BodieInSD

"Lies. Damnable lies. Statistics" In that order, though I would add "advanced metrics" for any discussion involving baseball. I'll believe my lying eyes. Rogers has stunk this year - lucky or unlucky. Duffey only has yet to stink!

Going to miss the Dutchman. I might be reading durring a broadcast and I'll hear a new Bert-ism and think "WTF did he just say. I must've heard that wrong." Watching the 2am re-broadcast usually confirms that I was right in what I thought I heard...

Kenta was my favorite Twins' pick-up in years. And yes, that does include the age-defying Nelson Cruz! Maeda is a front of the rotation starter, something the Twins produce far too seldom for a good baseball team. The fact that he is under contract for several more years (3 or 4? more) at an affordable price is a double bonus. When Berrios leaves (he will) at the first opportunity, Maeda will be the best starter the Twins have - barring another trade or FA pick-up. He doesn't have the upside potential of Berrios, but he has shown throughout his career to be a steadier and more reliable starter than him - and it will be at a lower price at the end of Kenta's contract.

Gonna miss the old Dutchman! One more piece of my childhood gone...

I'd agree, IF he could get the average/OB% up. Even if his "breakthrough" offensive season, he hit .263 with an ob% of .314. That is simply too low for a lead off hitter. As he is an excellent base stealer (percentage-wise) I'd grant him a bit more leeway, than the average guy, but those are unacceptable for a good line-up.

I agree wholeheartedly! Especially the "it" factor as you label it. Eddie is the proof for the old "lies, damned lies and statistics" adage. And to top it off, he is FUN to watch play, especially when he is having fun.

It would be nice if we could expect to see him in the lineup every day. I take it back, it would be heavenly if... Unfortunately only fool would expect that considering his history...

I'd be quite happy if he played in May for the Twins. He seems to take a loooong time to get his timing back after missing games. But when is out, he does tend to miss significant lengths of time, so that is understandable. Look forward to seeing him rolling along in June (fingers crossed).

Assuming the Twins' lineup is as (relatively) productive as last year's (lets see how the ball flies throughout baseball), there isn't much of a reason to fiddle with the structure of the lineup. With a healthy(ish) everyday lineup, the weakest spot in the lineup would be Buxton(!!!) assuming he is healthy) and I don't think that is exactly the kind of hitter that teams walk a guy to get to (what a grammatical nightmare)!

Agree with your lines. But, the biggest difference to me is the willingness to take bigger gambles - not absurd, budget-breaking gambles but slightly ones than the Twins have been known for in the past. Donaldson and Maeda are examples. The previous regime would likely never have traded for Maeda. Not because of any risk that the trade might have or might not have worked out (and that is to be seen) but because Graterol was under team control and can be paid the minimum and Maeda is not (though his contract is VERY team friendly). And if the stories of the contract negotiations are true, Donaldson would not have been signed. Assuming that they would have made the opening offer, they would likely have never budged in adding the final option year. And while his contract is big, it looks much more manageable in today's financial climate than Mauer's did back in the day. The Twins will never be in position to compete financially with the Yankees. If they make a mistake in signing someone, they simply sign or trade for the best available replacement and dispose of the contract however they can. The Twins pretty much have to live with their mistakes. Falvey & Co. seem to make very few mistakes. There are two ways of doing that. One is to do nothing - no action, no failure attached to that (non)action action. The other is to be good at your job. Long-time Twins fans have seen both. I much prefer the latter.

IF... Buxton himself brings two things the Twins are almost devoid of without him. ELITE defense (don't know that Donaldson is quite at that level at 3B - very good yes, but...) and a legitimate base stealing threat. Imagine Kepler getting a steady diet of fastballs with Buxton on base!

When the final Twins White Sox series came around last year, I made it a point to go to see Moncada in person. If anyone else remembers, he played like carp. Granted it was in the last 2 weeks (or so) of a very long and bad season for the White Sox, but Moncado looked worse defensively than Sano and played a pretty much lazy looking series - especially for a guy who had MVP caliber numbers. So if he was simply a young player not used to the grind of a 162 game season, or maybe a little banged up at the end of the year, or simply sick and tired of playing more or less meaningless baseball on a poor/bad (though improving) team, I came away FAR from impressed. The season long numbers do say that he is much better than the player I saw that weekend, but my lying eyes were really glad that the Sox thought he was a building block!

I agree. To me it is right below protecting yourself behind the plate from foul tips. But these guys are professional athletes. Their reflexes are extraordinary compared to the general population. I simply find it strange that 3B is (and has had) a position that lacks depth at the top tiers. The pool of candidates is by no means small (5 minor league levels plus Rookie leagues - and those are only hte ML affiliated pros- and the physical skills are not particularly demanding (i.e. speed/range). A good first step (meaning quick and in the right direction) and the ability to keep the ball in front of you are really the the only skills a player needs. Repletion in the minors should hone those skills and sharpen the reflexes.

