Rosterman

I'm curious to the number of pitches he throws in a game, the size of the Korean ballparks, and it will be an interesting spring as he faces a different type of player over here. There is always an upside. And a challenge ahead for the Twins pitching coach and newly named bullpen coach.

We are backed up with starting pitcher prospects thru 2019. Just like we had an abundance of centerfield candidates in the system. You can never have too many starting pitchers. You don't know if Hughes will repeat. If he does, will we be able to afford him or trade him with one year left. What is the fate of Nolasco. Pelfrey IS in reserve, maybe. Kyle Gibson may be a commodity to trade. A young solid pitcher, but still #4 or #5 in the scheme of things if others pan out and he at least stays at his current plateau. Yes, you sign someone hurting for one year with an option. You hope two minor league materialze this year. You hope another comes up late next season. You hope one more is in the 2017 pipeline. You are looking good if you can now find outfielders.

I would give Parmelee a second run rather than Colabello, just for the age factor and Parmelee CAN play the outfield. I would sign another catcher and have Pinto start at Rochester - and I mean start behind-the-plate. He's either going to be a catcher or needs to build some sort of trade value as possibly being one. Yes, the Twins CAN sign a left fielder AND a pitcher. I would vote for May in the bullpen. I would vote for Pelfrey to start the season on the dl, unless he is light's out. Milone will show if he can pitch in spring training, otherwise send him down to Rochester and put anyone, even Wheeler, in there. If nothing else, shows a lot of bodies just hanging around the roster taking up space, from Darnell to Thompson to Duensing and Swarzak, not to mention Colabello. The Twins have to decide what to do with Kepler, as he CAN BE a prospect trade chip and will have already used two of his option years by the end of the season with no call-up in sight. And Hicks HAS to play, somewhere, somehow. He is in his third year and we don't need to have to play the arbitration game. He needs to produce. I wish there was a good alternative to centerfield (okay, we move Santana there, have Escobar at short, and instead of Nunez let Bernier, Beresford, Hanson or someone, anyone, be the backup guy for chump change). Again, your roster shows that the Twins are going into the New Year with a lot of deadwood on the current roster, and looking to add only two names not on the 40-man.

The teams play their cards close. Wait until the last minute to throw bodies out there, hoping to sneak some back onto minor league rosters (Colabello, for example) and you can't drop a newcomer from the 40-man, I believe, until after spring training. You have to ask, always, will a player be grabbed and held on a team's 40-man roster, will that player accept a minor league assignment, or will the resign with you as a team with a promise for a spring training invite. You need to have players to move during the free agent period, and heaven forbid that you roster is so solid that you end spring training with Matt Guerrier, Jason Kubel and Jason Bartlett all needing roster spots and you don't have bodies to send down, release or whatever. You hate to see non-tenders (Duensing and Swarzak, maybe) as you wish the Twins were smart enough to get some value for them rather than jsut cut them loose, but the value of those players is also the fact that teams think the Twins may non-tender them. You tremble when spring training ends and the Twins lose guys like Pat Neshek, Alex Pressly, Mike Restovich because they needed a 40-man roster spot for someone (especially in hindsight) who didn't produce in the end. Not that the losses, down-the-road, are anything more than heartfelt. The Rule 5 got blown out of proportion, I think. If you don't have enough players of your own to protect, why are you going after another organization's 41st, or 61st or 71st player (with promise). There are so many players out there...look at the free agents, look at the minor league free agents, looks at teams that are drafting better and better players who last more than a short season for a look (what IS the average life of a prospect these days 3-4 years instead of 1-2 due to disabled list games and extended spring trainings) not to mention the amount of good, solid players in the numerous struggling for attendance independent leagues. Theilbar or Thompson or Darnell. One young, one could be a sleeper, one ahs been dependable and is still cheap. Fryer or Herrmann, neither necessary but are they better than nothing? Remember, Rene Rivera was once a Twin and look what he did last year. You grabbed a Henry Blanco who shined when Mauer went down. You find a Corky Miller and he stays in baseball for 80 years. But once you add a man to the 40-man, he stays. He has to go through waivers, which is almost worse than Rule 5, and can be snatched by a team, waived out by them and not claimed, and kept free-of-charge by that organization. So you have to believe a 40-man add will come to the majors. And believe me, when looking back at the Twins, so many have not! Go look at the roster at www.twinscards.com, the minor league section, and see who was on the 40-man each season and didn't play in the majors that season. Start in 1961 and go forwards.

