Western SD Fan

My issue with pulling SIm out of the rotation was never because he didn't deserve to be pulled. It was more that they didn't have a plan or a backup plan since both Rojas and Ober immediately go down after making this move.

Not sure it will be Adams this time as they have to monitor the number of trips they send him back down to five. Probably will be whoever has to give some length the night before.

I still think they sent him down with the intention on trying to work with him and get him back to being the player they expect him to be when they drafted him. The blowup about him refusing to play 2nd base was a bit overblown, at the time and still to this day. He made an honest assessment to the media that he wasn't sure that he was capable of playing 2nd base. He only made one appearance at 2nd in the minors so that would help defend him. Royce's problem the entire time has been his statements to the media. He has fallen out of stardom status, but the raw talent is still there if he can put it together. The idea of having him try first base is to both help him get back up here ASAP and to help the team in a position that they need to stabilize.

Does Richards still have reverse splits? I know that was the great selling point for trading for him a few years ago.

That has been a Shelty special in leaving the starters out there to get one or two extra outs when the numbers suggest he can get them. With Ryan, Bradley, or even Ober, it has worked more often than not. Didn't work tonight with Prielipp and Shelton should have seen it with the ominous fly balls that Prielipp was giving up in the prior inning.

At first. There was a report earlier today that Lewis is starting to put in some work at first base. It seems like they wanted to regain his confidence at the plate first, then introduce a new position for him to try out. It does sound like they worked on his mechanics at the plate in St Paul as well.

If I had to guess, the answer would be no. They have been treating him with kid gloves since they brought him up. He did a good job with the QS. Time to turn it over to our reinvigorated bullpen.

More insurance runs! Definitely helps Prielipp chase down a quality start tonight.

Those fly balls are looking a little more menacing, but he did complete five innings! Can qualify for the win!

That's another factor to me that goes into the Culpepper equation. As long as Gray and Kreidler are performing above expectations, they get to continue to push him back. We all know who they are long-term, but sometimes it's nice to ride the hot streak.

The optimist in me says that they are working out a contract similar to Konnor Griffin, McGonigle in Detroit, or some of the others that have signed earlier this season. The pessimist just says, no matter what, that they will stick to their tried-and-true method of service time manipulation regardless of the damage it may do to the current team or his career. If you consider the upcoming labor negotiations, the players not on the 40-man still have to report to the minors. But if you are on the 40-man, you get locked out.

Nice bounce back inning by Prielipp. He may make 5 innings tonight.

They brought back the Protest rule just to protest the game on that play. May have to wait until the league looks at it.

I don't disagree with you there. It's more of a reality statement that, since he is not on the 40-man, they do not have to rush him up here no matter how many hits or home runs he gets in St. Paul.

The answer is much more than you want him to since he is not on the 40-man. If he was, he likely would have been up here already. Something about an impending work stoppage has got everyone scared?

I honestly think it's more that he needs more seasoning in St Paul and we have no choice but to have him up here at the moment. This was why I was advocating the Mlodzinski thread earlier today that he could provide both short- and long-term assistance to the team. At least he seems to be able to face major league pitching at the moment.

Prielipp was looking decent for the first couple of innings. Seems like he is falling apart as the CWS are forcing him to come in the zone and he does not have the swing and miss stuff in zone.

Someone will likely correct me because I'm not sure I understood it properly. From what I read this morning, since SWR is out of options, he must be added to the active roster of another team unless he chooses a minor league assignment. There is a real possibility that no team wants him on their active roster so he may end up coming back to the Twins. He should have cleared waivers by now.

I heard some rumor earlier this season that they get to count the standing room season tickets only as attendance. Seems a little suspect to me.

Yep. It also keeps working back towards them after what they got earlier today.

I'm in Rapid City.

All of the good storm chasers are in my neck of the woods today. Should be an interesting evening!

This could be a good low-wattage trade for the Twins. Especially for this year, where you're on the fringes of competing, but don't want to screw up whatever process the Twins are currently under. From the Twins perspective, even as a bulk pitcher, he is currently a more effective bulk pitcher than anyone else we currently have on the 40-man roster. As reported by Dan Hayes yesterday, Abel is cleared to face live batting practice on Thursday, and he is the pitcher closest to coming back from the IL. When Abel comes back, the move would allow Prielipp a chance to go back to St. Paul and work on some things, like his control. If the Twins continue to fade, they can still trade Ryan and Mlodzinski will still give bulk innings for a team that will need pitchers to get through the season. From the Pirates perspective, you are able to rid yourself of what appears to be a disgruntled player and likely pick up a low-level prospect as I'm not sure there is anyone currently on the team that the Pirates would want. Maybe Larnach as he could replace Ozuna as DH. I don't think the Pirates would want either Lewis or Wallner as neither one would fit into their short- or long-term plans. Now for the warts. He has never thrown over 99 innings in a season. His ERA and WHIP has been increasing every year including this one. His hard-hit rate for 2026 is over 50% and his ground ball rate is 43.2%. Not exactly encouraging for a shaky defense with limited range and a below average K-rate. It's possible that Pete Maki and the coaching staff could tweak his pitch mix and get some more out of him. Ultimately, you need arms to get through the season, and the Twins need arms if they want to stay competitive. If there is a low-level trade that can be worked out, I think it would work out for both teams.

I would take his statement as an entire load of salt. He was put on the restricted list on Sunday and was taken off the list on Monday, which means he wasn't getting paid. The lack of payment motivated him to come back to the team.

I found the patch that Joe Ryan needs to have stitched to his uniform: