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gunnarthor

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Everything posted by gunnarthor

  1. gunnarthor
    The fact that you write this - "Billy Beane...well, we know the success he has had with the cash strapped A's and what he has done for baseball as a whole" - and then ignore that the same problems faced Ryan says pretty much everything you needed to on this. I expect that this thread will turn into a massive knot of negativity.
  2. gunnarthor
    I would guess it's end of the season physicals and such but maybe something more than aches and pains with Perkins and May?
  3. gunnarthor
    The reports of out ST suggested that Molitor didn't like his work ethic from the get-go. And there have been rumors about him being more interested in hitting HRs than working on his overall game. I would doubt that the move to left had any impact on his bat - and he started most of his games in AAA in RF anyway. Reusse made hints that the Twins couldn't move Arcia at the deadline this year so I do think they are looking to move him. He has some solid LH pop but that's about it. He has to hit a lot and his numbers at AAA suggested he lost nearly all his plate discipline. We'll see how he does in winter ball and ST but I think the Twins are about done with him. (Of course, I said the same thing about Perkins, too).
  4. gunnarthor
    http://deadspin.com/cc-sabathia-is-checking-into-alcohol-rehab-1734716045 Sounds like he was lined up to start a playoff game (if they beat the Astros) but checked into rehab instead. That sounds kind of serious. Hope he gets well.
  5. gunnarthor
    Arcia put up a .630 OPS in AAA this year. While a .752 OPS as a 23 yr old two years ago was solid, I think last year was just as important on what the team can expect from him. My guess is that he'll play winter ball and the team will make a decision on him in ST. It looks like they really have three choices on him. 1) They could say he's a bench bat with limited defensive versatility behind an OF of Rosario/Buxton/Hicks (maybe Hunter, maybe Kepler, maybe Robinson). 2) They can pencil him to start in LF in April and keep Buxton in the minors. Give him 6 weeks or so to show that he's not the horrible player he was last year before bringing Buxton up. 3) Hope that he puts up some impressive numbers in winter ball and/or ST and trade him for something that might help us, understanding that the return probably won't be much better than the Kevin Jepsen trade.
  6. gunnarthor
    I wouldn't be surprised if Ryan trades Milone but Nolasco probably can't be moved at this point. Arcia might be traded but it won't be for much (if they re-sign Hunter, I think Arcia's gone). Plouffe is a possibility but I don't think they'll move him. If they make a surprise trade, it might be Hicks, who looks like a real CFer now. Guys like Vargas, Danny Santana, Pinto have no trade value.
  7. gunnarthor
    Yeah, I admit the ugly racism is a big thing for me. I disagree that I've suggested it's anyone's primary motive (or every singled anyone out at all) but I do think it's a much bigger one than most people want to admit to. And, as I've said, it's a big reason I enjoy having him on our Twins team. That said, I will thank you for your explanation on why the post was removed and I do owe you an apology for the BYTO crack.
  8. gunnarthor
    Pointing out that that Hunter's success pisses off a (hopefully) small but vocal segment of the Twins fan base isn't unnecessary or inappropriate - it's a legitimate reason I like him so much and will be ok if he comes back which was what the thread was about. The massive amount of negativity you've let stand - (while deciding that this is the uncomfortable discussion that doesn't) - is the biggest problem with TD.
  9. gunnarthor
    I posted that I don't care if Hunter comes back or not but I did enjoy that he ticks off the segment of the fan base that doesn't like opinionated black men. Mods delete it. I guess we have a lot of Strib commentators in our mod group. Meanwhile, posts insulting the intelligence of our GM in our "congrats on our season" thread stay up.
  10. gunnarthor
    If he's not back, he's had a hell of a career - .277/.331/.461 110 OPS+, 2451 hits, 353 HR, 498 doubles, 50 WAR, 9 GG and a 5x all-star. He's not a HOFer (although there are worse players in it) but he should be in the Hall of Very Good and the Twins HOF.
  11. gunnarthor
    This really was a fun team to watch. The best news is that this should also be the worst Twins team for a number of years.
  12. gunnarthor
    I'm not if BP is actually meant to do much more than get stroke/swing down. I remember a few years ago a story about Delmon Young standing in against some of the Twins pitchers during their bullpen sessions with a bat but not swinging to get better plate discipline. I don't think we saw any improvement that year from Young.
  13. gunnarthor
    I think most of us read Molitor's statement as similar to things said by Dozier and Buxton and Hicks and Ryan and give credit to Hunter for being a huge reason the Twins have done well all season. Nothing in the article says that Molitor thinks Hunter should be MVP. http://blogs.twincities.com/twins/2015/09/29/twinsights-paul-molitor-makes-the-mvp-case-for-torii-hunter/ 'However, due to Hunter’s strong clubhouse influence, Molitor could see the merit in his right fielder drawing Most Valuable Player consideration, at least on a down-ballot basis. “Different voters quantify their MVP vote differently,” Molitor said. “You think back to some of the MVPs the past 30 years that maybe weren’t even close statistically to some other people yet either won or came close. (Kirk) Gibson for the (1988 Los Angeles) Dodgers comes to mind for me.” Should the Twins grab the final AL wild-card spot over this final regular-season week, Molitor hopes it could push several of his players into the year-end award mix.'
