Rosterman

It's so tough, because of the Twins position in the standings, to have any idea of who might be available, unless they want to absorb some big contract, which could happen when a player is sent thru a second time and doesn't need compensation. I think the twins may be looking at that venue more and then deciding what to do with the player after-the-fact.

I'm not seeing it. Not sure what the whole organizational picture is. The coaching staff changed, but the results have been glamorous. The Twins are, indeed, in a weak division in some ways. Who has improved? Who hasn't improved? Is there stability on the 40-man roster, let alone the 25-man roster. Part of it will be the expectations the front office sets for 2018 and beyond. Rebuilding mode, or do they think they have enough pieces (they don't) to remain a contender of sorts in 2018. More interesting to see will be if there ARE major shakeups throughout the minors. If the Twins return to signing lots and lots of minor league free agents, or if they actually push prospects. Be interesting to see if some movements start by people leaving (in the front office) rather than being elt go.

I thought Granite handled himself well and would rather see him get turns in the outfield than Grossman, at this point. But the Twins still don't have a bonifide DH. Vargas isn't cutting it. They won't give Park the opportunity (even with some open roster spots). Palka will have to surge at Rochester to get a September call-up. But they still lack that bat, and I don't want Escobar there. Looks like Polanco might be coming alive. Not sure what to make, or who to put, in the rotation. It was the bullpen getting lumps before. But that has settled down, and pretty much any name from the Rochester bullpen would add more sense to the pen. But who can you send out in the rotation? When Bartolo Colon is your best starter, something is amiss.

It's a lefty thing. Let him get his feet wet. He may not be top of the rotation, but is he better than some of the names we already have out there (Hughes, Gibson, Santiago, maybe even Mejia...not to mention Gee or Colon)? The guy was nervous. If you can figure out a way to not have guys get nervous...and to throw like they should...not how they feel...maybe everything would be perfect. Only time will tell.. Quick call up. Starting a game earlier than scheduled. How are the Twins over .500 is what I wonder!?!

A short change of locale. Get him under the wings of being against some older talent. He will return to Florida for the Fall Instructional League, I'm sure. Different roadtrips on the horizon. A stepping stone to maybe starting with the Kernels next year. After all, want to see Royce graduate out of the short-season teams if at all possible and not sit in Florida during the early months of 2018 playing piickup ball.

I'm excited. I don't think we really lsot anything in Garcia compared to what we gained. Kintzler was not your ultimate closer. As we see, Belisle is perfectly able to do the same, and sure the Twins could patch together someone else in Hildenberger/Rogers/Pressly if push-came-to-trade. I'll say this, it will help to sell tickets going into September, which is what the Twins have to do. Will it save Molitor's job? Will Paul figure out the lineup? Will Buxton get above .250? Will Dozier hit more home runs than Sano? How do you market this stuff? And, seriously, what prospects do you bring up? The ones the Twins truly have to bring up are back-of-the-pen/bench types like Palka and Vielma to see if they should stay, and folks like Melville, Slegers, Hurlbut even Melotakis to see if you should consider keeping them in the organization in some way. Besides Reed, everyone else is still considered "sometime in 2018" or beyond. What is still amazing is that the Twins have two 40-man roster spots open, that Colon is still a Twin, that Santiago may be coming back, and that Glen Perkins may re-emerge before September 1. The bigger backup is happening in the minors where Gonsalves and Bard pushed Yohan Pino and Baxendale backwards. Go figure on that. I'm not sure who they could truly add, unless they want to grab some big discarded contract when a guy goes thru a second time. But the more the win, the lesser chance they have of doing a decent waiver claim anyways. Talk about a pleasant surprise and some overachieving. Now we have to figure out why the team is so horribly bad at times and what can be done to prevent that from happening. Where is Gibson?

Let's hear it for Dillon. Between him and Belisle the Twins are step at closer. Why is Busenitz up here if you aren't going to use him. Suddenly have that extra Granite bat would look pretty good, especially when you had a weak bench when Sano was down.

We need to sign Mark Hamburger!

