Trade for Beltre doesn’t look possible
Posted on July 19th, 2008 – 3:05 PMBy La Velle
Indications are that the Twins will not swing a deal with Seattle for third baseman Adrian Beltre.
The Twins recently contacted the Mariners about Beltre’s availability, but it looks like the Mariners’ price would be too high - something like the return the A’s got in the Joe Blanton deal. The Phillies gave up two of their top four prospects, along with a third minor leaguer, to get Blanton.
In the Twins’ case, it could mean one of their four young starters plus a couple prospects.
Although the Mariners kicked Richie Sexson to the curb, they want to contend in the near future. Beltre is one of their decent players in an underachieving lineup. And he’s their best glove in the infield. So it would take a lot to get him.
Two other things to consider: Seattle didn’t do well with the Erik Bedard trade and probably feel pressured to make up for it. And they have a new GM in Lee Pelekoudas who probably wants to make a big splash.
I mentioned recently that the Twins were very interested in Colorado third baseman Garrett Atkins last year. It doesn’t look like the Twins will be able to rekindle those talks this year because Atkins is doing so well the Rockies view him as a core player.
So the Twins will have to look elsewhere for a right-handed hitter. They are also on the lookout for bullpen help, an area some people in the organization feel is a greater need. There are a few out there. Jon Rauch of the Nationals is one. Fernando Rodney is available but he’s been injured, is having trouble finding the plate and trading within the division is hard.
I have no evidence that the Twins have asked for this player, but if Oakland is interested in dealing Huston Street, I think he’d be a great set up man - as long as he stays healthy.
156 Responses to "Trade for Beltre doesn’t look possible"
wilson betemit for livan hernandez might actually be a fair trade on both sides because of the yankees ‘terrible pitching’. if the twins made any trade this would be the most possible to happen in my opinion, but i dont think they will do anything beside cut lamb and get a prospect for it
AJ,
I explored that idea a month ago, although i suggested throwing in LNP, that wouldn’t happen now that he is playing better.
LaVelle…it’s Joe Blanton by the way
houston street would be awesome as an 8th inning guy
Yes, it’s Joe. Knew a guy in college named Jeff Blanton. Amazing how that pops up….:)
Where’s Kubel?
It’s “Joe” Blanton.
Kevin Kouzmanoff come on down!
My biggest concern with Buscher is that I hold my breath every time he makes a throw to first. I do believe that his scattershot arm is going to get Doc killed or, at least, put on the DL. That would not be a good thing.
I guess I’m not so concerned that we need a third baseman as I am a righthanded threat to bat behind Doc. I think he’s going to see plenty crappy pitches as the season wears on.
One of the problems with Cuddyer’s injury is that it doesn’t seem to have improved much. When I had hand surgery the doc told me that the hand was as complicated a location as the knee and injuries there are often chronic. It isn’t out of the question that Cuddyer may not be back this year. Hopefully it will heal but I wouldn’t be shocked if I read from LEN3 some day that he has to have surgery. Or maybe he’ll be back in a week.
Whatever the case, even with Houdini back in the lineup they still need more balance and a better attack against lefties.
I hope they do something but I am not holding my breath.
The best place for Punto and Cuddyer is either on the bench or off the roster, preferably off the roster.
As far as what Seattle is asking for Beltre, I think a starting pitcher and a prospect for him is a fair deal. I don’t know if that is in our best interest. Seattle could be planning to have him around when they contend again. He is only 30. The question is does that help or hurt us this year when we are trying to win now. I think Buscher, Harris and Co. with our current starters are better than Beltre and a weakened rotation. But can a deal be struck where we are not giving up key pieces to this year’s team? say 3 or 4 prospects.
What about Casey Blake?
Braves and Dodges could both use Livan Hernandez if we could work out a trade. That would get us Liriano up here. Also we have Boof in the pen to be the 6th starter. Who is next in line after that?
they can make a trade with seattle if they want to be a bit creative…i dont believe they would have to give up one of the starting pitchers, but may have to give up some talent on the farm, no doubt, but thats what it takes…theres many way to cut a deal to satisfy someone, so bill smith get on your dealing bibs, and get the damn deal done….we need it that bad or you might as well deal morneau, because he is not going to get very many at bats….bill smith its your choice….and i hope you dont have to live up to the twins reputation of cheap….just get it done the right way…
You mean Seattle doesn’t want Livan?
If that’s the price Seattle is asking for Beltre, I don’t blame the Twins for not making the deal.
Jeez HERB, having a bad day today? I will let the Twins handle their roster situations, and root for whomever Gardy has to put on the field. Man oh man, HERB, do have reasons for your anger at Punto and Cuddy?
honestly our offense is fine if they are going to do something it would be a 8th inning set up guy that way you could move Crain and Guerrier into 6th and 7th inning roles instead of killing them by pitching them too much. If your going to aim high with Street what kind of package would they have to put together
just listening and looking at cuddyer doesnt look good…i agree with someone earlier that said we may not see him back this year…that would not surprise me at all……all the more reason for bill smith to get dealing……
damn injuries sure have hurt the twins this year, but amazingly enough they have had the guts to hang on, again all the more reason to make deals…this team has earned the chance to have the best available talent to chase this pennant….gardy and the team deserve it…to hell with 2009 and 2010- we can deal with those years when we get there…now is the time to get moving…
“The best place for Punto and Cuddyer is either on the bench or off the roster, preferably off the roster.”
Dumbest.Post.Ever.
ya gotta just ignore stupidity like that bull………………..
Punto for Garciaparra
maybe offer them liriano in a package and see what we can pull out of them…beltre, rhodes, bedard, are all available along with ibanez …dont tell me that we cant make a trade with these guys….its going to take some guts, but what the hell …get it done
Well, looks like Herb is back, was really wondering if he forgot the website, and couldn’t find his/her/their way back 
Anyway, too bad about Beltre. I was hoping for that to happen.
Makes me wonder if this was thrown out there as a possibility to remove the perception that the Twins aren’t going to do anything to try to improve the club. Yeah, throw out a rumor to the writers, where the writers put it out there, making Joe Public salivate at the prospect of a masher hitting behind Morney, and giving an instant upgrade at third. When contacting the Mariners about this interest, surprise, surprise, they want WAY too much for said player (who here didn’t already know this was an expensive talent trade?), and they move on, basically saying, we tried.
There are good fits out there, but they are all expensive, talent-wise. The old, gotta give something to get something mandate. Anyway, it isn’t like we have a couple players that can’t play the position. Harris has actually done pretty well there, and may well have found his future position.
If Cuddy comes back, heck, it may be as a third baseman. There really isn’t any reason that he can’t start working on his defense at third, even while recovering from these injuries. Doesn’t take much vision for someone like Cuddy to realize that he may be able to extend his career as a corner infielder, and parlay this opportunity into a HUGE contract in a few years. Good defensive third baseman with power rate pretty well when it comes contract time.
