DocBauer

History. Hrbek has his, and it is impressive. Mauer's isn't finished yet, hasn't written all his chapters. So to me, right now, I pick Hrbek over Mauer. As for the Hrbek, Ripken ROY situation, I believe I was pretty clear that I am a homer. Love Cal Ripken. Great HOF ballplayer. Deserving of the ROY over Hrbek? Probably. Take away, just for a moment, that he played SS and would become a HOF player and just look at the numbers in '82. For fun. Ripken: 160 G/ 655 PA/ 598 AB/ 90 R/ 32 Dbl/ 5 Tpl/ 28 HR/ 93 RBI/ .264 BA/ .317 OBP/ .475 SLG/ .792OPS Hrbek: 140 G/ 591 PA/ 532 AB/ 82 R/ 21 Dbl/ 4 Tpl/ 23 HR/ 92 RBI/ .301 BA/ .363 OBP/ .485 SLG/ .848 OPS I don't know that games played or plate appearances are necessarily relevant, except where they may impact number of at bats, and production within the confines of those at bats. Edge Ripken: runs, doubles, homers. I'm calling triples and RBI even because we are talking about 1 each. Edge Hrbek: batting average, on base percentage, slugging and OPS. (And OPS+ if you are in to it) Wait....what?! Yes sports fans, it's all true. Ripken had more runs scored, more doubles, and a higher doubles per AB %. But our boy Kent had a higher BA, OBP, SLG% (slightly) and higher OPS and OPS+ with an almost identical runs and HR % per AB, but with Kent having a higher RBI% per AB. Again, it's all just for fun. But I think I can defend my "homerism" with some credibility at least. P.S.= just for arguement and fun, Cal had an amazing 21 year career! But Hrbek's 14 year career is not to be sneezed at. To me, these two are always tied together a bit because of their coinciding careers and 1982 rookie seasons. Cal, with the longer career, obviously surpasses all of Hrbek's final numbers. But it is interesting to note that final career numbers continue to have Hrbek winning the BA, OBP, SLG, OPS and OPS+ numbers. And believe it or not, for their final career numbers, Hrbek actually posted higher % per AB numbers in doubles, HR and RBI. All of this is simply to say...and remind...that Herbie dude was a hell of a ballplayer! And I think we sometimes forget about how good he really was. P.P.S.= speedster Hrbek also stole 37 bases in his career, out of 63 attempts, for a success rate of 59%, whereas Ripken was only successful on 36 out of 75 SB attempts for a theft rate of 48%. Take that Orioles fan!

FWIW....on topic as well as off...I thought Arcia actually showed some defensive improvement in RF last season. Ignoring any debate about Hunter's worth as a signing, I was incredulous at moving Arcia out of right to make room for Hunter there. I always believed it made infinitely more sense to put the older veteran Hunter, signed to 1 year, in to play left.

With all due respect to Blyleven, Viola, Radke, Santana, Oliva, Mauer.....sigh....enough. All due respect to these and more, I'd be very tempted to pick Hbrek as my 4th were we to limit the discussion simply to the Twins portion of history. Local kid does good. Unless my memory is going...(and it's possible)...I believe he finished second to Ripken for ROY. (Always thought he got hosed because Ripken was a SS, but then again, I may have been prejudicial in this regard) He had a long, productive and consistent career and was a fixture for two World Series teams.

I dont mean to sound snobbish or too much a modernist, but, I kind of have a hard time including the great Walter Johnson on this list simply because his era, his team, was not the Minnesota Twins. I'd actually be very much in favor of the Twins bridging the gap between the Senators and MN Twins, celebrating and embracing the past and the connection. But they never have. Babe Ruth played in the early half of the last century, but he has always been a Yankee. (No Red Sox noise please) But Johnson wasn't a Twins, he was a Senator decades before the team moved.

I can't believe we haven't gotten to this subject yet. Yeah or nay on the beard? (I like it, FWIW) Is it permanent? Or does it dramatically and conveniently come off if his BA stays sub .300 much longer?