So where is Vielma in this mix. Niko will be a minor league free agent. Is he good enough to let the backup duo walk, perhaps? A pitcher like Melville is interesting. Is he backup at AAA. Do you add him to the 40 man for a September callup, or do you put mroe stock in Hurlbut or Slegers, for example. We still have Rucinski in the mix. Turley is out there. Wimmers will need someplace to go. Is ZTonkin a piece to reinvest in right now?

Yes, the front office did buy a couple of years back. Maybe not the best use of monies, but they did spend money. Not sure what the purpose is...just to look to be competitive or what. Comes back to Target Field, the most beautiful stadium in baseball. The Twins ahd a given for the first couple of seasons where the stadium sold the tickets (and they sure did their best to use the stadium to sell tickets). And the baseball experience, once the product on the field is made whole, can be truly beauitiful. The new stadium was supposed to make the Twins competitive in the free agent market, and also able to spend money to keep their own under contract. Name the splashes they made on the free agent market. Name the home-grown talent that walked away to other teams. See the front office cry because they truly did want a winning team, selling out the stadium constantly, so they could really jack tickets, instead of the nickle and diming they are doing for select games and sections right now...squeeze that lump of coal and you'll get something...maybe. So maybe we all can afford to go to a Twins game because they haven;t been that god,really. And even that bit of light a couple of years back...like this year...barely creeping above the .500 mark and with the added wildcard, you can almost seem like a post-season threat. I like Dozier. Not sure what we will replace him with. He is not a premiere second baseman, sadly, otherwise there would be more knocking on the door. Mauer is a solid player, good on the field, can hit decently...but each year his numbers put him further and further away from a Hall of Fame vote. He would've made it had he stayed a catcher and played accordingly, even 2/3rds time behind-the-plate. I don't fault the move, really don't...but we now have no place to put him on the field or the lineup where he scares the other side.Players want to play on winning teams? They want to go to the post-season? Good luck if you can predict who and when. Best is to play 200% the first half of every year and hope someone needs you badly as a position replacement and you are a worthwhile investment. Joe and Brian, right now, have contracts that other teams really don't need to take. It's a sad state that you aren't a GREAT deal, maybe not even a good deal, especially when compared to what a team already has or other pieces in the marketplace.

Found it strange that after two complete games in three games, the Twins chose to deplete their bench by sending down Granite when they brought up Gibson. No bench at all. Or a weaker line-up. Have to start thinking hard about who they need to bring up and where to bat them in thee order. The Twins still want to be competitive and win? Well, it ain't happening with what they put on the field today.

Not sure if Joe Mauer will be a manager. Probably just one of those roving Twins as he loves retirement. Even the life of a coach is a lot of road games. Although his brother Jake has the potential to someday manage the Twins.

Yes. They did good. Murphy pretty much played himself into a nothing role in the organization. That they were able to flip Garcia, and if they had waited a day that trade MIGHT not have happened at all, was genius. Kintzler has been good for the Twins, but is he THAT good and that the Twins managed to get a possibly rotation piece was a fantastic return, plus they can better negotiate to bring Kintzler back (as a setup guy if they wish) then if they had let him walk themselves. I'm sure the thoughts of arbitration signings of Santiago and Gibson, as well as bring Breslow and Belisle into the fold, were along the line of filling holes and having a possible trading chip in a year in which -- if polled -- no one would've thought that the Twins would've held first place in the division and bee in the playoff hunt STILL come the All-Star break. But this stuff, call it for what it is, doesn't always pan out. Hopefully the Twins will move on from Gibson. Plus the many other pieces are more valuable to keep than move, all of a sudden. Some of this can change. If someone claims Santana, do you jettison his 2018 salary commitment for a prospect or two, or is he the anchor and maybe only bright spot in the soon to be young rotation of 2018. You have to make a decision on Dozier, and right now he looks to be a longterm Twin. This season will actually lower his value compared to what he might've been worth - trade or salary-wise - this past winter. But he gives you predictable offense and, as I have said in other posts, he could be a DH who plays a position 2-3 years out. They still have to address Mauer. No first base replacement yet. So Joe is better than...nothing. And the field staff question will be big this off-season, especially when the minors continue to thrive with the coaching talent down there...should more of them come north, or do you totally go outside. We are in a rebuilt. The front office did try to find pieces that might be flippable for a rebuild. They have added four fine pitching prospects for near nothing. But, again, I seem to remember Terry Ryan doing something like that when he did the centerfield shuffle-off of some players for pitching, too.

