10PagesOfClearBlueSky

Is the direct tv ad on the side of the page intended to hang down over the first few forum threads? I am on an i-pad, and I can't see the first few posts. These 'interruption style ads' do not entice me to click at all.

Mr. Brooks, I understood your jest, and did not think you would die by your ascertation about Gardy batting 2nd Baseman in the 2-spot, but I believe that it is a perception that exists. Baseball Referance has Tolbert's stolen base numbers at an 11 per 162- Game clip. While not exactly a burner, Tolbert could steal a base when called upon. A player with a grand total of 680 plate appearences doesn't seem to have been blocking anybody from the 2-spot, more like just filling in during injuries. This brings me to my conversation with CDog, in which I stated that when a guy like Tolbert is the other option, Mauer batting second seems like a better choice. I would be interested to see somebody with a better mastery of stat-sorting do a study of how often Gardy has batted the 2nd Baseman in the 2-spot compared to the frequency across the league. Noting the OBP of these players on average would also help to confirm or deny actuality of tis perception. Dont look now, but Dozier switched his jersey number. New number: 2. It's meant to be!

CDog, I agree that Mauer in the 2-spot is sometimes tempting, but in general my perspective has been that it should have been done during certain stretches of time when injuries and roster considerations have made that option the most desirable. Generally speaking, Gardy hasn't done this during times when 'just sliding everybody up' has seemed the most obvious choice. For Gardy to choose to do so when he theoretically has the entire roster to choose from would be even less likely than him doing it in the aforementioned scenarios. That being said, if Dozier, Escobar, Florimon or Carrol were to hit well enough and have decent On-Base numbers then I would rather see Mauer stay as the number 3 hitter. Carrol not having great speed seems to decrease the desirability to have him in the 2-spot despite his usally solid OBP. Still, I am not so sure Carrol in the 2-spot would be a bad thing. In my projection, Carrol is the utility man, so that is a moot point. I also really like to see runners on base with Mauer coming to the plate. People who desire Mauer at 2 don't seem to see him as quite the RBI threat that he can actually be. One good and one decent OBP guy gives Mauer and his plate discipline an opportunity to select a pitch to drive in some runs if he gets one, or to draw a walk and let the big guys swing it. Mauer at 3, with his combination of OBP and ability to drive the ball sounds pretty darn good to me.

Drtwins, You're right. I checked the schedule and it is clear that this April 10 date is incorrect. April 7 will be the first time a fifth starter is "needed". This makes me think it is much more likely the Twins will go with a full five-man rotation right out of the gate, and just give their opening day starter the extra day of rest. I would amend my projected rotation to include Deduno, and to make room I would subtract Roenicke from the bullpen.

Agreed. This slight against Gardy that he only bats second basemen in the 2-spot has always rubbed me the wrong way. What he does prefer is a "speedy guy who can run around and steal some bases" in the 2-spot. I don't blame him for that either. The fact that the Twins' speed guys have tended to be Second Basemen has simply made that occurrence more often. Now, arguing that he should pay more attention to these speed guys' On Base numbers before he puts them in the 2-spot would be a more fair criticism.

Spideyo, Yes, you went on the record with you lineup substantially before I did. I still would have been shocked to see Podsednick signed as it would have indicated very little faith in the Hicks/Mastroanni/Benson combination on the part of the front office and coaching staff. To me, it seemed pretty clear even in early February that the Twins believed their CF would come from inside the organization. Like I stated, to be fair I did not foresee Hicks making the choice of the three as easy as it seems like it is going to be.

Nick, Thanks for the response. This was my first post here. Nice to have one of the big guys make me feel part of the community right off the bat. While in principle, I agree about Dozier not earning the number 2 spot in the order during Spring Training, I'm still not convinced that Gardy will ultimately see it that way. Odd as it may sound, Dozier might be earning his spot in the order with his solid defense. Clearly his defense has gotten people talking and has made his spot as the starting 2B more likely. If we assume he wins the 2B position we can then nitpick about the choice between Carrol, Florimon, and Escobar. If Carrol were to be given the start at SS, I would see Gardy batting him number 2. In my lineup, however, I am guessing that Escobar ends up as the starting SS. Given this, I just don't see Gardy stacking up the middle infielders at the bottom of the order. He really seems to love to put a "speed guy" in the number 2 spot in the lineup. Going on my roster assumptions, I then choose between Escobar and Dozier for the number 2 spot. While Dozier hasn't been lighting it up, I believe the perception exists that his offensive upside would be make him much more palatable at the number 2 spot than Escobar. Even if Florimon beats out Escobar for the SS spot (which I believe he won't because of Escobar's emergency catching potential) I still would expect to see Dozier number 2 and Florimon number 9. As far as Gardy batting Joe 2nd; I said in my blog post that I may be likely to try it, but I've just not seen enough evidence that this is a likely option given years of witnessing Gardy's style of constructing batting orders. "A very good chance" of Joe batting 2 seems overconfident on the subject unless you know something I don't know (which is very much likely). If I were to bet Monopoly money, I would wager that Joe Mauer bats third on Opening Day and beyond.

