mikelink45

I really liked this look at historic 1B and how the Twins have used the position.  If we extend the list to Twins history Harmon Killebrew played 1B for 14 of his 21 seasons.   Bats R - throws R.  The trend did not start in the first two decades.  My eye test - back then both eyes worked - said Vic Power (3 years a Twin) was the best fielding and most fun of all the 1B - he was also R/R.  994 Fielding average, 7 gold gloves, 
Thanks for your new era review!

Martin was amazing - he did great for a short time everyplace he went - of course the players were burnt out when he left, but they had wonderful years until then.   19 years and 48 ejections.  The Twins won 97 games in his one year. 

Just as an addendum, I love Roy Smalley! His season where he hit 24 HR and 95 RBIs was really special - a few more like that and it’s a no brainer. I wanted to vote for him. I love his analysis with Dick Bremer and think he has brilliant baseball mind. His broadcasts are like a clinic to me. I’ve even had Twitter contact with him and he’s very nice. I love the fact that Gene Mauch, brilliant tactician, is his uncle. IN short, I’m a huge Roy Smalley fan!  And very proud that he was a Twin. Maybe I should reconsider and add him!

Martin was amazing - he did great for a short time everyplace he went - of course the players were burnt out when he left, but they had wonderful years until then.   19 years and 48 ejections.  The Twins won 97 games in his one year. 

That Manager was Billy Martin, who gave the Twins baserunner's like Tovar and Carew the Green Light to work their magic.

I loved Tovar, he brought so much to the game, he was a talented Arraez in his time.  So versatile and dependable.  I would have my second vote for Roy Smalley.  He has become an integral part of Twins lore and a great spokesman for the team.  What is interesting to me is whether the Twins will continue to do this every year or is there a cutoff where no one is truly deserving of the honor?

THIS is why the Twins were once so darn good:
By Larry Schwartz
May 18, 1969
Minnesota Twins second baseman Rod Carew is more than a terrific hitter as he shows today when he goes wild on the bases. After drawing a walk from Detroit's Mickey Lolich in the third inning, Carew and Cesar Tovar, who is on second base, pull off a double steal.
Then Tovar steals home, while Carew remains on second. But he doesn't remain there long, and he steals third, easily beating catcher Bill Freehan's throw. Then for the fourth time this season, Carew steals home.
The Twins now have several base stealing threats but the manager is like a dud firecracker all fizz, no pop.

I loved Tovar, he brought so much to the game, he was a talented Arraez in his time.  So versatile and dependable.  I would have my second vote for Roy Smalley.  He has become an integral part of Twins lore and a great spokesman for the team.  What is interesting to me is whether the Twins will continue to do this every year or is there a cutoff where no one is truly deserving of the honor?

That was definitely something I thought about when I was writing this. For some prospects I was thinking that it would be better if we traded them, but it would be more of a guessing game if I included that. I think there is a small chance that Rooker could figure something out and become a very solid player, and for Sabato, he is looking like a career DH or fringe first baseman. Hopefully he finds something out too.

We're now past Wait 'Til Next Year mode, and are jumping straight to 2025.
Plausible roster, though.  Hope some of these arms pan out.

I love it.  One of my pleasures on TD is when I get comments and discussions - and often other opinions.  This could be really fun - Go Eddie Rosario!

I believe the use of RP, the length of SP appearances, who cares about exit velocity and especially how far a HR was hit?  Who are all those coaches and what do they do? Which coaches are the most important.  .How soon should prospects be called up? How do we shorten games?  What needs to be done to get the popularity of the sport back?  Oh the options.

I love it.  One of my pleasures on TD is when I get comments and discussions - and often other opinions.  This could be really fun - Go Eddie Rosario!

I love it.  One of my pleasures on TD is when I get comments and discussions - and often other opinions.  This could be really fun - Go Eddie Rosario!

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

Add in the commissioner!

Oh, in no way am I defending any baseball team owners. I think they're all bastards.

I can see keeping Rooker, since he still has options if not traded.  Buxton seems to be OK with long term, let's get it done. Pohlads have always stepped up for long term face of franchise assets, that is how I view Buxton.  If we sign Buxton, can see Kepler and Garver packaged for pitching.  Too many holes to fill there.  Gordon and Arraez and fine for utility players and should be kept and see plenty of AB's.  Cave should be gone.  Can see starting Kirlloff in left field and give Laurach some more AAA time until ready.  He was rushed this year.  
If you don't resign Buxton this list is going to look a lot different. 

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

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?

Keeping Jake Cave isn't a hill I would die on.   I've been on record a long time for not liking his game very much.  If you or someone else want to keep Garlick as the OF place holder instead, it's not terribly consequential, but IMO we have an oversupply of options for the corners.
Celestino is on the 40-man and I would of course keep him, but I'm not confident he'll be ready on Opening Day - his good AAA numbers are built on a rather high number of hits dropping in.  I drop Refsnyder and Garlick because their bats aren't any better than Cave and they do not have his range - Refsnyder hurt himself trying to play CF, after all.  Dropping Cave too, brings the OF count down to 5 and that's too thin.  The acquisition of someone better than Cave in center will make his departure assured and painless.  We are short on up the middle talent.

I'd say that's definitely true for the backups on the 26-man ... but I'm not so sure that one or two of them could be a good option in AAA for depth? There are a lot of 'it depends' in all of this because, well ... it depends! lol. All I know is that you have to cautious about who you keep with as much as who you drop. Fun and frustrating puzzle to mull over.

I think Refsnyder is a certain drop. He has no minor league options,  did not even hit at replacement level, he's no longer considered an infield option and he's 30. Yes, he hit for a couple weeks, but that appears to be an aberration. If the team can sign him to a minor league contract, he could try his luck in St. Paul again and see if the injuries pile up as they did this year. 
I haven't mentioned Cave either. He's a capable outfielder, but his hit tool seems broken. To be a backup outfielder who would be penciled in for occasional starts on a corner, you have to be somewhat of a threat with the bat and Cave has hit worse than a backup catcher. 

Given how this season has gone and the way the roster is built, I wouldn't hesitate to clean house in the outfield. I'd drop Garlick, Refsnyder, Cave, Astudillo, and Rooker. I'd keep Gordon because I think he has real potential as a 10/11 man and he's actually kind of key to my outfield plans...
If Gordon is a legit CF backup, maybe I keep a right-handed bat like Refsnyder or Rooker (I lean toward Refsnyder due to the glove but Rooker's bat is far more potent). If Gordon is not a legit backup CF, I ditch all the corner guys and go sign a competent defensive backup CF for a million bucks.
Basically, it's time to move on from no-position corner guys taking up well over half the team's positional roster space. This team needs more balance than it has had in the past and that means sacrificing a little offense for defensive competency on the bench.

Most of those players will likely remain with the team. The people most at risk of losing their 40 man spot:
Simmons - obviously 
Cave - He’s had a tough go of things in 2020 and 2021. It’s time to find someone better, or use his spot for another prospect. 
Astudillo - His “positional flexibility” has been reduced to corner IF/OF spots. Rarely as a catcher anymore. I think Gordon’s performance in September gives him the edge as utility guy. 
Maggi - Just an honorary nomination this year for being a long time minor leaguer. He shouldn’t be considered a short or long term player on the 40 man. 
People that I wouldn’t be surprised if they were jettisoned from the roster or kept are Garlick, Refsnyder, and Rooker. They’re decent depth pieces.