So who are the pitching matchups for this series! Wouldn't it be nice to have seen Romero this homestand?

What about the names on the 40-man. Like Vielma, Palka, maybe Rosario. Do we keep them on. Will they really contribute to the team in 2018? On the plus side, you can drop names as you add. On the minus side, you can't drop 40-man adds until sometime in spring training, if they are added during the lead-up to finalizing rosters. So in some way,s you do add some suspect names come September (Slegers, Recker, keep Vargas, Park) to move off if you have a free agent signing or something. But Diaz, it would also mean a tam keeping him on heir 40-man for at least the next three years while he develops (sitting on the bench in 2018) and he would be open game if removed at anytime after that. But depends on how much the Twins think he is a Mauer replacement, which opens another basket of thought - how long will the Twins have/need Mauer on the team and doing what? At this point in time, I would rather longer-term sign Dozier to factor into DHing in the future as well as play the field (I would imagine Dozier could play in a pinch 1B/3B/Of) than Mauer, who would be confined to 1B or DH, and is not the guy I want as a fulltime DH...assuming Sano stays healthy an can play third for a few more years, too. I shake my head in wonder that we pretty much all thought the Twins bullpen, today, would've had names like Reed, Burdi, Cederoth, Bard, Jones, Chargois, Jay by the end of this season. How the life of prospects change.

Yes, you do bring up some non-prospects as fill-ins, if the need arises. I'm looking at the 40-man. I see the following basically leaving because they should be free agents: Belisle, Gee, Perkins, Santiago, Gimenez, Adrianiza and Colon. I would not offer arbitration to Boshers, Gibson, Escobar, Grossman or Vargas at this point. You can also cut O'Rourke, Turley, Recker and possibly Vielma and Palka. I am on the bubble on what to do with Polanco, as well as the longterm situations of Chargois and Hughes. If you can move Hughes off the 40-man, which you should be able to do by adding him back on at the end of his 60-day DL in September - and send him to the minors (and thru waivers) like you did Blackburn, do so at this point. You still are on the hook for his salary. But he's not eating a roster spot. That's a heck of a lot of players that I don't see playing with the Twins come spring of 2018. Added back in, somehow, before the season ends for a looksee would be names like: Park, Slegers, Hurlbut, Rucisnki, maybe Baxendale and Melville. Do you care about Matt Hague? Also, make sure you do look at Palka and Vielma before jettisoning them, if you wish. Looks like names like Wimmers, Tonkin and Heston would be ignored. Many of the above, by giving them a shot with the Twins, then possibly removing them from the 40-man, would still give them enough of a big league taste to maybe resign if the Twins want them for minor league depth. But I don't see any of them as givens for roster spots. The only other pitcher I would possibly add before seasons end would be Jake Reed. Get him some innings going into next season in the majors. Many of the names to drop from the roster should happen during the waiver wire time in August. you shed the spot to add a prospect. YTou still have a better job at revisiting the player in the of-season without having to face arbitration or staying with the max 20% salary cut that you would if they stayed with the organization. Sadly, I don't see many of the names (or free agents) having fights over their signability with another team and most would probably not end up on a 40-man themselves. (Exceptions: Escobar, possibly Grossman, Polanco will be given a flyer...but being out of options hurts him so bad). Which kinda says a sad case for the current state of the Minnesota Twins.

