Article: Finding Room For Arcia

[jokin]

The Twins' best defensive OF IMHO is Fuld, Hicks, Herrmann, but not by that much over Kubel, Hicks, Fuld. I don't think Herrmann's defensive "prowess" or his ability to catch are enough to keep him in the majors. I hope Arcia comes back at the end of his rehab as a more patient and disciplined hitter and also as someone who will focus on defense.

 

Amen to all of the above.....And in this instance, the bolded word is worthy of double quotation marks.... "'prowess'"....Yeesh.

[Boom Boom]

Just to clarify - I'm not against Pinto DHing per se, just against him DHing as much as he has been. There's a benefit to keeping him in the lineup when Suzuki is catching, but there's also a benefit to not having Colabello stumbling around right field.

[tobi0040]

I always love it when people forget who is managing.

 

 

Yeah, strategy and platooning. If only.

[jokin]

By that logic, why does Bruno even travel with the team then? He could just Skype all his players to watch their swings and hang out in Cali...I need to get on that plan

 

No, Bruno needs to be with the 12 guys on the current roster directly in his charge. Meanwhile, Arcia needs to be rehabbing his injury and getting his wrist back to 100% playing condition and getting his timing back at a lower level of play.

[tobi0040]

Now if only Jack Goin can just sit Gardy down and explain the statistical likelihood of being forced to bat a pitcher one time this season due to 2 catcher injuries in the same game.....is less than the likelihood of being struck by lightning....

 

And further the wear and tear on Mauer's knees for 2 innings in that situation that will never happen. I think the Twins have one math major on their staff so they can say they are not behind the times. I am guessing this person has no sway at all.

[jokin]

Just to clarify - I'm not against Pinto DHing per se, just against him DHing as much as he has been. There's a benefit to keeping him in the lineup when Suzuki is catching, but there's also a benefit to not having Colabello stumbling around right field.

 

Yep. Hence the "horns of a dilemma" for the Twins and the quandry of the "proper" playing ratios for Suzuki and Pinto. Also, don't forget that Gardy feels you can never use your 2nd catcher to pinch hit in a 2-catcher roster alignment.

[jokin]

And further the wear and tear on Mauer's knees for 2 innings in that situation that will never happen. I think the Twins have one math major on their staff so they can say they are not behind the times. I am guessing this person has no sway at all.

 

Righto....but......Barring something unprecedentedly calamitous, Mauer is never going to play at the position again. But certainly Escobar can catch for an inning or 2 should the slightly less "unprecedentedly calamitous" occur. (It still grates me on that interview that Ryan and Gardy participated in a year ago when they belittled Goin's efforts at doing his job the right way).

[Tibs]

And further the wear and tear on Mauer's knees for 2 innings in that situation that will never happen. I think the Twins have one math major on their staff so they can say they are not behind the times. I am guessing this person has no sway at all.

 

Mauer didn't miss the last month+ last year because of wear and tear on his knees.

[Brandon]

Herman is the perfect 26th man for the roster. Meaning he is good for those situations where a player gets hurt he can come up and help Pinto get more plate appearances at DH. Since Herman is not an actual solution he doesn't belong on the team for a full season. Right now everyone is producing above normal so we need to ride that out. Even Suzuki has 19 RBI in 59 AB. Arcia can spend a little time in Rochester. I would like to see him come up but with the 30+% K rate is that a good idea? It is when we need a hitter not when we are actually competitive. Willingham will be up soon too and that will cause a juggling of the lineup where Pinto will loose time and Kubel and Colabello will loose a little too. But as long as everyone has an OPS near .900 I don't see how we could bring up Arcia. Maybe when Willingham gets traded we can bring Arcia back up. or when the bat cool off. but ultimately its not a decision that has to be made until 20 day rehab assignment is over.

[cmathewson]

Yep, Joe will never catch again, not to save his knees, but primarily to save his brain. My sense is the concussion was much more serious than they let on, and they can't risk another one. As it is, I don't think he's all the way back from it. He's not seeing the ball as well as he was before it. Whether that's from residual affects or the long lay-off is anyone's guess.

 

Worst case, you lose the DH if Pinto has to catch and you pinch hit for the pitcher. With relievers coming in every inning, that's not a big deal. This is such a minor risk compared to the potential reward of having both Arcia and Pinto in the same line-up together, it should be a nonsissue.

 

But, this is Gardy. I just wish the FO would put the best roster together and tell Gardy to manage what he gets. We've seen what happens when they give him too much authority over the roster. The irony of Castro over Bartlett coming around to Bartlett over Presley is just mind boggling. The FO needs to stabilize the roster and make Gardy do the job he's paid to do.

[tobi0040]

Mauer didn't miss the last month+ last year because of wear and tear on his knees.

 

OK, so in the scenario where we have both catchers go down in the same game....we need to bake in the scenario where Mauer comes in for two innings and gets a real good shot in the head. He has almost 8,000 innings behind the plate.

