Leaderboard

If you have to trade Polanco in order to afford Correa. You could never afford Correa in the first place.

Ace is so subjective. Does he have #2 starter potential? Yes. That is why the Twins gambled on him in the first place. Think big picture folks: He regains his pre surgery form, the Twins extend him for a year or two at a reasonable cost. He could be a mainstay in the rotation for a while. He dominates and the Twins have a young, pitcher in the fold they can try to keep or move for other capital. This is the type of lottery ticket a team like the Twins will always chase.

Games in September that Matter is my barometer. We had games that mattered in September last year. We failed at those games but they mattered. I'm OK... And I have the same goal for next year. You have to find the door in order to knock on it. One of these years it will open.

Is he an ACE? Not by my definition, but there are only a half dozen or so who are. Is he the Twins best pitcher, maybe? Probably? Doesn't mean he is my opening day starter. That job goes to Sonny Gray. Why? I want Gray matched up with the other team's top pitcher. Then have Mahle going in the #2 slot where he should be as good or better than most team's #2. Advantage Twins. Give me the advantage in game 2 and game 3 and they will win a lot of series, even in the playoffs. And they will do that without paying +$20M to some aging name we all recognize. As for an extension. Let's see how he is pitching come spring training. If all it good, you betcha. Count me among those who believe last winter's lockout and shortened spring training had a major effect on the health of many players...Mahle may have been one of them.

It is hard to call it a conundrum when the entirety of the the OF consists of unproven youth, AAAA players, a lower end starting OF (Kepler) and Mr. Injury himself. Hopefully one of the younger guys will take a huge step this year to spread out the pack.

Not by my definition, but he's possibly the best pitcher on this team's staff. A staff ace, if you will. That's dependent on which Joe Ryan shows up though; Pre-covid or post-covid. Getting a full season of pre-covid Ryan probably gives him that title. All that said, a healthy Mahle is a definite boost to the rotation.

I agree and I think the trade was a good gamble. There are no guarantees in trades and what we gave up was never going to be enough to get someone without risk. To me, this is the kind of thing that mid-market teams do to try to improve. I supported the trade then and I still support it now.

That makes the roster crowded, doesn’t it? When you need 8 players to fill 162 instead of 3

I think the term "ace" is used too much, and isn't something the Twins should be concerned about finding. I think they should concern themselves with finding 4 guys good enough to start playoff games. So to me the question is if Mahle (in this case) is good enough to start a playoff game if he's healthy. To me the answer is "yes." If the Twins were to run Mahle out there in a playoff game I'd go into that game feeling like they have a shot to win. And to me that's what matters.

I will be honest folks. I probably enjoy the offseason as much as I do the regular season. So much optimism and hope, so many possibilities. What move might the Twins make? Who will improve? What else is happening around the league? That leads me to my question: What matters to you more: the ride or the results? Lets get this out of the way first. We all want the Twins to win the World Series. But do you consider the season a loss if the Twins don't win it all? Was last year a success for the Twins in your eyes? Can you enjoy the ride for what it is or was? On the other side, can you enjoy the year even if you know the Twins are going to be terrible? Can you enjoy the forest through the trees, looking for individual wins or gains here and there? Or do you shut it down and only pay small attention to a team that has no chance of winning? For me, it is always about the ride. I am curious as to where you stand and why?

Were you watching the same Twins games I watched last year? Larnach had 9 defensive runs saved above average in just 331 innings, and within a few weeks he had a handful of assists, so teams all-but gave up running on him.