Yes, Slegers and Hurlbut would be equal options to Dillon of Gee, both who more than likely won't be here in 2018. Add in Santiago (who will be a free agent) and Gibson (should've never gone to arbitraion in 2017, let alone think about 2018) - you can argue that Slegers and Hurlbut (and Eades) as well as AAAA castoffs Turley and Melville won't be superstars, but they might be as hungry, if not more hungry, to show off what they can do. And the Twins have to make off-season decisions on all those guys, so let's get a little exposure, especially with roster spots open and more to come. Can they be worse? Can they be better? You'll never know unless you give them the opportunity and, they are the future of the team more than Colon, Gee, Santiago. Same with the bullpen. If you must, Pressly or Rogers at closer. But why not Hildenberger. Or let's just see what Curtiss can do. Just don't feel the need to increase the post season value of Belisle at this point in time. The Twins need to play for 2018. And it would be good to give Romero a cup of coffee in the least now since he will probably hit his inning limit come September and the Twins will probably not see fit to have him just travel with the team and do a bullpen inning or two. Give him one or two starts now! End the season with Slegers and Hurlbut in the least. Can see that you won't add Gonsalves, or even Stewart, to the 40-man before season's end. Just not the Twins Way. Hey, the old Twins Way is being replaced by a new Twins Way!

Mauer batting cleanup. Let's put together a lineup and stay with it. Is Buxton or Granite leadoff material? Where to bat Sano. The Twins seriously lack a designated hitter (let's try Escobar or Rosario in that spot - only kidding) Two hitting coaches and Vavra. Pickler doing what he does. Molitor one of baseball's best. You can call on Oliva and Carew. What is not working here.

Good list. I don't really see anyone holding down a major league job in a lot of the players you mentioned (like Thorpe or Kohl Stewart). Mason already went thru waivers and could've been claimed by any team with a 40-man spot. But somehow he made in thru. Go figure? If anything, I would use the current open spots to look at players on the fringe, like Baxendale, Hurlbut, Slegers and what they do in their brief looksees would determine if they stay or go. Are they also six year minor league free agents that might jsts walk anyways? The Twins have to be really careful adding folks like Diaz, too far away...yet can they be lost in the minor league portion of the draft? Looking at this season, we already have Vielma, Romero, Jorge taking up space and not really ready for the majors, and we can argue if they will be major league ready before any of the added candidates from this off-season. The Twins could have up to 14 roster spots available between now and the beginning of spring training, if they really wanted to be hard-lined. And the newcomers will get some consideration, although what is the potential for any of them staying on a major league roster (unless a Wild Card like the Padres come into play and grab three rokkies to keep on the roster and in their system). That is where you have to think long and hard about Littell and Moya, for example. But you realize how few candidates the Twins have for 40-man spots in the offensive part of the roster. Very few. And looks like we may be saying goodbye to high draft picks Levi Michael and Travis Harrison. And, hey, weren't we talking that our bullpen, by now, would be people like Reed, Burdi, Cederoth, Bard, Zach Jones, Chargois, Melotakis. As early as this season? How the world of prospects can change........

