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gman

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Everything posted by gman

  1. gman
    I'm thinking not before 24 at the earliest. But I agree that 23 will be a big year for them to possibly rise up the prospect charts.
  2. gman
    If we sign a shortstop, I'd prefer Turner over Correa. Let the Twins and Dodgers swap free agent shortstops. unfortunately it is more likely that the Dodgers wind up with both.
  3. gman
    I would focus on locking up our current core of starters. Keep the security for the next 3 years in knowing that we at least have 5-8 major league starters available without going to the junk pile. Thats better then we've done in 30 years. Hopefully 1-2 starters per year will be developed out of the minors. When one of our minor league starters pushes someone out, then trade the veteran.
  4. gman
    Currently Polanco bats 3rd or 4th in next years lineup. If not, then who? Do we really want Gordon batting in any of the 3-5 spots again. Arreaz can bat leadoff or 2nd or 3rd, but not all 3 in the same game. Although that might be nice. We all hope that Kirilloff, Larnach and Miranda find spots in the middle of the order but they all have some proving to do yet. Later in the year maybe Lewis, Martin, Julien, Wallner and Lee are someplace in the lineup. Buxton, on occasion at the top of the lineup, but hitting 6th might truly be better. I can't see starting next year without Polanco in the lineup, whatever position he plays. He not only hits better an drives in needed runs, but needs to be around to take pressure off the other guys. Remember this could be the first full year at the major league level for at least half the lineup.
  5. gman
    The Twins just had a season of injured players without signing more players with injury histories. Unfortunately by the time most pitchers hits free agency they lost their fastball and gained a medical history.
  6. gman
    I don't think the Twins sign or trade for any starter with less than 3 years team control. They currently have 3 of the 4 starters named above with only 1 year of control. If the #5 spot is not used to develop an in house starter, then next winter could easily look as bad as last winter. They may focus on trying to sign Gray and Mahle to multi year deals with the #5 spot going to Ober to start with. Personally, I would sign the 2 best relief pitchers on the market and focus on developing the best pen in baseball. Go with our current starters and dominate the later innings with the pen. We're already 70% of the way there and relief pitchers are less expense on long contracts than starters and easier to turnover year after year.
  7. gman
    It seems likely that Martin and Julien get lots of playing time in spring training. I would expect they both start the season at AAA. Almost seems as if they are both destined to start their major league careers as multi-position guys.
  8. gman
    Maybe they will something in spring training, but not too likely. I would expect next spring to focus on the training part mixed with finding out how physically healthy guys are.
  9. gman
    I hope better or trade him for a bag of rock salt as soon as possible.
  10. gman
    If they can't rob someone on a trade, which they probably can't, I hope they leave Kepler on the bench to start the year. Let some of the young outfielders play the field and show if they are ready. Kepler can backup all 3 outfield spots. He could start a couple of games a week and come in as a late inning defensive replacement. Maybe not automatically getting the starting nod, will help him focus on his hitting more.
  11. gman
    For the Turner, Bogaerts, Swanson teams if they won't pay for these 3, then they won't pay for Correa. The Twins for pay for any of them. You're right in that the Twins are in no position to challenge the best teams in baseball with or without Correa. Consequently I don't think it's much of a reach to expect the team to continue with the player development position for building a club. If they get lucky and fall into a division title next year, I wouldn't expect them to go out and bring back a free agent star for 2024 unless the division title is due to development of in house talent. They have a lot of players with potential, but not a lot of verified success. Beyond Arreaz and if healthy Polanco, what else do you have. You can't count on Buxton for more than 30-40 healthy games a year. The veteran portion of the starting rotation is on 1 year deals at this point, and I would think more about trying to extend a few this winter.
  12. gman
    Potentially Julien is another on-base machine. The Twins lineup has not been strong in that regard in years. Another good problem is where to play him. Let the cream rise to the top. I don't think triple A will slow him down. It's good to have players at higher minor league levels pushing the major leaguers for playing time. Should be that way.
  13. gman
    I think most of the team will be unsettled (at best) to start the year due to inexperience and injuries. Urshela, if someone beats him out for a starting role, can easily be a veteran back up or provide trade value. I see a similar position for Kepler next year. The Twins could certainly use capable veteran depth when they get ready to make any kind of run.
  14. gman
    Another target could be Nicki Lopez from Kansas City. He splits his time between shortstop and second with good fielding stats at both. Although last year was not a good one for him offensively, in 2021 he was top 5 in hitting in the American league. With Bobby Witt, probably the future shortstop for KC, along with Aldaberto Mondesi coming off the IL and also Maikel Garcia that both play the position, KC has the position well covered. Garcia is rated has the #5 prospect in the KC system. I'm only guessing but there appears to be an abundance of shortstops in KC for the position.
  15. gman
    I think the person who plays the most games at shortstop next year is currently in the Twins system. Lewis is probably the closest. It is highly likely that there is an intermediate signing or trade this winter. The worst intermediate option would be A Gordon/Polanco/Urshela combination for the seasons firsts 2-3 months. That would almost assuredly sink the whole year. I also think the current Twins system provides the player(s) who play the most games at shortstop over the next 10 years. My pick for long term would be Noah Miller. He has the history from High School through the minors of sticking at shortstop, gaining defensive experience and not being moved around to different positions. He has provided good defense at the position in his short professional career. At the plate, while needing a lot of work, has demonstrated patience has exhibited by his 76 walks in 469 plate appearances. At 6'1' and 190lbs he appears to be big enough to ultimately provide solid extra base hitting from the position. I think he should be advanced a level at the start of next year or soon there after. I could see him making his first appearance in the majors during the 2024 season at the age of 22.
  16. gman
    I like the fact that he is hitting 500 (SSS) with walks and stolen bases. Not everyone has to swing for the fences. Also Julien is doing similar things with fewer plate appearances. I would like to see them both at the top of the order but not sure where either will play. I watched a couple of AFL games with Martin at shortstop. One game he looked doable, the other a little rough. Just hasn't played enough at the position.
  17. gman
    The Astros didn't think he was worth it and they are more World Series prepped than the Twins. Turns out they had a shortstop who was good enough to at least help them to the Al division series. If the Twins definitely proved to have a complete team ready to compete for a World Series title, I might consider signing Correa to a large contract. But remember he also said "The reason I don't steal bases anymore is that I am trying to save my legs to last a couple more years at shortstop." The only stolen base attempt i saw him make this year and he came up at second kind of gimpy as he hobbled back to the dugout. Could have just been a coincidence.
  18. gman
    I know. I mis typed.
  19. gman
    I expect Enlow will be on the 40 man roster next year and will be working as a starter for the season.. His 2019 year at adv A ball was very good. He lost a year in 2020 like everyone else in the minors. When he returned in 2021, he started off great if for only 21 innings before he went down with elbow surgery. Until that point his walks per nine was about 2.2 showing, very good control. Last year as is typical of post tommy john surgery his walk rate was closer to 4.7/9. i think he has a bright future as a starter in the Twins org.
  20. gman

