Rosterman

Will he play full seasons? Is he worth Donaldson money right now for five years? How much do you lose if he can play out a contract, but not fulltime? Or should it just be the problem of another team. So much is at stake in his final 25 game run for this season as other teams scout him...carefully. His next season, as a Twin or not, is essential to Byron. If he plays the whole season to the satisfaction of his past couple (or 162 games), he is set. But I don't see another team necessarily trading for him and then signing him for the $100-125 million he reportedly deserves. Which means he becomes a rental and the Twins get a high recent draft pick and another decent player in the mix, more or less...probably less. The pain is if Buxton literally sucks, the Twins option is a QO at season's end to get a draft pick, or nothing...unless he is healthy enough to bring something, anything back at the trade deadline. Like Berrios, I think Buxton is looking towards a glorious future, or so his agent is telling him.

C'mon, this is so easy. Miranda is a third baseman. You add an infielder, you subtract an infielder. Donaldson is playing DH now, it seems. You want Arraez to play everyday. Put him at second, Play Polanco at short. Have Miranda play third. See how the last 30+ games go. You cut loose Simmons. Maybe a team sees defensive strength, and he gets on a playoff roster. They claim him, the Twins save some money. Right now, the Twins also will have to jettison someone to the minors when Buxton returns. Rooker, Cave or Refsnyder? Let's see who gets the most playing time to see if they remain on the roster in the week ahead. So many extra names in the bullpen. Someone will have to be removed to add Dobnak back to the 40-man. Who could that be. Of course, the Twins could give up on Pineda and Thorpe and make them 60-day disabled and end their seasons (as well as their career in the off-season with the Twins). Looks like the Twins will also have to add back Farrell. Of course, with the reworked rotation, would love to see the Twins promote Strotman, add in Ryan, maybe advance Balazovic for a start or two. Looks like Sammons, because of Rule 5 status, is also in the mix as a potential lefty. Of course the Twins could demote Barnes or Over if they wish, end their seasons early and keep their innings solid. But still need to get rid of a body if you add Ryan. But, yes. I vote for Miranda over Simmons. Stop playing guys out of position. Arrez has no need to be in the outfield. Miranda doesn't need to play any position open that day...make him your third baseman of the future and then decide after seeing him play if he opens in St. Paul next spring or the majors, and you have to do something with Donaldson, or be glad you have a DH who can also play the field. Then you only have to decide about Kirilloff over Sano at first base in spring training, and what to do with that odd man out. Simmons is not in the mix for 2022. Rooker still is. Look at anyone else NOT in the mix for 2022 and make roster moves now accordingly, please.

It is all about depth and where the guys now fall in the pecking order. Colina has age on his side, but will be spending his third year on the 40-man and, assuming he is healed by spring training, more than likely starting in the minors. The team has to look closely if they will be adding Enlow to the 40-man, who will also be spending a year in rehab. Ad you have Duran, who we hoped would be getting a major league tryout this season (along with Balazovic). That would suddenly be four names that you can't count being in the majors to start the season, and you play wait-and-see where they progress during 2022. Stashak is also the same. You can cut him and maybe resign him, but if no one claims him for their own 40-man, I believe he is a free agent. But a 40-man spot is valuable, unless you are arguing keeping him or any of the over 30-arms of Albers, Farrell, Thielbar, Minaya. All of whom could probably also be resigned to minor league contracts if they don't take services elsewhere. I believe Smeltzer may have an option year left with the Twins and they would keep him if no one else claimed him. Remember that all teams are dealing with the same dilemma as the Twins, which is why guys like a Smeltzer isn't waived until the last minute when all teams are adding their Rule 5 saves. I think the Twins could get Smeltzer thru waivers. The Twins can also move Dobnak off the 40-man. They still control him, they just have to pay him. Shades of Nick Blackburn and Joe Mays. If another team would claim him, the salary would be theirs to keep. The Twins could let him start the season at AAA without having him on the roster, and see where he goes from there. Garlick is so far behind the pecking order, once Buxton returns. Remember, he beat out the now released Broxton, Refsnyder, Larnach and Kirilloff for a spot on the major league roster. Celestino is now also ahead of him. Cave is still in the picture (although he ahs probably priced himself out of an arbitration backup job). And the Twins have Kerrigan and Contreras both performing well in St. Paul, neither of whom would probably be taken in the Rule 5. Do you take the chance someone will grab Colina? Remember, you always need a couple of names on the roster who can be jettisoned if you sign a free agent, and at that time it is often easier to get them thru waivers and late enough that the only alternative for the player is to sign and stay with their team. Be interesting to see how the Twins treat their roster of pitchers like Thorpe, Jax, Thielbar, Stashak, Farrell, Law, Minaya, Coulombe, Albers, Garcia, Garza, Gant, Barraclough, not to mention Hamilton. I would look at each case as a competing general manager looking to improve my club and if any of those names were available, would I leap, run, be joyful adding them to my own 40-man roster at the expense of...whom.

