Tyner could be non-tendered
Posted on December 12th, 2007 – 9:40 AMBy Joe Christensen
Over on his blog, Seth Stohs is reporting that Twins outfielder Jason Tyner was non-tendered last night. I have not been able to confirm that news this morning, but I have calls in to Jason and his agent.
I do know the Twins have discussed the possibility of non-tendering Tyner rather than take him through arbitration. He made $400,000 last year and could make $1 million in his first year of arbitration. With Craig Monroe officially in the fold, the Twins have four outfielders — Monroe, Jason Kubel, Delmon Young and Michael Cuddyer — and still plan to acquire a starting center fielder. That wouldn’t leave much room for Tyner.
I know he has enjoyed his time with the Twins, and I know they’ve been happy with his performance, so I thought there was some chance they would work out a one-year deal. But if Seth’s source — a little birdie, he called it — is correct, Tyner will become a free agent.
I don’t see that happening with the Twins five other arbitration eligible players — Cuddyer, Kubel, Justin Morneau, Juan Rincon and Matt Guerrier. Others have mentioned Rincon as a non-tender candidate. I could be wrong, but I don’t see it. The deadline is 11 p.m., tonight, but we’ve been told that the Twins should have an announcement by late afternoon.
209 Responses to "Tyner could be non-tendered"
After signing Monroe I don’t see a reason to carry 6 OF’s. This news does not suprise me at all and isn’t that big of deal since Tyner would not play much anyway.
Joe
Are you getting scooped by Seth these days? Come on, work your magic, let’s get some new news today.
What about Joe Mauer playing CF?
Joe
Have you heard of any Free Agents that the Twins may be eyeing? If with the trades of Santana and Nathan their are still going to be wholes in the rotation and the infield, any ideas on who they might be going after?
speaking of non-tenders, morgan ensberg was non-tendered by SD. i think the the twins should take a shot. this guy was a stud 2 years ago. worth the gamble, no? link below:
http://mlbfleecefactor.com/2007/12/12/morgan-ensberg-to-be-non-tendered/
This makes me sad, Tyner was my boy.
I will miss cheering for him as an underdog.
Now that Mitchel report is coming out and putting names to the roids will this once and for all prove that Bert Blyleven was pitching to people all hopped up on drugs and deserves to be in the Hall of Fame.
Ed….$4.35 mil for a guy who only had ONE good year? Looks like someone gave him some juice back in 2005. Questionable call.
I think Morgan Ensberg is exactly the type of guy we shouldn’t go after. A washed up, broken down, waste of space. A Terry Ryan type player. I’ve been hearing the phrases “kick the tires” and “trying to catch lightning in a bottle” a lot lately and I think they both apply to this guy. He’s going on my “Just Say No To Eckstein/Gonzo/Rowand” list.
As for Tyner… eh. Not surprising, not a downgrade. It was fun watching him hit a couple off the baggy that he thought were going out only to see them fall just short. And it was cool once he finally hit one out. Otherwise, good riddance.
This is excellent news for the Twins. They will avoid the black-eye of having the kingpin of the steroid ring on their team when the Mitchell report is released tomorrow.
Patrick
Can I ask why you don’t want the Twins to go after Rowand? Just curious, but I think he would be a decent fit depending on the contract.
hope they can replace his TWO home runs
jama, I’d imagine Seth’s “little birdy” could be nothing more than simple logic.
Like you said, with Monroe around and the Twins still hunting for a CF, what use is Tyner?
So I dunno if it’s really a scoop or just making an assertion based on what we as fans know.
I agree Rowand would fit well with the Twins, though my idea of a good contract may not gel withe prevailing opinion (I’ve heard he’s asking $13-14mil/yr for 4-5…which sounds like a good opening figure for negotations).
As far as other FAs…3B doesn’t look too good from what I’ve seen (even considering Lowell or A-Rod since neither was going to fit into the Twins current payroll). I don’t have problems with Buscher if the rest of the lineup is put together well.
Rotationally? Liriano, Baker, Boof, Slowey, Blackburn…it’ll be shakey, but I could live with it for a year if there’s nobody on the FA market that is worth the kind of money the Twins will likely have to throw at them (unless they go for another Ponson or Ortiz…which I would imagine they don’t)
Rowand is looking for five years. He’s 30yrs now so he knows big money won’t be available for him in 3-4 more years. Phillies want him back but will only offer 3yrs with 4th year option. White Sox want him back, especially the fans, but the Sox just picked up the young potential superstar, Carlos Quentin, from Arizona so why would they sign Rowand long-term. I believe the Twinks want Ellsbury and until that situation is settled, Rowand is on the back burner if at all.
It’s unfortunate that Juan Rincon was not traded by now; he could have brought a decent prospect from an NL team in the beginning of last season… I can see the Twins offering arbitration and then trying to trade him, but his value is diminished…
Kubel, Morneau, and Guerrier should be signed to 3-4 year contracts. Guerrier could potentially be in the closer mix if Nathan is traded…
The other
If they are going to non-tender Tyner, that makes me believe even more that they are leaning towards the Ellsbury deal. I like the line-up in this case, but- that leaves the old starting staff a little thin.
Anyone heard any word on what it would take to trade for Inge? I’d be happy with him as a 3B.
