The Twins do NOT have an eighth-inning guy
Posted on July 9th, 2008 – 7:40 PMBy La Velle
What do the Twins need to help their playoff chances?
Based on e-mails, responses on these blogs and callers into KFAN when I’m in the studio, many fans want a third baseman. San Diego’s Kevin Kouzmanoff and Colorado’s Garrett Atkins have been mentioned by fans, and the intrepid Joe. C reported on Wednesday that the club has had internal discussions about Seattle’s Adrian Beltre (by the way, who cares about internal discussions? That doesn’t mean they are going after that player.)
Third base isn’t the most glaring need. Brian Buscher and Brendan Harris have shown enough to suggest that they won’t be horrible there.
I feel the Twins need a bullpen arm, preferably a power guy to match up with the bashers in the eighth inning. And there’s at least one Twins official who agrees with me.
The Twins’ bullpen is far from a pushover but I think it can be improved. After Tuesday’s loss, they are 40-4 when leading after seven innings. You can look at it two ways. A 40-4 record looks great in most cases - but the four losses match their 2007 total.
Pat Neshek’s injury has been a huge blow. He doesn’t throw 95 but his quirkiness made up for that.
Juan Rincon’s demise is unfortunate. He used to throw 95 with the slider from you-know-where but his stuff - and confidence - took a beating over the last two seasons.
Righthander Jesse Crain can be that guy but he’s not used in the eighth inning all the time - and he hasn’t been used on successive days since June 8 and 9.
Righthander Matt Guerrier has taken the ball in a variety of roles over the years, which makes him valuable, but he’s not the power arm you want.
Righthander Brian Bass is a rookie and should be worked in the way Guerrier was worked in a couple years ago.
The Twins need some heat coming out of the bullpen, someone who will make opponents worry about dialing it up late in games - although someone without a mid-90’s fastball who’s still a proven set up man could work too.
I recently spoke with a Twins official who felt the same way, but indications were that no trade talks were heating up. And there’s doesn’t appear to be anyone in the minors ready to step in and help. Philip Humber recently was moved to Class AAA Rochester’s bullpen - because he’s walking too many people.
What I’m suggesting is hard to pull off because good set-up men aren’t always available and, if they are available, could cost a lot in return. I’m not sure how deep the potential reliever pool is. I scanned a few rosters and found a bunch of unrecognizable names (what’s an Osiris Matos?). Mlbtraderumors.com took a stab at it last month.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the Twins looked around for bullpen help before the July 31 deadline for trades without waivers. They could use another big stick in the lineup, but blowing eighth-leading leads can crush a team in a pennant chase.
78 Responses to "The Twins do NOT have an eighth-inning guy"
Any relievers in the minors that could possibly step in and contribute????
after scouring the affiliate rosters and stats…it appears we’re stuck with what we got in the pen
What about giving Danny Graves a shot at the bigs again? He has done alright down in the minors. He is starting right now in Rochester which has led to a higher ERA (5.06) but lets give him a shot, he has done it before. He has also been a head case before but he can’t be much worse that what we have seen in the last 3 games.
Also sometime this year we need to give Randy Ruiz a shot, he had a good spring and is hitting .300 with 11 dingers and 49 RBI’s (also has 100 K’s in 340 AB’s) for the year at AAA and is currently on a 16-game hitting streak. His problem is he is really only a DH.
Like I said after yesterday, Smith said the team didn’t have any glaring needs.
Well, thanks to the Red Sox, that need is now pretty glaring.
Which is needed more? A righty 3B with power or an 8th inning guy that can be counted on?
Grant Balfour would be nice to have right about now…
Glaring, it was.
It’s a real bummer we didn’t see Nathan at all in those first two games.
If Gardy isn’t going to get creative then and use Nathan than I prefer his approach… in much the same way he ran Bass out there two nights ago in the 8th of a 0-0 game, it’s the same as when Slowey was pinch running… He’s screaming for help. We saw a quick move after Slowey took the bases maybe we see a quick move to shore something up here?
Maybe you can move Boof for a mid-tier NL set-up man?
I gotta agree with LaVelle — who would have thought at the beginning of the year that our need was in our bullpen, and our starting pitching and offense was in good shape? Beltre would be interesting, but only if we could get him for nothing — doesn’t he have a fat contract with Seattle?
Bring back everyday Eddie and take a chance on Blalock who comes back in a week?
Two immediate thoughts come to mind.
