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jtkoupal

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Everything posted by jtkoupal

  1. jtkoupal
    I have a feeling Austin might be the odd man out when the Twins sign Nelson Cruz
  2. jtkoupal
    Current Twins Projected Lineup: C Castro (Defenseive Catcher who missed almost all of 2018) 1B Cron (Actually was pretty good away from the Trop and decent vs RHP) 2B Schoop (Counting on a bounce-back year) SS Polanco (Hope he takes the next step) 3B Sanó (Please, Lord Jesus, save this man's soul) LF Rosario (Hot first half of 2018, let's hope he's healthy and gets back to that) CF Buxton (Please stay healthy and kind of hit) RF Kepler (Ever gonna break out? Time's-a-tickin') DH Austin (A slightly worse C.J. Cron that only hits lefties) In other words, not a lot of sure bets in this lineup. Pretty much flipping a coin and hoping it lands heads 6 or 7 times.
  3. jtkoupal
    I used to be a fan of waiting for the future to come to you and staying the course. In certain situations, I still believe in that. Not here. Not now. The rest of the division has gotten worse, and Cleveland is going to trade an all-star starter this winter. The mandate should be to win NOW in this division. Just go for it. The division is up for grabs, and if you make the playoffs, think about that extra revenue ))
  4. jtkoupal
    Austin is gone. We're gonna sign Bryce Harper and move Max Kepler to first base.
  5. jtkoupal
    Just pay Harper, please. Also, Nelly Cruz would be huge for that lineup.
  6. jtkoupal
    *I'll take a hard pass on LeMahieu, personally. *Keep Adrianza *Bye bye Grossman *Yes please on Zack Greinke *No thanks on MadBum. BUT... The Twins are AL Central Champs if they sign Machado. Just pay the man, please.
  7. jtkoupal
    So the releases of Alan Busenitz and Alex Meyer (LAA) marks the end of the Twins/Angels blockbuster of 2016. Who got the better end of that deal? Well...If a tree falls in the forest, does it actually make a sound? On the bright side... At least it wasn't lopsided like Hicks or Hardy
  8. jtkoupal
    Which wouldn't be the end of the world if he has made a commitment to getting better this offseason. I have no information as to what Sanó has been doing with his time. If he has made a commitment to improvement, he will be fine over at 3B. He has the arm and, if he has trimmed down a bit, his range could at least be adequate. If he has made a commitment to the couch, he probably won't succeed anywhere on the diamond. I guess we will find out more in late February as to what he has been doing with his offseason.
  9. jtkoupal
    This could shape up to be a battle in spring training. The only thing I can think of is that Sanó stays at third while Austin and Cron get 1B & DH (in some order). However, given that Sanó looks more like a 1B/DH type than a 3B at this point, it's hard to imagine a scenario that includes both Cron and Austin next year. I guess it's not our job to make these decisions, and Falvine has a better idea of what they're doing than we do. Time will tell
  10. jtkoupal
    That baseball analyst job is my dream job... but I'm unfortunately still a year away from a bachelor's degree. If anyone's looking for someone with an Economics or Statistics background, though, hit me up!
  11. jtkoupal
    Here's a radical idea: DON'T FIND A CLOSER!! That's right. One guy doesn't need to be designated the "closer" and relegated to 9th inning action. Add several weapons you can trust and use them as appropriate. Better to have your relief ace pitch in a tight 7th inning situation against the best opposing hitters than facing the bottom of the order in a three-run game in the 9th.
  12. jtkoupal
    I get where you're coming from. What I'm saying is that 1.) Are the Twins going to overpay just to smooth things over? and 2.) Do Buxton and his agent even want to sign an extension right now? If they expect his value, which is probably a bit low right now, to go up in the future, they likely will wait it out. Like I said, I get the idea, I'm just not so sure how realistic it is
  13. jtkoupal
    I love the optimism, but I think this may be a bit aggressive. I like your ideas, but I must caution you. 1- I still have faith in Max Kepler, and, presumably, so do the Twins 2- Do you really lock up Buxton after his injury plagued season? And would Buxton even want to sign right now? I believe Buxton and his agent would want to wait and hope he reaches his full potential, then cash in bigger. Furthermore, is that relationship really stable enough for an extension at the moment? 3- Is Cave and Gonsalves going to fetch Rasiel Iglesias? 4- Are you sure you want to sign Jose Iglesias when Nick Gordon is waiting in the wings?
  14. jtkoupal
    I like the idea of adding somebody such as Descalso and Adams. However, the bullpen cannot go unaddressed. Adding a power bat to the infield is a must, but the Twins will have a hard time competing if that bullpen stays status quo. The Brewers almost made the World Series with a mediocre rotation and awesome bullpen. The Twins have a better rotation, but clearly, the bullpen must be better.