Also, if Morgan Ensberg is non-tendered, I’d give him a shot.
The problem with Rowand IS the contract. He’s not going to get Hunter money, but close, especially when he’s the last legit CF out there. If they wanted a CF that age at near that money, they would have signed Hunter.
If Tyner is gone, the Twins have no CF until they either trade for one or sign a FA. Then if that players is out, who plays CF?
I don’t know. Ensberg was a huge prosect. It’s not like 2003-2005 came out of nowhere. I’d give him a shot. $4M is nothing nowadays in baseball, unfortunately.
NO!! NOT J TY!
sorry, but while tyner might not be great, or even really good..
he is a guy id hate to see go..
dont get me wrong, monroe, kubel, young, cuddy are guys im happy to have on the team.
but tyner is the bench guy with speed and right now we dont have much speed in the outfield..
(and there is another double into the gap for cabrera)
people will fly off the handle about another washed up “lightning in a bottle” FA signing, but take a look at the 3B out there, if you find one better than him, please let me know.
Ellsbury is one of the fastest OF in MLB right now, so I don’t know what you’re talkinga about that we have no speed in the OF !!
4 years for Rowand at $13-14 each? That’s only a year more than they offered Hunter and a mil or two less a year. I’d do it.
As far as who plays center if Rowand goes down, then you call up Span or put Monroe up there (either way Span gets called up).
Monroe is the backup outfielder for just that kind of reason.
jama-
I guess I should have qualified that. I don’t think we should we sign Rowand for the number of years it would take to sign him. 3 years w/an option is the way to go and he won’t take that. He’s a solid player but I still think he’s overrated because he broke his nose once. He’s got that same reputation for hustle and grit that Eckstein has and it warps people’s perceptions. he’s nowhere near as overrated as Eckstein but I don’t think he’s as good as people give him credit for either. If we can’t get a CF back for Johan or Nathan than I wouldn’t mind having him on the team (supposedly he’s a good clubhouse guy)but only if the price is right. Or, more importantly, the years. Another thought, why would we give him 5 years but not Torii? He’s only 2 years younger than Torii and not substantially better.
i can see them non-tendering rincon, he cleared waivers and they (supposedly) have tried to trade him. he hasn’t been the same after the bust for stuff he couldn’t read the label? i picked up some flax seed at the grocery store last week and i already feel stronger. hope i’m not in the mitchel report.
KB, if you’re going after somebody like ensburg because he’s the “best at the moment” then perhaps you should reconsider going after him at all.
At that point just have Buscher hold dow nthe fort until he either proves himself or a more viable candidate becomes available.
On another note, Tad Iguchi signs with Padres. I don’t know how much he got, but I wouldn’t have minded seeing him at 2nd. DIdn’t know he was availabe.
If they non-tender Rincon, he will be signed somewhere else by the end of the day. People are despirate for good bull-pen help, he’s better than alot of options out there.
KB-
first, we don’t have Ellsbury yet so yes, our OF speed isn’t great. Second, I’d much rather trade for Rolen than sign Ensberg. yes, he’s more expensive and yes, people could argue that he’s another player on the down slope of his career, a “lightning in a bottle” guy. they might be right, but I’d much rather have Rolen because if he does bounce back, his talent level is so much higher than ensberg. When healthy (which isn’t often) Rolen is still one of the best 3B in the league.
Rowand is asking for 5-6 million less than what Hunter got. And even after that, it’s still 1-2 million less than the Twins offered Hunter.
I think that Ensberg would be a better option than Buscher (although I do like Busher).
I don’t think they will go after Ensberg, they had the chance last year, and didn’t.
Patrick,
I know they don’t have Ellsbury yet, I was just joking, but I really do believe the will have him by Opening Day. If they let Tyner go, they will obviously have to go get another CF.
The problem with Rolen is you would have to give something up to get him. I think that he will require one of our bull-pen guys or a top-level prospect. Ensberg, just some money.
but tyner is the bench guy with speed and right now we dont have much speed in the outfield…
Pridie could potentially replace Tyner in that role…
I assume that the Twins’ bench would look something like
Redman
Monroe
2 of Harris/Casilla/Punto/Buscher (I assume 2 of them would get 2 of the 2B/SS/3B positions)
Pridie
This assumes that a new CF and a new 3B or 2B or SS.
i had heard a rumor that cuddy might get put in left and young would stay in right..
anybody else hear that?
unless they plan on moving cuddy to 3rd??
otherwise we will have kubel or monroe on the bench almost all the time..
it wouldnt surprise me to see and outfield of kubel/CF/young
cuddy plays 3rd and monroe DH’s
any thoughts?
The problem with Rolen is you would have to give something up to get him
I’d love to have Rolen in the lineup… As far as “character issues” go, look at the person he had a problem with: a dui offender who was caught asleep drunk in his SUV at a stoplight, and the manager of the most juiced club (the late 80s-mid 90s Oakland As). I’d take Rolen’s side on the case…
The issue might be that the Cardinals do not want to trade him within the division & shut down the Milwaukee talks by asking too much. I think that a bullpen arm or two (Rincon/Reyes) and a mid level prospect (take your pick) would do it.
sethspeaks is on top of his game, I love that site
I really think they are hesitant to move Cuddy to 3B, he didn’t like playing there, and you risk him not hitting as well when playing a postion he doesn’t like.
