stringer bell

Much like Cuddy, it would be defensive versatility, rather than ability that would get him more playing time.

I'm a Dozier fan and even I can't say he has established himself to the point that alternatives (moving him to SS, moving Rosario to the outfield) or trading a top prospect like Rosario should be seriously considered. However, he's done great since the end of May and certainly is among the better players on the Twins that are going out on the field every day. I still think he would be better served by batting down in the order, but right now he is the best lead-off guy the Twins have.

I confess that I haven't been a huge Morneau fan since he limped home for the '06 MVP. He has been a poor player late in seasons when he hasn't been injured, and he has usually missed significant time at the end of the season. That said, I actually respect his work and effort to get back. He plays hard and works very hard on his hitting (maybe too hard), but the results overall just haven't been commensurate with his salary. I suspect that Morneau will in fact be traded and the "bounty" will consist of salary savings and any prospect will be no better that what they got for Butera. I really don't hold out much hope that Morneau will return to the Twins for 2014, and to be honest, I won't have that much regret or disappointment if that is indeed the case. There would be value in opening a spot on both the 25-man roster and the 40-man. $3.5M in savings could be better used in acquiring pitching in the offseason, although I won't hold my breath.

The streak ends thanks to a Cleveland error! Mauer scores on an error by Bourn.

Predict who breaks the homer for runs streak, when and how it is broken. Also who scores the run and who (if any) drives it in. I will start the predictions by naming Dozier as the run scorer, driven in by a Mauer single in the fifth inning of tonight's game.

I guess I see this a little differently. First of all, no one is going to claim Morneau for sport, because the Twins can simply accept the claim and the claiming club owes the balance of his salary. That is more than $3M for a quarter of the season. From my point of view, if the Twins unload Morneau's salary, clear a roster spot and nothing else they break even. If they get a player with some chance someday of being a contributor, that is even better. If they get greedy and want a top prospect (or bust) then they end up with Morneau til the end of the season.

Cleared from the Disabled List and back on the Twins. I thought he was a goner (DFA) for sure.

Ramirez and Mastroianni were born the same year (2 months apart) and Clete is less than two years older, not four. That said, I think that Mastroianni will be optioned when his rehab time is over. He hasn't played in a couple of days and the Red Wings are off tomorrow, IIRC. Doumit is due to come off the concussion list soon (Friday?) and that will require another move. Ideally, a pitcher should be demoted, traded or designated, but there aren't any obvious candidates for demotion unless Kyle Gibson is shut down. So, if a position player is demoted, Ramirez might be the leading candidate, even though his demotion would expose him to being claimed, since he has no options remaining.

Many ifs in the following scenario, but if Dozier proves to be a decent hitter with surprising power and a fine defender and Rosario "beats the door down" by continuing to hit as he advances through the minor leagues, the Twins would have decisions to make. One would be to move the superior defender back to shortstop to clear a spot for Rosario. The other option would be to trade one or the other.

Only if Morneau homers on the same day.

Good game for Plouffe tonight. Perhaps the slump is over.

Wow, just wow. Well, I guess the Twins hold Ramirez in much higher regard than I do. I should note that Mastroianni and Hicks aren't playing right now. In a 14 inning game, they never got off the bench and they didn't play yesterday, either. Antoan Richardson hasn't played in a while either (injured I suppose).

Joel, I've been thinking that Ramirez is a candidate to be DFAed as soon as his rehab is over. Assuming that Mastroianni is up to being a center fielder again, I see no point in calling Ramirez up. Further, I see no point in sending Colabello down unless the Twins are "all in" on Rochester winning the AAA championship. May hasn't really been that lousy. I guess it may be possible that he gets promoted, but more likely to Rochester. I don't think there's any thought of Diamond being anything but a starter, no matter what his problems have been so far this year.

The roster move hasn't been made yet to replace Carroll. It looks to me like there are two possibilities--Escobar or Mastroianni--with another roster move pending (Doumit off the concussion DL). If Doumit is fully healthy, Herrmann could be demoted or Colabello or Thomas could go. Colabello or Herrmann would be a free option, while the Twins would have to DFA Clete. A move has to be made on Mastroianni by the 15th, but he could be optioned to Rochester if he hasn't started hitting.

I have noticed that Carroll's arm is much, much less than it was even last year. He is still a good defender because of the reasons mentioned in this article, but he really isn't more than a stopgap shortstop. Again, he has made the absolute most of his limited (and now diminishing) tools.

Someone needed to (re)start a thread about Plouffe. He has been dreadful (I read somewhere 6-60) for quite a while. I have heard differing opinions about his work ethic and attitude, but the production hasn't been there lately. I think he should be given the rest of the year to see what his numbers can be, but if he continues to struggle, he has to be a candidate for a non-tender. I am presuming he is arb. eligible this winter.

Robinson is not on the 40-man roster, so I suspect that unless someone else is moved, that the Twins won't make a 40-man move just to give him a September call-up. I would speculate that one of Wilken Ramirez or Clete Thomas may get the gate clearing a spot or that the Twins can shed some salary with an August move, but I doubt they promote Robinson given his only OK numbers at Rochester.

Scott Diamond with a complete game shutout. 5 hits, four Ks.

40 man spot for Mastro, who may or may not also be promoted to the Twins by Thursday. Carroll did his job and made the absolute most out of his abilities. Best wishes to him!

I agree with you on this. Besides this, the other question that troubles me is whether the team really understands the need for power arms, particularly among the starting pitchers. While they did well with the Rick Reeds, Carl Pavanos and so forth in the past, they need to bolster their pitching staff with guys who get swings and misses.

Back to my Three True Outcomes thought: The Twins hit 11 homers resulting in all 19 runs scored. They walked 23 times and fanned 45 times in four games. Chicago hit 7 homers, walked 13 times and struck out 29 against a staff that is at or near the bottom in all three of those stats.

It wouldn't be a Twins-ChiSox series w/o an Adam Dunn bomb.

You've gone in the wayback machine to April!

Have you been to the Fort in late August/early September? I presume it is different than mid-March.

Puny doubles.