I was always down on how the Twins handled Escobar and Danny Santana.  If a guy is successful one year as a starter, he deserves the opportunity to be a starter at the same position next year.  Escobar success this year after being returned to starting SS didn't surprise me:

PA    BA    OPB   SLG   OPS

248 .308  .356   .542   .898 

Makes me wonder how Santana would have turned out [and what would the Twins record look like] if he had been returned to the starting CF position.  Fantastic arm for a shortstop:  just didn't seem to have the feel for it.

BTW:  Stringer:  what's the scale on the version of WAR you used?  I honestly don't like WAR right now.  Too many different version makes it seem like it's not ready for prime time.

Sano: they should have called him up in June when he had already been mashing a while and the Twins went into that collective slump. In fact I remember some discussion threads asking what Sano might even be worth in a trade. Why leave him in the minors for so long? I was one of those who wondered if there was something wrong with him. Guess there wasn't.

Rosario: didn't know enough about him. Twins Daily has really gotten me interested in minor league goings-on, however. (That, and some extra time on my hands in my "old" age.) so Rosario seemed to come from nowhere. He is a plus in the outfield, so much more valuable than Arcia. Which is good, as it frees up Arcia to be used as a DH vs righties. Rosario, if he can lay off bad pitches might be an All Star at some point.

Hicks: I always felt he was a bit of a scape goat, maybe still is, but his extended stay in AAA at the start of 2015 was well earned with all the shenanigans surrounding him. If this is the real Hicks we are seeing, wow. Although I think he's hit a little slump here now.

Escobar: goes without saying Molitor gave Santana too much rope. There shouldn't be a competition for shortstop in 2016.

I also think there could have been a few extra wins in there. Can't get them back though. We can however go into 2016 with a better shot at the postseason, provided the pitching holds up.

I feel the Santana/Escobar situation was handled correctly initially. Both coming off excellent seasons, though Santana played largely out of position. But with 2 guys for 1 spot, you have to make a decision at some point. Pure talent and potential, Santana projects better. It made sense to go with him.

Where the whole situation was NOT handled correctly was Santana probably got a little too much rope. And when the Twins did make a move, they kept yo-yoing the spot between Escobar and Nunez and a suddenly recalled Santana instead of just sticking with Escobar and letting him play himself in or out of the spot on a permanent basis.

Santana still has a lot of ability and potential, whether it be with the Twins or elsewhere. I think it would be best for him, and the Twins, if he were to get some quality AAA time, but also learn to play 2nd, and still see time in the OF. If he settles down defensively, and we can see the offensive potential come alive again, great! But if he just can't handle being an every day ML SS, then he might find a real niche as a multi-positional utility player.

The Twins being down offensively this year is certainly disappointing. But what I do like about their lineup is the fact that it works, more or less, as a whole. The total equals a greater whole than the sum of the parts.

But there is certainly the potential for more!

Would be interesting to compare the Twins scoring and overall numbers to the rest of the league as it seems scoring and offense in general are down.

I like our hitters better than Kansas City;s . The pitching ... not so much.