mudcat14

Anyone heard what's up with Royce Lewis? He keeps playing everyday, but his average at the Fort has plummeted about .050 in the last two weeks. Perhaps he's just wearing down in his first year of full-season ball. I hope it's nothing physical.

Pitching in Beloit for 5 whole innings this season. Currently on the DL. Not on A's Top 30 list. 6'3" & about 175#. Anybody got a scouting report on him? I hope he at least throws hard when healthy. Now, let's find a taker for Morrison and see what Austin might provide going forward.

I can't help but wonder if a bump to Chattanooga would be due for this guy. I'm not suggesting that he's Mike Trout, but except for the speed and glove his numbers in a season split between A & A+ Ball are superior to Trout's. Granted, Alex is about 1 & half years older than Trout was. Never the less, I'm hoping, hoping, hoping that he's a special talent. Additionally, Trout was drafted 10 spots later than Kirilloff, so a rapid ascent isn't at all unprecedented.

A+. Pressley was the only one relatively certain to be here next season, and to turn him and the others into 10 prospects, plus Austin & Forsythe is amazing. No idea which, but am willing to bet a couple of them actually pan out, down the road.

Well, Boston's out. They just got Ian Kinsler.

According to MLB Trade Rumors, the Twins and Yankees will split the remaining $4mil owed Lynn this season. So I guess it's only about a $2mil salary dump, with a couple cheap bodies to boot. Believe me, I'm not excited about this deal, but it's also hard to hate too.

Salary dump for a bench player. Rijo is the interesting part of this deal. 19-years old and already has seen action in the FSL. He also refuses to walk hitters. May give up too many hits, but could be helpful down the road.

Agreed. Kiriloff is untouchable right now. Despite missing a full season, he's improved his numbers every step up the ladder while being a year or two younger than the competition. You ride this pony until it bucks you. Could be a very special player.

The Twins have added four players to their organizational Top 30 in the last 24 hours. Any chance this prospect build up is tied to another deal, perhaps after the season? It's no secret that almost everyone on this site and elsewhere covet the Marlins backstop, Realmuto. Word is that Miami is holding out for a windfall of prospective talent in return. These recent moves seem to have put the Twins right near the top in terms of prospects. Could this free them up to consider moving some of them? Just wondering.

You're right about Kepler, 'tanked' doesn't really apply to him. But as Dick Bremer was alluding to during the broadcast, when a player reach's the 1,200 AB threshold, you either expect to see some improvement or is that all he is. Max's splits are certainly different from previous years, but overall he's no more productive than ever. Whether it's coaching, player development or scouting, Max and the players listed above along with Lynn & Odorizzi are all having the worst years of their respective careers by almost every metric. This can't just be coincidence or hard luck.

Please! I can't watch any more of this. Not sure if I wouldn't fire the entire Front Office as well. Every choice that they have made has back-fired. We have a roster full of pitchers who can't throw strikes, and batters that can't hit (or often even swing) at them. That we are in a position that Escobar is our primary clean-up hitter is inexcusable. Our scouting department (which was supposedly rebuilt) is pathetic. They can't evaluate potential talent and the advance scouting appears to be non-existent. Can't blame them for Polanco's suspension. But when core players like Dozier, Sano, Buxton, Morrison & Kepler all tank together, that's systemic not coincidence. Man, am I frustrated by this team!

Hopefully the Twins use the savings to salary Wilson Ramos for the remainder of the year, since Tampa is clearly in the sell now mode. If we eat his contract, the return shouldn't be too high.

Buxton needs to go to AAA. I believe he has an option left. His failure to generate any offense is costing us more runs than his glove is saving. Each of the past two years, he's come back from a AAA stint as a new hitter. Let's not drag it out any longer.

I'd love to get Realmuto, but would balk at the Marlins asking price. I believe the prudent move would be to target Wilson Ramos. As an impending FA, the asking price would be much lower. Badoo and Stewart or possibly even less would get it done. Tampa would appreciate the $5mil or so in salary relief.

Sano for Realmuto & Barraclough. Tired of Miguel's health issues, which are almost exclusively due to his failure to be in shape.

AJ!

Dick said on the broadcast, that the plan is to stretch him out as a starter. The thought being it's easier to schedule his rehab appearances and to cut him down to relief if necessary, than to stretch him out to a starter later in the season.

Trevor got the start tonight at Fort Meyers. Hopefully all goes well, and he can add another quality piece to the big league staff soon.

The Yankees added Stanton's deal and couldn't find any takers for Ellsbury. They'll go with Andujar & Torres @ 2B & 3B precisely because they'll be cheap for a while. All of their money will be used to tie up Judge, Gregorious & Sanchez, along with attracting the LH Harper and starting pitching. They have no need or desire for another costly RH bat. I'd be really surprised if this winter's FA freeze-out is a 1-year trend. Manny is clearly very desirable, but to me his windfall will be just a rung below Harper & Kershaw simply because the biggest money clubs have his spot covered. I don't see anyone getting $300mil. $35mil/year maybe, but not for more than 6-years. The risk has proven to be way to big, more often than not.

You're probably right about him signing elsewhere, but I'm not sure where that would be. To me, the Mets & Phillies seem the most likely in terms of need and budget. Chicago, LA & The Yankees will be going all in on Harper. None has a particular need to spend big bucks on a RH SS/3B. Maybe Washington, if they lose Harper. I've heard the White Sox could make a strong run at him, but would hope we could at least compete with anything they could offer. Remember, we shed a ton of payroll after this season.

He wouldn't sign, and there would be no draft pick compensation since he was traded mid-season. Call me crazy or stupid though, but I think he could be a real possibility to sign in the off-season. Having him during the balance of 2018 would only enhance those chances. Mainly though, I'm becoming more and more dubious of Sano's willingness or ability to achieve his potential.

I would seriously give up Sano for Machado even up, today. Offer Manny an 8-year deal for around $250mil with opt-out clauses any time after three years. Let him play SS if that's his preference. I'm rapidly tiring of Sano's inability to solve the out and away problems he is suffering from at the plate. He's capable of punching the ball to the opposite field harder than most LH Sluggers can pull the ball that way, but refuses to make any adjustments. Obviously this move will never happen and probably shouldn't happen. But it's time for Miggy to stop being a threat, and become an actual weapon.

I think it's wise to let him reach Free Agency. If they decide they want him beyond this year after the season, I doubt his value will increase greatly. With our impending middle infield depth, it's worth the gamble.

To be honest, I don't think there's enough difference defensively between Adrianza, Aybar or Escobar to matter that much over 80-games. In fact, I don't think Polanco offers any real upgrade with the glove either. Where this hurts most is at the plate. None of the three replacements is the hitter that Jorge was in the final 3rd of last season. My guess is that the hottest bat and match-ups will help Mollie determine who is in the line-up each day. Don't be shocked if Gordon gets an early look if he continues the streak he's been on so far in spring training. Let's face it, with Dozier's likely departure, Gordon & Polanco will likely be handling the keystone in some configuration in 2019 anyway. Giving Nick a strong taste this season might be for the best.

Sounds like his BB rate, fly ball rate & launch angle all jumped significantly last season, leading to the power surge. If this truly signals a philosophical change that he can stick to, perhaps he can sustain his production. An OPS of .868 is nothing to sneeze at.