Mark G

Win the WS? No. I was thinking more along the lines of competing for a spot in it come October; honestly competing, not getting swept by the first team we face. At least being in the mix of contenders, and I'm just not sure the improvements alone will get us there; guys staying healthy and playing up to their potential just might. And I know I am old school, but BA still means more to me than WAR, because I have been given too many definitions of "replacement" to truly trust that stat. I will take a pure hitter any day (which Judge appears to be as well) over analytically driven stats. And the trade offs we made (again, just the trade offs, not the underlying potential this team has if it stays healthy and plays up to potential) don't appear to tilt the needle in a positive enough direction to get me on the wagon just yet. But I am waiting for that push, and will gladly jump if I am wrong.

While I am not quite on the bandwagon yet, I am trotting along side it so I can catch it if and when my fears subside. I can't get on board yet, because I do not see the changes as an upgrade worthy of title proportions. We upgraded at catcher, and added a good pitcher to a starting rotation that has too many questions for my comfort level. Paddock out, Mahle and Gray seemingly on innings limits to keep them off the IL, and Maeda not having pitched since late '21 gives me pause. We lost our 1 and 3 top hitters (please don't tell me BA doesn't matter) and added two outfielders who can play D, but fall short of the two hitters we lost. And we added a wild card, in my extremely humble opinion, in Farmer, who can play multiple positions and can replace any injured infielder if the need arises. That pretty much leaves young guys stepping up, key players staying healthy, and the BP being able to hold up better than last year with having to pitch way too many innings. Optimistic? Yup. Overly confident? Sorry, nope. But I will gladly be wrong. And, by the way, the one thing I will wonder about until we see it play out, is the balanced schedule this year. Gone are the days of playing Detroit, KC, and Chicago 57 times a year. It will be interesting to see how that affects the record as the year plays out. Good example would be Ryan, who couldn't lose to Detroit if he was trying to throw the game, but struggling against better/more disciplined lineups throughout the league. Time will tell how we do against more of the 2 leagues. I am ready to jump on board; I just need the team to give me the right push. 😎

So did Gardy.........until he didn't. 😉 I'm kidding.......sort of. But Gardy did have a pretty good winning record for a lot of years until he ran into 4 straight losing years, and he was gone. Losing, even for a little while, does make you an easy target, because winning and losing is the only issue. Heck, even Molly had winning records 2 of his 4 years, and the FO was selling out from under him left and right the last two. Managers are paid to do two things (generally speaking). Run the team day in and day out; players, coaches, lineups, pitching decisions, etc. And win. Again, generally speaking, more than you lose. Given the talent level, of course. We hit 307 home runs in '19; we didn't in '21 and '22. Remind me of our records in those 3 years. 😏 Gotta win with out them sometimes. All some of the folks are saying, maybe myself as well, is that the last two of our managers were made the scapegoat, so to speak, as are all managers when the team loses. (on the other hand, Kelly had a lifetime losing record, and he is in the Twins Hall of Fame, so maybe I don't know what I am talking about) I hate being the guy who is looking at the half empty glass instead of the half full one. This team definitely has the potential to do very good things; it just has to do it, which is still a little iffy with all of the potential health issues we have seen recently. I am rooting for your prediction.

"Hell, they were almost a top 10 offense last year" And an offense that scored 3 runs or less in just over 48% of their games. (I know, because of the trotting out of the guys you mentioned, but still a concern) Every one of those guys healthy and producing? Definitely a top 10 offense. Problem is, it hasn't happened yet. I hope it does; I hope the optimism a lot of the folks are showing comes to fruition. But forgive me if I am more than a little cautious.

