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Kwak

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Everything posted by Kwak

  1. Kwak
    The Twins did sign Mauer to a four-year contract which included the year he would have been a free-agent. When that contract expired Mauer was RICH, and had such a strong negotiating position "that he held the Aces".
  2. Kwak
    Place Escobar under a multi-year contract--@##$$% NO!! He is a marginal SS, who might well revert to a liability next year. He's not going anyplace anyway. KC's Escobar is a far better candidate for [them] to contract than MN's Escobar.
  3. Kwak
    MOY?--No, but close. Yes, it is a meaningless award. Molitor's strength is managing attitudes. Just when it appears the Twins will melt like ice cream in a hot sun, by golly they turn things around with a winning streak. This isn't a good team [talent wise], but they scrap, fight and steal wins--exactly the type of attitude consistent winners display.
  4. Kwak
    What did Molitor (and staff) do to completely turn the team around after those three losses in NY? That took some managing. I fully expected the Twins to implode after that series--and lo and behold six straight wins and brought the Twins into serious contention. This team doesn't win on talent/skill, it wins on grit and determination--qualities that were not displayed under Gardenhire. Molitor is a good manager, and deserves a great deal of credit for the change in the team. The comment about Sano [being managed by Molitor?] Sano wasn't present for May when the this season was redefined from losing to winning.
  5. Kwak
    For all of those advocating throwing at Ramirez (or anyone else) you should consider that there will be a retaliation. At this point of the season Cleveland has nothing to lose if punished by MLB, but the Twins can ill-afford to have an injured player (likely a regular) or a suspended pitcher. Most likely the next Twins loss effectively ends their season. The risk isn't worth the "reward".
  6. Kwak
    This wouldn't have happened if the Twins allow Nolasco to pitch to Kipnis! The IBB was just as bush-league as the bat flip, Kipnis represented a meaningless run and walking him in this situation yells that Ramirez is just an easy out. OK, he feels disrespected (get used to that kid) and he seizes his golden opportunity to express himself. Face it, the Twins were well aware that an IBB could backfire (and spectacularly so!) and chose to use this pointless tactic. They should have been angered at themselves not Ramirez.
  7. Kwak
    Amazing that posters consider the !@@## (posing) that Hunter does "leadership" or "team spirit", but when a opponent (especially one who has just witnessed 2 games of this) retaliates in kind to be "bush league" or whatever the modern day term is. True, it was "uncalled"--but considering it was a Row 1 HR that turned a six run lead into a 9 run lead just emphasizes the lack of importance of that HR! The twins should have been laughing at him instead of complaining about disrespect.
  8. Kwak
    Not included in the discussion: the immediate negative effect on the team when they perceived management was writing them off as a construction project. There were losses that "didn't have to be". Contrast to the effect on Toronto after the trades--gigantic. Fortunately Molitor and the field staff were able to change attitudes and turn everything around. This team was ready to implode after the NYY series and somehow managed a six-game winning streak saving the season--a result not obtained by the Front Office and their "personnel decisions". There is much more happening than "trades".
  9. Kwak
    Treacly Announcers. Call the player out when he really screws-up--I don't mean the ordinary errors, but the stupid ones. Picked-off on a 3-2 count, not knowing how many outs, throwing to the wrong base, becoming a spectator while in the field. Rip the guy good and loud--he gets paid at least a half-million a year--he should be aware!
  10. Kwak
    Or did the Twins notice that CLEV is LHH dominant and that matching Milhone vs CLEV might turn out out considerably better than using Hughes?
  11. Kwak
    Apparently he wasn't injured.
  12. Kwak
    Actually, it's the Indians. The Twins have no impact on the Angels (and vice versa) but Cleveland does! These games will also serve as statement games for the future.
  13. Kwak
    The premise of this entire discussion is based on "innings limitation theory". That somehow +20% increase is a sacred number. Medical study supporting this? No. It's a self-imposed limitation that [likely] was used to convinced ownership that management will "protect their investment" in pitchers by limiting innings. Unfortunately sports medicine has not progressed to the point of "injury prediction" to lend any more credibility than simply "less use, less risk"--hence the religious adherence to 100 pitch limits--and "innings use increase limitation.". Sadly, pitchers still get injured and owners stuck paying them to recover from them.
  14. Kwak
    If Tonkin was inserted in the 7th inning--and he "melts down", would the same vitriol have been posted? I think so. The key decision is: selecting the guy who will succeed as opposed to selecting the pitcher most likely to succeed. In short, hindsight is 20/20 and foresight is a complete fog.
  15. Kwak
    This is what happens when starters are "protected", relievers are abused and the manager is allowed to "play chess" with the bullpen.
  16. Kwak
    Chief, you identified the real problem--but then ignored it! The problem is the concept of a six-inning start. In the first half of the season, teams can succeed with that strategy (the Twins did this all through the Gardenhire era) but then the bullpen gets both burned-out and batters "learn" the RPs "stuff" due to overuse. Teams (Twins) need to use their starters longer (beyond this mythical 100-pitch "limit") to limit bullpen use. The "fatigue" on the starters can be managed by the use of "spot" starters. A "skipped-start" is scheduled to permit some rest for the starters. This used to be the role of the "5th starter"--and it worked well.
  17. Kwak
    Whoa! Perkins enters with a four-run lead, gets two outs, but serves-up a two-run HR and panic ensues? Perk has often closed games with a lead, gets scored-on yet still "nails-it down". That's the important point--closing it out. 1-2-3 innings are great! Especially on six pitches, but the assignment is "close it out", not make it look easy. Perhaps the Twins will change ( ) to closer by whose turn it is, rather than using only one guy.
  18. Kwak
    The premise of this thread implies that Thursday's game was "high leverage" and previous games were not "high leverage". I reject that implication. A strong case could be made that the games in May were more important because that is the time when the Twins were winning consistently and raised their status from "cellar dweller" to "contender"--and that maintaining the winning [momentum] was most important. Cleveland isn't the competition for Twins for the WC--they are chasing the Western division teams. The games were "higher leverage" from Cleveland's perspective than the Twins. Every loss by the Twins is bad--but each game counts only as "one" as opposed to a game against Houston which counted as "two". Gibson stunk--but to imply it was cause by the relative importance of the game is unfounded. Gibson has had bad games (and good ones). Gibson's problems are more likely to occur from his reliance on "hitting bats" rather than on strikeouts. Occasionally balls in play find holes. Kipnis's HR is similar to most of Dozier's HRs in the first inning of games--a "get-me-over" fast by a pitcher trying to establish a groove gets pounced on by a lead-off batter that has HR power rather than the typical "punch/slash" hitter often found in the lead-off position. Sometimes a guy gets "surprised" when he isn't properly focused. Besides, Gibson should not have been deemed " a go-to guy" or "ace" or "stopper" anyway. His caliber of pitcher gets nailed regularly, irrespective of "leverage value".
  19. Kwak
    The Twins won't be the only suitor for Hunter--and he won't come cheap! Hunter will demand more money, playing time, limited or a no-trade clause, will only consider playoff teams, and maybe even a second year. Hunter has already demonstrated that he'll go where "the best deal lies"--so expecting a re-sign and a "home-town discount" is pure fantasy. In short, this "ain't a done deal".
  20. Kwak
    The Twins showed that it was more important for their Chattanooga affiliate to win their league that for the Twins to advance to the playoffs. I'm all for good relations with the Minor League teams, but... . There was a "Ryan quote" in the Strib last week that dealt with the disparity of September promotions between the Twins and the Angels. The Angels had expanded their "roster" to 37--and Ryan deemed that a bit much. The quote included "...earned", and "...service time considerations". Kepler is a bit different than most, because he is permitted four options rather than the usual three. However, it sure looks like he won't need all of them--and one was already used for 2015 anyway--so "promoting him" only cost the Twins a few thousand dollars. That's only a few less limestone bricks in the never-ending program of fan-enhancements in Target Field.
  21. Kwak

