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Physics Guy

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Everything posted by Physics Guy

  1. Physics Guy
    The Twins broadcasters brought up the Sabathia trade on Sunday and I thought of this thread. They traded Sabathia for Matt LaPorta, Michael Brantley, Zach Jackson and Rob Bryson. Being as they ended up with a starter in the OF, they clearly did better than the Twins. They also traded away only three months of Sabathia. Gomez appears to be better than Brantley, so maybe the trade wasn't as bad as we think it was, if we had stuck with Gomez. Granted, that would have been an extreme exercise in patience.
  2. Physics Guy
    You may be right. At least he is keeping the hope alive with .300+ BA over the past 10. If need be, maybe Plouffe slides to RF and we find a DH/1B who can pop 20+. I think we realistically should be able to hit more HR that we have in the recent past.
  3. Physics Guy
    Anybody else find it interesting that the Twins picked Buxton as their hitter of the month instead of Sano? It's hard to argue either way, but I just found it interesting.
  4. Physics Guy
    Agreed. I thought I was clear about that in my post. As far as Benson is concerned, I would think he is a non-prospect if he is not up by then.
  5. Physics Guy
    Just to be clear about those stats: OBP/SLG/OPS Question for the group: When the term "triple slash" is used, isn't it usually AVG/OBP/SLG? Not trying to be critical, just a question for future clarification. On a related note, Beresford and Richardson are near the leaders in AVG and OBP in the Eastern League.
  6. Physics Guy
    Other than the fact that the Twins are only a .500 team, there is nothing that sucks about being a Twins fan right now. They are much more competitive than last year and their minor league teams are on a roll. My biggest concern is that too many of their best players are at High A and Low A. I wish they had a couple more at AA or higher. The promising part is that several of their top prospects at AA and AAA are pitchers: Gibson, Meyer and May. Their top hitters in A ball also look like they could ascend at a quicker rate than past prospects. It's much easier being a Twins fan today than it was at this point last year. I'm holding out hope that Ryan will pull off a trade for a veteran pitcher that would be be cost controlled and they could spend money on to resign later, someone like Shields. I think this scenario is much more likely than signing a FA to big money. Ryan seems much more likely to spend money on guys that have been with the organization.
  7. Physics Guy
    I agree with Brock's earlier assessment that the Twins' should be able to provide plenty of power. By the end of 2014, the Twins lineup could look like this (with potential 2015 HR totals): C - Mauer 10 1B - Parmelee 20-25 2B - Dozier - 5-10 3B - Sano - 30+ SS - ???? LF - Arcia - 20-25 CF - Hicks - 10-15 RF - Benson - 20 DH - Plouffe - 20-25 When was the last time they had 5 guys with 20+ HR potential? I realize this is an optimistic assessment, but there are other options to fill some of those gaps. They also will have money to spend for a guy or two. I also agree that SP is their number one goal for spending. One avenue I would like Ryan to pursue is trading for a solid veteran SP from somebody that is looking to do a salary dump. If the Twins continue showing signs of turning it around this season, they also have a better chance of luring a FA starter. I have my doubts that TR will go after the top shelf, but who knows.
  8. Physics Guy
    I tend to agree with this. As many have stated here, this is most likely a situation where Gardy's frustration with Plouffe has boiled over. My feeling is that Plouffe misinterpreted the signs to Arcia, which can happen. He is still relatively new to the position so everything isn't automatic for him. I still think he can be an average 3B, but he needs to start showing that he cares more about the defensive part of the game. All that said, I still don't care for the way Gardy is dealing with this. It is their responsibility to prepare their players, especially one that is learning the position at the MLB level. Most of this is on Plouffe, but Gardy and his staff have some responsibility. When was the last time you heard Gardy say something like, "Plouffe was out of position there. I think he misread the signals from the coaches. We need to do a better job of making sure guys are in the right places." Acknowledge he made a mistake, but have some accountability also. If Plouffe really is screwing up enough that he feels he needs to call him out, I would rather he just sits his sorry butt on the bench.
  9. Physics Guy
    Yes and it's perfectly within our right to question the coaching staff. Why should we not complain if a coach isn't doing exactly what he is paid to do? As I stated earlier, this is Plouffe's fault also. Let's not kid ourselves and think the staff has nothing to do with this. It does not take 5 coaches to position one player. To be clear, I am not stating that the coaches didn't attempt to move Plouffe. If they did try to position him and Plouffe later moved, then it is all on him. Did anybody say the ship was sinking?
  10. Physics Guy
    Could you be a little more condescending? I'm not sure that comments like that really fit YOUR comment policy. I would expect more from a site administrator. As for what you can and can't do on a field, we are not talking rocket science here. It takes two seconds to move. At least one of the coaches on the bench has responsibility for defensive alignment. If I'm not mistaken, the bunt occurred on the first pitch. There would be plenty of time to communicate to him that it was a possible bunt situation. A simple "watch the bunt" is all that would be needed. Now if he moved after the alignment was set, you are correct, that is hard to do anything about. Of course, that wasn't part of the discussion before your post. My question is, why are they worrying about the veteran 1B rather than the 3B who has much less experience?
