Article: Rumor Mill Round-Up: 12/18

[Nick Nelson]

You can view the page at http://www.twinsdaily.com/content.php/2548-Twins-Rumor-Mill-Round-Up-12-17

[Otwins]

Would love to see Santana back. Seems like both sides parted ways on good terms. I have read repeatedly that players speak highly of playing for the Twins. Bartlett, Kubel, Pelfrey resigning shows this is more than just talk. This is the left hander that I want to see. I am sure he is not what he was but am also sure that he is better than some that we have.

[tobi0040]

Would love to see Santana back. Seems like both sides parted ways on good terms. I have read repeatedly that players speak highly of playing for the Twins. Bartlett, Kubel, Pelfrey resigning shows this is more than just talk. This is the left hander that I want to see. I am sure he is not what he was but am also sure that he is better than some that we have.

 

I would welcome a minor league deal with Johan. It is tough to expect a viable comeback, but would be a very low cost move. If the worst thing that can happen is you pay him a few hundred thousand dollars to be around and mentor guys like !Meyer and Gibson it seems like that would not be the end of the world .

 

I hope nothing comes of this mark reynolds chatter. That guy is a total hack

[orangevening]

How about Matty G.? It's still on the reunion theme

[Brandon]

I am surprised there isn't any Michael Young chatter. His main goal is playing time so he wouldn't be expensive or require a long term commitment. He doesn't strike out but 15-16% of the time or half the team rate of last year. Hits for solid average good for hit and run, plays multiple positions though not a great defender.

[cmathewson]

Reynolds makes no sense. If they want another 3B option, Chavez makes more sense. But my understanding is they want to give Plouffe every opportunity to put up or shut up. Reynolds complicates that.

[Winston Smith]

Reynolds might improve team speed and his K rate would fit in! From the piranhas to the whales.

[jmlease1]

A minor league deal on Santana seems about right and it wouldn't be a bad fit. Let him get rehabbed without pressure and see if he has anything left. I'd think he'd be a good guy to have around as a role model for younger pitchers, especially those needing to learn how to throw a change-up. It wouldn't hurt the team's reputation around the league either, looking out for someone who was one of their guys.

 

I'm not interested in any of the other pitching options at this point, since it looks like Garza isn't an option. I'd rather go with Gibson/Deduno/Diamond for a 5th starter and see if any of them are viable options after this season.

 

If the Twins are going to spend some more real money this off-season (and they still should have some money to spend) I'd much rather see them get another bat; the offense still has a lot of "ifs" in it, outside of Mauer: can Willingham get and stay healthy, was Dozier's second half for real, can Arcia avoid a sophomore slump and cut down the Ks, how far will Pinto drop back when his BABIP goes down to a sustainable rate, can Hicks be an acceptable MLB hitter, can Plouffe show some consistency...I mean, that's a LOT of questions for the offense. Reminds me of the pitching staff going into last season where there was some opportunity, but the only certainty was Perkins in the bullpen.

 

I like Suzuki as a catching option. Either him or Buck would be reasonable backups for Pinto and would be good bench options.

 

Here's a question: with the Twins investing heavily in starting pitching that should (should!) give them significantly more innings from their rotation this season...will they finally go away from a 12-man staff and put together a bench with more options? Because if the starters perform as expected, you shouldn't need more than a 6 man bullpen: closer, 2 setup men, 2 middle relievers, 1 long man. Hopefully your middle guys have enough juice to occasionally set things up and/or go 2-3 innings on occasion...but you're not going to pitch that extra guy if your starters are throwing reasonably well more than 1-2 times a month otherwise. So hopefully that creates room for a platoon?

[Thrylos]

How about Matty G.? It's still on the reunion theme

 

LEN3 has a bunch of stuff on him today. Here.

[ashbury]

The item on MLBTR about Santana doesn't discuss contract terms. It worries me if they are thinking about a guaranteed major league contract. A minor league deal, as mentioned here, would of course be fine. And if some other team wants to snatch him away by guaranteeing a contract, well, good for them I guess. Maybe the Astros, who originally signed him, would like to offer him a chance to end his career where he started.

[Nick Nelson]

I think the odds of anyone giving Santana a guaranteed MLB contract at this point are extremely slim. He's an enormous long shot.

[Halsey Hall]

I'd welcome Santana back in a heartbeat! He most likely never plays again in the majors, but could really help the younger pitchers. For the cost, even helping one improve would be worth the money.

 

I don't care who they get to play 3rd base. I watch any hack there over Plouffe, I've seen enough. With him you gt what you've seen and that's very little.

[nicksaviking]

The item on MLBTR about Santana doesn't discuss contract terms. It worries me if they are thinking about a guaranteed major league contract. A minor league deal, as mentioned here, would of course be fine. And if some other team wants to snatch him away by guaranteeing a contract, well, good for them I guess. Maybe the Astros, who originally signed him, would like to offer him a chance to end his career where he started.

 

I'd like to take a chance on Santana, but this is the rub. It was reported earlier that Santana was going to have an audition for teams in January hoping to generate interest in a MLB contract. If he signed a minor league deal prior to that, it clearly means he knows his throwing session will not be up to snuff which of course does not bode well for his chances of recovery.

[BigTrane]

According to MLBTR, Twins *were* in on the deal on Chavez (no link, just look for the interesting Juan Rincon story). Very interesting, on both counts. Sign Suzuki!