GoGonzoJournal

I could live with the choice even if it happened this year. Fans like Molitor because he's another local hero from UM that gives the team that approachable and Minnesota-nice feeling. Not that Mientkiewicz doesn't, but who knows if Molitor even wants the job or if he'd be any good at it. We know Doug is good at it and familiar with the weapons at his disposal. I wouldn't mind a tag team of Dougie and Paulie, but I've been calling for Ozzie Guillen the past three years. Now's not the time to give in. I guess Terry Ryan should interview anyone interested and see who he's comfortable working with. Ozzie's probably not high on his list.

I wouldn't have a huge problem with Gardy staying one more year, but totally agree with Nick that Anderson should be gone. Wouldn't mind Gardy being gone for the right manager. Paul Molitor is a reasonable in-house solution. I wouldn't mind Ozzie Guillen. He is, at the very least, entertaining. And you know he's always wanted to manage the Piranhas.

I'd like to see Plouffe stick around until the Twins get anything out of Sano. I agree that he has increased his trade value as a third baseman, and there will be takers. But frankly, I wouldn't put Sano at third either. I'd move Mauer to third and have Sano play first with Pinto in left field. Parmelee or Schafer would serve as fourth outfielder behind Arcia, Hicks, and Pinto. Escobar would be utility man.

I like the idea of Pinto playing a corner outfield position. Parmelee won't stick and Buxton is probably a year away now, so it's either Jordan Schafer or Aaron Hicks, because Santana's going to get a lot of starts at short.

No. They have not at this point.

They all have value if compared to available replacements. Sure there are plenty of relievers available, but the asking price for others may be too high. If Terry Ryan is willing to sell low, which he should be, then these deals can work for both teams. Maybe less so for the Twins, but two of the three are really just roster moves resulting in salary dumps. The idea is to get youngsters in those roles in a lost season to prepare for next year.

Bullpens should consist of young, cheap, high-powered arms, and that's it. Even a veteran closer is a waste of money unless you're Glen Perkins making $5.5 million, which is a steal. Nathan's getting $10 million to be less than mediocre in Detroit. Mind-blowing contract for a man his age.

With the waiver trade deadline just two weeks away, Terry Ryan and the Minnesota Twins' front office still have some work to do despite unloading Josh Willingham and Kevin Correia for marginal returns and a few dollars they won't use. However, the veteran jettison has created roster spots for Trevor May and Tommy Milone, but the big problem in Minnesota now is a throng of young, capable bullpen arms that don't have roster spots because of veterans like Brian Duensing, Jared Burton, and Anthony Swarzak. Guys like Michael Tonkin, Ryan Pressly, and, perhaps, Alex Meyer or even Trevor May, should be pitching those innings. Duensing has the most value given his 2.28 ERA and 173 ERA+, and although he's striking out two fewer batters per nine innings compared to last year, he's also giving up two fewer hits per nine innings, lowering his WHIP to 1.246 from 1.475 last season. Duensing can't fill the role of a setup man, but should be pretty effective in the seventh inning, and the Yankees sure could use some help in the seventh inning if they're going to climb the AL Wild Card standings. I propose Terry Ryan and the Twins look further into the future, past the mid-level prospects, and pitch Duensing for 19-year-old Austin DeCarr. DeCarr has two plus pitches – a fastball that reaches 96 mph and a hard curveball – and although his changeup needs a lot of work, he could end up a No. 3 starter around 2018. I would have traded Anthony Swarzak last season when he tossed 96 innings at a 2.91 ERA and 139 ERA+, but apparently there wasn't much need for long relievers in last year's playoff race. Swarzak's value is in his ability to eat innings and spot start, and despite an ERA above four this season, his ERA+ (96) indicates he's close to an average replacement pitcher. In fact, he's on par with JA Happ and has pitched better than Drew Hutchison of the Blue Jays, whose starters and relievers have been equally underwhelming. If they want to stay in the AL Wild Card race, a guy like Swarzak could help get them there. Swarzak doesn't warrant much more than a player to be named later, and that player will depend on how many innings or starts he makes, like the Correia deal with the Dodgers. Burton will be the most difficult and most Gonzo trade to pull off because he's old and awful. He's got a team option for next year, so he'll be a free agent at the end of the year anyway. It would have been nice to move him when he was a serviceable setup man back in 2012, his first year away from the Cincinnati Reds, but Ryan and the Twins thought it would be best to give a two-year deal to a 30-year-old reliever with a long and documented injury history. Now Burton is hardly a serviceable middle reliever, but lucky for us, the Reds' bullpen is pretty atrocious, yet they're just three games back in the NL Wild Card race. Burton's ERA+ of 90 is nearly 20 points higher than JJ Hoover's, who has still managed to somehow pitch 52.2 innings, five more than Burton. I'd trade Burton for a bucket of balls at this point. Dumping the rest of his contract and allowing Tonkin, Pressly, Meyer, or May to pitch those innings is enough of a return for me to be satisfied with the trade, and I think many Twins fans would agree. --- Find more Gonzo sports stories at GoGonzoJournal.com/sports, including a wild trip to the 2014 MLB All-Star Game.

Craziest thing...I changed my status to "May have to move back to Minny if Buxton gets a September call-up." Minutes later Bleacher Report alert tells me he's been carted off the field. I think I better give up on the Twins for their sake.

The Twins officially have the worst luck bringing up top prospects. Hope for Byron's sake it's not as serious as it looked.

Ozzie! Ozzie! Ozzie! I've been saying this for years. The Twins need a manager that will light some fires under asses, take pressure off the young players by putting it on himself, and relate to the young, Spanish-speaking players coming up. Ozzie Guillen is that man. Plus, an entertaining post-game interview goes a long way in a small market.

