rdehring

Wow, 34 players now gone from the system. Should make it easier to get some work in for the remaining 150 or so when/if they have an instructional camp later this fall. Did see a couple surprises, at least for me with Widell heading the list. A bit surprised to see Gryz and what, six other catchers on the list. Must have a number of good catchers coming up from the DSL.

Now, let's get Berrios extended this winter, along with Buxton. Want to comment on everyone writing Dobnak off for the future. From what I saw, his problems late weren't that anyone was hitting him especially hard. Rather, his ball which normally moves a lot was moving way more than normal. Saw so many pitches move a lot and way out of the strike zone. Result was that he was constantly 2-0 or 3-0 in those last couple games. Not a clue what could have caused this, but certainly seems like something that can be fixed. Would be much more concerned if hitters were teeing off on him. Might also help a groundball pitcher if the Twins didn't shift as much or bring the infield in early in the game with a runner on third.

I normally cringe when I see comments proposing that the Twins spend big dollars on veteran starting pitchers. But your comment above actually makes sense, at least to me. I expect the Twins payroll in 2021 will be less than this year, perhaps a lot less. But should they cut ties with one of several players to make room for a prospect, they just might be able to free up $30mm for a one year contract with Bauer. And one year is the only way I would be comfortable with big dollars to a pitcher. And who knows, the Twins might be high on Bauer's list of teams he would like to play for. He is familiar with the Twins, they are a contender and he wouldn't have to pitch to Max Kepler.

The reasons you listed for trading this trio is the biggest reason why the Twins should keep them and build around them and Buxton. There are others on this team who could also be traded should the FO be serious about opening a spot for one of the young studs or part of a package for a top pitcher.

No one has been a bigger fan of Thorpe than I. But after watching him struggle this past season, am beginning to believe that with his stuff he has to be perfect on every pitch to be successful. And that just ain't gonna happen over a long season. So count me amongst those who remain hopeful...but a big doubter.

What happens to Max's power totals for this crazy, short year if the Reds had started Trevor Bauer in one of their three games this season? As crazy as my above comment is, this season was equally crazy. Other than the pain from going two and out again, let's put the entire year behind us and forget it. I believe Max was becoming the player he can be in 2019 and the best is yet to come. I honestly believe he has the potential to be very good for the next ten plus years, so good he could someday be considered for the HOF. So for me, he is as close to untouchable as any Twin should be. I also believe that of the three young studs coming up, Rooker, Kirilloff and Larnach, Kirilloff is going to be special. But you don't need to trade away Kepler, or Rosario, to get him onto the diamond at Target Field. If anyone gets moved, put Kirilloff at first base and trade your K man in every other at bat. Watched most of the Rays game against that team from New York last night. Wow, that is an exciting team to watch. Sure made me question my thoughts all year that our bullpen was as good as any...not. Do have a question for the guys at TD. Could someone do a position by position comparison between the Rays starting 9 and the Twins? How many of the Rays starters would start if they were on the Twins. Yet, they are headed to the League championship series and sure looks like a favorite to me.

Hadn't been a big fan of Wade. But the more I saw last year, he grew on me. Think I would agree with those who prefer him to Cave as the 4th outfielder.

Yes, we found out how useless RBI were in the recent Houston series. I'll take a guy that drives em in...and yes, I understand that no one on the team other than Cruz had any RBI in that series.

Love Eddie and would be happy should the Twins extend him and he remains a Twin. With that said, understand the need/desire to open a spot(s) for Kirilloff, Rooker and Larnach. With a desire to find at least one of those at the beginning of next year, will be curious to see what the Twins do. Truth is they can probably create a spot by keeping one of their most exciting players (most exciting when Buxton is not in the lineup)...IMO.

Yes, no, maybe? A lot depends on whether he is willing to accept a one year deal or one year with an option. When players get to his age, isn't smart for teams to be guaranteeing two years unless the total dollars is near what you would pay for one good year. Also depends on the insider knowledge management has regarding his health and general physical condition towards the end of last year. No question, he began wearing down the last several weeks. And that was only a two month season. Should he begin wearing down after 6 weeks of a six month season it could be ugly. We just don't have the knowledge needed to know.