I agree, it would be a perfect solution, but it scares me that he could go back to his old streaky hitting that he exhibited last time he was at 3B.
Kubel, CF, Young with Cuddy at 3B looks sweet….as long as he hits like he did last year.
Cuddy hit .276 with 16 bombs and 81 RBI last year. That looks great compared to Punto, but it’s still below average for a third baseman. I’d rather keep his cannon arm in right field.
MH:
Kubel is DH. Monroe is 4th outfielder and the power bat off the bench. If Kubel struggles like the first half of last year Monroe platoons DH with Kubel.
I like Rowand but KB is right….long-term solution at 30yrs old?…then we should have paid Hunter to stay.
$4M is nothing to Steinbrenners and the like but to Carl and the Twinks, it’s big ching. If we’re going to the youth, then let’s get someone is to develop a little.
Monroe and Kubel are nothing. Tyner is better than both. Now that the Twins are semi-stuck with Monroe they should non-tender Kubel.
I like Kubel in the outfield, I think we should find a way to keep him out there, he hits better when he’s out there and he has a hell of a bat. I think it would be worth the shot at Ensberg but based on the Twins’ previous success with these types of players it probably won’t work out.
Gardy and Billy have both gone on record this week that Cuddy is staying in RF. Why do you guys keep torturing yourselves with the thought?
KB-
I think we’ll have Ellsbury by opening day as well. The only way I think that’s not the case is if the Yanks panic and make a big offer. Really, Ellsbury, Masterson, Lowrie, +1 is much better than Hughes, Cabrera, +1. The Yankees will have to see that and realize that hey, if the Sox are going to offer that much it won’t look so bad if we do it. Then they’ll offer us Hughes, Melky, Jackson, +1.
We do have a good chip in Nathan. The Cards have Isrnighausen but he’s getting old. Ship Nathan +1 to the Cards for Rolen. You’d think they would take that. Rolen in the middle of our lineup would be a nice addition.
Tyner is better than Monroe and Kubel…..are you kidding me?? Please say that was a joke.
Did you watch the second half of the season last year??
Man, i don’t want to get too ahead of myself but the Twins could actually have a hell of lineup next year. I’m looking forward to it. Just a couple weeks ago I thought all was lost
“Just a couple of weeks ago I thought all was lost”
No, the Twins still have Santana.
Patrick…I agree with the Nathan for Rolen thing…but there is no way Rolen would hit in the middle of our line-up to start the season…depending on what you classify as middle, he has an outside chance at hitting 6th, but I’d say that’s Kubel’s spot to lose in the order…
CF
Mauer
Young
Cuddy
Justin
Kubel
Rolen?
How close is BS watching the non-tenders in Hou (Wiggington or Everett) now that Tejada is allegedly on his way there????
They could have a pretty decent line-up, but I think we may get a glimpse into what it feels like to watch good offense with mediocre pitching. At least until the kids come around.
No matter how bad the Twins are currently looking, no team with Johan Santana on it can be counted out this early.
Wiggington, please.
I for one agree with perhaps getting rolen..
but i completely disagree with trading them nathan and a player..
rolen is injury prone and has a big contract..
you get the cards to pay some of that contract and you trade away a prospect or two..
nathan is a big time closer…
The latest is they are going to keep Wiggy and non-tender Everett and play Tejada at short, so the left side of thier infield will be Miggy and Wiggy.
I agree, they can do better than Rolen for Nathan. I hope they get some starting pitching in return for Nathan. (this is all assuming the Ellsbury deal).
But, wait to trade him until the deadline.
Miggy, Wiggy et al link…
http://msn.foxsports.com/mlb/story/7556464?CMP=OTC-K9B140813162&ATT=49
if johan does not land a blue chip pitcher then the twins need to turn to trading nathan for that blue chip pitcher..
i like the sox deal for ellsbury.. i think it is the best deal thus far..
but the yanks offer a blue chip pitcher and a CF.
thus you could trade nathan for a 3b or a SS..
trading johan for the ellsbury trade makes some sense..
you get ellsbury, and some young pitchers.. but you dont get the blue chip pitcher.. so then nathan gets traded for the blue chip pitcher
You’re right, MH.
I would really like to get the Santana deal done, so we can move on with the rest of the off-season.
What’s the big deal about Ellsbury? Ellsbury=Tyner except Ellsbury charges for autographs.
Ellsbury = potential
Tyner = Know comodity of futility
Hawk, this isn’t the ’70’s anymore, where a player stayed with one team for his entire career. A long-term solution in today’s world is 5 years!
Anybody who thinks the Twins are going to have a 2008 lineup full of 24 year-olds, so we can watch them all develop together and turn into a World Series team in 2012 is living in a dream world. There will be veterans mixed in here and there.
The trade I LIKE THE MOST is trading Johan to the Mets
1. Johan is out of the AL
2. You probably land a combination of Mulvey (22yrold SP) either Martinez(19yrold CF)or Gomez(22yrold CF)
Pelfrey(23yr old SP) and (26yrold SP)
you send Johan for Mulvey, Pelfrey, Gomez and a Infield prospect i think the twins should Jump all over that deal..
