Dman

Yep totally agree no shortage of DH candidates. If Cruz stays good there is no better DH out there so hopefully he has another good year in him.

Relievers are a volatile commodity so it is hard to ever feel comfortable with that group. The FO certainly deservers the benefit of the doubt given how the pen has performed the past couple of years but they did lose a lot of talent this past year. Trevor May was excellent out of the pen the last three years and how quickly he was signed and the money he got proves other teams liked what they saw. Maybe Alcala can take over his role of hard throwing dominant righty but it is a high bar. Romo was essentially replaced by Colome and given Romo's failures last year it could be a slight upgrade. Clippard pitched well last year. Far from dominant K wise but he was a solid option. Robles has been all over the place and looks like a down grade at this point granted it is just spring but he has looked very hittable to this point. No one is going to beat Wislers numbers from last year not even Wisler but again that is high bar for someone to step in and come close to. So yeah I am not feeling as bullish on the pen this year. Colina seemed a mess last year and despite that great slider got hit hard. Chalmers has trouble throwing strikes and we haven't even seen him or Ober this spring. So have to believe the FO doesn't trust those 40 man space eaters with MLB innings. Shaun Anderson has been a disaster so far this spring no way they trust him and Smeltzer gives up hits and walks like he wants to be friends with the opposing team. Those two are also sucking up 40 man spots and seem unlikely to help anytime soon if ever. So yeah I agree I don't see them being in the best shape without Thorpe and Dobnak coming out of the pen. The two guys that have been most impressive to me this spring haven't been really tested and are not on the 40 man. Derek Law and Luke Ferrell both have pitches that move and both have 6 K's in about 4 innings of work. Small sample size I know but they have been the most consistent and best of the bunch so far. The Twins need to put them up against better competition to see what they have. There's not really room on the 40 man so I guess it would take an injury or poor performances by Smeltzer or Robles to find room as almost everyone else seems too important to risk losing. So hard to say if Law or Ferrell can find a way on no matter how well they perform but they appear to the best two guys left. Hamilton and Waddell have had good moments as well but not sure they would be trusted or not at this point either. Hopefully there is vast improvement ahead for Anderson, Colina and Chalmers or some tough decision might need to made if guys don't perform.

He is kind of a forgotten man IMO. The K rate in 2019 was good the WHIP and ERA just a tad high. I am intrigued to see how he does this year. He could be a valuable lefty. Will be nice to get to know him.

Yeah I like Morneau in the booth mainly because I like his analysis. I like that he gives a good hitters perspective. I get what others are saying that he can be a little dry but personally I don't mind that. To me he is there to give me unique insight and I think he does that quite well. I also enjoyed Bert I know some didn't care for the tangents he went on but there a nice comradery there IMO. He gave good pitchers perspective and was easy to listen to IMO. I had no issues with Bert. All the guys they have tried in the booth have there strengths and weaknesses and in general I like all of them.

I know it Spring training and if you are going to give up a couple of painful homeruns that is the time to do it but it deflates your confidence in a newly acquired pitcher very quickly. I know guys are working on stuff and mainly trying to stay healthy but again the uneven performances of the pen makes me worry. They need to give Law some reps with better batters at the plate. He has done very well after the lineup changes but lets see if he can attack the big boys please. What I got of Derek on MLB TV looked good. He moved the ball around had nice movement and had batters fooled most of the time. Lets see if it translates to the better hitters. The bats have been pretty quiet except for the replacement players. I hope guys are going to get serious and be ready pretty soon or this could be tough start to the year.

I hate to say this but I prefer Buxtons bat to Keplers right now. He hasn't hit well in so long he is pretty much an automatic out. His Spring has been pathetic. He has hit a few balls hard but always, always pull side right where they are playing him. If he continues to be this bad I would try to find a way to platoon him to take some of the pain out his hit tool.

I stand corrected. Thanks for the info very valuable.

