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Miguel Sano is Off to a Worrisome Start


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I have never been a Sano fan. I realize "if" he does hit the ball it can travel a mile. But that seems like a big "if". He strikes out far too much for the little gain you get. 40 home runs is a lot if he gets there, but is it worth all the outs he makes and the questionable defense? I know there is the worry that he will be another David Ortiz. We gave up on one and don't want to give up on another. But Sano has never shown he can be a consistent contributor. I also realize his trade value is low at this point. BUT the organization should keep their eyes open. We have many young prospects in the organization that could take over first base today and contribute at least as much as what Sano is doing.

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Since we now know what Sano is.....

K-Sano Sano will eventually have to go K-sera sera! Whatever will be, will be. I don't understand why people think he is going to change just because it is a new season. He is, what he is and he is not going to miraculously change just because the calendar flipped.

I'd like to see his bat disappear from the lineup and be replaced with someone who can hit more consistantly. At this point, LaTortuga shows more of an ability to produce than K-Sano.

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Maybe this is obvious to everyone here, but it seems like Sano and Garver, unlike Donaldson and Cruz, do not have the contact skills to be consistently taking first pitch strikes. If they want to swing for the fences, fine, but hoping that the second strike of every at bat is a meatball is too easy to pitch around.

 

Yes, when the weather warms, both of them will make more contact with the crap they see with two strikes. But the approach still limits them

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People are so damn fickle... Was anyone here paying attention to the team in 2019 when Sano looked lost at the plate throughout his first few weeks and then proceeded to hit the cover off the ball for the rest of the season? I get that strikeouts are not fun to watch, but they're honestly only slightly worse than a normal groundout or pop fly (and they're better than double plays!). While the results haven't been there yet, I still think Sano has been taking some good at-bats so far, and if he continues this approach, he's going to start connecting sooner or later. Any calls to bench him in favor of Astudillo are just plain silly.

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I freely admit that Sano can do damage at the plate, but I still feel the Twins should have tried to trade him when his stock was high -- and I'm talking about back when Molitor was still managing the team.

 

That didn't happen, so the Twins have to accept his timing issues at the plate and his other drama. Since he's here, we should all be hoping he turns things around sooner rather than later. We can all be happy he has been drama-free for a while and take that as a win. Small steps.

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Man, I don't get so much of fandom. It's not binary; there is plenty of room on team that exists between "monster hitter/star" and "release/trade him". Sano's career arc has been pretty disappointing but if he lands somewhere in the "slightly above average masher" range while playing a competent first base, there's room on this team for him under the terms of his contract.

 

We all want to see better but if he doesn't deliver, he shouldn't be kicked to the curb for it as long as he's still producing somewhere close to average MLB starter territory.

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Man, I don't get so much of fandom. It's not binary; there is plenty of room on team that exists between "monster hitter/star" and "release/trade him". Sano's career arc has been pretty disappointing but if he lands somewhere in the "slightly above average masher" range while playing a competent first base, there's room on this team for him under the terms of his contract.

 

We all want to see better but if he doesn't deliver, he shouldn't be kicked to the curb for it as long as he's still producing somewhere close to average MLB starter territory.

 

Why shouldn't the Twins treat Sano the same way they treated Vargas?

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Because he's 100x better?

 

I must have missed that. He is a worse defender and a less consistent hitter. The dinger rate is similar. Sano drives cars and lives in houses that are 100x better, I guess.

I seem to recall fans having heart attacks at the very idea of Vargas manning first base. We have someone worse over there now and we're OK with it. And heck, we don't even want to talk about it.

 

Both the Twins and the fans have inconsistencies in the treatment of Vargas and Sano.

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Last season threw a lot of hitters out of whack. Lets see how he is hitting 200 ABs into the season. He just needs consistent ABs and I bet he will be fine. I look forward to seeing a .250/.360/.570 slash line with 40 HErs in 550 ABs.

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I must have missed that. He is a worse defender and a less consistent hitter. The dinger rate is similar. Sano drives cars and lives in houses that are 100x better, I guess.

 

I seem to recall fans having heart attacks at the very idea of Vargas manning first base. We have someone worse over there now and we're OK with it. And heck, we don't even want to talk about it.

 

Both the Twins and the fans have inconsistencies in the treatment of Vargas and Sano.

Sano is a much better player.

 

On offense, Sano has a career wRC+ (probably the best single indicator of offensive output available) of 118. Vargas had a career wRC+ of 100, exactly league average.

 

On defense, it's harder to gauge because Sano has so little time at first base. He was -5 DRS last season and his UZR was pretty equally bad. It was also Miguel's first season at first. FWIW, in a microscopic sample size this season he's zeroed out (average). Vargas was decent at first, posting a +4 DRS in his career. Time will tell how that shakes out but I expect Sano to ultimately grade pretty similarly to Vargas in that regard. For a first baseman, Sano is pretty athletic and mobile enough to do okay over there.

 

As a whole, Vargas posted an fWAR of 0.9 in ~850 PAs while Sano has an fWAR of 8.8 in ~2300 PAs. That's not particularly close; Vargas is marginally above replacement level while Sano is somewhere around average MLB starter in overall value.