Mets dont have the Blue chip pitchers. but if you get 2, perhaps 3 pitchers for Johan, and a starting CF… you gotta make that trade..
Ellsbury = potential to be the next Tyner (except a douchebag that charges for autographs)
Tyner= quick singles hitter
I forgot to mention Humber.. he is the 26 yr old pitcher for the mets..
Again, in a Dream World
A’s Twins Mets 3 team trade
Mets get- Johan, Crosby, Johnson
Twins Get - Haren, Reyes
A’s Get- Slowey, Pelfrey, Gomez, Humber, Pellot
As far as CF is concerned we have
Pridie
Monroe
Young
who can play or handle CF well enough without Tyner if he is not offered arbitration.
As far as Ensburg, we can offer him a minorleague contract with a spring invite….We can also do that with Branyan who has monster power…. or we can find a real solution.
Personally I would like to resign Johan and Rowand to play CF otherwise get Ellsbury and be done with the OF and begin focusing on the IF and finding a Starting pitcher.
why do we want ellsbury so much? we already have one of those in our farm system……span…
Robert, you obviously don’t know much about Ellsbury, and obviously have some sort of man-crush on Tyner. They are worlds apart.
you know if we want speed in center we should just go put span there…. but we would rather have a power hitter there and a speedy person like reyes for the shortstop instead of power in ss
Span….really. Why do we want someone who should be in AA (maybe) playing major league CF?
ESPN has an article about the Twins being a bottom 5 lineup..
makes sense.. last year we were not great.. and we can only hope that harris pridie, young replace the hunter bartlett production
I just don’t see how Ellsbury could possibly be the key to trading the best pitcher in the game. We are chock-full of quick singles hitters, why are we so quick to get another one? I guess i would prefer to replace Hunter with somebody that can hit it over the fence on occasion but maybe that’s just me. KB, I could care less about losing Tyner, all I’m saying is why are we non-tendering Tyner and then trading the best pitcher in baseball for a player that is very simalar to the Tyner? Doesn’t make sense to me.
span is in AAA and had almost the same production then ellsbury… only reason span didnt get called up was because of hunter. span is invited to spring training so we will see how he is there….who knows he may be our lead offf hitter
sounds like craig is off his meds again!
WE ALREADY HAVE A ELLSBURY IN OUR FARM…… we should trade to the rangers for blalock and prospects…… or to mets for reyes and then nathan for blalock
Monroe and Kubel are both 4th, 5th or 6th outfielder types. If they both only get 200 AB, that’s more than enough.
Robert, you obviously don’t know much about Ellsbury, and obviously have some sort of man-crush on Tyner. They are worlds apart.
Hahaha…
No im not trying to make fun of Robert!
but i think its funny how fans are soo wound up over ellsbury…
the kid has had 116 at bats and all of a sudden he is a all star CF..
young prospects come up and perform until teams are able to scout them..
mike ryan came up for the twins and batted well over .300 in his september call up.. where is he now?
Tyner is a douch-bag; these are the exact types of players the team needs to unload; can’t wait until Punto goes after next season… kudos to Bill Smith for realizing what Terry Ryan never did, you can’t win with Puntos/Tyners/Fords/LuRods/Rivas etc etc etc… baseball is no different than any other sport, you need big, athletic guys… Monroe and Young are a nice start….
craig……
“Monroe and Kubel are both 4th, 5th or 6th outfielder types. If they both only get 200 AB, that’s more than enough.”
should i even comment?
I don’t agree with the Span comments that liondragon is making but I do agree that we already have Ellsbury in our farm system, his name is Ben Revere.
MH all i’m saying is that Tyner and Ellsbury are the same type of player, quick singles type hitters. I don’t get all the hype about Ellsbury.
Tejada gets trades to the Stros for two major leaguers and four minor leaguers and all the BoSox can offer is Ellsbury and two minor leaguers? The O’s and Stros trade makes Smith look smarter and the Hankees and BoSox look cheap.
Robert,
yeah.. i know what your saying..
and i actually copied that whole man crush post from KB.. i just didnt know how to put it in italics..
and i agree with you..
fans are all hyped up over ellsbury..
maybe if the kid had played a full season and hit .300 with 10 hr 75rbi and 50 SB with some great defense.
but he has had 100+ at bats..
my biggest concern is this..
If the twins cannot trade Johan for a blue chip pitcher, what makes them think they can trade Nathan for a blue chip pitcher?
id rather see Melky in center and a rotation of Liriano/Hughes
then Ellsbury in Center and a rotation of
Liriano/baker
with the orioles cleaning house do either mora or huff sound like a plausible 3b canidate, could come semi cheap?
“baseball is like any other sport, you need big athletic guys”
Joe Morgan 5′7, Kirby Puckett 5′8. Lou Brock 5′9, Willie Mays 5′10, Luis Aparicio 5′6, etc., etc., etc. will never cut it.
