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PatPfund

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  1. PatPfund
    Can’t really expect a premium year with plantar fasciitis; in the field or at the plate. Hopefully he feels better next year, and maybe gets some extra rest days. In some ways he’ll never live up to his contract, and in others he already has. I’m happy with what we have, and I’m glad we have two great foundation blocks in Correa and Lopez to build around. (I remember some metric rating his arm as average last year; cracked me up no end.)
  2. PatPfund
    Well, they need to trade or waive some players given the coming 40-man crunch. Farmer (as well as Polanco, Gordon, Larnach, Winder, Sands, etc) could be the piece or part of a package that brings back the most. You make a good argument, and Nick Nelson’s high upside pitcher would be a worthy target.
  3. PatPfund
    Pretty much agree with the list except I'd put hitting approach at the bottom of the list, behind my added "Figure out a plan for CF." (Re-sign Taylor? Give Martin a chance along with Castro to be '24's MT? I have zero hope Byron is any answer here.) To differ from some comments, 1B is indeed a big problem; Solano was pretty much the only option left a 1B in the playoffs, and while he is a nice backup piece... yikes! Internal options are indeed the best; Miranda in particular assuming his shoulder heals. (Maybe another item should be to remind Jose and Carlos not to leave their best seasons in the offseason gym. Train, yes. But durable beats "sexy" every time on the ballfield.) Finance is going to call a lot of this, I'd love to see Gray and/or Maeda back, but only on deals that are realistic about their ages and injury history, and that won't happen unless the market brings them back to us. (I'd also buy Wallner a 1B glove, and work him there. Fabulous target and more 1B depth.) I'd also bet at least one pitcher comes in via trade, and also that they chase a second. One way to convince Louie to go to the 'pen would be to give him a full chance to start in the spring, then find himself where Ober was last spring. Bet he'd go 'pen instead of going down to AAA.
  4. PatPfund
    I was 45, Tony Oliva was my childhood idol, and I definitely remember the WS years vividly. I liked where the Twins were going (well, where I thought they were going) in '04. In all honesty, though, the Twins in this loss streak era were a good not great team. Their rotation was filled with a bunch of #3 pitchers once Santana was gone, and that plays fine over a season overmatching some 3s, and all the 4s and 5s, but come playoffs the focus is on 1s and 2s, and the Twins just didn't match up. It was freaky they lost all the games, but not so freaky they lost all the series. This team is different with some really strong starters (including the yet-to-toss Ober), and if we can wake up the sticks, the Twins can compete with anyone.
  5. PatPfund
    Even more than the starting pitching (barring injury it should be Lopez, Gray, and Ryan with Ober or Maeda as the 4th guy when needed), the Twins need to work on the bullpen over the final games. How many are they keeping, and what are the roles? Add Paddack, Stewart, and/or Alcala? Drop Winder, Keuchel and/or Funderburk? I think Jax can be a key piece, but he has always been weak when overworked, and that's where he is now. Byron may (or may not) be back for the post-season, but I only see it as DH/PH. The guy hasn't played in an MLB outfield for over a year, he has constant leg issues, and he isn't getting any younger. His team kept him out of the field all year, because they didn't feel he was up to it (and he didn't exactly argue with them about it). We may never see the 'old' Byron again, but for sure I don't want to parachute him into a key defensive position covered with a year-plus of rust.
  6. PatPfund
    Great article with the outside perspective, and a good trade for both teams. I miss Luis, but the team dealt from surplus, and picked up an absolute rotation anchor (then extended him) while finding an excellent leadoff hitter in the system.
  7. PatPfund
    I don't want to skip to the end, because I think we have other X factors on the horizon like Stewart and Alcala (who in particular would need to show effectiveness at the MLB level before being a possible post-season add). More than worrying about how Varland fits amongst the one inning RPs, I love how he can go out and dominate for 2-3 innings, which can be critical in playoff games where the starts are often cut shorter.
  8. PatPfund
    I have shockingly little interest in trading value players for a pending free agent. The Twins remain a mid-market team with long-ish sizable contracts already out on Correa and Buxton, and they have a wealth of young controllable talent to help keep them competitive as those contracts age (and nobody ever planned on them aging gracefully). We are so much better off with real depth (just consider how many Saints OFs have been called up this year, and blessedly none of them named Celestino), and if trades/extensions need to happen I'm more interested in pitching than a short term power bat.
  9. PatPfund
    Baseball is full of players whose careers are cut short by injury; one of them manages the Twins. Rocco was a young star, who lost a season-plus to a torn ACL followed by a torn UCL, and then was constantly on the IL with muscular issues complicated with mitochondrial and Lyme issues until he was forced to retire at age 28. None of us know for sure whether Byron will ever again approach his original potential, because none of us actually knows what the bleep is going on with his knee/back/hamstrings/hip. But all indicators (like the fact his knee feels better until he uses it) seem to point to a chronic knee injury, and it may be the sort that surgery can't fix. Clearly, though, this season is pretty much toast. He just had a knee setback with just a few weeks left to go (and even less in the minors for a rehab stint), and the team has better/healthier options at DH. Let him try to recover, shut it down if/when it is clear he can't help this year, and figure out the best plan for his off-season. (Personally, I'm bummed, but never really expect to see him be the "old" Buxton again. Dude once scored from second on a ground-ball to SS; dang, he was amazing!)
