Jacksson

No, it is not.

It is "THE END" for Larnach wearing a Twins' uniform. AND Wallner too.

To state this fact is an absolute insult to what the game and it's players have become with the passing of time. Check back on the batting averages of the top MLB performers over the last 60 years and try not to feel slighted when a player batting .274 is today idolized.

Keaschall signed with the Twins 7/18/23. Here we are 3 years later and the Twins have not yet determined/established a defensive home for this guy. What kind of organization is it that permits this to take place? What kind of organization condones signing, investing 3 years of organizational development resources on a one dimensional player? Now he has reached the Major Leagues and FINALLY it comes to light that this guy is so unplayable at 2B that he has to be moved to the OF. AND, it so happens, the Twins have a 40 man Roster and organizational prospect list CLOGGED UP with OF talent. Let's be clear: we are discussing a player currently batting .274, NOT .324. Would .324 be the case, allowances could be made. If Keaschall lacks the range and reflexes to play 2B, then he certainly had better be working on getting the jump on fly balls off of the bat, learning how to play balls hit over your head and towards the wall and consistently throwing to the cutoff man. Twenty-three is way too young to pigeon-hole a player into the career position of DH.

Team is going nowhere. In his current condition, Buxton is hurting the team, not helping. Put Buxton on the IL for the balance of the season. With roster expansion and the IL placement; there is room to get a look at 3 of the AAA kids, especially and particularly those who are in their final option year. Let's see what they can do.

Buxton would have to be consulted on any trade discussions due to his NTA. That does not mean that it cannot be floated that Buxton is available. In those discussions with Buxton in which he is informed that the Twins would, at least, listen to trade offers, just that would convey the idea to Buxton that the organization no longer regards him as a fixture and lead Buxton to conclude himself that the remainder of his career may be best spent elsewhere. His loyalty to the organization can also be made apparent by Buxton's own realization that his departure by trade could reward the organization he holds so dear.

It is a BUSINESS !! By trading him while he can still play CF you are extracting maximum value from an Asset. Once he moves to RF, his asset value is diminished.

Time to move him to a different organization and extract some value in return. His Premier value is based upon him playing CF and in actually being able to play that position for 120+ games a year. He does not have nearly the value to the Twins or to any other organization as a RF. Do the guy a favor and let him continue his career in Atlanta.

What's the difficult decision?? Dump them both for whatever you can get.

The "GLOWING" report on the back-end members of the Twin's bullpen needs to be tempered with a dose of reality. Hoffman comes in and needs to get 3 outs. After a strikeout he gives up a double to Keaschall in RF. Since I didn't see the play, I don't know if it was a REAL double, a player assisted single played into a double or what should have been an out, charitably, hometown scorer, called a two base hit. Then, Hoffman gives up a grounder towards the middle, which, except for the defensive effort of Clemens to not only keep the ball in the infield, but to also turn it into an out, would have resulted in a run scored and the lead reduced to 4-3. So now with 2 outs, a runner on 3rd and still with a 4-2 lead, Hoffman proceeds to throw a total of 8 pitches to Dubon. Two of the first four were in the dirt for balls (this is wise nursing a 2 run lead with a runner on 3B??) while the decisive in the count, 7th & 8th pitches were dangerously close to being in the dirt, down and away. This put the tying run on first with still 2 outs. Fortunately, with the count 1-1, this batter swung at Ball #2, low and away and flew out to the LF to end the inning. Let's interrupt this to relate to the Twins' offensive performance in the bottom of the eighth, when, with the bases loaded via a HBP, single and an error on a sacrifice bunt, the bases were loaded with ZERO OUTS. In short order, 2 pop outs to 1B and a ground out to 2B would end the threat and keep the lead from being padded. Gomez, our "ACE" Closer begins his performance by throwing 4 of 5 pitches for balls up and away to bring the tying run to the plate with no outs. He is able to entice a groundout to 1B on a heater down and in on his 2nd pitch for out #1. Now in LF, since the top of the inning, after his stellar defensive play in the previous inning, Clemens is awarded the opportunity to record the final 2 outs by catching fly balls off of fastballs which had been thrown for strikes but were down and away. Game Over.

Whatever they are doing and however they are doing it has not worked & is not working. A new approach and .or new coaches are needed.