Hawk
part of that is because Tejada is undercontract for this year and next year at a reasonable price of 13mil each year..
johan is a free agent after this year and he commands perhaps 25mil a season..
thats why teams wont part with more players for Johan.. he is a huge investment.. 6 yr $150mil contract. as well as a couple blue chip players…
MH, I still wouldn’t buy those stats because Ellsbury bats RH and plays in Boston. Tyner could knock 10 out if he was RH and played in Boston. I agree, I would much rather have Melky/Hughes + 2 than Ellsbury +3. If we really want a quick singles hitter in CF why not just plug a temp out there until Revere is ready? I don’t see how trading Johan for Ellsbury works to our benifit.
Mora….35yrs, declining numbers and 7.7mil Huff…..31yrs, declining numbers and $4mil.
That’s what is wrong with baseball. All these guys are getting off the juice and their numbers are falling off the charts.
Robert.. ellsbury bats LH..
Oh I thought I remembered Ellsbury hitting a couple homeruns over the green monster in the WS last year, must have been hitting it the other way.
Mickey mantle told a funny story about size. When he came up he was about 5′ 10″ and 175 lbs. The Yankees listed him at 5′ 11″ 185 lbs. He had a pretty good year, which had the Yanks selling him to fans as a young superstar. The next season he was listed as 6′ 200 lbs. He said he hadn’t grown at all.
Um Robert, that was Dustin Pedroia….
the cupboard is bare at 3b and ss what are the options or are we happy with punto at ss and buscher 3b?
Well lets trade for Pedroia then! haha
That would be a great move to trade for Dustin Pedroia. He is a 2b and could play ss. There is no way Boston would include him in a deal.
Jason Tyner’s career MiLB line (3059 ABs): .307/.370/.361
1 XBH every 23.5 ABs
1 BB every 10.7 ABs
Jacoby Ellsbury career MiLB line (1017 ABs): .313/.389/.425
1 XBH every 13.75 ABs
1 BB every 9.2 ABs
They are the same except Ellsbury gets an extra base it twice as often and walks 15% more often.
Oh, and Ellsbury can play a passable center field, something Tyner can’t even sniff.
Here’s what the Twins should do for the remainder of the off-season:
1)Offer Johan a fifth year, 5/100, or 113 total for the years 2008-13
(how come they can’t commit to this? 5/93 is ok, but 6/113 isn’t? He’ll be the best paid pitcher in the game)
2)Sign Ensberg
3)Trade Rincon/whomever to Boston for Crisp: look at his 2001-2005 track record; he was basically injured his entire time in Boston
Lineup:
CF Crisp (300/350/450)
3B Ensberg (obp machine)
C Mauer (power will go up)
RF Cuddyer (if Grady insists on RLRL)
1B Morneau
LF Young (don’t put too much pressure on him by putting him at 3 or 4)
DH Kubel (ok to platoon Monroe some)
2B Harris (weakest link)
SS Casilla (with potential to move up to 1 or 2)
Rotation:
Santana
Liriano
Baker
Bonser
Slowey
This lineup can win 85-90 games and be competitive.
Ben Revere career MiLB line: .325/.388/.461
1 XBH every 11.9 AB
1 BB every 9.1 AB
I like Revere, let’s wait for him to develop. Plug a temp in CF until he is ready.
did i just see craig comparing tyner to mickey mantle and willy mays? neither could play on craigs team they hit more than 5 hr a yr. his max.
Joe, what’s the chance the Twins surprise everyone with a deal for Santana out of nowhere? Is that out of the question considering the holes they need to fill?
The Astros didn’t give up much to get Tejada though. Troy Patton was the one prospect. But that makes sense cuz Tejada is pretty well done.
Did someone actually say to trade Joe Nathan + someone for Scott Rolen? Believe me, it woudln’t take that much to get Rolen, and if it does, he will stay with the Cardinals.
Ensberg - I think I’d rather go with the Buscher/Macri combination.
Blalock - I think I’d rather go with the Buscher/Macri combination.
It would take more than Rincon to get Crisp.
I say we trade all of our MLB players and field the Minnesota Red Wings next year. Pohlad would be happy with that. Cheap Cheap Cheap.
So what will it take to get Crisp?
We kept sending out Punto at 3B last year. Here’s the Punto - Ensberg career line comparison:
0.265 0.366 0.476
0.245 0.314 0.321
Ensberg has posted OBP higher than .375 in three different years, and also hit 23+ HR each of those years. We definitely want to grab him. Give him an incentive-laden deal and hope for Mike Lowell.
If the Twins can offer Santana a 5 year extention, why can’t they offer a 5 year extention with 2 option years where 1 becomes guarenteed when he reaches 200 IP. That way we are never on the hook more than 5 years and Santana should be able to hit 200 IP in at least 2 of the 5 years. There you have it a 7 year 140 million contract.
Personally I would rather have Ellsbury over the pitching as the Twins still have tons of pitchers comming up. Get Ellsbury and Lowrie. The lineup would be set and solid if we can get a 3b or if Lowrie or Harris can play there.
By the way, here are the Lowell/Ensberg comps. I doubt we’d pass up Mike Lowell.
Career:
Lowell: 0.280/0.344/0.468
Ensberg: 0.265/0.366/0.476
Everyone said Lowell was washed up after he posted a 0.236/0.298/0.360 line in 2005. Well, after Ensberg posted .230/.320/.410, now’s a chance to get him cheap and ready for a comeback.
revere is good too….
but hes not ready yet.. if we want someone whos speedy in center put span there for now and wait till revere is ready then put him there
Hell, give Ensberg a shot, what’s the worst case scenario, he plays better than Punto?
