jimbo92107

I do feel bad that Torts missed his game day. It wouldn't have hurt Gonzo to get a day off and start El Cherubo at 3rd. Instead, he rides the pine until late, Baldi shamefacedly puts him in, and the little chubby guy of course gets a hit. If he starts at 3rd, does he hit for the cycle? Now, we'll never know. Submitted with tongue in cheek for our buddy, Riverbrian.

I had no idea he was relying on a new cutter today. I thought the main improvement was the extra couple mph on his heater that he learned from Wes Johnson. Apparently that extra velo, plus his cutter, makes Perez into almost a new pitcher. I'm all for that.

Gotta admit, I really like Rocco Baldelli. Very upbeat attitude, loves to compliment his players, and his compliments are very specific and enlightening. Twins lucked into a very good skipper.

Sounds like Bailey Ober and Jordan Balazovic could be candidates for a bump to the next level up. I know it's early, but I'm just saying... ;-)

Twins front office just doesn't make moves like this. Unless the guy is Korean or something. It's got to be a cheap gamble, or it won't happen.

Of course, the rookie pitcher, just barely hanging on, can shake off the veteran first round draft pick catcher known for his defensive catching prowess. Sure, he can shake off his call. It might even happen, one time in about a hundred. Otherwise, the rookie throws whatever the catcher asks for, and tries to hit the glove each time. In a pressure situation, it's Castro's call.

No, Castro didn't ask for it in the Correa's wheelhouse. The real problem is that Ryne Harper's fastball has no significant movement. He does a good job of mixing it in with his many curves, but his relative lack of command of the heater, combined with its barely adequate velocity and lack of movement, make it meat for the league's best hitters, of which Carlos Correa is definitely one. I mentioned later that Harper could try adding one more pitch, but after mulling it over I think he should try to learn the cutter technique used by Greg Maddux and Bartolo Colon. Both men threw the pitch in the upper 80's to low 90's for great effect. A cutter like that would give Ryne Harper a fastball as effective as his curve balls at getting multiple whiffs. Of course this is a simplistic solution offered by a dubious source of sports wisdom. However, Harper looks like the kind of pitcher that might make it work. He already is a control pitcher with relatively fine command of a difficult pitch, the curve. The Maddux-style cutter would allow him to throw a fastball at the left side of the zone, then have it break outside the zone late, at least getting the ball off the bat's sweet spot, unlike his current heater, which tracks nice and straight right into the heart of the lumber. Other than that, he could keep throwing curves, which is my gripe about Castro. The catcher should know which pitches to avoid, not just which locations. If Correa was having trouble straightening out the curve, then keep flashing number 2. Giving Correa a cut at Harper's BP heater on a 3-2 count strikes me as just irresponsible. Frankly, it'd be better to walk the guy.

After giving up a 3-run homer tonight, this may not be the best time to sing Harper's praises. However, I do now see what form of magic he is throwing. It's the curve ball that he can throw at many speeds and to many locations, avoiding the middle most of the time. Harper's fast ball goes between 89 and 91, which is not impressive, except that his motion is pretty similar to his curve. The homer was Castro's fault, for giving in to a good hitter, Carlos Correa. Trouble was, it needed to be located in a corner, not middle in. For Harper to stick in the show, he needs to start hitting corners with his meager heater. Then he can use the gas to finish off hitters, after getting them in a hole with the curve. That, or develop a third pitch, like a slider or a good change. Harper's curve/heater combo isn't quite enough, after hitters get more accustomed to his repertoire. Or, he can just throw more curves. Very seldom do guys square that up, even if they're expecting it. One other option would be for Harper to learn that little cutter that kept Bartolo Colon in the majors for an extra ten years. Somebody got his phone number?

Always bat Buxton ahead of a guy with great contact hands. Rosario or Astudillo. Either of them raps a single down the line, Buxton scores from first base. If he steals 2nd before the hit, Buxton scores in a jog.

How fleeting is fame - I completely forgot about Tyler Jay. If he shines this first half, I wonder if there's any chance this former high 1st rounder gets a shot at the Twins bullpen.

I'm impressed that Schoop has the same line drive homer power as CJ Cron. Schoop is actually a pretty big guy. This could be a fun season to watch Twins baseball.

True, which means theoretically a baseball could enter the zone from the sides or from above, and be a strike. Not from below, though. That would require a bounce. Also when Dick says, "Over the outside corner," that describes a vertical vector traveling upwards from that corner, unto infinity. So, a "strike over the x corner" is grammatically and technically correct. However, Bremmer's "strike ON the outside corner," when the pitch was between the upper and lower corners, it inaccurate. Possibly better to say, "Strike, intersecting the outer line segment between upper and lower corners." Or, as Nine of Twelve might say, "Strike, intersecting the outer face of the pentagonal prism." Let's see Dick say that ten times!

Nobody will dub Dick Bremmer's play calling "edgy."

I think they kill the Night King. But he comes back to life in the quantum realm. With the Red Witch. Ant Man is there, too.

If Miggy-San plays well, it's bye-bye to Adrianza, then Cave for a 13th arm. Gonzo can cover most of that, and El Cherubo gets the rest. Shop Castro, too. Garver and Torts can do the catching, and those guys can hit.

That's more of a personal/personnel question. I'm sure Pineda did not come to professional baseball as a gelding... ;-)

Looks to me like Pineda is gradually getting stronger, but it will take time for him to refine his command as he throws the ball harder. He had it before; he'll have it again. Prognosis: Stud horse in development.

The good news is, this team isn't doomed to a season of futility. Two or three savvy moves, and the Twins could be very competitive.