I don't see the conundrum in the numbers. I see the conundrum in health and young performance. Contreras, Celestino, and Garlick are easily replaced and aren't providing any conundrum. Kepler is a serviceable vet who shouldn't be stopping any moves from happening. The conundrum is not knowing what you have in Larnach, Kirilloff, Wallner, or Gordon. There's hope that any number of those 4 could step up and become everyday regulars on a major league team. None of them, not even Gordon, has actually established that they truly are everyday regulars on a major league team. To me Gordon is best served as a utility guy. Kirilloff ideally becomes your everyday 1B (Arraez would be a DH/1B/2B/3B utility guy against RHP for me). Hopefully Larnach can claim a corner, but he'll need to put together more than 1 healthy month in a season before I trust him. Wallner needs way more success in the majors before I'm concerned about him as part of a conundrum. We get a lot of these discussions. "The Twins have too many "X type players" and it's a problem." I don't think any team with back to back losing seasons has enough of any type of player. Having 8 guys who can play a corner outfield spot isn't a problem unless 4 (3 isn't a problem cuz of the DH spot) of them are worthy of being penned in as a starter during the offseason. The Twins don't have any guys currently on the roster that we should look at and say "that's the guy in LF (or RF)." Hope for health, young players stepping up, and the shift ban "fixing" Kepler isn't a conundrum. If you don't have 3+ guys at the corner outfield positions that you'd be willing to hand a contract extension today you don't have a corner outfield conundrum. Anyone see 3+ guys they trust enough to extend today for the corner outfield spots?

The ride AND the results. 12 months, 365 days, 8760 hours, 525,600 minutes...24/7, the whole enchilada. I think about the season, and what the FO is gonna do, all the time. Can't get enough. I want another WS title before the good Lord takes me.

At the moment, Gordon is our must trustworthy OF player. He got his chance, made the most of it, and has earned the right to plenty of innings - certainly over Celestino and others. Gordon can hit plenty decently for average and with some pop, plus he’s strong defensively with range, glove and arm. He’s also a catalyst with his energy and speed. There is also no reason to expect Gordon has plateaued - he still has plenty of room to improve if he stays focused, disciplined and committed to being the best pro he can be. At worst, he’s the fourth OF playing 4-5 times a week (3 of those in CF spelling BB). At best, he’s an everyday starter at a corner position and Center when BB is DHing, resting, or injured. He could be a real gem….

This is not as glamorous a list as the title would imply. Let's see Buxton got in 92 games - only 58 in CF the rest DH. Larnach had 51 games - 13 of the DH or PH. 33 LF 11 RF. Kiriloff got in 45 games, 5 DH or PH. 18 at 1B and 28 in the OF. Add up the games in the OF for all three - 120 games in the OF - we did not even get a full season from the three combined. Garlick and Contreras are not starting quality. Wallner had a late season call up and had 16 games in the OF - still not a full season. Gordon had 140 OF games - more than all the prospects and star had combined. Celestino had 141 OF games. So we have Gordon in LF, Celestino in CF, Kiriloff, Wallner, Larnach, Buxton filling the third OF position and Contreras and Garlick on the bench. Not really crowded. We need to revisit this article next September.

No. There are not many true Aces - and Mahle has to be healthy and he has to perform before we can make any assessment of where he is in a rotation let alone in judging him for ACE status.

I don't know about an ace. Of the Twins pitchers that will be free agents after the 2023 season. He is the one I'd put a qualifying offer on. So maybe I'd call him the staff ace. Seems like a prime spring training extension candidate.

MLB Trade Rumors just posted a lengthy article indicating the Mariners want a left handed hitting 2nd baseman and that the FA market is pretty naked. I like Polanco, and perhaps we would be selling low after a down year, but the guy should fetch a very healthy return on a reasonable contract. Hopefully that return would be excellent, and it would also open a spot for Julien and, after recovery, someone like Lewis is we sign a FA SS like Correa. Thoughts? Any juicy targets in the Mariners system we could expect in return? BTV has him set at 19.9, which is probably low for the former All Star who has the bonus of being a switch hitter....

I initially laughed at this until I realized you were correct...then I started crying...

I realize you're kidding here. I've been a Paddack fan for a while now. After his rookie season there was talk of him possibly being one. Him Being healthy for 2024 I wouldn't discount. He was good to really good before the last two seasons on elbow trouble. He could surprise all the Rogers trade haters...

The Reds really pitched Mahle at a blistering pace, to showcase him. Twins bought into it. It was unrealistic for the Twins to expect Mahle to continue that pace especially coming down with shouder problems. Hopefully Mahle will be 100% & the Twins will manage him properly. If so he can pitch close to 200 innings & have at least a 3.50 ERA. That's good enough to be our #1. A full ST will also help.

