LyleCole

How is it "nonsensical" ? You really cannot explain it which means your hypothesis is weak. Basically, there are two paths. One, go all in and prove that ownership will invest in this team that people consider to be a "contender" (I don't totally agree with this myself) and get the payroll up to closer to average MLB payroll. Find the right deals and bring in at least one front line starter and one high end reliever. Or, otherwise, if the ownership is still on the we are going to be spendthrift path, dump everything that will not be a full part of the rebuild. Ryan. Jeffers. Buxton. Lewis. Bell. Get the best prospect deals you can. Then rebuild. It is two divergent paths that only ownership can control.

I thought this team is a "contender"? Maybe you don't think that. But if you do and ownership is committed to increasing payroll, now is the time. Otherwise, be major sellers at the deadline and rebuild.

If the Twins are serious about contending then multiple moves should be made at the deadline: a starter and a closer, and maybe even another short reliever on a lesser deal. Everyone with the exception of Jenkins and Culpepper, and perhaps Marek Houston (a prospect I am not as high on as others but if he keeps hitting even close to his AA production he is a starting MLB player) I would include Luke Keaschall and Brooks Lee on the available players.

To the screams of other people, this is a point I have been making. IF the Ownership is serious about increasing payroll, now is the time to demonstrate it. While I think the current team is mediocre it has a chance to make the playoffs. But if we had a huge influx of talent it could be a playoff contender. If not, then why keep Ryan Jeffers? Why keep Joe Ryan? If you aint going to pay them, trade them before you lose the significant trade value they have right now.

What evidence do you have to suggest they will? They have not spent the money to be competitive. They won two championships more than 35 years ago with a special combination of players but have not invested on the team to keep it competitive.

IF your goal is to win a division then perhaps that is meaningful. Since 2000 we have won the division 9 times, which seems reasonable. But, we have only been the wild card once in those 26 years. ANd of course, in those 10 playoff trips we have won one wild card series and one division series (in 2002). I think it is pretty telling that in 6 of the 9 division championships, the Twins would not have been the wild card team. We have competed in the worst division in the American League. And, again even though we had HOF player in Joe Mauer, a player who was a HOF level player in his shortened career, and a mulitple Cy Young winner, we did not have a good enough team to truly compete for the World Series. If you look at all of those rosters they had major holes up and down because the ownership did not invest in the team. I am glad you enjoy this team. Sometimes the entertainment is more valuable than the winning. But just think how good the team would be if the owners invested $50 million in pitching.

No, you stated that the President of Baseball Operations, which was Derek Falvey, presented the budgets to ownership. To refresh your memory here is the quote "You do understand that the head of baseball operations brings to ownership the plan " which implied that he was the one setting the budget. And you do understand that is not true. Ownership set the budgets and the front office had to make the roster within those parameters.

Yeah. If you believe that the head of Baseball Operations, whose job really depends on how the team performs not by the money it makes (or does not lose), would WILLINGLY bring to ownership these payroll budgets then I have a bridge to sell you.

IT isn't an opinion, it is fact. In the past 15 years the Twins have had a total payroll above the median payroll 2 times, peaking at 12th place in 2000 ****ing 12. They were 15th in payroll in 2023. In the past 15 years the Twins have only spent more than the league average once, in 2012, by $3 million. Even with that outlier year, they have underspent the average MLB payroll by $24.8 million annually. Please, signing Puckett and Mauer are anecdotal and not even close to an argument. And here is what it meant: in the last 15 seasons we have gone to the playoffs 4 times. We have one single playoff win to show for it, with a playoff record in that stretch of 1-9. If the owners spend the money to just the league average adding 1-2 quality players to the roster, they could have been contenders, not pretenders. If they want to spend money now to make this team competitive, then do it and acquire some players at the deadline and make the contract offers to Jeffers and Ryan needed to retain them, along with other high end players. If they do not, then dump everything that moves to build up the prospect bank so that in a handful of years we can become competitive.