Here’s hoping that Cuddy starts taking fungos out at third soon. He can hold off the throws until his hand is fine for that, but I would think he would be capable of throwing at this point. Big, big difference throwing a ball and gripping a bat.
I think the Twins need to prepare for Cuddy not coming back this year (postponing any decision on Span until next season), put Punto back into the utility role as he hs become injury prone this year, and bring Liriano to the big squad. Hernandez, Liriano, Baker, Perkins, Slowey, & Blackburn in a 6 man rotation, wrotking one or two innings on their 3rd day between starts if needed, and Guerrier, Breslow, Reyes, Crain, & Nathan in the bullpen. Option/release Bonser & Bass and let them be next seasons feel good story with another team.
kubel behind morneau is not exactly what you want….hes not the most fearful of hitters, dont get me wrong, i like kubel and he does an adequate job most of the time, but he is not what we need to protect the big guy….nor is cuddyer for that matter, even when hes healthy…its about time we get a bonafide power hitter…and i think beltre is the perfect fit for this team and in this dome…..
if people are going to post make it logical. The thought of morgaging the future to make the playoffs this year is downright stupid. Besides Beltre would not make that big of a difference in the win total so let the young guys go.
Willie Norwood says:
July 19th, 2008 at 3:37 pm
Kevin Kouzmanoff come on down!
I’d much rather go with the horrible platoon of Buscher and Harris then waste time with the awful Kouzmanoff. He’s a mediocre hitter, a mediocre defender, and wouldn’t be an upgrade by any stretch of the imagination.
in the offseason Joe Crede is a free agent, go get him.
Travis Aune says:
July 19th, 2008 at 4:04 pm
if people are going to post make it logical. The thought of morgaging the future to make the playoffs this year is downright stupid. Besides Beltre would not make that big of a difference in the win total so let the young guys go
Actually, Beltre would make a HUGE difference. Offensively he is a major upgrade over the platoon and defensively, he is a gold glove defender which would also be a HUGE upgrade.
mj1…. If your wanting to trade Larino you better get all those guys and more, well all those guys might be enough. lol
you better get out the big checkbook if your going to get crede
yeah .259 hitter who is a primadonna thats what the twins need
Trade for Beltre doesn’t look possible
Posted on July 19th, 2008 – 3:05 PM
By La Velle
Indications are that the Twins will not swing a deal with Seattle for third baseman Adrian Beltre.
The Twins recently contacted the Mariners about Beltre’s availability, but it looks like the Mariners’ price would be too high - something like the return the A’s got in the Joe Blanton deal. The Phillies gave up two of their top four prospects, along with a third minor leaguer, to get Blanton.
,b.In the Twins’ case, it could mean one of their four young starters plus a couple prospects.
give up Slowey or Perkins, the 2 most replaceable pitchers of the 4, and give up Manship and Revere.
me too, your ideas on cuddy are pretty far out there….the man is hurt, he is not going to be out working on his defense, especially at 3b..lol……and i wouldnt be so quick to blow out bonser, as i think they may get some good work out of him in the bullpen, witness last eve and if they ever need a starter he can always fill in, but they might just find him to be one of these one inning wonders, where he can just come in and blow away 3 guys and out, sorta in the neshek mold, not that he is neshek, but get 3 quick outs and call it a day…..
I think Revere is untouchable for a few years. If he continues to progress, he’s ready about the time Cuddy & Kubel become free agents (guessing on Kubel).
Travis Aune says:
July 19th, 2008 at 4:08 pm
you better get out the big checkbook if your going to get crede
4 years, 34-40 million should be about right. Twins payroll is tiny this year compared to recent history. When the new stadium opens it should go from the 56M this year to 90-100M. They have plenty of money to spend.
I wouldn’t want the Twins to trade any of he four young starters or Liriano right now. That’s all the starting pitching they have and there isn’t anyone else in the high minors I’ve heard of that’s even near ready. They might not all pan out as starters over he long run, it’s too early to tell (Exhibit A:Boof). Liriano might turn out to be a Garza-like problem child, but I’d at least wait out the season with him.
Crede is getting more than 34-40 on 4 years.
Beltre for Bleckburn/Slowey/or Perkins plus a low prospect would work for me….
can’t trade Manship too especially since he might be ready by mid 2009.
I would be willing to trade Liriano for a small farm due to his injury history(he was a throw in on the AJ trade due to all of his injuries in the past) and some issues the FO has had with him, right or not
other teams wouldn’t give up as much as we think they should due to those same things however.
the twins have alot of young pitching prospects…theres no reason we cant dispose of a couple, as we have such a young starting staff now, and if they stay healthy the next few years, where are these young prospects going to be anyway,as we dont have room for alot more on the major league team….its a good problem the twins have…depth, but now we need to make use of some of the depth…
I would LOVE to see a trade for Atkins and Brian Fuentes.
kmack says:
July 19th, 2008 at 4:12 pm
I think Revere is untouchable for a few years. If he continues to progress, he’s ready about the time Cuddy & Kubel become free agents (guessing on Kubel).
they don’t need Revere for anything but a trading chip. This organization is full of Revere’s.
1. Gomez
2. Span
3. Young (unless he starts hitting for power)
4. Pridie
5. Hicks (1st rounder this year)
6. Ovalle
7. Benson
8. Dolenc
maybe more. all no power guys with lots of speed.
Shawn in Binghamton says:
July 19th, 2008 at 4:16 pm
Crede is getting more than 34-40 on 4 years.
no chance. not many teams need a third baseman and he’s getting paid 5.1 million this year. He is not going to get more then 10M a year unless some foolish team makes a ridiculous offer like Hunter got from the Angels, but all the big money teams have third basemen.
Looking at some 3B stats, Crede & Beltre are 1 & 2 in errors commited, and 7 & 11 out of 11 in fielding pct out of 11 qualifiers in the AL. The Twins 3B by commitee is 7th in the AL, Seattle 10th and Chicago 14th. Let it work itself out.
i kinda agree with shawn…get rid of liriano while hes hot stuff, and let someone else take the chance of him being a headcase…if he does well, so be it …good for him and seattle….but lets get a lineup for this year that can get the damn job done…liriano will be forgotten as fast or faster than that average guy in ny ..i think his name was santana or something like that if i remember right
Ok Nico,
Have you seen what free agents get on the open market? 34 yr old Mike Lowell got 3 years and 40 mill from the Sawks
Crede will average 12 mill a year minimum
I was thinking that the Twins could trade Morney for some pitching. That is what we need to do. Lamb could easily play first. Punto is an adequate third baseman. His defense easily compensates for any lack of pop in his bat.
Second, well, Casilla needs to get over to short, pull Everett back up from his rehab, and insert him into the shortstop role when ready, and then move Casilla back to second.
Infield of Punto, Everett, Casilla and Lamb, yeah, I love that defense.
