Twodogs

I can remember in 2002 following spring training that a guy like JC Romero was going to be lights out. I hadn't hardly heard of him before that spring training, I mean I knew they tried to start him a few times the year before but honestly I didn't think much of him. Anyway that year the twins put together a bullpen that included Guardado, failed starter Latroy Hawkins failed starter JC Romero failed starter Johan Santana, rule 5 pickup, flirted with starting some games, didn't become a full time starter till 2004. Bob Wells journeyman, prob failed starter Tony fiore mid season pickup Michael Jackson, (hee hee), prob a waiver wire pickup, I'm not sure Juan Rincon prob failed starter. That was one of the better bullpens in recent twins history and look at that conglomerate of guys, I'd say not much hope for those guys until the season played out and that team won 94 games.

I think Kimbrel 3 - 45 would be great.

Keuchel looks a little better after that Odorizzi debacle today

I'm not sure the God's appreciate all of the frivolous joking about offerings of nothing. It might make them mad enough to brew up some bi-lateral leg weakness and spew it on to one of our boys. You know, one of those injuries that you just can't figure out.

I don't know, I think the Twins would be better with Keuchel, but the Twins have some depth in the rotation. It's the bullpen that really worries me and with Reed getting shelled the other day again it would seem to me that the most pressing need would be Bullpen help. There is a stud out there.

He'll be fine. Tape that **** up.

Sano prob needs to sit down and study what the pitchers are trying to do to him. I think this cut on his foot is overblown. It's a cut, they don't want it to get infected so they are keeping him out until it's healed? I'm hoping he has a good season!

Yeah I understand what you are saying, but, to me, with the addition of Gonzalez; you have Garver who is the backup catcher and he hits Right handed, to Castro's Left. Gonzalez can play almost every position except Catcher and he is a switch hitter, then Cave is the 4th OF and he hits left, and then it would seem to me that someone like Austin can be that Right handed bat off the bench in that moment of need, especially in those handful of games played against the national league where you might want to pinch hit for a pitcher? With the addition of Gonzalez and his position flexibility and his bat, I just don't see a demanding need for a guy like Adrianza. And I thought he did ok last year, came up big a few times. But with two righties, a lefty and a switch hitter on the bench I feel at least like the number of different lineup possibilities are numerous. Just seems to me that Austin is really out of positions with CJ and now Gonzalez in the mix, but his bat also seems more dangerous than any of the other guys they have.

Yeah, you can put him anywhere in the lineup you want, my main point was that you shouldn't need the bench to make an everyday lineup, the bench should be the bench, to occasionally spell a starter and to use to pinch hit etc... During the games so you can play matchups better.

OF Buxton SS Polanco DH Cruz OF Rosario 3B Sano OF Kepler 2B Schoop 1B Cron C Castro Those other guys are on the bench

I don't see anything wrong with a bench of Cave Garver Gonzalez Austin I mean the guys they have playing everyday are young, and as long as the twins don't have any new 80 game suspensions I don't see that much need for an Adrianza or any other light hitting middle infielder. If need be, injury or something you can probably find a guy like that on waivers, or use Gordon in that role if need be? I mean Danny Santana is still getting work, so there are guys out there that can fill that need. Put the bats on the bench until they need that guy. Cave OF PR Garver C 1B Gonzalez pretty much anywhere Austin 1B DH PH

It makes some sense that the big market teams a la the Yankees are already set, why spend a bunch more when you already have Stanton, Judge, etc... Also, why are players from other countries not included in the draft. That makes no sense to me. If they were included in the draft then the rules for these players could become more in line with each other. International players should have to declare for the draft. Then these phenoms will have to go to who drafts them. Not be able to hold out and go where ever. If they played professionally in Korea, or the Dominican then treat then like they just came out of college?

You are correct, about the only thing the older players have, or at least had say 10 years ago was name recognition, you could say this guy was going to put more people into the seats than some unknown, but the unknown may perform just as, or close to as good as the guy with name recognition. Now I feel in the steroid era that the older guys did play better because they were less injury prone and they had greater experience. But that isn't as much the case now. However, I'm not sure your analogy flies, as all of the 1960 vehicles that I see all seem to be more expensive than the new ones.

They might need to re-structure how they pay each draft slot sort of like the NFL does? But then owners could end up paying big for players that go bust in the night. AKA Ryan Leaf etc....

