Chembry

Did you mean Harry Ford from Seattle? I think most would welcome that trade. I will add another to the mix, although most, including me, would probably be less enthusiastic about it. Austin Wells from NYY. There is a lot of talk of Judge moving to 1B next year and Ben Rice taking over the primary catching duties. They would need a RF and Wallner would be an upgrade from Stanton defensively. Austin Wells is also under team control through 2029. He is another left handed hitter though, but very good defensively.

I don't know about offending for 3 years, but the CBA states that teams must spend 150% of their revenue sharing dollars on MLB payroll. A quick google search says a grievance can be filed for any action violating the CBA. No time requirement as far as I can tell. Nobody knows how much the Twins receive, but it was speculated that the A's received or were to receive $70M (100% of their revenue sharing dollars) in 2025. The A's only received 25% in 2022, 50% in 2023, and 75% in 2024 which is one of the reasons (probably many others) they didn't spend as much. https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Articles/2024/12/09/mlb-athletics-payroll-spending/ https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2024/12/athletics-risk-mlbpa-grievance-without-further-payroll-increases.html

Curious if anyone has heard anything on Marek Houston. He was removed from Wednesday’s game and hasn’t played since. Haven’t read anything that he got hurt and still on the active roster. Was hoping to see him play a few more games before the season is over.

I read today, on another social media site, that some think Canterino should be given a chance to make the bullpen next year. I responded by saying he hasn't pitched in a professional game since 2022 and that was a AA game. There is no way he competes for a spot next year. If he gets healthy and stays healthy, maybe in a few years, but no way will that happen next year. Not saying it can't be done...Cam Boozer did it, but it also took him 4 years to work his way up to the MLB after not pitching in professional baseball for 4 years.

Personally I would put both Festa and Prielipp in the pen as well and I think both will thrive there. I don't disagree with Funderburk, Adams, and Ohl at all. I was just saying they are the most likely of the current roster to stay in the pen. I don't want them up here if we start trying to use them for more than 1-2 innings. I was trying to limit the number of FA signings. I do think Raya also has a good chance of being in the pen next year. Time will tell. It's a fun conversation because there are many possibilities.

I just calculated some stats since the trade deadline, mainly focusing on the bullpen. Record since trade deadline: 11-21 Bullpen since trade deadline: 131 1/3 IP, 84R, 76ER, ERA 5.28 Bullpen first 22 games after deadline: 95 1/3 IP, 41R, 36ER, 3.40 ERA Bullpen Last 10 games: 35IP, 44R, 41ER, ERA 10.54 (really shows how bad the bullpen has been lately) What may surprise many is that the Twins have lost leads or ties in the 6th inning or later 12 times since the trade deadline. Those types of games are going to happen from time to time, but not 12 times in 32 games (38% of games). If those blown games were cut in half, our record would be 17-15 since the deadline. The bullpen initially after the deadline wasn't awful. However, the last 10 games has been absolutely dreadful. The point of this post is yes, the bullpen needs to be addressed. The vast majority of the bullpen more than likely won't have roles with the organization in 2026, or they shouldn't have roles. Below are my thoughts. Current Bullpen/2026 role: Travis Adams: Only should be used in 1-2 inning stints Genesis Cabrera: UFA not resigned Kody Funderburk: Pre-arb...This one is tough, but I don't think he has the stuff. Non-tendered. Thomas Hatch: I think he has done enough to stay on a 1 year deal at league minimum, but assume the Twins non-tender Brooks Kriske: non-tendered Cole Sands: offered arbitration Michael Tonkin: non-tendered Justin Topa: I don't like it, but I think the twins will pick up his option Pierson Ohl (I know not on current active roster): Only should be used in 1-2 inning stints The way the current roster sits, our 2026 bullpen looks like: Adams, Ohl, Sands, and Topa. That leaves 4 spots open for internal candidates and FA signings. I can see the Twins signing 2 FA on 1 year deals of the Tommy Kahnle/Tim Mayza/Caleb Ferguson types. The bigger question is who internally from AAA will take the last few roster spots in the bullpen. In my opinion, there are two internal candidates that make sense. Festa and Raya. Both have had shoulder issues that could limit their use as a starter, which a bullpen role makes sense to maximize their value to the organization. Raya has been pitching out of the bullpen recently in 1-3 inning stretches. Giving what is going on with Festa, we can draw parallels to Duran. Duran started having shoulder fatigue in spring training of 2021. He only pitched 16 innings that year and was transitioned to full time closer by 2022. Festa started having shoulder fatigue in spring training this year and pitched 84 2/3 innings this year before being shut down for the year. The Twins may very well have him try starting again next year, but recurring shoulder issues tend to lead to bullpen roles. There are two other internal candidates that are less likely in Morris and Prielipp. The Twins will probably want to see what they have as starters first before they move them to the pen. Prielipp could be interesting because we don't know if he can stay healthy enough to be a reliable starter. This year is by far the most he has pitched in a season and that's only 67 2/3 IP. Depending on how he responds in spring training, we may see him in the pen in 2026. Can the Twins build a bullpen, yes they can, but this is a long way to say that it's not going to happen overnight. There will probably be significant experimentation next year with several younger guys to see who sticks and who doesn't.

Definitely agree. Since the vast majority of the current bullpen won't have a future in the Twins organization, why wouldn't we give some of the younger guys a chance? Give them some experience against MLB hitters for the last month of the season and get a jump start on 2026. I responded that exact question to a Gleeman tweet, and he responded that Morris is still being built up after coming back from injury and Raya has >6 ERA in AAA. As a reliever, Raya's ERA is 4.97, still not great. But if we feel his future with the organization is in the pen, let's get some experience now. There is no reason to run Davis, Kriske, Cabrera, Funderburk (I know he has been better as of late), etc...out there when we have younger guys that would probably be better (definitely not any worse) and could use the experience. Davis should be DFA'd today when Pablo is reinstated.

