mikelink45

I rewatched the play on Nick's post - it is a sloppy error.

Nick it was a wonderful horror story. Once again you nailed it and I am sorry you are right on so many points. As I sit here with snow falling and two fresh inches on the ground I keep thinking this must still be spring training. These games don't count, but then I remember last spring and they do! Keep telling us the truth.

I think we would.

The problem for Twins fans is that we saw last year what a terrible start can do to an entire season.

I am in admiration for any of you who can listen to Rocco - sorry, but that is too much to take. I know early in the season, but we need a four game winning streak to get above 500. 8 0f 10 batters are under 250! And five are 200 or less. The BP has Duran, maybe Duffey, Winder who now should step into the rotation and ?????????????????????????????????? The Twins BP ranks 28 out of 30.

Wow - prospects went 11 - 24. Nice. Lewis Thorpe has lost it and we have so many prospects I expect that unless he has a miraculous comeback he will be gone for good this year. And Vallimont is struggling. Glad we have a lot of arms - those two are not doing themselves any favors. I had to go and look at the 40 man. I would say that Garlick and Vallimont are the next two off the list.

Is it time to be concerned about Jeffers bat?

I heard that Buxton was not that severe either - but now we do not have either one. Bad situation for the team and I think Winder is ready to step in.

Prospect bats 5/19 and 2 HRs. Rodriguez is really making a great early season impression. What is happening with Miranda? He is only hitting 194. Bad luck, frustration for not making the team???? Prospect arms 13 inning 5 runs. Three on IL. When does Balazovic come back to pitch? He needs some innings.

Amazing how long you complained about older generations complaining about your generation. Must be analytics.

Did Duran give up the runs, or was it our shaky defense? Take out Buxton and Urshela and that defense is just not going to get it done. Garlick is not a good fielder, Arraez could leave his glove in his locker. So glad that we won and our Bipolar fandom was treated to Sano's HR, but missing Buxton in the field is much more serious than missing his bat.

I often hear the comparison between Sano and Ortiz - we should wait because he could turn out to be David as he matures. So I looked at the last two seasons - and compared them to Ortiz age 27 and 28 seasons: Sano 204/278/478/757 and 223/312/466/778 He struck out 371 times for those two years. Ortiz was traded to Boston when he was 26 so these are his first two years as a Red Sox 288/369/592/961 301/380/603/983 He struck out 216 times total for those two years. Even the last year in MN makes you question why they traded Ortiz 272/339/500/839

We will be watching Sano throughout the season and then? Will we resign him? We traded for Gary Sanchez who is currently 4 for 18 and has 9 Ks. This team likes the all or nothing sluggers. That is why we drafted Aaron Sabato who currently has struck out 6 times in 10 ABs. I do not know the solution. Maybe now that the pitchers have been taken out of the batter's box we can go back to the original mid 1800's rules where the batter can request the pitch he wants. Buckle up, be ready to be amazed and then amazed again. This is the Bipolar diagnosis for Twins fans.

I have to turn to Shakespeare to respond to your literary presentation. He wrote: "All the world’s a stage, And all the men and coaches merely players; They have their exits and their entrances; And one man in his time plays many parts, His acts being seven seasons." A season of promise and hope A season of injury A season in Right Field A season at third base A season of disappointment and hope A season of first base and DH And two full seasons worth of strikeouts " The sixth age shifts Into the lean and now too large pantaloon, With spectacles still needed to find that outside ball; His youthful hose, well sav’d, a belly too wide For his shrunk shank; and his big manly voice, Turning again toward hopeful thinness And whistles in his sound. Last scene of all, That ends this strange eventful history, Is second period of hope and mere oblivion; Sans hits, sans walks, sans homeruns, sans everything." But strikeouts.

You miss the truth of this era - Ruth did not just hit HRs and strike out. His career line is 342/474/690/1.164

8 hitting Prospects 5 - 27 185 for yesterday 3 Pitching prospects 9.2 innings - 7 runs. No need to calculate that era. I watch the prospect activities and hope to see someone catching fire. Sands looked good, Rodriguez is going to move up the ratings. Lewis seems to have cooled off and Miranda has really not gotten going. And then the video added Sano - 0 - 19 with 9 Ks. He is frustrated and should be. My question is, why was he part of a minor league video - is there a hidden message here?

