Jump to content
Can the Twins escape Cleveland with a split? Join our game thread! ×
Twins Daily
  • Create Account

mikelink45

Old-Timey Member
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    10,327

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    27

 Content Type 

Profiles

News

Minnesota Twins Videos

2026 Minnesota Twins Top Prospects Ranking

2022 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

Minnesota Twins Free Agent & Trade Rumors, Notes, & Tidbits

Guides & Resources

2023 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

The Minnesota Twins Players Project

2024 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

2025 Minnesota Twins Draft Pick Tracker

2026 Minnesota Twins Draft Tracker: Picks & Bonuses

Forums

Blogs

Events

Store

Downloads

Gallery

Everything posted by mikelink45

  1. mikelink45
    NO NO NO - there have been many decisions that baffled me this spring, but to make the bullpen older is the ultimate. Only Graham, who has a terrible minor league resume is under 30. In a year where expectations for all but the most optimistic are dire it is time to put the young arms in and let them learn in the bigs.
  2. mikelink45
    250 with 18 home runs - stolen bases might go up because I expect that Molitor will want the running game to be more aggressive. ESPN has him #6 overall second baseman, I would put him on top of this list.
  3. mikelink45
    280/380/410 I rank him last. I will take the HRs and I think that Hosmer will build from his series success. Joe seems to be aging poorly and I have read that he will be rebounding his numbers for three years. I think he has settled into the definition of a replacement player, not elite, not bad, just a person who can fill a spot.
  4. mikelink45
    The rankings do not talk about pitch framing or fielding. It seems that we cannot rank them without that. If I remember the articles on this forum Suzuki is not a great framing catcher. Second would be the ability to throw out runners. Third is the success of pitchers - calling the game. These mean more to me than what he will bat. But I cannot rank because I personally do not know. .240/.300/.350
  5. mikelink45
    Sorry, optimism is not to be found in many of us fans for good reasons. When we are not just reading Twin centric postings and look at other sites we get a sense that no one even wants to talk about the Twins. The Tigers look good with three potential studs in the rotation and massive bats in the lineup. Cleveland is developing a quality staff (note developing not free agents, not wily old vets) and is picked by some. The White Sox got hitters and pitchers and is the most improved time but still third. KC went to the world series and is picked fourth. That is the division - oh wait, the Twins are there too. Maybe a slightly better than last year fifth. I keep looking for optimism and I would rather than a really young club that did have a future.
  6. mikelink45
    Good players come to the majors in their low 20's and develop with major league experience. The Twins seem to think that players should spend their 20s in the minors and come up with 10 year experience. Not a happy fan!
  7. mikelink45
    Thank you for your sentiment - mediocre might be an improvement, but it is not the standard I care about. Blow up this whole damn roster and fill it with young players who might fail, but have the potential to be something. Safe and boring! I am already anxious for next spring training. Oh wait, there is a season to play.
  8. mikelink45
    How excited can I get when we do not have the youth infusion I hoped for and we are looking to catch the waiver wire dregs? Get rid of the mediocre - try to remember we had the number one ranked minor league - put them in the majors and lets really have some fun.
  9. mikelink45
    When are the next cuts? We have three question marks = backup catcher, CF, and pitchers (5th starter and relief) and the old question of cagey vet versus young and struggling with upside. In 2015, we will not contend or be a 500 team - it is good to experiment with those who will be with us beyond 2015. I would choose May, Rosario, Pinto, Hamburger, Graham. So long Milone, Pelfrey, Schafer.
  10. mikelink45
    Nice description of this Rubik cube. Since we have both Pelfrey and Stauffer clogging the pipe your summary is sound. Take those two out as I would and it becomes more attractive and I think better, especially if May gets the spot as he should (more upside and talent). Then we keep Graham and Hamburger, but most importantly, I hope the Twins do some trading. There are some bullpens, like Toronto that could really put value on our extras.
  11. mikelink45
    This was one of those columns where I read what was written, thought about it and came away as confused as I began. Rosario - Hicks - Shafer. I like Rosario, it sounds like Molitor likes Rosario so only Shafer and Hicks are playing center! I want Rosario, but I will go to bed totally confused and hope for better in the future.
  12. mikelink45
    Pelfrey slogged his way through - great. He was saved by two excellent plays and still he struggled his way through. Can we find more ways to give faint praise? It is time to move on.
  13. mikelink45
    Do it - let's avoid the we can't afford our players situation down the line. If Buxton and Sano come in like we think the payroll is going to be blown out of the bank.
  14. mikelink45
    Hughes learned in the big leagues. There is only so much learning in the minors. Let's start getting young arms in the bigs while they are still young. We put up with Nolasco, Correia... because they were vets. I want the Twins to get over that and start putting the young pitchers with major league coaches on major league mounds.
  15. mikelink45
    They signed Stauffer hoping he had the right stuff if he doesn't; let's move on. I am tired of hearing about contract instead of ability.
  16. mikelink45
