Rosterman

The Twins have two choices for Plouffe gong into 2016. Make him a super Cuddyer sub playing outfield and backup first base (and third) or trading him. When he becomes a free agent he will definitely walk. He may walk if his arbitration wishes become too high, i.e. he has a great 2015. But if he does have a great 2015, he will also be highly tradeable. Otherwise, he will become a very expensive utility guy. He might become the next Graig Nettles, or perhaps the future Brian Buscher,

We have all been totally wrong. The third place Minnesota Twins are not a mess.. Sure, the starters can get into the fifth inning. A reliever throws a bad pitch now and then. They can play errorless ball. And they can also play little ball and do the walk off home run bit. Our whatever starter kept us in the game against another's team #1 starter. The other team was almost as dismal as hitting as we were, considering we took the first five innings off. Marney got drenched and shorted her microphone. Bloody Mary's were being served with two pieces of cold pizza at the sixth inning. We are on a roll. Third Place Minnesota Twins! Can wait until we dominate the .500 Westies!

Let's get a look at our bullpen's strength and weakness, all in one night! Who's the long-man if this goes to 18 innings?

Yeah, that old lower level pro shop was almost a walkway, and was often overshadowed by the Fox29 undercover sports anchor desk. It's a good piece of real estate. The Twins probably see a need for more food and beverage sales at a game than any of this other stuff that can be purchased at the much bigger Pro Shop, although this Pro Shop WAS by the exit leading to the light rail. I think they have also discovered that sit down places AND rails to watch the game are extremely popular as the fans do wander Target Field.

Santana will have to play himself out of the lead-off spot. I always liked the idea of Mauer batting third. Give him a chance to see pitches (if the batters in front actually allow that to happen). I don't have a huge problem with Hunter batting second, for now. I like to Dozier actually bat 5th, either getting an at bat with multiple runners on base and not making the final out of an inning. Of course, he can also become, basically, a lead-off batter again. But the twins have no clean-up hitter at the moment. Not Plouffe. Arcia or Vargas are the likely candidates, but not day. Just don't bat Suzuzizki second. Please. If an when Rosario breaks to the north, I wonder where he will bat. And I still wish we had both Santana ans Escobar in the lineup as bookends instead of what we have now. The offense still hasn't taken off (although today looks a tad better). But once you can get everyone to gel a little, get the hit-and-runs going, maybe steal a base, take more pitches. Combined with starters getting out of the sixth and maybe into the 7th on occasion. Then...we can look at something otehr than fans-ion-the-stands on the scoreboard!

It's a tough job, especially on the major league level. With all the analyticals and such. It is truly amazing how many players do hit the ball directly to where someone is playing. The only way you get a hit is if it has that extra bounce, just goes over the head, or if you misfire and do hit it somewhere no one expects, And the fact that the better pitchers do have four strong pitches in the majors.

It is unusual to have a whole slew of prospects break camp with a team. Usually teams are solid enough that you be breaking in one player in the regular offense, and possibly one pitcher. That doesn't mean that during the course of the year, via injuries and such, the future doesn't get more of a play on the field and from the mound. Those glimpses makes a player available before the trading deadline ends, of the waiver deadline, or moved during the off-season. The Twins have Suzuki with Pinto coming up with experience. You may not be happy with Pinto behind the plate, but given an ounce more seasoning he may be equal to the current situation and bat better. Hopefully one or two guys are in the wings to show life in the majors in 2016 and 2017. Mauer is stuck at first base. Dozier is stuck at second with Polanco as backup. Santana is at short with Nick Gordon in the wings. Sano will take Plouffe's place at third, unless the Twins pull a Royals-moment and move him to leftfield. Then they need a third baseman, as Plouffe just may be too arbitration expensive as we hit 2016 or 2017. Buxton, Rosario, Walker, Hicks, Kepler...any number of bodies...showing up this year and next. We still have Arcia in the mix. We could pump Sano out there, or Plouffe. Names like Beresford, Michael, will be bench backups. There are lots and lots of candidates for the rotation. Some will shine, others won't. But even the lesser lights may be just as good as two-thirds of the current rotation. May and newcomer Meyer will get the call this year. Berrios and Stewart next year. Cederoth may get the call too, unless he becomes bullpen bound. We know there are arms in the bullpen future. But, yes, we should be happy to see the return of Pinto and Hicks in 2015. Sometime given to Rosario in the outfield. Sano called up at third. Meyer for the rotation. Probably no one, unless they are a September surprise, for the bullpen. Three new rookies. Maybe 2-4 next seasons. That's seven. Plus the4-5 who premiered last year. That's 12.