ACE...no. Possibly the #1 and best starter on the Twins staff? Very possibly. Per everything I've heard and from Mahle himself, no injury, and nothing found in 2 separate MRI's. Mahle believes he threw too much after the lockout and short ST and just tried to do too much. His arm just as strong as normal and got worn out. Not so sure that didn't happen to more than a fee guys across baseball last year. Thankfully, we finally appear to have a normal offseason and ST. His ERA outside Cincinnati is a good half run less, and I believe most of his peripherals are better as well. (Been a while since I last looked at them all). I like that he's under 30yo. Healthy and ready to go, he's ar the perfect age where stuff and experience come together. I like Gray and Ryan a lot. I would love to see 26-30 GS from Ober because I think he would really surprise. And I just can't bring myself to doubt Maeda. But I think Mahle is going to be our best SP in 2023.

Almost none of them were viewed as studs outside Twins' land...... I don't understand why we conflate pre-this FO with the current FO. They have Ryan who they have for his entire time in the majors. They likely have Ober and Varland and SWR. Are any of those aces? Not likely, but they might be near Berrios level at times. That doesn't count Winder (who most outsiders viewed as a good RP most likely). It doesn't count Enlow (injuries happen). They have passed on pitchers in round one most of the time. I don't love that, but it tends to make it harder to develop aces (not impossible).

That's a good way of framing it, and the last two years are poster children for this notion. Horrible start in 2021 and then played .500 for the last two-thirds of the season, finishing with 73 wins. Good start in 2022 and actually played under .500 for the last two-thirds of the season, but finished with 78 wins. Yet, following the 2022 Twins was WAY more than just five wins more enjoyable than 2021, because in 2022 it wasn't until about Sept. 10 that I felt like we no longer had a shot. In 2021, it felt like drudgery from early May to the end of the year. Success in the playoffs is bonus (and don't get me wrong, it's a HUGE bonus -- every October I remember those 1987/91/Game 163 feelings), but my overall enjoyment of baseball comes from the sustained nature of a regular season that leads to September nail-biters.

I like following them all year long. I love Spring for the hope that it brings and to see how the off-season acquisitions fit in. I love the core of the season for the pure enjoyment of baseball. Win or lose I get enjoyment out of each and every game. I love fall baseball as races heat up and scoreboard watching takes place even if the Twins are out of it. If the Twins are out of the race, I still enjoy seeing the fall call-ups perform and assess, in my mind, how they may pan out next season. I love this time of year also as I wait daily for news of new acquisitions to get me excited for next season. I guess overall, I am a baseball-lover an hopelessly dedicated to this game.

I agree that "ace" is too subjective. Some people define it as "Cy Young contender", others as "legit #1 starter", and others might define it as "guy you want starting game 1 of a playoff series". I look at Mahle and see a pitcher that reminds me a little of Brad Radke in terms of production. (they're different pitchers, of course; Mahle gets a lot more Ks, Radke walked way fewer, etc) But he fits that mold to me in terms of the results you might get. That's not a bad thing. Let's hope Mahle is healthy. If he is, I think he's going to have a very good season. I certainly wouldn't complain about him starting game 1 of a series, to be sure.

Every single team can list 8 names on a corner OF depth chart and call it a conundrum by these standards. Not many teams CAN'T list at least one name in the corner with a recent track record of above average performance. We got Gordon... so we escape that "at least one name" thing. So trade off the excess... We got Gordon.

