How Can the Twins Front Office Regain Twins Fans Favor?

[Ted Schwerzler]

Although the Minnesota Twins rode a strong month of May into the final weeks of the season before sputtering out, plenty of ire has been directed at the front office regarding the lackluster performance for a second straight year. How can the front office regain favor from fans?

 

Image courtesy of Jordan Johnson-USA TODAY Sports

There’s no denying that Minnesota Twins fans spoke with their wallets this season. Minnesota saw its lowest attendance total since 2001, and not even a now 12-year-old-Target-Field could save them from that fate. Following an 89-loss campaign in 2021, the Twins may have come in right around projection totals, but it’s hard not to see why fans wanted more.

Plenty went wrong for the 2021 Minnesota Twins, but after sending Josh Donaldson to New York and spending big on Carlos Correa, it looked like this team could compete in a division where the White Sox and Guardians were their lone competition. Derek Falvey and Thad Levine made a pitching addition in the form of Sonny Gray, but the signings of Dylan Bundy and Chris Archer should’ve never been expected to move the needle too much.

Having been hired prior to the 2017 season, fans are wanting better results from a front office that, at times, has been too cute. Although Terry Ryan and Bill Smith also wore out their welcomes, loud voices are now ringing to a tune of 2023 being a critical juncture for the duo. How the pair can be brought back into the good graces of fans likely is a multi-faceted question.

Strike Strong this Winter
It’s hardly fair to ever expect any plan to be rigid when it comes to sports. Having alternatives for when options change is a must. Minnesota displayed that last season when they initially targeted Isiah Kiner-Falefa as their shortstop until the opportunity to dump Donaldson with Correa falling in their lap became a possibility.

That said, the Twins targeted Bundy as their first signing of the offseason. Only Joe Smith and a handful of waiver claims were their answer in the bullpen. Establishing themselves with more certain options that present a much higher ceiling is a must. Minnesota used a team-record 38 pitchers this season. Plenty of the starters are young and should be expected to provide results of the pitching pipeline Falvey was brought in to create. Josh Winder, Bailey Ober, Louie Varland, Joe Ryan, and Simeon Woods Richardson are all nice pieces to round out a rotation. That should be the back half though. Kenta Maeda returns, Tyler Mahle will hopefully be healthy, Gray option should be picked up, and Chris Paddack will be here at some point late in the year. There’s no reason to add middling options to that group. Another #1 or #2 arm has to be the focus if you want a rotation taken seriously.

The bullpen is in better shape assuming Jorge Alcala and Cody Stashak can be healthy. Matt Canterino won’t be an option for a while, and although Jhoan Duran has emerged alongside Griffin Jax as success stories, they need help. Supplementing short starts with elite relievers is a route you can go, but half in on both is something we’ve seen fail.

Find a Shortstop
There’s no reason why the Twins can’t pay Correa, and there’s arguably less of one why they shouldn’t. That said, he’s going to command a boatload, and it’s probably fool’s gold to suggest he’ll get top dollar here. However, if Minnesota can make a strong offer, then a city he seems to enjoy may become more enticing.

If it’s not Correa, going half-in on a team that needs leadership and the ability to sustain winning simply won’t work. Brooks Lee would be a longshot for Opening Day, and Noah Miller can’t hit yet even though he's great in the field. Royce Lewis won’t be back until mid-summer at the earliest, and what he looks like at that point remains to be seen.

This isn’t another Kiner-Falefa or Jose Iglesias scenario. Maybe the Twins shy away from going for a long-term deal that locks down the position (although it’s been a revolving door for years) but paying handsomely for a position that will quarterback a poor defensive infield is a must.

Be Open to Change
Arguably the largest detractor for a good portion of Minnesota’s fanbase when it comes to the front office is their reliance on analytics. While data is an incredibly powerful tool when driving decisions, being so rooted in it as a finality has seemingly dug some graves.

