Wizard11

I have to admit to being a bit shocked that some are making an issue of a headline. Stunning really. But then I considered that TD has indicated a need for more writers. For the headline critics perhaps this was just their awkward way of volunteering to create content and demonstrate how it should be done.

Nick, It seems that you are either experiencing an ephinal satori or H2N3 delirium. Here’s hoping for satori

Sano only needs to play 3rd one more year. 1B will be all his in 2019 assuming he is healthy.

I don’t think the ideas that this was a shrewd signing as well as mildly disappointing are mutually exclusive. My response was that it was a solid move but not the impact move so many of us have been waiting for and thus a little underwhelming. The small moves of this offseason will be viewed vastly differently depending on the rest of the offseason. For my part I am nervous that so much of our offseason speculation has revolved around signing YD. Realistically this is a low probability scenario given the multiple suitors with cash and a WS opportunity. It is probably good to remember that not long ago we thought we had a real shot at Ohtani.

Hmmm, one year ago we were all looking back at a 59 win disaster of a season. Now after bringing in a new front office and an on field improvement of 26 wins there seems to be a great deal of discontent from many “serious” fans. There seems to be an emerging view that unless this front office somehow brings in a superstar starting pitcher such as Darvish, many will be disappointed by the “failure”. With a bit of circuitous logic, I guess it is a healthy sign that fans have moved on so quickly to greatly elevated expectations. I do hope we get some high impact pitching help, but regardless I am thrilled with the new FO’s fresh approach.

I think a reasonable argument can be made for cutting Phil Hughes loose. I think it is unlikely he is looked at as a future contributor and he is a sunk cost regardless. If he is only improbable at best as a future asset, why use a roster spot on him?

A refreshing perspective. This view may not play well with those who want to attribute no credit to Falvey, Levine, or for that matter Molitor. With the current leadership in the front office and on the field it has felt like things makes sense again. Even at the times when I strongly disagree with their decisions, I can follow their thought process. The vibe has changed with this team and it has changed for the better. Young Players like Buxton, Rosario, Sano, and Polanco are reaching their potential and in the case of veterans such as Mauer, Gibson, Escobar, and Belisle, they have raised their performance from the recent past. Players added such as Gee, Castro, and Gimenez have brought upgrades. Youngsters like Hildenberger and Busenitz who were fringe prospects have flourished. The vibe has changed with this team. Time to give credit where credit is due even when it doesn’t fit our biases or theories.

Wow, was that the "happy" leaving the room? Nick, for my part I really appreciate the consistent and regular good work you produce on here.

Nick, Thank you for this article. It is a refreshing and hopeful perspective that is grounded in cogent observation. I think sometimes as fans we focus only on roster construction. This is understandable given the dark years of the recent past. I am really looking forward to potentially seeing the implementation of data driven decisions that occur pre-game and in-game utilizing whatever roster assets are active. Lineups, positioning, pitch sequencing and location, fatigue metrics, etc.. To use a time worn analogy, it would be quite fun if the Twins leadership can be the "Piranhas" (thanks Ozzie) of baseball strategy. Aggressive, cunning, and unexpected. It sure would be a welcome change from the backward strategic and tactical approaches of the last regime. Tired of feeling embarrassed about being a Twins fan. I live in San Diego and travel the country monthly. The Twins were once well respected outside of the TC for the hard nosed, fundamentally sound, and somewhat retro brand of baseball. Not so much now.

To me for 2017 I think Joe Mauer is ideal as a lead off hitter against most pitchers. He still does a good job of working pitchers and seeing a lot of pitches. I do think this would turn him into an asset as opposed to the liability he is as a 3 hitter. The strategy of using a non-speed guy at the top of the order is not really that new. A good compo for Joe Mauer would be Wade Boggs who spent much of his career as a lead off hitter. Although probably none of us expect batting titles from Joe anymore. I would rather see Dozier in the 3 spot.

Tom, I like your thought process here and I would trust the new management team to successfully implement it. I also like the flipping analogy. It is apt and in this context we are greedy for some talent in these parts.