I am a huge Turtle fan but I feel like the last couple of springs he has fooled me. In spring the pitchers are more likely to throw first pitch strikes and at times batters face non-MLB pitching competition. This benefits Austudillo because at the MLB level pitchers generally throw pitchers pitches early in the count and while he might hit the ball it tends to be weak contact. He generally doesn't wait for something better or work counts at all. So the book on him is easy. Throw your best breaking balls and let him get himself out more often than not. Work the edges and bottom of the zone he'll swing don't worry it doesn't even have to be a strike just close. Don't get me wrong he has done well this Spring. He is always dialed in and never takes a play off and that is what we love about the guy. I still think he makes the 26 man and is good player but I also think that once teams start playing "real" baseball he won't be this good.

I said this in another thread but my main issue with Dobnak was his inability to strike guys out and get in long battles with batters fouling off pitches. He generates plenty of weak contact and if can strike more guys out along with that he seems destined to be an elite pitcher. I don't know if the new pitch will hold or work the needed magic but if it does I think it will be hard to keep Randy out of the starting rotation. If he does prove he has it then maybe they should consider a six man rotation especially since Maeda has been prone to getting soft later in the year and even Berrios has struggled later in the year they need to protect Shoemaker so maybe a 6 man quality rotation is the best way to keep guys healthy and productive over the long season. He has to prove this is for real first IMO but if he continues to pitch that well I think they should consider it.

I agree with old nurse that the Twins view the fireman role as most likely more important than the closer role. If you are asking which arm do they trust the most going into the season then I would say it is a tossup between Rogers and Colome. It might come down to lefty righty splits or who is most effective but right now I would say it is between those two. It will likely change as the season moves on as well. Alcala has looked pretty good in limited time and could get better. While Duffy has been brutal this spring he could turn it on for the start of the season. Spring doesn't bring a ton of clarity. The only guy I haven't liked and it is partially because I don't know that much about him and partially because his pitches are too straight is Robles. I am not sure he belongs on this list but we will see.

It's really a nice group this year. I have been hoping Broxton could show he can command the strike zone and it looks good so far but the true test would be having him start against the other teams starter as he hasn't always gone up against the toughest pitchers. Also he almost has to be addition by subtraction and with Garlic playing well there could be some tough decisions ahead for outfield 40 man spots. I know Lin has the better line but I generally like Maggi for some reason. Maybe it is his confidence I don't know but I am pulling for him. Same with Refsnyder guy looks good at the plate but you can see why maybe he is not quite good enough to be a starter. I haven't seen Linn much but the batting line is very good. Law looked really good today. He had the ball diving under bats and moved it all over the zone. I don't think he has faced the elite competition yet so hard to say just how well his stuff might play but he looks good right now. I have had my eye on Waddell and got to watch him today. He looks tough on lefties but he has given up hard contact at least earlier this spring. Today he struck out the side. He has a ways to go to be the SOFM but nice to see him improving. I really have enjoyed watching Ferrell pitch. The stuff looks soft but nothing seems very straight. I don't know if he can keep up that K rate but if he does the Twins might have something there. Hamilton has been rock solid but would like to see him face some tougher hitters. He seems to always show up after the lineup changes. We are close to half way through and I am really enjoying the effort these guys are putting out there. Someone will rise to the top. Right now I have no idea who that will be as I seem to like all of them. If forced I am still high on Broxton because if his offense is improved his defense is above average everywhere in the outfield. That makes him a great backup upgrade especially in center. For pitcher I am sticking with Hamilton who was my initial pick but hot on his heals for me is the deep underdog Ferrell. Underdog because I don't believe he is a hard thrower like Hamilton. The pitchers seem the most unpredictable to me at this point as there are things to like about all of them and with such a small sample size things can change with a bad game or two.