"The Twins have improved the roster from last season. That’s an objective truth." Now that is not an opinion; it is not even a prediction. It is a declaration. A statement that someone feels in unarguable. Now, I am not saying it is right or wrong, the jury is still out on that, but I am wondering how the roster has improved. I know I will probably miss something here, but my memory tells me we let one catcher go and signed another, who is predicted to be a little better with the bat. We let go or traded our highest and third highest average hitters. We lost two infielders and added two outfielders who have not hit at or near the two guys we lost, and we added a utility guy in Farmer. We added a #2 or #3 pitcher, hoping he will rise above that even. We appear to be standing pat with most of the rest of the pitching staff, and the rest of the position guys as well. As Alex pointed out, there may be another move coming, but the declaration was the roster as it currently stands is improved. Definitively. It surely hasn't regressed, but how much has it truly improved? Again, the jury is still a long ways from giving us a verdict, but I think a lot of people are counting on guys staying healthy more of the time and contributing what they couldn't before. If they all are right, the declaration will probably be true. But, as Beast pointed out, we have an enormous number of guys on the 40 who have yet to prove that will be the case. I hope they do. I hope the jury finds Alex innocent of any charges of over reaching. I hope for a WS. But, then, I do that every year. 😉

Well, I guess it boils down to I expect any entity I give my money to should give me the information I need to feel comfortable with the information I have to feel comfortable with continuing that financial relationship........yeah, that didn't make sense to me either, but you get my drift. 😏 And you disagree. Cool. I guess I will always want more information before I hand over my money to this particular business, and you will be content with whatever they feel they "owe" you. Again, cool. Doesn't make me right and you wrong, or vice versa. We just want different things from what I still call "our" team. May we both be content with what we ultimately get. 😉

Very true, but they are the ones telling us much of the time that the injury status for a player is "day to day". So, logically, someone is going to ask each day, if that is the only info given to them. How many times have we seen "day to day" turn into the IL? Do they truly not know the extent of most injuries? Do the players and trainers not connect with the manager and coaches? (Actually, I do wonder at times about that, because how many times has Rocco told reporters he hasn't talked to the player and does not know the status as of that moment.......but I digress) Day to day is quite often a cop out; a way of answering a question without answering the question.

Bear with me on this one, it is likely to be pretty long. 😬 I agree that none of the major sports teams give the fans the kind of information that makes them feel a part of the team; as I said previously, the "our team" mindset. But, as I see it, sports is just one aspect of life where people in general, fans or not, want to know what they are being told is true and what they are being sold is real, and worth it. We want honesty and forthcoming information throughout all aspects of life. Our civic leaders, our employers, the business' we purchase from, the places we bank.......I could go on for a while. Nowhere else do we tolerate being left in the dark, or just flat out lied to in some instances, and still do business with them. If any other entity were to act like sports franchises the Attorney General, the BBB, the consumer protection agencies, and so on, and so on, would be all over them. So what makes sports so different? I think it is because of our unique relationship with them; again, the "our team" outlook. Any other personalities or celebrities don't have the unique draw athletes do. And other celebrity areas of entertainment seek out the press to give all kinds of behind the scenes info about how things are filmed, who their favorite people are with, etc., etc., etc. Celebrity press people actually go too far sometimes (at least in this extremely humble observer's opinion). But can you name anyone (I can't) that feels like Yellowstone is "our" series? Or an album? Or a movie? We bond to a team almost as much as we bond to our jobs and our churches. I know a lot of people who would put their family first, but their favorite team second, even above job and other interests. I guess that is why we don't want to be shut out of the flow of information that makes waiting for next season worth it; kind of like Twins Daily. This is our flow of information we can't get elsewhere. But is it enough? Was that the point of the article? Maybe, maybe not, I won't speak for Greggory, but it sure helps keep me tuning in. Again, I get that all sports franchises do it to one extent or another, but the unique relationship between team and fan almost screams that is a bad business model. Any information they might give you and me is already known by the other teams anyway. They all pay scouts to watch their opposition; they are experts at seeing the kinds of things we are asking about; they aren't giving away any secrets by answering a reporter's question. Because at the end of the day, it is as much of a business as any other, and I will not purchase something from anyone unless I have all the information I need to make an informed decision. The Twins might take heed of what a lot of their fans are telling them, which is "hey, remember us? We are in this too, you know".