Wow. Barnes threw over 100 pitches and even got enough innings to win the game...if Sano hadn't decided to go on paternity leave. If the Twins could free up some roster spots, they could send Barnes and Ober (literally shutting them down early) to St. Paul and have Strotman, Ryan and Balazovic come up and join the rotation. Who could they jettison to give them a couple of roster spots, plus one for Miranda since Donaldson is the designated hitter now?

You gotta like how he can work a pitcher. You need him to bat five times in a game, and ahead (or behind) the proper hitters. Line-up construction is something I have trouble understanding in the Baldelli-era, not that the batting in 2021 offers much in the way or iron-clad choices.

Well, gotta do a lot of looksees. Not sure how badly we want to protect 35-year-old lefthanded pitchers on a 40-man roster. Vincent was still able and is gone. Thielbar ahs been one of the success stories for the year. Albers gave us long relief, from a lefty, which means he almost went thru the order---twice. The Yankees order. That is/was one of the plus marks for Gant, plus he ahs another year of arbitration (at what price). He can spot start, or go long relief. But he, too, is auditioning for a 40-man spot in the off-season, We forget that St. Louis was happy to give us a guy who might be too expensive for their needs and a possible Rule 5 for a pitcher they felt could be turned around for the remainder of the season. So Gant is auditioning, too. As is Coulombe, amongst now a whole host of other names. That list of 10 names in the bullpen is a far cry from opening day: Rogers, Duffey, Alcala, Stashak, Thielbar, Robles, Colome, Waddell, Thorpe. Talk about turnover!

Never give up the dream! Especially if you are a lefty!

Yeah, the reality is that it may not be as big of a crunch as thought. Regarding Enlow, something similar happened to Nick Burdi. He went on the 60-man, did a couple of rehabs, I think he was added to the roster in the final month. He spend most of the next season, also on the IL. But they got him some more major league time when they could, or the Twins just didn't want him back. Which also brings up that if a team doesn't keep a Rule 5, and if the Twins don't want him back, he can still be grabbed by another team if they are willing to play by the Rule 5 rules. The Twins also have a Rule 5 guy, Alejandro Machado, who was on the IL for a whole season, and when the Twins decided to cut him the next season, the Royals didn't take him beck. One of those guys that has been on the major league roster (25 man) and never appeared in a game with the Twins, like Tomas Tellis, Chuck Schilling and Carlos Torres from season's past. Now regarding potential minor league free agents: I ask if they are better than ANYONE we have on the roster. Who would I be willing to jettison in favor of this guy that I can probably resign as a minor league free agent. Also, looking at potential 40-man roster cuts. As a general manager outside the organization, would I leap at a chance to add Smeltzer to my own 40-man, or Stashak, or Burrows. And at the cost of what player. Looking at Rule 5 candidates, would I, as a general manager, really waste one of my precious (and they are precious) 40-man spots on a player like Enlow. When players now go into Tommy John land, it can be almost two seasons of wasted time. They age in that time, fall further down the pecking order, or eventually run out of options like the Twins are facing with Thorpe. Is it worth the 40-man spot to gamble on a prospect? Sure, the Twins did it with Santana. The Tigers did it with Baddoo. And with 26-man rosters, you can take that gamble more these days, especially for a waaaay back of the bullpen arm that you may have to carry, eventually, for 90 days. You gotta think on every player move...is this guy getter than someone I have to kick off the roster to add them. When will that player make the major leagues and actually help the organization. What would other organizations think of players that I am letting, basically, walk. And I think injuries are going to play more-and-more into decisions on who to keep and not to keep. That and the missed minor league season. When you look, all these guys got one year older, had one less season of play, and there are a helluva a lot of players out there scrambling for jobs outside of those controlled by the organization.

