rv78

IMO, this is probably one of the best articles written on this site since I started visiting it. A short recap of everything that was said could simply be stated that "you get what you pay for" and the Twins have done that for the last 20 years. Sorry, but sometimes the truth hurts and the Pohlads, St. Peter and the FO of the last 2 decades are the only ones responsible. I can't envision that they don't know these exact numbers now or what they have looked like in the past. It seems they have chosen to ignore them all the while being cheap and instilling in the fanbase that, that is the Twins way, and how it HAS to be done. I think another part that wasn't covered that contributes to the Twins lack of success is the foolish spending of money on players like a Gallo or Kepler that don't produce and on players that are injury prone and only play part-time. I look back to the day when Puckett, Gladden, Hrbek, Gaetti, Brunansky, Viola, and the gang of the late 80's and early 90's and compare them to todays players and all I see now is injury prone non-productive players of which many are over-paid.

This is laughable no matter how you look at it. The FO tells us the bullpen is not a priority yet a couple games into spring training they sign two pitchers that fit their usual criteria, big arms with no control and poor success except for brief stints in their careers. Most of us know that there are issues with the bullpen, mainly Pagan and Megill and they continue to show that the bullpen really isn't a priority by signing has-beens.

You are only partially correct. Analytics says the starters can only go 5 innings tops so Rocco is going with a 4 man rotation since they will only throw about 70-80 pitches per outing. That means one less starter than anyone figured. 12 pitchers and 14 position players. Afterall, when you run out a different lineup everyday you have to have enough position players to move around and keep them uncomfortable playing multiple positions. 2 Catchers (Vazquez, Jeffers) 6 infielders (Kirilloff, Polanco, Correa, Miranda, Farmer, Solano) and 6 outfielders (Gallo, Kepler, Buxton, Larnach, Taylor, Gordon). Add in that Gallo can play 1B. Kirilloff can play OF. Miranda can go 1B. Farmer can play 2B, SS, 3B plus emergency Catcher. Gordon can go 2B, OF, emergency SS. Solano can play 2B, 3B, SS. Yep, Rocco will be living the dream in 2023 as he runs out a different lineup everyday. Ok, seriously 1 of the position players will be odd man out if someone isn;t traded. My guess is Larnach or Kirilloff, depending on who is hitting if they are both healthy.

His last 2 injuries were from sliding into 2nd base and getting hit on the hand with a pitch. Playing DH would have not prevented either one.

A trip down the same path of Tyler Duffey would be fine with me. Over-rated, and yes, over-paid cup of coffee who's ship has sailed. Move on please. 5 years at $9.25M isn't much in todays world of over-paid atheletes but in this case it's still like pouring money down a rat hole.

Your article is about waiting to make "the" move. Mahle and Lopez were acquired to help the Twins win in 2022. The fact that both of them had 2023 seasons under contract was a bonus. The MAIN reason you make trades at the deadline if you are in contention is to win THAT year. Both of those moves were "the" moves they made to win in 2022. That is the same thing you are expecting from them in 2023. Yet your point of view says that when they make "the" move in 2023 that we should expect it to help them in 2024. If it is next year then why is that "the" move? As for Rocco, if you want to give him credit for winning in a season with a juiced ball and a shortened covid season where they didn't play many of the tougher teams then you also have to blame him when it comes to losing, especially when you manage poorly. Bad fundamentals, failure to even try to manufacture runs, pulling pitchers that are pitching well just because it is 3rd time through the order, over using a bullpen, or using a bad reliever over and over again in high leverage situations points criticism directly at you if you are the Manager. The FO has a low bar to exceed compared to the previous regime. That doesn't make them geniuses if they outperform them. Their true measure of success is playoff wins and Championships and the lack of either speaks volumes. Evidently you didn't witness the Andy McPhail regime and the success he brought to the organization.

Waiting isn't the problem. Having the FO trade away good prospects for broken down pitchers or 1 year wonders is. After-all, isn't that what the Twins did last year? How did trading for a broken Mahle help this team in 2022. How did trading for a 1/2 year wonder in Jorge Lopez help the Twins in 2022? How is signing a .190 hitter in Gallo to an $11M contract good when a Wallner, Cave, Larnach, Celestino, Gordon, Garlick can all hit for a higher average for pennies on the dollar compared to his contract? How many at bats will he and Kepler, who should have been traded due to his own ineptness at the plate, take away from the guys who can actually hit? I don't trust Rocco to be smart enough to use the guys that can hit on an everyday basis when Gallo and Kepler are the veterans getting paid the big bucks. They'll play way more than they should. You have more confidence in this FO making "the" move than a lot of us do. They haven't shown the ability yet to do "the" move that actually helps! Up to this point, I'm more afraid of what move they'll make.