I've always felt having a quality catcher, or two, is very important, and an under rated position over the years for reasons I've never understood. Maybe it's because for so many decades they were defense first players and only a few were ever good/great offensively. Much like SS until the position was almost re-inveted in the 90's. But the #1 job for any catcher has been to handle the pitching the staff! That includes calling the game, even though the dugout has some say, communicating with the pitcher to keep them calm, listen to them, recognize what is working, making adjustments, providing a good target, etc. Jeffers does this part quite well. Does Jeffers throw out a lot of baserunning? No. He was right about league average in 2021, his only full season. He was not as good in the abbreviated 2020 or his sort season in 2022. And the Twins, as an organization, concentrate more on catching the low strikes with their catcher stance, vs defending the SB. That might not help. Does Sanchez have a gun? Yes. But despite reported defensive improvement, he still didn't do all the other things as well as Jeffers. RALLY GOAT has already laid out the various statistics regarding SB and runs scored and other notable numbers. And while defensive statistics are always a mixed bag to interpret, especially for catchers, it's been pointed out in previous OP's that the Twins ERA was better with Jeffers behind the plate than Sanchez last season. And BTW, where did this whole pitch framing idea become about "stealing" strikes? I'm sure it happens. But pitch framing is about exactly that; framing those "edge" pitches securely for a good look from the ump vs snatching/grabbing at them, in order to have a close strike called as a strike. When did that become "stealing" strikes? All of this to say I've watched Jeffers A LOT since he came up. He's lacking in a few area I'd like to see cleaned up and improved on, but I like what he does behind the plate, how he handles the staff, the general results from the staff when he's receiving, and feel he's at least "quality", if not good behind the dish. And nothing in my personal opinion is going to change anyone's mind. And that OK. We can agree to disagree. The biggest issue with Jeffers, IMO, has been his offense. I never bought in to the 2021 Twins having this league best catching idea, though I liked Garver a lot, (very similar to Jeffers in many respects), as I wasn't sure the rushed Jeffers, and his 2020 numbers, was sustainable. You have to remember, he was drafted in 2018 and appeared in 64 games. In 2019, his first full season, he appeared in 103 games split between A+ and AA. And YES, just like in college, he hit and produced. So as a 23yo, with 24 games played at the AA level, he was up with the Twins in 2020 sharing catching duties with Garver. And he produced in his SSS of 26 games. His 2021 wasn't good at the plate, despite 25 XBH. His 2022 got off to a poor start, but as previously listed above in a previous post, he was starting to shine and getting on a roll before the broken thumb basically finished his year. At 25yo, and a quality hitter/producer in college, his first couple of milb seasons, his debut in 2020, and his hot streaks before being hurt last year, I'm just not giving up on him at this point. I don't know how good he might yet be, but I do know there's still a lot of potential there. But regardless, he needs help. And unless the Twins are going to make a major FA or trade move...and there are other spots that I think need to be addressed as a greater priority...Narvaez is an ideal candidate to add. He's a decent, sold LH hitter and experienced backstop who helps make a nice combination for game calling and pitcher handling. I believe he should have already been signed. The whole 1 in the hand vs 2 in the bush scenario. After adding SOMEONE, the "desperation" in regard to catching is "what's next"? The FO has never ignored catching, drafting a few and acquiring a few, but Banuelos can't hit. Williams and Isola have bats, and potential, but appear to be #3 options at best, and probably #4. Camargo has a shot, but I believe is only going to be entering AAA for the first time in 2023. The rest of the Twins options were all drafted in 2021 and 2022. Five of them, and while there's talent and projection there, they're all 2-3yrs away. They should have already signed Narvaez, and then been knocking on Leon's door. "Hello, did you enjoy being in the Twins organization last year? Would you like to sign a split deal and be with us in 2023 as you were with Cleveland last year? We'd love to have you!" And if not Leon, then someone similar. I want a good catcher at St Paul to work with the pitchers and not have to feel FORCED to trust in Bechtold, Williams, or Isola if injury hits.

If not next year or two years, then why worry about Jeffers relative to automated strike zone? Jeffers likely won’t be a Twin in 4 years anyways. Unless you have Joe Mauer generational talent, you churn and burn catchers like relievers. Too many injuries

Sign Contreras and Narvaez and you have the R/L covered, and trade Jeffers or, if options left, have him for depth. That is what he should be. Depth, He has had many years to mature and he is just getting worse at the plate.

ROY candidates typically come from having the opportunity to play. If SWR or Varland are in the rotation coming out of camp it would be somewhat surprising. Wallner is probably lower on the depth chart than we think. The other two are not realistic at this point (Lewis with his injury). Injuries or an organizational direction change will be needed for the Twins to have a ROY candidate...

