kab21

One question has already been answered even if this trade doesn't go through. The Twins will indeed pick up salary in a trade. Trading for a rental doesn't exactly go against what Falvey/Levine said earlier this month. They aren't emptying the farm system on this trade. That is the rental they were talking about. They are removing one of Colon/Gibson (it's Colon) from the rotation and that is an absolutely necessary step for any .500 or better team. And it is using lesser prospects (not top prospects). Obviously they will have to send someone with potential in the deal. Navaretto (or comically Turner) certainly aren't part of this deal. Navaretto has multiple years of <.600 OPS on his resume. That isn't decent in any definition. Lamonte Wade seems reasonable to me. Good prospect but lacks upside (corner OF with below average power) and is a position of depth. Perhaps Blankenhorn. Granite would be an interesting case. Good time to sell high imo since he isn't this good (AAA numbers) although this would be steep just for Garcia. Garver would be frustrating since all he has done is hit at every level. Rortvedt also seems reasonable. He has upside but he is years away and most likely never makes the majors. But at the end of the day I really hope this trade gets done for a top 15ish prospect since Garcia is a competent starter and replaces an ocean of diarrhea in at least one of the rotation spots.

Great now you are back to don't try. Perhaps they have to pick up a little salary. Oh wait - that's impossible for the Twins also. This is tiresome.

Awesome. Take the best possible outcome for a prospect and make an argument. If Sheffield (or whatever prospects you could get) was likely to perform like your prediction then he would be a top 10 overall prospect and a case could be made just like the Yankees trades last year. But the fact is that this is nothing like the Yankees situation this year.

The Twins record is what it is and they are competing. I haven't expected them to still be contending for the Central but here we are. Even if I still expect them to fall out of it I am still not trading (and throwing the white flag) while they are 1/2 game out. That is an awful thing to do to players and they will absolutely let you know about it.

But you still don't think those trades would be a considerable drop in performance? Really?

Did I only say that they would only get blasted by the media? They would lose the players themselves if they sold right now. This is the most important factor imo. How can you expect the players to perform when the FO guts a team 1/2 game out? And yes, trading Santana (1 of the 2 good starters - Mejia is making an argument for a 3rd) is gutting the team when they are pitching Gibson and Colon.

If somebody could take Santana's spot w/o a big drop in performance then he wouldn't be getting traded for Santana. A name suggested as a possible ballpark value for Ervin is Justus Sheffield. He has made 17 AA starts and would most likely bomb in the majors if promoted now. That is a big drop in performance. Rogers could take Kintzler's spot but who takes Rogers' spot? The Twins already have MASSIVE problems getting to the 8th/9th innings. This trade would further deplete an already really weak bullpen. The Twins need to add a RP instead of subtract.

The Twins would be absolutely blasted by local media, national media, players (especially important) and by fans if they sold as some suggested. And they would deserve it. People keep talking about 'we should get prospects for next year' but these trades look nothing like last year's Yankees trades. They had premium players in free agent seasons that brought back a HAUL of prospects. The Twins have a few alright players (controlled for next year) that would bring back one top 50ish prospect and several borderline top 100 guys. There is no way I make those moves for a mediocre haul like that. It might be possible to trade someone like Escobar and make it very clear that it was done to add a pitcher that could help out this year or at the very least next season. Everyone can see that the Twins need a lot of help in the bullpen and the rotation. That could be defensible. But I actually think they should keep Escobar as a super utility guy.

Are you actually talking about trading 2 players at the Twins greatest positions of need when the Twins are 1/2 GB in the Central? It is one thing to not make a significant acquisition at the deadline but it is quite another to sabotage a contending team (for the playoffs). Sure they likely aren't beating the Astros but to sell at this point would be an awful move as far as the clubhouse and the fans are concerned. This is one of my biggest frustrations with the board right now. Everybody wants to play for 2019 or later despite being 1/2 game back.

A) Santiago was actually pitching well until the extra inning game where I believe he got hurt. Meyer has 67IP with a 5.6 BB/9. I need to see a little (actually a lot) more before I use hindsight on this trade.

I will repeat - Nobody is talking about a blockbuster for a rental. Some are talking about a very good controllable starter. But I am directly talking about trading the #15-ish org prospect for a competent starter but everyone just replies 'can't compete in the postseason, no reason to make any trades'. And as of a week ago people are still speculating what Ervin Santana can fetch. The Twins are 1/2 GB right now.