[jokin]

Yep, Joe will never catch again, not to save his knees, but primarily to save his brain. My sense is the concussion was much more serious than they let on, and they can't risk another one. As it is, I don't think he's all the way back from it. He's not seeing the ball as well as he was before it. Whether that's from residual affects or the long lay-off is anyone's guess.

 

Worst case, you lose the DH if Pinto has to catch and you pinch hit for the pitcher. With relievers coming in every inning, that's not a big deal. This is such a minor risk compared to the potential reward of having both Arcia and Pinto in the same line-up together, it should be a nonsissue.

 

But, this is Gardy. I just wish the FO would put the best roster together and tell Gardy to manage what he gets. We've seen what happens when they give him too much authority over the roster. The irony of Castro over Bartlett coming around to Bartlett over Presley is just mind boggling. The FO needs to stabilize the roster and make Gardy do the job he's paid to do.

 

I am thinking that with Ryan out of the picture temporarily, that Gardy gained an inordinate measure of additional power in the decision-making process (fastest ever move to 13 pitchers and 3 catcher- comfort-zone....). While it's logical that non-baseball, former marketing intern Antony would need to defer to Gardy a little bit, the return of Ryan full-time can't come soon enough IMO- and hopefully, Ryan has been digesting daily briefings from Jack Goin during his treatment sessions and convalescence.

[Mike Sixel]

Why? Why not just put Escobar back there? Mauer is not going behind the plate. MAYBE if both catchers and the emergency catcher go down in a playoff game....

[jokin]

OK, so in the scenario where we have both catchers go down in the same game....we need to bake in the scenario where Mauer comes in for two innings and gets a real good shot in the head. He has almost 8,000 innings behind the plate.

 

Escobar has been the "emergency catcher" ever since he was acquired.

[TheDean]

Worst case, you lose the DH if Pinto has to catch and you pinch hit for the pitcher. With relievers coming in every inning, that's not a big deal. This is such a minor risk compared to the potential reward of having both Arcia and Pinto in the same line-up together, it should be a nonsissue.

 

Besides, if Arcia is up (and possibly Willingham too) in a game with Pinto at DH and Zukes at C, Pinto has to switch to catcher, and you've got 2 of Kubel/Hammer/Arcia/Colabello on the corners, that means the other two are on the bench. I dare say, those are the most potent pinch-hitting options I've seen in the last few years for our dear Twins. The advantage of this roster configuration is ridiculous. You get at least two ML-caliber at bats before you go to your pitcher. Heck, even Nunez and Fuld (or Nolasco?? ) could give you a chance for a hit late in the game.

 

The other roster configuration option is to keep a 3rd catcher, put Herrmann in, and get roughly 0 ML-caliber at bats in that slot.

[jokin]

Besides, if Arcia is up (and possibly Willingham too) in a game with Pinto at DH and Zukes at C, Pinto has to switch to catcher, and you've got 2 of Kubel/Hammer/Arcia/Colabello on the corners, that means the other two are on the bench. I dare say, those are the most potent pinch-hitting options I've seen in the last few years for our dear Twins. The advantage of this roster configuration is ridiculous. You get at least two ML-caliber at bats before you go to your pitcher. Heck, even Nunez and Fuld (or Nolasco?? ) could give you a chance for a hit late in the game.

 

The other roster configuration option is to keep a 3rd catcher, put Herrmann in, and get roughly 0 ML-caliber at bats in that slot.

 

Well-stated.

[Shane Wahl]

I definitely would give Arcia a small stretch more in AAA and then promote him while demoting Herrmann. This is dangerous because Gardenhire gets weird about playing two catchers. Suzuku is still hitting and Pinto looks like he will be a good overall hitter for the future.

 

Perhaps and ideal situation, offensively:

 

Dozier 2B

Mauer 1B

Plouffe 3B

Colabello DH

Kubel LF

Pinto C

Arcia RF

Hicks CF

Escobar SS

 

I guess they can't sub in both Florimon and Suzuki in case the odd thing happens and Suzuki gets injured late in the game and Escobar is already out. Jeez, the Twins do really need to build their roster around that bizarre possibility. Or not.

[kblack1011]

Sure Hicks needs more development time in AAA, but then who's your back up center fielder? Fuld is fine as the 4th outfielder, and can take over starting CF duties for a DL stint, but he isn't going to hold up over a month or two. His hitting is a statistical anomaly.

 

I think the bigger concern is that Hicks hitting isn't a statistical anomally. He hasn't hit above 1 season at AA, so I think it's probably best for him to work on his swing in AAA. The backup centerfield (along with the starting center fielder) has been a problem for the last 2 years. We have cut 2 outfielder that would have been better off with as backup with Hicks developing in the minors. Also still not sure why we need the 3rd catcher when if you ran into a emergency, why can't you us Mauer for a couple innings?