Gilmartin would the closest, although he was mainly an AA pitcher last season. Michael is to unseasoned. Adams needs a year in the minors to adjust to being a starter. I am more worried about anyone the Twins MIGHT lose in the minor league portion. Will be interesting to see who they advance to the AA and AAA rosters. I'm happy to see Beresford give the Twins another chance. That he did means that he didn't find overwhelming requests for his services elsewhere at this time, a good omen. In some ways the Rule 5 is diminishing each and every year, as more players become minor league free agents, or can be grabbed if they are dropped from a 40-man roster (would a team grab, at this point, Darnell or Kepler, for example). Finding that back-of-the-bullpen or end-of-the-bench spot is only necessary for rebuilding teams, or teams that have arrpetty darn solid starting nine and rotation.

Man, I keep having thoughts of that Red Sox package of Lester, Masterson, Crisp, Lowrie with Bowden as a throw-in for Santana. But we wanted Ellsbury. Or so the rumors flew waaaaay back when. I'm thinking the Twins may play it slow in the free agent marketplace, as their needs do run more towards a one-year contract, unless the starter of their dreams at a workable 2-3 year price leaps in front of their headlights. Most players will be pushing for those multi-year deals, especially those over 34 or so for sure. But there are only so many roster spots and so much money, so we might find someone still kicking tires after everyone's card is full the closer the Twins get to spring training...but hopefully sooner. They need a bat who can play the outfield, and/or backup somewhere else. We need a starter who will start games. We might be looking for some cheaper bullpen arms if we don't spend money on Duensing and Swarzak again. And a backup catcher would be great if we want Pinto to start fulltime in Rochester. We have the centerfield mess of Hicks, Rosario, Scheafer, Buxton if he fires up spring training, or can always move Santana back out there if Eddie and Aaron go to Rochester, and we hope there is no second season slump (as well as one for Vargas).

Great and enjoyable piece. Baseball has come such a long way from "throw it over the plate and make him swing" days of yore. There is still some pitch-to-contact mentality, as you can place your fielders and they need to do something out there. And so many pitchers HAVE to have up to four solid pitches, not that throw 1-2 of them more than a couple of times in a game. And as long as no one is on base, a closer or setup guy can just throw, depending, of course, on the batters he is facing. You always shudder when you hear system-wide edicts about what players should do ("take the first pitch"). A coaches job is to work on a player's strengths, and to make comments on how to work around trouble areas, and to reinforce both thru word and practice. Especially when you now have infield coaches, outfield coaches, hitting coach, assistant coach, bench coach, bullpen coach, pitching coach. One coach for every three players almost. Not to mention the folks you can sneak into practice (Smalley, Laudner, Bert, T.K., Marni et al).

He all of a sudden has to produce or he prices himself out of a job, and we all saw where the likes of Jason Pridie, Dustin Mohr, Jason Tyner, and even Lew Ford, edned up.

Yes, the upper levels had some senior citizens, actually guys older than on the major league roster once Willingham was moved, and Morales, too. From a position of strength, we basically have Rosario, Buxton and maybe Walker, who might be more of a Vargas DH. Kepler is the great unknown. So we better hope Arcia is the real deal. That Hicks can produce some support, if nothing else, as the spare outfielder. And that Plouffe, who might become over-priced at third (and thusly the outfield) isn't the choice for an outfield spot (or vice versa Sano). I'm not really excited about our outfield future right now if Arcia, Buxton and Rosario don't happen. We will have all these top-flight starters and hard-throwing relivers, but no one giving us offense if the outfield.

Yeah, good list. I seem to recall Terry Ryan praising Joe Benson as the second-coming, a real deal. Angel Morales sorta disappeared. Hicks is questionable and shouldn't be. Parmelee was a surprise, and is still a surprise. The number of players from this 50-man list (some still coming) that will make the majors is...mind-boggling. 3-5 maybe, and not all with the Twins?

