TwinsFan268

Oh, God no, I would not call this offseason a failure. Just look what happen last year. We made a few little signings and we only became a 101 win team with 307 home runs. Totally a failure, right? NO. Bringing back Romo was a great move. Extending Odorizzi the qualifying offer was a bit of a leap of faith, but he accepted, and we brought back our top starter. (In the opinion of a very big Odo fan.) We signed Alex Avila, who's a great veteran catcher and will be a great addition to the team. (And that's coming from a huge Garver fan.) We signed Tyler Clippard, who will be a great addition to an already strong bullpen. We exercised Cruz's option for next year. (Which made Cruz fans like me and Twins fans in general breathe a little easier.) We will be a pretty good team in 2020. If we are the Wild Card team, that doesn't mean there's no hope. I mean, look what happened to the Nationals!?!

ODORIZZI 15???? WHY??????? I don't think I agree with these rankings very much.

I wasn't technically disrespecting the DH, Cruz is one of my favorite Twins players. I was just pointing out that he is 40 and may need days off at some time. Not many players play in 162 games in a season.

Twins fans don't like to talk about October. Especially in January.

There's been talk for a very long time about the Twins getting Josh Donaldson and moving Miguel Sano to 1st. Last week, I listed all the reasons why signing Donaldson was a good idea. Today, I'm going to list the reasons why it might not be such a good idea. PRICE One of the main things that might not be good about signing Donaldson is his price. He wants a whopping $110 million for 4 years. (Sorry Donaldson, if you want that much, you may have to wait until February to sign!) The Twins and Braves have reportedly given him offers, but they're not as much as he is asking for. AGE Along with this is the fact that he is entering his age 34 season. So, when the contract is up, he'll be 38. And not every player is Nelson Cruz in their late 30s. He may not be as valuable in the end of his contract as he is in the beginning and teams may not want to risk getting a player who is nearing the end of their career. INJURY RATE Josh Donaldson has been injured in 2 of the last 3 seasons. This year was a great season, with no injuries, but who knows about the future. Showing his past injury record, teams may not want to sign Donaldson because of how often he gets injured and cannot play, even though he is a good player when he is not injured and can play. SANO There's something that I started wondering about right after I published "The Benefits of Signing Donaldson". What if Sano is WORSE at first base and is better playing at third base? Will they have to alternate with their third basemen like they do with their catchers? What do you think? Do you agree that Josh Donaldson isn't all he's cracked up to be, or do you think they should go big and sign Donaldson? Write your opinion in the comments! Note: There is a half solution to the Sano problem. If Sano can't play first, then they can have Marwin Gonzalez play first and look for a real first baseman at the trade deadline in July. But, Sano and Donaldson both have great bats and having them alternate would give them less chances to meet personal home run records. However, Sano is an option to play designated hitter if Cruz needs a day off, along with Mitch Garver.

IDK, but I think I read somewhere that Garver plays better at catcher/doesn't want to play 1B. Now, DH, that's a new story... If Cruz needs a day off, Garver's one of the best to replace him at designated hitter.

I don't know... it's not quite what I want to do but it is what we should do. I don't think we need to trade Rosie, Cave, and Marwin though to get Boyd. We might want to give the rookies a little chance, and then if they don't do well enough, we let them keep learning. That's what the minor leagues are for. Not every rookie is Arraez.

CRUZ 17???? WHY??????? (ok now realize it was stupid to say why because you explained but still! WHY???)

Sorry about how it turned the catcher thing into a copyright sign. You know what it means hopefully.

The Twins 2020 roster is looking a lot like their 2019 roster. But that's probably good, considering their historic 2019 campaign. If we were the Tigers, then that wouldn't be so good, considering their 114 loss season. So, anyway, today I'm going to take a look at what some of their lineups might look like next year, and what the rotation will look like. This is going to be for the first have because it's too soon to say about the second half. It's almost too soon to say about the first. So, here are 2 lineups the Twins could use (considering that they DON'T sign Donaldson.) VS. RIGHTIES L. Arraez (2B) J. Polanco (SS) N. Cruz (DH) E. Rosario (LF) M. Sano (3B) M. Kepler (RF) A. Avila © B. Buxton (CF) M. Gonzalez (1B) VS. LEFTIES M. Garver © J. Polanco (SS) N. Cruz (DH) E. Rosario (LF) M. Sano (3B) M. Kepler (RF) L. Arraez (2B) B. Buxton (CF) M. Gonzalez (1B) Do these look good? Comment what you think. The current opening day rotation looks like this: Berrios, Odorizzi, Dobnak/Smeltzer/Thorpe/Graterol, Dobnak/Smeltzer/Thorpe/Graterol, Bailey. Who do you think should fill the third and fourth rotation spots?

