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bird

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Everything posted by bird

  1. bird
    Terry Ryan didn't say Joe Blanton was a prime target, Chief. Jerry Crasnick did. Ye of little faith...
  2. bird
    Good point, Boom Boom. As a matter of fact, five dozen members of the Twins scouting and development staff played a role in Bill Smith's regime. And Ryan's. They met as a group at the end of the season, like they do every year. Despite thrylos's beliefs to the contrary, they all have cell phones and email accounts. They're probably expected to have and share their opinions. We don't have a clue as to how it all works. Wouldn't it be fun to have access to what all these professionals have to say? But what the hell, at least we have each other.
  3. bird
    Yuck.
  4. bird
    The Span/Meyer trade details are simply speculation. Why re-hash it? And it doesn't matter really. There is a range of expectations associated with what "fixing" the 2013 team means. I'd much rather hear your opinions about what you think Ryan's expectations are for 2013, and what your own expectations are. What would satisfy you for 2013? A .500 club? More?
  5. bird
    The key to THIS year is that Ryan has no excuses. And, unlike in your time machine examples, Jim, THIS year Ryan (not media reports, but Ryan) has given us a very clear assurances that he won't be constrained by budgets. My theory is that last year Ryan failed to liberate himself to his own old mentality, which was necessary in the past, of value-shopping and avoiding bidding wars. He also made a very poor bet that Liriano, Baker, Pavano, Blackburn, and Marquis/Hendriks/whomever was going to be enough. So, those of us who hold out dim hope aren't doing so blindly. I for one base my hope on Ryan's own words, not media speculation, and on the fact that there are more options available to solve fewer problems this year than last. My expectations aren't ridiculous: two pitchers for 2013, through FA or trade, better than #3-4 starter Diamond. A 2013 team that wins close to half its games (say, 77 wins), making them watchable. A 2014 team of exciting first and second year players, on the rise, fun to watch, with more talent on the cusp. If Ryan instead gives me Liriano and Myers and calls it a day, I'll join in the criticism.
  6. bird
    The majority of opinions: the Myers/Lester rumor is bogus media speculation, identical to jokin's speculation that the Twins could have done better than the Alex Meyer return for Span. A return, by the way, that a vast majority of writers and fans think is fair, the exception being Cameron, and of course jokin.
  7. bird
    mww, you just said the Twins have no pitchers coming up in the minors 2-4 years from now. This is simply an entirely bogus statement. Why do you keep saying this? Advice: temper it to say the system is thin in the upper minors. This would be arguably an accurate statement.
  8. bird
    Sickels ranked Meyer #28 among his pitching prospects in 2012. Detroit, Chicago, and Cleveland did not have a single name on the list of 50 prospects. The only AL West prospect on his list is KC's Jake Odorizzi, rated slightly higher than Meyer.
  9. bird
    Heck, throw in Tim Wood.
  10. bird
    Yeah, that jokin. What a class act. Nick, the argument I'd make against signing Liriano is that it's almost completely predictable that he'll go into a long, long streak where he unravels. As emotionally distraught as some fans get, think of how much this shatters the bullpen for game after game. How it increases the prospects for injury. And the emotional toll on everyone else on the team should be considered. So, while Liriano has more upside, he has less reliability. And, I'd be willing to bet that Pedro Hernandez and Samuel Deduno will both outperform him, especially in terms of quality starts and innings pitched per start.
  11. bird
    Hey, as long as they produce two pitchers better than Diamond, via FA and trade, who cares how many guy like Liriano they bring on board to fight for the fifth spot in the rotation? And, while it's logical to assume most of the better FA pitchers will view other teams as more attractive, it's certainly not logical to conclude that the Twins won't appeal to some of these guys if the money's right. Outside of a hyandful of commenters at TD, this organization has a solid reputation asa player-friendly environment. ...waiting for someone to bring up Knoblauch or some other one-off example to prove how terrible the Twins are as an organization....
  12. bird
    Allhope, you've mentioned that the Twins are asking for a haul foe Span, and you've mentioned that the Braves turned down the Twins based on their demands for Span. Just curious. Who's your source? thrylos?
  13. bird
    mike wants wins, you're correct in saying the Twins have the money. They CAN afford two "legitimate" FA pitchers, say, a Marcum and a McCarthy. AND, IN ADDITION they can trade for a second #2-3, even afford to sweeten a deal by paying some of Morneau's salary to seal a deal, for example. Ryan said he won't encounter financial constraints in going about solving the problem. This is important. So, if he does what many expect- strictly bargain-hunting and dumpster-diving- giving us nothing more than over-the hill vets like Marquis, rule 5 bets, and Feldman types, he will earn every ounce of criticism. My theory is he's not being aggressive on these initial fringe guys like Baker and Feldman because they're a dime a dozen and he already has a half-dozen of them. Let's see.
