Forever34

Part of me says yes, he is clearly ineffective at this point and the innings count is the most likely cause. You don't want to risk injury for what is expected to be at least our second best starting pitcher either. The Bert Byleven in me says: "No, quit being a pussy. This will build up his arm strength and stamina and he'll be a better pitcher for it. Plus dealing with adversity is important for the mental aspect of pitching. Get me another beer."

A couple years ago I remember seeing Hicks at #9 on the list of best prospects in all of baseball. Though I had read of his supposed 5 tool ability and knew he was a much heralded prospect it was hard to believe the hype when the guy was putting up pedestrian numbers in low A ball. Last season he put up less than exciting stats in Fort Meyers and I was all but set to write him off as someone who was never going to put it together and be what he was supposedly capable of being. Today I'm glad to admit I was wrong and look forward to seeing him roam the spacious grass of Target Field as soon as possible.

You're welcome I guess.

That's an excellent point. He has become a fan favorite quickly and to most trading him would seem like the Pohlads being cheap and throwing in the towel for us being any good in the near future (especially if we get prospects in return). When I remember the all the comments on the Twins home page about how they were idoits for taking Buxton instead of reaching for a starting pitching prospects as if it was realistic for him to help this season I'm reminded that most fans only care about immediate returns.

To the casual fan this probably seems crazy. But since there are clearly no casuals here my point should be understood. This is my first post so for all I know this conversation has already been had. 1. He's having a career year at the age of 33. It's unlikely that he can repeat or better the numbers he's putting up next year or in the future. Yes, you could have said the exact same thing when we signed him but in this case it is better for Terry Ryan to cash in his chips while he is ahead. 2. While this might technically be an extension of #1, his trade value has never and will never be higher. If we want to get something of good to great value (like a top of the rotation starter or competent middle infielder) in return now is our chance. We clearly have holes and he is one of our best pieces available to fill them. 3. Our minor league system is overflowing with OF talent. Half of our top 20 prospects at the beginning of this season where OF, then we went and drafted Buxton and traded for that Pinero guy. On top of that some of the premeir prospects are finally producing at a rate that warrants the hype (I'm looking at you Aaron Hicks). While the guys in Rochester aren't the most exciting group overall every level below looks like an All-Star team of OF talent. We have three good guys manning the big open space at Target Field now and I've liked what I've seen from Mastroianni in limited duty. Not only do we have the talent to potentially replace him, the longer we have no OF spots available in the big leagues the longer all those guys will have to wait to get a well deserved promotion. 4. He is a bit of a liability on defense. It's no secret that our starting rotation sucks. All the promising pieces we have and those in the minors that have a realistic chance of helping in 2013 are not strikeout pitchers. Therefore if we want to keep runs off the board we can't have holes in the field. 2 of the 3 current pieces can cover a ton of ground and most of the prospects seem to have that ability as well. Plus if we can move Revere to LF his weak arm won't be such an issue. 5. HRs and RBIs are great and all but he strikes out way too often. So far he's done a good job of protecting Mauer, but if he can't consistently get hits and walks how much protection will he be in the future? Say there are two outs and Revere gets a hit then steals 2nd. What's to keep teams from walking Joe just to get to Willingham? Keep in mind how unlikely it is for him to maintain his current HR, RBI, and OPS in the future. 6. We wouldn't have to listen to "Your Love" by The Outfield 2-3 times a game anymore. There have been three season at Target Field. In the first we ran away with the Central. In the second Danny Valencia chose that song for his walk-up music and we lost 99 games. This season Willingham rotates that with "Sweet Home Alabama" and we are potentially a 90 loss last place team again. I'm not saying it's the songs fault. Okay yes I am.