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JD-TWINS

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Everything posted by JD-TWINS

  1. JD-TWINS
    3rd straight game with 4 different guys getting 2 hits or more - that’s huge! The coaching staff’s emphasis & the player’s ability to “be more selective” at the plate has changed things. Some days it’s more significant than others. Martin & Larnach’s plate discipline is becoming elite. 2 W’s in Chicago and 1 or 2 in Pittsburgh and they’ll still be near .500 and through their longest trip of the year…………now 3 games into 17 straight w/o an off day……… important stretch …….. maybe they can run off a few more w/o a loss? 🤞🤞 Zebby - Ryan - Prielipp - Bradley in Chicago …… Rojas should be available to back up Prielipp on Wednesday, if needed.
  2. JD-TWINS
    Sunday evening……..After just 3 starts - ORLANDO ARCIA is going to have a place on the roster for a while. Defense at 2B has really elevated ……. odd to see a smooth defender at 2B. 1 hit - 2 hits - 3 hits in his first 3 games starting. Assuming he’d have to pass through waivers if he left the MLB roster ……. he’d be gone for sure. Kreidler makes the plays at SS and keeps getting just enough hits to stick. …… ability to shift to OF as needed (& play well) is a big advantage for him in the roster. With Clemens ability to play 2B if needed & Lee apparently taking up residence at 3B & Keaschall’s probable heavy playing time at 2B …………. it seems Kreidler - Arcia - Keaschall are the middle infield………. Gray may have a difficult time carving out a spot, even with Lewis in St Paul. 2 Catchers - Buxton - Larnach - Martin - Outman - Gonzales ……. Arcia - Lee - Bell - Clemens - Keaschall - Kreidler Gray doesn’t seem to fit…….somebody gets exposed to waivers OR Gonzales goes back down.
  3. JD-TWINS
    Right now, TWINS are tied with Toronto for the last Wild Card in the AL. Competitive in a weak League, not just weak Division. There are 3 “good” teams in the AL & that’s it ………… as things continue to get squared away in the PEN & with Lee at 3B (better fit) & Keaschall slowly creeping to reach his capabilities…………I like the path forward. Abel & Festa still have a chance to be very helpful in the 2nd half! Can either Lewis or Wallner hit .245 at the MLB level in 2nd half?……….. it would be a huge step up from their current .160’s……..not holding my breath.
  4. JD-TWINS
    I would suspect that the lack of success v. “good” pitchers and success against lesser opponents is pretty typical across baseball. I remember a stretch where TWINS beat (and scored 5 plus in each instance) Skubal - Valdez - Gray - Crochet ……, so, ………….
  5. JD-TWINS
    I know they score runs……… 9 - 10 - 8 - 8 - 13 - 8 - 11 - 11 - 9 - 8 ……… 9.8 runs/game over 10 games ……. skews the total run output as it relates to being competitive regularly. They have scored 2 or less eleven times through 51 games……… 3 or less 19 times. I get that “this is baseball” but there have been too many good pitching performances washed away due to lack of run support. They have just sent down two guys (regulars) that had terrible, terrible offensive stats. They have James Outman - Caratini - Bell - still on roster with negative WAR numbers. Lee & Clemens & Keaschall have all been under 0.00 WAR for big parts of the season. Jeffers - Buxton - Martin - Larnach have supported the stats in a big way to date. To be “competitive” the offense needs to play better day to day.
  6. JD-TWINS
    Agreed - if he hits, he stays put. Where did he play prior to 2B coming up or before drafted? I see here he may play some OF? Does he have a “natural position”?
  7. JD-TWINS
    In hindsight, Lee (0-4) started & played well at 3B Friday night - Kreidler (2-4) at SS. Regardless of what fans want to see or think is best path, the Team is focussed on trying to WIN. They have guys like Clemens - Arcia - Kreidler - Outman - Gray on the roster v. guys from AAA. It seems clear. If Keaschall hits he won’t get moved. If he doesn’t, Arcia or Clemens or Lee will be in his spot at 2B.
