mikelink45

And stole 1406 bases and scored 1115 runs.

I know the phrase "Power wins games" is popular in this thread, but I believe Rickey Henderson knew how to win without power. And so did a number of teams in the past.

I had hope for Sano, but no he has not lived up to my expectations, but then I am not of the opinion that Ks don't matter.

What will be the shift in strategy once baseball gets tired of the "three true outcomes" - a phrase I have grown to hate. Will some wildcat team put the Go-go White Sox, the 1976 Oakland A's, the Herzog Cardinals, or even the KC championship tean approach together and because of the fact that teams are not used to it - if they succeed copy cats will start. I do hope and dream that happens. ""Whether you steal or not, you're changing the rhythm of the game." - Hall of Famer Joe Morgan" By the way - Minnesota ranked 27 in stolen base attempts per game in 2021. Which was up from 2020. And these were up from 2018 when we ranked last in MLB. Why? In 2021 we weren't the Bomba squad anymore and we were losing. Maybe a change would have been warranted.

That was an excellent report. Thank you.

My speculation is that 2B has become the bottom of the fielding positions and Arraez is not really good there. His bat plays, but where to play him is the issue. What are the teams that need a 2B? And what is the real return. This discussion is difficult because I have been a real fan of Luis. I like a bat that is under control and I do not need 9 HR hitters in the lineup at the same time. Now I see that we want to make sure we get more power from Martin and I remember how they were going to fix Buxton's swing for the first three years he was with us. There are many aspects to Arraez and his tenure with us, but I also worry about his knees.

I am a big fan of Arraez, but recent posts have caused me to question his trade value.

I raised this question in another post - what value do 2B have now? I think that it is the lowest ranked position in defense. I am afraid that Arraez does not have much value to anyone but the Twins.

One problem that this summary points out is that 2B does not seem very hard to fill. We have Polanco, Arraez, Miranda, Gordon already on the potential roster for next year and more in the minors. Does every team have this kind of situation? If so that makes 2B the least valuable position in terms of trades. Maybe Arraez, for example, is not as valuable a trade chip as we have talked about in the off season.

I totally agree with your take. I continually struggle to understand how the pitcher we have is worth less to us because he has only two years left, than someone else's pitcher who has just two years left. I want to know if our young arms have more than potential before we start maneuvering.

More for us to hope for as we watch MLB fritter away it's season and spring training.

Projections are always fun because they cause conversations like this. Do they project any bad seasons? Are they optimists or pessimists? Thanks for sharing this. Without spring training it is still good to have something to hope and wish about.

As I posted with Lewis - this is where the massive amounts of coaches that we have now hired need to earn their money. Take an Athlete with speed and agility and create the SS that we need. I see Miranda as heir apparent at 3B, Buxton is a fixture at CF and Celestino could be the OF that fills in when needed. He seems like a healthier clone of Arraez which could help the FO decide that Arraez is tradable - package Arraez and Donaldson and something good should return. It will be interesting to see if he deserves all this national attention. He has taken Royce Lewis place among the raters.

I enjoy the history of baseball and that is why in the past I have written about Tom Custer and Wild Bill Hickok playing baseball. Another story that is among the lesser known baseball games was played in Skagway during the height of the Gold Rush. The game was played on Independence day in 1901 and unlike the rest of the baseball world it was a team of black Buffalo Soldiers and White Railroad workers. The soldiers were assigned to this remote Alaskan wilderness to bring law and order where there was no law and certainly no order. A man known as Corporal Green was the captain of the Company L Soldier nine and a man by the name of Phelps led the railroad workers. It was about bragging rights and a prize of $50 for first place and $25 for second. Played near the Moore's sawmill there was beer from the Skagway Brewing Company and vendor of ice cream, lemonade, and milk. In the stands were miners, railroad workers, prostitutes, gamblers, and soldiers. It was a lively crowd and the game was a three hour affair (so much for short games) with umps from the townspeople who may or may not have known the rules. The White Pass RR men wore blue trousers, black shirts and caps while the soldiers had numbered shirts, knickers, and striped socks. In the end the RR men (umpires decisions or not) won the game 14 - 10 and the crowd was ecstatic. That was baseball in the Klondike.

He was one of my favorites. I remember the evenings at the old stadium with a slight breeze and the shiny grass and glare of the lights and then there would be this pitcher on the mound who seemed to be in total control He seemed relaxed and ready for anything. We got him at his peak and 1965 was a magic year. After he left the Twins his career crept along and he got in lots of years, but the accolades and accomplishments were behind him.

How great - baseball - live in 2022! Thanks for the update. Seth this is a perfect place for you to be.

With the speed and athleticism, I am puzzled why we cannot coach him to remain a SS. That is where his value is and he is the only one in the minors with the chance to fill our greatest need.

Are we all over-rating the minor league arms? Reading TD and following the threads it seems like we have lots of good arms, but stepping outside our community it seems a little sparse. And then there is the question - why are we all assuming Dylan Bundy can be part of a good rotation?

So far the pitchers we have added each year have not given me much faith in the FO.

Lawton is one of our truly underrated OFs. He was our main man for a period and reminds me a lot of LaMonte Wade. I hope Wade can have that career. Lawton had a slash of 277/379/428/808 for seven years with the Twins.

Mark Appel was a similar high risk pitcher who did not sign with his first team and now has six mediocre at best seasons in MiLB. Pitchers are volatile, but when there is a red flag it worries me. What does he want to do?

We never really know how the MLB career for a prospect will work out, but there is no reason not to be excited about Miranda. What a year. I wish he had gotten an MLB taste the end of last year, but that is just being picky. The lack of position is a real issue. Does he go to LF with Kiriloff at 1B? How will Larnach look this year - still shell shocked or ready to assert himself? With Buxton and Kepler that only leaves LF for the two of them. DH is Sano, 2B is a traffic jam with Arraez, Polanco, Gordon and 3B is Donaldson. I am sure he will not be at SS. And yet, I really want to see him play and not rest on the bench.

As soon as I see Boras I want to hide - he is the boogyman of agents and dealing with him leaves me cold. That said, what really stops me is the physical unknown.

I agree - this trade made all the difference for the team. Your essay made me try to think of trades that the Twins made that did make a big difference. Jack Kralick for Jim Perry really jumps out at me, as well as, Gerry Arrigo for Cesar Tovar. And trading Dick Stigman for Mudcat Grant and Vic Power was an absolute steal - Pedro Ramos was at the end of his career. And trading Jim Merrit for Leo Gardenas gave the Twins there best SS in franchise history. Thanks for the memories.

I have been waiting for him. He is the talent that really looked like he could be a fixture in a rotation. I do hope to see him this year.