  15. jtkoupal
    It is interesting how young managers have been so effective in the recent past. Hinch won with the Astros last year, Cora is probably going to win in his rookie year (as a manager) this year. Clearly, having a young, inexperienced manager isn't the end of the world. I like what I have seen from Rocco to this point. I think, as the article suggests, that he will be relatable to the boys. Can't wait to see how it translates to the field.
  16. jtkoupal
    Yeah the Twins could mimic the Brewers' success.... IF they acquire 2 MVP candidates and build a dominant bullpen. It's gonna take more than a few modest FA signings to live up to what the Brewers have done. In fairness, though, the Twins do have a better rotation, so the team will be built a little different. However, too much needs to get done for them to realistically turn it around that drastically in one offseason. The Twins could very well be better than 78-84 next year, but 95 wins doesn't seem particularly realistic.
  17. jtkoupal
    So frustrating. Sanó has all the talent in the world, but he continues to pee it down his leg... I don't feel bad for people like that
  18. jtkoupal
    When the Yankees sign Machado, Didi might just be on that list too :0
  19. jtkoupal
    A couple months ago, I thought for sure Joe would be back for 2019. All indications point the other way now. It's too bad, but Joe was getting to the point where his name is the most valuable thing he provides. He's still an OK player, but his numbers have been very modest since April. If this is it... THANK YOU JOE!!!
  20. jtkoupal
    Gotta wonder if Hildenberger is fighting through an injury. He has had a lot of bad outings in the 2nd half. Really, he hasn't been good at all in the second half (8.65 ERA, 5.92 FIP) On the bright side, his xFIP is 3.76 and K/9 is 9.00 in the second half... so perhaps he's been largely unlucky, but the BB and HR rates have been pretty bad in the second half.
  21. jtkoupal
    I love Joe Mauer, but I am of the opinion that it's time to move on. As much as I have loved watching him play, I believe his name adds more value than his production at this point. He has great numbers w/RISP, but if you really stop and look at his total numbers, he hasn't been that good since April. With an fWAR that won't exceed 1.0 and a wRC+ of 95 at a replaceable position, it's probably time to face reality. I'm as sad as you are, but there comes a time where you need to move forward. That time may have come.
  22. jtkoupal
    The more I dig into the numbers, the more I think the Twins and Joe Mauer may need to face reality. As much as I love Joe Mauer, it might be time to move forward. Joe has not been an above league-average hitter (in terms of wRC+) in any month besides April. Since May 1, he has a .689 OPS, a wRC+ of 84, & and OBP of just .315. His defensive metrics have fallen of a bit since last year, also. All things put together, his fWAR sits at 0.8 with 8 games left to play. If Joe wants to play in 2019, he will probably be brought back. If he is back, though, he probably is just a rotational player, and the Twins need to add some depth to their corner infield.
  23. jtkoupal
    That is a disadvantage to the strategy. It was proposed in Russell A. Carleton's "The Shift" in Chapter 4. The strategy exists in theory because many argue that there are not 150 guys that can be effective starting pitchers. Factor in injuries, and that number increases substantially over the course of a season, maybe to 180+. Those guys may be too highly-touted to experiment with this, which is why I prefer to target an established guy, but if that gets too expensive, I figured it would be logical to at least consider alternatives. More realistically, The Opener could be used with some of these guys into next year. It has been working better as of late and I would like to see them continue with it.
  24. jtkoupal
    No. 4 regular starters. Skip the #5 starter spot (at least some of the time). When there needs to be a 5th starter, use two guys (i.e. Gonsalves and De Jong) and have one pitch 3-4 innings, then the next guy pitches 3-4 innings. One of the guys can get optioned after the game and the other can serve as the long man until his spot in the rotation is needed again. As I said, it's wonky, and I like the idea of signing an established starter more, but the Twins have enough depth to possibly make it work as well as an abundance of pitching prospects that could use some innings.
  25. jtkoupal
    I prefer the idea of acquiring a legitimate #2 or #3 starter, but another idea has gotten my attention lately. What if the Twins went with a 4.5 man rotation, and used the "Fifth Starter" days to piggyback with the likes of Romero, Gonsalves, Stewart, De Jong, & Littell? The Twins could skip the 5th starter when off days allow (at least some of the time) and then, when the 5th Starter does need to pitch, use two pitchers to piggyback. There are plenty of options, so they can be sent up and down as team needs dictate. One pitcher can pitch 3-4 innings, and the other can pitch another 3-4. It's wonky and unconventional, but it could negate the need to spend big on a free agent, which is always a risk. I prefer to sign an established pitcher, but if you can get similar production from a bunch of guys making league-minimum, you might want to think long and hard.
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