Out in the outfield, we need to get rid of Young. Dang, I wish we could get Garza back, we would be at least 10 games better at this point with that once in a generation arm here, instead of trading him off for that dead weight we got. Dang, Bartlett and Garza, what was Smith thinking?
Anyway, We could move Span over to Center, move the throwin Pridie to Left and hope that Gomez can get his act straightened out in right.
Joe still needs to catch.
With a trade of Morney, I think we should be able to get Garza back, but I think we may need to add Cuddy to that, well, since Pitchers are so valuable compared to clumsy slow, bad baserunners.
Now, with this lineup, I think we can do something, maybe even play .500 ball.
Span
Casilla
Joe
Lamb (he would get tons of RBI’s)
Kubes (DH)
Punto
Pridie/Gomez
Gomez/Pridie
Everett
Then for the starters
Garza (get him back for Morney)
Baker
Slowey
Blackburn
Liriano
Bullpen
Bonser (maybe trade for true setup guy)
Crane
Breslow
Guerrier
Perkins
8th inning guy
Chad Qualls (got him for Young and Livan, Arizona wanted Livan back)
Closer
Nathan
it would be interesting, but i would love to see how many of these twins castoffs, hunter, santana, silva, etc would come back to minnesota in a heartbeat given the chance…it seems when players leave minnesota they never tear up the league anywhere else (one exception..carew) they always never live up to the hype for some reason….im betting most of them miss minnesota alot…
Me Too,
Prepare to get tore apart after that last post! Wow, it gets dumber and dumber on here by the minute!
BTW, before I get blasted too bad, that was a joke for a post. Trying to imitate one of my hero’s on the Strib blog Dare you to figure out who.
me too…stop the drugs or at least offer to share
Bullmoose says:
July 19th, 2008 at 4:13 pm
I wouldn’t want the Twins to trade any of he four young starters or Liriano right now. That’s all the starting pitching they have and there isn’t anyone else in the high minors I’ve heard of that’s even near ready. They might not all pan out as starters over he long run, it’s too early to tell (Exhibit A:Boof). Liriano might turn out to be a Garza-like problem child, but I’d at least wait out the season with him.
1. Kevin Mulvey is ready
2. Brian Duensing is about ready, Spetember callup probably
2. Jeff Manship needs another year or so
3. Ryan Mullins needs another year or so
4. Yohan Pino needs another year or so
5. Anthony Swarzak and Jay Rainville need to pull their heads out of their butts and will be September callups next year if they do
6. Tyler Robertson and Cole DeVries are about 2 years away.
7. This year’s 1st round supplemental draft pick, Shooter Hunt, could be ready by the all star break next year. so far his line is: 3 GS, 14 ip, 2 hits, 1 earned run, 2 walks, 28 strikeouts, .64 era, .29 whip
Back to 3B, even though there are no real power guys there, the Twins 3B have 53 RBI, 3 less than CHI (Crede has 51) and 6 more than SEA (Beltre has 46).
Too bad about Beltre not being available for something reasonable. Maybe more luck with Blake.
Truth is, the most glaring need on the team has been shored up pretty well with the platoon of Buscher and Harris. I like that platoon, and am glad that Gardy at least gave it a try.
Buscher is probably the better hitter, Harris is definitely the better fielder.
The DH position and third base have actually put up pretty good numbers this year, especially when compared to last year.
Shawn in Binghamton says:
July 19th, 2008 at 4:22 pm
Ok Nico,
Have you seen what free agents get on the open market? 34 yr old Mike Lowell got 3 years and 40 mill from the Sawks
Crede will average 12 mill a year minimum
no chance.
1. Lowell is a better player by quite a bit.
2. Sox and Yanks always overpay their own players for no other reason then they can.
3. who actually needs a third basemen will come into play. There won’t be a huge market for third basemen. Only teams that need one are: Twins, Astros, Giants, and Pirates.
One of the Astros top prospects is a 3B so count them out. Giants top prospect is a 3B, so I highly doubt they’s sign Crede to a long term deal to block their top guy. The Pirates #2 prospect is a 3B so count them out.
Crede wants to be a Twin and he really has nowhere else to go. It’s a perfect fit in the 34-40M for 4 years I suggest.
i dont know what chicago and detroits 2nd half schedule is like, but i do know the twins is brutal, with such a load of road games, so this team needs to gear up and do whatever it can to put the absolute best talent on the field nite after nite, and its going to be imparative that gomez start putting up something, as he has totally gone to the crapper, and im surprise gardy has left him in there…span i think will be fine and i sure would like to see him lead off, and most of all get that rh bat (beltre) behind morneau….buscher and harris are great guys and very good, but would be better off in fill in roles and make for a great bench…i wouldnt mind seeing span in center and monroe in rf for some games …monroe playing a few games will produce….
Just curious what people think:
Is the concern:
a)Righthanded power bat to balance results vs. lefties or;
b) Addressing a 3B deficiency?
As I mentioned above, I’m not necessarily hung up on third base per se. I really think they need a right handed bat that poses a real threat behind Morneau and gives us better results vs. lefties. I guess 3B is the most logical spot to fill, but if they had someone with pop that played second (move Casilla to SS) or a replacement for Monroe that can actually hit lefties is that ok?
Again, I’m assuming Houdini isn’t going to be back real soon.
Set positions
C Mauer
1B Morneau
2B Casilla
LF Young
CF Gomez
RF Cuddy (despite injuries & Span)
DH Kubel
Players without a position
Harris, Buscher, Tolbert, Lamb, Everett. Pick 2, plug them in at SS & 3B everyday and lets move forward.
The RH hitter is the need. 3B just appears to be the defensive position where you’d most likely find candidates since the OF, DH and 1B are pretty well set. Relatively few RH power hitters playing SS and 2B these days.
I wanna know what’s with all the hating on Liriano?
Trade him? Are you out of your minds?
he’s the closest thing we have to a dominant #1 Starter, and hes not due a big payday for a few years.
Personally, I like the fact that he’s talking about how he doesn’t understand that he’s not back up with the Twins. Shows he’s got fire, shows he knows he can help a team in the middle of a pennant race, Shows he WANTS to play and be a big part of their success.
How can you be mad at a guy that is performing great and has done everything they’ve asked of him, yet he’s still in AAA. Its not his fault, its that the Twins are playing better than expected.
What in god’s name is wrong with that?
Everyone is overeacting, He hasn’t said he’s mad at the Twins, his agent is the one who filed the grievance, on ludicrous assumptions.
Everyone here KNOWS he should be pitching for the twins to replace a certain puss-baller (Hernandez), but he keeps managing to win some games, and the Twins are playing well, so you can argue you don’t want to mess with chemistry.
In my opinion, if and when Liriano is called up, he puts an even greater fire into a team already playing well and they go on an even better run.
Everybody calm down, When he does come up you’re all gonna look like fools when you’re saying how awesome he is.