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Can we appreciate Sano for what he is? A guy that will have a lot of strikeouts, low average, but a lot of home runs and good OPS. That’s still a solid player. It’s almost like you guys expect him to be a hall of Famer which is unfair expectations. I remember riding back from Beloit when he was down there. I told my buddy that Rosario would be more valuable player if he stuck at 2B. Well he didn’t stick but my initial valuation was a lot closer than anyone expected. He is still a fine player but he is what he is. He will have some hot streaks and we will be glad to have him. If you are expecting Barry Bonds out there, then sorry.

 

Well...... top prospect in MLB through the minors, has a movie made about him.... hype hype hype. Of course the world then expects him to be a HOFer. And why not? He was entitled as he rose and now it is time to be what he was meant to be. I don't see it as unfair. He got every opportunity, every benefit of the doubt when it came to other distractions, and the money. I don't think it is unfair to expect him to deliver at all.

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Well...... top prospect in MLB through the minors, has a movie made about him.... hype hype hype. Of course the world then expects him to be a HOFer. And why not? He was entitled as he rose and now it is time to be what he was meant to be. I don't see it as unfair. He got every opportunity, every benefit of the doubt when it came to other distractions, and the money. I don't think it is unfair to expect him to deliver at all.

If your baseline is that a top prospect should equal HOF then you have a long life of disappointment ahead of you. I’ve watched the kid in the minors and he’s not too far off from what I thought. Granted I thought he’d be a .240-.250 hitter so that’s disappointing but 30-40 homers is about right.

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If your baseline is that a top prospect should equal HOF then you have a long life of disappointment ahead of you. I’ve watched the kid in the minors and he’s not too far off from what I thought. Granted I thought he’d be a .240-.250 hitter so that’s disappointing but 30-40 homers is about right.

 

Not my baseline. But it seems your projection. Just part of the Sano story. I don't mind disapointment, and I don't deny it, either. Makes the highs higher. When you are a great player by failing 70% of the time.... to be a baseball fan, you have to embrace a long life of disappointment.

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".... He was entitled as he rose ... "

 

Wow! not a personal attack but that is rather egregious. Miguel Sano signed a rich contract that took him from abject poverty to wealth when he was 16. Entitled is not the case, not close. The maneuvers made on him and his family by professionals and the blatant racism he faced as a young kid under the eye of MLB was atrocious. Sano had to prove his age by agreeing to various tests that proved his age. It is amazing he managed himself through those experiences and years in my thinking. 

 

Certainly, I hoped Sano could hit .275 - .300 with 30-40 homeruns and a .900 OPS and so on, but he is still at least average. I loved K. Vargas and his style but there is a demonstrable difference between them as others have pointed out quite effectively. 

 

Lastly, I mentioned last year in a comment that Miguel Sano is one of the only hitters in baseball that strikes fear as he stands in the batter's box. As a former pitcher myself, Sano is the only Twin I would say that about. Sometimes I think umpires feel the same way because in a very non-scientific judgment I cannot ever recall seeing a hitter have more balls called strikes against him than we see when Sano is at the plate.

 

Miguel has quite a way to go before he regains the fans and his long streaks of flailing are difficult for even the most faithful Twins fanatic. Still, we can relax and wait out his early season issues. Can't we?

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".... He was entitled as he rose ... "

 

Wow! not a personal attack but that is rather egregious. Miguel Sano signed a rich contract that took him from abject poverty to wealth when he was 16. Entitled is not the case, not close. The maneuvers made on him and his family by professionals and the blatant racism he faced as a young kid under the eye of MLB was atrocious. Sano had to prove his age by agreeing to various tests that proved his age. It is amazing he managed himself through those experiences and years in my thinking.

 

Certainly, I hoped Sano could hit .275 - .300 with 30-40 homeruns and a .900 OPS and so on, but he is still at least average. I loved K. Vargas and his style but there is a demonstrable difference between them as others have pointed out quite effectively.

 

Lastly, I mentioned last year in a comment that Miguel Sano is one of the only hitters in baseball that strikes fear as he stands in the batter's box. As a former pitcher myself, Sano is the only Twin I would say that about. Sometimes I think umpires feel the same way because in a very non-scientific judgment I cannot ever recall seeing a hitter have more balls called strikes against him than we see when Sano is at the plate.

 

Miguel has quite a way to go before he regains the fans and his long streaks of flailing are difficult for even the most faithful Twins fanatic. Still, we can relax and wait out his early season issues. Can't we?

Thank you!!!

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Is 5 years of NOT living up to the hype long enough to begin the doubt process? I think so.

 

He actually has been at the MLB level for 6 years. I am not a real big Sano fan but I don't think you are being fair. He was very good 3 of those 6 years with a wRC+ of 125 / 137 / 149. To put this in perspective, Rosarios best year was a wRC+ of 118. Sano is definitely not consistent but he has the ability to be a real force. I would love to see him put it together in the next month. Garver looks much more like 2019 Garver and Buxton looks like an absolute BEAST! 

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