Lakeside

If Arcia starts hitting. . . . does your outield suggestion make him expendable at the trade deadline???

Another Question --- The results were just announced, but do we know when the test was administered? Was it during last season or during Spring Training?

Question---if it can be proven on the length of time that Santana has taken the illicit steroid and lied on his physical exam question about it. . . then . . . . is it in the Twins best interests (from both a competitive motive and also from an ethical motive) to attempt to have the contract ruled null and void?? What are your thoughts??

is i close to the truth. . .I'm guessing we will use about 10 starters by the end of the year. The real number right now is about 45. . . as in $45 million or the amount of guaranteed money owed to Nolasco, Stauffer, and Pelfrey!! I' guessing that number is the real reason we are not going to see Meyer, May, and a different reliever at this time. My guess is that Stauffer and Pelfrey are being shopped right now. We will see what happens, but with some patience Meyer, May, and Berrios will be members of the staff by August.

My take on this subject-- Perkins Fien Duensing Thielbar - I also like Thompson, but experience the difference Pelfrey -- for the time being (Millone or May is 5th starter) Graham - impressive enough to keep as Rule 5 Boyer Stauffer -- will stay instead of Boyer if he has a couple more good outings. Otherwis he is waived. Hamburger - I think Molitor likes him. Bad outing cost him. . could be up if Boyer falters. Tonkin - can't seem to get the numbers he has in minors in MLB. . time is running out. Burdi---will be up sometime this year Reed--will be September call up

During the time in question I had a couple of good friends at the top of the Twins organization. While I know that Prior was considered, what this article fails to tell you is that Prior was really not an option. He had let the Twins organization know that he would not sign with Minnesota if selected. . . While I've been told that they would have taken Mauer anyway Prior's stance certainly had some bearing on the issue. . . . Hindsight can be 20/20, but I think the choice of Joe Mauer at the time was excellent. . . He is, even with his issues, probably the greatest hitting catcher, for average, of all time.

Baseball roles continue to evolve. It appears from some of the transactions we have seen this winter that the Royals trio of 7-8-9 inning stoppers is influencing MLB this winter. In the Twins case I'm guessing that they are looking into something like that with Stauffer, Fien, and Perkins. Obviously, on paper, not as strong as the KC trio was last year, but the important thing is that it appears they are moving to that system. Meyer could be your 7th or 8th inning guy this year instead of Stauffer or Fien. It also appears to me with the stockpile of quality relievers in the minor leagues that the Twins have the "potential" to have a dominant 7-8-9 releiver role for some years to come. Although, I am like Jim Pohlad in that "potential" is only that until proven on the MLB level. No doubt, however, you will see more teams going to a defined role for the 7-8-9 innings when they have a lead. It's a long way from when Bert Blyleven was throwing 300 innings as a starter. . .as I say, baseball roles continue to evolve which makes it such a fascinating game.

Interesting fact on Winfield. . he actually played about half the season the year before at age 21. Participated for the Gophers in the College World Series, was drafted 4th overall by the Padres, debuted two weeks later for them, and I don't beleive that he ever played a day in the minor leagues, not even on a rehab assignment. He was one of only three players ever drafted by three sports, NFL, NBA and ABA, and MLB. Of course he was destined to play baseball because he was born in St. Paul on the day Bobby Thompson hit the "Shot heard round the World".

There is a downside. . .if we think we can contend in 2016 and Rosario is the LF, then I would rather have him there with a year of experience instead of being a rookie that year.

I'm a fan of Rosario. I know I'm in the minority, but I would like him to be in LF and play thru his inexperence. . . . ala Vargas and Santana. . .I think that is the best situation for him. As the article points out, he's not a "picture perfect" swing at the plate.. . his hands get back a little late. However, some of the best hitters in the history of baseball have not been "picture perfect" . . Tony Gwynn, etc. The great hitters will perfect their inadequicies on their own. He has a season of hitting over .300 in the Puerto Rican WL and that is not easy to do. Puerto Rico thought enough of him to place him on their WBC National Team. I don't expect the Twins to challenge next year so I would like to see the season be one where we find out some things about our "almost ready for prime time" guys.(Rosario, Meyer, May) After a year of that we will know weather to fish or cut bair for 2016.

Here's my take for what it's worh. .4 open spots today plus they release Thompson and Collabello makes six open spots: 1) Sano 2) Meyer 3) Rosario 4) Gilmartin (everybody wants pitching in Rule 5. .can start or be a LH reliever in MLB) 5) Michael or Goodrum (future utility player. . cannot afford to lose both) 6) Hamburger (always have liked his versatility. . . possible replacement for Swarzak) Long Shot--Chris Mazza--underestimated, but seeing him pitch, he has the abilty to be a 7th inning guy at higher level at some point in time. Possbility -- Ortiz makes 40 man over Herrman. However, I beleive we are so weak at MLB outfielders that we have to keep Herrman and Parmelee until we see the plan. .i.e. free agent, Rosario ready, etc?? Lose one of the following in the draft -- Boer, Wheeler, Adam, Beresford

Agree!

