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shimrod

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Everything posted by shimrod

  1. shimrod
    I'll answer this one. No accomplished FA will choose the Twins absent a massive overpay. The players the Twins need to upgrade the roster will be attractive to better teams as well. If the Twins are actually increasing payroll almost 50% (which I doubt happens) they should target trades for established players teams may be willing to move, either because they're getting expensive (for small market teams) or there's a high profile youngster inhouse and ready to fill that position. I don't pay enough attention to the league to know which players make sense. I do know another off-season of paying for Caratinis, Bells, and Frances will not move the needle. Players a tier above that bunch are not coming to Minnesota by choice.
  2. shimrod
    I completely agree with this. The Twins have established themselves as the destination of last resort for free agents. It will take a pretty large overpay to entice a mid-career, multi-tool player to pick MN over anyone else. The reclamation projects and one-dimensional guys are all we'll get. The players the Twins need to enhance this roster will have to be acquired by trade. And they will not be cheap in prospect terms. But at least in a trade you pay the going rate, not a "bad team" premium.
  3. shimrod
    And keep in mind that judge didn't deny the deal. He simply said the owners need to open the books and prove they were losing money before they could break their lease.
  4. shimrod
    I expected a hundred losses so I was pleased to enjoy more wins than anticipated. I also expected the Twins to leverage the trade deadline to add prospects and clear the decks for a youth movement; here I was bitterly disappointed. I knew we weren't getting any stars in return for our veterans but addition by subtraction would have been the right move. The Twins need an influx of athleticism, defense, and enthusiasm. We saw hints the last couple weeks but in too small a sample size to know who's actually ready and who still warrants a placeholder. Our missed opportunity was in team development, not won-loss record.
  5. shimrod
    I'm willing to go with the concept that "meaningful" applies to evaluating prospects and setting the stage for a winning 2027. Unfortunately the team failed by that measure as well.
  6. shimrod
    Depends on whose expectations. They need to sweep the Rangers to even meet their preseason expectations from Fangraphs. But they did nail the over on the Vegas odds, so I guess they can stick that little feather in their caps. My expectations. I thought they would lose 100. I'm very happy to have been proven wrong. It's more fun to watch when they win.
  7. shimrod
    I totally see your point. But strictly by the standings math, they’ll probably end up one hot week away in the course of a 6 month season from being in the playoffs or at least still in the hunt in this final week. Even just an extra win a month…that’s not far off imo. They had their hot week(s), that's why they didn't look that far off at the end. The Twins are going to finish with a better record than expected considering their talent level most of the year.
  8. shimrod
    Not a direct analogy, but suppose you operate a restaurant. Expenses tick up and you decide to maintain your profits by using lower quality ingredients and serving smaller portions. Then you're surprised when fewer customers show up. Ownership needs to invest. I'm dubious the same people who created this situation are willing to spend enough to resolve it. Even though, with promising youngsters at multiple positions, just getting to league average payroll would be more than enough to right the ship.
  9. shimrod
    So Pohlad says "increase" and TD discusses $30, $60, and $80 million dollar increments. I expect you could write a much more accurate article if you examine the $5, $10, and $12.5 million dollar options.
  10. shimrod
    So what? Twins need to take care of Twins business. Right now that's getting a good look at next years players. And I agree we should have been evaluating the youngsters since the deadline.
  11. shimrod
    The only thing I can think of is they want him off the 40 man for the offseason but still want to keep him so they are doing it now in hopes that he will sneak through. Occams Razor indicates Keystone Kops. Or ownership has assured the team they will authorize paying up for a better catcher. Jackson is not needed because we will spend enough to fill the starting and backup catcher positions with legitimate players. Of the three possibilities - Keystone Kops incompetence, trying to sneak him off the 40 man, or ownership opening the checkbook - I think the last one is the least probable.
