Rod Carews Birthday
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Everything posted by Rod Carews Birthday
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Agreed. The reality is that nobody out there really saw this as a possibility until it happened - probably not even his Mom. I think he was really a guy without a home that was only going to get a chance on a really terrible team. Other teams passed on him after the Twins put him in as a throw in on the trade. Good for Rooker! He really showed everybody (and I mean pretty much everybody!). I hope he has a great career and I don't really feel that bad about the situation. -
I understand wanting to keep him happy, but I would guess that none of us really knows how great his desire really is to start again. This might be overblown by fans and media. Also. . . we all have bosses. I had a lot of autonomy in my job, but at the end of the day I didn't always get to decide my role. I know he has made and will make much more money than us, but he still answers to his boss. The reason I care is because I completely agree with the potential pitfalls of Jax returning to the starting rotation. I don't think it's a chance the we (or he) can afford to take.
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One of the things that drives me a little crazy is the tendency that we have (me included) to think that our top prospects will become Willie Mays or Hank Aaron starting immediately. It puts unrealistic expectations (like “where’s the power?”) on them and winds up leaving us all disappointed in the end. We quickly forget that even Twins Hall of Famers like Kirby Puckett were just “pretty good” as rookies (and there are countless others) before developing into their fully formed stardom. The road will surely be rocky and there will be ups and downs. Put me in the club that is hopeful that Jenkins will eventually become a star and have a long productive career with the Twins. That is a much bigger concern than what he does in his initial call up. We (and the Twins) all need to exercise some patience.
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I believe you meant to write that the this guy is an option if the Twins decide to move on from Willi Castro. If they do move on from him, it will be for financial reasons, which pretty much preclude signing anybody substantial in free agency. I don’t know how he will turn out as a player, but at this point Tena has a very SSS of work to base anything off of. I’m don’t necessarily think that his development into a strong player is assured, plus he will cost something to acquire — likely a something that has just as good of a chance to develop into a strong player. The one area where I think that they can go with the players they have — Miranda, Julien, Lee, Hellman, Martin, eventually Keaschall — is because they can accomplish much of the bench work, albeit by committee, that Castro and others have been doing. We also forget that for most of the year Farmer was almost unplayable offensively — and the defense wasn’t amazing either. I think this is one place where the Twins can sit on their hands and see how their younger players do.
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- jose tena
- kyle farmer
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Lewwww! He was one of my favorite players. I just wish he could have played and been productive longer for the Twins! Glad to see he’s still playing the game that he loves!
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Wow! He just seems like he is a million miles away at this point. Obviously the Twins like his stuff and projectability, but he has so much to work on before he can pitch for the big club -- actually he has plenty to work on before he gets to AA! For me, a guy like this can't be in the top five, there's just too much variability in the possible outcomes.
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Given how well Joe Ryan was pitching last year before he got injured, I'm not sure much change is in order. Ryan seems well in touch with his pitching and seems comfortable tweaking it on his own. It's true, he might need a few more fastballs against some batters, but then again, he might need less against others. He's a really smart guy (certainly smarter about pitching than me) and I will let him figure that out. His job is to stay healthy and keep pitching. He is a massive upgrade from anybody who would take his place in the rotation if he gets hurt.
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These guys aren’t useless players, but aside from whether they are better than the players you have (Mateo probably isn’t and Soto probably is), they don’t save any money AND they cost prospect/player capital to acquire in a trade. I’m just not seeing the upside for the Twins as currently constructed.
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To me, non-tendering a player depends on two things, money and roster space. None of these guys cost much at all so even replacing them with minor leaguers doesn’t amount to anything. We are sitting at 37 on the roster going into the Rule 5, so creating space there doesn’t seem like a motivator either. Headrick is a lefty and breathing and might get healthy enough to improve, Topa might be that guy from 2023, Tonkin has some history of an innings eater in the bullpen, and Henriquez has shown a little and would seem to have room to get a little better out of the bullpen. I say tender them all until you need a roster spot. Then one of them can disappear.
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- justin topa
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To me, Raya is the most puzzling pitching prospect the Twins have. I'm not necessarily second guessing what the Twins have done -- they have more information on him than anyone else does -- but if Raya is to have a future as a major league pitcher, he's going to need to ramp up at some point. Can he get to a higher pitch/innings limit this year? That could answer a lot of questions. I think at the moment I would have him below Morris but that could change rapidly as he moves along. Puzzling. . . interesting! Let's hope this materializes in a positive way!
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I don’t think they are redundant at all. They have a similar, but not identical, hitting profile and both are right-handed corner outfielders who actually hit well last year, but last time I checked, two corner outfielders were needed. Now, maybe at some point one of them gets displaced by a prospect coming up (ahem. . . ERod), but until then let’s get all the mileage out of them that we can. Then we perhaps have someone good to trade. So much is made on this board of individual players’ defense, or the perception of it. Neither of these guys are prime Byron Buxton or even excellent Max Kepler, but that doesn’t mean that if they hit, their defense isn’t acceptable. Sometimes we err by comparing players only to the best there is at a position, when just OK is just enough when paired with a good hitting profile.
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More importantly than my earlier comment. . . The Twins have MUCH more information about these guys than we do, so I’m going to defer to their take on things. You are right, he’s a big strong guy with a very lively arm, and that alone makes him interesting. I can think of a certain closer whose strong peripherals never really translated in the minors either. Some guys just take a little more time to develop than others, and it’s not really a straight line procedure. Adams sounds to me like a guy who could be a little boom or bust with a range from #4 innings eater starter to absolute killer relief arm.