Well, needed to keep Thorpe in St. Paul for his start today and pitch, say, Gant instead. Now will Thorpe go on the IL and really screw up evaluation of him? I would also just cut Colome. You battle back, ake the lead, and the guy throws potential wild pitches with the tying run on third...and.... Just throw Colome and Simmons out there and be done. Bring up Miranda to play third. Put Polanco back at shortstop. We lose games with SImmons there, will we lose more have Arraez at second and Polanco at short? Two open roster spots. Bring in three new pitchers for the road trip. Let Strotman take some lumps if need be. We just better have Ryan, Balazovic when we can expand rosters. Let Pineda go, maybe get picked up by a contender. Save the money you can get by not paying free-agents to be who gave you little or none in trade va,lue before the deadline.

Does Canterino move up to Wichita? Does Balazovic, this start aside, move to the Saints? In a team building for the future, should the Twins spend time on old AAAA guys giving them major league service time? Does it help their pensions?

So why not have players get real comfortable in a position that they can play for their career. Why I remember seeing a guy in right field, just the other day, play a inside-the-park home run ball that the regular rightfielder wouldn't have had happen. You bring in someone as a defensive replacement late in a =wipeout game to give the regular a rest.

If all five of these guys open 2023 with the team, I will be happy. Lewis has a road to climb, actually a mountain. Him and Duran just need the playing time against experienced folks. Martin will be joining him there. Balazovic will start the season there and graduate to the Twins, one hopes. Woods-Richardson will be pushed at Wichita to move to AAA. Quit being down on Lewis. He is only 22. As is Martin. One played collegiate level, one went thru the ranks of minor league ball, which is a learning experience of its own. Fun he we go from a season of Dobnak, Smeltzer, Thorpe in the wings to instead have them replaced by Barnes, Ober and Jax with Sands, Ryan, Strotman, Winder in the wings...and Duran and Balazovic still in the promised prospect camp. And we also have Colina and Enlow in the near mix. Jeez. Talk about prospects keeping us from going out and spending money on a legit arm!

He is one of those guys that you like a a fourth outfielder, someone who plays with heart and soul. And given a full season of play will also give you his best. Names like Robbie Grossman, Lew Ford, pop up. As long as there is a job open (and every team has them), and your salary demands are within reason, well, Cave will play - health saying - for at least five more seasons. Look at the Twins this season. They let Wade and Baddoo go elsewhere. They went out and signed Broxton who was in the hunt at spring training, but lost out to Garlick, neither as good overall as Cave at the moment, but turned out to be worthwhile. They also had Refsnyder in the mix. Broxton really tanked at AAA in the early months, otherwise he would've been here. Cave gave the Twins one important step - he could be a better than average centerfielder. Someone better than using your spare infielder. He can play center better than most, which is what you want. Can we write off his hitting woes as tied into his back? Perhaps. Chances are Cave won't be on the roster come post-season. A younger face will probably need to be protected, and he will enter free agency, still with an opportunity to return to the Twins (money), or go elsewhere if there is an opportunity with another team to be a regular.

