bighat

Sox are going for it, I'm guessing a lot of pundits out there are going to be predicting the White Sox #1 in the division this year. Especially if the Twins don't sign Cruz.

It's a push, nobody really got anything out of this deal. I suppose if you pressed me, I'd give a slight edge to the Twins but it's pretty insignificant in terms of the team's big picture.

Agreed. Eddie was a gamer and came up in big moments. Extra inning game winners, big HRs and let's not forget throwing out runners on the basebaths. Dude was FUN or "interesting" depending on how you felt about him. I personally enjoyed watching him play. Big character loss for the Twins and mark my words, you'll see him on SportsCenter next year making big contributions somewhere else. I do understand the business side, but people framing this as a WIN for the Twins are really stretching here. Blindly assuming that Larnach or Kiriloff will repeat Eddie's production is childishly naive. Not many baseball players can hit 32 HR and drive in 104 RBI while hitting above .270 - even if you're a blue chip prospect. It might take 3 years for each/either of them to hit those marks. And they'll make plenty of bad plays along the way, Eddie's not the only player making mistakes out there. Don't get me wrong, I think this was the right move and it had to happen at some point with those prospects. But this doesn't necessarily solve a problem IMO. Good luck Eddie.

Thanks for sharing, very cool. I've taken some road trips as well. To jump on the bandwagon here: - San Fran's park is awesome, it looks just as good if not better in person. It's the real deal. Also very very CHILLY. Do yourself a favor and set some money aside and go. - Pittsburgh also has a great park. Nestled right downtown on the river, also a fun area to kind of walk around. Well done. - I went to a Marlins game back when they were called the "Florida Marlins" and they played at the Dolphins football stadium (now called Hard Rock park). Awful. Not sure what the worst part was, the humidity, the sightlines, or the fact that it was an $80 cab ride to the park from South Beach. - I've been to Milwaukee's park several times. Frankly I think it's terrible. When they close the "flaps" behind the outfield it gets very hot inside. Location is outside of downtown, decent for parking lot tailgating but that's about it. Swing and a miss on Miller Park for sure IMO. - St. Louis was a nice park. The downtown itself is kind of abandoned, aside from a few stadium bars the area is kind of desolate. Nice looking place overall. - Also been to both Chicago stadiums several times. Wrigley's great, as long as you keep your expectations realistic. It's historic and therefore there are limits. They used to have the crappiest set of televisions for fans to watch when they weren't in their seats or when they were in the obstructed view seats. Like TV sets from 1985 mounted on steel brackets everywhere. I also feel that the new huge scoreboard they put in the OF was a mistake. Takes away from the atmosphere. Food is terrible, just avoid it. Bathroom lines are insane, particularly for the unfortunate female fans. The neighborhood makes up for everything and then some. - As for Guaranteed Rate Field, it's the last of the "mega parks" and you can tell. Very steep steps in the upper deck. They have a great view of the city but it's directly behind home plate - instead of facing a great view of an amazing skyline, you look out and see a freeway and the Robert Taylor homes (some infamous housing projects). The surrounding area is improving but it's got a long way to go. Go for the game, get back on the red line and go home. The food is great here, best polish sausages, brats, dogs I've had. The smells are fantastic in that park and make up for a lot. - Went to old Yankee Stadium in its last year of existence. Loved it, had fun in the bowling alley across the street before the game. Had a great, very gritty Bronx vibe. Can't speak for the new place.

I'm 8+ years sober and I agree with you. I wasn't given a "pass" on the actions I committed while I was an active alcoholic. Sure would have been nice if the credit card companies cancelled my debt on purchases I made on that Vegas trip because I was loaded the whole time. Would have been cool if my girlfriend had come back and said "no worries", or my old job would have said "it's all good, forget about it". But that's not reality. The stuff I did while under the influence still counted against me, and I accept it. Most Americans with 2 DUIs are in a world of sh*t by the way, we're talking losing your driver's license for FIVE YEARS. In my case, I was lucky enough to have a strong support system around me to help me get sober and more importantly stay sober. And I found that inside myself, I knew that stopping drinking was in my best interests long-term. Sounds like Tony is missing some of that from his life. The guy clearly has a drinking problem and needs help, but that doesn't mean he gets a free pass on the actions he's committed while under the influence.

Non-specific stuff: some feel he's weighed in far too often on the Colin Kaepernick stuff, has called him a "fraud", has also said that he would "never allow anyone to take a knee" when the anthem would play, etc. Some people believe that prioritizing the flag over the feelings of minority players is racist. Former players Ron Gant, Royce Clayton, Brian Jordan (among others) have called him a racist. Marcus Stroman obviously feels the same. I don't have specifics, just citing what's been said. Specifically: in 2010, La Russa publicly supported Arizona's odious SB 1070 law, which essentially encouraged racial profiling of Latinos. Ozzie Guillen spoke out against it.

When searching for flaws, this one immediately came to mind. Your SP gets blasted for 6 runs in the first 2/3 of an inning, now you're down six and you lose your DH for most of the game. Also, what happens when your SP goes out with an injury in the 1st or 2nd inning? Same rules apply? If not, what prevents a team from faking it (ie: "Wilson was removed with elbow soreness but is expected to make his next start").

Expose him to waivers and let the Pirates, Royals, or Rockies take Thorpe if they want. Personally, I've seen enough. Wish the guy the best of luck but I can't see a place for him on this team.

