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Blogs

Off The Baggy

Twins Join Cities as Saints Become Affiliate

As has been the expectation now for week, the St. Paul Saints will officially join the Minnesota Twins organization in 2021 per reports from the Star Tribune. Previously playing in the American Association as an Independent Baseball team, they’ll now assume the role of the Twins Triple-A affiliate.   For years there has been talk about the convenience having an affiliate just down I-94 would provide the Twins. Then during the pandemic shortened season, CHS Field acted as the alternate site for t
mikelink45's Blog

ESPN - Roto fantasy rankings for the Twins

As I said in my previous blog posting I am watching to see where the current Twins rank in ratings outside the Twin Cities. It is always suggestive to read a less biased - less connected view of our own team. So here is the ESPN Roto rankings for 2021 - https://www.espn.com/fantasy/baseball/story/_/id/28285423/fantasy-baseball-2021-rankings-roto-rotisserie   Catcher Garver is rated #7 (between Will Smith and Gary Sanchez) Jeffers 34 (between Romine and Torrens Avila is 47 between Trevino and Kna
Doctor Gast's Blog

Let`s bring back the `87 Twins

In 1986 the Twins had one of the worst records in baseball (71-91) but in 1987 the Twins turned it around, becoming a Cinderella story that won the World Series. A story which inspired movies. 1986 team was basically the same team as the 1987 w/ players Kirby Puckett, Kent Hrbek, Gary Gaetti, Frank Viola, Bert Byleven, Tom Brunaski, Roy Smalley, to name a few. So what changed? They brought back the pin-stripes & added the M insignia. The change was a immediate success & continued w/ succ
mikelink45's Blog

An outsiders Fantasy view of the Twins

I am always looking for outsider opinions on the Twins since it is too easy to have hometown bias. All of us who root for the Twins follow them with much more emotion and fan hopefulness that allows them to rise higher in our opinions than an outsider might see them. So, I was interested in the Athletic’s fantasy baseball rankings. I know fantasy and reality are not the same, but it is one way of comparing players. Derek Van Riper just posted his fantasy ratings of players https://theathletic.co
One Post Blog

Prediction: The Twins are Heading to Wichita (and maybe St. Paul too)

Minor League Baseball is going to see massive changes in 2021, and the Twins have already signaled that they will be among the teams seeing the biggest shakeups. There has been plenty of speculation that St. Paul will become their new AAA home, but it's my belief that whether or not that happens, the Twins will end up with a Minor League Team in Wichita, Kansas one way or another.   As a quick recap, Minor League Baseball is expected to undergo a massive reorganization starting next season as it
mikelink45's Blog

Eddie or Miguel or Byron or Max? You choose

Since the main TD articles keep talking about Eddie Rosario being traded, cut, cursed or whatever you want to call it I thought it might be instructive to do a comparison of all the six year players on the roster. In a move that we all thought would make the future of the Twins we had Eddie, Byron, Miguel, and Max arrive the same year and it did not take long before they were part of a home run hitting behemoth and twice got to the playoffs where they, like their predecessors failed. (I chose no
Thoughts from The Catch

5 "Under the Radar" Free Agent Utility Player Targets

In my follow-up to the 5 “Under the Radar” Free Agent Pitching Targets blog, I thought it would be fitting to also describe a few key free agent utility players that should come at a bargain.   One of the top priorities of the Twins offseason is to find replacements for utilitymen, Marwin Gonzalez and Ehire Adrianza - both now free agents.   In 2020, Marwin and Ehire combined to produce .1 fWAR while costing just north of $10.5M in salary, if it were a normal 162 game season.   Injuries to the T
mikelink45's Blog

The pandemic, the economy and 2021 baseball

The baseball owners through their lackey – Rob Manfred – have declared that they lost substantial and unsubstantiated amounts of money in 2020. A May 2020 CNBC report said, “Under the MLB’s plan, the highest-paid players could lose about 80% of their salaries, while players making the least amount could keep up to 90% of their pay. The plan calls for players to retain their salary via a tier system. In short, the more a player is scheduled to earn for the 2020 season, the less he retains under t
Milldaddy35's Blog Area

Milldaddy's 2021 Offseason Blueprint

What's up everyone? You may know me from the forums as I have created and introduced multiple game threads throughout my time spent at TwinsDaily, and have also created offseason blueprints in the past. This year is the hardest one I will have done, because of the COVID-19 pandemic and it's affect on spending both on the Minnesota Twins, as well as baseball as a whole.   The Twins spent what would have been 135M on their payroll in 2020, before being prorated. I am going to assume that that num
mikelink45's Blog

Bring a Glove

ESPN had a gold glove preview which I enjoy because it lists the three finalists and not just the winner https://www.espn.com/mlb/insider/story/_/id/30246554/mlb-gold-gloves-preview-which-stars-elite-field so we get 27 candidates to think about for each league.   The weakness of the Twins is really apparent - there were two Twins listed. Byron Buxton of course and Kenta Maeda. As usual there is a caveat about Buxton - "Buxton would be a good choice, but he played in only 39 games."   In addition
Left Field Gap

My Twins 2020-21 Offseason Priorities

Recently I was on Twins Daily’s Offseason Live with John Bonnes and Ted Schwerzler and discussed the Minnesota Twins payroll outlook for 2021. Most years it has been relatively easy to make an estimation on the team’s payroll but a year of COVID-19 has made it anything but easy.   While having payroll conversations, it became a quick reality that if the Twins need to at all cut payroll from a 2020 payroll just shy of 140 million, the dollars will be spent quickly. As that realization hit, I bega
Thoughts from The Catch

