DocBauer

Putting on my Twins-red/rose colored glasses: 1] The Twins have 6 players with 20 or more HR, another 3 with double digits. 2] Mauer wins his Gold Glove this season, is even a bit more productive, overall, from his 2017 season and signs an extension for 2 years for around $8-9M per. 3] Santana comes back healthy and strong with as good or better of a slider than before. He wins 13/14 games despite time missed. Berrios becomes the top SP with 17 wins. Odorizzi is again the solid pitcher he was in Tampa, and the better one he was the final couple of months in 2017, and joins Santana in the 13/14 win club. Not to be outdone, Lynn is stronger a full year removed from TJ, and Gibson's transformation the second half of last season is NOT a mirage. BOTH will also win 13/14 games. The Twins will win 90-ish and people will be dumbfounded the Minnesota Twins actually have a top and viable staff.

Thought I'd weight my $.02 or $.03, FWIW 1] Polanco seems like a really good young man. To my knowledge, he's never been in trouble for anything since joining the Twins organization. While I ABSOLUTELY believe it is a professional (or amateur in many/most/all cases) to know what is going in to their body...and their just shouldn't be an exception because this is your CAREER we are talking about...I'm not just going to say he is lieing. He is clearly regretful, and has manned up in public to apologize to everyone. Not a lot of guys busted have done so or appeared so remorseful. 2] Considering the preponderance the Latin ballplayers, specifically, it seems, from the Dominican, who have been busted, I have to wonder if their is any sort of language/communication barrier that helps allow for some of these incidents, or if there is, in fact, some bad information being told to these players back "home". Could these players be told something to the effect that it's OK, limited exposure, it will wash out of your system in time for the season, etc. Just seems to me, percentage wise, there has to be a component here yet unveiled. 3] I believe in punishing those who break the rules. Absolutely. Intentional or not, unless there is proof you were "swindled" in some manner, you are still responsible for what took place. Period. But I do have a very hard time with the pre-season ban. What is the punishment? 80 games. Great! Then it's 80 games. After that, you are cleared to play and in a sort of probation with Hughes penalties if found guilty again. But any suspension should just stop after the 80 games, IMO.

To me, it's hard to ignore Adrianza showing he could hit in the minors and then hit well with the Twins. Opportunity? Change of scenery? Tweaks at the plate? Hard to say for sure. And he could absolutely regress, but there is also some reason for general optomism. A decent bat with contact and speed at the bottom of the lineup with quality defense would not be a bad thing at all, not that he'd truly replace Polanco.

Being 100% transparent, I don't know that I've seen enough of Adrianza at SS to know if his defensive reputation is fully earned or not. I know I like what I saw last season overall. And his bat was a big surprise. And while a huge fan of Escobarm I think he serves the team best as that first guy off the bench to give rest days while still playing a fair amount. The choice would seem to be Adrianza, barring yet another surprise move by the FO. At bar slots in to 2nd utility spot. Haven't watched much of him the past couple of years, and don't think I saw him play at all this spring, but until/unless someone better becomes available, he brings experience and the bat seemed to come alive in ST.

I've been a hopeful fan and apologist for Vargas for some time. Really bummed it just never worked out with the Twins, for whatever reason(s). I wish him the best. I think this move is a bit "meh" but it makes sense. You trade a young DSL "flier" prospect who is years away for a decent OF prospect with some offense and offensive potential, (And positional flexibility), with multiple options remaining to shore up your AAA team and provide call-up/roster flexibility. It isnt always Burger King where you can "have it your way" and just order up the same player but he hits RH or switch hits. You acquire young pkayers with potential who may help. I'm really not crazy about Rochester's infield, but their OF and DH situation look good to bolster such a fine young pitching staff, and their seems to be a trio of young OF now for depth, competition and the magic word "potential".

I think power and AVG will fluctuate somewhat year to year, which is pretty normal, but I don't think we've seen the best of Rosario yet. Hes athletic, fast, has quick hands, and the ball just jumps off his bat.

Great question! And I am no expert, to be sure, but I think being a game caller and receiver is a lot like being a pitcher at those lower levels. At the lower levels, you can blow people away at times with velocity, or that one outstanding breaking pitch. But hitters also grow and adjust. And so must a pitcher learn to adjust to facing batters multiple times, be able to develop that second and third pitch, etc. And a catcher must not only learn his staff, but he also must grow in setting up hitters.