I think Plouffe in LF with Sano at 3B would be okay. However, since Sano missed the season I believe that there is a better chance of Rosario breaking camp North in April than Sano. Another option might be Escobar as the everyday 3B and Plouffe in LF. I'm a reaiist and when I look at the 1 year stop-gaps prior to the Buxton arrival, I look at Hunter, Denofrio, Aoki, and Rasmus. However, we have lost over 90 games seasons in a row, so how desireable are we for them? One for a year would be great. . .but let's see how that works out. Without one of them, our four top OFs are Arcia, Schafer, Hicks, and Rosario. Maybe Parmelee, but I'm guessing that he and Collabello are eventually waived off the 40-man roster to protect some younger players from becoming eligible for the Rule 5.

Not disagreeing, but, who in the organization would be better to put in LF? If not Rosario, then it has to be a free agent signing or trade?

I'm also of the belief that with a decent Spring, Rosario will be in leftfield at the start of the season unless the Twins spend big for a one-year stop-gap here (Hunter, Denofrio ??). If that happens he could actually be penciled in in CF with Schafer as the 4th outfielder. I do believe, however, his best outfield position will turn out to be LF. I'm of the opinion that Molitor will be different than Gardenhire and look at multi-tool players more -- ability to run, bunt, take the extra base, defense, etc - over single dimension players like Willingham. . that's why I think Rosario has a chance to break camp and go North next Spring.

Lots of opinions, lots of options. My point, I guess, on Hicks/Schafer, is that I would rather go with them and wait for Buxton if we all assume that he will be the CF of the future rather than be unprepared this season at the Starting Pitcher situation. I don't have the stats in front of me, however, I believe that I heard the Twins were either first or second in the AL in runs scored the second half of the season. Must be some production in that line-up and with a Molitor philosophy of being more agressive on the basepaths, I think we will score runs. Taking Hughes out of the equation, the other starters - Gibson, Nolasco, Correia, Pino, Deduno, Swarzak, May, Darnell, Pelfrey, Milone, and Johnson - had a combined ERA of 5.22. A starting staff ERA of 5.22 will not keep you in many games. I also believe money will be an issue. Will Ryan go up to $30 million "annually" in new free agent spending? I'm of the opinion that that will be the high side if he does. So the question is, "Where do we put that money -- outfield or starting pitching?" Reliable starting pitching - if they will come to Minnesota - will cost $10-12 million per starter. If we get two then there is not the money left for the price of a Rasmus type CF. I'm all for having a plan but I would like to find solid starting pitching instead of relying on May, Meyer, and Millone (and Nolasco). If they falter, what happens to the season? In my opinion we can suffer a little in CF more than we can at SP. Just my opinion.

I'm not campaigning for Hicks/Schafer as the end all to CF forever. I do, however, believe that many people feel that Rosario in LF and Arcia in RF is not a bad option for this year and is part of the Twins future. If that is the case, and Buxton is the future in CF, I just don't think there is value paying up to $10M for a stop-gap such as Rasmus. I also believe that the Hicks/Schafer OBP and base-running will produce as many runs as Rasmus power. I like speed on the basepaths ala the Royals this Fall. Hicks/Schafer give you that and put pressure on the defense/pitcher when they are on the bases. Paul Molitor played that way and I'm guessing that his team will be built around his philosophy and not like Earl Weaver's 3 Run HR philosophy. Finally, I've always believed that it takes about 800-1000 at bats to truly judge a MLB hitter. Schafer just hit that number and I don't think Hicks has 600 yet. Go back and look at the early careers of Hunter, Cuddyer, and Gomez. None of them really established themselves until they got to about 700-1000 at bats. I always believed we gave up way too early on Gomez. Just my thoughts. . . I think our internal offensive production can be fine. . .I think any money we have to spend should be on pitching. What makes the Hot Stove League great is that we all have different opinions on this stuff. . . .,maybe Rosario will never see a Twins big league uniform and be used for trade-bait. . who knows???.

I have a feeling money will be an issue, however, even if we say it isn't, Rasmus has only what I would consider 2 above average years since 2010. . that's about a 40% chance he will rebound. Consider this, you cannot score if you don't get on base. . . Rasmus scored only 45 runs last season for a good offensive team because his OBP was only .287. . .when I learned the business anything under .300 was abysmal and to be avoided. He strikes out in 33% of his plate appearances (not at bats. . plate appearances). He stole only 4 bases all season. . . He doesn't exactly create problems on the bases like Hicks/Schafer can do. Rasmus only asset over the platoon mentioned is his ability to hit with some "pop", however his HRs have been steadily declining the last three years. Someone will overpay for him because he is a "name" player. But I am still of the opinion that Hicks/Schafer would score more runs in the line-up and play as good of defense at a fraction of the cost. Money can then be used somewhere else. My guess is that Terry Ryan will not go overboard on spending. It is not in his genes.

