Miguel Sano Update - Running Progression

[bean5302]

Saw a paragraph in the Star and Tribune from 2 days ago.

https://www.startribune.com/injured-twin-bailey-ober-is-back-to-pitching-again-could-make-rehab-starts-next-week/600184461/

 

Quote

Miguel Sano had surgery to repair a torn meniscus in his left knee and hasn't played since April 30. A Twins spokesman said the first baseman has "moved along in his running progression" and has also started hitting, with plans to face some live pitching next week.

I'm guessing he's on pace for a return to the team around the All Star Game. He'll probably get a 1 week rehab assignment.

[Linus]

He should get the full 20 day rehab to work on his swing. 

[chpettit19]

Will be very interesting to see how they handle him coming back. Hot Sano in the 6/7 range of the lineup could be a huge boost. Cold Sano could really hurt an already inconsistent offense. Days with Sano at 1B, Sanchez DH, and Jeffers catching would probably have me not watching the team for those days. If he gets off to a good start in his rehab stint he'll get a shot to show he's middle-of-the-season Sano and launch some bombs. If he gets off to a cold start in his rehab I hope he isn't just automatically inserted back into a full time role.

[Rosterman]

He would replace Garlick, Miranda or Kirilloff. Take a pick. Of course, Polanco will probably be back and possibly push garlick from the roster before this. Although he should be the primary DH in the end.

Does Miranda need to spend time just playing, say, third base in St. Paul.

Does Sano play first base...instead of Kirilloff, making Alex the fifth outfielder?

Where do we end up playing Arraez?

Will Sanchez and Jeffers only catch, then...and not be a DH?

What is Sano still keeps swinging at the low and outside and doesn't hit? How long can he stay in the minors? Any options left?

Garlick, Kirilloff and Miranda all have three weeks to make heir mark and prove they NEED to stay in the majors. 

 

[Doctor Gast]

Twins should start immediately working with his swing during his recovery and intensively during his rehab. Especially the short spring training Sano needs the extensive swing training. Hopefully coaches can improve his poor mechanics so he can be a good contact and low SO hitter. He should be kept in the minors until he transforms into a better hitter. It'd be sad if it does happen.

[RpR]

1 hour ago, Rosterman said:

He would replace Garlick, Miranda or Kirilloff. Take a pick. Of course, Polanco will probably be back and possibly push garlick from the roster before this. Although he should be the primary DH in the end.

Does Miranda need to spend time just playing, say, third base in St. Paul.

Does Sano play first base...instead of Kirilloff, making Alex the fifth outfielder?

Where do we end up playing Arraez?

Will Sanchez and Jeffers only catch, then...and not be a DH?

What is Sano still keeps swinging at the low and outside and doesn't hit? How long can he stay in the minors? Any options left?

Garlick, Kirilloff and Miranda all have three weeks to make heir mark and prove they NEED to stay in the majors. 

 

Garlick is batting ,262 with 6 home runs while Kirilloff, Miranda and Larnach are all heading for the Mendoza line.

If Garlick does not stay, that is proof Baldelli has head problems.

[Dave The Dastardly]

30 minutes ago, Doctor Gast said:

Twins should start immediately working with his swing during his recovery and intensively during his rehab. Especially the short spring training Sano needs the extensive swing training. Hopefully coaches can improve his poor mechanics so he can be a good contact and low SO hitter. He should be kept in the minors until he transforms into a better hitter. It'd be sad if it does happen.

Sano needs to go. The Twins have been trying to fix his batting approach and failing long enough. He needs a change of scenery and so do we.

[rwilfong86]

Send him down for a 3 month rehab assignment when he comes back ?

[stringer bell]

1 hour ago, Rosterman said:

He would replace Garlick, Miranda or Kirilloff. Take a pick. Of course, Polanco will probably be back and possibly push garlick from the roster before this. Although he should be the primary DH in the end.

Does Miranda need to spend time just playing, say, third base in St. Paul.

Does Sano play first base...instead of Kirilloff, making Alex the fifth outfielder?

Where do we end up playing Arraez?

Will Sanchez and Jeffers only catch, then...and not be a DH?

What is Sano still keeps swinging at the low and outside and doesn't hit? How long can he stay in the minors? Any options left?

Garlick, Kirilloff and Miranda all have three weeks to make heir mark and prove they NEED to stay in the majors. 

 

I think Larnach is in more jeopardy than Garlick, Miranda or Kirilloff. Further, unless Garlick stops hitting lefties, I think he is safe. A lot can happen in a month as far as roster goes. I would expect that someone will be injured by then so that there is roster room for Sano. 

