LA Vikes Fan

Clemens is fine for now and filling a hole. I actually wouldn’t mind him as one of the four bench players since he can play respectable first, second, and probably third base, and a decent corner outfield. I think the hard issue here is that he really shouldn’t be starting, but we simply don’t have anybody else. I would love to see them bring up Gonzalez as a right handed hitting part tim 1B/OF/DH playing 3-4 days a week and see what he has at this stage in his career. It may be a rush, given that he hit Great last year and not so much this year. If they want to wait with him, maybe Sabato deserves at least one shot before he ages out. I know neither of those sound like great options, but it seems to me that this is the year to find out what we have.

There will be plenty of opportunities for Culpepper this summer. Gray is falling off, Arcia is a complete wild card, and that’s before any possible injuries. Keaschall is also scuffling although a little better lately, and he may wind up being that RH corner OF we need given all of our OF prospects are hurt or scuffling. Also, we need to find out if Lee can be a long term SS this year. I expect that something will provide Culpepper an opportunity in the next 3-6 weeks. I agree with taking the time to let him develop until then. He needs to be up no later than July though

Kody Clemens is fine for right now at first base but we all know he is not a long-term answer. He’s hit .255/.345/457 over his last 30 games (102 plate appearances) with a roughly 26% strike out rate. Add to that that he’s a very good to elite fielder at the position and he’s fine for right now. He’s 30 though, and this is as good as it’s ever gonna get. The thing to do is bring up a younger player, preferably one who hits right handed, and see what they can do in a quasi platoon with Clemens, with an occasional day in the outfield. Fedko seems like a good choice because he can also play OF, but I would prefer Gonzales because I think he has a much better chance of being a full-time MLB player in the future (and he’s on the 40 man). Let him get his feet wet by playing three days a week, two at first base and one in the outfield, and also pinch hitting. Create space for him by deciding between Outman and Kriedler and only keeping one. I vote for Kriedler. And, by the way, DFA Luis Garcia, have Bowman take his 40 man spot and bring him up. Today so he’s available for tonight‘s bullpen game.

That is an interesting play, although I think the better play might be to put Lee at second base with Keaschall moving over to first. You could almost experiment with something like that now with Kreidler playing shortstop where he looked very good defensively in spring training. That might tell you if Lee and Keaschall can be a decent right side of the infield for you when Culpepper is ready to come up and play short. I kind of hate to do it right now since Lee has really taken to the shortstop position and by the metrics his defensive markedly improved to average over the last month. Unlikely he’ll ever be more than average at SS though.

This is an interesting take about moving Clemens to 2B, where he would likely be better than Keashall in the field. The problem is we then have no 1B and there is no one in the Minors likely to help. Clemens is 2 OAA and Bell is a butcher at 1B. Besides, Keaschall is only 23 and could/should improve with reps. So overall, interesting idea but I don't thank it works right now. Something to think about come mid-season if Keaschall still isn't playing well and GG starts to hit and play 1B every day in AAA. By the way the "league average OPS" by position at Stat Muse (https://www.statmuse.com/mlb/ask/what-is-league-average-ops-this-season-by-position) is .777 at 1B, and .684 at 2B. Clemens is .739. Comparison of Twins "starters" with this average by position - Jeffers .941/Caratini .520 - C avg. .671, Keaschall .600 - 2B avg. 2B .682, Lee .720 - SS avg. .710, Lewis .559/Gray .676 - 3B avg. .674, Larnach .779, LF avg. .719, Buxton .899, CF avg. .675, Martin .883, RF avg. .730 (Wallner was .551), Bell .607, DH avg. 736. Sure shows the weak spots -DH, 1B, 2B, 3B. Also shows how well Jeffers and the OF is playing, especially when you consider all 3 OFs are even or positive in OAA -Buxton +4, Larnach +1, Martin +1 (surprising, thought he would be higher).

We aren't going to score here, are we?

Do you guys like Adams? 7.47 ERA in the Bigs with a 1.71 WHIP? I've watched him pitch on TV and I don't think he's very good at all. I get and support dumping Garcia for a younger player, but I don't think that guy is Adams. I'd much rather give Klein a shot although I know they have to wait to recall him since he just went down May 7. Boy, you look at the St. Paul bullpen and there doesn't seem to be much there. Maybe Peredes, Culpepper, or Gallagher? Matt Bowman is the only reliever having a good year in AAA and he's 34. I think he has an opt out on Sunday (as does Brebbia), so get ready for Bowman coming back.

Funny, but old joke out here in LA. People used t say that about Steve Sax after he mysteriously lost his ability to throw to !B from 2B.

You are 100% right.

