Major League Ready

I am torn on signing another SP. If you sign another SP you have that player, Nolasco, Hughes, and Gibson. Therefore, you have 1 spot available for May, Meyer, Malone, and Barrios. I realize Sps get hurt but that arrangement would not have provided much opportunity for prospects this year. Many people here say the Twins need to embrace rebuilding. Signing FA SPs on the wrong side of 30 is not a sound strategy in rebuilding, especially the ones that require a contract where they are very likely no longer performing in the final couple years. I also think while no one says FAs always work out. Those same advocates do not put much weight on the impact over the course of the contract and they likely deterioration in production from these older FAs. If we sign a "Lester tye" for $20M or more and they end up like CC or Lincecum or any one of many other examples, the Twins are going to have $60M tied up in Mauer, Nolasco, and this mythical FA in 2016 & 2017 when there is a real chance they could be contending. Some will respond they will have plenty of cheap talent so they could afford. That is a very parochial view. What could they be if they had the $60M to spend to fill the holes necessary to be a dominant team?

If the Twins were to approach this type of trade, Buxton is the closest comp. We can't trade Meyers because he is not under contract with the MN Twins. Therefore, Buxton and Meyers are equal in this scenario. The Royals did not improve by 15 games because of this trade. They improved by 15 games because a whole host of other players, some that were still prospects when this trade was made, improved the team. The Royals we also very fortunate in terms of injury of lack thereof. Most fans think quite differently than GMs or for that matter leaders of most organizations. Fans think much shorter term - We still don't know if Will Meyers is going to be the star he projected to be as Roy or the significantly less effective injured player from last year. However, from a management decision perspective. The projected cost was 4-6 WAR per year for 4 years after this year. I am not a fan of WAR but it illustrates this case clearly. 4-6 games could very well keep them out of the playoffs more than once over the next 4 yrs.

How many here would trade Buxton, a SP prospect equivalent to Odorizzi, and a couple other prospects for a one game playoff? It just so happens that KC got very hot and it has worked out but would you make the trade knowing it was for a one game playoff?

A couple interesting points regarding the 2006 Tigers. They finished second in the division to the Twins managed by RGThey did not have the ace many insist we must have. They had 4 solid starters with an ERA between 3.63 and 4.08Their free agent acquisition that put them over the top was Kenny Rogers who was 41 y/o on a 2 year contract. He gave them 195 innins and went 17-8.The other most significant addition to the team was a rookie named Verlander.Bonderman who had been poor in his first 3 seasons gave them 214 innings at 4.08. In other words, that improvement came from within.Robertson gave them 208 innings at 3.85. He was pretty bad in 2005 and went 7-16 with a 4.48 ERA. HisThe 2006 Tigers are a very poor example in terms of proving what many suggest we must do. They did it by acquiring a mid level FA for 2 years, a rookie performing well, and the two Sps that remained from 2005 improving substantially.

I like Dozier a lot. He is a great example to our young players on how to play the game. He has great focus on D, plate discipline, and has also shown the value of good base running. Having said this, I would still entertain trading him for the right return. We don't look so good in terms of OF prospects. AB Walker might turn into something but what if we could get a Joc Pederson type OFer in return. We have enough middle infield prospects that I am confident we could replace Dozier. I don't think that is true in terms of corner OFers. By 2016 we could have this team ... C - Pinto 1-Santana 1B - Mauer 2-Buxton 2B - Polanco 3-Mauer 3B - Sano 4-Sano SS - Santana 5-Vargas CF - Buxton 6-Arcia or new OFer OF - "Pederson type" 7-Arcia or new OFer OF - Arcia 8-Pinto DH - Vargas 9-Polanco That looks like a line-up with incredible potential. Meyer Barrios Nolasco Hughes May And a bullpen with a bunch of power arms. You also have Stewart, Gordon, a very high pick this year and a whole lot of other depth waiting in the wings.

I have to agree that Santana should be starting 80% of the games in September at short with Schafer or Hicks in CF. I guess this is a product of putting the best team on the field because contending teams should face our best. I would argue the team with these suggested changes is no worse than what has been put out there lately. We need to acquire a LF via free agency and platoon Schafer and Hicks in CF. If one of them earns the everyday job, great. Plus, that makes one of them available as a late inning defensive replacement or pitch runner or both. That team would be quite different than the one we started with in 2014.

I think it is safe to say that elite FA SPs are not a new idea to teams outside the top whatever number you want to use in terms of revenue. If we go back over the top FA SPs for the past 10 years we will find they all landed with 7 or 8 teams. We can safely conclude that all of those other teams were aware of their availability but NONE of them EVER made such an acquisition. Are they all incompetent? Do the fans who promote this approach know more about manage a MLB franchise? It is not a matter of if the they can come up with the budget. The Astros had a $12M payroll last year. Did they make any such transaction? The cubs had the payroll room and so have other clubs in this position over the course of the last decade or two. The strategy looks pretty good if viewed in the context of the first year or two. What about in 2016 and 2017 when we could actually be in contention. Mauer, Nolasco and XX Elite SP would constitute 50% of the entire payroll budget. (if the Twins set new revenue records) That is a scary thought. Mauer and Nolasco are likely to way underperform by then. So now we should take on another huge contract of someone who is very likely going to also underperform in the final couple years of their contract. And we would do this so we could be mediocre the next couple years and then have a bunch of dead weight on the books about the time we start getting good. You don't have to look very hard to see the ONLY successful model for mid-market or small-market teams is to draft and develop. Of course smart trades help too.

Can you name an elite starter signed in FA by a team outside the top 10 in revenue that was not a retention or extension?

How many legit "Aces" have been signed in free agency by teams outside the top 10 in revenue? Let's say in the last 20 years. If this is a good idea for the Twins, shouldn't the Astros and Cubs, White Sox, and Diamond Backs also be pursuing the elite FA starters?

I was thing the same. When you have sucked as bad as Arcia you should be seeking advice, not giving it. It causes me some concern about Arcia for the future. Apparently, getting his a$$ handed to him by ML pitching on a regular basis is not a learning experience for him. We all know the definition of insanity. In this case it is the definition of stupidity.