If you own a business and have what you identify as two issues that hinder you from achieving success and delivering a profit do you only address one? Is it a linear proposition and you only address one?
The second is that inre: the reliever issue you have no assurance that Neshek will be back next year. You have to address this gap as a two/three year problem and, thus, you should be willing to give up more than if this is a stopgap to make it until Sept.
I have no names but I would look to closers/8th inning guys on the bottom of the barrel teams…there are at least 10 of them and that one guy may be worth giving up more than you’d expect if he is a more than one year solution.
Circumstances organize themselves to allow you a chance at the ring only every once in a while. Good execs, in any walk of life, understand that when you are presented with a chance you have to alter your “big picture” plan and go for it.
Fortunately for the Twins they don’t need to mortgage the future for a short term answer. If they do their job they can find a 3 year bullpen guy and still get a Beltre, etc.
Or maybe they should just bring up Liriano to pitch in the eighth. Naw.
How about Morrow from Seattle? I would think Seattle may be in the selling mood!
It is not impossible to pick up a middle reliever, or even a 2nd closer and using him as the setup man for Nathan.
We have a ton of middle of the road prospects that could get us a solid reliever.
Look to Colorado, Houston, SD, Seattle…
I had no belief we could be a player to be a contender this year.
I kind of like being wrong sometimes.
The problem is that you have to act when the window is open. Organizational agility is an asset and indecision, hesitancy, conservatism can close that window quickly.
The Twins are legit contenders for the division TODAY. A week from now may present a different scenario and cause an exec to ride out the season and act later. I tend to think that the Twins can stay in the hunt for a few more weeks as they are constructed now. Decisive management can extend that further and, if they do their job, contribute to the almighty “build to 2010.” They aren’t mutually exclusive objectives.
We’ll see if Bill Smith is cut from Terry Ryan cloth or he has a little more Hendry, Beane, Melvin in him than his mentor.
If he is more of the same then I fear that the Twins, like the Wild, will be building for a tomorrow that never comes.
This team doesn’t need an overhaul…it needs a tweak that can be done by being a predator on teams that aren’t as accomplished as they are.
Does anyone remember what Kevin Cameron of the Pods hits on the gun? He used to hit 95 while he was a Twins farmhand.
Morrow’s the kind of guy a seller covets. He’s not going anywhere. Putz on the other hand… Not that the Twins would go after Putz.
Cameron is on the DL with an elbow issue. Hasn’t pitched in the bigs since early May, although he is on his rehab assignment now.
the twins need to buy low. you’re not going to get a good bullpen reliever for less than top prospects these days. remember when cincinatti traded austin kearns and felipe lopez for 2 relievers from the nats, who both ended up flaming out? bullpen guys are just two expensive in the market today. it’s easier and wiser to grow your own on the farm.
what you want is a pitcher struggling who showed signs of greatness in the past, who needs a change of scenery and a new pitching coach (a la brad lidge for philly). one name comes to mind - derrick turnbow. he has stunk big time in milwaukee the last two seasons, mostly due to lack of control and confidence. i’m not sure if anyone picked him up, but the twins should look into it if it wont cost them much.
Willie:
In any business, if you have multiple holes you have to assess which are of the highest priority.
Especially in a situation such as baseball, where you have limited assests (players) to expend and limited resources (other teams) to pull from.
If the Twins only had ONE hole to figure out they could focus their assests better.
But with TWO holes, they have to split their assests (or give up more) to get the parts.
Seattle - Rowland-Smith, Arthur Rhodes,
Texas - Guardado, Francisco,
Atlanta - Carlysle
Cincy - Affelt
Colorado - Grilli
Pittsburgh - Grabow
SD - Bell, Adams,
SF - Hinshaw
Washington - Rivera, Hanrahan,
Couple people that caught my eye:
Heath Bell - SD
Jesse Carlson - Tor (Reyes replacement)
If everyone agrees we need a 8th inning guy who can throw smoke, why not put Liriano in there (late inning role) he sure as hell can hump it up there. Plus, it’d be nice if he was a little wild every once in awhile (as in Randy Johnson 10-12 yrs ago) to keep the hitters off the plate. Whatdayathink Lavelle?
how about liriano in the bullpen as the setup man till he regains enough to be a starter again???
to me this is the only way liriano gets up into the bigs again unless they get livan out of the rotation which i wouldn’t mind either.
could be like chamberlain was for the yankees
Rafael Betancourt or Rafael Perez from the Indians. Rebound with the Twins?