[stringer bell]

1 hour ago, Doctor Gast said:

Twins should start immediately working with his swing during his recovery and intensively during his rehab. Especially the short spring training Sano needs the extensive swing training. Hopefully coaches can improve his poor mechanics so he can be a good contact and low SO hitter. He should be kept in the minors until he transforms into a better hitter. It'd be sad if it does happen.

It has been an ongoing struggle to work with Sano. He simply doesn't have great bat to ball skills. He warms and cools, but there are immense holes in his swing. I guess he is what he is.

[TeJayDubz]

4 minutes ago, stringer bell said:

He simply doesn't have great bat to ball skills. 

This is what makes his hitting issues so hard to fix. Statistically he has a great eye and rarely swings at pitches outside of the zone he just misses damn near every pitch inside the zone. 

[Original_JB]

44 minutes ago, TeJayDubz said:

This is what makes his hitting issues so hard to fix. Statistically he has a great eye and rarely swings at pitches outside of the zone he just misses damn near every pitch inside the zone. 

I wonder if anyone has straight up told him to let the bat do the work. Ever watch in bowling the guys that wind up and feel the need to chuck the ball at 25mph, forcing it down the lane with little control instead of going with a consistent, naturally fluid throw? The ball has plenty of weight/momentum to do the job. Likewise, Miguel is a big strong guy, and as such, he should be able to swing a heavier bat than most guys, while maintaining the same bat speed --- which applies more force to the ball. He doesn't 'need' to go nuts trying to murder the ball, just try to hit it squarely, and let the bat do it's job. I know it isn't easy to hit a ball, but I think focusing on driving the ball through the pitcher's face with a 'normal' swing might help him.  **yeah, I know he's been resistant to coaching** horse, water.....

[tony&rodney]

One thing is certain - Twins fans have significant opinions on whatever Sano does. Let us all hope for a miracle. Why not?

[bean5302]

1 hour ago, TeJayDubz said:

This is what makes his hitting issues so hard to fix. Statistically he has a great eye and rarely swings at pitches outside of the zone he just misses damn near every pitch inside the zone. 

I don't like relying on O-swing rates as a good indicator of a player's eye at the plate alone. Sano is a good example. Pitchers routinely throw him absolute junk. The fact Sano is able to lay off junk pitches... most of the time, isn't all that great. Sometimes pitchers stay away from the zone because the hitter is dangerous and sometimes because the hitter is going to likely give the pitcher a free strike. Sano is the latter. Almost 6% of pitches Sano see's are way low or way outside. In fact, down and down and away are hot zones for the concentration of pitches he sees. 

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/miguel-sano/12164/heat-maps?position=1B/3B&view=bat

Compare that to another batter who sees a similar number of pitches in the zone, Manny Machado. You can see Machado sees far more pitches which are just outside the zone and fewer which are way outside than Sano. Machado is a tough hitter and pitchers do not want to throw him good stuff to hit, but they can't get him to chase garbage, either. Sano's O-swing is much better than Machado's, but not because Sano is better at plate discipline, Sano just gets more junk thrown his way.

https://www.fangraphs.com/players/manny-machado/11493/heat-maps?position=3B&view=bat

 

[tarheeltwinsfan]

13 hours ago, tony&rodney said:

One thing is certain - Twins fans have significant opinions on whatever Sano does. Let us all hope for a miracle. Why not?

Fool me once, shame on Sano. Fool me 1,038  times out of 2,496, shame on me. 

[terrydactyls]

I heard an interesting audio clip on MLB Network radio on Sirius about Sano.  They were reporting that Sano was in Fort Meyers to start his rehab.  The audio clip they played came from someone in Florida reporting (sorry but I did not catch his name) and he said that rehab wasn't the primary focus because "he is just (short pause) fat."  If this is true, I think it is a pretty good indication that he doesn't have the mental drive to play major league baseball.

[East Coast Twin]

10 minutes ago, terrydactyls said:

I heard an interesting audio clip on MLB Network radio on Sirius about Sano.  They were reporting that Sano was in Fort Meyers to start his rehab.  The audio clip they played came from someone in Florida reporting (sorry but I did not catch his name) and he said that rehab wasn't the primary focus because "he is just (short pause) fat."  If this is true, I think it is a pretty good indication that he doesn't have the mental drive to play major league baseball.

The Guardian's radio announcer Tom Hamilton a few days ago ripped Sano for being "fat."  Perhaps that's what you heard.  Or perhaps there now multiple sources.

 

https://larrybrownsports.com/baseball/cleveland-announcer-tom-hamilton-miguel-sano-fat/599446

[terrydactyls]

12 minutes ago, East Coast Twin said:

The Guardian's radio announcer Tom Hamilton a few days ago ripped Sano for being "fat."  Perhaps that's what you heard.  Or perhaps there now multiple sources.

