gunnarthor
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Everything posted by gunnarthor
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Sweep!!!
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Sounds like things behind the scenes are in play. Back while he was still a prospect, the Twins didn't invite him to ST with the ML club (although they could have) b/c he wasn't working hard and they didn't think he deserved the invite. And then he had a very strong AA campaign, IIRC. He'll get sent down and he might not come back again this season but the Twins aren't going to release him - just like Perkins, who filed a grievance, sucked and pissed off the fanbase to an incredible degree. Hopefully the time in AAA helps him.
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I think that is fair. I really like Walker and in the past, I've linked to Jason Parks podcast about the Twins. He didn't have Walker in his top 10) but said that he had an amazing ceiling and could be a "first division" type player, if he gets some plate discipline. That is a fantastic prospect to have. But the Twins system is absolutely loaded right now - they could have 5 players (Sano, Buxton, Meyer, Stewart, Gordon) in most top 40 lists, and only Meyer will graduate. And they have real depth behind that. Walker could be a top 10 prospect in a lot of other systems. Parks said the Twins 11-20 were better than at least 3 teams 1-10.
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It's amazing how good you are at taking things out of context. When Hicks has Mauer's track record of a .400 OBP we can talk.
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Review Gardenhire's job so far this year
gunnarthor replied to Brandon's topic in Minnesota Twins Talk
I think he's done well and am glad he's the manager. That said, this thread is going to blow up into "Gardy doesn't like young guys", "Molitor is the reason X is working" and "Gardy is dumb." -
Jason Parks - prospect guru at BP - tweeted that he was headed down to watch Berrios pitch tonight.
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Dozier belongs but there are a lot of starters better than Hughes right now - Yu, King Felix, Tanaka, Buerhle etc. Not sure there's enough room for him. I guess Perkins can go - I don't really care about relievers in the all star game.
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Here's one thing that notes his makeup concerns but doesn't talk about them: http://milbprospective.mlblogs.com/2014/01/27/differentiating-between-mlb-com-baseball-prospectus-top-prospect-rankings/comment-page-1/ I know BP quoted multiple scouts that had real problems with his makeup and work ethic but I can't find the link.
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Not a good comp. DeShields has moved to CF - had been at second base. Also, DeShields has some makeup concerns that Gordon doesn't.
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Cubs aren't in a hurry to rush him, from what I've read. I've been looking at other teams lists and I think the Twins do have the best farm system with the Astros graduations being taken into account.
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Even though he's slumping, his OBP is still better than the guys you might want to put in there (Plouffe, Arcia). I suppose Suzuki could move up but I don't think that's a great idea. With Mauer's track record, unless he's hurt, you'd assume he'd starting hitting again. Willingham has good on base skills but Morales, Arcia and Plouffe are more power than on-base. Ideally if the Twins had 1-3 hitters getting on base a lot, those 4 guys should get a lot of RBIs. And, while lineups really don't matter that much (fans waaaaaaay overrate them), ideally you want your best two hitters (Dozier and Willingham, I'd argue) hitting 2nd and 4th.
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They gotta keep him there unless he's hurt. If he's hurt, put him on the DL. If he's not, then you have to think that he'll start hitting again. He's too good to put up these kind of numbers over a full season. Personally, I think he's hurt - either the back or still dealing with concussion symptoms. But I'm just guessing.
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He's 5th in the AL in GB%. That helps him a lot. He's been inconsistent to say the least. He needs a few more strike outs and a few less walks. And I don't think there is any reason to think that won't happen. He just needs time.
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They'll certainly be in the discussion and I think they'll add a prospect or two with deadline trades. Cubs will be in the discussion - Bryant will be a top 4 guy - but they have some disappointing seasons too. Astros will be there but Singleton will graduate, maybe Springer, too. Correa will be a top 4 guy (most likely) but Appel is crapping the bed. But they added Aiken ...
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1) Walker - probably not. I don't care about OBP that much but the problem it suggests - lack of plate discipline - is something that would probably be fatal to him at AA. 2) The power is nice but I'd still be worried about plate discipline. 3) Not really. Lots of players have played on winning teams and not made the majors. 4) I think he would. People forget how good of a bat he has, period. It wasn't "he's good for a catcher." It was an elite bat. His career OPS+ coming into this season, which doesn't take into account position or league, was as good as or better than many other great hitters, including Teixeira, Howard, Adrian Gonzalez, David Wright, Griffey, Longoria, Kaline, etc. And I think it would be fair to say that his numbers would have been slightly better if he didn't have the wear and tear of catching in those seasons on him - and his counting stats would have been better. I guess that's a long way of saying that Mauer's hitting ability was always HOF caliber regardless of position.
