2018 Twins

[rundrave]

I don't understand why some Twins fans are upset about these trades and moves. Escobar and Dozier were free agents in just a couple months.  They can sign anywhere they want this off season, including back with the Twins. Better to trade and get something its better than just letting them walk away.

 

The Twins were out of the playoff race. These moves were pretty standard and in my opinion good moves. 

[PurpleFloyd]

5 minutes ago, rundrave said:

I don't understand why some Twins fans are upset about these trades and moves. Escobar and Dozier were free agents in just a couple months.  They can sign anywhere they want this off season, including back with the Twins. Better to trade and get something its better than just letting them walk away.

 

The Twins were out of the playoff race. These moves were pretty standard and in my opinion good moves. 

That's a fair point. For me it comes down to the fact that I believe most fans don't want the team quitting on them and that is exactly what this looks like. 

 

The team is still charging the same per ticket, beer costs the same as does a t-shirt yet for the rest of the year they are telling the fans they need to settle for a lower quality product.

 

It says the management are quitters who lack the desire to compete every game to produce the best record they can possibly get.

[pikestabber]

Dozier 3 for 4 with a single, double, and HR in first game as a Dodger. Nifty play in the field, too. Good guy--not a Dodgers fan, but hope he gets a ring there and then comes back home next year

 

And Escobar is hitting well for the Diamondbacks. Will root for him, too, and hope for a reunion.

[rundrave]

11 hours ago, PurpleFloyd said:

It says the management are quitters who lack the desire to compete every game to produce the best record they can possibly get.

 

I don't see it like that at all. Terry Ryan and Gardenhire were notorious for not holding players accountable. They stuck with their guys (Nick Punto is a great example)  and how dare anyone from the media question them. Gardy repeatedly tolerated mediocrity.

 

I like that the new leadership isn't tolerant. Like I said before in an earlier post, this team had over 100 games to prove they were contenders and they failed in every aspect. It got to the point where the Twins didn't have any leverage at all. They were lucky to get what they got. 

 

5 minutes ago, pikestabber said:

Dozier 3 for 4 with a single, double, and HR in first game as a Dodger. Nifty play in the field, too.

 

That's an awfully small sample size?   But you have to tell the full story. That game doesn't go extra innings because of his error earlier in the game that cost them a run right?

 

Cain tripled to right, Cain scored on throwing error by second baseman Dozier.

 

It sure is weird seeing him in that uniform though lol

[PurpleFloyd]

2 hours ago, rundrave said:

 

I don't see it like that at all. Terry Ryan and Gardenhire were notorious for not holding players accountable. They stuck with their guys (Nick Punto is a great example)  and how dare anyone from the media question them. Gardy repeatedly tolerated mediocrity.

 

I like that the new leadership isn't tolerant. Like I said before in an earlier post, this team had over 100 games to prove they were contenders and they failed in every aspect. It got to the point where the Twins didn't have any leverage at all. They were lucky to get what they got. 

 

 

That's an awfully small sample size?   But you have to tell the full story. That game doesn't go extra innings because of his error earlier in the game that cost them a run right?

 

Cain tripled to right, Cain scored on throwing error by second baseman Dozier.

 

It sure is weird seeing him in that uniform though lol

I wasn't talking about the coaches. They are fine. It's the front office.

 

As a coach, how would you like it if your boss traded some of your best talent and left you dump to compete with for the rest of the season? That's a losing mentality that is created by the front office.

 

 

[rundrave]

Dozier with another HR, is salt in the wound.

 

happy to see him doing well despite not being on the Twins

[JBMasterAngler]

Fernando Rodney joins the casualty list. What did we get in return from the A’s? I thought signing him was well worth the risk...but with that being said, I’m glad he’s gone now.

[Duffman]

The Twins have always had closers that make the end of the game "interesting".

Not sad to see him go either.

 

Now if we can just get the "Walk off" monkey off of our back by next year.

 

Almost 20% of our losses are walk offs.

Edited August 10, 2018 by Duffman

[Duffman]

Forsythe

Not too shabby.

[JBMasterAngler]

That was pretty cool watching Mauer come out for the 9th to play catcher. Too bad we didn’t keep that big lead, maybe he could have caught the whole inning. Seems to solidify what his decision is going to be.

[smurfy]

now i read that the Twins fired Molitor. friggin pohlads.

[JBMasterAngler]

I’m ok with them firing Molitor. I think last year’s team was about the best you could expect from him as a manager. Perhaps it increases the chance of Mauer coming back? Hmmmm. Will be interesting to see who they go after. I’m guessing Joe Girardi isn’t a likely candidate.