I say again, I don't think the team will stick with Hughes based solely on contractual obligation. As was pointed out in another thread/blog, (sorry, I can't recall which one now), the team has been pretty aggressive in some of their trade moves to take on full salaries of players in order to "pay" less in prospects or acquire higher rated prospects in return. But with the contract, a solid start the other day, most of these finalists having options, it doesn't really hurt to give Hughes that first month to see once and for all of you have something there or not. I absolutely love the pen depth this team has. And like they did at times last season, they can play the Rochester shuttle game with any "losers" listed above, plus Curtiss, Reed, Jay and even Melotakis possibly. I admit to being intrigued now by Kinsley. But sooner or later, now or when Santana returns, they are going to have to return him or make a trade. My guess? At the end of ST they make a trade to keep him, whether he breaks with the club or not.

I am going to have to disagree somewhat, FM, even though I also commented about some of this on page 1. Just like the ML team, milb teams have guys hurt and banged up. Not uncommon to have a guy or two begin the season on the DL. In that case, you do need "filler" pieces. Jaye is one of those. Slegers and Jorge are not. Slegers may not be special, but he's a legitimate back of the rotation possibility. Jorge is as well, though could be better if he really gets a 3rd pitch down. At worst, he might be a nice bullpen arm. Enns is debatable, IMO. LH and breathing and newly acquired, you give him some time to see for sure what you have. I'm disappointed in Romero beginning in AA, to be sure. But there is a bit of a numbers crunch, to begin the year at least, and he seemed to work well with the pitching coach there. I bet he's up in a month or so.

No intended slight to Enns, but I could see him being a swing man to allow for Romero to rise quickly to Rochester, and he should. Other than a good start, numbers crunch, maybe a little more time with Artega, not much of a reason to keep Romero in AA very long. And a couple months from now, May should be back. However, I could see him get early starts at A and AA before settling in at Rochester as well. Jaye has to be considered just a depth move. Very excited about the depth and potential of most all these guys. We hit the mark with just a couple of them in the rotation, a couple in the pen, it's a HUGE win! I understand where someone begins the season doesn't regulate them staying there long. But I hope the Twins will be aggressive with promotions for these guys.

And I'm probably wrong. Thought I read somewhere we had a 3rd year of arbitration or something. Maybe it was a QO. Sorry if mistaken.

IMO, sooner or later, the Twins need to make a deal for Kinley. The arm seems real. Winter ball, FWIW, and ST thus far, seem to mark him as a guy worth keeping. But the reality is he's still climbing a bit of a mountain to, essentially, climb from A+ ball to the ML. And when Santana is back, there is going to be some shuffling. I actually like Granite a lot. Quality instincts in the OF, elite speed and a GREAT approach at the plate. He knows who and what he is and doesn't try to pretend to be something he's not. But Grossman is clearly the better option to begin the season. He plays a competent, average defense in the OF, much improved over 2016, hits OK, provides OB, and has some pop. A potential late bloomer, to some degree, if he could just even out some of his numbers from '16-'17, you'd really have a very sound 4th OF overall, especially considering he doesn't have to play CF with this team. Someone gets hurt? Yeah, Granite is the starter.

As to Arietta, his numbers, when closely examined, still rate solid and he could bounce back. I would have been OK on a 2 or 3 year deal for him. But $25M per just seems crazy to me! Glad that wasn't our move!

Totally respect your viewpoint Mike but will choose to disagree. Gonsalves and Romero should be getting their feet wet this season and at least one will probably be a major contributor next season. Possibly both. Berrios should continue to grow, and with options, I believe Odorizzi is ours for 2 more years after this one. Is all of this a bit optimistic? Perhaps. But as you stated yourself, of just the 3 guys you mentioned, 1 should be good and 1 OK. Most important thing is the depth and number of potions available the next couple of years.

I'm not savy in the modern day metrics. I hear them. I understand a little. I'm a little old fashioned and look at K/9, BB/9, WHIP, etc. But I get it, regardless of which stats you look at, guy slid some last year. Maybe it's just me, but when a guy gets it done pretty consistently for a few years, then misses a season due to surgery, then isn't quite his previous self the next season, I'm going to line upon the "dud it before" side of the argument, especially when history also has shown pitchers coming back from TJ seem to take a step forward their second year back

Right now, I'd slot him behind Slegers as well for a call up. And that's not a knock on him, but the reality of Slegers having more AAA time. I think you're spot on with him as a solid back end SP, with his role probably being a long and swing man. To me, despite being a very different pitcher overall, he reminds me of Stewart. If he could just get that 3rd pitch to really develop, he might take off.

I dislike losing draft picks because you just never know, right? But this isn't the NFL where a "3rd rounder" is expected to be a top player for your team. 75th pick of 95th, you are giving up a "maybe" selection for immediate help. And while the Twins are currently, seemingly, lacking in a number of "blue chip" prospects, they have a quality and deep farm system in place. (And the "blue chip" numbers could easily rise after 2018 plays out). And who knows, Lynn could do very well here, love his time, and be re-signed, further negating the cost of said "maybe" selection.