RH bat is the most important. And 3B is the logical position because as Crikket stated, all the other positions are set.
could always make a call to the Brew Crew and see what it would take to get JJ Hardy.
also, could always try Luke Hughes at third for a while and see how that goes. He’s leading the Eastern League in slugging and OPS and is third in average.
You’re nuts if you think the Twins should give up on Liriano. He’s only guy close to the bigs with potential to be a #1 lock down starter. You don’t move those guys. The reason the 06 Twins were feared is becuase they had two of those for a nice run.
This team has a lot of nice pitchers but no one who any team is afraid to face.
Nico: I think the Twins are going to need Slowey, Perkins, Blackburn, Baker, and Liriano to have a shot at the post-season this year. I’m not as confident as you that Mulvey and/or Duensing can fill in if the Twins trade one of the five.
if the Twins aren’t willing to trade for a third basemen, the only logical move, other then calling up Hughes, is to move Cuddyer to third when healthy. Young has to be lineup, Span has to be in the lineup, and Kubel has to be in the lineup. If Gomez is to remain on the team he needs to bat 9th, but ideally he should be sent to AAA until he learns how to do anything but bunt for a base hit.
I think Liriano, Baker, Slowey, Perkins, and Blackburn could be like Maddux, Smoltz, Glavine and Avery of the early to mid 90’s Braves.
I agree there’s no reason to hate on Liriano. That said, he’s not off limits to trade consideration. But you get a load full of talent if you go that direction, not just turn him over for a “good” 3B. The problem is that teams are unlikely to offer fair value for him right now because he hasnt re-established his MLB credentials. So trading him is not very likely.
I’ll be shocked and disappointed if any of the current SPs or Liriano are included in a deadline trade.
Perkins or Slowey are replaceable and should be used in trade. Trading both would cripple this team, trading one would have little impact and makes room for Liriano since it is evident Livan is here for the season regardless of the fact he is horrible.
As per Joe’s update: No new news on Cuddy and Punto possible to DL (roster move needing to be made before NYY series).
Liriano need to stay in the minors because he had serious Tommy John surgery. This is like reconstructive knee surgery for a football player, or Tiger Woods. But this surgery is much much more touchy. Football players continue to play on blown out knees, it happens all the time. Tiger Woods won the Masters with a blown out knee. Could Liriano have pitched with the blown out elbow or whatever? He would have made Joe Vavra look like Cy Young.
theres good chemistry in this starting staff and bullpen for that matter..you will not see a trade of one of these guys period…thats why i say liriano may need to go, but we have plenty of other pitching prospects that seattle should be interested or any team for that matter- i dont believe bill s. will mess with the starting lineups of this team, that has had such good luck and clubhouse clean…
but again we have a deep farm to deal with….
I still think the Twins should see what an offer like Duensing, Devries, Tolbert/Lamb/Buscher/, and One of their several ‘Toolsy’ OF prospects could land.
They have trade pieces to go after a RH bat, and they need one, keep trying Bill Smith.
Slowey, Perkins, Blackburn are also a part of any trade i could deal with, though don;t want to happen, but if they do make a trade for an impact bat, one of them probably has to be in the trade
I think Smith has the chips to be creative.And he showed in the TB trade that he’s not afraid to give up talent to get talent.It just needs to be a good fit.
It doesn’t need to be a 3B,the bigger concern for me is a RH hitter with pop to keep Morneau from taking two or three strolls down to first every game.If Cuddyear is out for the year Smith can go after a OFer and maybe Span can stick as a 4th outfielder or platoon with GoGo in CF.
I agree with a post above that the biggest need could be bullpen help.Either that or the Manager is going to have to show a lot more confidence in Reyes and Breslow to get out RH hitters earlier in the game.
I wonder what the price tag is for 3 months of Guzy?
It is early, Seattle may be posturing. I still say Slowey and Buscher could get it done- with maybe a b/c prospect thown in. The 3b pool (# available v.s need) is pretty deep, so I think they are a little high on their price tag…
Casey Blake is interesting to me- but I wonder if he ends up platooning with Buscher.
joe c has a new blog and lineup…gomez leading off again…damn it
mj1 - ya we have a lot of pitching prospects, but NONE are even CLOSE to Liriano’s level or have shown glimpses of the dominance he has. You don’t trade a guy like that, hes a rarity. The other SP prospect we have are not rarities, thats why we have so many of them
a. The Phillies gave up two of their top four prospects, along with a third minor leaguer, to get Blanton.
b. In the Twins’ case, it could mean one of their four young starters plus a couple prospects.
a. does not conclude b. because the 4 young starters are not prospects.
for reference, here are the BA Twins’ top prospects this season (same publication day with the list that had the Seattle prospects in the trade listed as #2 and #4) :
1. Nick Blackburn, rhp
2. Joe Benson, of
3. Wilson Ramos, c
4. Tyler Robertson, lhp
5. Anthony Swarzak, rhp
6. Ben Revere, of
7. Jason Pridie, of
8. Brian Duensing, lhp
9. Jeff Manship, rhp
10. Trevor Plouffe, ss
So, according to that logic, Benson, Ramos and someone like Brock Peterson would probably make it happen…
Not too expensive
I would rather part with Slowey than Perkins or Blackburn. Perkins is a lefty and Blackburn is our only starter (presently) who can hit 95… Slowey might turn out ok, but he is a bit of a jack of all pitches, master of none.
That said, if the player in return is not Beltre (or better) I would not include any of those three.
TwinsNoteGuy…….. Well said.
Joe Benson was EXTREAMELY overrated by BA. If he is our second best prospect, we are in trouble.
That said, with Revere doing well and a young ML outfield, he would be first on my list of prospects to part with.
JimCrikket,
actually, the DH (finding someone who would be a PT DH against LHP) is a probably a higher need since both DHs are awful against LHP. Targeting someone like Mike Loretta 347/.458/.571 against LHP this season and free agent after with the remainder of $2.5 mil left, who can be a DH and a PT 3B and would take a marginal prospect to get, might make a lot of sense. (heck call up Macri for the 3B position against LHP and Ruiz for the DH position against LHP and might be better than what the team has right now)
I think they should trade Bonser for Liriano, getting themselves an immediate upgrade in the bullpen while giving up virtually nothing.
Khalil Greene? I don’t know about that, were looking for a hitter and he’s hitting a ‘07 Punto esque .214.
I’m thinking Kevin Kouzmanoff is the best option out there that we could try and land since Beltre apparently isn’t gonna happen.
He’s got more pop than our 3B now, between Lamb, Harris, Punto, Buscher, and Macri, our 3B are hitting .271, with 9 HR with 5 being the most for one player.
Kouzmanoff is hitting .276 with 12 HR, and 41 RBI, and hes in arbitration years for awhile, so he’s relatively on the cheap in salary and would be around for awhile.
and as far as fielding, those 5 have 8 errors at 3B in the season, and Kouzmanoff has committed 7, not losing anything in that regard.