Lineup and rotation I'd like to see after the Aug. 31 waiver trade deadline. Santana (CF) Dozier (2B) Mauer (1B) Arcia (RF) Vargas (DH) Plouffe (3B) Suzuki © Parmelee (LF) Escobar (SS) Nolasco Hughes Milone Gibson Meyer May

I wouldn't have minded if the Twins went with a six-man rotation the whole season. Maybe the extra day off between starts would have kept Pelfrey or Nolasco off the DL, and Deduno could keep making starts instead of throwing wild pitches with runners on in a relief role.

In a wild MLB Trade Deadline Day that saw David Price to Detroit, Jon Lester and Jonny Gomes to Oakland for Yoenis Cespedes, John Lackey to St. Louis for Joe Kelly, and even Stephen Drew from Boston to the Yankees, Terry Ryan and the Minnesota Twins' front office can hold their heads relatively high. They locked up All-Star catcher Kurt Suzuki for two more years at $12 million with a slick vesting option for a third year based on plate appearances, as Mike Berardino tweets. The Twins played it smart and basically have full control of that vesting year. However, with Kennys Vargas being called up to fill the designated hitter spot in light of Kendrys Morales being traded back to Seattle and the "triumphant" return of Joe Mauer to first base and not catcher, it doesn't look good for Josmil Pinto, who now has plenty of time to progress defensively in Rochester. It certainly wouldn't be a surprise if Suzuki gets 485 plate appearances in 2016, but it would mean Pinto still can't catch and Mauer still won't catch. With his improved approach at the plate that Parker Hageman recognized in video reconnaissance, maybe three years of Kurt Suzuki won't be so bad. Let's just hope Pinto learns to frame pitches at least as well as Suzuki in a hurry so Ryan can move Suzuki sooner rather than later. He did make another slick move in giving waiver claim Sam Fuld back to Oakland for starting pitcher Tommy Milone. I like Milone, whose given name is Tomaso Anthony Milone. Milone has put up impressive numbers in nearly 500 MLB innings pitched, but his strikeout numbers have steadily fallen. If he gives up even fewer homers and walks, which would be expected given Target Field and Rick Anderson, Milone will be an effective starter until 2018 when he becomes a free agent. And he will be better and cheaper in the role Kevin Correia has been failing to fill. Correia will be waived, and I wouldn't be shocked if he ends up the fifth starter or long reliever of a National League Wild Card contender...say, the Pirates. Any return on Correia is good return. Hell, maybe if we throw in a reliever they'll give Vance Worley back. Of course, we must also consider Ryan's move to send Morales back to Seattle, which brought relief pitcher Stephen Pryor in what looks to me like a salary dump of sorts. Pryor's only 22, but I don't see Ryan's interest except that Pryor's biggest problem is walks, and if there's anything the Twins organization preaches it's, "Don't give free passes." I didn't understand the move with so many young pitchers to throw out there as relievers: Thielbar, Fien, Pressly, Tonkin, even AJ Achter; and I still don't understand it after none of our relievers were traded: Burton, Duensing, Deduno, or even Perkins (although that would have been heartbreaking). So the Sam Fuld trade was outstanding, the Kenndrys Morales trade was pretty terrible, and perhaps the best move Terry Ryan made was to extend Kurt Suzuki at reasonable dollars and years. The Twins will most certainly be active at the waiver deadline, with Correia, Willingham, Burton, and maybe even Deduno to be considered. It's the most wonderful time of the year. For original story visit http://gogonzojournal.com/sports

If Ozzie Guillen were captain on this sinking ship, I assure you Nolasco would have been threatened with bullpen duty months ago. Totally agree it's time to change the culture of the Twins.

I would fire Gardy and hire Ozzie Guillen, and I've been saying it for years. Guillen has always admired the "Twins Way," and I think he could help develop the young Spanish-speaking talent (Sano, Escobar, Florimon, etc.). Ozzie also has a way of lighting fires under his players' asses and would provide some much-needed entertainment that's been absent from Gardy's postgame interviews. I'd say Rick Anderson is less to blame for the failures of the front office. He hasn't had anything to work with since Santana left. Liriano was a wreck. Baker, Diamond, and Blackburn were flashes in the pan that got figured out. Worley was hurt. Now he has to put up with Nolasco's terrible fastball that gets hit harder and more often than any in the game. But Anderson has a knack for creating really good bullpen arms. Perkins, Theilbar, Duensing, even Burton was a surprising turnaround. I'd also replace the entire training and medical staff. Too many injuries and too many players being diagnosed improperly or too late. Inexcusable.

Willingham on a one-year deal will NOT happen! He'll be 36 and be even more useless in LF. We have DHs coming out of our ass. That 3-year deal was one of the most team-friendly contracts ever for a guy with 35 HR and 110 RBI...on a team that lost 96 games and wasn't going to compete that year or the next. Hindsight is 20/20, but when a man outplays his career averages like that you can't say NOBODY was thinking about trading him. I certainly was and Terry Ryan probably was too. Bill Smith even had to. He should have been moved in 2012.

Correia has very little value now. Could be part of an August waiver deal, though. Not at all crazy to move Hughes, Morales, and Suzuki. Maybe a little for Hughes, but Morales was basically trade bait the moment he signed, and Suzuki was a pleasant surprise that you can't pass up on when a contender is in need of a catcher.

Agreed, but it's not just for salary relief. It's for one of Seattle's top five prospects.

Good point on Uggla, but I like Dozier defensively and the Twins have him under contract on the cheap until 2019. No reason to move that contract.

All I have to say is maximum value. Can't afford to be a fan in times like these. Hughes has the most trade value on the team besides maybe Suzuki. No reason not to field offers. And sure Suzuki has been valuable, but he'd be even more valuable as a AA catcher with potential that can move Pinto to DH.