Darius

Im sorry, but there is just no reasonable argument, IMO, to have a likely future reliever with developing injury issues before he even reaches the majors (Graterol) ahead of the best defensive player on the planet (arguably ever) who has shown impressive offensive flashes (Buxton) with significant team control remaining. Whether we are talking potential, actual production, or whatever other measuring stick available.....it’s not even close. I’m even hesitant to put Kepler ahead of him based on one year of production with a juiced ball. Even with the injury Buxton still amassed 3 WAR, compared to Keller’s 4 (which could very well be his career high). As mentioned, I’d also put Balazovic over Graterol at this point, I think. I just don’t see Graterol sticking as a starter any time soon.

Monster year coming.

No. Just a sense I get, but he’ll never put up the kind of power numbers he did last year again (I think people have lost context on what 40 homers with non-juiced ball actually means). I’d expect the his numbers to look closer to 2018, in which he hit 20 HR in 611 PAs (as opposed to 36 in 596 in 2019). I think people are underestimating the ball change in their evaluation of the 2020 team. The Twins seemingly changed their entire program, in terms of approach at the plate, To get the ball up in the air. The hitters did a wonderful job of it, and with the ball it was a perfect storm. We’ll see Sano and Cruz put up monster power numbers again because they hit the ball a mile, regardless of the ball. But, I think guys like Kepler, Garver, Rosario, and Polanco are going to See significant power reductions. I think Kepler and Rosario especially. The home runs to right and the balls off the limestone could turn into fly ball outs at a significant rate for those guys. Garver also drove a ton of balls to that right center area of the field, if I remember correctly. I’m concerned. We’ll have a good offense, but it won’t be a top 2-3 elite offense like we saw last year. That’s why it was so imperative that we upgraded pitching. Signing Josh Donaldson would certainly help keep that offense up with the Yankees, who certainly won’t be hurt as much by the ball in their T-ball park. Long story short. I think Kepler has a nice year, but he’ll look more like a .270/20-25/80-90 RBI guy than Yelich and his absurd all-time great numbers. It’s not even fair to compare the two, really. It’s like wondering if Jorge Polanco will reach Alex Rodriguez status circa 2007.

I agree with some of the sentiment on Garver that we really don’t know yet. Was his production enhanced by the juiced that ball? I think so. And, no, the juiced ball didn’t help everyone. Not all hitters are created equal in terms of fly ball rate, etc. it helped some more than others. I don’t know the data, but it just seemed like he was one who really benefitted from an approach geared towards “lifting” the ball. There’s really no telling at this point how that will affect Garver and his production. There’s also the issue of playing time. If he’s truly the offensive force he appeared to be in 2019, he needs to play more games. But, if he plays more does his production decline? Likely. Nonetheless, you can’t say he’s one of the greatest offensive catchers of all time and an MVP candidate when he’s only playing in half of the games. I can’t really argue with where he is placed on this list right now, at the end of the day. But, I have a healthy level of skepticism that he’s indefinitely going to be the player we saw last year. I certainly don’t think he’ll ever match the level of production per PA/AB, so where does that put him? On Buxton, despite the injuries and past struggles, etc. I still think he’s one of the most valuable piece on the team. He’s certainly higher than 7 in the Twins organization. There’s a reason all of these teams start with Buxton when discussing trades with the Twins. Personally, I think he has a big year in front of him. He could very well be a top 5 piece in the MLB, let alone on the Twins, this time next year.

There is less than a 0% chance we see Kirilloff until he hits the service time threshold. It’s more likely that a nude Kate Upton rides a unicorn up to my front door to deliver the winning Powerball ticket (they really need to change that rule). But, it wouldn’t shock me to see him at some point. I think it’s probably more likely we see Rooker while holding off on Kirilloff until September. Then. we’ll see Kirilloff once he hits the service time threshold in 2021.

I like to think of this as who would net the most in a trade if were to happen today. I’m not sure that Arraez should be as high as he’s apparently going to be. I think Sano would return more “value” in prospects if traded today than Arraez. I get it, fans love him (I thought we were leaving popularity out of this, though). He had a great year. But, how valuable is he really at this point? It’s extremely unlikely that he’ll sustain what he did last year. That’s not to say he won’t be a .300-.310 hitter over a major league career, but there’s just not a ton of value in that right now. Especially when you have no extra bass power, are mediocre (or worse) defensively, and have limited versatility (he should really only play second base). Good player. He could be (is) a solid piece on a good team. But, despite the lengthy control, I have a hard time saying he’s more valuable than a one of the best RH power hitters on the planet right now (Sano). Sano is a guy who can carry a lineup for significant stretches. Rosario can do the same. Arraez just can’t do that. There are many hitters in the Twins lineup that generate fear in opposing pitchers. Nobody is scared of giving up a slap oppo-single to Arraez.