I know what you are saying, but I would respectfully disagree. It is not America's game, it is America's pastime. It has been part of the country's culture for well over a century. It is a great distraction from the rest of the world. It is something kids have dreamt about for lifetimes. We idolize the players (or at least used to). We pay money to see them play a game that we ourselves played and still could, if we slow it down to our level. Why? Because there is something magical about it. And since we are paying to see it, the folks selling it to us should be a bit more considerate to their customers. It becomes "our" team after a while, even if we do not actually own it. They do not see it that way, it appears, so what we see today is the result. It could be so much different. Couldn't it?

That was the longest way of saying cut them some slack I have ever read. 😉 And that is saying something with this team, as the people who talk to us are the best I have ever seen at using more words to say nothing than anyone else in my life. 😏 Seriously, all I ask of them is just be honest with the people who pay their bills........US. If they would tell us everything Greggory just talked about, they might take a whole lot less heat. Because Greggory is right; when there is a gap in knowledge, we will fill it in ourselves - right or wrong. Well, most of us will. I am always right. 😇

Sounds like the conversation they have at Joe Soucheray's Crabby Coffee Shop. 🤭

"Derek Falvey pulled off another master-class trade" I nominate this as an early candidate for "Most hyperbolic statement within a main TD article-2023" I know there is a lot of time left, but I still like this comment's chances. Couldn't agree more!! As for line 4.........get back to me sometime in '24, because we have no way of knowing if it will work in our favor for a while yet.

Me as well.

Seriously? They were sub .500 the last two years with Buxton, too. Would you move him to get pitching? And if we had, would you say Twins fans weren't crushed? As one Twins fan to another, please do not decide for me whether or not I am "crushed" by moving one of my favorite players. And Miami thinks enough of Arraez to give up a pretty good major league pitcher and two pretty interesting young prospects for him. He must have something going for him other than just being fun to watch 500 at bats a year. The jury is still out, and will be for awhile, on whether it was a great move or not. But I do hope you are right, and that it turns out to be.

If it was that simple, we would have 4 aces, with a couple more up our sleeves just in case. 🤭

"There's likely enough playing time to go around what with the injury potential, but also the desire to keep players fresh." Pretty much agree with everything else, but this makes me nervous. This assumes all the players on the roster are relatively equal; that there are not "starters", and "bench players", or reserves. Everyone plays in a rotation, with everyone getting a certain number of at bats. In this extremely humble observer's experience, that leads to one of two outcomes: we either finish first, as everyone is that good, so of course we play them all, or we finish somewhere in the pack (like the last two years), as everyone is average, so of course we might as well play them all. Do we really think we have 13 starting caliber players? If so, play them all in rotation. If not, play your best players the vast majority of the time (unless hurt), and sub only as needed. Players get paid based on their skill levels and production; why we would play lesser players as much, or at least almost as much, as the top skill players befuddles me, but then I am not one of the smartest guys in the room. Let's hope our brain trust is (at least this time around). 😉

"While it’s sad to see Arraez go, the Twins’ front office deserves credit for making an excellent deal." Sorry Matt, no disrespect intended whatsoever, but I will not start my reaction with that premise. We have no way of knowing if this was an excellent deal, and we probably won't know until somewhere in the '24 season. Hitting for pitching; yeah, I get it. But as much as I would normally go with that argument, this is a team that WITH Louis scored 3 runs or less in just over 48% of their games. And that was with Correa, so he is not an addition from last year. Now, take away your leading average hitter and your third leading (Urshella), and how confident are we that the injured will stay healthy and pick up that production? I hope that Pablo is everything we hope him to be, and he wins games 1 and 5 in the playoffs. And in a perfect world he would face Arraez in game one of the World Series. But you will forgive me if I don't hold my breath. Get back to me in '24 and we'll talk again. And as an aside, please, please please, enough with the "prospects". 19, and especially 17 year old kids in Class A don't move the needle for me. Four year veterans with a career .314 BA, on the other hand, come along how often? One more time: I hope you work out, Pablo. You took the place of a gem.

