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Granted, you weren't born yet, but the 1970 Twins had a strong rotation, top to bottom: Jim Perry (24-12, 3.04 ERA), Jim Kaat (14-10, 3.56), Bert Blyleven (10-9, 3.18), Louis Tiant (7-3, 3.40), Bill Zepp (9-4, 3.22). Unfortunately, they ran into an Orioles team with even better pitching (and at least as good hitting) that won the World Series 4-1 over a very good Cincinnati team. That rotation was Palmer (20-10, 2.71), Cuellar (24-8, 3.48), McNally (24-9, 3.22), Hardin (6-5, 3.53) and Phoebus (5-5, 3.07). Imagine winning 20 games and having the third most wins in the rotation!

Some more Semien analysis for anybody interested:

I think Simmons is the better option depending on price

To be clear. I would like to upgrade SS defense. Semien, Profar and Hernández would do that. However, the Twins claim Royce Lewis looked great in St Paul last year, they should not sign anyone longterm that blocks Lewis.

I don’t have any interest in Profar. Hernandez is a decent option, but only if the price is right

I’m intrigued if the terms are 2 years or less. He’s no sure thing, but I like that he’s made significant strides defensively and broke out offensively in 2019. I say 2 years or less because the 2021/22 free agent class at SS is loaded. Lindor, Corey Seager, Correa, Baez, and Story are all set to test free agency.

However this shakes out it is encouraging that the FO is thinking big. Semien would be a solid addition as would Simmons or Hernandez. Any of these three noted above would provide more quality, depth and flexibility to make other moves.

Do I think that Polanco should start at SS? NO. Do I think that Polanco should be the utility? NO. Do I think that Polanco should start at 2B? Yes Do I think that the Twins should sign Semien? Dunno? I believe that the Twins are looking for a SS & they've stopped in to let Semien know that they are interested & if he would accept $xxxxxxxxx/ year, they are just kicking the tires. I believe Semien wants much more than the FO is offering. As far as FAs go I'm more interested in Hernandez because as a utility player he'll be much cheaper. He be the full time SS and is available to help out CF. He's motivated to prove that he can start full time + he has fire, which Twins need. He's also a clutch hitter w/ a lot of PS experience

I'm interested in this, but i need to have an idea how much better Semien is at SS than Polanco defensively. I KNOW Andrelton Simmons is superior, how much better is Semien than Polanco. Jorge's future with the twins or any other team that acquires him as their SS for 2021 is either at 2B or as a "super utility" with an above average bat. But with the exception of Donaldson, the Twins are distinctly "below average" on defense in the infield. This needs to improve.

I think your priorities are right Tony&Rodney. But if we have to choose between Hernandez and Profar it's clear to me that Hernandez is the much better fit. Tom Kelly always had a philosophy that he wanted his bench players to be able to play defense. Hernandez is head and shoulders better than Profar and he's very strong in areas we would need him most: CF, SS & 2B. Hernandez also has better power and an abundance of post season experience. I'd rather trade for Ketel Marte and have a "regular" player with the ability to play CF, 2B, SS & 3B (and I'll bet he could play a corner outfield as well). But Hernandez is clearly their best bet for "Super Utility." That said, I'd like to see a better defensive SS and either move Polanco to 2B and Arraez to super utility (or trade Arraez---he's in HIGH demand for good reason). OR, trade Polanco. With a $4.33 million dollar salary for 2021 and an affordable contract going forward, Polanco would have trade interest as well.

I can see him being the shortstop, but if Donaldson goes down, maybe Polanco goes back to short and Semein to 3B. I think he might be a better fit at 3B than Polanco.

I think a lot of FA will be signing 1 to 2 year deals. They may not want to but will need to settle for it. For him he will may want to sign the 1 year deal try to have another good offensive season away from Oakland and then try to get long term deal when fans can sit in seats again. This actually would bode well for Twins if they think Lewis can be long term SS. They have buy low short term deal with little risk. If he crushes they throw the QO on him get a pick, if he is ehhh they let him walk. If he is below mehh, depending on other moves they fill his spot internally.

The theme of the piece is patience - this would not be patient. The Twins of old (and several other franchises) have messed up young pitchers via the baptism by fire. Let them gain their experience in the minors - pitching wasn't the Twins' problem last year, and my guess is there will be enough this year as well without leaps of faith with the young pitchers mentioned.

No. Jorge Polanco is the shortstop. Unless... unless, there is bad news concerning his most recent injury and recovery.

