Article: Twins Designate Oswaldo Arcia

[Kwak]

The problem isn't that Arcia was DFA'd--it's that it should have happened earlier! It was clear that Arcia has negligible value on defense. There can be no future for that type of player with the Twins given that the Twins are committed to play Sano someplace in the field. Someone else could have been signed (even Grossman!) in the off-season to provide some kind of a safety-net if one of the "planned OFers" failed.

[PseudoSABR]

Sad to see Arcia go, b/c his potential was salivating.  But I can't blame the Twins plenty of bone-headed plays and missed opportunities lead to this.  He could have cemented his job early on this year, but he blew it.  Remember how he got hot in April for a week or two; he couldn't sustain it and couldn't adjust.  

 

That said, he could still be part of the organization; though I think some other team will take a flyer on him.

[KirbyDome89]

Arcia is a flawed player. He was terrible last year, but he absolutely can play at the major league level. I'm not sure how many organizations can just throw away 30+ HR power but I know the Twins aren't in a position to do that. Its frustrating that they'll give up talent and get nothing back. Its going to be even more maddening to watch him hit homers for another team. The most infuriating part though is the fact that a 20-46 team couldn't find a way to get Arcia consistent ABs before making a final decision on him. It blows my mind. Buxton and Kepler were both sent down this year, while Sano and Santana have been hurt. Grossman was signed less than a month ago, and yet Arcia couldn't sneak in some relatively consistent playing time? To top it off you have multiple position players with options (Park, Kepler) and a handful of scrub pitchers (Boshers, Ramirez) who nobody will lose sleep over if they're gone. I don't think Arcia is going to be Ortiz 2.0, but I do think he's a talented player who shouldn't be tossed out. 

[jokin]

 

Sad to see Arcia go, b/c his potential was salivating.  But I can't blame the Twins plenty of bone-headed plays and missed opportunities lead to this.  He could have cemented his job early on this year, but he blew it.  Remember how he got hot in April for a week or two; he couldn't sustain it and couldn't adjust.  

 

That said, he could still be part of the organization; though I think some other team will take a flyer on him.

 

Arcia only started in 12 of the Twins 24 games in April.

In his first 3 games, Arcia went 0-9, so he didn't start out hot, but for the month, he had an OPS of .724 in 12 starts. which was 5th best on the team.

Arcia started 11 of 28 Twins games in May.

 

It's pretty hard to argue that Arcia got any sort of extended look. And even with irregular play, his offensive output was much better than many established regulars and some metrics indicate that he had made strides in improving his plate approach.

 

People keep bringing up Arcia's struggles vs. LHPs. In point of fact, Arcia has done extremely well against lefties relative to his career numbers against southpaws- in a small sample size, he actually significantly outperformed his 2016 numbers vs. RHPs .  .702 OPS 115 OPS+

 

As I said above, It's hard to maintain that Arcia got a fair shot as a starter and blew it. It was extremely strange roster construction on Terry Ryan's part to start the season with Arcia as a 4th or platoon OFer, as well as the # 4/5 option on the DH depth chart (Arcia DH'd one game this season). There was no way that he should have been in LF in the first place- where he had little experience, what with RF meanwhile manned by a guy who had NO OF experience- and centered by Buxton, who most of us agreed in the offseason was not going to be major league ready on April 1.

 

 

Edited June 17, 2016 by jokin

[S.]

Sadly, I'm not even surprised. This FO is such a joke, it's an insult to Twins fans that they haven't all been fired. 

[jimbo92107]

Hard to say if the Twins will eventually regret this, but it's definitely the best news for Arcia. He's simply not going to get enough playing time to hone his hit tool with the logjam in this team's outfield. I like the Valencia comparison. Arcia has talent, but he needs consistent reps at the mlb level to find his game. 

 

I hope he winds up with Oakland, Colorado, etc. Somewhere that appreciates power hitting. 

[PseudoSABR]

 

Arcia only started in 12 of the Twins 24 games in April.

So he only started half the games as a supposed bench player?  He didn't get an extended look, but he had an opportunity.  

 

Arcia might prove to be big league player, but the Twins have lots of poor fielding corner outfielders who might be able to hit.   On the dude's third option year, it shouldn't be surprise.  

 

There's lots of nails in the FO's coffin, but this probably isn't one of them.