Which is needed more? A righty 3B with power or an 8th inning guy that can be counted on?
We’re fine at third. (Not great but fine.) We’re anything but fine in the bullpen.
From what I’ve read, Liriano isn’t throwing the heat yet. I don’t know that that’d be a good fit.
To me, Jesse Crain is the roster guy who fits that role best. Otherwise, the Rockies’ Brian Fuentes is being shopped right now. He’s worth looking into.
Steven Shell - WAS, good K totals in AAA
Tyler Yates - PIT, too many BBs though
Dustin Nippert - TEX, a lot of hits
Good suggestions…
I’d call Toronto. They have Jason Frasor and Brandon League, who both throw heat.
Turnbow? Can’t throw a breaking ball.
Liriano isn’t throwing heat, more like 91-92.
I initially thought about Jesus Colome, but he doesn’t know where it’s going.
Barry Bonds is the Answer!
once again, all those guys suggested (fuentes) and bc beneke’s list are all guys that will cost a lot. you can’t give up a lot on a rebuilding team like the twins.
and whoever said put liriano in the bullpen is out of their minds. he’s a starter and needs to be groomed that way. he was too dominant in 2006 to give up on him like that.
I posted this 3 days ago. Glad someone else is getting on board. This team is good. Not great. But capable of winning this division and who knows what else if we get that 8th inning guy. A Shannon Stewert type pickup, but a pitcher that can put us over the top. Instill confidence in the team that when we get a lead it is likely not to be turned over. Guerrier, Crane, Bass, etc do not give the team that feeling. They are fine in their roles. But a Neshek type of guy is what is needed. We had to of seen that the last couple of days in Boston.
Bobby Korecky.
He was incredibly solid when we called him up earlier, and he proved that he could be clutch. Why is nobody else thinking of him?
This one comes out of right field…How hard can Cuddy throw a pitch? Obviously nothing would be done this year, but another guy in the bullpen was also a position player. It would ease a log jam in the outfield, while adding a hard throwing righty. But its like Favre playing for the Vikes, neva happnin.
how is carmen cali doing in the minors?? could he be called back up??
Never thought I’d see the day when Minnesota fans were squawking about needing bullpen help. What prompted that? A certain east-coast, Matt Damon endorsed whoopin’? We’d give you Masterson for a young starter. None of this Duensing or Mulvey crap though! You have Liriano coming back so I really don’t see what you need with Perkins. We’ll throw in Crisp as well… he’d fit the Twins hitting-style perfectly.
Otherwise, forget all this Tyler Yates-Eddie Guardado garbage (how about LaTroy Hawkins too)! If those stiffs were worth a crap in a handbasket the Nation would have them already. There’s far more effective guys out there that can be had by teams outside this powerhouse division.
Give it a few more weeks after they realize that they’re not going to compete with The Nation and the Jays will cough up Ryan just to rid themselves of salary… unless they can dump Burnett’s. There you go: AJ is a train wreck in the rotation but stick him in the bullpen in Twinkie-ville and you can use him as a power-arm out of the bullpen a la Wood for the Cubbies. Then dump his expiring contract before he eats it when the year is up (the B-Birds would even eat a portion of his salary).
Or, for your consideration (Billy Beane won’t deal with us or we’d already have both these guys): Street or Foulke from Oakland. Beane doesn’t believe in closers… make him a good deal involving a young, contact-hitting position player with virtually no salary (Span?) and he’ll give you Street with a bow tied to his head faster than you can say “Rich Harden.” You wouldn’t have to give sh$t for Foulke though.
Better yet: make an offer for JJ Putz when he comes off the DL. The Sea-Dogs have Brandon Morrow, they drafted Josh Fields out of the University of Georgia to be their proverbial “closer of the future.” The writing’s on the wall for Putz who started as a set-up man anyhow. They want the Nation to give up Lowrie for him and that’s not going to happen…if we’re not going to give him up for Santana, there’s no way we’re going to give him up for a Putz.
It’s time for you Twins fans to start dreaming a little bigger. Your owner is the richest in baseball, hold his feet to the fire a bit more. Contenders or pretenders…what’s it going to be? Get the Junkyard Dog looking-dude who owns this fine piece of blog here to go after that cheap-ass franchise of yours a little more like the way Bob Ryan of The Globe went after Danny Ainge before last year! Man alive, the way you’re all moping around on these blogs, even The Nation is starting to feel a little sorry for you.
