DocBauer

I've been an advocate for Feliz for some time now, especially with Levine familiar with him. I think he could step in as the closer and allow Chargois and others to define themselves initially without having to step in as "the guy" in the 9th right away. Further, a strong bullpen helps mitigate a questionable rotation somewhat, and allows the rebuilding Twins to actually win a few games they might otherwise lose. Winnjng is still the name of the game, and learning to win, IMO, is a real thing. Feliz could be an excellent flip candidate, but is also young enough to re-sign and keep. But I'm not sure I'd be in on him for 3 years at this point. I was thinking more about a year deal with a chance to close as more of a bounce back candidate. I might even consider a 2 year deal. Just not as excited about 3 years when I think there are enough questions about him being what he was previously at this point.

Personally, I think Gibson gets a bad rap because of his down...and injury plagued...2016. For the two seasons before he was solid and showed improvement from '14 to '15. I would fully expect, at this time, to see a different and healthy Gibson in 2017 that looks like the '15 version, perhaps even better. But I sometimes feel like he doesn't trust himself or his stuff. If you remember many years ago, Viola had a problem of nibbling too much. Despite not having tremendous heat or big time SO potential, Viola was suddenly convinced that he was indeed a power pitcher, and not a "crafty" LH and needed to trust his stuff. Now, I'm not saying Gibson is another Viola waiting to happen at all. But whether he doesn't trust the players behind him, or his own stuff, I feel he just doesn't attack the zone and ends up nibbling too much, trying to be perfect.

Nice write up, and I'm more than willing to be creative and even take back salary. We have the means to do it, and might even end up with a surprise. But I am still perplexed by the random thoughts and reports in any potential deal. Yes, it's fair to quibble and argue over Dozier's ultimate worth. But it's not as though the Dodgers have 3 top 2B with equal ability and trade worth at their trade fingertips. JDL is a fine prosect. So might be Alvarez. But Alvarez us still an A ball prosect despite potential. Would you feel Berries and Romeo would be enough to acquire one if the top 2B in the game if the shoe was on the other foot and it was the Twins needing a player to put them over the top? (Closest approximation I can come up with) I just don't feel the Twins are being unreasonable in asking fir a quality 3rd prospect to make this deal happen.

I'm 51 and guess I was born being a Twins fan as it became my father's favorite team when they moved to Minnesota. He was born and raised in South Dakota, which means I'm from their originally as well, lol. I have lived most of my life in Nebraska, however, and Omaha for the past 27 some years. I was about 5 when introduced to baseball and the Twins via my father...who I have referenced before in previous posts, and who is a lurker but not a contributor...by way of AM 570 WNAX radio out of Yankton, which I still listen to today. He coached little league and taught me the game as we listened to Twins games in the car or on a transistor radio. I've seen the Twins play in person in KC, a couple games in Anaheim back in 1984 while at the Olympics, but have, unfortunately, only seen the Twins play in The Cities once when very young and my father's little league team was rewarded with a trip and game. I watch as many games as I can, and have followed the Twins and their milb system via The Sporting News, Baseball America, Baseball Digest and the Tribune all my life. I began to follow Seth and other bloggers initially before following them here to Twins Daily at its inception. I lurked for a time before joining on as an active member. Obviously, my favorite memories were the two World Series championships, but I specifically enjoyed watching the Twins earn their trip in '87 by watching the games over the Tigers with my dad. Surprisingly, despite all our time with the Twins on the radio, we've only ever watched a few full games together. So enjoying those wins together over Detroit was special. (Still fondly recall the hustle of Randy Bush). Some of my favorite Twins of all time would be Hrbek, Puckett, Viola, Kubel, Cuddyer, Hunter, Jones and Spanish. But there are just too many to mention. And a special shout out for Herb Carneal. I still miss his booming baritone welcoming me to the broadcast.

You can call me crazy, but I'm a little bit excited about the 2017 rotation. And no, not because it couldn't be any worse, (although that is true), or because I think its going to suddenly be good. I'm excited because I truly believe a healthy Gibson will look like his 2015 self. Because Santiago pitched better down the stretch when they quit messing with him. Because now that he got his feet wet, I want to see what Berrios will do. Because I like May in the rotation. Because I'm curious to see if and when Hughes can make it back. Because if Dozier is traded I want to see the SP candidate(s) they bring in. The grades here are sound and fair. But I'm really excited to see what changes for 2017. And the truth is...it really couldn't be any worse.