  8. JD-TWINS
    I hate the thought of trading Jeffers just as he’s really started to strive at the plate. If pitching stays relatively solid there’s an opportunity to trade Joe Ryan for a haul - at a minimum, ONE very solid up & comer that can contribute/start in ‘27. Those Ryan $$ saved could be spent on Jeffers. Lopez upside for long-term with organization is tough to move on from ……. super high character guy that loves the game …….. figure out a way to extend at least 2 years. Buxton is a lifer in Minneapolis. Martin is playing well and very affordable - no trade there. Lewis & Wallner didn’t really have much trade value after ‘25 season……. it’s gotten FAR worse! Either could resurrect themselves but trading them, while under control, isn’t really a net gain. If Team spends $20M more in ‘27 after shedding Ryan’s salary, gives Team a definite opportunity to be very competitive in ‘27. Rotation: Lopez - Bradley - Abel - Ober - Prielipp (Rojas/Matthews) Pen: Sands - SWR - Festa - Gomez - Morris - Orze & a myriad of possibilities (FA included) for 3-4 spots…… including depth. Lots of time in ‘26 to screen/develop possibilities for ‘27. Need a Catcher!!! …….that would pair with Caratini (he’s under contract)……..almost threw up watching Jackson on Friday night. OF/DH ….. Larnach/Martin - Buxton - Gonzalez - Rodriguez - Jenkins. IF ….. Lee - Culpepper - Keaschall ……… fill void at 1B in FA ……. or with a much better hitting Lewis Supplementing this offensive group and the PEN, with Ryan’s freed up $15M + $20M ownership increase (to a mere $125M total) seems they could be extremely competitive. Also, the trade acquisition in any Ryan trade should contribute in ‘27. Can they trade for a proven young Catcher for Joe?
  9. JD-TWINS
    My fingers are crossed for ‘27: Lewis - Houston - Culpepper - Lee from 3rd to 1st………can flip Lewis & Lee at the corners……. one of them has to move to 1B, IMO …….. assuming their bats are adequate through balance of this year. Lewis huge question mark on whether he bounces back at the plate - Lee, not quite as consistent as one would hope for at the plate either. Larnach - Lee - Clemens all drifting downward……scary with Jeffers out for long period. Buxton - Keaschall - Martin - Kreidler all with 2 hits last night …….. nice to see!!
  10. JD-TWINS
    Let me rephrase - he gave up a solo HR & he took the loss in the 9th. Clear enough?
  11. JD-TWINS
    He isn’t progressing - tough to do when playing nearly every day and worrying about hitting a ball properly. He’s got a looong way to go to get anywhere near Altuve…….he’s a better hitter than he’s shown to date. Gotta adjust to seeing as much action he’s been exposed to early this year - physical but mainly mental fatigue. I don’t really know what he might do in the OF. He’s fast enough. He’s aggressive to the ball. He could play some utility 2B - LF - DH - maybe blend at 1B? I really like Luke but if he’s displaced over next 12 months, it means Team is getting better!
  12. JD-TWINS
    Johan Duran blew a save in Philly & Anthony Banda locked down the Sox in Boston - sweet!! 😉 Keaschall becoming a bit more consistent with the bat……….. Bell has a hit in 4 straight games. Hope he can continue to lift himself up! The PEN hasn’t lost more games than pathetic offense in ‘26. They have stunk in a handful or more games…….. bad in as many games when they were already trailing though. They have really been piecing things together for a decent string of games now. Obviously, more talent in a couple spots would be very helpful……. Rojas or Prielipp (reduce innings) eventually…….. maybe Festa…….. SWR seems to be squarely locked into a PEN role balance of this year. Banda has had a sub 3.50 ERA for last couple years, he’s settling in a bit ……… Gómez appears to have found something in himself …….. Morris is a bright spot. PEN is coming around!
  13. JD-TWINS
    There’s a bunch of room for him (with his capabilities on defense) before he gets to the unplayable Average Lewis was putting up. Don’t necessarily need to be good - just better than alternatives.
  14. JD-TWINS
    Good defense and 3 HR in 10 games is very noteworthy for anyone in this organization! I get it, no crystal ball going forward, but his athleticism seems to give him a fighting chance. Some adjustments from past offensive habits are paying off - obviously, need to see more to be comfortable with him on the roster. Gabriel Gonzalez up tonight in Gray’s roster spot for a few days. Hope he sees some action!
  15. JD-TWINS
    He couldn’t stay on the field … the “egregious headline” was a statement about him being smart with his health …., not a terrible thought. Talent & potential production typically outweighs a guy’s stupid or arrogant comments, from a fan base point of view. See, Barry Bonds & dozens of others across pro sports……….Royce has not been able to utilize his talent so “the mouth/attitude” have become the central view of him as an individual. His fault. If he had 9-10 HR’s and was hitting .275 while playing 90% of the time fans would mimic his eye black in the stands……..press wouldn’t ever mention the “face paint”.