To me, the guy released just has to be Sanchez. There is really nothing invested there. I get it's ST, and early, and guys are getting in work and the such. But he is a flier anyway, and has shown little to nothing thus far. Hughes may end up as a casualty also, but there is money invested, sunk cost or not, and he's younger than Sanchez as well. I know some will say Enns, but he's relatively young, LH and breathing, and offers at least SOME upside, perhaps in the pen if nothing else.

Hate to repeat myself, but I will, lol. The only negative is Mejia being forced out of the rotation, probably, when Santana is back and ready to go. (Of course, injuries can happen). And it's kind of a shame, though I love the Lynn signing, because I think Mejia has a future. But that being said: Santana Berrios Odorizzi Lynn Gibson Echoing the previous statement this is the best rotation the Twins have put out since I'm not sure when. Yes, Gibson still has to prove he belongs. And you can claim those 13 starts by Gibson are a SSS, but they are close to half a season. Additionally, it may have been a coalesence of the changes he made in the previous off season and ST coming to fruition. But less we forget, waiting in the wings for 2018 will be: May (when back) Mejia (assuming him to be the odd man out) Gonsalves Romero Slegers Jorge Rochester is loaded! And there is real depth here, in whatever order you want to rank these guys. Not that looking ahead to 2019 accomplishes much at this time, but, Santana can be brought back. Berrios and Odorizzi will be back. Lynn could be re-signed, particularly not only if he does well, but enjoys his time here. I believe the team still has ankther year of control over Gibson, though I could be mistaken. And Pineda will be back. Then you factor in the 6 guys just listed at Rochester. Absolutely the best depth and potential we've seen in ages for the rotation! And there still remains the possibility of a major trade or FA signing for 2019.

And one of the best parts of the signing is no more threads addressing if and when and who the Twins may sign for the rotation. LOL

Only thing not to like is Mejia figures to get squeezed out and that's a shame for the long term. I know you always need more than 5 SP for a season, and he can still open the year in the rotation with Santana out. Just seems a shame not to have him developing in the 5 spot. But this is a great signing!

Wait. Hold on for a second here. We don't know how this is going to turn out, but can we cool the jets for a second?! Kintzler was a "meh" signing to about 90+% of us and then proved to be solid in his role. Belisle's signing was met with more apathy than mere "meh" attitude, especially after a couple of early rough outings that spiked his numbers. You can argue the true role of a closer, changing of dynamics of MLB, coaching, or simple luck of the draw but Kintzler actually turned out to be a very solid closer. He even drew comparisons to former Twin great, and current bullpen coach, Eddie Guardado, as a less than stellar arm but quality closer. And when Kintzler was traded, there was much consternation. But Belisle, next arm up, even in SSS, proved worthy of assuming the role of closer. So now the Twins bring in a veteran closer with over 300 saves in his career, who still wings a mid 90's FB, with multiple All Star appearances, ( for what that's worth), and a K/9 over 9 for his career, 10+ for 4 straight years, and 5 out of 6, a career AVG against of .231, on a 1 year deal and some think this is a bad signing? Results, not Tums. The all time closer is Mariano Rivera who converted 89% of save opportunities. Let us look at all time Twins saves statistics and conversion %: Nathan, 260SV 89% Aguilera, 254SV 81% Perkins, 120SV 85% Guardado, 116SV 81% Recently, as Twins: Kintzler, 45SV 87% but 74% career Belisle, 9SV 69% but 30% career So on the edge of seats at times or not, Rodney brings it, has an 82% save ratio for his career and an 87% conversion ratio for the past 4 season's with his impressive K rate and is a poor signing on a 1 year deal for what reason?

Couldn't agree with this more! Need multiple likes. Much like Brock pointed out in another thread, it's Dozier's right to explore FA for the first time. It's also the Twins right to see how 2018 goes before making an offer. There is a tremendous amount of fluidity going on here. Personally, I'd still offer a 3 year extension that is fair, possibly with a 4th year option. Something along the lines of $14-15M per. If BD and his reps don't like it, so be it. I'd still bet it's the same kind of offer he'll receive as a FA. I'd just rather lock up his next 3 years of very good to solid production and have it "in the bank" vs looking to replace it.

Nice post. But Sano IS the future at 3B. The only question is how long the "future" is. Other than injury, rapid weight gain/total disinterest in work and conditioning/injury, there is still NOTHING to indicate in any way that Sano can't play at least a solid 3B, if not a really good 3B. Speculation is like a rampant disease! Regardless, barring trade, we could still easily see a brilliant combination of Javier, Lewis, Polanco and Gordon taking over the infield on a few years.

OOPS! Or LF with Buxton in CF.