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LA Vikes Fan

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Everything posted by LA Vikes Fan

  1. LA Vikes Fan
    Agreed, but Emma is unlikely to ever be a well rounded hitter. He'll be a guy who walks a lot, hits 25 plus HRs, fields well, but has an average or below average batting average and a 30% SO rate. Something like a .240/.350/.475 line. That would be great to have in the lineup but It's a guy who hits in 4-6 hole, not a guy who hits 2 or 3.
  2. LA Vikes Fan
    I agree that this is a high variance team - could win 85-90, could lose 90-100. Nick, you described them well. My one nit is that I think Shelton is much different than Baldelli. Being a baseball manager (or head football coach, CEO, etc.) is about leadership. Leadership is not only about the lineup decisions or pitching changes, etc.; its much more about creating a culture conducive to winning and putting players in the best position to be successful. Some guys get a pat on the back, some get a kick in the ass, some get left alone. You have to create a culture where each individual contributor is put in a position to contribute what they can and celebrated for that contribution regardless of how big or how small, not put people is a position where their flaws are exposed or where they are criticized because they aren't something they lack the skills or temperament to be. I think Shelton understands that much better than Baldelli did and is trying to create a positive, winning culture. Who knows if it will work. We may simply not have enough talent to be successful or may need to define success at 81-81 given our talent level. I do think Shelton could be the "X factor" that allows this team to be better as a whole than the sum of its parts.
  3. LA Vikes Fan
    The decisions are in - Arcia, Altavilla, Banuelos, and Trent Baker all sent to minor league camp. Bowman granted his outright release. That means Lawyerson and Kent made the team in the bullpen. If I'm following this, your 2026 opening day roster is almost done unless we make a trade or pick up someone else's waived player for a backup SS or BP pitcher- C - Jeffers, Caratini (Jackson still on roster, assume he will be traded or DFA'd) IF - Bell, Keaschall, Lee, Lewis, Clemens, Tristan Gray OF - Buxton, Wallner, Martin, Outman, Larnach Rotation - Ryan, Bradley, Ober, Abel, SWR Bullpen - Rogers, Topa, Orze, Funderburk, Banda, Sands, Kent, Lawyerson There you have it unless there is a waiver pickup or trade made before Thursday.
  4. LA Vikes Fan
    God I hope you're wrong. At the very least, I hope the thought is Wallner - Buxton - Martin in the OF with Larnach as the LH DH/emergency OF. I would actually prefer Larnach and Outman gone with a Buxton/Wallner/Martin/Roden OF group, each playing on the OF 4-5 days a week and DH'ing on occasion. Bottom line is that Larnach should NOT see the OF.
  5. LA Vikes Fan
    Agreed. Martin should get an everyday run in LF to see if he can take the LF position by playing like he did the last 2 months of 2025 - .282/.374/.365 (.739), 11 for 15 on steals, and above average OF defense. My hope is the reason they chose Outman over Roden is so that Roden can get everyday ABs in St. Paul as next man up, waiting on the starters and/or Larnach to get hurt or fail. Outman should be the 1-2 day a week CF and otherwise not play. Larnach is the LH DH who plays rarely in the OF.
  6. LA Vikes Fan
    Agreed. Martin is your opening day LF and will be there most days now with Roden in AAA. Larnach will only be in LF occasionally, mostly the LH DH. Very sorry to see Outman over Roden though. Maybe we'll find a way to trade Larnach or Outman so Roden can come back.
  7. LA Vikes Fan
    The tempting choice after last year is Martin - .374 OBP (near elite) with no power. Classic lead off guy if he can replicate that. Martin, the Buxton, then Keaschall, then Wallner. Moves your power guys back where they can hit with runners on base. Big bet on Martin, though.
  8. LA Vikes Fan
    I actually see two win – win trades already coming out of the last deadline. Trading Duran for Abel in an of itself might be a win-win if Abel meets his potential as a middle to top of rotation starter. That guy is easily worth a quality closer, and we have at least a potential high end catching prospect (but we are way too far a way to know if Tait is any good). The other is trading Jax for Bradley. I think both teams are going to be happy with what they got out of that trade. Now, if Roden can turn into a quality starting outfielder, I might start to think there was actually a plan last year …
  9. LA Vikes Fan
    My guess is they pick up someone DFA'd by a better team, which of course leaves a large number of possible sources.
  10. LA Vikes Fan
    Urshela was released today. Agree on the rest.
  11. LA Vikes Fan
    Right choice. Abel looks ready: Matthews does not. Let Zebby refine a 3rd pitch in AAA. Abel is likely to be up and down performance wise, but he earned the shot. So far, glad to see the Twins embracing their youth. Looks like Funderburk over Chafin and Abel in the rotation. I hope Rodon gets a starting OF spot and Martin makes it as the 4th OF. We need players. Let's see if our "younger" guys can be any of those players and, if not, on to GG, Emma, Culpepper, and Jenkins.
