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mikelink45

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Everything posted by mikelink45

  1. mikelink45
    This old man is bound to have nightmares now. As Gallo's most outspoken critic this would force me to wait for the second inning before tuning in. Give me Julien, let him be the next Arraez. I am also of the opinion that both Polanco and Kepler should have been traded when they had peak value and I am not sure that changing the shift is going to be that much better for either of them. I think Buxton, Correa, Miranda are locked in to the 2 - 4 positions. Kiriloff 5th.. So in answer to your question, without Julien I have no idea who will lead off.
  2. mikelink45
    In this era where BP is almost more important than rotation I think Duran is a permanent key to the pen and the rotation is not only filled with vets but has a number of young arms waiting in the wings.
  3. mikelink45
    The problem for Balazovic besides his meltdown, is that Winder and Ober will be first in line to fill rotation gaps and then Paddock might come in late in the year too. Unless there is a trade it is hard to see how our rookie SP get a chance this year. I agree with all the notes on Julien and I am excited to see how former Twin Steer does for the Reds this year.
  4. mikelink45
    Not a fan of Kepler or Gallo. I want Larnach in OF, Kiriloff at 1B. I know that dreaming of Gallo leaving is not going to work for me, but Kepler seems to have value that might be best recognized if he has a good spring training. Our OF list is too long.
  5. mikelink45
    I cannot argue that Toronto is not overpaying Berrios. Nor can I argue that we have overpaid for many arms - pitchers tend to drive the teams crazy.
  6. mikelink45
    I am sure you noted, as I did that only he and Lee made it on these lists. That is a disappointment and might show that familiarity creates a home team bias.
  7. mikelink45
    I really like these two players and I think they are key to success of the team. I would trade Farmer before Gordon. I am with JD-Twins as a backer who does not understand the statements that diminish what they contributed.
  8. mikelink45
    Not expecting it, but it would certainly be a shock to fandom. I do think including a pitcher (Ober in your example) would be necessary as part of the package. Berrios had an awful year, but managed to stay in the games long enough to get 12 wins. Martin and SWR still have to prove themselves in mlb before we can use the line "getting teams to overpay. Just as he did when he traded Jose Berrios for Austin Martin and Simeon Woods-Richardson at the 2021 trade deadline." I see that statement a lot on TD - but it is not true yet. The potential is there, but we have seen potential fade away before.
  9. mikelink45
    I can't rank players I have not seen or read enough about. I do think Julien is too low.
  10. mikelink45
    One way to develop the pipeline is to leave a space in the rotation for a prospect to move in and prove himself. I like this rotation, but the list of prospects is a waiting room for injuries. Good luck - we have pared down the really tradeable prospect list now unless we are looking to trade our own pitchers (I know we already did with Petty). Trading our veterans when their is a replacement is a better system. Arraez was my favorite, but trading him was the right thing to do. We should have traded Kepler and Polanco when their value was greater. If we win this year the strategy will be worth it. If we are 500 again it is not.
  11. mikelink45
    The blank ballots do not bother me. They said that they did not think any of the players on the list were truly hall worthy. It is their right. If it kept someone from getting elected it accomplished what they wanted. No other sport has as much attention for the HOF. I know nothing about Hockey and Soccer and seldom see anything written about them. Football has a flood of players every year and the linemen wait while everyone is excited by the WR and QBs. Basketball is the craziest. Nice that they recognize the sport over the whole world, but our reporters only talk about the NBA players and there is a low bar for them to cross. But BB has a unique system that gets a lot of publicity because fans are mad, the writers have to decide how a player ranks all-time. For me Rolen would have been my only choice too. The badboys - Bonds, Clemens, Jackson, and Rose have gained my recognition by not being elected than they would if they had been put and in then we moved on. Of course other badboys - McGwire, Sosa, Palmeiro don't even get that pub since they have this foursome in front of the line. Mauer will get in and if it takes a few years that is fine. I listened to the interview with Billy Wagner on MLB.com and enjoyed it. He keeps waiting and has learned how to handle the situation. I know that without injury there would be no question of his induction as a catcher. But catcher is not a position that has a lot of inductees. It is a hard position to judge. But if they concentrate on his years behind the plate he is in. What I do not understand is the flood of RP that have made it in. Since Rollie Fingers there are more RP than any other position. But in the long run, just as I could not make a one sentence response, MLB gets a lot of press from a system that creates both fanfare and frustration and that is to their advantage. In the long run it does not matter.
  12. mikelink45
    I am not as down on the team as you might think. I just do not like promoting the team before the season begins. Remember how we were going to win the division at All Star last year. Well I do not like Gallo and I am very outspoken because I keep seeing comments I cannot agree with. If he performs well (hits at least 220) I can take it, but I like the idea of Larnach and Buxton in the OF - Kepler not so much. Taylor is good for the bench, but he is no longer as elite as his field once was and his bat is no better than Celestino. If we want to have a free swinger I prefer Wallner at DH. I like Kiriloff's promise, but like Larnach he has not been on the field enough to count on - same with Lewis. I think Polanco is a good trade candidate like Kepler. I prefer Gordon over Farmer. I like Vasquez and wonder why Jeffers has not advanced. The starting rotation is the best we have had in a long time, but we are always waiting for the surgeon's knife and I want to see some young arms succeed for the future of the team. In the BP I am really down on Pagan and the new additions do nothing for me, but I do like Duran, Thielbar, and Alcala and I hope we fill the pen with young arms like Canterino. And Correa is great, but not enough to get us to the series. Hopefully you can see that like the Twins last year I am at 50/50, but I think there is a chance to move up quickly if health is present.
