Danchat

Great conversation, guys. I just found it hilarious when a random Royals fan commented that "Danny Valencia is a good defender". I laughed for 4 straight minutes and then did a "wait... is he serious?" Lough's defense at the very least makes him better.

I see Gilmartin's ceiling as a Anthony Swarzak-esque long reliever. I think he could crack the majors as a reliever, but I sure hope the Twins don't call him up as a starter.... And as everyone else has said, these pitchers are getting redundant. We need to DFA Kris Johnson and Albers...

http://www.baltimoresun.com/sports/orioles/blog/bal-orioles-acquire-outfielder-david-lough-in-exchange-for-danny-valencia-20131218,0,7915908.story Danny Valencia is going to his 4th major league team, the Kansas City Royals. The Orioles received OF David Lough in exchange. And to think someone like Valencia can get you a decent outfielder. Since Plouffe is nearly the same guy, could we get a player like Lough back for him? At first glance, the Orioles won this trade, but then someone will mention Valencia is better if he only faces lefties.

Why in the world do we want him pitching for us next year? We could have a AAA scrub throw for a 5.00 ERA for a dime, but now, Pelfrey pitches for $6M in 2015. He will improve off of last year, but really... the only potential he has is if he has a good first half and we trade him for something.

MLB Trade Rumors said that Kubel received a major league offer from the Orioles. Man, Baltimore sure loves former-Twins! I'm sure they would have claimed Hendriks if the Cubs didn't claim him!

Wouldn't surprise me if Pinto doesn't make the opening day roster. He needs time in AAA. I would like to see Herrmann starting at catcher, and if needed, Fryer behind him. I would also like to see the Twins give John Buck a 1-year deal or perhaps take a catcher in the Rule 5 draft.

According to MLB Trade Rumors, the Padres and Diamondbacks have interest in Liam Hendriks. I don't think he's gonna clear waivers if that's what we do with him.

I'm getting the feeling that TR is going to acquire a starter via a trade. I won't guess, but there's gonna be a trade coming. Just wait.

I like Gardner a lot, but I don't think he'd be a big upgrade on Presley. If it was substantial I would work a trade, but Gardner is already 30. Taking a quick look at Baseball Refrence, here's a comparison chart. (Category): (Who's better) AVG: Gardner slightly OBP: Gardner by a lot HRs: Presley hits twice as many SLG: Presley OPS: Gardner OPS+: As Thrylos said, Presley 98 to 97. WAR: I can't say how relevant this is, but per season Gardner leads 3.22 to .25. BTW Presely had a negative WAR with the Twins in 2013. Fld Prct: Gardner .991 to .986. Range Factor per Game: Gardner 2.11 to 1.71 And in base stealing, Gardner still looks capable with 24 at age 29 last year. Presley has been caught stealing 15 times and only got 20 bases. And that's before he was 28. Gardner is clearly better, but there's no reason to upgrade, especially depending on how valuable the Yankees might think he is.

My thoughts: 1) Doumit doesn't belong anymore on this rebuilding team. 2) Give Worley one more shot and see if he can turn it around. 3) I've given up on Hendriks. He's AAAA material. He won't be apart of our eventual playoff run so I don't want him here. 4) Diamond should probably move to the bullpen. Take Duensing's spot in the long relief dept. 5) Let Albers keep pitching in AAA and see if it's worth trying him out again once some pitchers get hurt up here. I am cautiously optimistic for him. 6) Colabello is flukey and I seriously can't tell if he can be in the MLB. Give Parmelee his final chance. I like him, and I think if the coaching staff can refine his swing he can bat .260 and hit 20 homers and play adequate RF/1B. If he fails here, another team (probably Baltimore) will put Parmelee to better use and show us his true potential.

Snepp is exactly right. I'd say 72 wins with this team right now.

This. If we are signing a catcher, it shouldn't be for long term. Pinto looks really good, at least in my opinion.

I think it's definitely a concern. I think things will level out eventually, like Worley, Albers, or Kris Johnson going into the bullpen, or Hendriks getting outrighted. With most likely one more FA pitcher coming, I expect some room to be made. Things will be straightened out eventually.

A 3. It's the same horrible rotation plus Nolasco! We don't even know how healthy Deduno will be, and we have to kick the tires on somebody other than Pelfrey. We need a solid arm like Arroyo, Kazmir, or somebody in that range.

Man, I sure hope we don't re-sign Pelfrey. Sure, he's a #5 pitcher but so is everybody else except for Nolasco. I think we need one more arm in the rotation and it sure better not be Pelfrey. Plus, how in the world is he worth $8M a year? I know everything is inflated but nobody is going to burn that kind of money signing him... right? We need a solid #2 pitcher to complement Correia, Deduno, Nolasco, and whoever goes in that final spot. And it sure better not be Mike Pelfrey.

And Nolasco it is. I'll say it will be 3 years 50M.