Also rumored to be non-tendered: Joe Crede. I think it might be a long-shot that he’s non-tendered, but I’d give him a shot, coming off back surgery last year.
honestly i think ensburg may get picked up by the twins.. it seems like they wanna get a good 3rd baseman cheap and hes the one to get… then get reyes through the santana trade and trade nathan for a really good pitching prospect or 2
ensburg is better then crede
considering who knows how well he will be after surgery… you know though.. you can argue on that one on which is better..
if you wanted to take one of them NEXT year you go for ensberg.. if you want major risk you go with crede
Yeah, no doubt about it, I would much rather have Ensburg than Crede
If Everett is healthy, he is the SS I want the Twins to have. His fielding is supposedly as good as it gets, and adding the pieces the Twins have added, he would not be expected to offer much offense.
Crede would be great if he recovers from his surgery. If the Sox non tender him the Twins should go after if for no other reason than to make graig made that we added another player who can hit 20+HR. Also it would piss off sox fans if he signed with the Twins.
That should say to make Craig mad that we added another player who can hit 20+ HR.
I think I would rather have Crede, he’s got more up-side in my mind, and younger. We’re not playing for next year anyway, give him a year to see if he can get back to his old ways, if not, move on next off-season.
I’ll pass on Everett, he doesn’t represent any more to me that Punto. Defense and NO offense.
I just don’t trust Crede to stay healthy and produce, too much of a risk
Adam Everett? He of the .248/.299/.357 career line? I don’t care if he can play short and 2nd at the same time, we don’t need a slightly-better version of Nick Punto. The Twins offense at this point is still really bad, though a Santana trade would hopefully really help to improve it.
we should get barry bonds to play 3rd he can hit 70 homers!!!! that tops all if we want a home run hitter 3rd baseman…
and after the whole thing going with him right now it could probably fit in pholads wallet!!!!!!!!!! OMG ITS A MIRACLE!!!!
A 70 HOME RUN THREAT THAT CAN FIT IN HIS WALLET!!! OMG OMG I MUST BE DREAMING!!!!
lol
Someone please explain to me why the Twins haven’t asked about Clay Buchholtz? Is he untouchable? I would much rather have him than Ellsbury or Lester he is only a slight notch below Hughes. If the Twins are asking for Hughes why not Buccholtz?
cause we asked for both lester and ellsbury to bid against hughes….
Between Ensberg and Crede, I’d go for Ensberg. I’m not sure I want either one, but if I had to choose Ensberg would be the guy. The Twins have already got Monroe and Young this offseason, it’s time to get someone with an OBP that can at least reach over .320. Crede’s career OBP is .305 and his career high is only .323. Ensberg’s is .366.
.366 is Ensberg’s career OBP, his career high is like .390 something.
thoughts on barry at 3rd? lol
i wanna hear you guys laugh lol
lion
I understand that the Twins asked for both but it doesn’t sound like the Sox are willing to do that. So why not get their best prospect in Buchholtz like they are asking for Hughes from the Yankees? If the Twins have pondered a deal where Lester is the main point then the Twins are in trouble.
has mike lamb signed with anyone? could always try tony batista again
jama,
cause if we asked for just bolcholtz we would just take the yankees offer..
at first we wanted bolcholtz and ellsbury but they wouldnt do it so we asked for lester and ellsbury.
i think liondragon is right we should get barry bonds as our 3rd baseman… his defense may suck but you know the twins have to give up defense for power LOL
why don’t we just have Gardy fill in at 3rd? That would be cheap. Pohlad would be happy and he could go back to eating fetuses or whatever it is he does.
robert,
ya but whos going to coach then??? TC?
LOL that would be funny… TC’s lineup would be……
1 TC
2TC JUNIOR
3TC KIDDY
4TC GRANDPA
5TC GRANDMA
6TC BIG GUY
7TC KANGAROO (you always need someone to kick people into place)
8TC MONKEY (gotta have a trouble maker)
9GARDY
ya thats right TC is so talented he can coach AND play lol
No, I think Punto should still bat leadoff, I mean, he really “gets at it” and plays great defense. Plus we know we’d all miss him sliding into 1st.
I think it’s time for the Twins to call up Gardy’s son. He posted a solid .501 OPS as a 24-year old at Ft Myers this year, and the Twins need a shortstop. Career minor league line of .203/.259/.234, sounds like a perennial all-star to me.
liondragon…
Are you a 12-year-old girl or the only guy in America that uses “lol”?
Hey…get Crede for 3b and sign Rowand for CF. We could really piss off the Sox.
Yeah, I bet Gardy’s son really “Gets at it” though. Him and Punto could platoon between 3rd and SS. That would be really cheap. The cheaper the better!
