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cmathewson

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Everything posted by cmathewson

  1. cmathewson
    It's not really the whipping boy's fault most of the time. We have often blamed Gardy for using his backups more than is warranted. In the case of Punto, he kept making a utility guy into an everyday guy. It never worked. Though I still contend that if he had ever payed much attention to fundamentals, it might have worked. He could have been a speedier, switch hitting Jamey Carroll if he had learned to bunt, shortened his swing, picked up his coaches on the bases and gotten in front of the ball more often. Part of my using him as a whipping boy is I always hoped he would play better, with his tools. Butera's more on the GM at the time than the manager. I often wonder how good the Twins would have been in 2011 with Hardy at short and Ramos behind the plate. Butera was put into the everyday job, where he was way overexposed. There really aren't any whipping boys on this team. If Florimon fails, Escobar will step in. I'm one of the few people here who doesn't think that's particularly likely. I like Florimon's range, and his bat is not as bad as most people think. But if it happens, I'll be the first to praise Escobar. He does everything well, and he pays attention to the fundamentals.
  2. cmathewson
    The only exception is Bartlett. We're still not sure if service time was the reason for the otherwise inexplicable move. Some say it was because Gardy didn't like him. Some say it was because Kelly didn't like him. Who knows? They sure didn't take advantage of the service time they gained by holding him back.
  3. cmathewson
    I wonder if Romero's absence affects this. They probably needed a third baseman for New Britain. The fact that Kvasnicka has versatility makes it all the better. When Romero finally makes his way from the Dominican, he'll have a place to play, wither in the outfield or behind the plate.
  4. cmathewson
    The whipping boy needs to be someone on the bench who gets more playing time than he deserves. Punto and Butera fit the bill. This year, it's either Escobar or Mastroianni. Let's say Gardy platoons Mastro and Parmelee, the Twins play against several lefties in a row, he's in a slump and Parmelee is hitting well. He would be a candidate for whipping boy.
  5. cmathewson
    With his defense and speed, all he needs to do is hit better than Florimon to take that job away. The only reason he's still in AA is he needs to work on TK's list of pet peeves before he's ready.
  6. cmathewson
    My votes would be Hendriks and Burnett, right now. But that might change in the next couple of weeks.
  7. cmathewson
    I think you need to consider the time those players played. Here OPS+ is a much better metric to compare players than OPS. Oliva had a career OPS+ of 131, even after his later years. In his prime, 150 was common. If Parmelee puts up a 131 OPS+ in any given year, everybody would be happy.
  8. cmathewson
    It's a good sign. In the past, we've had more than our share of washed up veterans. There was a string of them at third base in the mid 00s, for example. I'm glad they are more focused on youth now.
  9. cmathewson
    The 26th man question has come up the last two times the owners and PA have negotiated. The players and managers want the 26th man. The owners don't.
  10. cmathewson
    Huh, I didn't realize they had DFAed him. Well, I'd say Theilbar, then. Hernandez had a great spring and is needed for the Rochester rotation.
  11. cmathewson
    Doh, Meant to say They can put Guerra on the 60-day DL, opening a spot on the 40 mn for Ramirez.
  12. cmathewson
    They can put Guerra on the 60-day DL, opening a spot on the 60-day DL for Ramirez. I think Walters hurt his chances yesterday pitching against major league hitters. Robertson really hurt his chances the other day. So I'd say it will be Reonicke and Burnett going north, with Robertson optioned and Walters reasigned.
  13. cmathewson
    1. He wants to win. 2. He wants to win 3. He wants to win 4. He wants to stay here If the Twins want to keep him (and I think they should at least try unless they're blown away by an offer), they need to convince him they can win. That likely means getting some better starters in here. Help is on the way with Gibson and Meyers, but will it be too little, too late? Ca c'est la question, eh?
  14. cmathewson
    Is #1 taken?
  15. cmathewson
    The real comparison is Baker vs. Pelfrey, which is looking OK for the Twins right now.
  16. cmathewson
    This is a tough one. I think he can be a productive hitter. But he's not a high-average hitter. .270 seems optimistic. On the other hand, he will take some walks. So his OBP could be around .350. I just don't see as much power out of him in Target Field. Doubles, yeah. Homers, not so much. His swing is like Kubel's. We saw how hard it was for Kubel to hit dingers in Target. I'm going to call a triple slash of .350/.450/800 with 16 homers and 80 RBIs. The RBIs come from hitting behind a resurgent Morneau and a solid Doumit.
  17. cmathewson
    Sorry, I got the acronyms mixed up. I was thinking about the DTFC. That was the one I was banned from. FWIW, I did not write anything in that forum involving ad hominem arguments. My comments were purely about players. In particular, I got into a strong disagreement with a well-known troll over the Castro/Bartlett incident. It lasted for several months. At one point, I publicly walked away from the forum because I got tired of the moderators curbing my comments and supporting the troll. I was also disgusted by a moderator who threatening to burn down Seth's house. When I briefly returned to make one comment, I was unceremoniously banned. I was perversely pleased when they shut the board down. I am so glad we now have a forum that walks the fine line between letting discussions go and curbing ad hominem attacks.
  18. cmathewson
    I am relatively new here. So I will just post a short observation: Since I joined a few months ago, I have noticed a significant improvement in the quality of the debate. I have seen a lot of "I respectfully disagree" posts, which tend to improve the tenor and substance of debate. When I started posting here, I was afraid it was just the second coming of the BYTO site, from which I got banned for simply because I respectfully disagreed with the moderators, who routinely bullied people who disagreed with them. This time, it wasn't the moderators, but self-appointed experts who rejected opinions out of hand if they didn't agree with their own. I haven't seen that kind of behavior in weeks.
  19. cmathewson
    Wilkin Ramirez will likely make the team as a bench bat. The Twins can make room by putting Deolis Guerra on the 60-day DL.
  20. cmathewson
    Deduno injured his groin in the wet conditions in the championship game of the WBC. Several replays showed his foot slipping on the mound, though the umps did nothing to improve footing. He will need rest and rehab for up to two weeks, then he'll need to get ramped up with the appropriate inngings load. my best guess for his major league ability it May 1.
  21. cmathewson
    Fire gady!
  22. cmathewson
    I think he'll improve on defense. He struggled there last year in his first year at the position. He had like four gloves in spring training and had to rotate around the diamond in practice. He barely got any reps at third. This year, he's able to focus on the little things like positioning and footwork. So he should be better. I'll say a +3 UZR. Offensively, he'll be streaky like last year. But with a full season of at bats, he should have better counting stats. I'm going with .260/.320/.480/.800 with 28 homers and 32 doubles.
  23. cmathewson
    He's not at all the kind of player Twins scouts love. They read spray charts. They see how many balls get by him. They see how slow his first step is, so, when he does get to a ball, he has to make a spectacular play to make an out. They see all that stuff.
  24. cmathewson
    I'm shocked! Scott Boras uses hyperbole to describe why his client is without a contract?! Look in the mirror Borat. The Cardinals offered your client $12 for one year. You turned it down. Now he's SOL. Poor you.
  25. cmathewson
    If you think the WBC games are mere exhibitions, you're not paying attention. Teams are full of all-star major leaguers. It was much higher and more intense competition than any spring training game.
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