terrydactyls

Sounds like me speculating about finding a Prom date.

With $51M available (and stay under budget), the Twins could sign DiSclafani, Cobb, and Wood and still have plenty left for a good glove SS and a Buxton extension. That would give them a competitive team for 2022.

Several posters have mentioned Miami as a possible trade partner. By happy coincidence, MLB radio today was discussing the Miami offseason with the beat writer from the Miami Herald. He was saying that the Jeter-run front office is willing to do whatever it takes to get a good catcher, more offense, and some veteran leadership. Sounds like a perfect match to me. I say the Twins start the negotiations with an offer of Garver and Kepler for Alcantara and Bleier. If they accept, fine. If not, try to find some add-ons to get the deal done. Ideas??

Everyone Can Calm Down Now. I figured Out the Front Office Strategy. It came to me late last night. It all became crystal clear. The Twins front office does know what they are doing and here is the explanation. The first step is to trade Buxton immediately. He and his agent have no interest in Minnesota so we ship him out. The trade partner is the San Diego Padres. They need a center fielder and have some decent minor league talent. But there is only one that is important and that is C.J Abrams, their #1 prospect and a shortstop. Along with Abrams the Twins also get the Padres #12 prospect, LHP Ethan Elliott and their #21 prospect, RHP Steven Wilson. But as I will show below, they are not important to the Twins as players but only has trade bait. The second step is to contact the Oakland A’s and offer a nice package for Chris Bassitt. The package is to pick four players from a list provided by the Twins. The list is divided into two levels and the A’s can pick any two from the first level and any two from the second level. Level 1 Luis Arraez Max Kepler Jordan Balazovic Keoni Cavaco Blaine Enlow Misail Urbina Level 2 Brent Rooker Aaron Sabato Drew Strotman Alerick Soularie Cole Sands Spencer Steer Charlie Barnes The Prospects obtained in the San Diego and Washington trades The third step is to contact the Miami Marlins and offer them a similar package for RHP Sandy Alcantara and LHRP Richard Bleier. For this pair, however, the twins offer the Marlins their choice of three from the first level 1 and three from the second level (picking from whatever Oakland left behind). The fourth step is to off Josh Donaldson to the Washington Nationals along with $15M for any prospect in the 15 to 25 ranks. The fifth step is to take fill out the empty roster spots with the money the Twins have freed up. And here is how they do it. Contact Marcus Stroman and offer him $22M/4 years. Contact Raisel Iglesias and offer him $8M/3 years. Contact Corey Knebel and offer him $7M/3 years. Contact Collin McHugh and offer him $6M/2 years. That fills out the pitching side. For position players, the Twins lose both Kepler and Arraez in the trades above so they need replacements. Abrams will fill the SS position and Miranda takes over 3B. Celestino takes Buxton’s spot in CF until he proves he can’t handle MLB pitching and then either Martin or Lewis take his spot. Kirilloff takes over in RF for Kepler. They still need a left fielder and a 1B. Contact Anthony Rizzo to play 1B and sign him at $20M for 4 years. Contact Mark Canha to play left field and sign him for $10M for 3 years. The Twins now have a $130M budget with plenty of pitching and a lot of power. And that is what the front office is thinking. Below is the 26-man roster after all these moves. All Dollars Shown in Millions Position Player $$$ Position Player $$$ C Garver $3.50 SP1 Alcantara $4.50 1B Rizzo $20.00 SP2 Bassitt $8.80 2B Polanco $5.50 SP3 Stroman $22.00 3B Miranda $0.60 SP4 Ober $0.60 SS Abrams $0.60 SP5 Ryan $0.60 LF Canha $12.00 CF Celestino $0.60 RP Rogers $7.00 RF Kirilloff $0.60 RP Duffey $3.50 DH Sano $9.25 RP Thielbar $1.50 RP Alcala $0.60 4th OF Larnach $0.60 RP McHugh $6.00 Utility Astudillo $1.00 RP Knebel $7.00 Utility Gordon $0.60 RP Bleier $2.50 2nd C Jeffers $0.60 RP Iglesias $8.00 Other Lost $$$ Maeda - SP (injured) $3.00 Colome - RP (buyout) $1.25 Donaldson (buyout) $15.00 TOTAL Payroll $132.30 BUDGET $130.00 AVAILABLE -$2.30

I'm glad I now live in Maine. I can pick a new team to follow from a wide selection of "local" teams. I have Boston, New York (2 teams), and Philadelphia relatively close. And they are teams which are often talked about on the MLB channel on Sirius radio (unlike the Twins which are seldom mentioned). Unless the front office does something pretty dramatic happen soon, my interest in the Twins may end its 60 year run.

Exactly, If you "lock in" incentive payments and Buxton and has a very good year in 2022, he would be guaranteed a huge contract based solely on having one good year. There would be no incentive left after that.

