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
    If there was a collapse I will cite the back to back games July 19th and July 20th. Zebby was an absolute horror show in Chicago. He gave up 9 hits, 3 walks, 8 earned runs in three innings of work. Then Ryan followed him up in Cleveland by serving out SIX gopher balls. This was where the heart got ripped out if you asked me. It was a point in the season where they could have proved something and they did. They proved they did not have what it takes to win in the playoffs and most of us already knew that anyway. To say this was a "collapse" is weird to me
  2. ewen21
    Not sure why people are framing this season as a "collapse" either, but it keeps getting run out there. What this team did have was a hot run through part of June and July. The 2001 team had a "collapse" but honestly, I can't even say that was a collapse since they outperformed expectations and young players developed at the same time. I don't see that kind of thing going on here.
  3. ewen21
    I am not meaning to drag you into this, but I will double down and say that he is a big problem for this organization as far as I am concerned. A REAL big one and I do not have a real answer for it because he has that no trade clause. Buxton has been exalted as "the face of the franchise" and has been called "one of the best in the game" and all other such nonsense. All I have to say to that is 862 hits in 12 seasons. Good morning, good afternoon, good night. The Twins and this fanbase really needs to pour cold water on this need to exalt a particular player in the future. It is not healthy for any team to put a player on a lofty perch where they are beyond reproach. This doesn't make for a good team culture. That being said, if Lopez and Ryan are to be relied upon to lift us up then we have learned nothing with regard to assessing pitching. I am more concerned with Lopez's personal wellbeing at this point let alone what level he will pitch at in 2027. He had his second TJ and missed an entire season. What can we realistically expect from ANYONE in that position? Someone please tell me something And Ryan was a terrible disappointment. The fact is, this guy has proven to us that he is unable to pitch a full season of quality baseball. The wheels end up falling off the wagon for whatever reason. I do not even care about the WHY at this point. There is no WHY. He doesn't doesn't seem built for the long haul. Maybe we need to move him for some younger talent to a team that is win now and has a better plan for this guy.
  4. ewen21
    Did they REALLY, or was it they got hot in July, slumped in August and went back to what the really were in September? Let's go by the months: April: 13-15, May 13-15, June 14-13, July 15-9, August 10-17, September 11-13. Those two BRUTAL games in a row mid-July was the reality check. Matthews in Chicago and then Ryan in Cleveland tells you all you need to know about where this team really was this year. A collapse? Hardly. THey just were not all that good to begin with I sum it up to a mediocre team playing over the heads in
  5. ewen21
    Festa is going to have to show me some command soon. He makes me think of Alex Meyer whether that is fair or not. He simply has not done a damn thing yet and until he actually does he's as replaceable as the oil filter on an '03 Camry. I am speaking specifically about what I (read WE) have seen of Festa at the major league level. It hasn't been good. Whatever I missed his 5.12 lifetime earned run average in 117 innings tells us something beyond whatever anecdotes I want to mention, as does his 1.300WHIP. No one should have expected him to suddenly ascend a few tiers in one season. Hoping for it vs expecting it are two different things. As far as Mick Abel is concerned, his walk rate doesn't inspire confidence in me. There are Mick Abels, David Festas and Anthony Bandas moving almost every single week on the transaction wire in major league baseball. If we can't replace guys like them then we have some serious fargin problems
  6. ewen21
    Excluding Lopez, (and we already knew he was out) all we have are the track records for Banda, Abel, and Festa. Banda had a couple of nice seasons in LA but other than that he's meat, a dime a dozen. If you can't replace that then there's a problem. As far as Festa and Abel are concerned, you're being highly speculative if you think they'd come in and assert themselves as assets this year. Festa has as a lifetime 5.15ERA with a 1.300WHIP to match. What exactly were your expectations were he healthy? Ditto with Abel, only his lifetime numbers are worse. A 5.46ERA and a 1.546WHIP? Please explain why you expect so much better than what they've delivered thus far. I really would like to read your thoughts on this one.