When you start looking at unhealthy pitchers, you start looking at Pelfrey-ish starters to bring into camp. Why not add Johan Santana to the list. Instead you look at decent starters that just had a bad year with a contending team, or a starter that had bad support in their own ballpark. And you must scout them to see beyond their 5-16 record and 5.00 ERA. That's finding a diamond-in-the-rough to take a chance on, and the Twins did take a chance on Hughes, for $8 million. Milone was another guy they took a chance on, and may take an additional chance that he WAS injured last year, and at a cost of some $3 million (and Sam Fuld). I really don't see any names leaping out at me that other teams will pass on, or not take as big of a gamble on as the Twins did with Hughes (three years, most would give him one).

Tony Oliva! But it does help, especially from those that make the jump without going thru any of the academy settings. But, how do they handle themselves in Elizabethton and Cedar Rapids and Chattanooga and Rochester, New York. On the major league level, you should at least have a player personnel person who hangs around before and after the game when players do press, and also available for continued learning as each seasons rolls.

wait...Kenny Chesney? Can I get tickets, be first in line...oh, I have to buy a season ticket package to even be offered some. Dang!

Spring Training will shake things out. Do the Twins find a left fielder. Is Aaron Hicks sound. Does Escobar AND Santana light up the grapefruit league and you find a place for both. Is Nunez still on the 40-man. Escobar is a bargain as a backup, and no need to extend him, just go year-to-year.He is better than nothing, so far, but is truly replaceable as more prospects come forth...Polanco for example. Again, depends on what the Twins do about a bat for left field, but I would be happy if Hicks shines, Santana is at short, and Escobar is around to play middle infield or 3B if someone goes down and we have to bring up a Beresford or someone as a replacement utility guy, although if Santana would go down, I see Polanco getting more at bats. And, who knows, Sano may slug out Plouffe and take over third, pushing Plouffe into a battle with Arcia and Vargas for at bats.

If the Twins are seriously going to pursue a free agent (or two), then the players in question are not worth the monies, if the Twins are holding fast to their payroll figure of, say, $85. If the Twins are NOT going to pursue any free agent above and beyond a mid or low level name, then go ahead and negotiate arbitration on ALL the players. Swarzak and Duensing should be trade chips (and if you had even an inkling of not keeping them, they should've both been traded for something, anything, last July). Nunez (and even Schafer) are replacable players, but both were adequate producers last season and the only reason to keep them would be that they fulfill the backup positions you need and the bench that you could use. I would rather have them, at the moment, than say Beresford and Reynaldo Rodriguez on the bench. Milone is an interesting case. He's a lefty. Would you keep him, say, over the more expensive Duensing to fil the same role in the bullpen, a long relief guy who could also step in and start (wait, Duensing became a short guy last year...what!!!!!). So, it all boils down to numbers. Pretty much ALL the Twins arbitration guys (maybe not Fien or even Plouffe) if thrown into the free agent market would make more than they can in arbitration. Which is the pain of the system. Of course, arbitration rewards you for what you have done, in the past few years, for the team you play for. SO that evens out. But unless you truly want to stay with the team and take, perhaps less monies, you say bye-bye and face the real world that may give you an equally low paycheck next year and another release after the following season.

Debt retirement is not my problem, it is yours. Who did you borrow the money from and how you need to pay it back is a decision you made. If you make a profit and can pay it back sooner rather than later, are we supposed to jump up and down with joy that you are saving money on your investment? If you can't make a payment, I believe you have enough invested to borrow even more, especially since you run a bank. I seem to remember mumblings that Pohlad Dad had leveraged the Twins with the largest outstanding debt that major league baseball would allow him to handle. Better to have the cash and invest in other things, than to pay off what you have...sometimes. You don't lose money on debt in business...you write it off against profits in the long run.

I don't totally disagree with this concept, but the team does have to spend and take all the chances possible if they want to out-perform in the TC Market. They have to want my ticket purchase, my ear for the radio, my eyes on the television, my need to wear the logo on a hat and a player name on my back. What do they have to do to outperform in the TC Market. They have to win, they have to spin a favorable image, they have to make eye contact, they have to shake hands and get people out into the community more now than ever. There is a pretty diehard base of 10-13,000 season ticket holders. But where did the other 12,000 go and why. How do you get them back. Oh, and yes, the Twins do spend some of their kept 50% on bettering the organization as a whole - minor league facilities, more money on draft picks and such. They can only make so much profit without having to pay more on profits. Anything they can spend internally is a tax blessing, and some even increases the bottom-line worth of the organization. But, again, Target Field was approved and built to make the Twins more competitive, to push them into and keep them in the upper tier of teams due to quality of play, naming rights, more club seats and suites, advertising control and such. But it sounds like that unless the bodies do come, we can return to Metrodome-like rankings amongst baseball's business. I never did like the Target Field Marketing. But somehow it worked. And combined with the play of the team, if outperformed their expectations.