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I think Deduno is back to the pen first. And May is the guy they bring up.
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I have no concerns over Stewart - love him and think he's a top 35-40 prospect in all baseball. Just like Gordon more.
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Meyer will probably get some BP time this year - he's on a pitch and innings limit but May doesn't have that problem. He's a workhorse. He's pitched 150 innings each of the last 3 seasons + some AFL time last year. He could pitch 200 innings this year and not be a concern.
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Gardenhire's next target. Is it Pinto?
gunnarthor replied to jorgenswest's topic in Minnesota Twins Talk
Yeah, and I would have no problem with that, either. (I might prefer May/Meyer replacing Deduno today though). -
Gardenhire's next target. Is it Pinto?
gunnarthor replied to jorgenswest's topic in Minnesota Twins Talk
I think some people aren't being that realistic on what Pinto really is. He's not an all star. He might not even be good enough to be a starter. His bat should be about what he is now, although less streaky. I suspect he can probably be a .240/.320/.430 105 OPS+ hitter, which is pretty good for a catcher. Whether or not his defense is good enough is another question. If the Twins think he can improve his defense while catching Correia and Deduno and working hard with Steinbach, then keep him up and keep on the path that they are on. Suzuki will eventually slow down or get traded. May and Meyer will probably replace Correia and Deduno and Pinto can catch them. If the Twins think his defense is only going to get better playing every day, send him to AAA. But if you think Pinto is secretly a .300/.350/.500 hitter than you're going to be disappointed. And it's not because of Gardy. -
Gardenhire's next target. Is it Pinto?
gunnarthor replied to jorgenswest's topic in Minnesota Twins Talk
I guess the one great truth at Twins daily is that (unless it's Mauer) it's never the player's fault. Cripes, he's played in 70% of the games and, when he was hitting well, Gardy had him in the lineup nearly every day - so Gardy must have been a genius then. He slumped in the begging of May (.466 OPS) - presumably b/c Gardy is evil - and then Gardy started playing him less in part b/c of NL schedule and gave the DH to the hot hand - trying to win games or something. Pinto is a nice piece. He may eventually be a solid catcher but he's not an all star. He's a 25 year old unfinished product. Defensively and offensively Suzuki has been better than him. I suspect the Twins want Suzuki catching Gibson - their prized young arm - and their two big FA signees probably don't want to throw to Pinto. -
BP did a redraft of the 2013 draft - we get Gray in this version. But they said of Stewart (who goes 6th overall): Reason: Nothing substantial has changed with Stewart, and frankly, I'm pleased he's here at no. 6. His front-of-the-rotation potential has not dimmed at all given his performance in the Midwest League as a teenager, and as he settles in with more game experience, he could begin to move through the minor leagues more quickly. – Mark Anderson Stock Analysis: Stewart slides just a few spot from his actual selection thanks to Harvey’s talent leap and Manaea’s return to form. But as mentioned, nothing has really changed with the 19-year-old, who is just plugging away in his first full season.
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That looks about right. You could argue that May could be a slot or two higher. I think I'd put Burdi 10th.
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??? You don't think players take things into their own hands in football for (perceived) slights/insults? Christ, football players have pools for knocking other players out of the game and were willing to break the rules (and the law) to do so. Teams set up plays so wide receivers can cut block *******s on the other team. Hockey players have hit each other with deadly weapons b/c they are mad at each other. Do you think that football doesn't have unwritten rules about running up scores? Sure they do. And when teams break those rules the opponents get angry, fights start and the next game (if they play again) are usually chippy. The rules are a simple code of conduct on how to play the game - every sport has them, frankly probably every work place has them. You seem to be bothered that, in baseball, the rules will sometimes allow a pitcher to hit a batter with a pitch. Fine (although earlier in this thread you said you were ok with it in some circumstances). Every sport has physical violent ramifications to actions - many of them perceived slights, some merely the rules of the game. The NBA used to have a no-free pass layup rule and that lead to one of the leagues signature moments when Kevin McHale assaulted Kurt Rambis on national TV. People wax poetically of those times. I'm sure you'll argue that football players pushing and hitting after the whistle are also breaking the law (and are actually far more likely to cause real injuries).
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“I said, OK, no problem, I’ll be a pitcher,”
gunnarthor replied to jokin's topic in Twins Minor League Talk
Have a link to the 98 mph thing? I certainly hadn't seen that. I like Berrios a lot. And I'm really, really surprised on how well he's doing this season. I didn't expect that at all. Edit: Ah, your link went to the second page of the Souhan article, which I thought was the entire thing.