  7. ewen21
    Even if we had the best bullpen in baseball this team would not have gotten out of the first round. Our offense exceeded expectations but was medium to slightly above average. Our starting pitching sucked, or defense was below average. Even with Varland and Duran doing what they did the rest of the team simply was not good enough to mix it up in the playoffs (assuming they'd even make up the games get in having these two)
  8. ewen21
    This gave me a chuckle, if I may be blunt. I am "Bearish" on almost all pitching on our roster at this current time. I am going to need to see it and in the case of Lopez, he's coming back after his second TJ, so I have concerns about his personal wellbeing. I am not trying to see Joel Zumaya 2.0. I have no real expectations for Lopez. or Matthews for that matter. He is 9-11 with a 4.90ERA and that is a jump up for him. I still have a foul taste in my mouth from that absolute debacle at Wrigley Field right about when curious optimism was starting to rise in me (for no good reason) just after the ASB. Matthews spit the bit in the worst possible way in that series. I just don't see the dog in him and I never did. More of the same. Finesse, pitch to contact kinds of hand jobs. I am beyond my limit with this. How can a team literally NEVER draft, raise and bring up a legit pitcher with an AS season? YOu'd think maybe once we'd get one by accident? Nope. I guess we don't deserve good stuff
  9. ewen21
    Banda, Sands, Festa and Abel missing time should be something a good team could absorb easily. The fact that we fall on that as some kind of setback speaks to the lack of depth we have in pitching.
  10. ewen21
    If fear some people are drinking from the same chalice with Clemens as some did with Nick Punto. How about we take a step back and appreciate what he did this year. This is hardly his norm and in no way should we expect this from him going forward. If he supplies us with this kind of production next year, that is gravy.
  11. ewen21
    I do like Clemens, honestly I do, but no team should be "built around" a career utility player now in his 30s. That said, I would say we can use more players who share his attitude and work ethic. I know the word "attitude" makes some folks gasp, but it should not. I think we need to start developing a strategy to manage the post Buxton years. He has two more years on that contract and at this point there is no scenario where it makes sense to sign him beyond that contract. One thing we must STOP is this notion that we need to hoist a player up on a pedestal and give him "face of the franchise" status. That is something I would like to see go away forever. I see no profit in that strategy with regard to player development and that is what should be the focus. I much prefer teams more like the early 2000s. Did the Twins exceed expectations? I do not think that is the right question since most people didn't even expect a .500 team.
  12. ewen21
    No, I am saying Bradley would be a nice #3 if we had Johan and Liriano going at the same time. It just a happy thought not to be taken on a literal level.
  13. ewen21
    If they were below average with well above offense at a couple of those spots it I am happy. I don't think we are going to see that in 2027 right now.
  14. ewen21
    I would say it is a tremendous shame we didn't Bradley around to back up Santana. He's been a heck of a surprise and he is only 25.
  15. ewen21
    I will say I surely would love to have a finely honed dynamic young infield. We had one with Corey, Christian, Luis and Doug. I would dare say their energy gave our pitchers a boost well beyond just the plays they made. Lewis just isn't it. I'd like to see Lee at third. Keaschall, Kreidler, etc??? I mean..... is Josh Bell supposed to dust of his first base glove? We have no depth in the infield going into next year and it is a problem. Kody Clemens is a nice player to have, but he is a true utility player. Give me an infield with four names I know will can reasonably expect to play 120 games or more.
