Darius

This is way off: 1). He has beem hurt in his career, but the majority of his time missed was due to one ACL injury (he missed a few other games with an ankle). I dont think its overly worrisome. For example, Aaron Rodgers missed nearly the whole season a couple years ago, and had surgery this offseason. Tom Brady had an ACL. It happens. Nobody calls them injury prone. 2). Considering the fact that he has never played with evem mediocre skill playera around him (running game, receivera, etc), and never played in the same system for multiple years (which is so underrated), he's been pretty darn good. After winning offensive rookie of the year in 2010, on an awful team, he had a pretty poor year in his sophmore year, on a worse team. Since that year, he has never posted a rating below 82, which is around league average, posting as high as 90+, which is well above league average -- Aaron Rodgers posted 92 last yeae, for example. Since 2012, he has a 54-31 TD-INT ratio....on terrible teams. Tell me, you dont think an above average NFL QB on awful teams, an a guy comfortable with play-action, would look much better with the best RB in the NFL, and a top 10 if not top 5 defense? "Not good" on the field is just lazy analysis. 3). He was not replaces by a rookie. He was the starter. The rookie was named the starter after the trade....over Chase Daniel. 4). The first round pick is overrared. Espwcially 20+. Cordarrelle Patterson, etc, were picked in the first round. You're not really as likely to find a great player as many like to think, because theyre bought into the NFL draft machine hype. Also, the Vikinga have a second, multiple thirds, and multiple fourths. They will be moving up. 5). The cap hit means almost nothing at this point. Kalil will be coming off the books, Patterson, etc. They'll be just fine. The trade may or may not work out...but one of two things is going on here:. Youre a crusty Packers fan who was happy as hell after Teddy went down, who is now disappinted and grasping at any straw to makw yourself feel better.....or you dont know as much about Bradford and football aa you think you do. The trade may or may not work out. But, lets not be dense and pretend like rolling into the season with Shaun Hill was a better option. How'd the Pack look with their awful back up when Rodgers got hurt?

He's not coming to MN. Why would any high-end FO guy want to come to a place where he'll be hamstrung by ownership every year? He was recently named executive of the year, and turned around a struggling franchise with a lot of saavy big-time moves. He built arguably the most entertaining product in the league, and has the terrible stadium in a hockey-only city nearly sold out every night. This guy will have a much better opportunity than the Twins within a year. I heard it said by Gleeman that this could be a leverage play that originated from his camp, not the Twins, and that just makes too much sense. The Twins would never publicly divulge a nugget like that if it were actually in the works. Possibly, a leverage play by the Twins to try and pull in another actual candidate ("see, we have options). Knowing the Pohlads the way we do....probably to try and get someone to sign a low-ball deal. All of that said, a guy who isnt afraid to shake things up is exactly what this organization needed 10 years ago. Id be thrilled with that hire, and every Twins fan should be as well.

So what about all the cautionary tales of teams that dont spend money on quality players and only try to work players out of their own system? The Pirates for about 50 years comes to mind. The Twins since the early ninties. Many many more. Then, there are all the inspirational tales of the teams that have purchased championships, and have basically held an oligopoly over major league baseball since the late 90s. Pointing at an outlier here or there and saying youre doomed with big free agents is misguided. Its much more rare to win a championship as a small market team near the bottom of the league in payroll every year. Hindsight on Grienke is 20/20, and he still may rebound. You have Grienke in one hand, in the other there is Sherzer, Hamels, Kershaw, Cueto, and Strasburg. You cant tell me going out and trying put one the leagues most dominant starters at the front end of your rotation is ever a bad idea. How has the middling-bargain barrel rotation paradigm worked out for the Twins over the years? There are infinitely more horror stories on that end of the spectrum.

Honestly, which manager could have done anything with the worst pitching staff in the league, and one of the worst in Twins history, if not baseball history, and two months of an ice cold lineup from top bottom? Maybe a few more hit and runs wouldve totally changed things... I get there are things hes done that many dont agree with, but you could've created a cyborg frankenstein out of Vince Lombardi, Herb Brooks, Nostradamus, and The Wolf from Pulp Fiction, with a built-in sabremetric supercomputer, and it wouldn't have made a difference. This team would have made any manager in the history, or future, of professional baseball look incompetent. Blaming this on Molitor is like filling a kiddie-pool of gasoline, popping the top off of an oxygen tank, filling a tall glass of chlorine triflouride, sitting down in the whole mess and lighting a cigarette.....then blaming the fireman that show up for the fire. Or, you know, like blaming immigrants and the poor for the economy.

