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nicksaviking

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Everything posted by nicksaviking

  1. nicksaviking
    Well he's been working full time for the Rays since he retired. I don't know why it wouldn't have been an issue then but it is now.
  2. nicksaviking
    Wow, good company. I'm taking a listen now. Edit: Ha, just got to the part where Luhnow was praising St. Louis' use of analytics to win the WS and then immediately said he can't sit up on stage and share his secrets! Oh the foreshadowing! It's at the 18:30 mark.
  3. nicksaviking
    I considered the possibility that I'd be shown up so I slyly slipped a double negative into my post
  4. nicksaviking
    What the heck Topps, even that stamped signature says Rocky. I ain't never seen a Lawrence Berra baseball card.
  5. nicksaviking
    My only concern with Espada was that it seemed like it might be over-mining the Astros system. Alex Cora is about to win a World Series, let's go do the same with Espada. That's probably not why a team would want Espada, but I'd be concerned that it would probably be why many of the fans would. But I don't know anything about him, I'm sure he would be great also. I'm happy with Baldelli, I like the Plouffe endorsement, not because I want Plouffe's input, just I can hope that it's representative of other players as well. While free agency is largely based on money, it's also based on geography, hopefully Baldelli is popular enough to offset some of the Twins unfixable geography issues.
  6. nicksaviking
    Perhaps the new strength and conditioning team were brought in to help with that. Along with getting Kepler's swing and Polanco's shoulder stronger. Also with getting more bullpen guys able to go multiple innings. And Sano.
  7. nicksaviking
    Yeah, Shelton would arguably be considered the more qualified candidate based on experience so I wonder how that dynamic would work. But I think Baldelli is my horse as well.
  8. nicksaviking
    I'm not sure what level of talent Miami is looking for, but I'd definitely look to include Kepler as an additional piece in a package for some kind of great-to-elite level player.
  9. nicksaviking
    Of course if the front office wanted to pick the coaching staff but also wanted it to appear largely to be the field managers call, they'd probably just hire Derek Shelton who in retrospect probably actually was the chosen successor to Molitor back when Shelton was originally hired. The fact that he hasn't been named manager already when two other managerial spots have already been filled makes me think the front office is having second thoughts and might really be considering Hyde or Baldelli. Which I hope they are.
  10. nicksaviking
    That reads like an entertaining gag, but I'm instead going to view it as satirizing what appears to be zero interest from our beat writers and other local media in following this situation.
  11. nicksaviking
    His Line Drive % is very low and always has been, but this year he clearly made an effort to hit more fly balls as his FB% and GB% basically flip-flopped. However he also has a very high Soft Hit% and a below average Hard Hit %. There has to be more line drives, but maybe the new strength and conditioning folks will get him stronger. Strength probably isn't the only factor in hitting the ball harder, but I'm sure it doesn't hurt.
  12. nicksaviking
    I'd say that Target Field's small RF dimensions minimize the benefits of Kepler's speed. In fact, if a groundball pitcher like Gibson is on the mound, his added range covering the infield may be more beneficial than in RF.
  13. nicksaviking
    Well the free agent class is highlighted by Lucas Duda and Matt Adams. It's just not a strong position any longer. I'd guess it's because with today's technology and training the best athletes are typically the best hitters, and the best athletes don't waste their defensive talents at 1B. I'd think the fact that 1B has become a bit of a stale position is very correlated to the fact that shortstop is no longer an offensive black hole.
  14. nicksaviking
    I agree Tom, except I'd rather replace Grossman on this team as well. I'd rather look to fill any open roster spots with the best bat available, not the best bat who also plays 1B. There are enough 1B capable players on the team who are already going to be playing regularly.
  15. nicksaviking
    I like the idea of identifying a "core" but not at this particular moment. It seems to me core players are typically only identified after the team wins. We can identify who the core players were in 1987 and track them back through the struggles of the seasons before. Same with the clubs from early this century. Gary Ward, Tim Teufel, Matt Lawton and AJ Pierzynski probably would have been considered core players if we did this exercise during those building processes. Not to dismiss the idea, I just would prefer not to get wrapped up in worrying about selling low or making certain guys untouchable when the team isn't yet built to win.