[Old Twins Cap]

Colabello is actually a decent 1B. And, you can't tell me Mauer would not be better than Colabello in RF. Why not put the athlete in the outfield and use Colabello at 1B?

 

Oh wait, the Twins way.

[tobi0040]

I think the bigger concern is that Hicks hitting isn't a statistical anomally. He hasn't hit above 1 season at AA, so I think it's probably best for him to work on his swing in AAA. The backup centerfield (along with the starting center fielder) has been a problem for the last 2 years. We have cut 2 outfielder that would have been better off with as backup with Hicks developing in the minors. Also still not sure why we need the 3rd catcher when if you ran into a emergency, why can't you us Mauer for a couple innings?

 

I am not convinced any CF option we have is better than even a slumping Hicks. It is my personal belief that the best thing for his development is to gain confidence at the big league level. With a .321 OBP, even while hitting .188 we can wait. Fuld's career OBP is .316, OPS of .658 is higher than Hicks .597 but Hicks can only go up from here.

[AScheib50]

Colabello is actually a decent 1B. And, you can't tell me Mauer would not be better than Colabello in RF. Why not put the athlete in the outfield and use Colabello at 1B?

 

Oh wait, the Twins way.

 

I'm on board for this idea, too. Although it would complicate the whole Mauer learning first base thing. He would take some time learning the OF, but I do like his chances of being good in RF better than Colabello's. I am pretty sure LEN 3 wrote something very similar in one of his postgame notes last week even.

[TheLeviathan]

The part that's hard for me is that I don't see any way to give Arcia playing time (realistically) that doesn't dramatically chop down on Pinto's at-bats.

[nokomismod]

Colabello is actually a decent 1B. And, you can't tell me Mauer would not be better than Colabello in RF. Why not put the athlete in the outfield and use Colabello at 1B?

I think makes a lot of sense too. I just wish this decision would have been made in the offseason so Mauer could have used the time to work on OF defense.

 

The Twins mgmt probably had no idea that they would have a logjam of decent offensive guys with power in OF that also play really bad defense. How do you get Kubes, Arcia, Willingham, and Collabello at bats when they all are best suited at DH?

[Mike Sixel]

Well, they probably also view Mauer's move to 1B as inevitable in a couple of years anyway, so why not move him to his eventual (pre-DH) position sooner rather than later (esp since there was no 1B on the 40 man that they could reasonably predict would be even close to as good as him). Can't blame them, imo, for the Mauer to 1B decision. (man, I just agreed with mgmt......sell your stocks now!)

[kblack1011]

I am not convinced any CF option we have is better than even a slumping Hicks. It is my personal belief that the best thing for his development is to gain confidence at the big league level. With a .321 OBP, even while hitting .188 we can wait. Fuld's career OBP is .316, OPS of .658 is higher than Hicks .597 but Hicks can only go up from here.

 

After watching Hicks last year, not sure if he can only go up. Fuld's lifetime line is looking like a goal for Hicks at this point. Might be easier for him to gain some confidence in the the minors.

[ericchri]

The part that's hard for me is that I don't see any way to give Arcia playing time (realistically) that doesn't dramatically chop down on Pinto's at-bats.

 

I'm struggling with this, too. Pinto's arguably been our best hitter this year, bringing a little more power than Plouffe. He needs to be in the lineup as often as possible until something happens to show he needs a break.

 

I'm wondering if Suzuki isn't playing himself into getting traded, contingent on how close we stay to contention anyway. Assuming we want to keep Arcia and Pinto because of their age, he's got the most value between:

 

Willingham

Kubel

Colabello

Suzuki

[Brock Beauchamp]

I don't see how Pinto can be taken out of the lineup at this point. The guy has done nothing but rake since hitting the Majors.

 

You let that guy just keep on keepin' on.

[kdrupp09]

It seems really foolish for the Twins FO/Gardy to even consider, let alone, attempt to have Mauer catch ANY more innings ever. He is still owed about $100 million give or take. To risk him, even if its is for 2 innings is just a large and unnecessary risk.

 

How long of a contract did the Twins sign Suzuki to? If it is only a 1 year contract, you definitely have to look to flip him for max value, similar to what the Cubs have done a couple times in the past few years.

[ashbury]

It shouldn't be that hard to figure out... just send down corner outfielder Chris Herrmann.

 

But then some pitcher might get splinters in his hand from having to bat. Won't someone please think of the pitchers?

[tobi0040]

After watching Hicks last year, not sure if he can only go up. Fuld's lifetime line is looking like a goal for Hicks at this point. Might be easier for him to gain some confidence in the the minors.

 

In any event, they are close offensively and Hicks certainly has more upside than the 32 year old Fuld. I am guessing Hicks is better defensively as well, certainly has a better arm. If we still had Pressley, maybe AAA for Hicks would make more sense.