Just wondering, but is it a foregone conclusion that Ryan Doumit is outta here? It didn't seem like it was that long ago when he signed the extension. But signing a catcher doesn't really make sense with Doumit, Pinto, and Herrmann on the roster. I'd rather not see him here, because he'd probably take up the DH spot, which Willingham should play...

I think it should be called "The Curse of All Former Twins"! Oh, wait a sec, that isn't a curse... it's called players not living up to their potential here.

I feel something has to be wrong if on Fangraphs Pelfrey is a 2.1 WAR and on Baseball Reference he was a -0.3 WAR. We can argue all we want about Pelfrey, and I bet he'll throw better next year, but the key is we have to get better pitching. If we re-sign Pelfrey we are doing nothing but accepting a mediocre pitcher who will give us little chance to be elite. We have to get someone better or we have the same pitching rotation as last year (plus one unimpressive FA pitcher). And that was a 90 loss rotation.

No, no, no, and.... no. If we are going to spend 150M on a player (which there's a 100% chance we won't) it would have to be on a pitcher. I know our hitting is seriously bad but there is help on the way. There is no help coming for our pitching staff. I just hope the teams in contention get together and drive the price down. Will any team ever learn from these bad 100M+ deals?

I think it's not a bad idea to trade Dozier while he's hot. I don't think he'll be that great so if we can get a good pitching prospect for him pull the trigger. Rosario will be here in the summer ready to take over 2B. Until then.... Bernier?

I like this move because Rick Spielman is untying himself from Ponder. He's at least giving Leslie Frazier a shot to keep his job. Freeman by NO means is a franchise QB. The first 3 weeks he was worse than Ponder. However, if he can turn around (which I doubt because Musgrave is an idiot) then he'll be better than Ponder. The wild card is Matt Cassel. If he has a good performance against the Panthers, how can you not start him against the Giants and (potentially) go 3-3? If Cassel falters, then play Freeman.

We might be able to say 2013 was the least talented team, but it wasn't the worst season. Of my current memory (2002-2013) I would say 2011 was easily the worst. We had (fading) talent and we lost 99 games. That was much more crushing than this year.