Do they really though? Santana is what he is, and will be in the rotation. Same for Gibson. I dont think anything they do will change that. Berrios needs the innings, but again, likely a rotation staple in the future. Duffy might need the innings, but one could argue some bullpen inning might benefit him. Trevor May would be a candidate for the future, but thats not happening this year. That leaves the rotation spots that are being filled by guys like Santiago, Pat Dean, and Albers. Nobody needs to see another inning from those guys to know that they shouldnt be in a major league rotation next year. No disrespect intended to those fine gentlemen, but its just the truth right now. I'm not advacating bringing Gonsalves up. But for other reasons. Saying that there are just too many pitchers sounds like one of the old company lines. Yes, there are some breathing bodies, but there might be one legitimate rotation piece on the Twins right now (Santana) if we're talking about a true contender. Two if you bank on Berrios' upside.

I think your last sentence is the realworry. I dont want him to come up, be told he needs to tweak his mechanics (a la Berrios), struggle, and have the sees of doubt planted.

Dozier is unreal right now. He quietly is putting up numbers that should be getting MVP consideration. Can you imagine what those numbers would look like right now if he wasn't one of the worst hitters in the league for the first few months of the year... It's unbelievable. When it's all said and done, this may be one of the greatest offensive seasons in the Twins history...and he's really done it over about half of a season.

The hysteria over this is nuts. Law's comment is ridiculous. What does he lose if he gets hurt? A free beer after the game from the sponsor next year? There is no college scholarship/pro contract on the line here. If he blows his elbow, he's not going to be some handicap or CTE victim (plenty of amateur/youth football leagues out there). People live with injuries that aren't surgically repaired all the time (labrum, knee ligaments, etc). I know someone who freakishly tore up their knee while shopping for groceries. Should we turn it into a crusade against the dangers of buying bananas? A few weeks ago a teammate tore an ACL in a slow pitch softball game. Should we look into whether or not we want to allow slow pitch softball as a societal issue? He is an adult. The guy is an amateur ball player, probably had a great time, and made some amazing memories. I'm guessing he wasn't going out there against his will....in fact, it was probably his idea. This asinine reactionary social media society we live today has gotten out of control. This exact thing has probably happened hundreds of times over the years in amateur baseball in Minnesota, or any other state, without being documented. But, now everyone has to chime with their, "look at me! I'm the most righteous! I am even more outraged!" covertly narcissistic comment over Twitter. Let's face it. Nobody commenting gives a damn about John Doe amateur from the tundra's elbow health. They just want as many people as possible to think that they do. Can anyone just enjoy something cool for once without it turning into some controversial issue?

I'm sure there are many examples of players in other organizations that have hit home runs, and went on to continue that in the MLB. While it may be true that home runs arent a great indicator of stardom, I can't look at the Twins organization and make that generalization about all power hitters in all systems. I think, in this case, it may lend itself more to the Twins historical inability to develop players. The fact that the only member on the list to find success actually turned into one of the greatest clutch power hitters of all time, once he got into another organization, kind of reaffirms that for me (Ortiz). The guy even said himself that the Twins had him all screwed up trying to change things and having him do things that didnt come naturally.

So how do you distinguish between the legit prospect and the reliever? Look at the back of baseball card? If he's 6'5" 230, he must be a future ace? Or, do you just assume everybody in A ball is a future reliever?

This is just.....I believe the millenials say lol.

Is contraction still on the table?

Not that I disagree with you. They blew it with Ortiz. But he certainly used PEDs, just like many players on the Twins probably did/do. There are many substances out there that players still use, and aren't tested for or are covered up with very sophisticated chemistry/pharmacology. Ortiz could've just as easily stayed with the Twins and got the roids from Juan Rincons' guy instead of Manny's. The difference was, Boston had guys (Manny included) that taught him how to harness his potential, instead of trying to fit a square peg into a round hole. Ortiz, JJ Hardy, Valencia, and a few other have said as much themselves. Not sure why multiple players would go out their way to lie about that in the media. It's a fact. Everything aside, believing Ortiz didn't juice....or only succeeded because of juice....are equally naive.

I think it's simple: The luck ran out. They didn't have transcendent players like Johan Santana, Joe Mauer, Justin Morneau, Torii Hunter....and other very good players like Cuddyer, Kubel, etc, falling into their lap anymore. Players with supreme talent that would've succeeded anywhere, with no particular development and coaching. There was a tipping point where they had to make saavy moves to keep the team afloat after that crop of prospects came through, that just happened to pan out. There was a window of opportunity to trade, rebuild, retool, etc. They couldn't to it. They didn't know how to do it. They were stuck in 80s in terms of information systems/evaluation, and there was a country club atmosphere under which no decision makers were held accountable for their performance. The front office was always terrible. There was just a few years where the stars aligned, and a bunch of prospects panned out. People saw that and thought Terry Ryan was a genius....even though he continually dribbled it down his leg in terms of bolstering the roster year after year after year. It probably would've been better had that not happened, Joe Mauer chose football (who was the key to all that success...one of the greatest Twins of all time) and ownership gutted the front office 15 years ago. Maybe the Twins would have accomplished more than the pseudo-success of the mid 2000s.