Why are we even talking about this club and October at this point? Shouldn’t we be more focused on the minuscule amount of money, relative to MLB budgets, that we’ve saved in 2023? I’ve been told here that’s the most important thing.

So you’re answer is just to eat cheap ****ty pizza your whole life, and watch other enjoy great pizza? And you’re just OK with that? That really sucks for you.

This FO is turning into a joke. They’re pessimistic so they just back away? Again? The best thing that could ever happen to this team would be a face plant this year and empty stands by the middle of the summer. Maybe it’ll be a wake-up call.

Yeah, I don’t know how one could conclude that the team is better now than last year. They’ve added nothing apart from Clippard. I’m still of the opinion that Gibson is a good pitcher. He could very easily have better seasons than both Hill and Bailey. The roster is also full of regression candidates. It’ll be really difficult for Polanco, Kepler, Cruz, Garver, Arraez, Odorizzi, Rogers, and some others to replicate last year’s level of success. Last year was a perfect storm, in a way, that the FO squandered. That should be more of a story than it was/has been. Banking on last year to repeat itself, or even somehow get better, without addressing any of the weaknesses that ultimately derailed a playoff run is just plain stupid. It’s insulting to the intelligence of fans that the FO and certain media expect fans to buy that crap. Especially when the team from Chicago has been loading up.

I’m still an advocate of getting your best hitters the most ABs (aka, hit at the top of the order). I know Arraez looked great. But, I’m not handing the lead off job to him out of spring training. I want to see him carry his success forward into the new year and sustain it. There’s always the opportunity for regression and the league to catch up. I’ll have no problem handing him the permanent lead off job if he shows up to start the season. I want to see Polanco at the top of the lineup. He sees a lot of pitches (relative to most others in the lineup). He has some extra base pop. He’s one of the best hitters in the American League, who I want getting as many plate appearances as possible throughout the year. I could see Buxton hitting his way into that spot as well. That speed would such a massive weapon atop the order. I think that’s the ideal scenario. In the meantime, Arraez and Buxton in the 8-9 hole is absolutely lethal considering you’re turning over to Polanco, Kepler, Cruz, Sano.

....and when they finally do something, it’s basically the only two guys I didn’t want. Yuck.

I’d be all for Walker and Wood as a flier (no thanks on Hill), at this point. There is, literally, no other option at somehow acquiring decent pitching (yeah, offseason isn’t over....they’re talking on trades....D’ohk. I’ll take all bettors on that one). Ideally, for a serious franchise, you’d attempt something like that as a handcuff to a bigger acquisition. Real rotation depth/insurance for an injury, etc. You’re just a silly clown pretender if you sign one of these guys as one of your primary rotation pieces and say you’re trying to win a championship. And, no, the rotation would not be “stuffed” for 2020. We’d be left with 3 competent known commodities, at best (one injury/regression from Berrios, Odorizzi, Pineda from a total disaster), a bunch of AAAA guys that are due to get shelled (Dobnak, Smeltzer, Thorpe), a stalled out prospect with no history of carrying a starters workload (Graterol), a guy with potential that’s never been realized (Walker), and a guy who used to be OK years ago in the national league (Wood). That is about as un-stuffed as a rotation gets in the major leagues these days, especially for “contenders.” What a joke that we’re left sitting here with these options. Total and unadulterated failure worthy of ridicule, boos, and rotten vegetables from fans. Any attempt to say otherwise is propaganda or delusion.

