diehardtwinsfan

Moderator note: I swear we are debating this trade Plouffe/Sano to RF in a half dozen threads right now. Let's not derail every single thread at TD to rehash this same debate. It's getting very old.

I don't get too worked up about anything involving the Yankees since Yankees prospects automatically lose shine when they are traded and every trade always favors them to start. I'm growing tired though of the idea that Murphy has no upside. that's not true. His offensive ceiling is likely a bit lower than Hicks. His floor is quite a bit higher, and he happens to be at a position where we need far more help.

I think he finishes the year with an OPS slightly north of .800.

Perhaps it's not May's K pitch...

wonder if he's confusing 2015 and 2014. In 2014, the HRs dropped off and many of the peripherals weren't as bad.

Agree. I'd add that even the best pitchers see an increase in ERA second and third time through the order. The big thing with May is that he was improving. His K rate was going up too. In my opinion, May has the potential to be a 1-3 type starter and will likely fit in as a solid #2. Those are very valuable starters, far more valuable than an elite shut down pen option.

Oh I agree, highly unlikely, which is a big reason why I'm not a fan of big FA splashes... and in Rickey's case, the pen will likely be tried first. Though to be fair, it has happened. Mike Lamb, I think, got the boot, and I believe Jason Marquis was signed to a 2 year deal when he got let go. I could be wrong on both, but it has happened, even if it's rare.

This. I'd much prefer May in the rotation. Hopefully, he gets a shot. Perhaps he and Berrios force it and they dump Nolsaco and trade Milone.

I think Murphy should OPS around .700, which isn't bad for a catcher. The kid still has some upside, and was above average in his minor league career every stop of the way, while being young for his age. He may never have an .800 OPS, but he should be a solid backstop for this team the next few seasons. I do think that Suzuki would benefit from less PT. .700 is probably pushing it for his OPS though.

I'm really not sure where the idea that Polanco is better than Dozier is coming from. Even with his second half swoons, Dozier was an above average 2B, something Polanco will only strive to be over the next couple seasons. He may get there eventually, but he isn't there now, and likely won't be for a year or two. Side note, defensively, in my limited sample size seeing him this spring, he was pretty bad.

Personally, I think it was the wrong decision. I'll leave it at that and encourage everyone else to maintain said respect.

for what it's worth, what I saw on Sunday was one inning of pitches where hitters were squaring up on him quite nicely (though he didn't get help from his defense) and 2 innings where he was pretty good. He was for what it's worth, throwing a bit faster in those 2 innings too. I want to believe he was just working on something, but truthfully, only the coaching staff knows that. I do think though that he needs to start showing it sooner than later. I'd like to see May force his way on to that rotation talk, b/c I think the Twins are far better with May in the rotation than in the pen.

Just a few nits to pick here. I agree on 1, 3, and 5 (though I don't agree on how he's going to get to this one). But 2 and 4 really bug me. 2) Yeah, the guys at the top succeed more, but I don't think we can say that they rarely fail. We all saw the failure that was Delmon Young. He was number 1 on a few lists for a few years. Yes, injury can get in the way, but there are a lot of intangibles that don't show up in a box score and a lot of baseball skills that need to be learned. We (not necessarily you in this case) tend to chalk much of that up as 'luck' and write off what constitutes real skills and real adjustments since all major leaguers make, while not understanding that there was an actual change that drove that low BABIP into something a bit bigger. 4) I hear this argument with every prospect, and it's often an excuse to justify an action that many people are questioning. It's really a dangerous argument in my opinion. Aaron Hicks was not Carlos Gomez and Buxton is not Hicks. Yeah, they are different people, but that doesn't mean we should use that as an argument to justify the mistakes that were made with (in this case) both of them. Just because Buxton ranks a bit higher on a BA list doesn't mean that we should put him in the majors if he's not ready. I don't necessarily care if he's 'better' than say a Ryan Sweeney if we have to sit and watch him flail away at major league curveballs only to see him sent down to AAA after he's beaten. People handle that type of frustration differently, and while we can say that we see more natural talent in Buxton than say Gomez or Hicks, we know absolutely nothing of his (and their for that matter) character. If the Twins decide to send Buxton to Minneapolis this spring, I hope that is not b/c they forced themselves to select the lesser of two evils but because they think he's ready to hit major league pitching. What I know from last season was that he wasn't. Has that changed this offseason? Perhaps, but if he continues to be rather subpar this spring, then I really think it's best for the Twins and Buxton to let him spend some time in AAA honing those skills. As an added bonus, he will most likely be a better player for the Twins when he actually is ready. He really doesn't have much in terms of at bats in the high minors. That's largely due to injuries. Trying to force a Mike Trout timeline on him while forgetting the amount of time that he's missed really misses the point... Heck, trying to force a Mike Trout timeline on him is just silly. Trout's career thus far has the makings of a first ballot HOF. Buxton needs to be ready for the show before we can make that type of comparison.