  12. LA Vikes Fan
    Whoa! Chafin also released?! Matthews send to minors? Rotation and Bullpen coming into fous: Rotation: Ryan, Ober, Bradley, Abel, SWR Bullpen _ RHP - Sands, Topa, Orze, Altavilla, Kent (?) LHP - Rogers, Banda, Funderburk. So Able over Matthews, Funderburk over Chafin, Kent over Hendricks. Love the first 2, Meh on the last one.
  13. LA Vikes Fan
    Thanks for the update. I want to keep him, too. I think you're right - it's Hendricks, Chafin, and Arcia that have the opt outs. I just read the date is today, not tomorrow. When do we expect the team to announce its roster decisions?
  14. LA Vikes Fan
    I have to think Dan Altavilla will break camp with the team. He had a 2.48 ERA last year in 29 innings with the White Sox (admittedly with a 5.45 FIP), and seemed to pitch well for Italy in the World Baseball Classic this spring. He's on a minor league deal so he will have opt outs under the CBA and one is 5 days before opening day, i.e., tomorrow. If Altavilla and Kent make it, Orze probably goes down. My guess is Orze and Altavilla stay and Kent goes. My real guess is that someone winds up on the 15 day IL to start the season.
  15. LA Vikes Fan
    Wow, I didn't know he was that lousy against LHs. My concern is that we will keep him since he can opt out and not keep Funderburk up. I agree that if we are only keeping 3 LHS, lose Chafin and keep Funderburk. I would prefer to see a bullpen of Rogers, Banda and Funderburk as LHs with Sands, Topa, Orze and 2 of Kent, Altavilla, and Hendricks as RHs. Maybe Hendricks will be willing to go on the IL or start in AAA for a month while we sort all of this out. I just don't want the less experienced players to lose out on valuable playing and learning time for guys like Chafin (age 36 season) or Hendricks (37). I think we have enough experience in the BP with Rogers, Banda, Topa, and Sands - we don't need more. Give Funderburk (29) and Orze (28) a real shot. They ain't young but at least they will be around for the next 3-5 years. I'm hoping Klein, Festa, and Lawyerson get a real shot this year too.
  16. LA Vikes Fan
    I was reacting to the note in the article that said about Chafin - "Over the past three seasons, righties have posted a .243 batting average and a .714 OPS against him." To me at least, that isn't bad even for a RH pitcher against RH hitting. Your post only talks about last year, so I guess the question is what is more likely to be repeated - last year where he pitched 16 innings or the average of the last 3 years where he pitched a total of 104 innings. I would look at the last 3 years as a better barometer, especially for a reliever who didn't pitch a lot last year because of injury. You may disagree. I think the point still stands. The concern is that we can't have 4 LH relievers in the bullpen because none of them are usable against RH hitters. If, in fact, Chafin's track record suggest that he is likely to "hold" RH hitters to a .243 BA and .714 OPS, I think he is usable against RH hitters. Overall, I think we bring up the 8 best relievers even if 4 are LH, especially if Funderburk is the one on the bubble given how well he pitched the last 2 months of the 2025 season. Moreover, this team needs to get younger and give younger guys a chance to build a new core. Funderburk might be part of that. Same for Bradley, SWR, Abel, Mathews, Keaschall, Roden, Martin, etc. This year isn't about using guys over 30 or guys who have proven they are average at best or more likely below average, all to try to squeeze out a extra 2-4 wins. He needs a shot and I hope we can give him one. I just don't think the concern about having 4 LHs in the BP is warranted under the circumstances the Twins are now in. If getting guys their shot that have earned it that means 4 LHs in the BP, so be it.
  17. LA Vikes Fan
    This could get ugly out of the gate. Ober may have to go on the IL to start the season to see if he can find a way to get 2-3 more MPH out of his fastball. If that happens, it's Ryan, then Bradley, SWR, Able adn Matthews. Lots of innings for the bullpen in that rotation. How much is Giolito again and would he come to a team this bad?
  18. LA Vikes Fan
    Given that Chafin has decent stats against right handed hitters, why is it so bad to have four lefties? I agree if both are better than the fifth best right reliever, they should both stay. I think they’re both better than Kent. The problem is, I think Altavilla is better than both of them. I look for both of them to be on the roster and one of the other guys to be on the IL, probably Topa. Then, by the time he’s ready to come back, one of the others will be either completely ineffective or hurt.
  19. LA Vikes Fan
    It will be interesting to se how they handle the back end of the rotation. If this is a true "start from scratch" competition, Abel is the front runner, followed by Bradley, then SWR, then Matthews. If SWR and Bradley were guys who had to pitch poorly to not make it, then Abel has a clear lead over Matthews for the last spot. I hope they open with Abel in the rotation and send Matthews to AAA as the next man up. He'll get plenty of starts and he has things he needs to work on.
