Doomtints

SDI is rubbish, but it's nice to see the Twins well represented.

What happened here is a couple of you liked the OP's definition of roster flexibility, then attacked that same definition when it was shown to be a poor definition. It's fun to be a mod, right?

Another game, another pair of throwing errors by the Twins infield. The Twins infielders seem to have a special affection for sloppy play when Gibson starts, though the infielders are starting to share the love with everybody.

The question isn't whether or not Gibson can last 5-6 innings sometimes, the question is who would take over for him? The Twins don't have anybody else. Those minimum 3 solid innings have value and are more than the team would get from anybody else right now. FYI, Gibson is second on the team in IP, so clearly he's not as bad as it seems.

You start by saying they are not unsophisticated. You end by saying they don't know PR. In the middle, you talk about things I wasn't talking about, all while saying I'm wrong. Thanks for the vent.

The outfield defense has been nearly flawless. The infield defense not so much.

It's not? Here's last year. I see 70% of the roster playing more than one fielding position. What do you see? Name PosSummary Tyler Austin 1B-DH Logan Morrison 1B-LF-DH Joe Mauer 1B-RF-DH-C Brian Dozier 2B Logan Forsythe 2B-LF-DH Gregorio Petit 2B-SS-3B-1B-DH Miguel Sano 3B-1B-DH Eduardo Escobar 3B-SS-2B Bobby Wilson C Juan Graterol C Jason Castro C Chris Gimenez C-1B-P-3B-DH Mitch Garver C-1B-P-DH Willians Astudillo C-3B-2B-LF-P-CF-DH Byron Buxton CF-DH Ryan LaMarre CF-LF-RF-P-DH Jake Cave CF-RF-LF-DH Eddie Rosario LF-RF-CF-3B-DH Johnny Field LF-RF-CF-DH Taylor Motter RF-3B-SS-2B Max Kepler RF-CF-1B-DH Robbie Grossman RF-LF-DH Jorge Polanco SS Ehire Adrianza SS-3B-1B-2B-LF-DH

(Also, and this is the worst bit, until recently the Pohlads were the regional bottler for Pepsi. Gross.)

Carl started out by buying foreclosed properties (mostly farms) during the Great Depression. He continued to buy failed or failing assets and properties, including banks, land, buildings, etc., throughout his lifetime. Note a couple of things: - Though the Pohlad family was valued at $3.6B as late as 2015, Jim is suspected to only have cash in the $1M - $10M range in spite of running the both the Twins and managing the real estate holdings. How would you feel about doling out $100M contracts when you have much less than that? - The $3.6B value in 2015 appears to be going downward, though I'm not sure how as the economy has been good, so take this with a grain of salt. - The liquid assets in the family that come from the businesses are shared by 20 different people and their families. Jim probably doesn't have the control we think he does. If the Twins go in the red, it affects a lot of people, all in his family.

I imagine more will be done than in the TR years -- where we would often see one token move at the last possible second to make sure there wasn't an uproar among fans and the press -- but as to the caliber of this year's moves it's impossible to know. One thing is for certain, any move the Twins could make that would make a difference would be an expensive one, both with cash and prospects. And, yes, if they don't make an appropriate move or two I can see this team fading down the stretch. Saving money year after year only makes sense if you're willing to spend that money you saved when the time is right. The Twin Cities have proven that the seats will be full when the team does well, and they'll be empty when the team sucks. The path forward for this team could not be more clear.

Bill Smith was given enough rope, it seems, but Jim and Terry were both clear that every expenditure had to be run through both Jim Pohlad and Dave St. Peter after Smith was demoted. St. Peter has stepped back since Levine was hired, but Levine has still made it clear that he has to run things through Jim. The closest thing to what you are alluding to is a statement by Jim Pohlad during the Terry Ryan firing stating he was surprised that Terry Ryan didn't come to him more often to ask for more money in order to make a move. Considering payroll is heading downward since then, I suspect this statement was largely for PR. Heck, every statement this team has made since 2010 regarding payroll has been for PR. Reality has never jived with their statements.

Good points. People have mixed him up with Buxton a little bit (and you too perhaps a little bit... I don't remember the Twins marketing Sano as the next big thing). Since Bill Smith left as GM, the Twins felt like reluctant partners with Sano. This is the first year that feels different, where he isn't being jerked around or questioned at every turn by someone in management. Also, consider the source. Twins Daily was part of the Sano drama when it unfolded. A healthy dose of skepticism goes a long way in baseball, this article/narrative is no exception.

Then you should be a White Sox fan! This is how they have played for at least a generation now.

I don't think moving around the OF means that much, that happens all the time. Same with 3B/1B. I think this year's roster has been comparable to previous teams when it comes to flexibility. Astudillo forced himself onto the roster, and Gonzalez/Adrianza are fulfilling their roles. Arraez is the lone surprise. If Sano had not been out, suddenly your list is much less interesting.

Dozier's "advanced" middle infield defensive metrics were awesome when Pedro Florimon was standing next to him. They weren't so good otherwise. We have to be careful here, do Polanco's numbers look better due to Schoop? We're also forgetting that the "advanced" defensive metrics cited in this article need three years of data to be trustworthy. The 15-20 errors Polanco will commit this year, to me, says he still isn't a good defender. Does his offense make up for his errors? So far, sure, at least usually. Later on, maybe not. Every bat gets cold. Knoblauch was great out there except for his throwing errors, too, and the problem, as we all know, only got worse. Polanco's glove isn't the problem.

The biggest surprises are 56 wins, 166 home runs, 119 team OPS+ (though dropping fast), and 115 team ERA+. Individual improvements are less significant. The above stuff happened as a team.

Booo. Hiss.

There have only been 30 teams since the 90s, I believe. How about this: The Twins have been above league average in home runs 40% of the time since 1961. They led the MLB in home runs twice in total, both back in the era you alluded to, and one of those years only yielded 79 wins.

"For many years" = 5 years out of 59? What's pitching got to do with it? Come on man, follow a thread. The Twins have historically been a pitching/defense team, not a hitting team.

When that lineup worked it was paired with good pitching. When the Twins have been good, it's been the pitching. This isn't historically a power hitting club.

Bullpen pitchers get the luxury of hiding some of the runs that happen while they are on the mound in the previous pitcher's ERA. Flip all of the inherited runners to the relievers to see if the Twins truly have a shut-down (or even competent) bullpen.

The Twins are cheap have not historically been a power hitting team.

The Twins have plenty of bat in the infield. Bring up someone who can play defense from the bench.

Honestly I think Allen just wanted out of LA. He lost the closer's job in April and then was put in solely in pointless situations. That's a big drop. It would not shock me at all if he had a conversation with the team and then punctuated said conversation with his final two disastrous performances. Allen will be as good as a handful of other relievers on the Twins, at minimum. There's no reason to sign him then have him sit in the minors.

I like conversations about errors because everyone says these days that errors don't show whether or not someone is a good defender. It's like saying triples don't matter. Anyway, for some perspective, the 91 Twins had some stretches where they had an alarming number of errors. One interesting fact: The Twins have 54 errors as a team, but only 3 errors are by their starting outfield. This infield is terrible and opposing teams are figuring it out, and each infielder has a different weakness. It's a train wreck out there.