I wouldn't, and for a variety of reasons. I would rather have a guy play 100 games in the field over 50 (and that is close, as Buck played the field in 58 and Louis played in 102), and I would rather have a guy hit .316 with and OBP of .375 than a guy that hits the occasional solo HR, strikes out 1/3 of his at bats, and hits .224 with barely over a .300 OBP. A contact hitter who walks more than he strikes out vs a hitter who swings like he is swinging a golf club to get his "launch angle" just right so that when he finally connects it is a HR or a double. People are over valuing the solo HR hitter, not the guy who gets on base 37-38% of the time. And on what planet is a .314 lifetime hitter "barely above average"?

I am sure there has been a post somewhere that I would disagree with more.........but for the life of me, I can't think of one off hand. Batting title dum.........I will have to remember that one. 😏

I am old enough to still pine for another Zoilo, but if anyone can capture the audience like he did, I believe it will be Carlos. He is the complete player.

I am sorry you misunderstood my post to the degree you did. I would attempt to clarify, but it appears it would just add fuel to the fire, so I will leave it be and hope either I am clearer next time, or you understand me better next time. Or both? Anyway, time to move on. Take care.

"It's ridiculous to make this out to be some sort of move that we should even have real feelings about. If you'd never heard of either player in a deal it's not a deal worth complaining about." Taking this thought one step further, if most of us had never heard of either player then it would not be a deal worth writing about. But Matt did, and he opened it up for discussion. We can agree to disagree, but I would hope that we would not rip each other over an opinion which, by definition, cannot be right or wrong.. Sincere, yes. Snarky, yes. Funny, maybe (I do try). But neither right nor wrong. Let's go easy on each other. ?

Let's pretend for a moment we had signed Verlander to a multi year contract. Would we be asking what it means to every other pitcher on the 40 man roster? Of course not; we would be amazed and thrilled we had a top of the order pitcher who could take us to another level. So why are we asking how a player like Correa would affect every other non pitcher on the 40 man? Why couldn't we just be glad we locked up a premier player at a position that we have been lacking for years? I don't really expect to have this happen, but if it did, and we had a premier SS come into our fold for several years to come, would any one of the other 31 teams be worried about how it affects the other 25 players? Every one of them would figure out a way to incorporate a premier player into the roster; but we couldn't? Of course we could, and I hope we have to figure out a way.

Do we want a former front line pitcher who is still only 31, and has the potential to be a front line pitcher again? And do we want him for the MLB minimum wage? No investment we couldn't walk away from the instant we see he no longer has it? A possible investment in the future if he rounds back into form? We would be lying to ourselves if we said no. But........and it is a big but.........do we want the clubhouse drama that might come with it, along with the negative press? 31 teams are going to ask themselves that question, and I am willing to bet at least one makes him an offer. Should it be us? I doubt it, only because of how sensitive this market is and the backlash that would come with it. But professional sports is littered with guys that can't keep their emotions in check or their mouths shut and everyone survives. Just look at professional wrestling. As opposed to golf. ? I think we would be amazed at how short a time it would take to either cut bait with him or forgive him for the past. But this is a minefield we will probably be wise passing on.

Maybe, but a #1 has to be able to beat a #1. He has to be able to go through the lineup at least at 3rd time and even get his toes wet into a 4th time. And he has to be able to do it more than just a handful of times a year, but enough times to make your team believe you can do it when it is needed the most. Do you believe Ryan has that ability? Now, or as he goes through his career? I sure hope so, but do we believe that.........really? Time will tell, and I hope you are right. I really do.