Loosey

Since it has been brought up and argued about. What I meant by pleasantly surprised when discussing Pelfrey was that he has performed better than I personally thought he would have. I was thinking he was going to be the guy he has been his last 5 starts the entire year. I know ERA is not a great measure, but using it as a measure for how the results of the games he pitched in were I think he did well. Is his success based on luck and getting big outs in situations where he needed them, yes. I don't think it was or is sustainable. I also want him no where near this team next year, because I think the actual results we are seeing this year, will be completely different next year due to those peripheral stats you mentioned earlier. That is why I would like to see him put on waivers and the Twins take what they can in return. I assume it will be someone who will most likely never see Target Field, but it's better than nothing and as my entire post states, I think it's time to move forward and get the future guys feet wet to see what we have here. Not time like the present to prepare for the future, or something like that. . . .

I don't like the play for the tie mentality and giving up an out. Bat Hunter and hope he can drive the ball and a run in, or both. Or maybe he moves the runners with a ground ball to the right. I play to win on the road and at home, but I am not a Major League manager, so I could be wrong. Also, playing for the tie with this bullpen is a risky proposition.

How many members does Twins Daily have now? And how much would the Twins take to buy the Twins from the Pohlads? Let's do the math and see if we can work out deal. First order of business, new GM. DaveW, any interest? I think the minimum contract length is 17 years.

The Twins remind me of that guy who really wants to invest in the stock market but is too scared he will lose money. However, when they finally get the courage, the market is at it's peak and they ride it down and lose money anyways, then they sell and don't get back in the game again because of the fear of losing . . . Until it hits that high point again, vicous cycle.

I agree with all. And to answer your last question at the end, the only team I could imagine taking on his contract would be Boston. I think Mauer could get back to being a .330 hitter in Fenway just by slapping it to Left. That being said, it will never happen. He will never waive his clause and if he did I doubt Boston would even want him, they a just the only logical trade spot due to the field dimensions and their payroll capacity.

What else does Kepler have to do to get a AAA promotion? I think he clearly has met that development point, now it's time for refinement in AAA and a hopefully a September call up. Or does Terry Ryan have no idea who he is because he isn't a middling 38 year old reliever?

2002 Bat Flip.

Ryan plain and simple had been unable to make his teams better using methods outside of the draft. From everything we have heard he doesn't scout draft picks or make those decisions. He also doesn't believe in Free Agents or Trading for proven talent. So, in the words of the Bob's from "Office Space", "What is it exactly that you do here?" Ryan should not be the GM.

I think we can safely assume Alex Avila will be resigned by Detroit and the negotiations will be done at Thanksgiving dinner table. So he's out. Most of them are weaker hitting guys. I would spend my money on Wieters and hope he gets healthy, but it sounds like first base is in his near future, especially with back issues and coming off Tommy John. Other than that most remind me of Suzuki. Jaso and AJ might be a notch higher hitter, but AJ is not future plans worthy.

You think he will be available when TR decides to quit on his own terms 6-7 years from now?

Funny, some teams hold their upper management accountable for its dysfunction.

How so? in 2006 on May 30th they were 23-28. From May 31 on they were 73-38. Winning 18 games in September to win the division by 1 game. In 2008, I was mistaken. They played awful in September and were 3 games under .500 to lose the division and the one game playoff to the Sox. In 2009 on August 30 they were 65-65. From August 31 on they were 21-11 or 22-11 if you count game 163. in 2010 they were 17-10 in September, finishing out the season on an 18-12 run. Outside of me including 2008 by mistake, how was that untruthful? Outside of those years the past 5 have been bad teams the entire year. It's not like they were playoff bound teams in 2011-2015 and imploded in September.

I agree. I should have maybe called it throwing in the towel on their current roster. Since technically, the young guys could make them better and I didn't even add Buxton be recalled to the list of items since I assume they just wait until September to do that.

I wouldn't say it is cherry picking, it was the outlier. The rest of the months align more with how this team was expected to perform this season. I would say they are improving from prior years, but this team really is about a 8-10 games under .500 type of team.

Regarding rebuilding the Farm, how much say does Ryan have in drafting? I'm honestly asking because I have heard from different people. Some say he does nothing with the draft other than send in the pick, others say he gives some input.