If this articles proposed trade idea worked or something close to it, It would definitely be worth it IMO but I don't think it would be enough. I like the idea of using the draft pick to lesson the blow of losing prospects but to make this del work I think the Reds would want a comp similar to what the Rays got for Chris Archer. So probably Kiriilloff (Meadows) Balazovic or Duran whoever Pittsburgh likes better (Glassnow) and then maybe that draft pick or a younger pitcher like Enlow (Baz). Maybe a throw in as well just to make it look even better. Castillo is a very good pitcher and I don't think we match up well with Polanco or even Kirilloff. If they are giving up their best pitcher they will want a guy with potential to be as good and able to replace him fairly soon. Getting a controllable fairly elite shortstop would likely also be necessary but Maybe Kirilloff would suffice. Since you can't bank on prospects a third solid guy would need to be thrown in also likely a pitcher because they are already giving up pitching so would likely want pitching in return and if the return isn't extra pitching why make the trade in the first place? Again if they were willing to bite on the draft pick that would help but it is hard to say if that is something they would want to do rather than take a guy further along. They don't need to trade their best pitcher the only way they would is if the offer was just too good to refuse.

I know it is spring training and all but Blankehorn has looked a bit lost at the plate at times. He started out well being patient and drawing walks but now he just seems geared up to swing at anything. If he isn't looking for where the ball is going and just guessing I don't see that working out. I also have seen a lot more swing and miss to his game than I would have hoped. He is a big guy though and with a bit more seasoning he could be a really good player. I just haven't seen it yet in the games I have watched him. Not sure what to think of Soularie. Lot's of scouts don't like the swing but the numbers kind of speak to his success so not certain what the disconnect there is. He also supposedly has a good eye at the plate which generally bodes well for being a good hitter. I doubted the Twins on Jeffers so am going to trust them on Soularie for now.

Shoemaker has been impressive so far. If he didn't have such a horrible health history I bet he could have made more money this year. I think he picked a good team that will look out for his health and if he does well should get payed what he deserves next year. Gotta say kind of disappointed in Smeltzer. He kind of reminds me of Kevin Slowey. A guy that always looked on the cusp of being good but gave up the long ball at inopportune times. Today he walked the number 8 and 9 batter back to back. He had to know that would be trouble and of course it was. He's a good story but when he's out there I always feel he is one pitch away from disaster. Robles got the three K's which was good to see but it was against the B squad guys so not that impressive IMO. A good start but I need to see more. Hamilton looked a little shaky to me but no runs allowed again and no walks so hard to complain. Balazovic looked good out there. Again it was against the B squad guys but he didn't over throw it, trusted his stuff and was done in 10 pitches No walks, No K's No runs what's not to like. Glad they got him out there and hopefully they give him another chance. Kirilloff looked much better at the plate today and his competition in Rooker, and Broxton are coming down to earth some. Rooker looked a bit lost at the plate today. It looked more like he was guessing than trying to recognize where the ball was going and he got fooled plenty for a two K game. Garver wasn't any better with 2 K's as well and Broxton looks like he might be back to his strike out ways as he has 5 Strike out in 15 at bats. I was hoping for the new and improved Broxton but he needs to keep those K's down. He does have 5 hits and 3 walks already so he is doing fine for now but I don't think that BABIP of 667 will hold. It was a pretty good game except for Seltzer's one inning. Nice getting to see some of the young pitching prospects get to play.

I think Colome has been reading my critiques and wanted to shut me up, lol. Let me say I was impressed with his inning of work today and he can feel free to make me look bad anytime. The pitching looked good today not much more to say than that. I was happy to see Colome look like the dominant pitcher I thought we were getting. Maeda does what Maeda does and makes it look easy. Farrell and Wadell got some work and were all K's today. Farrell is still right there for the Sire of Fort Meyers. He has 5 K's in 2.1 innings of work for a 70% K rate while keeping his WHIP at .43. I know that is a small sample size but dang that is some good pitching right from the start. That is a good way to get noticed. Speaking of Sire of Fort Meyers candidates Broxton actually took a walk today. He also struck out once bringing that nasty K rate into the 30% range but if he continues to make good contact and have a decent eye at the plate he could really help this team. Looks like guys are settling in and pitching is going to be tougher from here on out the regular season can't get here fast enough.