My guess is that you are not collecting a baseball paycheck... I'm not saying that you can pull a guy out of the stands to play 3B, but that a professional should be able to capably man the position.

3B is a mystery to me. It seems that it should be an easy position to fill with quality players. Qick hands and feet, but necessarily fast feet. A strong arm is a necessity, but accuratacy is just about as imortant. Poiwer hitting is is kind of expected, but Wade Boggs made a decent name for himself there without tons of power. In other word, 3B requires your basic defensive skills. Seemingly these skills should be processed by nearly all professional (not just MLB) ball players - no one is asking them to block J.J. Watt, shoot free throws or put backspin on a soccer ball. But the list of high quality 3B is (and has been) rather short. 14 in the HOF (about one per decade of ML Baseball) and for most of my life the depth has been poor. No one would take the 5th best 3B over Manny Machado or Nolan Arenado. At nearly every other position, you can make the case for the (consensus) #5 at any position over the #1 (consensus) be it because of his glove, power, speed or whatever your team may need. 3B seems to (and has for years) stratify the players much more distinctly than other positions. Anyway, the Twins now have one of the better ones. And have gotten him for a reasonable price (by modern MLB standards).

Around the horn - C) Garver is not a kid, and plays a position that wears guys down overnight (ahem, Joe Mauer). No long-term deal. 2B) Arreaz has just over a half season in the bigs. A nice bat but not much defense shown. And No long-term analysis can be done. No deal, but check again at end of the year to see if first season is a harbinger or a fluke. 1B 3B RF and SS are looked up. Rosario is a tough one. Puts up some nice numbers (and they seem to improve year over year barring injury) and will undoubtedly give max effort and play hurt. Too bad he'll also play injured and do himself and the team no good. He is also a bit of a air-head in the field, but does have the "tools" to be a top-notch defender. If you say he is "easy to replace", remember that he is the best LF the Twins have had since Delmond Young! (remember that dumpster fire? That should have been EASY to upgrade, but it took YEARS to do). I say make a fair offer to him to lock him up, but simply refuse to go too high - there are outfield prospects galore in the Twins system, and they are close to being ML-ready. Kiraloff (sp?), Larnach or even one of the middle infield prospects (as a bridge to a real OF prospect) can fill his shoes for at least one of his plusses (Contract hitting, power hitting, glove, arm), and maybe more. Hate to say this but Buxton gets NO offer beyond a one year deal. And that would have to be HEAVILY incentive laden with a low base salary. We all know why - he plays less than half the schedule. And he doesn't get "hurt", he gets "INJURED". Badly injured. Every year. Even in 2017 (his good year) he missed over a months' worth of games. He has to prove that his entire ML career (injury-wise) has been a fluke. Tall order. Sign Berios. Long term. At whatever cost. Period. If his arm is sound, lock him up. He isn't an elite pitcher (yet) and may never be a top-5 starter, but he is a high quality starter who is reasonably durable and he works HARD to improve himself. To replace him in the free agency market, you'll need to sign one of the top (if not the top) free-agent starter when he leaves. That means outbidding the Yankees, Dodgers, Phillies, Cubs, Angels, Red Sox.... well you get the picture. Feel confident in replacing Berios tby that route? Really think you'll see someone better in a Twins uniform? Yeah... My opinion is that you NEVER sign bullpen guys (closer excepted) to long term deals. Too variable year to year and decent/good relievers are always available, be it in free agency or at the trade deadline. Even the Twins can get them! And whatever you do don't give Duffy a long-term deal of ANY sort. He has stunk too bad far too recently to make me believe that last year is his new normal. Hope it is, but... my dad said put hope in one hand and sh*t in the other and see which one fill first.

...not just "misses half a season", he misses half of EVERY season ( more if you include his rookie year).

And looking at the state of MLB pitching there are few guys who could locate a pitch out of the zone any better than most do in the zone...

That is funny! As trade material he isn't worth a bag of baseballs. Or just the bag. Maybe he is worth the shoestring tying the bag shut. Maybe...

If such a thing happened (and I hope not), maybe someone will do the obvious and move Polanco to where he needs to be - 2B. He has a weaker arm than Ozzie Smith had, but doesn't play on astroturf (and will be bouncing throws over to Sano this year - not a pleasant thought!). I think his arm strength might be below average at second base, but not as bad as it is at SS. A below average/ poor defender at one position ( though hopefully not up the middle) can be dealt with on an otherwise good defensive team. This team is NOT even close to a good defensive team, and really needs best-case scenarios from so many guys that very unlikely that they will be even an average defensive team (Improved D from Arraez, Polanco, Garver and Rosario. A full season from Buxton allowing Kepler to play where he is above average and improving. Sano being a decent 1B. Donaldson not getting injured, or having his performance fall off appreciably this year). I called Polanco's defense a tire fire in another post, and I stand by it. His arm and range are very bad for a shortstop. Both would be at VERY BEST be average at 2B - but at least he wouldn't be as far below average at second. The Twins have intriguing, but seriously flawed options in the middle infield. I'm not saying that we need to go back to Nick Punto to have a glove up the middle, but our pitching isn't good enough to be paired with a subpar defense.