We will get a true picture of the minor leagues going into next season. After the washed-out 2020, in which the Twins did pay all their minor league guys, we saw the Twins front office front-load the upper two levels with more than 30 minor league free agents. The ONE big issue has been injuries. Currently the Twins have Duran, Colina, Dobnak, Smeltzer on the 40-man roster. Earlier they had Thorpe and Balazovic. Plus you have assorted other names out with injuries. Not to mention names like Sands and Enlow and Canterino who would all be playing above current roster space. Not to mention Winder. The Twins are carrying/relying on a lot of pitchers that just aren't...pitching. We sit here in Twins Daily land and seldom look at the big picture day-to-day. 40-man roster management is an art. Every player in the system is evaluated on where they are today, should be tomorrow, will they move too fast and need to be added to a tight 40-man, or flare out a bit and be grabbed by someone else. I can see the Twins holding back on Sands, Enlow and Villamont with hopes no one will see them major league ready and allow the Twins to get another year of minor league play before making their own hard decision. The washed out 2020 season allowed players to move towards their own free agency, but there will be a helluva a lot of players switching organizations come this winter because they have stagnated in an organization, grew older, and jobs will be harder to find as organizations suddenly have a full draft of guys to put into their system. I like what Falvey and Levine have done with the coaching throughout the system, bringing in collegiate coaches, and getting a solid system in place. Making Fr. Myers your low-A team to also feed off of the FCL League is great. The Twins have a wonderful complex. I may disagree on many of the free agent choices, but did expect better results overall. I do keep thinking back to all those early extra innings lost. If we had dominated, we would be sitting where Cleveland is right now. I will blame the front office for not spending on a first rate closer and a #1 starting pitcher, both in limited supply. Would the Twins have been better served with Hendricks in tow? Keeping May? Well, they get to try again, see if anyone wants to come here. If I have a frustration, it is more on the field. Establish your couple of severe batting orders and stick with them. Get players and give them a position. So many guys have played anywhere and everywhere. Maybe it is fun for them, but it reminds me of T-ball. And don't be afraid to cut guys, NOT just the revolving 40th player thru the bullpen staff, but others. Especially in a losing season. Total looksee has to be on 2022 and beyond. Yeah, Colome and Coulombe are fine, Burrows needs a long look, Farrell may be a keeper if you like Wisler. But if these guys are truly coming back in 2022, you can probably still get them, and keeping them on your roster doesn't make it any more likely that they will come back once the season ends anyway. Falvey and Levine are still dealing with the previous administration. I ask myself every year "what to do with Sano." Kepler signed a decent extension, and may end up being the 4th outfielder because of it. We saw them pull the plug on Berrios to go in their own direction, and that deal looks good. They seem to be prepping for a team without Buxton, although we pretty much have been that way for 2021. Lots of player decisions. 26 players need to be here that can play, Preferably all year, in Target Field. Another 10 have to be ready to play from Day One to 30 days out. We can't have a roster full of guys who gave little to the major league club in 2021, starting with Buxton's paltry 27 games and including no shows from Duran, Balazovic (so far), Colina. Little from Thorpe and Smeltzer. Pitiful from Happ and Shoe and Colome. Guys like Stashak eating up a spot with Law and Farrell. At one point our outfield was Rooker, larnach and Refsnyder. That says it all, and definitely not the plan Falevine saw going forth! Plus an infield of Garver, Astudillo, Polanco, Sano.

