Dman

Small sample size but Cave has the same OPS as Eddie and is probably a better defender in left than Eddie. Cave also had 8 dingers in his small number of a bats as well so he has some power. Not a great stretch for him to replace Eddie with those numbers.

I wouldn't mind seeing extensions for any of those layers with exception of Rosario. Granted I love Rosario passion but the lack of discipline and the fact we have some young guys ready for that spot it seems like it would be a mistake to extend him at this point. I hope the Twins can find a way to get a couple more extensions done this year. Berrios would be key as hanging onto pitching is always important. If Sano has finally put things together I would love to have him an extra a year or two. Same with Buxton.

I think Duran is the only lock on this list. While I am not a believer in protecting position players in the rule V I would protect Raley for sure as he is almost MLB ready and with rosters expanding makes sense to be poached by teams not planning to compete next year. Blankenhorn might get poached as well as he reminds me of Niko Goodrum to some extent without the speed and maybe a better bat. He might not get taken but would hate to lose him at this point. He might be a tough add though because if he regresses he might be hard to get off the 40 man. Celestino is pretty young I agree with the poster who said a team could take him as 4th outfielder as his defense is good and then hope the bat plays. Pretty big gamble at this stage though and you don’t see many or any teams really try that in Rule V, but with roster expanding and some teams not competing you never know. I would not protect Wander. His defense is poor and his bat didn’t even play in A ball. He might have potential but appears to be years away at this point. I don’t know why a team would saddle themselves with a player like that on their 40 man. For pitcher’s I am torn on Chalmers. He still has control problems although they have gotten better and should get better the further removed from surgery he is. I just don’t think he is ready for MLB right now and I am not sold yet that he ever will be. The K rate looks good though and he is a hard thrower so probably needs to be added. Also torn on Jax. I love that he just goes after hitters but the WHIP is a little high and without the K’s 5th starter is likely the best he can do at the MLB level. Still would hate to lose him and I think he could work in someone’s pen right now so might have to add him. Tough call there though as we have some higher quality guys not too far off. I was pretty high on Wells but coming off surgery he might be a really big gamble for a team to take but his K 9 is good and I have always liked him for a spot in the pen. Unless he doesn’t come back well I think he will be a guy that makes it. Not sure if needs protection this year or not but he would be guy I would hate to see leave. I also like Moran better than most on this site. He had a K 9 last year of 13 but a horrible WHIP. He doesn’t throw real hard but he gets such good movement he K’s a lot of guys. Personally I would rather have Moran on the 40 man than Wisler. Wisler has one great pitch is 27 and has no options. Moran has two good pitches is 22 and has a full set of options. If they think they can fix Wisler why can’t they fix Moran? I don’t get it. I think Jovani is underrated but I guess we will see how this plays out soon enough.

You are right my rhetoric was too harsh. I just never liked the Tyler Kinley signing and my emotions got the better of me. Thanks for calling me out. I agree with you no need to degrade. I removed the post since it serves no good purpose with that content in it.

While I agree I am being a little bit harsh my main criticism is their infatuation with rule V pickups or guys with no options who have to remain on the 25(6) man roster which can allow other teams to pick up our home grown guys via rule V. Last year the guys that mainly ended up working out the best were guys that were in OUR system (home grown) not someone else's. Guys that had options remaining so that they could move them up and down. This pickup doesn't allow for any of that and smells a bit like their rule V pick failure Tyler Kinley. Not saying you can't find diamonds in the rough in rule V but unless they are certain they can fix this guy it seems like a waste to me. I am fine with guys they sign that start at AAA with the potential to be added later like they did last year I just don't like these types of moves where they have to roster a guy who has been historically bad and is now 27 with no options. I would rather they use that spot to get someone with a proven MLB track record in free agency or keep one of their own players form being poached.

Travis maybe I am being mean for asking this but I am curious so here goes. Toward the end of your minor league career did you see the writing on the wall that you might not achieve your dream of playing MLB and how did you feel once the Twins let you go? Maybe I am a creep for asking that but I am curious about your mindset during that process. If you don't want to answer this one that is fine. FYI I followed you (i.e. your stats) throughout your minor league career. Kept hoping you would take off and there were times when it looked like you might. Anyway I wish you well and am glad that you appear to be in a good place in your life right now. Thanks for giving this a shot.

