Why is that too bad? He's very smart. A good baseball guy. And, from what I've heard, Falvey and Levine really like what he does. 

 

 

I don't know enough to have my own opinion about Rob Antony. But I did find it interesting that Thad Levine was almost effusive in his praise of Antony during his recent interview with Aaron Gleeman. One of the things he mentioned is that he, Falvey, and Antony each have responsibility for maintaining contact and a relationship with an equal number of the front offices of other teams to have the intelligence on hand about possible trade partners. He also lauded him for pulling off the Mejia trade as interim GM.

 

I don't know enough to have my own opinion about Rob Antony. But I did find it interesting that Thad Levine was almost effusive in his praise of Antony during his recent interview with Aaron Gleeman. One of the things he mentioned is that he, Falvey, and Antony each have responsibility for maintaining contact and a relationship with an equal number of the front offices of other teams to have the intelligence on hand about possible trade partners. He also lauded him for pulling off the Mejia trade as interim GM.

As he should, that was the kind of trade this team should have been making regularly from 2011-2016.

 

Of course, the Meyer trade was... eh, not so hot.

 

As he should, that was the kind of trade this team should have been making regularly from 2011-2016.

 

Of course, the Meyer trade was... eh, not so hot.

What about Abad for Pat Light?

I'm still skeptical that Meyer will do anything except have a short, injury-riddled, inconsistent career. I have been waiting five years for him to prove me wrong. I completely understand the end of the team's patience with him.

 

Besides, the trade helped us get rid of Nolasco. What would the Twins record be in 2017 if Nolasco were still around? Nolasco+Meyer on roster < Not on roster.

Edited August 8, 20179 yr by Doomtints

 

Do all the scouts go to Sturgis also?!

 

I agree with a lot of your points about the where the organizational failings stem from, but I don't really agree that Gladden is tied into modern baseball and unless they pass by the clubhouse and broadcast booth, I'd think he has little interaction with the scouts who largely work remotely.

 

The idea that job security is going to be based on productivity and malleability instead of tenure does appear to be coming to fruition though. That's progress as far as I'm concerned, even if it's the impersonal and corporate way to do things. If you're going to win, you have to keep up with the Joneses. Mom and pop shops aren't suited to win in today's big money sports environment.

I've never heard of an organization owned by billionaires refered to as a mom and pop shop. 

 

I'm still skeptical that Meyer will do anything except have a short, injury-riddled, inconsistent career. I have been waiting five years for him to prove me wrong. I completely understand the end of the team's patience with him.

 

Besides, the trade helped us get rid of Nolasco. What would the Twins record be in 2017 if Nolasco were still around? Nolasco+Meyer on roster

I'm not sure Meyer will ever amount to anything either but Twins fans made a much bigger deal of shedding Nolasco's contract than it deserved.

 

There was absolutely nothing stopping the Twins from keeping Meyer and DFAing Nolasco at any point during this season. And it's possible, maybe even likely, that would have been the smart decision once all of this plays out.

 

I'm not sure Meyer will ever amount to anything either but Twins fans made a much bigger deal of shedding Nolasco's contract than it deserved.

 

There was absolutely nothing stopping the Twins from keeping Meyer and DFAing Nolasco at any point during this season. And it's possible, maybe even likely, that would have been the smart decision once all of this plays out.

 

I'd add that given the org's need for high ceiling close to MLB pitching, it made less sense.

 

I'm not sure Meyer will ever amount to anything either but Twins fans made a much bigger deal of shedding Nolasco's contract than it deserved.

 

There was absolutely nothing stopping the Twins from keeping Meyer and DFAing Nolasco at any point during this season. And it's possible, maybe even likely, that would have been the smart decision once all of this plays out.

 

Perhaps, we'll see.  I'm biased because I never would have traded for Meyer in the first place, nor would I have picked up Nolasco....

 

I've never heard of an organization owned by billionaires refered to as a mom and pop shop. 

 

It wasn't a reference to the income of the proprietor, it was a reference to quaintness of the familial atmosphere and adherence to doing things the way they've always been done.

It wasn't a reference to the income of the proprietor, it was a reference to quaintness of the familial atmosphere and adherence to doing things the way they've always been done.

Obviously.

FWIW, Gladden's great. He's a dinosaur with analytics, but he has some really keen in-game insights.

Almost nothing is less fun than having to fire people. It sucks. A lot. I appreciate that they took time to assess performance and other fit criteria before making off field moves. Not sure I agree they couldn't do more on the field, but that's another topic.

 

Gladden scouted. Gladden is a little old school, and likes having his action figure persona, but he knows his ****. 

 

Yeah, Gladden scouted.  20 years ago.  And he wasn't evaluating prep or even college level talent.  He was a ST scout and then an advance scout.  He was reporting on tendencies of major leaguers for the most part.  That isn't even remotely comparable to the job of an amateur scout.

 

Yeah, Gladden scouted.  20 years ago.  And he wasn't evaluating prep or even college level talent.  He was a ST scout and then an advance scout.  He was reporting on tendencies of major leaguers for the most part.  That isn't even remotely comparable to the job of an amateur scout.

I was wrong!

 

FWIW, Gladden's great. He's a dinosaur with analytics, but he has some really keen in-game insights.

 

I love Gladden too, easily my favorite Twins announcer to listen to. I appreciate his description of the game and his insights and the way he thinks along the game. On top of everything.

 

Being a dinosaur with analytics doesn't bother me, I find the use of them by announcers to be more distracting than enlightening anyways.

I have talked to many pro and amateur scouts, and I can say there is not a big variety in the quality of area scouts. Even scouts whose organizations tend to be viewed as analytical are not any better at breaking down a players strengths and weaknesses and projecting them than teams that lean more traditional. I would say that the biggest gap in the ability to evaluate talent is between major league teams and college teams, not between separate major league teams.

 

That being said, I think that Dan Gladden is right. If you love the game of baseball enough you will watch a lot and pay attention to detail, and learn from what you see. I don't know a single scout who was better at their job because of time they spent in a classroom. It is all about time spent on baseball fields.

 

 

Edited August 8, 20179 yr by Hrbowski

 

 

That being said, I think that Dan Gladden is right. If you love the game of baseball enough you will watch a lot and pay attention to detail, and learn from what you see. I don't know a single scout who was better at their job because of time they spent in a classroom. It is all about time spent on baseball fields.

 

That's kind of how I would read his comments. Are you going to be a good scout if you've never watched baseball? Of course not. But do you have to go get a degree in scouting? Hell, did you have to even be a good player to be a good scout? Of course not. Both are equally ridiculous.

 

You can start anywhere, have studied anything in school (or not gone), be any age, etc. Credentials seem to matter very little. It's pretty wide open, actually.