LA Vikes Fan

06/06/23 Minnesota Twins placed CF Byron Buxton on the 10-day injured list retroactive to June 3, 2023. Left rib contusion.

Buxton to Il according to MLB. com.

Corresponding move is Buxton to the IL, retro 3 days.

Buxton to 10 day IL, Larnach up and hitting 5th tonight.

It's up now. Buxton to 10 day Il, Larnach up and batting 5th.

I agree with all that but keep reading that Kepler doesn't want to or won't play CF. I have no idea if that's true but that's the reasoning given for the lack of CF days for Kepler.

I'd love it for you to be right but I don't see any way that Kepler and Solano get that kind of return. Remember, Solano is a 35 year old who plays little to no defense and doesn't run very well. He was a street free agent when the Twins picked him up. Maybe if Kepler got hot we could get something for him but I just don't see him being worth much more than a lottery ticket prospect or 2 or salary relief, and probably not both.

Funny you should mention his eyes. I watched some of the recent games and saw the same thing. First, it looked like he was having trouble seeing at the plate. Then, that was the same game where he butchered a line drive hit right at him. I wonder if he has had a eye test recently?

I think you've hit the nail on the head. This is a classic situation of mismatched expectations. We and the team all expected Max to be a middle of the order bat who played great defense in RF. He had that one year in 2019 and has gone south since. His descent is currently picking up speed. He turned out to be a glove first OF who is not been able to maintain even a mediocre offensive output as he ages. It is unfortunate but it's time for him to be replaced by either Larnach or Wallner, or some combination of them. I know this is going to be tough because he is a long tenured Twin. I just don't think it will be good for the clubhouse if he simply becomes a bench player because I don't think he will take it well. I don't think anybody would take it well in his situation. I would love to trade him for frankly almost anything respectable but I don't know that that opportunity is available. Whether or not we can trade him for something, I think we've hit the point where we need to part ways and get the at bats for the other guys. An IL stint followed by a rehab in AAA followed by trade would be ideal. If that isn't an available option, I think you got to trade or DFA him and I think you have to do it soon. By the way, great original post and great title. Should be in the running for post of the month!

I hear you on Lewis but I think the plan is to keep him in the IF after getting hurt in CF last year. It is an interesting thought though - put Lewis in CF every day and have Castro or Miranda play 3B. Also opens up the possibility of trading for Jamier Candelario who's reportedly available. Still, I have to think Lewis will stay at 3B.

To me the big question is if and when we are going to move on from non-hitting veterans and take our chances with non-established players. The obvious issues are Kepler and Taylor. Kepler should be on the bench most nights (or dealt) in favor of Larnach or Wallner. They might not be better initially but it would be hard for them to be worse at the plate. I think it's worth the defensive downgrade (although lately Max's defense hasn't been very good) for the potential offensive upgrade. While Taylor is a little tougher due to no obvious replacement with Gordon out, I would play Castro in CF 3-4 days a week with Taylor as a part time player/defensive late inning sub. This is all assuming Buxton isn't going to play CF which is the better solution. I think those tweaks would help, but let's face it - this team will be better on offense when and IF Correa, Buxton, and Polanco hit like they have in the past and at least 2 of Kirilloff, Lewis, Castro and Miranda hit like MIranda hit last year or better. If these things don't happen, we're in trouble. There ain't nobody else coming to the rescue.

Would it help to play him in LF instead of CF, and move Castro/Gallo to CF? Yes, that hurts the defense in CF while improving it in LF but should help the offense. Taylor can be a defensive replacement. My thought is fewer chances in LF, fewer chances for injury., and more important to improv the offends that maintain the defense.

I think I understand the logic although not sure I agree with pulling Ober. Ober pitched 108 innings last season after pitching only 72 innings in 2022 and 108 in 2021 (both include MLB and MiLB). The general thinking to avoid catastrophic injury is to manage innings such that you only ramp up 20% a year. That would get Ober to 125-130 innings. We should be thrilled to get 140-150 innings from him this year. Saving a few bullets (innings) here and there may translate into 2-3 more starts in those 140-150 innings. Still, I would like to have seen him start the 7th last night. Let's find those saved innings in games where we're 2-3 runs ahead or behind, not a scoreless game with our primary divisional rival. I agree with the theory, disagree with last night's application of that theory.