Develop the outfield defensive skills of: Keaschall, Martin, Larnach. Work them EVERY DAY IN PRACTICE. In the offseason give them drills to perform. In Spring Training, EXTRA work on outfield defense EVERY SINGLE DAY. If defensive ability proves to just not be there, you have no choice but to trade one or all of them. There is no room on a low spending team for a litany of players who are unable to contribute both on offense and defense. A complete review of the organization's minor leagues needs to be undertaken to identify players with defensive/positional shortcomings. If extra/intensive work fails to develop those skills, the players need to be jettisoned from the organization. There are only so many organizational resources, time and money that can be invested in players WITHOUT a path to a viable, MLB performance level defensive position. Further, the scouting and drafting arms of the organization need to be put on notice that players WITHOUT the natural instincts and physical skills to perform, at the very least adequately at a defensive position are to be discouraged from being brought into the organization in the first place.

The team got snookered on acquiring Hoffman. His best days are behind him; gives up walks and hits when he enters a game. Wore out his welcome, lost his job in Toronto and was only available because the Twins traded his replacement to Toronto last year.

What are the hitting coaches doing to earn their pay and to justify having a job? What are the advance scouts doing to earn their pay and to justify having a job? FOURTEEN STRIKEOUTS out of a possible 27 outs to be made. TWO strikeouts each from: Martin, Buxton, Lewis, Lee and 3 from Kreidler = 11 of the 14. Embarrassing and shameful team performance.

"At one point Martin was a terrible OF." He still is. Check out the highlights where in successive innings, he misplayed a hit in the first inning into a (favorable hometown scorer) a triple and the very next inning played (favorable hometown scorer) a hit into a double. Played both like he belonged back in Class A ball. Where was the Sizemore coaching influence on those two comical plays? Perhaps his hair was in his eyes - this is the Major Leagues = get a haircut.

BOTH Larnach and Martin should have been dealt at the trade deadline but they are still here because Zoll didn't have the guts to dump them and TP, in his hallucinatory, optimistic stupor thinks that his team of misfits can actually contend and has managed to get a fair number of Twins' fans to drink that Kool-Aid.

No reason to start Jenkins' clock started this early especially when Rodriguez will be out of options next year. BTW: How long do we put up with all the K's from Culpepper before we send him packing back down to AAA?

Remember too; the Phillies changed defensive positions of 3 players to accommodate Luis being able to remain at his preferred 2B position. Since Keaschall bombed out at 2B and is now patrolling CF until Buxton returns, Luis could have filled the 2B vacancy with Clemens moving to RF. IF/when Buxton returns send Keaschall to St Paul to learn how to play CF.

So put Ryan on the IL already. Get a replacement from the Saints. Clearly Ryan is not himself since the All Star Break. Enough with the hope and prayers; when a player isn't right put him on the IL = that's what it is for.

Typical posturing by a Pohlad organization to make middling player moves while addling a minimal amount of payroll expense and characterizing that as "going big". While NAME starters who were established difference makers ended up elsewhere, we got Dean Kremer. We added two Middle Of the Road relievers, who should have been added this past off season to help the team jump out of the gate as opposed to watching as leads became losses due to a failed assortment of DFA level relievers. We now have an established closer, who was once our property before we let him slip through our fingers, who spent the early part of the season igniting fires rather than being a fireman. Meanwhile, Jeffers is still a Twin, Larnach is still a Twin, Ryan is still a Twin, Buxton is still a Twin (and on the injured list once again), Bell is still a Twin, Wallner is still a Twin, Travis Adams is still on the 26 man roster, Tristen Gray is still on the 26 man roster and rotating into the line-up playing SS, the team is still carrying 3 Catchers on the 26 man roster, despite the freefall of his batting average, Martin is still on the 26 man roster, and so is Roden. Since the beginning of the season: our 1B is now the DH, our other 1B is now 2B & RF, our 2B is now CF & RF, our SS in now 3B, our back up SS & CF is now at SS, our 3B is now 1B, our RF is buried in the minors and seems to be on a path out of the organization, our CF is on the injured list for the THIRD TIME this season (so far) and as for pitchers we have 6 on the 60 day IL. Seems like the s****y stewardship of ownership requires the use of TP!

Keaschall will gain CF experience over the remainder of the season after it is announced that Buxton will under go season ending hip surgery

Really appreciate the specific and detailed analysis. Should we not be surprised if we don't see Buxton in the line-up again this season?

Dobnak the castoff outclasses the supposed ace Ryan. That's laughable.

The long term approach with his career and the organization is to leave him off the 40 man roster until he has to be added and let him finish the year at AAA while gaining more experience and confidence. He won't see the field in Minneapolis, only in St. Paul.