I think the site has been overwhelmingly negative despite a winning season so far and contending for a playoff spot. For example we have been reading for two months that the Twins shouldn't trade any prospects (a majority of the site) for any help. Not even guys in the org's 20+ prospects for a competent starting pitcher. Nobody wants to sell the farm for a rental but at some point this team has to bring in a competent starting pitcher and bullpen arm. The Twins are 27th in team ERA despite having two very good starters and two very good reliever. Getting a 6+ ERA from two rotation spots and multiple spots in the bullpen. Getting anyone decent is a huge upgrade over that.

If I am cutting RP'ers then Pressly is 3rd or 4th on the list and not where I start. I think you are too set on roles. Pressly is stashed somewhere before he goes back to a larger role. If...

We have one thread where Gibson has been so awful for so long that he has to be removed from the rotation. Colon says 'Hold my BEER!' Both of these are terrible options but the Twins can't go forward with a 3 man rotation. I would say make a trade but the board has mostly been against trading any prospects since they aren't a competitive playoff team if they make it. Something has to give since the Twins have gotten complete garbage out of two rotation spots and are still in the playoff hunt.

So you are going to put someone that has struggled as much as Pressly this season into the setup/closer roles? It looks like Molitor has decided that Pressly will be used as a long man and that is the guy that goes into the game in the 4th inning (actually the 5th I think) when you know you are going to use several RP's that night.

I see more Jacque Jones in Rosario personally. And he was a perfectly fine LF'er through his arb years. And Brooks is completely right. You don't replace Rosario until a clearly better option comes along. Granite is not it (discussed 2 weeks ago). And neither is anyone else in the upper minors.

So you are saying that the standard operating procedure of previous regimes aren't indicative of the current regime then that is exactly my overall point. I didn't say that they were 'HUGE' signings. I said that the 'never going to happen' crowd sounded just like you. And Sano was a HUGE deal at the time. One of the largest (or the largest) signing bonus for a 16 year old at the time. Something that was not considered possible for a team that had completely ignored the high bonus int'l market at the time.

Sano, Kepler and Polanco - People were saying that they wouldn't do that. Insisting. And then it happened. Things change for teams. Just because the team was run one way a decade ago (getting close to that long since they were competitive) doesn't mean that it will be the same with a new GM from outside of the organization.

When the starter only makes it through 4 IP then you are almost guaranteed to use someone that you don't want to use in the game when there are so many bad options.

The problem with this 'they haven't' argument is that they have a new GM and before that the team was very non-competitive for half a decade. I remember hearing that the Twins wouldn't spend big on Int'l FA and then they did and they have kept spending. I also remember hearing endless times that the Twins wouldn't sign any significant FA starters and then they did (2x for 45-50M). The Twins will certainly spend if they have a chance at the playoffs (1.5 games out near the deadline).

Pressly bothers me less than Breslow and Belisle. At least in Pressly's case his K/BB rates (and swstr%) are good (near elite). He is getting rocked when the ball is put in play though. And it isn't even every time the ball is put into play. He has a normal BAPIP and is getting a lot of GB's. But he has a 25% HR/FB rate and a 55% LOB rate. If a hitter can get under a ball then it's a goner. If they can get on base then they are going to score. When he misses, he must be laying the biggest meatballs across the plate. Note - I am not making an argument for him but there are statistical oddities. 25% K rate - 6% BB rate - 50 GB rate

This plays right into growing sentiment abroad that the US 'is a very dangerous place'. I have always disagreed with that (there are dangerous areas and most violence is from friends/family) but this is getting ridiculous.

Mejia has certainly earned a spot for next year but I just wouldn't fully count on him at this point. With him at #4 and Gonsalves (or different prospect) there is still a lot that can go wrong. At least in that case there is potential for things to go right since they have upside. The trade that I would be talking about is Gray, Fulmer or someone proven.

This is pretty vague but if anyone can come up with a source of this info then I would like to see it. I feel pretty confident in saying that the Twins will be paying almost all of Hughes' salary regardless of when they cut him.

I think signing 1 FA or making one trade is a good first step. This has been my argument against trading Santana. If you only have Berrios then you have to add 3 good starters. If you have Berrios and Santana then you only need to add 2. Once you make one move then you need one. Getting one good starter is possible through prospect promotion or another move but getting 3 is a very long road to take. My goal would be 4 average or better starters and 3-4 alright-ish ones (depth). Ideally you get a true ace or even really good #2 but I worry about that once there is some level of stability in the rotation. I am not putting Mejia in the competent category yet. He has had a mixed first season so far and there are some encouraging signs but also some signs that he never approaches average.