Otherwise, if you guys need any more help from The Nation, don’t be afraid to ask (hey, we offered you Lowell for Rincon a few years ago and you turned us down).
Good Luck,
-The Nation.
Bobby Korecky.
He was incredibly solid when we called him up earlier, and he proved that he could be clutch. Why is nobody else thinking of him?
No one forgot about him, he just isn’t that good. His “stuff” checks in somewhere above Bass (awful) and below Guerrier (decent).
Speaking of Bass, being a rookie doesn’t have anything to do with disqualifying him for the 8th inning role, not being a good reliever does.
Wow just what we needed Beacon Hill a little slap in the face…yes lets get our cheap owner to cough up a few more bucks to contend today and stop feeling sorry for ourselves…we have a team that is 1-2 peices away from really contending…sure we can beat the Indians and just about anyone from the NL, but we have a chance to make it all the way with a solid set up guy and one more big bat. We should have taken 2 out of 3 from THE NATION at home and Beacon Hill knows it. I wish Bill and Carl would get it!
Carl - what do you say - do you have one more stong series run in you.
reliever options:
Huston Street, Santiago Casilla (if available), Damaso Marte, Heath Bell (if available), Hong-Chih Kuo (if available), Jon Rauch (if available), Juan Cruz (if available), and Geoff Geary (if available) would all be solid options for the pen. Also, Ricky Barrett in Rochester, Ben Julianel in New Britian, and maybe in Spetember, Carlos Gutierrez (1st rounder this year) could all be in house options.
3B options:
Bill Smith should be on the phone day and night until he has a deal in place to aquire Adrian Beltre, Garrett Atkins, Jeff Baker, Aubrey Huff (I know, he’s a weak fielder, but the bat !!!), Casey Blake, or post all star break, call up Luke Hughes and hope there aren’t too many growing pains.
Brian Bass Ackwards… is barely a major leaguer at best. I like Korecky a hell of a lot more than Bass, but Bass is out of options and Bill Smith is out of Testicles after cutting Rincon, and having the Pohlads eat that salary I’m sure they have his Jewels in a Jar on their desk right next to Terry Ryan’s.
Not all of the players I mentioned would be expensive.
Buddy Carlysle is a failed prospect, a failed starter, and was sent to the minors until the middle of May… so I don’t think at his age he would be expensive at all.
And the point of being a contender is more important than being a rebuilder. Yes the team is in a rebuilding mode, but the division is weak, and if they have to give up a Humber, and a Matt Moses to get Carlysle that’s not giving up too much.
If some team was asking for Robertson, or Dunesing or something like that… then too much, but you have to spend money to make money, and you have to trade prospects for talent now if you want to win now… tomorrow isn’t guarenteed… you can build and build, but if Morneau gets hurt this team is done for as long as he’s done… So take the chance now… tomorrow isn’t promised.
They should immediatly bring Liriano up and insert him in the starting rotation. And they should cut Bonser and move Perkins to the bullpen.
How about Boof? Yesterday on the radio, the Dazzle Man said that Bonser was finally letting loose out of the pen, hitting 96 with his fastball and 90 on slider. He’s also got the intimidation factor. Vote Boof for the 8th!
Beacon Hill, obviously a “real” Red Sox fan. As only an actual Red Sox fan would carry an ego large enough to refer to themselves as “The Nation”.
Congrats though on being the prime example of why the Red Sox have replaced the Yankees as the most loathed team in baseball.
From loveable losers to egomaniacs in under four years, that’s gotta be a record.
BC Beneke-Nice touch with that Bass ackwards bit.At least you admit that you didn’t think the Twins would be players this year, Thanks for the info about available relievers.Since alot people are targeting 2010 as the year to make a big splash,who should the 3b with power be?
What about that Slama kid in Single A?
biggest problem is every team in contention has as bad a bullpen problem as we do or worse. so that makes any decent help expensive.
if smith wants to try and win this yr you spend what is required to get houston street and beltre or atkins. if not we have seen we can beat up poor teams but not real good teams so the playoff hunt is meaningless. imo it’s either buy big or sell and wait until next yr which may not come, i.e indians 07 next yr indians 08.