MLB - this is pathetic. The game no longer sells itself. And I know because I will not attend a game that is going to take 3 1/2 or more hours and have no action. Go out for a hotdog when the HR is hit and you miss the only action of the game so you watch a replay on the jumbo tron - how does this differ from staying home and watching on tv with a dozen replays? The game is killing itself. I hope the statheads are happy. You were right, but in the long run, who cares? Joey Gallo hitting cleanup - his average is actually up this year - he is hitting .200. Wonderful He hit 150 last year and the Yankees have him batting fourth! Imagine Mantle, Maris, Berra...seeing this. I am so sad. How about your money back if the team stinks? Lose and you get 20% back, lose by more than 3 and it is 50%. Lose my 5 or more and the game is free. Or better yet - everytime a new RP comes in you get another 10%.

Sanchez has 15 ABs and 7 Ks - do you want to make him a positive example?

Being busy and missing the first 4 innings - then wishing I had been busy and missed all nine.

Yes leave him. If he tired he and Robert's would have known. As easy as the Twins were today he was still coasting and there was nothing else left for a fan to care. Can't judge Paddack yet, but not a good beginning to his Twins era. I see a complaint about the lineup - would Jeffers have really made a difference? Kiriloff has one hit this season. All we are really missing is Correa and he is batting 211 so far. It was not the lineup - it is the fact that we have proven over the years - we are not ready to contend for the WS. We are not a post season team. Teams that do well in the Post Season have great pitching - we do not. Paddack is an example of our teams pitching - a filler, an inning eater. They have Buehler, Urias, Kershaw, Heaney, Gonsolin with one of their best starters out - compare to Gray, Ober, Ryan, Paddack, Bundy. Their bullpen has Kimbrel, Graterol, Treinen and we have Duffey, Duran and Thielbar. We cannot out spend the Dodgers, but we have to find a way to get a staff that gives us a real chance against the high quality teams. Sonny Gray is number 42 on Bill James list of the best starting pitchers. Berrios, Lynn, and Gibson are all in the top 40. Rich Hill and Jake Odorizzi rank above our second pitcher #95 Dylan Bundy. Ober ranks #98. Ryan, Archer, and Paddock are not in the top 100. What does that say about our FO choices and our chances. I know it is early in the season and in a month it might be turned around, but I sure did not enjoy the Dodgers coming in and kicking butt - scoring more runs per game than all the hits we accumulated in both games combined.

When a team just DFAs a batter who is owed $28 million I would say that the message is quite clear. I do not want him on the team. Let's move with what we have - Larnach, Celestino, Gordon for now and hopefully Kiriloff back in 10 days. If he isn't the three we have will get us through the year and Martin can be ready or Lewis can get some OF time. Is Miranda any good in the OF? Urshela? The BP might be a bigger problem than trying to fill LF.

Stone cold glove - his fielding this year seems to have disappeared. DH and PH only at this point. This is an adjustment to my earlier statement after last nights game.

So much to unwind. Listening to the radio announcers - this game was a preview of the post season - I agree, we lost again. Everyone has dissected the big issues - Winder was misused, starters should go 5 - 6 innings - the overuse of BP is ridiculous. The question in another posting was whether Arreaz deserved to start - only at DH - his glove has turned to stone this year. The BP without Rogers and Alcala is not a championship caliber. Hopefully Duffey comes back strong and Duran keeps that arm healthy. The rest seem mediocre. By the way, Garver is batting fourth and doing really well with Texas - of course we have Sanchez - the whiff king. Talk about catchers framing, his bat is framing the opponents and making them look great. Do we know if Sanchez and Sano has a bet going on the most Ks?

Arraez is by far the best hitter outside of Buxton and gives us something that is unique - a player who uses all the field, knows a ball from a strike, and controls the plate no matter who the pitcher is.

After the Alcala announcement we are all worried about the future. Please no more bad arms, shoulders, elbow....