As with all of us, my opinion doesn't matter. But what will the Twins do? We just don't know what effect this crazy, crazy season had on the performance of all Twins players. Although many had very disappointing seasons, we just don't know if the Twins are giving all of them a 'mulligan.' With that said, I have a feeling there may be less significant moves than we think should be. For example, how can you plan to have Sano playing every day after striking out 50% of the time. How much did Polanco's ankle effect what he did this year? Why was Garver so bad after being so good? What is the problem with Arraez' knee? Will it go away with rest or does he need another surgery? There is little question that Jeffers will most likely be penciled in to about 50% of games behind the plate. There is no question that albeit in small samples, both Rooker and Kirilloff appear to have made claim for a spot on the opening day roster. How those spots are made available remains to be seen and I for one eagerly await their moves.

Wanted to respond to MNTWINSWINAGAIN, but didn't want to copy that entire post. Found your thought process to be interesting, very interesting. No one will know until we get to spring if there will be any fans in the stands, thus budgeting 2021 revenue is a crap shoot. So I will be shocked if we don't see the Twins payroll reduced substantially, much lower than most of the above projections. Did find one thing in your post that I had to do a double take on. That was including Javier with your infielders to bring up. He didn't play anywhere in 2020 and most recent season was a total failure with the bat in 2019 at Cedar Rapids. Certainly not ready for the big leagues and is probably buried deep in their depth chart at shortstop. Now Lewis, he could be another story.

With all the talk about hitting coaches I began wondering about something I must have heard several times during every broadcast. That is that they were not allowed to use some type of video during games that they had relied upon in previous years. Assume it had something to do with Houston prior transgressions, but not sure of that either Will that video be back next year? Did it make that much of a difference to be the cause of so many good hitters throughout the league doing poorly?

Very interesting, thanks. Do you know if the payment is prorata, ie, one-quarter year is 2.5% of a full ten years. So if the max at 45 years old is $68,000, Poppen would get 2.5% of that for one-quarter...or $1,700 per year?

Thanks for another great article, Nick. Don't know how you keep them coming day after day, but they are appreciated. Expect the first question is the biggie that everything else will be subject to. Opening day is now less than six months away. Looking back six months, really not much has changed. Yes, there is hope for a vaccine in the coming months and perhaps some better treatments. But COVID-19 isn't going away, we are gonna have to learn to live and yes, die with it. That means old fahrts like me and my wife don't have much of a life making Twins games on tv so very important. It also means that there will most certainly be both limitations and restrictions on fans at Target Field next April. With that a strong probability and a large loss in 2020, don't see how the Twins payroll budget won't be much smaller in 2021, probably down to $100M or even less. Actually, the worst scenario for their CFO is that there is a full season with attendance limited to 15%-25% which would likely generate bigger losses than this year. Gonna be an interesting winter as players and the union gripe about not receiving those big long-term deals. So I see the Twins doing more tinkering along with a few smart trades rather than any BIG free agent signings. Would love to see Nellie back, but on a one year deal. Agree with you that it is probably 50-50. A big need is getting several players who play best on the big stage when needed the most. But their biggest need may be a new manager. I cannot believe that an entire team goes in the tank on the biggest stage because all of their key players are losers. I refuse to believe that both Maeda and Berrios needed to be removed and the outcome wouldn't have been different had they stayed in. I cannot understand the constant shifting and bringing the infield in early in a game when a double play would end the inning. Two key runs were scored by Houston on weak ground balls that were outs for the first 100+ years this game has been played. Those are all the Manager's decisions, and they weren't good. As for the hitting coach, I wasn't around the team and have no way of knowing whether he should stay or go. It appears the Twins have a half dozen players ready to step up and play. Rooker, Jeffers, and Kirilloff all look to be ready. Jeffers spot is easy, the others will require that another player be moved. Don't know what form it will take, but they are gonna have to start getting some of these guys playing time. Thanks, Nick.