    Boring is not the adjective that a time that lost 90 games four years in a row and are losing fans at a fast clip should want, yet that is what we have. Houston blew things up and brought in youth, now it is on the verge of turning things around. The cubs traded and brought up youth and everyone is excited by their chances. The White Sox did not pay for replacement players and they suddenly got exciting. But the Twins cut Meyer and insert Nolasco, Milone, Pelfry... wouldn't it have been exciting if the rotation had been Hughes, Meyer, May, Berrios, Gibson? Might not have won, but heck we still won't win. And what if we had Buxton, Rosario and Arcia in the outfield figuring things out and Sano on third and Mauer traded and young guys like Vargas and Pinto sharing time there and at DH? And Tomkins, Burdi, Achter in the bullpen with Graham, Perkins, and Fien. Somehow that would have been exciting even if we were still last in the division. Now my desire is for a trade as soon as possible for the pitchers and vets that clog the major league artery.
  17. mikelink45
    I remember watching Sandy Koufax when he was the wild, no control pitcher with the Dodgers - they let him work out his issues and he became such a legend that no one remembers his beginning. Next HOFer Randy Johnson - it took him time, but it also took time on a major league mound to hone his skills. We are not a championship team - build for the future where the building can be most effective.
  18. mikelink45
    The bench on a team of this caliber is not that interesting. It is a poor place to bury a player with real potential and with the DH there is not a lot that really needs doing. Better to call up with injuries. Probably the best thing the twins can do is have defensive replacements there.
  19. mikelink45
    I thought it was appropriate to share this note from David Schoenfield - As Will Carroll said in Howard's piece, "Spend money on research. Call a summit and get all the best minds together. Just making it a focus is a good thing. Teams that have shown a focus on this, like the Rays and the Brewers, have shown a big difference. The White Sox medical staff actually saved a full year's of salary over an average team -- it's like a 'Buy 9, get the 10th free' -- over a decade of play. That's significant, but yet most teams are doing nothing." Too much money is at stake for baseball not to do more. And rather then making this a team-by-team issue, where teams try and find a market inefficiency in pitcher health, baseball should develop a central program for research and development into injuries, with results available to all 30 teams. The sport is starting to move slowly in that direction, such as maintaining an injury database, but that's just a small step. If every team contributed even $500,00 per year -- the cost of one rookie reliever -- that's $15 million to start up a program, with additional funds coming in each season.
  20. mikelink45
    I think your postings add a lot to this site. I feel like we really begin to understand who the people are in the minors. Having them be more than a name and a stat really improves our experience. Of course, the Twins now have to face a more knowledgeable fan base and their quick shore answers no longer are acceptable.
  21. mikelink45
    His mental approach to the game is the reason for not putting his natural athleticism into play. Thinking about hitting, not thinking about baserunning, not knowing the outs means he is in a cloud. Can the old mentor cut through this? The body has all the right assets - speed, balance... Come on Torii - do your job.
  22. mikelink45
    I wish I were that smart - I know that I was able to prevent the rotator cuff surgery using some exercises that our Physical Therapist developed. It was a great success for me - but it is not that same as it would have to be for a major league pitcher and the stress they put on their arms. As a 70-year-old fan, I only speculate about all the improvements in health, conditioning, and analysis and wonder why we have not moved forward on what has become an epidemic. I remember when the first surgery was done and the amazement that we had when Dr. Jobe succeeded in this, but now we are at a place where we are seeing a rush to surgery and I hope someone is doing something on the other side. My old replaced hips testify to some of the great changes that have come in the health industry.
  23. mikelink45
    The academy is a really great idea and nutrition is something that really needs attention, but it also brings up a question that I have no answer to. Is there anything that can be done to help prevent TJ surgery? Are there warm ups, compensatory muscles that can be developed with the right exercise? This is so costly to player and club I am waiting for a new development. I hope the academy actually has some classes (analytics anyone?) and becomes a means of developing the whole player.
  24. mikelink45
    For a long time the "Twins way" was a hot and popular topic - it's just that the era has passed and the TR way has not generated any buzz like the Sox and the Cubs or other exciting teams. Until Buxton, Meyer, Berrios, Sano are on the roster it will and should stay that way. In our everyday Twins reading it is easy to see more than there really is and to feel like we are being underestimated, but my fear is that we may be guilty of overestimating our progress. Whether fantasy ranking, preseason predictions or just a national buzz I enjoy the perspectives just like I enjoy this site, but let us earn some respect before we are concerned about lacking it.
  25. mikelink45
    I read the comment in another posting that Pelfrey takes a long time to warm up and is not suited to relief. TR has clogged up a system that we have been patiently waiting for over 4 years. Now is not the time for older, low upside, fillers. Youth is all I want. Let's see that vaunted minor league produce. Fill the bullpen and the rotation with the young guys and get Sano and Buxton up asap.
×
×
  • Create New...