5 "Under the Radar" Free Agent Pitching Targets

Today is the official first day of the offseason! Annnnd nobody knows what to expect. What we almost assuredly can count on is that the Twins payroll will be reduced from what it was in 2020. With that in mind, the front office will have to be smarter about how they spend their money. Here are a few “under the radar” pitching signings that could prove valuable in 2021.   The way I am looking at this is that the Twins have at least one spot open in their rotation. Ideally, I would like to see the
Off The Baggy

Bring Back the Light on Littell

Going into the 2019 Major League Baseball season the Twins had few question marks more glaring than what their bullpen would look like. Fast forward to season’s end and it was among the best units in baseball. That happened largely because of internal development, and Zack Littell was part of that.   Acquired from the New York Yankees, Littell had pitched a brief 20.1 innings during the 2018 season. Working as both a starter and reliever in his debut year, he moved completely to the pen in 2019.
mikelink45's Blog

Old school - sure to make a lot of you mad

I had an idea. What if someone got a hit, stole second - maybe third and someone else got a hit and they scored?   In new school does that not count?   What if someone got a hit, someone bunted and then a single brought them home? Does that not mean that the run scores?   Do I have to wait for a HR? Should I look for a K instead of a sacrifice?   Do I have to fire up the computer. What to do? No HR? We cannot score that way. We need HRs without runners on base because analytics say that is reall
Baseball Good

What I'm Reading

The Shift Is Burning Teams:   I wrote about how the Astros dismantled the Twins’ infield shift during the Wild Card series. The Ringer’s Ben Lindbergh dove in further, detailing how right-handed hitters should not receive the shift treatment:     In September, Tango took a more rigorous look. The noted sabermetrician, who now serves as MLB’s senior data architect, examined the results of bases-empty matchups since 2015 between the same batter-pitcher duos, with and without three fielders on one
Off The Baggy

Embracing New Ideas Highlights World Series Storylines

There is no more frustrating word to me in modern baseball than analytics. I love and fully embrace the new avenues in which we are able to evaluate and prepare in regards to the game of baseball. Unfortunately, boiling it down to a buzzword as “analytics” has become, leads to little more than a quick note suggestive of being well versed in actual understanding. This World Series is about two organizations that are fully capable of turning up their nose at those instances.   Let’s not be naïve,
Baseball Good

What I'm Reading

Becoming a More Patient Leader:   Two good tips on how to increase patience in these stressful times.   Redefine the meaning of speed. The U.S. Navy SEALs are known for their saying “Slow is smooth, and smooth is fast.” These rapid-response special forces teams are paradoxically methodical and patient in both planning and executing their time-critical missions. They have learned over 60 years of operating in crisis situations that working at a slow and smooth pace reduces mistakes and re-dos a
Doctor Gast's Blog

Why did the Twins regressed in 2020? One answer

The Twins have been a big question mark all year. Great 2019 performances from players never realized in 2020 except Cruz & arguably Rosario. Although I`m not normal superstitious but baseball is, I never understood why the Twins wanted to bring back the baby blue uniforms to reminisce the "Twinkie" era. the auguration of the baby blues began w/ the Griffin / Carew fiasco. Carew was content to play out his years in MN but this fiasco changed all this & Carew could not leave fast enough.
Off The Baggy

Finding the Twins Next Utility Man

Going into this offseason the Minnesota Twins are going to need a replacement for a couple of backup infielders. Both Marwin Gonzalez and Ehire Adrianza are free agents, and I’d expect the Twins to move on from both. They served key roles on the active roster however, so seeking out a replacement will be necessary.   Marwin was signed under the premise that his 2017 was repeatable, and had they know it was a trash idea, Minnesota likely would’ve looked elsewhere. Adrianza was a glove first guy t
mikelink45's Blog

Nelson Cruz - our new Don Baylor

If you wonder if Nelson Cruz is one of a kind you have to go back to the Twins 1987 and a man named Don Baylor. Here is a video clip to remind you of his power and importance from that world series. https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=3461288973914917   At his death the Pioneer Press had this to say, "Don Baylor’s 27 games with the Minnesota Twins were by far his shortest stint with any team, but they were a big 20 games, for the Twins and for the longtime major league slugger. “It was the best ti
Off The Baggy

Twins Must Figure Out Corner Prospects

The Minnesota Twins signed two long term extensions for current big leaguers back in 2019. One of them was given to German left fielder, Max Kepler. He’s unlikely to be going anywhere, but the same can’t be said for right fielder Eddie Rosario. With just one open outfield spot, the organization has at least three corner talents to generate a plan for.   Now able to call the 2020 Major League Baseball year, last season, it comes with the reality that top prospect Alex Kirilloff made his debut. Su
Get to know 'em

Twins Offseason Primer 2020-21 Video Series

The Minnesota Twins have some big decisions facing them as we prepare to enter the 2020-21 MLB offseason. I ran through a few topics in a series of videos over on my YouTube channel.   Keeping Eddie Rosario | MN Twins Offseason Primer Ep. 1   What To Do About Donaldson, Buxton? | MN Twins Offseason Primer Ep. 2   Finding Time For Kirilloff, Lewis And Others | MN Twins Offseason Primer Ep. 3   Have We Seen The Last Of Odorizzi And May? | MN Twins Offseason Primer Ep. 4   Free Agent Targe

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