I understand the Jepson move in the context of last year. Ryan was mostly criticized at the time for not doing more. However, contracts offered to Fien, Milone, Jepson, and Plouffe last winter equaled somewhere in the neighborhood of $19MM. Seems like those dollars could have brought something much better. 3 of the 4 have already been DFA'd this year. Hughes, Nolasco, Perkins, Ervin, and Park have not worked out well (yet?) either, although in the context of the timing of those contracts, they were somewhat defensible. Jepson is just the latest indictment of the extremely poor allocation of team resources. GMs are routinely given seven figure salaries in part because of the perception that they will be "right" much more of the time, than a random individual selected from a phone book. Jim Pohlad is a lot more patient than I would be if that was my money

If Ryan can not get any kind of return for Plouffe then waive him. That would be yet another squandered asset but it would be unlikely and pointless to give Plouffe $10mm next year to continue to clog the roster. A half season more of Plouffe in 2016 is of zero value to the Twins. For my part, I would send Danny Santana out the door with him. DS has a great "bag of tools" but has shown no meaningful progress as a hitter. Also there is scant evidence that he possesses a major league infielders glove. That means we are dedicating a roster spot to a pinch runner and third string CF behind Buxton and Kepler. Polanco should get the roster spot and get into a middle infield rotation with Escobar and Dozier. If a quality, almost major league ready catcher can be had for Dozier or Ervin and any other combo of veterans then Ryan should jump on it.

One more cliche to add to the mix..."addition by subtraction". At this point doubling down on a bad decision in an attempt to get "perceived value" for Plouffe is hubris. Ditch him already. On another note, I am curious and mildly hopeful that R. Grossman turns into a serviceable starter. He has an excellent pedigree in that he was once viewed as a good prospect and may be a late bloomer. It has been awhile since Shane Mack and we are due for a success story of such ilk. (Yes, I know Mack was a rule 5). I realize the probable outcome for Grossman is likely something much less.

I was furious at the time about this choice. A younger version of me even wrote letter to Terry Ryan campaigning for the Twins to keep Ortiz.(The only time I have ever done anything like that). The local media had been speculating this would happen. It did in fact seem to be a major mistake to many fans, myself included. Torii Hunter spoke out against this decision as well. Tom Kelly criticized Ortiz regularly on his Sunday radio show in regard to "Mr. Ortiz's inability" to hit to the opposite field. He was very condescending with fans who called in about his Ortiz views and would frequently make very critical comments of their perspective. It was clear he had strong views on David Ortiz and they were not terribly favorable. TK retained influence with the Twins FO. I remember one show where he essentially compared his skill set to Pedro Munoz or Bernardo Brito. Bit wrong there as it turns out. He also frequently mentioned Ortiz's defensive limitations but it was in juxtaposition to Mientkiewicz's exceptional defensive skills. Dave Ortiz was a serviceable 1B on a team that already had exceptional defense there. The issue of offering him arbitration was framed in part around DH but at that time many thought Ortiz would do fine at 1B as well. So it was keep 2 of 3 from Dougie, LeCroy, or Ortiz. Fun fact, David Ortiz was originally known as David Arias. Some sort of "misunderstanding" with birth certificates

It certainly would have been more forthright to just tell Trevor May at the beginning of camp what his role would be. Whether or not one agrees with this deployment of his skills, most could agree that it was pretty shabby to perpetrate the fiction that he was ever in consideration for a starting role. Anyone who has had the experience of being deceived by their bosses knows it is not a great way to win loyalty or build morale. Not sure what it accomplished as they were going to have to tell May what his real role was eventually anyway.

Perhaps those comments should have been a new thread...

On a tangential note I am kind of surprised Molitor and Twins fans are so readily embracing Tyler Duffey for a rotation spot. He has had a handful of ML starts and not a great deal of High Minors experience. He essentially has only 2 pitches. Moreover he had extensive collegiate experience as a reliever and threw hard in that role. Trevor May has been a starter for most of his career and has 3 viable pitches. He also has a great deal more experience against ML and high minor's hitters. Would it not be logical that May would in fact be the 4th starter? I like both young pitchers but this seems like a better deployment of them. For my part I will not get too shook up whether Milone or Nolasco gets the 5th spot. The difference between those two in the Twins win column is likely zero.

Thanks Nick

Seth, Thanks for a great walk down memory lane. I really appreciate your article as it is a great reminder of the joys and lows of baseball and of following your favorite team. So often the content of Twins blogs feels like one big dreary slog thru unhappy fandom with the endless criticisms of ownership, the front office, managers, coaching staff and players. It is always refreshing to read your inevitably upbeat content which to me exudes how much fun it is to follow baseball and the Twins. Their is nothing wrong with observing the shortcomings of our favorite organization, but it sure is a lot more fun to focus on the positive possibilities and the ever new hope that is the core of being a baseball fan.