Totally love your take here as it is pretty the same as my own. Gordan has been doing OK. His OPS is nothing to write home about but having a young solid Utility depth guy is not a bad thing to have in your pocket. He can be this years Torreyes for us. A guy who can help us if multiple infield injuries come up. I agree with your premise of why sell low. He appears to be a solid player with the potential to get better. To be a Marwin or Escobar like player down the road. Unless we are dying for that 40 man spot for some reason I think it makes sense to keep him around. If someone wants to over pay for him in a trade then that works for me too. I just don't feel like he is throw in materiel but that's me. He has value and given time and opportunity I think will provide more value than most people think. No one thought Arraez provided much value before this year and Gordon has greater speed and a better arm than Arraez. They are fairly similar players with the exception of Arraez's amazing eye at the plate which very few in baseball can match. I agree with others that it would be nice to see greater durability. He was out early this year and then late with a HBP injury. He still had decent numbers at AAA .298/..342 with and .800 OPS. A little more muscle another year of experience should serve him well. He might not be the All-Star he should have been being drafted that high but I see a guy who can still be very valuable down the road.

I think the Twins will have to add him if they want to keep him. He has already had success in AAA and teams like the Orioles and Tigers would love to grab a guy like that for free. He is too close to ready to not be added IMO. If he is added though the Twins would need to think about moving another outfielder via Trade. Not sure how many of these guys we can keep on the 40 man. Somebody might have to get moved at some point. Personally I think Wade is the most likely trade candidate. He hasn't shown much power and his batting average in AAA has not been that stellar either. I know he has a good eye but that might not be enough in today's game. Will be interesting to see how it plays out.

I agree with you. There are a lot of things to like\love about Rosario but patience is not one of them and it makes him far more average than people realize. Kepler has a worse average and his OBP is .36 points higher and OPS .55 points higher than Rosario and thus more valuable. Max also plays some of the best right field in the league and Eddie not so much. There is a fatal flaw in Eddies game and if he can't fix it then Larnach or Kirilof will be better options either later this year or next for sure. Granted the young guys won't likely hit 32 home runs but they still could end up with an OPS similar to Rosario. They would cost less and production even it went it went down slightly likely wouldn't hurt the team that much. I mean even Jake Cave has a better OBP than Rosario and his OPS is essentially the same and he would play better defense in left than Rosario. Granted it is a small sample size but our 4th outfielder can essentially play to Rosario's level right now. Look I Like Rosario and I don't think the Twins will trade him this year, but if he doesn't improve his OBP and OPS then next year is another story. I think at least one of Larnach or Kirolloff will likely be ready to go by then or as noted above Cave could step in.. He needs to learn to play cat and mouse with the pitcher or his value will never be that high. He is a good trade candidate simply because we have minor league depth at the position not because of hate. The numbers simply show he needs to be better or the competition will take his place.

I never thought Dobnak would have had a chance to be anything other than possibly a low level MLB reliever. I never had him as a top prospect and figured that he most likely would end up a AAAA pitcher. I guess I could not have been more wrong about him. Only having numbers to rely on I always liked his WHIP but the K9 numbers didn't seem to be there so I never considered he could even be a dominant pitcher. This year he really had a great ERA and WHIP no matter what level they had him at. While his K9 numbers are not fantastic it isn't at Kohl Stewart levels either. He seems pretty solid attacking the zone and getting good results. I am surprised but happy to be wrong as we need some guys to step in and step for us soon. Sorry I doubted you Randy I wish you continued domination and success.

Very, very happy that in a very special season the Twins took the division. The beginning of the year was heaven with all the long ball action. The middle of the year was torture as the huge division lead was whittled away to nothing and eventually knocked out of first place. The end of the year was a grind but even with all the injuries, the Pineda suspension and our main rotation in shambles this team never quit. They kept fighting. They kept winning and they held off the Indians to take the Central division crown. Unbelievable and fantastic. Here's hoping for a little more Twins magic in the post season.