Emilio Pagan was terrible and sank the Twins early this year. He’s shown a better ability once coming around to making changes, but Minnesota stuck with him because of stuff that could be exploited if it ever started to work out. There were also data-driven decisions behind the acquisition of Bundy, Archer, and Smith, thinking the brain trust and what they employ could unlock a higher level of performance that never showed itself.

 

Being willing to cut ties, or change direction when something isn’t working hasn’t been evident on a quicker timeline. The Twins were dreadful with runners in scoring position this season, and while the lineup wasn’t built to bash the longball like that of the Bomba Squad, little was done schematically to change run production opportunities on the fly.

Spend…Again
We saw the highest payroll in franchise history during 2022 when Minnesota dropped roughly $140 million on this club. Whether Correa returns or not, there’s going to be a ton of money to spend. While revenues will obviously have taken a hit following a lacking attendance and likely slowed renewal of season tickets, paying for premium talent is a must.

Falvey and Levine have cultivated a core of players such as Lewis, Alex Kirilloff, Trevor Larnach, Ryan, and many others. With their salaries all stymied through the arbitration process, it’s that group that should be supplemented by this regime to prove the youth is here and believed to be ready to compete.

What else do you need to see from the Twins front office to dive back in? If you’re out, where did they lose you? What have you appreciated most?

 

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[dberthia]

• Investigate why we're so injury-prone and why it takes our guys so long to recover. Then do something about it. Roll some heads if necessary.
• Dump Pagan and Kepler. Take whatever you can get for them, consider yourself lucky, and move on. I'm already assuming Sano is history.
• Stop pursuing pitching reclamation projects like Bundy, Archer, Happ, etc. The list goes on and on, in grand Twins tradition. Land one quality starter and one quality reliever instead of a slew of retreads who you can get cheap.
• Don't throw any more money at Correa for a long term deal that will hamstring us in its later years. Let him go and use that money on the pitching acquisitions mentioned above.
• Tell Rocco to watch the ball games in addition to his spreadsheets when he's making decisions.

[gunnarthor]

Honestly, I don't know how they can without becoming a new FO. The twice through the batting order thing is tiresome and stupid but the potential danger is that none of the pitching prospects they've had are showing anything. And is that because we are just in a bad development spot (it happens) or is it because the philosophy of twice through the order permeates throughout the organization so minor league pitchers aren't taught third and fourth pitches like they should be? I have no idea but I'm very worried. 

The Twins had three players this year and three players last year get even 500 plate appearances. That's a stupidly low number but also shows either a problem of philosophy - we have to rest guys more often - or a problem of training. But it means that lesser players get more at-bats then they should. Good teams should give the majority of bats to good hitters. The Twins were more like a pee-wee team, making sure everyone got at-bats. 

And at the end of the day, there isn't a lot of hope left. Even in 2014, a pretty bad year, Twins fans could see how this young group of superstars in the minors were coming along and they'd be here and we'd be better. Now, we have no real pitching in the minors (and perhaps that's not an accident but a by-product of a really bad philosophy) but even the best hitters aren't going to be difference makers. (Although I loved the Lee pick)

[LastOnePicked]

Honestly, I don't really want or expect them to spend money on free agents this offseason. I don't have even a single shred of hope for 2023, and I don't think they spend money all that wisely anyway.

If we're stuck with this FO, here's what I want from them this offseason more than anything:

1) Cut ties with past-their-prime players who are clogging the roster. No more Bundys, Caves, Pagans or Archers. Trade Kepler. Decline the Sano option. Clean house and commit to a youth movement. DO NOT lose a single promising prospect in the Rule 5 Draft when it returns.

2) Find the best damn pitching coach on the market. Offer him Correa's opt-out contract savings from Year 2 if you have to. Clarify to this person that a full-season commitment is required. Get this person excited about shaping the next 1990s Atlanta Braves-style rotation.