I have nothing to but Wow! Very well written story and it is amazing the hard work these guys put in to reach their dream. I'll be keeping an eye on Louie this year.

Nice article helping me see Sparkman in a better light. I know it was his first spring game but he didn't have great control and got hit pretty hard so I soured on him pretty quickly. His last time out was much better but he will need to more to convince me he has a chance to be on the 40 man. The competition for 40 man spots especially bullpen spots this year is going to be really tough. Colina, Chalmers and Ober are already on the 40 man and while I haven't seen them pitch this spring the Twins would be hard pressed to DFA any of them at this point. Then you have Hamilton, Ferrell, Law and Minaya to compete with not to mention other Twins prospects like Hackimer, Mason and Valdez. He is going to have to be better than all of those guys just to find a spot. Granted there will be injuries there always are but so far what I have seen from Sparkman I don't see him as a better option than Hamilton or Ferrell to this point and I haven't seen Law pitch yet this spring so he might not be a better option than Law either. If he is Wissler like we are going to need to see more K's and less hard contact. I hope he finds the mojo but he really needs to impress if he wants a spot on the big team.

Totally agree with you that a 4th option helps the player in this situation. Without the 4th option the Twins would likely need to use him in the pen as the rotation is filled out right now. They could make him a long man and try and keep him stretched out but it generally isn't the same as being in a routine ready to go every 5th day. I think the league does him a dis-service if they don't allow him to have a 4th option year. If you look at the spirit of the option rule it is to force teams to play good players, players that are good enough to play on another team instead of just stockpiling them on the 40 man. In this case though the Twins will have no plans to drop him from the 26 man and allow him to move to another team so that point is moot. He will get payed more being on the 26 man short term but his development as a starter could be set back as well. Also he did miss a lot of development time early on with his arm and sickness not to mention the short year last year. Honesty I think he cracks the 26 man at some point this year as guys get injured or need time off. He just needs to prove that he belongs first. Having the option to go up and down also should help his development as he can be integrated in more favorable circumstances. I think that without the 4th year option he will need to be deployed from the pen which would mess with his starter routine as well and possibly earnings later on as starters are more valuable than relievers. Personally I think there is a good case for a 4th year option benefiting the player and the team in this situation.

I like that calculation but I think you also have to bank on the fact that Buxton will be hurt at some point every season and for taking on that risk I think the Twins would look for a bit of a discount to those numbers as well. He has had some concussions and we know what those did to Mauer and Morneau. His shoulder issue is not a small thing either and he has had wrist issues as well. I think there is a reason they are coming to the table here. HIs injuries could sink him in a hurry. IMO Buxtons value lies between Jackie Bradley Jr. Level production to George Springer level production. Jackie got 12M AAV and Springer 25 AAV but the contract was front loaded and ends up more like 22.5 AAV. Your Calc for Buxton at 18AAV settles him right in the middle. Personally I think that is a number that gets it done but I am not his agent. I think the Twins would like to hedge and keep that number lower mainly because of injury risk but I guess we will have to wait and see. I think your number is a good starting point though so let the negotiations begin.

I swear I saw an article that mentioned Broxton had an opt out but looking back I cannot find anything. Does anyone else know if he has one or not. If not the Twins won't need to add him until there is an injury most likely to Buxton. If he has one he might force their hand to add him. The thing is we already have 7 outfielders on the 40 man so somebody would have to go to make room. Who knows maybe Broxton will slump down the stretch and it won't really matter. I know it is early but the outfielders on the outside looking in are playing hot right now. So hot, I honestly don't know who will win left field and who will be the backup outfielder. Kirilloff is off to a slow start but it is very early and he will likely heat up. Cave is only marginally better right now with a 422 OPS. Rooker and Garlick are neck and neck for the slow footed right power bat\platoon. Broxton is in the process of Making Cave look irrelevant and being a righty whose slugging right now is better than Rooker and Garlic could be a real weapon to move around. He also could be an elite defender in left and cover Center better than anyone not named Celestino. There are so many possibilities right now I have no idea what the Twins will do. Lot's of spring left and the pitching will get tougher the closer we get to the the regular season so plenty of time to sort things out but right now there are 5 good options for two spots. Who wins them is anybody's guess at this point.