The Twins went into this offseason looking for impact pitching. They'd had a phenomenal offensive season, hitting 307 home runs, but their pitching wasn't so awesome. They were also entering the offseason with a rotation that consisted of Jose Berrios. They quickly extended a qualifying offer to Jake Odorizzi, and he accepted. Then, they resigned Michael Pineda to a 2 year contract. Fans said that the rotation looked "too much like last year" but I didn't think about that. I would think about how they really needed two more pitchers. You can't have a rotation that consists of three people, and especially not 2 people for the first 39 games of the season. (Of course, we did know that they would use Randy Dobnak, or Devin Smeltzer, or Lewis Thorpe in this spot.) So finally, on Tuesday, they signed Homer Bailey and Rich Hill. (ha ha, a pitcher named Homer?) When I was reading Twitter comments on their posts about signing them, a lot of them said things like this is a great signing-from Indians fans and I thought you wanted to keep up with the White Sox. One of the worst things about this signing is that Hill is injured until JUNE! So, in addition to Dobnak, Smeltzer, or Thorpe being used in Pineda's spot, they're going to need one of them to fill Hill's spot. (Now is the part where you should be saying "Oh, God, this was a really bad signing") I will give you the even worse part of it: Hill will be 40 the next time he comes to pitch. Nelson Cruz will also be 40 next season, but he's a designated hitter, not a pitcher! (Now you say "Why the heck did they do this?") And, both their contracts are for only 1 year, so when the Twins enter next offseason, they'll practically be back at square one with Odorizzi also set to enter free agency. Could they have made a worse signing? Also here's a secret: Homer Bailey looks terrifying and old and like he needs to smile more.

Dobnak and Smeltzer will probably pitch until Pineda and Hill come back.

Dear 2019 Twins, You were a good team in a bad year. You made it so that there was something that made us happy. You provided a sense of comfort. You were always there when we were going through tough times. You were wonderfully exciting. You gave us the funniest (think rally squirrel), happiest (think clinching the division), coolest (think breaking home run records), and most unforgettable moments (think Cruz's 40/400). All of Twins Territory is hoping that you can be like that again. As we close the books on the 2010s, a decade when the Twins were not extra wonderful (except for 2019), we're hoping that in the 2020s, we can be the team to be feared of. Listen to all of us, please. There was nothing like the joy of 2019 baseball. Until October. Maybe October won't be feared in the 2020s. Maybe we'll just, you know, think that it was just another year that we got to October and we could do it. We want 2020 to be funny, happy, cool, and unforgettable. That's our hope. We all hope it. We know you do too. So Bomba Squad, I hoped you learned something here. I hope you learned that we are all hoping that the magic of 2019 will carry into 2020, because it brought us all comfort. And also, we would like to thank you. You were truly magical. Sincerely, Fans Across Twins Territory

We're not trading Arraez. Period.

I think that Cruz's 40 and 400 should be on here. But you know, he's my 2nd favorite player, so that's why I'm saying it probably. Still, pretty good moment.

Oh yeah, that's a pretty good solution! Trading Sano would get us good players and it would make our team. A few things: if Buxton gets injured like kind of happens a lot (sorry just stating the truth) Kepler can play center, Rosario can play right, and Arraez can play left. I know Rosario is best at left, but he can play right, like he did a few times while Kepler was injured. Also one question that I should probably know the answer to, but is Moreland a free agent? If not, who do we trade to get him? I think for the first 39 games of Pineda's suspension we could use Smeltzer. This looks like it could even improve the Twins from 2019. (Huh? Improve? What does that mean?) Great job, thank you so much.

I know that there are tons of options and there's still 2 months left of the offseason. But I mean so far. What do you rate it so far?

It's been a quiet offseason here in Minnesota. Fans are getting disappointed. (But trying to stay loyal.) So let's just take a step back and think about what we need, what we've done, and what we still have to do. Starting Pitching: You might think that nothing's happened here, but it really has. At the beginning of the offseason, the Twins had a rotation that just consisted of Berrios. Now it has Odorizzi, Berrios, and Pineda. Of course, you can't have a rotation with only three pitchers. And since Pineda still has to serve 39 games of his suspension, which will last until mid-May, they have a rotation with 2 pitchers in it until he comes back. Of course, they have a lot of internal options here such as Randy Dobnak or Devin Smeltzer. So that shouldn't be too much of a problem. Backup Catcher: This is one of the only satisfying thing about this offseason. The Twins got Alex Avila, who is a very good catcher, and the perfect replacement for veteran catcher Jason Castro, who was a free agent this year. (Has no one gotten Castro yet? He's a pretty good catcher, someone should get him.) The Twins have a reliable catcher for when Garver needs to take a day off. Definitely the high point of this offseason... I heard Avila was even better than Castro! Corner Infield: This is the one that we've all been thinking about lately. Now that the Twins and Nationals made offers to Josh Donaldson, we're just waiting to see if Atlanta offers the fourth year that Donaldson is looking for. If not, then the Twins or Nationals will probably get him. If not, the Twins could look into trade options to replace C.J Cron, who is now a Detroit Tiger. (Dang, I kind of liked Cron and Jonathan Schoop, who's also a Tiger now. Do I have to not like them anymore?) The Twins are also considering moving Miguel Sano to first, because his defense was really poor at third. So, the Twins still need two starters (or one? Maybe Dobnak or Smeltzer could fill the last spot?) and a corner infielder. (Hopefully Donaldson! Fingers crossed!) On a scale of one to ten, I rate this offseason a 3. What's your rating? What do you think about this?