Like I said, the real basis of my argument is the fact, the ABSOLUTE fact that cannot be denied, is that the Twins ownership will not spend the money. That is the one consistent feature of this team across GMs and Managers. If we were really serious about our prospects and that this is a good team that can be competitive, we would be looking at MAJOR trades at the deadline. Packaging prospects (prolly not Culpepper or Jenkins) and perhaps one of the younger players already on the roster like Keachall, to bring in a player that will be difference makers, ALONG with a few other minor moves. Put a trade package of players together for Josh Hader or Reid Detmers. How about another for Mason Miller to bring in a true closer. Put another package together for Brooks Raley. It might cost the Twins Luke keaschall or Brooks Lee, Eduardo Tait, Gabe Gonzolaes, and a few other players, and down the road a boat load of money to keep them signed, but that is what real contenders with REAL OWNERSHIP does.

Ummmmmm, sure. Your response is such a fact based statement it should be sent to law schools to add to their curriculum. Do you disagree that the Twins ownership is cheap? And the ages of the players? How much salary this team would have to add to even reach the league average? I do not see a hybrid keeping the existing veteran players on this roster into the future where the young prospects with potential will be developed into a contending team as a workable solution. It is better to pull the band aid and chose a route. The choices are 1. ownership opens its wallet and adds the veteran free agents now and builds the top prospects into the roster or 2. complete rebuild with this group of prospects plus high end prospects we get in trades. But the most likely path is the Twins will continue to go their same old same old, slowly moving up the prospects and filling the holes in the line up with low budget players.

What this best indicates is that we need to trade the veterans on this roster that will not be part of this foundation away for pitching prospects to match the offense in the same timeline. Someone posted the dream 2028 lineup, and it looks great on paper, but the problem is that the bulk of that roster will be very inexperienced players who will take time and will lose a lot of games because of that inexperience. The 1987 WS team did and the veterans listed in that group will be that much older. In 2028 Byron Buxton will be 34 years old and Joe Ryan 32. They are in their declining years were injury issues can be even more significant. Also, it does require that the Twins sign Ryan to that huge contract (I think the guy says $210 over six years) and Buxton would probably require an extension to enter his final year of his deal. That would be completely out of character for the Twins ownership group, especially investing that contract in Ryan who would be 38 in the final season of his contract. Plus, the probability of Pablo Lopez being part of that group is very low. This is the logical approach, with the only caveat being that suddenly the ownership group changes how they finance the team and will be willing to add significant players to that group, especially on the pitching side. Not the low ball veterans like Josh Bell and Anthony Banda, but players earning $10, $20, or even $30 million per season to fit in the holes in this roster. Lets put it this way, to get to "AVERAGE" MLB roster payroll the Twins would have to add $70 million in salary to the 2026 budget. That is one $30 million per year player and 2 $20 million per year players. If we had those players on the roster right now they would be true contenders. But they don't because this ownership group, and I can only say it one way, ****S OVER its fans. It is in a solid market with a beautiful urban stadium and they run it on a shoe string.

So, 5 years later he still is not carrying a full starting work load and pitch count level. And, because of his history I doubt he ever will.

It is observational, but I have my doubts about the Twins medical staff. I would also add that the Twins have a high propensity to draft pitchers that have had previous arm problems hoping that the injury gave them a draft value if they recover. Priellip. Quick. Ellwanger. LaPour. Generally, a well managed reliever throwing fewer pitches is easier on the arm than starting and throwing 90-100 pitches. And, that isn;t the only reason to look at Prillip as a reliever, even a closer. He has the fastball-slider mix that is very optimal for the role while his off speed pitches are not the best part of his arsenal. It would be the best outcome for Priellip to be able to be a regular part of the rotation, but the pitch and inning limits are probably never going to go away.

While it would be great to leave Prielipp in the rotation, I just do not see a scenario in which that really works out. Here is Connor's IP by year: 2020 21.0 (Alabama) 2021 7.0 (Alabama) 2022 0 2023 6.2 (Rookie, A+) 2024 23.1 (Rk,A, A+) 2025 82.2 (AA, AAA) 2026 82.1 (AAA, MLB) No one is going to ever trust his arm and injury issues enough for him to produce a full time rotational starter role. So move him to the bullpen where his fastball-slider combination will be lethal. Then he can fully produce across the season, although the injury issues will never fade from memory.