Edited June 17, 2016 by PseudoSABR

[beckmt]

Arcia is a DH type only.  He was given chances to play the outfield and was horrible to say the least.  This is not a defense of the FO, but just a viewpoint.  He could not be trusted to hold down an outfield spot.  Park at least takes walks and I believe will adjust to be a major league DH, plus he is a decent first baseman.  Twins need players in the field to make the plays, Arcia could not and he is not Sano.   Hope Plouffe will hit enough in the next month to make himself tradeable and Sano can play third. 

Young players will make errors,  in this year they need to be played at a major league level.

[jokin]

 

So he only started half the games as a supposed bench player?  He didn't get an extended look, but he had an opportunity.  

 

Arcia might prove to be big league player, but the Twins have lots of poor fielding corner outfielders who might be able to hit.   On the dude's third option year, it shouldn't be surprise.  

 

There's lots of nails in the FO's coffin, but this probably isn't one of them.

 

Actually, he ended up starting about 40% of the Twins' games. And the only fair way for him, and best means of the Twins to both ascertain and maximize the Twins previous investment in him, as well as accentuate his potential value, was to set up the roster in such a way in ST as to give him the opportunity of an extended look.

 

Obviously, it was clear early on that was never going to happen- the OF/DH roster construction made zero sense with respect in giving Arcia any shot at a legit half-season look. Arcia got less and less playing time- and ultimately grew stale, even as other established vets and guys younger than him, all played instead of him- and mostly trotted out, day-in and day-out giving pretty awful performances themselves. At the very least, Arcia should have been inserted in the late innings to PH in just about every game, just to keep his timing and batting eye sharp- instead he got all of 4 PH opportunities, and we got to see Suzuki, Murphy, Mastro, et al, futilely flail away, instead.

 

And yes, we're in agreement... there're more than enough steel spikes in the FO coffin, already... I've certainly never been a big fan of Arcia, but like most of us, appreciated the raw power potential... and appreciated the obvious diligent effort that Arcia made in the offseason to get his career back on track. He appeared to have done everything the team asked of him in getting ready for 2016, yet there's really no evidence that the Twins reciprocated and gave him a fair chance in overcoming the setback of his nightmarish 2015 season. I wonder how that makes some of his former teammates feel, especially considering that Sano seems to have done little of what the club asked him to work on last winter.?

 

This latest gaffe was just one more glaring example of the inability of this bunch to manage, anticipate, derive and act upon value from its set of both existing as well as expiring assets.

Edited June 17, 2016 by jokin

[AlwaysinModeration]

I hate this move, because it's another example of the Twins driving a player's value down to his lowest point and then selling him / giving him away. It shouldn't need to be said, but buy high, sell low is not the way to run an organization.

 

The Twins prioritized Kintzler, Boshers, Dean, Neil Ramirez, and Grossman over Arcia.

 

Arcia must be thrilled. He will wind up playing on a team will put him in the best position to succeed. And that is, consistent ABs against RHP, either at DH or OF. The fact that most of the regular posters on here, as well as most of the other teams in the league, know this, and the Twins do not, is a huge indictment of the Twins FO and manager.

[Platoon]

And when Sano comes back? Then what. They just keep running from the Sano/Park fiasco. And Rosario is starting to tear it up in AAA. Then what. Trade him, or Kepler so they can keep Plouffe? Polanco? Sink or swim, I hope Oswaldo gets a chance somewhere to settle in, he didn't here. And I think that is an underdiscussed aspect of the team. Players see things, they see some players treated as untouchable, no matter what they do, and others rested completely differently. They notice this. It's one of two things a manager can handle. The other is putting players in a position to succeed. Then it's up to the player. Nunez at SS regularly will be the next example of this!

[Platoon]

"Arguably?" Who's your attorney? Johnny Cochran? (He's the only one off the top of my head who got clean away from defending the indefensible.)

If the player don't fit, the front office should (a)quit

[Mr. Brooks]

 

Despite the worst record in the AL, this roster is just so loaded that they just didn't have room for him!

Danny Santana, arguably one of the worst non catchers to ever carry a bat to the plate is somehow necessary to hold this team together!

And notice how Seth hedges his bets so that 5 years from now when it's obvious this was a terrible move he can play it off as just another unlucky set of circumstances for Terry.