Big Papi wouldn’t be the Big Papi we know if he stayed with the Twins, for a few reasons: 1). He openly called out the hitting approach the Twins coaches at the time. He may not have developed into the same hitter. Until recently, the Twins as a franchise have been one of the most inept in baseball at developing power hitters since at least the early 90s. 2). He’s known for his postseason, notably World Series, heroics. We’ve seen how the Twins approach the goal of Winning a World Series. If they had kept Big Papi long-term, they wouldn’t have paid one of either Mauer or Morneau. They certainly wouldn’t have gone out and obtained the pitching necessary. Big Papi would have only a handful of postseason ABs, and zero World Series ABs. 3). I’m sure this will ridiculed by the deluded, but he never would’ve been hooked up with the same pharmacist, if you get my drift. Add that into playing a lot of game in the dome/Target Field, his numbers could like drastically different. Twins fans may know him as a great player. But, there is no chance, IMO, that Big Papi is anywhere near the legend he is now if he stayed here. The Twins biggest mistake ever has been repeating itself numerous times since the year 2000. They don’t participate in free agency/the trade market. We’re seeing them urinate away another great team right now, like they did the Mauer/Morneau squads. If they would attempt to properly supplement their homegrown prospects, maybe we’d be talking about Mauer as a postseason legend like Papi (is there anyone in Twins’, maybe MLB history, you’d rather have at the plate with the season on the line and RISP than Joe in his prime?). In fact, if he had stayed here he may be reviled by many like Joe Mayer for hogging the payroll and losing a million playoff games in a row.

Are we seriously having a conversation about whether a team should do what it can to attempt to win a World Series, or actively do the opposite? And people actually advocating that the Twins shouldn’t make serious attempts at winning a World Series? Because they are worried about losing out on some marginal revenues 5 years from now because they traded a player? My God, is this the culmination of a Twilight Zone-esque practical joke that this website has been setting up? I mean, as a fan of any team, this conversation is insane. The Pohlad Stockholm Syndrome has gotten so bad that I have to repeat this: People are now opposed to the Twins attempting to win a World Series because they are concerned about what revenue numbers a half-decade from now might look like because of it. Why isn’t winning a World Series, then trying to win another an option? Why is the default, “well if we win a World Series we are required to slink back into a hole of futile payroll numbers for a couple of decades? Seriously, what the hell is this website even doing here, if this is the point we’ve reached? Why do any of us even care anymore? I have to Go back up to the top make sure I’m not being trolled by Randball....

I’d love to get Ray. All I’ve been asking for this offseason is someone of his caliber. Nobody in their right mind was expecting Cole or Strasburg, based on the Twins perpetual cheap approach (yes...again...they are cheap. No matter how much certain people don’t like hearing that). He provides some solid upside. I think his floor is relatively safe. Most importantly, he’s a legitimate arm that bumps one of the AAAA guys. A move like this, at minimum, is necessary if Falvine wants to get on a podium and tell fans they’re trying to win something beyond the AL Central with a straight face. I really don’t understand people hard-passing. What’s the alternative? Smeltzer? All of the free agents are long gone. Also, it’s a very small commitment on the Twins end in terms of payroll, which makes it a good compromise for the pocket protectors. This should bring all Twins fans together, from the Pohlad haters to the Pocket Protectors, arm in arm singing carols.

Let’s be honest, the Twins aren’t signing Ryu. Also, it’s a stretch to say “the Twins are in on him,” based on that Tweet (I don’t think they deserve that much credit). It says they are known to be “in the starter market.” That means nothing in terms of being serious about throwing a legitimately competitive offer at Ryu. We all know the song and dance at this point. Throwing some random low-ball deal at someone isn’t “being in on them.” Not a fan of the media propagandizing to made it sound like they are trying in earnest, when they clearly aren’t. I’m honesty starting to wonder whether media members see some incentive (viewed favorably by members of the organization, etc.). Or, if people feel it makes them appear enlightened. At this point, you know it’s not a reader demand thing (90% of Twins fans are getting physically ill from all of the rationalization of inactivity). You could make quite the social study in media influence out of this Twins offseason.

We need these guys to take a step, but banking on it in lieu of supplementing the roster is just a bad/cheap (yes, they are “cheap”) decision by the FO/ownership. We certainly need Berrios and Buxton to take a step. But, is that really a likely outcome? They have both shown significant physical limitations. Berrios seemingly gets exhausted around the same time every year, and is a pretty small guy in general. Buxton has never proven he can stay healthy. Chances are greater that both go down in flames with injury issues this year than both simultaneously put it together. That’s something that should be planned for.....not hoped for. I’m not sure Kepler has any more to give. A stellar offensive season was likely aided somewhat by the ball fiasco. Similar to Berrios, he wore down last year. Is that likely to improve as a player ages into their late 20s? Probably not likely. The league will also have much more information/reports on Kepler. Additionally, any more out of Kepler and he’s a league MVP caliber guy. I just don’t think it’s realistic to expect/plan for that. Regression over last year is almost assured. Those guys all taking significant steps would be huge for this team. So would signing a dependable, high-end-ish starting pitcher. Both are equally as likely to happen (as in, neither will happen). Doesn’t make me feel real great about the 2020 playoff prospects.