But you also run the risk of someone else gabbing Dougie for a spot if you wait too long, too. But, we also have the Jake Mauer factor to consider down the road, too.

And, it seems, that the Twins are always a bit behind in the "make an offer" stage. The thinking is that a top flight pitcher is $12-14 million, when reality is that they are now $16-20 million. And maybe they thought Nolasco was one of the best pitchers on the market, rather than in the middle of the pack (everyone thought Garza and Santana would sign for more). And Nolasco, like Corria the year before, jumped at what they thought was a good offer. You have to give Ryan credit for making offers to these guys, although when they did happen (and not after the fact), the support of such offers by folks on this board were "hat is he thinking." And the days of making an initial offer and hoping for negotiation seems to have passed when doing business for the new year begins. You put the best you can out there, and then the discussion is just over the years of the contract (multiply the $$$ of the average year). Baseball is a strange and foolish business. Only so many teams can absorb a $20+ million contract each season. Only so many players will be able to get $10 million or more before the wells start to dry up. ALL teams have roster considerations, from prospects to players on the rise, to grizzled old contracts that they wish they didn't have...but paying for the guy, so we have to do something with him. But back to the above comment. Yes, Ryan seems to be that guy at the auction house that makes the opening bid. Someone raises his offer. While he is thinking about offering a dollar more, ten other people raise the bar at least 30%. But a least he can say he made an offer.

The Twins don't want to hire a manager for just a season or two, yet they might, and that might be the reason to have Molitor. Almost like looking at the major league roster, the Twins don't have a lot of immediate spur-of-the-moment contingencies for replacements is something happens to someone. They tend to play safe grooming people for jobs. That is one reason they fill their minor league rosters with free agents, who can step into the majors if the call came, instead of pushing forward a prospect, more often than not. Who would the Twins bring in if they needed a new president. Would they pay $35 million to bring in someone from outside? Are they totally grooming Anthony to be the next GM, or is Krivinsky the man to go to for short-term? If they bring in someone from outside, what happens to the field staff. I found it interesting that Ryan wants a say in coaches. How do you hire a coach? Which ones are the msot valuable to be on the same track as the manager? Molitor was a coach under Gardy, but he was an add-on to offer a different perspective than the majority of the other guys, some just doing their jobs like Cuellar, Steinbach, holdovers Ullger and Vavra) and some bring new insight, Bruno. Would I want to be Moltitor and told we want Mienkiewicz up, kinda a manager in training, as it seems you may not want this job for a decade? No more so than hiring Dougie and having Jake Mauer on staff as a manager in training. Both Molitor, and especially Mientkiewicz, have worked with more than enough players, even had passing professional relationships with many, that they should be able to cull together a wonderful team...an extension of themselves, not just an extension of management of the organization. Man, if the Twins went outside and had 6 coaches that have never been a Twins uniform. They would panic. If the team loses again next season, they would never ever do that again (that we suspect). Better to play it safe. But still, what happens if we get a new general manager. What happens if we get a new president. What happens if the Saints outdraw the Twins in real people in the stands?

http://m.twins.mlb.com/news/article/99486764/twins-re-sign-mark-hamburger-six-others-to-minors-deals Hamburger, Oritz, Tony Thomas, Salcedo, Mike Gonzales, Jario and Reynaldo Rodriguez resigned.