 

On a 100+ loss team it's just sad that they couldn't commit to giving his bat a legit opportunity.

[70charger]

I'm going on record as hating this move.

 

Might it be better for Arcia? Sure, and good for him. Is it likely to be better for the Twins? Of course not, and if they had approached this situation with some common sense they wouldn't be in the position of giving away potential for nothing.

[Eephus]

http://www.startribune.com/arcia-blasts-walk-off-homer-in-ninth-to-spark-twins/377063081/

 

The recap of this game 4/26 game with Arcia hitting the gamewinning HR says it all. Arcia's got great potential and the Twin leadership (like'em or hate'em -- they are the ones making the decision) got too tired of him not following their fairly straightforward advice repeated perhaps thousands of times: Ozzie, don't swing so hard. If they felt Arcia had the ability to learn, Kelper would have been sent down or Santana would have been DFA'd. 

 

Arcia might have an impact in the MLB some day. I personally wouldn't bet on it (but I wouldn't bet very much against it either . Goin' way out on a hypothetical limb here!)

Edited June 17, 2016 by Eephus

[goulik]

If Plouffe had been traded, Sano would have been at third and Arcia would have been given a better look this year. If these had been his numbers with double or triple the playing time, then fine, time to cut bait. Unfortunately, Arcia was not given much of a chance this year to bounce back so I am upset. I love Arcias passion. I love his raw energy and emotion. Our team needs more of that. I love his home run power and what he did as a rookie. He had many flaws and I understand managements frustrations but he was so young and raw. SMH, *sigh*

[Ncgo4]

Thank goodness we kept Santana! He can field badly, just like Arcia and hit much worse and do so in many more positions. 'Cuz, he's versatile.

[Boom Boom]

I'm not a big Arcia fan... I don't think he's going to go all Big Papi.

 

I'm less of a fan of Santana, who provides bad defense wherever you put him and doesn't hit a lick. I'm also of a mind that signing Park was a big mistake, and that optioning him would be in everyone's best interests at this point.

 

On the plus side, there's one fewer player blocking Sano's permanent move to right field.

[wsnydes]

I'm far from sold on Arcia.  He may prove to go the route of a Valencia and eventually get there.  I see him as more of a platoon guy that hits a HR every so often and strikes out most of the rest of the time.  His lack of plate discipline is his undoing.  That being said, if he cleans that up he could be quite productive.  I don't see him going Ortiz on us regardless though.  I'm not going to lose sleep over him being gone, but how they even got to this point is just item on the list of reasons this FO is a clown show.

 

That being said, this timing makes little sense.  They knew Santana was coming back in a matter of days when they signed Neil Ramirez.  They simply could have not signed a guy that was waived by two teams in three weeks and let Chargois get another inning or two.  Then when Santana was ready to come back, they send Chargois down.  I wouldn't be that bothered with carrying 12 pitchers, Molitor just has to use them more efficiently.  But the best answer was to let Santana sit in Rochester for a bit while you worked out a trade for one of the big league position players.  Development to win more games later on should be the focus, not necessarily winning games now.

[mazeville]

I would like to designate the Twins' front office for assignment.

 

What a dumb, dumb, dumb, dumb decision.

 

I don't mind the Byung Ho Park signing. But I think Arcia should have been the designated hitter this season, given his power and hitting potential. I also believe that he will find another team and will absolutely rake. 

 

Neither Park nor Kepler are hitting much. And they have options. Why not send one of them down? Why not send a reliever? Why not, you know, trade Plouffe while you still can?

 

And speaking of trades, it's looking like the magic fairy dust Abad used to be lights out this year has worn off, reducing his trade value. 

 

This team and front office need to understand that this isn't about this year at all. There's no point in somehow trying to rescue the season. They need to get themselves ready for next year. 

 

Twins don't need my ticket money this year.

[wsnydes]

I'm far from sold on Arcia.  He may prove to go the route of a Valencia and eventually get there.  I see him as more of a platoon guy that hits a HR every so often and strikes out most of the rest of the time.  His lack of plate discipline is his undoing.  That being said, if he cleans that up he could be quite productive.  I don't see him going Ortiz on us regardless though.  I'm not going to lose sleep over him being gone, but how they even got to this point is just item on the list of reasons this FO is a clown show.

