yarnivek1972

Not to pick nits, but wouldn't a picture of the sign for the I 94 exit to Milwaukee in Madison have been a more appropriate choice.

I honestly think it would be faster for the teams to have bussed this. Or go real old school and taken the train. I mean they will board busses and head to the airport. I realize it's a charter and security is a tad less intrusive, but I would assume they all have to go through some kind of screening. 25 players, a dozen coaches, trainers, traveling media, equipment guys, etc. It has to be a good hour to get everyone boarded. Airline traffic. Who knows how long it would take them to get airborne. Half hour after doors shut. Figure an hour from wheels up to wheels down. Someone (I assume the players don't - but someone has to do it) unloads the luggage and the equipment. Then board another bus to the hotel. Someone loads luggage from plane onto bus. figure 20 minutes to the hotel. So, 3-4 hours minimum. It's what, a 5 hour drive?

Give it a rest already. You don't like that the Twins "sold". We get it. Do you need to bring it up in every single thread? Move on.

Why would the Twins call up a starting pitcher on Wednesday for a game to be played on Sunday? Gee might be the starter Sunday. but it is just as likely to be Hector Santiago. Last I heard (it's been awhile since I checked) he was about as ready as he is ever going to be.

There was clearly something different about Polanco's approach. In April and May he struck out about once every 8 at bats. That's a bit better than his career rate of once every 6 at bats. That's the kind of progression one would expect as a player gets more experience. But in June and July, he struck out out once every 4.6 at bats. That's Sano range, actually, it's still better than Sano. But Polanco doesn't have Sano power. So far in August, 1 K in 17 at bats. So, the long and the short of it is that Polanco appears to be back in his game. His game is contact with occasional gap power. He doesn't walk much, but he also usually doesn't strike out much. His ceiling is probably an OPS in the low .700 range if he develops a little more power. More likely .680 to .700. That's just who he is. Is he a replacement level player? Yep. But that's the reality of mid market teams. The Twins are never going to field a roster full of All Stars. Sometimes, someone who is "good enough" will have to be good enough until the organization develops a better, cheaper, option. Right now, Polanco is cheap. And if he posts an OPS+ in the upper 90s to low 100s, that will probably keep him in the lineup if he plays good enough defense. Right now the jury is still out in that regard. As with his hitting, he seemed fine in April and May and really stunk it up in June and July. The "eye" test tells me that early his issues were throwing. In June and July, he had problems getting the glove on the ball. That's a concentration issue. Take note of what his numbers are now and see if they improve by the end of the year. Right now, he has a UZR/150 of -1.2. That's not good, but it is substantially better than the -32.3 he posted last year. For the most part, based on "inside edge" fielding stats, he's making most of the plays he should be. His biggest area for improvement is in the "Likely (60-90%)" area. He's making 67% of those plays. Like to see that at about 80% or better IMO. FWIW, Escobar is a -.2 UZR/150 at SS in 2017 (SSS of course), after posting a -11.8 last year. IMO, Escobar would be a better fit in the NL, where the bench is a little longer. He's good enough to start semi-regularly, but will be exposed if he were to play 140 games a year. And of course, he would be a good bat off the bench and a good guy to use for a double switch. In the AL where the norm is 3-4 man bench, the opportunities to pinch hit or platoon just aren't there like they were 20 years ago. Again SSS, Adrianza has a 3.5 UZR/150 at SS in 2017. Adrianza kinda strikes me as an older, albeit less experienced version of Polanco. Substantially better defensively though. My gut tells me he isn't cut out to start 130, 140 games a year. Ideally suited to be a more "traditional" reserve though.

Yeah, Gladden scouted. 20 years ago. And he wasn't evaluating prep or even college level talent. He was a ST scout and then an advance scout. He was reporting on tendencies of major leaguers for the most part. That isn't even remotely comparable to the job of an amateur scout.

That only helps if none of the 5 teams ahead of them continue to win.

After losing 103, it would really be difficult to not move forward.

By that logic, why would a team trade for Rosario? They can probably find equal productivity from a FA and most organizations have a slugger capable of playing a corner OFer in the upper minors. Starting pitching is still the more valuable commodity. IMO, no way does Rosario by himself fetch an established, controllable quality starting pitcher.

Two of whom did not pitch at all in the last 7 days. And yet the Twins have essentially a two man bench, one of whom is the back up catcher.

And still no attempt by Falvine to give Molitor an extra position player. It was inexcusable Saturday. 3 days later it is just plain stupid.

That would be a fantastic idea. If Polanco had minor league options remaining.

Escobar doesn't have a contract for 2018. He isn't eligible for FA, but it seems unlikely that the Twins will pay what he will get in arbitration if the plan is for him to be a reserve. As a reserve, Adrianza is more than capable and Vielma is more than capable as a second reserve. So, Escobar will likely be tapped to be the starter at SS next year or be non-tendered.

I suspect Gladden has no clue what he's talking about. Maybe 30 years ago that was all you needed.

I don't agree with inserting Buxton into the leadoff spot just because it is hoped he will blossom there. How well did having him hit third work? Buxton needs to be at the bottom of the order until he shows he can consistently hit MLB pitching. Given the current roster, the two guys who should be at the top of the order are Mauer and Grossman.

What are you basing this on? A lot of youngish players? That would be more in line with the 1984 version. By the time 1987 rolled around, many of the regulars had 5 full seasons under their belts. Their W-L record? The Twins worst record in 1987 was one game under .500 - and that was for ONE DAY. They were never under .500 after May. They were in first place 127 days in 1987 and in first for good by June 10. That is not the way the season is going in 2017.

Of course he was far more known for his exploits elsewhere, but everyone in Minnesota remembers him as the veteran brought in to help a bunch of wet behind the ears kids compete for a World Series in 1987. ESPN is reporting he died of cancer at age 68.

ftfy

The atmosphere is unsettled. That much is certain. But unless it rains from now until 2 o'clock tomorrow non-stop, it shouldn't really matter if the tarp is out or not.

Belisle might have the "unflapability" factor. But he has no track record as a consistent strike thrower. Not recently. His BB rate the last 4 years is almost 3. That's fine if you are getting 9 or 10 K per 9. Not so much at 6 or 7 K per 9.

Meet Twins closer, Matt Belisle. Angels and ministers of grace, defend us!

What was the launch angle on that? 89%

Yeah, bunting in that situation made sense... When Molitor was a rookie.

Not sure I see the logic behind bunting. Bunting with two strikes almost certainly is a Paul call. Adrianza is hitting almost .300.

Montezuma's revenge...