  16. nicksaviking
    Sounds like along with Derek Shelton, Brandon Hyde, Hensley Meulens and Rocco Baldelli (and maybe a few others?) have already interviewed. All look like interesting candidates to me and from an organizational perspective I like how under-the-radar this has been. From a local journalistic perspective, seriously, what the heck. Unless they had all four (and maybe more?) interviews this morning, seems like our writers aren't on top of things.
  17. nicksaviking
    Maybe the new strength and conditioning folks can build up Polanco's shoulder strength. He'd probably be quite adequate if his arm wasn't below average. If we can figure out how to get pitchers to add velocity I'd think you'd be able to do it with a shortstop as well. Anyway, that probably won't be the case but paying some physiology wiz to figure it out sure sounds more economical and practical than paying millions for a sub-par offensive shortstop.
  18. nicksaviking
    I'd take Greinke, but he's still got a limited no-trade clause and I think he desperately wanted out of KC and Milwaukee so Minnesota may be on the list if his distaste was for the Midwest. From my understanding typical NT clauses allow the player to pick new teams each year, so if the Twins do want him, they may want to stay out of any and all rumors until he makes his selections for his list and cross their fingers they don't make the cut. I've said before that I'd like to keep 1B open for platooning as a quasi-2nd DH spot. But Goldschmidt? Yes please, I'll do that plan instead. I don't know if AZ is going the rebuild route, but if they are, I'd rather acquire Nick Ahmed as a 1-2 year stop-gap SS than any of the free agents. Also, I'd have interest in former Diamondback and current free agent AJ Pollock. The Twins have the outfield depth to cover the 40 games he's going to miss due to injury. He's pretty dang good when he's healthy.
  19. nicksaviking
    I agree, no nickle and diming the free agents. I'd rather have quality over quantity and if they can't get that in free agency then they need to get it via trade. I don't like Keuchel and his sinker and low strikeout rates, I don't trust those guys' skill sets when they age nor do I trust it translating to a new team. This team shouldn't be looking at sinkerballers with this infield defense anyway. Speaking of sinkers, I was interested in Corbin despite fairly high sinker use but looking at him more I also have concerns about his low velocity and the fact that he threw a slider on 40% of his pitches last year. That was always supposed to be the pitch that would ruin your arm. If that's been debunked I could be talked into him, if an extreme slider use is still a concern I would leave him alone. I'm still all about spending most of the FA money on relievers. Cream of the crop guys, there are lots available.
  20. nicksaviking
    Only two teams had payrolls under 75M last year. The Twins won't find themselves that low. And Ricky Nolasco, Jason Castro and Ervin Santana laughed all the way to the bank when they signed their deals with the Twins.
  21. nicksaviking
    I don't want a no-bat SS tied up for four years or so. I'm OK improving the infield defense if it's a guy that will be gone or moved once a better option emerges though. Iglesias and Galvis probably have enough bat to be a stop-gap regular but if it's more than two years I'd pass. Otherwise maybe I go for a Hecheverria, Jordy Mercer or Alcides Escobar and stick them at SS regularly when groundball pitchers like Gibson or Stewart start but if a flyball pitcher is on the mound like Berrios I go with the defensive downgrade to get the better bat in the lineup. I'd also be interested in a trade. If the Yankees do chase Machado they're going to have too many infielders. Do they move Gregorious?
  22. nicksaviking
    According to Wikipedia Meullens also runs a baseball academy in Curacao. Not sure if that's still true as the citation is old and the link is now broken, but that's a plus in my book. That sounds like someone who proactively looks to work with young baseball players. Also he speaks five languages, including Japanese (he played over there for awhile).
  23. nicksaviking
    I'd just like to start with a guy who matches the philosophy of the new front office. Even if their philosophy turns out to be an incorrect view, I can't help but think things will still run smoother if everyone is on the same page. Molitor didn't have to be at fault for anything, but as evidenced by his dismissal, he as a square peg for their round hole. I wouldn't have wanted to keep trying to make that work.
  24. nicksaviking
    I'm not sure that it's a coincidence that the two guys who are in broadcasting are said to have drawn interest from the Twins. Maybe the Twins are interested, or maybe these two just want to get their name out there and have the connections to do so. I'll buy the Twins interest in those two when I read that they're sitting down for an actual interview.
  25. nicksaviking
    When my wife says that stuff to me the steam coming out of my ears fogs up the windows and I too become a poor driver due to visibility issues.
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