Would the prospects be better or worse. Well, you can probably say NOT ANY WORSE! Personally, I have felt Arcia needs more time at AAA and should be on a shuttle back-and-forth, back-and-forth. But...you have no one else to play out there. Really, you don't. The Twins needed to sign one more offensive player in the off-season, someone who could play the corners, maybe first base. A Chris Parmelee that deserved a $6-87-8 million salary. We lost our #1 starter. Now Hughes has to face the #1 from another team. Nolasco, well, no one knows. I have never been a total Gibson fan. I would've traded him this off-season if he had value to anyone. He may have had his most value ever in 2014. He has to be better than a Blackburn or a Slowey, but sometimes I wonder if he really is. Bring up the young guys, at some point, but what point. Here's another question. Let's put Robinson and Staufer and Herrmann and Schafer and Boyer in the minors, at Rochester. Would they be doing their thing at a plus-AAA level? Is the difference in play that much different? April is a do-or-die month for the Twins, lots of games against their own division. The front office has to be sweating if they can sell all those plastic cups full of Bloody Mary mix and day-old pizza for $19 before the pizza really goes bad, kinda like the team on the field you might say. Two Questions! What should the Twins do to make you, a member of the Twins blog-o-sphere,more excited about the team that you will spend money to watch them in person, buy things labeled "Twins" and say good things about them on a day-to-day basis? What should the Twins do to excite the common fan, the one that has a spare $30-50 in their pocket and have to decide between an evening live with the Twins, a dinner and bar-hop with friends, a visit to the Saints? How do you get them to watch you on television in the least. What do you do to make them talk favorably about the team, rather than drive by the new Vikings stadium and have high hopes for the football team. Us ahrdcore Twins fans will never go away. We will fume, but still watch. But right now, the Brand is suffering BigTime!

A couple of bad lucks so far this year. Terry Ryan and Company always seemed to look at building a team that would be competitive in the division first, then cross their fingers that they can hold their own against the rest of the leagues. We can't complain that money wasn't spent. We can't complain that attempts weren't made to fill in pieces with competent players. Players can shine or stink, you have no control over that. You ultimately hope to build a team that can compliments the highs and lows. We didn't look this bad in spring training, not that spring training means anything, but.... And we could trade Joe, but who do we get for first base? Ryan Howard, perhaps? Every year someone has to struggle. Texas did. The Phillies have ahd issues. The Mets and Cubs always come up short. No one expects anything from Houston, at times Miami. Kansas City has been the poster-child of franchises that sometimes have less than 10,000 fans in the stands (Oakland A's anyone). We remains fans. We second guess, we offer opinions, we admire that it is a tough way to make a living, running a team and playing on a team. There's always the joy of watching your team AND the other team play, a hotdog and beverage in your hands, sun shining in from the outfield. You win, you lose.

Hunter was a marketing signing. Pure and simple. It's a one year deal. He talks to the press. He excited a certain segment of the fan base. He still has some skills. He could play as well as what the Twins had in the upper system (Chris Parmelee, Arcia). He could switch to DH if Vargas fails, and IF the Twins find someone, anyone else to play in the outfield. It was just a few years ago that the Twins had an over-abundance of centerfielders. Now we are struggling to see anyone major-league worthy of holding down any of the outfield spots today. Maybe tomorrow, but nothing shining bright today!