  16. JD-TWINS
    Completely agree but I don’t see anything substantial happening unless he’s working on it for at least 6 weeks …….. may take a month just to find a groove……. then it needs to be repeated v. live/competitive pitching. He may not be his 2023 self again, but he sure has enough ability to be a 115 OPS+ guy at 3B with 15-20 steals per year……that’s not great but it’s a hell of a lot better than where he’s been…… and considered a “good” player.
  17. JD-TWINS
    Kreidler is a right handed batting SS that can play CF. More value off the bench right now BUT after this year’s stats, FEDKO does deserve a look/opportunity very soon if someone falters. No way he deserved a chance last summer after a pretty bleak ‘24 and then not moving to AAA until August 1st of ‘25. The “heavy left handed roster” comments need to be checked. The typical level of RH pitching is 70/75% across the game. The Twins 13 man roster currently has: 3 switch hitters - 6 RH hitters - 4 LH hitters The roster coming out of Spring Training had 3-5-5 respectively. AAA probabilities are Lewis - Fedko - Gonzalez from Right side & Wallner - Jenkins - Rodriguez - Roden from the Left side.
  18. JD-TWINS
    With Abel & Festa back by All-star break - seems feasible…….. the PEN becomes reasonable ….., SWR will be a fixture there balance of the year, along with Morris. Prielipp - Rojas - Matthews piecing together the 4th & 5th starter spots with Ryan - Ober - Bradley ……… the rotation looks good ……. spot starts for Rojas to give other rotation guys an extra day between every other start. They have the framework of a really decent staff, including the PEN over upcoming weeks. If starters maintain the 8th spot in WAR and the PEN can move from 23rd toward 16-17, it should translate to some more Wins. If offensive replacements for Wallner & Lewis hit .220 each it will be a shot in the arm …… pretty low bar!
  19. JD-TWINS
    When has Matt Wallner gone 3-4 in consecutive games - Bell did Monday & Tuesday. There’s Bell’s disappointing stretch and then there is Matt Wallner. Bell is in the cusp of at least working his way back to average……… Wallner just kept sliding backwards. My point is I do not hope for a day when Matt is the DH for the Twins…….just don’t see him flourishing over any length of time.
  20. JD-TWINS
    Not knit picking but I’d have Bailey Ober in the Top 5 group with Lopez - Ryan - Abel - Bradley with Prielipp - Rojas - Matthews right behind them & SWR & Morris in the PEN. After today, I get the feeling they like Morris at 96-97 Mph & shortening his “starter repertoire” to be the Closer.
  21. JD-TWINS
    3 pitchers gave up 5 hits/no walks and had 15 strikeouts. Completely in control for 9 innings. Bottom of line-up (6-10) had 5 of 6 hits for the Twins………Caratini - Gray - Kreidler - Outman. Outman is actually playing like a real MLB player (great catch today in CF) over most recent games. His BA was zero in middle of April & now he’s up to .185 - big change! Not a huge fan but he’s improved!! I didn’t think Clemens nor Outman should be on the March 27 roster ……… Clemens is up to .240 (hit today) and he’s got a .765 OPS.
  22. JD-TWINS
    ?????
  23. JD-TWINS
    For ‘27, I’m bullish on moving Lee to 1B. Culpepper at 3B - Houston at SS - Keaschall at 2B. Lee’s lack of mobility is worked around - he’d have a nice glove at 1B - switch hitter with a 20 HR probability ……. particularly if the defensive pressure is reduced. Can still be a utility guy at other spots in the dirt if needed.
  24. JD-TWINS
    I’m hoping that’s what Lee works (1B) on ALL Winter ……….. Royce is a great option from a “profile” standpoint in paper. Not sure he’s got the hitting tool anymore - I know that’s dramatic but he’s not been good for any length of time for 1.5 seasons.
  25. JD-TWINS
    Houston seems to be the heir apparent at SS. He’s a year away. Lee isn’t terrible - not great. I’d like to see some stability for Lee so he can focus on his AB’s. Culpepper has played 3B & will probably play 3B going forward. Look at Baltimore’s “unbelievable young talent” …… (over last 1-3 yrs.) a list of “can’t miss guys”. Most are struggling. Nobody has a crystal ball on these guys - I trust baseball people to know when Culpepper is ready. There’s certainly an open door for him when he is ready. In the meantime Arcia is a reasonable bridge to Culpepper or back to Lewis, depending upon who is more clearly the better choice in a month. IF, Arcia has some success, he may supplant Gray or Kreidler as a better depth option?
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