There has been a buzz for a little while now that the Twins may sign Josh Donaldson. Here are some key reasons why the Twins should just STOP MAKING US CRAZY AND JUST SIGN DONALDSON ALREADY. Defense: Yes, Sano is a very good player offensively. But defensively? Not quite so much. Maybe what he needs is a move to first base! Donaldson could ensure a solid option if Sano decides to move to first. Home Runs: No, the Twins don't need any home run help. But if every Twins player currently on the roster hits exactly the same number of home runs that they hit this season, the Twins would have 253 home runs. That doesn't even break the 267 2018 record! By signing Donaldson, they'd have a solid 290. (Donaldson hit 37 home runs in 2019) A Reliable Player: Even if Sano can't make the move to first, they'd be able to split time between Donaldson and Sano, which makes for two reliable players at third. No, Donaldson wouldn't be able to fill the Twins' biggest hole: STARTING PITCHING. The words strike fear in every Twins fan's heart. And with the Yankees stupid signing of Cole, our playoff luck isn't looking much better because the season ends the same way every year: Yay! We got into the playoffs! Shoot! We have to play the Yankees. I guess I'll just watch the Twins lose. So hopefully, 2020 will change the tune a little bit. *Now tries to find fingers crossed emoji* Dang, why are emojis so hard to find? I guess I'll just write it instead: Fingers crossed! Yes, I was hoping that the Twins would celebrate Christmas by signing Donaldson or some top notch pitcher but that didn't happen. Sadly. So, we'll just hope that they ring in 2020 by signing Donaldson!

Let's not forget that we were a 101 win team in 2019. If we were a team like the Royals or Tigers who are trying to rebuild after disastrous seasons in 2019, maybe. Is this really what we want? Our offseason may have gone AWFULLY in the first 80 days of the offseason, but there are still 56 days left. Maybe we can use this plan as a last resort, but most definitely not the first thing we do. Nice thinking though...

Thank you so much Dome Dogg! I will add these in!

Since the Twins have been so incredibly this offseason, I can't think of too much to write about them. So, I decided to do a fun little thing here, pairing each American League team with its National League team (from its division). This time, I went mostly based on location. Well, kind of entirely based on location. Please write a comment if you don't agree. CENTRAL DIVISION Minnesota Twins/Milwaukee Brewers As I said, this is entirely based on location. So, I put the Twins with the Brewers because of the whole borderline thing. Cleveland Indians/Cincinnati Reds They're both in Ohio. This is based on location. Chicago White Sox/Chicago Cubs They're both in Chicago. Kansas City Royals/St. Louis Cardinals I don't know, seemed closer together than Tigers/Cardinals. Detroit Tigers/Pittsburgh Pirates They're just kinda left over here... but they are both in last place. EASTERN DIVISION New York Yankees/New York Mets They're both in New York. What more can I say? Tampa Bay Rays/Miami Marlins They're both in Florida. Boston Red Sox/Philadelphia Phillies I got so stuck on this one that I decided to just go with this. Baltimore Orioles/Washington Nationals Very close together. Please help me! This division is tough. I couldn't come up with anything for the Toronto Blue Jays and Atlanta Braves. I mean, they don't go together, but should I put them together as leftovers? Please help in the comments. WESTERN DIVISION Houston Astros/Los Angeles Dodgers This division is really hard to do based on location, so I decided to do it in another way. This one I chose because the Astros banged their trash cans hard enough to beat (cheat) the Dodgers in the 2017 World Series. Oakland Athletics/San Francisco Giants Location, location, location. Texas Rangers/Arizona Diamondbacks I felt like the names and mascots and logos kind of went together. Los Angeles Angels/San Diego Padres California teams are put together. Seattle Mariners/Colorado Rockies 1. They're just leftovers. 2. They kind of get overlooked a lot. What do you think? Comment and tell me which ones you would pair differently and why!

I agree that Polanco will be shortstop, Arraez will be second base, and Kepler will be outfield. But I don't know about Lewis, Larnach, or Kirilloff. Probably one or two of them will be in the lineup, but with the free agent market WAY down, the Twins may trade one or more of their prospects. Garver may be catcher, but he also may be DH or 1st base. But good job. Predicting 4 years into the future can be tough.

How easy to replace is Cron? He hit 25 home runs and was a pretty good defensive player. There's not a lot left on the free agent market, so unless the Twins sign Donaldson and move Sano to first, they might have to look into a trade.

You're right-not more home runs, but he does get a lot of hits and is a good player. But the home runs are what made Minnesota great and recognized this year. If everyone currently on the Twins roster would hit the same number of home runs that they hit this year, they would be at 255 home runs. So basically, yes, Avila is a very good player but he does not hit as many home runs as Castro.