    The Twins Need Hitters

    gman commented on Greglw3's blog entry in Greg Allen

    Arreaz stat line 366/421/862 with 39 RBI's with runners in scoring position. Problem only 105 plate appearances with runners in scoring position. A 37% success rate. Another problem he had 388 appearances with no one on base. Miranda stat line 272/328/744 with 46 rbi's in 128 appearances runners in scoring position. A 36% success rate. 255 appearances with bases empty. Buxton stat line 145/280/635 with 9 rbi's in 68 appearances with runners in scoring position. A 13% success rate. Correa stat line 274/366/730 with 30 rbi's in 116 appearances with runners in scoring position. A 26% success rate. Seems like the real stats speak very well of Arreaz. Maybe he should bat 3rd.
  21. gman
    I have been a pro-Arreaz fan since he made his A ball appearance. He would have had my MVP vote if I had seen the vote being taken. My personal ranking would have been Arreaz, Correa, Miranda. I also think some how he should also be an assistant hitting coach on this team. He could teach a lot to many other team hitters. With a healthy Polanco & Miranda hitting behind him all year he could possible have scored 50 runs more. I would much prefer to see the team full of players that know how to hit instead of just swing hard
  22. gman
    The roster is filled with talent. But as with Buxton for 8 years now, will the talent be converted to wins. Even with everyone showing up healthy next year, we have many players who still need to play to or arrive at the expected (hoped for) level of talent. If they get close to their expected talent level, I wouldn't expect them to bust out of the starting gates, but rather a slow build of momentum with gained experience fueled by talent. I think there are many on team side who are just as frustrated by their injuries as fans are. Yes, Correa got $35mil from the Twins, but I don't think he showed up just for the check. I think he also looked at the talent of the roster and expected the team to be able to go much further. Any team he signs with is going to have to have a roster with long term high expectations (5 + years), as well as a big paycheck.
  23. gman
    Well the Twins and Red Sox finished tied at 78 wins for 13th fewest. Somebody could get lucky in the new draft lottery system next year.
  24. gman
    I wouldn't keep Garlic on the 40 man roster. Of our other 2 right handed outfielders Buxton is only part time and Celestino needs to complete his training in the minors. Our other minor league options are also lefthanded except someday possibly Martin. Anybody know why Rucker was pushed so fast to St Paul?
  25. gman
    (My name is Emilio Pagan and I approved this message. Along with a really big fat paycheck.)? Now that would be really weird!
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