La Velle
I am just curious. In regards to a set-up reliever, what is wrong with Ricky Barrett at Rochester? Is it just because he is another left-hander? His stats look pretty good.
I think Jon Rauch would be a great get if the price isnt too high.
I can’t believe the Phillies are that desperate for pitching. If the Twins do look to trade Livan, the Phillies should be the first team they call.
No Beltre?……. GOOD!!
Jeff Keppinger of the Reds is a good RH bat. He can play SS and 3B. Plus, he is cheap. He might be available.
Kubel and Buscher vs. RHP (2008):
OBP SLG AVG
.347 .518 .290 - Kubel
.395 .486 .371 - Buscher
I’ve been beating up both Kubel and Buscher for a couple of years now, but they are doing the job. Against RHP, anyway.
keppinger doesn’t fit the bill. They need a power bat to protect Morneau, not just a bat.
jeff keppinger doesn’t fit the bill. They need a power bat to protect Morneau, not just a bat.
from mlbtraderumors.com:
Phillies No Longer Interested In Fuentes?
By Coley Ward [July 19 at 3:39pm CST]
MLB.com’s Trade Talk blog speculates that the Phillies may no longer be pursuing Colorado closer Brian Fuentes, after Philadelphia traded three prospects for Joe Blanton. The blog wonders, “How many chips do (the Phillies) have to play?” Then, the blog hedges its bets:
If an earlier report is correct, the Rockies have asked the Phillies for right-hander Carlos Carrasco or catcher Lou Marson in return for Fuentes, so something could still be possible.
Trade Talk goes on to say that the Rockies would “hit the jackpot if a team came up with a young, talented starter — like, say, the Yankees’ Phil Hughes or Ian Kennedy, or a couple of top Double-A prospects such as the Rays’ Wade Davis or Jeremy Hellickson.”
It’s highly unlikely the Phillies will deal Carrasco, the organization’s top prospect, for a set-up man. It’s an absolute impossibility that the Yankees will trade Hughes for Fuentes. The Rays are still considered the front-runners for Fuentes, the blog says.
Coley Ward writes for Umpbump.com and can be reached here.
If a Hughes/Kennedy could get that deal done, I think the Twins could put in a good offer for Fuentes…
Jeff Keppinger vs LHP (2008)
OBP SLG AVG
.456 .543 .386
It’s only 70 AB vs LHP, but he is a very good hitter. I think he could be a good platoon player. Interesting to note that he has not struck out once in 70 AB vs LHP.
I think a Kubel/Keppinger platoon, would be more than adequate behind Morneau. A Buscher/Keppinger platoon would also be fine.
If the Twins are interested in Huston Street, they’ll have to work hard and fast because mlbtraderumors.com reports that the Brewers are scouting him this weekend. We own the Brewers, but they are using their prospects in a wise way to get some potential help.
GO TWINS!!!
Craig Monroe vs LHP (2008):
OBP SLG AVG
.217 .216 .122
74 AB
Also from mlbtraderumors:
The Third Baseman Market Revisited
By Tim Dierkes [July 18 at 1:42pm CST]
Today let’s take another look at the third base options on the trade market.
Garrett Atkins, Rockies. Atkins has displayed dramatic home/road splits since the beginning of ‘07. Plus, his defense is not well-regarded. He’s under team control through 2010, and the Rockies’ unwillingness to do a long-term deal should tell you something. They’d probably still ask for a lot though.
Casey Blake, Indians. Blake seems likely to be traded. His versatility is a plus, and he provides an .800 OPS. He’s been linked to the Dodgers and Twins recently.
Adrian Beltre, Mariners. It’s been suggested that the Mariners might keep Beltre just to avoid using an even more embarrassing offense for the rest of the season. The Twins have inquired on Beltre, who is solid on both sides of the ball. Beltre will earn a reasonable $12MM next year and has a limited no-trade clause.
Kevin Kouzmanoff, Padres. The Padres’ public comments do not indicate a willingness to trade Kouz. However, there was a rumor that the Padres could deal him to open up third base for Chase Headley. Kouzmanoff hasn’t even reached arbitration yet.
Ty Wigginton, Astros. Wigginton is hitting .282/.368/.470 in 231 plate appearances, and can play multiple positions. He’s a bit like Blake, though I believe he’s under team control through ‘09. The Astros haven’t given any signals that they’re shopping him.
Ron Belliard, Nationals. Belliard is signed for ‘09 at $1.9MM. He can help in a utility role.
Hank Blalock, Rangers. Blalock briefly moved to first base, but never appeared there in the Majors. He returns to the lineup today after a slew of injuries and setbacks. He’s an interesting hitter, but hasn’t played much in recent years. Blalock has a $6.2MM club option for ‘09.
Jose Castillo, Giants. Castillo posted an .854 OPS in May, but hasn’t hit otherwise. He’s not high on anyone’s list.
Bill Hall, Brewers. Hall is platooning with Russell Branyan at third base. Originally, he wasn’t happy about it and preferred a trade. There’s probably not much of a market for him, nor is Doug Melvin motivated to make a deal.
Andy LaRoche, Dodgers. For some reason, LaRoche’s name always comes up as a possible trade chip. The 24 year-old hit .277/.444/.420 in 38 Triple A games this year, and hasn’t had Major League success. He started the season on the DL with a torn thumb ligament.
Melvin Mora, Orioles. The O’s are stuck with him - he has a no-trade clause and a $9MM commitment next year. He might be the worst starting third baseman in the game.
Mike Lamb, Twins. Lamb is a DFA candidate; he lost his starting job with an awful first half. Unfortunately he is under contract for ‘09 at $3MM.
Mauer power?
The idiot radio announcer needs to change his pants. Poor John Gordon got a little excited on the Mauer homerun. Kind of reminded me of a teenager getting excited over the SI Swimsuit addition though there was a Playboy right under it (Morneau). FIVE OF HIS 6 HOMERS ARE AGAINST LEFTIES…HE’S AMAZING… John Gordon is an embaressment
damn rain! no dish for now. Doh!
BCB,
All hometeam announcers sound like that, watch or listen to another teams games and you’ll see that the Twins announcers, TV & Radio, are no worse than other teams. Better than most actually.
Street blew his 5th save this afternoon.
CLASSIC TWINS!! Talk about the big Trade to improve the club, then say the price was too, high!! I’ve heard it many, many times before. NO SURPRISE!!
All you Liva haters must just be sick about now!!
If it was me, I’d be looking for BP help first. Fuentes would be a great addition, but not for a SP. Street would be good too, but do you really want to make a deal with Billy Beane? AS for Beltre, they need to absolutely sure his wrist is good to go, otherwise forget it. 3 prospects is not outrageous for him. But honestly, I would be stunned if the Twins traded for the guy. He makes too much money for the Twins. Just isn’t going to happen. If they really want a new 3B, then trade for Kazmanouf….2 prospects plus a low level A-type guy wouldnt be a bad price to pay. He fits the Twins payroll restrictions…articifial as they may be. But he’s not going to be the power guy everyone seems to want behind Morneau. Oh well, can’t have everything. Go get Uuf!