  16. ewen21
    Sorry String Bell. I didn't mean that as much as a retort to you as I did vent my long standing frustration with how this team develops (or doesn't develop) pitching. I will bow out on this thread since it is supposed to be about defense. I do not have much interest in this conversation given where our pitching situation is
  17. ewen21
    I am looking forward to 2027 and not looking back at whatever bad breaks we might have had with injuries in order to maintain a "positive outlook". Just being real here We can also say David Festa has pitched 117.2 major league innings to a 1.300 WHIP, 5.12 ERA. What honestly could we have expected from him this season? Anthony Banda is 32 years old and has a career WHIP north of 1.400. Guys like Banda are a dime a dozen on the open market. Cole Sands has had one really good year as a relief pitcher, but so did guys like Tony Fiori and Jack Cressend. It's not like he was Pat Neshek. What really could we have expected there? Losing guys like that are part and parcel of every major league season for every single major league team. We really lack depth if those are guys we are going to bring up when talking about injuries affecting our team. As far as starting pitching goes, I am not pleased with how things have panned out. Matthews and Ryan got destroyed in outings close together in July when we were feeling good about whatever slim chances we had. Ryan slid right down that greasy chute and it was horribly disappointing. Matthews gets talked up like Kevin Slowey did and that doesn't help my outlook on him. Pablo Lopez is on an unsettling trajectory if we are going to be at all honest about things. THis is his second TJ and he has not pitched since 2025. What kind of reasonable expectations should we have for him next year? You mention Mick Abel and this is a player who has pitched to a WHIP north of 1.5 for his career and he had arthroscopic surgery a couple of months ago. What is a reasonable expectation for him in 2027? I am "bearish" on Twins starting pitching until proven otherwise. I have read more than a few glass half full outlooks and that is fine if you want to have one. However, I have read plenty of those over the last couple of decades and I am just seeing that come true. It's just that I find it completely unrealistic to view an outlook such as the one I have provided here as unacceptable.
  18. ewen21
    Only five teams have given up more earned runs than this team has. HOWEVER it matters far less than the talent we put out on the mound. For some perspective, the team ERA is 4.55 right now. Even if our defense flashed the leather and were near the top of the league in defense it wouldn't make all that much of a difference. All things equal, we still would not be a contender if we are being at all honest. This is not to say defense doesn't matter. It does matter, even more so when you get to the playoffs (and there's the rub). Unless our pitching improves fairly drastically I do not see how we can speak seriously about this team being in contention for anything beyond a wildcard spot and a first round exit, Our pitching has to take a giant leap forward before I can fired up about defense.
  19. ewen21
    Yes. wouldn't it be nice, but in today's game there is no way in the world a manager like Tom Kelly can exist.
  20. ewen21
    Simply put, the latter since the article and Shelton is assessing what we have.
  21. ewen21
    Yes, of course. I had Ron Hunt on the brain and thought you actually saw that happen to him!
  22. ewen21
    He was in the National League his whole career. Which team was he on when you saw him? I am "too young" so I only remember his time as an Expo, not as a Cardinal (although he did play there the final 12 games of his career).
  23. ewen21
    My mind went to him immediately. I grew up in upstate NY and watched the Expos play the Mets although I never did go to an Expos game. My brother went to Olympic Stadium and I regret never having gone because I had a couple of chances. Hunt was a Met at the start of his career up until I was still wearing diapers. Then he played for the Expos after years with the Dodgers and GIants. I first started following baseball (older brother and dad) and collecting baseball cards I was aware of him. I am old enough to I remember Jarry Park, saw the Expos on TV with Bob Beetle Bailey, Ken Singleton, Ron Fairly, Tim Foli, etc.. and the notorious John Boccabella (the Expos PA guy loved saying that name). Rusty Staub was a Met by then. Anyway.... Not only did Ron Hunt lead the league in HBPs seven seasons straight (from 1968 all the way through to 1974--as you know) his totals looked like this: 25, 25, 26, 50, 25, 24, 16 IN spite of being hit by 192 pitches, Ron Hunt managed to play 914 games during that time which is precisely 21 games more than Byron Buxton has played in his last ten seasons.
  24. ewen21
    His confidence seems to exceed his common sense. He wants to exude a brash, confident outlook as if the power of positive thinking will get him through. Some may see that as a "positive attitude" because he goes around looking like he's having the time of his life. I do not. This is the major leagues.
  25. ewen21
    No, I do not either.
×
×
  • Create New...