I'm not a big Kepler fan at all - guy can't hit well enough for a corner OF - but I do think he would have a very valuable role on the Twins if used differently. He shouldn't be an every day player. He should be the classic 4th OF playing 2-4 times a week, INCLUDING in CF. I'd love to see him right now in a CF platoon with MAT. He should never hit higher than 7th in the order when he does play. The real problem is that Rocco likes to play him every day, won't play him in CF, and hits him too high in the order. That magnifies his weaknesses - hitting, particularly against LH pitching - and minimizes his real strength - Defense. Bottom line is the reason I think Kepler probably should be traded is that Rocco won't use him properly. It's a tough choice but I think that it's better that Kepler would be gone and those innings and ABs go to a combination of Wallner, Larnach, and Castro, rather than using Kepler as an every day OF hitting in the top 6 spots in the order.

Castro's average vs. Civale must explain why Kepler is hitting 5 and Castro 7 instead of the other way around. I'm as big a Kepler basher as there is here - guy can't hit - but I hope he comes through today and for the rest of the year. A Kepler that could hit at even his lifetime stats of .231/.316/.426 (.742) would be worth the number 7 or 8 spot in the lineup. Still have to think that Wallner would be better, though. Ah, to dream . . .

Wallner first, regardless of who goes on IL. Don't forget that Castro can play 3B pretty well and is decent at 2B so we don't have to bring up an infielder if Correa goes out with Lewis and Farmer around to play short, and Castro and Solano to back up both 3B and 2B. If two guys go on the IL? Very tough because there isn't another healthy hot player in AAA outside of Wallner. I would guess Julien is next though, rather than Miranda unless Miranda has really started to come on.

Agreed. The offense is really the issue. I guess that's what makes the continued use of Kepler and Taylor in particular so frustrating. Both have a pretty consistent track record of offensive futility. It is very unlikely they will be better than their career averages and in the case of Kepler, it's becoming more and more evident that he is on the downward slope. Corner outfielder's need to hit and it's more important that they hit then that they field as long as there are at least adequate.Yes, defense important particularly in CF so I understand Taylor a little more. Personally, I would give Castro some run in CF if we're not going to play Buxton there and see if he can handle the position the field. The offense needs to improve. The most obvious ways to do that are to (1) replace Kepler with either Wallner or LArnach (when he's healthy) on an everyday basis - they may not be better but it difficult for them to be worse and the potential for better is there, (2) give Castro the majority of work in CF (4+ days a week) so we can get him, Lewis and Gallo all in the lineup together, and (3) get Buxton in centerfield 2-3 days a week with Castro there most of the other time. This would replace Kepler and Taylor in the lineup with Castro and either Wallner or Larnach once the latter is available, and potentially open up the DH spot two – three days a week to get guys a partial day off and/or to get Wallner, Larnach, Farmer, and Solano in the lineup more regularly – even potentially Jeffers when he is not catching. I think that would definitely help the lineup.

Julien looks like the classic guy who could be an asset in another year or two but isn't quite ready now. The difference between a quality AAA player and a quality MLB player is in the details and consistency. That's where he has his issues. He is inconsistent in the field, inconsistent at the plate, and needs a lot more refinement on defense. I think the bottom line is he just isn't quite ready yet and is probably more of a 2024 consideration in the 2023 asset although it is nice to have someone like that for depth. I do think he can be a quality major-league player at second base so I don't think we should move him to 1B or make him the centerpiece of a trade. Instead, have him continue to really focus on defense at AAA.

Weird lineup. Why is Buxton out again? Is there an injury issue we don't know about? I understand giving Correa a day with his plantar fasciitis. What about Lewis? Will it be 2 on, one off for awhile? The bigger question is why the lineup in Houston this series has included our two worst hitters as everyday players - Taylor and Kepler. It's just mind boggling.

I agree. I would like to see them continue the trend by playing Wallner over Kepler, Julien over Solano, and Castro over Taylor. Doing this requires Buxton to play the field. Put Maeda in the bullpen when he's ready over Pagan and leave Ober and Varland in the rotation. To me, that's the youth movement we need.