Love it Mike D. Let the kid play.
wow i didnt know he had a son who played in the twins minors 
Seth Speaks-
I think the Astros gave up quite a bit for Tejada. Patton is their 3rd ranked prospect and Costanzo is sixth. Albers was ranked very high in their organization last year. Scott is young and inexpensive and has MLB experience. I don’t know anything about the other guy, but still, that’s a good haul for the O’s. Tejada wasn’t doing anything for them and I’ll be surprised if his name isn’t on the Mitchell Report tomorrow. Also, the Cards would not give up one of the top 3B in the league, when healthy (granted, he has a really hard time staying healthy) for only one year of Nathan. Especially considering the state of FA this year. There’s no quality out there. We’d have to include a mid level prospect as well. He’s signed through 2010 at 12 million a year. A little expensive but not too bad by today’s standards. What do you think we’d have to give up for him?
Assuming both are healthy: Crede > Ensberg
Punto in CF.
First “lol”, now smiley faces. Going downhill fast here.
Anyone care to guess if any Twins or former Twins will be among the 60-80 players that supposedly will be named in the Mitchell Report?
Does anyone actually care what the Mitchell Report says? I know I don’t. It’s inconclusive and is going to put too much blame and the people that it names.
gardy should bring him up from A ball to pros he woul fit right into our lineup
you know he may be better then punto….
he is on the fort myers miracles team…
you never know a miracle could happen
Yeah. And that’s the ONLY reason Toby is still playing. I bet he gets promoted to AA next year too, though as long as he never sees the MLB roster I don’t really care where he plays.
It’ll make the whole league look dirty and take focus off of McGwire/Sosa/Bonds - they’ll be in the same class as a bunch of guys and their * will be lessened. Wanna bet Clemens is one of them?
ensberg is better then crede?
you have got to be kidding me.
crede plays stellar defense….
IMO..
im taking crede over ensberg 100% of the time
Toby was an “ok to decent” college player but nothing special….and that’s coming from college coaches who have seen him play.
MH,
we shouldnt take either of them.. get rid of punto and go for the goldmine…..
TOBY GARDENHIER
switch hitting 3rd baseman with a .220 batting adverage and .500 obs PERFECT
Aaron Rowand just signed a 5 year deal with the Giants. Put that Twins rumor to bed now.
wow your accually right.. got signed for 5 years… WOW
Also, Chris Weinke is back in the NFL. Signed with the 49ers.
Sox are skeptical over Crede’s back surgery and his prognosis. Crede has nice upside but $5mil GTD for next two years is a gamble.
Toby would be cheap, perfect! I don’t think they should include seats in the new stadium, make the fans bring their own, that would be cheap.
As a 49ers fan, that fact makes me feel even worse about my team, if that was even possible…
couple of yrs gardy’s kid can coach 3b for jake mauers team. keep it in the family. did anybody hear if prior got tendered? do you know how the twins would have been crucified on here when they took baby jesus over prior?
Rowand was too expensive anyway. We need CHEAP players.
We should make the players clean up the Dome after the games, save some money.
rowand has signed with giants??!!
Or we could have the custodial staff play for the Twins, that would be really CHEAP!
mj1,
ya its on mlbtraderumors.com
take a look
really odd never thought it would be the giants.. this must be like the angels with hunter
I am sure this has been discussed already, so I apologize, but what is Scott Rolen’s status, and is he a possibility for the Twinks?
or we can just whine all day while the yankees beat up on us and get 30 runs in a inning having TC pitching…
Does anyone think Corey Patterson would be a good idea in CF next year? I think he’s being made out to be a worse player than he actually is. He seems like Coco Crisp and we wouldn’t have to trade to get him. Apparently Coco is far superior at defense (Patterson is right near the bottom in range ractor). They are the same age though (28).
No, we won’t get Rolen, he’ll cost too much. We need to go cheap. Ship off $antana to the Red Sox for the entire Lancaster JetHawks team and rename our team the Minnesota JetJawks, that would be CHEAP!!!
all in favor of gardys son playing 3rd next year say I.
all in favor of gardys son not playing third say nay
whos the jethawks?
Aye
the score is 1 I and 0 nays anyone else?
i still say cf could be manned for a year by d.erstad…til we find something much better…i just have a feeling about him playing in front of the home crowd for his last year or two,…could be something very good and reasonably cheap….especially if we fill all the other holes…3b -ss and i belive that will be done with the santana trade….
the jethawks are one of Bostons class A teams. They are CHEAP!
you know I’m an “I” liondragon,
Toby would be cheap
Darren Erstad is terrible. That’s almost as bad as my Corey Patterson suggestion.
id rather go for the pawtucket soxs
I think the Twins should be all volunteer. Pohlad could pocket everything!
but Darren Erstad is from North Dakota, so we should have him on our team.
Maybe we could get him somehow packaged with Travis Hafner as a North Dakota combo plate.
haha Robert, I like your thinking.
twins seem to be moving awfully slow, surprise, surprise…pisses me off when i see all these other clubs making the moves..rowand is off the boards now…come on bill lets make a deal…or two, three..give us something to really b.s about….tired of all this speculation……
talking about speculation.. i think toby bats 5th.. gardy always wanted his son playing the big role
My grandpa is from ND too and he played some college ball, I bet he’d sign for really cheap. Pohlad would like him too becuase he doesn’t tip. Plus Gardy would like him cause he really “Gets at it”
hey guys…
mlb said rowand got about what torii got…
18 mil a year…
LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL LOL
should i continue? crazy they do the barry zito signing and then this?