Man, six games out after playing seven. That hurts. It's a tough job, but I always had issues with Gardy's line-up construction. But I will also admit I don't have answers. Where should Dozier bat. Do we need to keep Joe in the #3 spot forever (I don't like him as #2 personally). Is Hunter a #2, or a #5. Who bats clean-up. Vargas, Arcia, Plouffe...for now? I know you want to establish consistency, and that is supposedly what the final week of spring training was for. I can live with one pitcher being horible in the bullpen. So I would give a spot to Graham, as you always need a guy to mop up, especially if you remain a non contender. I don't know the answer to why Brian Duensing went from potential starter to being a one batter pitcher, and if the Twins need that luxury from the left side, and is there no market at all for the guy...I guess probably not if he is a one batter pitcher. At least there are enough arms in the wings, both present and future, that at some point the Twins have to create the bullpen shuffle. It also helps if the starters can push towards the 7th inning, rather than worrying about getting out of the 5th. There were $65 tickets available for the home opener. There's $6.50 tickets for the next game. Go figure. I'm trying to figure out how to really market this team and this season. Drawing a Blank!

The joy is that the Twins have a lot of fine prospects that may not break the main 9 or the starting rotation, but could still prove to be valuable bench/backup guys, or add strength to the bullpen, and pretty much all of those guys fill that bill...so we don't need to fill the roster with AAAA professionals or replacement value pitchers.

Did anyone catch the playing of "It's a Beautiful Day for a Ballgame" during the interview with Torii at the game's beginning. Like others, I wonder if the need to sing "God Bless America" is a necessity. Yes, you can showcase another singer. But...

Adding Buxton to the 40-man is not that difficult. You might have to let go of Shane Robinson or Jordan Schafer. What scares me is who would go if they decided to add, say, Eric Fryer.

The Twins do have some arms coming up that could dominate. And they did start Hicks, but they also have given a lease to Arcia, who could basically be expensive for the team when he reaches Hicks' current age. It is a tough game. There are elite players, but not always a whole lot of them. A player can also become MORE elite if the team he plays for has a good mix of players behind him to go with his own talent. Again, it is a tough job. Line-up construction. How you put together a rotation (which pitcher pitches against which pitcher...should your strong arm pitch against a possible stronger arm, or should you try to dominate the backend of someone else's rotation). What makes Mauer a #3 hitter now. Why is Hunter hitting 4th. Is Dozier the perfect #2. How do you construct a bullpen...a fly ball pitcher, a groundball pitcher, just lots of speed to get the batters swinging and pray that someone catches it, or someone slow and crafty. Of course, not having to use the bullpen more than 2-3 innings average is the perfect solution. And what is the organization feel, or in our case "The Twins Way," and why is or isn't it working. You can be your own island and not change and keep going, hoping to get the breaks and such. But sometimes you have to look at what others are doing, at how players change and the programs you draft them from have changed in itself, and make adjustments. The wonderful decision of finding the right faculty for your minor league stops. And then, you have to sell tickets!

Yes, something clicked with Billy Martin that Griffith kept him in the organziation and made him manager. Wonder what would've happened if he had kept him rather than parting ways. Bill Tuttle is fondly remembered as the guy with chew in his cheek. And surprised Oravetz didn't get a cup of coffee with the Twins with his fine season in 1962.

And then we traded him and Lenny Green for Jerry Kindall and Frank Kostro. Billy Moran was the odd guy in the deal. Twins and Indians and Angels doing one of those three-ways. Power basically went downhill. Green had a couple of sparkles. Less said about Kindall was a bit better than modern day Drew Butera. In 5 seasons Kostro barely put together a half-season of at-bats.

Is the reasoning behind making some of these guys starters is just to get them more innings, rather than less. Yes, you can always put a starter in the bullpen. But can you make a reliever into a first-class starter?