3) Fire bench coach Jayce Tingler and hire someone who can counter Rocco's worse tendencies and accentuate his best ones. Tingler might be a great guy, but he's got the stink of two collapsed seasons all over him now. Goodbye. See if James Rowson is interested in a reunion. Offer him Correa's opt-out contract savings from Year 3.

4) Speaking of coaching, catch up with LaTroy Hawkins and Nelson Cruz. See if they're interested in being a part of the staff in the near future.

5) Revolutionize the training and fitness aspects of the organization. I don't even know what that would look like at this point. Detachable pitching arms? Stem cells mixed into the Gatorade? Vibrating barcaloungers in the dugout? Whatever it takes to boost stamina and reduce injuries. Use whatever you should have used for a Correa extended contract in Years 4-7. Make it happen.

And finally, if I get nothing else, please let me have this.

6) Learn how to speak to actual Minnesotan human beings. No more press conferences with ridiculous corporate-speak. Learn how to see things and say things plainly. Admit failings. Promise to improve or die trying. Act like your careers here depend on sober assessments and actual results - because they should.

[SwainZag]

3 minutes ago, gunnarthor said:

 And at the end of the day, there isn't a lot of hope left. Even in 2014, a pretty bad year, Twins fans could see how this young group of superstars in the minors were coming along and they'd be here and we'd be better. Now, we have no real pitching in the minors (and perhaps that's not an accident but a by-product of a really bad philosophy) but even the best hitters aren't going to be difference makers. (Although I loved the Lee pick)

There isn't a lot of hope?  The Twins should go into next year with 1 maybe 2 players above the age of 30.  The entire core of this team is under the age of 28.  I know everyone is on the extremely pessimistic, all hope is lost, fire everyone train, but good lord. 

Injuries decimated this ball club this season.  The 2023 already looks a lot better on paper than the 2022 did coming into the season and we are months from opening day.  Call me optimistic, but IMO the pessimism has gone off the dead end around here.

[farmerguychris]

Easy fix.  Win in the post season.  If you win at least a series there, you'll buy at least another 3 years of fan support.

[gunnarthor]

21 minutes ago, SwainZag said:

There isn't a lot of hope?  The Twins should go into next year with 1 maybe 2 players above the age of 30.  The entire core of this team is under the age of 28.  I know everyone is on the extremely pessimistic, all hope is lost, fire everyone train, but good lord. 

Injuries decimated this ball club this season.  The 2023 already looks a lot better on paper than the 2022 did coming into the season and we are months from opening day.  Call me optimistic, but IMO the pessimism has gone off the dead end around here.

Every team had injuries. The Twins designed a pitching system that would ensure they needed 30 pitchers to pitch a full season. Six of those pitchers managed to top 70 innings. To blame this on injuries is nonsense. Bailey Ober on the DL didn't wreck our season, the plan of needing two dozen pitchers to create a pitching staff ruined our season. 

Re: age. First 30 isn't really the cutoff. Players are (usually) what they are by 25 and start declining by 30. There are tons of exceptions but it's probably a really bad plan to expect 29 year old Polanco to better than 28 year old Polanco. Second, the Twins are in a really ugly weird spot where they need to start relying on a bunch of young guys who aren't really that young anymore but haven't really shown much at the ML level yet - Lewis, Kiriloff, Larnich, Wallner, Jeffers, Miranda. That's not a completely useless core but a lot has to go right to be just solid. They amassed 3 WAR in 1100 PA as a group. To be fair, I think the Twins could have a top 10 offense if things broke right and still finish under .500 (similar to this year). But the pitching is the far, far bigger problem.

Lastly, I've been pretty consistent with my concerns about this FO's inability to make solid plans and their reliance on unrealistic expectations and hope v. facing reality. And I've been pretty consistent with pointing out that they failed to do the obvious when they were hired - supplement the core they inherited and extend the window of opportunity they had. The Twins are a bad team. Some of that was hidden because we play in the AL central.
 