I agree that we tend to be a little too negative here about the team. I think that's because we had higher expectations than were justified. The 'experts" predicted 80-85 wins. I think we're going to be on the higher end of that - after 1/3 of the season we projected to 84 wins (28-26 x 3 = 84-78) - and that's with injury issues. I think we may have overhyped ourselves into thinking this was a 90+ win team and anything less than that seems like a disappointment. I'm an optimist because I think the hardest thing to find is good starting pitching and we have a very good rotation that looks like it will be good in the future. We have some young talent that looks like it may be coming of age in Kirilloff and Jeffers, and we have Lewis, Julien, Castro, Wallner, and Larnach who may join them. All positive and all fun. Here's the 2 things that drag me down. First, Correa and Buxton are simply not performing and it's starting to look like it's more than just a slump. I don't think Buxton will perform as a DH. It's hard to do that and I think he would benefit from playing in the field, injury risk and all. Frankly, having him on the IL is not a whole lot less production than we've gotten from him the last 15-20 games. Correa looks hurt and should sit for 10 days if we think that will help. If not, move him to the 5 or 6 hole and leave him there until he hits. Second, I just don't understand why we won't embrace the youth movement. We need to accept that we probably aren't a WS contender and this could be a great year to play the younger guys, develop them, and probably still win the division. The old core simply isn't good enough. We need to play Kirilloff, Lewis, Castro, Julien, and Wallner every day to see what they got. Catch Jeffers 50% or more of the time. Instead, we trot out guys who don't really contribute much and won't be here next year - Kepler, Solano, Taylor, Pagan and soon Maeda (watch, he will go into the rotation and Varland will go to AAA). Gallo is ok but not really what we need. DFA Solano, bench or trade Kepler and Taylor, call up Wallner, see if there's a market for Gallo, and put Buxton in the field so the younger guys can play every day by opening up the DH spot and LF. This could be a fun team to watch and it just isn't very fun or very successful. I'm willing to take a chance on our short term success to make them more fun and improve our long term chances. Turn over the roster and go.

How about moving Buxton to LF? Yes, still injury concerns but fewer chances assumedly means less risk. Castro (60%) and Taylor (40%) play CF. Gallo plays RF/1B 80% of the time, same for Kirilloff (at 1B unless Gallo has a leg issue), and Kepler plays RF the days Gallo or Kirilloff sit or DH. Also opens up a spot for Julien to stay, play 2B 2-3 days a week while Polanco sits or DHs. I don't know if that really solves the problem but helps.

Would there be less risk if we played Buxton in LF? IF so, who wins and loses in that scenario? it would open up the DH spot which might allow us to get more ABs out of Polanco, and keep Julien, Wallner or Larnach on the roster and give them 4 days a week in the lineup. It means Gallo plays RF and Kepler sits, with MAT and Castro playing in CF. Kepler loses out but he isn't hitting and hasn't hit since 2019. Something that should be considered?

Agreed. Why is Kepler starting over Castro? I just don't get this man crush Rocco has with Kepler. Love the glove, but he is not an every day player with his level of offensive production.

Agreed, but probably what we should have expected. We scored less than 700 runs last year and the only meaningful off season "improvement" was Joey Gallo. Let's say Gallo is basically as wash with what we expected from Miranda, and until recently we've been really running out the same team as last year most of the time. The change if it comes will be from adding younger guys into the core. We've added Kirilloff and now are adding Lewis. Frankly, Castro is becoming part of the core over time. I'm not sold on Julien but he's a possibility, although likely a casualty when Polanco comes back. I'd prefer that they DFA Castro and give Julien some run - he could be a lot better. The only way we are going to improve the offense is to replace weak performers with guys who might be better and who would make us less reliant on the HR. We've replaced Farmer with Lewis, Miranda with Kirilloff, and may be in the process of a partial replacement of Vasquez with more Jeffers. I would like to see us replace Kepler with Wallner - risky and hard to do with Kepler's seniority - and replace MAT with Julien by playing Buxton in CF or LF (with Castro in CF) and opening up the DH spot to a rotation. Can't see anything else on the horizon that could help, but add Polanco back in every day to the above and we may improve at least some. Have Correa and/or Buxton hit better would also add a bunch. A lineup of Polanco/Julien, Lewis, Correa, Buxton, Kirilloff, Julien/Polanco (depending on who you like leading off - Gallo is not the answer there), Castro, Gallo, Jeffers/Vasquez could perform a lot better. Bench is MAT, Kepler, Farmer, and the other catcher.