mikelink45

This is tough to sort out. In the past Gardy would have had his favorites, but Molitor has not been here long enough for us to figure out what traits are really appealing to him for companions on the bench. Danny Santana has not done enough to give him what seems like a guaranteed slot - there are many one year wonders who have come to baseball and knocked the cover off the ball and then could not do anything in subsequent years. Bob Hazle of the Milwaukee Braves was a great example. Here is a really good summary of that year - I was at the ball park to see some of his games: http://research.sabr.org/journals/1957-hurricane-swept-braves-to-pennant or you can check this out and see the top 25 one year wonders from Bleacher Report http://bleacherreport.com/articles/713369-baseballs-25-biggest-one-hit-wonders-of-all-time What this means to me is that Spring Training is to sort out a roster and winter conversation means nothing. Is Santana a player or a one year wonder? I do not know, but I do not like to think that he is almost guaranteed a roster spot and that is how the conversations have gone. Arcia is more interesting, but again, he has to show that he has matured. Of the three Tonkin seems the best bet, but we have to figure out the Nolasco pitching squad - what do we do with him? Have him sit on the bench and talk to Joe Mauer or put him in where he will push out a starter with more potential or a reliever who has no more options?

Buxton and Rosario - the runs they save in CF and LF will make up for the runs lost in RF and their bats will bloom as the summer temps rise.

It is all about numbers - TR brings in a lot of question marks with hopes that one or two shine in Spring Training.

TR makes his move! His M.O. seems to be to make a couple moves with some significance at the beginning of Free Agency then sit and watch the other teams maneuver before picking up dregs just before Spring Training. Like players, general managers have tendencies and TR does not divert from his. The only thing left is one we hope he avoids - signing an overrated vet for too much money and too many years - Nolasco, Santana, Correa...

I just finished reading the Peter Gammon blog and found it really had a message for this thread - http://www.gammonsdaily.com/peter-gammons-bullpen-stability-proves-vital-as-pendulum-of-dominance-continues-toward-pitching/ Hopefully the Twins have the pitching coaches in majors and minors to do what Peter describes, I have no way of judging them, but the one final aspect that I fear is the analytics. The Twins have shown real reluctance in jumping fully in to the new era of advance statistical analysis and Gammons blog really makes a case for more. TR please read the blog and ask your in-house stats man to interpret.

There is confusion in some postings. This is a good article and the simple issue as I see it would be: if you are going to sign someone, get someone good, quit filling the slots with low paid, low expectation vets - use minor leaguers that at least have an upside. It is the type of player we sign that causes our regrets.

You said an intriguing group and I am still looking for something intriguing. At this point, roll the dice with the young guys, forget about another savvy vet. There is nothing here that looks better than Burdi or Rogers or any other number of players in the minors. So we do not have a LOOGY - Perkins has shown that it does not matter which way the batters swing if you throw good stuff. We are going to be around .500 again, build for the future - our young guys should be ready in another year for a bigger push and we should have that in mind with the 40 man.

Santana in CF is getting boring. He has either regressed or he is showing what he is. Either way, we need Buxton's defense and some patience while he puts his game together. Torii took some time to get his act together and Buxton has too many tools for us to be impatient. On the other hand, there is a long list of players who come up and have a terrific first season, but never find the promise. I may be the only person on this blog post old enough to remember Bob Hazle who came up to the Milwaukee Braves and set the league on fire. A sure superstar - batting 403 for 41 games and helping propel the 1957 Braves to the championship - to be followed by .211 and .179. Check this out for good history - http://www.baseballprospectus.com/article.php?articleid=18058 Danny could survive on speed and versatility, but you have to either bat of field and right now both look questionable.

Its okay to forget about him, unless there is a miracle somewhere waiting to drop in Nolasco's lap we all want to forget him and hope the Twins do to. Better to lose the money than the games.

Sano - Arcia - Vargas - Park seems like a full cupboard to me, if only we could move that big box of Sugar Coated Minnesotan out of the way.

As a small Hall advocate I find a number of recurring themes which do not deserve all the angst that they receive; Will someone get 100% of the votes - this is a big who cares item for me. Do they post the stats on the plaques? If someone is making a statement who cares, that statement only gets aired because some writer is looking for a column in the doldrums of Winter.Will the PEDS get in? Again, who cares. I am not for their induction and I do not feel that the Hall suffers from their absences. In fact, until Rose came along, Shoeless Joe Jackson got the continuing poor guy press, then Rose who has become boring, and now it is the PEDS. They get more publicity for not being in. Look at the list of ridiculous inclusions in the hall - most of which we cannot list without research - Mary Marion comes to mind, but there are many more. The HOF is getting the 10 is not enough treatment, but we have not put in more than 5 in any year of my life so obviously the congestion, if it were truly memorable could have been fixed with a couple 10 player inductions, but the fact is, most of these guys are only good - a player like Raines was an all-star, but if he does not get into the Hall will anyone care in 10 years? And Schilling - is good in the off season, this is not a post season HOF, he was good, but there are many good pitchers like Tommy John, Jim Kaat, Jack Morris who are not in and Schilling is just another very good pitcher, like Catfish Hunter and Jim Bunning, who should visit, but not be on the wall. I have visited the Hall and I really enjoyed it, but I liked the exhibits - who reads all those plaques? The best thing about the elections is not who gets in, but the conversations and memories that surround the voting.Which leads to my last point - the indignation of people like Buster Olney become really boring. Vote or don't vote. I do not care.