I suppose it's not surprising to state that one of my all time, absolutely favorite movies is Major League. I could just about quote the entire movie...(and often do, lol). I'm sure many of you could as well. My tag line comes from that movie. And before you rush to look...and because it pertains to this article...I will simply remind that it is "Nice catch Hayes, don't ever f***ing do it again." I find the line, the moment, and how it is delivered absolutely hilarious. I don't find what Arcia did in the Royals game Monday night, in the 6th inning, humorous in any way, shape or form. If you missed the play in question, Gibson was cruising along with the game tied 1-1, when the lead off hitter for the inning hit a fairly deep rainbow to left center field. Arcia had to trot a bit, put a little giddy-up on, but didn't have to work hard or sprint to get there. The ball...the rainbow ball, can of corn if you want to quote the hated ChiSox Hawk...came right down to Arcia's glove......and bounced away for an error, putting the lead off hitter on in what would be a 3 run inning that suddenly ended Gibson's night. Now, errors DO HAPPEN. Nobody is perfect. With an out in this situation, it doesn't necessarily mean or prove that the next couple hitters wouldn't have still gotten a walk, a pased ball/wild pitch, double down the line inning to score a run or two. But then again...when an OF literally drops the lead off out, how do we know it didn't change the entire sequence of the inning? My question is this, it was such a "don't ever f***ing do it again moment", that I have to ask; "should Arcia have been pulled from the game to make a point? Calling it a learning moment?" Keep in mind, I'm an Arcia fan, believer and even defender at times! He's young, very talented, has a very big future ahead of him, and has the potential to be at least average defensively. In my opinion. But I felt this play was such an example of lack of concentration and non-chelant attitude that I wonder if a move shouldn't have been made at that point. Your thoughts and opinions?

I haven't seen anything from Stauffer to convince me he is any kind of answer. Sorry. I dont know that I trust Hoyer either, though his last couple outings were solid. Not saying Pe lfrey will thrive in a bullpen role, but I think he has a **** if he will embrace it. Good, healthy results as a ML starter are now an exception, not the common. I didn't expect a lot from Stauffer, but I definately expected more than this. Very disappointed. But right now, I dont know if there is a viable solution. Play Robinson more because he's better defensively and is hitting NOW?

Considering just how bad the team hit and played defense the first week or so, I don't see any more reason to single out Santana than anyone else. Moving pieces around the lineup makes sense. And a day off here and there is normal for anyone and everyone. But demotion or benching after this short a time after a good '14 and a good ST would be counter productive and reactionary.

For the most part, been very impressed with the SP so far this season. The large number of SO's produced has got to have the Twins milb on some sort of record pace.

Hu and Go-Go......WOW. Right there with you on Gonsalves as top Milb pitcher in the organization this season. My pick also.

Anyone have specifics on Aiken and how injury might not be "normal"? The entire baseball draft is a huge crapshoot. Biggest in sport to be sure. But I have to say, not having that second round pick seems to put a bigger Spotlight on our #1. So I really hate to gamble. Still, a high ceiling LHSP, a previous first pick in the draft, being available to us at 6? Soooo very tempting.

Meyer showed last season he was very, very close. Now he's made one start this season and it wasn't good. People are already looking for tall bridges. Time to relax and take a deep breath. The sky may be falling over Target Field, or anywhere the Twins have been playing thus far, but it doesn't mean it's falling everywhere else.

Love your enthusiasm SD, and love the article as a whole. I don't agree on pushing Sano and Buxton so agressively, I just can't. It's just too much too soon after all that happened last season. Pretty much agree with everything else you've stated here. How great is it that we are soooo spoiled on the milb and prospect level that we hardly even know the kids at low A CR despite their talent and their great start? One of these days, all these kids from Rochester on down will finally get their shot, and the Twins will be back on top, with more on the way. We'll win out 3rd WS plus, and win consistently, and forget the past 4-5 years. The winning could begin as early as 2016. Unfortunately, it doesn't seem that it will begin in 2015.Even if we break the season in to halves.