 

https://larrybrownsports.com/baseball/cleveland-announcer-tom-hamilton-miguel-sano-fat/599446

Thanks.

[CRF]

The only thing I want to know about his running progression...is when he's running to another team. We have to move on from Sano. 

[ashbury]

On 6/25/2022 at 7:09 AM, East Coast Twin said:

The Guardian's radio announcer Tom Hamilton a few days ago ripped Sano for being "fat."  Perhaps that's what you heard.  Or perhaps there now multiple sources.

 

https://larrybrownsports.com/baseball/cleveland-announcer-tom-hamilton-miguel-sano-fat/599446

Wow.  Merited or not, that's not what a professional broadcaster says on the air.  Ignorant to start with ("not hurt"), which maybe reflects that he's talking about a player on another team than his own if I'm trying to be charitable.  No reason to add the editorial broadside after that, about anyone.  It's not overtly actionable, but is at an end-of-career Kaat level of smug cluelessness (and I say that with actually a lot of appreciation of Kaat's overall body of work).

[The Mad King]

He should be on the trade block to whatever NL team needs a right handed bat. 

[Rosterman]

In the end, the Twins will do everything they can to play him in the majors and try and get a retrun on their 2022 investment. 

Sometimes, it is hard to "just let go."

 

[RpR]

Just as so many could not wait for the rookies to get here and save the day, and the turned out to be lacklustre at best, just wait until he gets back before being so judgemental.

[Irishman]

I think it would be better if Sano stay away from the Twins.   He has too many Ks.   I don’t mind if he is traded to any NL teams.  

[Major League Ready]

There is no way he is here next year so let's just move on, especially if it's true that he is badly out of shape.  Give him 20 days at AAA and hope they can trade him.  If not, release him.  I would much rather see Kirilloff or Arrez get the playing the time.

[rv78]

Time to face the piper, Sano can't be fixed. If he could, it would have happened before now. Anyone hoping for a different Sano upon his return is only fooling themselves, however I expect Rocco to make him the full-time 1B and/or DH when he returns. Which means he'll play about 4 days out of 7 just like all of the other regulars in the lineup. No Consistancy. Probably won't have to make room for him on the 40 man roster either as Buxton is heading that way soon. Probably should be there already. Not sure why they think a 50% Buxton is better than a healthy Celestino or Gordon. Both who have hit reasonably well so far this year, just don't get the chance to play every day. The team is in shambles no thanks to Rocco and his revolving door lineup. He thinks managing is going with matchups instead of playing your best players every day. So far it hasn't worked very well considering the rest they get is more important to him than playing time. Consistant playing time is a benefit in the majors too, not just the minors. Maybe all of the young players don't need to go to AAA to play every day, maybe they need to play every day with the Twins. Good luck having that happen with Rocco at the helm. 

[SanoMustGo]

2 hours ago, ashbury said:

Wow.  Merited or not, that's not what a professional broadcaster says on the air.  Ignorant to start with ("not hurt"), which maybe reflects that he's talking about a player on another team if I'm trying to be charitable.  No reason to add the editorial broadside after that, about anyone.  It's not overtly actionable, but is at an end-of-career Kaat level of smug cluelessness (and I say that with actually a lot of appreciation of Kaat's overall body of work).

Screw that, he is getting paid millions...and a professional athlete.  Perhaps he should have used words like "lack of discipline" or something.  However, I think some of Sano's problems are self-inflicted, maybe most.  But either way, Sano is a waste of talent, based on the results.

 

[mnfireman]

There have been some big-name players DFA'd this year, some by small market teams (Cain), so it is a possibility. If he is out of shape (he is supposed to be rehabbing), then it should be a no-brainer.

[Game7-91]

1 hour ago, Major League Ready said:

I would much rather see Kirilloff or Arrez get the playing the time

Amen.

Arraez cannot be part of that calculus. Barring injuries, Sano's return will cost Miranda or Larnach a 26 man spot. I too would rather see what they have with these guys, let them play. A change of scenery might help Sano, who knows. He's had a long leash here and its time to cut bait.

[Original_JB]

5 hours ago, terrydactyls said:

I heard an interesting audio clip on MLB Network radio on Sirius about Sano.  They were reporting that Sano was in Fort Meyers to start his rehab.  The audio clip they played came from someone in Florida reporting (sorry but I did not catch his name) and he said that rehab wasn't the primary focus because "he is just (short pause) fat."  If this is true, I think it is a pretty good indication that he doesn't have the mental drive to play major league baseball.

 

Well, this is when he hurt himself. How many weeks of inactivity since then? Can't be pretty. *pic from startribune.com