Who plays where? We all like Arraez in the lineup, often leading off. He works the count. Gets on base. But we hate him at second, Donaldson is better at third, and he just isn't the hitter we want in right or left (not that Kepler and Larnach are making us happy.) We all hate Polanco at shortstop. Yet if we don't have Simmons, who do we have at short - Polanco. At least until the arrival of Martin & Lewis, and then we have to wonder who will actually play where and when. At what point do those guys make us not feel bad if Buxton walks. Since this is about Gordon, is he just a solid utility guy, for at least another season? Can he play 2B/SS/3B/OF as necessary? If so, his speed is good, but is he a better bet than Astudillo? Is he more valuable than Jake Cave? Should Cave be repalced next season by the older Refsnyder? Is there any reason Cave, Garlick, Refsnyder should be kept on the 40-man, considering as long as we have Sano, Kirillof will be playing the outfield, or playing 1B/DH with Sano, Garver and maybe Rooker. Is Rooker long for the Twins in the off-season? If the Twins don't resign Cruz, then I picture Garver/Sano will be the primary DH with a little bit of Rooker in the mix. Which means Garver will also be the third catcher a la Astudillo, with Rortvedt coming up fulltime to spell Jeffers. Man, in some ways I'm tired of all this positions shuffling. The other night Garver at first, Astudillo at second, someone at short, Sano at third. An outfield of Larnach, Refsnyder, Rooker? Who's anywhere? But the Twins will go into the off-season before making final 40-man decisions with Cave, Refsnyder, Gordon, Rooker and possibly Astudillo. They have a few people to add because of Rule 5, Lewis the top one - Enlow, Sands, Villamont, Winder, Sisk are all at AA so not as appetizing. They have Javier, Weil, Watson, Moran, Miranda, Lujan and Wells, Maciel, Cabbage, Bray, Ryan, Caleb and Ian Hamilton, Vasquez all approaching (I believe) minor league free agency. Who will go, who will walk away, who might stay will be the question.

I would also put Miguel Sano into the mix, if he can get his average up and approach the 25-homer mark. But who do the Twins have to replace. Well, with Rogers, anyone they could BUY as a closer. There seems to be some left-handed ams in the minors on the cusp, and we can still drag out Columbe and Thielbar for another season...I guess. Miranda will be added to the 40-man. The question is more if he will come up in September and get some exposure, Thus do you go with Donaldson and hope he IS tradable next trade deadline. Getting rid of two outfielders. I would rather see Kirilloff at first base, thus keeping Kepler and his contract, still, in Minnesota. I think the Twins will play out half-the-season with Buxton, unless he does return for 25-30 games and really rakes. We need value for him. I would rather see him help us in center and play for his free agent contract with all his abilities in 2022 and just give him a qualifying offer and get a top signing...or trade at mid-season. I see the Twins sticking with Rooker and Garver as possible DH candidates, also capable of playing first, which means the Twins will have another catcher on the roster besides Jeffers. September is important. Do the Twins look at anyone and everyone they can fit into the current 40-man musical chairs, or not.

As long as you can keep him on the 40-man, he has more option seasons. When I saw him enter the waievr field, thought "oh, my!"

Be interesting to see how the Twins rotate starter prospects into the mix. I imagine we should see Balazovic and Sands brought up, not to mention Stortman. Just so they get a taste of the major leagues. I wonder if the Twins would consider using someone like Gant as a regular opener for the younger starters. I also don't see the Twins wanting to shut down a guy like Over before the season is over. The question is do you just keep him at the 50-60 pitch level or push that upwards towards 100. Also will be interesting to see if fall instruction league exists and who the Twins send to whatever is Wieetr Ball.

Now it is all about minor league management and where you see such players as Sano, Kepler, Polancio, Garver come 2023 or 2024. There are supposedly 12-a4 plays on the cusp of AA thru Triple-A (although the Saints roster is mostly AAA guys now until a few move up from Wichita. If that is rue, the Twins need to find 40-man spots for those guys in the next two seasons. Five should easily come forward by this season's end, with tryouts in the majors in September (the Twins may actually be making few 40-man moves come November than ever). 2022/2023 will see basically big expenditures for Donaldson. If his salary was removed, the Twins could spend bigtime on one front-line starter and one real-time closer. They can play their dumpster diving for some bullpen arms (many of whom are already on the 40-man or in St. Paul) as well as that spare outfielder/infielder (most of whom are also at AAA St. Paul). They need to address training and conditioning. So many players down. Waiting for the total of games lost by players to injuries in this season compared to any other. When you have 5/6 guys on the 60-day, well.......

Time to elevate Sands and Balazovic to St. Paul.