The nice thing about baseball in the winter is that we can dream anything we want. Keep dreaming - I enjoyed the article.

Might there be some new year optimism sprinkled in here? I don't care, I hope this is accurate and the Twins soon have a solid 1-5 rotation for maybe the first time in my life (and I'm nearly 50).

He should either be the everyday SS or not on the roster.

Good lord I hope Cody is right....

He was MVP of Arizona Fall League. Some noise around how good he was this summer. His tool set is unmistakable, but you do make a good point - his production to date doesn't = his tools.

OP: “For reference, Hernandez has appeared at every position except for catcher and pitcher.“ Hernández actually pitched to four batters, recording one out, in one appearance against the Phillies in 2018.

I think Arraez is more stretched at SS than Polanco and is, if not a better offensive player, at least a more vital offensive player. Yes, the Twins used him at short, third and left, but I think Polanco would be better suited to a utility role.

Can someone explain what about the performance of Royce Lewis would indicate he is ready for the majors? He was good in Low A. He was mediocre in his first year at A+ with an OPS of 726. He was worse in his 2nd year of A+ with an OPS of 665. He was promoted to AA in spite of his lack luster performance. The sum total of his experience at AA is 33 games with a 649 OPS. How does this track record indicate he is ready for the majors? It makes me question if he will ever be an impact player. I still maintain hope but I want to see some sustained success at AA or above before he gets a shot for more than a couple games. Ideally, he performs the 1st half of this season. Then, they can move him to St. Paul and take advantage of our AAA team being local to get a look at him at the MLB level.

Royce Lewis may well be ready for this role this season. If so, resources can be used for other positions - SP, RP, DH, SS....

I feel more confident in the acquisitions that Falvey/Levine make, along with letting players go, than I do with the previous regime. I feel their success rate has been much higher.

Well, yes. Putting a player on the roster should be based 100% on how the front office thinks the player will perform and 0% on how the player has performed in the past.

Did you have a better baseball career than Falvey? Just curious. I guess to avoid being a "nerd," Falvey should intentionally make incorrect decisions, to show that he's above concepts like "due diligence" and "logic"?

To me there’s not much to be baffled about with this decision. The staff transformed Wisler into a one pitch wonder, and he saw immense success. The league always adjusts, and they’re probably not betting him repeating what he did in a larger sample size. For now, they’re paying lip service in case if their other options don’t work out and he’s still available later this winter. I’m more confident that the FO can identify more reclamation projects and transform other players just like Wisler. I think yearly bullpen turnover will continue to be a trend in the future. Especially with how many in game pitching changes there are, and the volatility of the position group as a whole.

yes, he's a Hall of Famer. I suspect he won't get in on the first ballot, in part because there's still a bundle of voters that haven't been purged yet that believe in not voting for guys on the first ballot unless they meet some other undefinable characteristics for being in the "inner circle". I wish he'd gotten that deserved Gold Glove for one of his seasons at 1B; that last piece of hardware would have sealed it for some voters, especially because it's one of those things that doesn't happen, guys winning a GG at 2 different positions. But the hardware is there, the batting titles are there, the MVP & all-stars...the decline was sudden, but he was still productive at 1B. It wasn't like he stopped contributing, and the 2018 season was pretty darn good. The only thing guys like Bill Dickey or Mickey Cochrane have on Joe is rings; the only thing Gabby Hartnett has on him is longevity (and Mauer's peak was definitely higher) and all of those guys are deserving Hall of Famers. Piazza was a bigger slugger, but Mauer did everything else as well if not better, making them about equal as well. Heck, Mauer was right in the same lane as the immortal Yogi Berra excepting post-season heroics. Mauer is in the same class of players as Dickey, Cochrane, Hartnett, and Piazza. That's an easy Hall of Fame player. If the rule is you don't get in unless you're Johnny Bench or Pudge Rodriguez...then you're not electing another catcher for a very long time, if ever. Mauer was fantastic by any test and should go in first ballot. I can't penalize him for not having the rings; that was a team failure. Mauer did everything that was asked of him and was a wonderful player. He even turned into a terrific clubhouse leader in his later years mentoring a young team. I'm on Team Joe, always will be.

Jaffe presents the case for anyone to understand and see - Mauer is a first ballot HOF player. Jaffe and Jaws aside, Mauer is a first ballot Hall of Fame inductee. Phenomenal athlete and baseball player, he was underrated by too many.