PopRiveter

It frustrates me that so many of the players I am most curious about seeing are cut before getting to see them play a televised game. I wanted to see Hicks, Arcia, Colabello and Santana this spring. Guess I'll have to settle for just Hicks.

Here I've been creating Miis of the entire 40 man roster to play Mario's Super Sluggers (like a chump.) Your solution is so mich simpler!

Just got his third of the day. If a starting job could be won today, it would be.

I know it's just spring numbers, but Hicks has 4 home runs (and counting) in his past 3 games. His 8 RBI are tied for the team lead. If he has any chance of playing his way onto the team, he's doing it so far.

My favorite Hrbek memory is my dad complaining about Don Mattingly's gold gloves every time Hrbek caught an impossibly bad throw from a fellow infielder. Hrbek could scoop it and stretch like mad! Dad was right.

I would've written a different list. I know the fast-track can work (Meyer has already had success at A+, and could see some mlb time if he dominates at AA this season,) but I think it is much more likely that some of the guys who have already debuted will progress to greater levels of production. Almost all players have a season or 2 of adjusting at the mlb level before they are stable players.These guys have already had those seasons: Sam Deduno Cole Devries Liam Hendriks Casey Fien Anthony Swarzak Chris Parmelee Trevor Plouffe Joe Benson Darin Mastroianni Brian Dozier Alex Burnett -all have seen some mlb time and offer their own reasons for hope, but would need to perform better than they ever have in the majors to be considered an asset. These are the guys who seem to be at the age and the point in their development that they will either excel and make a real impact, or falter and disappear. Last year, Diamond/Revere were at that point and established himself. Plouffe/Fein kind of did. Valencia/Hughes were at that make-or-break point and he broke. When I look at this list, I see some reasons for hope, but not many reasons for solid faith. I can easily imagine Plouffe going the way of Valencia, Dozier going the way of Luke Hughes, Chris Parmelee going the way of Brian Buchanan, Sam Deduno going the way of Willie Banks (sorry I couldn't come up with a more recent comp)... I hope a couple of these guys will find a ceiling higher than role-player as I think it there is an even slimmer chance that Gibson, Hicks, Arcia or May are going to be big impact players in 2013. I'll be happy if they get a chance to see some time on the big field and start to acclimate themselves. They are the hope of 2014 to me.

Your posts are far and away my favorite on this site. I'm anxious to see 7-1! Jacque was a favorite of mine too. I refuse to reassess my old favorite players in the light of modern statistical findings/measures. One of my favorite Twins moments was Jacque leading off the 2002 season w/ a home run against KC. I just looked it up to find the year and saw all the other stuff I forgot about that game. Twins won 8-6. Jacque hit a second (3-run) homer and Ortiz, Buchanan, and Hunter all homered as well. Sadly, Radke pitched 4 1/3 innings of 5 run ball. I'm not going to look too close at his line as I don't wish to contradict your claim that he only threw 2 balls in his career. For me, that game alone was worth using Jacque at lead-off all season. After all, a lead-off hitter is only guaranteed one bases-empty-at-bat per game.

I think Morneau is in position for a big year. To me, he is the single biggest reason a Twins fan can cling to any hope this season. That said, I want him wearing the biggest, cushioniest helmet that modern science can engineer and fabricate.

" To quote Hilary Clinton, what difference does it make." I think it was Morrissey who sang that, not Hilary Clinton.

Nick's argument is very reasonable. Sound. Logical. ...and... Matt Capps really seems like a heckuva guy that I'd love to have a beer and plate of wings with. However, I am a fan. I don't enjoy watching Capps pitch. From the first time I saw him pitch, I have not enjoyed watching him pitch. After that, it got much worse. I can't imagine I'll begin finding enjoyment in watching him pitch just because he makes less money. I'd like to see his next Twin's contract be as a minor league coach.

Jokin, I enjoyed reading your Parmelee argument. It seems pretty reasonable. I'd add that for those who fear Mauer's GiDP numbers, Parmelee should double a lot. Certainly more than Carroll/Dozier/Escobar/Florimon. P.S. I really dislike even writing Escobar and Florimon's names in that sentence. Here's hoping a waiver claim or MiLB free agent can knock one of 'em off the depth chart.

You've got my vote. I like: 1. Mastro 2. Mauer 3. Morneau 4. Willingham 5. Parmelee 6. Doumit 7. Plouffe 8. Carroll 9. Dozier I think Morneau will be the best overall hitter on the team next year, and I don't think you hurt yourself by having 2 lefties in a row. When healthy, both Mauer and Morneau have had great splits. I expect Morneau is returning to that type of production. If he doesn't, batting order is moot as the offense won't be effective.