[Brandon]

I thought the front office did a good job this last offseason minus the Rogers trade.   Clearly Cueto over Archer but that’s pushing it a little.  Archer looked good at the beginning then ran out of gas.  
 

resign Correa.  This one looks easy and should be done.  
 

 

[LastOnePicked]

1 hour ago, SwainZag said:

The 2023 already looks a lot better on paper than the 2022 did coming into the season and we are months from opening day.

Hey, have optimism and keep the faith. Good for you. But the Twins are going to be losing a 5 WAR player in just a few weeks here. Can't quite see how they're "already better" than 2022. Pessimism can be a downer, sure, but the blind optimism around here can get a little tough to swallow, too.

It's not your fault, and it's not our fault, The Twins need to learn how to silence critics and reward believers. Until then, skepticism is probably well warranted.

[SwainZag]

15 minutes ago, LastOnePicked said:

Hey, have optimism and keep the faith. Good for you. But the Twins are going to be losing a 5 WAR player in just a few weeks here. Can't quite see how they're "already better" than 2022. Pessimism can be a downer, sure, but the blind optimism around here can get a little tough to swallow, too.

It's not your fault, and it's not our fault, The Twins need to learn how to silence critics and reward believers. Until then, skepticism is probably well warranted.

Correa is not a forgone conclusion yet.  The opening day rotation looked like this: Ryan (5 career starts), Gray, Bundy, Archer, Ober.  The 2023 rotation is looking like: Ryan, Gray, Mahle, Maeda, Ober/Varland/Winder.  The bullpen is already looking better as well than what they started with.  The offense of course would take a hit if Carlos ends up signing elsewhere, but there is room for hope with a lot of young players.

Pessimism IS a downer and I believe skepticism is warranted and fair game.  But when almost every thread is about or derailed with fire the manager/front office, woe is me, Twins are dead to me etc.....it makes it hard for some people even want to come post and be around.  Even the most skeptical fan base should have some positive chatter out there.  EX: Varland throws 6 shutout innings and there are 10/1 more comments about how the manager/front office is dumb for pulling him rather than the great performance.  Just my two cents.

 

[Richie the Rally Goat]

Baldelli and his coaching staff need to emphasize the fundamentals. So too must all levels of the minor league coaching staffs. The FO needs to be working with each level on comprehensive plans to improve players’ ability to do the basics. Hold coaches accountable for failures in executing last offseason’s plans. There may need to be some changes made.

Acquire better pitching. The plan to acquire pitching failed miserably last offseason. It better be comprehensive plan and executed flawlessly this off-season.

Acquire or develop better position player depth. A lot of the challenges with staying on the field, will persist next season too. Kiriloff, Larnach, Buxton, Arraez, will all be back next year, likely Kepler and Polanco too. Need to have better options and greater flexibility when the inevitable injuries happen.

Competently backfill Correa (or keep/resign/extend him). 

[tony&rodney]

The easy answer to the question of how to get fans back at Target Field is that the Twins need to put a better product on the field. A couple of fixes include an emphasis on sound baseball grounded in the fundamentals of the game; scrap the failed "Plan" with starting pitchers in favor of decisions based on the game as it develops; and use the players in multiple ways (run, sacrifice, move runners along, tough with two strikes, etc.).

The Twins likely need to consider some changes and we have Falvey for that task. I'm ok with trading anyone. The team needs better athletes and baseball players. Target Field is a pretty fine stadium and an exciting team will draw even if they don't win 90 games. The product this year was obviously not interesting to the casual fan even when the Twins were in 1st Place. I can't say I disagree with the public's vote on the team in 2022. Hard core fans still watch. I'm watching the game now. A change is needed to bring the general public back to paying attention to the Twins.

[jkcarew]

How about producing (draft/develop) a healthy/functional, legitimate top-half-of-rotation starter. You know…the one thing that all the ‘experts’ said you’d be good at? Let’s start with one.

ONE.