Here is my theoretical letter to the Twins ownership and to the agent for Byron Buxton concerning to current negotiations to extend Buxton’s contract. A Letter to Falvey/Levine/Pohlad and B.B. Abbott Dear Sirs: It is my understanding that all of you are in basic agreement concerning the base salary for an extension for Byron Buxton and that the holdup is the incentives. Because your negotiations are done in private (as they should be), I have no idea what the concerns of each side might be. Here are my suggestions. Make the base salary $12M per year beginning in 2022 and extending for an additional seven years for a total base contract of 8/$96M. The incentive plan should be have a base with achievable goals and extending to difficult to reach goals with significant rewards for attaining them. Below is a table showing some possible goals and bonuses attached to each goal. The minimum amount of bonus that can be earned would be $8M and is based on Buxton having an above league average season for an outfielder. The maximum attainable bonus would be $21.5M but would mean that Buxton would be the best player in baseball. But the amount of the bonus would be offset partially by increased revenues caused by every baseball fan in America wanting to see Buxton play in person. Games 100 120 130 140 150 160 Bonus $1.0M $1.25M $1.5M $1.75M $2.0M $2.5M Hits 140 160 180 200 220 240 Bonus $1.0M $1.25M $1.5M $1.75M $2.0M $2.5M Home Runs 20 25 30 35 40 45 Bonus $1.0M $1.25M $1.5M $1.75M $2.0M $2.5M Stolen Bases 20 25 30 35 40 45 Bonus $1.0M $1.25M $1.5M $1.75M $2.0M $2.5M MVP Voting 10th 9th 8th 7th 6th 5th 4th 3rd 2nd 1st Bonus $1.0M $1.25M $1.5M $1.75M $2.0M $2.5M $3.0M $3.5M $4.0M $5.0M Gold Glove Voting 3rd 2nd 1st Bonus $1.5M $3.0M $4.5M Platinum Glove Voting 1st Bonus $2.0M I understand that this commitment would be a significant financial investment but only if Buxton provides the level of performance that should be rewarded. If you have any questions, I can be reached through Twins Daily.

"Inaccurate"? I'll accept that. But get real. Does anyone really think that the union will try to push through a rule change that says an MLB manager must designate someone as the authorized starter in every game he pitches and he can't be replaced until he proves himself unworthy of continuing pitching in that game (a paraphrase of what an actual rule would need to be)?

Deciding to use pitchers in a unique or unconventional manner would not be a change in the rules. Therefore, the union has no say in the matter.

Does the players union have the authority to dictate how a major league team is run? I don't think so. One other advantage in using this approach is that more money would be left open to add position players. You might be now able to sign a Correa or Seager if you spend a lot less on short-inning pitchers. I think that with all the AAA/AA arms that the Twins brag about that this approach might be perfect for now. And for those who insist on a big name pitcher, you could sign one of those to pitch every fifth day and give everyone else a day off.

I hate being repetitive but the Twins should either give the job to Gordon or Palacios, or sign Jose Iglesias for a $3M. Then devote every penny remaining to extending Buxton, finding a couple (or three) starters and at least two decent relievers either through free agency or trade (lots of extra outfielders - Rooker, Larnach, Wallner, etc.). An outfield of Martin, Buxton, and Lewis in mid-2022 would be fun to watch.

Add a $2-$3M SS with a good glove and then go nuts on pitching. Go after every free agent under 32 or 33 years old and try to get three of them to sign. Oh, and get Buxton's autograph on a long-term contract. Then the Twins will be in contention.

The score so far is: In Favor: 5 Against: 3 I wonder what Vegas has for the odds?

My dream is to sign a cheap SS and spend the remaining budget on pitching.

There will new rules in place regarding the QO starting December 1st. When the current CBA expires at the end of November, a team's highest draft pick becomes protected. I am willing to give up my 2nd round pick if I can get Robbie Ray. And if that happens, then it would cost a 3rd round pick for Thor. That seems reasonable.

Here is my vision for the future with only one trade (Jax and Rooker for Sonny Gray), only going through free agency. Step 1 is exending Buxton for a base of $15M a year. Incentives are not included because they are an unknown. The only new position player is Jose Iglesias to play SS. I added two new starters, Sonny Gray and Anthony Disclafani, and three new relievers (Collin McHugh, Corey Knebel, and Raisel Iglesias). I did end up $2M over the $130M budget but that's budget dust in the big picture. Comments, complaints, and revisions are always welcome (but usually ignored). All Dollars Shown in Millions Pos Player $$$ Pos Player $$$ DEAD MONEY C Garver $3.50 SP1 Gray $10.00 Position Player $$$ 1B Sano $9.25 SP2 DeSclafani $15.00 Maeda - SP (injured) $3.00 2B Polanco $5.50 SP3 Moran $0.60 Colome - RP (buyout) $1.25 3B Donaldson $21.00 SP4 Ober $0.60 SS Iglesias $3.00 SP5 Ryan $0.60 LF Kirilloff $0.60 CF Buxton $15.00 RP Rogers $7.00 RF Kepler $6.75 RP Duffey $3.50 DH Miranda $0.60 RP Thielbar $1.50 TOTAL $132.15 RP Alcala $0.60 BUDGET $130.00 4th OF Larnach $0.60 RP McHugh $6.00 AVAILABLE -$2.15 Utility Arraez $1.50 RP Knebel $5.00 Utility Gordon $0.60 RP Minaya $1.00 2nd C Jeffers $0.60 RP Iglesias $8.00

