kab21

I practically expected this to happen. There was so much animosity towards him that he almost had to start out great. This is basically a giant middle finger to all of the armchair GM's. Sometimes we deserve it. On a more serious note this is why you don't cut a player outright and instead stash the likely more talented prospect in AAA. It is possible that Nolasco is healthy and could be solid this year while another pitcher or two fall apart or get injured. Now the Twins have a pair of really good replacements to bring up instead of the next Pino, Albers, or other AAAA scrub.

Obviously a trade since Butler just signed a 5 year contract extension. I don't see how it happens. It would almost certainly have to be player initiated but even then they don't have much leverage. Perhaps though this could lead to a Taj Gibson deal to give the Wolves a really good set of bigs.

Jalen Rose on his show just dropped a bomb on his ESPN show. Obviously this isn't sourced but he said Jimmy Butler to the Wolves to play with his old coach. This sounds ridiculous but Jalen has made some similarly bold calls in the past and they happened. I am not expecting this but I think there is a better chance than some of Dave's bold calls.

I love that Thibs is the coach but I am a little hesitant about him being the president w/o a GM that he answers to. I don't really like that dynamic in the NBA and it seems to have a poor track record most places. He can't do worse than Kahn or Mchale though in that role but this team has the potential to be something special.

Arcia wasn't in the equation but it was going to take an act of God to remove Mauer from the lineup this year or next regardless of his decline. They have basically locked themselves into a lineup of Mauer/Park/Sano in some combination of 1B/DH/RF. And Vargas basically has to be cut because I am not sure he can even be promoted unless one of those 3 is on the DL. But when you are bad then you don't worry about where to play everyone. Just add more talent to the org and then you can trade an excess like you say.

He has always been streaky. If a few of his flyouts drop in for XBH's his entire stat line transforms into his normal line. I am much more worried about players like Rosario and Buxton that can't even make contact.

So far this is encouraging. My only problem with acquiring Park is the odd roster construction that is forced on the Twins especially if Arcia's hot streak is legit but he could be a great value. Best news is that it increases the Twins brand in Asia and I live in Asia. I plan on going to South Korea in a year or two and watching a baseball game and it would be really cool to see Twins caps or people coming up to me if I wear a Twins cap.

Sano doesn't have a natural defensive position. The Twins are just hoping that they can hide his defensive liabilities in the field because he won't be a good fielder. Right now they aren't going to play him at multiple different positions this season. Just let him hit.

I think it is funny that everyone is criticizing the show for ending on a cliffhanger that will eventually get leaked. If people care enough to be talking about the leaked cliffhanger in between seasons then they have clearly won even if it is leaked. I have read up a little on who it might be and I think it makes sense to follow the comic. I would be surprised if at this point if they went a different direction. I will be upset if they kill off Michonne or Daryl (Sasha is also a fave) although Michonne's character hasn't been as awesome in the last couple of seasons. I kind of want it to be Rick though. I don't hate him but I think the show could go in a lot of different directions and it would add intrigue to Carl.

I think it is fine to call a top prospect up for 2-3 weeks and be a bench player. There is a lot to absorb by just being around the MLB team. More than a month and the player needs reps. I think we will see Polanco play 2-3 times/wk. I can see the Twins getting Nunez 1-2 days off and possibly a day off for Dozier or Escobar.

Sano hasn't taken an infield grounder all spring (according to some) and Polanco has been in AAA. Neither is an option until Plouffe is DL'd and Polanco is called up.

I didn't say that it was his only role. With Santana on the DL and an OF'er up the team now only has one backup IF'er and Plouffe is expected to be out for several days but he isn't on the DL. That results in zero backup IF'ers which is exactly what I meant by guys getting injured and missing a game or two. This is the reason that it is important to have 2 guys that can play the IF positions well on a bench. These kind of minor injuries happen all the time and having a bench of Arcia, Quentin, backup C and a utility IF (with a 1B playing DH) is very risky.

I mentioned Dunn and PG a page or two back. I am not sure if you can evaluate Tyus like that though. He really wasn't ready to play this year and when he did play he wasn't really surrounded by talent although Bjelica and Shabazz finished the season strong.

Santana was replaced by an OF'er because his role on this team was backup CF'er. He couldn't be replaced by Nunez. Likewise Santana had never played 3B (according to thebaseballcube). That isn't what I consider redundant. Replacing Nunez with a bat only player like Quentin (with Arcia on the bench and Park at DH) is a very risky roster situation.

Hold the horses people - a week ago Nunez was completely redundant with DSantana. It is crazy how fast opinions change around here.

How many spring training games did he play at 3B? I am guessing that the answer is nearly zero and that answers whether or not he will move midseason.

I just got caught up on the last season and this damn show has a unique way of sucking people in. It is a bit repetitive though.

Does a team really have an OF logjam when none of them are hitting? Everyone continues to be concerned a prospect X and prospect Y not having anywhere to play but this is what happens when you have prospects and young players are given starting positions. Some of them flop and the too many OF'ers situation works itself out. This is part of rebuilding.

guys the story is about Laroche and Boyer going undercover in Thai brothels for 10 days with the intent to rescue child prostitutes (and not end up dead). I certainly hope his son wasn't involved.

That is the thing. You aren't going to add a missing piece unless two teams really match up well. And Shabazz is up for restricted FA in one more year.

I think that is a poorly written analysis. If a young player is on the roster then he should be playing everyday. Murphy is fine as the backup OF'er if he is called up. Here is the problem that I brought up this offseason. The Twins left themselves with no plan B if Buxton failed (it has only been 9 games but it has been bad so far). The Twins repeatedly do this to themselves (Hicks and Gomez). That is the frustrating thing. I might be disappointed that multiple young players are doing terribly this season but that happens with young players.

this was exactly what I was talking about. On the other hand he is at least skilled and the reserves lack that for the most part.

Is Gasol really a good option? I was thinking a Taj Gibson type that would help rather than hurt the defense and be competent on offense. The only problem is that Gibson has one more year left on his contract. I don't know what to think about Shabazz. He is the only decent backup wing they have right now.

That is the old Laroche story. This thread is about something completely different.

I think you are reading the wrong story. http://deadspin.com/espns-insane-adam-laroche-puff-piece-features-laroche-l-1770710009 It is crazy that two pro ballplayers would do this while under contract. I can't imagine that either team would be too happy (not so much the ChiSox anymore) with their mission. This is a really good way to end up dead.