Robinson is, quite frankly, a AAAA-ish player who is a 5th ML OFer with some usefulness. Not being mean...just accurate based on his career thus far. Schafer is a quality athlete who plays a nice LF and can provide great base running and SB's, but has done nothing to indicate he could do anything at the ML level..ever...until the last 2 months of last season. Again, not a knock or being mean. I was impressed and was hoping for more this season. But that is not a resume for handing over a ML roster spot, period, much less a starting CF job! With so much young bullpen talent available, I struggled all off season with the signing of a past proven veteran, a Hawkins-type let's say, who could provide experience and leadership and a challenge to Fien, and hopefully hold the 8th inning for a year while all those young arms transitioned to more important roles at the ML level. They had ability and experience, just needed a bit more. And dare I say it again? This is what we get? I didn't think Stauffer was a good signing. Wish he'd prove me wrong, don't believe he will. Thought Boyer was signed as a dart in the dark and AAA help.Still think that's what he is. Felt Pelfrey had a shot to re-invent himself as a reliever. A shot. Honestly, I sort of get the first signing. I can almost get the second signing if it was ONE year. But track history now shows Pelfrey with one good year, one decent year, and all other ML seasons...overall, forgetting moments or short periods...as poor or awful or injured. But he's in the rotation for what reason? Because the Twins are so desperate for someone to take the ball every 5th day on a rebuilding team that they turn to a failed starter rather than gamble on one of their prospects? Blow up the bullpen. Make the moves NOW...another week at most. Awful and over matched isn't a bad day...it's bad days and bad weeks going all the way back to ST. A bad SP Pelfrey is still a bad SP Pelfrey. OMG....I'm about ready to have an aneu....aneury.....stroke!

What is Jason Tyner doing these days? You think I'm joking? Look, the poor damn horse has been pushing up daisies for some time now. So while I want to feel bad for kicking his dead carcass, I just can't, because he's long gone, but the stench remains. Once upon a time, up until just a couple years ago, the Twins...even the bad Twins teams...usually played at least OK defense. But one thing you could count on since the early '80's, nearly 35 years straight, was that the Twins had someone of quality to play CF and lead the OF. For a brief time, there was Eisenreich, who looked like a young phenom before falling apart due to a nervous condition. (he at least eventually had an OK career) This helped bring about a warranted rush of Puckett to the majors, and the Twins were blessed for many years by his ability and presence. Then came Hunter. A HOF All-Star supplanted by another All-Star and possible, at least borderline, HOFer. (and if any of you recall a piece I wrote several months back, I spoke half tongue-in-cheek and half serious about how the downfall of the Twins actually began slowly with the loss of Hunter) We blew the Santana trade not only because...by all "believable" reports, the Twins could have more talent by just accepting less...but because the ONE really good player they got back they rushed and gave up on too quickly in the name of a one year rental on a SS. (ouch!) But out of that mess came Span. And it (he) was good. And then came Revere, and it (he) was different but good also. But TR gambled big time on Hicks, traded both Span and Revere, for a pair of potential RHSP studs, thinking CF would be at least OK. Don't blame him for the trades. It was the kind of gamble, frankly, the Twins needed, and may still pay off nice to big. And don't blame his faith in Hicks. Hindsight is easy! Top pick, top prospect, top 100 prospect, coming off his best ever season, remember? Blame TR for the past TWO years. I mean, really? Hicks wasn't ready and it turned out to be a mess so the next year the only thing you do is hand him the job again? I mean, you have a AAAA journeyman and another semi-AAAA journeyman coming off injury as the only competition and fall back plan? OK...so surely we've learned our lesson for year THREE of no proper CF to play defense and lead the OF right? NOBODY expected the Twins to shell out big bucks or top prospects for a bona fide stud CF this off season. Why would you when you had Buxton on the way...hope Hicks would still amount to something...Rosario as a possibility...and the OK, better than expected Santana as a fill-in/backup option? But this is what we get? FA wasn't filled with options. And TR didn't/doesn't want to trade top talent. But A) who said we had to trade top talent for a stud, and who said we had to trade top talent for an OK option out there who could translate to a nice reserve?

I know the whole "but look how young he is" thing gets old. But in regard to Arcia, its not old yet. Still a long leash there. No worries on Gibson after one poor start. I understand the move of Pe lfrey to the rotation. But I dont like it or get it, not at this point and all we have seen. The bullpen to me...I dont get it. I dont get it at all. If Graham wasn't a rule 5 he wouldn't be there. This is the best they could do with the young arms available? I cant even touch CF again without blowing a blood vessel. Hunter was not my preferred choice. But I didn't expect what has happened thus far. But, knowledge, experience and last season...not going to call for his head yet So how long? Pinto within a week, two max, as he appears healthy. Pe lfrey and the pen? I'd like to see May begin, and changes with it. This is just....yuck. It is my sincere hope that TRY and Molly knew the start was dicey, hoped for better, but were planning on youngsters getting that month or two before reshaping the roster.

