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Taildragger8791

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Everything posted by Taildragger8791

  1. Taildragger8791
    Hicks hasn't exactly been a bastion of health either, considering he has exactly one season with over 390 plate appearances. It's criminally negligent that the Twins haven't found a solid backup CFer to fill in for Buxton. They knew he was iffy to be ready for the season, and he's left them in tough spots year after year with unavailability. You have to plan for someone to man CF competently without weakening the rest of the defense by relocating everyone. I like the Buxton and the X-Factor he brings to this squad. His speed/athleticism/defense/baserunning pressure is the straw that stirs the drink on a team chock full of big swingers. That said, you don't turn down potential young front-line pitching for him. Buxton's elite skills/athleticism could start to erode before he ever learns to stay on the field, at which point he's no longer an X-Factor and he's just a decent player with OBP issues that will want to get paid.
  2. Taildragger8791
    Rated with 10 hitters better than average (based on something called Weighted Runs Created Plus). I think they might score some runs this year... https://www.mlb.com/news/minnesota-twins-deepest-lineup-2020
  3. Taildragger8791
    I've been kicking an idea like this around in my head for a while. I like the way you've laid it out. It'll never happen but it would be more fun to watch your non-contender team playing competitively within their division and having something to play for rather than getting smashed in the mouth for 6 months on their way to 95 losses. I'd even consider splitting up the season into 2-3 parts with mid-season promotions/demotions for the best/worst teams in each division, then determine the playoff field from the top teams during each slice of the season. Again, better than watching your team 20 games out of any meaningful contention in August/September. Would give teams on the rise or that dealt with health/adversity issues early on something to push for and reduces the benefit to tanking.
  4. Taildragger8791
    Regarding #3, I know it'll never happen (because money) but I'd rather see the League contracted by 4 teams than expanded by 2. There's not enough talent to go around anyways, so rather than dilute the talent let's concentrate it. Shed a few crummy markets/franchises along the way.
  5. Taildragger8791
    I'm not a fan of diluting the playoff field any further. Since the wildcard expansion I haven't been too disappointed with teams missing the postseason that really deserved to be there.You have 162 games (should be 154) to make your case and earn a spot. Make that long grueling 6 months of hard work and competition count for something. Considering how volatile and random baseball is, I think that large sample size does a good job weeding out the weaker teams that don't deserve even a roll of the dice in the postseason. Expanding the WC round to a 3-game series makes sense to me though. A made-for-television Bachelor-style selection ceremony for postseason opponents is stupid, but whatever. I won't lose any sleep over it but I'll certainly make fun of it. It just screams misguided out-of-touch leadership to me.
  6. Taildragger8791
    Where do we keep getting the idea that early season games don't matter as much as summer and late season games? If the Twins drop 5-6 extra games the first two months while trying out a smattering of borderline MLB-ready pitchers and rehab projects, well that could be the difference between a comfortable division title win and a dogfight to make the playoffs. And there is no room for error if Berrios/Odorizzi are anything less than their best. We know Berrios can be an impact pitcher but he can also go in the tank for long stretches. Did we not learn anything about the importance of starting pitching from the latest playoff embarrassment? Anyone who thinks they'll trade for a #3 or better starter mid-season is crazy. Every year people think the price will be more palatable next time (whether offseason or trade deadline or waiver wire) and when the time comes it's still always too rich for our blood.
  7. Taildragger8791
    The shine of 101 wins has tarnished a bit when we saw how helpless the Twins' pitching (and even their vaunted offense) was against a quality opponent. A very good offense and decent pitching can go a long ways in the regular season, especially in this tanking era and this division, but that doesn't mean you're a true contender. There were six 96+ win teams and three 100+ win teams last year, which (like the juiced baseballs) is way out of the norm and means we have to look at 2019 records/statistics with a little different context. That said, I think the Twins are still on the upswing and will at least be relevant and watchable for the foreseeable future. Yet I wouldn't blame anyone for doubting their contender status until they've proven they can: Develop/acquire enough playoff-caliber pitching (including the bullpen)Clean up the defense and add depth at key defensive positions so it doesn't look like a clown show out thereMaintain a top 5-6 offense as key players leave (Cron, Schoop, Cruz, Rosario?, Sano?, Buxton?The above is mostly banking on prospects stepping up and fulfilling their promise, which is always a gamble. At least the team is interesting enough now to hopefully enjoy watching it play out.
  8. Taildragger8791
    I like this idea and agree it seems like a fun project. It's always interesting to follow the threads on how players came into the organization. In regards to players acquired via trades or compensation picks you can probably go back even further to connect the dots to where the player that was let go originally came from. We'd probably be surprised how far those threads really go.
  9. Taildragger8791
    Not sure why you'd group IFA with MLB FA. Everyone goes after IFA because the money pot is heavily constrained. That's the perfect place for bargain shoppers to hit the lotto on cost-controlled players. Even on the MLB FA you're stretching the term "impact" quite a bit. Castro and Gonzalez play adequate defense at defensive-oriented positions without being a total black hole on offense. That's about it. Pineda was a reclamation project that they had to pay up front for a year of rehab before getting a good-not-great partial-season out of him. It's good they resigned him because they need solid mid-rotation starters but he's a 4+ ERA pitcher year-in and year-out. These guys are good for plugging holes and raising the floor but they don't raise the ceiling for the team's competitive level that much. The floor is pretty solid these days but they really need to raise that ceiling if they want to avoid getting swept in the playoffs every year. Cruz is absolutely an impact player and I'm stoked they got him on a 2-year team-friendly deal. I have to believe age and positional (in)flexibility is the only reason the Twins had a shot at him, but I'll take it.
