You all care about this site. The next step is caring for it. We’re asking you to caretake this site so it can remain the premier Twins community on the internet.
Well everyone Spring Training is finally upon us! With only a few days to go, I sit back and critique myself. Did I prepare to my fullest ability? Did I out-work everyone else when there was nobody looking? Could I have done more? These are all questions that run through anybody that did prepare. There may be a sense of panic for the guys that didn’t. Overall, there is a great excitement to get the ball rolling this year. With report date tomorrow, I’m looking forward to seeing all my past
With the Twins coming off one of their worst pitching seasons in over a decade, many fans and analysts are blaming the Twins’ “pitch to contact” philosophy. Critics cite career lows in strikeout rates for pitchers like Francisco Liriano and Matt Capps in 2011 as proof that there needs to be a new approach on the mound. However, if we look back at the Twins’ recent history, we see that the “pitch to contact” strategy has actually played a large part in their success, particularly by producin
This was originally posted at http://thetwinsarmchairgm.blogspot.com/ Stanford ace Mark Appel followed up his great start last week with a not so great one this week. While he went 8 innings and struck out 11, he gave 8 hits, two HR's and 7 runs in a 7-4 loss to Fresno State. Conor Glassery at Baseball America had a nice write up on him after the start that can be found here. While the amount of hard contact he gives up now is concerning, Appel can grow into a dominant starter if his command w
I mean no offense, Allan. You know the old saw about blind pigs and acorns, right? Proposition: Bud Selig is just such a blind pig. And a pretty lucky blind pig, at that. I'm not a fan of Mr. Allan H. Selig. I harbor no particular ill will toward him - although he was in cahoots to contract my favorite team. But we have a (fabulous) new stadium now as our home for the foreseeable future. I'm willing to let bygones be bygones. But Buddy has been a busy boy. He certainly wouldn't be eligible
This has been previously published at The Tenth Inning Stretch. I have highligheted the four questions the Twins need to answer this Spring Training previously. With a couple weeks in the books in Spring Training, the Twins so far have played 4 games (3 official and a "B" game that does not count in the standings or in the players' statistics officially) so there are hints of light for some of those. The starting outfield: All indications seem that the Twins will go with Span at Center Fie
Recently JJ Hardy came out and mentioned that some of his success at the plate last season was due to going back to what he does naturally, which is pulling the ball. The Twins wanted Hardy to go to the opposite field. Hardy mentioned his first BP session with the Twins back in 2010, "My first round of BP with the Twins, I was trying to (pull the ball), and Rod Carew and those guys call me over and say, `That's not we want. We want line drives the other way,"' Hardy said. "So that was my appro
Recently JJ Hardy came out and mentioned that some of his success at the plate last season was due to going back to what he does naturally, which is pulling the ball. The Twins wanted Hardy to go to the opposite field. Hardy mentioned his first BP session with the Twins back in 2010, "My first round of BP with the Twins, I was trying to (pull the ball), and Rod Carew and those guys call me over and say, `That's not we want. We want line drives the other way,"' Hardy said. "So that was my appro
In my continuing quest to improve the ferocity of Target Field Walk-Up Music, I have had an epiphany. For around a 100 years, horror movies have hired composers to add intensity to the moment. Why not go with the professionals on this one? After all, some of the Twins players could use a jolt of intensity in the pysch-out department. Here are some horror themes that would sound mighty smart pumping out the speakers at the ballgame. Song: "Psycho: A Suite for Strings" Composer: Bernard Her
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-qyh6vOiA6zE/T1S8a9F6iVI/AAAAAAAAALw/lCp-aYdUVdA/s1600/Liriano.bmp [Originally posted at Twins Fan From Afar] In the end, Francisco Liriano's pitching line yesterday looked fine on paper. He gave up no runs, walked one, and struck out two, in two innings. Still, though, even though this was his first start of the spring, I was left wanting a little bit more. The frustrating aspect of Liriano's outing, for me, was that 12 of his 25 pitches were balls. In the first inni
http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-MEN91q2weg0/T1OmFEAiBWI/AAAAAAAABHI/xWKOZXlzyBE/s320/SpanFall.png The Twins are only three games into their Grapefruit League schedule but Denard Span is making sure to put all of his concussion worries behind him. Over the course of the last handful of days, Span has been forced to make numerous plays on the ball that could be troublesome for a player who suffered a concussion last year. Even with all of these rough plays, Span has not suffered any major setbacks and