For 2024 and beyond? = Lee, Lewis, Julien, Salas, Martin, Correa, Polanco, Miranda, all tied to 3 infield positions. Let's face it, that's too many players to get quality at bats for on a regular basis. I see Martin moving to the outfield if he continues to develop. Still leaves 7 players for 3 infield spots. My guess is Polanco will be traded at the deadline in 2023 unless he is raking it and the Twins are leading the division. If they aren't in contention they'll get a better haul for him if he is raking it. Otherwise I don't see the Twins picking up his option for 2024 and 2025. Salas would be a stretch for making it to the show in 2024 so he can probably be scratched from the list but needs to be figured long term. If Kirilloff and Larnach become legit players which is a high probablility that I, and a lot of others are hoping for, then 1B and a CO spot are tied up as well. If Buxton can stay healthy that only leaves 1 OF spot to fill. Wouldn't it be great if Wallner, Lewis or Martin can fill it? Then again Emmanuel Rodriguez may only be a couple years away as well. Who's the odd man out? Salas? Julien? Miranda? What about Gordon? Still too many players for positions available. Good problem to have but eventually it means someone or two or more will probably be traded.

Everyone is raving about his defense and this article is no different. If defense was the only thing it took to make a winning team this 2023 version of the Twins will be tough to beat. Unfortunately if you want to win you also have to score runs, not just prevent them. Outside of Vazquez taking some at bats away from Jeffers I don't see where the Twins improved their offense much. Especially if guys like Gallo and Kepler, who can't hit, take the majority of at bats away from Gordon, Larnach and even Farmer. Maybe Kirilloff will be all that he is hyped up to be. Maybe Polanco will have a bounce-back season. Maybe Buxton will remain healthy and produce like he is capable of. Maybe Correa will put together a full season of producing runs instead of his 1/3 season we saw last year. Let's hope that maybe Miranda can be as good as last year. IF all of the "maybes" pan out they'll score enough runs to win, but I am not counting on Gallo to be a significant offensive contributor and IMO, I don't think the FO expects him too either. They got Gallo for 2 things only, defense and to hit an occasional HR. Anything else will be gravy.

Is this the same Derek Falvey that built the bullpen in 2022? You are only as successful as what your record indicates and how far you go in the playoffs. Isn't this year 7 of his regime with really nothing to show for it? It stands to reason that so far, it doesn't look like he knows a lot about what he is doing.

The Twins FO is banking on a lot of "IF's". Good health has to be the biggest "IF" of all, from Buxton, Larnach, Kirilloff, Polanco, and even Correa to Mahle, Maeda, Ober, Gray, Lopez, and half a dozen others that could popup out of the blue ay any time. Not that other clubs couldn't have that happen as well but the FO hasn't done a very good job of staying away from the injured easily type of players. Then there's the "IF" of can this team score runs? Or if the bullpen can hold a lead until they get to Duran? If Rocco will manage a game by sight, feel and logic instead of by a spreadsheet? A lot of things can go right for this team, but it won't take a lot of things to go wrong to wreck it.

No doubt defense is the cue here. The bigger question that carries a lot of doubt in the opposite direction is, can any of them hit? Great defense doesn't win games alone if you can't score.

It has been posted before that Gibson had basically the same surgery. Knowing it was 40 years ago and turned out to be reasonably successful is a good sign for Kirilloff and the Twins. I would speculate that 40 years later the surgery has been fine-tuned as well which should make it being a success even more of a probability. A healthy Kirilloff at 1B may be the key to a winning season and the Twins taking the next step towards the ultimate goal of a Championship if not in 2023 but within the next few years.

The core of the roster is here to stay and the talent is worthy of starting on a nightly basis. You might want to forward that to Rocco, who uses numbers with no regard to talent, to change the lineup on a nightly basis.

The FO has already said the bullpen is not a top priority. That's quite obvious since Pagan is still on the roster.