Jump to content
Twins Daily
  • Create Account

Althebum82

Verified Member
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    257

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Profiles

News

Minnesota Twins Videos

2026 Minnesota Twins Top Prospects Ranking

2022 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

Minnesota Twins Free Agent & Trade Rumors, Notes, & Tidbits

Guides & Resources

2023 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

The Minnesota Twins Players Project

2024 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

2025 Minnesota Twins Draft Pick Tracker

2026 Minnesota Twins Draft Tracker: Picks & Bonuses

Forums

Blogs

Events

Store

Downloads

Gallery

Everything posted by Althebum82

  1. Althebum82
    Why the heck does this article talk about Jermaine Palacios taking a pitch with two strikes?
  2. Althebum82
    No, only Polanco on the bench in favor of one of the other three.
  3. Althebum82
    Clearly Lewis needs to stay in the DH slot. 3B for him is too risky. Polanco was a logical candidate to try at 3B, but let's instead switch to Farmer, Solano, or Castro for game 2 to address the obvious weakness of the logic. Polanco will still find a way to make an important contribution to this team's success, one way or another.
  4. Althebum82
    Wow, if Polanco has an issue, everyone has been pretty mum about it. Plan A has gotta at least be trying Lewis at DH. Does not make sense to "save" him for round 2. Hard to imagine the Twins not including Buxton on the roster a la Kirk Gibson. But it's pretty obvious that he should not be starting at DH.
  5. Althebum82
    Kepler with the "Game-Winning-RBI", Pagan with the save. Okay, this time technically in a meaningless game, but this is still a reminder that the oft-maligned duo has contributed significantly to this team's successful push to the playoffs once they each shook off horrible starts. Keuchel has been an interesting story to watch, but it sure looks like it would be a big mistake to include him on the playoff roster at the expense of Funderburk. For my money, the rookie has made his "Mark" and deserves to given the opportunity to have an impact. Nice that they stretched him out an extra inning this time. I can understand why Buxton wants to push to return. This is, after all, contractually his team along with Correa. Guess at this point I would take him over Luplow, but not really anybody else. His struggle has been painful to watch and the team has thrived since his placement to the IL. I still think Ryan is our third-best option as a starter despite this showing. But, if he falters in his next start, how great is it to have Maeda on hand to pick up the pieces?
  6. Althebum82
    Larnach was certainly given the first-out-the-gate chance to win a spot on this list back in April, but I agree that he has lost out to Stevenson (even though Stevenson has yet to show the offensive promise that was seen in St Paul) due to the skills that are mentioned as Stevenson's strengths. At this point I would have to agree with Larnach's exclusion.
  7. Althebum82
    He really did make an impression with his initial call-up (from AA if I remember correctly) where he was mostly used for his speed as a pinch runner but did manage to get a lightning-fast triple as well as a double in 6 at bats. Glad he is on our side and that he has overcome two stints on the IL this year to have a significant contribution to this team's success!
  8. Althebum82
    Not intending to take away anything from what the Twins have accomplished this series.....but my oh my what an embarassing display our opponents have presented so far.
  9. Althebum82
    Headrick has been announced as the move to make room for Ober. Nice to have our two back-end bullpen guys finish the game pretty cleanly so that everyone else is fresh for the rest of the series. Based on Maeda's performance it would appear that Keuchel is a likely odd man out of rotation unless things go horribly for Ober for some reason. His inclusion in the bullpen is still of good value to the Twins, and he is smart enough to adjust to whatever role the Twins need him in.
  10. Althebum82
    I was moaning about this trade (although interestingly somehow found comfort in the inclusion of a couple of low-level minor league prospects) the entire month of April. April in Minnesota may just never be Lopez's "sweet spot", but his performance heated up with the weather month by month and he has clearly shown that he is exactly what the Twins needed after last season's starting pitching instabiity. What is even more impressive is to hear him be interviewed. He is incredibly intelligent not only about baseball but health as a pre-med student in college and the son of two doctors. He projects an attitude of quiet confidence that makes you believe that he is every day eager to continue learning new things. It would not surprise me to see him evolve into a front office capacity if he would wish to do so post-playing career. Fantastic writing technique, by the way, of getting an expert opinion of the Marlins to share their perspective. Don't know if you have ever used it before but I actually find this quite refreshing and uniquely brilliant.
  11. Althebum82
    Useful? Not particularly, other than eating a few innings here or there in the last few games strictly for the purpose of reacquainting him the skill level of big league batters again. Sherriff? Definitely not. The Twins will likely see their best return on investment with him by doing what they can to build his confidence but not expect anything beyond Barnie Fife -level duties until next season (unless maybe a little winter ball may make sense for him). But it most certainly is encouraging to have him come as far along the recovery path as he presently is.
  12. Althebum82
    Oy vey, is there no limit to number of subtle Pablo Cruise references on this site? Some people, I guess, Don't Want to Live Without it. But, ultimately, Whatcha Gonna Do? I am just glad we have him in our starting rotation.
  13. Althebum82
    Dallas Keuchel the strikeout master (6 in 5 innings)? Ultimately it amounted to a good enough five inning start followed by outstanding relief work. Nice call on the double steal, but what an embarassing display by the catcher and left fielder not being able to make Stevenson look like the fool he really was on that play.
  14. Althebum82
    So, at a time when medical knowledge and technology were significantly less advanced, knees were the body area that ultimately brought a somewhat premature conclusion to Tony O's career. He may have had other body challenges as well, but none were as prominently documented as Buxton's other injuries. Everyone hopes for healing and recovery for our franchise outfielder. But knees are still a serious area that can effect everything from sleep and mental health to performance on the job. He is a fighter and wants to overcome all obstacles that get in his way of being the best he can be. But some obstacles can ultimately be too much, as we saw with Tony O. He has provided well for his family, and it may be in his best interest to "walk away" from the game while he still can. Literally. It is certainly a legitimate question to ask and I appreciate this article doing so.
