Jump to content
Twins Daily
  • Create Account

ewen21

Old-Timey Member
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    2,598

  • Joined

  • Last visited

  • Days Won

    1

 Content Type 

Profiles

News

Minnesota Twins Videos

2026 Minnesota Twins Top Prospects Ranking

2022 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

Minnesota Twins Free Agent & Trade Rumors, Notes, & Tidbits

Guides & Resources

2023 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

The Minnesota Twins Players Project

2024 Minnesota Twins Draft Picks

2025 Minnesota Twins Draft Pick Tracker

2026 Minnesota Twins Draft Tracker: Picks & Bonuses

Forums

Blogs

Events

Store

Downloads

Gallery

Everything posted by ewen21

  1. ewen21
    I am sorry, but everyone outlives their usefulness and that is what happened with Ryan. You can say he was a great scout of talent back in the day and that he did "a lot of great things for the organization", but to deny his incompetence in the end is a bit absurd to me. YOU ARE CORRECT. The Twins were WAY LATE to adapt to change. What the heck is baseball without the dynamic nature of the game? It changes and that is an absolute which must be understood and acknowledged. Ryan refused to do so. The fact is, no matter how unpleasant it is for you to hear, Ryan was fired because he was not fit for the job any longer and we all knew it the day he stepped down in 2007. He even said so himself. Nobody told Ryan to come back, but he did. He stepped away when it was time to deal with Torii and Johan and then came back after Mauer was signed; BUT only when the team completely cratered. It was your standard "low risk, high reward" move that defined Ryan. I guess he figured....the team is already blown up, so how can I screw it up worse? And he did! Had Ryan simply walked away in 2007 and rode off into the sunset as a behind the scenes guy then maybe I can understand your dismay over how Ryan gets vilified. However, he came back when we were safely in a nuclear winter and did even more damage after he came back. Need I summarize his asinine moves of the second tenure?
  2. ewen21
    When I think hitter I think the spectrum of offensive production and Harmon gave us more than what Knoblauch did, in my opinion. Thanks
  3. ewen21
    I understand they are different players with different skill sets, but it isn't very hard (in my opinion) to make a holistic judgment without much introspection in this case. When making this comparison, I view it this way. If I had to draft one or the other in my first pick to start a team I am picking Harmon over Knoblauch without hesitation (and that is no slight on Knobby).
  4. ewen21
    Better to me means most impactful hitters. Matty Alou hit over .330 in four consecutive seasons and hardly anyone mentions it. Why? Because as extraordinarily impressive as that was he was basically a singles hitter. As dated as the quote may be, I think Ralph Kiner may have said it best: "Singles hitters drive Fords, home run hitters drive Cadillacs"
  5. ewen21
    While Knoblauch was a great hitter for average and stole a lot of bases he should never be compared to Killebrew even in a "best hitter' category. I respect your knowledge and your considerate demeanor, but what criteria are you using if you feel Knoblauch warrants a comparison to Harmon? It honestly doesn't even matter what aspects of their offensive game you want to emphasize.
  6. ewen21
    We have a near pandemic the likes we’ve never seen, but a least we don’t need to worry about whether or not Byron Buxton is ready. We wouldn’t miss a beat without him if you ask me. Yeah he provides great defense but it isn’t like he’s a catcher or a shortstop. He simply doesn’t see enough opportunities to make his glove as much of a presence as what I read here. He makes a difference, but when he’s barely getting on base and not hitting much (which is pretty common) he hurts us as much as he helps. He could breathe a sigh of relief, I guess. The man has a .567 OPS for his career in April. As far as the sentiment about him not getting at bats during ST was OK since there was concern about him getting hurt really is counterintuitive thinking. If you feel that way then you basically have asserted he’s destined to be hurt.
  7. ewen21
    Why are you telling me what I should do? I am not going to stop watching baseball because the Astros cheated. You make no sense. I will say, I did stop watching baseball for almost five years after the strike. If something like that happens again then perhaps I will, but why in the world would I allow the Astros scandal make me stop watching? This is about the Astros not being punished for me. And if players want to administer their own form of punishment, I probably will be behind it for a little while. And I might even get a little enjoyment out of some of it, as sinister as that sounds. Baseball is not real life to me. I have a family, a profession and a life. Baseball is a show to me and with the money these guys make and with how insulated their worlds are I am going to shred players in the occasional rant. Do you feel the need to close all of that down? You are no fun
  8. ewen21
    Arraez is not "light hitting" One who hits .334 with a 123 OPS+ should not deserve such a designation as you've assigned.
  9. ewen21
    Ben Revere's goofiness might best embody what I couldn't take about the early 2010s Twins teams. Somehow people found his smile charming. I found it to be thoroughly annoying
  10. ewen21
    I take issue with the title. I could not get past it and needed to post my 100% disagreement with the mention of these two names together. This is not a good way to start a discussion about Luis Arraez. He had a .828 OPS last year, Ben Revere had a .661 OPS. TO compare the two is call Arraez toothless after a single half season where he played brilliantly. He also mananged to hit 4 home runs and Revere needed over 2,000 at bats to get there. I will read the article and then see if it's even worth another response. Sorry, Ted....not sure how or why you decided this should be the launching off point for a discussion.
  11. ewen21
    I am not looking at it from a player perspective. Why would anyone here look at this issue from that perspective? If you want to go there then I would submit to you that a great number of players are pretty ornery over this. And PLEASE. Don't classify this in the same group as Joe Niekro filing down baseballs or individuals operating on their own. The logic and reasoning applied in this case isn't a one size fits all thing. Just as in law distinctions are made between different circumstances. You cannot disprove logic by superimposing it over multiple circumstances where the logic doesn't work. IN this case there were so many layers to the cheating, so many people attached to the team were complicit in this. When you say something like, "if you’re gonna ban everyone who breaks the rules" you are really dumbing this down. Honestly you are. This all boils down to the fact that these players were not punished. There is an assumption that it cannot be proven who was and was not involved. I call BS on that one. Baseball simply doesn't want to sink a franchise so they've swept it under the rug.
