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jimbo92107

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Blog Entries posted by jimbo92107

  1. jimbo92107

    Louie Varland looks real

    By jimbo92107,


    starting pitchers
    He's not a downward plane kinda pitcher, more like Cole Sands in that his whole delivery seems to happen down low. Louie Varland looks legit to me. When I saw his compact delivery, it reminded me a little of Bartolo Colon, who looked like a converted catcher. The tight snap from behind the ear, no big, loopy wind-up, is a style that works well for some good pitchers, like Grienke. The quick delivery and up-tempo pace will help him surprise some hitters, who are accustomed to a more relaxed pace. Less time between pitches means less time for the hitter to process the pitching sequence and predict the next one. That and the compact delivery also means less time for a runner to read the pitcher's move to home...or not. 
    One thing that really impressed me was his K of Judge in the first. Got him with a beautiful diving change that caught the inside corner. He could throw a dozen of those to Judge, and I bet the guy still couldn't straighten that one out. Especially if he also can zip a heater high in the zone just previous. Point is, it looks to me like Varland can do just that. His command of several pitches is better than Joe Ryan's, not counting Ryan's heater, which is his one great pitch. Varland doesn't appear to have one great pitch, but he's got several very good ones, which bodes well. 
    If his arm doesn't fall off, keep this young stud in the rotation. Twins have found themselves another good young pitcher. 
  2. jimbo92107

    Simeon Woods-Richardson

    By jimbo92107,


    starting pitchers
    The hardest thing to get about Simeon Wood-Richardson is his name. The easiest thing is to see a guy with stuff like Jordan Balazovic, but with a big, friendly smile for the world. Another easy thing is watching his slow curve bend about a foot, just catching the zone at the end of a pretty little trip through the air. You could just about see the catcher and the ump both smiling at how pretty it was. Then he comes back with that snapping fastball, low in the zone. This guy is a keeper. I want him on my team. 
    Not sure how much more polish he needs after dominating the Red Sox for a couple late innings Monday. 
    One challenge the team will face is figuring out a good nickname. Sim? Woo? Rich? SWR? Not sure what fits, it might not even be part of his name. He seems like the kind of relaxed, friendly guy you wish was your neighbor. I feel like calling him Frank, or Chuck. 
    Anyway, his talent looks very real to me, and it doesn't look like just a couple snuff-out innings. This dude can really pitch. 
  3. jimbo92107

    Should the Twins offer "Vaccine Days"

    By jimbo92107,


    sports medicine
    Simple question. Given the self-interest of the team, should the Twins organization seek to partner with the city/state gov't to offer free vaccine shots to fans that have not yet had one? Probably this would limit the choice to the J&J single-shot vaccine, which also is easier to store than the other two. This would be a positive public relations move, plus it would of course help the state of Minnesota achieve a higher level of overall immunity from the Covid virus.
  4. jimbo92107
    The Minnesota Twins abruptly canceled the remainder of the 2018 season today after losing their opening game to the Baltimore Orioles, 3 to 2.
     
    "Crushing defeat," said Derek Falvey, who took the rap like a man. "I apologize to the Pohlad family for putting a losing squad on the field. I hereby submit my resignation."
     
    Falvey was quickly joined by the rest of the Front Office, plus all the Twins coaches and Paul Molitor, the team's Hall of Fame manager.
     
    Various players either simply left town or announced their retirement. Joe Mauer plans to start a trout fishing club, possibly hiring Kent Hrbek as coach and manager. "Fishing and golf are all baseball players know," said Mauer. "I'm too old to become a pro golfer, but I think I can still catch a fish."
     
    Fans concerned about refunds for season tickets are out of luck. The Pohlads are keeping the money.
  5. jimbo92107
    The last four years watching the Minnesota Twins has been a real beating. The only thing keeping me and a lot of other fans from bugging out completely was that we knew there was some help coming via the draft, and that knowledge came from websites like Twins Daily.
     
    We have now seen the 2015 version of this team, and it's getting better. Still, this ain't a playoff team, that's pretty clear. The pitching staff is still average at best, the position players are still largely punchless, and the defense is still below par.
     
    My question is this: Why stick with this group when we know they won't make the playoffs? Clearly they're not ready to challenge Detroit or KC, a couple teams that themselves don't look Series bound. At what point should this team figure that it's better to bring up guys like Meyer and Buxton, let them get their feet wet at this level, rather than keep them down on the farm in favor of a team that's going nowhere?
     
    The Twins brought Aaron Hicks up after tearing up AAA pitching for awhile. He looks much better at the plate, loading up and firing out. Buxton has never had trouble getting aggressive at the plate, or anywhere else. Anything he needs to polish, he can talk to Bruno. Meyer won't get better coaching in AAA than he'll get here, and he needs to see the guys he's got to beat.
     
    How much longer?
  6. jimbo92107
    I know that hitters try to read pitchers. Do pitchers read hitters, too? I suppose they do, if they think they see something that indicates a hitter's intention.
     
    Recently I've been watching Joe Mauer's at-bats, and I may have detected something that pitchers and catchers are using against him. It's common knowledge that Mauer wants to become more of a power hitter, turn on inside pitches, pull and lift them.
     
    What I've noticed is that Mauer seems to be tipping off his intention to try pulling the ball. When he waggles the bat over his head, he's looking to pull it. I think when a catcher sees him doing that waggle, he instantly positions himself outside, so when Mauer tries to pull it, he can't do it effectively. Conversely, when Mauer holds the bat very still above his head, he is signalling that he's going to do his patented inside out swing down the third base line. When the catcher sees that, he positions himself inside, so Mauer has to get his hands inside and fight off the pitch.
     
    Has anybody else noticed this tell? It may have something to do with Mauer's peculiar ineffectiveness this season. If it's true, then Mauer certainly is clever enough to reverse reverse his behavior, making the current tell useless. Waggle the bat, then hit the outside pitch to left field. Hold the bat still, then smash an inside pitch over the fence. Do that a couple times, and the joke will be over.
  7. jimbo92107
    Just figured what Aaron Hicks is doing rong at the plate. In the movie "Blazing Saddles" there's a dance scene where gay dancers push their hands forward while pushing their asses backwards, singing, "...that's why they're doing the French Mistake..."
     
    Yup, Hicks is doing the French Mistake. It's not as obvious as in the comedy, but the effect of letting your rear hip trail behind the swing accomplishes the same thing: no power, no reach, lots of weak pop-ups. The rear hip has to torque in front of the swing, dragging your hands along for the ride. Right now Hicks is faking it, trying to make it look like he's turning his hip, but it's actually trailing. The result is a weak arm swing, not a body swing.
     
    The only real way to cure the French Mistake is to whip the bat thru the zone as hard as you can, over and over, then do that when you're at the plate. Turn the hip, then let it rip.
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