In Liriano's preseason debut he threw just over half (52%) of his pitches for strikes. What we need to see from Liriano is his ability to consistently throw under control. He's a wild card with a huge upside, as well as a huge downside. Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. Even in Liriano's no-hitter last season he showed signs of his split personality pitching. We all know and have seen what Liriano is capable of when he controls his pitches on a consistent basis. The Twins desperately need Liriano to pitc
Between the idea and reality, between the motion and the act, falls the home run Towles hit this afternoon. We terrible pun men wait by our computers, with our pointer fingers cocked and ready. We terrible pun men, already awaiting the opportunity to be the first to title a blog post "The End of a But-ERA" when the catcher is dropped from the roster. In this frozen land, we know only one smart-assed blogger can be the first to use "The End of a But-ERA." And so we wait with eyes watchin
originally posted at http://www.TwinsTarget.com [TABLE=class: tr-caption-container, align: center] http://1.bp.blogspot.com/--CJOCaL529E/T1NxMjoCrLI/AAAAAAAAAOU/ZXgiuVe3qzA/s320/Carlos+Gutierrez.jpg [TD=class: tr-caption] source: mlb.com [/TD] [/TABLE] 15. Carlos Gutierrez, Right-Handed Reliever, 25 years old 2011 stats: 2-3 4.62 ERA 57/31 K/BB in 62.1 innings for AAA Rochester. Last year's rank: 43 Acquired: Drafted in the first round (27th overall) out of University of Miami in 2008 Gu
Originally posted at k-bro's baseball blog You may have heard that MLB has changed the playoff scheme starting with this season by adding an additional Wild Card team to each league. Some people like it; some people hate it. I really don't have an opinion of it yet, because, honestly, I don't really understand it. I've read a lot of stuff about it, and it all makes my head hurt. I figured I'd map it out on some spreadsheets to see if that helps. Yes, I know, I'm supposed to be afraid
Thanks to NESN, I'll be watching at least the first few innings today. Hopefully Liriano can show control and command. I'll update anything that seems worth mentioning.
Venezuela has produced a number of good ballplayers over the years, some even for the Twins. What has our academy produced in the last 10 years? Can't think of anything? Neither can I, and that my friends is the problem. Where is the pipeline of talent? Why is it that the Yankees always have prospects to trade for established stars? Because they pour money into their international signings and develop players abroad. The Twins have an Academy where pretty much no other team does and yet I
First posetd at www.ontheroadwithshawn.blogspot.com Spring training is getting going in earnest, the Twins won 7-3 today with contributions from Mauer, Morneau & Span. TwinsDaily is becoming the place to be to check out Twins content, check it out here. It is a good place to find much of the posted Twins content as well as discover new blogs. I recently discovered Twins fan from afar via TwinsDaily. Recently, I tried to convince Joel Zumaya not to retire, now I will continue my prospect
[h=3][/h] Spring training is getting going in earnest, the Twins won 7-3today with contributions from Mauer, Morneau & Span. TwinsDaily is becoming the place to be to check out Twins content, check it out here. It is a good place to find much of the posted Twins content as well as discover new blogs. I recently discovered Twins fan from afar via TwinsDaily. Recently, I tried to convince Joel Zumaya not to retire, now I will continue my prospect countdown with 20-16. Check out the rest of
Jose Rodriguez was the Twins Daily short-season minor-league hitter of the year. He is at the Dominican facilities for spring training now but will likely join Extended Spring Training in Fort Myers.
I really hold back what I would like to say about then payroll arguments here. The fact that people don't accept the amount taken in dictates the amount going out requires one of two things. Extreme financial ignorance or fanatical bias that prevents the acceptance of something some basic. I did not change the argument. It's the same idiocy over and over. Do you really want to be on the side that suggests revenues does not determine spending capacity?
The Twins Daily Caretaker Fund
I really hold back what I would like to say about then payroll arguments here. The fact that people don't accept the amount taken in dictates the amount going out requires one of two things. Extreme financial ignorance or fanatical bias that prevents the acceptance of something some basic. I did not change the argument. It's the same idiocy over and over. Do you really want to be on the side that suggests revenues does not determine spending capacity?· 0 replies
