sampleSizeOfOne

Good call. And it took a long time to update Gameday as it needed to be reset manually somehow to override game situations which don't normally occur.

Just got back to computer and am tryin' to make heads or tales of it too... 1) It is spring training, so Gameday is less well managed than normal. So the involvement of Jorge Alcala probably won't get updated/fixed. 2) As for real life, somehow Kepler got called out? Perhaps he was picked off? There is a count listed as 2 balls and 1 strike. Could be either the pitcher or catcher who gunned him down. Or it could have been some sort of interference call?

Claim victory in your heart, and the universe will follow. Yeay! We Won! (But what did we win? Discuss) Lineups Redsox: 0. Nathan Eovaldi (R ) P 1. Enrique Hernandez (R ) SS 2. Jarren Duran ( L) CF 3. Hunter Renfroe (R ) RF 4. Rafael Devers ( L) 3B 5. Christian Vazquez (R ) C 6. Bobby Dalbec (R ) 1B 7. Christian Arroyo (R ) 2B 8. Michael Chavis (R ) DH 9. Michael Gettys (R ) LF Twins: 0. Devin Smeltzer ( L) P 1. Max Kepler ( L) RF 2. Mitch Garver (R ) C 3. Jorge Polanco ( S ) 2B 4. Miguel Sano (R ) 1B 5. Byron Buxton (R ) CF 6. Alex Kirilloff ( L) LF 7. Willians Astudillo (R ) 3B 8. JT Riddle ( L) SS 9. Caleb Hamilton (R ) DH Play ball!

Thanks theJemmer for your insight into the Visa process. The closest i've come to this i think is hearing complaints from a friend running a small start up i worked for a while back complaining that they couldn't hire who they wanted because they couldn't get the work visa approved (it might have even been re-hire who they wanted)

Suggestion makes more sense than i gave it credit for. 15 players can a soccer team make, and that works out considering how substitutions work/are used. But the skill sets differ sufficiently it is unclear they'd be competitive in that league either.

Anything worth talking about here? I feel they seem better at this 0-16 thing than the Vikings, and yet do not get credit for it here.

Yes?

If Profar arrived today... We can expect Simmons round about Tuesday?

I apologize for Lewis' injury. That's on me. I shoulda known better than to make a Prisoner reference about Balazovic being #6, and thereby dooming us to have a new #2 every epsiode...

I too am sorry to hear this news. I hope catching it early makes the recovery eaisier and more likely he'll recover fully

Obligatory Prisoner quote: "I am not a number. I'm a free man!"

Might i also add (and considering my handle here, it has a special place in my heart) that looking over Albers' stats, he is batting 1.000? An unstoppable force for the Twins! Indeed, while playing for St. Paul, no Twins' opponent will be able to anything to stop him.

I am confused... He's getting $40M, $45M, and... $17M? The drop off seems strange, or at least unusual, but given he has opt outs, he has a chance to change things if he wants to. I actually hope he sticks around for the $17M season rather than opting out, as that means he found some place comfortable to stay and play, and the money is less important. Or rather i hope there isn't a corresponding decline in his talent.

This report says it is slightly more reasonable change, being a <10th of an ounce rather than a whole ounce... https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/mlb-planning-changes-to-the-baseball-in-effort-to-reduce-home-run-rate-fluctuation-per-report/ar-BB1dvCBR And they cite Korean increase in weight reducing homers significantly, so a decrease in weight might serve to offset the bounciness reduction? It is certainly a complex system, so figuring out how it will affect play is not obvious. And it perhaps makes spring training that much more important to adjust to these changes. Meh, batting will work itself out. If it had been a full ounce, i'da been more concerned on how it would affect pitching in the form of different stresses leading to injuries. At least they are sharing the info. Sounds like it is more than has been done in the past.

They have resolved their differences apparently, and the case has been dismissed... https://www.msn.com/en-us/sports/mlb/jeff-luhnows-lawsuit-vs-astros-dismissed-after-sides-resolved-differences/ar-BB1dqNoH

And just to be complete, we also got a few more recent minor league deals here: https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2021/02/twins-sign-keon-broxton-to-minor-league-deal.html Sure could get confusing if Broxton comes up as an injury replacement for Buxton. And other pitchers mentioned are RHPs Robinson Leyer and Chandler Shepherd, just to complete the list of folk mentioned as signed in the article.

Albers is back! https://www.mlbtraderumors.com/2021/02/minor-mlb-transactions-2821.html

Yes. I am still excited about Willians Astudillo. This does not interfere with my excitement for any other Twin. Hopefully it does not excessively inflate my expectations, but it would be a boring world without hope.

Welcome back, Mr. Cruz!

I like this discussion. Dobnak does stand to benefit from a better infield. It may be a stretch, but All-Star results are not out of the the question, as it is playing to his strengths. Likewise, La Tortuga has elite contact skills, which is an ingredient of a batting title contender. It is a stretch of a similar magnitude, but at least there's a chance. Anyway, it'll be fun to see how the season plays out

Isn't Bally a pinball game maker of old? The opposing team has been replaced by drop tragets, and you have to shoot it through the pitcher's legs to light the extra ball. Also don't let the ball go down the dug outs. Game called on account of tilt. Some one banged the tv too hard.

This is true, and should probably be kept in mind when evaluating it. Still, i think it is an open question.

Was also thinking that. I guess i would expect us to shift less, or at least less exageratedly.

Who gets the better highlight reel: Buxton or Simmons?

Watched the highlight reel posted above, and was impressed how many were on relays, or alertly handling baserunning. Or that needed replay to overturn. Some folk say this will give Lewis another year of seasoning. Perhaps they are right, but I look forward to him earning a call up, and benefiting (like all the other current infielders) from his mentorship.