This topic sort of piggybacks off of @Platoons from last night: It's August 4th and the Twins are tied for the 2nd wild card spot! WooHoo! That is how I think most of us thought we would feel in April if we got to say that statement on August 4th. However, realistically it feels like we are on a sinking ship. Yes, a snapshot of the standings show the Twins in a great spot, but if I were buying futures on the the rest of Twins season I would be shorting. The teams nipping on their heels all got significantly better at the trade deadline while mortgaging some of their future. The Twins got Kevin Jepsen, whose debut was nothing short of terrible. Today they sit 3 games above .500 with a 54-51 record. Take the month of May out of there though and this is a team that is 10 games under .500. Outside of May their record is 34-44. Pretty much exactly what most thought this team would do this season. 5-11 since the All-Star break and this team looks like it is ready to implode. Now going back to my topic's title, When to Throw In The Towel. I think most of you are reading this would say now, while more casual fans would want them to play it out and try to hang on to that last playoff spot. Realistically, I think it is over. The reinforcements aren't coming and the teams behind them aren't going to lay down. Even if they manage to play .500 over the next 2 months I don't think that is enough with how well Toronto and Baltimore are player, even the Rangers are sneaking up there. That being said, I think the first few months of this season gave Twins fans a taste of what is to come in the future years if the roster is managed correctly. And that management should start now. If the Twins don't make it out of this road trip still in full control of one of the Wild Card spots it is time to throw in the towel and rebuild for next year. It sucks! I know, I was hoping this team could make things interesting into September but that doesn't appear to be the case. There are players on this roster that would be useful for a playoff push, but since that isn't happening here is how I would "throw in the towel' and get an understanding of what this team has for next year when I do believe they will be in contention in September. #1) Find a spot for Arcia on the 25 man roster: He is out of options next year and will not be back in Rochester whether the Twins think they can slip in through waivers or not. He has too much talent and will be picked up if that happens. Replace Robinson with Arcia and let him do "Arcia things". This guy was once one of the best hitting prospects in this organization and few struggles and discipline issues got him in the Twins doghouse. Let's see if can play well for a 2 month stretch in big leagues. If he can't then I guess a change of scene might be a good thing. If he can, great! The that will give the Twins a lot of Outfield options to open next season. But lets let him get his 2016 tryout started now instead of March. #2) Pelfrey: Pelfrey has been a pleasant surprise this season. As much hate as he receives he really has actually done well. However, he is a FA after this season and is blocking some younger talent that is more likely to be part of the long-term future. To me is the perfect waiver trade guy. Reminds me of the reverse of the Carl Pavano trade. Perhaps his decent pitching here as of late could snag the Twins a young live bullpen arm in return. #3) Get May back in the rotation: I know bullpen is one of the three weak spots, but since we are throwing in the towel lets weaken it some more and actually make use of one of the future starters in his actual future role. #4) Strengthen the pen: I know I just said to weaken it, but I think putting Duffey in there and calling up Berrios could make it quite better. Boyer gets DFA'd in the process. Addition by subtraction! #5) Get an extended look at Polanco: Nunez doesn't need to take a roster spot. He should not be part of the future. Polanco might be. Is he a shortstop? Let's find out! Put him out there and let him play every day for the next two months. In his couple spot starts he has looked like he can hold his own. These moves will drastically change the outlook of the roster but it is the right thing to do for the future. The worst that could happen is the Twins lose A LOT of games down the stretch. Or the flip side, possibly this infusion of young talent might spark something and cause them to accidentally stay in this thing a while longer.

2006, 2008 and 2009. 2006 was the year they had to basically win every game from June on and Morneau and Mauer led them with MVP caliber seasons. 2008 was the year they lost in the one game playoff to Chicago. 2009 was the season when Morneau hurt his back and the team jumped on Cuddyer's and were absolutely on fire in September and went on to win the one game wildcard. So basically they have sucked down the stretch in the seasons where they have sucked all year.

I agree. If anything this season we have seen glimpses of the future might hold. I for one am excited and tried really hard not to get my hopes up for this season, and finally let my guard down at the All-Star break thinking, they just might hold on and make the playoffs. Oops! That being said, the rest of this year should be about rebuilding and reloading. I think some waiver trades need to be made to shore up weaknesses. I would love to see Polanco get an extended look at SS the next 2 months since he is the only real option I can see for next year unless a blockbuster trade is made. Since they are giving up on the season, I say move May back to the rotation after Duffey's start and leave Duffey in the pen. Robinson seems to be a nice guy, and I feel sorry for his personal life situation with his daughter, but it might be time the Twins move out. I'm not sure if he has options, but if he doesn't I'm sure he can pass through waivers and go to Rochester. That way he is much closer to his family and still receives his paycheck and benefits. Bring Arcia up and see if being back in the majors re-motivates him. When Buxton comes up it might be a good move to move Rosario back to AAA for the time being to work on his patience. In addition Berrios to the ML pen for Boyer would kill two birds with one stone as well. The roster would look a lot different but it would be for a reason, and I think the fans who really follow the team would understand and like these moves. The team this year has been almost directionless, as if winning caught them off guard and delayed they rebuild and development of players. These moves would set them up nicely to be able to make logical September call-ups as well. Kepler, ABW, Pinto come to mind as do handful of pitchers. Just my thoughts.

Who would you market as the star of the team if not Dozier? He is having a fantastic season coming off of a really good season. He hits for power at a position not known for power. I think he deserves to be "marketed" as a star. I also think his play on the field is what makes him a star more than team marketing.

He didn't really say they are the reason the Twins aren't scoring runs did he?

His control seems to be out of whack. I mean 3-0 count, just walk him. Instead he leaves a belt high fastball down the middle. That couldn't have been where he was trying to throw that pitch.

So, Milone is on the DL and bring up Duffey to to start on not May. In fact, May wasn't even one of three guys they discussed to replace Milone. Again, I don't get the thinking. I understand he isn't "stretched out" yet. But you would think May could go a good 5 innings next week and work toward getting stretched out. Who is to say Duffey won't struggle and only 3 innings? I like Duffey but I would like to see him in the Pen for now and May starting instead since we know what we have in him.

But then he would lose all that power he gets from the heavier head.

And as Brock mentioned, Gonsalves struck out 8 in 5 innings last night. He also walked 3 but gave up 0 hits over the 5 innings.

The problem is your believe they "think".