ewen21

I do now https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-7FUkmZcoc

Menards Pan

Grossman batting cleanup!!!!

It wouldn't be LeVelle without the typos. Thanks for the update Doc

I don't agree that he destroyed minor league pitching at every level. He had an excellent year in 2013, but he had a bad year in 2014 culminating with one game in AA where he went 0-3 (with 3ks) and was carried off the field on a stretcher. He didn't exactly tear up AA hitting .283 in Chattanooga and was promoted to AAA for 55 at bats and he hit .400. With that he was called up. He had a bad year and a scary injury in 2014 and that was where I grew concerned about where he might be headed. Now he's got this recurring migraine thing to contend with. Not sure how there can be "zero concern" at this stage. As far as the Trout comparisons go and the over the top accolades that he gets it's all kind of unfair. Sure he can run and play great defense, but that stuff simply won't last very long. Not at the level he does it now.

My post was not any kind of forecast. I more or less spoke only about what I have seen. Could he become a superstar or a player people thought would be one of the best in the game? Sure he can, but I a never put much stock in forecasting a player's future based on his "tools". Life happens and so many other factors come into play. My main concern has always been his bat. Thus far he has posted a .691 OPS and an OBP of .292 over his first 1,023 plate appearances. That just isn't very good. Nothing very controversial about saying that.

I have had concerns about Buxton since forever. For starters, he has a big hole in his offensive game. He is a very streaky hitter. He has had a few short periods of success with plenty of deep valleys of failure. He cannot seem to get comfortable and settle on an approach to hitting that works. He is very jumpy and nervous when he steps into the box. Lots has been made about him being a humble, simple country boy. It's almost as if Major League Baseball is too overwhelming for him. It's like he loved being a blue chip prospect, but hasn't yet settled in on the reality that he is a major leaguer with high expectations attached to him. He needs to come to terms with it. Somehow, some way, he needs to get the mental part of things down. When he started off horribly last season he attributed some of it to being nervous. That concerned me. A couple of years ago when he struggled early and was sent down to Rochester to get fixed he said he felt comfortable being with "his brothers" down in Rochester. That also concerned me. Don't like the mindset where he considers AAA a place where he should get attached to. Then finally, the Beradino article last month which seemed to be a preamble to what would be an issue. I don't know what's going on with Buxton. He is offensively challenged and seems very sensitive. A lot has been made about his defense but it appears his reckless play caught up to him. Everywhere I go to read or talk Twins people gush over Buxton like he is a superstar. He can run. That is the only very exceptional thing about him. It's easy to marvel at a bunch of web gems and point to defensive metrics. Meanwhile, I have watched the goalposts move in on this guy. He's been called five tool player and I even read something where he was compared to Mike Trout. I never once bought the hype because I actually wait for results before I heap praise. Looks like a lot of people "touched the money" too soon on this kid. I am very concerned about him if he is supposed to be a big time player for this organization for the next ten years. I'm just hoping he's a solid contributor to the lineup for a few years.

Max seems like a player who has the ability to take coaching and effectively make adjustments.

Is there STILL no reason to be concerned about Buxton? He was hyped quite a bit and many thought he and Sano would be bigtime stars. I never believed it. I needed to see it first. Looks to me like Max Kepler might turn out to have a better career.

Guys, it isn't about the WHY. Forget the why. Only Joe can tell us why he takes this approach. It is about what the approach yields for the Twins in these situations. I am not slamming the guy, but I do bristle at the notion that what I have said can be classified as "mythology".

Edit feature isn't showing up so I cut and past this to correct something. Note the underlined is what I meant. Is it complaining to say the guy has done very little in these situations since his contract kicked in? Here are the numbers for Joe in Close and Late situations during that time: PA--614 AB--508 H----130 2B----24 3B-----1 HR---10 RBI---61 AVG--.255 SLG--.369 I would also like to add this as a comparison. Here he is in close and late situations from 2004 to 2010 (from the age of 21 to 27) PA--582 AB--464 H----142 2B----22 3B-----2 HR---16 RBI---85 AVG--.307 SLG--.433 Note how much more he slugged, how many more home runs he hit, how many more runs he drove in and this was done in 32 fewer plate appearances. No one was saying much about Joe taking too many strikes back during this period because he just WASN'T taking as many strikes. He was on those pitches a lot more than has been since the ink dried on the contract.