[nofishfisherman]

I have no issue with the firing but firing Molitor isn't the solution.  In baseball a manager is probably responsible for maybe a handful of wins and losses a season that stem directly from decisions he makes.  The rest is up to the players and the GM who drafts and signs the players.  If you can find a manager that could take this team to anything better than roughly a .500 record then you should sign him to a lifetime deal.  In reality Molitor was given a bunch of free agents that did little to nothing, his 2 young stars that were supposed to lead the team rarely played and when they did they played poorly, the GM traded away anyone of value and got no immediate help in return, he lost a half of his middle infield for half a season due to a PED violation, and his supposed ace on the staff missed most of the season.  Take all of that into consideration and you'd probably be thankful for 78 wins. 

 

It really doesn't matter who the Twins sign as a manager if they don't find a way to draft better and target players in free agency that can actually have an impact on the team.   

[Big Dave2]

6 hours ago, JBMasterAngler said:

I’m ok with them firing Molitor. I think last year’s team was about the best you could expect from him as a manager. Perhaps it increases the chance of Mauer coming back? 

 

Since the whole state of Minnesota seems to be in love with Mauer, maybe they will just hire him as manager and keep him forever.....

[nofishfisherman]

24 minutes ago, Big Dave2 said:

 

Since the whole state of Minnesota seems to be in love with Mauer, maybe they will just hire him as manager and keep him forever.....

 

The was the first thing I thought when I heard he was fired. 

 

Not sure why anyone is real concerned about Mauer retiring.  He's an ok player but nothing more than just ok.  If he were to come back I'm not sure what sort of contract he'd want but I'm guessing you could get more for that money elsewhere.  I'm also interested to see if they Twins invest the money they'll save now that Mauers contract is up or if they'll pocket it as additional profit. The Twins way would dictate the spend half of it on mediocre journeymen players that just keep the ship afloat while they pocket the rest of it. 

[Big Dave2]

12 minutes ago, nofishfisherman said:

 

Not sure why anyone is real concerned about Mauer retiring.  He's an ok player but nothing more than just ok.  If he were to come back I'm not sure what sort of contract he'd want but I'm guessing you could get more for that money elsewhere. 

 

They could have done more with the money the entire length of his overpaid contract. They will probably erect a statue of the guy at the ballpark eventually but the truth is, his contract and subsequent lack of performance was the demise of this team.

[rundrave]

37 minutes ago, Big Dave2 said:

 

They could have done more with the money the entire length of his overpaid contract. They will probably erect a statue of the guy at the ballpark eventually but the truth is, his contract and subsequent lack of performance was the demise of this team.

 

Who are the players that they could have signed that didn't come here? Pretty sure they offered Yu Darvish a blank check prior to the start of this season and he signed with the Cubs instead for likely the same thing he could have got from the Twins. Thankfully that worked out in the Twins favor but Mauer's contract has never kept them from signing anyone else. I agree the Mauer contract was not worth the money, but it never prevented them from signing anyone else.

 

The general lack of appreciation for how valuable Joe was for the better part of 15 years is misguided. Despite his early success some people always wanted more. And for how little he was paid early in his career $400k when he was winning batting titles and an MVP (as a catcher!).  I am glad he was properly sent off this weekend. He will go down as one of the greatest Twins ever. If you cant appreciate Joe the player and person that's on you.

 

I think Molitor getting let go needed to happen. Its hard for Falvey to move forward with a guy he never wanted in the first place and basically inherited. He was gracious for sticking with Molitor after they over achieved last year but he was not required to. For a manager who wasn't picked by this front office, his results just weren't good enough. That's not all on him but I hope a new direction will yield some better results.

 

[Big Dave2]

5 minutes ago, rundrave said:

 

Who are the players that they could have signed that didn't come here? Pretty sure they offered Yu Darvish a blank check prior to the start of this season and he signed with the Cubs instead for likely the same thing he could have got from the Twins. Thankfully that worked out in the Twins favor but Mauer's contract has never kept them from signing anyone else. I agree the Mauer contract was not worth the money, but it never prevented them from signing anyone else.

 

Of course it prevented them from signing other players. That's absurd. Are you trying to say that there is not one free agent over the course of 8 years that was available that could have helped the Twins in some way? I'm not just talking about big name guys, I'm talking about all available players.