The Twins were being, naturally, cheap. Looking for a massive hometown discount. Hunter walked, Cuddyer left. Nathan moved on. Yes, the Twins offered $80m, at first. Then went to $90. Then hinted at $100. During the process, I believe Santana's agent was also able to talk to the variety of interested clubs and get an idea if they could sign him longterm. That happened and the trade went forward with a $137 6-year contract that could push it to $150 million. Like Berrios, Santana saw dollar signs. Why not. He also wanted to go to one of the major markets for baseball, be it Chicago, Los Angeles, Boston or New York. A pitcher like Johan was also looking at the secondary dollars that come with name branding and commercial ventures. But, like so many, you can be a regular fish in a BIG marketplace, or stayed in Minnesota and be the Kemps or Subway King of Minnesota. The Twins probably could've pushed to $120 million for six years. And, quite frankly, they should've. Like Corey Koskie, you wonder if Santana's career would've continued strong if he had stayed and been a Minnesota icon rather than chasing the almigty dollar. And when a player is NOT returning to a club (remember the demanding Chuck Knoblauch), the paying club is somewhat in the driver's seat. The Twins got Humber. I believe they originally wanted Pelfrey at the time. The Yankees supposedly offered Cabrera, Hughes, Chamberlain and Ian Kennedy. The Twins didn't want Cabrera. The Red Sox offered Lester, Crisp, Bowen and Lowrie. The Twins wanted Ellsbury. The Red Sox countered with Buchholz rather than Lester.. But nothing could be put in stone and the Mets suddenly became the players in the game, only. The Twins got Humber, who had to be put on the roster. They got Gomez, who should've been sent to the minors for some seasoning. They got Mulkey, or eventually got us Jon Rauch. And Deois Guerra, who spent SEVEN YEARS in the Twins system leaving at the ripe age of 25 and ahs pitched in 100+ games since, okay. You have to hope that the Twins were running the board this round, that San Diego, Mets, Blue Jays and a couple of other teams were making offers you'd be a fool to refuse while scouting secondary options that may be more fruitful. Sometimes it is a tough call. You can't expect a hometown discount. You should actually be paying a hometown bonus because the guy ahs been toiling for your team for the past six/seven years (or in Buxton's case, working part-time for six of the past seven). Good luck to Berrios. He has the incentive to be the BEST pitcher he can be looking for a payday. So many things can happen between then and there. And then you have to always hope that the player will have the same "in play" as they beak the bank but still need to come to work and play every fifth day for the next half-a-decade.

I think Jax will be a solid back of the rotation starter, and hopefully find a career as a solid middle multi-inning relief guy. The Twins will let him start, I hope, to stretch him out and be a possibility in 2022. He ahs to be able to go thru an order three times to stay in the rotation long-term.

Berrios Time. The starting pitcher names I most remember are the oldtimers...Perry, Blyleven, Pascual, Kaat. We had shortimers like Grant and Chance. Then we get into Goltz, Radke, Tapani, Viola, Santana and shortimers Erickson and Lirano. Santana, Perry, Viola had better WHIPS. All the oldtimers had better ERAs. Everyone else started more games in their career for the Twins (except Chance and Grant). A homegrown talent who got away (hey, Matt Garza was another that left too soon). Goodbye, Jose! Will be interesting to see how well you pitch heading into free agency and how the money will flow in your direction.

Gotta get that #1 stopper relief pitcher. I am excited about Moran, Cano and possibly Hamilton. The question is how gets cycled (or recycled) for the rest of the season. The sooner the Twins part ways with Colome the better. A top of the order starter. Yes, Noah would be fine by me. I have faith that the Twins will look at Balazovic and Winder still. Remember, we also have Dobnak! And Smeltzer and Thorpe are still in the mix, I guess. Catcher is fine with Garver also able to play first base or DH. DH is fine with Rooker, and Garver/Sano as relief. Maybe even a resting place for Donaldson. Arraez, Polanco, Gordon, Lewis should be able to hold down the infield. I might like a better backup body that Alstudillo for third base, but.... An outfield of Kepler, larnach and Buxton is fine. Kirillof needs to be a regular, and maybe bump Sano more to the bench or DH (or Miguel can stay in shape and be our third base backstop). I'm not seeing an issue with a backup in the outfield. I hope we maybe see more of Refsnyder. Maybe not too much more of Cave. Maybe time to see Contreras. But the Twins showed that for outfield depth you can troll AAA free agents: Garlick, Reysnyder, Broxton...shouldn't be a problem to find a fourth outfielder. Two questions: who are the Twins pending minor league free agents of note? Who are the names the Twins have to look at hard for the Rule 5 draft. Wander Javier back in the plans? If he Twins spend money, they need to do it on a front rotation arm, a proven starter, and maybe bring back Pi9neda. I'm not sure if Cruz really fits into the picture anymore. September will be the time to look at everyone really really hard who you think might play in 2022 and get them on an off-season program to come to spring training strong and hungry.