    10-3

    Kwak replied to DaveW's topic in Minnesota Twins Talk

    Using the 10-3 as a premise, I wonder how everybody will feel if they go 8-5--and fall short by a game! How many of the cheery responses like: "...if knew the Twins would be contending for the playoffs in late September, I would take it...", would "change their mind"?
  22. Kwak
    Yes, I read where Hughes will replace Milhone in the rotation--and Hughes was recently demoted to the pen! This must be a negative development. The rotation for the rest of 2015 will be: Santana, Hughes, Gibson, Pelfrey and Duffey. Everyone else in the pen, unless "injured". Nolasco? He won't start until/unless the Twins are eliminated. The Hughes experiment should convince the Twins to not duplicate that with Nolasco until the games are meaningless--or someone else "goes down". Next season? The rotation will be begin: Santana, Hughes, Gibson, Duffey, and Nolasco. Milhone and Berrios in Rochester waiting like vultures. May will find himself as the 7th inning guy, with Jepsen and Perkins dukeing it out for the 8th and 9th inning(s). XXX only knows who the rest of them will be--and how many!
  23. Kwak
    Leadership? Clubhouse mentor? "Climb on my back guys, I got this." Hunter? He didn't have this quality before--so where did he get it? How do we know that the success of Hicks, Rosario, et al, was caused by Hunter? How was his "leadership" shown or measured?--especially since none of us were on the Twins and could "witness" this leadership. Perhaps we should return to why Hunter was signed last year: way to few who could be "trusted" to play at the ML level not even close to three OFers, and a desire to show "fans" a familiar face in order to sell tickets. Anything else from Hunter would be a bonus. Are those circumstances from last fall unchanged? Or, do the Twins have an adequate number of ML-calibre OFers for next year? Is Hunter's "game" that significant that warrants his return? Did Hunter lose his supply of magic beans in June and thus became a liability?--and will that happen again next year?
  24. Kwak

    10-3

    Kwak replied to DaveW's topic in Minnesota Twins Talk

    It will all be clear Friday AM. The Houston/Angels series is a negative for the Twins--but that can't be avoided--division opponents face each other many times. A sweep by either team is problematic for MN, if by Houston they retain (or build!) a noticeable lead, if Anaheim, they stay relevant and keep their mojo, while perhaps pulling ahead of the Twins. Overcoming multiple teams is more difficult than only one. Wins against Cleveland are worth double this week. If Cleveland (who aren't dead yet) win, they stay relevant and will be tough through in Cleveland.
  25. Kwak
    This thread is a joke. The people you want to trade are the undesirables and require significant cash sweeteners to trade--ergo, won't happen. The players that can be traded (young talent) are the ones that should be kept.
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