  14. bird
    Just my opinion based on what Ryan has indicated: 1) it's very possible that Ryan DOES have the money to spend on a #2-3 FA starter, whtever market, and 2) despite his penurious past history, Ryan is very possibly highly motivated to add non-fringe ptchers as opposed to the Feldman types. I know this flies in the face of past history, so I understand and respect the doubt and skepticism. I just believe th economics have changed enough that we could (and should) be pleasantly surprised by what Ryan does this winter. And of cours, jokinwill then sing Ryan's praises from the rooftops.
  15. bird
    jokin, I will be there to criticise Ryan if he fails to procure two #2-3 starters, via trade and FA signings, between now and the start of the season. I said as much earlier in this thread. Of course, that won't stop you from predicting that I'll defend Ryan regardless, because that's just who you are.
  16. bird
    I agree, Leviathan, that the Cubs are smart for signing Feldman and Baker. But this would ONLY make sense for the Twins if they were supplemental signings. They need two #2-3 starters. Not much need for two more #4-5 starters. Diamond is better than both those guys, and we need two guys who are better than Diamond.
  17. bird
    My sense is that Ryan senses an urgency this time around, after the risk he took with last year's rotation went so horribly awry. (Yeah, I know, many of you saw it coming, and he didn't. Congratulate yourself.) If Ryan fails to pick up one #2-3 FA starter (Marcum type), and trade for a second#2-3 starter (Delgado type), I will join the pitchfork and torch crowd, but I'm gonna wait to make my trip to Menard's for said items until all the winter horse swapping is over. There's no rule that says Ryan has to solve the problem exclusively via FA signings. He has trade chips and "payroll flexibility." For the first time in many years.
  18. bird
    If the Twins had signed Baker and Feldman, the vast majority of the comments on here would negative. Ryan would be called names, and be derided as cheap and incompetent for signing two guys who are no better than #4-5-6 starters on a losing team, and risky ones at that. But, because Ryan did not sign them, he's being called names, and is being derided as cheap and incompetent for not signing two guys who are low-risk solutions as #3-4 starters. Shocking.
  19. bird
    When will it NOT be premature to judge Ryan's winter moves? Um, spring, after his winter moves have been made. Tons of Feldman's and Baker's can be defined as a dozen or so free agent pitchers who are valued more highly by the pros, and another dozen or so similarly better pitchers who are available via trade. Is that good enough for you, mike?
  20. bird
    Like minn55441, I listened to Ryan on ESPN 1500 with Mackey and Pelissaro last night. I was heartened in particular by one statement in response to a question about the trade involving Buehrle: "I respect Buehrle a lot....but we need several Buehrle's". He left the very distinct impression that he intends to solve the rotation problem, to do it with at least Buehrle quality pitchers, and that he has the financial muscle to do it. I agree with minn55441. Time will tell. I personally am optimistic, and think the critics are premature in judging things, especially ahead of the winter meetings next week. There are tons of Feldman's and Baker's out there. I'm holding out for two pitchers better than those two, maybe a third.
  21. bird
    We have no NEED for a player like this. None whatsoever. If we want a player likely to dissappoint us, let's just go with what we got.
  22. bird
    Gee, with that kind of TV income, I'll bet they reduce ticket prices by 80%, so someone in the median income bracket can afford to go to a few games each year.
  23. bird
    Brock, I agree with you 100% that for 2013, we need a trade for a #2-3 starter, which means bye bye to Morneau and/or Span most likely: we need a surprise FA signing of a Marcum-type, and we need a trash heap sucess story or a Deduno shocker to go with Gibson, Diamond, and Hendriks. My post about the farm system was in response to the frequent comments that the system has absolutely NO pitching help available in the next 2-3 years. It's true that the system is very thin in high ceiling pitching prospects above low A. But at the lower levels, people are going to be very pleasantly surprised by two years from now at the promise of a number of pitching prospects. My argument has been that we can fix the current shortcomings enough to compete almost immediately via outside additions, and then rely on a wave of talent, pitching included, from the farm system in 2-3 years and beyond.
  24. bird
    Pitchers in the farm system who might possibly contribute to the rotation over the next two-three years: Kyle Gibson, Liam Hendriks, Alex Wimmers, Adrian Salcedo, BJ Hermsen, Pedro Hernandez, Logan Darnell, Madison Boer, Tom Stuiffbergen, Manuel Soliman, and the 2013 1st round pick, the 4th pick in the draft. mike wants wins, we've had this discussion before. While you might say that none of these guys will likely be "really good", I'll say that it's likely that a few of them will be #2,#3,#4, and #5 starters. My bets are on Gibson (#2), Hendriks (#3), Wimmers (#3),Hermsen(#5), and this year's pick (#2). Now that's a far cry from YOUR statement that they have NO relly good pitching help coming up in the next 2-3 years. So help me understand why this isn't an adequate explanation for why some of us are much more hopeful about the pitching pipeline.
  25. bird
    trader t, who is really really smart, unlike Terry Ryan, will be unable to give us an example of a small market team that has made the playoffs or come very close to making them every year.
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