  12. shimrod
    That's a silly conspiracy. Larnach and Lewis in the lineup isn't selling one single solitary ticket. Culpepper, Jenkins, and Rodriguez however, would sell a few more tickets. The target audience is not the TD readership. I have relatives in the cities. They occasionally attend games. They couldn't name a single Twins minor leaguer. They do love Buxton and Lewis. That said, you're likely correct. As I noted, the most likely explanation is excuse making by agents or others. I'd like to think our management did not keep injured, unproductive players in the lineup while the teams (slim) postseason chances circled the drain.
  13. shimrod
    Is that really true? Or agent spin to excuse poor play? It's hard to believe a MLB manager would keep playing guys who are hurt to the point they're ineffective. Unless, of course, he was under orders to keep recognizable names in the lineup in an effort to sell tickets.
  14. shimrod
    Edited to remove dumb comment (by me). Need another cup of coffee
  15. shimrod
    True, but to be fair those conflicting arguments could be from different commenters. Those who wanted Jenkins for the playoff drive can argue he should have been elevated sooner. Multiple week watching an injured Buxton flail could instead have been the adjustment period for Jenkins. Perhaps he'd be settling in by now. Personally I never saw this as a playoff team. My preference was to sell at the deadline, adding young talent and clearing spots for prospects like Jenkins.
  16. shimrod
    Reportedly Jenkins has a history of needing an adjustment period. That's why it was imperative to get him up and acclimated now. Ideally he is adjusted and ready to hit the ground running next year. EDIT: I don't see any argument that promoting Jenkins cost the team a shot at the playoffs. It's not like they benched a healthy Buxton. Who was going to fill that position and do substantially better than Jenkins? Kreidler?
  17. shimrod
    But we made such a massive investment at the deadline! Go big or go home, shouldn't that have paid off?
  18. shimrod
    "I like that kid!"
  19. shimrod
    The Twins have already won more games than I expected this season. It's been a pleasure to watch them win as many as they have. Winning is fun. Shelton has elevated this team. He's a mediocre tactician but appears to set clear roles and expectations. No more lineup bingo. I don't like seeing players trying to learn new positions on the fly but to be fair the players moved weren't looking great at their original positions. Royce shows potential to be a plus defensive 1B, Lee is better at third than short, and Keaschall just wasn't working out at second. The problem isn't that the team collapsed. The problem is ownership/management moving the timeline based on a better than expected (lucky) few months of baseball. This years deadline was an opportunity to finish the job started last season - trade away expiring veterans, rentals, and a couple surplus outfielders to add youth and clear the field for the prospects.
  20. shimrod
    If Keaschall can become even average defensively we'll really have something. Second base is likely to be Culpepper sooner or later so an offseason of outfield work is in order. Lots of outfield work.
  21. shimrod
    Yes, most teams work within their budget. Aside from the occasional new owner who subsidizes the payroll with his own cash (Mets) expenses have to match up with revenue. What's done with the revenue is the difference. Are you trying to build a winner or are you maximizing cash flow? Long term vision or short term profit? I don't think many experienced baseball executives are interested in the latter. Twins ownership has already signaled they're looking at the short term. I don't see a proven executive signing on just to boost the teams sale price.
  22. shimrod
    I expect an experienced baseball executive plans how to win. Tell him the goal is to maximize profit and he finds another team to work for. EDIT: To be clear, it's my belief that the swap of owner overseers and subsequent talk about competing, along with the (minimal) increase in payroll has everything to do with the drop in revenue and ticket sales. Ownership would be perfectly happy living in the basement of the abysmal AL central as long as the money kept rolling in. Much to their dismay fans are reluctant to turn out and watch a team that isn't trying.
  23. shimrod
    Sad to say, but replacing the Buxton we've seen recently isn't a high bar.
  24. shimrod
    6 bats is three more than we're accustomed to. The real disappointment is that the guys struggling should be team leaders. A playoff push is when your core veterans should shine - instead we're leaning on rentals and rookies.
  25. shimrod
    Kelly maintained high standards for fundamental baseball. The drop off occurred after Gardy took over and got continually worse throughout his tenure. It infuriated me listening to the announcers obligatory "the Twins do the little things right" commentary as they made mistake after mistake.
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