I think this is an important point. Much like my grading the infield as "incomplete", I feel the same way about the OF. I remain bullish on both Buxton and Kepler. (As someone stated, we all need top stop with Trout comparisons for anyone and everyone) Buxton did show a strong finish to 2016 and has tremendous potential. And we all want to see that potential realized sooner rather than later. But he is quite young, moved rather quickly through the minors despite missing some valuable time due to injury. But he's just so talented and raked so well at his various stops that we just almost expect the same thing at the ML level. Always liked and believed in Kepler and his potential. But again, he's young and we all know he faced a different kind of learning curve than a lot of prospects. After his breakout 2015, really, he should have spent more time in AAA before making his debut. Rosario is a bit of an enigma to be sure. We still don't know what we have in him. But the ability is undeniable. And we've seen glimpses. He may never hit the way we'do like or display great strike zone judgement, though one suspects/expects it will improve somewhat over time. But with defense, speed and power, I'd still be playing him pretty much daily to develop and see what he can be. Remember, he still only has about 770 ML AB. There is room for Grossman on this team as a 5th OF, bench bat, DH. I honestly didn't see him play enough to know how bad his defense may or may not be. But if it can improve even a little, it would be nice to be able to use him in the OF here and there as a RH option to give Rosario and Kepler a day off. I'd still like to see a better 4th OF brought on board. I had high hopes for Santana as a nice and dangerous utility player. He's still pretty young, has a lot of talent, and was brought up pretty quickly. But we just haven't seen any development. He's someone I'd definitely let loose to add to the roster. But he'd also be someone I'd love to sign to a milb contract and keep around if he went unclaimed.

My arguement is the same...doesn't his potential and limited production alone deserve a real shot at regular playing time to see what you might have?!

NOT going to get in a debate about the value of a tall, strapping young LH pitcher with room to grow and and improve who has outstanding milb numbers and a seemingly good sense of how to pitch and the chance to be quite good with time and polish...(see what I did there?)...but I will speak again about Santana. Considering the dearth of FA options, his proven track record, his strong 2016 season, what trades seem to be bringing, what he could mean to a team with a real window of opportunity, I absolutely believe Santana is worth a top100 prospect, if not two. Top milb prospects can turn out to be studs. They can turn out mediocre. They can wash out. If a team looks to improve and bust through their window, they absolutely have to be willing to "gamble" on giving up a couple good "prospects" for the proven player who can make them better. With Dozier or Santana. In an ideal situation, Dozier would net 3 SO prospects and Santana would net 2 position players. If not a quality pair, I think I'd rather keep Santana to help lead my staff to as many wins as I could for my young team.

Thank you for the article and hard work Nick, much appreciated. But with exceptions of Cozier and Mayer, IMO, you could almost give the entire remaining infield a grade of "incomplete." I get that things go wrong sometimes and guys get hurt, but for various reasons, the entire infield was unsettled almost the entire year. At the risk of repetition: Escobar: injured and stuck on the bench behind other guys not bitten by the bug. Sano: the entire RAF fiasco to begin with Park: Korean import and hurt almost all season. Vargas: flashes but still no long term, consistent playing time and a ridiculous roster crunch demotion. Polanco: young and talented but still a rookie and playing mostly SS. ..a spot he hadn't played all season! This is not to bash the players, FO, Monitor or anyone. Rather, to me, it's a glass is half full scenario. Imagine some health, guys actually playing where they should and being used properly,and maybe/probably one more infield option brought in. Even with the trade if Dozier, we could be looking at a much improved infield in 2017.

Please correct me if I'm wrong here, but wasn't he supposed to be selected earlier than he was based on pee-draft rankings? I would assume he'd begin next season at CR before a possible promotion to Ft Myers. But after college and his strong start last season, I wonder what the chances are he might skip straight to FTM to begin 2017.

I agree that Santana could fall off a cliff at any time. But isnt that true of any pitcher? Injuries and overall wear and tear can affect anyone at any time. But it's also true that every pitcher is unique unto themselves. And there really is no proof, no concrete evidence to suggest to the Twins or anyone else that Santana is preparing to fall off that cliff immediately. In fact, the numbers, and other various numbers posted here, indicate how relative and consistent he was last season and the years before.I agree with an earlier comment that he is a solid ML #3 who sometimes pitches well enough to almost be a 2. (At worst, on a deep staff he's a very good 4 and not overly expensive by today's standards) Personally, I'd love to keep him to help lead the staff, but feel he is a valuable trade chip at this point. Not as valuable as Cozier, but valuable to a number of teams with an open window and a need to deepen their rotation for a run. IMO, and hope, the Twins would acquire a mix of 3 strong arms from a Cozier deal, and then trade Santana for 2 quality position players, not quantity. I believe his experience, history and strong 2016 would be worth a pair of prospects ranking in a team's top 10-15 overall. And I'd target 2 of 3 spots between catcher, infield and outfield, preferably AA or high A. For a post season hopeful team, I feel this would be fair value.

