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mluebker

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Everything posted by mluebker

  1. mluebker
    “Shelton is used to faulty, incomplete rosters limited by insufficient payroll. He’s wrapped in the (in)security blanket of not being handed reinforcements, despite clear needs. He’s acclimated to the quiet feeling of despondence that goes along with doing your job with one hand tied behind your back. He’s familiar with ownership that’s more concerned with profit margins and operating cash flow than fielding a winning team. And, he’s no stranger to needing to pretend to agree with the direction of a bad team.” So basically, Shelton arrives with his spirit pre-broken, saving the front office the time and effort they’d have to expend doing that to another candidate.
  2. mluebker
    Yes. Regrettably. Now all they need to do is hire Rocco as a bench coach and save a few more bucks on new employee orientation.
  3. mluebker
    No, I think the front office—Falvey and company—are doing that. And after the trade deadline, they had were a little short on experience and had to go with who was left.
  4. mluebker
    You beat me to it! I'd maybe add "once they start actually having regular position players, not a roster full of jacks-of-all-trades rotating around the field."
  5. mluebker
    Rowson, Servais, or Shelton. Glad to see them focusing on catchers. Hope whoever gets the nod is a good motivator.
  6. mluebker
    Glad you appreciate it. And much as I’d like to think I originated that particular turn of phrase, I’m pretty sure I’m not the first one to use it.
  7. mluebker
    Sounds like maybe you need a refresher on the meaning of “sounds like” (speculative, an opinion) and “is” (stating a fact).
  8. mluebker
    Sounds like I stated my opinion, not anyone else's. Sorry that bothers you.
  9. mluebker
    That's probably true. I more meant that I hope his bat will be stronger next year than this year. But if that doesn't change, it's probable he is more destined for a utility role than a starter role Other than Buxton, is there anyone else on the roster who both hits and fields well enough to be an everyday player on a team that actually could contend? If there is, I’m not seeing him on that list.
  10. mluebker
    Sounds like Falvey’s dream team and everyone else’s nightmare.
  11. mluebker
    “Reading between the lines, and in some cases just taking their words at face value, it becomes clear that Twins leadership is longing for a return to the good old days of ‘The Twins Way’ — or at least an evolution of it — on multiple levels.” That would be a whole lot better plan than whatever it was they thought they were doing for the past few years.
  12. mluebker
    My facts are straight—I just draw different conclusions from them than yours. Hope that doesn’t upset you.
  13. mluebker
    It was and it is emblematic of how the Twins part ways with guys who are playing better than those they find to replace them. Rocco supposedly was extended this past year as well, and now he’s looking for a job, too, so that doesn’t mean much. Extensions don’t seem to foreshadow their intentions. Either way, extending guys they shouldn’t might be another thing to add to the list of what’s wrong with how Falvey and his masters do business. They can’t see the future any better than you or I, but you’d hope they wouldn’t keep repeating the errors of the past.
  14. mluebker
    Long essay to say you have a different opinion. Okay, cool. But that’s all we have when when we talk baseball—pretending they’re right and wrong don’t give them any more weight.
  15. mluebker
    There’s only one reason the Twins part company with a guy who’s playing well: They don’t want to pay him what he’s worth. Dress it up some other way if it makes you feel better, but they’re cheap and they don’t want to pay for performance. They’d rather try to fill the hole with a prospect who may or may not be ready, a cheaper free agent, or a guy who’s been DFA.
  16. mluebker
    Desperate?
  17. mluebker
    Of course he is. A salary dump has the same result as, “Oops, he’s due for a raise. Get him on the ejection seat!” Maybe they do him a favor by giving him an extension, but as soon as they do, the countdown clock starts ticking. He’s gone.
  18. mluebker
    This kind of trade is the Twins’ bread and butter. As soon as a guy’s performance means they’ll have to pay him a decent salary, it’s time to put him on the market for a package of iffy prospects. Fans are stuck with rooting for the former Twins guy to fail with his new team so we can say we got the best of the deal.
  19. mluebker
    Maybe too much looking at stats and not enough looking at players.
  20. mluebker
    “The Twins were supposed to be different. They had modern analytics…” Pretty much everyone counting on analytics these days means it’s not going to be an advantage anymore. No team with a roster of cast-offs and lower-tier free agents that strictly follows the numbers is ever going to dominate teams with better players that also strictly follow the numbers. If the Twins continue to be the former under the Pohlads, they’re going to need a different approach, starting with a manager who’s aware of the numbers, but willing to listen to his gut, and think outside the box once in a while. Otherwise fans in other cities with low-performing teams will be posting articles cautioning that they don’t want to become the Twins of their league or division.
  21. mluebker
    If they do this, send them a bill for the consultation and check into the requirements for witness protection.
  22. mluebker
    I'd take a catcher with no on-field coaching experience, as long as he has good communication skills. I don't know anything about Suzuki's communication skills, though.
  23. mluebker
    Clearly Joe has had some media training. He seems skilled at giving the answers to the questions he wanted to be asked, instead of to the questions he was asked or addressing what his theoretical audience actually wants to know. It's called "spinning'," and apparently whoever trained him forgot to mention how that technique rarely works with sports fans, at least not for 34 consecutive years.
  24. mluebker
    Played in the 2002 ALCS or can convincingly pretend you did. Get thrown out once a week. Ability to wave arms furiously while yelling “C’MON BLUE!” required. Must own at least one pair of stirrups and an authentic Starter jacket. If you’ve ever taken batting practice in a Metrodome dome dog costume or been immortalized in a Target Field bobblehead, congratulations: you’re already qualified to manage the Minnesota Twins. Okay, it's Doug Mientkiewicz by acclamation! (Well, the bobblehead was at the Dome, but close enough!)
  25. mluebker
    Love it—it could be Billy Martin and Calvin Griffith 2.0. And we know he knows how to motivate young players, something the Twins now have in abundance.
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