That being said, this timing makes little sense.  They knew Santana was coming back in a matter of days when they signed Neil Ramirez.  They simply could have not signed a guy that was waived by two teams in three weeks and let Chargois get another inning or two.  Then when Santana was ready to come back, they send Chargois down.  I wouldn't be that bothered with carrying 12 pitchers, Molitor just has to use them more efficiently.  But the best answer was to let Santana sit in Rochester for a bit while you worked out a trade for one of the big league position players.  Development to win more games later on should be the focus, not necessarily winning games now.

I'd be interested to know if TR even tried to trade him first.

[whitsbrain]

With how bad the Twins pitching staff is, you need players in the OF who can chase down all the balls hammered around.  Arcia can't do that.  Now, try to get something for Plouffe in a trade and move Sano to third.

[alarp33]

 

Danny Santana has the same dirt on Molitor that Punto had on Gardy.

 

At least Punto was good at something (defense), there's literally nothing Santana is good at other than being fairly speedy

[tobi0040]

With a roster that has Buxton, Kepler, and Escobar, Santana is not needed as a backup CF.

 

With Dozier, Escobar, and Nunez he is not needed to back up SS either.

 

So we could have hung onto the higher upside guy and cut the extremely replaceable Santana. Or send Park to AAA which it looks like he should be for a little while.

 

But the easy way to make sense of these things is to first accept that this FO has literally no idea what they are doing. Then you see these things and it makes perfect sense

[wsnydes]

 

With a roster that has Buxton, Kepler, and Escobar, Santana is not needed as a backup CF.

With Dozier, Escobar, and Nunez he is not needed to back up SS either.

So we could have hung onto the higher upside guy and cut the extremely replaceable Santana. Or send Park to AAA which it looks like he should be for a little while.

But the easy way to make sense of these things is to first accept that this FO has literally no idea what they are doing. Then you see these things and it makes perfect sense

Santana can play semi-competent defense in so many places, that's his value.  I just hope that this is a sign that TR is actually actively trying to move some of these veterans and may need a very short term stop gap player.  I'm not overly optimistic that is the approach however.  That requires too much foresight for this FO.

[mikelink45]

The problem with moves like this is not the individual player or the individual move, it is the collective confusion that every move seems to reflect.  12 pitchers - yes we have a bad pitching staff - is 12 terrible pitchers better than 11 terrible pitchers?  

 

I am so disappointed in the development of players, the swing and miss on so much potential from so many players is beyond frustrating.  

What does a Twins fan look to for the rest of the season.   It already seems so long and we have not even reached the all-star game.  And please, change the rules.   No Twin All stars this year. 

[twinssouth]

I actually agree with this decision. He's had 3 years to clean up his D/O and still hasn't done it. He may have talent but if he can't get his head screwed on right it's not going to happen. Don't you think the Twinis have tried to trade him, even for a bag of balls and no one was interested. It's possible he clears waivers and end up in Rochester.

 

I still remember couple years ago watching him for all 3 games in Tampa when things were going good for him, missing cb's by a foot (twisting his underwear in the process), try snapping the bat in half over knee, rinse and repeat, having a flyball miss his glove and hit his shoulder. He's entertaining, that's for sure.

[tobi0040]

 

Santana can play semi-competent defense in so many places, that's his value. quote]

 

There is no difference between Santana and Beresford. Or about 12 guys on waivers every day. And defensive flexibility should not be a priority now

[wsnydes]

 

Santana can play semi-competent defense in so many places, that's his value. quote]

There is no difference between Santana and Beresford. Or about 12 guys on waivers every day. And defensive flexibility should not be a priority now

I wasn't necessarily trying to say it was. Beresford or the 12 guys on waivers aren't on the 40 man, so that complicates things further (unless they did the smart thing and not claimed Ramirez).  If that happens, then you have two guys that can do the same thing on the 40 man.  That doesn't make sense either.

 

Fact of the matter is that the Park signing and a long list of other roster mismanagement led to this point.  It always goes back to the pieces of this roster puzzle not fitting.  I for one don't mind that they chose to move on from him.  I do mind how they got here.  

[TheLeviathan]

Another victim of the decision to not trade Plouffe.

 

This is just terrible asset management. Terrible.