Fernandez might have the furthest to go but with the highest upside. More than a few guys on that list I could see moving up.

JEALOUS! My father and I are hoping for a trip there this summer. With a little luck, might be a weekend a few fellow TDers are there as well. Hadn't really heard about Booser until I saw him mentioned somewhere during the off season. With his velocity and quality second pitch, could he be on the fast track this year the way guys like Burdi and a few others seem to be?

Go-Go Gonsalves! This year's "Berrios-like" fast riser"?

See what I did with the capital letters there? LOL First of all, this honestly has little to nothing to do with the Detroit series. (OK...only a teeny, tiny white lie there) I mean, we're talking the first three games of an entire 162 game season...on the road...against a good ball club? It happens. Completely stinks just how embarrassingly AWFUL (and borderline inept) the team looked. But it's still three games, one series, and life and the season move along. I'm not going to blow smoke about how tomorrow is a new day, Astro rainbows will break out, and the Twins will be in the playoffs because they will play .700 ball starting with the ChiSox series. And I'm not going to bash TR for the Nolasco or Santana signings. (though I'd love to nail him a bit about the second go-round with Pelfrey that just didn't make sense at all, especially for 2 years and $5M per. Huh?) I wanted Kazmir and not Nolasco .( Looks like I win that one!) I thought Santana was an excellent signing overall, and one of the top 2 I wanted this past off season. (if no ACE type was to be signed) Both signings were a $M higher than they probably should have been, and each probably 1 year longer than they should have been. But in today's FA market, both contracts are generally in line. And be honest, forget injury and suspension, these two guys, based on pure history and track record and dependability and projectability, were each solid, quality signings. Especially for a team that had suffered through a stretch of starting arms that pitched about as well as Martin or Akroyd in a singles bar with Czech accents. (What's your sign?) But on the whole, on the surface of a golden pond, Steppenwolf "Magic Carpet Ride" the signings were smart and solid and should have helped. Best laid plans of mice and men and yadda yadda yadda. Murphy was an optomist! So here we are, and kind of how we got to where we are: For...wait for it now...THE THIRD YEAR IN A ROW TERRY RYAN COMPLETELY BLEW THE TWINS CF SITUATION. I am completely dumb and dumber awestruck how we could end up here again.The top acquisition was a AAAA OF who plays good defense but who's offensive history makes Jason Tyner look like...oh...Hosken Powell on a goo day? (wink and a nudge there) But you get the point! I honestly and truly didn't think Milone would be part of the rotation. I honestly and truly felt May had the last spot in the rotation sewed up like Betsy Ross! (OK, 75-80%) I also thought, really and truly, that a healthy Nolasco would help the club the first half of the season, then help it some more when he was traded around mid-season, bringing back salary, at least one decent prospect, and opening a spot for Meyer who would be knock-knock-knocking on Target Field's clubhouse door for his shot. I also thought Stauffer was a poor signing. I just didn't see him as a fit for the club and what we needed. I felt we'd make one senior FA signing, a Burton type, but just didn't see Stauffer as the fit. Especially with so many young mid-innings arms available, including a couple with 8th inning potential. Thus far, through ST and the first couple of games...well...you know. So we don't have Santana or Nolasco in the rotation. We have a bullpen that requires doses of Mylanta and Prilosec before the season even gets fully under way. Anything hit to the OF feels us feel like the forever moments before an impending car crash. (we were hoping for a quality CF defensive option that would allow for seatbelts and airbags at least) And the MLB team that has either the best, or second best, minor league organization of all the ML teams has ONE rookie on the club, and he's jumping to the majors from AA as a rule 5 draft choice. (deep breath) Ok Doc...you might be saying about right now...