This is my first blog post... so bear with me, folks. It's not hard to make a report card type of blog, so I'm going to focus on my own analysis of the players and the improvement they've made. And for many, regression that has happened. So, without further ado, let's take a look at how our pitchers did this season... get your barf bags ready. SP Kevin Correia, 4.18 ERA, 4.9 K/9, 2.2 BB/9 I chose these specific stats because that's what I will analyze for these players. Believe it or not, Correia had has 2nd best season of his career (as a starter) and surpassed my expectations. He's raised his strikeouts slightly and also had his lowest walk rate ever. He did what he was signed for, and no matter how this $10 million was spent, they got what they could out of him. SP Mike Pelfrey, 5.19 ERA, 6.0 K/9, 3.1 BB/9 So which Pelfrey are we going to get... the one who can go 6 innings and give up 1 run? Or the one that implodes in the 2nd inning? ESPN nominated him for the midseason Cy Yuck and they had good merit. Pelfrey is a last resort #5 option in the rotation and I want nothing of him next season. Although he was capable of strikeouts (getting a career high 6.0), he rarely ever escaped the 6th inning and isn't capable of many innings. He clearly regressed, but he was coming off Tommy John surgery and entered the American League for the 1st time. SP Scott Diamond, 5.43 ERA, 3.6 K/9, 2.5 BB/9 I don't want to repeat what everyone else is saying. Yeah, he was bad. But holy mother of pearl, 3.6 K/9??!?!? No wonder he was a punch bag for these batters. After an impressive rookie reason, Diamond followed it up with a complete clunker. So which Diamond are we going to get? Unfortunately, I'd bet he's just as bad next year. SP Sam Deduno, 3.83 ERA, 5.6 K/9, 3.4 BB/9 Wow, we could call him Deduno 2.0. How in the world did he manage NOT to strike out over 6K/9 innings? At least they lowered his walk ratio to around league average, but I think he has some unearthed potential. If the Pirates got their hands on this guy, they could make him better than Liriano right now.... but the big problem is Deduno's health. He should be ready for next year, but he's a glass cannon. He is clearly the most improved of the starters. SP Pedro Hernandez, 6.83 ERA, 4.6 K/9, 3.7 BB/9 My gosh.... how in the world does Hernandez qualify as the 5th starter? This is seriously worse than last year. That atrocious ERA is backed up by his other stats, like the revolting 1.82 WHIP he had. If you're not going to strike anyone out, his BB/9 should be under 3.0 at least! There is no reason for him to pitch for the Twins ever again, and if he does, please, let it be in the bullpen. SP Andrew Albers, 4.05 ERA, 3.8 K/9, 1.1 BB/9 Well, if you're going to refuse to throw strikeouts, at least he doesn't walk anyone. There's nobody close to him on this team with a 1.1 BB/9. However, I don't buy his 4.05 ERA. He's extremely flukey and is reminiscent of Scott Diamond. I would welcome him into the rotation next season but I suspect he'll decline. SP Kyle Gibson, 6.53 ERA, 5.1 K/9, 3.5 BB/9 Everyone was excited to see Gibson pitch... and now we understand why he wasn't rushed. These stats couldn't be more disappointing for him (except maybe the next guy on the list).There is nowhere to go but up and I hope that applies for his K/9. I do expect him to throw less walks. I also suspect the pitching staff is responsible for his failures. He has so much talent, so how can he flop like this? SP Vance Worley, 7.21 ERA, 4.6 K/9, 2.8 BB/9 Words can not do this justice. Worley's regression from Philly is astounding beyond measure. His ERA increased from 3.50 to 7.21, faster than that guy on the Supersize Me movie could gain weight. His K/9 plummeted from a respectable 7.7 to 4.6. And worst of all, his Hits/9 went from 9.0 to 15.2. YOU HAVE A BETTER CHANCE OF GETTING A GUY OUT WITH A PITCHING MACHINE. That is all for the starters. Hendriks, Walters, and De Vries are so bad/meh/unimportant that they don't need to be mentioned. CL Glen Perkins 2.30 ERA, 11.1 K/9, 2.2 BB/9 What a phenomenal season from Perkins. Every stat shows he was incredible, and while he likely won't be able to keep up these stats, it looks like we have a reliable closer for the future. He probably had the best season of his career. 'Nuff said. RP Jared Burton 3.82 ERA, 8.3 K/9, 3.0 BB/9 I have a thing for Burton, he's one of my favorite pitchers on the team. (maybe because he's semi-competent, like few others?) However, it seemed whenever there was a tie game in the 8th inning, Burton would come out and blow it. He somehow lost 9 games this way. His stats looked pretty good, and I think his ERA will drop next year. I'd say he had a slight regression, but it was unlikely he was going to repeat last year's campaign. RP Josh Roenicke 4.35 ERA, 6.5 K/9, 5.2 BB/9 Not sure what to think of this guy. I thought Tim Wood or Alex Burnett would take this spot from him, and he held it the whole year. He's hittable, OK at strikeouts, and walks way too many guys. Yet he had a sub-4.00 ERA most the year, inflated by a couple really bad outings. He had a great season, but it sure looks like he can't possibly keep this up. I expect him to find a job elsewhere. RP Casey Fien, 3.92 ERA, 10.6 K/9, 1.7 BB/9 Fien topped last season with an even better year. He was elite and shut down several games, winning 5. When he gave up runs, it was typically in non-important situations. The Twins found him with a minor league deal and now have a menacing reliever who strikes out over a batter per inning. Just look at that juicy BB/9 ratio. Nice! He won't keep those numbers up next year, but I think he'll continue his dominance. Kudos to the Twins management for finding this gem. RP Brian Duensing, 3.98 ERA, 8.3 K/9, 3.2 BB/9 I think the perfect adjective for Brian Duensing is "meh." He's hittable, gives up runs, and is a specialist. His ERA is low in my opinion, and he's likely to regress next year in my opinion. He's hit his ceiling and it might be time to move on. Perhaps we can trade him after he signs his RFA deal. I'd like to see someone like Tonkin take this spot. RP Anthony Swarzak, 2.91 ERA, 6.5 K/9, 2.1 BB/9 Three cheers for the best long reliever in baseball! Hip hip.... OK, maybe he's not the best, but he just had his best season (probably in his career). He isn't as hittable as before (8.3 H/9) and is very important for the (seemingly daily) game where the starters can't make it past the 5th inning. Sign this guy up because until we have a reliable starting staff we'll need this doctor to stop the bleeding. RP Ryan Pressly 3.87 ERA, 5.8 K/9, 3.2 BB/9 Who expected this guy to make the team? Who expected him to pitch the whole season? The Rule 5 pick out of Boston's minor leagues looked really good early in the season and slowly has declined. In his rookie season, Pressly looks like a future Duensing or Swarzak to me. I love that the Twins have a surplus of guys who can throw in the bullpen, but I fear the time they'll move him to the starting rotation. Hopefully he stays in the pen and continues his success. RP Caleb Thielbar 1.76 ERA, 7.6 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 Speaking of surprises, Thielbar has sure been a welcome addition. Another rookie, Thielbar has looked dominant and I seriously see little reason for his numbers to decline. I know that 1.76 ERA is bound to increase, but he passes the eye test (at least my eye test) and gets strikeouts and key outs. I forsee him having a key place in the bullpen one day. Phew... that's all for now. Expect the batters on Wednesday. Feel free to comment or agree/disagree on anything.

It's too bad I can only hit the like button once, because I would have hit it 5 times if it were possible.