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mikelink45

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Everything posted by mikelink45

  1. mikelink45
    I enjoyed the article and the Kopech love, but it would seem that MLB is not anxious to sign him. But to sign a disgruntled pitcher late in ST reminds me of signing Lynn. Pouting his way through the season his performance was forgettable.
  2. mikelink45
    I enjoyed the first premise, but who would trade a closer for Jackson and Larnach/Wallner/Martin/Roden/Outman? Closers demonstrated their value in te FA market.
  3. mikelink45
    I believe you are being very generous in this quote. Weakness is not an acceptable word - disastrous seems better, But there is always hope and Lee has the opportunity to prove his value. I am fascinated by Culpepper but realize he will be at least 24 when he debuts so he has to hit the ground running. I know weak batting SS have been part of MLB for decades some are in the HOF. Ozzie Smith was always considered great arm - no hit, but in 19 seasons he maintained a 262 BA. Rabbit Maranville played SS 23 years and is in the HOF for his fielding, but over more than two decades he hi 258. Aparacio and Tinker both glove first SS in the Hall maintained 262 BA. Lee as a bad fielding SS now has a 232 lifetime BA over two seasons. Brooks - it is time! Otherwise this goes beyond my 2B and 3B - Royce and Keaschall or Bust - this is already busted and there is no rescue coming in quickly.
  4. mikelink45
    Let's hope! No TJ surgery, no other injuries, and find command! That would be great. I would love to see him meet expectations.
  5. mikelink45
    Torii Hunter said, Spring training is for getting to know your teammates and forming a chemistry. I dont like it. In other words, it is not how hot you are the first couple of weeks, it is how you finish Spring Training. ST stats have no meaning. If any of the projected starters go hitless would they sit at the beginning of the regular season? I really like the hot and cold, but it is hard to get excited or disappointed at this stage. My only comment from this list is that I saw Abel pitch (video) and I really liked his form. I hope this works out. When I went to google about this I got these examples: 2012 Toronto Blue Jays: Finished 24-7 in spring training, creating high expectations, but finished the regular season with a disappointing 73-89 record. 1996 Detroit Tigers: Put together an outstanding spring training before finishing as one of the worst MLB teams, notes ESPN. Patrick Lennon (1996 Royals): A non-roster invitee who hit .395 with three home runs in spring training but did not translate that into a sustained major league career, notes Royals Review. Luis Gonzalez (2006 Mariners): A reliever who had a strong spring but failed to stick on the Opening Day roster, notes Lookout Landing. (ESPN) Thanks for keeping us informed.
  6. mikelink45
    I agree with the sentiments here - Walker has so much potential but so did Kiriloff. The injury issue is a serious concern.
  7. mikelink45
    This is the prospect on the lists that I am most anticipating. I think about Puckett's bat and size.
  8. mikelink45
    At second base I said Keaschall or Bust At third I repeat - Lewis or Bust Our infield depth is really weak unless Marek and Culpepper really blossom quickly. Culpepper seems like a real young prospect because of the length of time in the system. But he is already into his 23rd year. Marek is 21. MLB has been going to quicker and younger call ups. Will the Twins?
  9. mikelink45
    Here is an interesting story on prisoners and MLB from the Hall of Fame. https://baseballhall.org/discover/short-stops/players-after-prison
  10. mikelink45
    Keaschall or bust - I see no real alternative and his arm is recovering and his energy reminds me of Bader - we need that. I keep looking at all the position rankings around the web and Buxton and Keaschall are the only players who make all the rankings.
  11. mikelink45
    Too high. Let's see some minor league success before we raise him to the top ten. I would have Culpepper higher than him as well as Mendez.
  12. mikelink45
    Rosario has fewer ABs but has done well but Rodriguez would take Clemens place for me. Considering our expectations Cole Sands and Taj Bradley are NOT HOT But the pitchers have so few innings and games that it is hard to put one of them in the Hot column
  13. mikelink45
    Frustrating to see the hot - all batters, not hot - all pitchers. I love having Gonzales pushing for playing time. Not sure Kody deserves that listing on 3 - 10
  14. mikelink45
    The only comparison I would make is at his position. Puckett and Buxton are the true centerfielders. Puckett had 12 years before his injury ended his career Buxton has 11 years Puckett played 1783 games Buxton 898 and if Buxton played 162 he would fall far short of Puckett's number and that matters for impact on the team Buxton's line for those 898 games 248/308/487/795 Puckett 318/360/477/837 I do not care what WAR says - Puckett far out distances Buxton. Buxton is the second best position player of his era - Mauer number one. Sometimes ranking really do not matter.
  15. mikelink45
    I totally agree with the last post - put Winokur some place other than SS. He is not Ripken, His size and speed do not spell SS. Otherwise this group does not impress me.
  16. mikelink45
    I agree that Mendez should be ahead of the last four on this list.