(it's alright, I heard you)..."where is this "silver lining" you speak of? I thought you were one of the optimists here at TD? Right now, your rainbow is light refracted on sludge, and your silver lining is badly tarnished. Where's the Celexa?" Here we go.... We will get Santana back. And yeah, it may sound trite and cliche and we've made jokes about it, but it really is like a mid-season trade for a solid, quality veteran starter. I still think he'll be the Twins 3rd best man behind Hughes and a developing Gibson, but that's OK. He'll be a really nice #3 SP for now. It's May's time now. And don't kid yourself, he knows it. And he's going to prove it. He built on mistakes last season, finished strong, and posted numbers in his last few starts that few Twins pitchers could have hoped to reach the past few seasons. There will be NO REASON to send him down if Nolasco is healthy and comes back soon. Why? Because Pelfrey, at the end of the day, is still Pelfrey. We have come to the point, when examining Mr. Pelfrey, where we must now admit that the couple really solid seasons he has had as a ML starter...logging GS and IP with a solid W-L record and ERA, etc...are the abnormal, and not the norm or potential norm. High, hard and straight is still high, hard and straight, whether in the rotation or the bullpen. However, in the pen, for an inning, two tops, is different than trying to face batters 2 or 3 times through a lineup. And I don't know if Pelfrey can succeed as a RP or not. (again with the whole high, hard and straight thing) But I think he at least has a shot there. Hey, just because you can't deliver or sort the mail doesn't mean you don't have great penmanship or a really wet tongue to address and lick closed the envelopes! May is in and will almost assuredly stay in. Pelfrey will self destruct as a SP. The question there then becomes, is he traded? (no way) Released? (possibly) Shown the door the the bullpen again? (probably) This opens another spot. It allows for either: A) a healthy Nolasco pitching well and helping the Twins, or becoming fairly valuable trade bait which could open up a spot in the rotation...or... an injured or ineffective Nolasco, which kind of screws the Twins, but opens the door the Meyer to come up after a few starts in AAA to work on his mechanics and change, gain confidence, and be focused and ready. These are pretty real scenarios. May is already up. We already know what Pelfrey can and can't do. Nolasco is a big question mark. Whether it was in the Twins plans to roll with these vets temporarily while May and Meyer got some AAA work in for April and May or not...we are coming to the point where best laid plans are moot. The rock is FINALLY meeting the hard place, and it's time to run with the youth of tomorrow. (in a fully positive, non-MTV kind of way) Even if Ryan has been replaced by an evil alien, Cthulhu or angry ChiSox anti-Twin deity, the inevitable has been placed upon him. Great rusty gears are finally in motion. Pelfrey will undoubtedly be given the "idea" to apply his version of pitching in the bullpen, and we will see what happens. But he, and Stauffer and Boyer will need to show something, immediately if not sooner. And the reason is simple; despite promises made before signings, (if made), despite senioritis over freshman youth, despite "proven" over potential, the arms at AAA Rochester are just better, as well as younger and cheaper. And the arms at AA Chat are even better! CF? Oh my! What can I say? I've been on this for two plus years now like white on rice...like flies on a Yankee crap..errr...CAP...like a Kardashian on an NBA player....and push will come, soon and probably hard, to shove, and something will have to happen here. Can we get by for a month or two at most with what we have? I honestly have my doubts. But that month or two might just be enough to Hicks and/or Rosario to work on some things, get some momentum and confidence, and either or both get their shot. The whole point here is...a lousy start...the Santana and Nolasco news...Pelfrey still around...Stauffer and Boyer...the CF situation...may be beyond any normal human control of conservatism. The bad news of Santana and Nolasco is creating a snowball affect that should actually be of benefit to the future of our beloved Twins. May up first, Meyer next...(others waiting in the nearby wings, Rochester that is)...Pelfrey to succeed in the pen, or forever be gone, which in turn helps hasten the moves of Stauffer and Boyer potentially, etc. None of this is personal. Not in the slightest! It's just about game....and our Twins...and how much they have in them...and could have. Augmenting the roster is one thing. Buying a month or two time with fill-ins to give that little extra prep time for youngsters could prove to be prudent in the long run. But stubbornly refusing to move forward is something all together different. Like it or not, despite exiting ST with a seeming stall in the rebuild and youth movement forward, it seems to be brewing a life of its own. And that is a good thing. And it shines like silver!

May in the starting rotation is the best newsI've heard all season. Of course.....it may also be the only good news I've heard this season so far......

So MLB has gone ahead and adopted the 10 run rule?

"BING!"

Looks like that leg is going to have to come off.