Overdue move, glad to see it made. Kreidler is just a placeholder for now, up because he's a good fielder, hits right handed, and can play SS or 3B once a week in addition to the OF. Once Emma or Roden is healthy and has his stroke back, the issue will be Kreidler or Outman for the 26th man/defensive replacement/pinch runner/occasional play guy. Hard to care who wins that competition but it's probably Kreidler based on what we seen. It was nice to see mentioned in the article that the Twins would've already brought Emma up had he not gotten hurt. I'm really hoping to see a standard starting outfield of Martin, Buxton, and Emma come July 15 with Larnach as the DH/4th OF. I also hope I to see an IF with Culpepper at either SS or 3B. I would project a different 1B, but I think that is going to have to wait until GG or Mendez establishes that they can both play the position and hit at the AAA level or Lewis starts to hit and forces a reshuffle of the IF. Look, I was a bigger fan of Falvey that many here. I think he modernized the Twins operations in a way that was long overdue, had a pretty good eye for prospects in trades, and did substantially improve pitching instruction and development. His big blind spot though it was obvious - he had a very hard time moving on from players that he acquired or in whom he believed, even when the empirical evidence showed that they were not able contribute at the MLB level. It looks like Zoll is much more willing to cut bait, perhaps because of a push from Tom as the owners rep. I see this as a very good thing. My hope for every day lineup/batting order by July 15 - Buxton (CF), Larnach (DH), Martin (LF) Jeffers (C), Emma (RF), Lee SS/3B, Keaschall (2B), Clemens/Bell (1B), Culpeper (SS/3B). Bell either hits and plays first base or he's a rarely used 1B/DH against LH pitching and/or traded. Lewis either hits and pushes Clemens out of the IF by playing 1B or 3B (with Culpeper going to SS or 2B and Keaschall to 1B in the latter case), or he's gone. Caratini is the classic second catcher who catches about 30 to 35% of the games, with Jeffers catching the rest and getting another 10 or 15% play at DH. Kreidler is the classic utility man playing OF, SS, 2B, and 3B to cover for minor injuries and give rest days to starters. Gray the same for the IF guys. Now don't get me started on the bullpen . . .

I agree with that and think it's perfectly consistent with my earlier stated approach. It's all in how you approach people - the best approach is we have confidence in you so you have should confidence in yourself. I'm not talking about coddling Lewis and Wallner - I think they should both be sent to AAA - It's all about HOW you do that and the message you send. Telling them you're disappointed in their performance or kicking them in the ass on their way out the door is a mistake. It's much more likely to be successful if you tell them that you're giving them the tools to succeed, that you're invested in their success, and that you have confidence they will succeed.

Sending Lewis down to AAA to work on his swing makes sense. I think there is a legitimate concern on how he will adjust to a demotion. His confidence seems a bit fragile. I don't think the team can take that into account in the ultimate decision, but this does have to be handled well so the right message is sent - "we believe in you and are just trying to give you space to become all that you can be". I know some of you will just think the message should be, "grow up and deal with adversity" but as someone who manages Gen Z lawyers, I can tell you that approach is very unlikely to work. Blame us Boomers and Millennials for the way we raised our children perhaps, but the military style jsut send direct orders approach is the wrong way to deal with players in their 20s. He'll go down and the second he gets the chance he'll be gone to another organization AND he probably won't improve. You've got to show him loyalty, support, and commitment or you won't get that back. By the way, all of the above also applies to Wallner. In spades. Don't get me wrong, Both Lewis and Wallner should go to AAA in the next 15-30 days absent major improvement, probably for Culpepper and Emma. Still, the Twins have to handle this right if they expect these guys to improve and be in a position to come back.

I agree with your idea of bringing up more of the prospects for this year. By the way, Wallner has 1 option left so he can be optioned. I've read conflicting things on Lewis but Fangraphs says he has 2 options left so I suspect he can also be sent to AAA.

I think this has to be the plan. Prielipp Thursday for 5, followed by Rojas for 3. The Bradley spot either skipped or given to Matthews Friday or Saturday depending on what works best for Ryan.