Why are we relying so heavily on RISP? There are plenty of situations where it is garbage time, or tack on runs, or times where we are down by six or eight runs, etc. Let's get into why he never was much for late inning dramatics. This is what we are talking about here. Joe Mauer in close and late situations: https://www.baseball-reference.com/play-index/split_stats.cgi?full=1&params=clutc%7CLate%20%26%20Close%7Cmauerjo01%7Cbat%7CAB%7C Is it complaining to say the guy has done very little in these situations since Target Field opened? Here are the numbers for Joe in Close and Late situations during that time: PA--614 AB--508 H----130 2B----24 3B-----1 HR---10 RBI---61 AVG--.255 SLG--.369 Feel free to check my math. I have had a long day, but honestly, I really don't see why I even needed to go this route and put the numbers out there. We all watch the games. Simple observation should show anyone here the guy looks for walks these situations. Is it such a leap to say he lets tons of hittable pitches go by? It has been such a prevailing theme that it has made me wonder why he doesn't seem to have a "happy zone" or a specific pitch that he is looking to drive. The approach he takes makes no sense if we are talking about a player being considered for Cooperstown. This approach is why he doesn't have many big late inning hits in close games that we can refer to. It is as simple at this for me: Since 2011 the guy changed. That was when he was just 28 years old and it was before the concussion. Watching him play over the last seven seasons don't feel like I am watching greatness. Sorry, I just don't. Especially when we are talking about this topic right here. I have struggled through too many Mauer at bats over the last seven years in these situations to be just blowing smoke. The numbers don't lie and they reflect an approach that is passive to a fault when his team most needs him to HIT (not walk). Here's hoping he gets some memorable hits over the course of this season. Up until last year the dude had ONE walk off hit. That was in 2007 against Oakland. It took him ten seasons to get another one. That is just odd for a hitter of his caliber. Then again, it really isn't if you watch the guy's approach when the money is on the table. Rather than dig in and be the man he looks to set the table (when the table is already set).

Even Joey Votto, who also gets criticized for watching too many pitches go by doesn't get as stiff as Mauer does with RISP. He has walked 365 times in his career with RISP, less 133 IBB that = 232 walks. With no one on he has walked 470 times (more than twice that amount). Mauer, on the other hand, has walked 403 times with RISP, less 140 IBB that = 363 walks with RISP. With no one on? Mauer just 349 times. Even with the intentional passes subtracted out, Mauer has walked more with RISP than he has with no one on. How is that even possible? It is pretty easy to see that Joe becomes way more selective with RISP than he should. He was paid to be the franchise player it was incumbent upon him to carry more of that weight. Like you say he seems content to just unhook the shin guard and trot down to first and consider it a success. For a contrast, Miguel Cabrera:

I would agree with the underlined. I also looked at how much more often he walks with RISP than he does with no one on base. When you compare him to say....Miguel Cabrera, a guy who people DEFINITELY pitched around he walks way WAY more with RISP. I just don't see a whole lot of "Joe Mauer Moments" on his resume. He had that walk off HR last season and his only other walk-off hit up until then was against Oakland in 2007. My main issue with Joe is in big situations I see him standing in the box watching fat pitches sail on by way too often. I wouldn't call that a myth

Grrr!

We are not getting him into the HOF. IT will be the Baseball Writers' Association of America, not people from Minnesota (or Twins fans) who love Joe Mauer.