He looked pretty bad in his strikeout yesterday too, so there's definitely some refinement needed. On the flip side, as said by others, his double was a thing of beauty. I think some time in AAA would serve him will personally, but you're right in that there isn't exactly competition. Sweeney might be that darkhorse guy, but Buxton is clearly being given every opportunity to win the job. The team clearly wants Buxton to win it. Though at this point, I'm not sure he has. Hopefully he improves on his early numbers over the next week or two.

Got to see a few of these guys in camp today. ABW is a pretty nice guy. He mentioned that it sounds like he'll be starting in AAA. Not sure if that's what he heard from his bosses or just his own speculation (though it's pretty reasonable).

people are talking about Buxton as a sure thing to head north. I suspect that he's in AAA and Sweeney heads north in his place. Arcia and Santana are locks as far as I'd guess.

Hmmm... I'll look you up on Saturday.

I suspect Buxton and Berrios both spend a lot of time in AAA this season. In Buxton's case, he needs to show something to send to the majors, and in Berrios's case, there's no room for him short of a late call up for BP duty (this assumes of course that no trades/cuts are made). Park on the other hand, I'll be surprised if he doesn't go north with the team. On that note though, does he have 3 options in that contract should he need AAA seasoning?

He needs to be. He was a break out pick last year and had a season that most would rather forget. Granted, there was an injury here, but hopefully he's realized that he has a much better chance of making the team if he's playing a good all around game. The real question is going to be who sits if Arcia earns a spot. Sano won't be sitting. Do they move Rosario to CF, or do they finally trade Plouffe?

I guess I struggle with the idea that AAAers cannot hit a 95 MPH straight pitch, especially since many of them have ML experience. Hopefully Tonkin can do something to prove his value, he's been hanging around for a while and it would be nice to see him lock down and excel at a role in the pen.

If Escobar has another really good season, that extension is going to get expensive. I'm not against something longer term as I really don't see much for SS options in the high minors. If their really sold on someone, then there's a nice trade chip in there somewhere. But Escobar was one of the best SS in baseball last year... think about that for a second.

I'd pass on both. I want to see Buxton accomplish something at the ML level before handing him a 6 year deal.

I'm not sold on Polanco yet, and I don't think Dozier is going to fall off the face of the earth. Polanco has options, and I'd like to see if he's figured it out in AAA before I hand him an MLB job.. Just my two cents there. Now if you get an offer you cannot refuse for Brian, by all means trade him, but understand that this is very likely a setback in 2016 and possibly longer if Polanco flops.

He's done this two seasons in a row now. At one point, we have to wonder if the changes were real. I remember AJ praising him quite a bit when he left the Sox saying he just needed consistent PT... Like it or not, when he's gotten it in MN, he's been one of the better SS in the league. Hopefully we found a gem and the second Liriano trade was close to the first. It's even sweeter knowing the Sox were the victims.

Biggest problem with diabetes is his diet and I suppose taking his meds. He cannot consume the carbs that the rest of us do on a normal basis. That may cause issues with his stamina, particularly as that's main source your body uses for endurance. It's certainly doable, but definitely an issue to deal with. I went on a similar diet last summer and watched my ability to run distance evaporate rather quick, and I'm pretty far from a professional athlete in terms of what would be a healthy caloric intake.