[Richie the Rally Goat]

37 minutes ago, tony&rodney said:

The easy answer to the question of how to get fans back at Target Field is that the Twins need to put a better product on the field. A couple of fixes include an emphasis on sound baseball grounded in the fundamentals of the game; scrap the failed "Plan" with starting pitchers in favor of decisions based on the game as it develops; and use the players in multiple ways (run, sacrifice, move runners along, tough with two strikes, etc.).

The Twins likely need to consider some changes and we have Falvey for that task. I'm ok with trading anyone. The team needs better athletes and baseball players. Target Field is a pretty fine stadium and an exciting team will draw even if they don't win 90 games. The product this year was obviously not interesting to the casual fan even when the Twins were in 1st Place. I can't say I disagree with the public's vote on the team in 2022. Hard core fans still watch. I'm watching the game now. A change is needed to bring the general public back to paying attention to the Twins.

I don’t think “the plan” is the issue as much as having healthy and durable pitchers capable of pitching 30 starts of 6+ innings or a deep enough bullpen to overcome the deficient rotation. Coming into the season, Bundy, Archer, Gray, Ober and Ryan weren’t going to get you to 750 to 1000 innings. If you want your rotation to get you that 750+ injings, they still need to acquire 4 more arms that can do that. Right now it’s Ryan that’ll get you 150+ next year and that’s it…

[Bigfork Twins Guy]

I’d have more confidence in this FO if they would occasionally pounce instead of playing the waiting game.  They lost out on a lot of good FA pitching last year and when the music stopped there were no chairs left.

[Parfigliano]

Ditch the all analytics all the time approach.  It killed them.

Teach fundamentals like base running, hitting the cutoff man.  There are too many instances where their dumb mistakes make them look like little leaguers

[SwainZag]

44 minutes ago, Parfigliano said:

Ditch the all analytics all the time approach.  It killed them.

Teach fundamentals like base running, hitting the cutoff man.  There are too many instances where their dumb mistakes make them look like little leaguers

You can have an analytical ball club with good fundamentals, they should co-exist.

[terrydactyls]

LastOnePicked mentioned the one thing I feel is paramount for the FO to do and that is to be open with the public.  The Twins should have significant funds to spend.  So I hope they make reasonable offers to some quality free agents and, if they don't sign, explain in clear terms why they didn't.  Keep the public informed.  And don't sign anymore retreads just so they can say they tried.  If no one of quality wants to play in Minnesota, give the young guys an opportunity to be a MLB player.

[Whitey333]

This is a bad baseball team and has been for the past two seasons.  I agree with many people here regarding analytics.  It's ok to use them but we need to be able to deviate from the plan when the plan is obviously not working.  Baldelli has NO in game managing/ adjusting skills at all.  The Twins play listless boring baseball.  They must get away from the swing for the fences on every pitch, and get players who don't strikeout 30% of the time.  Too often we have seen players throw to the wrong base, not know how many outs there are,  botch things up on the bases.  It sure is convenient to blame the whole season on injuries even though most of them were later in the year.  Our pitching continues to be amongst the worst statistically in baseball.  I think many fans are tired of the 100% stick to the plan even if it means losing games.  The FO needs to be honest with the fans in whatever it is they are trying to do.  This a bad baseball team playing very bad baseball for two years.  My guess with the same FO and management philosophies in place we will only see more of the same.

[Danchat]

8 hours ago, SwainZag said:

Injuries decimated this ball club this season.  The 2023 already looks a lot better on paper than the 2022 did coming into the season and we are months from opening day. 

I just don't foresee them getting good injury luck next year. They simply have too many brittle players, too many hitters who immediately go into the tank upon suffering a minor injury and too many pitchers who already have red-flagged injury histories or are potentially suffering from the optimization that our pitching staff had them go through to get their MPH as high as possible.

2 hours ago, SwainZag said:

You can have an analytical ball club with good fundamentals, they should co-exist.