  12. ewen21
    Agreed. What I do not understand is that some feel criticism (such as what I presented here) should be curbed. How is that? People who are coming from that angle are essentially saying players deserve no criticism. At all....because it is too speculative and too judgmental. To hit back at criticism in this case? Honestly. Get over it and let people rip these a-holes
  13. ewen21
    Am I being too judgmental?
  14. ewen21
    I am saying what I would do. It would send the message: YOU ARE NOT WELCOME in my clubhouse. Is it harsh? Maybe it is. Then again, I am not trying to convince you or anyone to endorse what I have said. Are we OK still? I hope so, because I kind of enjoy your posts (sometimes)
  15. ewen21
    Uh, there is a distinction I make between taking PEDs and being part of a team-wide cheating scandal. Those guys did it and deserve a strike. Another strike and I would want to cut ties. The other thing about it is all of those other players suffered consequences. Marwin has not. You do understand this, right?
  16. ewen21
    How is Gonzalez necessary to win a ring? I get that he has 10.5 left on his contract this year and we aren't going to just throw it away, but I know I would. His game is no better than Adrianza's and I think it is important to send a message to all Twins players that this bullsh*t is not tolerated here. Not sure how or why that is a crazy notion. Tell him he can keep his check and just leave.
  17. ewen21
    Kirby Puckett never played in under 145 games 9 years in a row. That alone makes this hopeful comparison completely off base, in my opinion. He isn't going to suddenly develop into a durable player, and in fact, as he goes into his 26 year old season he is player entering his statistical prime. For a first round pick with such hype he has a .292 OBP and he is supposed to be a speed guy! When I see Buxton, I do not see Kirby Puckett. I see Mike Cameron--so far
  18. ewen21
    Sometimes things go beyond analytics I would be happy if the Twins simply hit the eject button and no one ever spoke his name again
  19. ewen21
    You are guilty! You kind of remind me of Gardenhire!! Sorry man, but....since you'd be willing to 1) rush a kid up who into emergency duty (who probably isn't ready) and 2) in the process more than likely create a black hole in his spot in the lineup. Way too early to plug this kid into that spot. That doesn't compute for me. And thankfully, I am certain our GMs probably see it my way
  20. ewen21
    STOP. You picked a guy who has not played over A ball to replace our starting CF if he goes down. You picked him over a player with a good deal of ML experience and has an OPS around .800. His speed and defense is that magical it supplants a guy with an .800 OPS and two years of experience at the ML level in that role. I don't need a lecture about the Go-Go Sox of 1959 and the Whitey Herzog teams (which are completely dated in today's game). To pick Celestino over Cave only serves to illustrate how far over on the continuum you are on defense and speed. You value that over experience and everything else. I am not discounting the importance of defense. It's more like you have grossly overvalued it in this case.
  21. ewen21
    He's got "speed and defense" so let's take him? Doesn't matter that he is 20 and has not played an inning past high A ball. You have seen this guy play? Honestly man. Might be 2 or 3 more years before he is ready, by the looks. I will take Cave as our 4th outfielder. He is a better offensive player than Buxton even with considerable drop off in the field. I want a lineup with no black holes in it as opposed to the mythical "speed and defense" in CF which apparently cures cancer and saves lives. This old elitist BS about defense is bunk. It is important, but it gets far too much weight around here from what I am reading. I will take a team that is simply average on defense and outstanding on offense. You can have the all hands HOF defense team with the average bat team and I will kick your teeth in 7 times out of ten (given we have the same kind of pitching).
  22. ewen21
    Agree with you 100% Given a choice between two players with the following skill sets: One of the very best hitters in the game in all areas, but OK defense vs. One of the best defenders in the game, but OK bat I take the bat every day and twice on Sunday. A great glove is great to have, but I would rather have a spectacular hitter over a spectacular fielder. There is no way the glove can have the same impact. A centerfielder makes about 2.5 plays a game on average. Buxton doesn't make much more than that. Not his fault. He just doesn't get the opportunity to make a lot of plays only he can make. Maybe just a few a year, to be honest. A great hitter gets up four times a game and can wreck games, screw up the other team's pitching and manager, etc,.,, since his time up is 100% guaranteed. Buxton could wait weeks before he makes a great play. It is beyond his control. It really is that simple
  23. ewen21
    Buxton reportedly got his surgery on September 11 of last year and recovery time is supposed to 5-6 months. In less than two weeks it will be six months so what gives? He is getting his work in right now according to all I have read, but isn't ready for live action. We went through a laundry list of ailments in 2018 and we really never knew when he would be ready. The fact that articles like this have to written tells me all I need to know. I literally have zero expectations for Buxton this year. This "if healthy" tag is something he needs to lose real soon or else he isn't going to last very long in this league
  24. ewen21
    Not trying to knock Stashak, but......he's pitched 25 innings. If we know anything about relief pitching we don't know what 90% of the relief pitchers are one year to the next. It is the most unstable position there is. Sure, it was nice to have him come up and be useful and it would be nice to see more of these kinds of guys.
  25. ewen21
    Thanks for the enthusiasm and for hearing me and some of the other fans out on the title. I happen to think our pitching is not that bad. The bullpen seems to have some pros and our starting staff is much better than what we have had over the last 10 seasons
×
×
  • Create New...