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Gene Larkin

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Everything posted by Gene Larkin

  1. Gene Larkin
    I don't understand why so many people have already decided Sano is some kind of butcher at third. Terry Ryan has spoke highly of his defense, and said his weight is not an issue for staying at 3rd long term. It sounds like at AA he is making a lot of spectacular plays to his left and right but struggles at times with routine plays. Like many young players, especially those learning a new position, with experience and more repetition, he should improve defensively. Many on this thread are raving about Ploufe's defense, but I clearly remember how much of a liability he was in the infield when he first came up. With time and experience, he has improved.
  2. Gene Larkin
    Any talk of trading Sano because of a perceived logjam at third is just crazy. I don't remember the source, but I remember reading in spring training that Tom Kelly called Sano the best player in the Twins organization. Let's also not go too overboard about Ploufe's performance so far this season. For his career, Ploufe has a .247 BA, .419 SLG and .732 OPS -- numbers that you would expect Sano, as a top MLB power hitting prospect, will eventually exceed.
  3. Gene Larkin
    I would argue the team really started to click after Rosario and then Hicks entered the lineup. After yesterday's 2-hit game, Rosario is hitting .273 (just 2 points below Mauer, although in fewer at bats) has 9 RBIs and his average with RISP is above .400. Hicks in a small sample size is hitting .244 but has come up with some key hits and walks. That's not even talking about the plus defense they're provided.
  4. Gene Larkin
    I'm amazed at how much so many Twins fans love Oliveros, a 26-year who has spent all or parts of 9 seasons in the minors. The Twins took him off the 40-man roster this spring, exposing him to waivers but not one of the 29 other MLB teams bothered to pick him up, even to assign him to the minors. To me that's rather telling. Sure he has put up some good if not great AAA numbers but the annals of organized baseball are full of such players. I also find it amusing that some of the same people raving about Oliveros are also downplaying what Milone has done recently at Rochester
  5. Gene Larkin
    So far Hicks hasn't driven in a single run and he has had a dozen at bats or so with runners in scoring position. If that doesn't improve considerably it won't matter how well he plays defense.
  6. Gene Larkin
    Here's my sense of the timing of the Vargas demotion and what may be happening with the roster. As many have pointed out, the Twins will play the next two games in Pittsburgh so there's no need for a DH. Vargas could pitch hit in those games but if he got on base he's so slow that the team likely would need to pinch run for him, burning another position player. Molitor also may be thinking about making double switches in the NL park. Using Bernier may make more sense in those situations because he can play multiple infield positions, while Vargas is limited to playing first base and Maurer isn't coming out of the game unless it's already decided. On the team's off day on Thursday, I would not be surprised if Pinto gets called up and Bernier is then shipped out. Pinto, who has hit well at AAA, could then DH or occasionally spell Suzuki at catcher. Hermann, who is hitting about .156 by the way, could then be sent down for Arcia, when he is healthy, or Vargas, after he is eligible to be brought back up.
  7. Gene Larkin
    I agree Rosario's K rate in majors is way too high, but it does not seem to be indicative of his minor-league career. According to FanGraph, it was 20.2% in 2014 and 21.4% in 2013 in AA and in 23 games in AAA this year it was 17%
  8. Gene Larkin
    Escobar (a favorite of many on this board) and Santana also rarely walk and strike out too much compared to their power numbers but they seem to have stuck at the big league level
  9. Gene Larkin
    Rosario may look overmatched in certain at bats but after going 1-3 Sunday his average is back to .242 with 6 RBIs. Not great but not that much worse than some Twins regulars (though in a smaller sample size). I know most Twins bloggers and many fans think it's only a matter of time until he's sent back to AAA but I'm not so sure. I listened to Rob Anthony on 1500 ESPN Sunday and he talked about how the Twins liked the "extra dimenson" he brought to the big league club with his plus fielding in left field and delivering hits in clutch situations
  10. Gene Larkin
    Nearly all the coming moves are predictable; Stauffer for Pressly, Fien for Tonken, Nunez for Bernier, and probably Arcia for Rosario; big question is after Schafer comes off DL. Unless Hicks is hitting a ton by then, I think he goes back down also.
  11. Gene Larkin
    Why worry about losing a career minor leaguer like Bernier?
  12. Gene Larkin
    Not to belabor the point, but in all or parts of eight minor league seasons, Hicks has a total of 41 HRs with a .426 SLG and .806 OPS. In comparison, Rosario, who I don't consider a major power hitter, has 60 HRs with a .480 SLG and .820 OPS in all or parts of six minor league seasons. Like Hicks, Rosario is a plus defender in the corners.
  13. Gene Larkin
    Even in the minors Hicks has not shown he can hit with enough power to justify being a MLB corner outfielder. Once Buxton arrives Hicks is a fourth outfielder at best.
  14. Gene Larkin
    The timing of the Hicks call up sure seems like it was in response to the Robinson emergency. It's a stretch of the imagination that the Twins originally intended to bump someone else from the roster only to learn about Robinson's situation. After three days or so, is it back to Rochester for Hicks?
  15. Gene Larkin
    In regard to Rosario, I was referring to what he's shown so far in driving in runs from the 7th or 8th hole, particularly with 2 outs. He already has as many RBIs (5) as Schafer and Hermann and nearly as many as Robinson and Santana (7) and Arcia (8) in far fewer games.
  16. Gene Larkin
    Seth, send Rosario to the minors to make room for Hicks? Really? How much better would Eddie have had to have hit in his first 5 games to impress you?
  17. Gene Larkin
    I can't believe people are seriously saying Rosario should be sent down to make room for Hicks. All Eddie's done so far is homered on first MLB pitch he saw and the proceed to set club record for most games with at least 1 RBI to start his career.
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