Very, very happy that in a very special season the Twins took the division. The beginning of the year was heaven with all the long ball action. The middle of the year was torture as the huge division lead was whittled away to nothing and eventually knocked out of first place. The end of the year was a grind but even with all the injuries, the Pineda suspension and our main rotation in shambles this team never quit. They kept fighting. They kept winning and they held off the Indians to take the Central division crown. Unbelievable and fantastic. Here's hoping for a little more Twins magic in the post season.

While I agree with you that he has as much or more potential to improve than regress I still don't buy the sign right now scenario. So many things can go wrong it doesn't make much sense to sign him long term this early. What if he blows out his knee again and is never the same player again? What if he gets concussed and isn't the same player again? What if he does regress? What if he never develops much power? Then you are stuck paying for a guy you may not even want on your 40 man. There is a reason teams typically don't extend players this early and that is they don't want to take on that kind of risk. Give him a full year and see what things look like. There really is no hurry to make these deals until players are close to arbitration. Most deals are only adding a year or two tops anyway. Under the current rules If I was in the FO I would wait even for a sure thing I would wait. I will say that I agree that barring injury I think Arraez will get better as he ages. I think he will selectively add power to his game in the next couple of years and with his great eye at the plate I don't think there will be much regression because he will force pitchers to pitch in the zone and that should allow for better outcomes. If he stays healthy I believe this guy is the real deal and a big asset to this team now and moving forward.

I have always liked Arraez's bat but I am still not a big fan of his defense. I think he can probably play close to average at 2nd base and that is where he should stay. I really don't like his arm at third at all. When he throws the ball over I swear it looks like it is going in slow motion. When Sano throws a ball over it gets to first in a hurry. I really believe that on a close play the throw from Arraez would be just late instead of just in time. I don't like him in left field either as he isn't real fast and again doesn't have a real strong arm. Is he better than Josh Willingham, sure but you still lose defensive value when he is out there IMO. I can see why fangraphs and other scouts are somewhat down on him as he lacks power and at his best is average at 2nd base defensively. The hit tool is as good or better than most all the rookie prospects IMO it is an elite tool. I keep expecting him to regress with the bat and he just keeps on hitting. With the great approach at the plate he has I think Francona is right he looks like someone who will challenge for batting titles in the future. Like many have already said I like him a lot as our future 2nd baseman. I think he will grow into some power and round out the hit tool and make it to some All Star games. I think his future is bright and am happy the Twins found an under rated player that has the best hit tool on the team.

The way Thorpe was throwing I was begging Rocco to get him out of the game. Once the Indians were up 5-2 I thought the game was squandered and lost. Thank goodness the bullpen held and the bats finally got hot. Sano with the big bomb was fantastic. We have two out of three in the bag do I dare hope for a sweep with all the bullpen arms used up? So happy we are up 5.5 games with teams looking to pack it in left to play.

When it was zero to zero in the 7th I thought was thinking one slip up and we are done but they came through big time and we pitched a shutout. Very happy and relieved with the win. Hopefully we can get at least 2 out of 3 and keep ourselves in good shape moving forward.

Being home run kings was just a surprising and fun development that I never saw coming this year. We still have a slim chance to beat them but I am not sure that it matters that much to me. Would it have been nice bragging rights sure but I think with the way teams are going to be put together now that record might continue to be broken for a while. Whether we win it or not we have proven we can play with the big boys and have a dangerous lineup where almost any player can go yard at any time. That is good enough for me.

I know we have a 5.5 game lead but with Pineda suspension and the tough 6 game stretch ahead I am feeling a bit negative about our chances right now. I just hope Cleveland has as much trouble winning games as I think we will. They have the tougher schedule but they still have very good starting pitching so hard to say how things will play out. Hoping the good guys can find a way push through the end of the season and keep winning games.

I hear you he has passion and you can't help but see his love for the game. I just wish he enjoyed the game of cat and mouse with the pitcher more. If he did I think he could be an elite player instead of one closer to average. If he could do that I could see the Twins trading Larnach or Raley or maybe even Kiriloff. But if they play the game better and have fewer weaknesses then why keep Eddie? They are going to hit walk off Home runs just like Eddie as well as take walks and work the pitcher which he can't seem to do. Hard to match Rosario's passion but this game is about production and winning not much else.