What did the bird say to Pohlad?
“Cheap Cheap Cheap”
tedge ….pattersons tank is 0 on E
reborn,relocated erstad tank on 3/4
will be in all out battle for come-back player of the year with monroe..lol thats good for us…
Erstad sucks his OPS last year was .645. That is terrible. I know Patterson’s isn’t good either, but come on Erstad is OLD!!! He isn’t getting better and he never was that good to start.
im telling you we need toby he has an AMAZING .500 OBS OMG OMG OMG perfect for our middle of the lineup
The yanks and sox have it all wrong, CHEAP is the way to go
Besides, I only put the Patterson thing out there because I was curious what people’s opinion’s were. I have since made one of my own and that opinion is that Patterson sucks too. I just liked how he could steal bases. But, that is all he can do.
fukudome now a cub 48 million…damn..big money for little japanese player … we will have a ball with that name……damn…
MLB.com
Terms of the deal were not disclosed, although the value of Rowand’s contract was believed to have approached the five-year, $90 million package that Torii Hunter, another free-agent center fielder, recently received from the Los Angeles Angels.
Oh my god. Aaron Rowand. The Giants are idiots. Why do the overpay players so much. On the plus side the 30-year-old Rowand actually reduces the average age of their roster. Man, that team is gonna suck.
48 million?!? Why, that’s not cheap at all!
On Everett–comparing him to Punto is ridiculous. As a regular, Everett was the #1 defensive SS according to (I think) the Fielding Bible. Punto was average as a 3B in those ratings and rated pretty well as a 2B.
Patterson–He wouldn’t be a bad signing at $6M a year for two years. He is only 28 and has 30+ basestealing speed, which, I think, counts for something. Again, it depends on which stats you peruse for what kind a fielder someone is. I think of him as average, but having great speed, which might help on the Metrodome turf.
flatblade, are you kidding? $6 million? hahahaha (Pohlad and I are laughing)
Flatblade,
That contract 2/6 million is what I was thinking about. I know I would rather have Crisp (their offense is similar and Crisp is better at defense), that seems like a fairly wise investment if the Twins fail to land Ellsbury. If we don’t get that guy isn’t starting to look like throw in Jason Pridie is going to open the season in center for the Twins. Their’s no one left to get unless we make a Johan trade.
Robert,
We just paid Craig Monroe 3.87 million.
yeah but he’ll be “lightning in a bottle” Don’t you see?
Rowand went for 5yrs/60 mil…hardly ‘Hunter’ like money.
Any further word on Ensberg non-tender?
Patterson has no “lightning” potential (nerdy physics joke in there if anyone can find it)
Tredge & liondragon-
Fox Sports is reporting that Rowland signed a 5 year, $60 million deal with the Giants. I consider that a fair deal for him in the market. I know I would much rather spend $60 million for Rowand than $90 million for Hunter.
5 for 60 million seems a lot more reasonable.
Austin,
It’s Tedge, not Tredge. No offense taken though. Even though the money is more reasonable, I still stand by my statement that the Giants are going to suck.
Tedge, sorry about that. I would say the Giants aren’t going to be very good either, but at the same time they gotta start trying to improve their team somehow and I think this is a nice start.
The Giants do have some good, young pitchers. It’s too bad they have a bunch of bad, old hitters.
So with holes at CF and 3B, no one wants the Twins’ pitching prospects? Blackburn, Slowey, Perkins, Boof?
Or is it that the Twins need to keep prospects now that they’ve decided Cytana will eventually go?
And if that’s the case, why havent’ they resigned Silva? Then quit fixating on getting a bona fide MLB pitcher in the deal for Santana. Get a truckload of position player prospects instead.
And then watch Silva-Liriano-Baker-Perkins-Slowey go.
What are you waiting for, Mr. BS?
lay off BS, I think he is doing a good job
good negotiating takes patience, not just running off and making trades ala Kevin McHale or Mike Lynn
we see what that got us
Romer-
Word is that Silva is seeking better than 10 mil/yr. and possibly 5 yrs. I believe the Royals have offered him 4/40 mil. and rumor has him looking for closer to 5/55 mil. I just can’t see doing that. Also, knowing how tight he and Santana are…I don’t see him making any concessions to stay in MN. especially with Johan on the way out.
Romer- why would we want Silva if he is going to command at least 9-10 million a year?
I think Bill Smith is highly reluctant to trade Santana. He does not want to be known as the GM who traded the great left hander and gave away the Twins chances for a pennant in the future.
Hank Steinbrenner has Bill Smith scared to death that if he trades Santana to Boston, Hank will spout off about Smith not being fair. Someone should lend Smith some moral support in order to give him enough courage to stand up to the Yankees organization and trade Santana to Boston.
I heard that the Twins GM Smith spent most of his time at the Winter Meetings in Nashville hideing from Hank Steinbrenner. They said he was so nervous that they had to give him a tranquilizer to keep him stable. Apparently Hank had called Smith some bad names and Smith thought Hank was trying to find him and he was angry at Smith.
Hank Steinbrenner told Bill Smith that if he didn’t trade Santana to the Yankees, Smith would be in big trouble and apparently gave him a few hours to complete the deal. I heard that was when Smith went into hiding.
