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bighat

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Everything posted by bighat

  1. bighat
    Much needed win - that said, it was another painful game to watch for Twins fans. Even Kepler's ducksnort single in the 9th felt like this team got plum lucky and didn't deserve this one. A shame to see the bullpen in shambles. Everyone looks terrible: Duffey, Stashak, Rogers, Colome, and now Robles. If the Twins didn't have good starting pitching they'd be 1-12. Buxton. Cruz. Donaldson (good grief). This is the team's 2-3-4 part of the lineup and none of these players have played in more than half the team's games! We're fricking 13 games in and they're "resting" Donaldson right after he returns? Baldelli always seems to be saving bullets in the chamber for the next game, or the next series. Thinking about ways he can get away with using guys like Astudillo, Cave, and Riddle and sneak out wins so that he can play his "big guns" next time and give everyone a rest. Again, we're 13 games in! Play your stars! You think Ken Griffey Junior was "resting" and just playing in 10 of his team's first 13 games? No! The dude was a stud and he was playing in 157, 156, 161, 160 games PER YEAR. Good lord Rocco, get these guys on the freakn' field. By the way, I like Rocco as a manager! Just hate this particular aspect of his philosophy. Wonder how Thorpe's going to do against Mike Trout tonight?
  2. bighat
    If anyone needs to jump on a flight and head to LA right now, it's the Minnesota Twins. It's pretty clear none of them like being here right now. I'm pretty sure they're going to mail this one in today, but the Red Sox are going to be playing their B Squad so the Twins might just have a chance. This team has not been fun to watch. Those winnable losses against Seattle and Milwaukee are looming very, very, very large right now.
  3. bighat
    I love how you don't want to count blown saves. That literally means they came into the game and gave up the lead - which is the only thing you don't want your relievers to do! How's this for you: Tell me the main reason living on Mars would suck - but you can't mention the lack of oxygen, atmosphere, freezing cold temperatures, or the desert-like conditions. Jeez louise man, you're way too caught up in expanded stats. We can't give Robbie Grossman the MVP Award just because his expanded statistics suggest he's more valuable than Nolan Arenado. It doesn't work that way.
  4. bighat
    Polanco is an average hitter? Gasp! He's going to just hit .260? Horror! Did I miss something? Did I miss the MLB.com article that said "Twins Success in 2021 Rides on Jorge Polanco's bat"???? The fact is that if Polanco hits .260 with 15 HR and 62 RBI that's just fine - after all, we've got Buxton, Cruz, Donaldson, Sano, Garver, Kepler, and Arraez who are all supposed to be mashing around him. Polanco's not the problem. Never was, never will be. Because he can hit and will get out of slumps. The problem is Sano and Garver, who literally cannot hit the ball and take MONTHS to come around. It's unacceptable to have 4 and 5 hitters going 0-32 in a 3-game series with 25 strikeouts. It's a killer. I'm increasingly worried about Kepler also. I'm happier to see Garlick up at the plate than Sano, Garver, or Kepler at this point.
  5. bighat
    True! Also wish they had a former MVP about to get healthy, maybe a guy who could play 3rd base and hits right-handed. Darn.
  6. bighat
    Batting Garver 5th behind Buxton vs. lefties isn't going to work. Twins are one right-handed bat away from putting together a solid middle of the order, wonder where we can find one of those? Oh yeah, Josh Donaldson is supposed to be that guy. Blame Tortuga, blame Polanco, blame anyone you want: but Donaldson's absence is costing the Twins big time. With him it's almost impossible to think this team isn't at least 7-1.
  7. bighat
    If you are a baseball fan, specifically a Twins baseball fan, yesterday's game could not have been better. Home Opener. Double-digits on the scoreboard. Three homers, including one from the breakout MVP candidate. Berrios to 2-0. Garver showing some swagger. These guys are having fun... Only downside: Josh Donaldson watching from the bench. This team is firing on all cylinders without him, and Arraez in the lineup daily is looking more and more like a perfect fit. Must be frustrating for JD, not much he can do but sit back and enjoy the show. What a team this would be if Donaldson could stay on the field.