Absolutely, plenty exist right now. The Rays practically worship analytics and usually field a strong defense. I think the problem is more related to coaching and to the front office's focus on signing/drafting bat-first players and not focusing on the fundamentals in the minor leagues.

[TopTwinsFan]

I anticipate a foreboding future for the Twins. Never in 35 years of being a fan have I seen a darker future. They will always be my team, probably just need to tune out for a few more years until the overmatched, extremely uninspiring leadership of this team is gone. So jealous of the Rays and Guardians. Imagine having smart people run your baseball operation. I know its hard for us.

Still do think there is a chance we win a playoff game in the next 10-15 years though.

I think its important to understand as a Twins fan, our owners do not care much if the team wins. Its just a money making project for the Pohlad boys. Selling bad product year in and year out to people like me who are dumb enough to buy it.

 

[Blyleven2011]

What totally lost me towards the front office  was in 2021 when we were losing and losing badly and alot ,  Falvey  was in hiding and not speaking to the media ..

He sent levine in front of the cameras until the twins suddenly started playing better ball in August and September and Falvey was back in front of the cameras  ...

Falvey takes no responsibility  for losing  but wants all the glory for winning  ... 

That's my story and I'm sticking to it ...

[TopTwinsFan]

As I get older I realize we only have so many years of watching/following our favorite team. The news that Falvey and Baldi will be back is a slap in the face of fans like me. I will admit that this team ruined days for me this season. Its ridiculous but I would see Pagan blow a sure win and be pissed all day. Then repeat a day or two later. Then a few days later once more.

The Twins think Im stupid and I have been. Not anymore. Wont be going to the games (or taking my family) next year, wont be buying merchandise, may not be following them at all.

The Twins ownership/leadership couldnt care less about me as a fan, why should I care about them?

[Karbo]

If the FO wants more fans in the stands they simply need to put a better product on the field. I have been a die hard fan since they moved here, I've seen some bad teams over the years yet there always seems to be a ray of hope for "next year". This team seems a bit different. Maybe because Rocco manages like he's playing stratomatic, instead of real life baseball

For next year this team has some pieces that could be the makings of a good team. At the very least they don't need to go after a couple of retread starters with the likes of Gray, Ryan, Maeda, Mahle, Ober, Winder, Varland, and eventually Paddack. Instead they can concentrate on the pen.

They need to work something out with Correa IMO. They also need to do a better job evaluating guys with injury history.

They are going to need to do something about the catching job. With the new rules I'm concerned that Jeffers will be embarrassed  by guys stealing bases. After all our pitchers don't seem to be taught how to hold guys very well.

They need a RH hitting outfielder that can hit with some pop.

Last but not least, they need to get back to basics. Stress fundamentals the entire time in ST.

Not that big of a list, but yet it seems like alot.

[Peter]

Gotta keep Correa! If he leaves twins are d screwed. All In all it was entertaining season. Losing to Cleveland in close 1 run games  is what cost them division title. Need to add another starting pitcher. Beef up bullpen. That was major problem this year. Love the twins and will follow then through better or worse. 

[Riverbrian]

6 hours ago, TopTwinsFan said:

 

The Twins think Im stupid and I have been. Not anymore. Wont be going to the games (or taking my family) next year, wont be buying merchandise, may not be following them at all.

The Twins ownership/leadership couldnt care less about me as a fan, why should I care about them?

You are the Top Twins Fan? 

Surely whoever was in 2nd place will rise past you now. 

[TwinsDr2021]

 

15 hours ago, SwainZag said:

 The opening day rotation looked like this: Ryan (5 career starts), Gray, Bundy, Archer, Ober.  The 2023 rotation is looking like: Ryan, Gray, Mahle, Maeda, Ober/Varland/Winder.  The bullpen is already looking better as well than what they started with.  The offense of course would take a hit if Carlos ends up signing elsewhere, but there is room for hope with a lot of young players.