 

5 minutes ago, rundrave said:

 

The general lack of appreciation for how valuable Joe was for the better part of 15 years is misguided. Despite his early success some people always wanted more. And for how little he was paid early in his career $400k when he was winning batting titles and an MVP.  I am glad he was properly sent off this weekend. He will go down as one of the greatest Twins ever. If you cant appreciate Joe the player and person that's on you.

 

Yes he's a great guy and yes everyone loves him because he is "one of us" and yes he has been an above average player but that doesn't mean that his large contract coupled with the fact that he has failed to live up to that contract hasn't crippled the Twins organization for several years.

 

 

[nofishfisherman]

Its hard to make a list of players that the could have signed but didn't because the Twins never really pursued any top end talent.  Darvish might be the exception but that offer was made with Mauers contract set to come off the books in a year.  5 years ago they would have never made the offer which sort of proves the point that Mauers contract was a limiting factor in who they would target in free agency. 

 

I don't really begrudge the Twins for signing Mauer to the deal they did they really had no other choice.  At the time he was a hometown hero who just had one of the greatest seasons any catcher has ever had and they were set to open up a new ballpark.  Had they let Joe walk in free agency it would have been a PR nightmare.  Besides as the time his output seemed to deserve the deal he got.  There is no crystal ball that would have indicated he'd regress and that he'd have to move to first base.  Had he been able to stay at catcher then his current offensive stats would have looked better given what you typically get from a catcher.  However, you tend to expect more offensively from your first baseman so his stats started to compare less favorably to his piers at the position. 

[rundrave]

7 minutes ago, Big Dave2 said:

Of course it prevented them from signing other players. That's absurd. Are you trying to say that there is not one free agent over the course of 8 years that was available that could have helped the Twins in some way? I'm not just talking about big name guys, I'm talking about all available players.

 

Who are the players they could have signed that didnt come here because they werent offered enough money? Why cant you name them?

 

Obviously there were plenty of free agents that could have helped the Twins but they signed guys like Mike Pelfrey instead. In 2016 they spent almost $35 million alone on just Santana, Nolasco and Hughes. How did that work out?

 

Mauer made a lot of money, but if you think it cost the Pohlads or the team too much and it prevented them for signing anyone else your wrong. You can't spend money if some free agents don't want to come here. 

[JBMasterAngler]

I wouldn’t mind if he came back for 1 more season. But it’s not really necessary. Tyler Austin is ready to play everyday. He’ll sacrifice the batting average, but make up for it with more power. The popular consensus is that we’ll bring Eduardo Escobar back. That would be nice. I heard the same with Dozier as well, but I could do without him.

[nofishfisherman]

4 minutes ago, rundrave said:

 

Who are the players they could have signed that didnt come here because they werent offered enough money? Why cant you name them?

 

 

 

Thats sort of the point.  They didn't come up short in negotiations they simply didn't pursue anyone from the start.  Its no secret the Twin organization has been reluctant to add to the payroll.  If you're not going to add to the payroll then you better be smart with how you spend the money you do have.  Its not hard to see that they could have gotten similar production for less money than they paid Mauer and then would have had more to pursue other players more deserving of the contract.  

[Big Dave2]

1 hour ago, rundrave said:

 

Who are the players they could have signed that didnt come here because they werent offered enough money? Why cant you name them?

 

Obviously there were plenty of free agents that could have helped the Twins but they signed guys like Mike Pelfrey instead. In 2016 they spent almost $35 million alone on just Santana, Nolasco and Hughes. How did that work out?

 

Mauer made a lot of money, but if you think it cost the Pohlads or the team too much and it prevented them for signing anyone else your wrong. You can't spend money if some free agents don't want to come here. 

 

1 hour ago, nofishfisherman said:

 

Thats sort of the point.  They didn't come up short in negotiations they simply didn't pursue anyone from the start.  Its no secret the Twin organization has been reluctant to add to the payroll.  If you're not going to add to the payroll then you better be smart with how you spend the money you do have.  Its not hard to see that they could have gotten similar production for less money than they paid Mauer and then would have had more to pursue other players more deserving of the contract.  

 

What he said.....^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

[chaffmj]

To me this all about the Pohlads. They said they couldn't win unless we built them a new stadium. Well we built them a new stadium and they never gave us a team that wins.

[rundrave]

not sure what to make of the new manager yet but will give him a chance. Just glad to see the Twins went outside of the organization.

 

No chance of signing Escobar back now since he signed with the Dbacks.

 

And Dozier's numbers don't look to be doing him any favors either. Will be interesting to see if he still gets offered big money despite his bad performance in a new contract year.