  14. gunnarthor
    Nice write up. It's far too early to worry about Buxton. Considering where he started this year, essentially having lost a whole year last year, he's fine. Interestingly, I remember that Ryan quote. TD damn near blew up about how Ryan didn't understand baseball.
  15. gunnarthor
    The Mets signed Cuddyer for his leadership ability, gave up a draft choice and gave him two years. So, yes, I think Hunter will get a deal above what a 1 WAR player would normally get. I expect that the Twins will be the ones that sign him but you will hear about other teams as well.
  16. gunnarthor
    There's no way to prove it, one way or another. The arguments that Hunter had an impact on the team outside of what his statistics say (and however you want to measure them) are based on the idea that the FO brought him in here to improve the clubhouse, that the GM, manager, fellow vets and young rookies have all pointed out that he has had a huge impact on the Twins (as have the reporters covering the team and national reporters). The manager of the team he left has openly said it was a big hit for the Tigers this year as they had to deal with adversity. Angel fans still remember Hunter fondly for how he led the team after Arenhardt's untimely death. They could all be lying or they could all be wrong. But that's what you go on. The argument against Hunter having an impact outside of what his statistics say (and however you want to measure them) are based on the idea that it doesn't exist, or it can't be measured or some teams aren't trying to sign leaders like Hunter (although, some are).
  17. gunnarthor
    Rosario and Hicks were both up, Arcia was on the DL.
  18. gunnarthor
    Well, first, people aren't sure about these sort of measurements. We're starting to hear about catch framing being worth 3-5 wins a year but catchers aren't getting raises yet. Does that mean framing isn't worth 3-5 wins in some cases? Was Williams managing the reason the Nats under-performed this year? Was he worth 3-5 wins in the wrong direction? Will his replacement be paid on the expected WAR upgrade? Probably not. I do think Hunter had a real impact on the clubhouse (and I recall you and I arguing about this in ST when you said we can all expect the Tigers to be worse b/c they let Hunter go). I have no idea how much impact he had. I think he had a ton of impact in May when he was hitting the snot out of the ball and maybe getting the young guys to believe that the Twins were a good team again. "See that HR I hit? See, we're ****ing good." I expect that sort of machismo rubs off on the younger guys. I honestly think if he had hit like July in May and May in July, the Twins wouldn't have been nearly this good. I think if Molitor and Hicks and Buxton and Dozier have all said that his effects have been huge, I do think they are probably right. I don't know if it's 5 wins as you suggest but it's probably more than 1, which is what fWAR says he gave us.
  19. gunnarthor
    I figure this is the most likely scenario for next year. The Twins re-sign Hunter on another 1 year deal. TD blows up. Our starting OF is Rosario/Hicks/Hunter with Buxton and Kepler in AAA. After six weeks, Ryan re-evaluates his line-up. If Hunter is as bad as some expect, Buxton comes up at that time. If Hunter is hot and Rosario hasn't regressed, Buxton might wait a bit longer. Either way, Twins make the playoffs again. Kepler comes up in Sept again. I'm not overly concerned about Hunter. He's nearing the end and everyone knows it. Having him make the team out of ST doesn't necessarily block Buxton or Kepler since both could use some time in AAA and both could come up if Hunter struggles. Arcia posted a .610 OPS in AAA this year so the Twins probably shouldn't count on him for much.
  20. gunnarthor
    I might be remembering this wrong but I don't Atlanta really put AJ on the market in the first place. He wasn't going to get them much of anything back - certainly not Hu - and they don't really have a clear back-up in place (Benthacort was dealing with injuries). At the deadline, they weren't a good team but they weren't as bad as expected (they dive bombed afterwards). They made a few other moves (some good, some bad) so It probably didn't really make sense to move AJ for his minimal return.
  21. gunnarthor
    Yeah, according to the rumors Colorado wanted Sano (they knew Buxton was off the table). They also wanted ground ball pitchers so Gibson was mentioned but Berrios would have been a bad fit for them. And, of course, Tulo's salary made all of this academic. But I don't think the Twins really had a package that could have beaten Toronto's - 2 20 year old pitchers with electric arms and a 22 year old top 100/50 prospect (depending on the list), all of whom profile as good ground ball pitchers. And Jose Reyes, who is either a salary dump or a good player who could replace Tulo, depending on what spin you accept. Outside of Sano and maybe Gibson, who really excites you for Colorado? Berrios is a fly ball pitcher, the other Twins pitchers had big set backs. They apparently weren't looking for bats, unless it was a difference maker. They wanted young players to go with a potentially pretty good nucleus coming up.
  22. gunnarthor
    I had insider once through ESPN the Magazine (probably a decade ago now). But they double billed me when I re-upped and it took forever to fix it - although they eventually did. But arguing about $26 (or whatever it was) with a massive corporation on several different phone calls gets old really fast. So, I never went back.
  23. gunnarthor
    You wanted Tulo but did you want to give up Sano for him?
  24. gunnarthor
    B+ sounds about right. There wasn't any catching upgrades out there and the Twins were right not to throw prospects out for a guy like Price. Scott Kazmir seemed like a good guy to go after but even he was pretty expensive prospect-wise (and he only wanted to go to Houston). Ryan did a pretty good job of judging the teams chances and future.
  25. gunnarthor
    Apparently, ESPN isn't going to do chats anymore. That was one of the few reasons I kept going back to them. Nearly all the crap I want to read is on their insider now except for the sweetspot and Caple articles. Bummer.
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