One of the dumbest decisions in a long line of dumb decisions made by any Twins FO since the early 90s.

I don’t know why people are so disgruntled by some of this analysis. It’s clear. His swing as it sits isn’t doing him any favors. His chances of sustaining any sort of meaningful production in the MLB, or maybe even before then, are in serious question. Could he succeed without swing alterations? Maybe. Not likely. Pointing out one of the few outlier examples in the history of the MLB (Puckett) as evidence that he shouldn’t alter his approach is a very strange stance. You’re really supporting everyone else’s argument by pointing out how rare it is. Of course they should be pushing him to develop, rather than just saying, “hands off, let the nature run it’s course.” It’s absurd to even be arguing such.

I guess we just don’t see things the same way. It boils down to them being unwilling. If you have to overpay, so be it. At some point you have to go for it, otherwise what are we even doing here? If not this year, when? At what point are the Twins numbers just off, and it’s a problem? They are way low on everyone. Always. They have to know that going in. They don’t have to have the payroll flexibility of the large market teams all the time. Nobody is saying that. People are asking for them to do it once. When you have the table set for you as a potential contender. Why is this getting framed so often by the media right now as an unreasonable ask? I understand their payroll limitations. There is no reason why can’t be in the $140-150 range (right what 50% of 2019 revenues will be). Part of the problem is them shooting themselves in the foot PR wise. If you’re not willing to go out and pay up, be honest about it. Don’t say “we’re going to do everything we can to add impact pitching,” if that means Zach Wheeler having to turn down $20M additional to sign with you. That’s not serious. Don’t lie to the fans in an attempt to run up season tickets, then say, oops that got away from us. Show some aggression, competence, and willingness to get something done, or don’t say you will to schill.

I wouldn’t mind taking a no-downside risk on Bird. Obviously, that can’t be a plan A thing, but it could return some solid dividends. He’s shown flashes. I’d be OK with Smoak, but I’m not sure you couldn’t get a comparable player for much cheaper. A Brent Rooker or Luke Raley could likely step in be a rough equivalent offensively.

Nobody is getting paid more than they are worth. The market dictates what they are worth. The Twins actually want to pay less than what they are worth. There’s nothing/nobody “conspiring” against the Twins other than themselves. It shouldn’t be a mystery why nobody want to play for one of the of the top 5 most notoriously cheap franchises in Major League Baseball (yes, Phil Mackey....cheap...deal with it). It seems there is a willingness to blame everything/everyone but the Twins right now. Spin it how you must. At the end of the day, the Twins are unwilling to pay what it takes to get requisite players here to compete for a championship next year. Bottom line. There is nothing wrong with fans being frustrated by this. In fact, going into the season with a payroll equal to or less than last year should be downright insulting to fans. I’m noticing a huge media push to rationalize kicking the can down the road. Deferring hope. Some hacks are even going as far as calling the people who keep them relevant “morons,” for not swallowing the propaganda with a thank you. They’ve returned a 100+ win young team. One of the greatest offenses of all time is sitting in the clubhouse. Not spending now should send a message loud and clear to fans if this club: Give up hope. Not one of the hundreds of articles written in the last few weeks will convince me otherwise.

If it were left at “patronizing,” that would be a good thing. They openly insult the intelligence of people who think the Twins should spend some money on some good players. It’s insanity. Phil Mackey literally came out and called people “morons,” this week, based on the fact that he himself leaks rumors that they were “in on a guy.” I can tell you this. I was a regular listener the SKOR North Twins show. I won’t listen to another second of it as long as that garbage hack Phil Mackey is in there. Same with the ultimate hack Doogie. He’s a total loser hack (makes things up or rips them off from other people and throws “my sources tell me” or “I’m hearing” onto it, then insults people who call him out). He’s another one that I go out of my way to ensure I don’t provide a red cent, or even a click, to.

Remember, signing free agents to big contracts it stupid.....just look at the Nationals, Red Sox, Astros, Cubs, Giants, Yankees, or Phillies. They have only won 12 of the last 15 World Series titles. Morons (right, Phil Mackey?).