Boof time!
Man does Delmon Young suck!
If the Twins could get Garrett Atkins, that would be great, because he seems to be playing consistently well the last few years, and he still has at least a few good years left. However if they can’t get him or someone as good as him, I would rather the Twins go with what they got. Adrian Beltre and the others being mentioned are either underachieving and overpaid or too old.
Justin Monreau to Josh Hamilton, ESPN announcers and national press: “What do you think of me now?”
Hey Lavalle or anyone else out there, what is the MLB record for most .300 hitters in a starting 9? With Delmon’s hit they Twins have 5 officially and 6 if you count Span….6/9 of the starting 9 hitting over .300? Come on, that cant EVER happen!
http://ussmariner.com/2007/09/10/the-value-of-adrian-beltre/
Beltre would be huge for the twins esp getting him out of Safco which kills right handed hitters. The Dome is pretty deep in LF too but it’s better than Safco.
It could be seven hitters over .300 when Punto returns.
Beltre’s paltry .260 AVG wouldn’t fit in.
As far a RBI’s Beltre would be hitting is a much better spot and get many more chances with the twins Seattle has one of the worst offences in the league right now so he isn’t getting many chances.
You Twins fans don’t get it. You have a 3rd baseman in Buscher. All I am saying is give him a chance. He has had few at bats and defensive plays since being up.
2-4 last night with 2 RBI’s; 2-4 thus far tonight with 2RBI’s and a homer.
Perfect in the field both nights. (With good throws by the way). You got a major league 3rd baseman for minimum wage and don’t know what you have because of limited at-bats/playing.
Secondly, Buscher is a GREAT team player; first to the ball park and a great guy to have on the team…..Doesn’t that account for anything these days?
average alone is a pretty short sighted way of judging a player look at Gomez a decent avg but a horrible OBP which limits his chances to use his speed on the base paths.
Right on Rocky, like I said above ahd Craig adds to, we have 6-7 .300 hitters right now, no need to go after more bats. Look at todays game, they intentionally walked Mauer to get to Monreau for goodness sake? They dont want to pitch to anyone in this order
I wouldn’t be against giving Buscher a chance but I’m not sure he can sustain much success and from what I see he is fringy on range and arm at 3b.
Not to rain on your parade jason but Texas’ pitching staff is down right awful.
300 is 300 and those guys are major leaguers and if you listen to ESPN and the national media, they are the next best thing since sliced toast. The hitters only got maybe up to 5 hits apiece vs. texas and that may raise the avg a point. And they have faced pleanty of other good pitchers. To have 5-7 300 hitters on a team at this point is the season is pretty significant.
Rocky Simon says it all. Buscher is hitting the cover off the ball and is starting to settle in at 3B. I’ve really come to appreciate his skills. He’s a better player than I thought.
That’s a good hitting lineup. .300 hitters with high OBP produce loads of runs. The more hitters like that you can pack into a lineup, the better.
Hernandez came through tonight..good for him and the Twins! Competition is not a bad thing. I think the entire SP staff feels the need to perform well every time they get a chance. Noone should feel safe with Liriano doing as well as he is. Why break up the competitive chemistry now? Dont trade one of the SP’s and move Liriano into the rotation, unless they get Hanley Ramirez in return…hey maybe, Perkins/Duensing/Ramos for Ramirez!! (that’s a joke folks). Go Twins!
“To have 5-7 300 hitters on a team at this point is the season is pretty significant.”
Very significant. Also, Kubel is around .290 vs RHP as well. It wouldn’t be a surprise to see him hit over .300 vs RHP. That’s a nasty, slashing group of hitters. There is some speed and power in this lineup, as well. This team keeps getting better.
Maybe the asking price for Beltre would be more reasonable as the trading deadline gets closer.You would think Seattle would be more interested in dumping his salary vs the package they got back.
Craiger and his Kubel man love
Seattle is willing to spend money, maybe they think they have a run in them next year.
I feel bad for Liriano, and all the Livan bashers tonight. I would like him up here as much as anyone, but not at the expense of one of these starters, and not in the pen. He pitched his way out of the rotation, and his attitude hasn’t been world class in the past. Gardy holds grudges (IE Cuddyer when he was a 3rd baseman) as much as he has favorites (Little Nicky Punterrible).
You can’t bring him up to pitch relief after he comes back from Tommy John… it could very well adversely effect him for the long hall, and at his age, and with his talent you can’t take that chance because Liriano could be a CY YOUNG type pitcher… you don’t want to screw that up. So let his feelings be hurt… he can build some character in that.
But we are a half a game out, and Livan just hit double digits in wins, and I don’t think anyone except him expected him to hit 10 wins if he got 35 starts this season. It’s scary, but this team is on pace to have 3 guys challenge for 20 wins in Liriano (pulling a Gullickson) Perkins, and Blackburn… Slowey uses too many pitches in 5-6 innings, but he has shown himself to be a much better pitcher than he looked at any point last year. His confidence is amazing.
Shawn, Seattle is willing to spend money because they are owned by Nintendo, and the Wii and Ichiro are both big sellers/draws, lol. King Felix is a stud, and Silva is an every other year pitcher so next year exect him to win 13 games with a 4.25 ERA… Beltre will be in a contract year so possibly HGHing his way to 40 homers again? The catcher kid (can’t think of his name) is going to be a very good hitter (lousy catcher)… and I think that Wladimir Bentencourt is going to be their Michael Cuddyer type guy… solid arm, 15-20 homers 80-100 RBI… put him with Ibanez… I think they will make a run at another starter, and a middle infielder, or possibly Giambi in the offseason, and be a pain in the ass to the Angels next season, but no real competition in the West for the Angels again in 2009. You have to be jealous of the Angels.
Well, my man Livan is another game better than the Great Santana.
Yep, it seems that the Twins got the better end of that deal so far this year. Got our future centerfielder, and some pitching prospects for a pitcher that has a worse personal and team record than the scrub that the Twins signed to eat innings.
Livan pitched an excellent game against the NUMBER ONE offense in Baseball.
Good for him, not so good for Frankie. Great for the Twins, and that is actually all that matters anyway.
Great game guys. Way to get closer to the lead, half the season left, and the Twins are right there.
Craig…
It looks like you and I are going to end up meeting in the middle on this one. You love the small ball, and they are small balling like no team I’ve seen since the 87 cardinals, and maybe better than any team I’ve seen since the 82 Cardinals which was the greatest small ball team I’ve ever seen.
The power seems to be finally generating which is what the team needs when it comes to an important series against top line starters… keying on mistakes.