I blame CJ Cron. Even a first baseman should be able to run over 12 miles per hour. Nah, kidding. Wish I'd seen the game. I'm getting the impression that Gibson may require another few starts to get his mojo back. Sounds like Trevor May is flaming out, Tortuga is slowing down, Marwin is seeing the ball, Rosie and Buxton are on fire, Hildy is human, and Bender is back distorting space and time with his curves. Interesting teams don't always win, I guess.

Instructions: After running headlong into a wall, take two aspirin. Repeat if needed. Wait...Byron, that doesn't mean run into the wall again!

Ironic, the day after we're discussing Buxton's ability to stay healthy...he runs headlong into the outfield fence and...this time, he gets back up healthy. A lot of things are different about this year's Twins squad. Buxton seems to have confidence now that he lacked last season. Garver looks like a real live pro catcher, complete with one knee down and a compact, dangerous swing. Polanco's new sidearm throw actually looks stronger than his 3/4 delivery. Kepler looks like a solid player in all aspects now. Rosie looks like an All Star. Pineda looks like he's going to be a stud horse. Berrios looks solid. Hildy is well nigh unhittable, as is Rogers. The new guys all seem competent and smart. The bullpen still may need some help. Romero or Stewart? Both? Much, much more interesting team than last year. These guys could cause some trouble, be disruptive, possibly be a bad example for the children. Carry on, 2019 Twinkies.

You guys are totally missing the point about Buxton. Despite all of his speed, Buxton has very little confidence in his technique. It was Paul Molitor who taught Buxton how to steal second base at the pro level. It will take a similar effort to teach him how to steal third base and how to steal home. Meanwhile, you are also missing the point about why stealing bases is valuable. Applying pressure to the opposing pitcher is the point. When Buxton steals a base, it pressures the opposing pitcher. He steals third, he applies more pressure. When Buxton threatens to steal home, it applies even more pressure to the pitcher, which may induce a wild pitch, or a nothing ball right down the middle. Most pitchers perform worse when runners are on base. Crank that irritation up several notches when a good base stealer is aboard. Ricky Henderson used to drive pitchers crazy with his running game, and it paid off in wins. You guys even said it yourselves - the Twins will probably get most of their runs via homers. Well, when Buxton is on base, the pitcher's attention is divided between the runner and the batter. If that helps induce a pitching mistake, the next pitch could wind up in the stands. Stealing bases helps make that more probable.

Those of us around and aware at the time may recall the long discussions about what type of stadium to build. Old Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington was notorious for slow drives to the game, rain postponements in spring, great baseball in summer, decent football in the fall, and then football in snow during winter. I remember as a child sitting in a sleeping bag during a Vikings game when it was -10F. I loved it. The Vikings won, while the other team huddled around propane heaters. Well, Minnesotans finally had enough of ritual suffering, and decided to build a new stadium closer to the middle of town. Everybody knew the best kind of stadium to build was a retractable dome, but that was twice as expensive as an inflatable dome. So penny-wise Minnesotans opted for the Metrodome, despite the earnest protests of "real baseball fans" like local TV anchorman Dave Moore. It didn't take long to discover that the playing field was too hard. It was murder on football players, and it created a new way of getting a hit in baseball, pounding a pitch into the dirt for a super-high bounce. A few years later people noticed that the dome material started to darken from cigarette smoke and indoor air pollution. The dull gray tinge made it very difficult to track a high fly ball to the fence. Twins players became experts at that very niche skill. By the time the Hump was torn down, pretty much everybody hated it. However, the inside structure of the place was in almost perfect condition. A brand new inflatable dome could have been installed, plus a new playing surface, for far less than the cost of a new stadium of any type. There were even proposals to retrofit the Hump to be an outdoor stadium, or even an outdoor stadium with a retractable roof. Architects these days! Nawww, said the billionaire owners. That's not expensive and vain enough! They wanted separate new stadiums with hyper-pricey, enclosed box sections for millionaire fans of the Vikings and the Twins, or they'd all leave town! Took about ten seconds for the legislature to fold on both threats, and here we are...rain postponements again, just like in the old days at Metropolitan Stadium. I never went inside the new Vikings stadium, but I've been to several Twins games at Target Field. A standing room ticket goes as low as $12 bucks some days, and you can post yourself almost right behind home plate at a hot dog stand. Beautiful field, but those TVs and PA system are too much noise and distraction. My dad hated them, before he died, but I think a younger version of him would have liked the place. Dave Moore would have liked it, too.

I'm still hopeful for Kohl Stewart. Excellent athlete, but he's just not a natural pitcher. He will need to work hard and long on every aspect of the pitching game, because nothing will come easy. That said, I still believe he can keep honing and sharpening his skills to the point that he may well perform like a "natural" pitcher, like Jose Berrios. Only thing is, Berrios himself works hard as a sled dog on his own game, too. That said, there are "natural" pitchers, guys that simply grow up with stuff that's almost unhittable. Walter Johnson had an effortless side-arm sling that amazed the world for twenty years. Other than a few guys that look like they're just skimmin' stones, most humans really have to work at their pitching technique. I hope the Twins coaches keep these learning hurlers from breaking their arms.

Tyler Austin looks to me like a 1B power hitter, period. Decent glove, but the big question is, will he hit 30-plus home runs per season with an acceptable OBP? If so, then the Twins possibly blew it. CJ Cron appears to be that guy, but just older, and maybe a little slower. Might not matter anyway. Twins could bring up a prospect that's better than either Cron or Austin. Brent Rooker should be that, if he works his butt off at fielding first base. Or they could stand pat for now, using Astudillo to back up Cron. Whatever gets El Cherubo on the field is okay by me.