  11. Physics Guy
    As a coach, I agree with Mike. If that happened to my team, I would be just as upset at myself for not anticipating that and moving Plouffe. There are at least five coaches in the dugout and one of them should catch that. I doubt this is the first time Kipnis has done this and it should be in the scouting report. It is incumbent on Plouffe to know the situation also, especially with a left handed batter. Gardy needs to stop pointing fingers in the press. This is getting old. Edit: Kipnis has 10 bunt hits in 2+ years, so this should not be surprising.
  12. Physics Guy
    Gomez was clearly rushed to the majors. His first year with the Twins he was 21, 2 years younger than Hicks. Hicks is a more polished player than Gomez was and he is struggling. If Gomez had spent his first two years in the minors while Span patrolled CF, Gomez might be in CF now and Hicks in AAA. Many players don't debut until they are 24 or 25. I don't fault the Twins for moving on, but I do think they should have handled him differently at the beginning. It seems to me part of him being in MLB was to save face for the trade. They needed to show they got something for Santana.
  13. Physics Guy
    Joe Nathan+Escobar+Hernandez > Pierzynski
  14. Physics Guy
    But now you do know that you shouldn't. Don't feel bad, it's pretty amazing how many phrases like that have bad connotations that people are unaware of. Well done ashburyjohn.
  15. Physics Guy
    Thanks guys. I should have known to check Knuckleballs.
  16. Physics Guy
    I'm hoping there are enough people here that have either made the trek down to Cedar Rapids, or live there, to help me out. We are traveling to Chicago over Father's Day weekend and my wife has graciously agreed to make a side trip through Cedar Rapids. I also have two young baseball-playing boys (10 and 7) who will be making the trip. Mostly, I am looking for recommendations for hotel accommodations. We are looking for something that is clean, has a pool and possibly serves a continental breakfast. Any other recommendations for the day would be greatly appreciated also. It looks like there are two major pockets of hotels, one north of the stadium on 380 and the other south of the stadium. Is either location preferred?
  17. Physics Guy
    Hitting with two strikes is what makes Joe a great hitter. He has a great OBP because he is able to draw walks by taking more pitches. Do I wish he didn't take as many pitches? Sure, but the number of pitches he takes does help to wear down the pitcher. His average is consistently in the .300's because his two-strike BA doesn't drag him down. The way he is hitting with two strikes this year is unbelievable. As for Pierre and Suzuki, it's pretty clear why they are on the list. They are both good contact hitters, with low K rates. With two strikes they put the ball in play and use their speed to get infield hits. I would hazard to guess that they, in their younger days, were amongst the leaders in IF hits.
  18. Physics Guy
    I've been around HS baseball for 25 years and this has by far been the worst season in Minnesota during that time. Our HS team has not practiced outside yet. Usually by April 1 we could start being outside regularly, with occasional days where we would be pushed indoors. I quit coaching a couple years back and feel very sorry for those still involved. Once their season starts it's going to be a nightmare. On a related note, my son gets to go to the afternoon game tomorrow as a reward for being a School Patrol. I told him to pack his snow pants!
  19. Physics Guy
    Agreed. Given that he's a converted SS, he makes the plays coming forward very well. I'm a little surprised he's having trouble to his left, but maybe that was part of the issue he had as a SS (besides the throwing part). Correct me if I'm wrong, but he had trouble as a SS when he had to rush his throw. He seems to have no such problem on the bunts/slow rollers when he has to rush his throw. IMO his issues stem from a lack of experience. He shows signs that he can make tough plays, but just needs to find consistency. I still believe he will turn out to be at minimum a league average defensive 3B. That would be more than acceptable if he has an OPS of .800 with a league average of .740 last year.
  20. Physics Guy
    Nice summary, Seth. The Twins are using Carroll exactly the way they should given the makeup of the roster. With all three of the young(er) guys on the roster, they should receive the majority of the time. Until Florimon or Dozier prove they shouldn't be starting, Gardy is doing exactly what he should, IMO. If one falters, I would think Escobar gets the next shot although I wouldn't blame Gardy for going with Carroll.
  21. Physics Guy
    Because everything has to be based on research? He did say, "I guess...."
  22. Physics Guy
    Come on guys, three walks in his last five AB and no K. That's a little improvement. He's even laying off some of the two strike breaking balls. Hopefully Dozier will hit like he did last night and allow Hicks to work it out at the bottom of the order.
  23. Physics Guy
    Just did the same and found two teams, Cle and Sea, that have 11 man pitching staffs. ChiWS have 13.
  24. Physics Guy
    Nice article Seth. Good summary of the most enjoyable game to watch thus far. I have to say, I was a little nervous when KC gave up a home run to Bourjos and then later to Harris. Who would have guessed those would be the only runs allowed? As an aside, we get that you don't like Florimon. Maybe it's just me, but it seems like you take a shot at him every chance you get. It's not like he's been an utter failure thus far. FanGraphs has him at 0.4 WAR thus far. Give the guy a chance.
  25. Physics Guy
    Sorry, I meant he was unavailable last time.
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