How much longer is the team going to continue to trot out a 35 year old catcher hitting .138?  It makes zero sense and I get that there is almost no catching talent in this organization from top to bottom, but lets start by giving Willians Astudillo a shot.  He is hitting in the minor leagues, with a career AAA average of over 300 and has hit 7 home runs this season.  He can't be any worse.  If he fails then lets give someone else a try.  

 

I have absolutely no concept why the team continues to play some of the non-entities it does.

My guess at the concept is that they value his defense and experience and feel that is a better complement as a back up to Garver.

 

I am not sure I agree but also acknowledge that I have no way to fully assess his contribution beyond his track record of poor hitting.

And while we are at it, why would the Twins organization have any interest in a player like Taylor Motter?  I get that a major league roster needs bodies, but what possible value does he serve?  Motter is a career .196 hitter in almost 400 plate appearances.  Motter was hitting .167 in Rochester.  

 

This is the best we have available in our minor league system?  

 

If you look at our AAA roster, it is pathetic.

 

Nick Buss   31 years old.  239 average  649 OBS

Chris Carter  31 years old  189 average 757 OPS

Jermaine Curtis  30 years old  200 average 605 OPS

Tyler Featherstone  28 years old  168 average  548 OPS

Taylor MOtter (now up with the big leagues)  167 average 565 OPS

James Ramsey  28 years old  240 average  572 OPS

Leonardo Regginatto  28 years old 197 average  530 OPS

Cameron Rupp  29 years old  171 average  543 OPS

Brock Strassi  28 years old  211 average 632 OPS

Kennys Vargas   27 years old  217 average   640 OPS

Bobby Wilson   35 years old  125 average  332 OPS  (NO WONDER HE WAS CALLED UP WITH SO MUCH SUCCESS).

 

Our AAA affililate has exactly 6 position players 25 years of age or younger:  Jake Cave, Nick Gordon, Zach Granite, Jimmy Kerrigan, Sean Miller, and Lamonte Wade.  (Other than Sano and Buxton).

 

The entire team has 3 players with at least a 250 batting average and 700 OPS:  Jake Cave, Willians Astudillo, and Wynston Sawyer.

 

The entire roster has one young prospect in Gordon a marginal prospect in Wade, and a fringe guy like Granite. Almost the entire roster should be released, but then they would not field a AAA team.  This is really a major problem for this team and the current FO bears a lot of responsibility for this debacle.  

 

My guess at the concept is that they value his defense and experience and feel that is a better complement as a back up to Garver.

I am not sure I agree but also acknowledge that I have no way to fully assess his contribution beyond his track record of poor hitting.

 

I think our pitchers would hit better.   

And while we are at it, why would the Twins organization have any interest in a player like Taylor Motter? I get that a major league roster needs bodies, but what possible value does he serve? Motter is a career .196 hitter in almost 400 plate appearances. Motter was hitting .167 in Rochester.

 

This is the best we have available in our minor league system?

 

If you look at our AAA roster, it is pathetic.

 

Nick Buss 31 years old. 239 average 649 OBS

Chris Carter 31 years old 189 average 757 OPS

Jermaine Curtis 30 years old 200 average 605 OPS

Tyler Featherstone 28 years old 168 average 548 OPS

Taylor MOtter (now up with the big leagues) 167 average 565 OPS

James Ramsey 28 years old 240 average 572 OPS

Leonardo Regginatto 28 years old 197 average 530 OPS

Cameron Rupp 29 years old 171 average 543 OPS

Brock Strassi 28 years old 211 average 632 OPS

Kennys Vargas 27 years old 217 average 640 OPS

Bobby Wilson 35 years old 125 average 332 OPS (NO WONDER HE WAS CALLED UP WITH SO MUCH SUCCESS).

 

Our AAA affililate has exactly 6 position players 25 years of age or younger: Jake Cave, Nick Gordon, Zach Granite, Jimmy Kerrigan, Sean Miller, and Lamonte Wade. (Other than Sano and Buxton).

 

The entire team has 3 players with at least a 250 batting average and 700 OPS: Jake Cave, Willians Astudillo, and Wynston Sawyer.

 

The entire roster has one young prospect in Gordon a marginal prospect in Wade, and a fringe guy like Granite. Almost the entire roster should be released, but then they would not field a AAA team. This is really a major problem for this team and the current FO bears a lot of responsibility for this debacle.

That’s really not unusual at AAA. AAA is for MLB replacements. Genuine prospects usually don’t spend much time there on the way up. Therefore, you wouldn’t expect to see more than 3 or maybe 4 prospects in AAA. It just so happens that most of the Twins prospects at AAA are pitchers: Gonsalves, Littell and Moya being the others in addition to Gordon and the borderline Wade. There are others there who may or may not come up and be able to help. But I generally stop calling someone a prospect if they are over 25. Like Bard, Busenitz, Slegers, et al.

Edited June 23, 20188 yr by yarnivek1972

 

That’s really not unusual at AAA. AAA is for MLB replacements. Genuine prospects usually don’t spend much time there on the way up. Therefore, you wouldn’t expect to see more than 3 or maybe 4 prospects in AAA. It just so happens that most of the Twins prospects at AAA are pitchers: Gonsalves, Littell and Moya being the others in addition to Gordon and the borderline Wade. There are others there who may or may not come up and be able to help. But I generally stop calling someone a prospect if they are over 25. Like Bard, Busenitz, Slegers, et al.

 

While I get that, our AAA roster is not filled with MLB replacements.  It has nothing.  And you can make all the excuses for the FO on this you want,  but our AAA roster is nothing but pathetic.  Their concept of how to rebuild this team is pathetic.  I get we had a fluke year last season, just like we did in 2015.  But pretending we are contenders does not make us a contender, and these pretenses has hindered our rebuild for years now.

 

Frankly, I don't care much anymore.  A team that brings up a Taylor Motter instead of Nick Gordon just does not have that much appeal.  

Motter, Wilson, LaMarre and Belisle all need to be released. Morrison is a bench bat at most. They are like cancer to the team.

Edited June 23, 20188 yr by jun

LaMarre has turned out "OK" as a signing. Petit contributed a little. Wilson was solid for the Rochester roster, and an emergency catcher of someone needed a week on the DL. But his by no means a depth solution.

 

Maybe Goodrum wanted to move on, but I thought letting him leave was a big mistake. Really disappointed the FO didn't pony up for a couple more solid AAAA guys considering the best position players in the system were AA and lower.

 

What was Rupp signed for? Wouldn't he be an improvement over Wilson?

That’s really not unusual at AAA. AAA is for MLB replacements. Genuine prospects usually don’t spend much time there on the way up. Therefore, you wouldn’t expect to see more than 3 or maybe 4 prospects in AAA. It just so happens that most of the Twins prospects at AAA are pitchers: Gonsalves, Littell and Moya being the others in addition to Gordon and the borderline Wade. There are others there who may or may not come up and be able to help. But I generally stop calling someone a prospect if they are over 25. Like Bard, Busenitz, Slegers, et al.

And yet, this hasfront office not used AAA that way. Nearly every prospect the have promoted has gone thru there. And I'm not sure this is accurate, or one of those urban myths. And if it is for MLB replacements, why aren't there any?

 

And yet, this hasfront office not used AAA that way. Nearly every prospect the have promoted has gone thru there. And I'm not sure this is accurate, or one of those urban myths. And if it is for MLB replacements, why aren't there any?

All of the MLB replacements are pitchers in AAA for us. Ryan LaMarre, Taylor Motter, and probably Robbie Grossman should be playing in AAA as potential replacements.