Pitz

http://www.howtoinstructions.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/12/100-Dollar-money-toilet-paper-roll.jpg You're right, that doesn't look very absorbent.

I'm going to need some of those new fangled sabermetric thingies to back up your position.

Agree with you.The Twins should be looking to sell Nunez. I don't think his value could ever be higher (not that I have expectations of a great return). This seems like a situation where there is always a guy with a 'higher ceiling' that should get a chance. Beresford's ceiling may not be that high, but he deserves a shot at the big league level, and I think he could prove to be a quality big leaguer. I mean the Twins gave opportunities to Matt Tolbert...

Maybe, maybe not - but the argument for the 6-man would be to get guys experience and evaluate the quality they have for moving forward. Trevor May would be much more valuable as a starter - can he do it? It's also time to settle whether Meyer can be a viable big league starter. Santana, Gibson, Duffey, Berrios, Meyer, May - that's the 6-man rotation I'd envision for the rest of this year.

Just looked at Baxendale's player page. Talk about splashing a little cold water on my excitement about the current Miracle starting rotation. I had forgotten how dominant D.J. was there in 2013 - 9 starts, 57.1 innings, 1.10 ERA, 0.78 WHIP, .171 BAA, 48 K's, 11 BB. I know he wasn't regarded as highly as the current Miracle guys, and he's also struggled with injuries so it does not necessarily mean anything for the younger guys, except maybe to remind us that they still have a ways to go. Good to see D.J. pitching will again this year and hope to see him move up to AAA soon.

A.J.Murray had a decent week. Over 7 games from Saturday to Saturday he went 15 for 28 (.536) with 5 doubles, 1 triple, 2 homers, 9 runs, 11 RBIs. Raised his season BA from .226 to .304.

Yep, which is why he needs to be playing. I'd like to think he'll have an easier time adjusting because he's a different kind of hitter than the other prospects that have come up. But of course that's no guarantee.

I don't agree with the way the Twins have called up Polanco only to sit on the bench, but he's not out of options next year because of it. I'm pretty sure he's out of options because they had to add him to the 40 man roster heading into 2014, so they then had to use options to keep him in the minors. The only reason he was called up in 2014 is because he was already on the 40 man roster (but his option had already been used that year). That being said, they need to play him or as you suggest trade him. I'd prefer they keep him and play him because he better balances the lineup with his higher contact and OB skills. He profiles better at the top of the lineup than Dozier.

For whatever reason, I was anticipating a great start from Jay and he didn't disappoint. Nice to see him bounce back strong after a rough start on April 28. In looking at the recap, the three hits he gave up were all ground balls and two of them were infield hits (one being a bunt). Seems like he was in a pretty good groove last night.

Travis Harrison is hitting .432 in the month of May (9 games) and has raised his average from .230 to .297. Unfortunately the other numbers during this stretch aren't all that impressive. Only 1 extra base hit, 2 BBs, and 10 Ks.

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Good thoughts. The grades seem rather generous for the team being somewhere between a dumpster fire and the worst thing ever. Your average player grade is about a "C" which means this team has been far less than the sum of its parts. Maybe that is the case? Maybe that says something about the manager? I don't know.

New "plan" to keep his innings limited?

I wouldn't have any complaints with this. Don't think the Twins have scored 3 runs in one trip through the order too many times this year. 3 solo homeruns are just as good as a 3 run homerun. Maybe even better if you believe as some TV announcers do that such a homerun is a rally killer.

At least this shows signs that Molitor may be opening up to considering some new ideas. At least that new idea wasn't Mastro 3rd and Centeno 4th.

Wait, I was trying to stay positive with this thread.

Well he avoided the 0-9 start at least... not that things have improved all that much since.

I was thinking more of the 7 BBs and 1.40 WHIP. His last AAA start was very solid though.

Looks like there are a couple college catchers projected at the top of the draft next year. So there's that.

After posting my comment, I wondered what would have happened if Duffey had made the starting rotation out of spring training. He didn't necessarily put up great numbers in AAA so perhaps he would have struggled even more if he had been up. So yeah, maybe he needed a few more starts to get going.

Not necessarily disagreeing with you, but spring training performances get ignored all the time.

I wonder if the Twins should consider moving to a 6-man rotation. (And when I suggest that, I'm doing so in full agreement of both of your suggestions.) They need to let Berrios, Duffey, and Meyer pitch in the rotation this year. Moving to a 6-man would help keep their innings down. Of course I'd also advocate for getting May back into the rotation, so maybe move Hughes to the bullpen and trade someone over 27 years of age.

Appreciate your reports! Any notes on Huascar Ynoa? Have you seen him pitch at all?

Couple interesting reads from Fangraphs from March on his pitches: More than 2-Pitch Repertoire Shockingly Interesting Twin

I don't get a chance to watch a whole lot of games, so I mostly end up looking at box scores and some highlights. I was able to watch a good chunk of yesterday's game though, and I just wanted to say that I was quite impressed with Tyler Duffey. He seems to have good enough stuff to at least stick in a big league rotation. I know there has been a goal for him to develop his change up to add to his repertoire and help his FB/CB play up even more. But what I liked most about watching him was the competitive spark I saw on the mound. He wants the ball and he wants to succeed. I hope the Twins continue to give him the former and he continues to do the latter. I'm sure he's probably been talked about a great deal, so I'm sorry if I'm rehashing any old discussions. But I thought it may be worthwhile to highlight his very solid performance. Here's to looking for brighter days ahead...