Must take exception to your comment that Jeffers is a strong defender. Yes, he has a reputation for framing, which hopefully goes away in the next year or two with some type of robo ump or challenge system. The catcher I have seen behind the plate is bad at blocking balls and terrible at throwing out anybody. Yes, the pitchers often are as much to blame about steals, but his record last year was bad. To answer your question, catching is the biggest problem the Twins have, HUGE! They need a new starter, who preferably swings from the left side. Someone who will play about 90 games a year with Jeffers at 70, MAX. They also need a third guy. Could be someone like Leon who is at St. Paul on a minor league deal. Ideally, this is an older vet who is fantastic working with the young pitchers who are one step away. And finally, they need a third guy. Some guy at AA who is a solid prospect and could/should be ready by 2024.

IMHO, the Twins would be better off sticking with what they have. Why go out and get an oft injured pitcher that up to this point in his career hasn't shown much more than #3 starter quality? Just taking innings away from the youngsters that may or may not prove to be just as good, if not better, for a fraction of the cost.

Thanks man, much appreciated! Glad you enjoyed the video. Polanco really seems like the low-hanging fruit this winter if anyone is moved, but only if there's a set plan for 2B. As one of the new faces of the team, an extension for the inexpensive Arraez seems more likely than a trade. According to Do-Hyoung Park, he's been working on his conditioning with Nelly Cruz, has already lost 11 pounds, and his knees are doing well. Reason for optimism! Source: https://www.mlb.com/news/former-twins-give-back-to-luis-arraez-jose-miranda

Who cares about TwinsFest? What I want to know is ... will there be a MeltDown this year??? ? I need a new pint glass! @John Bonnes, well?

As posted by many he is not an ace , an above average pitcher maybe ... He was 3-12 in 2019 , he was 13-6 in 2021 with 180 innings pitched , his most in any season , a 500 record to date and a career Era of over 4 ... It's a shame the goal of 20 wins a season by a pitcher is not attainable by most pitchers ... A bulldog , stud or consistent ace he is not ... A good pitcher when healthy , can't wait to see the big red machine become winners again with the trades from twins and Seattle ...

I mean, they don't need to live here in the offseason...

I do not recall him having surgery. Everything I heard was that the Twins never really did identify what was causing his arm issues. If I am mistaken, please correct me and send a link to an article on his surgery if you can. As for being an ace, I think he has the potential to be OUR ace but not a true ace in terms of baseball overall. I rank him as a #2 if healthy (similar to Barrieos) and think we have a bunch of #2 & #3 pitchers now and I am happy with that. Sometimes depth is better than say a clear ace and a bunch of #4 & #5 pitchers.

Isn't our break glass in emergency guy now Farmer? That also is a plus in that they do not have to send him down when not functioning as a catcher.

Possibly. But considering the recent run of pitcher acquisitions, there is probably 100% chance the Ty is gonna need shoulder surgery come early May. Feels like the new Twins Way.

The Twins are not alone in trying to get top end pitching talent. Many teams have tried time and again. Some go the route the Twins do and get lottery ticket guys that pay off for the year, others go big on FA and hit, but that is rare as well. I am not excusing the Twins of lack of pitching talent, but it is not like every team is marching out great talents every year. Honestly, the way the team manages the starters, I do not know what they would do if they had a real shut down ace anyways. Hopefully, one day we can find out though. However, I do wish people would stop acting like every pitcher out there we do not sign or trade for is so amazing. Remember all year people called for us trading for Montes. How did that work out for Yankees? He put up some of the worst numbers of his career. People were upset we traded away Berrios and not signed him to long term deal. How did that end up for Toronto? A negative WAR and one of worst seasons of his career. Maybe he bounces back but he would have been one of worst in our rotation. Many other FA did not live up to expectations over the years too. My point is, a lot of things need to work together to have a top pitcher, and they do not come around all the time.

Fortunately, injuries are seldom an issue for the Twins.

The Twins are jointly owned by brothers Jim, Bill, and Bob. Jim has been the managing partner of the Twins, while Bill is better known for working in the movie industry, and Bob seems to have concentrated on overseeing the family's other holdings. They seem to own some things individually and other things (such as the Twins) jointly. I'm sure this is a vast simplification of their approaches to the various businesses. Joe is Bob's son. I doubt very much that he can summarily decide to spend in a way that doesn't show a profit. Nothing in the announcements seemed to indicate a change in ownership share either. I don't think I've ever seen mention of whether the offspring of Carl's three children have some kind of official stake; that may come down simply to the respective will when the three pass away, and if they have unequal numbers of offspring then things may eventually become uneven. For the present, an owner's son now has a highly responsible job in the organization.