And. . . how do you know that money is not an issue?

IMO until we wait for Buxton, what is wrong with Hicks/Schafer in CF? Hicks hit lefthanders at .279 with a .410 OBP and Schafer hit righthanders at .326 with an OBP of .390. Somebody other than Gardenhire might notice this and figure out that is not too bad for a #9 hitter with speed and some defense. Why spend $7-10 M on a stop gap for Buxton when you have those two at about $1.75 combined? I'm more concerned about Buxton being who we think he is than a Hicks/Schafer platoon.

I'm for Rosario breaking camp in LF next year. A Hicks/Schaeffer platoon in CF and Arcia in right. I'm of the opinion that it would be difficult to get any of the quality FAs who fit (Denofrio, Rasmus, Aoki, Rios) on a one-year deal and I'm not sure, if we believe Buxton is the future, why we would want any of them for more than one year. The Rosaria scenario give us Right hand hitting in Suzuki, Dozier, Plouffe, and Vargas and left hand hitting with Vargas, Mauer, Rosario, and Arcia. Throw in some speed in the at-bats of Santana, Schaeffer, Hicks, Rosario, and Dozier I think we can score some runs. As for outfield defense we still have a liabiltiy in Arcia but here's what the Scouting Report on Rosario is, "He is a very good outfielder with a very strong arm. He would make for a terrific left-fielder".

I also look to have Rosario break camp as the starting LF next Spring. Guessing Arcia will be in RF and a platoon of Schaefer and Hicks in CF. I believe Hicks did hit .280 vs. lefthanders. I think Rosario can play and, while not sure Hicks can move up to the MLB level and perform like he did in AA, I don't want to give up on him yet. I think we did that a little early on Gomez. . . i.e. showed the tools but didn't pulll it together in time to show the Twins.

Nobody asked, but here's my take. Please understand that I am a Defense first, up the middle, roster person. Strong D at catcher, SS, 2B, and CF. . . takes precedence over offense at these positions. Winning teams seem to get both. MLB-- Dozier, Santana, and Escobar. You can make the case for Santana as the starting SS and Escobar in a utility role. You can also make the case for Santana in CF with Escobar starting at SS. Maybe Nunez or Beresford (if we can sign him) make the grade as an additional Utility player. Dozier has team control and experience behind him. . . you could also make the case he would bring the most of anybody on the team in trade value. with Polanco, Michael, Goodrum,and even Gordon as potential long term middle infielders, is it time to sign and trade Dozier?? Rochester---Beresford and Polanco as the starters with Thomas (who I just believe we re-signed) spelling them. Chattanooga--Michael at 2B (although I think he will eventually be valuable in MLB as a Punto type utility player) and Mejia and Goodrum at SS. My guess is that Sano starts at 3B here and Goodrum may replace him at that position when he (Sano) is moved to Rochester or MLB. Ft. Myers--Walker and Vavra at 2b -- this could be their ceilings, but someody has to play 2B here. Vielma at SS. . personally, I really like the potential of Vielma. . he is already accomplished on defense and he battles every single at bat. . he will become a better hitter because of that. Logan Wade could play here, but I'm guessing he will start as Cedar Rapids 3B. Cedar Rapids--2B--Kelly, Schmidt, and Hinjosa. . . it is possible that Hinjosa will play 3B regularly and move Wade to 2B with Kelly and Schmidt. Nick Gordon will get all the at bats he wants playing SS here. Elizabethton/Gulf Coast -- Extended Spring Training will determine who goes here. However, don't be surprised if Manuel Guzman becomes the 2nd half 2B, paired with Nick Gordon at SS, at Cedar Rapids.

How did Mauer get into this topic? Isn't this about 3B??

Here's my take on ths for 215-- MLB - It is Plouffe's job. He will begin here and be the primary 3B for the immediate time. Escobar will spell him occaisonaly. Nunez may or may not be wih the team. Rochester-- I don't believe that Robinson, Hanson, or Bernier will be protected on the 40 man roster. Either Robinson or Hanson, my guess is Hanson will re-sgn as a minor league free agent and man this position. Waring is a long-shot to play here simply because he could be an injury protection player if the other three all sign somewhere else. Chattanoga -- Sano is put in the line-up everyday if his health dictates. If by Juy 1 he is playing very well he will be promoted to the Twins ala Vargas and skip AAA. Goodrum will be exposed to the Rule 5 Draft, nottaken, and will be on the roster here. He can play 2B, SS, and 3B when Sano DHs and play 3B if/when Sano moves. Ft Myers- Haar will be the everyday 3B which will give Christenson the everyday 1B position. Cedar Rakpids -- Wade returns here along with Hinjoso and Mautner comes from Elizabethton. Wade will be successful and move up when Sano does or will not be successful and be released. ETown/Gulf Coast -- The young players mentioned have not distinguished themselves yet and Spring Training and EST will determine their fates. Unfortunatey, I believe that Wickens, Waring, and Bernier are released.