And I don’t think either of us expected half this from the starting pitchers this year though if you say you did I will not disagree with you. I expected 68 to 74 wins.
They are doing amazing.
Potential .300 hitting slashers, some with power, some with speed up & down the line-up. This has got to be a scary line-up for opposing pitchers right now. Cruising along, all of a sudden a couple of bunts can blow the game wide open. Still, another power arm for bullpen & a power RH bat (3rd baseman?) would make this team even scarier. I have faith in scouting & management to do the right things. This is fun in a “rebuilding” year.
Oh yeah, “Tiggers” score 6 runs in 1st inning & still lose game. Nice pitching.
Twins need power. Beltre or Atkins are the only guys worth trading for that fit the bill and Beltre is also a gold glove fielder. Otherwise, there is always Luke Hughes who probably would do a decent job.
I would love to see JJ Hardy traded for. A Harris/Buscher platoon wouldn’t be so bad if they had a slugging shortstop.
Buscher killed the Beltre deal the last two games.
There, I said it.
Morneau, Mauer and the Seven Dwarfs are now TIED FOR THE HIGHEST TEAM BATTING AVERAGE IN MAJOR LEAGUE BASEBALL AT .281.
Its now time to re-up Vavra’s contract for 10 years.
Its now time for all other MLB teams to send representatives to Joe Vavra’s hitting clinics and to take good notes.
Its now time for Vavra to publish his book:
“The Science of Hitting in the Major Leagues - My Critics Can All Suck it!” by Joe Vavra.
A Pulitzer Prize winner for sure.
Yeah, sane, pullet surprise for sure. Maybe a sequel on “Home Run Derby Pitching For Dummies”?
Twins don’t need Beltre. What they need is simple:
1.) Give Buscher the 3B job and let him run with it. The guy’s earned the chance. Give him ABs against lefties too.
2.) Trade Livan and get Liriano up here. Christ, even Joe Mays can win when you score 14 runs. This guy is going nowhere in the post-season, and he’ll be really iffy down the stretch. Lirian is a stud and will probably instantly assume the ace role.
3.) Unload Boof. He’s taking up space Bobby Korecky deserves.
4.) Most importantly, get a strong set-up guy. This bullpen is not nearly as strong as some people think this year. That’s why they get schooled on the road at times. They need a gun that can set up Joe, since Neshek is probably shelved for the next year and a half.
There’s something special happening here this year. With a few tweaks, this team might become the 2003 Marlins. I mean, does anyone really believe the Yankees, Red Sox, or Angels would hit around Liriano or Baker while either is at the top of his game? No way. Good pitching shuts those teams down.
Billy Smith–whether he created it or not–is sitting on potential magic right now. A couple of wise moves can enhance the chance at that magic, but they don’t include guys like Beltre.
LALA:
I say go with Plan “B”. Bushcher,Basher,and Boof.
1)Buscher the everyday third baseman.
2)Basher behind Morneau should be Delmon.
3)Boof, the power pitcher out of the pen.
(killer bees?)
Sane…It’s now 11:30 pm as I read your 11:05 pm post (”…My Critics…”) and I’m sure that many others have said…LMAO. Thank you for the hearty chuckle!!!!
Do you realize that if Buscher hits LHP’s and Harris hit RHP’s, Gardy won’t have a spot for Lil’ Nicky?
Never mind!
Forgot who I was talking about!
1. Buscher CAN’T hit lefties no matter how much you wish he could.
2. Bonser is fine and can stay. The horrible, no good, useless Brian Bass has needed to be cut off this roster for the last 2 months.
3. The offense needs the help, not the pitching. Trading for another pen arm would be a giant waste of resources. A slugging third baseman and/or a slugging shortstop is the major need on this roster and if neither are added before the deadline, expect this team to be out of the race by September 1.
The Twins are currently on half game out of first with a team that most experts (including most of the local media) thought would finish near or at the bottom. I say don’t make any trades. There’s no guarantee that any trades(s) will take them any farther then the current lineup. It might even mess up the good chemistry they’ve got going. Leave well enough alone and ride these horses to the finish line.
Nico (by the way, just finished playing a little GTA4 haha):
http://mlb.mlb.com/stats/sortable_team_stats.jsp?statType=1&timeFrame=1&Submit=Submit&groupByTeam=true&baseballScope=mlb&timeSubFrame=2008&sortByStat=R
Offense isn’t as big a need as the bullpen…5 in the MAJORS in runs and tied for first in average. Of course another power right handed bat would be great, but Delmon is turning it on (hopefully continuing, he destroyed a hr tonight). 8th inning guy 1, rhb 2.
My argument is: The Twins DON’T need to make a trade to win the division. The Twins DO(!!!) need to make a trade to be serious contenders in the playoffs.
They do need another power bat. They could really use another bullpen guy.
Livan vs. Liriano is very touchy. I really want Livan to stay. Yes, he’s bad. Yes, he’s good. His veteren presence has helped more than I think most of you realize. He…just needs to stay. I was always fine with Liriano just being a AAA man this year. Now I don’t know. The ONLY good way for me, is to have a 6 man rotation. If this was any other year before this one, Livan would be gone by now. But, finally, after all these years of hearing about All our young pitching that will be Very good in a few years, it’s here- all of it. We have no more Silvas, Mays, Ponsons, Ortizs, (the list goes on). That’s ALL we have now, is young guys- except for 1, and only 1, vet. on the staff. I don’t think it’s good to have all young guys. The coaching staff says it’s a good problem to have, but I’m just glad I’m not in charge on this one.
Almost forgot… going to NY,NY to see the Twins kick Ponson’s ass in person. I can’t wait for this- never been there.
Since Livan has value to some teams, I would sell high — especially after last night. See before he has another bad outing and get Liriano up to the big club. Package Livan and a prospect for an 8th inning guy. If we keep overworking our bullpen, they will end up with elbow and/or shoulder problems. 3B and SS are not ideal, but a great bullpen and Liriano in the majors will be better than some veteran 3B who may be mediorce and also giving up too much young talent in the process.
The other option would be to move Perkins or someone else to the bullpen to bring up Liriano, but trading Livan would be better IMO. I’m not bashing Livan, he’s been great for this team, but moving him now would be smart.
Poor John Gordon got a little excited on the Mauer homerun.
Yeah, it’s not like it put the Twins in front at the time or anything…
As far as having to give up one of the four young guys in the rot’, that may sound reasonable to another team…but for the Twins I don’t think it’d be a good idea.
They took enough chances with the rotation by dealing Santana and Garza. They couldn’t afford to set it back by losing a guy like Blackburn or Baker (you gotta think it was one of these two they wanted)
Of course, with what they paid Silva, maybe the Twins can give them something comparable and they’ll totally buy it as a “top level prospect”.
who needs beltre anyways?