One question I ponder: how fair is it to the history of the game to start robot umpires for today's players? Some random guy went out there and hit .265 in 1982. Another dude hit .216 in 1935. They had bad calls go against them also, as did the hundreds of thousands of other guys. It's not like umpires have just gone downhill all of a sudden - in fact they might be better than ever with the current scrutiny. The main problem I have is do you tarnish the game's history by making this huge change? I suppose the argument could be made in the NFL with the instant replay as well. I think in the end, getting the call right is the most important thing....but in the NFL, you really are only using replay for catches/fumbles, maybe a couple times per game. Even in the MLB's replay system, we're only using it once or twice. The ball/strike thing would be used on every play. I'm not sure we comprehend exactly what would happen here. Would guys hit better? Worse? Way worse? Way better?

True, but don't we also have Aaron Hicks syndrome? The Ortiz trade was awful, but don't forget the most recent fumble. In the case of Hicks, I do understand the trade...the problem is the return. If the Twins are going to trade Sano or anyone else, they've got to get some great talent and start winning some of these trades. They may have won the Escobar and Pressley trades, but the jury's still out.

Any team would have given up on Liam Hendricks, and nobody faults the Twins, Blue Jays or KC for giving up on him when they did. He's had three good years in nine MLB seasons and still owns a career ERA above 4.00.

Agreed - frankly I've passed on them for starters and for bullpen as well. They both seem to be, at best, mop-up guys. No point in keeping guys like this on the roster. Thorpe and Smeltzer aren't Matt Garza types who simply have unharnessed stuff. They don't have the stuff in the first place.

Yep. And I'm not even sure the names you listed are particularly desirable. Yeesh.

The shifts are giving hitters free base hits every time. Someone above mentioned Kepler - they play him to pull, and the 3rd baseman is essentially standing on 2nd base. All Max has to do is just doink one to the left side of the infield and he's on first. Or bunt. Whatever, just put the ball in play over there. Unbelievable that hitters are going up there and seeing the defense against them, and they can't - or worse yet, won't - try and hit the ball to an empty spot. Speaks a lot about the hitting coach.

I see your sarcasm and very much agree with your point. All anyone cares about right now is HR and slugging. The Twins built a very nice machine that seems to be built to win during the regular season with that philosophy. Works great against 4-5 pitchers on the good teams and the 1-2-3-4-5 pitchers on the bad teams. Problem is, in the playoffs you only see the 1-2-3 pitchers on the GOOD teams. That's when you need guys who can get on base. Wade fits in as a nice option for this team in that regard. We coulda used him doing that in the Astros series this year or the Yankees series last year. I'm intrigued about what Wade can bring to this team next year.

I wouldn't mind giving him another 1-year deal with an option year. I also wouldn't mind if we didn't bring him back. We have to be realistic and expect the numbers to go down, and also assume we'll see less of Cruz in the batter's box if he does return. Fewer plate appearances and week-long "rest periods" and injuries are gonna be a part of the future with Nelson. Letting him go opens up a spot for a developing player.

Was Polanco really that bad though? I'm not sure how that narrative has gained steam.... He led the team in PA (226) and batted .258 (not great but surely respectable). He walked 13 times, led the team in SB (4) and hit 4 homers. His slugging % was certainly bad, but that's really the only area that stands out as poor for Jorge in 2020. To lump Polanco in with a guy like Garver, Kepler, or even Sano is unfair IMO. Sure he regressed a smidge, and he made a terrible error in the playoffs...but he's the last guy I'm worried about in 2021.

Rebuild. Knock it all down. Pray that Donaldson is healthy for the first half of 2021 and trade him at the deadline. Trade Sano as well, even Buxton if needed. Maeda would fetch a haul with that contract, and Berrios could get a ton of prospects. The team needs to be completely rebuilt and establish a new identity. That will only happen with new faces, and new clubhouse leaders. Royce Lewis should be the new focal point and building around him is the goal. I'm sure the Twins won't take this route, and many fans will call me crazy, but honestly I don't think this team wins a playoff game until the whole barn comes down and is rebuilt on another pasture.

Gotta love Rocco resting Byron Buxton in an elimination game, because he "is not felling 100 percent". The previous day Buxton got a hit and an SB in Game 1. Not feeling 100%??? Huh? At this point in the season, is anyone 100%? Like seriously. "Not feeling 100%"? It's an elimination playoff game, Rocco.

I know this might sound crazy, but I think this team needs a compete rebuild. Just burn it all down. I'm all for trading away guys like Sano, Rosario, even Polanco and heck maybe Buxton. If you can get something for Donaldson at the deadline next year get rid of him as well. We need a new team that comes up together, gets their tails handed to them and loses 100+ games for a couple of years. I know it sounds crazy but frankly we're not going to go anywhere just filling in the cracks with 1-year contracts and signing castoffs and free agents. Tear the whole building down and start over from scratch.

"But his BWRTP and his RTEDSG show that he's just getting unlucky", blah blah blah. Show me the ERA and I'll tell you exactly how good (or bad, in this case) a guy is.

Very good point - I agree that was indeed the death knell.

Twins strategy for the past 2 years under Rocco is to close your eyes and swing as hard as you can. Many here support that strategy. It might work during the regular season but in the playoffs you have to make adjustments. This team is unable to do that.

This series ended last night in the 9th inning after the Romo fiasco. Today's game just gave fans the opportunity to watch the Twins bleed out slowly on live television. Not sure why any of us watched or are still watching.

Seen on the internet: "Teams managed by Dusty Baker have lost their last 10 win-and-advance-to-next-round games. The Twins have lost 17 straight playoff games. Something has to give today".