  10. PatPfund
    Gallo is indeed a mystery. Not going to rip the FO for the add, because several of their similarly mystifying moves (like Solano and Castro) have turned out really well. But there comes a time you need to call even your friends into the office a "toughest part of the job" talk, and that time is long past for Joey. (Now if they'd just put Correa on the IL and give Farmer some extended play at SS; watching Correa gimp home on the Jeffers sacrifice hurt MY feet. Inflamed tendons in the feet are not going to get better without rest, and that is better done before the playoffs.)
  11. PatPfund
    This is obviously post-OP, but after a solid 7 innings at the plate and in the field by Byron on Wednesday, and then a day off, he had to be pulled from Friday's game after two strike-out DH at bats with a sore knee. Hopefully I'm wrong, but everything I've seen since the first half of last season (including being shut down early and still not ready at the start of spring training, and frankly the Twins trying to keep him out of the OF) points to a chronic knee injury that may never let him play ball again. Or let him be anything like the Buxton we once knew. I'm now counting on nothing from him the rest of the year. Kirilloff and a dose of Castro Chaos would be welcome additions back. So would moving Correa down to 6th in the order until he starts hitting again. His penchant for hitting DPs absolutely snuffs good work being done at the top of the order.
  12. PatPfund
    If I had to guess likelihood of the three you named, I'd say Paddack is the most likely to be healthy and helpful, Alcala may be healthy, but not sure how helpful, and I'd love Stewart to be helpful, but I doubt he'll be healthy. Varland looks to me to be the most likely help they get from St Paul. Blistering heat the other night as a reliever.
  13. PatPfund
    The trade is fine as addition by subtraction. The Twins close the book on a trade that didn’t work, got an arm, and have a lower pain threshold if they need to release that arm. Which would have happened if we’d gotten waiver RPs. And like likely still will if a lot of arms return soon from IL (3-4 pending).
  14. PatPfund
    To make space on the 40 Man: Put Miranda on 60 day, let him and Gordon work at St Paul, but otherwise heal for next year. Waive Celestino as needed. Waive Luplow. Release Joey Gallo as needed, release Floro as needed Clear MLB roster for returns/claims (beyond releases above): option Sands, option Funderburk as needed, option Winder as needed. Activate: Castro when ready, Kirilloff when ready, Buxton when ready, maybe Alcala or maybe he works in St Paul and readies for next year if we get all three pitchers. Claim Giolito, Rodriquez, Cisnero I wouldn’t claim an offensive player since we have RH bats Castro and Buxton coming back, Lewis, Solano, Polanco, Jeffers, Vasquez, and Farmer along with Correa on the MLB team now.
  15. PatPfund
    We’ll never know how/if things were botched, because we’ve never really known the physical issues. He could feel better with rest because the extended rest has done some healing. Or maybe just cooled the problem until he starts playing again. Don’t know but it is sad I hope he stays on the IL longer.
  16. PatPfund
    Sure, work him out to see how that plays. Julien too (doesn't have to be either one, it can be both). Or Wallner. And please give Williams a shot before Garlick (we pretty much know Kyle, and Williams (along with his other Saints team-mates) don't freak when they see the bases full.
  17. PatPfund
    I'm with @MinnInPa. Funderburk has been dominant for as many months as Henriquez has games, he's striking out three batters for every one he walks, his AAA WHIP is 1.109 and his K/9 is 13.5. Clear one of the drones off the 40-man and give the guy a shot to acclimate to MLB. And at least keep an eye on Henriquez, because as the OP correctly points out, the back part of our 'pen is filled with interchangeable bulk arms who have done nothing to stand out as helpful under pressure. (Winder is really disappointing; at one time he looked like a rotation pitcher, but since his injuries last year he looks totally waivable. Sands is only as good as his offspeed pitch(es); if he can't throw them for strikes, his fastball is batting practice speed.)
  18. PatPfund
    I remember after Varland blowing away the Astros being horrified at the thought of Maeda taking his place in the rotation, then he got lit up three times straight and was an easy demotion. Which goes to show how sketchy making these calls 6 weeks out can be. But... Keuchel, no. I'd give him one more start and focus less on earned runs than WHIP. If he gets knocked around for the third straight start, it is time to pull that plug and call up Varland (who looks great again). Starting late season games is just the kind of prep you want for post-season (and pitching out of the 'pen ain't rocket science; starters do it every year). Maeda, no, unless he fades. If quality holds, I'd plan on 4 SPs, move #5 to the 'pen. And I'd give Kody Funderburk the next train ride over from St Paul. Dude's got 3 straight years of ERAs in the 2s and is currently fanning 1.5/inning, has 25 BB against 83 K, and peeps are hitting under .200 against him the last three months. That looks like real help rather than a fungible arm, but we kind of have to know how he fares against MLB fairly soon. (Oh, and I'll mention Randy Dobnak. As in "Randy Dobnak got beaten like a dirty rug last night.")