We don’t need to trade for a set up guy. The “franchise” is the answer. We had Santana, J.C. Romero & everyday Eddie together in ‘pen back on 1st division champ this decade. Time to do it again. Send Bass down & call up the franchise. Bullpen instantly becomes one of best in majors. Lamb moves on, one way or the other. Make a trade for RH power 3rd baseman or SS. Or at least call up Macri. Then just stand back & enjoy.
I’d like to put in a word for Slowey, since alot of pople seem to think that he would be the player to trade off for more hitting. Slowey, had one of the lowest season ERA’s in the history of the International League for a starting pitcher last year. To believe that the low ERA would eventually not work its way into his Major League stats is absurd. He will be much better than Radke was and may consistently lead the Majors in ERA. That is the kind of pitcher the Twins need to keep and continue developing.
Twins fans should not expect any trades by the Twins before the trade deadline or after for 2008. Buscher is doing a good job at third and he is a respected hitter around the league already. He will continue to improve and the left handed bat at third base is a plus. The left handed bats of Buscher and Span have added a quality dimension to the lineup that was not there last year or earlier in the season, which accounts for the teams good standings in the division.
Slowey, It seems to me that he was also the pitcher who stole the kids tennis shoes in spring training. Nice guy, he should be put in the bullpen until someone falters.
The additon of Span and Buscher has really made a difference to the team’s fortunes. I agree that their left handed bats in the lineup have added a quality dimension that was not present last year or earlier in the season this year. Span is a Lou Brock type of player who is already good. For those of you too young to know who Lou Brock was, check it out with an Internet query. Span will continue to improve. It would be a big shame if the Twins put Cuddyer back out in right field and platooned Span around the outfield like a questionable utility player. Span should be the everyday right fielder. I don’t buy the idea that you have to have a right handed hitter against left handed pitching and visa versa. Good hitters like Span learn to hit both righties and lefties. Buscher is a good guy in the clutch and can hit for a high average, a rare thing for a third baseman. The typical third basemen are power hitters, but they often don’t contribute alot to helping their team win everyday, like a Brian Buscher style player. Keep those left handed bats in the lineup !
coco, Liriano at this point in his career needs to be a starter. He did his time in the pen before he got hurt, and now he’s starting to show he’s ready to come back.
They want to make one move with Liriano and be done with it. Which is why they’re likely trying to get somethign done on the trade market to open that spot up for him.
Winning with Span and Buscher in the everday lineup should tell Gardenhire something. It may be a winning formula when combined with the rest of the lineup. Lets hope Gardy doesn’t put Cuddyer back out their in right field and platoon Span like a common utility player. But with Gardenhire’s weak mind, who knows.
Yeah, Mr. Baseball, the only part of the formula that matters is Span and Buscher. Couldn’t possibly be any other parts to that formula that actually matter
Right now, the Twins are riding high. Let’s just enjoy the ride. I know I am.
Who honestly would have thought that our scrap-heap vetran starter is doing as well as he is right now? Look at his BAA and ERA, and compare it to his record, they are disconnected as much as I can ever remember seeing, but hey, a Win is always better than a L, and that is something that these guys are putting out there for us. Heck, even BC and Fire are having abit of fun right now with the way the team is playing. Gotta be something to playing your young guys, I think.
Mr. Baseball,
Get your butt home and finish cleaning out the garage!
T, The Yanks did it with Joba last year & turned him into a starter this year. A lights out 7th & 8th inning set up guy to get to Nathan will let the Twins often play a 6 inning game. Hopefully Neshek will be back next Spring. Franchise can take over Livan’s spot next year. WHO ELSE COULD WE GET IN A TRADE WHO COULD DOMINATE LATE IN THE GAME?
New Stadium: Wouldn’t this make sense?
1) Build the new Stadium in Bloomington close to the Mall of America.
2) Build some huge hotels, shopping malls, restaurants, Parking Garages in between New Stadium & Mall of America
3) Construct some easy mass transit (i.e. light rail) that would make it EASY to go back-and-forth between the New Stadium & Mall of America & new constructions in between the two.
4) Talk about a boost to the economy!
New Stadium: Wouldn’t this make sense?
1) Build a new Stadium in Bloomington close to the Mall of America.
2) Build some huge hotels, shopping malls, restaurants, & Parking Garages in between New Stadium & Mall of America
3) Construct some easy mass transit (i.e. light rail) that would make it EASY to go back-and-forth between the New Stadium & Mall of America & new constructions in between the two.
4) Talk about a boost to the economy!
What do the Twins get if they keep Livan all year and he signs elsewhere as a free agent? Do they get a compensation pick like they did for Hunter and Santanna? I know that is what Milwaukee will get if Sabathia does not sign with them.
IF Livan gets 15 wins, he would be a Type A free agent, and we should get a supplemental pick. This might be more valuable than what they can get in a trade.
Coco,
Jon Rauch, Brian Fuentes, and Huston Street to name a few, but those are all bigger names than I’m expecting to see. Still, you said “dominate,” and I think that’d be a good bet for those three.
As for the Beltre bit, I’m disappointed that we’re backing off, but with the price they asked, I think it’s the right move also.
Why are people saying that Slowey is the one we should trade, by the way? Slowey’s minor league numbers are some of the best numbers I’ve ever seen for a pitcher for a full season, and he’s been nothing short of fantastic this year.
His control is phenomenal and will lead him to be among the league leaders in WHIP (and subsequently ERA most likely) year after year. If I’m the Twins, Kevin Slowey is absolutely untouchable.
Perkins and Blackburn have looked much more hittable this season. Slowey’s last two starts were terrible, yes, but he’s still going to be fantastic for the Twins in the long run I think. It seems like people are just thinking about the last two weeks when they think of Slowey though. I don’t know about you all, but I was at the game when Slowey shut down the Brewers, and that was one of the more dominant pitching performances I’ve ever watched live. A three-hit shutout against the Crew? You’ve gotta be kidding me…
I don’t think we need, per se, to trade, but I would like to see a move for a good RH bat to help protect Morneau, and - maybe more importantly - another bullpen arm (preferably RH) to get us to Nathan.
Nothing earth-shattering, but I’m looking at this as a gravy season of sorts. I’ll admit I undersold the squad before the season, and am quite happy to see them where they are. Now, though, my expectations have adjusted upwards and I’ll probably be disappointed if the Twins don’t make the playoffs. I’d just have to keep reminding myself I didn’t expect them to even be in contention.
Regardless, I don’t think you break up this nucleus. I think we’re set up very well for 2010 (not that I’m giving up on ‘08 or ‘09!). If the Twins FO is smart we could have the perfect storm of new stadium and a very good team.
THe Twins need A bat to protect Justin Beltre would have been Ideal especially because he can hit homers something the twins are lacking behind Morneau. Busher is a nice player but he doesnt hit homers and hes Lefthanded we need another power guy.
[…] the Twins won’t go there. It’s a matter of Mariners coming down in their demands but, as I wrote recently , it could be tough for these teams to find common […]