Beat me to it glunn. I absolutely love my Twins, win or lose, and have literally grown up with them my whole life. Over 45 years as a fan. (NOT dating myself. I happen to be a very, very young 51yo. So hold off on the old man jokes! Lol) And I absolutely love TD and the people here who run it, maintain it, and contribute here. Without getting personal, 2016 has been a very tough year for me in real life. TD has often served as a saving grace for my sanity at times with our shared interest, love and fanatasiscm with the Twins. I wish everyone here a wonderful Christmas and New Year! And if I may impart a bit if wisdom: "Be good...or don't get caught!" Lol God Bless!

I'm going to keep things very simple here and focus in just a couple points. Untouchable? Arias and Bellinger. What do I want? (And see as fair) JDL, Alvarez, and Stewart-Buehler-Sheffield. I'd be happy to stop right there and be happy as can be and call it fair for both sides. But if I could come away with Van Slyke as a 4th player and an excellent 4th OF/role player for the Twins you could color me pink.

My immediate answer to the initial question is no, i wouldn't trade any of them at this time. Would I consider moving one of them if it meant making a deal with the Dodgers as mentioned above...and other places...probably. But to me the absolute best thing the Twins can do right now is acquire additional assets/prospects to work with. In my over 40 years following baseball and the Twins, I have seen top prospect after top prospect washout completely or at least fail to live up to his hype and potential. I've also seen a lot of guys picked later in the draft turn out to be all star caliber players. {Dozier?} The drafting and signing and trading for young talent in baseball is the biggest crapshoot in all of sports. There are things to really like, and very much potential in all of them. And honestly, we have NO IDEA just who will make it, who won't, and just how good any of them will be. You give me 5-7 solid young arms with potential, and I will almost guarantee one of them turns out to be a stud, one pretty to very good and one solid with the rest amounting to nothing...maybe a solid to good RP for one. You keep these 5, combine them with Berrios and Mejia, and at least 1 if not 2 similar stage/age prospects from the Dodgers and I bet you end up with what I just listed above. A little good fortune, you might even end up with another solid starter and a second quality RP. But having the numbers to work with are important.

I've always liked the Dodgers though I can't say I'm a "fan" as there is only one team in my heart. And I get that no team wants to give up top prospects in a trade situation. Everyone wants to "win" a trade. But except in somewhat rare cases, trade steals don't happen. You have to give up something to get something in return. Maybe the Dodgers system, praised for talent and depth, turns out to not be as loaded as reported. But it would appear, from reports and rankings, that they are. And they are a team with a lot of talent on the ML club, and even by trading away some talent, would still seem to have a bunch on the way. And they are a serious WS contender for 2017 with a big open window to win one. Dozier really fits what they need. And prospects, the Dodgers' or the Twins', are still prospects until they prove themselves. That is the risk the Twins take in moving a known, high quality ML proven player like Dozier for prospects. IMO, I see JDL, Alvarez and another of Stewart, Buehler, etc as a fair offer for the Dozier. Do the Dodgers give up a trio of nice young arms that could turn out to be very good? Yes. But they still have a bunch of quality prospects in their system, they increase their likelihood of reaching the WS with Dozier, said prospects given up are not guaranteed of anything right now, and the Twins assume the proverbial "risk" of the future development of the prospects. To me, it's a win on both sides and fair value for both clubs.

IMO, May will turn out solid at worst in the rotation given a real chance. This is based on stuff, milb history, and what he started to show in 2015. But his IP over the past 1 1/2 seasons probably marks him as the 5th SP for 2017. Also still a big believer in Berrios. Being a quality ML SP is HARD. There is almost always a learning curve. Part of his problem, IMO, is maybe trying too hard and not relaxing. You just have to believe and hope a Dozier trade happens and we get another quality young arm to plug in. Haley? Don't know enough about him to really say much. But Gibson, Santiago and maybe Hughes all help finish out the rotation for now. (Does Wheeler ever get or deserve a shot if he pitches again as well as he did last year?) And Mejia and Gonsalves develop at Rochester while 4 other young arms begin 2017 and AA with some nice upside. Nothing is proven or guaranteed! But I don't feel things are all doom and gloom either. I'm actually kind of excited over the rotation options the next year or two.