[…] LaVelle’s blog. He makes the case that the Twins’ main need is for a hard-throwing set-up guy to make a […]
well said, t…i can’t even remember hating the yankees as much as i do the sox now. and this last series has nothing to do with it. i still vote for graves to come up and join the twins bullpen. he may not be “the answer” but he has to contribute more than bass…that guy is a complete mess out there. he has no idea where the ball’s going and looks like he’s ready to squeeze out a turd right on the pitching rubber
Bobby Korecky?
Wow…. The NATION. I think I just puked in my mouth a little bit.
Jon Rauch is who I would be targeting. Washington 3 or 4 years away from being good, but have a core of young talent. Rauch is 29 at this point he’s a luxury with a relatively high trade value. The Nats are devoid of staring pitching in the majors and upper minors.
Rauch is finally putting it together. His last three years in the pen were very solid. Also he is signed through 2010 for like 2-4 million a year. Rauch is mid 90’s fastball but is so big it appears even faster.
The Twins appear to have a young rotation pretty set with three or four prospects developing nicely. They could afford to trade some depth of SP from the Minors or AAAA starter Boof.
Also lets not forget before getting hurt Neshek was scuffling a little himself. Him being back in 2009 doesn’t mean problem solved, might end up here again in 09.
How about Boof? Yesterday on the radio, the Dazzle Man said that Bonser was finally letting loose out of the pen, hitting 96 with his fastball and 90 on slider. He’s also got the intimidation factor. Vote Boof for the 8th!
I first noticed in San Diego, then a couple more times in the past few weeks that Boof was warming up in the late innings (with no intention of putting him in the game I assume), perhaps they are getting him accustomed to this role? Might as well give him a shot, the long-reliever bit hasn’t played out too well for him lately and as others have said aquiring a guy most likely wouldn’t be cheap.
Taylor Buchholz of Colorado is 26 throws hard and has been dominant.
Heath Bell in San Diego may be another option.
How about the Twins putting together a package for Beltre and the Mariners’ Brendan Morrow?
I know that’s a significant deal, but there seems to be a surplus of major league-ready talent for the Twins in the outfield. Having made the commitment to Delmon and Gomez with trades, and to Cuddyer with a multi-year contract, it would seem that Span would be a valuable trading chip.
I imagine the Twins could also include one of the AAA starters from the Santana trade, along with either Buscher or Harris, and perhaps a low minors prospect to complete such a deal.
I’m not a big fan of this either, but it is Liriano that should be tried in the 8th inning slot. At least give him a try, if no trades are made. The club needs help now, he can go back to starting next year. Johan came out of the pen early in his career, Liriano can do it too, if his arm is ready. All hands on deck to keep this an entertaining season!
Where’s Ron Davis when you really need him?
I also wouldn’t mind the Twins throwing a contract like Everett’s or Lamb’s at the Rangers along with a low minors bag-of-balls type of throw-in for Eddie G.
It could be a great opportunity for him to come back to Minnesota and would give Twins fans a good storyline to distract them while we struggle for the playoffs.
A pitcher doesn’t mind getting beaten when he has thrown his best pitch. Gardy doesn’t mind getting beaten when he has sent in his worst pitcher. Why would a good manager do such a thing in a close, very important game? He wouldn’t. Only a poor manager would. And he did and will probably continue to do so. Bass is the worst pitcher that I have see this year- yes, even worse than Ponson. And Gardy is a nice guy, but…
Why not fast track Slama? Bump him up to AAA and see how he does. If he can hold his own there for a month or two, call him up to the majors. He’s got 78 K’s to 14 BB’s in 48 innings. Less than one baserunner per inning. Zero homeruns allowed in 80 professional innings. Plenty of groundballs. It’s not like he is too young. He’s 24. Bass is 26 and he blows. His stats have never been remotely close to Slama’s. Slama is older than Brandon Morrow, Joba Chamberlain, Joakim Soria…all these guys have had success in the majors out of the bullpen. I’m not saying he’s as good as those guys, but if you can strike out nearly two batters per inning with good control, lots of grounders, no homeruns…what else does he need to do to at least get a promotion and see how he does? It seems like it is at least worth trying him out at AAA (or for the love of God, at least AA) and see how he does. Maybe we’ve got our next 8th inning guy already in the system.
Boof Bonser and a minor leaguer for Heath Bell. That is all.
Slama is the answer. As for Atkins lets go get him too. We have 100 starters in the system lets trade two of them plus, Lamb or Bush to get him.