The is a most interesting question. Perkins has a very acceptable contract, even if he moves into just a set-up role as his Twins years continue. Yet, what is his true trade value now.You can see how fast his value diminished when he shut down at the end of the season. He should always have some value, being a lefty, but if he really shines in the first half and the Twins are going nowhere, do you move him and for what? Plus, who is in the wings to take over the closer role.

Achter, Tonkin. You can reinstate Oliveros or Pryor. Darnell is there. Thompson and Thielbar are there. And that's before you have to go after the "new" kids in the pen. Not to say that those in the majors are better than those mentioned above, but.....

And the Toronto GM "I have to grab any waiver guys before anyone else, because, well...you know Terry!": And the Colorado GM "You can even grab guys who are good, because who wants to play for a buck when you can get two!"

It is seldom that a team has such a GREAT starting five that you don't have room for either a work in progress (i.e. the Future) or someone needing a break that ahs the potential to outshine at least a couple of the other guys on the starting staff. Sadly, Milone AND Pelfrey aren't those guys, but they do have nearly $8 million in ront office investment and need to have a roster spot. Can either outshine any of the other four? Naw. Not even Gibson, I would say. So that isn't saying much. So, we cut bait and give the job to the most promising rookie in what will be a long line of prospects battling to break into the rotation. The first is Trevor May. Of course, if he doesn't cut the multi-inning slack, you can probably develop him into a bullpen pitcher. He knows this, because right behind him wanting that starters job is Mr. Meyer. But Meyer can't be cocky and will need to produce, because in the wings are Kohl Stewart and J.D. Berrios. Wow. Can the Twins TRULY have FOUR GUYS who could pitch in a major league rotation. FOUR GUYS, and that is not counting anotehr half-dozen that can blossom this year and also go for the prize in 2017-18. I can live with Milon and Pelfrey for now. Both can be showcased. But I doubt that anyone before July will take Pelfrey's $5 million off our hands, unless he is actually starting games (or unless something happens to Perkins and Pelfrey develops into a closer). Milone is a token lefty. He can get the job done...if he wants. But only if the team is scoring some runs behind him. He will hang on somewhere, anywhere, as a lefty, as long as he doesn't get too expensive, which he almost was this year and definitely will be next, even if he manages to put up Cy Young numbers. But Trevor May being almost ready? He ahd ups and downs when called up. He worked over the winter. He had the flu in spring. He knows he has to produce, but you can also take a step backwards pretty fast going to the minors, although being the last man standing from the Revere trade means the Twins WILL put him somewhere for a moment, or wrap him into a package for someone if he shows shining life. Hell, even having him in the bullpen to become the first in line for emergency starts. But wait, we still have Pelfrey and the other million-dollars arm Stauffer.

Marketing the Twins in 2015 was going to be a problem. After four losing seasons, the one thing they couldn't announce was "Watch us Rebuild to a Brighter Future." The naysayers would pounce on the dollars (decreased as it would be go) in the pockets of the powers-that-be. And, of course, you have no idea how ALL these prospects will pan out. So, the Twins spent more money, extending the Ace, paying BIG money for an above-average starter, bringing back hometown favorite Torii Hunter. And hoping they can shuffle the cards and make the names that people are somewhat familiar with into a pot of gold. Of course Santana, Arcia, vargas and, in a lesser vein, Pinto will shine. Mauer will come beck strong. There is no way the rotation can s-u-c-k. The stat records of Milone and Santana and Nolasco says nay! The bullpen is strong, just needed tweaking from the backend. We may still see those prospects, but the Twins will be competitive in 2015, or so the line comes from the front (marketing) office. Trist us that the Twins found some diamonds-in-the-rough and everyone will pull together to win in this even division where anyone can take home the title. And the Twins still have the best of futures going forwards. We just might s-u-c-k again this year, which means rebuild will happen and we will really s-u-c-k again. But hey, remember the Twins from 1992-2000?

Pelfrey could become a closer, too.

We have no problems if the starters give us 7 strong innings and we have a bullen of 7 arms. Keep whoever you choose on a short lease and the phone line open to Rochester!