  8. bighat
    Troublesome, worrisome, frustrating - all of the above. But what else is new? Sano's career in a nutshell has been marked by long, deep hitting slumps followed by short bursts of amazing power and skill. He's not 21 anymore, he's not even 24. The guy's 27 and this is who he is. His home runs are incredibly noteworthy, but so are his strikeout numbers. This spring he batted .159 with a 50% strikeout rate, he's basically not made any improvements on that so far this year. He's fallen to batting in the 6th and 7th spots, respectively. Yesterday he was batting 7th against a lefty - I think that tells you all you need to know. Concerning for sure.
  9. bighat
    Rewind the clock 6 months. Do the Twins leave Baddoo unprotected again if they got a do over?
  10. bighat
    This extra innings rule is absolute garbage. Maybe start it in the 12th inning (someone else suggested this on another thread) but having it start immediately in the 10th is just a slap in the face to the game of baseball. Absolute joke. This team should easily be 5-0, terrible to see how the bullpen and this extra innings rule have stolen victories. These games count, when the Twins are 1 game out of first in September remember that. Rooker shouldn't be getting playing time unless Garlick is sick or injured. Bullpen has some real shaky pieces. Buxton, Cruz, and Arraez are as locked in as possible right now. Must see TV every time those guys are at bat.
  11. bighat
    Too early to panic on Dobnak? Great effort from the offense today - one might say that everyone on the Twins has a case of the runs.....
  12. bighat
    Thanks - yeah I heard that too. I'm just saying it felt super vague, if this was Mike Trout we'd have known what was going on within 5 minutes.
  13. bighat
    Unfortunate this team gave away Game 1 - they dominated that game in every way, should have easily gone 3-0 on that trip. This team is going to need Donaldson and Buxton if they want to compete against teams like the White Sox, NYY, Houston, Toronto, TB, Oakland, and so on. Great starting pitching so far. Simmons looks good - I have a feeling his error on opening day will be the only one we see for a long time. He can hit at the bottom of the lineup, too. Looks like a nice addition! Arraez is the story on offense so far.
  14. bighat
    The whole Buxton thing was irritating for a couple of reasons. Obviously seeing Buxton exit early gives lots of Twins fans PTSD. The other factor was that we were given zero updates, no news - let's get reporters and broadcast teams from both sides back into the stadiums, home & road. Knowing Buxton, he's not going to be playing today in Detroit. We can all say this is no big deal but it really stinks to see Byron - yet again - have to leave the field in the midst of what was looking like a promising hot streak. If he misses a few games he may take a few weeks to warm back up again. Great win, fun game to watch, looking forward to seeing this team take down the Motor City Kitties!
  15. bighat
    Great effort by Berrios. Overall though, this game was still pretty tough to watch. The Twins struck out 17 times on Friday, 13 times last night. The strikeout is the most common out for the Twins so far this year and it isn't even close. Combine that with Milwaukee's 17 strikeouts last night....frankly, reruns of the "Golden Girls" might be more exciting. You can frame it as a "classic pitcher's duel" if you must, and sure we can get away with that summary today. But this type of strikeout-heavy performance has become all too common in today's MLB. If the Twins strike out 15-20 times again today, even if they win, it's frankly unwatchable baseball. As someone else mentioned, if you wonder why MLB is losing fans, the strikeouts are Exhibit A. Striking out not only removes chances for hits, but it also eliminates those exciting and athletic defensive plays that we come to the ballpark to see. Not sure what MLB can do aside from moving the mound back. Might be time for that discussion. Great job Berrios, wish he'd have gotten the 7th. Here's hoping Buxton stays healthy! Arraez looking great so far at 3B. Duffey looking pretty shaky. I'll take 1-1, here's hoping the Twins win the series today!
