alarp33

On a team that has been all but mathematically eliminated since May

I would trade Dozier, but I'm not sure this puts me in the rebuild category. I wouldn't expect to compete in 2017, but I would aim for 2018 and I think Polanco will be better than Dozier at that point.

It's not going to be up to the search firm to clean house, it will be up to whoever is hired to lead the Baseball Operation.

Mike Leake is also 28. I agree on the surface 2/27 isn't that bad. I think it is more the rotation spot teams aren't willing to fill in 2018 with a 35 year old Ervin Santana. What contenders fall in this category? I'd cross the Dodgers, Red Sox and Rangers off the list, they can all aim higher than Erv. Maybe Baltimore?

Odds are very high none of the 3 are traded by Aug2. No one wants Nolasco and Milone, and no one will want Santana for $30 million. Twins would probably be able to get something for Santana by picking up half the contract, but that seems unlikely

Anyone who was still concerned Antony might get the permanent job should take a deep sigh of relief. Excellent news someone other than St. Peter or Pohlad will be finding the best candidates

I did read it, and I didn't see Berrios describing what they've asked him to work on. I saw quotes from his Rochester Manager and Brad Steil. Sounds as if in his 8 inning 3 hitter, the 1st inning or two were not great. I guess we shouldn't expect pitchers to ever make it past AAA, because I'm not sure there's been a prospect who has been perfect in every inning, every outing. If these seem like reasonable expectations to you, for any prospect to be able to beat out Ricky Nolasco for a spot in the Majors, we probably won't agree on much. "If he pitches the way he did over his last six innings tonight then, yes, that's a legitimate question," said Red Wings manager Mike Quade, whose club went 7-2 on the homestand and improved to 59-42. Those in positions of power are more perfectionists, however. Quade said innings one and two weren't big-league worthy, when the Chiefs hit at least four balls hard. "We want him to be more consistent and execute his pitches," Steil said. "He's still only 22, he's still learning. Sometimes when guys are top prospects at such a young age, people wonder why they're not there (in the big leagues) yet. There's a lot to learn." Sunday's start, a 3-2 victory over Norfolk, was an example of where work must be done, Steil said. Berrios pitched six scoreless innings, allowing four hits while walking two and striking out nine. But his day was over because he was already at 95 pitches. "He ran the pitch-count up a little bit probably by not putting guys away earlier than he could have," Steil said.

Heck of an attempt to move those goalposts. I did get a good chuckle out of this one though "He JUST got called up. From AA. Because the CWS have no better options." As if a team in the Twins position, all but eliminated since May, pitching Nolasco, Milone and Duffey have so many better options they can't give Berrios a shot

Good info, thanks for sharing. I still question the idea of building a rotation by paying full price for #4-type veteran starters, over overpaying for a #1/2, or taking 1-2 year flyers on guys. Though I would guess that falls on the person in the GM chair

I think most people on this site are aware of the myth of the closer. You picked a very odd example to try and prove a point, one that doesn't actually work.

He gave up 2 runs in Houston, the game I specificlly commented on , that does not work out to a 10.20 ERA. When does Ricky Nolasco, the pitcher with the highest ERA in baseball since 2014 get to work on the huge ragged kinks in his game?

Out of all those names you listed, I would put 2 of them in the category of "locks to be long term MLB Starters (btoh good ones)". Sano and Kepler. Edit: Not to say I disagree with flipping Palka.. just pointing out that logjam is no sure thing

Umm, in regards to Berrios? Yes. The team has 3 pitchers getting shelled every time out, very easy to find a spot for him this week.

"Making a decision or taking action when you know that things are going to change"? That sentence alone doesn't make any sense. Whatever parallel you are trying to draw to the business world is failing. I'm curious when you think transactions are acceptable, because something is always going to change on a Major League roster. There are always deadlines, etc.

Agree. It's also worth noting, if Arizona had doubts about Toussaint for some reason, the industry certainly valued him highly last summer. For now, he is just an asset, and they sold very low, getting a Pinch Hitter and $10 million salary relief. In the end he may flame out, Arizona may have sold at the right time, but that doesn't mean they did a good job or maximized value

This is really hard to comprehend. What does your organization have to do with Jose Berrios still being in AAA?

I saw Berrios strike out 8 in 5.1 innings in Houston, how was that unfair?

Byron Buxton had 240 AA/AAA combined at bats when he was promoted to the Majors. Jose Berrios has thrown 306 innings in AA/ AAA and is still down there. Anyone else seeing a major flaw here? Good thing its Center Fielders that only have a certain amount of throws in their arm before the inevitable elbow surgery.. wait..

Would you agree Berrios is the better prospect than Duffey? If so, why do you think lower level prospects should be allowed to or are more equipped to spend less time AAA and learn in the Majors than better prospects? By my count, Duffey has thrown 116 innings in AAA, and Berrios is at 173. Why is that ok?

I'm curious if you think these other teams that are seemingly going to offer a good return suddenly forgot that Tommy Milone was placed on waiver 2.5 months ago. As for "it's pretty hard to tell the other club he is a solid SP". Are you under the impression that General Managers just take each others word for who is good and who is not? Do you think they might have access to film, or even stats that show Tommy Milone is terrible? Like how do you think these trade talks start? "You guys should give us a good prospect for Tommy Milone, he's good and a part of our rotation" - RA "Oh he's in the rotation and good? Sure thing, who do you want?" - Other gm

I don't know that it's your messaging, I would say it was TR and RA's messaging that is the issue. You could have a team of 10 working on analytics, but if the decision making constantly ignores the information you come up with, the perception is going to be there. I would point to the pitching staff for the past 6+ years as exhibit A, while the rest of baseball seems to have focused on K's, its almost like the Twins organization has gone out of their way to find the "pitch to contact" guys, while at the same time employing an awful defensive team. It doesn't take a deep understanding of analytics to understand the less strikeouts, the more balls that are going to be hit into play.

No one forgets that. I think you are forgetting what an awful pitcher Ricky Nolasco is

Huh? What exactly are they telling Berrios by keeping him in AAA for 30 starts?

He's owed something like $17 million (~$4 this year, $12 next, $1 buyout), there is no way in hell a team is going to trade for Nolasco and take on $12-13 million. Frankly I will be shocked if this doesn't end in a DFA, or a team basically agreeing to take him on at slightly above the veteran minimum, like $2 million next year (with the Twins picking up $15 million)

A lot more than 2