  15. Althebum82
    He has shown that when healthy, he has the promise of a long MLB career. The Twins did what they felt they had to do to get a return on their other starting pitcher investments and balance his contribution as well. It was an unorthodox, but logical approach. The hope is that it will pay off in a brighter future for both him and the team over time. I'm okay with that. By the way, the only way he can pitch for the Twins in October is with league approval due to the injury of a September 1 roster player, correct?
  16. Althebum82
    With every start as the season progresses Lopez has shown how important it was for the Twins to acquire him. Arraez is truly special, but a quick look at across the river (along with the signings of Solano and Farmer) shows how much infield depth this franchise has which made Arraez expendable. Even Steer and ES were expendable, unfortunately the expected return for giving them up didn't pan out like Lopez has.
  17. Althebum82
    You know, sometimes the desire for a return on investment gets in the way of making smart choices regarding the true best interests of the team. Wow, to if CC has really been playing through this much pain, it would at this point be smart choice to help him provide us with a max return on his investment by resting him so he is more ready for the playoffs. We do have competent options as others have stated. Moving him down in the line-up is also smart. His glove and team leadership qualities really make him truly a special player. Let's not throw away the potential for a good long career with the Twins for some games in September of marginal importance. Frankly, we have been down this road with Buxton before as well. If he is not able to experience good health on his rehab assignment, shut him down for this year if it means a better chance to deliver results over the rest of his contract. This is a well thought out and well written piece, Cody. As exasperating as CC's season has been offensively, he is always a battler and plays an important role in this team's success. Also, it is clear that there are young players who have emerged to cover the short comings of our key veterans' performances this year. Let's keep focusing on strengths where they exist on this team, and do the best we can with our short comings so that we can all enjoy the unique experience of October MLB baseball.
  18. Althebum82
    Quite frankly Martin, Garlick, Keirsey, Stevenson, and Prato (who played OF to start the season in Wichita) are all overachieving expectations as well as infielders Hernan Perez, and Severino. It's pretty easy to argue that at least one of these guys should have Luplow's roster spot. In the end, most likely he will be gone when Willi Castro completes his rehab assignment and we can all go back to calling out Joey Gallo again.
  19. Althebum82
    Excellent piece, very comprehensive and a joy to read. I had really hoped that Ortega would earn his keep. His limited career MLB appearances, though, have all added up to be too home run prone for whatever reason. In a different TD article it was mentioned that Keuchel would no longer be part of the rotation. I have not seen that reported anywhere else, but I will confess that my reading exposure is limited to a few sources online. If this is true, then surely there is a roster move of some kind approaching shortly that may create an opportunity sooner rather than later. No doubt Gallo has earned his position as the current TD reader whipping boy. But I just can't see this team moving on from the known to the unknown much at this point of the season. Any adds to the roster at this point will most likely be limited to those with existing MLB experience, and most likely be injury-connected in some way.
  20. Althebum82
    No. Not really even a fan of using him at DH, but agree he has earned an increase in his share of the catching load. Every team wants to try to get a max return on a big dollar free agent investment, but the more I see Vasquez in the line-up, the more I cringe. Playing either guy at 1B only exposes the limited return on his signing.
  21. Althebum82
    Here's an observation......the last time the Twins had only two catchers on their active roster over an entire season was 1995 with Walbeck and Merullo. Granted they only played 144 games as a team that year and utility guy Reboulet did fill in an inning, but the point is that the odds of Vaquez and Jeffers staying healthy enough to handle the entire season and possibly playoffs alone is historically daunting. No one else is on the 40 man roster, and we only add two more now in September to the active roster instead of an unlimted number basically in years past. Should Camargo or Williams be added to this list? By the way, love the premise of the article and the conversation it inspires!
  22. Althebum82
    Aaaaaannnnd right on cue, note that Kepler has been kept out of tonight's line-up due to being hit by a pitch on his foot in Monday's game........after supposedly being ruled "just fine" earlier in the day. Hopefully, not a reprise of his 2022 2nd half toe injury for which he had surgery...... Even if it is, I still think that the general consensus opinion of "yes" to the option signing will still continue to be accurate.
  23. Althebum82
    There can be little doubt about the benefits of a recency effect. Had he started out red hot the first half of the season and then crapped out down the stretch posting his current numbers as final, the answer would be no. Overall his total season numbers right now are okay but unspectacular and not worth $9M given other player options noted by others. But no doubt it is a thoughtful question the way the season has unfolded for him. Kinda makes you wonder if the issues that have lead to some IL time were more of a lingering battle than we all knew. Maybe it took this long to fully get back to his physical potential. On the other hand, maybe that thought should really be completely irrelevant. I guess only Kepler himself knows. It is fun to see him making the contribution to the team success that we all expected from him. In the end, I also believe they will do the extension.
  24. Althebum82
    Yeah, there could very well have been a gentleman's agreement with Boras where they need to keep playing Gallo and then Boras would extend a little courtesy back by asking Keuchel to not abandon the Twins at the earliest opt out date. It would be a reasonable benefit for both parties, especially if Gallo had actually turned it around. But, that time has now passed. Chris Williams has earned at least a look. And, Gallo is clearly in his way.
  25. Althebum82
    Mr Belinski, your wish is granted. Moran is down, and welcome back Headrick. Not sure that Headrick has actually earned a call-up, either, but he is left handed I guess. It is a move that most certainly reinforces the message of the original post.
×
×
  • Create New...