  17. mikelink45
    Fascinating - I really enjoyed this review because it also tempers our expectations for the prospect rankings. When I look at the current top prospects many of them come from other systems through trades. Will they perform as expected? Will they out perform the players they were traded for? Tait/Rojas/Gonzales/Mendez/Gallagher are in the top Twenty according to Pitcher List and all were acquired in our massive trade moves this past summer. Add in Mick Abel/Taj Bradley (not a rookie anymore) and RHP Geremy Villoria, OF James Outman, LHP Garrett Horn, RHP Mike Mikulski, OF Alan Roden, RHP Sam Armstrong. Who will be the breakout stars? Who will win the trades? Will they stay healthy? The Pablo Lopez trade looked great the first 2 1/2 seasons. Then he was injured and missed significant time in 2025 and now he is injured and will miss all of 2026. Luis Arraez was traded for Lopez, Jose Salas and outfielder Byron Chourio. Arraez won a batting title with the Marlins, then he was traded to SD and won another batting title during his two years there. Now he is with San Francisco. Yes we could use Arraez, but if Pablo had stayed healthy we still would have won the trade. Salas, 22, SS, hit 236/310 with 732 OPS last year at Witchita. Baseball reference has him as number 29 in our system. Byron Chourio, 20, OF hit 344/429/410/838 He looks like he might be a success or solid trade bait. He is ranked 30 on Fangraphs top 43 list for the Twins. https://blogs.fangraphs.com/minnesota-twins-top-43-prospects/ This is a 2025 list. As we see the TD lists I would love to see a comparison chart that compares the various projections on Fangraphs, MLB.com, TD and others..
  18. mikelink45
    like jmlease1 I question DeBarge being ranked that high. I suspect we have other prospects that are being more productive and have a higher upside. I would move Culpepper to the top of this group. Followed by Diaw. Thanks for interesting insights. I did not know anything about Ellwanger and nothing in his stats say he is a top prospect, but then number 20 is a crapshoot. Even dropping DeBarge I do not know who would fill the empty spot on this list.
  19. mikelink45
    Lets talk about the players I want to fight for a position - Walker, Gonzales, Rodriguez.
  20. mikelink45
    A dismal outlook. Where are the days of Killebrew, Morneau, Mientkiewicz and Hrbek. Sure anyone can play 1B, but should they? With Lewis and Lee still question marks on the left side, it is sad to see this position seen as a filler instead of a positive. If we trade Jeffers we can have below average production at both catcher and 1B and I can't wait for Nick to analyze 3b, SS. Like another post I would put either Larnach or Wallner at 1B and improve the OF at the same time.
  21. mikelink45
    We know Boras does not like to give up Free Agency so I think we can begin the planning now. I don't like it when the other teams and agents know we are desparate.
  22. mikelink45
    I would like Jeffers extended but Boras is not a supporter of this strategy.
  23. mikelink45
    I am not as pleased as most commenters. I am actually thinking of next year which is what most articles have pointed to as when the Twins climb back into contention. We have some excellent prospects that I suspect will be in the lineup - Walker, Rodriguez - but if Jeffers is gone and there is a good chance then Caratini is not a good replacement. Everything I have read is that his defense is not adequate for the number one catcher and Tait is still a ways off.
  24. mikelink45
    I have no debate with you. Santana is fine for me, but Baines in particular is a case of favoritism over qualification. Tony LaRussa got him in. I would not have put in Andrew Jones. I would say five years on the ballot is enough - they are either worth putting in or they should be off the ballot. I only say five because of the periodic logjams. And based on the way we judge players I would probably put in Bonds, McGwire, Clemens, Sosa. Not because they didn't cheat, but because they were allowed to have full careers no matter what they did and they were not multiple offenders like Ramirez or A Rod and nor did they commit perjury like Palmeiro. In the past I did not want them in, but they have gotten more publicity by not going in than they would have if they were voted in and we moved on. My issue is that their records should be erased if they are not allowed in. The same with Rose who was reprehensible in many ways, but every year we got Rose stories and not MLB is so tied to gambling that it seems foolish to blame a player for gambling - unless it is like the black sox who through the game The moral stances that baseball has is shown now as gamblers find players like Ortiz and Clase who can be tempted to gain a little extra money. Dumb as it is I am sure there are more. I am frustrated with some of the HOF stances because the Hall has refused to give clarity to their stance on PEDs, gambling, and law. The guidelines are "Voting shall be based upon the player's record, playing ability, integrity, sportsmanship, character and contributions to the team(s) on which the player played." Who decides on integrity, sportsmanship, character and what that means? Ty Cobb would be excluded on this basis, but his record as a player demands he is in. If that is the basis that Dale Murphy should be in and otherwise I would not elect him. On that basis Moe Berg should be in - spy for the US in the war - but his record on the field says no. Sorry, you got me thinking too much.
  25. mikelink45
    I think Kriedler, Roden and Martin stay, but let's hope some better options come our way. It will be interesting to see if Zoll has the stubbornness of Falvey when it comes to players they acquire. Outman should be given no free pass. He stays only if he found his old bat. Arcia is too old to be a viable SS, but they might like his age. Wagaman does nothing for this team as it is constructed. Urshela does not have the glove to backup SS and if he is kept it means Lewis is backup SS. Gray is interesting and could beat out Kreidler, but that is not exciting.
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