  13. mikelink45
    I have posted this elsewhere, but I have to repeat because I am tired of hearing what a great OF Gallo is - last year according to BR - as a Yankee he 0.1 Offensive WAR and -0.4 defensive WAR. As a Dodger he had -0.3 Offensive WAR and 0.2 defensive WAR. His Defensive WAR for 8 years was 1.6 - an average of 0.2. This is a promotional piece and I am not buying it. Let's see the outcomes. Polanco is past his peak, the OF is filled with what ifs, Miranda has to get past the Sophomore slump and prove he can field at 3B. Correa is great, but his good season last year could not save us from under 500. Mahle, Maeda, Paddock, Gray all have to stay healthy. Pagan is still in the BP. Kiriloff has to stay healthy, Buxton has to stay healthy, Larnach needs to stay healthy. Someone has to get on base and it won't be Gallo. Jeffers has been below par for two years and with the new larger bases his arm is going to be tested. Vasquez is a good, but not great catcher. I look forward to the new season, but let's not go overboard on projections and comparisons.
  14. mikelink45
    It pains me to see any comparison of Gallo and Arraez - there is the reason so many of us have less passion for the game than we used to.
  15. mikelink45
    He has lost his place in the pecking order and before we can put him in the BP or SP he has to demonstrate that last year was a fluke - and that happens in AAA.
  16. mikelink45
    last year according to BR - as a Yankee he 0.1 Offensive WAR and -0.4 defensive WAR. As a Dodger he had -0.3 Offensive WAR and 0.2 defensive WAR. His Defensive WAR for 8 years was 1.6 - an average of 0.2.
  17. mikelink45
    I just do not understand how everyone is working to rationalize Gallo. last year according to BR - as a Yankee he 0.1 Offensive WAR and -0.4 defensive WAR. As a Dodger he had -0.3 Offensive WAR and 0.2 defensive WAR. His Defensive WAR for 8 years was 1.6 - an average of 0.2.
  18. mikelink45
    Sorry, my eye test says we have a fielding analytic that is off the rails. A corner OF fielding has never been as important as his bat.
  19. mikelink45
    I am fine with your analysis until the OF - Gallo and exceptional does not compute.
  20. mikelink45
    I like the rotation, but I am hoping that when one or two go down we will see the young arms move into the rotation and stay there. That is the future. The BP can jettison the Pagan types and fill it with young arms to give them ML experience. Relying on trades just reduces your youth. Trading players when they have value to get good return and that is what they did with Arraez. Have we waited too long for Polanco and Kepler? Will we end up trading Gray or extending? Trade a player a year too early rather than a year too late. - Branch Rickey
  21. mikelink45
    I think we need four more OF. In fact lets set a new standard and play Correa, Vasquez and 7 OF each game. There has to be a trade with this surplus, although we need to old on to someone when Gallo drops is BA below 100 and his K rate soars to new levels.
  22. mikelink45
    I am glad so many like this - it leaves me shaking my head. Is he really better than Celestino? I do not think so. I wanted to see Celestino continue to progress. Taylor is at his peak. In all I like it better than signing Gallo. But Taylor's bat brings nothing.
  23. mikelink45
    I am glad you are more patient than I am with Cavaco and Sabato - neither profiles as a good MLB player to me. As far as injury prone - the dictionary says: often sustaining injuries. Two missed years in a row makes Lewis seem pretty injury prone to me. Larnach and Kiriloff the last two years and minor league injuries as well for Alex make them injury prone and yes I regrettably have to say Buxton is injury prone. An article in the Atlantic says: " Injury is a fact of life for most athletes, but some professionals—and some weekend warriors, for that matter—just seem more injury-prone than others. But what is it about their bodies that makes the bones, tendons, and ligaments so much more likely to tear or strain—bad luck, or just poor preparation? A growing body of research suggests another answer: that genetic makeup may play an important role in injury risk." "Stanford Sports Genetics offer genetic tests that can tell the average consumer about his or her risk for sports injuries, including ACL ruptures, stress fractures, osteoarthritis, and spinal-disc degeneration."
  24. mikelink45
    On ESPN - Brad Doolittle had this to say (requires subscription) about the trade which they say could favor the Twins if the prospects come through: " Since Arraez broke into the majors in 2019, he leads all 247 hitters with at least 1,000 plate appearances with 10.8 at-bats per strikeout, per Baseball-Reference.com. (The Angels' David Fletcher is in second place at 10.0. Incidentally, in dead last with just 2.3 at-bats per strikeout is new Twin Joey Gallo, which makes for an unsightly lineup swap if you want to view the Arraez departure through that lens.)
  25. mikelink45
    I have a hard time seeing a real trend here except to say that pitching is trade rich/prospect poor. The left hand column has a lot of pitchers, but I say that none of them has a strong advocate in the FO and they are mostly fillers right now. As for position players the right hand column has a pretty strong TR listing and the position players on the left hand column (this FO) still have a lot to prove before we can pat the draft team on the back. Thirteen pitchers via trade. One waiver and one FA. Not a pipeline. Position players - 6 TR and three FA. Not a big impact from our FO yet. So what is the Falvey philosophy? I cannot see it in this chart.
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