diehardtwinsfan

Last I checked, the ideas of changing the posting rules are merely speculation.... and I'm pretty sure that it would have to be agreed upon by both sides. You'll probably have to link Hughes' statement about a 1 year deal. I haven't heard that. He hasn't lived up to expectations, but he hasn't been terrible either, and that is in a bandbox of a park. I'm guessing he gets a multi year deal.

He didn't exactly dominate the AFL, which is AA level. He's a great prospect, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if he doesn't spend any time in MN this year.

I seem to remember reading a write up on him that said he had 4 plus pitches, or perhaps it was 4 potential plus pitches... Stewart will likely be a top of the rotation asset if he makes it there.

You forgot about Randi Dinkleman.

I'm surprised Bartlett could only find a minor league deal. Smart on his part since if he finds any sort of shred of his former self, he's going to unseat Florimon pretty easily. Bartlett was a plus defender whose bat had some upside.

I'm not sure this is the right decision. I still think he should get some reps back there. Pinto looks like he can be a decent catcher... not Mauer good, but good.

I like Buxton, but he's not ML ready... yet.

To lazy to repost. http://twinsdaily.com/twins-minor-league-talk/8796-top-20-prospect-lists.html

I have to think that most of these numbers are low... that's just me personally, but I think most of these guys get more years and dollars.

I'll take a stab at this. In the prospect world there's a saying TNSTAAPP (There's no such thing as a pitching prospect). Pitchers get hurt and flame out much easier as the move up... at least that's my guess. They also start out with promise and transition to a reliever. One really good example of that in recent Twins history is Hudson Boyd. He was on a few top 10 lists and pretty much universally in the top 20 when he was drafted. Right now we hope he can become a decent back of the pen option. Second, pitchers with upside are going to get ranked higher. It's the most important position in the game and having more good pitching than you have pitchers is the easiest way to fill gaps with high ceiling talent at other positions. Pitchers are like gold. In the Twins case it's compounded by the fact that they have a lot of high ceiling guys way low in the minors. If guys like Stewart, Gonsalves, and Thrope all continue on at Cedar Rapids where they left off in rookie ball, they will all likely be in the top 100 by the end of the year. Of course history says that only one of them will likely make it big. Here's to hoping history is wrong and we have a trio of top of the rotation starters in 4 years.

UCL injuries for hitters are not the ordeal that they are for pitchers. Not to mention that it was just a strain. I think this is a situation where resting it is probably the right choice.

I'm with you here, but we are in a minority. If the bat is for real, I'd move Dozier to short before I moved Rosario to the OF. That's my 2 cents at least.

I'm hoping for a down payment on a Tanaka posting fee.

I enjoyed this article, and while there's a "puff piece" aspect to it, there's probably some genuine respect there too. When you make statements like "There's no GM I respect more than Terry Ryan" you are going above and beyond in lavishing your praise. If the respect wasn't genuine, he would say "I respect Terry Ryan", especially since he basically says he has more respect for Ryan than all of his counterparts. I'd echo what someone else said, but if Boras wrote the same piece, I really am curious what he'd say...

I'm not sure they should target 3 guys, though short term deal guys like Johnson I don't have too much of an issue with. I really think they need to get one guy on a long term deal as someone is going to have to function as a decent placeholder until Berrios/Stewart/etc. come of age. All 3 of your guys will be available for 1 or 2 years. That's nice from a risk standpoint, but the same problem will exist next year. Also, I think it's a bit too soon to give up on May.

I'd say there are guys in the 20-30 range that would be in most team's top 20 list. That is nice. Pinto is too low.

The names certainly are encouraging.

Seth, I think you under estimate what May can end up being. That said, while I like Meyer, May, and Gibson, counting on all 3 is not smart.... I do hope Ryan recognizes this.