I really like him too followed him the whole way through. I have looked at pitches he has hit and wondered how he could even reach them. He plays with spirit no doubt and that is fun to see but his one fatal flaw does really irk me and it really brings down his value as a player if you ask me. I am not a huge chemistry believer because most of the time it is an answer in search of a problem. How many trades involve a GM saying this guy only hits 200 but the chemistry he brings should put us over the top? Or we really need to draft good chemistry guys over guys that have 5 tool potential? Just how many bad chemistry guys are there out there? Every story Seth has ever written is about what hard workers these MiLB players are and what good team players they are. Where is the article about the bad seed? That being said I know every team wants to create a family type atmosphere or brotherhood. Wants the guys to be loose and feel supported. From what I read last year it sounded like the club house was a bit toxic and that is probably the main reason they brought in Baldelli. A manger closer to the age of some of the players who seems to stress keeping guys fresh and keeping them loose. Part of the reason they brought in Cruz is that he is a good club house guy and he has proven that he is. Also at least early in the year the players frequently commented on how they liked the guys on the team and that the club house was relaxed and a fun place to be. So there is likely more to it than I like to admit sometimes. My point is ultimately though that it is about production. Manny Machado has value because of his past and future projected production not because of any chemistry concerns. It just doesn't work that way in todays game. The statistical edge is always at work and I don't see chemistry in the list of tools at fangraphs. Teams like most all of their players but production is key and there are service time and payroll constraints as well as age\injury concerns to boot. They all play a role in who is kept and who is let go. I like a lot of things about Eddie but he is replaceable just like lots of players on lots of teams.

That is a bit of a slippery slope you are creating there. I presume that means you would never want to replace any players on the current roster for fear of messing with chemistry then. So no trades, no FA no new players because chemistry could be broken. I don't think there is a team in the league that does that. Most of the acquisitions we got this year seemed to fit right in and actually enhance the chemistry of the team so that in itself might blow a hole in your theory.

But everything OPS stands for is situational baseball. For Example last night Sano took two walks instead of swinging at pitches out of the zone to try and hit a Home Run. Those two walks created the only runs scored in the game last night. Without the Sano walks we score no runs at all and Eddie can't even be the hero. Every situation counts and that is what OPS measures. I will give you that Rosario has elite wrists and hand eye coordination and can turn on a ball better than a lot of batters. He has an elite skill there but he wastes it by not being patient and getting good pitches to hit and in the end that makes him more average overall. I love the guy like everyone else does when he comes up big but other players come up big too not just Eddie. I love his passion and that he cares about winning the game in a good way, but the numbers don't lie and his current production looks replaceable to me.

He is a good player and typically brings energy but looking at numbers Jake Cave's OPS is not far off from Eddies. He plays just as good of defense as Eddie and he is younger with more years of control so if you are a believer in OPS then you wouldn't lose much production swapping them out. Eddie has a higher batting average but his OBP percentage suffers because he doesn't take walks (i.e. poor plate discipline). That issue handicaps him and in the end it hurts his total production so it makes him more replaceable than other players. I get he is the hero today instead of the goat but tomorrow is another day and his flaws will show themselves once again. He has been s steady 800 OPS player which is good but not elite. If there is a player whose production can be replaced it appears to be Eddie that would be replaced.

I totally agree and would add we have three players AA or higher that are close to ready to take that spot. I prefer Kepler over Eddie, Eddie is no Buxton in center and why pay top Dollar for Eddie when we have players coming up who can likely put up numbers close to him or if lucky just as good or slightly better. We could use that extra money to pump into pitching which is a greater system weakness and need. It is not that people don't like Eddie as a player it is just that he seems the most likely to be moved. Personally I think the Twins will keep him one more year until they can determine if one of those three players can make the transition. Kind of like Arraez this year. I guess we'll find out next year.

Eddie is a heart breaker. For every great play or clutch Home Run you also have to put up with swinging at balls a foot off the plate, running himself into an out or inexplicably missing a cutoff man. His heroics are great today until he is maligned for the next misplay. He makes games interesting I will give him that but he is not a model of consistency to be sure.