mikelink45

There is no answer to this question - it comes down to a variety of issues: Do the Twins think he can be healthy? Does he want to be here? Did last place sour him? Will the Twins meet the demands of the agent? Is the agent willing to negotiate? Do we have a CF if he is gone? What is his market value? If he leaves will a FA want to come to the club minus its biggest star? Stay tuned.

It interesting to me that after a terrible season we are left with a debate over which adjective to assign to it. We were last in the worst division - imagine if we were in the East. Disappointment and shock are the best descriptors I have. Because we all believed we were in a fight for the third division title in three years. I do not know anyone or any service that foresaw this travesty. I still see the lineup with the potential of a very good team, there are good prospects. The season hinged on SP and RP and even with a few gems at the end, we go into 2022 knowing our best pitcher is gone. So will 2022 be a surprise and a joy or do we have to go to the thesaurus for disappointment and shock again?

It's nice to have a wrap up, but is it really the season wrap up or will there be another reflection? I am not sure how I feel about the season other than being disappointed. What do we build on? How do we truly evaluate the end of the season. Nice that we ended on a good note but it's a lot easier to win when the pressure is off and there is no hope for the off-season. Players like Ryan and Ober we're fun, but does that mean that we can count on them for next year? So many questions. I think point about Arraez is one of many questions that are left to be answered from this season.

I do not know how to grade front offices. There is the organizational part - putting the right people in place, maintaining a functioning organization, establishing communications. Then there is the on-field portion which is both MLB and MiLB. I cannot speak to the organization, the Minors are looking good, but the decisions at the major league level were definitely a fail this year. Simmons, Happ, Shoemaker, Colome, Robles are poor results. Trying to avoid 90 wins instead of preparing for the playoffs is a terrible result. Having to trade Berrios because we could not sign him and having Buxton still dangling out there with the possibility that we might have to trade him is a bad reflection on leadership. Lacking a rotation, a bullpen, and a short stop going into next season looks pretty incompetent. I will not give a grade because I lack the ability to see all aspects of their performance, but I cannot see a grade above C after looking at the team on the field as it ends 2021 and looks at 22.

What a year - our goal is not first, second, third or even fourth place - it is to not lose 90 games!

Add in the commissioner!

Ober and Ryan should be in the rotation, but Gant and Jax should not. The audition is over. When the Cardinals give up on a pitcher they seldom prosper elsewhere. Figuring out the pitching staff for next year it is a real difficult conundrum.

Keep in mind that our owners were willing to contract and eliminate the twins at one point.

This is so hard to figure. In seven years he has played three years worth of games (490) and yet was paid for 1,134. I know there is no equation that balances the team and the player so he will want to be paid for what he can be and so does every other player (unless they are old stars who want to be paid for who they were). Pro sports make no sense to the rest of us when it comes to salaries. I mean Mike Trout is not worth $30 million a year to me, but I do not write the checks. So do we sign him? I would like to continue to see him on the team, but again, it is not my money. What ever they decide - both sides, I will keep watching, hoping, and wondering.

I do not have the solution, but would have loved to see Miranda get some MLB exposure. However, moving Donaldson to DH does not work for me, I watched him run out to LF and catch a fly that I don't believe more than 2 or 3 players would have gotten to. His bat is valuable, but so is his glove. I want Miranda up, but I do not know where.

At this point there is not much to learn from any one team. But I am enjoying the rise of the Tigers on the backs of the ex-Twins and a young pitching staff. Goodrum was like Baddoo, someone plucked from our minor leagues who jumped at his chance. Of course Schoop was just a one year signing, but we dumped him quick and he too has taken advantage of the opportunity. Goodrum was never a real prospect and would not have made the Twins but he now has five years and a line of 230/304/398 - 703 OPS His total WAR is only 2.3, but his versatility has really benefitted the Tigers. Akil Baddoo has a line of 257/304/438 - 764 and 2 WAR for this year. I always like to cheer for former Twins organization players.

His issue is not talent, but his availability. His absences are difficult and like Buxton and Kiriloff it is an issue to have the right replacements. I would love to have a year of a healthy Pineda.

I followed you until you kept Cave - Celestino can hit as well as Cave and field a lot better.

I like to look back and see how your selections fair = Huascar Ynoa was a good pick. Now pitching for Atlanta Braves. He had 1.7 War before his injury and looks like he has really good potential. Moran is now a Twin and hopefully a bullpen fixture for the remainder of his career. Andrew Cabezas has not been a bright star yet in the minors. Too soon for Lawyerson. If you ranked the picks you have made from 1 - 5 how would you see them now?

probably not, but I like collective inputs.

I have no idea. The biggest question for me is who has value to other teams and what can we get from them? Then there is the FA question - which FAs fall into the list that actually might be willing to sign with the Twins? The prospects needing to be named are a good group, but too many coming off injury to project them in the majors. The only reason I can see for Cave playing during the last few weeks is hoping he hits enough to interest someone else. He hasn't. He is my first drop. Rooker, Refsnyder, Garlick are the kinds of players that fill out the rosters of bad teams - I want something better. SS is the biggest puzzle. I cannot believe that Simmons might come back, but all the discussions eliminate us from the big book boys and say our own players can't play SS. So what might happen?

If Pineda is gone and Colome is coming back I am one disappointed fan. Come on Rocco - we have seen enough of Colome. I assume that it was a sympathy move to allow Detroit to score one more run before the end of the game.

I was impressed by the past list of hitters chosen even if two are on other teams. Akil - Tigers 260/327/443 770 Diaz - Miami 215/250/486 736 Can you give us an update on Chris Williams? I see Matt Wallner in the top prospects and he has had a good year, but Chris is a mystery to me. I like to see the progress of your picks.

Catchers are really valuable and many are able to last a long time - look at the Cardinals! So age would not be a critical issue for Garver if he had not been hurt as much as he has. Injuries take a big toll - ask Mauer. But a trade of a catcher should bring in a really quality pitcher. But who has an abundance of SP and needs a catcher? The Dodgers have the pitching, but also have their catcher. The Rays always seem to have pitching even if I can't keep track of who their starters are - do they have catching? Who else?

Colome getting the save is a great example of why it is a worthless stat. He stunk again. Getting out of the inning and giving up two runs in the process is not a good outing. Please find a new home for him.

I do not see them trading Sano - they will dream of his second half and probably fill the DH with him. Rooker has not shown that he would give more value and he is the other full time DH option.

I am concerned about our top three pitching prospects. Duran's injury creates a question mark and Balazovic and Woods-Richardson both have whips that are too high and that concerns me since I really hope they move to MLB soon. Are Winder and Canterino the next arms to consider for our rotation?

We have a habit of dropping like a rock in some seasons. Look at 1989 -1990 1991 95 67 586 1990 74 88 .457 1989 80 82 .494 1988 91 71 .562 You choose three good examples, but the las 60 years have seen too many of these collapses. Add 1968 and 1978 to the list of What Happened Seasons. Here is where those seasons fit into the records. x-1970 98 64 .605 -- 1 x-1969 97 65 .599 -- 1 1968 79 83 .488 24 7 1967 91 71 .561 1 2 1979 82 80 .506 6 4 1978 73 89 .451 19 4 1977 84 77 .522 17.5 4 1976 85 77 .525 5 3

I have not seen anything that gives Jax hope, but I do remember that Berrios also looked terrible his first year. I hope Jax recovers from this start.

I don't see Rooker or Jax being part of the team after Spring Training next year. Miranda has passed Rooker as a prospect and someone needs to step up on the mound. Jake Cave continues to prove he does not belong and yet I do not trust the brains to see that. I just do not know what to think about 2022