Earth to Falvey: The Window is Wide Open
Entry posted by mike8791 ·
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Most of us gnashed our teeth this past offseason when we heard the new team's philosophy that there is no reason to go all in until "the window is open". I say gnashed out teeth because many of us asked the question: how do you open the window wider without adding significant outside talent?
But Falvine stubbornly held the course by passing on virtually every available free agent reliever, despite a woefully undermanned existing bullpen. Surprising to many the Twins got off to a great start, sitting on top of the AL Central by 3 games, 9 games over .500. Hard to criticize the FO now, but looking a bit beyond the results to date, there are certainly some hurdles to overcome if the Twins have hopes of sustaining this early season success.
The batting order has been robust, as hoped, with the new additions filling serious holes in the lineup. Add in positive starts by Polanco, Kepler, Buxton, Garver and the Turtle, one can see why the Twins have been in the top tier of lineups, particularly slugging. With Sano's expected return in a week or so, this lineup should remain in the top 5 in the AL for quite some time. No obvious needs now for supplementing the lineup.
The rotation has been good, as well. Berrios has elevated his game like we all hoped, Odorizzi has made a sizable jump over last year's lackluster season, Gibson seems to be rounding into shape(though we'll hold our breath until he achieves more positive results against top lineups), and Perez has been the most pleasant surprise of all - so kudos to the FO for the results to date. The problem is the team is one major injury away from going from a respectable rotation to a below-average one. Pineda has proven unreliable and there is certainly no one at Rochester who can step in and contribute. Let's face it : Twins' home grown phenoms have phlubbed badly so far - Gonzales, Romero, Stewart. Others expected to provide depth like Mejia, Littell have pretty much fallen on their faces at the big league level. It would be naive, to say the least, to think the Twins have a deep enough rotation to sustain this success over an entire season.
Then we come to the bullpen, a widely recognized(except by the Wonder Boys) achilles heel of the 2019 club. After 29 games in the season, the bullpen has largely held together, but can we expect this to continue thru the long summer months? Looking at the pen realistically, only Rogers seems to have continued to solidify his late-inning role. Parker has been good but the jury is still out on a guy DFAed by a woeful Angels club. Hildenberger has looked like an ace at times, and yet his poor inherited runners scored averages still raises doubt as to his long term dependability. May has been a disappointment and while Harper has looked good, his peripherals are shaky and one doubts whether he could be counted on in the heat of a pennant race. As seen by the revolving door with Rochester, no one else has shown any promise, nor is there anyone on the AAA roster who looks capable of providing needed relief. Amazing how badly this organization has whiffed on their drafted pitchers!
In summary, April has been a pleasant surprise and has obviously opened our window for contention a bit wider than expected. But the major development in the first 30 games has been the Indians' injury problems, especially in their starting staff. No team can sustain losses of a Kluber and Clevinger without a falloff in performance. Their bullpen was not reinforced over the winter(sound familiar), nor was their lineup improved. It is pretty obvious that the AL Central is ripe for the plucking, especially with the continued rebuilding by the Sox, Tigers, and Royals.
So Mr. Falvey, the window is wide open! What are you going to do about it? In baseball, as well as in war, if your opponent is down, you don't go into a defensive shell and hope to hang on. This is the time to capitalize on their misfortune and try to bury them! While it is early in the season, the FO should be planning to go full throttle as soon as possible. First, by trade or by signing, they need to add at least two late-inning relievers to slot at or above Rogers. Obviously, Kimbrel is still available, but at this point, most teams are in a waiting mode until the June draft, after which Kimbrel will not cost a draft choice. Then, let the bidding begin. A far more proactive approach would be to use some of our surplus(outfielders, catchers, lower level minor league prospects) to pry loose one or two relievers from obvious non-contenders. All it takes is resolve and ability to take some risks. Better sooner rather than later if we want to build on our lead rather than tread water. Failure to bolster the bullpen will almost surely result in the FO's early season prophecy of the window not being open yet to come true.
And after (hopefully) addressing the pen issues, the FO will figure out a way to pry loose a veteran starter who can slot into the #1 position in the rotation. This is important not only to guard against a lack of depth but also provide the team a much better chance of succeeding in the playoffs(think back to 1991 to remember what that feels like). There are pitchers like Greinke, Baumgartner, Stroman, perhaps Thor or Wheeler who will be available as we approach the trading deadline. All it takes is an agressiveness on the part of Falvey to pull the trigger, trade one or two of our top prospects(in a pretty deep system, at least at lower levels) and give this team a chance to go well into October, for the first time in almost 30 years.
It's time, Mr. Falvey. You've made a lot of progress but don't sit on your laurels. The window of contention is now wide open! Do something!!!
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