Yes, pretty similar. I don't think Gardy will be likely to go for Mauer batting second. And really when I think about it, with Hicks' potential OBP and as long as Dozier can have close to average OBP I don't mind them one and two at all. Your lineup didn't seem very optimistic regarding Hicks. Podsednick never seemed very likely to me, but then again neither did Hicks looking so well. Your scenario in which both Mauer and Doumit are unable to catch and therefore Escobar is needed to catch AND one of Carrol/Dozier/Plouffe are unavailable to play the infield seems unlikely at best. And am I remembering correctly that Mastro is said to be able to play a little bit of 2B in an emergency? In your scenario occurred, then Mastro at 2B would be the least of my worries. I would rather have the nice pinch hitting balance of R/L, but that doesn't mean Gardy won't agree with you.

Rosterman, You make some good points. Yes, of course 40 man roster considerations would have to be made. That goes without saying. I would think whoever is on the outs from the Roenicke, Woods, Pressly mix would make room for the addition of Thome and/or Collabello. Clearly, Thome is a long shot, which I stated in my post. I don't think he and Collabello are exactly the same, however. Yes, they are both bats off of the bench, but one hitting left handed and one hitting right handed makes them substantially different in actual game strategy scenarios. In fact, they somewhat protect each other as opposing managers would have to be mindful when choosing to bring in same handed relievers. Who do you see as the Right handed pinch hitting option if Thome was on the 25? And conversley who is the left handed option if they go with Collabello? My point is that none of Carrol/Mastro/Escobar exactly strike fear into the hearts of opposing pitchers. Would having them both be a luxury which is far from likely? Yes. Pressly over Hernandez seems reasonable, and I admitted that Hernandez would be a sleeper choice. The left-handed option would be nice, but I agree that if Pressly has been performing better then the best reliever available should get the job regardless of R/L considerations.

Han, Why not both Colabello and Thome? Pinch hit options from both sides of the plate. If Escobar can convince Gardy he could catch in a pinch, it might be possible. My Opening Day Lineup - Blogs - Minnesota Twins News & Rumors Forum

I am so into the idea of Colabello making the team that I even included him in my Projected Opening Day Roster. My Opening Day Lineup - Blogs - Minnesota Twins News & Rumors Forum

You can view the post with the whole roster explanation here: My Opening Day Lineup - Blogs - Minnesota Twins News & Rumors Forum Here is the batting order: Starting Lineup CF. Aaron Hicks 2B. Brian Dozier C. Joe Mauer LF. Josh Willingham 1B. Justin Morneau DH. Ryan Doumit 3B. Trevor Plouffe RF. Chris Parmelee SS. Eduardo Escobar Opening Day Starting Pitcher Vance Worley What does everybody think?

Interesting lineup, Shane. I just posted mine, and there are many similarities between our rosters. There are a few notable exceptions as well, including a very different looking bullpen. I really feel like the season is close when i start to make projected lineups, and it really gets me excited for the season. I'm lucky my girlfriend is such a big-time Twins fan, because I'll be fooling around with my projected roster off and on every day for the next three weeks!!

