josecordoba

1. I think you're somewhat correct. I think Terry Ryan thinks Free-Agent Pitching is generally a poor value due to Injury Risks. Remember this is a franchise that traded Johan before Free-Agency when they're highly unlikely to find a comparable pitcher for decades. Keith Law has talked about how if he was a GM (He would tend to avoid long free agent deals for the probablity that they fail). I tend to doubt that Terry Ryan as GM views success merely according to the Bottom-Line but I have no doubts his roster building has budget constraints they wouldn't encounter in other markets. 2. The Profit/Spending Thing has a few variables. The reality is they're bad enough where the money needed to upgrade the roster to the point where it impacts the gate probably isn't profitable. If you assume the 1 WAR for 5 Million Dollars. 3. I don't fault fans for being mad with the current on the field product (Especially Season Ticket Holders). The problem though isn't the Twins aren't currently spending enough money it's instead years of bad drafts, bad trades, and poor player development. This process is much more important in building a good baseball team in Minnesota.

I don't disagree yet the role of Kevin Correria types concern me must more when you're competing for a division then when you're rebuillding. Basically if Kevin Correria gets Thirty Starts in 2013 (We'll probably get what many predict) hopefully he gives you 180 below average innings yet if Kevin Correria types start 30 games when competing for a Division Title then this is a much bigger problem.

Fair enough.

We saw a healthy Plouffe (Who was a decent long-term option) along with a dinged up Plouffe (Who was not). We saw Dozier make his first run through the majors (340 At Bats). We saw Florimon for 150 at bats. I've got ideas about the long-term value of all these players yet I haven't seen enough of any of them to make conclusive judgments. If the Twins were on a different spot on the Franchise Curve I would advocate a different approach but I'm fine with seeing if these guys can make useful adjustments.

I'm guessing the thought process is they wanted an inning-eating backup for young rotation options. Generally any pitcher that has decent health that isn't going to be outright terrible is going to cost more then league minimum.

1. I would never assume that more spending crowd would advocate giving Kevin Correria an absurd contract. I don't disagree with the main premise that the more money spent would equal a better product on the field which would equal more fan interest. What I wonder though is about the value of short-term gain at the expense of long-term construction. 2. I wouldn't describe the Twins as not spending for their existence. The reality is their financial resources were limited in the Old Stadium and Television Market compared to other franchises. The Twins have spent within budget for most of their existence. The Twins weren't cheap in their moves before 1991 yet the finances of Baseball have changed during this time frame. The Twins aren't as generous with their finances as other teams in similar markets yet this doesn't mean that no opportunities can't be used to advance the roster. What my issue tends to be is what is the best approach to put a championship level product on the field heading into the 2013 Season. I tend to believe that developing Internal Talent to eventually combine with external talent (Such as the Hudson/Hardy moves in 2010) is the best approach at this time.

I agree that this sentiment is most likely true yet you don't want contract signed in 2013 to limit your ability to add Payroll in 2015. I realize you could sign short-term contracts but then I wonder why not just see what you have with younger guys (Plouffe, Dozier, Parmalee, Florimon, Gibson, Hendricks) if an additional 20 Million Dollars might only be the difference between 70-74 wins.

It's not so much spending just to spend. It's managing your budget in a way that when Money is most needed (July/August of Contending Years, Free Agency with important need to fill) the money's there. I realize it's frustrating if you understand the money probably being sat on but I would argue a much better strategy is to save the money when a team has a much greater marginal value per win.

First Time Poster Here who defended Mackey over at AM 1500. 1. The first question to ask is what the Team's True Talent Level. We've won 63 and 66 games the last two years. We also traded away nearly 7.5 WARP in Revere and Span. I realize the pitching probably couldn't be much worse. But it seems even the most optimistic gauges of the Team's True Talent Level would put it between (65-70 Games). Even accounting for Random Variation of perhaps 10 games either way. This doesn't place us real close to contention. 2. Could the Twins spend more money? Sure- I would never debate this. What I might question is whether this is the best idea. If you use the commonly assumed figure of 5 Million-6 Million Dollars for 1 WAR as cited by Dave Cameron this means spending an Extra 25 Million Dollars on Payroll only upgrades the team to a true talent level of 70-75 wins. The reality of this is the Twins are going to end up eating most of this money since they'll be hard pressed making this amount of money up at the gate. Even upgrading the payroll 50 Million Dollars. Still in most scenarios leaves them far from the playoffs. 3. Why not sign Maicer Izturis? I believe him to be better then the current option which is most likely Florimon. I happen to believe Florimon wouldn't hit enough to be a starting MLB Shortshop (Even with great defense). Yet if the Twins believe Florimon can be a long-term solution at the position (It's not absurd considering the value of Brendan Ryan) they may as well experiment. I would say the same thing about Plouffe (They're not finding anyone better in Free Agency). I'm not a Parmalee Fan but I'm alright with seeing what they have till Arcia is ready sometime in the next 18 months. Basically the types of players the Twins could acquire- I just don't see a lot of long-term gain from their acquistion. A guy like the Cuban Short-Stop Diaz (Would be a totally different story).