I like the projected lineup - except I would drop Mauer Lower (won't happen because it would create too much angst). The Danny Santana candidate for 2016 could be Rosario, I think everyone is expecting it. But I fear that Sano gets that swing flying and SOs piling up and he could be the Vargas candidate. I hope not. I really liked both of these last year, but the year before I was excited by Danny Santana. And I do expect the Hicks turn around candidate will be Buxton. Speed does not diminish unless there is injury and speed will be the weapon that pushes Buxton to the forefront. Potential in this lineup is great - but it would be amazing for all these parts to come together in 2016 - I think it will be 2017 before it moves on all cylinders, but that does not mean 2016 will not count. Now put an analysis together for defense. We know what we have on the mound and someone needs to corral all those hit balls.

Earl Weaver was the believer in the three run home run and set this model early, with success, but that success was predicated on having four 20 game winners in the rotation and outstanding defense with Belanger, Brooks Robinson, and Paul Blair made them strong up the middle. I am worried that defense does not seem to be a concern in the roster and, of course, our starting pitchers are not up to the Earl Weaver Standards. We have ignored the KC model, but we are flawed in our pursuit of the Earl Weaver model too.

The Twins are in the middle here - look at the pitching staff and we are old, look on the field and we are young. But then the Twins are seldom in line with the rest of the league. What I am waiting to see is when we reach the point where teams learn to stop giving long term high price contracts to players who have passed their prime. I look at the angels paying for what Pujols did with the Cards because they were smart enough to know that he was only going to go downhill. The Cards made the right decision, but I am looking at these contracts that are out there now and it makes no sense in light of what these charts show.

Yes - I have given up on Nolasco. Not because he mighty not have a nice mediocre season left but because he does not have any great seasons left. Move on.

Amazing - it is like picking at the bones of a holiday dinner. We have no meat to roast on our hot stove so we keep making soup out of the trimmings that float our way. And now we will have a left handed relief pitcher to talk about as well. Toss another kleenex on the fire!

I agree with all these players and the potential for Regression, but what about our half season players - Dozier and Perkins. How will they handle putting them together for a full 162?

We know that one pitcher will get hurt, most likely more, but who is not easy to guess. Berrios needs to be next and if no one gets hurt or Duffey regresses Berrios has to be next. I am still bitter about last years season ending and the possibility that Berrios like Duffey might have made the difference, but moving on - if there is no injury and Berrios pitches like expected and the dumb service time rule is past - Milone to long relief becomes the best option. May, Duffey and Berrios in the rotation is my wish, but even a happy new year is not going to make that come true in 2016.

A nice diversion since nothing is happening on the MLB level. Good luck to all of them, but if they make the opening day roster we will not be as strong as we should be.

The only conclusion this gives me is that we have a lot of arms and our crisis in the bullpen is a crisis of trust. TR likes the vets and the Cards win with young arms. Anyone able to give TR a wakeup call?

As I continue to reflect on the failure of Terry Ryan to be the kind of general manager who can move a team in todays market I read this article http://baseball-players.pointafter.com/stories/8852/ranking-mlb-catchers-worst-best-2015?utm_medium=cm&utm_source=outbrain&utm_campaign=ao.cm.ob.dt.8852&utm_term=dt&utm_content=2787525#8-Kurt-Suzuki-Minnesota-Twins and saw AJ ranked 29 to Suzuki's 22 and think of how AJ was on his list to improve this position. And then I wonder what would have been the rank if Mauer had found a way to stay behind the plate.

Perhaps better wording would have been in order, but then again I think about running around with old Cy Young and swapping stories about the old days.

That's right, I was a sophomore in High School.

When I said I was 70 and usher for the 1961 season I should have shared the starting lineup - just looking at the names brings back great memories. Bob Allison Earl Battey Reno Bertoia Billy Gardner Lenny Green Jim Lemon Don Mincher Camilo Pascual Zoilo Versalles

Invest yes - keep - NO. But we got the most out of Kirby and I hope this will be the same with Buxton.