I know everyone said Canterino has a quirky delivery but seeing it makes you better understand why people were wondering about him starting. Still his inning was pretty dominating 10 pitches 8 for strikes. He paces around the mound like a caged lion and is ready to throw right away. Very interesting mannerisms for a pitcher but I have to say I came away impressed watching him on MLBtv. He appeared to have very good control of the strike zone and I think his motion messed with hitters timing. There isn't a ton of room on the 40 man but the way he is pitching someone could get bumped later on this season if he keeps pitching like that. Thorpe pitched well again striking out the side. He had some battles getting to full counts but he won them all today. Really nice to see and I hope he can keep it up. Garlick continues to roll with a 2 for 2 day but how about Broxton? He is off to a hot, hot, hot start this spring. He had a mammoth HR today showing off his power. He has kept the K's down and made contact so far. They need to put him in the starting lineup here shortly to see how he does against better pitching but he has been very impressive so far. I can see why the Twins like Winder as no one made contact against him but his control was off today and he didn't aggressive enough in the zone as he gave up two walks. He also K'd one batter and gave up no hits and no runs so pretty hard to complain when the only complaint is he threw too many pitches. He has things to work on but the stuff looks like it is there. Colome came out and pitched better today but I can see why the White Sox didn't trust the numbers. It took 24 pitches to get through the inning but he did K two guys so he did his job. Still early in he spring and the old vets don't seem to worry about much more than getting there work in so probably no big deal It was nice to see a little more offense out there and fun to see some good pitching performances as well. getting excited for the season to start.

It won't be cheap to extend him but if they don't do it now, as in this year, it won't get done. Once he is one year away he'll take his chances with the Market. He has game changing tools with the bat and injuries being the only things holding him back. I think they should try and get a couple more years out of him but maybe the Twins are OK letting him go and pivoting to Celestino hard to say. They can only pay so many players big money so they will carefully pick and choose where to spend it. I hope they extend but I wouldn't be surprised if they declined as well.

The Polanco played today I would much rather have Arraez back in that spot. I know it is just one game and spring training but he really looked bad out there in this game. For someone who plays baseball for a living it was shockingly bad. Well tomorrows another day but they probably should play him more this spring if he is that rusty at 2nd.

Yeah he didn't appear that interested his first time out. Lots of fairly straight stuff right down the middle. The surprising thing to me though was the absolute rock solid contact that was made. Yeah I know it is his first time out this spring but getting hit that hard in general puts a little fear in your heart even when it is only spring training. Speaking of down the middle despite his three walks every time Sparkman got ahead he seemed to throw it straight down the middle as well. I didn't see a lot of movement on his stuff either. Unless he has another gear in there I don't see him helping the Twins this year. Shepard looked better to me, and was to a degree but he also seemed to lack a true out pitch. It didn't look like he had enough deception to trip guys up. Granted Rocco gave both of those guys chances against Boston's better hitters but they really, really struggled as Boston managed solid contact on those two as well as Colome. I know it is early spring but Sparkman and Shepard aren't going to get many chances so they need to shine when they get the chance. Felt bad for both of them. It was fun to watch Hamilton but he wasn't quite as efficient as I thought he might be. Still he looks like he has the pitches to possibly be a callup at some point this season. Rooker and Garlick are really battling for that last outfield spot. Both have looked good early this spring. Looks like Garlick will most definitely stay on the 40 man now as the way he is playing there is no way he passes through waivers especially since Tampa would have a shot to grab him. Nice to have some righty outfielders with thump just wish they were a tad better defensively.

He looks better at the plate than I thought he might. If the offense is there they could certainly call him up this year. I sure hope he is ready soon as he seems like best centerfield prospect that we have. I hope Buxton stays healthy but if not it is nice to know there are options.