Your first 3 points are all the same point. In football, a good draft has a huge and immediate impct. There is no immediate impact in baseball. Success in baseball is generally the result of a long, slow build. The 2 sports attract different personalities at least partially for this reason. In football, everything is about now. In baseball, you have to balance timelines and momentums. I appreciate both sports, but am more impressed by a successful baseball team than a successful football team. To put it plainly, it is easier for a flawed football team to win 10 games than it is for a flawed baseball team to win 100.

I love this one! sure hope he lasts more than 20 pitches. On a minor league contract, any production is all bonus and this guy, if healthy enough to pitch, is better than most any other option in the system. That's a HUGE "if," but it's low risk/high reward. Go Harden!

It's sad when an antagonist dies, but even sadder when: "In a twist of irony, Bark's Lounge, after being accused of being a racist by unknown sources on an internet chat site, was murdered in Kagoshima, Japan by Yakuza hitmen hired by the Klu Klux Klan." Sure hope no one on an internet chat site accuses me of racism. Sobering. Goodnight, Bark's.

What you heard was not what was said. The team representatives pushed hard for a stadium with the message that they couldn't currently afford to retain their best players and they didn't project to be able to stay competitive in the future. The future is here. The Target Field revenue afforded them the ability to retain Mauer and Morneau on a contracts that wouldn't have happened if they were still in the 'Dome and it gave them the ability to replace Kubel and Cuddyer with comparable free agents. Pavano got signed for more than he was worth. Cuddyer's $10.5million option was picked up for 2011. The team was able to be proactive by signing Span and Blackburn to longer contracts than they might have with 'Dome money. You can make great arguments about the wisdom of their spending, but they have spent when they thought it was advantageous. Some fans seem to forget that much of the new stadium money ($264 million of it) was committed to Mauer and Morneau before the stadium arrived. That is the level of commitment that was promised. If you want to imagine they planned to spend in the "Upper echelon," feel free to imagine that and continue to be disappointed. At this point, the team needs to make smart moves, not spend for the sake of spending. The Corriea signing looks to me like spending for the sake spending. Right now, no one is getting a starting pitcher for a bargain on the free agent market. Wasting money will compound the problem and you can't just spend your way out of a bad spot in this market. My hope as a fan is to see some young players take steps forward. A good year from Hendriks and a good 1/2 year from Gibson could have a very positive impact. If Diamond can avoid a dramatic regression and a couple of the AAAA names are able to contribute again, I'll have more faith in them. Deduno strikes me as a legitimate x-factor. His knuckleball-of-a-fastball is an exciting pitch. I'm not saying there's a good chance he has RA Dickey success in his future, but I'm saying I still want to watch the game when he's pitching. Which name that isn't on our radar will surprise us? Nobody thought Scott Diamond had any chance of emerging like he did last year. The arms in the minors will be interesting too. The team hasn't had many high-quality arms on the way in recent years to keep an eye on. Maybe Wimmers-in-2013 will look a little like Gibson-in-2012. Maybe Meyer and May and Berrios will dominate and climb the ladder fast. Maybe no one will undergo Tommy John! Maybe I'm dreaming. Probably.

I like this signing by itself, but in context, it is a bit of a reminder that Scot Baker wasn't re-signed. He's the one guy I wanted out of this group and he signed awfully cheap compared with the free-agent crop. He wasn't signed because someone thought they could do better. They couldn't.

Turns out it's a pretty good year to only be "sorta bad" at playing baseball.

If this is what is available on the market, you have to pass. Convert Butera! I hope I'm wrong, but this sure looks like compounding the situation. Good for Correia?

A quick review of his career stats have me convinced not to offer him $10 million of my dollars. Yeah, this one is disappointing.

Good stuff. Low risk. Makes me feel more secure.

I'm a little conflicted too. As a fan, I like to cheer for the good guys and my team just traded away 2 of the best. Still, you have to balance the ship by offering value from your positions of strength to obtain help in your positions of weakness. Strategically, TR seems to be making great moves. Get ready to see how Darin Mastroianni does at leadoff. Might be fun.

In a way, the Twins just picked up Anthony Slama in the rule 5 draft. In a more accurate way, that is false, but I will pretend it is true.

I love Torii and will cheer his every play even as I root for his team's failure. It would've been nice if he were in Detroit's outfield this year instead of Delmon. I would have had 1 reason to care about the world series.

Thanks, Parker. That was a fun read. Turns out, baseball is a little more than dingers and free agents.