Prior to the 1994 season, I turned down a trade offer in my Rotisserie Baseball league of Cecil Fielder for Ron Davis. I laughed at that offer. Fielder hit 29 HRs and had 90 RBIs. And every knows how Davis did. I finished last that year.

Has he gotten vaccinated? If not, then send him elsewhere. I would prefer Iglesias for one (or even two) years as the shortstop.

I do have another scenario that has no trade and lesser names acquired for pitching. I will post that within the next few days.

Welcome to the terrydactyls 2022 off-season moves. My decisions had a couple of assumptions. 1. Buxton is extended at a base of $15M a year plus incentives. 2. A trade is made with the Miami Marlins. The Twins trade Kepler, Arraez, Garver, and Wood Richardson in exchange for Sandy Alcantera and Richard Bleier (LHRP). This seemingly lopsided trade was necessary to balance the trade on baseballtradesimulator.com. If the trade can be completed with less assets moving to Miami, that's even better. 3. The front office made its final decision based on the New Home Buyer methodology (explained below). My first step was to fill the holes left by the trade. So Jeffers takes over for Garver, Celestino replaces Kepler, and Gordon is the new Utility Guy instead of Arraez. Yes it is a loss of offensive punch but I believe the farm had plenty of substitutes. Miranda is now the full time DH. Larnach, Astudillo and Rortvedt complete the bench. To cover the SS hole, I sign free agent Iglesias to a 1-year deal. Next, I turned to the pitching side. Alcantera is now at the top of the rotation. I retain Ober and Ryan as starters. In the bullpen, I retain Rogers, Duffey, Thielbar, Alcala, and Moran plus the addition of Bleier from the trade. I then sign free agents McHugh and Knebe to complete the bullpen. At this point, my salary total is at $96.4M leaving me $34.4M for two starting pitchers. Next up is to get Robbie Ray at $25M, leaving only $9.4M for the last remaining roster spot. This is where the New Home Buyer methodology comes into play. When buying a house, you always have a list of desired features and a budget within to work. The decision you have to make is between most of your features and staying within budget, or stretching your budget and get some additional features that you really want. I can add Pineda for $10M and come in just slightly over my $130M budget. But that doesn't give me the dream house I would really like. So do I stretch my budget a little and get what I want or live with the less than ideal situation. I decide to stretch the budget and sign Stroman for $20M. That brings my new salary total to $140.6M. That might necessitate reducing the number of three martini lunches for the front office, but it will give me a World Series caliber starting rotation, a very solid bullpen, and enough offensive to win a lot of games. Comments?

I looked a one of the trade simulator websites a couple days ago to see what a Sandy Alcantera would cost in prospects. The best combination of players ended up being Alcantera and relief pitchers Richard Bleier (value: 82.9) for Arraz, Kepler, Garver, and Wood Richardson (value: 82.5). Any interest??

It's just so awesome that the Twins finished last in the Central. But they did hit a couple of long home runs during their 5,431 official at bats. Whoopee.....

I vote for adding a glove guy like Iglesias and spend big on Buxton and pitching.

Here is one person's thoughts on how to handle the 40 Man roster and the upcoming Rule 5 draft. I obtained the current roster from MLB.com and the Rule 5 eligibles from a Twins Daily article. There are currently 42 names on the active roster including the 60-day IL and pending free agents. From this list, I would drop the following: Charlie Barnes Alex Colome Ralph Garza, Jr Griffen Jax Michael Pineda Devin Smeltzer Lewis Thorpe Williams Astudillo Andrelton Simmons Jake Cave Kyle Garlick Rob Refsnyder That reduces the list from 42 to 30. Next I would add the following to protect them from the Rule 5 draft: Royce Lewis Jose Miranda Josh Winder Blayne Below Cole Sands Wander Javier Jermaine Palacios Kody Funderburk That leaves two empty spots on the 40-man roster. This is just my opinion and is based on nothing more than a hope for the future and a six-pack of Spotted Cow beer.

Winning baseball game is so damn easy. Just sign hitters that have 100 MPH exit velocity and pitchers that throw near or above triple digits and you will go 162-0 every year. Don't worry about anything else.