This is exactly what I'm suggesting. Most of those really big FA contracts aren't hunter. They are Kevin Brown type, or the Johan Santana type that does very well in the first couple of years but hamstrings the team later on. There is a time where they make sense, and a time where they most definitely do not make sense. Simply signing guys b/c you have the money is a long term recipie to have a bunch of aging under performing contracts on your plate that you cannot get rid of... Smart, targeted signings when you are one or two holes away from a contender is a completely different case. And yes, as you stated, the odds are not in favor of Ellsbury, Jiminez, and Santana all performing well in the later part of their contracts. Ellsbury - I'm not sure why he keeps getting bandied around. His OPS was not very good at all this year. His game is speed and that doesn't typically age well, and our OF is already crowded in the short term and long term. Why his name keeps getting brought up here is beyond me. He's a terrible fit, and an expensive one at that. Santana- fits a position of need. Has a history that indicates durability issues. Is this the type of guy you target knowing that when the offense on this team gets cemented, he could be on the DL with his second TJ surgery, except that he's getting paid 17M/year and that hamstrings your ability to replace him. Jiminez - He's just inconsistent. Talent is there, but the results don't always show. Also going to be expensive. I'm all for FA signings, and I honestly think Ryan is too (though he's a bit more risk averse), but in terms of where this team was last year, spending a ton of money makes little sense. The next wave is a lot closer and looks a lot more promising right now, so perhaps it's time to make a plunge, but even then tying up lots of dollars and years isn't smart. Getting that pitching is going to make a lot more sense when the hitting is ready to compete. The only real problem I see is that there are only 3 spots worth filling in 2015 (Meyer, May, and Gibson) and that assumes no one regresses. They will have to make a plunge at one point. The question is when.

Using FA to drastically improve your team fails more often than it works. In that sense, I agree there's no shortcut. Using FA to fill some holes, or in this case, where it's painstakingly obvious that the next wave won't have enough SP is a bit different. It's targeted. The question at hand is whether or not that 5 year contract still going to be worth it in years 3-5 when said next wave is established.

Same here. I didn't mean to imply otherwise if I did.

A few completely unrelated points: 1) It isn't necessarily happening here, but one thing that really bothers me about all of this is the focus on the racial aspect of things. I'm not a fan of it to be clear, but the fact that he chose to use race is inconsqeuential in my mind to the fact that he threatened Martin's family and Martin himself. Kind of sick really, and it's disturbing that society seems more pre-occupied with the use of the N word. 2) I was also in a fraternity, and echo most of what Mike said in post 25. Truth is though that the only "hazing" I experienced was having to carry a small journal with me for about 6 weeks, and had it been anything degrading, I would have simply said no to the bid. The problem as I see it is that the small gray line varies from person to person. I personally wouldn't think much of being ducktaped to the goaline (ala Tim Tebow a couple years ago), but I doubt I'd be OK with having my clothes stolen and not returned out of my locker while I was in the shower. Both of these, I might add, happen, and while some are OK with it, some are not. The problem with the hazing side of things is that the victim never gets to define the line. 3) Levi is right here, using the term bullying is a stretch at best. This is harrassment and extortion. It's a crime and Incognito will likely have a line added to his criminal record over this. 4) I do not see how adding professional women to the locker room will help this at all. I'd argue it would add a worse dymanic in sexual harrassment. That already can go on in a locker room, which is largely why no gays have come out of the closet in the NFL. But in the few cases some sort of integration here has already occurred, there has been documented harrassment and even rape. Just a few years ago, Brett Favre got in a whole lot of trouble over sending a few pictures to a reporter. He was also named in a lawsuit regarding some female trainers. Adding more women to this mix isn't going to suddenly tame these guys. This is maturity issue through and through. I'd like to simply ask why it is that these men cannot act like professionals (and I'd expand that to other fields too), but unfortunately, there's a culture here that's blatantly unprofessional. It has to start before the NFL or MLB. It has to start before college. It has to start before highschool. For all the talk about how sports build character, the reality of the matter is that most athletes are coddled their entire lives because of their skills. They aren't held accountable and this type of mentality can easily develop. Hunter Smith (former Punter for the Colts) wrote a great book on this a few years ago (The Jersey Effect). It's a good read (thought to be clear this is a religious book).

The question I'd ask is whether or not signing a FA is a shortcut (and Ryan's opinion of that). I think it can be, but it doesn't necessarily mean that it is. The article pointed out just how much promise exists in the higher minors and majors 1-9 in the order, and just how little exists in starting pitching. It would be foolish if these guys are legit to ignore the org need for pitching. What makes FA a shortcut, to me is the execution. Last year definitely wasn't the time to go crazy in FA. I'm not terribly sure this year is, but it should be clear at this point that the next wave WILL need more pitching than what the farm can supply. Spending money on younger talent that won't likely fall off a cliff makes a ton of sense. I'm not expecting the Twins to go out and get 3 guys, but 1 long term starter and 1 make good deal makes a ton of sense for this org.

So there's a 4th option year for people in this scenario? Was that part of the new CBA?

If the real Dozier is the 2nd half Dozier then his .800 OPS bat will play up just fine at SS. If this season's end results is the real Dozier, I'd trade him and give Rosario a shot a 2nd. Rosario's bat plays up very nice at 2nd, not nearly so much in the corner... and the OF is going to be crowded as it is with Buxton, Hicks, and Arcia all looking for spots, not to mention some other decent options coming up the pipeline.