We need a catcher. Let's face it...Jeffers isn't the guy. He's average at best defensively, and he can't hit.

with the new rules on the pitchers, I see base runners will be running a lot more that'll put a lot of stress on Jeffers. Plus not having a strong arm, Jeffers will have a lot of problems. Narvaez is an ideal platoon, we need to focus on getting him to set our floor. If we sign Correa we have our tandem if we don't, we can pivot & sign Contreras. If we sign Contreras, we can trade Jeffers. PIT has 2 very promising catching prospects, Davis which has been PIT top prospect for a little while and up coming switch hitting E Rodriguez. Rodriguez last season has shown that he has all the tools to be a very good catcher. IMO PIT could be thinking about competing this year, so they might consider an upgrade at catcher & maybe willing to let Rodriguez go. If so that could solve our catching problem for a very long time.

Matt, after reading your take, I am looking out my window right now.... Eight inches of snow. Drifted over sidewalks and driveways that I spent two hours shoveling yesterday. The winds are 20-30 mph, with occasional higher gusts. Wind-chill right around zero. There is no sun, and if there were, it would come up at 8:00 and go down at 4:30 p.m., meaning, there isn't a chance of seeing the light of day in a non-work moment. Tell me again why the Twins could or should sign an elite baseball pitcher to bring their family to this God-forsaken land? Wouldn't Carlos Rodon prefer to hang out in Los Angeles, maybe hit the beach by 10:00 am., ice-cream on the boardwalk, those barely dressed sexy young things zipping by on roller blades -- not a cloud in the sky, and all the glitz and glamor of California that make Carlos believe that with his talent, he should be priced like an epic piece of Christian Dior jewelry, dangling between the open front of that babe's prodigious tank top.

I hope Ryan is a stud. But the Twins can't sign every young pitcher to an extension or they will end up with a roster of Dobnak's. If waiting a year or two costs the Twins money, it means Ryan is worth it. Happy to have him well compensated if he proves he is worth it. The Twins certainly need young SP's. Too soon.

I wouldn't look so hard for that lefty masher. 1. Lefties pitch approximately 28% of the innings thrown in major league baseball. If you are looking to sign players for duty with actual money. Find the guys who can hit Right Handers since they will throw the majority of the innings and spend actual money on them. More bang for your buck. 2. Players who only hit lefties decently in those 28% of all MLB innings thrown should have much less value and shouldn't cost much to acquire if you want them. You can pick them up off the floor... Like Kyle Garlick for example. 3. Haniger hits right handers as well as left handers. I'd lose my mind if he was platooned. ? 4. Myers looks more like left-handed pitcher specialist and platoon worthy but... but... you don't want to invest in that. 5. If you are going to platoon someone on the short side. You have to have the left handed compliment that out performs the right handed dude platooning with him in order to justify it. 5. Here are numbers from the Twins last year vs. RH hitting. Look at the lefties piled up at the bottom. https://www.espn.com/mlb/team/stats/_/name/min/split/32/table/batting/sort/OPS/dir/desc When you see what the lefties were actually doing against right handed pitching... there were times we were forcing it. Bring me Haniger.

Bunt at least 25 times. Steal 30 bases. Play 120 games in CF. Win a gold glove. Hit over .270 and hit 25 plus HR. Play in the post season. Look at each of these goals one at a time. Does anyone reading this doubt that Buck has the necessary skills to achieve more than any of these statistical goals? Could he steal 40 bases? Yes. Could win a gold glove? Yes. Could he hit more than 25 homeruns? Yes. It all depends on his health. Therefore, what could Buck do to give himself optimum opportunity to achieve these reasonable goals? It may have to be like a distance runner pacing himself. I would love to see him have a full complete season and post season. I know no one would want that more than Buck himself.

Proving baseball ownership is all about real estate development for many owners.... The media will repeat the ridiculous claims about jobs and a huge impact on the economy, and the taxpayers will subsidize the billionaire.