  10. Taildragger8791
    Well that pretty much assures the Twins' reward for fighting their way to the top of a mediocre division will be running into the buzzsaw that is the Yankees for another 5 years. New decade, same as the last decade.
  11. Taildragger8791
    I thought he only had a year of arbitration left, my mistake. I wouldn't drop him just to count on a prospect to replace him, since I think pretty much all prospects are suspects until they prove otherwise in the majors. If they find a stopgap free agent for a year or two that would be ideal. Use his $5-$6 million he'll get in arbitration towards a hitter that provides a steady presence in the heart of the order rather than his swing-from-the-heels-on-a-ball-thrown-at-his-eyes boom/bust style.
  12. Taildragger8791
    I don't expect to get a haul for Rosario, but I don't want to extend him either. This lineup could use some steadier bats/defense to compliment the boom/bust, so rather than let him walk I'd rather get something and at the same time see if they can replace one of their most volatile & impatient hitters. I like Rosario and his aggressiveness, he's definitely a gamer and gets big hits, but there just isn't enough upside in his bat at his position to accept the boom/bust outcomes.
  13. Taildragger8791
    This seems crazy to me after we saw how poorly the bullpen strategy worked in the playoffs without a few starting pitchers that can at least get you 4-5 quality innings. You end up so far behind you don't even get a chance to throw your top relievers out there before the game is out of hand. Even the best bullpen can't cover 7 innings per night.
  14. Taildragger8791
    Pretty much spot on what I expect as well. I like Rosario but I think this team would be better off getting some pitching for him and finding a replacement with better plate control and ideally better defensive chops. They also need to make sure they have a quality backup CFer for when Buxton unnecessarily gets hurts running through a wall in a July game. The clown show they put on in the outfield in the ALDS exposed the suspect pitching that much more. This shouldn't be that hard and at this point it would be negligent not to plan for it. Sano came a long ways this year but hopefully he spends all offseason working on handling high velocity and pitches up in the zone, as well as laying off those low/outside balls. Improve on that stuff a little and he'd be an absolute monster, but as it is his achilles heel was exploited by the postseason high octane pitching.
  15. Taildragger8791
    The home runs and big offensive displays were fun this year, and the players are certainly likeable. But we all knew this pitching staff was threadbare and too much of the team got by and smoke and mirrors and matchups. Unfortunately those favorable matchups disappear in the playoffs and now it’s just an embarrassing massacre. They need to replace 2/3 of the pitching next year get an adequate backup for Buxton.
  16. Taildragger8791
    I think the Twins will back into the playoffs but we've already seen that this team can easily drop a series to the Tigers and other bad teams and they struggle to win against good pitching. Now the offense is further banged up and the rotation is so uncompetitive they're throwing bullpen games to try and squeak by. It may come down to whether or not Cleveland takes care of their business, and lately they're looking like a tough out.
  17. Taildragger8791
    Has anyone laid eyes on Keoni Cavaco to see what he’s struggling with? I don’t get too excited one way or the other with GCL results, especially with a first year kid, but a .470 OPS is still a little surprising. I’d expect to see the raw talent flash at least a little.
  18. Taildragger8791
    The hitting displays are fun when things are going but even in this super ball era you still can’t out-hit mediocre pitching. If they limp into the playoffs as-is they’d get absolutely embarrassed with their one-dimensional sideshow. At least the long ball still sells tickets.
  19. Taildragger8791
    Any word on what in particular Cavaco is struggling with? He’s off to a particularly rough start in his first year. My (usually fuzzy) memory was that these top prospects usually at least hold their own in the GCL on raw talent alone.
  20. Taildragger8791
    Losing too many games to bad teams. I'm really uncomfortable with the volatility that comes with an offensively-dependent team...
  21. Taildragger8791
    While Gibson has been around league average, his performance doesn't translate to being a #3 for a strong contender which is what we should be talking about. That translates to being a #3 on a likely non-playoff team. If he's our #4 or #5 starter I'm good with that because he can eat innings and put together some really good stretches at times, but his downside is off-putting to me for a playoff rotation. Just too many baserunners and stressful innings for my comfort level.
  22. Taildragger8791
    The day Jake Reed is relevant enough to finally surpass the 90's Vikings wide receiver of his namesake in Google search results is the day I'll lose sleep over him still being in AAA ball.
  23. Taildragger8791
    Adding Bumgarner would push Pineda or Perez to the pen, hopefully boosting both it and the rotation with one move. It also means Gibby or Odo can help out of the pen in the playoffs, I'd assume.
  24. Taildragger8791
    I don't think Astudillo is really the caliber of player that teams worry about with regard to day-by-day service time implications.
  25. Taildragger8791
    He has 11 RBI on those 9 HRs because good pitchers are more careful to stay out of his happy zone with runners on base. I'm not convinced solo home runs add enough value to offset the tradeoff it took to get them.
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