and he was just a throw-in for the trade.
You should see the list of pitchers they've thrown out there... 35 different pitchers and they have 12 total players on the injured list. They badly need some arms that can stay healthy.
Yeah, it's an overgeneralization but the majority of Falvine-developed prospects who have made it to the majors have been of that archetype with some exceptions like Brooks Lee. One guy who did not fit that mold is Noah Miller... they traded him away. Perhaps that perception will dissipate when they start calling up guys who can play defense and steal some bases.
I think the play is to move the rentals and then one reliever. I could see Varland stepping into the 8th inning role with Jax or Duran handling the 9th, and they've been able to do a solid job developing relievers. I doubt Ryan is moved as they'll only part with him for a king's ransom. This isn't like the Berrios situation where it was likely that an extension was off the table and they were down to 1.5 years of control instead of 2.5.
I didn't realize Gonzalez was a career .302 hitter in the minors... but I don't see the comp to Arraez. I think the Larnach comparison is more accurate, I can see a 1-1.5 WAR player in him. I'm not worried about the power yet, he's too young for that.
I do wish we'd quit it with the subpar speed/defense prospects but I guess that's just what this front office loves. Maybe a move to 1B is warranted? I know his bat might not be quite good enough, but this organization needs depth at 1B and I'd rather have him there instead of as a mediocre OF who can't cut it once he makes it to the majors. We've had enough of those guys and give me Gonzalez over the next middling vet/Miranda/Julien at 1B, given he can handle it in the minors. He has yet to play even a single inning in the minors there so it's probably a longshot.
Is Zebby actually ready for the major league level? I'm not opposed to him getting major league experience now, but he's been bad after not pitching a whole lot in the high minors.
Seeing healthy Ober back in the rotation would be great. You'd like to not have to go into 2026 with Ober as a question mark.
Just checking in... woof. I'm seeing in the highlights that the Rockies' stadium seems to be nearly full, is there a bunch of Twins fans there? They're fielding one of the worst teams of all time but at list for this series they seem to be doing alright.
Just checking in... yup, turns out that article about Paddack's impending regression that was mocked by some as "analytical garbage" is aging really well. Paddack just isn't a very good starter.
The Dodgers hired away the Rays' GM and made changes to their organization to model after how Tampa runs things, and it's worked out quite well for them. I don't see what's wrong with trying to mimic a team that should be like the A's and Pirates based on their payroll but annually is at least a contender even if they haven't won it all.
Yup, I think Wallner's OPS is disguising how disappointing he's been - he had a .371 OBP the past two years is now sub 300. Add in his defense and he's barely been above replacement level. I still believe in him, but he's part of the problem with his 2025 squad not scoring runs... 16 RBIs despite having 10 HRs in 201 PAs is brutal.
These are the incentives in his contract according to Spotrac:
Annual MVP Bonuses:
1st: $8M
2nd: $7M
3rd: $6M
4th: $5M
5th: $4M
6th-10th: $3M
Plate Appearances
$500,000 each for 502, 533, 567, 600, 625