Pessimism IS a downer and I believe skepticism is warranted and fair game.  But when almost every thread is about or derailed with fire the manager/front office, woe is me, Twins are dead to me etc.....it makes it hard for some people even want to come post and be around.  Even the most skeptical fan base should have some positive chatter out there.  EX: Varland throws 6 shutout innings and there are 10/1 more comments about how the manager/front office is dumb for pulling him rather than the great performance.  Just my two cents.

 

I 100% agree on paper it looks much, much better, but if you dig into it it looks a little different.

First the good news Ryan shouldn't be on any innings or pitch count (I mean outside of the magical 100).

Now moving onto to Gray, he shouldn't be on a innings limit because he will be 33 next year, but he only pitched 119 and 135 the year and has made 26 and 24 starts. So you have to assume he will be hurt and miss multiple starts next year, if anybody goes into next season thinking Gray will start 30 and pitch over 150 innings you are pie in the sky crazy. (Yes, it could happen but everybody should be prepared and planned that it won't happen.

Mahle, If healthy should be on not limits, but again he is 28 and only once has made more than 25 starts and pitched over 130 innings. So that maybe seems like there are some question marks on a full season (30 starts and 180 innings) is it more than 50/50 it will happen? IDK but I am planning on not.

Ober will be 28 in July, basically been hurt every year of his career will be on some sort of innings and pitch count  again.

Winder another guy that has been hurt and will be on an inning and pitch count again.

Maeda coming back from injury and minus 11 starts in 2020 (and his rookie season of 2016) has pretty much just been a decent pitcher and I imagine will be limited in some way.

Varland will be a 25 year old rookie and there really shouldn't be a reason to limit him, they probably will, just like they did this year.

So what you are calling Pessimism is probably more realism. I hope everything goes right for each of this pitchers, but that is all it is - blind hope.

I look at these pitchers and say yes this doesn't look to bad, but there better be a back up plan for every one of these pitchers minus Ryan, and besides SWR and Cole I am not seeing that coming from the minors, so my skepticism is they bring more Bundy/Archer types in and hope the young guys force them out. (Rinse and Repeat of the last two years)

 

 

 

[mikelink45]

There is a sense of arrogance that does not play well in Minnesota.  Communicate and do so in a fan friendly and honest way.  Don't tell us about Pagan's great pitches when he can't command them or close a game.  Drop the duds - remember Colome?  We have twice gotten a closer that took us down for the first half of the season.

Fundamentals not analytics.  I don't mind information, but keep it simple.  From manager to FO we get this white wash when things go bad and that is not how we function.  Step up and take the blame, step up and hold players accountable. We do not need a Billy Martin again, but we need some of his fire.   Somehow this group of management experts just feels like they are too complacent - they might not be, but they need to show us.  Take us along as the Team grows, don't hide when Lopez comes in and turns back to a pumpkin.

[Squirrel]

6 hours ago, TopTwinsFan said:

As I get older I realize we only have so many years of watching/following our favorite team. The news that Falvey and Baldi will be back is a slap in the face of fans like me. I will admit that this team ruined days for me this season. Its ridiculous but I would see Pagan blow a sure win and be pissed all day. Then repeat a day or two later. Then a few days later once more.

The Twins think Im stupid and I have been. Not anymore. Wont be going to the games (or taking my family) next year, wont be buying merchandise, may not be following them at all.

The Twins ownership/leadership couldnt care less about me as a fan, why should I care about them?

Okay, so, to answer the question asked by the author, there is nothing this FO could do to earn back your favor?

[Squirrel]

I have a very short list:

1-Stop acquiring players that break down easily or a lot. I’ll revisit this thought if both Mahle and Paddack come back better. Which leads to …

2-Do better evaluating players you are trading for

3-actually spend on acquiring an AWESOME bp that can not only withstand the workload but can shut down the opposition and close out games. And see 2 above

4-Re-sign Correa, whatever it takes

5-Keep Urshela

okay, that last one really isn’t a deal breaker