What to do with Plouffe. My own long range thoughts, he loses the job in 2015 and becomes a super utility guy for the Twins. But he will also make around $5 million, be eligible for $7-8 in 2016, and if he gets any kind of playing time, break $10 million in arbitration in 2017. Holy Cow. The Twins cannot afford to keep him, but right now he has value coming out of spring training if anyone NEEDS a third baseman. Let them worry about arbitration. Sano will need to come up in 2015. But the Twins have no stopgap, unless you call him Escobar. Or if they bring back Nunez. And that may be the main reason to keep Nunez around for now, in case the Twins do wish to move Plouffe. I wished the Twins had added Debinson to the 40-man for September and gave him a 10-12 game looksee, especially since Plouffe did go down. Deb Romero would be smart and resign with the Twins with the knowledge that he may have the best short opportunity ever to make the major leagues with the Twins this coming season, or even out of spring training if he shines like he did last time. It is nice to see that the Twins MAY have some other choices: Haar, Goodrum, possibly Harrison, or at least one of the other five low minor league guys, as the general consensus (shades of Pedro Sandoval) is that Sano won;t stay at third. It would be nice to get to 2018 without a position change for Sano, but e will see. Do the Twins keep Plouffe. Is it worthwhile to sign him to a 3-4 year deal for $20-26 million, mainly to be a backup at third, first or the outfield (and maybe short...a super Denny Hocking). Or can we restock some positions with his value to another club and just call it a wash and if we ever want him back, get him at a much reduced single or duo year deal down-the-line. Escobar is now looking like a longtime signing just for his utility value. Is that something the Twins should also consider? Plouffe or Escobar. Who would you keep going towards 2016/2017.

I found it interesting the remarks about setting a coaching staff. The manager is the on-field boss, but the guys he surrounds himself with give their input and also have long leashes on doing the respective jobs so the manager doesn't have to do it all. The need to hire a field manager and the staff selected will impact the Twins from the top all the way down to the rookie league. There's at least three names from this year's coaching staff that could remain. There's three names of guys you could easily keep in the organization, from hitting instruction, to field manager, to roaming coach. There 2-4 guys I would consider for major league spots in the minors for sure, amongst them Dougie, Jake, Gene, Tommy. Even Sam Perlozzo would be a good choice for a bench coach. You could argue that the Twins could elevate Artega or Hernandez to the bullpen coach position, or bring in Ray Smith or Jeff Reed after their long tenure with the Twins. But any of these guys has to work with the new manager, be he in-house or out-house. I get the impression that the Twins still want someone who will keep the Twins Way going forward, not create ripples in a system already in place, but compliment it. And any other outside candidates will also be considered for other jobs in the Twins organization, or with the current field staff, if they wanted to jump ship our way. Is the December Winter Meetings the time that you need to have your field staff totally set? I think you can continue to make some deletions without field management approval, as well as add the necessary folks to the 40-man. You can also sign lots of non-roster players, who sort themselves out in spring training anyways. The big thing is to be able to set you AAA, AA and both A-ball staffs. Anyone catch that they hired Valezquez to be a pitching coach in the rookie league?

May and Darnell in the bullpen. Oliveros is out of options, right? Let Meyer start at Roch ester and see what happens. Maybe Pelfrey is right for the pen, too. Soft throwers like Pressley and Thompson and Thielbar are fodder, Achter and Burdi and major pluses in the wings. The Twins can afford to go arbitration with Swarzak and Duensing if they have the 40-man spots. Question is can they get value for them if the need is not there as spring training winds down. Fien should've been sold high in July/August. Possible he will be Burton of 2015. And why was Burton deemed closer when Perkins went down. Better to se anyone who would pitch in 2016 or 2016.

The thing is...it is only money. And the more money you have, the bigger mistakes you can make going towards a payoff that could, basically, wipe out your losses. The Twins signed Mauer, made him a franchise player (like Puckett before). If you take his salary out of the payroll equation and call him goodwill or marketing, which is really what it was and is and will be if he doesn't totally tank, you have more money. What, the last four years the Twins were paying Pelfrey, Blackburn, Baker, Nathan to pitch nothing for the team This happens. You plan for it. You absorb it. You jettison it at some point if you can and make it someone else's problem. You cut Pelfrey after spring training if he isn't ready. Don't send him to Rochester to block someone else. He's not in the plans or 2016. Do you keep throwing Nolasco out there just because he is owed money, and not play the rooked who is shining and the true future? Management has to eat crow, be willing to admit mistakes and move forward. Our management makes mistakes and seems to say "we are not going to overspend on first round draft picks," "we got burned on Japan and won't do that again," "we listened to fans and spent on free agents and look what happened, we won't do that ever again," "one of our guys is a free agent and he should take a hometeam discount because he shined for us and was vastly underpaid the past six years." Better yet: "Lock-in to your 2015 season ticket package and you'll get free $1 dome dogs at every game, ketchup extra though." When you make profits, you can gamble, for sure, with those profits. You may lose, but you may win.