  19. PatPfund
    Hanging on to my Max apology until this proves sustainable, but at least I located my Kepler shirt deep in the back of the closet, and might actually get it out for wear sometime soon. I never wanted Págán DFAed; my frustrations were always that I wish he could be, but the 'pen was so shallow that there never was any real pressure from other talent to drop Emilio. (The way Wallner has clearly bypassed Gallo, and the pressure to drop Joey is consistently going to grow as better hitters get healthy, and the big guy's flailing continues with dwindling at bats.) But despite the withheld apologies, it is pretty marvelous to have Max and Emilio part of the solution instead of being foundations of the problem!
  20. PatPfund
    For those worried about 40-man roster space, Gallo and Luplow (unless he hits fairly quickly) are low-hanging fruit on the MLB team. Someone else pointed out that Miranda could be 60-dayed (he's already more than halfway through that) if he isn't due back soon. Gilberto Celestino isn't as good as Mark Contreras who was just waived, and he could be waived probably without a claim (and no loss if he is; good athlete who can't hit, and whose terrible base-running wrecks even a bench role). Oliver Ortega is a fungible minor league RP who could be waived (say for Funderburk). Cole Sands would be next on my list, but I'm not sure you need 5 40-man slots to finish the year.
  21. PatPfund
    Love the premise of the article! Like your list, but I'd drop Celestino a mile off this list, and frankly waive him at some point if the 40-man gets tight (strategic to call him a right-handed bat, because he certainly isn't a hitter to go along with being a foolish base-runner; probably clears waivers, and if he doesn't then no loss). Stevenson plays decent defense, is hitting .312 with 14 HR, 35 SB, 51 RBI, and OPS of .906. and you don't need to platoon him. I'd also drop Lee off the list, and let him play the rest of the season at AAA. Sticking to the number I'd put Chris Williams on the list in Lee's stead; he has shown major pop from the right side of the plate for lefty/righty fetishists (of which I'm not one, but Rocco certainly is). Probably not Camargo yet, but as a defensive catcher developing major thunder with the bat, I'm curious what the off-season brings (I'd be quietly shopping Vasquez to see if there is a market).
  22. PatPfund
    I think the OP is right that Wallner is ahead of Larnach now. But Gallo won't be back, and his is the dead space currently holding Larnach in St Paul. (That, and Larnach has only flashed sporadic promise, not changed the conversation the way Julien did.) The Twins aren't doing themselves any favors by continuing to give at-bats and playing time to Gallo. Larnach may have options, but the Twins will have decisions to make on the 40-man before December that won't involve Gallo, but will involve other tall OFs. And without playing time they will be making them in self-inflicted ignorance.
  23. PatPfund
    I think #1 and #2 are factors (not whole reasons). I think #3 here is totally wrong. What do you add with a trade? Usually a veteran from either a losing team, or a struggling veteran you hope to revive for a few months. What are the Twins? Underperforming veterans - Correa, Buxton probably due to injury, Polanco due to injury, Kepler (been a solid few weeks after years of brutality), Gallo (who clearly is what he was last year aka pretty bad), Vasquez somewhat, Farmer somewhat. Who are the interesting players that give the most hope on offense with potential upside if played more? All young players; Julien, Kirilloff, Lewis, Jeffers, Wallner, even Larnach and Castro. Where is the most potential right now at AAA? Offense (Stevenson, Prato, maybe Williams if you want that right-handed hitter). I think the FO didn't add to the offense, because it would just add blockage to the team's best hopes, the younger players, and I think they correctly saw for this team to succeed in the playoffs, they need their current vets to produce better. If they develop their younger players (by playing them even against lefties), get Correa to start hitting better, and can keep Lewis and Polo healthy down the stretch, somebody like Pham would just be in the way. Wouldn't have minded a couple solid RPs though. (Same thing I was thinking in the spring when they were FAs not trade targets.) (And developing younger players would go faster by DFAing Gallo and putting Byron on IL when he is too injured to play (a month of that now might mean having the real Buxton down the stretch and into the playoffs).
  24. PatPfund
    I'm totally OK with this. The most interesting players are the young ones. I had zero interest in adding another fading veteran roadblock to players who either need to cut it in extended play, or be moved on from. Adding Pham to send Wallner back down to the minors doesn't make this team better. I would have loved another arm or two, but we also have arms all over our 40-man that should either produce or be let go. Maybe a couple come through (like Headrick or Varland or Keuchel). There are even interesting bats at AAA we haven't seen yet (Williams, Stevenson, Prato). Let's roll with what we have, DFA Gallo, IL Byron so he's ready for the post-season, and see what happens!!
  25. PatPfund
    Yeah, it always felt like we were an arm or two short in the 'pen. (And a LH hitter "who strikes out a lot" heavy in the OF.)
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