Yeah you got me. Drafted was not the right word

We didn't scout him and write pieces on him. Maybe a few people here did, but I did not. I did not forecast any kind of expectations for him or Buxton. Over the years I became a wait and see kind of guy. Like everyone I remember Sano being drafted, but drafts are pie in the sky to me. Been around too long to project a draft pick into anything. Too much can happen. It took until Elizabethton and his days with Eddie Rosario hitting a bunch of jacks there to start really feeling Sano. Then Pelotero Ballplayer came out. From that documentary I gained an appreciation for the kid and the struggle he went through. (Anyone who hasn't seen it and doesn't particularly like Sano ought to watch it to gain an understanding of the kid and what he needed to endure). From his overblown suspension for a home run trot (which I thought was an utterly ridiculous overreaction from the Twins brass), to his emergence with the Twins in 2015, to today....I never once imagined him as moving into Miguel Cabrera territory or even "superstardom". All I wanted was the guy to be our cleanup hitter. Maybe hit a lot of home runs and drive in a ton of runs. Somebody has to do that. So as far as expectations go, most people here did not create them. We are the ones who heard the stories and read the articles. If some people got their hopes up and imagined him to be better than what he turns out to be, so what? IF some people want to say they are disappointed, so what? There is room for varying opinions in my world. Bottom line is, no one should apologize for hoping he'd be better than he is right now. The fact is he strikes out wayyy to much and so has Buxton. At least in the case of Buxton he has cut down on the whiffs so far this year, but Buxton was downright frightening at this point last year. The trouble with Sano right now is he seems locked in to being the way he is. He seems unwilling to adjust and as troubling is his weight..... With both Sano and Buxton a lot of hype was generated and most of us just read about it. Most of us didn't make projections and comparisons. I actually read stuff about Buxton being comparable to Mike Trout. In what world is that reasonable? It is one thing to "think positive" and be "a fan" but it's an entirely different story to appreciate the game and be a fan without needing to slant things in your team's favor. So far, Buxton and Sano have made an impact but neither are great hitters. One has great speed and the other has great power. These two are not GREAT hitters and that is a huge chunk of the game, imo. I would like to see both hit over .270 someday, but they might not get there. Things need to improve. By saying that does it mean I think it won't improve? Absolutely not. Am I "panicked" or "worried"? Not in the least. I am just being honest about what I have seen. No one should feel guilty about saying they expect more from Sano. NO one. Quite frankly, I am a fan of the guy. I was not a fan of Gardy's brand of piranha baseball which seemed to shun power. I was happy to see us draft Sano and I want him to do well. That being said, the strikeouts (and some other things) are kind of disappointing.

I compared the numbers from what these players did at the catcher position. Those are just facts and those numbers will be reviewed in the process. Not reaching or complaining, nor am I interested in any back and forth. I will simply say this and move forward,.... Why are we pushing Joe out there for three more years given he suffered post-traumatic effects from a brain injury for three seasons? Someone that has suffered a traumatic brain injury needn't be playing professional sports into their late 30s. The guy has a family to think of and he has all the money he could ever need. If we are talking about his future does this not involve his future beyond baseball? Or do we need to push him out there for a few more seasons just so he can hit numbers?

Hits AS A CATCHER with (home runs and RBI at that position): Bench:1,464 (327, 1,184) Piazza: 1,906 (396, 1,205) Fisk: 2,145 (351, 1,197) Berra: 1,756 (291, 1,256) How about this guy? Simmons: 1,908 (195, 1,062) AS A CATCHER Mauer: 1,118 (91, 514) If we are going to compare Mauer to other catchers then it necessitates a comparison to those other catchers based on what they did at the catcher's position. It's only right if we are going to compare him to those players. The writer's with voting credentials will most certainly discuss and review those numbers. It will matter

I would agree.

He rounded down

YOu know what? I told some of my friends that Gibson may very well turn in a season like Carl Pavano did in 2010. One of those out of the blue seasons a pitcher has during his career where things click. I almost regret saying that already. Gibson looks like one of those guys who simply cannot visualize success. Give him an 8-1 lead and he just goes stage five mental. He had a win handed to him in a bow and he couldn't manage the game. Very VERY disappointing outing. I know it is early, but as I was going home from work and heard the lead dwindle it sounded like the same old song I have heard a hundred times with this guy, How can you have faith him? I tried to. He just won't let me

Sorry, but bunting is only just a quick fix. If Logan Morrison resorts to bunting every few games then he has been effectively neutralized. What he needs to do is go against the shift every so often. Develop an opposite field swing. It is like he is the exact opposite of Mauer in the way they are shifted. Are we left to hope that opposing teams have a mental lapse and give Morrison Mauer's shift? He's going to need to adapt

Worse than Buxton? Buxton had a hard time just making contact. After ten games last year Buxton was hitting .081 and had 20 Ks in 37 at bats. I can't recall a position player ever looking worse than he did those first 10 games last year. He was downright scary