I agree with the analysis if we are focusing only on this year but I think that's not the right focus. I agree that it would be good to have Varland this year and he's pitching much better in Toronto than he did for the Twins, but it's way too early to evaluate that trade. Rojas clearly is an electric arm from the left side. The earliest he will be truly ready is next year, although he may provide some value this year. If, and it's a big if, he becomes a middle of the rotation guy or better that trade is actually a win/win, a win for the Twins if he's a top of the rotation arm. The simple truth is that starting pitching is much more valuable than relief pitching. And in this case, Rojas is controllable longer than Varland. Anything Roden provides is gravy and doesn't move the needle much unless he's a multi year high end starting OF - very unlikely IMO. The other one that's hard to evaluate now is the Stewart for Outman trade. It was a lose/lose until now (the Dodgers got the princely sum of 4 innings in 2025 before Stewart blew out his arm again). Now the Dodgers can get Stewart's 30 innings a year in the next 2 months and he'll be back on the shelf by late August. If they do, they win. If he blows his arm out again early or if he's ineffective from the cumulative injury toll, it remains a lose/lose. The Abel/Tait for Duran trade is going to be a win/win unless one of them gets injured long term. Philly gets Duran while their competitive window is wide open, we get 6 years of Abel in the rotation (#3 or better guy), and 6 years of Tait behind the plate starting in 2028 or so, both of which match the next time the Twins have a chance to be truly competitive. Also, Mendez for 3 months of Bader is a steal for us. Overall, not so bad when yo line them all up and consider competitive windows. Take out the Varland trade and it's a B/B+ for the Twins, maybe even an A-. Add in Varland's trade and it remains a B/B+ ONLY if Rojas turns into a middle of the rotation or better starter. Otherwise, B- if he's a good bullpen arm, C if he washes out.

I also wonder about Topa. He hasn’t pitched in four days. Sounds like an IL candidate. You can backdate it three days so now might be the time to put him on the list. You could call up Matthews and give him the start on Friday when Bradley’s turn comes up. You can recall someone just sent down without eating the required 15 days (10 for a position player) if they’re replacing someone on IL so Funderburk can come back sooner. So, moves for this week - Mondat, Topa to IL, Funderburk back. By Friday, Garcia gone, Matthews up. I’d also think about Klein back for Adams when you can.

The bullpen “”plan” is both short sighted and frustrating. My only thought is that keeping the vets is an effort to have tradable assets and the youth movement starts after the deadline. Other wise, this makes no sense at all. I also wonder if this is because Shelton thinks it will help them compete. I think we know by now it won’t.

I was. I think he’s in the lineup tonight against the left hander.

He may be learning something. His HR to Left Center on Wednesday was an outside pitch that he just went with and hit out. The key for LH hitters hitting LH pitching is to be able to hit sliders running away. You can't pull those so maybe he's got a chance.

No. SWR is out of options according to MLB.com.

SWR needs to go to the bullpen, at least for now. He actually might be effective there - 4.38 ERA first time though, 6. 92 second time through. Seems to match the eye test and not unusual for guys who don't throw hard - once you see the junk once, it's easier to anticipate and hit. Moreover, he's killing us in the rotation going 4 -5 innings when followed by another guy going 5, maybe 6. . I would move Matthews up to take Sim's spot in the rotation, add Gomez ( the guy they just got from Tampa), drop Garcia, and either demote Klein or put Topa on the IL (Topa looks bad; wonder if he's pitching through something). Morris moves to a later inning 1 inning per appearance role. Also, give someone a real chance to be the closer. My money is on Funderburk or Orze, probably in combination. Give them the role and live with the results for a month. Only way to find out if they can do it.

Agreed and let's lean in on this. We picked up Yoendrys Gomez on waivers - 26, high SOs but also high ERA. He has not options left so someone will be leaving the bullpen. My guess is Luis Garcia. I'd like to see Rojas up in the bullpen soon, too. That probably takes an IL stint for someone, although Topa and Rogers inspire little confidence. Bottom line, I'd liek to see the Younger guys get some run adn if it costs us Topa and/or Rogers, so be it.

I was under the impression that Lewis has no options left, but a quick internet search suggests he has 2 remaining. Does anyone know the answer to this? Sending him down to find his stroke makes sense if that is possible, but I was under the impression that he couldn't be optioned.

This is a very tough one. You watch Lewis hit and he seems completely unbalanced, flails at breaking pitches, and regularly whiffs at fastball strikes in the zone. Yet we can all remember times when he looked like a superstar in waiting who just needed to avoid injuries and get a chance to play regularly. The current version of Lewis is completely unplayable. I think you have to give him another month to six weeks of regular time to see if he can turn things around, especially since he essentially has no trade value at this point. Even worse, he’s out of options so we can’t send him to AAA to get his stroke back and he undoubtedly would be claimed on waivers. I suspect that his timeline matches that of Culpepper in that when Culpepper is ready to come up, probably in June, Lewis is the one that stands to lose out.

Good God, Liam Hemdricks. I had actually forgotten about him. Good sarcasm, but maybe not such a bad idea? By the way, Andrew Chafinwas released and is a FA after pitching well in AAA. I htink St. Louis and the Cubs are wooing him but maybe he's worth a call?