  20. LA Vikes Fan
    Who knows if this is going to work out, but you have to be cheering for the guy. He's recognized his limitations and is trying to improve. None of us know if he can get to average or above in the field or at the plate. One thing we should all recognize is that he's relatively early in his career and far from a finished product. Let's not fall into the trap of assuming a 25 year old with a total of 659 MLB ABs and 803 innings at SS can't improve. It sounds like he know that he's got a guy coming up from behind in Culpepper and this is his shot. Let's give Lee the benefit of the doubt with at least half a season as the everyday SS and then see where we are. We need younger core players and we need them bad. Let's give him a real chance to be one of those players. If he doesn't perform, we can move on to the next, but let's not assume that answer until he has his shot. Same for Martin, same for Roden, same for Lewis and Keaschall. As the season progresses, same for Culpepper, Emma, Jenkins, and GG . Hey, it's not like we're going to contend any way so let's use this season productively.
  21. LA Vikes Fan
    There seems to be a narrative here that Wallner is either an everyday RF or an everyday DH. Why can't we have 4 guys covering 3 OF positions and the DH spot - Buxton, Martin, Wallner, and Roden (some might want Outman as a true backup CF in there). Personally, I think Wallner is a mediocre OF at best and would have in the field no more than twice a week, DHing 3 times, but others may disagree. To me, we need to improve our OF defense. That means more time in the OF for Martin and Roden, more time at DH for Wallner. I get the idea that Larnach "has to play somewhere". My idea? Trade him and clear the logjam. This is a tryout year. Let's find out what we have. We have to find a way to get at least 400-500 ABs for Wallner, Martin, and Roden unless they completely crap out. Same for Lee, Lewis and Keaschall. Larnach doesn't seem to be part of the long term solution so let's move him on.
  22. LA Vikes Fan
    Agreed, but I would change the order another way. Wallner is a DH/4th or 5th OF, not a starting OF. My view is that the starting OF should be Buxton, Martin, and Roden, with Wallner and maybe Outman behind them. Larnach should be elsewhere.
  23. LA Vikes Fan
    Why not break camp with Buxton, Martin and Roden as the starting OF, Wallner as the primary DH/4th OF (OF 2-3 days a week), and Outman or Clemens as the 5th OF? Give Martin and Roden 4-5 days a week of playing time and see if they can make it. It's time, In an ideal world, I would trade Larnach and Outman for whatever you can get, or trade Larnach and stash Outman in AAA (not sure he would clear waivers after his hot spring, not sure if I care). We have Clemens and Keaschall who can play OF if needed and a lot of guys in AAA deserving of a shot some time this year. We don't need 5 primary OFs on the 26 man roster. I think this whole idea of having to open DH ABs for Bell and Caratini is way overblown and frankly, a terrible concept. Guys, Bell is the everyday 1B 4-5 days a week with Clemens at 1B the other days and Caratini will play C 2-3 days a week. That's plenty of playing time for those guys, They can both play at 1B/DH against LH pitching with Wallner on the bench to get extra days. We do not need to hold back young players so those two over 30 guys and/or Clemens can get extra ABs. Give those ABs to Martin, Roden, and later GG or Emma by making Wallner a primary DH. Keep running them out there until they fail. Don't give those ABs to Bell and Caratini, or to Larnach for that matter,
  24. LA Vikes Fan
    I also appreciate these updates since I don't watch or follow the ST games. I have a couple of questions for those who follow this more closely. 1. Does it look like Abel might break camp as the #5 starter over Matthews? The stats suggest so , do they match they eye test? 2. Topa sounds bad. Does it look like an injury, so he could open on the 15 or 60 day list? Opening there for Kent or Altavilla? 3. What do we do with Roden, Martin, and Outman all hitting in ST, with Wallner and Larnach scuffling? Any chance of opening the season with the former 3 plus Wallner and Buxton in the OF with Larnach gone or in AAA? 4. Most important question - now that regulars are playing longer, the scores make it look like the team is a little more competitive. Is that accurate or am I just dreaming spring dreams?
  25. LA Vikes Fan
    I admit I haven’t been following the spring training results that closely, but I did see that Outman has good statistics. I think the current Twins hitting coach was one of the Dodgers hitting coaches when Outman. had his big year in 2023. Has he looked good in CF? Maybe he’s playing his way onto the roster, much as I don’t like the idea. If he is, how do you fit him in if you still have Larnach and Wallner without sending Roden to AAA? Bell at 1B every day. Roden in RF, Martin in LF, Wallner a primary DH, with Outman a 4th OF? They have to sort this out and it sure looks like on of the LH OFs needs to be traded.
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