Why Can't the Twins Spend Like the Padres?

1 hour ago, Mike Sixel said:

Like Ryan and Varland and Ober? Like Duran? Like Arraez? Like Gordon, who is finally showing something? Like Wallner? Or Larnach (before getting hurt)? 

Fangraphs has MN 18th in rankings. Yes, they are down, but then, they dealt for Gray, was that bad? Would you rather they not have Gray right now? I get that Mahle got hurt, sucks for sure.....Also, the Twins made the playoffs in 19 and 20, kind of hurt their draft position.....But the idea the system is a barren wasteland, as some have stated, just isn't true. If Lewis is finally healthy and a few others are what some here think they are, I think people will be very happy in a couple years.

It doesn’t have to be “barren”, it just has to not produce enough quality players to help the big team. A lot of the guys you mention are big question marks. Even Ryan was up and down. Way too soon to tell on varland. Ober is not super impressive even when healthy. Lewis coming off an ACL. 

Just now, Aggies7 said:

It doesn’t have to be “barren”, it just has to not produce enough quality players to help the big team. A lot of the guys you mention are big question marks. Even Ryan was up and down. Way too soon to tell on varland. Ober is not super impressive even when healthy. Lewis coming off an ACL. 

How many rookies do you expect to come and help each year? Realistically help? 

Ryan was a number three starter. Duran? Best RP in the game, maybe. Varland filled in admirably, as did Wallner. Lewis looked legit before getting hurt. Oh, and Miranda was very good. Larnach and Kiriloff got hurt. I think all but AK were rookies last year. Then you have Arraez and Gordon and Jeffers, who were rookies the year before or the one before that. This is one of the younger teams in the game.....

I just don't see how we can argue that there is no help coming up at all. Next year? Hopefully a healthy Lewis, Wallner, SWR are likely to see time. Lee might. That doesn't count any RPs like Enlow or Winder, for example. 

6 hours ago, Bigfork Twins Guy said:

I recall Steinbrenner getting into this situation.  He'd always spend tons of $ on FA's and prospect capital on trades for veterans only to have an empty farm system.  Over the years, they have balanced this out to where Cashman maintains the flow of prospects while signing key FA's like Judge and Cole.

I agree that SD may fall into this trap and end up with high-priced aging vets and little to no prospects to fill the gaps.  The proof will be in the pudding in a few years.

It's getting harder to acquire prospects because everybody is holding them.

Maybe that's a plus consideration for the Padres.

Their willingness to part with them made them more attractive trade partners.

The only thing I'm reasonably sure of... Once the farm is drained... the only way to avoid the rebuild is too spend more. The Padres have drained the farm and the 10 year deals have been signed. The Padres are not the Yankees, Mets or Dodgers who could spend their way through a drained farm. Yet the Padres drained it anyway while the Dodgers keep their favorite prospects and the Yankees have been hanging on to those two young shortstops with both hands. 

The Red Sox drained the farm and Betts and Bogaarts are gone. The Cubs drained the farm and the rebuild has started. 

Resurrecting this old thread because of a recent article I came across. 

The Padres, who play in Major League Baseball’s fifth-smallest media market, are taking in so much money that they expect to for the first time ever be a payor into the league’s revenue sharing program.