I maintain not trading at the deadline nor the injuries is the major problem this team faced. What drives me nuts is the shift for nearly every hitter and bringing the infield in early in the game when a double play would end the inning. Although my recollection isn't what it used to be, I recall two key runs scoring in the playoffs on slow grounders that would have been outs in days past. The biggest question facing this team is have they taken analytics too bloody far?

Spycake, do you or does anyone else know the details of a MLB pension? Does a player receive a partial pension if his career is as short as one game? Is it ten years of service time to get a max pension? How much is the max pension?

I would say quite the opposite. In Pittsburgh he will have a great chance of being part of a major league team while being paid at least the MLB minimum...which is a big chunk of money to the rest of us.

I have been wrong before, but I believe Kirilloff did need to be added this November. He was a 2016 draft out of high school. That means he has five years before needing to be added. His five years would have been 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020., unless with all the changes 2020 doesn't count...which I haven't heard.

Considering the subject, Nick, I really don't want to say it was a great post. But the fact is you nailed it. I had moved on to 2021 after Tuesday's loss that shouldn't have been. I see lots of talk above about 2021, but no one has mentioned the ugly truth. Yes, this team needs lots of changes to get over that last hurdle. But planning for 2021 is going to be almost impossible for the people that will be doing it. There are many questions the FO and owner will be facing. Will there be a normal 2021 spring training and season? If there is a 162 game season, will there be fans in the stands? And if so, how many? Will there be any progress towards a new CBA during the season? Or will baseball come to a halt after next year's post season? Considering the players unwillingness to give a nickel on their per game compensation during a pandemic, it sure seems like a strong possibility. And on a related note, will there be a minor league season? If not, baseball may have lost an entire group of players who were well into their development and won't be there to replace aging veterans over the coming years. And none of the above questions has much to do with any decisions about filling out a 2021 roster. But with that uncertainty, I don't see the Twins (or most teams) spending like normal. I will be surprised if lots of players don't end up on one year contracts for a lot less than they want. Likewise, I will be surprised if the Twins 2021 opening day payroll, assuming there is an opening day, is much over $100,000,000. And with Donaldson making $21,000,000, that doesn't leave room for any big free agent contracts.

Will be an interesting fall/winter at Target Field. Does the FO understand that this team has problems? Will they take a hint from over in St. Paul and decide that some serious changes are needed? Don't know how they will react, but am doubtful they will make serious changes and if they do, what those changes are. Should be interesting seeing what team takes the field in Fort Myers come March...assuming there is a spring training. And until we know for a fact that there will be lots of fans in the stands, what will their budget for payroll be next year? My over under is $100,000,000.

In total agreement with all your points, Ted. Was scratching my head when Garver pinch hit, then again when Avila came on to catch. Stopped scratching when Astudillo pinch hit as I knew the Manager believed he needed to get all four catchers into the game. I have to believe that Garver will be better in 2021. Maybe not 2019 good, but certainly better than this year. That puts Garver and Jeffers splitting starts about 50-50. Expect Astudillo will either be gone or in Rochester, assuming the World has returned to some degree of normal. That will help the Twins cut payroll for 2021, which I expect will be down from projected 2020 by at least a quarter or more. Notice how I have already turned the page to next year.

They talked about a few of these decisions over at the Twins site. Wade isn't eligible having been optioned to the ALT site on Saturday. They also were concerned with how well Houston knows Alcala, having gotten him from them in the 2018 trade. Personally, that was over two years ago and I doubt Houston would have an advantage from his time there.

Very interesting. Have to believe that it is related to some player(s) injury. Wouldn't surprise me to learn at some point that one of several Twins have been playing thru some nagging injury. Maybe Sano? Cruz? Could see Kirilloff getting at bats in either case.

looking forward to learning why and how he will be used, if at all? Could Cruz be hurting? Sano?