So you'd give the credit to the Twins, who have a long history of turning highly regarded prospects into nothing, only to see them flourish elsewhere? Are you implying that you think he would have been unsuccessful in other organizations, and the Twins did something special? If so, you have a more positive outlook than I....neither necessarily being right or wrong. Just not the direction I'd lean. Maybe he'd be an all star in another organization. Maybe not. Maybe he'd be even better if handled differently, and the system isn't maximizing his potential. I think that's the point. There are many scenarios under which he could be a good player, but not get recognized as a prospect (lack of exposure, playing through injuries, late bloomer physcially, etc etc). I'm certainly not going to say the Twins did something special, given their track record. Id be more inclined to give the credit to the player for succeeding despite the Twins system.

This argument can work both ways. Plouffe is awful over a huge sample size, so he shouldn't play. Time to see what Vargas can do over a large(er) sample. Also, the way Vargas is doing it appears to have a decent shot of being sustainable. He works to get good pitches to hit. If he doesn't get one, he's walking....unlike every other young player they've given long looks to (Rosario, Buxton, Sano...Kepler is the one exception). Just to make sure I'm not misunderstanding....you're saying player X (Plouffe specifically...,who is playing first again tonight instead of Vargas) with awful large sample size > Vargas with very respectable small sample size? D'ohK.

He can play first and DH. It's because he's not making millions and had the option. It has nothing to do with him as a player. Right now, he's swinging a better than Plouffe and Sano....and almost everyone else on the team with the exception of Dozier and Polanco. He should be getting at bats at the ML level. It's terrible that they are going to lose 100, and they're running guys like Plouffe out there, who have zero value to the team.

They aren't getting anything for Plouffe.

I know exactly how to fix him: I'm sure a lot of people can relate to the "I play better after a few beers" theory in softball, golf, pool, whatever your game. It's all about getting yourself in the right state of mind. Maybe the kid just needs a shot of Wild Turkey in between innings. But seriously. I think it's all mental/confidence. One good start will go a long way towards getting that ball rolling. He's nervous, he's pressing, he's hanging on every pitch....which trickles down into his mechanics. He just needs to trust his stuff/mechanics, and go out there and have some fun.

Sano at 3B, Polanco at SS, Dozier at 2B, and Suzuki at C is going to make any pitcher look bad. This is what I would do starting in September). Sano needs to split time at 1B/DH. Vargas needs ABs there as well. Mauer needs to be dialed back (2 positions with 100% abs = 200% -- Sano gets 75%, Vargas gets 75%, Mauer gets 50%....maybe knock a few off here or there for a Palka or ABW cup of coffee). Plouffe needs to be cut loose. Polanco should be getting most 3B starts (with some at SS and 2B if necessary). Escobar should play it out at SS. Santana and Grossman should give up most OF starts in favor of ABW or Palka. Buxton should get some more September ABs in center. I'd keep the pitching staff about the same, with more of Chagrois, Light, and maybe some other young relievers.

I think this is right on. And I think you can continue in the same vein by saying veteran guys like Plouffe and Mauer, who arent spring chickens and seem to always have nagging injuries, could probably see their performance benefit from a few more days off. I don't know what the debate is about. It's about options and contracts. Nothing else. There is no reason to have Plouffe in the team at this point. He's awful...there is no hope of a waiver deal... There are other guys that can play third, and Sano can start logging a few inning here or there at first. You could easily find 3+ starts per week for Vargas at DH or 1B (Mauer is also still a very good player, for what that's worth. A .380 OBP and elite defense is pretty darn good, I'm not trying to advocate sitting Mauer full time....I think that's crazy...just more days off).

His peripherals have always suggested he's not very good. Maybe he's just finally regressing to mean?

If that's a soft OPS, what do you call Plouffe's .680? Also, who at this point is buying tickets to the Twins solely to go watch Joe Mauer? His parents? There are reasons why he's not on the team, but neither of those are included. He had an option, and Plouffe/Mauer make more money.

Arcia and Vargas aren't even close, IMO. Vargas is actually passable at 1B, has very good zone discipline, and is a switch hitter. Arcia is a lefty who you can only play against RHP, can't play defense, and swings out of his shoes at everything.

I thought it was kind of interesting to see him used as a runner late in games in these summaries. Makes it seem like it's not a worrisome injury issue. Pure speculation.