Nelson Molina, Travis Blakenhorn, Trey Cabbage, possibly TJ White and Niko Goodrum, (the latter may be best as a versatile utility guy), and maybe even Gordon if another SS comes to light. There are also a couple SS in the low minors who might convert. The problem here is almost everyone is at A ball or lower. But this also gives Sano time to actually play 3B on a daily basis for a year or two. The numbers, despite some bad plays here and there, indicate he's about average defensively. And this is despite being young, not allowed to play daily, only about 750 ML AB of experience, and the entire RF experiment last season. He's a good athlete for a larger man with a gun for an arm. He charges the ball well. I have seen very few 3B in all my years who come up and are real assets with the glove immediately, and this includes the Twins history as well. Can't we just let the kid play some before we decide he can't play? Back to Dozier....

Terry Felton

Question to you all: Putting aside for a moment who exactly is on or off the table for sure, (which the Dodgers could change at any moment based on a desire to finish the deal, OR, the Twins taking salary back, etc), which is truly the best overall fit for the Twins as the 3rd piece in this puzzle? Is it someone like Stewart who may be close? Or are we better off with someone else like a Sheffield or one of the other younger and further away youngsters with more potential but more questions? JDL joins Berrios, May, Mejia, Gonsalves, and a number of SP candidates that will all probably begin next season at AA. I'm not so sure a younger, less proven lottery type isn't more fitting for the Twins at this point.

I admit I sort of forgot that list from 2005. At the risk if dating myself, I was honestly thinking all the way back to around 1983-85 or so with Banks, Sontag, Pittman, Newman, Gasser, Nivens and Bumgarner.

I am much higher on May than you are, considering he seemed to show better and better consistency in 2014 and flashed potential before being placed in the pen. The problem isn't even that that took place, it's that the Twins virtually lost a full season of potential and development from him in 2016. I believe we also still have Wheeler, do we not?

Just to expand a bit on your point, Rosario and Sano lead with something like a whopping 770 and 750 ML AB.

Numbers don't lie, at least not completely. As a result, I'm not going to formally disagree with you. But I will offer a rebuttal. Our OF defense has the ability to be very good defensively. In fact, with ranger and overall athletic, the only negative I can begin to find is Kepler maybe having an aveerge arm. Do they have to grow offensively? Yes. But Rosario, Buxton and Kepler are all 3 quite young and still growing, learning on the job as it were, and have real talent. I think Kepler may end up being the most complete hitter of the three and may just be our next 3 hitter. Buxton has made skills and was finally coming alive late in the season. Rosario is a bit of enigma, but we saw what he is capable of in 2015, and saw glimpses last season after his demotion. I feel Polanco has all the ability in the world to be a valuable hitter and quality defensive 2B, with some pop and speed. Vargas and Park I'm less sold on, but given health and opportunity, they are a couple of bats that have potential and need to play to see what they can actually do over a sustained period. Both have power, Vargas can switch hit, (at different times he's hit better from each side), and he shows some OB ability. Park isn't ancient, has good power, and had an early season stretch where he flashed. Sano only needs to be average at 3B to be a huge asset. Part of the problems we had defensively in 2016 was guys playing that shouldn't have been playing, and guys playing out of position. SS is a question still, but a healthy Escobar playing and performing more like 2014-15 could/should be solid. More than anything for this upcoming season, I'm looking for a mostly set lineup where guys that should be playing, and need to play actually...you know...get to play.

We have tons of information and speculation, and yet, we also don't have a lot of concrete information. Is it possible...I'm asking...that it's the Twins who are holding this thing up? That maybe the Dodgers are offering both JDL and Alvarez and the Twins are just asking too much for the 3rd spot? Not saying they shouldn't go for the gold here! Dozier is a high quality commodity and I couldn't and wouldn't blame the Twins for going for all they can get. But lately I've been reading he's not really worth this or worth that, etc, and the Dodgers aren't offering enough. I'm just wondering if the Twins are the ones holding up the trade here. Thoughts?

I would vote no. Castro is nice, and will hit primarily from the LH side. Garver has real potential, even if he isn't 23yo. Considering his milb numbers and stint with the Yankees, just no way Murphy is as bad as he showed last season. Plus, willing to bet Turner comes back to the Twins. Now, another quality AAAA type like Hicks last season, even another Centeno, wouldn't be a bad option for depth and competition. But with the actual ML roster in mind? Nawww