  16. bighat
    White Sox fans had to be laughing watching their former guy blow it for us. What a bust. Also, Maeda didn't pitch terribly, he'd have made it to 5 innings if Simmons didn't botch that double-play ball. Simmons with a crucial error, Colome with one of the worst blown saves in the history of the organization - Twins need a win tomorrow or things are going to start feeling real negative.... I agree with whoever said on this thread that they should put runners on 2nd base starting in the 12th inning. I really liked that. Buxton - career year coming down the pipeline? Two walks, SB, and a dinger? Me likee.
  17. bighat
    Serious question - will Josh Donaldson play 100 games in a Twins uniform? I mean, in total before his contract expires in 2024. We were all thrilled when the contract signed. Four years was steep, but we all thought "those first two years, 2020 and 2021 will be worth it". Well, we saw 2020 went poof and now 2021 starts out with JD having leg problems on the first dang AB. He's a cool dude and his personality and experience helps the team, but this could go down as the biggest contract gaffe in Twins history. And it won't be close.
  18. bighat
    Arraez getting the start in LF today on opening day - bold prediction: he becomes the Twins everyday starting LF, making the whole Rosario/Cave/Garlick/Kiriloff fiasco irrelevant.
  19. bighat
    Final spring training averages: Kepler: .070 Buxton: .135 Simmons: .138 Sano: .159 Garver: .172 Maybe it's not Garlick or Astudillo who we should be worried about.
  20. bighat
    Never understood how anyone could hate Astudillo. Especially a Twins fan. Sure, maybe you don't like his stats, or don't think he's super talented. But honestly, I'm shocked to see folks here who literally despise him. It's like hating Muggsy Bogues or Spud Webb. I can see being critical of their value, but how could you hate them? Willians had a great spring, hitting .361 with tons of ABs. His numbers speak for themselves. He did what he needed to do, give the guy credit. Yes he's is prone to make a gaffe or two, but the guy hustles and does the best with what he's got - most people with bodies like his aren't playing professional sports. The guy's got moxie and you can't coach that. Baseball is a marathon. Having guys like Astudillo on the team help make it interesting - in a good way. And his teammates love him, that counts for something too!
  21. bighat
    Once I got past my initial shock, this seems to be a rather shrewd move. This front office doesn't take any of its players for granted - when they see a contributor who can be extended, they take the opportunity. Cool. Looking forward to seeing how Randy responds this season!
  22. bighat
    Much deserved for Kenta Maeda, nobody can argue with that decision. Glad to see Baldelli putting the best guy up first, sends a solid message: you play well, you get rewarded. Buxton's tooth doesn't seem to be bothering him. Dentist pulls a tooth, Byron pulls a homer. Franco to the O's, any other free agents that should be playing still out there? Puig's the guy I always think about, he's got a few off-the-field issues but most guys with his talent would be signed by now. Word on the street is managers don't like this guy, which is weird because he plays hard.
  23. bighat
    Brandon Waddell has a 10.84 ERA. He's also given up 4 hits in his 3.1 innings, and walked two.....why did he make this list again? Oh yeah, he struck out a few guys. I know we've entered the age where real stats like wins and ERA don't matter to anyone, but c'mon man. At some point you gotta look at something besides strikeouts to determine whether or not a pitcher is good. The other options in the mix so far have been fun to watch and certainly will be fun to watch as we enter the 2nd half of ST. Can't wait to see how it pans out. Thanks Tom!
  24. bighat
    Thanks for sharing, great job!
  25. bighat
    Sucks to be under 50 and hearing about all of these vaccinations everyone's getting - waiting in line down here in Florida and there are tons of seniors ahead of me! It's all good though, they deserve it and I'll wait my turn. At least it should be soonish, down at my other place in Guatemala it's probably not even going to happen until late 2021 or early 2022 for most. Agree with most here, understand why MN is playing it safe and I totally get it....but at some point, c'mon man. We've been on this rodeo ride for a year. I can see restrictions in the beginning because nobody knew how to handle themselves, but at this point we know what we're doing. I'm not playing politics - I'm just a baseball fan speaking from a baseball fan perspective (that's what I do on Twins Daily!) At some point soon let's just rip this damn band-aid off and get life back to normal. Gimme a foot-long hot dog, large coke and an upper deck seat - I'm ready!
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