Yes, and you look at the value of resigning the players yourself. Kintzler is a solid journeyman relief pitcher who has been thrown into the role of closer and did well. He will be able to parley that into a decent multi-year contract in the off-season. Maybe not closer money, but somewhere in-between because he has enough skills to be a set-up man, if nothing else. Although I would discuss a return contract with him, the Twins now have the chance to look at closer possibilities (not Belisle) from within to see where they stand going into next season. Dozier was hot last year. Unfortunately no one needed a second baseman in the off-season, or one who was as predictable as Dozier, coming back to earth. You know what you a e going to egt with him...now. The Twins have to either explore a longer-term cost-effective extension with the guy, or decide to take what they can get. Two questions have to be answered: who plays second if he is gone, not just next year but beyond. Is Dozier a viable DH candidate who can also play the field? Biggest question of all: Why is he still batting leadoff? Santana. Another player that you know what he brings to the table. His past year of greatness besides, he is a middle-of-the-rotation workhorse that would thrive on an offense heavy team. He has a decent contract, is re-flippable if another team had taken the gamble. I look at moving him as freeing up salary for the next two seasons, but losing your most experienced pitcher. What would I want in return? More than anyone would be willing to give, sadly. The time to trade a Santana IS during the trade deadline. You might be able to move him in the off-season, but to whom and for what? My main reason for trading him would be the same as any other team for NOT trading for him. I can spend that money just as well elsewhere. Unless I really needed that 4th/5th starter for the playoff push, and no one better was available, I might bite and bite big. But right now...I'm going to get what the Twins got for the other Santana...a spare outfield piece with potential that needs roster space, a 28th-man starter out of options that is a placesetter and only pitching because I have no other candidates, a relief pitcher to fill out my bullpen but equal to anyone I can find on the waiver wire, and a guy with lots and lots of potential (can say the same for all prospects) but is taking waaaaay to long to get there, if he ever does - plus salary relief, only in this case save $13 million for 2018 and maybe more from 2019 instead of having to pay $120 million to a guy for the next seven years. Joe Mauer. Has a no trade clause. But even with all he can bring to a team, does anyone want him as a first baseman? If he was still catching, he would be worth millions. You would think Joe would welcome the chance to go to a contender, since it looks like the Twins may not get there in his contract lifetime. Unless the Twins extend him, and there is the big elephant in the future...how long, how much, and where does he play? The only other player (besides our prospects for the future) that may have worth is old Eduardo Escobar. But other teams look at him the same way the Twins have done - now for the third straight season. He is NOT the regular shortstop although he ends up playing the position more regularly than others, shows some power, an ability to hit...everything you want...from a dynamite utility guy, which means a low-level prospect (or two) in return. August will be a tell for the Twins. Let's see who they let walk for CASH BACK. Even trying to put together package deals with prospects...if the guys aren't wanted by a team like the Twins where almost EVERY job is up for grabs, why would other teams want these guys? You have to push these prospects a little bit...see how hungry they are...do or die-type stuff, rather than let them smolder in the minors while you throw out waiver-wire AAAA fodder to get you thru a game, with hopes that one of these pieces of coal will turn into a diamond and can be shipped off for another prospect that will wallow in the minors.

There is still something in the water that isn't keeping up the pep. The minor league teams seem to be doing better than ever, although the pitching pipeline is being derailed bigtime with injuries and Rochester, once again, was a haven for minor league castoffs until late (look at the current pitching staff and its stats...some good stuff happening from a lot of non-name prospects). If the Twins go forth with a youth punch, and there is little reason to NOT do so, they have three fabulous names that should be handling on-field duties in any number of ways at the major league level - Dougie Mientkiewicz, Tommy Watkins and Jake Mauer. They must be doing something right and if those three could be the manager, bench coach and one of the base coaches, you got the beginnings of another dynasty of on-field staff. Not sure what the Twins need for a pitching coach. But something isn't playing right in Kansas, eh...in Minneapolis right now. And, yes, September should be a time for callups and those guys to play, if not a tad sooner, as there is more than enough depth in the Twins system right now to restock the 10-or-so bodies that should be up here come September 1st getting major league playing time. Can start earlier in August by eliminating those players that don't need to be on the 40-man in the off-season or even at spring training. It will give you a bit better idea of what to go after with all that extra cash you got in player sales during the season and in salary dumps come August, not to mention solid ticket revenue. Hoping the Twins bandwagon continues thru August and even though September might be slow, maybe some braintrust in the Twins marketing department will figure out something to put fans in the stands. Hey, I have August promotions already: the first in a series of "going away parties" for certain players or on-field staff." Don't worry about putting a competitive team on the field of play in pennant races. Right now, you are a team that needs to look at as many pieces of the future as possible and give those pieces a taste of the big leagues and see how hungry they are for major league salary and meal money!

You must be too young to remember that famous movie line!

It looks like we don't need to 40-man roster him yet, which can be a plus. And got some cash in the deal to spend on international signings. CASH is the favorite player of the executive branch of the front office. Plus, we now have the opportunity to explore resigning Kintzler, if they need arises.

Sadly, it looks like some of the Twins players - Grossman, Escobar/Adrienza, Gimenez, Belisle will only be spare part acquisitions (really, these are bench guys or back of the bullpen guys) - will only draw interest when they hit the waiver wire, and be interesting to see if any of the teams in contention will make a play for them. Otherwise, it is on to the off season. I'm already looking forward to seeing what the Twins roster looks like come September call-up time!

I don't know what all this action is for relievers on teams right now. I mean, Craig Breslow is now a free agent!