The toughest job is 40-man roster construction. Who to protect, who to jettison, who to forget, who to hide. Baddoo was hidden, waaaay back in the minors due to injuries. Taking him was taking a big chance. He was behind Celestino and Larnach and Kirilloff and Rooker....so he was waaaaaay out of the picture. You keep a Cave (or a LaMonte Wade) as off-season 40-man adds have to stay on the roster unless traded until spring training is way underway. So you need a player or three to jettison if you sign a free agent. Miranda was missed? Well, the Twins don't see fit to add and bring up the guy, so it was doubtful that any other team would also make that choice. The Twins, going into 2021, needed to sign a top of the rotation starter on the level or Berrios.2, Someone a year or two older that is deserving of a longterm multi tens of millions contract. They didn't. They went to the slush pile of Shoemaker, Happ and Pineda, with the hopes that Ballazovic and Duran would need innings and these guys could be happily flipped at the trading deadline for riches. The Twins needed a bonafide closer. Not a closer by committee,. No a diamond in the rough. Not someone who Wes Johnson could magically transform. They didn't. Sure, they lost Clippard and Romo and Wisler and whatever. They also lost May, who might've been closer material and really didn't go for an outrageous contract. But instead they have gone to the trash-heap. Look at all the names waiting in the wings: Shepherd, Leyer, Hamilton, Albers, Nunn, Barraclough, Gilmartin, Lau, Garcia, Vincent, Harvey, Williams not to mention time and money spent on Coulombe, Law, Farrell, Anderson, Minaya, Waddell...and don't get me talking Colome and Robles. Let's put all that cha-ting into one contract and get someone actually good. And on offense, it all revolves around Sano, where and how much he plays, when he wants to play. At some point, you make it a non-issue and someone else's problem. Plus, yes, you could've kept Wade (or Baddoo) and rode without Cave. The Twins showed there is plenty of outfielders of that status to be had putting Garlick, Refsnyder and almost Broxton into the mix. Okay, Baddoo wasn't on the cusp (like Lrnach and Kirilloff) so he was blocked, blocked, blocked folks. Agree with that. He was 10 spots away from the Twins in the minds of the front office, depending on what he would do in a full-season of play in AA ball, soemthing Celestino should be doing rather than running around in the majors. Is it hard to sign starting pitchers? Then the Twins needed to be the best friend Jose Berrios ever had and figure out a way to keep him. DO you like what you see rather than spin blindfolded and buy in the open market? Then you keep your Trevor May. You resign Byron Buxton because he is Mr. Twin right now. You show other players that the Twins can be your lifetime in the majors leagues, not just a losing steppingstone to bigger markets and contracts elsewhere where you are forgotten (Johan, are you listening...what did New York do for you - you would've been KING of Minnesota baseball). Us fans have to realize that running a team IS HARDER than sitting in our armchair and dreaming up trades that get rid of mediocre players for great ones, advancing prospects before they are ready, shuffling names on and off a roster not realizing that they do have to go somewhere. Right now, let's recognize the NEWE core the Twins have to build around, what that core will cost tomorrow and five years into the future, and what needs to be done to supplement it. Supposedly money isn't an issue. If the fan base returns, totally in 2022 then the Twins should be looking at $150m+ for payroll. There is absolutely no reason they can't be competitive in the top free agent market.