From what he's done in the minors (but remember he is still a young man) I'd say you have Marwin Gonzales without any bat... My question about him is "Is he a major league shortstop?". I can deal with a .240 hitter with little power if he can play SS like it NEEDS to be played for a good team. And with the depth that the Twins lineup possesses, a below-average bat can be tolerated. Especially if he can steal the occasional base. Bunt a guy over if need be, or any number of the "little things" that used to be part of the "Twins' way" of playing baseball.

Best poditiition as far a depth? Easy - DH. We have a LOAD of good to great DHs. Cruz? Nuf said. Sano seems best suited there. Rosario's probably best suited as a DH (Maybe he can keep his head in 1/2 the game...) and Garver is more suited to DHing than being an upper echelon catcher (and that is after he has REALLY improved his defense since his initial call-up!) and aging and catching don't mix well as there REALLY is a toll to be paid for those who wear the tolls of ignorance. 3B is probably the best/deepest position on the team. Donaldson is money. Gonzales is very good, at least for short stretches (maybe more, but he has always been used as the utility player). Adrianza is more than solid at 3B ( and everywhere else) and Astildillo can play anywhere for a day (remember his debut was in CF!) and get you through (and for your 4th option that is more than you can really expect). That ignores Sano playing a few games at third if need be. Weakest? Either CF or SS. How is this??? We have last year's all-star SS, and (supposedly) a Platinum glover in CF!?!? Polanco's defence is a blazing tire fire at a position that is a DENFENSE first position. His range could theoretically still improve (unlikely) but that is the only right arm he'll ever have, and it is worse than my poor Univ. of Iowa (1989) SS arm! His skill set makes him look more like a 2B than a SS, but with the arrival of Arraes, that ain't happening. Byron Buxton's career high for games started is 131 and he averages just over 80 games started a year (excluding his rookie year, with 2115 included it falls into the 70s). And he won't be ready to start the season on time this year (zero ABs so far in Florida). When healthy he is the best defender the Twins have had since Torii Hunter's heyday in CF. The other half of the time he is worth NOTHING. Congrats on being the best defender on the DL (again)! I'd love to see him break his string of bad luck (and to break down like he has is partly bad luck) and play a FULL season healthy just to see how good he can be. Undoubtedly he could be a once in a generation player. Right now he is still all potential, and no real pay-off. Now as to saying the pithing staff is a STRENGTH, what a freaking joke!!!! As any farmer will tell you, three feet of manure counts a "depth", but you still just have a lot of sh*t. The bullpen is good enough due to the sheer number of decent/good relievers that an be trotted out, but it lacks a real quality arm that makes this collection into something remarkable. Who in this pen do you want on the mound against the Yankees with a playoff series ion the line? Yeah... And don't give me the stats, puckstopper1. The eyeball test tells me they aren't a top-level bull pen. Close, but they lack that great arm that can be relied on on to ALWAYS get the job done (think Joe Nathan from our recent past). Over the course of a season they will put up good numbers, but the good hitters will own them. The starters? An improving Berios is a no-brainer. An all-star last year, and a hard worker who seems to want to be the best. Just the type of player the Twins need to hang on to. Maybe he'll never pitch to a Johan Santana level, but few in baseball do... Odorizzi? Kepp using him like a rented mule. Let him have his lead and do his thing. When he can't do it anymore (and that time will come) take him out back and … well just keep treating like that proverbial rented mule. Maeda? He's the wild card. If he puts up numbers anything like he did with the Dodgers, he's an absolute steal. I simply don't trust pitchers coming into the AL from the NL to keep their stats, but I hope he can maintain (or at least be close). Hill? Simply no way to tell. Nearing 40 and coming off arm surgery isn't exactly a sterling recommendation though... If he is healthy and in his normal form by September (play-off time) that would have to be considered a success and anything else would be gravy. Pineda? A very nice middle/ back of the rotation type (and the closer to the back the better). At least he should be well rested... The rest? The youngsters are all potential (as always) and only time will tell which (if any) of this crop will be good, bad or just plain ugly. Bailey and Chacin (sp?)? Mom always told me that if you can't say anything nice, be quiet, so...

How many Gaterols do we have to trade away to get a "comparable" (or lesser) pitcher like Maeda? He is young, reasonably durable and a MUCH above average pitcher. So he isn't your idea of an "ace". He IS the closest thing the Twins have to one! And that isn't going to change in the foreseeable future. Quit making the perfect the enemy of the pretty darned good! And call me when Buxton shows he's an everyday player. He hasn't earned anything as far as an extension. Sure hope he does, but he ain't yet! Lets see 140 games in ONE season from him.