Opening Day is a few weeks away, and Twins fans still don't have an exact idea of what the lineup will look like when the Twins take the field. Many people have been discussing their Opening Day roster projections. I wanted to put this on the record so that I could say "I told you so". Starting Lineup CF. Aaron Hicks 2B. Brian Dozier C. Joe Mauer LF. Josh Willingham 1B. Justin Morneau DH. Ryan Doumit 3B. Trevor Plouffe RF. Chris Parmelee SS. Eduardo Escobar Opening Day Starting Pitcher Vance Worley Rotation Mike Pelfrey Kevin Correia Cole DeVries Bullpen Glen Perkins Jared Burton Brian Duensing Casey Fien Alex Burnett Pedro Hernandez Tim Wood Josh Roenicke Bench Darin Mastrioanni Jamey Carrol Chris Colabello Jim Thome DL Scott Diamond Anthony Swarzack First off, I went under the assumption that the Twins will go with a four man rotation until April 10th when they will need the fifth starter. At that point Diamond may be ready, and if not I would expect Hendricks to get the nod. Starting the season with a four man rotation leaves an extra roster spot. I dedicated the extra spot to the bullpen, where Hernandez, Wood, and Roenicke would all get a bit of a look before waiver and option decisions have to be made. Anthony Swarzack is also likely to be ready after not too long, and he will presumably take one of those bullpen spots in the long relief role. I see the eventual rotation and bullpen looking like this: Diamond Worley Pelfrey Correia DeVries Perkins Burton Duensing Fien Burnett Hernandez Swarzack I am optimistic that Gardy can trust Escobar's ability to catch a few innings in case of an emergency situation. If Escobar is on the roster, it is unlikely that Florimon also goes north with the club. That is unless Jamey Carrol is on the outside-looking-in, which seems improbable. I see Escobar getting the starting position and Carrol in the utility role. This leaves an extra spot on the bench for some pinch hitting power. Yes, I have Jim Thome listed even though he isn't even currently employed by the Twins. I added Thome to the list mostly because of how much I would like to see it happen, and I realise that it's a long shot. Left handed pop and excitement for the fans would be nice, and without Butera on the bench it makes the luxury of a pinch hit homerun threat more feasible. I also put Colabello on the list as a right handed pinch hitting option. It would be such a fun story, and the quality of his recent production might make it much less of a long shot than it seemed coming into camp. I guess my only other real sleeper pick is Hernandez in the bullpen. Another lefty would be convenient, and I can't think of anybody who has outright won the open spot. This of course implies that Hicks winning the center field job is not a sleeper pick, which I believe is starting to become consensus among the fans and the coaching staff. This projection is a combination of what I think we will see, and what I want to see. I would maybe try Mauer batting second and would probably not bring Burnett north, but Gardy seems set on them being where they are. What do you think of my roster? Anybody care to go on the record with their projection?

Opening Day is a few weeks away, and Twins fans still don't have an exact idea of what the lineup will look like when the Twins take the field. Many people have been discussing their Opening Day roster projections. I wanted to put this on the record so that I could say "I told you so". Starting Lineup CF. Aaron Hicks 2B. Brian Dozier C. Joe Mauer LF. Josh Willingham 1B. Justin Morneau DH. Ryan Doumit 3B. Trevor Plouffe RF. Chris Parmelee SS. Eduardo Escobar Opening Day Starting Pitcher Vance Worley Rotation Mike Pelfrey Kevin Correia Cole DeVries Bullpen Glen Perkins Jared Burton Brian Duensing Casey Fien Alex Burnett Pedro Hernandez Tim Wood Josh Roenicke Bench Darin Mastrioanni Jamey Carrol Chris Colabello Jim Thome DL Scott Diamond Anthony Swarzack First off, I went under the assumption that the Twins will go with a four man rotation until April 10th when they will need the fifth starter. At that point Diamond may be ready, and if not I would expect Hendricks to get the nod. Starting the season with a four man rotation leaves an extra roster spot. I dedicated the extra spot to the bullpen, where Hernandez, Wood, and Roenicke would all get a bit of a look before waiver and option decisions have to be made. Anthony Swarzack is also likely to be ready after not too long, and he will presumably take one of those bullpen spots in the long relief role. I see the eventual rotation and bullpen looking like this: Diamond Worley Pelfrey Correia DeVries Perkins Burton Duensing Fien Burnett Hernandez Swarzack I am optimistic that Gardy can trust Escobar's ability to catch a few innings in case of an emergency situation. If Escobar is on the roster, it is unlikely that Florimon also goes north with the club. That is unless Jamey Carrol is on the outside-looking-in, which seems improbable. I see Escobar getting the starting position and Carrol in the utility role. This leaves an extra spot on the bench for some pinch hitting power. Yes, I have Jim Thome listed even though he isn't even currently employed by the Twins. I added Thome to the list mostly because of how much I would like to see it happen, and I realise that it's a long shot. Left handed pop and excitement for the fans would be nice, and without Butera on the bench it makes the luxury of a pinch hit homerun threat more feasible. I also put Colabello on the list as a right handed pinch hitting option. It would be such a fun story, and the quality of his recent production might make it much less of a long shot than it seemed coming into camp. I guess my only other real sleeper pick is Hernandez in the bullpen. Another lefty would be convenient, and I can't think of anybody who has outright won the open spot. This of course implies that Hicks winning the center field job is not a sleeper pick, which I believe is starting to become consensus among the fans and the coaching staff. This projection is a combination of what I think we will see, and what I want to see. I would maybe try Mauer batting second and would probably not bring Burnett north, but Gardy seems set on them being where they are. What do you think of my roster? Anybody care to go on the record with their projection?