Why not bring back Bobby Korecky as a fire ball 8th inning reliever?
hey beacon hill,
Didn’t we take care of the nation when they came to town earlier this year…YES! Bosox are goin nowhere. They are tired and old. Just like your shtick.
Go back to boston or waste your time on a boston ma. blog not here on a mn twins blog
Trade D. Young, B. Bonzer, and Lamb for Atkins and Tyler Buchholz.
Bring up Slama. Send Bass away. Not enough K/IP to be a reliever
Activate Cuddyer.
Cudd, Kub, CarGo, and Span in of
C = Baby Jesus
1b = Mor
2b = Cast
SS = Put/Harris
3B = Atkins
I think we should either give Bonser a shot or trade him and a prospect for Washington’s Jon Rauch.
As for Bass, I agree with BC: I like Korecky better. I think he has the right temperament to be an 8th inning pitcher, and he pitched well when he was up here! I never understood why he was sent down.
Rhino:
You’re an idiot. The tired and old BoSox just made us their bitch. This is the textbook situation to tuck our tails between our legs and go and try to get some wins in Detroit.
Also: Lamb’s trade value is almost negative considering his two year contract. The Twins won’t trade Delmon. The package may exist for Atkins/Buchholz, but it includes Span.
Grant Balfour is who we need! For that matter, a lot of our past moves seem to be looking lousy right now … Kyle Lohse, JC Romero, Cristian Guzman, Matt Garza (not to mention Ortiz and Santana) … I’d take any of those guys back!
I like John’s suggestion in talking to Texas about Guardado and Blalock. However, here is the problem. Texas is going to want way, way too much for these guys. Living in Texas and being a Twins fan, I can speak to this somewhat. Blalock is not as ready to return as the Rangers are letting on, AND he will not be a 3B option upon his return. He is expected to be DH and 1B. So, for us to believe that Blalock is a 3B option (especially on defense) that is a fantasy right now. Also, I don’t believe that the Rangers are eager to get rid of Eddie, because everyone loves LHP in the pen and with Eddie and CJ Wilson, they have someone that can be trotted out in the 8th and 9th inning everyday (no pun intended) and ensure that there is a LHP available in a hold or save situation. A luxury most teams wish they had (the Twins included). I know that Delmon Young was THE guy in the deal that sent Garza and Bartlett to TB, but the time is now to say that experiment is NOT working and work out a deal with the Rockies and don’t be afraid to load up the prospect bus and get a HUGE blockbuster going with the Rox and try for Atkins and maybe see what it’ll take to land Matt Holliday or Brad Hawpe as well as Buchholz. It might take mortgaging the farm, but it might be worth it and Colorado is going to be desperate to start their rebuilding process now, and ALL of those guys are young enough to build the team around for years to come.
I know this is late but here’s my take. Trevor Hoffman in San Diego. He’s 40 years old on the last year of his contract, $ 13.5 million. SD will be unloading players to cut saaries. Likely Maddox, FA next year w/$ 10.0 mil.& possibly Giles, 09 Option @ $9.0 mil. Hoffman’s overall stats aren’t so good this year 1-5 5.16 with 16 Sv. but his splits show RH are hitting just .190. I’d think we could pick him for a couple mid level prospects.
What is the with the fan love-fest with Cuddyer? He’s an average ball player at best. He is 2 years removed from what can only be classified as a good season. He hasn’t been able to stay healthy all year. He’s 29! And people are already giving up Delmon Young who is 7 years younger and has far more potential at this point in their respective careers. Wake up people!
And secondly Adrian Beltre are you kidding? There is no way the Pohlads are going to pickup the second most ridiculous contract in baseball next to Carlos Silva’s! Beltre is getting paid way too much and like Cuddyer has only really had one good season.
What about brezlow??? he shuts everyone down when he comes in
I think Brezlow is an ok option at this point. The fact is there just aren’t that many good options available for a reasonable price that the twins can afford either monetarily or via prospects. The best option is to continue developing players in the minors over the summer, and hope that someone like Barrett, Gomez, Cali, Daigle, Slama, Julianel, or Korecky can come up and show us something. Otherwise we will be short an arm or two in the pen till next year.
I’m going to address two problems the Twins have right now, and suggest that they can both be remedied with Denard Span, with some help from Michael Cuddyer…
First of all, I think Carlos Gomez is an exciting player, and one who may one day be a consistently legit lead-off hitter. However, at present, he is among the worst lead-off hitters in the league. His on base percentage is a futile .295. He has only walked 14 times, yet has struck out an absurd 92 times (!). He is, quite simply, not getting on base.