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Maybe it’s because they want to play Major League Baseball someday. Are you suggesting that these guys are just tanking their careers because they don’t like the Twins? That seems pretty unlikely. Good grief. . .
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What is different about Jax now from when he was a starter? Remember, you have to dial his velocity back down (probably), you need to rely on more different pitches (likely) and you have to build his innings back up (definitely). Granted, he's had great success in the bullpen, but I'm not sure that he is any more of a potential upper rotation starter today than David Festa or Andrew Morris. Jax moved to the bullpen because he wasn't very effective in the rotation. That happened to a few other guys whose names we know also -- Glen Perkins, Joe Nathan, and plenty more. Great starters make more money than great relievers, but bad starters wash out of the league without making any money at all. I know the argument is that he can always go back to the bullpen. . . that is true, but does that experiment make the Twins a better team in 2025 and beyond?
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The raw materials for an elite bullpen are certainly there, it just depends now on how the players actually play/stay healthy. At their best, these guys are certainly at or near the top. However, it is almost always a foregone conclusion that someone will implode, someone will be injured, etc. That being said, most elite bullpens contain those things as well. Having a few backup options in AAA is essential. Since the three batter rule change and actual left-hander is probably not essential to the cause, as I agree that just having good pitchers takes care of that. However, I'm enough a traditionalist to think that occasionally being able to throw a lefty out there helps to mix it up a little for the batters. Not always, but sometimes. Acquiring one (unless Funderburk/Headrick step up) would be a good idea.
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- jhoan duran
- griffin jax
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The only reason he makes any sense to me is that he's left handed, which would provide a little bit of diversity in our rotation. However, he has had one and a half good years and has been hurt. . . a lot. Other than the handedness issue, I don't see that he necessarily slots in above Ryan and Ober. For Larnach alone, I would consider it, but I'm not jumping up and down for it. If we were to go the direction of the Lewis trade, Joe Mack (the catcher) would be an amazing get although he died in 1998 and would be 112 years old according to the embedded link. Father time. . . still undefeated.
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Morris definitely looks like a guy to get excited about. I love the fact that he appears to have two “ready” off-speed pitches to augment a solid fastball and curve. I’m less worried about the changeup, because isn’t that the thing that the Twins are supposed to be good at teaching? The question for me is what is the best answer for his development. Do you let him pitch as long as possible in AAA in hopes of really solidifying his status, or do you get him to the majors fairly quickly so as not to “waste the bullets”? I understand it’s impossible to know because there are examples of pitchers flourishing in both situations and also examples of pitchers failing. I also know that it depends on his results at that level, but the question of when is key here.
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So you’re saying that it would be a good idea to have pitchers pitch more innings if they are less good or less healthy. If anything these two years prove that given appropriate talent, Rocco Baldelli will let them pitch longer, and I think that’s what we actually want.
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I just don’t see the upside in a trade of Jeffers when you don’t have a catcher in waiting. To me, any catcher trade has to be trade #2, after the trade acquiring a catcher (or at least concurrently), unless you consider Camacho a starting caliber backstop, which I do not (and I don’t think the Twins do either).
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Great article! I'm excited to go watch the documentary. Are there any other documentaries out there about the Twins or their players over the years? I have watched the Harmon Killebrew on David Letterman episode a couple of times. It's awesome as well.
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Twins Trade Candidate Breakdown: Joe Ryan
Rod Carews Birthday replied to Eric Blonigen's topic in Twins Daily Front Page News
Joe Ryan, prior to injury, was the Twins' best pitcher last year by a number of metrics. His injuries thus far haven't been "scary" injuries that threaten his career, unlike many pitchers out there. He's still cheap, and will remain relatively so for at least another year. Based on these three factors, I'm not at all inclined to trade him. On the flip side, I would argue that he may actually have the most trade value (factoring in contracts) of anyone on the team and if someone blows me away, I'm all in. It's all about the return. If the return is there, you pull the trigger. If it isn't, you NEVER trade someone for the sake of trading them, especially when there is no salary relief from doing so. -
Twins Hold Bake Sale to Make Payroll
Rod Carews Birthday replied to RandBalls Stu's topic in Twins Daily Front Page News
It’s always nice to see Lew Ford make an appearance! -
Twins Hold Bake Sale to Make Payroll
Rod Carews Birthday replied to RandBalls Stu's topic in Twins Daily Front Page News
ARGH!!! Don’t click the link! -
This simply shows how difficult it is to evaluate young players. The sad truth is that most guys never make it in the majors, either because they don’t get there at all or because they are highly unsuccessful in a limited stint. At the end of the day, you have to do the job and that job is extremely challenging. Every single team has these “almost” guys who fail and Severino and Winder are just our latest examples.
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If Jax goes back to starting, his velocity will drop because you can’t give 100% effort for six innings at a time which will change his effectiveness. His career high innings pitched totals will be obliterated, which certainly raises the possibility of injury. He was the best part of a bullpen last year that was a little shaky. The Twins have pretty solid depth in the starting pitching lineup. Why would you move him? In hopes of finding a unicorn (there are examples, but certainly more failures) that can do this? Because you think he will move from shutdown reliever to #3 level starter or above when his previous stint was something just north of terrible? Because he wants to do it without regard for team considerations? (Please note: I would also like a pony.) Because starters make more money than relievers? Yes, but injured starters who never make it are out of the league and make nothing. I’m thinking that we don’t want to ruin something that we have. YMMV.
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