I think analytics are somewhat to blame for the change of approach that ownership has. For instance most players are just numbers now and not names. When a player had developed a name for himself he was paid according to his reputation, some good, some bad. However, now most of these guys don't have names anymore they are just a bunch of numbers. So at one point in time your name got you paid, now it's your numbers and the funny thing is that one person's numbers may be better than another person's, but not significantly better, so then I feel teams just kind of ignore the guys who have good numbers but not significantly better numbers than some kid they can pull out of AAA. I mean why does it seem so hard for a guy like Moustakis to get some sort of deal done. I mean it's obvious that he is one of the better guys at his position, and in the old days someone would have overpaid for his services not only because he performs pretty well but because he is a proven winner and a good guy. But even though he is one of the better players at his position, he is not significantly better than someone they can replace him with. So he toils in these good but not great one year deals.

I wonder what Curt Flood would think about the problems of today's CBA?

Buxton has 10 RBI in 2 games. That looks nice!

It seems to me that with the influx of international players which has to be at one of the highest points of all time that maybe MLB is ready for expansion? If you go back 30 years ago there was not this many players from Asia, dominican, etc... So like any market, if the market is flooded with talent then teams really don't have to pay very much for it. Now you add a couple more teams into the mix and I'd bet guys would be getting signed a little quicker? Just an idea that maybe would help the players in the future?

I think Marwin may just become the everyday firstbaseman?? Then Cron goes to the bench

He is somewhat flexible as far as positioning goes so that should help him with these new benches that are so short because of having 13 pitchers.

Starter, even if you have to send him down for awhile. They can find bullpen guys anywhere, bullpen arms are the most volitile position in all of baseball. Berrios did not have a first good year at all and they kept him in the rotation, I don't think the bullpen is necessarily the best place for a guy who has has arm issues. Bullpen guys never know when they are pitching they never know how long etc.... A starter is on a routine with pen sessions etc. If he's not one of the 5 - 6 starters send him down keep him in a routine so as to get the most out of him when it's time to.

Get rid of the DH and you'd speed up the game.

I don't think his agent will allow him to bunt.

The Twins realistically are in the same position as they were last year. There was a ton of hope going into last season that they had the pieces to win the Central, not necessarily to win the WS but to be able to make the playoffs. Now had they been in the hunt, who knows what they would have brought on board at the deadline to push them over the top, we will only know if they can get there this year. There is no reason why with everything that went wrong last year that some of that could go right this year. No matter how much everyone says they know that this guy will be the difference maker they just don't know. Remember Yu Darvish? Pretty sure almost everyone on here thought they knew that he was the difference last year, but how'd he do? As bad a Lynn was to begin with he still out produced Darvish. Nonetheless, if some of Buxton, Sano, Kepler, Polanco, Rosario etc... Go on and do even just a little better this year then the Twins could be in the thick of it come July and August and that's when they should overspend for a Greinke, Baumgarner, something to put them over the top. Right now, in my opinion all they really needed to add were pieces to the bullpen so they have a better shot at pulling out those close wins?? But otherwise I feel overall they are probably better with their signings than what they were last year? Schoop I think will be better than Dozier was last year, Cruz will be better than Morrison, and Cron and Mauer will be a wash, Mauer prob had a little more production but loses out when he has to miss long stretches because his brain was acting up. So all in all, if the core does just a little better I believe the new version of FA's are better than the 2018 version? JMO, still Perez is a little curious, when I think they just need to add to the Bullpen until the deadline? Now if they go out and overspend right now and that core doesn't produce, just like last year, they they overspent for nothing, the core has to produce before you go and add those 1 or 2 giant pieces.

I'm pretty sure that the group of Schoop, Cruz and Cron would have been picked up by someone had the Twins not done so already. But Perez, I'm not so sure? I'm sort of perplexed by that one. Because to me they don't need another 5th starter, they have a bunch of those, what they don't have is a #1 or an established closer. In the first half of the season last year I think the Twins lost like 23 games by 1 or 2 runs. Im going off of memory here but I think their record at the break was like 44 - 50. If they had pulled out 10 of those 1 or 2 run losses they would have been 54 - 40???? I think they have the hitting to do that this year. What they don't have is the bullpen to finish off the wins that some of those hitters can provide. Now if they are well more than a few games above .500 then they should at the deadline go out and rent an Ace for the remainder of the season to make that push. But right now they can prob stand pat if they can just solidify the bullpen.