But from the 9th spot in the order, Denard Span is demonstrating he would actually be a perfect lead-off hitter. Though his action has been limited (only 61 ABs), his OBP% is an outstanding .466. In this limited time, he has walked 12 times (only two fewer times than Carlos Gomez who has 365 ABs). His plate discipline is palpable - I noticed that he walked after falling down 0-2 in the count in the 8th inning against Boston the other night.
Carlos Gomez is a promising player, and one whose confidence is important, but Denard Span needs to be the Twins lead-off hitter. Let’s see if Gomez can get on base a little more hitting 8th or 9th in the order.
If Span becomes the everyday lead-off hitting RF, they will have to figure out what to do with Michael Cuddyer when he comes back from injury. (Now for some serious speculation…) Cuddyer came through the Twins farm system as an infielder. What if they moved Cuddyer to 3B? Obviously, it wouldn’t be worth it if Cuddy can’t handle the hot corner, but with Span playing so well in RF, and a hitting weakness at 3B, why not give Cuddyer a shot there?
Best possible Twins lineup at this point:
RF Span
2B Casilla
C Mauer
1B Morneau
3B Cuddyer
DH Kubel / Monroe
LF Young
SS Harris
CF Gomez
…
I have only two things to add tho this.
1. Regardless of where the Twins finish this season, to me it has been a success. These guys were suppose to be the cellar dwellers of the league and look at what they’ve accomplished so far this year. It’s just a shame that the attendence is down so much this year from last year.
2. Pohlad should open his wallet to fill the needs of the team. They had sais last year, that they were looking at having a payroll of $70-75 million. Currently they are at about $57 million. They didn’t sign Torii (Gomez has filled in nicely at 5% the cost) and they traded Johan to save money.
Carl, it’s time to open the wallet and spend some of that $13-18 million that you had planned to spend.
He says:
July 10th, 2008 at 11:40 am
Grant Balfour is who we need! For that matter, a lot of our past moves seem to be looking lousy right now … Kyle Lohse, JC Romero, Cristian Guzman, Matt Garza (not to mention Ortiz and Santana) … I’d take any of those guys back!
Let’s see:
David Ortiz is on the DL since June 3rd
Torii Hunter - 12 HR, .271 BA, 41 RBI’s, 62 K’s, .798 OPS (Gomez - 5 HR, .260 BA, 31 RBI’s, 92 K’s, .657 OPS)Neither is great, but for the price, I’ll take Gomez)
J.C. Romero - 54 K’s & 2.25 ERA, but has a 7.71 ERA over his last 3 appearances, with 1 K
Johan Santana - is Johan, but his WHIP is up from his career and he’s projected to pitch the fewest amount of innings since ‘03
Christian Guzman - Is having his career season this year, but has started to come back to his norm this past week. Besides, his glove was never that good.
Lohse and Garza are both doing what they could always do, pitch well.
for whoever inquired about turnbow, you do not want him. I am a brewers fan, and was a huge fan of Turnbow, who believed he just needed a change of scenery, and mainly managers, up until this year.
He has walked 37 guys in just over 17 innings, down in Nasvhille for our AAA team. The brewers have no incentive to give him away, and no one in their right mind would pay anything to get him
Lovell- Is Swarzak ready yet? Doesn’t HE throw gas?
Reusse said on his Sunday night TV show with Sid and M Max that the set up guy should be Liriano. His thinking was that Liriano may scare some hitters, unlike the current set-up guys, whoever gets put in that spot. Don’t know if this helps/hurts his progress, but I bet he would accept the role in order to be back in the Bigs.
Why don’t we ease Liriano’s transition back as a Twin by making him our stud 8th inning guy? Can you imagine? Liriano pitching the 8th (maybe occassional 7th too), and Nathan pitching the 9th? Why is nobody mentioning this, what’s wrong with this idea? He just won pitcher of the week honors in his AAA league after pitching something like 16 scoreless innings, right?
oops, guess I missed that previous comment. Great thought, Zekeman! Also, how bout that idea of Cuddy at third? Seems far-fetched to ask the AL leader of outfield put-outs to move to the infield, but our lineup with him at 3rd looks real nasty.
GO TWINS!
Nice site. Thank you!