Agreed, I was reiterating how bad they have been.

In the last 10 games, since the start of the Blue Jays series, our bullpen has given up 44 runs and blown a lead in the 6th inning or later 5 times…

I agree with you...All the moves made since the trade deadline, including September call ups have mystified most of us.

Seems like Raya has been pitching out of the bullpen as of late. Do we think that is foreshadowing for 2026 or is that a way to get him more work in 2025? Given his injury history, the Twins propensity to slowly ramp him up, and likely bullpen projection, it would have been nice to get him some MLB experience in 2025 if that is where we are heading in 2026. We really don't need the likes of Davis, Kriske, Tonkin, etc...pitching out of the pen when most likely they aren't returning in 2026 anyway. I know I am preaching to the choir.

I understand your thought, but you do know that league average is .246 right now...If he hits .230 with 35-40HRs that's pretty strong...History says he can because his career avg is .239 Kyle Schwarber isn't hitting .250 and we would love to have him. He is probably going to get $25M/yr this offseason on a shorter term contract. FYI-I am not saying Wallner is Schwarber...all I am saying is standards have changed. I would consider Schwarber to be one of the premier power hitters in all of MLB. As of yesterday he was hitting .245. In 2022 he hit .218 and 2023 he hit .197, so lets lay off on the Wallner hate a little bit. We tend to give up on players too easily.

I don’t want you to misunderstand my point. People get caught up in name recognition. Wallner is under team control through 2029 making league minimum next year. Giancarlo Stanton is making $32M this year and $19M next year. Don’t you think the value Wallner brings, especially if we move him to DH, is worth keeping for a few years while he is making league minimum next year and will reach arbitration in 2027? The answer should be a resounding yes.

I understand that… as I said wallner is having a down year and Stanton is having an up year, but their batting run value is the same. since you brought up RBIs, yes Stanton is out producing in terms of RBIs this year. No question. But, 2023 Wallner out produced Stanton in RBIs per AB (0.19 vs 0.16) and 2024 they produced at the same rate (0.17 per AB). Also basing offensive value based solely on RBIs is unfair. His production could definitely be better with RISP, but that also necessitates the hitters in front of him getting on base as well. I understand quite a few dislike Wallner, including you. I particularly don’t necessarily dislike Wallner, but don’t love him either. But if we compare his stats vs an established MLB DH, they line up very well.

That's exactly the point I am making...Optics are key. We don't watch Stanton every day, but the way ALL fans view their players is "the grass is always greener on the other side"... Sources: https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/savant-player/giancarlo-stanton-519317?stats=statcast-r-hitting-mlb https://baseballsavant.mlb.com/savant-player/matt-wallner-670242?stats=statcast-r-hitting-mlb Stanton's Batting Run Value (avg/OBP/OPS): Wallner's Batting Run Value (avg/OBP/OPS): 2023: 1 (43rd percentile in MLB) .191/.275/.695 2023: 12 (72nd percentile in MLB) .249/.370/.877 2024: 9 (70th percentile in MLB) .233/.298/.773 2024: 13 (76th percentile in MLB) .259/.372/.895 2025: 17 (84th percentile in MLB) .305/.380/1.027 2025: 17 (84th percentile in MLB) .215/.321/.823 Career 16 seasons: .259/.346/.875 Career 4 seasons: .238/.350/.851 2025 is an up year for Stanton and a down year for Wallner, but they are still producing at the same level of Batting run value. Even their career values are similar. They even strike out at similar rates (2025 K rates: 30.5% for Stanton and 29.3% for Wallner). The only difference is Stanton has been producing for longer. I am not saying Wallner and Stanton should be viewed equally, but stats don't lie. They produce similar results...

Is Giancarlo Stanton a good hitter? Just curious what your thoughts are on him? They have very similar stat lines this year. Since 2023, Wallner has provided a better run value that Giancarlo Stanton...Most probably put Stanton in much higher regard than Wallner, but that just isn't the case.

Hitting .280 is about 35 points above league average. Currently the league average is .246. What you are asking for in this case is a top 30 hitter in MLB for average as well as top 30 for OPS, wRC+, etc... That is the only thing that will make him "good"

I am thinking they try both...Up until Nov 21 deadline to offer arbitration.

sorry double post

I agree with you...That's why I try to explain his stats...Here are a few examples:

I argue these facts all the time on other social media platforms against those who say Wallner should be DFA'd or released by the Twins.

Understood on that. Just didn’t know if he pitched Sunday, Monday, or yesterday

Jax had something like a 8.59 ERA since joining the Rays...that was reported prior to Sunday's game so it may have changed since.

You know what's crazy about that? Looking at statcast, both Wallner and Stanton are almost identical in their batting run values over the last 3 years. The only difference is Stanton has been producing at that level for quite a bit longer.

I don't see the Twins spending FA money on Naylor, I would love it, but just don't see it. His market value is $17M/year according to Spotrac. https://www.spotrac.com/mlb/player/market-value/_/id/17627/josh-naylor Speculation on my part, but I am guessing he will want a long term contract now that he is 28 and want to take advantage of this season. I just don't think he will want to sign a 1-2 year contract and I don't see the Twins going long term. Maybe they will surprise us. If they sign a FA 1B, I see them signing a Carlos Santana/Wilmer Flores type of guy on a short term deal.